I Love My Dad

For the first time in years, my dad is going to be in the same town as me for Father's Day, and I am excited. I don't get to see him as often as I would like to, and he usually doesn't stay long when he comes to visit, so this is exciting. This time, he arrived today (Friday) and will be staying until Sunday afternoon. Yay! :)

Living 3 provinces away from my dad is sometimes hard for me. But I love Saskatchewan, and don't regret moving here, despite missing the mountains of BC. I never did anything with the mountains anyway, not being into mountain climbing, skiing, snowboarding, or any of that other stuff BC people are supposed to be all about.

My dad, on the other hand, loves the mountains. He grew up in Manitoba and will never live in the prairies again. So I have to drive a day and half to see him or he has to drive that long to come here. So having him here this weekend is really awesome.

How are you celebrating Father's Day?

Scroll down to see how much you know about Father's Day grammar! (Found on http://grammarly.com/grammar-check)

Review of The Dragon King and I by Adrianne Brooks

The Dragon King and I by Adrianne Brooks

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


There were things about this book that I really liked, but so much more that I didn't. I want to give it 2.5 stars, but it's not good enough for 3 so I've given it 2.

First off, I want to give a warning that wasn't given in the blurb. This book contains a lot of references to rape: fear of rape, attempted rape, possible rape. It wasn't clear if Alex was ever actually raped, but the threat is there on nearly every page. See, Alex is cursed: every man she comes in contact with falls under her spell and wants to be with her. This affects them in different ways: some want to protect her and just be near her, while others want to possess her, body and soul. This means that some of them want to rape her. At least one tries to do so in the text, and there is reference to this happening to her in the past as well.

Now, for what I liked. Adrianne Brooks sometimes really has a way with words. I really feel a connection to lines like "The main thing that I loved about living alone was the silence. Sometimes simply talking to people was like listening to white noise." I'm an introvert, so I strongly relate to this.

Unfortunately, even though I started off relating to her, I didn't like Alex very much. I can understand why she is antisocial and hates leaving her house—every time she ventures outside, she feels like she is going to be raped—but I don't understand why she fights Flo to get inside Clarabell's house. What the hell changed? Also, Alex's voice is very annoying. Maybe other readers would like the "modern" feel, but I just wanted to slap her or choke her or both.

And, you know, there's a reason why writing advice tells writers not to have a character look into a mirror and describe themselves. It's stupid and feels really forced and unreal. Yes, there is a such a scene in The Dragon King and I. Ugh. So annoying.

While reading, I kept wondering if an editor had even looked over this manuscript. If so, Adrianne really should hire a better editor next time. So many grammar errors. Yikes. For example: 'jealously' is an adverb; 'jealousy' is a noun. They are not the same word and cannot be used interchangeably. Also, continuity is important, kids. In one scene, Alex is gripping Sam's shirt with both hands, and then she tightens her arms around him. When did she go from one position to another? This kind of thing is really disconcerting.

Oh, and this book is in first person from Alex's POV so we really shouldn't be seeing lines like, "My eyes (view spoiler)[began to glow and I knew that they were neither the white of my mother’s power nor the purest black of another supernatural’s. They (hide spoiler)] were gray, like my father’s" since, how the hell would Alex know what colour her own eyes are? She's not even looking into a mirror in this scene!

This is definitely not the worst book I've ever read, but it's not very good either. I wouldn't recommend buying it, but if you find it for free like I did, you might want to give it a try.



View all my reviews

Review of Before Midnight by Jennifer Blackstream

Before Midnight by Jennifer Blackstream

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I really want to give this book 2.5 stars, but since that's not an option, I went back and forth on whether to give it 2 or 3. I finally settled on 3 to be nice.

It's not a terrible book, but it's not very good either. The writing is quite repetitive and tell-y (and full of so many typos), with sentences like, "he opened his mouth to bare a mouthful of sharp teeth too sharp to be human." Ok, so they're sharp then? Wait, are they sharp? I'm guessing they must be sharp. And it really feels like I'm being told to feel sorry for this girl who constantly feels sorry for herself. Well, I do what I want, not what I'm told. So there.

And, ugh, Loupe is so annoying. She drives me nuts. She acts pathetic and, though we're told she's really tough and won't give up, we don't see that; we see her giving up. Then she goes from weak and pathetic to strong and determined with nothing in between just because she's in love. It's the Power of Love! Give me a break.

Speaking of giving me a break, what's with all the purple prose? Like this: "Her jaw dropped. The most gorgeous man she’d ever seen was standing at the edge of the lake. From her angle, she couldn’t tell how tall he was, but he radiated strength. His soft brown hair and clear grey eyes, paired with a lean, muscled body, conspired to heat her blood. She wondered that the lake wasn’t boiling around her." So, I guess he's hot? Oh, and also, "Arabelle’s red hair fell like curling fountains of blood to the puffed sleeves of her dress." As a redhead, I think I might be offended or something (since Arabelle is EEEEVIL).

