Some Thursday Randomness

TV
I knew at some point that The Magicians was based off the books but had forgotten until I started watching the first episode. I've liked what I've seen so far. The acting is definitely better than the next show in this post. For the most part I liked the books so it will depend on the writing and actors for the show.


Next up Shadowhunters. I wanted to like this, I really did. I am still recording it in hopes that it might get better but chances are looking slim. Some things work but overall the acting is what is killing it for me. The girl playing Clary didn't bug me until the last episode and it wasn't even her acting it was her running. If they are going to put these actresses in these heels and then expect them to run around chasing things, they need to practice until they look comfortable doing it. Oh well, like I said may give it a few more weeks before fully giving up.


Fun Stuff
Just a random dance video...


Art
I cannot think of a time when I would pay this much for a vase (almost $1200) but they are really beautiful pieces.

High Wave Vase
by Kela's Gallery ( website) 

DeviantArt

Music Fractals
by Dmitry Bitus (deviantArt) 

Magician of Darkness
by Hyun (deviantart)

This Week's Reads

The Chess Queen Enigma by Colleen Gleason
(Stoker & Holmes #3) Goodreads
**I received this book from Armchair BEA last year. I read the first two books right away but am just now, finally getting around to reading this one.

Swords and Scoundrels by Julia Knight
(The Duelists Trilogy #1) Goodreads
**This was an impulse pick up at the library. The cover got my attention and it just sounded like something I might like. Haven't really looked to see what it's ratings are.

The Aeronaut's Windlass by Jim Butcher
(The Cinder Spires #1) Goodreads
**Butcher is one of my favorite author so I've been looking forward to this one. I've seen mixed reviews but hoping I either really enjoy it or it's like the Dresden books where it didn't fully grab me until book 3-4.

New Releases ~ week of 01/25/2016

Arrows by  Melissa Gorzelanczyk
The Brimstone Deception by Lisa Shearin (SPI Files #3)
Back to the Vara by John Kerry (The Vara Volumes #2)

Broken Hero by Jonathon Wood (Arthur Wallace #4)
City of Blades by Robert Jackson Bennett (The Divine Cities #2)
Front Lines by Michael Grant (Soldier Girl #1)
Graveyard by William C Dietz (Mutant Files #3)
Mercury Striking by Rebecca Zanetti (The Scorpius Syndrome #1)
Night Study by Maria V Snyder (Soulfinders #2)
Numbers Ignite by Rebecca Rode(Numbers Game #2)
Otherworld Secrets by Kelley Armstrong (Otherworld #4)
Rise of the Wolf by Jennifer A Nielsen (Mark of the Thief #2)
Roadside Magic by Lilith Saintcrow (Gallow and Ragged #2)
Shallow Graves by Kali Wallace
Spider Game by Christina Feehan (GhostWalkers #12)
Staked by Kevin Hearne (The Iron Druid Chronicles #8)

The Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn #6)
The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman (Lady Helen #1)
The Dragon’s Return by Stan Lee, Stuart Moore, Andie Tong (Zodiac #2)
The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry
The Memory of Light by  Francisco X. Stork
The Mystery of Hollow Places by Rebecca Podos
The Morrigan’s Curse by Dianne K Salerni (Eighth Day #3)
The Prophecy of Shadows by Michelle Madow (Elementals #1)
The Rule of Luck by Catherine Cerveny
The Siren by Kiera Cass
Your Lycan or Mine? by Michele Bardsley (Broken Heart #14)

Some Thursday Randomness

Movies

I liked the look of the Suicide Squad poster/s that Warner Brothers has released.

I'm not sure about the first look at the new Wonder Woman. I'm of an age that I have a very set image of Wonder Woman in my mind that, even though this sounds like it could be good, I don't know if I can get past the actual character image.

Random Things
Saw way too many things around the web this week but really liked these two.

Originally seen on Colossal (website) artist Ola Shekhtman creates rings from famous city skylines. The ones above are San Francisco and London. You can find all her items in her Esty shop (here).

Apparently this plush offered by Game Guardians on esty has been around for awhile. The demand for Falkor from The Neverending Story was so great that they now sell the pattern so you can make your own.

Fan Art
On a Doctor Who kick for some reason. Found it difficult to find any with my favorite, Donna, that didn't also have all the other companions in it.

Doctor Who - Companions
by Strawberrygina (DeviantArt)

Bad Wolf
by Kinky ChiChi (deviantArt)

This Week's Reads

**Did not have a good reading week so I'm still working on last week's books. Only two new ones this week. Both are parts of series that I've enjoyed the previous books.

