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Review: When Beauty Tamed the Beast by Eloisa James (audiobook)

18 Nov

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

I’m really enjoying this series of fairy tale romances with historical clothing on.

What I liked best was the playful tone of When Beauty Tamed the Beast, never entirely taking itself seriously. There were nods to the fairy tale, there were nods to the norms of historical fiction. None of these nods got in the way of the story or (more important in a romance) the characters.

The characters were entertaining, and both had more to them than a quick glance would see.

In this volume, the “Beast” is an extremely talented young doctor with a damaged (and painful) leg, a terrible temper and no desire to obey the usual rules of society (a character that will feel familiar to many TV viewers).

“Beauty”, on the other hand, reminds me more of Fiona in Shrek– certainly, her outside has everything that society deems desirable. That is, right up until the moment a small lapse in judgement leaves society believing she is pregnant. Luckily, she isn’t merely a beautiful face (and body). She’s got a sharp mind and, when pushed, a tongue to match.

A marriage between them seems to be the answer to both of their parents’ concerns, and so Linnet is off to meet Piers in his remote home…

There is one steamy scene, and other references to such activities without the same level of detail.

I hope there are more of these on the way!

Audio Notes

Sound Bytes @ Devourer of Books

For more audiobook reviews, check out Sound Bytes

Narrator: Susan Duerden gave a wonderful performance, giving a touch of magic to the proceedings.  Some of the secondary character voices worked better than others, but the primary characters and (particularly) the general narration were very good.

Production: No issues, no extras.  Well, I did have one minor issue, but I’m fairly certain that his was particular to the review download, and won’t be an issue in the final version!

Print vs. Audio?  Although I was charmed by the audio productions, I suspect I would equally have enjoyed this book in print.  When listening to audio, I do appreciate some restraint as to the quantity of really steamy scenes, as they generally seem to arise at highly disconcerting times, and can be difficult to skim through in audio.  That was a plus for this book over other romances, but I think this one would be good in whatever format is more convenient.

Thank you to Harper Audio for providing me this audiobook to listen to and review!

 
1 Comment

Posted by on November 18, 2011 in books, reviews, Uncategorized

 

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Review: Wrecker by Summer Wood

11 May

Wrecker: A NovelMy rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Wrecker was a wonderful story about what it means to be a family.

Summary via the author’s website:

It’s June of 1965 when Wrecker enters the world. The war is raging in Vietnam, San Francisco is tripping toward flower power, and Lisa Fay – a young innocent from a family farm down south – is knocked nearly sideways by life as a single mother in a city she could barely manage to navigate as just one.

Three years later, she’s alone again. Kids aren’t allowed in prison. And Wrecker, scared silent, furious, and hell-bent on breaking every last thing that crosses his path, is shipped off to live with distant relatives in the wilds of Humboldt County.

There’s no guidebook to mothering for Melody, who thought the best thing in life was eighty acres of old growth along the Mattole River and nobody telling her what to do – until this boy came along. For Melody, for Len, for Willow and Ruth, for Meg and Johnnie Appleseed, life will never again be the same once Wrecker signs on.

And for Lisa Fay, there’s one thought keeping her alive through fifteen years of hard time. One day? She’ll find her son and bring him home.

None of the characters in Wrecker had lives that had gone as expected, and I really enjoyed seeing each of the stories unfold as I read through the book.

Wrecker can’t live with his mother– she’s in jail, and will be for a long time. His uncle agrees to take him in, only to realize that he can’t care for his wife, suffering from some form of dementia, and this extremely active 3 year old boy, determined to live up to his name.

The neighbors step in to help out– first overnight, then for a few weeks, and so on. These aren’t just any neighbors, but a group of four dropouts from society living on a small farm in the Redwood forests of far Northern CA. Each has their own reason for living there, each has a reason for being drawn to Wrecker–and in some cases, for keeping a distance from him as well.

