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| Kara is now a wizard. Gandalf says so. |
Jan: 8 books/2632 pages
Kara: 4 books/1318 pages
Karen: 7 books/1917 pages
Kathleen: 8 books/3716 pages
Kevin: 2 books/682 pages
Regan: 7 books/1405 pages
TOTAL: 37 books/12,182 pages
Thursday, August 10, 2023
You Lucky Dog
Carly Kennedy and Max Sheffington did not know each other. But when their dogs got swapped by someone returning them to their homes because the dog-walker was indisposed, Carly and Max finally met. But not right away, because the dog-walker was in jail. Finding out who had which dog was not easy.
This was a cute "dogs bring people together" story. But between their work life, with Carly struggling financially after a layoff from her publicity firm, hoping to land a job in New York City, and with Max trying to overcome the final hurdles to reach tenure as a neuroscientist at his university in Texas, the stars were not cooperating. And their families were also a contributing factor in the difficulties of becoming a couple. This is an understatement!
This was a light, but engaging afternoon read. The dogs were as compelling as the people characters, which added to the charm.
Wednesday, August 9, 2023
The Time of Contempt
The Time of Contempt is the second novel in the Witcher series. In this story, we are seeing the effects of a brewing war between the kingdoms and Nilfgaard. The story begins where Blood of Elves left off, with Yennefer bringing Ciri to Aretuza, the school of magic, to hone her skills and receive proper instruction. On the journey, they run into some issues in the big city outside of Aretuza. Ciri is allowed to venture around the city with an escort, and they attempt to free a wyvern who is being held captive by a man who is selling tickets to see the poor creature. Things quickly get out of hand and Ciri and Fabio, her escort narrowly escape the mess. Ciri activates an amulet which brings attention to her location by other sorceresses in the city. She soon is captured by Tissaia de Vries, a sorceress who instructed Yennefer at Aretuza. Luckily, Yennerfer finds Tissaia and her companion holding Ciri, but soonafter Ciri once again escapes from the inn they are staying at in order to find Geralt, who is supposedly in a nearby town. A horrible storm is brewing with extremely bright lightning which is illuminating the farmland and nearby tower of Lara, which was once a portal created during the Conjunction of Spheres. While trying to find Geralt, and while Geralt is trying to find Ciri, they all witness The Wild Hunt, a spectral phenomenon of horsemen riding across the sky, similar to "the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse".
Ciri finds Geralt, and Yennefer teleports to them both. Geralt and Yen have not spoken in about three years. They were told once that they were made for each other, but nothing would come of it because "something more" was needed. They figured out that the "something more" was Ciri.
Continuing on, the first night of Aretuza, an attempted Coup begins with some sorcerers who have betrayed their comrades in order to gain favor with Nilfgaard. Emperor Emhyr of Nilfgaard wants the mages chapter to be dispersed due to their unfavorable massive loss at Sodden. Ciri disappears, Yennefer cannot be found, and Geralt is taken hostage by Djikstra's men.
Geralt gets away, Ciri manages to escape but is soon chased after by Cahir, the black knight. Ciri overpowers Cahir but decides not to kill him. The story leaves off with Ciri waking up in the middle of a desert, and narrowly survives. She tries fire magic on her own to save a unicorn's life, but because of this action, her magical capabilities were revoked.
Tuesday, August 8, 2023
The Cellist
The Cellist by Daniel Silva 471 pp.
Even though I impatiently wait for the new Gabriel Allon books to be released, somehow I started but never finished this one. Maybe because all the veiled references to the then U.S. President and his criminal buddy, the Russian president. After the nerve agent poisoning of Viktor Orlov, an exiled Russian who once saved Allon's life, Gabriel is drawn into the investigation with British Intelligence. Believing the Brits are on the wrong track, Allon enlists the help of a talented young woman who worked for the dirtiest German bank, notorious for it's money laundering and other illegal activities. They set up a multi-billion dollar sting operation to catch the oligarch and childhood friend of the Russian president. The book ends with the inauguration of the new U.S. President following the insurrection at the Capitol when the Russians make one more attempt to eliminate Gabriel Allon. Following the novel is a chapter of commentary by Silva on the Trump attempts at overthrowing the election which he lost.
Death in Ecstasy
Death in Ecstasy by Ngaio Marsh 280 pp.
The fourth book in the Inspector Roderick Alleyn series finds Alleyn investigating the cyanide murder of a wealthy woman during a ceremony at the House of the Sacred Flame, a cultish organization lead by "Father" Garnette. The clues are many but all seem disconnected from each other. The suspects are varied and jealousies and suspicions within the church members abound. There is obvious drug use but the possible source varies widely. Even the discovery of an old chemistry manual that opens to the instructions on how to extract cyanide from household items serves only to add confusion. Of course, the intrepid Inspector, assisted by Sergeant Fox and journalist Nigel Bathgate wrap up the investigation satisfactorily. Alleyn produces droll comments throughout although my favorite line came from the medical examiner during the inquest when he was asked why he had not thought it worthwhile to send for remedies (for the victim) to which the doctor replied "There is no remedy for death."