Dark Heart of Magic (Black Blade #2)by Jennifer Estep
Goodreads

Eighth Grave After Dark (Charley Davidson #8) by Darynda Jones
Goodreads

New Releases ~ week of 01/18/2016

A Painted Goddess by Victor Gischler (#3 Fire Beneath the Skin)

A Raging Dawn by CJ Lyons (#2 Fatal Insomnia)
A Soldier's Promise by Karen Templeton (#7 Wed in the West)
A Song for the Brokenhearted by William Shaw (#3 Been and Tozer)
Appealed by Emma Chase (#3 Legal Briefs)
Body by Joey W Hill (#1 Naughty Wishes)
Brooklyn on Fire by Lawrence H. Levy (#2 Mary Handley Mystery)
Cunning by Aleatha Romig (#2 Infidelity)
Darker Cravings by Candice Gilmer (#2 Mythical Knights)
Dirty Sexy Saint by Carly Phillips (#1 Dirty Sexy Series)
Dr. Forget-Me-Not by Marie Ferrarella (#16 Matchmaking Mamas)
Enraptured by Candace Camp (#3 Secrets of the Loch)
Falcone Strike by Christopher Nuttall (#2 Angel in the Whirlwind)

Feverborn by Karen Marie Moning (#8 Fever)
Forgotten Promises by Jessica Lemmon (#2 Lost Boys)
Funeral Games by Jay Allan (#3 Far Star Trilogy)
Hot Protector by Lynn Raye Harris (#10 Hostile Operations Team)
On the Meldon Plain by Pam Brondos (#2 The Fourline Trilogy)
Rapturous by Marie Force (#4 Quantum Trilogy)
Sutherland's Secret by Sharon Cullen (#1 Highland Pride)
The Doctor's Valentine Dare by Cindy Kirk (#13 Rx for Love)
The Sons of Sora by Paul Tassi (#3 The Earthborn Trilogy)
To Have and the Master by Sparrow Beckett (#3 Masters Unleashed)
Who Killed Shelly Sinclair? by Carla Cassidy (#12 Scene of the Crime)
Wickedly Ever After by Deborah Blake (#2.5 A Baba Yaga Novel)
Will to Survive by Eric Walters (#3 The Rule of Three)

Some Thursday Randomness

TV
Anyone watching The Shannara Chronicles on MTV (here)? I have to start by saying I have not read the books so I don't know how true to the books the show is. So far, I am entertained enough to give it a couple more episodes before making a final decision. You can also watch the first four episodes online at the link above.


DC's Legends of Tomorrow starts on the CW (facebook) 01/21/2016. This is another that I'm not familiar with the original storyline. This can be a good thing sometimes. I don't find myself overanalyzing the show/movie I just see if it entertains me. There seems to be so many shows coming out this year that this may end up like Arrow and I'll watch when the dvd comes out.

Art
First a coloring book for the Doctor Who fans out there. Comes out February 2016 from Penguin (pre-order)

Allanon (played by Manu Bennett)
by Suzanne Helmigh (DeviantArt)

Doctor Who Space Travel
by David Hoffrichter (DeviantArt)

This Week's Reads

**I managed to read/start all my books from last week,I don't think I will get to all of this week's.

House Immortal (House Immortal #1) by Devon Monk
Goodreads
**I've just started this one. It is interesting so far. Still in the early stages trying to figure out how the world is set up and works.

Down The Rabbit Hole ~ Anthology
J.D. Robb, Mary Blayney, Elaine Fox, Mary Kay McComas, R.C. Ryan
Goodreads
**Picked this up for the J.D Robb story. Will try a few of the others but might not read them all.

Iced (Fever #6) by Karen Marie Moning
Goodreads
**I really enjoyed reading the original 5 books from this series. I'm worried about this living up to those books.

The Crown Tower (The Riyria Chronicles) by Michael J. Sullivan
Goodreads
** Came across these and decided to give them a try. I'm going to try reading them in chronological order rather than release date order.

New Releases ~ week of 01/11/2016

A Gatlin Wedding by Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl (#4 Beautiful Creatures: The Untold Story)

Assassin's Kiss by Sharon Kay (#2 Watchers Kiss)
Better Off Undead by Cynthia Eden (#2 Blood and Moonlight)
Blue Darker Than Black by Mike Jenne (#2 Blue Gemini)
Cut Me in by Ed McBain (#101 Hard Case Crime)
Destroyer by Brett Battles (#2 Rewinder)
Dictator by Robert Harris (#3 Cicero)
Dirty Together by Meghan March (#3 The Dirty Billionaire Trilogy)
Even the Dead by Benjamin Black (#7 Quirke)
Extra Yard by Mike Lupica (#2 Home Team)
Giving Up by Audra North (#1 Pushing Boundaries)
Henchgirl by Rita Stradling (#1 Dakota Kekoa)
Hidden Ink by Carrie Ann Ryan (#9 Montgomery Ink)

