Gord’s Comments (group member since Apr 06, 2017)

Gord’s comments from the Vampires, Weres and Fae! group.

Ahh yes, when heading out into the post apocalyptic wasteland full of all sorts of threats and dangers I also make sure to pack multiple sets of sexy underwear. Priorities and all that.

Really, really not feeling this book at all. I was here for some bad ass mercenary librarians and what I'm getting is mindless romantic drivel. Maybe it's just my caveman male brain that just wants action but this is just boring.

I'm about to start chapter five and there is just something off feeling about this book. How to put this. Someone can't just feel an emotion that emotion has to be the most intense emotion ever felt in the history of mankind. Especially when it comes down to the horny feelings. There is that and this repetitive feeling of "I'll do anything to protect my _______". I get it, both sides have a stake to protect, their own schemes on the go, can we just get to something exciting already. There is also that feeling that the world building has been just kind of glossed over. Things happened, more things happened, and here we are. I'm far from giving up on this book. Their about to leave the city and partake in the classic "heist" story line. Maybe we will get some exciting happening outside of the city. That and some world building because for a post apocalyptic world it doesn't really feel that post apocalyptic yet.

Any way, that's enough nit picking for now.

Time for that weekly update.

Leverage in Death -5 Stars
Yet another In Death book and to no ones surprise I loved it. This was about an extreme get rich quick scheme. After 47 books there really isn't a lot that I can say about this series anymore. I simply enjoy the ongoing story, the characters, and the over arching world building.

Dead Things -3 Stars
This was a recommendation because I needed a book set in LA. Honestly on the difficulty scale for challenges it's a pretty easy one but there are just so many options that it gets overwhelming. I snagged this book because it was available on audiobook and sounded interesting. This book scratched an itch that I didn't know I needed scratched. That grittier male MC urban fantasy series. I see a lot of comparisons to Dresden in the reviews because Dresden is of course the big dog on the block but in my opinion this felt closer to Sandman Slim. The setting, the level of grit, etc. This book just reminded me more of that series. Regardless I had fun with this book. It wasn't perfect but it was a great popcorn book. Yes, the F bomb is dropped liberally throughout this book. According to one review, 182 times in 256 pages and this only the one swear word. Also, the MC gets beat up, constantly, pretty much every action scene results in our MC getting smeared across the floor, the walls, the ceiling, what ever is close and on hand. The MC is also not the most likable guy either. Now I know that this sounds like a lot of negative but there is some really interesting things in here. The hidden world of magic, the books portrayal of magic, and of course Santa Muerte being the higher power of choice. There is enough going on here that it makes me want to keep reading for now. Especially as I now need another book set in LA. Yup, that is just how some challenges happen.

On a side note I also wanted to discuss the narrator for the audiobook. His portrayal of the MC felt really good and spot on to what was put forward by the book. His other voices though ran the gambit from alright to "please just stop what ever you are trying to do". Especially his attempts at female voices. For instance the voice of Santa Muerte. At the start I was like "alright, this isn't to bad" and then it just descended into this horrible attempt at some sort of Spanish accent. I know that she is supposed to have this generic Spanish sounding voice but this voice just felt off, like really off.

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life -2 Stars
Entertain me here for a second. Look off into the far distant horizon. You see that little tiny dot out there? That is the edge of what I might normally read. That is the literary fiction, the contemporary romance, the magical realism books. My wheelhouse of horror, fantasy, and mysteries can't even be seen here from the land of self help books. This was a for a couple of different challenges that needed me to read a self help book and I was not looking forward to this one. I've never read a self help book in my life and just had no interest at all in doing so. If you like reading self help books this is no shade at you. It's just not a genre that I have any interest in reading. Lets just say that this book did nothing to help with my preconceived notions of a self help books. I'll start by saying some of the messages in this book are not a bad thing. The problem is that this message comes wrapped in a frat boys level of swearing. Just to be clear, I have no issue with swearing. I swear like a sailor at times. I'm former military and have had entire conversations where the primary word used was the F bomb. Swearing can be an effective method of communication if done right. Here though it just felt like a gimmick. A way to garner attention.

