These are all the books I’ve read since I’ve begun my 101 Things in 1001 Days Project.

2006
1. Micah, by Laurell K. Hamilton. 240 pages. Okay, I read this two days before I started the project. Sue me. It’s going on the list, because I like it. It’s part of the Anita Blake series… sorta. More of a novella, but very cute. A quick read. Took me like an hour and a half, if that. Fun, though. I’ll read it again.
2. Northern Lights, by Nora Roberts. 637 pages. Pretty decent. Didn’t care for the heroine, but I did like the hero quite a bit. Fairly accurate vision of a small town’s police department. Not too shabby a read, quite enjoyable. Glad the person I suspected was the villain wasn’t.
3. The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, Volume I, by Diana Wynne Jones. 598 pages. Fascinating fantasy. A bit Harry Potterish - orphan who knows nothing of his own inherent magic ends up being taught magic by strange people… neat things like gingerbread men that get up and run away when you try to eat them… And a writing style that’s quite similar. But that’s where the similarities end. This is a story involving multiple words and a less clear-cut “good/evil” plotline. In fact, this book is two stories in one, all revolving around the mysterious Chrestomanci - the most powerful enchanter in all the worlds. Great read. Looking forward to Volume II.
4. One Shot, by Lee Child. 466 pages. An excellent novel, another winner from Lee Child. Sure, it’s a tough guy’s action adventure, but Child writes like few others. His style’s engaging and swift - no unnecessary chatter, nothing to distract from the story at hand. He’s sharp, edgy, and fun. Jack Reacher saves the day yet again.
5. Liar’s Market, by Taylor Smith. 378 pages. A terribly boring book that took me three nights to read. Got marginally better in the last half, but it was dull. The store revolves around the wife of a jackass CIA agent. Her name’s Carrie, and she has a son, and all these terrible things that are happening have been connected to her now-missing husband, who’s enough of a jackass that he’d tried to kidnap his own son. Apparently just having him be a jackass wasn’t enough, they actually tried to redeem the bastard at the end. But all in all, the book was boring, I didn’t like it, and I won’t read it, or anything else by this author again.
6. One for the Money, by Janet Evanovich. 320 pages. Wonderfully fun! Stephanie Plum is an excellent heroine, and Evanovich’s writing is somewhat reminicent of Laurell K. Hamilton’s style - gritty and sharp, and unapologetic. I’ll buy the next in the series.
7. The Earth Path, by Starhawk. 256 pages. A beautiful, enchanting, and inspiring book on grounding oneself in nature. She writes of immersing your mind into the natural rhythms of life - becomming part of it, rather than looking outside from an all too dirty window. The book is filled with exercises, stories, and rituals to inspire you to continue living as one with the earth.
8. Winnie-The-Pooh, by A.A. Milne. 161 pages. To be honest… I’m not sure I liked this. Everyone knows about Pooh, of course, and much as I like him and his stories… the book itself is not really my favorite thing. It’s kinda muddled, and… I don’t know. I just didn’t really care for it. But maybe a second reading would change my mind?
9. Little Town on the Praire, by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 307 pages. Teehee. Loved this book. I picked it up accidentally at the library instead of grabbing Little House on the Prairie… or actually, Little House in the Big Woods. But whatever. This book, the 7th in the series, describes prairie life in the Dakotas, when Laura Ingalls is 15 years old, and the town springing up near their homestead is growing larger by the day.
10. Anne of Green Gables, by L. M. Montgomery. 309 pages. I was determined to hate this book when I picked it up - at least as much as I’d hated it when I was a child. But frankly, the further I got into the book, the more and more I liked it, and the less and less I found myself able to put it down. It is, in fact, a beautiful book - engaging, lovely, and Anne is a perfectly adorable chatterbox of a girl, and I must say I liked her very much despite myself. I’ll be reading the next in the series once I finish up Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrel, that’s for certain!
11. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrel, by Susanna Clarke. 782 pages. This is a monster of a book. And it’s… wonderful. Marvelous. Enchanting. It’s… not what I expected. It’s a literary work - scholarly in tone. It’s creepy, and eerie, and beautiful, and inventive. It’s fantastical, but not quite fantasy - magical, but not, as they say, magical in a Harry Potterish way. It’s a delightful read, even if it did take me days to wander through. I’ll be purchasing no less than two copies - one to read, and one to use as a beautiful base for an altered book on (what else?) magic.
12. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll. 86 pages. I haven’t the words for this tale of nonsense. No words at all. It’s like an acid trip, or what I imagine an acid trip would be like. It’s sheer imagery, and though they say there’s a theme hidden behind it, I rather like thinking there’s nothing but silly fun.
