New Release: Speaking from Among the Bones

You might have noticed that every time a new Flavia de Luce novel comes out, I declare that it's the best yet. Well, I apologize but I'm going to have to say the same again about Speaking from Among the Bones. On this fifth time out, Alan Bradley writes Flavia with more depth and more emotional growth than ever before. She still has a somewhat outlandish adventure but it is both intelligent and fun and there's a twist at the end that could mean a dramatic change for the de Luce family.

I won't talk about the plot since this is a series book but, if you've managed to somehow miss the series so far, I'll give you the basics. Flavia is a pre-teen in early 1950s England. She lives with her somewhat horrid older sisters, her distracted father and his enigmatic manservant in Buckshaw, a sprawling manor left to them all by Flavia's mother after she disappeared on an adventure in the Himalayas years before. Flavia is obsessed with chemistry and has inherited a top-of-the-line laboratory from an uncle with a similar taste for science. Specifically, she has an obsession with poisons. And, as with any over-curious child, she also manages to get into all sorts of scrapes and, of course, stumbles over more than one dead body as she grows up. This is a mystery series that is equal parts cozy and dark and is always compelling and smart.

This novel has been released today so either run out and get a copy or start the series and catch up. Chances are, you won't regret it.

Already thirsting for book six,
K

Cheerful is in the Eye of the Beholder

I had just added Cheerful Weather for the Wedding to my movie queue when Simon suggested that there be a read-along of the 1932 novella by Julia Strachey. I couldn't say no to that and so, while getting my hair cut and colored last week on a typically dreary January afternoon, I was surprisingly transported away to a sunny March day with blustery winds, where I waited (somewhat) patiently with a unique cast of characters for Dolly Thatcham's wedding to begin.

(Note: as the characters are pretty much the main attraction of this story, this post will be a bit spoilery.)

As we wait in the long hall, I find myself sympathizing with thirteen year-old Robert as his older brother Tom harasses him for ::gulp:: having on the wrong socks. Tom has always been so bossy and stuffy, hasn't he? I cringe to see Kitty, younger sister to the bride, acting all of her awkward self in a dress that doesn't look half as good on her as it does on dear Evelyn. I mean, yellow is a gorgeous color for the spring but it doesn't suit everyone, does it? And not to speak ill of the hostess but I swear that Mrs. Thatcham gets more dotty with every passing year. Even I heard her tell poor Millman to set up the luncheon in the library. Oh, and then there's that tragic young anthropologist Joseph sitting in the other room. I know that he and Dolly spent a lot of time together last summer but I can't recall ever thinking they were "together" exactly. Well, it seems like he might have been sweet on her after all. Was that a tortoise that just passed by the window? How bizarre! And who are all of these people flowing in to luncheon now? Cousin Lob, Canon Dakin, Aunt Bella -- what a diverse and amusing family. It makes up for this dreadfully blustery day. I hope the wedding itself is half as entertaining as the morning has been.

Dolly and Owen

And back to the present ...
Because this novella does focus so strongly on characters, with only a bit of action right toward the end, I'm a bit worried about the movie version. Looking at the cast list, they've added characters and obviously taken some of the implied situations from Dolly's past and built them up into the bulk of the movie. However, most of the appeal of the novella was in not knowing everything and in having the drama being a bit of a non-starter. How close were Joseph and Dolly really? Is what he revealed to her mother at the end of the story true? Or was this simply a case of him feeling upset that he didn't open up when he had the chance? What if they had a few more moments alone before the Canon came along? I think I'll likely postpone watching the film for a bit to put some distance between it and this well-crafted story.

Feeling not the slightest bit cheerful despite the weather,
K

New Release: Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

You've likely already heard of this unique new novel, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan, with its glow-in-the-dark cover and its celebration of books. It made a lot of "best of" lists last year and I was very excited to get it for Christmas.

Clay Jannon is an unemployed web designer in San Francisco who happens into a random bookstore, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, that has a "help wanted" sign in the window. Without much effort but, perhaps, a bit of destiny, Clay ends up with the night shift at the bookstore. It's a mysterious place with regular books in the front and towering shelves of strange volumes in the back. What those books are for and what the bizarre customers who come in at all hours are after is for the reader to discover alongside Clay.

