Sunday Summary – 30th September 2018
There is no eloquent way I can accurately express how well this week has gone for me!
I don’t know what it is lately, but I have felt a little bogged down. Perhaps it is work in general… or maybe because I have a number of blogging obligations. Either way, things have felt sluggish. I’ll admit I have been a little light on the blog-post-publishing front, but I think I needed those few days. I have no regrets.
This week I have only published one post – a Blog Tour review for Ragis by Donna Migliaccio. I have fallen so hard in love with this series this year; if you haven’t read it yet, I implore you to… you won’t regret it!
I promised a Mystery Blogger post as well. It’s already late (in my eyes anyway) and I haven’t been in the mood to write it. I’m not going to force the issue otherwise it won’t make for an enjoyable post. It’s a work in progress – maybe I’ll publish it one day!
I was having a good week anyway, in reading terms. I’ve also had a bookish event to look forward to, as this week has been the Manx LitFest. Unfortunately, due to other absences at work, I haven’t been able to attend many events. I did, however, attend a re-telling of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” at the Gaiety Theatre on Friday. I loved it; it was the first time I have attended an event like it. I hope I get the chance to again!
After going to see that performance, I feel revitalised. That might sound incredibly bizarre, I know, but it was good to break the norm. There aren’t many bookish events here and I seldom get the opportunity to meet like-minded people. I booked my ticket to attend in May, so I have been looking forward to it for a while! I think I am going to write a separate post about it very soon.
Books Read
It has been a good reading week, despite one book ending up on the DNF pile. I don’t like doing this, but if I cannot get on with a book, forcing myself to read it is worse.
After last week’s update, I finished A Stain on the Soul by Elizabeth Davies. I recently read and reviewed Three Bloody Pieces; ASoTS follows on from events in book one and I’ll also be reviewing this very soon! I had hoped to move on to the last book in the series next, however, since that book is not touring until November, I haven’t received my copy yet.
I picked up Desolation by Jesper Schmidt instead, although I confess, not for very long. This is the book I, unfortunately, had to resign to the DNF pile. Much of the narrative is spent trying to set up this fantasy world, yet it is difficult to invest into. I couldn’t warm to the writing style. I hate not finishing a book, but I decided quite early on that it wasn’t for me. It isn’t fair to force myself through a book I am not enjoying and even less so on the author when it comes to committing my thoughts to paper.
So, moving swiftly on – with my reading list for September done (as much as possible), I returned to reading The Eye of the World. This book is huge and the plot complicated, so I think I’ll be reading this in dribs and drabs until I get to the end. I have managed to read another 10% of the book, which to my mind is pretty good going. Having taken a break, it wasn’t all that difficult to get back into. I suppose it’s a good job really, given its size!
After going to watch the re-telling of Frankenstein on Friday night, I came home, made myself a cuppa and picked up the book straightaway! If that doesn’t tell you how much I loved it, then I don’t really know what will! I last read the book at the age of 14 and hated it! I have often said this for all the books I studied at school, but changed my mind when reading them again for pleasure. Frankenstein is also proving to be the same. I fell asleep reading this at around 1am on Saturday morning – that’s how unwilling I was to put it down! I am now halfway through the book… it won’t take long to finish either!
Books Discovered
Whilst I haven’t *bought* any books this week (which is a miracle, since payday has arrived), I have used some audible credits that I’ve had for a while.
I’ve added my first Phillip Pullman book to the list! I have heard a few things about this author, so when I saw a book by him set in Victorian England, I listened to the sample! This is going to be a really interesting listen and I cannot wait to try this new author!
I have also downloaded Lock In by John Scalzi. I am making a conscious effort to read/listen to more science fiction books, so this is a perfect fit. This will be the first book I have tried from this author too, so I’ll have to see what I make of this. Maybe I’ll be reading more of their books in future!
Coming Up…
It’s October tomorrow. The leaves are starting to turn, cold winds are rising and there is a nip in the air. Okay, so I’m being a little dramatic. But, the point is, it’s a new month! You know what that means… a new reading list! It is another busy month of review requests and blog tours, as well as a getting my hands on a much-anticipated release, MUSE OF NIGHTMARES!
Since I enjoyed the re-telling of Frankenstein so much, on Friday I’ll be taking the opportunity to tell you a little about it, as well as those that took part and made the event possible! I hope you can join me for that!
In the meantime, ladies and gents, keep reading!
Ragis by Donna Migliaccio
Donna Migliaccio is a professional stage actress with credits that include Broadway, National Tours and prominent regional theatres. 
A few weeks ago I was nominated for the Mystery Blogger Award. I tried to write my own post in response to this almost straight away… but I actually found it to be quite tricky! I’m going to pick up where I left off and try to finish that post for you!
