It's hopping time again!

BOOK BLOGGER HOP

Welcome, hoppers, to a sunny winter day here in TouristTown.  We survived the crippling December (crippling in sales AND in snow) and we're back at the shop where things are FINALLY starting to take off again a month into the new year.  Let's just hope we don't get any more bad weather...  Fortunately, round here in BlogTown things are rather more warm, friendly and most importantly, busy.  Over at LibraryThing we've started a read-a-thon group - a host volunteers, a date is set, and away we go - and it's becoming a regular thing.  I've hosted three 24-hour all-night jobbies so far, and joined two that I just dropped into when I could.  All of which is adding up to plenty of reading - and thus, reviewing - being done, hooray!

Soooo, come on in, everyone, take a look around!  As you might have gathered, I'm a young bookseller, and I run a second-hand bookshop in a quaint little tourist town with my mum.  This blog is a bit of a mixed bookish bag really - a few memes, updates on my rampant book-buying addiction, and, of course, reviews, mixed in with a few random titbits on life in general - favourite food, swoonworthy TV characters, owls, our kittens... whatever's floating my boat that day really!  After the reading lethargy that swept the blogosphere before Christmas, taking me with it, I'm hoping things will be a little more active round here again from now on.  When I'm not fielding pensioners at the shop or glued to the TV screen lusting over Milo Ventimiglia in Gilmore Girls, obviously...

*Sigh* Anyway, don't forget to leave me a note in the comments so I can return the visit...

Here's this week's Hop question:
"What book are you most looking forward to seeing published in 2011?  Why are you anticipating that book?"
Honestly?  I have no idea!  None of the titles I've seen in the many 'anticipated books of 2011' lists around right now have leapt out at me, and I don't tend to look too far ahead when it comes to newly-published books.  I have a huge Amazon wishlist that has some not-yet-published titles on it, but because I buy so many books already and have so many on my shelves, if I decide to buy a new book by trawling the list, a title is either available or its not.  There'll always be something to buy!  I look for new books in the bestseller charts and in The Times Saturday Review, and sometimes it's a nice surprise to go into a bookshop and find a book I've been hearing about but didn't know was out yet, or find that the latest in a series has reached the shelves at last.  I guess I'm looking forward to Passion by Lauren Kate - is that being published this year?  Y'know, as soon as I publish this I'll probably think of something really good...   :-)

NOTE:

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy For Books

The Thirty-Nine Steps, by John Buchan

REVIEW: THE THIRTY-NINE STEPS (3.5*)

by John Buchan (Wordsworth Classics, 1996)

Richard Hannay is bored out of his skull in London, and about ready to head abroad again in search of a more diverting life. But lo! In the first of many amazing coincidences, his American neighbour accosts him in the hallway that very day and begs him for help. He has discovered a cunning plot to start a war between Germany and Russia, and since he knows too much, the men in question want him dead.

A day or two later, when Hannay finds said neighbour on his smoking room floor with a knife through his heart, he realises he must run - so run he does! With the police behind him for murder, and the warmongers out to stop him hijacking their plans at any cost, the book becomes a helter-skelter race against time as Hannay fights to stay alive long enough to act on his late friend's information and stop the dastardly German plot.

There's a whole lot of running across moors and splashing through streams, improvised disguises and quick thinking, and, of course, hiding from that iconic aeroplane full of baddies. Buchan wrote that he meant this to be a "shocker' - the romance where the incidents defy the probabilities, and march just inside the borders of the possible' - and that is exactly what he delivers. It is fast and absorbing, faintly amusing and utterly absurd at times - and well worth a couple of hours of guilty-pleasure reading time!

Garden Spells, by Sarah Addison Allen

REVIEW: GARDEN SPELLS (4*)

by Sarah Addison Allen (Hodder & Stoughton, 2008)

This book was like a fabulous fusion of Like Water for Chocolate and Practical Magic. In short, magical and delicious! Where there were the mysterious Owens women and their supernatural powers, there are the mysterious Waverley women and their unique gifts; where there was downtrodden Tita and her passion-infused cooking, there is quiet Claire and her ever-blooming edible flowers... There are even two chalk 'n' cheese sisters, one homegirl, one tearaway, like Gillian and Sally!

Anyway, back to this book. The plot centres around two sisters, Claire and Sydney Waverley. Claire lives in her grandmother's old house in a small town, keeping to herself, running a catering company and tending her amazing garden. This garden is surrounded by high walls and cloaked in mystery, because the flowers there grow all year round, and the apple tree is rumoured to produce fruit that will reveal the biggest event of the eater's life, for good or bad. Wild Sydney is on the run with her little daughter Bay, desperate to escape an abusive relationship. To her despair, she realises she has no option but to go home and claim the sanctuary of her home town, even though it means returning to her roots as a 'strange' Waverley woman. For Claire, life is about to be turned upside down as Sydney and Bay arrive on her doorstep and handsome Tyler moves in next door, shattering her solitude forever...

This is a wonderful book. It is frothy and fun, with an abundance of quirky romance and quick-witted humour. Claire and Sydney play off each other's clashing personalities beautifully, and there are some wonderful small-town characters. Evanelle, a distant Waverley cousin with a penchant for young mens' bottoms and a talent for giving people what they need just before they need it, is particularly delightful, and the mischievous apple tree is almost a character in its own right! At the same time, the family relationships are deftly written, and there are some genuinely frightening moments as Sydney tries to escape from Bay's abusive father, whose presence lingers menacingly through the whole novel. The verdict? Highly recommended - and I'm glad I have The Sugar Queen already waiting on my shelves!