I'll be honest and say that I really liked this book but didn't love it. I can't put my finger on it but there was something missing from it. Maybe it was heart? Most of the character interactions were plot-advancing with little character building. I also thought the Google fandom was a bit strong. It reminded me of Microserfs by Douglas Coupland in its attempt to humanize a corporation. But, where Microserfs was able to portray its employees as hard-working, barefoot, Lego-loving nerds, this story gave the impression that Google employees are overworked, obsessive-compulsive misfits who have every moment of every day, down to what nutrients they eat, micromanaged by their employer. It made me a bit sad. While this novel was seemingly meant to celebrate intelligence and individuality--the soul, if you will--it just served to reinforce the loss of such things in today's corporate world, regardless of the outward face they put on. Still, there were some unique and unforgettable characters and events in the book and overall I enjoyed reading it. I just wish it had been a bit, well, more.

Finding the soul of each book,
K

Book v. Movie: The Woman in Black

This will be a pretty short post because I read the book and watched the film a month and a half ago and, to be honest, neither was especially memorable. The book was satisfactory but not mind-blowing and the film was bad but in a totally predictable way.

Susan Hill's The Woman in Black has been on my TBR list for years but I didn't get around to reading it until December, mostly because I also wanted to watch the recent film version. It turned out to be an acceptably spooky story with good pacing and a haunted house that I hope never to get caught in at night. But while the story also had a deep feeling of melancholy and loss, the film went for the cheap thrills, inventing horrors that were obvious and, to be honest, rather lame. I knew from the moment that I saw it was a Hammer film that it would be over the top but, when the entire mystery of the book was given away in the first few minutes of the film and then was just exploited for stereotypical horror scenarios, it was really frustrating. And I really don't believe this interview with Susan Hill where she says

And now, 30 years after I wrote it, The Woman in Black has made it to the big screen. Jane Goldman, one of the hottest screenwriting talents around, has done a marvellous adaptation, which is just that — not a copy but a screen interpretation which remains faithful to the spirit of the book but, like the play, is true to its own medium.

The film was not at all faithful to the spirit of the book nor was it, by any stretch of the imagination "marvellous". It was like a knock-off of The Ring or some other schlocky horror film.

Verdict: Read the book, skip the movie ... unless you really need to see Daniel Radcliffe looking handsome at a legal age, then go ahead and watch it but don't expect anything but a standard horror flick.

Disappointed once more,
K

New Release: The Map of the Sky

One of the books that I finished last year but didn't have time to review was The Map of the Sky by Félix J. Palma, sequel to 2011's The Map of Time. I was a bit conflicted in my thoughts about that first book but many of my issues (the chief of which was the first person narrative style) were solved in this one and, though not perfect, was a much more enjoyable read.

As with the first novel, I don't want to say too much about the plot of this story. It's a tangled mess that slowly unravels into a story that's incredibly inventive and part of the joy of it is the element of surprise. I don't think it would be necessary to read these books in order but many things would make more sense and have more meaning if you were to follow the order in which they were written. Then again, there is a secret kept throughout this book that is basically one of the plots of the original story so if you were reading this one first, you would likely be shocked when you went back to the first novel. Confused yet? Well, with an ocean trip to the Antarctic, an alien invasion, an appearance by a young Edgar Allan Poe and another bizarre adventure for H.G. Wells, this story will likely confuse you and excite you in similar proportion.

According to Palma's website (and if my Spanish isn't too rusty), the third book in the trilogy is currently being written and will focus on Wells' The Invisible Man (The Map of Time is built off of The Time Machine and The Map of the Sky uses The War of the Worlds as its inspiration). I'm definitely looking forward to Palma's final Victorian flight of fancy.

Traveling through time and space,
K

My Series in Progress (or On Bookshelf)

I am currently reading so many series that I've officially lost track. Even though they are listed on LibraryThing, it's not in a format that works in my brain and they include a lot of books that aren't really what I think of as in a series. Consequently, I'm composing this list of Series in Progress and I think I'll make it a tab on the top of the blog so that I can keep it current. I'm including any series that I'm not finished with (or haven't started yet) and any that I'm caught up with but should be continuing in the future.