I Am Your Judge by Nele Neuhaus (#4 Bodenstein & Kirchhoff)
Isadora by Ella Frank (#2 Masters Among Monsters)
Love in the Light by Laura Kaye (#2 Hearts in Darkness)
Make Me Sin by J. T. Geissinger (#2 Bad Habit)
Mermaid Moon by Colleen Coble (#2 Sunset Cove)
Murdergram 2 by Nisa Santiago (#2 Murdergram)
Of Flame and Promise by Cecy Robson (#6 Weird Girls)
Ravishing Ruby by Lavinia Kent (#4 Bound and Determined)
Scandalous Behavior by Stuart Woods (#36 Stone Barrington)
Teen Frankenstein by Chandler Baker (#1 High School Horror)
Tempted by a SEAL by Cat Johnson (#7 Hot SEALs)
The 8th Circle by Sarah Cain (#1 Danny Ryan)
The Assassin's Masque by Sarah Zettel (#3 Palace of Spies)
The Bitter Season by Tami Hoag (#5 Kovac/Liska)
The Covenant by Jeff Crook (#2 Jackie Lyons Mystery)
The Dirt on Ninth Grave by Darynda Jones (#9 Charley Davidson)
The Terrible Two Get Worse by Mac Barnett (#2 Terrible Two (with Jory John))
Traveler by Arwen Elys Dayton (#2 Seeker)
Where It Hurts by Reed Farrel Coleman (#1 Gus Murphy)
Wolf on the Hunt by N J Walters (#5 Salvation Pack)
Written in Fire by Marcus Sakey (#3 Brilliance Trilogy)

Book Review ~ Uprooted

Uprooted (Goodreads)

by Naomi Novik
published by Del rey
genre: Fantasy, YA,

Summary: “Our Dragon doesn’t eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley. We hear them sometimes, from travelers passing through. They talk as though we were doing human sacrifice, and he were a real dragon. Of course that’s not true: he may be a wizard and immortal, but he’s still a man, and our fathers would band together and kill him if he wanted to eat one of us every ten years. He protects us against the Wood, and we’re grateful, but not that grateful.”
Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted Wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life.
Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood.
The next choosing is fast approaching, and Agnieszka is afraid. She knows—everyone knows—that the Dragon will take Kasia: beautiful, graceful, brave Kasia, all the things Agnieszka isn’t, and her dearest friend in the world. And there is no way to save her.
But Agnieszka fears the wrong things. For when the Dragon comes, it is not Kasia he will choose.

My Thoughts: I kept passing over this one every time I saw it at the library. I finally decided at the end of the year to just grab it and give it a try. I'm glad I did. This is the first I've read from Naomi Novik and I enjoyed her writing.
I found the world and story unique and engaging. Once Agnieszka was "chosen" and taken to the tower I was hooked. While I didn't like all her crying at first, it seemed at odds with her character, when she finally got it together she became a strong character. The Dragon, while a nice contrast to Agnieszka, was kind of a flat character at times.
What made this story was the magic and the story of the Wood. The author did a great job showcasing the sharp contrasts between the Dragon's and Agnieszka's magic. This made the times that they joined their magic that much better.
Overall, I'm glad I took the time to read it. I cannot say that it's something I would read again which is why it's not a 5 rating but would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy of any sort.

Rating: 4.5

This Week's Reads

Uprooted by Naomi Novik (Goodreads)
**Kept seeing this at the library but wasn't sure if it was something I wanted to read. Decided to give it a chance.

Dr. Critchlore's School for Minions by Sheila Grau illustrated by Joe Sutphin (Goodreads)
**I find if I mix a middle grade book into my reading rotation it helps keep me from burnout.

Legacy of Kings by Eleanor Herman (Goodreads)
**I've been really into fantasy of all kinds lately. This sounds to have a mix of both epic fantasy and historical fiction.

New Releases ~ week of 1/4/2016

1635: A Parcel of Rogues by Eric Flint (#21 Assiti Shards)

A Ghoul's Guide to Love and Murder by Victoria Laurie (#10 Ghost Hunter Mystery)
A Second Chance at Murder by Diana Orgain (#2 Love or Money Mystery)
A Wee Dose of Death by Fran Stewart (#2 ScotShop Mysteries)
A Woodland Wedding by Rebecca Elliott (#3 Owl Diaries)
A Worthy Heart by Susan Anne Mason (#2 Courage To Dream)
Alistair Grim's Odd Aquaticum by Gregory Funaro (#2 Odditorium)
All the King's Men by Lea Griffith (#1 Endgame Ops)
An Ounce Of Hope by Sophie Jackson (#2 A Pound Of Flesh)

Beast by Jenika Snow, Sam Crescent (#1 Rage Riders MC)