Now I knew I was in for a rough ride pretty early on. I felt like I got the basic gist of things by the 20 minute mark. I then realized that I had five more hours of this book to slog through. I got pretty bored quickly after this point. This is one of those rare books that I sped things up to 1.25 speed and then eventually 1.5 just so I could get through things. While I do agree with some of the messages in this book I think that the author over simplified things several times. I don't feel that the world is black and white like that. That whole idea of "if you do this thing you are good and if not then you are bad" just isn't right. There is a grey in this world. A lot of nuances and circumstances that just doesn't fit into simple little boxes. For everything there is an exception. Hell, probably a lot of exceptions if I'm being honest. By the end, even sped up, I was just bored and wanted this book to be over. This was not a good experience for my first foray into self help books and I doubt I'll be back unless I really have to be.

Princess Jellyfish 2-in-1 Omnibus, Vol. 6 -4 Stars
This volume rather surprised me honestly. I thought that I had an idea where this story was going and this volume just tossed a lot of those ideas out the window. Or changed how I thought those ideas were going to unfold. This is an older book but I don't want to spoil anything. This book just took an unexpected turn and there is just this... how do I explain it... this real melancholy kind of feeling to things. Plans failed, life takes unexpected turns. Honestly, I was not expecting Tsukimi to do what she did. I just didn't think she had it in her and it feels out of character and yet somehow in character. I'm really looking forward to the next volume because I want to know what comes next.

Komi Can't Communicate, Vol. 23 -4 Stars
This single volume highlights everything I love about this series and everything that I dislike about this series. When this series puts aside the silly gags and what not it has a great story. It's incredibly emotional and is a great read. The art work is amazing and I am here for what I am reading. Slight side note, this volume solidifies why Manbagi is the best character in my opinion. That is all I'm saying about that. Then this volume also shows the lows of this series. Basically, Yamai. I'm not a fan of this character and I think she is the absolute worst part of this entire series. After all the highs this book was hitting this nut bar shows up and just tanks everything. I get it, she is supposed to be a gag character but I just don't like her at all.

The Apothecary Diaries Manga, Vol. 7 -4 Stars
This series is just a treat to read and I'm glad I picked it up. I'm really looking forward to the anime that is coming out this fall for this.

Robyn Hood, Volume One -3 Star
I was bored at work on Friday. I was done my work and was essentially marking time until my vacation started so I hit up Hoopla for something to read. This is one of those "superhero" books where the female lead somehow finds the most revealing outfit possible to wear. Seriously this costume makes sense. She gets teleported into a magical version of Robin Hood. When she shows up she is wearing jeans and a hoodie and while it sticks out a bit in the setting it makes sense. She came from our timeline and it fit the character. Then the series has a time skip, the art takes a massive dip, and she suddenly has this "outfit". Where in the hell did she find it? No one else wears anything even remotely like it. She has been supposedly living in the woods for the last year so where the hell did this modern day stripper outfit come from? Considering how little fabric maybe she had it folded up in her back pocket but even then why the hell would she have it? Putting the outfit aside this was some generic violent fantasy retelling. I have to say that the whole archery thing kind of bugged me a bit. So she suddenly becomes master of the longbow but it never feels like the longbow is used as an actual longbow. A longbow has a range of 450-1000 feet yet every action scene has here using this thing from like 10 feet away or less. She would shoot someone from 10 feet away and the arrow would just barely pierce the skin. Either that bow is the weakest bow in existence or something is seriously off here. This series is just kind of meh. I might read the next one, I might not.

Now what is next? I'm on vacation for the next week or so and have a lot of things lined up.

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly
I'm currently listening to this on audiobook and really enjoying things so far. Plus it's actually narrated by Anthony Bourdain which just adds to the experience.

For physical books I'm not sure where I'm starting. I have a giant stack of manga that I just got from the library. I've also got Deal with the Devil that I need to get started so I can return it on time. I also have No Surrender: My Thirty-Year War I want to get read this week as well.

