The Jacky Faber Series

Yes, I still read. No, I don't take the time to post. Going to have to work on that... again.

Right now I'm reading the 4th book in the Jack Faber series by L.A. Meyer. I'm 41 years old and love these books. The husband found them for me, as he does most of what I read. I'm ok with that!

Anyway, Jacky is a lot of fun, not too precocious, and totally enviable. I constantly think that I would love to have adventures like hers but I know I'd probably not survive them. If I had gotten hold of these books when I was younger I think they could have really made a difference on who I am. Not that I'm not inspired right now but old takes less risks sometimes.

And even though I know she's going to get out of whatever situation she's in, I do still feel the tension and suspense and am often surprised by the twists and turns taken to get there. It's a good thing when I hope there aren't too many more books coming as I have other things to read! But of course, there are - looks like a total of 10.

Bloody Jack
Curse of the Blue Tattoo
Under the Jolly Roger
In the Belly of the Bloodhound

More Stuff I Read While In NOLA

Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill: not usually a fan of this genre but I'll make an exception.

The Mystic Arts of Erasing All Signs of Death by Charlie Huston: the husband says I didn't like this when he tried to play me the audio book. I don't really remember but it's probably true. It took a bit for me to get into it but it was worth it in the end.

Don't Kill The Messenger by Eileen Rendahl: looking for the sequel...

The Dog Park Club by Cynthia Robinson: uncomfortable similarities to a real-life case made this one hard to like as much as I wanted to.

I Can Still Read (and Occasionally Manage To)

I have been reading I just haven't been blogging about it. I don't like to write reviews and it didn't seem fair to just boil it down to "I liked it" or "I didn't like it". So I'm just going to post the titles and if I feel the need to say something, I will (even if it is just liked/didn't like). I'm going to start with the stuff I've been doing since we left for New Orleans. Anything I've read since my last post is SOL unless I add it in when I get home.


The Magicians by Lev Grossman: we started listening to this on the way to New Orleans but didn't finish it before the husband went home so I read the ending.  I think I might have liked it better reading it than listening to it but I will look for the second book.

Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde: it's Jasper Fforde. 'Nuff said.

Writers Gone Wild by Bill Peschel: most people who write for a living are pretty screwed up.

The Widow's Season by Laura Brodie: did a really good job of keeping me guessing and I didn't feel cheated at the end.

Midnight Riot by Ben Aaronovitch: will definitely be picking up the next books.

The Native Star by M.K. Hobson: kind of predictable but I enjoyed it. Not against getting the next one.


Archangel by Mike Conner: eh, it was ok. Not sure what the point was.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness: this one is getting its own post. LOVED IT.

#75

The Sons of Heaven (The Company) by Kage Baker. The long-awaited ending to a great series. I really enjoyed it but I'm sad the saga is over.

#74

The Machine's Child (The Company) by Kage Baker. Second to last book of a series I've been reading since the disastrous trip to Solvang (and the only good thing to some out it).

#73

Dog Is My Co-Pilot: Great Writers on the World's Oldest Friendship by Bark Editors. I was afraid it would make me cry, but it wasn't too sad.

#72 Tattoo Girl

Tattoo Girl by Brooke Stevens. Yes, I know it's out of order but for some reason I thought I'd already blogged it... Anyway, I picked this one up because of the title and almost put it back down when I saw what it was about, but I liked it. I can't say I enjoyed it because a lot of it is too dark to be enjoyable. But it was well done and thought-provoking. In the end it confirmed my belief that religion causes a lot of harm and that women are stronger than most people think.

#73 Interred With Their Bones

Interred With Their Bones by Jennifer Lee Carrell. HS gave me this because of the connection to Cardenio, the craptastic play we saw while in Boston. She warned me it wasn't great but that it was worth it. I have to say if I could have followed the logic of the "who was Shakespeare" plot then I would have enjoyed it more. It's probably just me but I got completly tangled up and ended up zoning out. So not particularly recommended by me.

#71 Empire of Ivory

Empire of Ivory by Naomi Novick. Yes, I read through all three in a row. If I had had the 5th book, I would have gone straight into it.

#70 Black Powder War

Black Powder War by Naomi Novick. Still love this series.

#69 Throne of Jade

Throne of Jade by Naomi Novick. Love this series.

#68 All That Matters

All That Matters by Jan Goldstein was shallower than I had hoped. I really didn't care so much for the 23 year old suicidal protagonist - I wanted to hear more about Nana's escape from the Nazis. Seems odd to say a book about a woman being saved from herself is shallow but that's how I feel.

#67 Sarah Canary

Sarah Canary by Karen Joy Fowler was not the book I thought it was going to be - not that it was bad. I'm not sure that I can explain it other than to say I wanted it to be different than it was and if I had known I probably wouldn't have read it.

#66 Ballad of the Whiskey Robber

Ballad of the Whiskey Robber: A True Story of Bank Heists, Ice Hockey, Transylvanian Pelt Smuggling, Moonlighting Detectives, and Broken Hearts by Julian Rubinstein - the title pretty much sums it up... Actually, I really enjoyed this one, learning about Hungary and Eastern Europe after the fall of Communism and how it affected ordinary people through the rise and downfall of a hockey goalie who robs banks and post offices. I would recommend this one, despite the slightly cheesey cover art.

#65 Coffee and Kung Fu

Coffee and Kung Fu by Karen Brichoux is a light, easy read set in Boston. Have to say I was excited by that fact, hoping it would serve a bit as a travel guide. Sadly, not so much. But it was entertaining if not exactly inspiring. Well, I shouldn't say that as some parts made me wistful but in the end, it's a modern day fairy tale and everything turns out ok.

#64 Pope Joan

Pope Joan: A Novel by Donna Cross is another historical fiction set in the 9th century. Damn, I love this type of book. The legend/historical fact at the heart of this one is the election of a woman (disguised as a man) to the throne of St Peter. Apparently, a lot of smart women spent their lives disguised as men through the centuries.

I really enjoyed this one - the details were meticulous but only added to the story. Plus, some of the names were familiar to me from the are in So. Indiana where my grandparents lived. That's always a nice touch.

#63 I, Lucifer

I, Lucifer: Finally, the Other Side of the Story by Glen Duncan. I didn't warm up to this book right away even though I usually love books that feature angels (not religious stuff, but as characters). This one had a good concept but the delivery was a bit crude for my tastes (lots of cursing and weird sex stuff). I eventually got into it more but I still think he could have been less pornographic. And then it took me a while to realize the writer in the book had a name that was derived from the author's name (Declan Gunn). Not sure how I feel about that, as if he cares...

#62 Life of Pi

Life of Pi by Yann Martel. I finally found this after more than a year and brought it to Boston with me. I loved this book. There's so much detail and spirit and it's just the coolest concept. I keep meaning to google it and see if any of it is true - doesn't really matter, though. I'd recommend this to anyone.

#61 Quite A Year For Plums

Quite a Year for Plums: A Novel by Bailey White. Have to say I didn't care much for this one. The characters are quirky and interesting, but their actions don't amount to much. I guess it's meant to be a snapshot of life, but I wanted it to go somewhere or do something more concrete.

#60 Men Of Tomorrow

Men Of Tomorrow: Geeks, Gangsters, and the Birth of the Comic Book by Gerard Jones. The husband asked me to read this one and although I would have never picked it up on my own I really liked it. I have to say the "true" history of comic books is nothing like what you'd imagine. It's almost sad to think of the people who got chewed up and spit out. But it's fascinating to realize that for almost all of these guys, it was just a job.