(Warning: Prepare to be shocked. There are 36 (!) series listed, only six of which I am caught up with. I even left off a couple that I own one book of but am not sure I will ever start.)

Erast Fandorin by Boris Akunin
Books in series: 11
Books owned: 5
Books read: 5
Remaining books: 6 (The State Counsellor, The Coronation, She Lover of Death, He Lover of Death, The Diamond Chariot, The Jade Rosary)

Sister Pelagia Mysteries by Boris Akunin
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 3
Books read: 2
Remaining books: 1 (Sister Pelagia and the Red Cockerel)

Flavia de Luce Mysteries by Alan Bradley
Books in series: 5
Books owned: 5 (1 ARC to replace with hardcover)
Books read: 5
Remaining books: 0

The Montmaray Journals by Michelle Cooper
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 1
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 2 (The FitzOsbornes in Exile, The FitzOsbornes at War)

The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper
Books in series: 5
Books owned: 5
Books read: 2
Remaining books: 3 (Greenwitch, The Grey King, Silver on the Tree)

Mollisan Town Quartet by Tim Davys
Books in series: 4
Books owned: 4
Books read: 3
Remaining books: 1 (Yok)

Swann Family Saga by R.F. Delderfield
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 2
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 2 (Theirs Was the Kingdom, Give Us This Day)

Rose by Jennifer Donnelly
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 3
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 3 (The Tea Rose, The Winter Rose, The Wild Rose)

Chronicles of Kazam by Jasper Fforde
Books in series: 2
Books owned: 2
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 1 (The Song of the Quarkbeast)

Nursery Crimes by Jasper Fforde
Books in series: 2
Books owned: 2
Books read: 2
Remaining books: 0

Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
Books in series: 1
Books owned: 1
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 0

Thursday Next by Jasper Fforde
Books in series: 7
Books owned: 7
Books read: 7
Remaining books: 0

Charles Lenox Mysteries by Charles Finch
Books in series: 6
Books owned: 5
Books read: 5
Remaining books: 1 (A Death in the Small Hours)

Bryant and May by Christopher Fowler
Books in series: 10
Books owned: 5
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 10 (Full Dark House, The Water Room, Seventy-Seven Clocks, Ten-Second Staircase, White Corridor, The Victoria Vanishes, Bryant & May on the Loose, Bryant & May Off the Rails, The Memory of Blood, Bryant & May and the Invisible Code)

Believer Columns by Nick Hornby
Books in series: 4
Books owned: 2
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 4 (The Polysyllabic Spree, Housekeeping vs. the Dirt, Shakespeare Wrote for Money, More Baths Less Talking)

Jackelian by Stephen Hunt
Books in series: 6
Books owned: 1
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 6 (The Court of the Air, The Kingdom Beyond the Waves, The Rise of the Iron Moon, Secrets of the Fire Sea, Jack Cloudie, From the Deep of the Dark)

Shades of London by Maureen Johnson
Books in series: 2
Books owned: 1
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 2 (The Name of the Star, The Madness Underneath)


Mary Russell by Laurie R. King
Books in series: 12
Books owned: 2
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 12 (The Beekeeper's Apprentice, A Monstrous Regiment of Women, A Letter of Mary, The Moor, O Jerusalem, Justice Hall, The Game, Locked Rooms, The Language of Bees, The God of the Hive, Pirate King, Garment of Shadows)


The Agency by Y.S. Lee
Books in series: 3 (4th is scheduled)
Books owned: 2
Books read: 2
Remaining books: 1 (The Traitor and the Tunnel)

The Wicked Years by Gregory Maguire
Books in series: 4
Books owned: 4
Books read: 2
Remaining books: 2 (A Lion Among Men, Out of Oz)

Newbury and Hobbes by George Mann
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 3
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 3 (The Affinity Bridge, The Osiris Ritual, The Immortality Engine)

Mary Finch by Rose Melikan
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 3
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 2 (The Counterfeit Guest, The Mistaken Wife)

Bas-Lag by China Miéville
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 2
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 3 (Perdido Street Station, The Scar, Iron Council)