Why oh why is it always love at first sight? (Or, lust at first sight, maybe.) Loupe and Etienne don't even know each other—they've spoken twice!—when he confesses his love. I don't wanna say love at first sight never happens, I just don't think this is a very good way to begin a relationship. What if she doesn't like the way he chews his food? What if he doesn't like the way she rearranges the furniture?

And everything is so emotionally overdone, overwrought, and exhausting. (SPOILER: The sex scene wasn't even sexy it was so overdone.)

Am I allowed to request some realism even though this is fantasy? For example: (SPOILER: Loupe's stepsister shoots her with a crossbow while Loupe is in wolf form and shoots her toe off. This is her actual line: “Wow, I really shot your toe clean off. What a shot. There isn’t even any bone from the toe left, just a hole. I must have taken it off at the joint.”/ENDSPOILER) Are you kidding me? I don't think that's even remotely possible.

But I did enjoy the plotline, and I couldn't actually abandon it since I wanted to know what happened next. So it wasn't all bad.



View all my reviews

Review of Seaborn by S.A. Bolich

Seaborn by S.A. Bolich

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I feel as if I was carried on a wave of adventure and excitement with Nes as she journeyed with Jetta, Settak, Sheshan, and the others. This book was just as good as the first two, and now I cannot wait to read the fourth in the series.

The world S. A. Bolich has created is so rich and complex, and we learn of it slowly as the series progresses. Seaborn gives us insight into the fascinating world of the Water folk, and a few glimpses of the abilities of the Delvers. The romance here nearly felt tacked on, but I like it anyway. Finally, (view spoiler)[Settak gets a life partner (hide spoiler)].

I highly recommend this book (and the whole series) to everyone who reads fantasy. It's simply amazing.



View all my reviews

Review of Freak of Nature by Julia Crane

Freak of Nature by Julia Crane

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


This book opens with the boring cliché of the main character, Kaitlyn, looking at herself in the mirror. Even worse, she's hating herself/her reflection because she's a freak. I don't have a problem with angsty self-hate, if it's done right, but don't just tell me that she hates herself. Show me.

There is so much telling in this book (and hardly any showing), I felt like I was being spoonfed how I was supposed to feel. I couldn't make myself care about any of the characters. I felt like I was being talked down to, like I'm not smart enough to make up my own mind about any of this. This is why showing instead of telling is so important: the reader doesn't want to be treated like a child.

Another thing that really annoyed me was the constant, glaring typos. In one sentence, 'soldier' would be spelled correctly and incorrectly ('solider') within a few words. It seems that the author didn't bother with a basic proofread before publishing.

When Kaitlyn is at the shooting range, we are treated to a long, detailed, boring explanation of guns and shooting and stuff that I don't care about. I skipped over it. I get that the author did a bunch of research and wants to show off her knowledge, but I don't care. It's boring. And then this happens: "She continued to shoot the various drills the instructor set-up and explained. Each time, unknown to Kaitlyn, she performed at a world class level, something that took competition shooters years of practice and hundreds of thousands of rounds." In a third person limited POV, we shouldn't ever be told anything that is unknown to the POV character. It's jarringly unrealistic, because if she doesn't know it we shouldn't know it.

For a cyborg with a computer brain that we are constantly told is amazing and intelligent and beyond any human brain, Kaitlyn is really stupid. She doesn't understand slang until they give her a 'slang chip' and the only reason I can think of for this is that the author thought it would be funny if the robot got confused by idiom. Oh, haha. Spoiler: I'm not really laughing. At one point in the story, Kaitlyn is given an iPhone and this happens: " A small square on the screen said ‘Maps.’ Not knowing what else to do, she tapped it. She was surprised when it opened to a map." Are you kidding me? How idiotic is this girl?

The ending is way too easy and happens way too fast. I felt cheated. And then, Kaitlyn is approached by a douchebag at the bowling alley: '“What do you want?” she asked calmly, wishing Lucas would hurry up. “I’m looking at it.” His hand came forward as if he were going to touch her, and without considering whether she was doing the right thing, Kaitlyn grabbed his arm and threw him over her shoulder. He hit the hardwood floor hard on his back, and a long, low moan escaping him.' And Lucas, the man who claims to love her, berates her for this! “I promise. Kate, this is serious. If you do something bad, you could get taken away from me.” She needs to get away from Lucas now. Run away, Kaitlyn. Run far away. And don't look back.

This book really desperately needed a good proofreader and editor before it was published. The storyline was pretty good up until that awful ending, so I gave it 2 stars because I can see what it could have been. It's just so disappointing that it fell short of its potential.



View all my reviews

I Miss You

For Patricia Reid-Spurrill.

I miss your baking and your smile.

I miss you sitting in your chair.

I miss the way you’d sing offkey.

I miss the angels you would wear.

Two years today since you were here;

Two years, and still it feels so new.

Two years without your guiding hand.

Two years. Mom, I miss you.

OctPoWriMo 31 - Halloween

Today is the last day of October and the last day of OctPoWriMo 2014. It's also Halloween. I'm skipping the prompt, because I talked about what this year's challenge was like for me yesterday.

Halloween

Masks disguising friends and strangers;

Everyone is someone else.

Candy given out to children;

Everyone is generous.