New on the Library Shelves 30 11 14

AKA Showcase Sunday

A new segment here, participating in the Showcase Sunday meme over at Books, Biscuits & Tea.

 

Bought:

Chaucer's Tale by Paul Strohm (non-fiction)

Pin Action by Gianmarc Manzione (non-fiction)
Citizen Coke by Bartow J ELmore (non-fiction)
Star Trek: The Original Series: Foul Deeds Will Rise by Greg Cox (sci-fi)
The Game of Our Lives by David Goldblatt (non-fiction)

 

What books have you received or purchased this week?

New on the Library Shelves 02 11 14

AKA Showcase Sunday

A new segment here, participating in the Showcase Sunday meme over at Books, Biscuits & Tea.

Some good books this week: From Netgalley I think The Leopards of Normandy looks like it could be a nice historical series, while in the books that I purchased I'm excited to get a look at The World of Ice and Fire.

For review:
The Murder of Adam and Eve by William Dietrich (science fiction, Netgalley)
Empire by John Connolly and Jennifer Ridyard (science fiction, Netgalley)
The Leopards of Normandy: Devil by David Churchill (historical, Netgalley)
The Last Word by Hanif Kureishi (fiction, Netgalley)
The Children's Crusade by Ann Packer (fiction, Netgalley)
The Jefferson Rule by David Sehat (non-fiction, Netgalley)
More Awesome than Money by Jim Dwyer (non-fiction, Netgalley)

Bought:

The Lodger by Louisa Treger (historical)

Ebola by David Quammen (non-fiction)

Bathing the Lion by Jonathan Carroll (fantasy)

Of Bone and Thunder by Chris Evans (military fantasy)

Us by David Nicholls (literary)

The World of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin (fantasy)

The Secret History of Wonder Woman by Jill Lepore (non-fiction)

 

What books have you received or purchased this week?

Celestial Revolutionary by John Freely

In the spring of 1500, at the apex of the Renaissance, a papal secretary to the Borgia Pope, Alexander VI, wrote that "All the world is in Rome." Though no one knew it at the time, this included a young scholar by the name of Nicolaus Copernicus who would one day change the world. One of the greatest polymaths of his or any age - linguist, lawyer, doctor, diplomat, politician, mathematician, scientist, astronomer, artist, cleric - Copernicus gave the world arguably the most important scientific discovery of the modern era: that earth and the planets revolve around the sun and that the earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours. His heliocentric theory and the discoveries that would follow ushered in the age of modern astronomy, often called the Copernican Age, and change the way we look at the universe forever. This brilliant and controversial belief - born of a fusion of the theories of the great scholars of antiquity and the knowledge of the medieval Islamic world - was immortalised in Copernicus' epic "De revolutionibus orbium coelestium", a book whose very first printed copy was placed into his hands at the moment of his death in 1543.


Here, for the first time, is a biography of Copernicus that not only describes his theories but the life of the man himself and the epic, thrilling times in which he lived.

I probably know as much about Copernicus as the next layman so when I saw this book on Netgalley about his life and work I decided to give it a try. Talk in the blurb of a biography that would delve into the life of the man and the thrilling times in which he lived drew me in. Unfortunately, the book did not live up to that promise. Although the early chapters do provide a nice look at the politics, history and culture surrounding Copernicus and his work, the rest of the book became a study of the various theories the man developed. While I’m sure that someone with more of a basis in science would have been interested in this part, I skim-read it all, not particularly interested in a discussion of the various parts of the theorems that brought Copernicus to his conclusions. Obviously, your mileage may vary depending on your own background and interests, but unfortunately it failed to spark for me. 


I gave Celestial Revolutionary 2 stars.

New on the Library Shelves 26 10 14

AKA Showcase Sunday

A new segment here, participating in the Showcase Sunday meme over at Books, Biscuits & Tea.

