Tenth of December by George Saunders

I've not heard of Saunders nor read anything else of his before. This is my first time dipping my toes into his world.

Once again, I heard about this from Books on the Nightstand, and I decided I needed to rediscover my love of short stories. Thankfully, I just got a credit from Audible and went ahead and downloaded this book. After reading an article, on January 3rd, that this was the best book of the year already, I was doubly intrigued.

I have to say my one regret was listening to it rather than reading and savoring it. The author read the book but I felt he went to fast, although I understand why. The stories almost all called for some intensity, some rushed feeling. I wanted to read it instead simply because of the WTF moments. The "What did he just say??" moments. Saunders slips in these moments without blinking an eye, like they are the most natural things ever, and it takes a second, when listening, to realize what just happened.

Because hiring people to have wire strung through their brains and hanging as lawn ornaments is PERFECTLY logical and mundane.

What? Yes.

I don't recall all the names of the stories (another problem with listening to the audiobook) but I did enjoy them all and was pretty engrossed in each one.

Relic by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

I asked a friend, if I wanted to try Preston and Child, where should I start? He promptly handed me Relic. I'm actually surprised to learn, looking at Goodreads, that this was a Pendergast novel. I guess I'm surprised because, while Pendergast was a good character, I didn't think he would spin off into more. I was wrong, I guess!

I will have to say I enjoyed this one and will look for more books by Preston and Child. I'm a science-y type of gal and I found myself skipping some of the more science/plant/stuff to get to the meat of the book.

The Museum of Natural History in NY has become home to a beast of sorts that is fantastically killing museum staff. Fantastic as in GORY. Without giving to much away, the killings and beast are linked to an expedition many years past, whereas a "curse" was brought back to the museum.

In a weird way, everything made sense and seemed probable, which I liked, up until the Epilogue.  I really wish I hadn't of read that and just left it where it stood. For some reason, it annoyed me to have the magical stuff thrown in at the end.

Ah well.

Wool Omnibus by Hugh Howey

There are 5 Wool books and this little Omnibus puts them all in one collection. I heard about this from the CraftStash podcast and since it included knitting I'd thought I'd give it a try. WAIT!!! STOP!! It's not a knitting book! Come back.....

This is the story of mankind clawing for survival, of mankind on the edge. The world outside has grown unkind, the view of it limited, talk of it forbidden. But there are always those who hope, who dream. These are the dangerous people, the residents who infect others with their optimism. Their punishment is simple. They are given the very thing they profess to want: They are allowed outside. (Goodreads)

This is a bizarre apocalyptic collection about people who live in underground silos because the outside world is toxic now. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of people in this silo and it's basically functioning world in there, complete with castes and people in their places. Mechanical in the down deep (over 130 levels below ground) and Law up top (first floor). The silo is so large there are "hotels" on several floors because it simply cannot be traveled in a day.

We start off with the current Sheriff, Holston, climbing to his death (really, this is the first sentence of the collection). We learn that he lost his wife 3 years prior and he's decided to punish himself with the capital punishment the Silo mets out. A cleaning.

From there we spiral down into a world that is just bizarre and frightening. The people in the silo learn things that they were never supposed to know -Truth spreads like a virus - and uprises are organized.

If you like sci-fi, apocalyptic works, I highly recommend Wool. Get the collection. If you don't, you'll instantly regret it when the first book leaves you hanging.

Bite Me by Christopher Moore

As an audiobook, this was well done enough to annoy the hell out of me. The reader did the idiotic Goth girl voice so well, I wanted to slap my iPod.

This is a love story. In a way. It's #3 in the series of Tommy and Jody, vampires from San Francisco. I haven't read a Moore book yet that hasn't made me crack up laughing and, once I got past the Goth girl voice, this wasn't any different.

Tommy posted an ad on Craigslist for a minion and Abby Normal, Goth girl and vampire-wannabe shows up for the job. This book is told mostly through diary/blog entries from Abby, but throws in other perspectives of other characters as well.