The version of past Gord who thought walking in the summer would be so much and so easy because it would be "warm" was a fucking idiot. I just got back from a 7km/4.35 mile walk where the last 2.5km/2 miles I was carrying 10 library books and a few days worth of groceries. It is 26c/79f with about 40% humidity. I feel like I am melting right now.

The final four hours of the day. I've got about 2 hours of work max and then I'm propping my feet up and cruising into the weekend/holiday.

I remember reading that a while back and I thought it was pretty good. I've got that American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century downloaded. Hearing about a modern serial killer I've never heard about before is interesting.

The self help book is finally done. I initially sped it up to 1.25 and then to 1.5 just to get through it because I was just not invested in it at all. By the end I just wanted it to be done so I could move on to something else.

Final day before vacation. There are things to get done but honestly it's looking to be a pretty chill kind of day. Now to just get through the book I am working on.

I'm committed to this and I don't want to try to slog through pages of self help books trying to find something. I might just speed up the audiobook a bit.

I'm about 1.5 hour into this book and I'm bored, bored, bored, bored, and bored. It's not that the message is bad or anything but I feel like I more or less got the message by about the 20 minute mark. I'm then faced with 5 more hours of book to slog through.

I start my first ever self help book and I'm not very excited honestly. It's just not a subgenre I have any interest in reading at all and it's so far removed from anything that I normally read. For the first day I'm going to try listening at normal speed and see how it goes. This also kicks off the first of four nonfiction books that I have downloaded currently.

Two more days until my vacation and I'm split.

On one hand I am clearly excited. This is the first vacation I've probably had since Christmas. Having a week off to just relax is going to be beyond nice. There is also the obvious anime convention that I am stoked for. Still thinking about going to that concert. From a work aspect I'm also excited because I'm getting out of our summer inventory.

On the other hand things are stupid busy at work right now. I've got a metric shit ton of things that I need to get done and I'm not able to work on any of it. Sure it's inventory and I wouldn't really be able to work on things any way but still. I could probably ship out an order or two before inventory hits or get a bunch more prep done. When I do get back from my vacation I'm going to have two weeks of untouched stuff to get done on top of new stuff. It's all kind of sitting heavily in the back of my mind.

I could be negative about going back to work today or the never ending threat of rain but instead I am going to focus on the positive. That being I have four more days of work, counting today, and then I am off for ten days. Next Friday is the local anime convention and there is some good times ahead. Even in the short term I am going out for lunch today and getting my favorite sandwich. Tons of positive and good things are coming.

It's been another month of reading. I did complete one really old challenge that I've had lurking around so that was nice.

5 Stars
Laid-Back Camp, Vol. 13 (Volume 13)
Dark in Death
The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax
I Hate Fairyland, Vol. 5: Gert's Inferno

4 Stars
The Lost Stories
Yu-Gi-Oh! (3-in-1 Edition), Vol. 10: Includes Vols. 28, 29 & 30
Crocodile on the Sandbank
Fractured
The Royal Ranger: A New Beginning
Pablo Escobar: My Father
Run on Your New Legs, Vol. 1
Run on Your New Legs, Vol. 2
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The IDW Collection, Volume 4
Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon Vol. 4
That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon
W.I.T.C.H. Part I: The Twelve Portals, Vol. 2
Tombs
Solo Leveling, Vol. 6


Duds
Twelfth Grade Night -2 Stars
I actually completely forgot about this one until I was making this list
Amazing Fantasy -1 Stars
Just don't read this

As for next month I've got a lot on the go so we will see what happens with reading. Taking a look at what I've got right now the one I'm probably most hype for is American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century

Happy belated Canada day and an early happy July 4th for everyone wherever you are. Hopefully your weekend has been better then mine. Not that mine was "bad" it's just been miserable weather here for the last 3 days. It's just been dark, gloomy, and overcast with a never ending threat of rain all weekend. When it does rain it might be a couple drops against the window, a gentle sprinkle that last maybe a hour, or maybe it will open up and pour real hard for 15-20 minutes. Regardless it has been just a nonstop threat of rain and it has just been bleh. Of course this all ends and the sun returns right when I return to work tomorrow. How fun.

