Song by Civil Twilight: Letters From the Sky

Every now and again I find a song that for whatever reason completely moves me.  Letters From the Sky is one of those.

I hope you like it as much as I do…Letters From the Sky by Civil Twilight

Patricia Briggs: Moon Called, Blood Bound, Iron Kissed and Bone Crossed

Recently finished these four books (as in this week) and was surprised at how much I enjoyed them.  The books feature Mercy Thompson, a shape shifter with a magnet for trouble.  She was raised by a werewolf pack but never really fit in. She left them in her teens and went to tackle life on her own as a tomboyish VW mechanic only to find that the werewolfs are still near as are the fae and vampires…  The characters are great, Mercy is a strong, dynamic character and you can’t help but want her to win, in everything.

The first book didn’t take long to pull me in.  Things go from one thing to the next so fast that I found it difficult to put down as there were barely any ‘downtime’ for me to lose interest for long enough to put them down.  (Thus all four books tackled this week, I even stayed up too late a few nights which is unlike me.)

Tonight I am starting another series, the Alpha and Omega series so I will see if these ‘new’ characters are as intriguing and enjoyable as the Mercy Thompson series, which by the way has another book, number five, due out in about a month and the sixth coming in 2011.

Here’s Patricia’s website if you’re interested! http://www.patriciabriggs.com/

Diana Gabaldon – Outlander series

Wow. Just noticed how long its been since I posted. I don’t usually let the time get away from me like that.  Could be because I’ve been immersed in great books recently that I couldn’t bear to stop and think on my own. Or it could be that I started a full time job again, been travelling for work and been relatively lazy on my off time.  Yeah, that’s probably it.

Just recently finished Diana Gabaldon’s An Echo in the Bone. It is the 7th book in her Outlander series. If you haven’t read them and you’ve got some steel lining in your stomach they are amazing.  Diana writes extremely memorable characters, very inspiring to me as writer.  These characters grow on you from the getgo, they become your friends, your enemies, your kids, grandkids…they are so beautifully written that when the 6th book closes you just might cry because your losing them.  But then book 7 comes out and even after a couple of years, you are right back with them again.  Although, I must say that book 7 absolutely leaves you hanging and I am looking forward (waiting not-so-patiently but understanding if nothing else) for the next book in the series.

The first book starts with the life of one Claire Beauchamp who ends up going back in time 202 years only to be thrown into the mists of Ireland meeting a very-not-so-nice ancestor of her current husband, being accepted by a clan and falling for a young red-headed soldier ensued by the adventures of their lives battling the above mentioned ancestor. Then Claire has to make tall decisions about going back to her own time or staying with the true love of her life.

That’s the gist at least.  The story brings every emotion you have out to the surface, sometimes leaving you shaking from tears shed, other times red faced with fury.  I say it would be good to have some iron in your stomach because something Claire or her wonderful beau, Jamie, go hrough some VERY rough stuff.  They’re in the 1700’s…need I say more? Example, my best friend reads some of whichever books she is on and when it gets too stressful for her, she swaps to another book to chill and then will go back and tackle the book again.  I don’t know which one she’s on know but she’s got a ways to go.

The books are addictive.  If my hubby sees a Diana Gabaldon book in hand, he knows he won’t see me for a few days.  Luckily for us both, I read fast.

So basically, Diana is one of my idols as far as novel writers goes.   I hope you enjoy the books as much as I.