January: A month of post-apocalyptic teenage love triangles

Can someone explain to me why the YA authors of the paranormal and fantasy world must have love triangles?!?
I'm sure I could explain it myself - we can all identify with the teenage angst of having to choose betwenee the hot new guy and our old best friend, it creates tension and drama (sometimes where there is no tension and drama otherwise!) it allows the heroine to be dashing and brave because she has two big burly men to get her out of trouble... ok, so I've answered the question.

Anyway, in a month of catching up with the books that I have been meaning to read, or reading those old books I bought during my purchasing overload in December, the teenage love triangle has been an overwhelming theme. And no... I didn't read Twilight.

One of the things I wanted to do this month was read the full Tortall series in chronological order (which of course is not the order they were written in!). I started out with the three Beka Cooper books from Tamora Pierce (who will feature heavily this month). Terrier, and Bloodhound I had read before, and I love the story wrapping around the familiar streets of Tortall, particularly as we get to see a tiny bit more of George and Eleni Cooper (more on George later). Questions about the origins of Tortall are answered, and many thought provoking questions are raised. I'm in awe of Tamora Pierce as a story weaver. in Terrier and Bloodhound, the (almost inevitable?) love triangle is between Beka Cooper, Rosto the Piper (the new Rogue in town), and her loyalty to the Provost's Dogs, more than to any other man, although, in keeping with Ms Pierce's mature treatment of the subject, a couple of young men do manage to charm smiles from our heroine. The tone changes in Mastiff, the final in the trilogy. Rosto barely has a look-in past an unmet (and apparently unpleasant) fiance, and the budding romance is set far away from Corus. I was blown away by the story telling in this novel - and the end was just spectacular for wrapping up one of arguably the most important questions of Tortall. but enough, I'm hero-worshipping!

I needed a break after the intensity of the Beka Cooper series, so off to Janet Evanovich I trotted. Generally, I read the new Stpehanie Plum novel the day it is released. For whatever reason, I didn't get around to it straight away, so I was in luck, not just Explosive Eighteen, but also Love in a nutshell (co-written with Dorien Kelly). Again with a love triangle (as an aside - TEAM RANGER!!!!) with One for the Money hitting the big screen this month (already released in the US, we're just waiting over here....) there is a lot of press about this series at the moment, and Janet doesn't need any more help from me! Go read.

Next was another round of Tortallan genius - the four Song of the Lioness books were Tamora Pierce's first published stories, and they set the benchmark for her story telling, and introduced us to Tortall. Telling the story of Alanna, the first female knight to grace the halls of the royal palace in some 200 years, we are introduced to a world where people can change the face of a nation, and, with a little divine guidance, make changes in a generation greater than those seen in our world in centuries. Each book in the series unleashes a tool that Alanna uses to further her story, and each insignificant meeting becomes something important. I can't tell you how many times I have read the first 3 books in this series (the censors at my school never bought the 4th - cruel!!)

I've only just started re-reading the Immortals collection from Tamora Pierce (the 3rd Tortall series in chronological order); but I will provide a little spoiler - the shape and general geniality of our Basilisk is taken directly from Tamora Pierce's interpretation of the myth - which I think is far more special than some of the other takes we have seen on the Basilisk in the last 15 years (sorry Ms Rowling!).

After the Song of the Lioness, I moved on to yet another series which has been on my "to-read" pile for a while. I don't know why, because when I finally got around to Suzanne Collin's The Hunger Games I was blown away - what a story teller! And then what must happen, but thta I get side-tracked, reading god knows what, and then, this month I got back for Catching Fire and Mockingjay. Explosive. You can already see from the stills of the movie adaptation that this is bigger than Ben Hur. Just awesome. I was blown away. Although I have to admit that by the time I got to this series, I was ready to stab the 2nd guy in the love triangles just to stop the angst! Of course, the two boys provide a significant proportion of the tension in the story, so I couldn't really stab them, could I??