I'm aware of how old this makes me sound but I seriously love how convenient this new phone of mine is. I've got a convention coming up here in a couple of weeks and today they just released the schedule for it. Last year they started moving away from physical copies of the schedule due to printing costs which makes sense. They have the schedule on an app called guidebook. My phone has a QR code scanner built into the phone which I discovered today. In about a minute I was able to find the app by using the QR code, download and install the app, download the schedule, and start browsing through it. Using this apps I can set notifications for panels I want to see on my phone that will remind me anywhere from 5 minutes to a full hour before it starts. This is just so convenient. Gone are the days of lugging around a physical copy of the book and a pen to make notes. Gone are the days of constantly referencing the guide trying to find the panel I want to see. It's just so frigging easy

Time for that weekly update and I feel this week needs some explanation. My internet died last Sunday and my computer is my main source of entertainment. With that offline I was left with nothing to really do except read which is a dangerous thing. Now this only lasted a few days before my internet got sorted but oh boy did I get some reading done in those few days.

That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon-4 Stars
I'm not sure how this popped up on my radar but it did and I discovered that it was available through the local ILL service so I requested a copy. After reading this book I can safely say that this is a perfect popcorn book. It's short, making it a quick read, it's got an interesting story, and it has some sexy times for those that want that in their fantasy. With it's length it didn't get lost in complex and deep world building but what it did give was pretty well fleshed out and a solid base for future books to grow on. A couple little nitpicks from me. The world that the book is set in calls all nonhumans "demons". Now this wasn't established from the beginning and I thought that what we were dealing with were actual demons. Instead we've got dragons, werewolves, lamia, centaurs, minotaurs, etc. On one hand it's great to see so many different types of monsters in a book but did we really need to muddy the water by calling them all "demons"? My other nitpick is the sexy times in this book. I have no problem with smut being in a book but the sexy times in this book feel like a super harsh tonal change when they happen. Most of the book feels like a popcorn fantasy and then suddenly sexy times. The curse words suddenly multiply to the nth degree, it's got some mildish BDSM, etc. It just feels like the intensity of everything got ratcheted up by 1,000% compared to the rest of the book. It's far from the most intense sexy times I've ever read but it just feels so tonally different from the rest of the book. It's just a little odd. The book was interesting enough that I've already requested the next book in the series.

Solo Leveling, Vol. 6 -4 Stars
This series is just a blast to read for me. This book is definitely setting up the next big story arc and establishing our MC's power level compared to the other Hunters in this world. I don't want to get into to many details because spoilers but things are definitely heating up. I also have to say that this series is really great at building up those hype moments. Those moments where you can't help but be on the edge of your seat and fully engaged in the book because you don't dare look away.

Wyrd Sisters -3 Stars
I feel like I need to go into protective custody after posting my thoughts on this book. I know that the Discworld series is incredibly well loved and has many passionate fans so not giving this book full stars is going to get me put on some list somewhere. Now don't get me wrong I can see the good in this book. The characters were interesting, the humor was on point and had me laughing out loud several times, the setting was absurd and interesting but there were just several times throughout this book were I just felt bored and not engaged. It felt like this book was just disappear into this tangents that had little to do with the story and I would just unconsciously clock out. For instance, towards the end of the book The Fool got talking about his upbringing and his time in Fool School. This section just seemed to go on and on and on and on. It helped flesh out the Discworld but I just could help but wonder what this had to do with the actual story line and by the end of the book it turned out that it really didn't have anything to do with the story. Sure it fleshed out the character a bit and of course established things about Discworld but none of that really had a direct impact on the story. Now I want to mention some good things. Death, loved this character and the narrator that voiced him. Especially his scenes towards the end of the book. The relationship between Nanny Ogg and Granny Weatherwax was amazing. This genuinely felt like two people who had been friends/rivals for a lifetime. They bickered, they helped each other, they understood each other, and it was just fun to see the two different personalities feed off of each other. Fear not Discworld fans this will not be the last time I return to this world. I just wasn't the hugest fan of this particular book.