13. Anne of Avonlea, by L.M. Montgomery. 277 pages. Pretty enough, and cute. A light read, I suppose. Nothing too fascinating here this time. I’d have rather spent more time with Anne’s experiences at school, or even with the twins, but… It just wasn’t to be. Perhaps the next will be better?
14. Interesting Times, by Terry Pratchett. 295 pages. Interesting Times is a story about Rincewind the Wizzard [sic], who’s at once both the most unlucky and the most lucky bastard alive. Though at first I wasn’t sure what to think about him, I do like him, generally - he’s not one of the uber-dunces that Pratchett sometimes uses for his main characters. In fact, Rincewind seems to have quite the brain on him - just a lot of bad luck and no particular desire to live in “interesting times”, as he almost always finds himself. Needless to say, I enjoyed it.
15. Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Colfer. 279 pages. This book was good, even if I /did/ want to beat the snotty 12 year old main character into playing nice. He /is/ an evil genius… but boy, he needs a spanking or two. Nevertheless, the story was good, if you don’t mind despising the main character in a “my god, boy, you are spoiled /rotten/” sort of way. Interesting, nonetheless. I’ll probably read the next.
16. Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett. 973 pages. I stand in awe and bow to Follett’s genius, creativity, and craft. This is not a book I would’ve chosen based on its cover. Even the summary sounds terribly boring - but this book is anything but a dry and dull account of cathedral building in the 12th century. While the book does indeed revolve around just that, Follett is a master at suspense, and there isn’t a dull moment in it - there’s scarcely room to breathe. The book has occupied my consciousness for days. It’s torn me to pieces and built them back again. Despite horror and bloodshed and cruelty, the story twists and winds its way to a beautiful climax. It is ultimately a story of hope and love and justice, and it is well worth the hours spent reading every word.
17. The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame. 205 pages. Gugh. It was a /long/ 205 pages. It was a dull 205 pages. For a kid’s book, it’s incredibly wordy - and not in a hold-your-attention sort of way. Heck, I’m an adult, and I found it too wordy. I didn’t care for it, or even the characters in it. It was a struggle just to get through it. I’m glad it’s done with. I wouldn’t recommend it.
18. A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book 1, by Lemony Snicket. 162 pages. Lordy, this book is… unfortunate. *laugh* There’s not a happy ending in sight, though at least Count Olaf doesn’t win. It’s quite cute, though, if you can bear disaster and misfortune and misery and woe. Definately cute.
19. Holes, by Louis Sachar. 233 pages. This is a crafty, intriguing novel by an author who’s fascinated me since childhood. (Sideways Stories from Wayside School, anyone?) This novel is just as original, telling the tale of a boy, Stanley Yelnats, who’s sent to a correctional camp for a crime he hadn’t committed. The author weaves two stories together throughout the book - the story of Stanley, and the story of the origin of his family’s curse - into one incredible tale.
20. Anne of the Island, by L.M. Montgomery. 244 pages. Ehh. These seem to get duller as Anne gets older. In this book, Anne’s off to college, and it covers the entire 4 years she’s there. I think I’ll stop reading the series here. If the next one is any duller, I wouldn’t get through it.
21. Little House in the Big Woods, by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 238 pages. One of my favorite childhood books, and it was every bit as magical to me now as it was then. Makes me want some good home-cooked food, maple sugar and candy, and a little house in the big woods.
22. David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens. 238 pages. This is a ‘classic’, of course. A classic bore, anyway. Misery, hardship, and death, all written about very plainly. You never care for the characters, nor the trials they go through. You never care about where the story goes, or how it ends, or who falls in love with who. It’s a dull read by far. Blah. Thank god half the book was illustrated with terrible drawings. 238 pages would be much too long if it weren’t.
23. The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett. 224 pages. This is a lovely story - magical and wonderous and enchanting. It’s a book I may have to buy someday, just to own it. But my, the children are awful creatures. *laugh* Why are so many children’s books about orphaned snots? Ah well. A lovely book indeed.
24. The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell. 405 pages. This book made me cry. Honest. It’s terribly good, and terribly sad, and terribly funny at times, and horrific at others. It’s beautiful and marvelous and imaginative and engrossing. It’s the story about a companionable group of men and women who travel to another planet to meet the aliens that live there - and the disaster that results in only one man, a Jesuit priest, returning alive and broken in body, mind, and faith.