Then, just in case I had any patience left for YA fiction, I went and read the two latest novella offerings from Kelley Armstrong (can't wait for the new book!! and the Otherworld finale Thirteen in July!) the Darkest Powers Bonus Pack was great (as long as you don't mind love triangles!) telling some of the stories of the other people in the group home that Chloe (the Darkest Powers protagonist) finds herself in. Hidden, a holiday novella featuring Elena, everyone's favourite female werewolf was a real treat. I really admire Kelley Armstrong's first person style, and the humour she endows her characters with.

I also snuck in a YA steampunk sequel: Shelley Adina's Lady of Devices was a great read early last year, and Her Own Devices continues the tale. Adina keeps the story clean, but manages to make you adore the mix of upper-class snobbery and underworld desperation. if anything, the blend is getting even more pleasent as it matures. Her Own Devices grows on small incidents and opportunities in the first book, and we can expect even greater blooming in the series as it continues (I hope there is more!).

Without much thinking about the consequences I then rushed into Maria V Snyder's new YA books - Inside Out and Outside In. Again, a great YA tale, I really got into this, between Snyder and Collins, I don't think I slept much last month! these two stories stand separate from the Universe that Snyder introduced us to in Poison Study. Trella, a second class member of the Inside community is determined to figure out what the story is with the Outside once and for all. The results are far reaching and brilliantly conceived. To the extent that you can see how our civilisation could so easily be mirrored in this series, I found these stories even more gripping than the Study (the whole series can be purchased here) and Glass series - although those were also an adventure into well written YA fiction.

So that catches me up to this morning! I'm gonna go find something classical and dusty to read, just so I don't need to have angst about love triangles for a while... I'll start with Othello....

Welcome to 2012

Happy New Year!
So this year, my resolution is to post weekly on the rather neglected Basilisk's Loungeroom wall... (now all I'm seeing is crayon on a wall...) which is essentially all I have been seeing for the past 3 months - since I got back from Europe in October, we have been flat chat with the renovating, in order to get our lives sorted out and in display home condition to sell the house in January. whew! it's been hectic, with painting, and throwing out - literally - tonnes of stuff (special mention to the LB's hard working boyfriend - he has slogged through so much rubble from the back yard! (and is still slogging as I write!) but; I have had time to read a few odds and ends - and, with the throw-out comes the terrible burden of announcing that I took 7 crates to Elizabeth's warehouse in Fremantle. Elizabeth's Bookshops - love you long time... but I miss my babies!!
Allegedly, it's all already sold (see, apparently I do have good taste!); but ohh! the bits that went:

all my Jasper Fforde (except the one I was reading!)
all of Isabelle Carmody's Obernewtyn chronicles (except the new one)
the entire collection of Kylie Chan (except my signed & chopped 25th anniversary of voyager hardback edition of White Tiger!)
the entire collection of Traci Harding (I'm really gonna miss these, a lot aren't available on Kindle yet - please help me Harper Voyager!)
Every Tamora Pierce book (some twice) except for Terrier & Bloodhound - I've still gotta find a home for them
the first 5 Kate Daniels books by Ilona Andrews
the first 5 Mercedes books from Patricia Briggs
the first 4 Jaz Parkes novels from Jennifer Rardin
The first 4 or so Kitty Norville tales from Carrie Vaughn
Sharon Green's Convergence series (I can't remember the actual series name... see, already they are fading!!)
Souless from Gail Carriger
assorted Garth Nix, Racheal Treasure and other Australian Authors for young and old,
the full Twilight Saga (now I'm really embarassed)
Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials collection,
all of LB's boyfriend's Matthew Reilly's, and Dune Chronicles,
all 4 sisterhood of the travelling pants
the entire collection of Jodi Picoult
the entire collection of Janet Evanovich, the numbers, between the numbers, the early romances, the lot!
the entire collection of JD Robb
my books from Paris, from the Hague, from China... rondom books from used book sellers around the world,
signed copy of Paul Carter's Don't tell mum I work on the Rigs, she thinks I'm a piano player in a whore house, and his sequel, This is not a Drill.
Possibly most wasteful and embarassing of all, I must have thrown out about 20 books I've never even opened.

so anyway, enough ranting - I threw out 2 bookshelves and another one is basically empty (but for my lonely planet guides and a few books I can't throw away, either cos the dog ate them or they are personally autographed. I took out a mortgage (kidding... mostly!) to cover the replacement of a portion of the above, triple what I got for selling the books and it's gotten me less than 20% of the books back on Kindle. To be fair, some I would never have read again, but others, well... lets just say I might be over it by next new years post!