Built by Jay Crownover (#1 Saints of Denver)
City of Light by Keri Arthur (#1 Outcast)
Copy Cap Murder by Jenn McKinlay (#4 A Hat Shop Mystery)
Cowboy Under Fire by Carla Cassidy (#3 Cowboys of Holiday Ranch)
Cruel Crown by Victoria Aveyard (#1.5 Red Queen Trilogy)
Daisies for Innocence by Bailey Cattrell (#1 Enchanted Garden Mystery)
Death of a Bad Apple by Penny Pike (#3 Food Festival Mysteries)
Foreign Éclairs by Julie Hyzy (#9 White House Chef Mystery)
Game Over by Andrew Klavan (#3 MindWar Trilogy)
Holiday with the Millionaire by Scarlet Wilson (#1 Tycoons in a Million)

Infinity Rises by S. Harrison (#2 The Infinity Trilogy)
Kingdom Come by Jane Jensen (#1 Elizabeth Harris)
Life's a Beach by Jamie K Schmidt (#1 Paradise)
Merchant of Alyss by Thomas Locke (#2 Legends of the Realm)
Midnight Taxi Tango by Daniel José Older (#2 Bone Street Rumba)
Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein (#2 Mr. Lemoncello)
New Leaf by Catherine Anderson (#2 Mystic Creek)
No Gun Intended by Zoe Burke (#2 Annabelle Starkey Mysteries)
Nothing Bad Is Going to Happen by Kathleen Hale (#2 No One Else Can Have You)
Off the Clock by Roni Loren (#1 Pleasure Principle)

One Foot in the Grove by Kelly Lane (#1 An Olive Grove Mystery)
Passenger by Alexandra Bracken (#1 Passenger)
Passenger 19 by Ward Larsen (#3 Jammer Davis)
Renegade by Lisa Bingham (#2 Taggart Brothers)
Seduction on Session by Shayla Black (#2 The Perfect Gentlemen)
STARBOUND by Dave Bara (#2 Lightship Chronicles)
Strip You Bare by Maisey Yates (#4 Deacons of Bourbon Street)
Sweet Pepper Hero by J. J. Cook (#4 Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade)
The Best of Me by Elisabeth Barrett (#2 Return to Briarwood)
The Cake of Monte Cristo by Jacklyn Brady (#6 Piece of Cake Mystery)
The Cyclops Initiative by David Wellington (#3 Jim Chapel Mission)
The First Order by Jeff Abbott (#5 Sam Capra)
The Good, The Bad And The Vampire by Sara Humphreys (#4 Dead in the City)

The Impostor Queen by Sarah Fine (#1 Impostor Queen)
The Journey Home by Brandon Wallace (#2 Wilder Boys)
The Last Dream Keeper by Amber Benson (#2 Witches of Echo Park)
The Prophecy of Three by Donita K Paul (#3 Realm Walkers)
Thief of Lies by Brenda Drake (#1 Library Jumpers)
Thin Ice by Irene Hannon (#2 Men of Valor)
Timbuktu by Vasudev Murthy (#2 Sherlock Holmes: The Missing Years)
To Helvetica and Back by Paige Shelton (#1 Helvetica and Back)
Truthwitch by Susan Dennard (#1 The Witchlands)
Under Their Skin by Margaret Peterson Haddix (#1 Under Their Skin)
Wicked Lust by Sawyer Bennett (#2 Wicked Horse)
Wild Blood by Kathryn Lasky (#3 Horses of the Dawn)

Can't Wait Books 2016

Starting off the New Year looking forward. These are just some of the books I cannot wait to read this year.

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare (The Dark Artifices #1)
Goodreads
expected release date: March 8, 2016
**I haven't really kept up to date on her Shadow Hunter's but something about the book blurb just caught my attention. May end up waiting to see what people who have actually read it say.

Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
Goodreads
expected release date: January 5, 2016
**This is the one I've seen on every year end/looking forward blog I've read the past couple of weeks. I always worry when there is so much hype but really hoping this one lives up to it all.

A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab
Goodreads
expected release date: February 23, 2016
**I've been waiting for this book since the day I finished A Darker Shade of Magic. Loved just about everything about book 1 and cannot wait to go back to Kell, Rhy, and Lila's world.

Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs
Goodreads
expected release date: March 8, 2016
**A world I have loved since the first. Whether it is this series or Alpha and Omega they always seem to end way too soon.

Marked in Flesh by Anne Bishop (The Others #4)
Goodreads
expected release date: March 8, 2016
**Another Author/Series that is always on my favorites list. I love the world of The Others just as much as I loved her Black Jewels world.

Seven Black Diamonds by Melissa Marr
Goodreads
expected release date: March 1, 2016
**Almost passed by this one without reading what it was about. The cover looks more like a contemporary read than a fantasy that takes place in faerie.

The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan
Goodreads
expected release date: May 3, 2016
**I'm a sucker for all things Rick Riordan writes.

Truthwitch by Susan Dennard
Goodreads
expected release date: January 5, 2015
**Another that I've seen everywhere. Also, I love witches.