I Feel So Historical.

Hey world! Another tea time, another blog post. I'm not a very reliable person when it comes to blogging, apparently. But I do like to read. And since we've had this incredibly one-sided conversation a lot of times before, I'm just going to go ahead and continue with this post.

So, there was a time in recent history when I read this book called The Crucible by Arthur Miller. It's a play rather than a novel, but it's still published in book form, which makes the audible very very interesting. Like the last book that I read, it's read with more than one voice, and there's sound effects! So awesome. I like audibles like these. You can listen yourself at this Amazon link.

Summaryish: This is a play about the Salem witch hunts from the 17th century. Everyone accusing everyone else of witchcraft - to settle old disputes or honestly, no one will ever know. But this specific play centers around Abigail, and the people she accused. It's not really about anything else, so this is a short summary.

Review: Wowzers. This book is so...intense. It's amazing! It starts off like the first seconds of a race and doesn't slow down until the very last page. I love the way it unfolds! You discover little things at a time and you're never quite certain about the outcome, even after the final sentence. This story resonates like a cello. It's masterfully written. I can't imagine it ever going out of style. Simply, it's a classic must-read!

Words to the Characters:

Abby: Darling, I think that was just going too far.

Hm. I only talked to one person today. Weird. Bye!

Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
Anonymous Book Reviewer.

This Is a Really Short Post.

Hey world! You may have noticed, you may have not, but I did not post yesterday which was my scheduled day to post. There's a reason for that - I did not take tea yesterday. I actually got new tea recently, it's Bengal Tea from Celestial Seasonings. It's cooling now, so I don't know what it tastes like yet, but I have M&Ms on standby in case it's yucky. It smells good though. Kind of like chai but...vanilla-y. So while we wait for my tea to cool, because having something to do while my tea cools is obviously the only reason I blog (not), I'll talk about the book that's up.

So, as we come closer and closer to the present it's getting less and less tragic for me to say how long ago I read these books, but we're not that close yet, so I'm not telling, but the book is Outlaw by Ted Dekker. It is part of the Outlaw Chronicles, which I am reading out of order, so I'm assuming you can too, if you want to. I took my first sip! It's a stiff sort of spicy but also smooth and - this might sound weird - it makes me want to purr a little bit. Needs sugar though. Forth sip - this time with honey (we're out of sugar)- Mm. Even better. Ah, tea, almost as great as Amazon links.

Summaryish: A lady and her young child go out boating and their ship capsized. Nice start, no? They are separated and the lady - her name is Julian - is picked up by a tribe and turned into a slave. She then makes a series of decisions that lead to major happenings in the little sequestered tribal valley. Hm. Short summary.

Review: I wouldn't say I was disappointed, but after reading Hacker, it's pretty hard not to make comparisons between my two reading experiences. I had really high expectations, and this book didn't exactly meet all of them. It was still page-turningly awesome, but I was still hoping for something a little more. Don't misunderstand, I really really liked reading this book, but it's not something I'm going to remember forever, like I probably will with Hacker. So officially: it's a good book, but I'd trade it for a cookie if someone forced me to eat spinach for the rest of my life.

I can't think of anything for the last paragraph, and I'm out of tea now anyway, so bye.

Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
Anonymous Book Reviewer.

One Step Closer to Advanced Reader.

Hey world! I have decided that if I start today, I'll have just enough books to review every other day to get me through the big one I'm starting later. So that's what I'm doing! I'm also drinking tea, because, you know, it's tea time, and I'm so sophisticated. Or I like to think I am. Hey, I read and drink tea, maybe I am sophisticated. But I also eat Nutella out of the jar with my finger. And now that you know more about me than you ever wanted to know, let's get started with the reason you're actually here, the book!

So, we're not going to talk about how long ago it was that I read The Return of the King by J.R.R Tolkien, but I will mention that it is book three in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I started this series BB, but I I middled in here, and now I'm finishing here too. Ahh, nostalgia. This is probably the coolest audible I've ever sampled, but it's like...wow, kind of distracting. It's read with several different people...and sound effects! It sounds almost like a production rather than an audible. Neat. I'm starting to wonder if  this is the right Amazon link! Oh my gosh, there's even music! This is so weird. But cool. Where's the narration, though? Oh, there it is.

Summaryish: There's really not much I can say about this without giving away the other two books, and I'm against spoilers...so I'm just going to say that there are orcs, rings, hobbits, a little bit of Ents, and some Gandalf. Yeah. Bad summary, but that's why the ish is there.

Review: Okay, I will admit that I didn't really pay much attention the whole first half of the book. Does that make me a terrible person? No. Does that make this a terrible book? Absolutely not. I was simply worried about Sam and Frodo and I was like, "Blah blah blah, Pippin, blah blah blah, wait did Merry just die? Blah blah blah, FRODO!" But, even though some of the time I wasn't paying attention, I still enjoyed the whole experience of reading it - the entire book. Plus, it's like classic fantasy. Nowadays, genres cross and mingle, which is actually quite enjoyable, but sometimes it's just nice to have straightforward fantasy, almost like a relief. Plus, I really wasn't an accomplished reader before I read these stories. I'm still not, but I can dream.

My Favorite Sam Quotes:

"Is everything sad going to come untrue?" Rock it Sam, that was just an awesome sentence. I think Jason Gray wrote a song about it.

"If I hear not allowed much oftener, I'm going to get mad." Oh, hobbit grammar and Sam-humor.

Okay, see you Sunday. Unless I die, or you die. That was a sad thought.

Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
Anonymous Book Reviewer. 

I Have Too Many Tabs Up.

Hey world! I would understand if you hate me now. What has it been? Two weeks? I've never hidden the fact that I'm a terrible blogger, but I've just been doing other things recently. But now I have somewhere around five books to review, which actually isn't bad, but still calls for a marathon! Well, maybe not, because I have a 1130 pager coming up...I'll think about that. But you can rest assured that I'm blogging today at least.

So, longer ago than I'd like to admit I finished this book called Dark Halo by Shannon Dittemore. And, fabulous news, I've now read everything she has written! Of course, she's only written this one trilogy so far. Oh yeah, this is book three in the Angel Eyes trilogy. The audible isn't that great - far too breathy and quick for the way I imagine it. And the sample ended quite abruptly! But you can still have the Amazon link. 

Summaryish: The Terrestrial Veil over Stratus is ripping and soon everyone will be able to see the Celestial as Brielle sees is. But that's not the only things going on - Jake is missing. Was kidnapped by the Dark Prince and Brielle simply must go after him. Once she finds him, she is offered a dark halo. One that can erase her Celestial sight. Her gift - gone, just by replacing one halo for another. She doesn't want to see fear leaking down people's faces anymore...she might just choose blindness. That was a terrible summary. I tried to make it dramatic, but I don't think I succeeded. 

Review: Wowzers! This book was great. Everything from the previous two novels just built and built until it all just exploded in this amazing page turner! Sooo much suspense, sooo much action. Oh, I could just melt! And the characters were so life like it's like they were practically breathing! The story just flew by in a whirlwind, with the perfect balance of action and suspense. I didn't want it to end! But like all good things, it did. And that made me sad. But I'll always have my memories, and you will too, don't worry.

Words to the Characters:

Brielle: Oh, Gabby....

Olivia: I'm wondering about the Daddy now. Is it who I think it is?

Okay, see you tomorrow, or maybe not. Bye!

Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
Anonymous Book Reviewer.