Blink, by Malcolm Gladwell

REVIEW: BLINK - THE POWER OF THINKING WITHOUT THINKING (3*)

by Malcolm Gladwell (Allen Lane, 2005)

I love popular psychology and social science books, and Malcolm Gladwell seems to be the name to watch right now. I already have his book The Tipping Point sitting on my shelves, but Blink really tickled my fancy. The whole book is constructed around the fascinating premise that snap judgements and tiny amounts of pertinent information can be of more value in assessing a situation or solving a problem than a detailed and lengthy analysis.

Gladwell opens with the story of the Getty kouros, an ancient statue bought by the Getty museum for $10 million. The kouros and its papers had been through rigorous testing and legal checking to verify its age, provenance and handling. But when a select group of art and sculpture experts arrived at the museum to view the piece, it all fell apart. Each and every one of them instinctively felt that something was wrong with it. They didn't know what, exactly, but something about it wasn't quite right. Sure enough, with these opinions in mind the Getty probed further and found that the statue was indeed a fake...

The book then goes on to explore different facets of the 'Don't think - blink' argument. How a high level of detailed knowledge and expertise can allow an individual to 'thin-slice' and cut to the crux of a situation immediately. How thin-slicing can go awry, for example in moments of extreme stress, when your mind focuses on the wrong information and skews your interpretation, sometimes with fatal results. How the 'Blink' ethos can apply in the worlds of marriage counselling, law enforcement, music auditions, food testing and more.

There are some fascinating anecdotes and examples to illustrate this principle, but at the same time this is where Gladwell falls. As the book progresses these anecdotes get longer and more difficult to relate back to the pithy opening hypothesis. They are absorbing and Gladwell's journalistic background is evident in their emotive drama, but they sometimes confuse the flow of the book and end up being more of a focal point than the argument itself.

All in all, this was an interesting book, with some thought-provoking ideas and intriguing stories, and Gladwell's style is very accessible, wryly humorous and easy to read. Ultimately, however, it could have been condensed into a shorter book, and there seemed to be a fair amount of superfluous material. I enjoyed it and learned a lot, but sadly, I think the book as a whole will prove forgettable...

Dreaming Anastasia winner!

CONGRATULATIONS!

The Dreaming Anastasia giveaway is now CLOSED and Random.org has determined that congrats are to be showered upon: 

sweet_heart_52_9

I've sent out an email to the winner so check your inbox!  If I don't get a response in the next couple of days a new winner will be drawn.  Thanks to all who entered, and happy reading!

Awkward Situations for Men, by Danny Wallace

REVIEW: AWKWARD SITUATIONS FOR MEN (3.5*)

by Danny Wallace (Ebury Press, 2010)

This book is a collection of Danny Wallace's columns from ShortList magazine, and pretty much does what it says on the tin. It's about all those awkward situations people find themselves in from time to time - particularly relevant to men, but every woman will recognise herself in there somewhere too. Whether it's walking behind a woman late at night or saying the wrong thing about someone's new baby, forgetting someone's name or getting stage fright in a public loo, Danny has done it, learned from it, then written about it. His columns are charmingly innocent, wonderfully funny and very much for the 'every man' - and if there is the odd slightly duff piece, it doesn't ruin the overall book. I'll be looking forward to finally getting to some of the other Danny Wallace books that have been sitting on my shelves for far too long!

Seasons of Life, by Russell Foster and Leon Kreitzman

It's been another busy one at the shop today.  Grouchy grannies, rude teens, screaming kids, and one woman who took 'No dogs except guide dogs' to mean 'Please, do bring in your muddy westie and a large wet labrador!'  *sigh*  Okay, so I might have had a headache and therefore been a little grouchier even than usual, but it was very, very nice to get home tonight.  Popcorn, apple juice, and a couple of episodes of Gilmore Girls can really turn a day around! 

So, to continue the more positive slant of the evening, here's yet another review.  I finished this book on Wednesday and have finished another one since, so I'm just trying to catch up on the reviews so I can actually, y'know, read again... 

REVIEW: SEASONS OF LIFE - THE BIOLOGICAL RHYTHMS THAT LIVING THINGS NEED TO THRIVE AND SURVIVE (4*)

by Russell Foster and Leon Kreitzman (Profile Books, 2009)

Foster and Kreitzman's first book, Rhythms of Life, explained the importance of the circadian, or daily, rhythms that animals and plants live by. This second venture shifts the time span outwards and delves into the complexities of circannual, or seasonal, rhythms.

The first chapter is devoted to plants, and the way in which they use circannual rhythms to initiate flowering and other vital events in their yearly cycle. There are chapters on circannual rhythms in animals and birds, including the timing of conception and reproduction, hibernation and migration. These chapters clearly set out the latest research on why and how these rhythms operate, how they contribute to species survival, and demonstrate the way all of nature is connected in a giant web of interdependent species and individuals.

Finally there are chapters on the effects of circannual rhythms on humans. This includes such fascinating topics as the prevalence of certain illnesses at different times of year, birth and death patterns in different seasons, and a chapter on SAD, including research and ideas on its prevention and treatment.

