WOW: Where Shadows Dance

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine.  I've kind of rekindled my passion for historical mysteries lately, not sure why, but I guess I'm going through another phase.  Here are a couple I am looking forward to reading.

Where Shadows Dance (Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery Series, Book 6)
by C.S. Harris
Release Date: March 1st, 2011

Sebastian St. Cyr finds himself in the realm of international intrigue when he investigates the murder of a foreign office diplomat-a murder his reluctant bride-to-be, Hero Jarvis, knows something about. And when a second body is found, Sebastian must race to unmask a ruthless killer who is now threatening Hero's life-and the life of their unborn child.

Follower Love Giveaway Hop

Welcome to the Follower Love Giveaway hop!!!

This is another great event hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer, and there are over 200 blogs participating in this blog hop, so it should be a blast!!!  You will have the opportunity to enter many contests and try to win a variety of different prizes, all relating to books.

The contest runs from February 8th to February 13th so hop right along and join the fun.


Contest at Curling Up By The Fire


Prize: XVI by Julia Karr (ARC)
(US/Canada Only)


















Participating Blogs:

Review: The Discovery of Socket Greeny

The Discovery of Socket Greeny
by Tony Bertauski
Release Date: July 13, 2010
2010 Bertauski
E-Book Edition; 282 Pages
ISBN: 978-0982845202
Genre: Young Adult
Source: Review Copy from Author

4 / 5 Stars

Summary
Work comes first for 16-year old Socket Greeny's mother ever since his father died.  Now, in this tech-driven futuristic society, he’s zoned on energy drinks and living in virtual worlds because Mom rarely comes home. He doesn’t know what she does for a living.  His only real world thrill is fighting. But a world can change in a single moment. It’s a school day like any other, until Socket starts hearing other people’s thoughts. He’s hallucinating, maybe brain rot from too much virtualmode. Even when time seems to stop, he ignores it.  But when his mom arrives at school, he knows it’s for real. She’s there to take him to work. The Paladin Agency. He discovers an evolved race of humans that have existed for centuries, where thoughts can be heard. And felt. They are people that can manipulate time through the body’s metabolism. They protect the rest of humankind and strive to bring them understanding of their full potential. But some Paladins see humankind as inferior.  Socket soon finds himself in the center of controversy when he's anointed a Paladin prodigy. He didn't ask for the "blessing" of psychic powers and the ability to timeslice, he just wants to go home and be normal again. But, sometimes, life doesn't give us that privilege, his mom tells him. And when humankind is threatened and the Paladins are forced into the public eye, Socket discovers what his mother means. If he doesn't embrace his true nature, the world will change forever.

My Thoughts
While it took me awhile to figure out what was happening in this novel, and to understand the virtual mode of these teenagers, The Discovery of Socket Greeny was entertaining, interesting, and fascinating.  Once I got past the technological lingo that was used extensively in this novel, I was hooked by the plot and the characters, by Socket in particular, and had a difficult time putting it down.

In this world, there exists an entire viritual mode than can be accessed anywhere, including every school and every home, where one can create whole worlds and sims, being whoever you want, doing whatever you want.  One day as Socket and his friends Chute and Streeter hack into the virtual mode and a small war ensues with a rival school, something goes terribly wrong and Socket makes an amazing discovery.  He learns that his sim can feel, touch, and use his other senses, something that should be impossible in the virtual mode.  As he realizes the danger he is in, and calls upon tapped reserves he didn't know he had, a mysterious stranger comes to his rescue and saves him from annihalation.  Even Streeter, the computer whiz, doesn't understand what is happening, and the virtual world is shut down as a result.  Soon, Socket's mother arrives at school to take Socket away and he finds himself in a strange world, a world he didn't know existed, having to face the possibility that he has latent talents of which he knew nothing about, and enemies he didn't know existed.

I found the Paladins' alternate world somewhat confusing, but then I was experiencing it through Socket's eyes.  Imagine a boy, one day having full freedom and rarely seeing his mother, suddenly thrust in the middle of a deadly game of survival, realizing he has the potential to save the entire world, thrust into an explosive political situation, with little choice but to play along.  I fully understood Socket's confusion, anger, and betrayal, and the emotions that were behind everything he did, and I liked him more and more as I read.  He just seemed like a nice, genuine guy who did the best he could in an impossible situation.  The Paladin world seemed so different in comparison to Socket, so ordered and structured and sanitized, that he was like this bright spark in a stark world.  How anyone could live there and not go raving mad is beyond me.  And I do have problems understanding his mother, who doesn't always seem to have Socket's best interests at heart. 