25. Bridget Jones’s Diary, by Helen Fielding. 271 pages. Cute. Funny. Sometimes hilarious. Definately real. I saw the movie when it came out - and that was good, but it did differ from the movie somewhat, especially on a couple rather major plotlines - at least, the best I can remember. Namely, the plotline involving Bridget’s mother is different, and there isn’t a fight scene between the two boyfriends in the book. Ah well. Good anyway!
26. Across the Nightingale Floor, by Lian Hearn. 304 pages. Beautiful and provoking and tragic. Very Japanese. The story is set in a somewhat fantastical ancient Japan, and revolves around a young boy, Takeo, who possesses somewhat superhuman powers because he was born into a secret sect of assassins. After his peaceful mother and stepfather are brutally murdered, Takeo is formally adopted by the man who saved his life, a noble born samurai. However, not all is well, and sadly, this book is just the first in a trio. (Turns out, the trilogy has a sequel as well.) I’m both anxious and worried about the upcoming novels, as anything Japanese typically ends in sheer tragedy.
27. The Druidry Handbook by John Michael Greer. 272 pages. A beautiful introduction to the modern druidry movement - will definitely read and reread. It’s both practical and spiritual, and touches on history, important facets to the druid way, and gives a solid course outline for grounding yourself in druid practices. Love it, love it, love it.
28. Morrigan’s Cross by Nora Robers. 321 pages. Gotta say, I haven’t read a Nora book in a while… but she hasn’t lost her touch. Great start to her new semi-fantasy/paranormal trilogy. And I swear, she’s either pagan, or knows someone who is, because she has an unusual amount of books with magic and Irish mythology in it for a romance writer. :) Needless to say, I liked this book, though the romance felt a bit… forced, or fake. Not her best, but you can tell she put most of her work into Cian and Moira, rather than the two “main” characters in the first book.
29. Dance of the Gods by Nora Robers. 317 pages. The second in The Circle Trilogy, and even better than the first. I liked Blair more than I expected, and fell head over heels for Larkin. Glenna was vaguely irritating again, and poor Hoyt was barely there. That was a pity, because he has a lot of potential that he never even got to live up to in the /first/ book. But really… I think everyone’s waiting for book three…
30. Come Home for Christmas by Pat Pritchard. 347 pages. Okay, so I read this out of desperation at work. Ellen must’ve left it there. So I read it, anyway. Historical romance set in the old west. They say things like “Goldarn it!” and it’s considered cussing. Kinda made me wanna cry. The characters were somewhat interesting, but the plot was nonexistent. Centered around one of those unattainable love plots where the guy loves the girl, and the girl loves the guy, but one of them thinks he’s not good enough for the other, and so sabotages every step of their could-be romance, even though nobody else thinks this. So it was pretty pointless, but I read it.
31. Valley of Silence by Nora Roberts. 327 pages. The third in the Circle trilogy, easily the best of them. Loved the pairing of Cian and Moira - they’re perfect for each other! Though the plot was predictable right down to the very end, and Hoyt again got shafted out of relative importance, I did enjoy it.
32. A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. 86 pages. I’ve seen television adaptations of this as a child, but none truly stuck with me. I really wasn’t expecting to enjoy this as much as I did! Dickens - it was marvelous! Heartwarming and cheery and lovely all at once! Thinking about purchasing a hardcover copy of it to keep on my bookshelves.
33. Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. 208 pages. Incredibly sweet, though horse-abuse from one end to the other. Rather sad, actually, though a happy enough ending. Enjoyed it well enough, though!
34. Dune by Frank Herbert. 483 pages. Oii. I confess, I had a hard time dragging myself through this one. I thought I’d like it. Sometimes I even did. But it seemed such a chore, except for the last 100 pages, and a few spurts in the middle. Ah well. It’s over now. And not my favorite.
35. You Grow Girl by Gayla Trail. 190 pages. Okay, so this isn’t exactly a novel by any means. More of a guidebook on gardening, but dang if I didn’t read the whole thing. I didn’t do so cover to cover - skipping around was fun! - but I’ve covered it all, and it’s a darned good reference, so in the list it goes! Very practical, modern advice for people who aren’t experts.
36. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. 224 pages. The classic pirate adventure - that which all other pirate adventures stem from. While I read most of it in one night, it didn’t particularly keep me on the edge of me seat. The plot itself was wonderful. Even the characters were intriging (Silver especially, crippled as he might be) It was the /writing/ that bored me to tears. The first sentence is about 89 words long - and that was nothing unusual about the book. Needless to say, sentences that drone on and on and on lose my focus. And thus, the boredom begins. I was much more interested in skimming through and plucking out whatever bits my eyes caught onto.
37. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. 384 pages. The book is better than I expected. Better, even, than I expected after chugging through the first agonizing half of the book, ready to throw it out never to be seen again. But it picks up in the second, and you begin to see a hint of the impending doom. I loathed the nameless heroine and her absurd cowardice, and half loved Max from the start. And I must say I knew from the start just what had happened with Rebecca. I just knew. Though I despised the book when I began… I just may have to read it again, this time to capture the subtleties I missed the first time around.
38. The Passion of Mary Magdalen by Elizabeth Cunningham. 620 pages. I cannot say enough good things about this novel. The title names it well - it’s passionate, breathtaking, beautiful, haunting, mystical and mythical, and impossible to put down. (Though I did, I confess. It’s darned long.) Though crude, and perhaps blasphemous, this here is a story of a Christ I could love. This here is a human story - a story with flaws and failings and uncertainty, and hope and fear, and everything that comes with it. It’s a decidedly feminine story, a great romance, and I’ll read it again, I’m sure. It, and the prequell and sequell that will eventually be released.
39. Miracle on 34th Street by Valentine Davies. 118 pages. So, I love the story. But the book (which, mind you, came out at the same time as the movie, so many years ago) was not quite as magical. It was downright bland, and there was much to much /telling/ going on, if you ask me, and not near enough showing. Not enough emotion. But the story was great. Cute. Christmas, anyway.
40. The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. 154 pages. I wonder that I’ve never read this before - not as a child, not as a teenager. I wish I had, because I think I’d have enjoyed it much more then than I do now. Now, I don’t mind a good Christian story. Nor a fantasy. But this was… /blatant/. And I confess, I didn’t understand Edmund’s betrayal. It seemed rather contrived, if you ask me. In fact, the whole book seemed rather contrived. More like someone painted a fantasy around a Christian theme, but without much skill. You couldn’t get lost in the fantasy without the Christian showing through in neon lights, as opposed to… well… subtle hints on the wind that would be much more delightful to uncover. But whatever. I’d have enjoyed it as a child, I’m sure.
41. Animal Farm by George Orwell. 144 pages. Wow. Didn’t expect to enjoy this book so much! First read it in junior high. I must say, they make you hate things in school, just by forcing you to study the hell out of them and analyze them to death. I analyzed this book all the way through, and I really liked it, and worse, can see some of the same things happening here in this country today. Sad. Relevent. Worrysome. Worth the time to read again, even if you hated it in school.
42. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. 162 pages. Odd book. Cute. Creepy. Naturally. *laugh* Beat up book, though, from the library. With some ugly illustrations. Reminded me of the movie though. The old one, not the new one, which I haven’t seen. Not too shabby!
43. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. 259 pages. As I read this, I kept experiencing wave after wave of deja vu - mainly because if I’d thought A had told me all about the book as she read it for class five years ago, I was right. Some passages she must’ve read to me - quite a few, in fact, since I could strangely almost predict each word coming up in some parts. It was an intriguing book. Kinda mad. A loves it. It’s one of her most treasured books. I’m not quite so madly in love, but it was a decent read.
44. Mistral’s Kiss by Laurell K. Hamilton. 212 pages. AIII! Short! Too short! But I was impressed, actually. I loved it. I was wary, at first, but I /loved/ it. Things keep mounting up, hell - literally - is breaking loose, and I’m terribly excited. Despite the rampant sex in her books (the first sex scene virtually starts on page one and doesn’t end until near page 70) it’s all so terribly necessary and vital to the plot in her Merry books, and I was thrilled with the magics itwrought. Great book. Great.
45. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. 458 pages. Wow. What a book. Magical realism is fun - and the book is mad. *lol* I enjoyed it, thoroughly, and would probably enjoy it more a second time around. But to be honest, every page felt like ten to me. I don’t know why. But it did. Maybe because so very much happened on every page. Sometimes years would go by on every page. It felt like it, too. But all in all, a good, mystifying book.

