Saturday Snapshot ~ September 8

Saturday Snapshot is a weekly meme hosted by At Home With Books

I took this picture at our city's summer street art fair.  This woman is a member of the Detroit Fire Guild, and she moved in a poetic explosion of color, light, movement, and fire.  I like this photo, as messy as it is, because it is like looking through a kaleidoscope. 

R.I.P. VII

Imbibe all things ghastly and ghostly with Stainless Steel Droppings

What is it?

The purpose of R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril VII is to enjoy books and movies/television that could be classified (by you) as:

Mystery.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Dark Fantasy.
Gothic.
Horror.
Supernatural.
Or anything sufficiently moody that shares a kinship with the above.

I love October and Halloween and all that it means ~ scary books, scary movies, haunted houses, costumes, and the creepy spooky that goes with it. I saw this on BookBelle, and had to follow suit!

I am going to start with Peril the Third or, the One Book Only option:  I am sure this will change but for now, I'm good.  Actually this is a short book, so it might count as Peril of the Short Story

The Dunwich Horror by H.P. Lovecraft

My brother is a Lovecraft superfan.  Do they call them Lovecraftians?  Anyway, he has been telling me for years to read H.P. Lovecraft.  This is the perfect opportunity to go all out and read one of his books.  

The White Forest ~ Review

Title: The White Forest
Author: Adam McOmber
Source: NetGalley

Goodreads Summary:

In the bestselling tradition of The Night Circus and Sarah Waters’s The Little Stranger, Adam McOmber’s hauntingly original debut novel follows a young woman in Victorian England whose peculiar abilities help her infiltrate a mysterious secret society.

Young Jane Silverlake lives with her father at a crumbling family estate on the edge of Hampstead Heath. Jane has a secret—an unexplainable gift that allows her to see the souls of manmade objects—and this talent isolates her from the outside world. Her greatest joy is wandering the wild heath with her neighbors, Madeline and Nathan. But as the friends come of age, their idyll is shattered by the feelings both girls develop for Nathan, and by Nathan’s interest in a cult led by Ariston Day, a charismatic mystic popular with London's elite. Day encourages his followers to explore dream manipulation, with the goal of discovering a new virtual reality, a place he calls the Empyrean.     

A year later, Nathan has vanished, and the famed Inspector Vidocq arrives in London to untangle the events that led up to Nathan’s disappearance. As a sinister truth emerges, Jane realizes she must discover the origins of her talent and use it to find Nathan herself, before it’s too late.    

Adam McOmber, whose short story collection This New and Poisonous Air earned glowing praise for its evocative prose, here reveals a gift for fantastical twists and dark turns that literary fans will relish.


My thoughts:

I have mixed feelings about this book ~ it left me in a weird mood, kind of depressed and grouchy and blank.  The imagery is cold and frigid, not of this earth, stark and alien.  I kept picturing the landscape like one that had the life sucked out of it and all that was left was a white husk.

The story is told from the point of view of Jane Silverlake - a plain girl who sounds like she has an ethereal beauty, white skin and gray eyes.  She is not a nice person, not really.  She torments her maid, and her feelings for her friends, Maddy and Nathan, are excessive bordering on obsessive.  I think the story being told from her viewpoint is one reason the book is so cold ~ Jane is not that warm of a person.  She is isolated and removed and detached from the world, with the exception of her friends.  And even that is a little messed up ~ she wants all their attention, Maddy's and Nathan's, and doesn't seem to even want to share them with each other.  

Jane also has a special talent ~ she can feel the vibrations and colors from man made objects, their souls if they had one.  If one were to touch her skin, they would feel this through her.  Her power can kill and topple buildings and swallow people up, sending them to a world called the Empyrean.  Nathan is obsessed with her power, and wants to feel more and more of it.  Nathan and Maddy also have a special relationship, without Jane.  This leads to some major issues, and Nathan disappears.

The rest of the book is finding Nathan, and learning more about his interests and Jane's talents.  It gets all mystical, with the White Forest, white apes, Ariston Day and his fetches, the Lady of the Flowers and the Empyrean.  