This was definitely not what you would call an easy read. The chapters on animals and plants are very detailed and there is a fair amount of biological terminology to get your head around, as well as diagrams that take a little time to study and understand. That said, Foster and Kreitzman have done a great job at explaining things for the lay reader and making the book as accessible as possible without losing its scientific rigour. The chapters on human circannual rhythms are much easier to understand anyway, approaching the subject on a more sociological basis to reflect both the effects of complex social issues on our lives and the relative lack of knowledge about our human internal clocks. A very worthwhile and interesting read!

My first blog hop of 2011!

BOOK BLOGGER HOP

Welcome, hoppers, to a New Year here down on the blog.  We survived the crippling December (crippling in sales AND in snow) and we're back at the shop for another round of Hunt the Customer.  Fortunately, round here in BlogTown things are rather more warm, friendly and most importantly, busy.  Over at LibraryThing we've started a regular read-a-thon group - a host volunteers, a date is set, and away we go - and this week alone I've done THREE.  Two 24-hour all-night jobbies that I hosted, and one that I just dropped into when I could.  All of which is adding up to plenty of reading being done, hooray!

Soooo, come on in, everyone, take a look around!  As you might have gathered, I'm a young bookseller, and I run a second-hand bookshop in a quaint little tourist town with my mum.  This blog is a bit of a mixed bookish bag really - a few memes, crazy customer stories, updates on my rampant book-buying addiction, and, of course, reviews, mixed in with a few random titbits on life in general - favourite food, swoonworthy TV characters, owls, our kittens... whatever's floating my boat that day really!  After the reading lethargy that swept the blogosphere before Christmas, taking me with it, I'm hoping things will be a little more active round here again from now on.  When I'm not fielding pensioners at the shop or glued to the TV screen watching Gilmore Girls, obviously...
Anyway, don't forget to leave me a note in the comments so I can return the visit...

Here's this week's Hop question:
"Why do you read the genre that you do?  What draws you to it?"
I read a bit of everything, so this question just doesn't really apply to me.  I read YA books for a light and easy read, and because the blogosphere is full of great recommendations to choose from.  I read fiction for a bit of escapism and as a general fall-back choice.  I read science and other non-fiction books because I'm eager to learn and know more about the things I'm interested in.  I read classics because there's usually a good reason a book has endured so long.  I think every book has its value, as a bit of brain candy, to cheer you up, to make you think, to teach you something, to expand your horizons, so I'll read anything, from any genre, as long as something about the plot or characters or subject appeals at the time...

Hmmm, slightly crap answer, sorry!  I'll try to do better next time!

NOTE:

The Book Blogger Hop is hosted by Jennifer at Crazy For Books

Bachelor Brothers' Bed and Breakfast, by Bill Richardson

REVIEW: BACHELOR BROTHERS' BED AND BREAKFAST (4*)

by Bill Richardson (St. Martin's Press, 1993)

When I heard that this book was about literature-loving twin brothers, running a bookish B&B where guests could come to read and escape, I had an idea it might be right up my street. I wasn't disappointed! It was like reading the love child of 84, Charing Cross Road and a P.G. Wodehouse novel.

Part of the charm of the book lies in its whimsical structure. Hector and Virgil (named not after the classics but after twin bulls born locally on the same day) each 'write' their own sections of their story, and their narrative is interspersed with testimonies from guests at their B&B, recipes and book and author lists. The brothers share stories of their eccentric mother, thoughts on their opinionated parrot Mrs Rochester and mouse-killing cat Waffle, and musings on love, life and books. Each guest has their own tale to tell, perhaps of how they came to visit the B&B, or about their love for a particular author. There's even a little poetry from the so-bad-he's-good local poet.

I'm not sure I'd read it again, and it lost a star for a couple of slightly less sparkling sections and the way the bookish side of things slipped away a little towards the end, but this was still a thoroughly enjoyable novel. It is original, very amusing, full of charming characters and astute observations, and is a perfect book to curl up with on a Sunday afternoon with a cup of tea and a slice of cake. Enjoy!


NOTABLE QUOTABLES:

• "I love the phrase "learning by heart", especially when it is applied to poetry, because it seems such a perfect description of the process of memorizing words that have been carefully chosen and weighed and handled.  The heart, I think, which is the home of all things rhythmic, is where learned poems to go live."
• "It pleases me so much to find odds and sods that have been left behind in books.  This is evidence that books - even bad books - are organic: not just static and moribund repositories for calcifying ruminations.  They grow and change as they pass from hand to hand.  Here is a sign that readers, as well as writers, share the human need to leave some sign or symbol that we have passed this way."

My first challenge book down - hooray!

REVIEW: HOLES (4*)

by Louis Sachar (Bloomsbury, 2000)

This book arrived on my shelves in that roundabout way that can sometimes yield such excellent results. I noticed that there was a film called Holes. I saw a book called Holes appearing in countdowns of favourite novels, and even on the BBC Big Read list. A few years later, I happened to see the film. Another year or two later and I suddenly thought 'Hey, I want to read that book!' So I ordered it and voila! There it was, on my shelves. And thank heavens this wonderful process went without a hitch, because I'd have missed a treat...

Stanley Yelnats is on his way to Camp Green Lake, a remote correctional facility which runs on the basis that young offenders will become better people by digging holes across the vast empty lake bed. One hole every day, five feet across and five feet deep - and for heaven's sake, if you come across a yellow-spotted lizard, run for your life, because you do not want to be bitten by one of those. In between the narrative of Stanley's stay twist the old tales that have become Yelnat family myth: that of his great-great-grandfather Elya, whose broken promise led to an elderly Egyptian woman cursing him and his descendents, and of his great-grandfather, the first Stanley Yelnats, who was robbed by the notorious outlaw Kissin' Kate Barlow and left on the desert plain to die. As the novel progresses these tales begin to echo down the years, whispering clues and engineering coincidences, until Stanley begins to suspect there's more to the increasingly sinister Camp Green Lake than meets the eye...

