Title: [When She Woke]
Author: Hillary Jordan
Pages: 150 of 354 pages
Genre: Fiction
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: January 5, 2012
Rating: **1/2
When She Woke is terrifying for its semblance to contemporary American politics. The early narrative is just as claustrophobic as the protagonist's jail cell, and the laws and governing body are at once surreal and far too familiar. Ultimately, however, the text failed for me, as I found it impossible to find sympathy for the protagonist. When my library loan expired before I could finish the book I had only the briefest moment of regret.
15.
Title: [We Have Always Lived in the Castle]
Author: Shirley Jackson
Pages: 160
Genre: Contemporary Gothic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Work Text
Date Completed: February 15, 2012
Rating: *****
Jackson's novel is most compelling to me for its satire, which emphasizes sympathy for a murderer, and for its portrayal of madness as normality. I find the way Jackson develops the story from Mary Katherine's point of view fascinating, and enjoy this text every time I read it. My students did not all find it quite as enjoyable as I, although discussions about why they disliked the book were just as successful as discussions about major themes and ideas.
16.
Title: [Megan's Mark]
Author: Lora Leigh
Pages: 304
Genre: Paranormal romance
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition: Work Text
Date Completed: February ?, 2013
Rating: ***1/2
Megan's Mark is standard fair, a la Lara Adrian and her ilk; so much so, though, that it will make a strong source for my upcoming paper, especially in terms of paranormal dominance.
17.
Title: [The Queen is Dead]
Author: Kate Locke
Pages: 352
Genre: Steampunk
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: March 2, 2013
Rating: ***1/2
The second book in Kate Locke's The Immortal Empire series is much stronger than the first; the action is well-paced, characters are given stronger development, and the highly-flawed protagonist is much more sympathetic as she comes to terms with her new racial and social identity.
18.
Title: "Night Crow"
Author: Paisley Smith
Pages:17
Genre: f/f Paranormal Romance
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition:
Date Completed: March 4, 2013
Rating: **
At only seventeen pages, it's not difficult to imagine the level of development in Smith's story. "Night Crow" was included on a "best of" list for f/f paranormal romance, so I opted to purchase it as I wrap up my primary source research. The premise itself is far from satisfying, and did not inspire a great desire to turn to historical "romance."
19.
Title: "Purr"
Author: Paisley Smith
Pages:99
Genre: f/f
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition:
Date Completed: March 4, 2013
Rating: ***
"Purr" attempts to be reminiscent of de Sade, portraying a very-loosely historical account of a sapphic compound. Likewise included on the "best of f/f romance" list, this story included greater development and, while useless for my current project, was good for a romp. Still, I would not argue that it is worth the $4.59 purchase price on Amazon.
20.
Title: [The Truth]
Author: Terry Pratchett
Pages:368
Genre: Satire
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: March 8, 2013
Rating: *****
"The Truth Shall Make Ye Fret!"
Terry Pratchett's Discworld Industry novel The Truth was my first introduction to the colorful world of Pratchett's satire, and remains a favorite.
21.
Title: "Bitten in the Big Easy"
Author: Delilah Devlin, Paisley Smith
Pages:91
Genre: f/f Romance Erotica
Medium: Kindle
Acquisition:
Date Completed: March 9, 2013
Rating: *1/2
Through reading these two short stories I discovered a few very important things. First, it helped me realize why I so rarely enjoy contemporary vampire stories, despite my love of the genre historically: as a general rule, they show very normal, very boring people to be "special" and therefore deserving of eternal life and "love." Bella Swann is not special, and neither are the protagonists of these stories. Dracula's brides and Lucy Westerna are far more compelling. Secondly, I've discovered that Delilah Devlin and Paisley Smith are two authors I can certainly avoid in the future.
22.
Title: [Frost Burned]
Author: Patricia Briggs
Pages:368
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Preordered
Date Completed: March 11, 2013
Rating: *****
Although werewolves are not my paranormal subject of choice, I've discovered that the contemporary authors I favor most write primarily about werewolves. Patricia Briggs is one of those authors. Her novels are well paced with a close eye to development, and I've found her urban fantasy to be wonderfully compelling. She is consistent with the characters she creates, while showing progression through the series. The "angst" that defines some series is here kept to a minimum, showing that not everyone has the luxury to mope about personal issues when there is an external threat to address. Mercy is flawed yet sympathetic, and brings warmth to the series. Frost Burned is a strong installment with an interesting twist, showcasing Mercy's growth as a pack leader and an individual.
23.
Title: [The Hunger Games]
Author: Suzanne Collins
Pages:384
Genre: YA Dystopian
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: March 13, 2013
Rating: *****
24.
Title: [Mockingjay]
Author: Suzanne Collins
Pages:400
Genre: YA Dystopian
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: March 14, 2013
Rating: *****
25.
Title: [Catching Fire]
Author: Suzanne Collins
Pages:391
Genre: YA Dystopian
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: March 18, 2013
Rating: *****
All three are rereads, although this time I read them as a boxed set as opposed to ebooks; review was in order for this week's presentation. I've said before that Collins doesn't do anything original with this series, but she does it very well. It was interesting to approach the series from a more analytical point of view, and I look forward to sharing my ideas and theories with others.
26.
Title: [A Charmed Life: Growing Up in Macbeth's Castle]
Author: Liza Campbell
Pages:352
Genre: Memoir
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: March 21, 2013
Rating: ***1/2
The draw for me is simple: Macbeth. Of course, as a contemporary memoir I understood that the text would have little to do with Shakespeare's play (or his historical inspiration), but the title was enough to pique my interest, as no doubt it does for many others. And, to her credit, Campbell often delivers, pairing the story of her own life and childhood with the history of her home and family, satisfying both an interest in Scotland's often bloody past with the life now lead in these once-fortified homes. The personal historical anecdotes are fascinating and enthralling.
Campbell's personal life is less so. The story she has to tell is one of countless iterations - she is the "poor little rich girl" with the alcoholic father who pisses away hundreds of years of family history for goddness-knows-why. The last Thane is repellent in every way; even when Campbell tries to explain the charm he once holds the reader's skin will crawl. Campbell's role as a narrator is similar to her role as a child: she is bewildered, and doesn't seem to process the events of her own life.
If this was Campbell's story alone it would not be one worth reading, unless one happened to be a personal friend. However, her memoir holds interest for her accident of family, and the history she has to share.
27.
Title: [Gracefully Insane]
Author: Alex Beam
Pages:296
Genre: Nonfiction
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Library
Date Completed: April 2, 2013
Rating: **1/2
McLean Hospital is the stuff of narrative legend; temporary home to musicians, artists, authors, and the social elite, McLean Hospital is the benchmark for the posh mental institution of fiction. The other descriptions of McLean - fiction, autobiography, song - are far more rich and entertaining. There are stronger histories of mental institutions, and ultimately Beam's book reads more like a travel brochure history than a successful text for writing's sake.
28.
Title: [The Hobbit]
Author: J.R.R. Tolkien
Pages:320
Genre: Fantasy
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Work Text
Date Completed: April 4, 2013
Rating: ****
I did not appreciate Tolkien's work (or, for that matter, read most of it) until taking a graduate seminar on Tolkien. Dr. Verilyn Flieger is an amazing scholar and lecturer, and breathed a life into the work that I don't believe I would have found on my own. I liked The Hobbit when I first read it at 13, but didn't really enjoy the story until I approached it from an analytical point of view. Teaching the novel proved to be just as delightful as studying it myself, and lead to heated and thoughtful class discussions. It is also feeding nicely into our present discussion of Beowulf, for obvious reasons.
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