Wrecker explores the stories of many of these characters as forming a new family forces them to face who they have been and who they want to become. It also tells the story of Wrecker’s mother, and particularly her relationship with Wrecker– from his birth, the decisions that landed her in jail, and the effects of realizing he was growing up with no contact with her.

Although the strength of the book was this range of characters and their interrelated stories, there were moments when this was the weakness as well– I wanted to spend more time on one story rather than moving on to another. In general, the approach worked well.

In particular, the interweaving of stories was amazing– the mixing of past and present, of the stories of individuals and of the interactions between them, and most of all, how these interactions changed each individual and influenced how their story proceeded.

Much of the flavor of the book came from the setting– I grew up at roughly the same time but in very different places. I had to keep reminding myself that it is part of the same world I lived in. This very small community near a tiny town seemed completely different from anything I’ve known, but still was very real and vibrant.

All in all, a touching story, well told.

TLC Book ToursI read Wrecker for a TLC Book Tour.  Thank you to TLC and Bloomsbury USA for providing me with a copy of this book for review.  For other opinions on Wrecker, check out the other tour stops:

 
2 Comments

Posted by on May 11, 2011 in books, reviews, tour, Uncategorized

 

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Review: The Thousand by Kevin Guilfoile

08 Oct

My rating: 3.75 of 5 stars

This book isn’t for everyone, but I certainly enjoyed it. I also enjoyed the Da Vinci Code, which this book certainly reminded me of.  Except it featured Pythagoras rather than Da Vinci, and a secret society of mathematicians rather than Catholic priests. And the writing was better.

Summary via Goodreads.com:

In 530 B.C., a mysterious ship appeared off the rainy shores of Croton, in what is now Italy. After three days the skies finally cleared and a man disembarked to address the curious and frightened crowd that had gathered along the wet sands. He called himself Pythagoras. Exactly what he said that day is unknown, but a thousand men and women abandoned their lives and families to follow him. They became a community. A school. A cult dedicated to the search for a mathematical theory of everything. Although Pythagoras would die years later, following a bloody purge, his disciples would influence Western philosophy, science, and mathematics for all time.

Chicago, the present day. Canada Gold, a girl both gifted and burdened by uncanny mental abilities, is putting her skills to questionable use in the casinos and courthouses of Las Vegas when she finds herself drawn back to the city in which her father, the renowned composer Solomon Gold, was killed while composing his magnum opus. Beautiful, brilliant, troubled, Canada has never heard of the Thousand, a clandestine group of powerful individuals safeguarding and exploiting the secret teachings of Pythagoras. But as she struggles to understand her father’s unsolved murder, she finds herself caught in the violence erupting between members of the fractured ancient cult while she is relentlessly pursued by those who want to use her, those who want to kill her, and the one person who wants to save her.

I wish that The Thousand had concentrated more on Canada and Wayne, since I didn’t feel I got to know them as well as their key roles in the book would justify. It simply wasn’t a character oriented book, although what is there is well executed. I really liked Canada as the smart misfit card shark with some very specialized skills and really serious family issues. As much as she accomplished in the book, I still felt there was more to her.

The conspiracy and convoluted schemes were simply crazy. That’s the fun of the book, but if you don’t have patience for bizarre twists and unlikely turns, this isn’t for you.

I’ve been trying to figure out what to say, but really, I think this review covers it. If you like this kind of book, give it a try. If it sounds a little too convoluted or esoteric, you’re probably right about that as well.

I received this book for review via Kaye Publicity. Thank you for this opportunity!

 
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Posted by on October 8, 2010 in Uncategorized

 

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Review: Chosen by Chandra Hoffman

31 Aug

ChosenMy rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

There was so much I liked about this book, but the combination of characters just got to be too much at times.

From the HarperCollins website:

It all begins with a fantasy: the caseworker in her “signing paperwork” charcoal suit standing alongside beaming parents cradling their adopted newborn, set against a fluorescent-lit delivery-room backdrop. It’s this blissful picture that keeps Chloe Pinter, director of the Chosen Child’s domestic-adoption program, happy while juggling the high demands of her boss and the incessant needs of both adoptive and biological parents.