This book has everything. A wicked sense of humour and a divine sense of the bizarre. A haunting backdrop and a weepie moment or three. A motley crew of heroes and villains sweeping across the generations. Rattlesnakes and magic mountains, onions and sneakers - oh, and LOTS of holes. Look, just take my word for it, okay? Read it!

A Lauren Kate review and giveaway reminder!

Well well, this new year of reading is getting off to a fabulous start!  Over the course of three LibraryThing read-a-thons this week (two 24-hour marathons hosted by moi, and one hosted by someone else so I could read from work and drop in when I could) I've managed to devour a whole heap of books!  Not only that, but the prolonged periods of bookish concentration are doing wonders for my reading focus the rest of the time too...  So, without further ado, here's the first review owing from the latest one:

REVIEW: THE BETRAYAL OF NATALIE HARGROVE (3.5*)

by Lauren Kate (Corgi, 2011)

I really enjoyed Fallen and Torment, so I was thrilled to receive a copy of Lauren Kate's newly-published debut novel for review. For me, it wasn't quite as enjoyable as the Fallen series, with its complex supernatural world and intense characters and relationships, but it still had a lot going for it.

Natalie Hargrove, our protagonist, is sailing through each day at school with only one thing on her mind: securing the positions of Palmetto Prince and Princess for herself and her boyfriend Mike. Her crown is pretty much in the bag, but Mike just doesn't seem interested in their campaign and there is a fly in the princely ointment: Natalie's arch-enemy Justin Balmer. So when the opportunity arises to play a well-timed prank on him that will all but destroy his chances, she grabs it with both hands. To her horror, Justin is found dead the next morning and suddenly she and Mike are trying to get away with murder...

The first half of the novel didn't appeal to me very much at all. It was just too 'Mean Girls'. Natalie was a real Queen Bitch, wandering around making snide remarks about other people and glorying in her own popularity. The 'Bambies', a group of vacuous makeup-obsessed airheads who'll sleep with any boy that asks them, also feature heavily. Now, yes, patently the stupidity of this microcosm in which these girls imagine themselves to be mature, sexy and admirable is being ridiculed. But I really, truly hate girls like this and so it really put me off. Thank heavens for Mike, the laid-back rich boy, and Tracy, the hippie ruler of the junior girls' bathroom, who add a little personality to proceedings.

To my relief, the second half of the book really picked up. The other girls at school didn't feature so highly, and the novel zoomed in on Natalie herself, on her background and motives, and the experiences that had made her so ambitious. Suddenly her ruthlessness is exposed as desperation, her shallowness as naivety, and she becomes a little more likeable for it. As she and Mike struggle to keep their cool and evade the suspicion of the authorities and their schoolmates, the suspense and tension grow, and turn the novel into a real page-turner. The end was semi-expected but packed a hefty punch nonetheless, and although it provoked more questions than it answered, it closed the book on a high point.

I think I would have rated the book higher if I didn't have such a pathological aversion to the kind of characters that abound in Kate's school setting. Natalie's background story rounded her out as a person and redeemed her for me, and there were a couple of unusual characters and a slight hint of magical realism that added interest. I'd recommend this as a quick, light read for older teenagers - there are a fair few references to sex, drinking and drugs - and I'll be eagerly awaiting the release of Passion, the next in the Fallen series!

Note: Many thanks to Random House Children's Books, who sent this book for review.

... and a quick giveaway reminder!

Okay, so I forgot about my own giveaway.  What can I say, Christmas came, Christmas went, and all was busy!  Anyway, this is a final reminder that I am giving away a new copy of Dreaming Anastasia by Joy Preble, international entry, now closing at 12 noon GMT, Wednesday 19th January.  You can read my review of the book here, and enter the giveaway itself here.  Good luck!

The Chrysalids, by John Wyndham

REVIEW: THE CHRYSALIDS (4*)

by John Wyndham (Penguin, 2008)

This was my first John Wyndham novel and I had no idea what to expect. I wasn't even sure what it was about! I needn't have worried, because it entirely lived up to Wyndham's reputation as a classic science fiction writer.

The plot revolves around a group of children living in a dystopian society obsessed with 'God's True Image'. Anyone and anything that is seen to be 'wrong' is immediately stamped out as an agent of the devil. If a field of crops is less than perfect, it is burned. If a cow is malformed in some way, it is killed. And any human found to be different is stripped, sterilized and sent out into the 'Fringes', an area filled with exiled deviants, to live or die as they will. By taking these measures, the people of Labrador hope to appease God and rebuild the incredible society that existed before the Tribulation that turned the Badlands to deadly black lakes of burnt land and wiped out the 'Old People'. These children, who can communicate with a kind of advanced form of telepathy, know it's only a matter of time before their secret deviation is discovered and they'll have to fight for their lives...

I found this novel to be beautifully written and deeply thought-provoking. The obsession with the 'right' attributes that make someone human reminded me of the Nazi Aryan race, and was quite disturbing to read. There were elements of religion and philosophy, with characters musing on life and spirituality, and the real meaning of humanity. There were messages of tolerance, friendship and love. And behind all this there was a cracking good post-nuclear-apocalypse science-fiction story. With writing this good and plots this fascinating, this certainly won't be my last Wyndham - I think I might have to loan my houseplants out to someone and read 'The Day of the Triffids' next!

