Book Beginnings on Friday June 8, 2012

Book Beginnings on Friday is a meme hosted by Gilion at Rose City Reader. Anyone can participate; just share the opening sentence of your current read, making sure that you include  include the title and author so others know what you're reading.



I am reading Robert A. Heinlein's The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.  This is our Science Fiction Books Club selection for June.  I read this years ago.  As I read I things seem vaguely familiar.  I looked at the copyright and found that the publication date is 1966.   One of the main characters is a computer. No computer in 1966 had the abilities that Heinlein gave this character.  He really did write something that was not in the present but might be around in the future.  Here is the beginning.

"I see in Lunaya Pravda that Luna City Council has passed on first reading a bill to examine, license, inspect - and tax- public food vendors operating inside municipal pressure.  I see also is to be mass meeting tonight to organize "Sons of Revolution" talk-talk." 

So far the book is holding up very well.

Murder on Fifth Avenue by Victoria Thompson

Historical Mystery

Murder on Fifth Avenue is book number fourteen in the Gaslight Mystery series and it did not disappoint.  Sarah Brant and Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy are great characters and they continue to work together to solve a new mystery.  There is a big difference in this one.  Both Frank Malloy and Sarah’s father, Felix Decker, ask Sarah and her Mother to help in solving the crime.  Here is what Goodreads has to say about the book:

"Sarah Brandt’s family is one of the oldest in New York City, and her father, Felix Decker, takes his position in society very seriously. He still refuses to resign himself to his daughter being involved with an Irish Catholic police detective. But when a member of his private club — the very exclusive Knickerbocker — is murdered, Decker forms an uneasy alliance with Detective Sergeant Frank Malloy to solve the crime as discreetly as possible.

Malloy soon discovers that despite his social standing, the deceased — Algernon Abernathy — was no gentleman. In fact, he’s left behind his own unofficial club of sorts, populated by everyone who despised him. As he and Sarah sort through the suspects, it becomes clear to her that her father is evaluating more than the detective’s investigative abilities, and that, on a personal level, there is much more at stake for Malloy than discovering who revoked Abernathy’s membership — permanently."

Characters:  I keep wanting more development in the relationship between Sarah and Malloy.  I did not see much but it seems that there is a set up for something in the next book.  We continue to see Sarah’s Mother in a new light and this time we see more of Sarah’s Father.  He is more human in this book and that seems to be a set up for the next installment in the Gaslight Mysteries.

Plot:  The reason for the murder was well developed.  There were several red herrings before we find out who actually did the deed.  There was also another murder before anything was solved.

History:  This is set at the turn of the century and Victoria Thompson does a great job of capturing the flavor of the time.  There are several really interesting side characters that add to the history of the time.

Tension:  In several books Sarah and Mallory have been in danger.  This time neither were in actually physical danger.  The tension came for the pressure on Mallory and the difficulty in dealing with the upper class when any member of that class is involved in a crime.

I have to wait another year for the next book.  There was a bit of a cliffhanger at the end. I want to find out what is going to happen so I will be among the first to buy the next book.  (I was among the first for this one too.)

Berkley Prime Crime published Murder on Fifth Avenue by Victoria Thompson in 2012.

Waiting on Wednesday (WOW) June 6, 2012

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Lilly Cain has a new book in The Confederacy Treaty series due out June 25.  I love the series and am waiting on Undercover Alliance the next book in the series.  If you are a Science Fiction Romance fan you need to check this series out.

Here is what Goodreads says about Undercover Alliance.

Sarina is scarred. Her L'inar, the curving nerve lines that enable Inarrii to experience their full sexuality, were severed in battle and she can no longer reach completion. Until she accepts a job as bodyguard to the human ambassador John Bennings, and is astonished to discover that they share a mental bond—a mirrored pathway of thoughts that will allow Sarina to climax.

When John's the target of an attack and they are forced into hiding, he's not sorry to be in close quarters with the compelling Sarina. They explore their erotic connection, and John is happy to demonstrate that humans have more sexual skills than Sarina thought.

To prove that she is whole and rejoin her Inarrii clan, Sarina needs John to bring her to climax in public in accordance with tradition. With a roomful of Inarrii and humans watching, will John be willing to perform as Sarina needs—and will their public display make John vulnerable to another attack?

I have Undercover Alliance on pre-order from Amazon.

TeaserTuesday June 5, 2012

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! 