Now for all the manga and comics
Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon Vol. 4 -4 Stars
This was the conclusion to this series and it stays on brand. There is some big character growth, feelings are admitted, and things are the suitable level of sweet that I've come to expect from this series. If you are looking for a chill adult yuri romance then I'd give this a recommendation.

Ramen Wolf and Curry Tiger Vol. 1 -3 Stars
Speaking of chill romance we have this manga. This was another blind snag from the library and meh. I grabbed it because food, romance, soft and fluffy vibes. First, not a romance but I could see how some could consider this yaoi bait. It's about two guys who like to hang out and eat food together. There isn't really a whole lot else here. This manga just didn't click with me and I think a lot of it just comes down to the fact that it felt like it had no direction. The "story" just kind of bounced around doing whatever the author felt like but it had no coherent direction. For instance, everything in this world was an animal and then there was just one random human character. Why? No idea as nothing is explained at all. There is supposedly all this tension between Curry Tiger and his older brother. Why? Again no idea. It's not really explained and there isn't a story line to explain it. We just get random little glimpses of things and then it's off to something else. I just didn't feel a connection with this manga and have no plans to read on.

W.I.T.C.H. Part I: The Twelve Portals, Vol. 2 -4 Stars
Listen, I can't really explain why I like this series but I do. It's my first time reading this but it just feels nostalgic if that makes any sense. The story arcs, the character tropes and designs, everything feels like stuff I have consumed and enjoyed before. It takes me back to that late 90's early 2000's time and it just feels fun to read. It sounds like there is one more book in this story arc and then we get into a new one. Regardless, I've requested my copy of the next volume.

Tombs -4 Stars
This is another collection of Junji Ito shorts and I think it's well established that I enjoy Ito's stuff by this point. His stories are never full explained but that just adds to this creepiness of things. Why does everyone in this one little village turn into tombs when they die? Who knows, it just happens. Why does this little remote village have a massive systems of veins underground that randomly drains the blood of the local villagers to replenish itself? No idea, it just is. Why did this girls tongue turn into a slug? Why knows but dear lord it's a disgusting and horrifying thought. There is just something with his stories, his art, that just feels creepy as hell and I love every minute of it.

I Hate Fairyland, Vol. 5: Gert's Inferno -5 Stars
This was the big surprise of the week. I loved, LOVED, the original run of this series. It's that blend of weird, violent, cute, trashy, all rolled into one weird ugly ball of awesome. I figured that at the end of series that was it. The story had traveled it's course and had a satisfying ending. I was browsing Hoopla and saw this pop up. I wasn't sure what the heck it was and after some poking around I found out that the author had returned to this series and oh man was I excited. This book was an absolute blast to read. It hit all the things that I loved about the original series while leaving the door propped open for more stories to come. All I'll say is that Gert is back and Fairyland is not prepared for her return.

Now, what is next?

Dead Things
This is my next audiobook. I'm reading it for a challenge and it sounds interesting enough. After that I've got a bunch of nonfiction audiobooks lined up for challenges this month.

Leverage in Death
I'm reading through this currently and to no ones surprise I am enjoying it. I just wanted more In Death after the last one I read. After that I have some more manga to clean up and then I'll probably be starting Deal with the Devil

I went through my list and I still need to find 7 more.

Short Story
Western (Zane Grey, Louis L'Amour, NOT a romance "western")
Fable/Fairy Tale/Folklore/Mythology
Author of Color
Self Help
Poetry
Personal Interest (Art, Food, Hobby, etc.)

I'm tackling the self help one this month as I need it for another challenge. Poetry is something I know I need to tackle and I've got a couple ideas, Poe mostly. Still kind of stumped on the personal interest one though.

Crazy amount... ha ha ha ha... that never happens. Is $732.91 a crazy amount? Yup, I saved $732.91 bringing my yearly total to $3,940.15. I'm on track for an absolute bonkers amount this year. I blame it on the audiobooks and the manga/comics.

I'm counting down the days until my vacation and the local anime convention. It's one more week until my vacation starts and two more weeks until the con starts. Excited am I.