Monday, June 22, 2009

Mmmm. Hello, lovely.

What do you think, ladies? Could he be one of Larissa Ione's men? Perhaps Eidolon pre- s'genisis?

Just thought I would leave you with this image to enjoy before heading off to bed or work.  :)

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Gorging myself

Oh... wow. I just gorged myself on Nalini Singh. Seriously. I devoured her entire backlist. Damn those cats are sexy! I can't even get my thought is order to type up a review of any one specific book. Instead, I give you random thoughts about the sries:

- Her heroes are tough, loyal men dedicated to their pack. They are flawed, but not fatally so.

- The heroines are equally strong. These are no shrinking violets, but neither are they ball busters.

- Engaging political atmosphere. Ms. Singh has developed a complex world with all it's troubles and strife.

- Family is at the heart of everything. I love this. These are men who are driven by their connection to and need for family.

- Alpha with a capital A. Somehow, though, they are not jackasses.

- The characters from previous books don't fade away at the conclusion of their book. They play integral roles in subsequent novels.

- The women stand equally among the men. They don't lose their strength once the hero claims them for their own. These women are defined by their own personality and talents, not by the men they are mated to.


I could go on, but I shall leave it at that. Ms. Singh, you are now officially on my list. Auto buy, baby, auto buy!

Saturday, June 6, 2009

My inner geek rejoices

I will admit it. I have seen the new Star Treck movie twice already. I want to see it again. I have turned into a complete and utter fangirl. Squeee!!!

I have seen a good number of episodes from the original series, a handful of eps from Voyager (ugh) and Enterprise (way better than most people gave it credit for!) My most favorite of all the incarnations, though, has always been Next Generation. I have disticnt memories from childhood. Me and Dad had our TV night: Next Generation and Quantum Leap. What a perfect pairing! Networks just don't plan that way any more.

My love of Next Generation probably explains my glee at receiving this result:

Your results:
You are Deanna Troi
































Deanna Troi
70%
Uhura
65%
Chekov
50%
Beverly Crusher
50%
James T. Kirk (Captain)
45%
Geordi LaForge
45%
Will Riker
45%
Mr. Scott
35%
Jean-Luc Picard
35%
An Expendable Character (Redshirt)
35%
Leonard McCoy (Bones)
25%
Spock
22%
Data
20%
Worf
15%
Mr. Sulu
10%
You are a caring and loving individual.
You understand people's emotions and
you are able to comfort and counsel them.


Click here to take the Star Trek Personality Quiz

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Pet peeves, what are yours?

My lovely ginger friend, Jen, recently posted about incorrectly used Spanish language phrases. Let's just say they really bother her. This got me thinking. What bugs me when I read? Well, most of my big pet peeves are not ones that you would find in a published novel (not unless the author was allowed to write unchecked by an editor.) Which words and phrases get under my skin and make me cringe?

"should of" - Just because we are lazy here in America and butcher the pronunciation does not mean the word "have" has suddenly morphed into "of."

"orientated" - It's oriented. Just... ugh.


What about you? Which words, phrases, or misspellings make you want to pull out your hair?

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Refractory period

No no, I'm not talking about the one a man needs after he has been... intimate.  I am talking about a literary one.

Sometimes when I finish reading a book I am energized, ready to jump into the next book.  This is especially the case if it is part of a series or a new-to-me author.  This past weekend I read Angel's Blood by Nalini Singh.  So fabulous!  I immediately pulled Slave to Sensation out of my TBR pile.  I've got about a third of the book left.  I'm loving her heroes and the worlds she has built.  I know I will be picking up the next book in the Psy-changeling series as soon as I finish.  No down time. No recovery period.  No refractory period.

Other times I finish a book and need a break.  It could be because I have glutted myself on a particular genre.  I could be completely stressed by RL stuff.  Perhaps I read an author's entire backlist and just need to reset the brain.  Occasionally, I read a book that is so good, so complex, that I need time to process it.  I need a few days to savor the story, characters, and imagery.  Unfortunately, there are the times when you read a book so bad that you just can't bring yourself to pick up another book. (Usually, though, a good book will cleanse away the foul taste of bad writing.)

Recovery time.  A literary refractory period.  Do you have one? When do you need a break?