Monday, August 7, 2023
Fine
Fine: A Comic about Gender by Rhea Ewing 319 pp.
Rhea Ewing began a working on a college project that was to culminate in a 24 page zine about "what is gender?" After ten years and many interviews with friends, associates, and strangers they produced this book. During that time, Ewing, who never felt comfortable in their own body, came out as trans to their amazingly supportive family and friends. The interviews cover the topics of coming out, gender dysphoria, pronouns, abuse, body image, suicide, and many others. The most important take on all this is the need to find those who accept you as your are and make them your "tribe," then build on that.
Saturday, August 5, 2023
Blood of Elves
Blood of Elves is the third publication of the Witcher series, but technically the first full novel of the series. In this story, we meet the child surprise, Cirilla of Cintra, who has been Geralt's destiny. They finally find each other again and Geralt gains responsibility for all of her needs as her grandmother, Queen Calanthe, was killed (well subsequently committed suicide) in the destruction of Cintra by Nilfgaard. As Geralt assumes responsibility for Ciri, he brings her to Kaer Morhen, the compound where Witchers are trained. Ciri is taught fighting, agility and some spells in which she cannot yet perform. A sorceress, Triss Merigold arrives at Kaer Morhen and discovers that Ciri is much more powerful, and capable of magic than Geralt realized. She explains that Ciri's magic should be carefully watched and maintained so that it doesn't become uncontrollable and dangerous to herself and others. Triss mentions that Geralt should seek out Yennefer, his former lover because she is an incredibly powerful and knowledgeable sorceress, to help Ciri. Meanwhile, Dandelion the bard is captured and tortured by a man who is tracking down Ciri. The rest of the novel details Geralt delivering Ciri to the temple school in order to receive a better education than Geralt can provide. Geralt tries tracking down Rience, the sorcerer who was charged with finding and capturing Ciri. The end of the novel deals with Yennefer becoming Ciri's main mentor and teacher, and soon they become quite close. A war is brewing as Nilfgaard continues to conquer the lands, with elves and their "Squirrel" posse on the rise, attempting to avoid the pogroms of elves and non-humans.
Friday, August 4, 2023
Improbably Yours
Blythe is turning 30 and feels the pressure to take on the life that her mother, sister and boyfriend want for her. But everything is upended when she's unexpectedly given her grandmother's ashes along with the job to go to a specific island, find the spot where something special was buried long ago, and then to inter the ashes in that place. If she is successful, she will inherit $500,000 that her grandmother had put into a trust for her.
By leaving her boyfriend and rejecting a high-profile job which he had lined up for her, Blythe reaches for the unknown, and the chance to find out what she really wants to do with her life. She books a spot on the island of Vinland, a tourist destination for treasure-seeking. The tourists choose to be Vikings or Pirates, and they learn how to use metal detectors to find clues that have been planted for them. But Blythe's hunt is a much different one, and she meets a few people on the island who try to help her find where to bury her grandmother's ashes - in particular, Flynn, a man who doesn't really want to be on the island, but who came to be with his 12-year old niece after his sister died, and Savannah, the niece. The uncle and niece are butting heads constantly.
Blythe's grandmother has been dead for 24 years, but when she was still alive, she and Blythe had such a playful and loving relationship, with more than a touch of make-believe magic in it. Or *was* it make-believe? This book is filled with magic, at least one ghost, lots of ravens (including one who talks), and a lot of secrets.
Playing Dead
Molly Madison is an ex-cop who has moved from Massachusetts to California after her philandering husband was murdered and she was a suspect, apparently the subject of the first book in the series. This second book features her and her golden retriever named Harlow and her more newly acquired Saint Berdoodle named Noodle at a training facility for dog agility and barn hunting. Noodle finds not only a rat in a barn, but also a dead body - the body of Celeste, a woman who was so unpleasant that it was hard to decide who had the best motive and opportunity to kill her. Molly gets into the investigation when her newest human friend, Felicity, is arrested for the murder.
I learned a lot about the training of dogs, about girls' gymnastics, and also about people who have trouble socializing. I liked Molly's character - she's got a heart of gold for animals and likes humans *almost* as much, but is not afraid to let people know what she's thinking.
Tuesday, August 1, 2023
Makeup Man
I added this to my collection because of the Star Trek connection. Only about 60 pages deal with his time designing aliens for Roddenberry's franchise. I loved the early part of the book covering his family's history in hair and makeup. His apprenticeship with John Chambers of Planet of the Apes makeup fame was interesting. And establishing his special effects makeup cred by working on both Rocky and later Raging Bull was significant. There are stories of his work experience on many other lesser known projects too. He's made a lot of Neanderthal character makeups. Each story is pretty short, maybe too short, and draws on his memory. There are some cases where my film history knowledge makes me doubt that his memories are totally accurate. Hollywood's history of sexism is also revealed in some of his narrative. This wasn't quite all that I was hoping it would be.
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