Daughter of Henry VIII

Books

Red Son by

by Mark Millar

I love the idea behind this graphic novel. Superman, instead of being raised by the Kents in Kansas, instead lands in the middle of Russia and is raised on a collective farm. Growing up, instead of embodying the American Dream, he becomes the Champion of the common worker. And so much of it is just cool. There are loads of great touches, I loved the idea of the alternate Batman.

Unfortunately it never got beyond the “oooh that sounds cool” aspect of the story.

28 April 2010
Books

The underneath by

Author: Kathi Apelt
This is the story of an abandoned cat, an old hound dog who becomes her friend and her kittens, and the family they become. But it is also a tale of old Grandmother Moccasin, a shape-chaning lemia, who is trapped in jar and by her own anger and resentment at her betrayal, as she sees it, by those she loved. And through its blending of myth and floklore it is the perfect fit for my Once Upon a Time reading list. It is also a children’s book, so it shouldn’t take you to long to get through. Although that does not mean that this doesn’t have darkness.

19 April 2010
Books

The forest of hands & teeth by

Author: Carrie Ryan
I think that one of the main reasons I picked this book up was because of that title; The forest of hands & teeth it just seems so evocative somehow. And the blurb itself sounded vaguely interesting; “In Mary’s world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent.”

11 April 2010
Books

Living with the dead by

The plot of Living with the dead revolves around the character of Robyn; recently widowed she has moved to LA and taken a job in PR with Portia Kane, a Paris Hilton-type celebrity. Or wannabe celebrity. But when Portia is murdered Robyn finds herself the main suspect and in her confusion makes a break for it. She is helped out by her best friend, Hope Adams, and her boyfriend, Karl Marstsen.

25 February 2010
Books

Frostbitten by

It has been ages since I’ve read any of Armstrong’s books. I think I sorta faded away from them with Broken. But that was way back in 2006, she’s had four more books in the series out since then, as well as some YA books in the ‘verse, not to mention the ooodles of short stories. And while these books are pretty far removed from the cannon there is something so enjoyable about them.

23 February 2010
Books

The moor by

Author: Mary Russell
If you’ve read my reviews of the other books in this series you’ll already know that I really love them. If you haven’t here’s a quick recap; Sherlock Holmes, a real historical figure retired to Sussex in order to tend to his bees. While there he met Mary Russell; a somewhat moody, if quite brilliant, teenager and took her under his wing. She became his apprentice and later his wife. Errr, spoiler alert! In this, the fourth in the series, Sherlock sends Russell a telegram summoning her to Dartmoor and the moor that was the setting for The Hound of the Baskervilles. There are reports of another ghostly beast roaming the countryside and an old friend of Holmes would like him to investigate. Especially when a man is found dead on the moor.

22 February 2010
Books

Jack, the giant-killer by

I really liked the opening chapter of this book. De Lint creates a wonderful picture of Jacky Rowan. Recently dumped for being too uninteresting she has spent the night drinking her sorrows away. But on her way home she comes across a strange scene; a gang of bikers hunting down a little man. But when she investigates further there is no trace of it ever having happened, apart from the man’s red cap that she discovered on the ground.

8 February 2010
Books

A monstrous regiment of women by

Author: Laurie R. King
A Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes mystery #2

I’ve enjoyed the other books in this series that I’ve read, but this one I loved. Totally loved it.

It is 1921 and our hero, Mary Russell, has finished her undergraduate course at Oxford. She is also about to come into her inheritance. Her life on the brink of being totally her own. No longer a ward of her aunt’s; she will be able to live as she chooses. But how will she choose, and what does she want to do with her life? Will she pursue an academic career with her interest in theology? Or does her future lie with Holmes and the life of a detective?

2 February 2010
Books

Here lies Arthur by

ISBN: 9780439955331 LibraryThing | Author’s site Some stories will never stop being retold. How many different versions of the Arthurian legends are there out there? And do we really need another?...

21 January 2010
Books

The Knife of Never Letting Go by

ISBN: 9781406310252 LibraryThing ; Wikipedia[1] Chaos Walking # 1 I wasn’t too convinced that I was going to like this book when I first started reading it. The first chapter didn’t...

6 January 2010
Books

The Gathering Storm by ,

You know, I’ve been reading this series since I was in second year in school. Thats what, 1992? ’92 or ’93. Whichever it was, that is a long time to be reading the same story. But I don’t regret a second. Not even the incredible feeling of disappointment after book 10 when I shrieked that “nothing happened”. Because it is a great story, with great characters, and I really do want to get to the end and find out what happens.

3 December 2009
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