Book 20

Ok so it's confession time... I acted like a spoilt little kid when my sister gave me this book for my birthday, I was ungrateful and acted like a brat. The reason being (although it doesn't excuse my behaviour) I don't like/read King, his books are too long winded and I get fed up with them, I just can't get into his style of writing. Not only that she did give me the gift when I was in the hospital after having Ted, I was tired and grumpy and had been there for three days already. (This also does not excuse my behaviour, merely placement within the narrative as it were).

I did apologise to my sister because I did appreciate the gift, and I liked it even more when I realised it was a compendium of short stories. There would be little time for my aversion to Kings descriptive writing to kick in, I hoped.

And because it was a gift from my sister and she didn't have to, I thought the least I can do is read it. My mind wanders absently to the two mammoth King tomes sitting in the kitchen gathering dust, which will not be read by me but will be when I've donated them to the library.

I do feel bad for this almost phobia to King novels if you will because I even read the introduction and I thought he seems like a likeable person. So I feel a little bad for not liking his novels.

But all that aside, I really did enjoy it. My favourite stories were:

Willa, Stationary Bike, The Gingerbread Girl, The New York Times at Special Bargain Rates and A Very Tight Place.

One thing that did irritate me though was the fact that some of them stop without explanation or a conclusion. ( I don't like having to make assumptions to how their lives go on after the events).

If you've read it let me know which stories you enjoyed and why.

Book 17: The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer

I was saving this for whilst I was in hospital, (note: I'm a little behind in posting my book reviews and am copying them straight from a notebook), to have our third baby Ted but instead it was due to a mouth infection from a chipped tooth and no sleep to give me the decision to read it early. I really enjoyed it and if you've read the Twilight saga you will know why I was dragging my feet to finish the book because obviously Bree ultimately dies. It made a nice change to see the writing from a different angle and I really liked Bree's character which was new because I just couldn't warm to Bella in the other 4 books. And even though I knew the ending I kept my fingers crossed that she might survive...Oh Well!...Here's the backpage:
"I watched his body change. He crouched on the roof, one hand gripping the edge. All that strange friendliness disappeared, and he was a hunter. That was something I recognised, something I was comfortable with because I understood it.
I turned off my brain. It was time to hunt. I took a deep breath, drawing in the scent of the blood inside the human below. They weren't the only humans around, but they were the closest who you were going to hunt was the kind of decision you had to make before you scented your prey.
It was too late now to choose anything."

Book 15 and 16 The Vampire Diaries: The Fury/ The Reunion by L.J.Smith

These were a little difficult for me to get into as they are the third and fourth in the series and I have been living under a rock and haven't as yet seen the TV show to get a feel for the story. There were a lot of characters already established within the plot, but saying that L.J.Smith did give a little background but I think I would need to read the first 2 volumes to get to know them a lot better. Once I got past that though I did get swept away with the plot and thoroughly enjoyed both books immensely. And this now has added another DVD to my wishlist...Oh Christmas is all taken care of for the next few years... Here's the backpage:
The Fury:
"Elena struggles to control her desire for blood. Damon hungers for the golden girl and revenge against Stefan. Stefan is tormented after losing Elena, he will do anything to get her back. Even if it means becoming what he once despised..."
The Reunion:
"Elena is threatened by a terrifying evil. Damon, summoned by Elena to face a common enemy, puts his trust in the brother he loathes. Stefan attempts to keep his promise to Elena and protect the town from its most powerful villain yet..."

Book 14- The Witching Hour by Anne Rice

Phew! This was a mammoth tome of a read and considering a lot of it feels like the cataloguing of the Mayfair family tree my concentration never seemed to waver. I enjoyed it immensely. Here's the backpage:
"On the veranda of a great New Orleans house, now faded, a mute and fragile woman sits rocking. And the witching hour begins...
Demonstrating once again her gift for spellbinding storytelling and the creation of legend, Anne Rice makes real for us a great dynasty of witches in this engrossing and hypnotic tale of the occult spanning four centuries- a family given to poetry and incest, to murder and philosophy, a family that over the ages is itself haunted by a powerful, dangerous, and seductive being"

Book 13-Stray by Rachel Vincent

Although this is a book about werecats it made a refreshing deviation from the almost exclusive vampire related reads of late. I really enjoyed it and was happy to learn that it was the first in a series so I could add even more books to my ever growing amazon wishlist.
Here's the backpage:
"There are only eight breeding female werecats left... And I'm on of them.
I look like an all-American grad student. But I am a werecat, a shape-shifter, and I live in two worlds. Despite reservations from my family and my Pride, I escaped the pressure to continue my species and carved out a normal life for myself. Until the night a Stray attacked.
I'd been warned about Strays- werecats without a Pride, constantly on the lookout for someone like me: attractive, female and fertile. I fought him off, but then learned two of my fellow tabbies had disappeared.
This brush with danger was all my Pride needed to summon me back... for my own protection. Yeah, right. But I'm no meek kitty, I'll take on whatever- and whoever- I have to in order to find my friends. Watch out Strays 'cause I got claws, and I'm not afraid to use them..."

Book 12 - Never Bite a Boy on a First Date by Tamara Summers

I really liked this, it was quirky and funny and as it was for 11+ (says a lot about my mental age, hehe) would appeal to most vampire fans.
Here's the backpage:
"When we found the guy and saw the holes in his neck, the cause of death was obvious.
"It wasn't me" I said,
"I make one mistake and suddenly every little vampire attack is my fault? That's so unfair!"
But it doesn't matter how much I protest, unless I can prove my innocence I'll be spending the next decade in a padded coffin. So now I'm on a mission to track down the real murderer. I've narrowed it down to three suspects.
All acting suspiciously.
All boys.
And all very cute..."

