Get Lost in Literature

GoodReads is my favorite social network/ book blogging website at the moment...And as someone who enjoys and fully supports the freedom of speech, I'd like to weigh in on an issue that's been pissing me off. Bullying on GoodReads. I see people making mountains out of molehills; author's claiming readers are bullies, readers claiming authors a bullies, and readers at each others' throats in general. One complaint on GR, is that people are marking books they've never read with negative ratings... Often these are books that haven't been released, only the cover and summary to tell people the story's coming, and occasionally while the ARCs are floating around. People call this bullying. My problem with this claim is that there are other readers, marking books they haven't read, marking books that haven't been released, with 5 star ratings! So here we have two groups of people who think they can predict the future, but only one of these groups of people

The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle, #1) by Patrick Rothfuss I feel like an idiot for being so hesitant to start this story. This story is just... clever beyond belief. The story of Kvothe is story within story formatting but the jump between present and past is as smooth as the transition between dark and light. There is no confusion in that area. The present time, Kvothe is a dark, mysterious inn-keeper. In the past he's the bright eyed school boy surrounded by tragedy. I see a lot of comparisons to "Harry Potter meets Lord of the Rings" and I don't really understand comparing apples and oranges. Yes, Kvothe is surrounded by tragedy, but unlike Harry Potter he isn't sitting around waiting for the villain to come and get him, he's being proactive about it. Kvothe doesn't feel the need to prove himself, he knows he's a genius destined for greatness and dares anyone to challenge him in this. As far as Lord of the Rings goes, this

Horse Of A Different Color: A Tale of Breeding Geniuses, Dominant Females, and the Fastest Derby Winner Since Secretariat by Jim Squires Jim Squires, retired journalist, writes his story of low budget "breeding genius" that produced Monarchos, the 2001 Kentucky Derby winner. There were parts of this story I liked. First, getting a look at some dirty statistics. Meaning plenty of horse stories are more than willing to show the thrill of the gamble that is the horse industry, and the pageantry that circles racetracks, but it was nice to see something I didn't necessarily know before; how auctions work, the favoritisms, the scams. The reality of most horses don't race and those that race don't win...The dangers in breeding; the monetary risk should a broodmare not produce, and the heartbreaks and hopes attached to foals... The competitive foreigners trying to win the Derby even if it means spending millions on untested horses... But there were things in t

The book blurb just begins to describe what this book is about. Barry Fairbrother, parish council member dies of an aneurysm, his death acting as a catalyst for a war between the inhabitants of Pagford. The small town can first be fit into two groups. Pro-Fields and Anti-Fields. The Fields is a ghetto, for lack of better word, and its addition to Pagford district was unwelcome from the get, and the council been trying to get it rezoned ever since. The deceased was from Fields, and now his seat needs to be filled. As the campaign run begins, you get to see the lives affected by this war: wives who resent husbands, girlfriends who cling desperately to failing relationships, parents who don't understand their kids, teenagers who hate their parents...All of them harboring rich fantasies of who they think they are, conflicting with who they actually are. The biggest virtue of this book is the characters. There is no shortage of characters in this town, each with distinct personalit

I don't have any official followers yet, but in case I have any unofficial followers popping in from time to time, quiet and anonymous, I decided to clarify. I'm sure you noticed that some of my reviews are marked at the bottom with the phrase "original post date" followed by a different date than the one the blog gives you. This is because I'm posting reviews from previously read books on my GoodReads challenge... And some of those books were part of a series, that were started before I challenged myself to read a minimum of 30 books this year, so you'll most likely receive those  reviews in the order they were read/reviewed. I usually read 2-3 books at a time, depending what kind of story I'm in the mood for, click my  Currently Reading  tab to find out what I'm reading right now and my initial thoughts on those books--->I'll always post a full review when I'm finished.

The Grind Show, is about a demon-hunter named Jason, who absorbs a bit of extra power during a hunt gone bad. Now every demon appears to be after him and he's having trouble finding anyone brave or suicidal enough to stand beside him. The phrase that best describes this book is "action-packed". There is a demon attack, car chase, shoot-out, and/or disembowelment per chapter. And with an adventure that spans 40 chapters, the story only takes place over the course of 3 days. This book reads a little like an episode of Supernatural, gore followed by welcomed - despite being a little cliched- wit, a must read for Winchester fans. Things I love: Finally! A female counterpart who is up to the role she's been given. Twain, a musician, victim turned demon hunter, who knows how to aim the business end of a gun. She's strong AND emotional. I'm thrilled Phil Tucker didn't feel the need to make it one or the other. I like that Jason isn't all pure and good,

Main character Jacob Jankowski narrates this story, blending past and present life into brilliantly paced tale. I loved the idea of the narrator in a nursing home; the sad reality is, an old man who can't remember his age, isn't guaranteed a happy ending...So every page turned is a page closer to an ending I wasn't sure I wanted to see. When he reveals his past, it isn't much better; Jacob suddenly orphaned, broke, and homeless, hops onto a train in the middle of the night. The setting was pretty amazing; a Depression era traveling circus complete with freaks and sideshows, but it was the characters that really sell it. Jacob is relatable in both old age and young; as an old man he reveals his frustration at being the one left standing, at being taken care of like a child. The horror of having a mind fairly intact, and being surrounded by people a few decades younger who are barely living. Pointing out, that even though we all age differently, we're all going t

A friar, a poet, an epileptic psychic, camping on a battlefield. Searching for a knight to guide them through the gates of Hell... The book starts dark and mysterious and quickly pulls the reader in. Pestilence is ravaging the countryside and three friends on a mission from God, are looking to descend into Hell... But here the book loses steam. The prose is decent, dark and to the point; but David Wisehart makes a couple story-structure errors. First the Latin; no translation is offered with the Latin, and the sentences don't necessarily arrive at "Those Moments". You know those moments, the ones where the characters could speak any language they want and the meaning would be perfectly obvious. So if the book had been written without the Latin it would be almost exactly the same as the book with the Latin, except maybe a few sentences shorter. Second complaint about structure is in the poetry. Its cheesy. I skimmed the first few lines of each poem before moving on. P

The Mongoliad: Book Three (Foreworld #3)  by Neal Stephenson, Greg Bear, Mark Teppo, Nicole Galland, Erik Bear, Joseph Brassey, Cooper Moo, Mike Grell The final installment was very exciting. Cnan and her group of Shield-Brethren finally arrive at the Khagan's camp...to complete their mission of assassinating the Khan of Khan's or die trying. The Shield Brethren, the Rats, and the Livonian knights, finally rise up in an effort to take back Hunern from the Mongols and kill Onghwe Khan. Lian and Gansukh must decide where they stand. In Rome, the Cardinals must decide on a new pope, while Ocyrhoe must find her kin-sisters and Ferenc has to decide where his path lies... POSSIBLE SPOILERS BELOW . SKIP TO NEXT BOLD PRINT TO AVOID. There are lots of characters and lots of battles in this one; a violent end to a grand adventure. For the most part, I loved every rebellious, bloody, and occasionally heartbreaking moment. The ending is where I struggle. It was left really ope