But the very job that offers her refuge from her turbulent personal life and Portland’s winter rains soon becomes a battleground involving three very different couples: the Novas, well-off college sweethearts who suffered fertility problems but are now expecting their own baby; the McAdoos, a wealthy husband and desperate wife for whom adoption is a last chance; and Jason and Penny, an impoverished couple who have nothing—except the baby everyone wants. When a child goes missing, dreams dissolve into nightmares, and everyone is forced to examine what he or she really wants and where it all went wrong.

Told from alternating points of view, Chosen reveals the desperate nature of desire across social backgrounds and how far people will go to get the one thing they think will be the answer.

There was some interesting insight and reflection on the world of domestic infant adoption, and I really liked that we had the perspectives of birth parents, adoptive parents and a social worker.

The problem I had with this book was that the characters were all a little larger than life. I believe that there are people in real life like each and every person in this book, but it felt a little crowded in there with all of these strong personalities.

One birth mother is an angelically sweet woman, relinquishing her baby so she can better take care of her toddler. The other is a conflicted young woman, giving into pressure from her scum-ball of a boyfriend to give up their baby.

The adoptive mother to be is an obsessed woman who spends all her time on Internet adoption sites, the adoptive father a workaholic absent from most of the story.

I think that Chloe was supposed to be a person the reader could identify with, but her engagement to an unemployed extreme sports aficionado and her attraction to one of her ex-clients pushed her over the edge for me.

The issues they all encounter are real, and the stories are interesting. I think I would have liked it better if it was a little less dramatic, but I still felt it was worth reading.  I think this could make for interesting book club discussion.

Nicole at Linus’s Blanket also reviewed The Chosen, it worked better for her than it did for me.

I picked up this book (or rather a card that allowed me to download this book to my Nook) from the publisher at BEA.  Thank you to Harper Collins.

 
4 Comments

Posted by on August 31, 2010 in Uncategorized

 

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July Wrap-up

01 Aug

Overall, July was a good reading month. I read a lot of books.  Most of them were good, and there were a couple of standout stars. I read

Books on paper:

Books on my Nook:

Books as Audio

  • (3.5 stars)Blindman’s Bluff (Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus, #18) by Faye Kellerman (not reviewing)
  • (4.5 stars)The Soloist by Steve Lopez
  • (4 stars)The Search by Nora Roberts
  • (3.5 stars)Life’s a Beach by Claire Cook (review might be coming)
  • (4 stars)This Time Together by Carol Burnett
  • (4 stars)An Abundance of Katherines by John Green (review scheduled 8/5)
  • (not sure)The Postmistress by Sarah Blake (review probably coming)
  • (not sure)In the Woods by Tana French (review might be coming)

(Click on the book title for my review).

This gives me 7 paper books, 3 Nook books, and 8 audio books, for a monthly total of 18 books!   This brings me to a total of 103 books this year (55 paper, 6 Nook, 42 audio).  I also spent some time skimming through The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by , which I’ve read before, since we were discussing it for book club, but I’m not counting that.

My favorite books for the month were The Disappearing Spoon and The Language of Trees.  I haven’t yet rated my last two audiobooks of the month. Both were very uneven for me, and I’m not sure how much was the book, how much the narration, and how much was my state of mind.

I think my blog has had a good month as well.  I’ve posted 14 reviews!  I’ve decided it’s OK to read a book and not review it, if I don’t have any obligation to do so.  I have one book I read that I’m not planning to review, and two more that I’m not sure about.  I also posted a cute (and bookish) cat photo and wrote a long post about my role in my daughter’s reading material.

I posted two book giveaways, The Disappearing Spoon and Deadly Fear. Both are still running, and I’ve got more coming up!

Other bloggy work includes creating a facebook page for my blog, please come tell me you like me!  I’ve updated my sidebar and complete list of reviews as well.