Zamonia by Walter Moers
Books in series: 5
Books owned: 3
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 4 (Rumo and His Miraculous Adventures, The City of Dreaming Books, The Alchemaster's Apprentice, The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books)

Porfiry Petrovich by R.N. Morris
Books in series: 4
Books owned: 4
Books read: 3
Remaining books: 1 (The Cleansing Flames)

The Adventures of Captain Alatriste by Arturo Perez-Reverte
Books in series: 6 (in English)
Books owned: 6
Books read: 3
Remaining books: 3 (The King's Gold, The Cavalier in the Yellow Doublet, Pirates of the Levant)

Amelia Peabody by Elizabeth Peters
Books in series: 19
Books owned: 19
Books read: 19
Remaining books: 0

Mobile Library Mysteries by Ian Sansom
Books in series: 4
Books owned: 3
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 3 (Mr. Dixon Disappears, The Book Stops Here, The Bad Book Affair)

Books of Beginning by John Stephens
Books in series: 2
Books owned: 2
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 1 (The Fire Chronicle)

Barker & Llewellyn by Will Thomas
Books in series: 5
Books owned: 1
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 5 (Some Danger Involved, To Kingdom Come, The Limehouse Text, The Hellfire Conspiracy, The Black Hand)

Bess Crawford by Charles Todd
Books in series: 4
Books owned: 2
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 4 (A Duty to the Dead, An Impartial Witness, A Bitter Truth, An Unmarked Grave)

The Girl Who by Catherynne M. Valente
Books in series: 2
Books owned: 2
Books read: 1
Remaining books: 1 (The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There)

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 3
Books read: 0
Remaining books: 3 (Leviathan, Behemoth, Goliath)

Oxford Time Travel by Connie Willis
Books in series: 4
Books owned: 4
Books read: 3
Remaining books: 1 (The Doomsday Book)

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
Books in series: 10
Books owned: 7
Books read: 6
Remaining books: 4 (The Mapping of Love and Death, A Lesson in Secrets, Elegy for Eddie, Leaving Everything Most Loved)

The Cemetery of Forgotten Books by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Books in series: 3
Books owned: 3
Books read: 3
Remaining books: 0


Now I all of a sudden want to make a list of authors that I'm working through. My TBR is going to explode! In the meantime, I think I might have found a goal to add for this year -- catch up with more of these series.

Organize, read, repeat,
K

Footsteps in the Dark

I've read quite a few Heyer mysteries so far but I think I've just found my favorite -- Footsteps in the Dark. Sadly, it wasn't Heyer's favorite. I found this on Wikipedia --

The following year [1932], Heyer's writing took an even more drastic departure from her early historical romances when she released her first thriller, Footsteps in the Dark. The novel's publication coincided with the birth of her only child, Richard George Rougier, whom she called her "most notable (indeed peerless) work". Later in her life, Heyer requested that her publishers refrain from reprinting Footsteps in the Dark, saying "This work, published simultaneously with my son ... was the first of my thrillers and was perpetrated while I was, as any Regency character would have said, increasing. One husband and two ribald brothers all had fingers in it, and I do not claim it as a Major Work."

Well, at least she loved her son! This is a pretty standard Heyer mystery as far as plot goes--English country house, far-fetched mystery, bumbling country police officer and the inevitable romance--but the execution was more solid than usual. The characters were less stereotyped and had a bit more depth than in her later mysteries and the romance was more believable. So, even though Heyer didn't want it reprinted, I'm glad that Sourcebooks did it anyway.

A good story is no mystery,
K

Joining the 2013 Science Fiction Experience

I finally joined Carl's Science Fiction Experience last year for the first time and really enjoyed the variety it brought to my reading so I will be joining again this year. It runs from January 1st to February 28th and there are no rules or goals or anything other than enjoying one or more sci-fi reads or watches (tv or movies).

I've decided to pull three books off of my shelves for this event --

Neuromancer by William Gibson

This one is actually from my husband's shelves. It's also on the 1001 List which is why I'm finally going to give it a read. It's from 1984. I have to admit that I'm a bit nervous about this one. It seems really different from what I normally read.