The novel is also about embracing fate when it comes to you and about choices.  Socket struggles inwardly to embrace the new world he is shown and his new talents and the new friends he has made, and often wishes he could go back to his old life, but at the same time he realizes that is not possible after everything he has seen.  He often asks himself the age-old question that after everything you have done and learned, would you be content to go back to the old you or are you strong enough to embrace your destiny and take on the responsibilities you have been given?  It is a difficult choice for Socket, and one he struggles with continuously, especially as he is betrayed by one of his own.

Verdict
The Discovery of Socket Greeny is a fast-paced, entertaining novel, with great character development.  I really enjoyed the technological aspect as well, and found the virtual mode to be fascinating, if confusing.  I am looking forward to reading The Training of Socket Greeny, the second novel in this trilogy.

Review: Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier

Remarkable Creatures
by Tracy Chevalier
Release Date: October 26, 2010
2010 Plume Books
Softcover Edition; 312 Pages
ISBN: 978-0-452-29672-5
Genre: Historical Fiction
Source: Review Copy from Publisher

3.5 / 5 Stars

Summary
From the moment she's struck by lightning as a baby, it is clear Mary Anning is different.  Though poor and uneducated, she learns on the windswept, fossil-strewn beaches of the English coast that she has a unique gift: "the eye" to spot fossils no one else can see.  When she uncovers an unusual fossilized skeleton in the cliffs near her home, she sets the religious community on edge, the townspeople to gossip - and the scientific world alight with both admiration and controversy.  Prickly Elizabeth Philpot, a middle-class spinster and also a fossil hunter, becomes Mary Anning's unlikely champion and friend, and together they forge a path to some of the most important discoveries of the nineteenth century.

My Thoughts
Remarkable Creatures is an amazing accounting of the lives of two women, Elizabeth Philpot and Mary Anning, and their remarkable friendship as they fought against a strict social structure, one to pursue her love of fossils, and the other to survive in a brutal world, and together discovered some of the most important discoveries of the nineteenth century.

Elizabeth Philpot and her sisters arrived in their early twenties in Lyme Regis to live their lives sequestered away from London and their brother and his new wife, with an annual stipend.  To everyone's shock, Elizabeth developed a friendship with a local poor girl, Mary Anning, as they discovered in themselves a love for fossils and fossil-hunting.  Mary had the 'eye', and had an uncanny ability to discern the different types of fossils on the beach, as well as spot them in rocks and other difficult-to-see areas.  Mary came to the attention of 'real scientists' when she first unearthed an ichthyosaurus, and soon many of these learned men swarmed the beaches and wanted Mary to help them find their own specimens.  Little credit was given to Mary at first, except as a fossil-hunter.

What amazed me over and over again is how much Mary knew with the little education she had, and how brilliant a person she must have been.  What she could have done with an education behind her is truly remarkable.  And even more, how little the people around her didn't appreciate her knowledge.  Elizabeth Philpot, a middle-class woman, who normally wouldn't look or speak to someone like Mary, must have been a remarkable lady to notice the brilliance that was contained in Mary and to take the time to cultivate a friendship with her.  But Elizabeth also struggled again societal norms and strictures and was not always looked upon favourably for her actions.  There was a lot of gossip about the two of them and their fossil-hunting ways as it was seen as not being normal.  And many of Mary's earlier finds were not given credit to Mary, but given credit to those who purchased the specimens, and it took years to sort out the issue.  Again, the differences between men and women and their credibility and how much women have to fight for everything is incredible.

I have been to the British Museum and have seen some of these specimens, but was not fully aware of the story until I read the novel, so it was enlightening to me to discover some of the arguments about the nature of extinction and how it was something that was denied during this time.  Or that people really believed the earth had only been in existence for 6 000 years.  I think in our age of discoveries, we often forget how narrow-thinking some of the ideas during this century really were, and how people believed that the nature of extinction went against the Bible and God.   I wish that Ms. Chevalier had gone into more depth over the controversy these issues would have caused however, as the new scientific evidence that was presented during this time certainly challenged many preconceived notions held at the time and many arguments and debates occurred in many an association. 

While I found the fossil-hunting and the finding of the specimens to be absolute fascinating, I did find the plot to be somewhat weak, and I didn't feel like there was a lot of drama and suspense added to the story.  With little to work on, the author uses their creativity to fill in the gaps between historical facts to re-create a person with whom we can identify, but I didn't necessarily feel that way with Mary and Elizabeth.  I often felt like Elizabeth was patronizing towards Mary, or that Mary was brash and arrogant, with little feeling towards others. 