NOTABLE QUOTABLE:

• "The essential quality of life is living; the essential quality of living is change; change is evolution: and we are part of it.  The static, the enemy of change, is the enemy of life..."

My second post-read-a-thon review!

REVIEW: THE DARKEST NIGHT (3*)

by Gena Showalter (MIRA Books, 2009)

I'd been looking at this series for a while before finally succumbing to the scrummy covers and buying the first four books. This was my first Showalter and while it won't be my last, it wasn't as good as I thought it would be, based on her reputation as a paranormal romance writer.

The Lords of the Underworld are a group of big, strong men, created as warriors to the gods. After a terrible crime - opening Pandora's box and releasing the horrors inside - each has had a demon fused into their very being: Violence, Disease, Promiscuity, Pain, Wrath and more. This first novel mainly concentrates on Maddox, who has to live with Violence.

He is a tormented, brooding, muscular alpha male (so far, so good, right?) condemned to die every night and burn in hell until morning, after a further misdemeanour in which Violence took over and he killed Pandora herself. He is sent out of their Budapest castle one night when intruders are spotted on the hillside. Besides a new batch of Hunters, the men who have plagued the Lords through history, he discovers Ashlyn, a young woman who can hear every conversation ever held in every place she visits and who desperately seeks answers from the 'angels' on the hill. Against every instinct he possesses, Maddox manages to swallow his inner rage and takes her home to the castle, in a move that will turn all of their worlds upside down...

It's a little complicated, and this is where Showalter does well. The mythology she creates - ancient gods, Pandora's box, deadly sins, tormented keepers - is fascinating and well plotted. The way each Lord copes with their burden is distinct and sympathetic, and the 'back story' is revealed in gradual stages, with plenty of room for expansion as the series progresses.

The big disappointment for me, sadly, was the romance aspect of the novel. I just didn't feel the chemistry between Maddox and Ashlyn! Every instinct whispered that the romantic scenes were meant to be steamy and exciting - but they weren't. Perhaps it was because Maddox seemed to feel an inexplicable urge to bed Ashlyn every time he came within ten feet of her, creating a wave of testosterone akin to that of a teenage boy in a porn shop. Perhaps it was because when they were together, too much was told instead of implied. Who knows? All I know is, this paranormal romance would probably have been a lot less disappointing and a lot more exciting WITHOUT so much romance.

That said, it was a good little 'brain candy' read and I'll still be continuing with the series. Each book will deal with a different Lord, so perhaps I'll find a sin that's more my style later on!

REVIEW: BLACKLANDS (4*)

by Belinda Bauer (Corgi, 2010)

I picked this book up from the library on a whim, after seeing it on the list of TV Book Club choices a series or two ago. I'm glad I did, because I'd have missed out on a brilliant novel! It's a rather sinister book, and not one you could say you enjoyed, as such, but it's a fascinating read.

Steven Lamb is a young boy living in a broken family. Not broken in the traditional sense, perhaps, but definitely not whole. His grandmother is haunted by the unresolved murder of his uncle Billy, snatched by a serial killer as a child but never found. Every day she stands by the window waiting for her son to return home. Every day she shows her resentment of her grandson, and every day her daughter Lettie, Steven's mother, feels guilty that the resemblance between Steven and Billy has caused her, in turn, to love her younger son Davey more. And so Steven has spent the last few years digging. Every day he walks up onto Exmoor, where the bodies of several other children were found, and digs methodically, searching for his uncle.

But his hope and patience are wearing thin. The moors are vast and in three years he has found nothing. So he wonders if there is another way. He sits down and writes a letter to Arnold Avery, the man who was convicted of the murders all that time ago, asking him for Billy's location. Avery is fascinated by this blunt question from the mysterious SL, and begins a correspondence that quickly turns into a disturbing game from which neither can extract themselves...

For the most part the novel wasn't fast-paced exactly, but it was certainly absorbing. Bauer writes some sections from Steven's point of view, and others from Avery's. Steven has a naivety and innocence about him, despite his difficult circumstances, but it is Avery's sections that are sickenly compulsive. To see through the mind of this paedophile and killer, to see his thought processes and devious nature, is to see right into an abyss of evil insanity. It's extremely well written and creepy as hell. Of course, things were going to go wrong for Steven at some point, and when the climax started to build I couldn't stop reading. It was exciting, horrifying and terrifyingly plausible.

An excellent book, and one I'd highly recommend even to people who aren't huge fans of the crime/thriller genre. I think it's different enough to appeal more widely as a work of fiction, and as a debut novel it is an outstanding achievement well deserving of the attention heaped upon it after its TV spotlight. A great start to a new reading year!

Another read-a-thon comes to an end!

New Year 24-Hour Read-a-Thon

Last stretch!  Wow, the day seems to have been soooooo long and yet flown past at the same time.  Keeping busy, marking off the hours, and suddenly we're on the run-up to the big 2-4.  Just need to keep... going... :-)

HOURS 22-24 (6-8pm)

~ Hour 22 (6pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter 

Books finished: None

Pages read: 28

Blog time: 25 minutes

Reading time: 30 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 527

Total time read: 12 hours 15 minutes

Total time blogging: 6 hours 45 minutes

The Menu: Popcorn and more of that Baileys-spiked milkshake.  Don't want to overdo it now, do I?