A nice haul for review this week, from both Netgalley and Edelweiss. Cool to get the new Patricia Cornwell, I haven't read many of hers but the ones I have I have enjoyed. Path of Needles is also one I'm looking forward to - Alison Littlewood's horror is always nicely chilling! In terms of books purchased, I have been anticipating Cat Winters' The Cure for Dreaming for a while.

For review:
Children of the Canyon by David Kukoff (literary fiction from Netgalley)
Flesh and Blood by Patricia Cornwell (crime & thriller from Edelweiss)
Electric City by Elizabeth Rosner (historical fiction from Edelweiss)
The Mouth of the Crocodile by Michael Pearce (historical crime from Netgalley)
Murder in the Queen's Wardrobe by Kathy Lynn Emerson (historical crime from Netgalley)
Red Notice by Bill Browder (non-fiction from Netgalley)
Cane and Abe by James Grippando (crime & thriller from Edelweiss)
When The Dead Awaken by Steffen Jacobsen (crime & thriller from Edelweiss)
Path of Needles by Alison Littlewood (horror from Edelweiss)
Ostland by David Thomas (historical mystery from Edelweiss)
John the Pupil by David Flusfeder (historical from Edelweiss)
Will Starling by Ian Weir (historical from Edelweiss)
The Last Days of Video by Jeremy Hawkins (literary comedy from Edelweiss)
The Strange Death of Sullivan Chance by Thierry Maugenest (literary crime from Edelweiss)

Bought:

Star Wars: Rebel Girl by Brian Wood and Stéphane Créty (graphic novel)
The Cure for Dreaming by Cat Winters (fantasy)
The Greatest Empire: A Life of Seneca by Emily Wilson (biography)
The Golden City by J Kathleen Cheney (fantasy)
The Seat of Magic by J Kathleen Cheney (fantasy)
The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas (fantasy)
The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas (fantasy)
Beware the Wild by Natalie C Parker (YA horror)
The Archived by Victoria Schwab (fantasy)
The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir Who Got Trapped in an Ikea Wardrobe by Romain Puertolas (literary)
Malice by Keigo Higashino
Gray Mountain by John Grisham

So, what's new on your shelves this week?

The Second Amendment: A Biography by Michael Waldman

 

Amazon
Goodreads

Opening in the early days of the United States of America, when public fears of government overreach needed to be calmed thanks to the protection of the Constitution, moving through the spread to the Wild West and the days of Prohibition and gangsterism, before ending at the Supreme Court where political expediency led to a radicalized ruling protecting an individual right to gun ownership, The Second Amendment: A Biography is a sweeping exploration of the most controversial and misunderstood provision of the Bill of Rights. As renewed debate caused by recent mass shootings brings the Second Amendment back into the limelight, Michael Waldman gives a historical, contextual view that shows how society’s view of the amendment is coloured not by a historical understanding of the constitution’s context, but by political advocacy and the agitation of radical organisations.

I love reading about the United States. I’m not American and my hands-on experience of the country has been limited to a handful of visits over the years. And yet this vast country of such sweeping contradictions has always fired my imagination. I have an ongoing project to read a biography of every single US President and any time a non-fiction book about the US crosses my path I snap it up. One of the most intriguing (and terrifying) elements of US society, especially for a foreigner looking in at it from outside, is the Second Amendment and the unfortunate consequences that surround it. So when this book, portrayed as a biography of this most controversial of amendments, popped up on Netgalley, I jumped at the chance to read it.

The Second Amendment: A Biography turned out to be an absolutely fantastic exploration, not only of the Second Amendment itself, but of the development of the Constitution, the changes that swept through American society in the 19th and 20th centuries and the growing influence of the Supreme Court in modern American life. Although I am certain that some people will disagree, I found it to be not only well-written, with an engaging voice that carries the story from beginning to end, but also a well-balanced look at what is obviously a highly charged subject. While Waldman’s own opinion is obvious, he still gives a fair view of both sides of the debate, always presenting the arguments of those on every side of the divide, while keeping his own commentary to specific passages.