Vivienne Vermes is a writer and actress of Irish and Hungarian descent who divides her time between Paris and London. She has published four collections of poetry: Sand Woman, Metamorphoses, Passages and When the World Stops Spinning, and has performed her work in festivals throughout Europe. She is winner of the Piccadilly Poets’ award, the Mail on Sunday’s Best Opening of a Novel competition, as well as Flash 500s prize for short prose and the Paragram national competition for best poem and “petite prose”. She has taught creative writing in universities in Transylvania, and runs a writers’ workshop in Paris.
Elizabeth Davies is a paranormal author, whose books have a romantic flavour with more than a hint of suspense. And death. There’s usually death…
Starting on Wednesday, I have a Blog Tour review for Three Bloody Pieces by Elizabeth Davies. This is the first book of three; I am reading the next two books shortly for review at a later date! In the meantime, I would love if you could check out my thoughts on this first book when I post this week.
Next, I have another Blog Tour on Sunday! This is for The Barefoot Road, the first book I read this week. This is a standalone book that echoes historical fiction in its treatment of ethnic segregation and themes of witchcraft and religion. If you want to read more on that, check out my blog next Sunday.
So, as I have the Blog Tour scheduled, my Sunday Summary post is going to be slightly late. I’m going to schedule it for first thing Monday morning, so you don’t have to miss out on my weekly update and general musings. I hope to see you around for that!
My nomination for the Mystery Blogger award recognises the mini-review series I started a few weeks ago now. The aim of that series is to look back at books I have read previously and feature them on my blog. I feel it only appropriate to write another one of those posts again. This week though, I’ve decided the subject already. I felt it to be a little cliché starting the review series with these books, so I held back. Now though, I think I’m ready to talk about the books I would argue J. K. Rowling is most famous for. It’s a series that I can hand on heart say I grew up with; as I am sure many of you did too.
The Green Mile was the first book I picked up by Stephen King… and it kindled a real love for his writing. I have since gone on to read Pet Sematary, IT, The Gunslinger (book 1) and listen to The Stand as an audiobook. I have loved each and every one. Obviously The Green Mile is a little different to the majority of his writing. If anything, introducing myself to this author with this book made it easier for me to step into reading horror. It’s a genre I never thought I would like, but I have been proven wrong.
It would have been criminal not to include J K Rowling on this list. I grew up with the Harry Potter books. They will forever be cemented as a part of my childhood/teen years. I read the last book of the series on holiday as a teenager – I think it was the last year I took physical books on holiday. I must have had four or five books in the suitcase (at least two were hardback; the weight must have been half books). This was the last book I was reading, and it was so good, I physically couldn’t put it down to pack the case to go home.
Having read and LOVED the first Mistborn trilogy, I went on to read The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archives). I thought it would be difficult for Sanderson to best those books, but he did. It is taking all my efforts not to binge read the other two books that begin the series. Otherwise, I will be in for a VERY LONG WAIT for the remaining seven.
I have only read one of Laini Taylor’s books so far. I think it speaks volumes that I read the book outside of my TBR… and very quickly. I’ve also pre-ordered Muse of Nightmares ready for its release in October. Her writing is beautiful, her characters adorable and I just want more! I’ve also added Daughter of Smoke and Bone to the reading list because I loved Strange the Dreamer so much. This book also seems to have a lot of love, so I can’t wait to read this!
I have become a Discworld nerd… that’s for sure. One of my friends in particular had read Pratchett’s work and raved about him a lot. I didn’t really get into the idea… but I think that is because she usually talked about it to one of her other friends. Let’s just say the friendship isn’t mutual and leave it there.
I began reading the Sword of Truth series as a teenager, thanks to stumbling across Wizard’s First Rule in the school library. I’ll admit, since leaving school I haven’t really made much further progress with these books. That doesn’t mean I don’t intend to though! I love the characters and the world-building, but most importantly, the writing style. I think I am part way through book 5 of the series. I’ll have to give myself a re-cap and start that one again probably.
It is one of the rare occasions in which I had watched The Last Kingdom before I discovered it was based on a book series. When unveiling this “grand revelation” to a colleague who I knew had also watched the series… it turned out not to be a revelation to her at all. My disappointment at her knowing this already was short-lived, however, as she loaned me a copy of the book.
I don’t think I need to go into any particular detail when telling you which books this author is famous for. If you don’t know, then I wonder which rock you have lived under all your life.
George R. R. Martin has written many works in his time. Most notably is he known for the Song of Ice & Fire series, (aka A Game of Thrones to those not familiar), he developed a lot of his writing skill in producing short stories.
I cannot tell you how much I love this man’s series, The Kingkiller Chronicles. The narrative is beautiful. He is a master storyteller through and through.
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