All of the characters are really pretty good although I especially love the Emperor of San Francisco and his men, Lazarus and Bummer. The Emperor is a homeless man who takes on the duty of protecting his city against the vampires. His men are dogs and Moore always translates dog speak for us - and it's hilarious.

Vampire kitties, old ones coming to San Fran, little sword-wielding Japanese men, fake Rasta men....This book has everything you need to satisfy your funny bone.

(and it's a better love story than Twilight!)

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

It's possible that this book got to me because I'm highly emotional right now, but I doubt that. I think it got to me because it's an amazing book.

The Book Thief is set in Nazi Germany and follows a little girl named Liesel Meminger as she goes about stealing books. That is the plot at its simplest.

It's so much more than that though. The Book Thief is narrated by Death. At first, it was slow reading for me because I just wasn't sure I was ok with Death telling me a story. But, Death turns out to be quite empathetic and a wonderful storyteller. Of course he is. He's seen it all, humans at their best and at their worst.

Liesel is sent to live with a foster family, The Hubermanns. She had just lost her brother and had just stolen her first book. She's unable to read but the book had a strange pull on her so she took it. Once her new Papa found out, he decided to teach her to read. Papa clearly became her favorite although Mama was rough, she clearly loved Liesel as well.

This book and the books Liesel stole have one thing in common. Words. Words have the power to help and heal and the same power to destroy and control. This is obvious with the rise of Hitler, who used the words to his advantage and managed to create a horrific time in history. It's also obvious with Liesel, who, although she stole books, she used those words to heal. She healed herself, Max, her parents, the mayor's wife.

Zusak's writing style is magnificent. It did take me a bit to read this simply because I couldn't stop going back and re-reading sections. In Zusak's world, words are physical. They "are hurled over the shoulder", "ascend the staircase", "are punched into the air".

I admit my eyes kept leaking at the time of the air raids, when Mama becomes more than the character she began as. She becomes Liesel's mother, her arms engulf Liesel out of fear, her "pride is crayoned on her face" as she describes how Liesel helped everyone in the air raid shelter by reading to them.

My eyes full on exploded water when Death stepped in to do his job. The passages were beautifully written and heartrending.

This is the book that got my reading mojo back. I've been wholly uninterested in reading lately and just picked it up off my bookcase because it was there. Now I want more.

Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich

There's not a lot to say about the Stephanie Plum series except they are your tiny cupcakes in life. The little fluff you need and want to make your day better. Nineteen was a good one, read in the span of one day.

Evanovich really knows her audience and what we want. And she always delivers.

Cold Days by Jim Butcher

I can't guarantee no spoilers here.... be warned


Harry Dresden is BACK! From the dead! Oh, thank goodness. I didn't like ghost Dresden at all.

So Dresden ended up making a deal with Mab, the Winter Queen, in order to come back to the land of the living. She helped make sure he lived and was being "cared for" on the island of Demonreach after he was shot and killed. Now, Dresden is the Winter Knight. Oh, Dresden.

He awakens in Mab's world, getting a form of physical therapy, which includes being nearly killed in creative ways every day by Mab. Keeps him on his toes, ya know. Mab sends Harry back to Chicago with his first order: kill Maeve, Mab's daughter, the Winter Lady. Except...she's immortal.

There is so much action going on in this book it was a little hard to follow. True, Harry has his order, but he also has assassins after him, coming back to his friends and family (who think he's dead), Demonreach (it's a jail for evil evil things) about to explode, The Wild Hunt, meeting Mother Winter and Mother Summer (whoa), the war on the outer edges of NeverNever, the Nemesis, Outsiders..... The list is endless.

All in all, this was a great Dresden book with a whole lot going on. Exactly what I come to expect from Jim Butcher. BUT.... the ending was a game changer. Completely unexpected (at least to me!) and points us and the characters in a whole new direction.

Can't wait for the next one.