January 2007

46. The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue. 319 pages. A lovely, wrenching book about a boy kidnapped by fairy, and a changeling who takes his place and lives his life. Excellent.
47. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. 296 pages. I can’t believe I never read this before! The rest of my class had, but I’d been excused from it to do another project for the Gifted and Talented program, which sucked. And I missed THIS book. What a shame - it’s too bad I didn’t miss A Separate Piece or Peace or whatever that horrid book was, because this one is wonderful. Must buy.
48. Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. 219 pages. This book is freaking HILARIOUS! Much-loved, from the textured cover to the incredulous (and true!) stories inside. Pearl is a gifted storyteller with a unique voice. And a unique life. Who else stores yarn in their piano and freezer? A definite favorite.
49. Little House on the Praire by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 335 pages. Another lovely novel in the series, the second. I read and loved it as a child, and enjoyed it well enough as an adult, though there some things that irritated me about it. I was surprised at the end, though, when the Ingalls family packed it up and headed out at the end - I don’t seem to recall that part of the book when I read it the first few times! *laugh* Luckily, I have Farmer Boy sitting at home to continue the story on.
50. Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 371 pages. Actually, I liked this book better than the last! I thought the writing was a touch better, and not quite as much… racism, actually. The difference in Almonzo’s and Laura’s lives growing up was clear, and yet, so much was the same. Fun!
51. Sick Puppy by Carl Hiaasen. 447 pages. Hilarious! An over-the-top story about an oddly loveable ecoterrorist trying to teach a lesson to a very unpersonable lobbyist and his associates, Sick Puppy has… well, a lot of ’sick puppies’ in it, that’s for sure. Gotta read more of Hiaasen’s stuff!
52. Two for the Dough by Janet Evanovich. 312 pages. Another riot of a book for Janet! The second in her Stephanie Plum series is just as good as the first!
53. Three to Get Deadly by Janet Evanovich. 320 pages. Okay, so I’m on roll on these Plum books, thanks to A. This one is GREAT! Love Ranger. So much. Ranger is my superhero, woohoo! Another great tale about Stephanie Plum for the shelf.
54. The Two Minute Rule by Robert Crais. 325 pages. Make that 325 pages of shit. Sounded good - story about a bank robber who just got out of prison to the news of his cop son’s death, and goes to avenge/clear his name. But it sucked. Bad writing. /Really/ bad writing. An ending that didn’t make sense. Random bullshit in between - like, what’s with introducing characters in the first scene like they’re important, and then forgetting all about them the rest of the way through? The plot was decent. Good, even. But what a lame ride, and the endig was really contrived. I mean, why rob the bank, man? Why not just have them /call the cops/? Stupid. Crais, you’re off my reading list, permanently.
55. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. 236 pages. Eh. Quick read. Bloody short illustrated stories. Not too shabby. Kinda dull. Will soon be forgotten.
56. Four to Score by Janet Evanovich. 338 pages. [This includes the preview of book five at the end… but I did read that, too!] Of all 4 books of this series that I’ve read, I’ve liked this the least. It took me /hours/ to read. Hours and hours. Didn’t hold my attention, except for a couple scenes. It seemed rather thrown together, like Evanovich was trying to toss in as many bizarre things and as much slapstick humor as possible. Not bad, just not good, either.
57. Double Act by Jacqueline Wilson. 185 pages. Another kiddie book on the 100 Top Reads list. It’s… written in a style I abhor, though the story isn’t bad. In fact, it’s kinda cute, and I found myself liking it more as time went on. Not too bad at all.
58. The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. 406 pages. I am speechless. The Thirteenth Tale is an enthralling masterpiece. It is hard to believe that I have finished it, that I’m outside of it again. It’s hard, more, to believe that the person writing it was not in fact the book’s narrator - that these are fictional characters, that they aren’t real. It’s a book celebrating the love of books, a book of treachery and heartbreak and secrets. And twins. And ghosts. An incredible story.
59. On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 338 pages. A lovely book - I enjoyed this one better than the earlier books. It was a bit more mature, a bit less… moral. Good fun!

    February 2007

60. High Five by Janet Evanovich. 317 pages. Holy man, this one was goooood. Where as #4 in the series sorta sucked balonga, #5 was so amazing I’m vibrating with glee. For one, it’s got lotsa Ranger. Mmm. And I totally love it. Great fun.
61. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. 428 pages. I shouldn’t have watched the movie first. But I did. The book was better, I admit, I had all the visuals from the movie in my head the whole while and they were impossible to let go of. It was a fine book, but nothing I’d read again, to be honest. I’d have liked it better if the entire book had been set… well, before WWII instead of… being interrupted by it, which really threw my interest and concentration off just a bit.
62. By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 290 pages. Well, this one bored me a bit. I can’t say what exactly about it I disliked, but it didn’t hold my attention like the others have. Oh well.
63. Hot Six by Janet Evanovich. 294 pages. Good book! More sexy Ranger-ness. And wonderful developments with Joe! A good plot. Darned good. I liked it.

March 2007

64. Going Postal by Terry Pratchett. 377 pages. Haha! Pratchett’s great. Again. Finally, a hero who’s got a brain, even if he does have one awful name. Moist?? I about died laughing more than once, and the book kept me riveted pretty well through. The story follows one wonderful con artist from the hangman’s noose to his journey at becoming The Postmaster of Ankh-Morpork despite the near-impossible challenges before him. Loved it.
65. The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder. 335 pages. The next in the series, right before Little Town… Describes 7 months of blizzards that cut the growing town off from all supplies while food, coal, and kerosene ran low. Funny that I read this shortly after reading about the Donnor Party on Wikipedia… Hunger seems to be a theme here.
66. Seven Up by Janet Evanovich. 309 pages. This started slow and irritated the hell out of me… right up until about 3/4 of the way through, when suddenly, it was hilarious as hell, and I couldn’t stop giggling my ass off while trying to keep quiet because we had a prisoner at jail and I didn’t want to wake him up to mad hyena laughter. Not bad. Not great, but not bad.
67. The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. 235 pages. Gugh. I had to trudge through this one despite some fantasic passages and wonderful mysteries. But I can’t stand Smith’s voice - the whole book seems, to me, to be written in an idiot’s tone, where everyone who thinks or speaks sounds like a halfwit or worse. I will not be reading any more of his work, national bestsellers or not.