Comments: So close to the end!  I'm really hoping to finish this book before the end and start something else, but I'll be stopping for a bit this next hour to sort out my Amazon order so I'm in time for the next-day delivery deadline too.  Ironically, traipsing closer to the finish line I feel better than I have done in hours!  Rallying and marching on to victory!

~ Hour 23 (7pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 18

Blog time: 15 minutes

Reading time: 25 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 545

Total time read: 12 hours 40 minutes

Total time blogging: 7 hours

The Menu: Nothing at all... I was too busy READING!

Comments: Well, I took time out to do an Amazon order but ended up surprising myself with a show of strength and removing every book from that laden basket, just ordering a couple of DVDs to arrive in their own sweet time, instead of a boxful of books to arrive tomorrow.  I do have a couple of Marketplace things already on order, but I think I did well!  Now, I just need to finish this book to make my Read-a-Thon complete!  THE LAST HOUR IS UPON US!

~ Hour 24 (8pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter; The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Books finished: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Pages read: 36

Blog time: 10 minutes

Reading time: 50 minutes

Total books read: 3 different titles; one complete book; one half book

Total pages read: 581

Total time read: 13 hours 30 minutes

Total time blogging: 7 hours 10 minutes

The Menu: Just a few more sips of milkshake.  Nothing much.  I'm starving now though!

Comments:  IT'S OVER!  Another read-a-thon draws to its weary end.  Happily, I finished the Showalter book as I'd planned, though I did have to renege on my non-buying-books thingy already when I realised I'd started Henrietta Lacks but the library won't let me renew it.  And it was due back today.  But for £3.99 and considering I'll already be partway through it when it arrives, I made an exception.... Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go check in with my family who've barely seen my face all day, find some food, and do something non-book-related for a wee while!

The End-of-Event Meme

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?

Actually, none of the hours felt too daunting this time.  I went with it and napped when I needed to, and found that the wooziness of the sleep deprivation was far worse than the lack of concentration or the tired eyes.  Easily remedied by a fifteen-minute snooze!

2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a reader engaged next time?

I read Blacklands by Belinda Bauer and found it ideal for a read-a-thon.  Snappy chapters, type that's easy on the eye, a plot that winds up to a fast-paced climax.  Other than that, the usual suspects - thrillers, YA novels, things that are easy to read and not too exhausting for a tired mind!

3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the next read-a-thon?

I enjoyed it as it was really.  I mean, it wasn't a big, vast, organised, all-singing all-dancing read-a-thon, but there was a really nice, friendly, supportive, manageable group of people (mostly on LT) and I managed to check in with everyone throughout the day, which was nice.  And everyone could check in with each other, which gets lost a bit in the huge events.

4. How many books did you read?

I read half of one, the whole of another, and managed the first few pages of a third.

5. What were the names of the books you read?

I finished Blacklands by Belinda Bauer, read all of The Darkest Night (Lords of the Underworld 1) by Gena Showalter, and started The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.

6. Which book did you enjoy most?

Probably Blacklands.  I was already well immersed in the story and it was really novel, telling this chilling story of a boy's correspondence with the serial killer who killed his uncle.  You just know things are going to go horribly wrong somewhere.

7.  Which did you enjoy least?

I don't have many to choose from, but The Darkest Night would be my least favourite of the two main reads.  It was okay, don't get me wrong, but there wasn't the chemistry I thought there'd be between the two leads.  Considering it's supposed to be a bit steamy in parts, a lack of chemistry's not really very helpful.

8. How likely are you to participate in another read-a-thon? 

Almost definitely, I'd say.  I think it's a bit like having a baby - you slog your way through it, get tired, get weary, feel pretty rubbish in places... then a week later you're wondering whether to schedule another one!  It's a fun way of setting aside some quality reading time, getting through a book or three, and bonding with other readers along the way.

So there you go!  Reviews, a final round-up post and other coherent things will follow over the next few days, but for now, I'm going to stagger away and leave you to be played out by this rather apt favourite!

Read-a-Thon Update: Hours 19-21

New Year 24-Hour Read-a-Thon

Ooooh, the end's getting closer.  Can you feel it?  On the plus side, so far I'm still going okay, now the post-night-time weariness has been snoozed away.  Cracking on towards the end of my book and hoping to squeeze the start of another in before the end of the read-a-thon.  So without further ado, let's get on with the penultimate stretch!

HOURS 19-21 (3-5pm)

~ Hour 19 (3pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 25

Blog time: 25 minutes

Reading time: 35 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 458

Total time read: 10 hours 45 minutes

Total time blogging: 5 hours 45 minutes

The Menu: The last of the pizza and the dregs of the Ovaltine.  Yummy.

Comments: Another good hour!  And my new TV arrived early as well, which is pretty awesome.  I'm just plugging away at my book now, hoping to finish it in the next hour or two.  I'm not sure how long I'll last once it starts going dark and getting to sleepy-time again this afternoon (4pm sugar slump, I'm talking to you) so I want to get cracking now, while I'm still reading at full speed ahead!  Enjoying the book though, things are starting to make sense which is a relief given that I read half the book overnight.  Onwards!

~ Hour 20 (4pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 17

Blog time: 20 minutes

Reading time: 25 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 475

Total time read: 11 hours 10 minutes

Total time blogging: 6 hours 5 minutes

The Menu: Nothing at all!  Maybe popcorn?  Er, can't remember...

