coprime

I want the Trilogy bookcase so bad. Look how geometric and orderly it is! Sadly, I cannot afford it, and even if I could I have no place to put it. I think the Platzhalter bookcase is cool idea well-executed. It was my favorite bookcase until I saw the Trilogy one.

Uncharted Territory - Connie Willis
For the longest time, whenever I went into a bookstore, I had to remind myself that it was a bad idea to start collecting everything by an author when I'd only read one thing of hers, even if I had really enjoyed it. And that I already had two other novels of hers sitting on my shelf waiting to be read. So I finally decided to actually read one of those two novels, and I picked Uncharted Territory (rather than Lincoln's Dreams) because the premise sounded fun -- hijinks and adventures! exploration! needlessly ridiculous bureaucratic red tape! a socioexozoologist who specializes in sex! -- and it was short.

And I did really enjoy it until the end because nothing had changed in the end. Fin and Carson are the same at the end of the story as they were in the beginning. I would have been happy even if the end change had just been mental or if they'd decided that they didn't want to be in a relationship. Instead, I finished and was left with the impression that all the events in the book might as well have not happened for all the impact they had on Fin and Carson. Which is not what I would call a satisfying ending.

The Drakon #3: Queen of Dragons - Shana Abé
Ohh, I wanted to like this book. It's a historical romance about a race of dragon/human shapeshifters, and glenraven read and thought I'd like the first Drakon book. I picked up the third Drakon book first, but I thought I'd be okay because I've found that most romance series can be read out of order so long as you don't mind not knowing all the details when couples from previous books pop up. But it turns out this approach doesn't work so much for this series because when the hero from a previous book popped up, he was doing secretive, important-to-the-plot things and not a one of them was explained. I was left thoroughly confused, right in the middle of the final action scene.

I also had an issue with the fact that the entire action plot was just a set-up for the next book and nothing actually gets resolved. No, seriously, I very nearly threw the book across the room I was so frustrated with the ending. The book ends with ( spoilers if you care )

And then I had a lot of issues with the romance aspect of the novel. Partially, it's because I'm a bit sick of every shapeshifter/demon/animal hybrid/etc. having some sort of "animal instinct" where they must mate for life with one specific person and if that person isn't overly enthusiastic about them, then they just keep pursuing the person despite the other's wishes because their instinct tells them differently. It's very popular in paranormal romance, which is mostly what I read. And I don't like it because it dehumanizes the couple for me. There's always lots of talk about mates and alphas and such, and it's done regardless of whether our hero and heroine are dragon-shapeshifters, psychics, vampires, some form of were-. I can understand it more with the weres/shapeshifters, but why with other paranormal characters? Why can't the hero and heroine just fall head-over-heels for each other like normal, human romance couples do?

I will give Abé credit for doing a good job of integrating the different forms of the Drakon so that they all seemed equally natural. Kim and Mari were appreciative of each other and had chemistry no matter their form, and it never read weird for me. (Although -- and I know I'm harping -- I wold have expected dragon instincts to tend more towards a solitary existence rather than a pack existence.) But then halfway through the novel Kim did something where, if I had been Mari and had gone through what she'd gone through with her previous husband, I would not be able to trust him again without some serious work on his part.

I never got the emotional payoff of them rebuilding their trust however because Abé (and therefore Mari) didn't see what happened as that much of an issue as I did. So Kim made extra special sure not to do what he did again, and Mari had no doubts or hesitance at all stemming from Kim's actions. Sure, she still didn't want to end up in the same situation as when she'd been married before, but that was because she was against getting remarried in general. She never once thought "I don't want to get married, and especially not to Kim because he treated me like my former husband did (albeit by accident)."

Oh, and then there's Kim, who (along with the rest of his village) spends nearly the entire book acting like Mari and he are already married because years before he met her, he and the village council decided he should marry her for political reasons. And then when Kim and Mari finally meet, bam! they're married in the eyes of everyone except Mari, who keeps saying that no way no how is she going to get married again. Kim doesn't ever physically force himself on Mari, but it's incredibly annoying to have the hero saying that he doesn't care about the heroine's wishes on the matter of her marital status, he's decided they are and that's that.

Between my numerous frustrations with the romance plot and the wash-out that was the ending of the action plot, I was very dissatisfied with this book, and I don't think I'll read any more of this series. I might be willing to read one of her other novels if it was recommended to me by someone I know, but that's it.