I must say, it is good to be a little less cluttered with book shelves, the next to go are the DVDs and the CDs.

so anyway, did I actually fit any reading in?

I got through a few books - namely the 6th in the Thursday Next Series: One of Our Thursday's is Missing, and Jasper Fforde's new series debut Shades of Grey. I loved them both, I have been hooked on Jasper Fforde since Dymocks did their top 100 books 5 years ago, featuring The Eyre Affair. I have to say though, as I'm a (albeit reasonably well-read) engineering type, I really enjoyed Shades of Grey, possibly even more than the Thursday Next series - I think because there were no in-jokes of the literary variety... you know the one where you think - I know he's making a really witty joke here, but I haven't read [insert book title here] so I don't get it!
seriously, if you have read every penguin classic in the past decade, you probably still wouldn't get every cultural reference Fforde makes - which is one of the things I love! I always pick up something after the fact. Shades of Grey is different, the jokes are of a chromatic hue, and are thus much more accessible to gits like me. I did love stopping to get back to painting my little home beige (the colour Fforde associates with hell...) it made me appreciate the world so much more!

ummm... aside from that, there's heaps more, but I think I've taken up enough of the lounge time, better go sort out some sustenance!

September is all but over...

So – yet another locale, and another post – this time, the Thayls somewhere between Paris and Brussels – and what a stunning evening it is! The sun is setting out the window and the visibility is gorgous. This week has been the best (driest and hottest!) we have had all summer, and it’ nearly the middle of autumn! Just stunning.

So anyway, what are we here for? Right, so still finding more and more Steampunk authors to fawn over – Lindsay Buroker continues to surprise and delight with her mix of fantasy and steampunk - not sure if I mentioned how impressed I was with The Emperor's Edge? I know I should have, but my laziness knows no bounds. I'm really enjoying the mixture in this author's writing - especially the Emporer's edge series and supporting novellas: really fantastically imagined world, heavy, bordering on gruesome imagery, and really fun heroines. Why can't I write sassy heroines like all you guys do!?! Sorry, I'll stop gushing. I recently finished Flash Gold which was the first of a new series aimed more at a yukon steampunk world than the fantastic word of the Emperors Edge series, which further goes to show Buroker's flexibility. This project again finds our heroine, a gal who is good with her hands (a mechanic, you dirty minded perv!) with a tall dark and handsome stranger who she can't trust - *sigh* can we ever trust the tall dark and handsome men of the world? In the rough and ready world of the dog-sled racing pioneers, our mechanical genius needs to race against the competitors, and a harem of assassins who are just dying to score some extremely powerful loot...

I notice there is another one out now, bless all the prolific authors in the world! if only because I admire Buroker's attitude towards publishing and the excellence, I would recommend it, but I have genuinely enjoyed reading all the stories, and while I'm sure an editor and publisher might smooth out the lines and ask the difficult questions on occasion (there are times I wish I could!) I think what Lindsay Buroker is doing is applaudable, not just the quality of the works, but also the methodology of the execution.

After My Buroker fest, Zoe Archer has been a great way to maintain some of the joy of steampunk, her Blades of the Rose quartet are fantastic escapism, and while a bit too much time is spent between the bedcovers (or behind trees, in enchanted streams, sail boat cabins, etc etc) for me to be able to call them literature, Archer's variety in location, the depth of the character and story development and the width of the mythology described has me hooked. Although her world building is not always consistent (it does my head in when her characters talk in today's parlance - which they do regularly), Archer's story telling is enjoyable and I can't fault her stunning descriptions of times and places. I'm looking forward to finishing the final installation in this series.

