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Teens posts by Jane J
If you're a bookie like me then this is the best time of the year. No, not because of the turkey and Black Friday sales (though those are a bonus), but because now is when NPR posts their Books We Love list and oh how happy it makes me to browse through all those possibles. Think of it as a cross between the library's Best Sellers and Too Good to Miss collections. There is something for everyone and every one of the titles is worth a look.
Lucy Parker never fails me. When I need a warm hug of a book I know I'll find one in Parker's London Celebrities series. That said, Headliners doesn't start out all warm and cozy. The protagonists (introduced in The Austen Playbook) are rival TV presenters who pretty much loathe each other. And with good reason.
This first in the Rook & Rose trilogy has been on my to-read list for a while, but I'll confess it's length was a bit daunting. Not because I don't like a longer book, but because I never felt I had the time to allow myself to settle in and become immersed. But once I did that? I was. Immersed.
The Wisconsin Book Festival is the state’s premier literary event and it's starting soon. The festival will feature representative voices from our communities and spark conversations from a wide range of perspectives. At the Fall Celebration, you'll learn about the effect anxiety is having on our society, discuss gender identity, and explore issues facing the public school system.
Here's just a sampling of some of the great events that are planned.
A co-worker recommended Rachel Bach's trilogy to me since she knows I enjoy military SF. And I thank her right now for the suggestion. Fortune's Pawn introduces mercenary soldier Deviana Morris. Devi's ultimate goal is to join the elite special forces of her planetary kingdom, but to do so she can either spend years in the military slogging her way up the ranks, or go mercenary and get the needed bad-ass experience that way. A friend suggests she get a job on The Glorious Fool, a ship that has seen a lot of action.
October and the spooky season are just around the corner and I have the book for you. Elly Griffiths' (best known for her Ruth Galloway series of mysteries) Stranger Diaries is suspenseful and even spooky at times (there's even a ghost) and is a gothic book about a gothic story that is being written about for a book. Okay that sounds like nonsense, I know.
Here on planet Earth we may joke that our rock stars are gods, but in the universe of Gail Carriger's Tinkered Stars they really are. But to gain that status they first have to be recruited and then survive a competition (think American Idol competition, as opposed to the Hunger Games - no killing off the competition here) and prove they have the skill, artistry, and that certain something - call it stage presence or star power or charisma - that will make the audience worship them. Enter Phex.
Fawcett's novel is one I've been hearing good things about for months. Many of the people who loved Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree love this one. And since I loved L&L, I've had this one on my tbr for some time. When I had some downtime recently I finally found the moment to dive in.
Anyone who's known me for a while as a reader knows I can dig my feet in when a book becomes too popular. If I read a book before it became hugely popular, great. But if it's become hugely popular? I'm far more likely to not read it then. If I'm being honest here (and why else would I start talking about this?), I'll admit I like to be the discoverer of the books. I like to find the gems before everyone else. My petty confession of the day.
"London’s soul has gone missing. Lost? Kidnapped? Murdered? Nobody knows – but when Sharon Li unexpectedly discovers she’s a shaman, she is immediately called upon to use her newfound powers of oneness with the City to rescue it from a slow but inevitable demise.