Comments: Famous last words last hour there.  I got on the comfy chair... and woke up when the alarm went off fifteen minutes later.  Ooops.  Time to make another cup of something caffeinated, I think, and get something chocolatey for the 4pm lull.  And struggle on towards the end of the book, obviously.  Not that I'm not enjoying it, but there does come a point towards the end of every book where you just can't seem to finish it quickly enough...  Four more hours!

~ Hour 21 (5pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 24

Blog time: 15 minutes

Reading time: 35 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 499

Total time read: 11 hours 45 minutes

Total time blogging: 6 hours 20 minutes

The Menu: Popcorn, M'n'Ms, Baileys-spiked coffee milkshake *giggles*

Comments: Another complete hour at the book again, and once again I feel better for a rest and something shamelessly sugary.  Ah well, only three hours to go, what can I say?  I want to finish this book, I want to start my next book, and then when 8pm comes I'm going to crash out and watch TV in an addled haze until bedtime.  Oh, and sometime in the next 2 hours and 2 minutes I'm placing a big overnight-delivery Amazon order as well.  Much to celebrate!  On to the final stretch everyone!

And just for a little comic relief before the final stretch, here's the wonderful 'Farmer's Market' sketch from The Armstrong and Miller Show...

Read-a-Thon Update: Hours 16-18

New Year 24-Hour Read-a-Thon

Ahhhhh, sweet rest.  I'll be looking forward to zonking out later, I can tell you that right now!  But meanwhile, back in the land of the Read-a-Thon...  The numbers are heading up towards 24 and 8pm, so I'll keep right on going!

HOURS 16-18 (12-2pm)

~ Hour 16 (12 noon) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 10

Blog time: 20 minutes

Reading time: 15 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 380

Total time read: 8 hours 50 minutes

Total time blogging: 4 hours 50 minutes

The Menu: The last bit of very cold coffee and dry chocolate chip muffin from that breakfast I started about four hours ago...  Ooops.

Comments: I had a fifteen minute nap and wasn't woken up by anything this time, so I feel much better for it!  I think I'm going to go and make a drink and a hot water bottle or something soon - I'm thirsty and I have that whole chilly thing going on that people get when they've not slept.  Brrrr.  Hopefully the next hour will be better anyway, feeling a bit more refreshed and raring to get stuck in again! 

~ Hour 17 (1pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 30

Blog time: 15 minutes

Reading time: 45 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 410

Total time read: 9 hours 35 minutes

Total time blogging: 5 hours 5 minutes

The Menu: A slice of pizza (it was a big pizza!), Ovaltine

Comments: A much better reading hour!  I've been wide awake and focussed, completely absorbed in the book, and managed to read and enjoy the whole hour more.  Re-sult.  Let's hope I've got at least a couple more hours in me before I crash... Maybe I'll even make it to the full 24 this time? 

~ Hour 18 (2pm) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None 

Pages read: 23

Blog time: 15 minutes

Reading time: 35 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 433

Total time read: 10 hours 10 minutes

Total time blogging: 5 hours 20 minutes

The Menu: Pizza, Ovaltine

Comments: Just readin' away...  It's like I've found a second strength these past few hours!  Not sure it'll last until 8pm but in the meantime, I'm making the most of it...  I think the book's finally building towards 'the big event', whatever that may turn out to be, which is also good because it means my speed should pick up a bit.  And just for a little break that most book bloggers and LT-ers will probably appreciate, here's a clip of the uber-bookish Rory in Gilmore Girls.  Recognise yourself, anyone?  It was featured on the Dewey Read-a-Thon in October and now I've started on the DVDs!

Read-a-Thon Update: Hours 13-15

New Year 24-Hour Read-a-Thon

Another stretch begins!  And now we're back into the daylight hours, thank heavens.  And over halfway through the day!  It feels like it's gone quite fast, yet also like it's been an absolute age.  I'm fairly sure I'll be having another nap during this stretch, but given that I've only had 30 minutes' sleep during the night I think I can be excused!  On, on, readers!

HOURS 13-15 (9-11am)

~ Hour 13 (9am) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 15

Blog time: 30 minutes

Reading time: 25 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 340

Total time read: 7 hours 45 minutes

Total time blogging: 3 hours 45 minutes

The Menu: A bit more of the muffin and cold coffee I made during the LAST hour.  Ah well, readers can't be choosers.

Comments:  I'm getting that all-pervasive icky feeling again, so I'm thinking the next hour might be nap time.  I'm still reading, still fairly focussed, but feeling a bit light-headed, like everything's getting a bit surreal.  Or like I might fall over if I sit up too quick!  Other than that, I'm enjoying the book still.  Not quite sure where it's going, but these demon blokes are quite engaging so I'll keep plodding on! 

~ Hour 14 (10am) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 14

Blog time: 20 minutes

Reading time: 25 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 354

Total time read: 8 hours 10 minutes

Total time blogging: 4 hours 5 minutes

The Menu: Couple of bites of pizza and a sip or two of cold coffee

Comments: Well, I tried for another 40 minutes of sleepage, but Dad texted me fifteen minutes in and the phone woke me up with a fright, so I carried on reading again...  A little sleepy, a little fuzzy, but still going, still going...

~ Hour 15 (11am) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 16

Blog time: 25 minutes

Reading time: 25 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 370

Total time read: 8 hours 35 minutes

Total time blogging: 4 hours 30 minutes

The Menu: More tiny nibbles and sips at the general culinary debris.  My appetite is still playing second fiddle to the 'I need more sleep' ickiness.