April 2007

68. Hard Way by Lee Child. 477 pages. Mmm. Another Jack Reacher novel. Yum. I looove his stuff. This is one of his better novels - though really, I’ve adored all but one, and the one that I adored less was just because guys with hooks for hands scare me. Yep. Cowardly me. In this book, Reacher’s racing against the clock to find a kidnapped mother and child for a man who’s into some rather shady operations, himself! As usual, Reacher kicks ass. And as usual, there’s some intriguing twists along the way! And I’m glad someone’s finally asked Reacher how the heck he always knows what time it is. Too bad he doesn’t have an answer!
69. Hard Eight by Janet Evanovich. 311 pages. This one wasn’t too bad! Though the series itself is getting old. Janet has a formula. It involves all the same jokes, over and over again, and everything is five times as bizarre as it has to be. You know, a bit on the slapstick side. But hey, even I got a laugh out of a big psycho rabbit killer… And even better - we finally get some Ranger-nookie!
70. Letter Perfect by Cathy Marie Hake. 397 pages. I wish I’d looked at the publisher before I picked this up. Bethany House. It’s Christian fiction. Christian /romance/. No nookie. Damn. Because I actually adored the characters, and the plot. Hake’s a good writer, even if the preaching grates on my nerves. And even if there is no nookie. Only one kiss, too. Damn. But what /really/ pissed me off was the characterization of non-Christians as vile people with no morals. It’s too bad, because without all the hokey bullshit about that, and the irritating habit of dropping preachy Biblical stuff at me while I’m trying to read, because damn, it’s a darned good story, for a lighthearted romance. And a good read. If you’re a Christian, or you just don’t mind some preaching, do pick it up.
71. Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs. 304 pages. This book is like a train wreck - it’s horrible, it’s hilarious, it’s dark and morbid and impossible to tear your eyes from, even though you really, really don’t want to know what happens next.
72. Bonewits’s Essential Guide to Druidism by Isaac Bonewits. 320 pages. An excellent primer on Druidism, the history of Druidism, and the different organizations and groups within, including sample liturgies and rituals from several of the main groups. A great reference.

June 2007

73. Bad Luck & Trouble by Lee Child. 377 pages. So this is A’s fault for getting it out of the library in hardcover, but dammit, I couldn’t help but read it once it was in my hands, despite the fact that I always buy them in paperback, and the paperback version is a year away. And how was the book? Excellent. I loved meeting Reacher’s old team, and loved seeing him work with people he’s known for ages. And I loved the way Reacher disposed of the bad guy. Naturally.
74. Dancing on His Grave by Barbara Richard. 255 pages. Called a True Story of Survival and Triumph, it’s really a sordid memoir by one of five Montanan sisters who grew up in the 1940s and 1950s with a psychotic abusive father, and just happened to live - barely - to tell the tale. To be honest, not much ‘triumph’ goes on, but the graphic brutality and violence he inflicts upon them day after day from the time they were infants in the cradle sweeps you through to the end in horror. They never do really dance on his grave, which is a pity, because I would’ve.

August 2007

75. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. 759 pages. The end is here. And it’s worth the wait. Aside from a few complaints about the Slytherins and Draco and the epilogue, and a few even more minor ones, the book is great. I love this series from beginning to end.
76. Danse Macabre by Laurell K. Hamilton. 483 pages. Okay. I like Laurell’s writing. I like her characters. I like her plots. But as to the last - there isn’t one in this book. None. No plot. You think there’s gonna be plot, and then it just vanishes under a writhing mass of sex. This book is porn on steroids. Not that there’s anything wrong with porn. But I expect a little plot with this particular brand of porn, and I didn’t get it. Shame.
77. The Circle Within by Diane Sylvan. 183 pages. A lovely, if Wiccan, book on living spiritually as a pagan. It’s not Wicca 101. It’s not a spellbook. It’s a /spiritual/ book, which is something this religion needs more of. Something that goes deeper than “Set up your altar and do magic.” This book does that, and adds some nice rituals and prayers as examples. I like it.
78. Birthright by Nora Roberts. 502 pages. It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Nora. And this was a good book. Good characters - I loved the leading man, and even the secondary leading man. Loved the leading women too. Excellent romance with a touch of suspense based around an archaeological dig and a decades old kidnapping. Love it. A nice diversion.

September 2007

79. Naked in Death by J.D. Robb. 306 pages. A reread. The start of a fantastic futuristic romance series by the well known Nora Roberts under a new name. Been so long since I’ve read this (5-6 years?) that it was almost like reading it for the first time.