Waldman’s position comes from being president of the Brennan Center for Justice at the NYU School of Law – he comes at this both from a legal and a historical point of view, making sure to set out the historical context that should inform any interpretation of the constitution. To understand why the amendment exists and why the Founding Fathers saw the need to include it, Waldman explains, it is vital to understand the world around them, the historical pressures that influenced them, and the society that spawned them. As such, the first part of the biography explores the origins of the amendment. Waldman shows by referring to documents of the period and by pointing just as much to what is absent from these documents than to what is included that the Second Amendment was designed to protect the ownership of a weapon in conjunction with the protection of a militia. This militia was there to do away with the need for a standing army, the first step to the creation of a tyrannical dictatorship as far as those Founding Fathers were concerned. As Waldman points out, the rise of the professional army in the 20th century put paid to those fears – for most people – and thus should be taken into consideration in any discussion of the Second Amendment.

From there, Waldman explores the influence of the Supreme Court and the rise of the National Rifle Association, providing some interesting insight into the history of the NRA. For instance, it is apparent from historical documents that the NRA initially favoured gun control – it is only later that the organisation became radicalised and thus began to take the hard right position that it has taken in recent year.

Throughout, Waldman makes it clear that the debate about the Second Amendment has always been a debate between historians vs. lawyers – a debate that the historians have lost. Instead, the current understanding of the Second Amendment has been decided and imposed not by historical research, nor even by political bodies. Instead it is the Supreme Court, led mainly by Antonin Scalia in the Heller decision of 2008, who have made that distinction. One of the best parts of the book is the way that Waldman takes the Scalia decision apart, showing how the ‘contextual’ understanding the Justice defends is actually anything but. Still, Waldman remains optimistic that the Supreme Court has always followed the moods of the people and as that mood shifts more towards gun control, it is possible that the decisions of the Supreme Court Justices will shift along with it.

The Second Amendment: A Biography is an excellent exploration of a complex subject. Rather than demonising either side in the debate, Waldman presents each side with the historical context, showing how the amendment was forged and how it was interpreted throughout history. While his own political leanings (Waldman was one of Bill Clinton’s chief speechwriters) are clear throughout, he gives the entire debate a fair shake. Still, it is difficult to argue with his conclusions: the current gun control climate is the result of the radicalisation of conservative organisations like the NRA and the influence of law courts instead of the people’s representatives. Still, the book ends on an optimistic note, one that those who have suffered from the lack of common sense gun control laws will hope to see one day. I gave The Second Amendment: A Biography 5 Wild West gun control signs out of 5.

The New Men by Jon Enfield

Amazon

Goodreads

“In Sociological, we make men.”

So says Tony Grams, an Italian immigrant to America at the start of the twentieth century who joins the Ford Motor Company as an investigator, charged with looking into the life, standards, morals and family of the men who work for Henry Ford. In return for living a sober, dedicated life, the men who work on the Model T are offered the chance to double their wages... but only if the investigators of Sociological sign off on it. But as a worldwide war, racial tension and the rise of labor trouble begin to put pressure on everyone associated with Ford’s company, Tony begins a love affair that may bring his own life crashing down around him...

The New Men is one of those books that if it had not been for browsing through Netgalley would never even have appeared on my radar. When I saw it in the History section, though, I was initially drawn to the cover, a stylish blue and black concoction that seems to have come out of a Prohibition-era gangster flick. The blurb disabused me of that notion, but the idea of a historical novel centred around turn of the century America and the rise of the Ford Motor Company still caught my fancy. I didn’t really know what to expect going in, so I was pleasantly surprised by what I found.

The New Men is a well realised historical novel set in Detroit, which affords not only a glimpse of the strange new world that has arisen thanks to Ford’s revolutionary practices, but also gives an interesting look into the rise of our world. Through the eyes of Tony Grams, we learn about the Sociological program, Ford’s idea of sharing his profits with his workers, but only if they can pass a strenuous series of probing interviews and investigations into their lives. Whether it be how they spend their money, who their family is or what their moral standing is in the community, all of these elements are raked over and studied by the men of Sociological, men of which Tony Grams becomes a part.