Comments: Mum popped round for a morning visit with her coffee, and I spent a fair amount of time faffing around trying to find a decent Paolo Nutini video for a musical interlude... other than that it was just plodding on with the book.  A nap may definitely be on the cards soon.  Just long enough to remove some of the fuzziness would be perfect!

Read-a-Thon Update: Hours 10-12

New Year 24-Hour Read-a-Thon

We're on the run-up to the halfway point, and I'm guessing that I'm not the only one struggling against the heaviness of her own eyelids right now...  Hey, it'll soon be daylight again and things might get that little bit easier!

HOURS 10-12 (6-8am)

~ Hour 10 (6am) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 2

Blog time: 20 minutes

Reading time: 5 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 284

Total time read: 6 hours 5 minutes

Total time blogging: 2 hours 40 minutes

The Menu: I tried another piece of pizza but it stuck in my throat - a sign I was just too tired!

Comments: I finally succumbed and had a 35-minute nap...  My eyes weren't even focussing any more and I couldn't even drink anything without feeling icky.  Definitely a sign I needed a rest!  Another half-hour rest might still be on the cards, like last time, if I'm still half asleep, but I'll see how I get on for a few minutes...  *yawns and tries to stir her mushy brain back to life* 

~ Hour 11 (7am) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 24

Blog time: 15 minutes

Reading time: 40 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 308

Total time read: 6 hours 45 minutes

Total time blogging: 2 hours 55 minutes

The Menu: A handful of M'n'M and popcorn, and a gulp or two of juice, just to try and wake me up a little bit when I fell back into the land of the living!

Comments: Well, whaddya know, I got right back into my book and didn't fall back to sleep after all.  *pats self on the back proudly*  The reading's definitely slowed but I don't know if that's down to the change in book - smaller type per page, perhaps? - or whether it's the inevitable sleep deprivation effect.  Never mind.  I'm enjoying it, that's all that matters, though I may start getting annoyed with our hero's constant inexplicable urges to bed the pretty human girl.  There's so much testosterone floating around it's a wonder I haven't started growing a moustache and dropped my voice an octave or two just reading it...  On to the halfway point, woohoo!  *waves tiny read-a-thon flag*

Read-a-Thon detritus at its healthiest!

~ Hour 12 (8am) ~

I've been reading: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter

Books finished: None

Pages read: 17

Blog time: 20 minutes

Reading time: 35 minutes

Total books read: 1

Total pages read: 325

Total time read: 7 hours 20 minutes

Total time blogging: 3 hours 15 minutes

The Menu: Chocolate chip muffin, coffee, a couple of pieces of popcorn to take away the taste of the icky milk I hadn't realised was off (euuuuuw).

Comments: Well, Graham returned to the patio door, only this time I could see him and it was actually time for him to be outside waking the chickens up!  I've kept reading and not slept any more, which is awesome, and now it's daylight again (ish) I think I've got a few relatively pain-free hours ahead before the tiredness comes to turn my brain to cotton wool again!  Halfway through, woohoo!

The Hour 12 Meme

1. What are you reading right now?

I'm about a third of the way through Gena Showalter's The Darkest Night, the first of her temptingly-covered Lords of the Underworld series.  So far there's a lot of rippling muscles and testosterone-fuelled fights, between this bunch of delicious men who've had demons fused into their very beings as punishment for angering the gods they once served.  Or something like that.  Lots of macho hitting of things anyway, and passionate lusting after the girl that's made her way into their lair.  Perfect brain candy for a tired read-a-thoner!

2. How many books have you read so far?

I finished Blacklands by Belinda Bauer, and started this one.

3. What book are you most looking forward to for the second half of the Read-a-Thon?

Depends how awake I am!  I might go for another fantasy, a YA this time, like Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief or Michael Scott's The Sorceress, or I might go for a complete change of tone.  Who knows?

4. Did you have to make any special arrangements to free up your whole day?

Nope, I don't go back to work until Thursday so I'm good!  Just lots of reminding family so I get encouragement rather than disruptions!  I've been going on about it so long, they're probably just glad I'm up here doing it instead of down there talking about it...

5. Have you had many interruptions?  How did you deal with those?

I haven't had any really, apart from my stepdad wandering up a couple of times in the wee small hours to say hello...  Actually it came at just the right time, it woke me up again enough for me to carry on a bit longer when I was in danger of falling into a stupor!  And the second time it was getting light anyway, so he just popped in on his way to see the chickens.

6. What surprises you most about the Read-a-Thon, so far?

Nothing so far.  Actually, it all seems to be going pretty much like last year.  I'm spending about the same ratio of time doing everything - perhaps a little more time online since I'm catching up with a few people on LT every hour too - and reading at about the same rate, even feeling the burn at the same times, so it's all going as expected for the time being!

7. Are you getting tired yet?

Oh, good god, yes.  I had a half-hour nap a bit ago but I'm sure I'll have a couple more before the day's out.  The burning eyes is bad enough but when the dizzy swim starts you know you need a break!

8. Do you have any tips for other readers, something you think is working well for you that others may not have discovered?

Nothing I haven't already said, I don't think.  Not too much caffeine - I've had mostly grape juice during the night and made a coffee with breakfast.  Bright lights and a noisy dehumidifier keeping things in focus, and music breaks for a wake-up call.  Setting my phone alarm every hour to mark off the time.  Not trying to read some great master work at 3am.  Nothing that isn't either common sense or just one way of setting up my day!

Onwards, all!