Two New Discoveries and One Great Lover ;)

Since getting some pesky studying-related nuisances (exams, thesis etc.) out of the way, I've been doing some serious reading and movie-watching. Books first.

Having heard recommendations here and there all winter and spring, I'd amassed a large TBR pile (To Be Read, for those of you unfamiliar with the term) so I dug in with a vengeance.

Sarah Addison Allen was a writer whom I had been recommended, particularly because of my love of fantasy and the paranormal. Her novel Garden Spells was available at my local bookshop and since I love gardening, it seemed like a good one to grab. I knew immediately that this was a story that mixed the everyday things and the fantastical side of the story very naturally and matter-of-factly and so it did. I read it in one sitting. It was quite simply well-written and engaging. It had a gentle touch even though there was a definite suspense element. A lovely read. Not quite my usual fare, but perhaps that was why I found it so wonderful.

Another new acquaintance to me was Nancy Martin. I picked the first in her Blackbird Sisters mysteries, How to Murder a Millionaire and couldn't put it down. I chortled my way through the snappy dialogue, eccentric characters and things just going more and more wrong and I just had a great time. Will definitely check out the rest of the series.

One of the most awaited new releases this spring, for me, was the next installment in J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood series. Lover Mine, John Matthew's story, promised to be thrilling and Ward didn't disappoint. I got hooked on the BDB from the first (Dark Lover is the first of the series and an excellent book) and I felt that Lover Mine was a return to absolute top form. The series has been tight since beginning, books one through five are solid reads. I wasn't a huge fan of Lover Enshrined for some reason (book six in the series), but warmed up to Lover Avenged (book seven) again. As much as I loved John Matthew, it was Xhex, the heroine of Lover Mine, who really sealed the deal. Maybe because I found her easy to relate to. Amazing series in the dark end of the romance/fantasy genre. There is violence, some of it hitting against innocent targets, making these books tough reads sometimes and the enemies of the brotherhood, the Lessening Society, are scary as hell. Also, I feel I have to mention that the sex parts may be a bit rough for some romance fans, but I adore this series. A very original take on vampires and an incredible feat world and culture building. Kudos.

Sookie's Back: Dead and Gone

Let's get this out of the way, I'm a big fan of Charlaine Harris. I love her earlier work on the Aurora Teagarden and particularly the Lily Bard and the Harper Connelly series. I have enjoyed her Southern Vampire series as well, and even though the current vamp trend is starting to wear kind of thin (Twilight-hysteria, anyone?) there are many new vampire/UF series that I have found because of it, so it's not all bad.

Now, Harris is an excellent writer and the latest Sookie Stackhouse (for me since where I live I'd better wait for the paperback prints) is a solid, entertaining book. I read it in one sitting which is not unusual with Harris' books and Sookie's adventures continue to be interesting. Some of the novelty and charm of the earlier books has faded, but that happens when a series gets to be as long as this. I hope Harris (and her publishers, really) knows when to draw a series to a close, she certainly has done it right with Aurora Teagarden and Lily Bard. I personally feel it's better to quit while you're ahead and leave the readers sighing for maybe just one more book than write too many and leave that bad taste in their mouths. Sort of like a TV-series that is forcibly stretched too far and becomes boring or silly because it should have ended years ago (you know which ones I mean...).

This installment was still okay, though, absolutely worth reading. Not the best one in the series by a long shot, but okay :) Do read Charlaine Harris, if you haven't tried her books yet, she does tell a very good story. For those against the current vampire/UF trend, try Aurora Teagarden and Lily Bard for wonderful, more traditional mystery-writing.