Book 11- Lost Souls by Poppy Z. Brite

Phew this book was quite heavy going and was a lot darker than some stories I've read recently. It still had the Vampire theme but I liked the way Brite decided to make them into another race from humans and take away the preconceptions of vampires biting and blood rituals to turn others into their kind. It made a refreshing change to have their angst focused elsewhere instead of the searching for the perfect human to transform them into their eternal companion. But by taking that notion away Brite gave them the ability to procreate so also giving them the posibility for a choice in whether to procreate or not but maybe its just me being overly observant but the idea of contraception was never discussed within. I don't think it would have helped the plot any and since most vampires wouldn't care less about it I guess it probably would have been silly to include it.
It was a very refreshing read nevertheless. Here's the back page:
"In the French Quarter of New Orleans the Mardi Gras revellers concealed a group of pleasure-seekers who preferred to wear black. For Zillah, Molochai and Twig the party had been going on for centuries, fuelled by sexual frenzy, green Chartreuse and a cocktail of vodka and innocent blood.
Nothing was born in horror and brought up in suburban Maryland. Even before he ran away to find his true hone, he suspected he was different from other teenagers. And when he had his first taste of human blood, he knew he was right.
Ghost was a visionary singer of the band Lost Souls? When Nothing was drawn into Zillah's fatal circle, Ghost had to decide whether he should try to save the boy from himself- or abandon him to his bloody birthright"

Book 8: Frankenstein Dead and Alive by Dean Koontz and Ed Gorman

I'd meant to buy this 3rd installment to this saga ages ago and just never got round to it until now. Its strange when so many books entice you all at once. Oh but I did really enjoy it, well I enjoyed the whole roller coaster from the beginning of book one so I knew I was going to love it and I was not disappointed (and the Odd Thomas reference at the end made me smile). Although now I wonder if a fourth installment is on the cards or if that is it. I really must go and check...
Yippee book four is out June 15th...check it out here
And I am quite excited by the graphic novel too...Anyway heres the backpage for you:
"A devestating hurricane approaches New Orleans and Victor Helios, once known as Frankenstein, has unleashed his benighted creatures onto the streets. As New Orleans descends into chaos, his engineered killers spin out of control, and the only hope rests with Victor's first and failed attempt to build the perfet human, whose damned path has led him to the ultimate confrontation with his pitiless creator. But first Deaucalion must destroy a monstrosity not even Victor's malignant mind could have imagined - an indestructible entity that steps out if humankind's collective nightmare with one purpose: to replace us."

Book 6 and Book 7: Vampire Wars Trilogy & Vampire Destiny Trilogy by Darren Shan

Technically this is 6 books worth but I thought seeing as I was reading them in two big books I'd only include it as two books.
I'd waited a while to get these having read the first two trilogies a few times and although they are aimed at children they are fantastic.
I couldn't put them down until the saga was finally over and I wasn't even disappointed by the ending. Shan ties it all up neatly so there was no need for me to wonder about what the characters may be getting up to.
Heres the back page for the Vampire Wars Trilogy:
"Darren Shan, the Vampire Prince, embarks on a life or death mission. In "Hunters of the Dusk" Darren scours the world in search of the Vampaneze Lord on a road that leads to death. In "Allies of the Night" Darren faces his worst nightmare yet - school! But bodies are piling up and the past is catching up with the huners fast! And in "Killers of the Dawn" the vampires prepare for deadly confrontation - is this the end for Darren and his allies?"

And heres the back page for the Vampire Destiny Trilogy:
" In "Lake of Souls", Darren and Harkat go on a quest to the lake of the dead, through a world of mystery and terror. In "Lord of the Shadows", Darren returns home and confronts the demons of his human past. In "Sons of Destiny", Darren faces archenemy Steve Leopard for a fight to the death. With time running out, can Des Tiny be foiled, or is the world doomed?"

Book 2...Death's Mistress by Karen Chance

Oh I'm whizzing through these books hehe, only 98 to go, (well its 97 really I've read another one I'm just a little slow at posting).

Anyway this is the sequel to Midnights Daughter which follows the exploits of Dhampir Dorina Basarab. I wasn't sure if I had read the first one but after a couple of pages I realised I had and it all came flooding back.

Also that I got Midnight's Daughter for Xmas last year from my mum as well as the first Keri Arthur. Well I thought it was a bit strange.

It's a very easy read, even with a lot of characters and following the twisty story but it keeps flowing and it is easy to follow. But you might want to read the other one first.

Here's the back page for a taste:

"Dorina Basarab is a dhampir - half-human, half-vampire - and the only way she can stay sane is by unleashing her sometimes uncontrollable rage on demons and vampires that deserve killing.

After the fortunate demise of her insane uncle Dracula, Dory is back home in Brooklyn, hopinh that life will calm down for a while. But then two visitors arrive, her friend Claire, asking for Dory's help in finding a magical Fey relic, and the gorgeous master-vampire Louis-Cesare, desperate to find his former mistree, a vampire named Christine.

Dory and Louis-Cesare soon discover their problems may be connected: the same master-vampire Christine is bound to is also rumoured to be in possession of the relic. But they soon realize there's more at stake when Christine's master turns up dead. Someone is killing vampire Senate members, and if Dory and Louis-Cesare can't stop the murder, they may be next...