Coming up for August, I’ve got Broken Glass Park by Alina Bronsky for one of my book clubs.  The other is reading Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, which I’ve already read.  I’ll decide whether to reread/skim/rely on memory.  I’m also reading Wicked Intentions by Elizabeth Hoyt and The Boy Who harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer for blog tours.  Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins is on my immediate must read list as well.  After those, who knows what else!

How was your July? What do you have planned for August?

 
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Posted by on August 1, 2010 in books, summary, Uncategorized

 

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Everything Austen: Emma (movie) (mini-review)

24 Sep

EmmaI recently watched the 1996 movie version of Jane Austen’s Emma, featuring Gwynneth Paltrow.

I had three reasons for doing this now.  This first is that I like the book and this movie, and it sounded like a fun way to spend the evening.   The second was curiosity as to whether my 11 year old daughter would enjoy it. The third was to fill this month’s Everything Austen challenge slot.

I’d seen this movie several times before, and I knew I like it. I settled right into watching it, and frankly, I didn’t feel like being critical (hence the mini-review).

I find this movie true to the spirit of the book.  It makes changes as necessary to translate into a decent movie.  I like all of the casting, from Mr. Knightly (yum), to Mr. Woodhouse and Miss Bates (very funny) to Emma herself– far from perfect, but just appealing enough to have me rooting for her.

My daughter attempted to watch the 1970s BBC production with me, but just couldn’t quite hang in there.  She did stick around for all 2 hours of this one, losing track of the characters at times.  I don’t think it is going to become a favorite any time soon, but she’s still interested in watching Sense and Sensibility and maybe in reading one of the books.  I don’t see a hurry on those, but I certainly won’t stop her.

everythingausten3Me?  I’ve heard good things about the more recent BBC production, and so I may add a 3rd movie version of Emma to my challenge list. :-)

I’ve now completed 3 of the 6 things I need to complete the Everything Austen challenge at Stephanie’s Written Word.    The deadline is the end of the year, so I’m still on track.  There are so many books I’d like to read and movies I’d like to watch, I may keep this as a regular event– one Austen a month!

 
6 Comments

Posted by on September 24, 2009 in challenge, movie, Uncategorized

 

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A Bookish Meme

06 Sep

I found this meme on Bookworm Mari‘s blog, and decided to give it a try.

Using only books you have read this year (2009), answer these questions. Try not to repeat a book title. It’s a lot harder than you think!

Describe yourself: Laced with Magic by Barbara Bretton
How do you feel: One Scream Away by Kate Brady
Describe where you currently live: The Visible World by Mark Slouka
If you could go anywhere, where would you go? Beach Trip by Cathy Holton
Your favorite form of transportation: The Accidental Time Machine by Joe Haldeman
Your best friend is: Bundle of Trouble by Diana Orgain
You and your friends are: The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand
What’s the weather like: The Gift of an Ordinary Day by Katrina Kenison
You fear:  Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
What is the best advice you have to give:  Don’t Panic by Neil Gaiman
Thought for the day: Just Imagine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
How I would like to die:  Mercy Street by Mariah Stewart
My soul’s present condition: Innocent as Sin by Elizabeth Lowell

 
1 Comment

Posted by on September 6, 2009 in meme, Uncategorized

 

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The Friday 56

14 Aug

I’m trying out a new meme today!

From Storytime With Tonya and Friends:

Rules:
* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
* Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
* Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

The Gift of an Ordinary DayThe closest book was (unsurprisingly) one that I’m currently reading, The gift of an Ordinary Day by Katrina Kenison.

My restlessness of the last few years has quieted here. And it seems that my own newfound sense of well-being has even spread outward, lightening all our spirits.

That’s a nice quote! I’ve barely started the book, hopefully I’ll get there today.