The Affinity Bridge by George Mann

This is also from my husband's shelves though I had heard of the series first and had already added it to my library TBR before he mentioned it. He beat me to reading the books though and is finishing the third book in the series right now. This will be the newest book I read for this event (2008).

Impossible Things by Connie Willis

Because her "best" short stories will be published in one volume this summer, I thought I should get familiar with her style and subject matter with this collection from 1993 (stories from 1986-1992). Three of the stories won Nebula Awards and two of those also won Hugo Awards.

Are you joining the "experience" this year? What will you be reading?

Off to another world or two,

K

Books I'm Looking Forward To in 2013

Yes, my friends, I still have 230+ unread books in my home. But yes, I'm still excited about some new releases in 2013. You can't stop a dedicated reader from growing their TBR list, can you? Here are the books that are already on my wishlist and that I'll likely pre-order.

January 29

Speaking From Among the Bones by Alan Bradley
(already read an ARC but need a hardcover for my collection)

March 26

Leaving Everything Most Loved: A Maisie Dobbs Novel by Jacqueline Winspear
(probably won't buy until paperback because that's what my collection is)

June 18

The Ocean At the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

The Watcher in the Shadows by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

(no cover art released yet)

July 9

The Best of Connie Willis: Award-Winning Stories

August 20

A Fatal Likeness by Lynn Shepherd

I think Louis Bayard is working on another book but I'm not sure if it will come out this year. Still no news that I can find on the next Jonathan Strange book from Susanna Clarke or the next Sarah Waters. Jasper Fforde is releasing the US edition of the second book in the Last Dragonslayer series but I've already bought a UK version because I'm impatient. Charles Finch's newest Charles Lenox mystery (A Death in the Small Hours) already came out in November so I'll be reading that soon. And I'll still be looking for a copy of Essie Fox's Elijah's Mermaid. It doesn't seem to be available to buy from any of my normal sites (Amazon, Book Depository and Powell's). I may just have to have a UK friend buy me a copy and send it over the pond!

Are there any other books coming out this year that you think I should put on my buy list?

Excited about new prose,
K

Looking Ahead to 2013

photo by k

Happy New Year, everyone! I'm so excited to start anew. This year had some rough patches and I'm hoping for fewer of those in 2013. As for the blog and my reading plans, here's what I'm thinking --

My goal from last year was to read 50 books from my home TBR stacks. I only actually read 40 from my TBR stacks but also had 19 rereads from my own shelves so I think this accomplishes the spirit of the thing -- which was to make use of the books I've already bought. I'm going to keep the same goal for this year and count rereads again too.

I also wanted to read more non-fiction and translated/international fiction. I did well on the translated and international fiction but not so well on the non-fiction. I'll keep the same goal for this year and just try to read "more" of both.

I planned to read lots of Gregory Maguire, Matthew Pearl and Charles Dickens. I totally bombed on all three -- reading only one Dickens (and part of a second) and one Pearl. I still have a couple of months left on the Dickens project though so maybe I can get a couple more reads in!

I plan to continue with my Top 100 Chapter Books Read-Along Project at The Estella Society. I've finished eight books of the 100 so far and am really enjoying the project. I have a lot of great books on the list for this year too!

I also want to make some progress on the 1001 Books To Read Before You Die list again. I'm now working from the app that lists all of the books from the various iterations of the list so it's actually 1294 books now. I don't plan on reading all of them ever but it reminds me of many books that I do want to read. I've read 104 of the books or 8% of the lists so far. Here are the twenty titles that I own right now (on LibraryThing). I'll try to read as many as possible.

And it looks like there's enough interest in DWJ March again so I'll let you know about that soon (and be soliciting for some guest posts).

Finally, I'll choose a few group reads to participate in (starting with Cheerful Weather for the Wedding this month with Simon) and I'll likely join in all of Carl's challenges this year -- The Science Fiction Experience, the Once Upon a Time event and the Readers Imbibing Peril (RIP) event. Look for my Sci-Fi launch post soon (I'm looking at Connie Willis and William Gibson to start)!

How many books are you hoping to read in 2013? Any specific challenges or goals that you're looking forward to?

Starting a new spreadsheet,
K