Throughout the book, an underlying current of racism is prevalent, though not necessarily against men of a different skin colour. Each investigator is charged with looking into the lives of his fellow countrymen – so for example Tony is assigned to work with other ‘wops’, since his employers believe that he will be best able to deal with them and find ways of slipping them up. That racial tension becomes obvious in Tony’s encounters with two of his colleagues - Merry, on one side, who takes Tony under his wing, and Smythe on the other who seems to have developed a hatred for Tony based solely on the fact that he is from Italy.

This creates a very uncomfortable atmosphere throughout the novel – Tony is constantly under scrutiny himself and the pressure he feels drips from the pages. I would not suggest reading this if you’re in a bad mood or feeling a little down: the feeling of opression that reigns will only serve to push you even further! If read with the right frame of mind, though, the book turns into a tense thriller of a novel, as Tony becomes involved with corporate espionage and the fight for and against socialist influence in the Ford company.

Through Tony’s encounters with Thia, a divorcee he quickly falls in love with, we also get a glimpse into the way society’s mores are changing in this new world. The relationship forms the core of Tony’s story, as he falls in and out of bed with her and becomes more and more embroiled in her life. When Tony begins to put himself on the line for her and her family, things become even more tense as the novel builds towards a relatively dark ending.

The New Men is extremely well written, providing an impressive picture of the world at the time. However, it is also quite dry, with a main character it is often difficult to become attached to. Although we follow Tony through all of his ups and downs, I never found myself rooting for him as a hero, and he often seemed to endure and suffer through situations rather than affecting the world around him. Many of his choices are difficult to understand and relate to, so it may be difficult for some people to become invested in the story.

However, The New Men is a book that will stay with me. The themes explored are universal and the work put into creating this turn of the century world is impressive. The writing flows nicely and kept me engaged where the main character did not. It is not without its flaws, and yet it is a book I have found myself thinking about more and more ever since I closed the last page. Overall, I gave The New Men 3 Model-T’s out of 5.

Graphic Novel Review - Star Trek: Khan

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Goodreads

Beyond what some consider to be an unfortunate (and hopefully unintended) parody of Wrath of Khan, many fans main problem with the last Star Trek movie, Into Darkness, was the way that Khan himself was handled. Having a very British actor play an Indian character who had been played by a Mexican in the Original Series brought outcries of whitewashing, regardless of how talented an actor Benedict Cumberbatch may be. Using such a legendary character was always going to be dangerous and how much of a pay-off the decision was is still up for debate amongst Star Trek fans (though for the majority of non-Star Trek fans I have spoken to the problem is nonexistent and most love the film). For those who were bothered by the plotholes and inconsistencies, though, the graphic novel Star Trek: Khan may provide some closure.

Set in the period of time covered by the last five minutes or so of Star Trek Into Darkness, the Khan graphic novel uses the trial of Khan Noonien Singh as a framing device to allow Khan himself to tell his story. In doing so, we are afforded a view of the legendary Eugenics Wars, the flight of the Botany Bay and the awakening of Khan in this new timeline. As such, we are provided with some answers and closure to what happened in the movie.

First of all, the graphic novel provides what I felt was a great justification for the recasting of Khan, one that I wish had made it into the movie. We discover in the future sections that when Khan was found, Section 31 and Admiral Marcus decided to change his physical form and wipe his memory, thus creating John Harrison. With this explanation, we see how the producers and director were able to say that Cumberbatch was playing John Harrison - at this point in time, he actually believes that is who he is. I cannot help but think that if this had been alluded to or even used in the movie, it would have softened some of the outcry from the fans. Having Harrison discover who he is at the same time we do would have made for a much more interesting character, IMHO. As such, the graphic novel makes up for one of the most glaring plotholes in the movie, for this fan, anyway.