October 2007

80. Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. 384 pages. Good god, how did I ever survive without reading this book?! It’s /incredible/! The world will end next Saturday, according to the prophecies of Agnes Nutter, who wrote the world’s only accurate book of prophecies. The armies of Good and Evil are amassing, but, as the story goes, things aren’t going /exactly/ as planned. Or perhaps they are. Who knows, when it comes to the ineffable plan of God? An angel and a demon pair up to stop Armageddon from taking place, the Antichrist is missing, and lunacy ensues. This book just topped my shortlist of “favorites”.
81. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. 103 pages. I remember a classmate of mine reading this for a book report in 7th or 8th grade English, and I remember thinking it sounded stupid: dumb title, about a small, smarter guy, and a large dumb oaf. I remember it took her ages and ages to read - weeks. I don’t know how this could be, as it took me just about two hours, and only that long because I was interrupted quite often. It’s an… interesting book. I don’t like it, but I can’t say it was boring. But it’s one of those dead tragic books that you know, you just /know/ isn’t going to turn out for the best in the end. Overall, not my cup of tea, but I can see why it’s a classic. Raises a lot of questions. Makes you think.
82. Midnight in Death by J.D. Robb. 90 pages. So this was a novella, really, one of those “was originally published in an anthology” stories that got reprinted as its own book. Excellent quick read! Not sure where exactly it fits in the series. I’ll have to search that out to stick this bitty thing on my shelf. But anyway. Good stuff. Classic In Death with a very evil villain.
83. Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craghead George. 170 pages. This was sad, dammit. And lovely. Wolves. I love wolves. And survival stories. Good book - can’t believe I never read it as a child! But I’m glad I didn’t, because animal deaths are bad enough as an adult, let alone as a child.

November 2007

84. A Lick of Frost by Laurell K. Hamilton. 274 pages. Finally, a book with some substance! It’s a short one - real short, incredibly short - but it’s got plot. And yes, sex. That’s to be expected, really. But less sex and more plot this time around, which is a total bonus! Merry finally has to deal with Uncle Taranis of the Shining Court… and some other MAJOR developments happen to propel things forward. Hurrah!
85. A Witch’s Halloween by Gerina Dunwich. 223 pages. This is a cute book. Not quite what I was expecting, but cute, nonetheless. It’s all about Halloween - the history, the origins, the myths and legends, old-timey spells and traditional foods. I didn’t read it linear-style, but just skipped and meandered my way through. I can’t even guarantee that I’ve read every word - but I think I’ve probably skimmed and dottered my way through the majority, so on the list she goes.
86. Pronoia by Rob Brezsney. 280 pages. Another book that I randomly poured over and through over the last year. I think I’ve read enough of it to add it to the list by now. I LOVE this book. It’s filled with wild divinity, finding the extraordinary in the mundane, inspiring a radical new way to look at life. I open it up whenever I’m feeling down, and it always just perks me right up.

December 2007

87. Llwellyn’s 2007 Magical Almanac by Various. 384 pages. Another cutesy, somewhat fluffy, generally entertaining almanac from Llwellyn. As usual, some fascinating articles, some dull ones, some amusing ones, some serious ones… Worth the $10 or whatever for a year’s worth of random fluffery.
88. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. 399 pages. Holy cow. What a thrilling start to what’s promising to be an incredible trilogy. I’ve been seeing these novels in bookstores for a couple years now, and plucking them out, then putting them back on shelves. Finally, I got the first one from the library - a children’s book, they say, but definitely not childlike. Far from immature. What an incredible world. Strong characters, especially the heroine - and mind you, I’m not even a fan of your average female heroine. I can’t wait to read the others. Unfortunately… the library doesn’t have them.
89. A Cat on a Winning Streak by Lydia Adamson. 204 pages. Wow, this is bad. Bad. Bad. Bad. How did this lady ever publish all these books? Who reads this crap? I picked this up at the library intending to get a no-brainer easy-reading mystery to while away the hours. The ‘cat mystery’ seems to be a new and popular genre - straightforward mysteries where cats feature a prominent role in the series - so I picked a random book. And am sorry I did. The characters… bad. The dialogue… bad. The plot? Average mystery. No twists or turns. The writing sucked. The whole damned book sucked, and the cat - supposedly a lucky cat, where if you stroke her eleven times, you’ll win big at the gambling tables, turns out to be a dud, too. How. Lame. Waste of time.
90. Blood Brothers by Nora Roberts. 314 pages. Damn, another good one. Looking to be an even better trilogy than the last! At least I like all the characters better this time. *beam* Awesome supernatural romance, regarding a demon that was released by three unsuspecting boys 21 years ago on a camping trip in the woods. It’s now time for the big good versus evil showdown, and some great sex along the way, of course. :) Nora’s been striving and aiming at this sort of supernaturalism for years, and she just gets better and better at it each time. Can’t wait for the next book in May!

