In My Mailbox (April 25, 2010)

The weekly In My Mailbox post is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. It is fun to see what everyone else gets in their mailboxes, shopping bags, and library visits. Click on the link to The Story Siren's site to see the rules and join in the fun.

I guarantee that your TBR pile will grow when you see all the cool books everyone gets. You will discover lots of wonderful blogs and lots of books that you won't be able to live without.

This was a big shopping week for me. Lots of my favorite authors came out with new books this week.

Laura Ann Gilman has started a new series that is a spin-off of the Retrievers series. This book is Hard Magic.

There is a new Arcane Society book by Amanda Quick. I am really looking forward to starting The Burning Lamp.

Iris Johansen has a new Eve Duncan book too. Eight Days to Live is supposed to be more about Jane. I am hoping that Eve at least makes an appearance.

Jo Beverly has a new book too. According to Amazon, The Secret Duke has kidnapping, danger and forbidden passion. That sounds good to me.

I found these free books while checking out the Kindle Store. Against All Odds by Irene Shannon is a thriller; A Promise to Remember by Kathryn Cushman sounds like contemporary women's fiction, and The Autobiography of Ben Franklin to continue by fascination with Benjamin Franklin.

These were recommended on one of the many IMM posts I visited last week. Forbidden Book: Journeys into the Mystic which looks like a lovely graphic novel. I also added This Pen for Hire by Laura Levine to my Kindle. This is the first in a mystery series.

I also heard good things about Ann Aguirre and so I took advantage of Amazon's 4-for-3 offer to get her first two books in the Corine Solomon series -- Blue Diablo and Hell Fire and to add the second and third in the Sirantha Jax series -- Wanderlust and Double Blind.

That was my week. What couldn't you resist this week?

Getting Random with....

Jennifer at Reading With Tequila is getting random with me today. Stop at her blog and check out my totally random answers. You can win an $15 Amazon gift card by filling out the form there.

 

Teaser Tuesday: Changes by Jim Butcher

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Changes (Dresden Files, Book 12)

Author: Jim Butcher

Publication: Roc Hardcover; First Ediition/First Printing edition (April 6, 2010) 

"Harry," she said quietly. "I know you must be angry."

"I burn things to ash and smash holes in buildings when I'm angry," I said. "I'm a couple of steps past that point right now." (page 10)

Product Description from Amazon: Long ago, Susan Rodriguez was Harry Dresden's lover-until she was attacked by his enemies, leaving her torn between her own humanity and the bloodlust of the vampiric Red Court. Susan then disappeared to South America, where she could fight both her savage gift and those who cursed her with it.

Now Arianna Ortega, Duchess of the Red Court, has discovered a secret Susan has long kept, and she plans to use it-against Harry. To prevail this time, he may have no choice but to embrace the raging fury of his own untapped dark power. Because Harry's not fighting to save the world...

He's fighting to save his child.

 

 

It's Monday (April 19, 2010)! What Are You Reading!

It's Monday, What are you reading is a meme hosted by Sheila at One Person's Journey Through a World of Books.

This is the first time that I am participating in this meme.

Here is an explanation of the meme in the creator's own words:

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week. It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

I love being a part of this and I hope you do too! As part of this weekly meme I love to encourage you all to go and visit the others participating in this meme. I offer a weekly contest for those who visit 10 or more of the Monday Meme participants and leave a comment. You receive one entry for every 10 comments, just come back here and tell me how many in the comment area.

This is what I read and reviewed last week (Links go to my reviews):

• Spooky Little Girl by Laurie Notaro
• Broken by Shiloh Walker
• Let's Pretend This Didn't Happen (Dear Dumb Diaries) by Jim Benton
• Lion's Heat by Lora Leigh
• A Dangerous Engine: Benjamin Franklin, from Scientist to Diplomat by Joan Dash
• A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters

This is what I am currently reading:

• The Good Neighbors: Kith by Holly Black

This is what is next on the TBR stack (Links go to Amazon):

• Changes by Jim Butcher
• Mistwood by Leah Cypess (2010 YA Debut Author Challenge)
• The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (Flashback Challenge and E-Book Challenge)
• Romancing the Dead by Tate Hallaway (Bottom of the Stack Challenge and prep for attending author signing May 8)

Other Posts: I posted two lists of books on my other blog -- Ms. Martin Teaches Media. One is a list of the top 100 Middle Grade books and the other is a list of the top 100 Young Adult books. I have read about half of each list. Now I have lots of additional books for my "You should really read this someday" list.