The Eugenics War section was great, though nowhere near as satisfying as the treatment afforded to the era by Greg Cox' fantastic Eugenics Wars duology. It was still good to see the way that the world changed, watch the rise of the different genetically engineered superhumans and receive an explanation for how "simple" humans were able to force Khan and his people to run away aboard the Botany Bay.

In terms of the artwork, I found it to be hit and miss. Most of the portrayals of Khan (in both the Ricardo Montalban and the Cumberbatch form), and Kirk and Spock were fine, but at time the characters came across as flat and emotionless. The starships were well rendered, especially the Botany Bay, and it was nice to see the use of the classic Khan clothing from "Space Seed". Still, overall the artwork left me unimpressed.

Overall, Star Trek: Khan is a well written graphic novel that manages to lay to rest some of the more glaring plotholes in Into Darkness. The story and dialogue were well done, but the artwork left me cold. I gave Star Trek: Khan 3 magical personal transporters out of 5.

Showcase Sunday

A bit frazzled this weekend, so no time (or energy) to put up a full review. Thought I would try out a new meme and found Showcase Sunday, which seemed to be right up my alley.

SS is a weekly blog hop hosted by Vicky over at Books, Biscuits and Tea allowing bloggers to showcase what books and bookish things they have received in the past week.

This has been a pretty good week, including a few approvals from Netgalley for books I was looking forward to, so... :)

Here goes...

For Review:

Flirting with French by William Alexander
The Red Hot Fix by T.E. Woods
The Girl in the Road by Monica Byrne
The Buried Life by Carrie Patel

Bought:

Afterparty by Daryl Gregory
Heaven's Queen by Rachel Bach
Unwrapped Sky by Rjurik Davidson
Lover at the Chameleon Club by Francine Prose
Buried Angels by Camilla Lackberg
She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick

 

So what exciting finds/purchases have you received or made this past week?

Peacemaker by Marianne de Pierres

 

 

Gold faded to purple and then a dying red. Sunset from the butte.

In the last open natural space in the world, Virgin 'Ginny' Jackson works as a park ranger, charged with protecting the natural habitat from anyone who might wish to encroach on its borders. When she stumbles upon a murder, though, Ginny finds herself on the wrong end of official police interest. Her situation is made even more complex by the presence of a United States Marshall apparently seconded to the Rangers, a Marshall who seems to be able to see the invisible eagle that Ginny has always believed was only a delusion...

I had heard a lot about Marianne de Pierres in connection with her Parrish Plessis series and the space opera quadrology Sentients of Orion. Although I never got around to reading either of these series, the blurbs and covers had definitely put de Pierres on my radar and so when I saw that she had a new book in a new series coming out this year I decided this would be the perfect opportunity to have a read. When the book was made available on Netgalley - without needing approval to get it - I jumped at the chance and added it to this month's To Read List so that I could get through it before the release date. The setting sounded interesting, as did the mixture of future cyberpunk elements with what sounded like an urban fantasy type main character and plot.

Peacemaker takes place in an undisclosed future year, one where huge arc-like cities cover the Earth and a single open park area remains in modern-day Australia, policed and protected by a group of Park Rangers. Our main character, Ginny, is one of these, and she has a personal stake in the job - her father was one of the founders of the Park and he lost his life soon after it opened. When Ginny stumbles upon a murder within the park, then, it is in her direct interest to see that the murder does not escalate and harm the place she is charged with protecting. Things are made more complicated, though, when she is assigned to work with a US Marshall and she begins to see an invisible eagle that she has not seen since she was a girl, an eagle she has spent her adulthood convincing herself that she imagined. When the Marshall reveals that he can see it too, and that he has one of these Mythos himself, Ginny is drawn into a worldwide conspiracy.

