Ill Wind- Weather Warden Book 1- by Rachel Caine
This book was recommended to me because I like the Jim Butcher series starring Harry Dresden and there are a lot of parallels. Here, there is a group of people who controll the earth, air, water and fire. Their job is to try and tame Mother Nature's natural disasters. They rein in hurricanes, smother wild-fires and downgrade earthquakes. The heroine is Joanna Baldwin who works with air and water. She's leading a normal Weather Warden life until she is nabbed and given a Demon Mark. Running out of time, she tries to rid herself of the Demon before it takes her over. She meets and befriends a Djinn who helps her along the way.
I like the book but there was quite a bit of romance novel mixed in her. Joanna is, of course, gorgeous and every man she meets falls for her. There's quite a few love scenes strewn about the book quite liberally. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for love but it seemed a bit much. The ending was definately unexpected and I'll probaby checkout the next in this series but it hasn't made it to my Must Read shelf quite yet. Not bad, but I'm sticking with Jim Butcher so far.
Buried Deep - A Retrieval Artist Novel by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
I don't read a lot of true sci-fi. I'm just not a big fan of the space battles and military overtones. The sci-fi books I do like tend to focus more on futuristic culture and moral story lines rather than space opera and the Retrieval Artist series is fast becoming one of my favorites.
The first book in this series introduced me to the two main characters. Miles Flint and Noelle DeRicci. In the first book they were partners but Miles left the police force to become a retrieval artist which is basically someone who finds missing persons. I thought the first book was just ok but every book after has been awesome. I love the fact that the plot lines revolve around diplomancy and legal wrangling. You think laws are complicated now, in this future you have to navigate not only human laws but alien laws too. And this is where the trouble erupts.
In this story, the alien species are the Disty who control Mars. In their culture, they fear death. Anyone who comes near a dead body is considered "contaminated" and must be cleansed. This is no big deal for a Disty. However, the cleansing process will kill a human. So when Aisha Costard of Earth stumbles across a skeleton in a Disty neighborhood, she has no idea she has just signed her own death warrant. Of couse, the dead body leads to more dead and causes a major cultural disaster between the humans and Disty living on Mars. The Disty decided the only way to decontaminate the site is to burn everything and everyone -Disty and human- on Mars and start again. It's up to Noelle, Miles, and a few diplomates to negotiate a more peaceful resolution.
I read this book fast and furiously. Both Miles and Noelle are honest but flawed heros and under a serious amount of pressure. No massive space battles or ship maneuvers just good old fashioned detecting and legal work. Awesome. Can't wait for the next in this series!
The Forgotten Man : An Elvis Cole Novel by Robert Crais
Ah, another Elvis Cole novel. I love Elvis. You just can't go wrong with an Elvis Cole novel. Some are better than others but everyone is worth reading in my book. Lately though, the humor has been a bit light and the plot lines a bit dark. Our wise cracking hero has a broken heart and appears to be suffering from a mild depression. This is not good. The mystery and the action and the plot, however, suffer no such malaise. I read this book in one day which isn't easy to do since I was attempting to watch both kids at the same time. I just couldn't put it down. I'm hoping Elvis snaps out of his blues soon. He's getting a bit moopy for my taste. Also, I wanted more Pike action. But enough complaints. I devoured this book quickly and it was very tasty. I'd recommend you do the same. My only word of caution is that you should read the book before this one in the series to really understand what is going on. There's quite a bit of reference to Elvis' last adventure. Here's hoping the next is out in paperback soon.
Priestess of the White (Age of the Five Trilogy, Book 1) by Trudi Canavan
I don't remember why or where I picked this book up. It is a new sword and sorcery series that focuses on five people who are given magical powers to act as the hands of the gods to a realm. I'm only luke warm about this book. The good characters are 100% good and have no real depth. The five "good" sorcerers discover five "evil" sorcerers and the climax of the book is a big magical battle. There's a race of small flying people and one individual manages to become crucial in the final battle and swings the battle to the side of good. Yes, yet another nod to Lord of the Rings. Nothing bad here but nothing original. Lots of stereotypes to the extent of the good guys wear white and the baddies wear black. Duh. This may be one of five but I think for me, it's going to be one of one.
Plain and Simple: A Journey to the Amish by Sue Bender
I picked this off the shelf at my mom's house. The cover was a photo of an Amish quilt that caught my eye and the back flap arosed my curiosity. This is a story of a woman, caught in the fast lane of everyday life, who sees an Amish quilt and decides to live with an Amish family to try and learn to live plain and simple. It's a story about trying to re-center yourself and purge the materialistic desires and stresses of the modern world. The author lived with two Amish families and although she learned how they lived, she had a very hard time adapting their lifestyle to her own. I liked her experiences with the Amish. The idea of giving equal attention to everything you do was stiking. They take as much time and pride in cleaning up after dinner as making a quilt of tending a garden. Every task is important. Nothing is rated as better or worse. It truely is a whole other world. I think I would have liked to read this book with a group. There was a lot I would have liked to discussed and mulled over a bit more. It's a small book but there were quite a few things that hit home with me. I may pick it up and read it again a little slower next time. If you are tired of the rat race, give this novel a try.
Angel At Troublesome Creek by Mignon F. Ballard
I went back and picked up the first in the Augusta Goodnight mystery series and it was so sweet! What a fun and relaxing read. The mystery isn't too deep and the ending is happy but I just like the idea of having a guardian angel. This is angel Augusta's first assignment back on earth since WWII and her reactions to the modern world are quite sweet. She doesn't interceed directly. Instead, her actions are much more subtle. Her help comes in the form of a good meal, slowing down, thinking things through, and even summoning a little courage to do something different. This story involved a murdered Aunt and a missing bible. Of course, there was a bit of romance thrown in for good measure. Each book stood alone but reading them together was the way to go. I'm eager for the next in this series!