Flight into Fantasy

You know how, last week, I mentioned that my goal for the summer was to read a book a day? Well, it turns out that’s ever so slightly unreasonable. I get too easily distracted to maintain that kind of reading commitment.

Oh, well. It was a nice thought.

So here’s what I finished last week. Eventually, I will even manage to catch up on all my book reviews, too, and you’ll know in more detail what I thought of everything.

• Sea Witch by Virginia Kantra: Bree gets blamed for this one, and though I didn’t love it as much as she did, I was satisfied with it in the end. Certainly the book’s climax was everything I could have asked for in a paranormal romance.

• The Moon by Night by Madeleine L’Engle: Madeleine L’Engle has been a favorite author of mine for years. This was one of her few young adult titles I’d never read. It was very much a comfort read and I was just… very happy while I was immersed in her world.
• Secret Society Girl by Diana Peterfreund: I know there is a specific book blogger to blame for my decision to read this book last week. But my mind is like a steel sieve, and I have no idea who that would have been. Either way, it’s not the sort of book I think I would have picked up ordinarily, but I’m glad I did. I particularly enjoyed Amy’s slightly snarky, self-aware narrative voice. the story is told in a manner that suggests amy’s telling it to us after the fact, and she acknowledges when she did something stupid. I really liked that.
• Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny: I enjoyed this classic science fiction/fantasy hybrid. Again, I really liked the main character, and was impressed with his mad bluffing skillz. I wanted to know what scrapes he would get himself out of or into with pure, unadulterated B.S. I’m definitely going to keep going with the series.
• Slob by Ellen Potter: I blogged about this book recently, and I’m happy to report that it totally met my expectations. It was an awesome book, with lots of heart and humor, with a memorable narrator. Also, I sniffled. Several times. I almost never cry at books, so that should tell you something.

At the moment, I’m reading several books, one of which I may eventually finish. Here’s what I’ve been dipping into but haven’t finished yet.

• Luck in the Shadows by Lynn Flewelling: I think I may use this for the TBR challenge, which is due this week, since I’ve been spoiled about where the romance arc in this fantasy novel is going and it fits the theme of the challenge. I have to say, though, that while I find the writing accessible and the story fun, if I pause to actually think about the characters, I realize there’s not much there, and what there is, I’m not crazy about. But I’ll keep reading because, like I said, the book is fun.

• Overhexed by Vicki Lewis Thompson: I really, really do not do romantic comedies. Particularly not paranormal romantic comedies. But I wanted something to proofread for bookshare and I picked this book. Surprisingly, I really like it. The story is cute, and while there’s not a lot of depth to the characters, they’re fun to read about.
• Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel: I remember picking this up from Bookshare on a whim, and it looks interesting. I haven’t gotten far in it though, because the shiny still distracts me, but it’s a fast read, so I’m sure I’ll finish it soon.
• Lamb: The Gospel According To Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore: Probably won’t review this one, since I’ve already read this one. But I really like Moore’s writing, and I decided a reread was in order after I finished his latest book, Fool.
• Stranger in a Strange Land by robert Heinlein: It seems to be hip and cool for today’s SF fans to bash Heinlein, and, sadly, they have points. But this is my favorite of his books, and I’d never read the uncut version. I’m wondering if it’s anything like the uncut version of The Stand , where the added material really didn’t significantly add anything to the book. So far that seems to be the case. But I am reading this book brightly, brightly and with beauty. So there!

So that’s what I’ve been reading. I also have ebooks to review for TGTBTU that I’ve been neglecting, so I’m hoping to get to at least one of those this week.