ETA: glenraven has informed me that this is the really sucktacular book of the series and that the two before it are better. So maybe I'll read them at some later date.

Warrior - Marie Brennan
I have nothing bad to say about this one! Haha, finally my first book of the new year that I just out-and-out enjoyed. It was fun and interesting fantasy, and if I had the sequel I'd probably be reading it. I really like both Mirage and Miryo, and it was a nice change of pace to read a fantasy novel without any romance in it.

You know what's a really effective way to motivate yourself to read? Be away from home for a month and try to ward off homesickness by reading rollercoaster ride books.

Scarecrow (Shane Schofield #3), by Matthew Reilly: Yeah, I read book three in the series first because the store didn't have book one, and I thought Scarecrow sounded more fun than Area 7. Which worked out fine since I don't care about spoilers, and the book stands on its own well. It was a very, very fun book too! I kept being reminded of this one scene from Die Hard 4 where Bruce Willis launches a car into the air and takes down a helicopter with it. It's a scene that's really awesome to watch while it's also comepletely ridiculous, and the entirety of Scarecrow is like that.

Seriously, at one point a guy gets microwaved to death, it's awesome.

Bleh, the month of virtually no free time whatsoever has caught up with me and I've caught something. Sore throat, mostly. I did find enough time to finish a book last night however.

Cybermancy (Ravirn #2), by Kelly McCullough: This was a quick, little read (hence being able to read it in two days despite a lack of free time), and the best description I can come up with for the series is Computers + Sorcery + Greek Mythology = Awesome. Both Cybermancy and WebMage (the first book) are really fun to read, which is my main criteria for choosing reading material. The only thing that keeps me from loving these books completely and utterly is that occasionally McCullough is a little too enamored of how cool he thinks Ravirn is. (I will be disappointed if every attractive woman who meets Ravirn wants to get it on with him. It's close to going that way, but I'm waiting to see if this trend is continued in Codespell or not.) Oh, and the line "you can count her ribs from fifteen feet" does not make me think sexy thoughts.

But that's really a minor complaint. The story arc about the webgoblins (and other magic technology) and ( minor spoiler for WebMage ) is one I'm finding really interesting, the Greek mythology is snazzy, and the books move along at a fast clip without being a whirlwind.

The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne is the current book I'm reading. And I love it so. Freakin'. Much. I adore this book, which isn't that surprising since Jules is one of my favorite authors. But. This one is truly his masterpiece, I think. It's got the largest cast of characters (Eight and counting!) that I've seen in any of his books. (I've also read 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Journey to the Center of the Earth, and Around the World in 80 Days, so what I'm saying isn't completely without basis.)

Anyways-- eight characters. Journey to the Center of the Earth only had three. And, this is the most well-developed I've seen any of his characters. They all have distinct personalities. There's Pencroff who is the doubting Thomas of the group and whose emotions are passionate but also on a pendulum. Gideon Spilett, with his own curiosity about what's going on but is much more understated than the rest of the group. And Cyrus Smith! So logical and methodical, mmm. He seems, almost, to be Jules' author avatar now that I think about it. Just-- with the amazing precision both have. There's also Neb, whose enthusiam almost rivals Pencroff's but without all Pencroff's doubting. And, of course, Harbert, whose name I just adore. So smart and willing to learn!

Gideon and Pencroff are my favorite characters, but I love them all. (And I know I said eight but only mentioned five. Others appear over the course of the novel, but I don't want to give anything vital away.)

I was honestly surprised at how distinct and realistic these characters were. In Around the World in 80 Days, there was a romance between Phileas and Aouda, which I was never able to accept. I never saw why Phileas loved Aouda nor did I even see that he, in fact, did love her. I was told it, yes, but that's not the same. So I was pleasantly surprised by how these characters had honest emotions that didn't seem forced and were shown in such a way that they were there for me to discover if I was paying attention.

Then, there's the mystery of the island. Because, yes the title is quite descriptive. I haven't solved the mystery yet, but it's really enthralling. It creeps up on you, slowly and surely. And it's so subtle at first that you don't realize there is a mystery until Cyrus and Gideon point it out to you. And by that time, you're too far gone to want to put the book down. Oh, I love this book! I love it, I love it, I love it. Ever since I read 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, I've adored Verne's writing style. But this book takes the cake; it's just that good.

(A final note-- I'm reading Jordan Stump's translation and am using his names for people.)