Readers take Note
It's going to be a busy day here at the Nut House. Sounds of drilling already emanate from the closet, and the dishwasher is singing it's song in the kitchen. So in lieu of a sensible essay type-post, you get a glimpse into my reading habits of late. Some old, some new... all of them enjoyed by myself and the First Reader.
Take, for instance, Dorothy Grant's latest in tactical romance. Going Ballistic is a special sort of book - action, adventure, and a very unusual falling-in-love that doesn't turn the protagonists into drooling idiots over each other. It's as fun to see happen as the main characters dodge bullets and explosions without losing their capacity to be competent human beings. I dunno if I am doing it justice. Really, it's a fun read. And I'm not just biased because I did the cover art. I'm tickled I get to be associated with a book this good.
Another science fiction book, recently released, is JL Curtis's Rimworld: Into the Rift. If you haven't read the prior Rimworld books, you don't have to. This is set in the same world, and there are cameo appearances, which do have more depth if you had read the previous books, but largely this is a standalone read. And it's a good one, with well thought-out logistics for a space traveller who is piloting by the seat of his pants when everyone else is relying on computer implants. Add in a character who isn't exactly corporeal, and a near-suicidal mission for historical artifacts, and it was right up my alley. Highly recommend the whole series, which readers will know I enjoy.
To step back in time through the pages - or at least words on the screen - of a book can be a window into history. Particularly when the book wasn't written as history. DE Stevenson's books were written as contemporary light novels, often revolving around romance, but not always. In the case of The Blue Sapphire, the main character discovers new relationships with her family, a tiny Scottish village, a friend, and then, yes, a man who loves her deeply. She also breaks off an abusive relationship although that word is never used. This is a lovely story, one that will make you wish you could step through the pages into that long-gone world of the English countryside and a London that was.
In a difference between us, both the First Reader and I read and enjoyed books by Mary Roberts Rinehart. His pick was The After House, a mystery on a ship: "The story was good, the murderer was disappointing. It was a pleasant period piece read." I liked The Haunted Lady, a mystery involving an old woman being slowly frightened to death. Her books predate Agatha Christie's work, to which they bear some resemblance, but amusingly she became known as the American Agatha Christie. It's fascinating to see how the popularity of an author will sweep up another author in her wake.
Finally, Alma Boykin's latest in her delightful fantasy series is out. I always pounce on these with enthusiasm. Their style is different - some are novels, others are collections of shorts threaded into the same world. But all of them have the Familiars in common, and I love the wit and sarcasm of the talking animals, solving conundrums with their magical (and sometimes not magical, which is amusingly disconcerting) partners. There are twelve of them now! Perfect time for me to binge read back through the series, which I do semi-annually. Horribly Familiar is her latest.