I really wanted to like Peacemaker more than I did. The mixture of urban fantasy with a post-cyberpunk type world sounded intriguing and it is certainly a nice twist on both. However, this very setting is where the book was really let down for me. I never got the feeling of a clear-cut world around Ginny. The Park does not appear as much as would seem expected given its prominence in the blurb, while the city around it is a dull array of names of districts, none of which have a clearly defined sense of place. The level of technology was another disappointment - while we are dealing with a future far enough away from our own to have allowed for the construction and development of these huge cities that have extended so far as to leave hardly any free open spaces left, there was little other obvious technological development. Every time one of the characters uses a cellphone or a tablet, it created a dissonance for me that yanked me right out of the book. Surely, at the rate at which technology changes in the real world, by the time we reach these huge megalopolises, we would have moved beyond the same hardware we all use today. This of course may be my own personal peeve and your own mileage may vary.

On the other hand, de Pierres has created a nice cast of characters. All of them are multidimensional, affording for some strong, snappy dialogue between the main characters. Ginny herself is a good, strong female character, but there was nothing in her personality that drew me to her or allowed me to create an emotional attachment. I did not feel for her as she struggled against the various difficulties she encountered and because of that it was easy for me to disconnect from the plot and put the book down.

In terms of the plot, there were some very well done twists throughout and the way the book concluded affords a glimpse of some interesting ideas planned for future volumes. The romantic subplots were well done, believable and not in any way diverting attention from what was happening around them. However the mystery that Ginny is investigating never engaged and I found myself skimming through certain parts, waiting for the story to take off. Unfortunately, for this reader at least, it never did.

An interesting twist on the urban fantasy model that combines two genres, Peacemaker lacked a distinct setting and a captivating plot. Although the well-rounded, interesting characters made up for both of those slightly, I found it difficult to get to the end, skimming through and looking for something to catch my attention. I had high hopes for the book from everything I had heard about de Pierres up until now, but I was left disappointed. I would definitely try another book by the author in a different world, but I very much doubt I would pick up the sequel to Peacemaker. I gave Peacemaker 2.5 pistols out of 5.

Goodreads
Buy It For Amazon
Author's Website

From the Blogosphere:
Tor.com
MandyWrangles
Tsana's Reads and Reviews

From the Author's Mouth:
Interview by fellow author Jason Fischer

Ruin Falls by Jenny Milchman

 

The children had never been this far from home before. Liv had spent most of yesterday driving around, hunting for no-mess Crayola coloring books, praying they weren't too juvenile to keep a six- and eight-year-old occupied in the car, then running up and down the supermarket aisles in search of bars and snack pouches in case they couldn't find food on the road. Or in case they did find something, and Paul wouldn't allow the kids to eat it.

Liv Daniels and her family leave on holiday for the first time in years on a trip to see her husband's parents. When they stop for the night in a hotel, everything seems to be going well. But when Liv wakes up the next morning, she finds her two children missing. The police are called and a search begins, but it soon becomes apparent that the person responsible may be closer than Liv thinks...

Ruin Falls showed up in a Most Anticipated Books column on one of my go-to blogs, and the atmospheric cover caught my attention. The blurb seemed to promise a tense thriller so I added it to my To Be Read list. When it showed up on Netgalley I requested it and was pleasantly surprised when it was accepted - one of the first ARCs I asked for and received! I decided to wait until shortly before the release date to read it and devoured it in a single day. Ruin Falls is a thriller novel done right and I loved it!

Set over a two week period, Ruin Falls tells the story of Liv Daniels. A mother, wife and business owner, she shares a farm with her professor husband and two children. Following her husband's eco-friendly lifestyle, they avoid consumer culture as much as possible. Leaving on vacation, Liv's world is torn apart by the disappearance of her children. But it is the identity of the kidnapper that really sends Liv reeling as she is forced to reexamine everything she thought she knew and every belief she held dear in the light of a horrendous betrayal.
I don't think I will give away any major spoilers if I reveal that the kidnapper is Liv's husband, Paul. The reveal itself happens very early in the novel, an  the true mystery is not who took the children but why and where he has taken them. The fact that Paul is the one to be behind the abduction allows Milchman to play around with the standard kidnapping storyline as the police relegate it to a domestic dispute, leaving Liv alone to try and recover her children.

