Fresh on the heels of finishing both Pharos by Alice Thompson and Stolen by Lucy Christopher (finally!), I discovered another book, Plain Kate by Erin Bow, waiting for me in my mailbox on Saturday and I couldn’t resist starting it.
Pharos was an intriguing read. The best part about the book was the prose. It was evocative, (usually) spare, and eloquent. The story itself wasn’t bad, but I still need to digest it a bit before I try to express my opinions coherently.
Stolen. Oh, Stolen. What can I say about that book? Well, first I’d say that it’s agonizingly slow in the beginning and although it does pick up somewhat around the later middle and end, it’s still relatively slow throughout. That said, I did like the story. Basically, I kinda wish it was written by someone else. But that one is also digesting so I can write a cogent review.
I’m about two thirds of the way through Plain Kate and I’m enjoying the journey. There is so much to love about this book so far: it’s a fairytale without gratuitous sugarcoating, there’s talk of witchcraft, there’s a blood-sucking ghost, and the protagonist isn’t handed all of her heart’s desires on a silver platter—she actually has to work for it. That said, I’ve spotted a couple of (minor) problems which I’ll address in the review, but as of now, this one’s a winner. (I’m totally in love with Taggle, Kate’s cat, because he’s just plain hilarious.)
Assuming I finish Plain Kate today (which I’m positive I will), I’ll take in a few short stories or possibly read one of the new books that came home with me today.
And speaking of new books, I’m now of the belief that it’s darn near impossible to leave the house without coming back with a bucket-load of books. This morning while grocery shopping, I noticed that they were having a 75% off sale, so I decided to rummage through the remains and have now added 3 new books (technically 4, but one of them is a craft book) to my library. I’m not really complaining though because they were only a buck apiece.
I hadn’t realized I’d picked up two books by the same author, but I’m hoping that I really like her style because she’s a new to me author (both of them actually). Also, I hadn’t realized that The Wire in the Blood is the second book of a series, so I’ll have to scout out the first one before reading it.
If anyone has read Flynn or McDermid or these books specifically, I’d love to hear about your experiences with them.
# debnance wrote on July 18, 2010 at 1:51 pm:
No, I’ve not read any of these, but I definitely suffer from the same malady….I can’t seem to return home without an enormous pile of books. Fortunately, I generally pick these up at libraries or used book sales, but I am very, very tempted today to buy a couple for my Kindle!
.-= debnance´s last blog ..Sunday Salon- =-.
# She wrote on July 18, 2010 at 7:39 pm:
I do love the cover of Pharos. Also, it is never wrong to come home with a truckload of books. I think it would be preferred… bank account willing that is ;p
.-= She´s last blog ..One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich – Aleksander Solzhenisten =-.
# unfinishedperson wrote on July 18, 2010 at 8:54 pm:
Sounds like you’re a stickler for reading series in an order too. As for The Wire in the Blood series, I haven’t read them, but I have watched some of the BBC series, which was based on the books, and really liked them.
# Natalie @ Coffee and a Book Chick wrote on July 18, 2010 at 9:11 pm:
I haven’t read any of these (yet!), but I will have to say that I, as well, cannot come back home from a visit to a bookshop without a truckload of books!
.-= Natalie @ Coffee and a Book Chick´s last blog ..Sharp Objects- by Gillian Flynn =-.
# Nicole wrote on July 19, 2010 at 7:58 am:
I have accepted the fact that it impossible for me to do. What you brought home looks good. How could you possibly have left any of it behind?
.-= Nicole´s last blog ..A Hodgepodge of Links 4 =-.
# Ann-Kat wrote on July 19, 2010 at 3:37 pm:
Nicole, you make an absolutely wonderful point. It would have been impossible for me to leave any of it behind.
Thank you.
# Ann-Kat wrote on July 19, 2010 at 3:38 pm:
Natalie, it’s wonderful know that I’m not the only one. And the implication of the “(yet!)” in your comment makes me think I now owe you an apology for growing your Wishlist.
# Ann-Kat wrote on July 19, 2010 at 3:41 pm:
I had no idea that there was a BBC television series based on the books–thank you for that. I’ve just looked it up on Netflix and they have it on instant play, but I won’t be watching, yet–I want to read the books first–and you make a very astute observation: I do like to read series books in order. The last time I read the 2nd book in a series first (by accident) it left me agonized for weeks (actually, I’m still a little agonized over it) because I was unable to go back and read the previous book because I kept thinking, what’s the point? So, yeah, now I try especially hard to read books in order.
# Ann-Kat wrote on July 19, 2010 at 3:43 pm:
Hey She,
Welcome back (belated, I know). The cover of Pharos is haunting and it’s about 80% of the reason I bought it. And your statement is indeed correct; a truckload of books would be preferred, however, I think most people would neglect the second part of the statement: bank account willing.
# Ann-Kat wrote on July 19, 2010 at 3:47 pm:
I’ve had to stay far away from used books sales because although you can pick up a bunch of good books for a steep discount, it’s like I just don’t know when to stop. LOL
And wouldn’t it be great if Amazon started offering bargain Kindle books like they do for their remainders? (Granted, I don’t own a Kindle, but I do download the occasional Kindle book to read on my phone or my computer, assuming it’s relatively short.)
# Another Book Binge, and This Time I Didn’t Even Have to Leave Home wrote on July 21, 2010 at 3:36 pm:
[...] how I was saying it’s nearly impossible to leave the house and not come home with a bunch of books? Well, it seems that I don’t even need to leave anymore. The books, they will find me. And I [...]
# Mailbox Monday: The Goodies Keep Coming wrote on July 26, 2010 at 9:18 am:
[...] it seems fitting since I got a couple more titles over the weekend. (This entire week has been a good one for [...]