 
2 Comments

Posted by on August 14, 2009 in books, meme, Uncategorized

 

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Review: Best Friends Forever by Jennifer Weiner

02 Aug

Best Friends Forever: A Novel My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

When I started this book, I loved it. Unfortunately, that didn’t carry through to the end. I didn’t dislike it, but the characters’ actions confused me.

From the Simon & Schuster website:

Addie Downs and Valerie Adler will be best friends forever. That’s what Addie believes after Valerie moves across the street when they’re both nine years old. But in the wake of betrayal during their teenage years, Val is swept into the popular crowd, while mousy, sullen Addie becomes her school’s scapegoat.

Flash-forward fifteen years. Valerie Adler has found a measure of fame and fortune working as the weathergirl at the local TV station. Addie Downs lives alone in her parents’ house in their small hometown of Pleasant Ridge, Illinois, caring for a troubled brother and trying to meet Prince Charming on the Internet. She’s just returned from Bad Date #6 when she opens her door to find her long-gone best friend standing there, a terrified look on her face and blood on the sleeve of her coat. “Something horrible has happened,” Val tells Addie, “and you’re the only one who can help.”

I loved the childhood sections, seeing these two very different girls with very different lives, who became such close friends. I liked how each of them was quirky in a different way, and that brought them even closer together.

Even when the book was dealing with the pain of their high school years, the book rang true to me. I liked how this storyline unfolded, and pieces were filled in for us about what really happened.

At the beginning of the book, I liked Addie’s story. I found her Internet dating story hilarious. Seeing her relationship with her brother, hearing about her parents, learning about her business– all of these built her up into a character I found interesting and wanted to know more about.

Then adult Valerie appeared on the scene. I could understand her desire for revenge, but that’s about all. Perhaps I’m taking this book too seriously, but I don’t understand how she thought she’d get away with any of her actions. I really don’t understand how she’d have the nerve to turn to Addie. I really, really don’t understand why Addie was willing to go along with Valerie.

Valerie didn’t seem to be taking responsibility for her actions, in the present or in the past. She made one disastrous decision after another. She seemed to be living a normal, responsible life, but that didn’t show in her actions. Addie had taken control of her life, but was relinquishing that for this weekend, going along with Valerie since Valerie had once been her friend.

The love interest in the didn’t quite work for me, although it was a near miss. I did like the character, and enjoyed the rest of his role in the story.

The end of the book came together for me somewhat. I quite liked the beginning. I found the middle interesting, even as I didn’t understand the characters’ behavior. But maybe that’s more about me than the book.

This book was sent to me for review. Thank you Atria Books

 
3 Comments

Posted by on August 2, 2009 in books, reviews, Uncategorized

 

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Bloggiesta update #3

20 Jun

I’ve put in another 5.5 hours of work on Bloggiesta.

I finished the gravatar/favicon challenge that  Trish from Hey Lady! Watcha Readin’? hosted. I propogated that picture to all sites I could think of.

I also completed the anchor text challenge that Michelle from GalleySmith hosted.

I finished the Website Grader challenge that Ruth from Bookish Ruth hosted.  This led me to spend some time looking into including better metadata on my blog.  Unfortunately,  i don’t see how to do this on WordPress.com.  If anyone has any pointers, I’d really like to see them.

I also worked more on my hopeful eventual move to self-hosted WordPress.  Or in this case, ISP hosted WordPress.  I discovered their version is REALLY out of date and that our having 2 domains is confusing their server.  Or me.  Or both.  I’m backing off for the moment so I can regroup– I’m not sure if this is going to work :-( .

I did some odds and ends with book blips, and  Technorati.  I also may be joining up with a blogging buddy group, which would be fantastic.

And of course, I wrote this update.

As for reading, I’ve listened to another two hours.  I haven’t touched my paper book.

Hopefully I’ll do some actual writing this afternoon/evening.  I don’t think I’ll finish reading anything to review, though.

I hope everyone else that is working on Bloggiesta is having a productive day.

 
6 Comments

Posted by on June 20, 2009 in blogging, Uncategorized

 

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