So what else has the Basilisk had a bookmark in lately?

Cameron Chapman's Aboard the Unstoppable Aerostat Fenris (The Steam & Steel Chronicles); man can I say I was shocked and awed by the conclusion of this novella - I dig it. I admire it, and I hope that the consistency is maintained, should there be more chronicles, as it's a brave brave author that does it.

JR Rain's Vampire for Hire series - I got through Moon Dance and Vampire Moon, and really enjoyed them, not sure I'm going to keep reading though - Samantha Moon is a pretty desperate queen of the night, her struggles to be a mom and carry on her evening existence is kinda heart-wrenching to read. I see great potential for the series, which is 4 novels and several novellas strong, I'm just not sure I want to witness the suffering, sorry!

The latest from Kelley Armstrong - Spell Bound yay! we love Savannah!!

Smoking 17 from Janet Evanovich - and may I say, how exciting is it going to be to have Katherine Heigl playing Stephanie Plum in One for the Money - she could not be cast better.

So, that's it from me, nearly back in Rotterdam, from whence I trek back to Zoetermeer... yay!

LB

From August 2011...

So, sitting on a plane, heading back from Amsterdam to Perth – another 24 odd hours in planes and airports – living the dream. Had a couple of things i wanted to discuss last night, but after a couple of beers, it didn’t seem like a good idea.

So the latest on the basilisk’s bookshelf:

Tales of a Female Nomad – Rita Golden Gelman. Rita’s story reminded me a lot of a friend of mine from Sydney. Rita, and my friend M, are both more senior adventurers. M is a fantastic warm and funny woman who opened up her house and her heart for me after we met on a bus – that’s just the kind of woman she is. M lived as an expat in Saudi Arabia for 25 years and used that as her base for travel throughout the middle-east, Africa and Europe. I wish she would write a book on her experiences! Slightly different to M, Rita’s story starts, somewhat similarly to Elizabeth Gilbert’s pop-culture classic “Eat Pray Love” with a decision to make the change from the married life in high-achieving Los Angeles and commence a lifestyle vastly dissimilar to that which we would hold as an ideal. Unlike Eat Pray Love, Gelman does not stop after one year, and traverses quite a bit more of the globe. Gelman’s story resonated with me far more than Gilbert’s – which is a great read, and a must for women to read – because it wasn’t focused on “fixing” her life by taking time out, Gelman is instead describing a full-time lifestyle of a woman who chooses to embrace different cultures from the inside, and communicating and interacting with the aim of exchange – whether it be teaching English, singing songs, or cooking with the village. When I started the book, I was expecting it to be escapism – it has never been a conscious dream of mine to embrace cultures the way that Gelman does – she studying anthropology prior to her separation from her husband. Anyway, afterwards I was so fired up about the experiences she describes – I don’t know if I would ever be that brave, but I wanna be like Rita Golden Gelman and M when I grow up.

Following the completion of Tales of a female nomad, I couldn’t sleep, so thought I would jump into something a little different – James Allen's "As A Man Thinketh."

When posting: Oh my gosh – my transport related posts seem to be never ending – unfortunately they tend to run out of steam with the battery on the laptop!

July - Another Locale, another Post

One wonders why I never post from my beautiful hometown of Perth - I could tell you it's due to never being there, but I think the truth is that getting the internet access is that much harder when I'm at home.


So, currently located in Zoetemeer in the Netherlands, it's Summer and that means long, LONG nights, filled with plenty of time to read plenty of new books. since I haven't written in a while, I'm going to plug some great books from the past 6 months or so:



Continuing with the theme of Steampunk month from February, we have recently seen the release of Gail Carriger's 4th book, Heartless, continuing the intrepid Alexia Tarabotti's adventures, again, a fantastic example of the genre, I really appreciate Carriger's writing style, it is irreverent and absolutely hits the nail on the head; her succinct and well written prose immediately throws you in with the characters, and even after a couple of months between books, you feel as though you are back amoung friends.