  

Review: A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters

A River in the Sky

Author: Elizabeth Peters

Publication: William Morrow (April 6, 2010)

 

Description: August 1910. Banned from the Valley of the Kings by the Antiquities Service, Amelia Peabody and her husband, Emerson, are relaxing at home in Kent, enjoying the tranquil beauty of summer. But adventure soon beckons when they are persuaded to follow would-be archaeologist Major George Morley on an expedition to Palestine, a province of the crumbling, corrupt Ottoman Empire and the Holy Land of three religions. Searching for the vanished treasures of the Temple in Jerusalem, Morley is determined to unearth the legendary Ark of the Covenant.

The skeptical Emerson wants no part of the scheme until a request from the War Office and Buckingham Palace persuades him to reconsider. The Germans are increasing their influence in Palestine and British intelligence insists that Morley is an agent of the Kaiser, sent to stir up trouble in this politically volatile land. Emerson can't believe that the seemingly inept Morley is a German spy, but could he be mistaken?

Determined to prevent a catastrophically unprofessional excavation that could destroy priceless historical finds as well as cause an armed protest by infuriated Christians, Jews, and Muslims who view the Temple Mount, also known as the Dome of the Rock, as sacred, Amelia, Emerson, and company head to Palestine. Though it is not to her beloved Egypt, the trip to Jerusalem will also reunite her with her handsome and headstrong son, Ramses, working on a dig at Samaria, north of the holy city.

Before Ramses can meet his parents, however, he is distracted by an unusual party of travelers who have arrived in Samaria, including a German woman archaeologist and a mysterious man of unknown nationality and past. Unfortunately, Ramses's insatiable curiosity and his knack for trouble lead him to a startling discovery: information he must pass on to his parents in Jerusalem—if he can get there alive.

Once again the Peabody-Emerson clan must use all their skills and wiles to find the truth, prevent a bloody holy war, and save their son from the clutches of a nefarious enemy in this wonderfully engaging tale chock-full of thrills, mystery, and daring from the inimitable Elizabeth Peters.

My Thoughts: This is the 19th in an excellent series. I love Amelia Peabody Emerson. She is an original. She is intrepid and seems to have no fear. She is convinced that there is no situation that she cannot handle. Since the books are purported her diaries, we get a good chance to hear her voice and read her thoughts.

The books are filled with danger, archaeology, and often crimes. This one definitely focuses on spies. No one except our intrpid heroine and her family are what they seem. It was a fun visit with old friends.

Challenges: RYOB Reading Challenge

In My Mailbox (April 18, 2010)

The weekly In My Mailbox post is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. It is fun to see what everyone else gets in their mailboxes, shopping bags, and library visits. Click on the link to The Story Siren's site to see the rules and join in the fun.

I guarantee that your TBR pile will grow when you see all the cool books everyone gets. You will discover lots of wonderful blogs and lots of books that you won't be able to live without.

This is what I got this week. (I was trying not to buy too many and maybe catch up just a little.)

I bought A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters because I can't pass up any of Amelia Peabody's adventures. This one goes back in the series and takes place in 1910. Ramses is missing. There's something about a search for the Ark of the Covenant too.

Tales of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong is a collection of many of the short stories that she wrote for her blog or website. I didn't read them there and am eager to find out more about the fantasy world that she has created.

I also added one book to my Kindle. Linda Hilburn regained the rights to a book she had written earlier and released it again as an ebook. I am eager to see what her style is like as I read Undead in the City.

That was my mailbox this week. What did you get?

Review: Lion's Heat by Lora Leigh

Lion's Heat

Author: Lora Leigh

Publication: Berkley; Original edition (April 6, 2010)

Description: The mating urge cannot be ignored...

Bad boy Jonas Wyatt knows it is fate that Rachel becomes his mate. He can sense it. He can also sense her reluctance. But she has little power over the mating heat of the Breeds. It is Jonas's destiny to claim her. And nothing will stop him from having his way.

 

My Thoughts: This was another hot episode in the Breeds series. Jonas Wyatt has been the master manipulator in many of the previous books. This time he has met his match. Rachel has been hired to be his assistant and, since she is a friend of the lion Primus, Jonas can't force her out of the job. Rachel is more than willing to stand up to him and have her say. He says they are mates but she disagrees. The scientists are baffled because their mating is not following a standard pattern. 

 

Rachel has a baby from a previous relationship that Jonas accepts as his child. He is determined to protect her and her mother. The baby, Amber, is in danger from a genetics council scientist who is determined to find the secret of the Breed's lack of aging when they are mated. He is more than willing to experiment on a baby and the baby's biological father is willing to sell her to him.

 

The tension in this story was strong and the romance was heated. It was a great escapist fantasy and a nice addition to the Breeds series.

 

Challenges: RYOB Reading Challenge