Verdict
Remarkable Creatures was a fascinating and interesting read on some remarkable discoveries from two women who had a great influence on paleontology and helped influence some very important scientific theories during this century.  While the author's writing is flawless, lyrical, and beautiful, I found the plot to be weak and I couldn't connect to the characters themselves.   As usual though, the expectations of nineteenth century women, the conventions and ideas of the time, the scientific arguments, and the fossils themselves held a fascination for me that kept the novel interesting and entertaining.

IMM: I Love To Read

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren.  It's been an interesting week, as well as a sad one for Canadian Book Distributors with the financial difficulties of H.B. Fenn being formally announced on Thursday.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone I've worked with at H.B. Fenn as you have been terrific, extremely generous, and I have really enjoyed our working relationship.  I really hope that everything will work out for this company.

Books I Received for Review:

Death Echo by Elizabeth Lowell

A Trail of Ink by Mel Starr

Other Eyes by Barbara D'Amato

The Damage Done by Hilary Davidson

The Four Stages of Cruelty by Keith Hollihan

Among Others by Jo Walton

The Summoner by Layton Green

Books From the Library:

The Witch's Daughter by Paula Brackston

The Lost Gate by Orson Scott Card

The Goldsmith's Daughter by Kate Sedley (Audiobook)

I am still on my book buying ban and it was worked out fairly well.  I have no urge at the moment to go to Chapters or any other bookstore, and I have been spending more time in the library.  I have also discovered the e-library, which is pretty great, and have borrowed books to my ereader.  I need to go lightly however, so I don't neglect the review copies I have to read.  Book banning has been far easier than I thought it would be.  I even have many gift certificates lying around and haven't felt the need to use them.  I wonder if it would be different if we didn't have such a great library though!?  

I Love CSN Stores - And a Giveaway

As many of you know, CSN Stores is a fantastic place to do some great shopping.  I have purchased many items from their stores over the past year, and plan on purchasing many more.  As I am going away again this March with the family, I need to get a new laptop messenger bag as my old one has pretty much worn out its usefulness, with holes in the bottom and sides.  There are some great bags to be found on the site and I will also be shopping for new luggage for my kids as they have outgrown their old ones.  I am also in dire need of new luggage as my old bag got crushed on the flight home from Jamaica last year and I'm not sure if I can pound it back into shape or not.  I really loved that bag though as I always managed to make everything fit and just always made it under the weight limit.  I called it my "magic bag". 

There are several things I really like about CSN Stores.  One of them is their speedy delivery and how they keep me apprised of where my item is in the mail.  I always know when my item is going to arrive so if I am not home I could always have a neighbour pick up the item for me from my porch.  Another thing is their customer service.  If it had a problem, and luckily there have been few problems, customer service has been quick to resolve any issues.  The last item I received from CSN Stores was a lobster pot, and it was wrapped up so tightly, there was little chance of anything happening to it.  It also came in two boxes, which my children naturally fought over, as well as copious amounts of filler.

This is the pot that I received and I absolutely love it.  We used it when we had out crab fest a few weeks ago and for the first time, I didn't have three pots on the stove going at once, but used this on the BBQ and it worked great.  I can't wait to use it at the trailer this summer and see how it fares on the outdoor fireplace.

Cleaning was easy too.  It took little time and was so much easier than the stainless steel pots I have.  Very little scrubbing, and anything that saves time and work is fine by me.


Here are a couple of items I would like purchase in the next few months:

Add a couple of cushions for the lounger and you have a nice comfortable outdoor chair for reading, and I would love something like that!  The bookcases, well...I think that is self-explanatory.

And now for the giveaway!

One of my lucky readers will win a $45 GC to CSN Stores towards the purchase of anything they wish. Contest is open to Canada and US residents only.  Contest closes February 28th at midnight.

MANDATORY ENTRY:  All you need to do is leave your name and email address.  That's it folks!!

Review: Subject Seven by James A. Moore

Subject Seven
by James A. Moore
Release Date: January 25, 2011
2011 Razorbill Books
Softcover Edition; 336 Pages
ISBN: 978-1-59514-304-4
Genre: Young Adult
Source: Review Copy from Penguin Canada

4 / 5 Stars

Summary
Impossibly strong, brutally violent, and smarter than his captors: Subject Seven has escaped...