Milchman does a fantastic job of creating tension - right from the first page we are dragged into Liv's frame of mind as more and more events ramp up her feeling that something is wrong. Even before we discover the kidnapping, Liv is stressed, convinced that something is wrong or about to happen. From an agressive truck driver to her son disappearing in a crowd, Liv is constantly on tenderhooks and so is the reader.

Having your children taken is any parent's ultimate nightmare and Milchman does a fantastic job of portraying that in Ruin Falls. That is made even worse by the aforementioned fact that the police will not do anything because the father is the one who has taken them. Liv's feeling of helplessness fills the pages and it is great to see her slowly gain the confidence she needs to save her children. She really develops through the course of the novel, and I loved the fact that despite the presence of a male character who assists her, at the end Liv is totally alone when it comes time to face the true villain of the piece.

Of the supporting characters, most are well developed, though unfortunately Paul comes across as a bit of a cipher whose aims and motivations are left quite fuzzy. His parents are much more interesting characters, and the truth about his past is done in a very nice way, keeping you guessing and putting together the various pieces all the way through. I would have liked there to be a little more closure to his storyline, though what does happen to him is definitely well deserved.

As I mentioned above, the conclusion is worthy of the build-up, pitting Liv against everything she has feared and forcing her to stand up and fight for her children. The book ends with a hopeful twist, though one that remains bittersweet when you consider the implications of everything that has happened.

Ruin Falls does not break any major ground when it comes to this kind of family-in-danger thriller, but it does do what it set out to extremely well. Edge-of-your-seat, nail-biting tension from the first page to the last, it is not the kind of book that I found myself laying aside without a tug of reluctance, wanting to read a little bit more to find out what would happen next or how a situation would resolve. The mystery was well done and did not ever feel drawn out, and the conclusion was worthy of everything that had been set up until then. I felt for and related to Liv and the other characters. At its heart, Ruin Falls is about motherhood and the lengths any of us (mothers or fathers) go to protect our children (although I have to admit that Dads do not come out of this one particularly well!) I will definitely be adding Jenny Milchman to my Must-Read List. I gave Ruin Falls 4 shoemaking psychopaths out of 5.

Ruin Falls will be released on April 22nd.

Goodreads
Buy It For Kindle
Author's Website

From the Blogosphere:
Loveinwrittenword
Chorley Chronicals
A Garden Carried in the Pocket

From the Author's Mouth:
Interview carried out by fellow author Cynthia Lott

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Bucket List

From the Broke and Bookish

 

Top Ten Things on My Book Bucket List

1. Beat last years book reading challenge score of 284 books for the year. (Well on my way with 85 books read already in less than 3 months).
2. Regularly update this blog. I’ve been remiss at doing that for the past few years so I really want to try and post reviews more often and not so sporadically.
3. Read more literary and non-fiction.
4. Participate more in the blogging community through memes (like this one, so yay! J ) and by leaving comments of favourite blogs.
5. Reread Robin Hobb’s Farseer Trilogy, Liveship Traders Trilogy and Tawny Man Trilogy in anticipation of this year’s release of Fool’s Assassin. Have already started on this one with Assassin’s Apprentice last month, so on track so far.
6. Continue with my President’s Biography Read. I have set myself a goal of reading a biography of every US President from Washington to Obama before the 2016 election. This year, I’ve already read about James Garfield, Chester A Arthur, Grover Cleveland and Benjamin Harrison. I have some longer books to read over the rest of the year – including an entire trilogy about Teddy Roosevelt – so will probably only read about McKinley and Roosevelt for 2014.
7. Try and write a review of every book I read this year the day after I finish it (even if I just post it to Goodreads and not necessarily to the blog).
8. Read more new releases so as to have read as many books as possible before the Goodreads Awards at the end of the year!
9. Get at least one book request approved by a publisher on Netgalley. New to the whole netgalley thing, so I would feel that having at least one of my book requests approved would be a sign that I have managed to keep regular on the blog.
10. Gain a couple more followers. I only have 3, so a couple more for the year would be cool.

 

What’s on YOUR bucket list?