January - Catching Up

Yikes! I've been bad about keeping up with my blog. I took a wonderful trip to DC last weekend to visit friends. It was so good to see them, but it makes me miss them all the more now that I'm back home. My favorite site was the Library of Congress. It's the most beautiful building in America, both inside and out. I got see the Gutenberg bible and Thomas Jefferson's library - both are quite incredible. Being the book nerd that I am I bought all of my souvenirs here. Such a great trip! This is a picture of me in the Library of Congress with my new library card.

I have to start my book reviews with Shadowfever, the last book in the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning. Talk about ending the series with a bang! It was a complete roller coaster ride full of action and jaw-dropping reveals. The previous books in the series are good, but this one is great. No fan of the series will walk away feeling unsatisfied, even if we still don't know what Barrons is.

I re-read the Mercedes Thompson series and the Alpha & Omega series by Patricia Briggs. I love the Mercy series! Mercy is a 'walker' who shifts into a coyote at will. She lives in mobile home on the plot of land behind the alpha of the local werewolf pack. She works as a VW auto mechanic in the garage she bought from Siebold Adelbertsmiter, a metalworking Fae. One of her clients and friends is a vampire who owns a bus painted like the Mystery Machine from Scooby-Doo. Great writing and fun stories. I'm looking forward to the next Mercy release in March.

I also re-read For A Few Demons More from the Hollows series by Kim Harrison. I loved it as much this second time around. I tried Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey, but dumped it because I just couldn't get into it. Then I picked up the Jane Yellowrock series by Faith Hunter, a decent urban fantasy series about a skinwalker who hunts vampires. I'll be finishing up the last book in this series tonight.

I caught a few older movies on Netflix this weekend. I loved Fanboys, a movie about the ultimate Star Wars fans. Very funny if you're into sci-fi, otherwise I don't think you'd like it. I also watched Unthinkable starring Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Sheen and Carrie-Ann Moss. The casting and the acting was good, but the story lacked a little something extra so I didn't like it as much as I hoped I would.

The King's Speech, Black Swan, and other reviews

I absolutely loved The King's Speech! It stars Colin Firth as Prince Albert, who stutters. His father (the king) dies, then his older brother abdicates the throne to Albert (George VI), all this happening while Hitler is continuing to take over Europe. Albert finds help from a very unorthodox speech therapist played by Geoffrey Rush. With his help, Albert is able to deliver the radio speech to the nation on the eve of England's involvement in WWII. It's a wonderful movie full of humor and heart. I'm sure Firth and Rush will be getting Oscar nominations for their performances. Definitely go see this movie.

The Black Swan was just slightly too weird for me. Natalie Portman's performance as a driven ballet dancer will surely win her an Oscar nomination, but the character she played was unlikeable and I became more annoyed with her as the movie went on. That combined with the many suddenly bloody scenes had me anxious for the movie to end. It's well done, but I don't recommend it unless you want to see a movie that's a little too 'out there.'

I read Artemis Fowl and the Atlantis Complex, the latest in Eoin Colfer's series. It was good, but not as good as its predecessors. Definitely worth reading though if you're into YA literature. I also read Hellforged by Nancy Holzner which rocked my world. Shifters, demons, zombies galore and a kick ass chick kicking all their asses - what more could you ask for? I just finished a re-read of For A Few Demons More, the fifth book in Kim Harrison's The Hollows series. Just as great the second time around. Great wedding scene, heartbreaking ending.

I played a few Nintendo games over the holidays. I love Professor Layton and the Curious Village and Professor Layton and the Unwound Future. Both are puzzle games wrapped in fun little stories. Great series for the DS. I also played Epic Mickey on the Wii. It's sort of like a Mario game but not as fun for some reason.