tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post7171439961784288025..comments2023-10-11T09:22:33.136-04:00Comments on Paperback Writer: PBW's Book of the MonthUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-29258462509214100002015-08-11T00:06:15.597-04:002015-08-11T00:06:15.597-04:00Thank you, I'm honored by your reply! :)
I wor...Thank you, I'm honored by your reply! :)<br />I work in a public library, and was asked by an East Indian couple for a book recommendation. They didn't specify which genre, or even what they were interested in. So I ushered them to the science fiction sanctuary, plucked StarDoc from the shelf, and handed it to them with a smile.Johnathan Crawfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02081205732895036065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-33755845116462263812015-02-01T13:22:01.752-05:002015-02-01T13:22:01.752-05:00The Bookman's Tale by Charlie Lovett. Weaves ...The Bookman's Tale by Charlie Lovett. Weaves the past of an antiquarian bookseller with the present and throws in happenings 400 years earlier which could lead to a huge breakthrough about the question "Did Shakespeare really write the plays?" And it all starts with a small watercolor painting of Peter Byerly's deceased wife in the pages of a book on Shakespearean forgeries which would place her in Victorian England. Sounds crazy, but it works. Judy H https://www.blogger.com/profile/13685822567236742303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-51500315434308103402015-02-01T12:25:38.084-05:002015-02-01T12:25:38.084-05:00I've been reading Once Bitten, Twice Shy by Je...I've been reading <i>Once Bitten, Twice Shy</i> by Jennifer Rardin. This was a happy accident; a friend and I were talking about how I did not have a copy of the first book in a series I was reading, and she loaned this to me, at which point we figured out we were talking about two different series. I have really enjoyed it though. It has rich story-telling and characters that are interesting and fun. I am almost done (I leave the book at work and didn't have time to finish it last week), and I'm looking forward to the rest of the series. <br />JulieBAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-65603312717060284242015-02-01T05:05:30.971-05:002015-02-01T05:05:30.971-05:00I've been re-reading Jana Deleon's Ghost i...I've been re-reading Jana Deleon's Ghost in law series as I got books 5 & 6 and felt I needed to go back to the start. I've also knocked out books 17-21 in Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, but I think my fav book this January was No Ghouls Allowed by Victoria Laurie. I like this series and the Psychic Eye series, and really enjoyed this book. Scary enough that I had to take a break but totally readable. I'm really looking forward to reading First Frost.Fran Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11079042659459259795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-32921245891139651032015-01-31T21:59:04.181-05:002015-01-31T21:59:04.181-05:00I know that thrill -- a few weeks ago I came acros...I know that thrill -- a few weeks ago I came across an old Elizabeth Lowell novel that I had never heard of or read; I think I actually shrieked out loud.the authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03220786472896283714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-3041578711216096622015-01-31T21:57:31.800-05:002015-01-31T21:57:31.800-05:00I appreciate the kind words and very generous prai...I appreciate the kind words and very generous praise, Johnathan. StarDoc has always been special to me, not only because it was my first published novel but for all the wonderful readers who have reached out to me after reading it. the authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03220786472896283714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-51863943563115637732015-01-31T21:54:29.655-05:002015-01-31T21:54:29.655-05:00I grew very fond of that tree, too (and you'll...I grew very fond of that tree, too (and you'll be happy to know it does return in this sequel to cause more mischief.)the authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03220786472896283714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-9028738801791236752015-01-31T19:00:33.994-05:002015-01-31T19:00:33.994-05:00Oooooh... I've been meaning to see if she had ...Oooooh... I've been meaning to see if she had anything new out! <br />[adds to reading list]<br /><br />As for what I've been reading? Discovered that Robin Hobb has a new book with trilogy to follow that are more closely connected to the Farseer & Tawny Man trilogies than her other recent works. It's been so long since I read - and loved - those six books that I decided I needed a re-read before the new book, and so far, oh my, have they been all that I remembered! Finished Assassin's Apprentice and Royal Apprentice, might finish Assassin's Quest today or tomorrow, and there's no determining a favorite between them - it's been one dreamy indulgence. <br /><br />There's nothing better than discovering that a much-loved world and characters - that you wish had never ended - has new books more than a decade after the fact. Same day, I discovered that Elizabeth Haydon is finally publishing more Symphony books, too. Such delight and joy - totally what I needed to brighten this winter's gloom!Shawnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15511854435352811924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-67532885797429959872015-01-31T18:13:42.488-05:002015-01-31T18:13:42.488-05:00My book of the month for January is undoubtedly St...My book of the month for January is undoubtedly Stardoc. It's become one of my favorite science fiction novels, and I've spent over a decade dabbling in works written by Gibson, Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Richard K. Morgan, James Somers, Jeff Campbell, ad infinitum.<br />Stardoc's narrative is a living organic thing which confers a noticeably pleasant affect with nearly every line. I have yet to find a dry sentence.<br />There's been something missing for me in my experience with science fiction, and in my experience of reading the aforementioned authors. My general sense is that many science fiction authors seem preoccupied with a pissing contest of sorts, and they invest time in producing narratives to demonstrate their narcissism and/or self-aggrandizing ideas, rather than producing narratives that usher their readership into a pleasant experience. Of course everyone likes what they like.. but their narratives are implicitly cold and harsh, cerebral, and obsessed with their castles in the sky. However, with Stardoc I feel welcomed and colorfully ushered towards a fun visceral experience that isn't bound by these ordinary problems of so many other authors.<br />To risk making a crude assessment, I'd have to say that Asimov didn't understand what it's like to be human. Perhaps he understood what it's like to be human thousands of years from the present, but present humanities daily concerns are impossibly irrelevant to his narratives.<br />Stardoc is so openly human without risk to the higher concepts. I didn't know work like this existed until I found Stardoc and I'm so glad there are so many of them!<br />Goodreads told me that this was your blog, and I'm so glad I have the opportunity to thank you for your work! Thank you! It's very valuable to me and I'll be reading through the Stardoc series and I'll probably start reading them over again once I'm done.Johnathan Crawfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02081205732895036065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-84893375824205617582015-01-31T13:10:03.321-05:002015-01-31T13:10:03.321-05:00Actually, I managed the time to read "Garden ...Actually, I managed the time to read "Garden Spells". It came highly recommended.<br />Loved the feeling of the book, the setting, the pace. It carried me along, without sagging middle or boredom, right to the end, & I hated when it was over.<br />A nice, easy-to-read style, & I came to care about the people.<br />But my favorite character? The apple tree. :)rainehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04258822737734173873noreply@blogger.com