I did love the poetic-like writing of this novel ~ it flowed beautifully and evoked haunting images, and the story itself was haunting as well.  You really felt transported to another world and time, and the mystery kept your attention.

This book was unexpected ~ it was not like what I thought it would be like at all.  Although it was all a surprise, I did find myself liking it, although it was a little weird and cold.  I could picture reading in winter, when the world outside was just as white and unearthly. 

Top Ten Books On My Fall TBR

A weekly meme from The Broke and The Bookish

This weeks topic is:

Top Ten Books on My Fall TBR

1.  Cold Days by Jim Butcher:  I love the Harry Dresden series!

2.  The Twelve by Justin Cronin: I feel I have been waiting forever for this sequel to The Passage!!

3.  Into the Woods by Kim Harrison:  I just love the Rachel Mariana Morgan books!!

4.  Fairy Tales From the Brothers Grimm by Phillip Pullman:  I have always been a collector of different fairy tale books.  I love the Dark Materials books, so I am curious what he does with this collection.








5.  The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern: I know everyone on earth has already read this, but somehow I haven't! I am determined to read it this fall.

6. Beautiful Redemption by Kim Garcia and Margaret Stohl: I can't stay away from this series.  I feel like Don Corleone from the Godfather.









7.  Ten by Gretchen McNeil:  I am always looking for books that look scary, especially during the fall.  This book looks like it will fit the bill.

8. Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson:  I am a huge fan of Peter Pan stories, and Tiger Lily is one of my favorite characters from Peter Pan.  I am excited to read this! I have been on the waiting list at the library forever for it.

9.  The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater:  I read Stiefvater's werewolf series, and I liked that she took a little bit different direction with them. I am going to give this series a whirl too.

10.  The Demon Lover by Juliet Dark: I have to admit I am most excited about this book.  Juliet Dark is a pen name for Carol Goodman and Carol Goodman is definitely a top ten favorite author for me. I didn't realize she had a book out under a different name, so when I found it, I was super excited.

It's Monday, What Are You Reading?

It's Monday, What Are You Reading is a weekly blog meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey where you list the books you read last week and the ones you hope to read this week.    

Read Last Week:

             

The White Forest by Adam McOmber:  I am still reading this actually.  I am enjoying it so far, but the font is too small for my eyes! Lol.  It is making it hard to read for long.  I am reading it on a Nook, I don't know if I can adjust the font size?

The Sisters Montclair by Cathy Holton:  I really enjoyed this book!!! Set in the south, old houses, old families, mystery ~ I love it all.

The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh: This book blew me away with how good it was.  It even made a little teary is some places.

Into the Pumpkin by Linda Franklin:  I thought this book had wonderful illustrations.  I did get a little cranky with a part of it though. And I always feel badly when I say something negative about a book when it is my own personal pet peeve.  

Reading this week:

I am setting the bar high for myself my first week back to work, and because I am still working on White Forest. I don't think I will get through all of these, but I am going to give it a whirl!

                               

A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick:  My stepmom gave this to me to read.  It sounds very intriguing!!

Kept by Shawntelle Madison:  I requested this from NetGalley because the blurb said that fans of Patricia Briggs would enjoy it. I like Patricia Briggs, so it would be great to find another author like her.

The White Glove War by Katie Crouch and Grady Hendrix:  I read the The Magnolia League last summer, and I forgot about the second one until last week when I saw it on someone else's blog! I really do need to write down where I find out about books.
         

   

   

Into the Pumpkin ~ Review

Title: Into the Pumpkin
Author:  Linda Franklin
Source: NetGalley

Goodreads Summary:

The fun of Halloween comes alive in this beautifully illustrated children's book. The drawings, done each year by the author on the eve of Halloween, follow various "Halloween" characters as they prepare to celebrate this mystical holiday -- pumpkins, witches, bats, ravens, black cats, scarecrows, spiders, ghosts, and more. Should they have their party in the graveyard or the pumpkin patch? Should they dress up or simply go as themselves? Take a ride on the witch's broom and enter the pumpkin for a magical trip both you and your kids will not soon forget. Pre-K through 6th.