My teaser today is from Tangle of Need by Nalini Singh.  I started reading this yesterday and am about half way through.  So far, so good.

"Drive, she said, almost ready to crawl out of her skin with the need to rip off his T-shirt and use her teeth on all that hot firm muscle.  "Mack is waiting for us."  page 11

 

 

Musing Mondays June 4, 2012

This week’s musing asks…

Do you have a reading goal for the year, such as __ books? Why or why not? 


I don't set any goals for number of books to read in a year but lately I have set another goal.  When I accept I free book I try to read and review.  I have gotten so many free copies that my personal stack of books just keeps growing.  My goal now is to limit the free books and catch up on the books I enjoy.  Sometimes they are both free and ones I would have purchased on my own but not always.  So pick on my own will win.

Stacking the Shelves, June 2, 2012

Welcome to my Stacking The Shelves post!  Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews so follow the link and check out what other stacked on their shelves this week.  

Stacking The Shelves is all about the books we are adding to our shelves each week, sharing with you our excitement for our newest books.

This was a busy week.  

From the Library two audio books:
 Artemis by Philip Palamer
Ghost Story by Jim Butcher

From the Library two books:
 Pure by Julia Baggott
Children of the Night by Mercedes Lackey

Free from Angry Robot:
 City of Dreams & Nightmare by Ian Whates

From Amazon:
 Tangle of Need by Nalini Singh

From Baen Books:
 1634 - The Baltic Wars by Eric Flint and David Weber

Silver by Rhiannon Held

Paranormal

Just some background.  I received a advance uncorrected proof (ARC) of Silver from Amazon Vine.  This is the first published novel by Rhiannon Held.  After reading Silver I assume that it is the first in the world Rhiannon has built.

Here is Goodreads summary:

"Andrew Dare is a werewolf. He’s the enforcer for the Roanoke pack, and responsible for capturing or killing any Were intruders in Roanoke’s territory. But the lone Were he’s tracking doesn’t smell or act like anyone he’s ever encountered. And when he catches her, it doesn’t get any better. She’s beautiful, she’s crazy, and someone has tortured her by injecting silver into her veins. She says her name is Silver, and that she’s lost her wild self and can’t shift any more.

The packs in North America have a live-and-let-live attitude, and try not to overlap with each other. But Silver represents a terrible threat to every Were on the continent.

Andrew and Silver will join forces to track down this menace while discovering their own power and their passion for each other."

My take on the novel:

Worldbuilding:  This is a totally different take on werewolves and how a pack functions.  There was a lot to get in and it is handled beautifully.  Mixed into the story line there is a hint here and a hint there.  It never intrudes on the story but is an interregnal part of the story line.

Backstory:  There is a lot of backstory in the book.  Like the worldbuilding it is dropped in without intruding.  There will be hint in the middle of some dialog, a little mixed into the action and it all builds until you know the entire story.  In some instances that does not happen until the end of the book.  There were so many hints about past action that I did stop to see if I had started a book in the middle of the series.

Characters:  Both main characters were well developed.  Silver a little less than Andrew but most of that was because Andrew’s background was more complex.  There was not skimping on developing the side character either.  Even some who were only several phone conversations had depth and substance. 

Plot:  Very involved.  Everything was interwoven into the plot.  Backstory, worldbuilding, characters were all interrogated into the story line. Everything moved along seamlessly without the awkward sections you sometimes find in books.

Writing:  With everything else I have mention you have to know the book is very well written.  Rhiannon has her own unique voice and it comes across in Silver.

Tor will release Silver by Rhiannon Held in June of 2012.

Book Beginnings on Friday June 1, 2012

Book Beginnings on Friday is a meme hosted by Gilion at Rose City Reader. Anyone can participate; just share the opening sentence of your current read, making sure that you include  include the title and author so others know what you're reading.



My book this week is Children of the Night by Mercedes Lackey, a book that I checked out at the library this week.   This is book two in the Diana Tregarde series.  I have been curious about this series since I heard that Lackey got death threats from a fan after she quit writing the series because of poor sales.  There were only 3 books written.  She quit attending any events because of the threats.  I am no sure whether she attends now or not. 

Here is the beginning:

"Diana Tregarde sighed, propped her chin on her right hand and leaned on the countertop.  of all the jobs I could have taken, working in an occult supple store is not one I'd have chosen on my one."