Feels like my head's 'bout to 'splode

[rj_anderson]

So, my list of accomplishments for today:

1. Finished off my complete plot outline for Wayfarer and sent off to my agent, who liked it very much and didn't think it needed any changes, hurrah!

2. Read Infernal Devices, which left me going "AAAAAAA NEED NEXT BOOK NOW" and, of course, I don't have it yet.

3. Read Fugitives of Chaos, which left me in precisely the same position, only more so because the cliffhanger on that one is even worse. However, and I say this with all due respect to johncwright, his fetishes are showing and it's creeping me out, seriously. Not that this will keep me from reading Book III, but it will make me grimace and roll my eyes a lot. And it will remind me why I enjoy YA fantasy so much more than supposedly "adult" fantasy these days -- not least because it has a tendency to weed out these kinds of excesses.

On the to-read pile:

1. A children's biography of Michael Faraday (I couldn't find a "grown-up" one), which I'm two-thirds finished and which has made me more his fangirl than ever;

2. Robin McKinley's Sunshine, which I am reading because, well, it's McKinley -- although I am really not into vampires (they don't scare me, they don't fascinate me, on the whole they simply bore me), so my enthusiasm is somewhat diluted;

3. #8, 9 and 10 of the Lemony Snicket series, which I am reading out of an obscure sense of duty and the belief that the narrative has to pay off eventually.

But tomorrow will be absurdly busy, since we are having a joint birthday party for my two oldest sons, and they've each invited three friends, so I doubt I'll get much of anything else done.

Comments

[jamesbow.livejournal.com]

Good luck with tomorrow!

If you can, read Terry Pratchett's "The Truth", which has a neat take on a vampire -- a vampire photographer, who has some difficulty with the flash aspect of it. :-)

[kerravonsen]

his fetishes are showing and it's creeping me out, seriously

Oh, ugh. I really hated that in the first book (thank goodness there wasn't much) and I am Not Happy that there's more of it.

And it will remind me why I enjoy YA fantasy so much more than supposedly "adult" fantasy these days -- not least because it has a tendency to weed out these kinds of excesses.

Amen.

Robin McKinley's Sunshine, which I am reading because, well, it's McKinley -- although I am really not into vampires (they don't scare me, they don't fascinate me, on the whole they simply bore me), so my enthusiasm is somewhat diluted;

I also am really not into vampires either, but I also read it because it was McKinley, and don't worry, it's good. I'm not sure it's on the read-again pile, but it was a page-turner.

[thedorkygirl.livejournal.com]

Congratulations on Wayfarer approval!

[angua9.livejournal.com]

which I am reading out of an obscure sense of duty and the belief that the narrative has to pay off eventually

Oh dear!

[my_daroga]

I wasn't a huge fan of Sunshine either, which surprised me as I'm a huge Buffy fan and it's always making the rounds as appropriate Buffy-ite reading. Maybe it's the food thing; I don't like eating a whole lot, and seriously I think the real otp was food/girl.

John Wright

[jcobleigh.livejournal.com]

I just finished Orphans of Chaos based on your recommendation. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading Fugitives of Chaos, which comes out in paperback this month. I'm glad you liked the second book, though I'm a little put off by the occasional over-sexed teens interacting with adults. I'm not against sex in books, but I really don't care for when it seems more gratuitous than necessary for the plot.

Re: John Wright

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

What really irks me is that Amelia is a great narrator, wonderfully intelligent and powerful, but the author keeps putting her and Vanity into situations where they a) behave like brainless sex objects; b) are forced into wearing some exploitative costume for reasons only thinly justified by the plot; c) get tied up, manhandled and/or (I am still facepalming over this one) spanked. And yet, of course, they remain virginal (and in some ways almost laughably naive) throughout.

I can put up with a billion and one of Colin's crass comments (they are at least in character for his personality and the fact that he's a teenaged boy, and he actually made me laugh out loud once in Book II), but not that kind of nonsense. I would really like to get through Book III without grinding my teeth, but I fear it isn't going to happen...

Re: John Wright

[jcobleigh.livejournal.com]

My wife is almost through Orphans of Chaos based on my recommendation to her. Have you read his other books (The Golden Age or War of the Dreaming)? If so, would you recommend them?

Re: John Wright

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

I haven't read any other Wright, so alas, I can't speak to his other work. But I've heard it's good...

Re: John Wright

[jcobleigh.livejournal.com]

OK. Thanks for the reply.

[speak-candidly.livejournal.com]

In my personal opinion... Lemony Snicket? It doesn't. I'd be interested to see how you react to the ending, though.

[cocoskeeper.livejournal.com]

Happy Birthday to your two oldest!!!!

I read one Lemony Snicket and that was enough for me.

I'm reading Pride and Prejudice. Then I'll switch to books 5 and 6 of Charlie Bone. :-)

[sunsethill.livejournal.com]

Could we have a brief synopsis of why you liked your book recommendations? I know much of your flist must hear of these elsewhere, but I tend to hear of these things from YOU! ;-) It was because of you that I spent WAY too much time reading Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.

[owl]

And it will remind me why I enjoy YA fantasy so much more than supposedly "adult" fantasy these days

Yes, me too! I'm planning to start Mortal Engines soon (library): good y/n?

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Mortal Engines has clunky prose to start, and the main character seems a bit bland, but the idea is fantastic and it's got a delightfully skewed wit. Stick with it and it really pays off -- especially in the second and third books.