Linda Franklin is an award-winning artist whose work is widely exhibited in private collections throughout the United States. She is also a celebrated teacher who has launched many aspiring artists onto careers of their own.

My thoughts:

For the most part, I thought this book was beautifully done.  I loved the little accompanying text to the artwork, which was amazing.  I loved how it was spooky, and eerie without being too scary.  The ghouls and the pumpkin man were the creepiest, but the watery type style tempered the scary.  I thought that Franklin's idea of the party taking place through the pumpkin was pretty clever, and original.  

Let me preface - Halloween is my favorite holiday. ;)  I know I mentioned last week about the kids at our school clamoring for Halloween books. I am more than happy to oblige, since I like them too, and always have.  I thought the creatures that showed up to this Halloween party within the pumpkin were all pretty good.  Except the black cat.

 Let me get on my animal rescue soap box here for a minute.  I really hate to say all this, but I really believe strongly in what I am about to discuss.  So I hope I don't offend or bore you. However, I HATE the use of black cats as an example of a Halloween creature, and I wish it wasn't used anymore.  I volunteer at our local pound, and black cats (and black dogs!) are the most overlooked of all the animals. People come in and say things like "I don't want to hold that black cat, they are so unlucky!" or "Ugh, I hate black cats - they are creepy and sneaky!" This drives me crazy! And sadly and disgustingly, black cats are also tormented and tortured around Halloween.   You would think that our society could get past this black cat stigmata, but it hasn't yet.  I have a black cat.  A lot of my friends have black cats.  And they are wonderful loving animals, just like more colorful cats.  I really feel that using their image for Halloween purposes perpetuates the stereotype. Phew. Now I have that off my chest and can go on.  

All in all, I did like this book - there were just two pages that didn't sit well with me, and that is because of my closeness to the situation.  And that is just my own personal hangup. I know its not something a lot of people would think about or worry about. Otherwise, this is an adorable and appropriately spooky picture book. 

Love Letters from Ladybug Farm ~ Review

Title: Love Letters from Ladybug Farm
Author: Donna Ball
Source: Library

Goodreads Summary:

Love is in the air in this delightful novel-third in the bestselling Ladybug Farm series from award-winning author Donna Ball. 

Renovating a broken-down mansion in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley gave three lifelong friends a welcome second chance. But after taking the biggest risk of their lives, are these women also willing to risk their hearts?

All the effort Cici, Lindsay, and Bridget have put into transforming an historic but overgrown farm into an upscale winery and special events business is paying off-Ladybug Farm has been chosen to host a society wedding. What this really means is that they are about to be invaded by warring mothers-in-law, a Bridezilla, and a completely clueless groom. They have their hands full keeping Ladybug Farm from descending into total chaos.

But there's something about a wedding...


My thoughts:

This book was fun for me to read not only because I really enjoy this series, but because my family has three weddings this fall: my husband's brother is getting married in September, my brother is getting married in November, and then my cousin is also getting married in November.  There is a lot of wedding planning going on, so it was kind of neat to read this book right now. Thank god all the brides in my family are happy and fun brides - not Bridezillas!! 

This book was a little different from the previous two.  Before the focus of the book was on getting the farm in order and fixing the house, and the history of the house.  This time the book shifts to what they are all doing to keep the house solvent and pay their bills.  They end of hosting a wedding, that goes very awry, despite all the careful planning and attention to detail.  It was good to remember that no matter what you think you are prepared for, you are not ~ it is best to remember the important part of a wedding is not the actual wedding or reception, its the marriage itself.  

It is also a little different because the ladies of Ladybug Farm find themselves in relationships.  It was adorable.  The end however surprised me!  

As always though with this series, they were fun, easy, escape from stress and life books.  All you have to do is fall into their world in Shenandoah on Ladybug Farm.