Years ago, scientists began developing the ultimate military weapon: deadly sleeper assassins housed within the bodies of teenagers.  Now, Subject Seven, the dangerous alter ego living inside a fifteen-year-old boy, has escaped the lab and is on a mission.  His objective?  To seek out others like him and build an army capable of destroying their creators.

Hunter, Cody, Gene, Tina, and Kylie:  Five teenagers typical lives, until the day they each receive a call from a mysterious stranger - and learn that their destinies are intertwined.  Subject Seven holds the key that connects them all.  And a battle for their lives is just beginning.

My Thoughts
Subject Seven is James A. Moore's first foray into the young adult market and he does so with quite a bang.  Known for his horror and action novels, Mr. Moore brings his unique writing style into a clever novel that explores the concept of genetic development, in particular what can happen when scientists think they have failed, or in this case, unknowingly succeeded.

The story is told from multiple perspectives, and while this can be confusing, it is done skillfully and advances the story quite well.  I really enjoyed the different perspectives and learned a lot about the different characters because of this format.  As I followed the lives of the teenagers as they experienced weird blackouts, and woke up in dozens of strange and unfamiliar, and sometimes dangerous, situations, I was being given tantalizing little bits of information one morsel at a time.  I don't even think I realized how skillfully I was being led until about halfway through the novel when I realized who one of the characters actually was and I wondered how I missed that so easily. 

The Jekyll and Hyde personalities of the characters was really fascinating, and it was something I particularly liked.  I had to wrap my head around some of it at times, but I think having read the original book actually helped because I was least familiar with the concept.  I was wondering the entire time how Mr. Moore would handle the conflicting personalities inside one body and it was just starting to materialize when the novel ended.   I did like how the original personalities reacted fairly normally to the situations when they "woke" up from their genetic personalities though.  They were just regular frightened teenagers who had no idea what was happening to them and why.  The genetic enhanced personalities were quite amazing, but frightening, with some very brutal natures evolving from their 'Other' personalities.

The idea behind the book is quite original.  I liked how the scientists thought they had failed and wanted to destroy the batch of 'babies' they had created; what they didn't count on was human intervention, and now the 'babies' are out there.  Unfortunately, the first half of the novel was a little slow as the story was being set up, but luckily it picked up towards the end.  This novel, while very entertaining, is definitely a set-up novel for a series and quite a bit of the plot is left to be explored in further novels.  I think this is the only negative aspect to this novel as it felt imcomplete, with a lot left to be explored. 

Warning:  There is some graphic violence in this novel. 

Verdict
I really enjoyed Subject Seven and would recommend it to anyone who is interested in reading science fiction, action, suspense, and mystery.  The implications to genetic manipulations should give anyone pause while reading this novel, especially as the "Others" make their appearances.  I am looking forward to seeing what happens to our heroes in the sequel when it is released.

WOW: Ruby Red & Shimmer

I always enjoy this meme,hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine, as one of my favourite things after reading a good book is searching the upcoming releases for books that are being released.  For some reason, I've always enjoyed browsing catalogues, even as a young girl, and probably should have been a librarian rather than a teacher.  I've been seriously thinking about going that route though.  Anyways, tangent aside, here are a couple of releases I am looking forward to reading in the next few months.

Ruby Red
by Kerstin Gier
Release Date: May 10, 2011

Sixteen-year-old Gwen lives with her extended - and eccentric - family, in an exclusive London neighbourhood.  In spite of her ancestors' peculiar history, she's had a relatively normal life so far.  The time-traveling gene that runs like a secret thread through the female half of the family is supposed o have skipped over Gwen.  So it comes as an unwelcome surprise when she starts taking sudden leaps into the past.

She's totally unprepared for time travel, not to mention all that comes with it: fancy clothes, archaic manners, a mysterious secret society, and Gideon, her time-traveling counterpart.  He's obnoxious, a know-it-all, and possibly the best-looking boy she's seen in a century.

Shimmer (Riley Bloom, Book 2)
by Alyson Noel
Release Date: March 15, 2011

Having solved the matter of the Radian Boy Riley, Buttercup, and Bodhi are enjoying a little time off.  But their rest is interrupted when Riley encounters a young ghost named Rebecca.  Despite Rebecca's sweet appearance, Riley soon learns she's not at all what she seems.  As the daughter of a former plantation owner, Rebecca is furious about being murdered during the slave revolt of 1733.  Her overwhelming anger is keeping other ghosts who died in the slave revolt trapped in a shimmering bubble.  When Bodhi and Buttercup inadvertently fall into her trap, Riley is the only one who can save them.