false 16 326 102 true 5660189 read 1 true 609675 currently-reading 223 true 609674 to-read 143 false 3394929 fantasy 111 false 3395048 history 105 false 3395085 drama 93 false 3395049 historical-fiction 64 false 3395001 non-fiction 62 false 3394945 teen 55 false 3395481 medievalism 41 false 4108854 2009 35 false 3395087 classic-literature 29 false 3395070 urban-fantasy 28 false 3395889 biography 28 false 3395139 paganism 23 false 3395160 tudors 20 false 3394987 vampires 19 false 3394942 sci-fi 18 false 3395000 arthurian 17 false 3395136 irish 17 false 3395008 atheism 14 false 3395892 mystery 14 false 3394946 thriller 11 false 3395082 military-fiction 10 false 3395005 science 9 false 3395015 star-trek 7 false 3394972 courtroom-drama 7 false 3481573 tolkien 6 false 3480956 erotica 6 false 3396263 anthology 5 false 3939308 magical-realism 3 false 3396264 shakespeare 3 false 3396267 poetry 3 false 3395393 travel 2 false 4790277 newberry 2 false 3441985 austen 1 false 3706854 fail http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77907353 to: Stardust (Paperback) by Neil Gaiman
bookshelves: 2009, fantasy
I don't know why anyone would ever prefer a movie version to a book version of a story. This was SOOOO much better than the movie, and I loved the movie.

This was a proper faerie tale. A boy who wasn't who he thought he was, a wayward journey to find a fallen star for the heart of a girl who doesn't deserve it, True Love, and and ending that wasn't happy, but bittersweet.

Yvaine was fragile seeming but stronger than you would have expected. She would have willingly died to keep her word to Tristran, even before she realized she loved him. She was the person he needed to become a man.

Tristran himself was everything a proper faerie tale hero should be. He was brave, even if it was the bravery of youth, and honest. He was smart enough to accept help when he needed it, and to give help when he could.

I am sad at the ending, but not in a bad way. Like I said, it's bittersweet. And it highlights Yvaine's strength.

There were a lot of things that were different in the book than the movie in ways that surprised me. Seriously, the book is so much better. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/34119927 to: Wicked Lovely (Wicked Lovely, #1) by Melissa Marr
bookshelves: 2009, fantasy, teen, urban-fantasy, vampires
This was a great little urban fantasy. It was nice in that the ending wasn't perfect, but a compromise, like so many things actually are.

The plot was intriguing and held my interest from the start. I liked how Ash's ability to see faeries was not considered to be a gift or something fun. I think a lot of people would think it's cool to be able to see faeries but through Ash's eyes, we see another aspect to it that isn't cool at all.

I also liked how strong she was, even if she didn't think she was. It never gets old to see strong girls sticking up for themselves.

I did not care for Keenan. I'm not sure you're supposed to. But even so, I didn't like him much. I don't have much time for people who are basically blind to the wishes and needs of others, regardless of what rules he has to follow.

The ending, like I said, wasn't perfect, but it was definitely satisfying. I like how things turned out and will be interested to see it play out further in the following books. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/34126673 to: The Jury (Paperback) by Steve Martini
bookshelves: 2009, courtroom-drama, drama, mystery, thriller
This one moved a little slower than usual, so it got 3 stars. But it was still a good read. I was pleased because I *knew* who did it...and then I got to the end and was proven wrong. This is why I like Martini's books so much. I can't always tell who the killer is and I like it because so often I have mysteries figured out in the first couple chapters. That gets boring. So Martini generally keeps me guessing.

Anyway, I thought it was a little slower than usual because there was so very little actual court time. I like the court scenes in Martini's books the best. It's fun to see Madriani really get on a roll. Harry Hinds is, as always, a fun sidekick kind of character, snarky and fiesty.