Following on teh same theme, I have just finished CJ Archer's The Adventures of Miss Upton and the Sky Pirate which was a little harlequin'y but an enjoyable read - the characters had the opportunity for a lot more development, and the principles were only lightly steampunk - not really hitting it the way Carriger does, but an amusing way to spend a couple of hours. The main protagonist is a champ though, I would love to meet her.

Speaking of protagonists I would love to meet, 17 year old Lady Claire Trevelyan would have to be on this list. Shelly Adina's Lady of Devices is the first in her young-adult steampunk series, and this girl has got her head on straight. Adina's characters, particularly in the department of the male lead, and female opposition (opposition? you know what I mean, the person against the main person, give me a break!) still need a bit of work (a bit too cardboard stereotype at the moment), but the depths she goes to for the young people that young Claire meets and changes the lives of is fantastic - I loved the whole vibe of this piece, which had the similar sort of level as Y.S. Lee's The Agency series but without the mystery.

The last steampunk for the past 6 months, I promise, is the joint effort from Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris, Pheonix Rising - A Ministry of Peculiar Occurences Novel which again was an enjoyable romp. I read this one a while ago, so I can't say I recall the literary style in great depth, but the gist is enjoyable, (particularly watching a kiwi with a bit of an antipodean chip on her shoulder fighting both the Imperial system of Victorian England, but also the attentions of the burly, loud, unpleasant Australian). I found that the mixture of the secrets with the steampunk lead to a fabulous tale on this occasion, without the neccessity of pulling out the urban fantasy elements to make for a story.


So, apart from Steampunk, what on earth have you been reading?

More Kelley Armstrong, a bit of Melissa Marr, The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Kylie Chan's Heaven to Wudang,

The latest two Kate Daniels books from Wife-Husband dream team Ilona Andrews are Magic Bleeds and Magic Slays, I think I found this series through Patricia Briggs, another old favourite of the Lounge Basilisk's, and I gotta say, this vision of the post apocalyptic world where magic & technology collide is very attractive in it's chaotic-ness - the only word for Kate Daniel's life, relationships and job is messy, and it is great getting in the muck with her. A Caveat - I didn't really get/appreciate/enjoy the Andrews' "On the Edge" series, I don't know why, but I think it was the element of deperation felt by all the characters without the "stick it to the man" heart of the Kate Daniel's series.

Juliet Blackwell was another new find recently, her "Secondhand Spirits" was a really sweet mixture of hero-worshipping San Francisco (awwww, now I wanna go back!!), the do-gooding uber-powerful witch and the multiple mysterious males who may or may not sort through their issues over the coming books.

Things to look out for in the next few months:

Eye of the Tempest - Nicole Peeler
Succubus Revealed - Richelle Mead
Bloodlines - Richelle Mead

Heaps more, that currently escapes me. Anyway, that's the highlights, see you from the next random location.

LB

February was Steampunk Month

After the chaos of January, it was lovely to spend the month of Feb at home, and catch up on some reading;
Two great authors over the month were YS Lee and Gail Carriger; both of whom write alternative versions of Victorian(ish) England. Absolutely terrific reads for people who love to mix in the old with the fantastical.
I started the month by re-reading Gail Carriger's debut Souless which is the first of the parasol protectorate series, and was a "best new debut in 2010" (according to me). This book cracked me up the first time I read it, and improved on reading the second time - I flew through it so that I could get on to Changeless and Blameless; which are the continuation of Alexia Tarabotti's tale. I'm not going to spoiler all over you, but to say that if you have even the remotest knowledge of the historical period and love a tall tale, these books are really great fun - diabolical family and friends, never mind the enemies! Carriger has put a lot of detail into these stories and with Heartless and Timeless to follow close behind (June release for Heartless according to Amazon), she has obviously got more to say... which is exciting because these reads are fun and fresh (for me at least - if you have found other steampunk/paranormal books out there, I would love to hear about them).