January 2008

91. The Subtle Knifte by Philip Pullman. 288 pages. I am in awe of Pullman’s magic. He’s a masterful storyteller, with an incredible ability to pull fantasy, science, religion, mythology all into the richest and most satisfying of stories. Book II in the trilogy begins with our new hero, Will, and the majestic plot of the entire trilogy really begins to take shape. I need to buy this trilogy. Like, yesterday.
92. The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman. 465 pages. The enthralling and heartbreaking conclusion to His Dark Materials. I’m in tears, and will return to this trilogy again to read of Lyra and Will’s adventure, courage, and destiny. Must go cry now.

February 2008

93. The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff. 158 pages. Well… Winnie-the-Pooh is an accurate representation of the finest state of Taoism… The Tao is not for me.

March 2008

94. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. 352 pages. What an awesome book. Should’ve finished it weeks ago, but the knitting, it got in the way. I need to buy this one. It’s like my dream life!

April 2008

95. Truth & Beauty by Ann Patchett. 257 pages. A friend told me to read this memoir on friendship, insisting it mirrored, in a lot of ways, our own friendship. And boy does it. An excellent read, during which I said to myself, many, many times: “That describes my friend perfectly. She does that too! I didn’t think anyone else did that!” As the novel ends on a tragic note… I hope the mirroring isn’t too close, though.

May 2008

96. The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett. 210 pages. The first Discworld novel, involving the bad-luck wizzard Rincewind, who just can’t catch a break. Not too bad, but I warn thee - it leaves you on a serious cliffhanger.
97. The Hollow by Nora Roberts. 318 pages. The second in Nora’s new supernatural trilogy. (The first was Blood Brothers.) This one featured Fox Gage, who is soooo my type of man. *drool* Oh yeah. Great book, excellent characterization, excellent plot, great installment. Looking forward the next…. in DECEMBER.
98. The Harlequin by Laurell K. Hamilton. 422 pages. I’ve had this book for a long time. It’s been out even longer still, and I haven’t read it, because lord, Laurell has been making me weary with the drama-drama-sex-sex-drama she thrusts her characters through. This book seemed to be oh so very slightly better than the last… three? Namely, there’s a plot - not the plots of ye-olde, but a plot. And the sex? Oh, there’s sex, but it’s much toned down from the last. And there’s Edward. Edward makes everything better, but he really didn’t get to shine here. Damn. Still, there’s a little hope that the series will recover.
99. Storm Front by Jim Butcher. 322 pages. The first novel in The Dresden Files (series) introduces Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden - Wizard. He’s been called in to help the police solve a brutal murder, and finds himself ass deep in alligators - or at least black magic. It took me a while to get into the book, granted - Butcher writes at least partially for humor’s sake, and it wasn’t until about halfway through that I started to really get interested in the main character. By the end, I was half in love with the quirky wizard and the world the novel was set in. Looking forward to book number two!
100. Blood Memory by Greg Iles. 767 pages. Forensic odontologist (read: dentist) Cat Ferry finds herself suspended from an FBI Task Force after suffering from two panic attacks at the scenes of the serial killings she’s investigating. Once she returns to her hometown, however, she finds herself facing her own haunted past as some spilled chemicals reveal bloody footprints inside her childhood bedroom - and racing against time to connect his murder and her missing memories to the killings taking place today. A great novel. Huge, but fast-paced, and uniquely written in the present tense. I’d recommend it to anyone.

June 2008

101. Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel. 495 pages. I’ve thought about reading this all my life, but never really got past the first few pages until now. Then I devoured this epic tome in just a couple sittings, caught up in the story of Ayla and her upbringing by a small, tightknit Neanderthal clan when her own people die in a massive earthquake. An outsider, or Other, as they call it, she’s different from them in every way, but her efforts to learn the ways of the Clan eventually bring her acceptance by them. Still, she is Other… and this is something she will eventually have to face.
102. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder. 409 pages. This first-novel follows the path of Yelena, a young woman of about 20, who is offered a unique opportunity - to avoid immenent execution for murder by accepting a position as a food taster in the Commander of Ixia’s palace. The book is set in a fantasy world under fascist rule with a strange mixture of old and new world sensibilities; too often, I don’t feel immersed in another viable world but just an obvious mish-mash of ideas that aren’t put together quite right. The characters and story are both interesting, yet neither held my interest as much as I’d have preferred. Still, I’d like to read the next installment in the trilogy just to sate my curiosity about what happens next, and to see if the author fleshes the world out a bit more.