One thing that did bug me about this book, though--why the frak is it called The Jury? There was hardly any court time, no time at all with the jury or any one specific juror. None of the jurors were even mentioned by name. I just thought it was a weird title for a book that had nothing to do with a jury. Oh well! An anachronism. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/34141463 to: Grimspace (Sirantha Jax, #1) by Ann Aguirre
bookshelves: 2009, sci-fi
This was a fun sci-fi, lots of action and adventure trying to take down a monolithic, corrupt corporation. There wasn't all that much character development, which is sad since the characters are fun and Aguirre could do a lot with them all. Maybe in future books. There were a few loose ends as well, which I am hoping she will resolve in future. Overall though, it was a fun read and a good first novel. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/74884654 to: Star Trek: Voyager: Unworthy (Mass Market Paperback) by Kirsten Beyer
bookshelves: 2009, sci-fi, star-trek
This was pretty fun. I typically enjoy Beyer's novels. I was glad to see Voyager return to the Delta quadrant for genuine exploration. It was weird and kind of sad to see so many characters there, but still not to have it be the same old crew. The changes were good, though.

I thought the Indign culture was interesting in a completely messed up way. Revering the Borg freaks me out. I think Beyer needed to go into a little more detail about the Eight and Meegan, but I am sure that will be covered in a subsequent book.

Overall, a very nicely done Trek novel. *Way* better than the ones involving geriatric Picard and Beverly having babies. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/34126600 to: The Attorney (Paperback) by Steve Martini
bookshelves: 2009, courtroom-drama, drama, mystery, thriller
Well, I had this one figured out about halfway through. It was the first Martini book that I did have figured out before the end, though. Maybe I've read enough that I'm getting used to his style now or something. I don't know. It was still a very good read, though.

I really like the character of Paul Madriani. Actually, I like Harry Hinds a lot, too. I think they make a good team, and I like the snark between the two. In some ways, it reminds me of the snark between Bones and Spock. =) I wish Harry had been in this one more than he was.

I wasn't so interested in this particular trial--a deadbeat mother nabbed her own kid, and the woman who helped her do it ended up murdered, the mom's rich father implicated. I don't know why, it just didn't light my fire. I have little patience, I suppose, for stories involving deadbeat parents. But even with that, it held my interest and if I had to get it figured out before the end of the book, then at least it pleased me that I had it figured out correctly. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/73440037 to: Undue Influence (Paperback) by Steve Martini
bookshelves: 2009, courtroom-drama, drama, mystery, thriller
Read this on the flight to England. It was the first courtroom drama I'd read in a long time, and it was really refreshing. I was able to figure out a couple things, but Martini still was able to surprise me in the end, which is why I enjoy his books so much. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/70738595 to: Devil's Brood (Eleanor of Aquitaine, Book 3) by Sharon Kay Penman
bookshelves: 2009, drama, historical-fiction, medievalism
As always, another five star novel by Sharon Kay Penman. I wanted to do a different kind of review for myself, because I was struck by something I heard that I think is so true. When reading a book, or watching a show or film, we don't necessarily remember the overall plot. We remember scenes. that's not to say that the plot is lacking in any way; it's not. But remembering scenes is something everyone does. And not a week after I thought that, SKP started a discussion on her blog about her favorite scenes. So I am going to try to comment more on specific scenes in at least some of the books I read. So, some of my fave scenes from Devil's Brood:

-Henry's penance at Becket's tomb and his treatment of Becket's sister. I had an image of a shy, scared old woman and I felt awful for her, and hated Henry for being cruel enough to exile her, even though he made up for it with his penance and gift of a mill to earn her money. She just seemed like a shy, scared woman to me because I can imagine life hadn't treated her very well and it makes me sad to see sad old people who should have got better out of life than they did.

-Rhiannon's visit to Eleanor at Sarum. I liked the story of Rhiannon's blindness and how her dad taught her to compensate and learn to be independent, change the things that you can in life and accept those things that you can't change. It was a great scene and one that had a message that I think Eleanor desperately needed to hear.

-The scene in the garden at Winchester between Henry and Eleanor when they were discussing Joanna's upcoming marriage to the King of Sicily. I liked it because you got to see the parents rather than the monarchs, and for a minute they weren't fighting and you could remember how they used to be.

-Where Geoffrey is discussing his mother with the girl he took to the stable. I loved the story about the snake that he'd put in her bed, but then it ended up in his the next night! I loved that glimpse of the mother Eleanor might have been. It was bittersweet because of how John was thinking that he didn't have any of these kinds of stories about his mother, and he didn't understand why.

There were a couple others I loved, too, but I finished the book the night before I left for England, and I didn't get a chance to write about them before I, um, forgot. LOL. I'd forget my head if it wasn't attached. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/21598.Q_A_with_Sharon_Kay Sidhe1 joined the Q&A with Sharon Kay group. ]]>