I followed up the parasol protectorate with the start of "The Agency" series from YS Lee. A Spy in the House introduces us to Mary Quinn, a former thief who; saved from the gallows, is given the opportunity to better herself, completing an education at Ms Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls - the front for a spy agency built on the beliefs that a woman "minding her own business" may be privy to talk than any man. Its a great premise and Lee carries it off really well; and the depiction of James Easton makes me want to scream - where is the next book!!!!! The Body in the Tower continued Mary's story and Lee's depiction of the underbelly of Victorian(ish) London gets more and more detailed as the books continue. There is a depth of description that is just incredible, and Lee keeps the story moving; which is always appreciated by me... as much as the fact that I am even more appreciative of the fact that I didn't have to live that way!

A quick shout-back to Laura Bickle as well, having finished both Embers and Sparks (yay for the name, I only got that when I was halfway through the book!); I am again keen to highlight these books as being a great new series - although I'm worried about the depiction of Detroit? is it really like that? (If so, strike it from my list of places to visit, sorry!). Sparky and Anya's story has continued in the second book which again creates massive change not only for Anya and her Slamander side-kick (who has a very busy book!), but for Detroit's population of ghosts, witches and other things that go bump in the night.

Anyways, that's going to have to do for me - I'm currently doing the telecomute thing from the sunny Tweed Heads region of NSW/QLD... living the dream

Cheers

LB

And then it was Feb

Good afternoon lounge lizards,

I was looking over my CV today and one of my friends suggested inclusion of my personal interests in my resume... this gave me pause for thought, for two reasons...

1. I don't do anything cool!

2. I don't want to admit that I don't do anything cool!

So, in order to limit the damage, I have listed:

Personal Interests:

1. Travel

2. Writing

3. Renovating

Travel, definitely

Writing, well, my lack of input here would reflect a certain reticence regarding that

Renovating??? definitely have issues with calling that an interest... I have been "working" on my bathroom since Aug 2009, and by working I mean stripping some paint for an hour every 6 months or so, with the result that my bathroom constantly looks like it's moulting:

So, I'm not sure I can claim renovations, but we will give it a go....

Anyway, the actual purpose of writing - keeping you up to date on the latest and greatest in Urban Fantasy....

So January was Kelley Armstrong Month
I managed to swing a trip to Houston for work, and went absolutely mental on the Amazon "one click" button, with the result that I have a heck of a lot of reading to catch up on.
First was to get my teeth stuck into some Kelley Armstrong, starting at the beginning...
Bitten is written from Elena's perspective - a thirty-something female werewolf; she's living outside the pack's protection but as an extremely rare female, it's tough to fit into human life when the males of the species will do anything to get their hands on you.
This book set Elena on the path to be a regular favourite in the "Otherworld" universe, but it wasn't until Stolen that Armstrong really got to the guts of her vision of the otherworld.
Again, Elena sets up the story, but now we are introduced to a whole swath of other characters who will feature for the next 12 books, countless short stories and two spin-off trilogies.
I really liked this method of introducing a character in a book possibly two or three (or in Savannah's case 11) books before you really got their story... it gives you a chance to actually care about the character from the start of the book, but allows for tales which could never have been told if Armstrong had stuck with Elena's first person view of the world; it also removes the need for wearing in the reader to the new universes just to be able to tell a story, and gives the feeling that at book 11 we are only just beginning to warm up! Armstrong revisits favourite characters, and has provided a reality that's not just good and evil, but really plays into the shades of gray that we see daily - I love the idea of the Sorcerer's Cabals being multinational corporations, it gives them depth and nastiness but also provides a logic for the power base (by providing protection for their many employees from the prying eyes of humans, they are able to occasionally kill a recalcitrant security guard out of hand...)

So basically, with witty prose, smart and varied heroines and some incredible imagination, Armstrong has created a world for escapism that at times can be sweet, raunchy, political and geeky, with mystery and action thrown in for good measure.

recommendation: read them in order... as much as you can figure out the order!