Tag Archives: books

A snow day is just a reading day

Posted on by
1

Looks like I may be snowbound in the morning. Even if I’m not, I have no intentions of leaving the house. Tomorrow will be a day just to relax and maybe do a little reading for myself. I don’t have, or maybe it’s truer to say that I don’t take, the time to read anything just for the pure enjoyment of reading. It’s become a chore to read and that’s a shame.

Yesterday, I made it to the book store. Maybe I should back up a little. Last week I went to the local Barnes & Noble for attend an A.G. Howard book signing for Ensnared. While I waited for the signing to start, I browsed the selection available, and I found The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. I have to admit I’ve watched the movie but I never read the books. The horror!

Also catching my eye was a book by Guy Consolmagno, SJ* and Paul Mueller, SJ entitled Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial? …and Other Observations from the Astronomer’s In-box at the Vatican Observatory. I’ve come across Br. Consolmagno on several science shows on Discovery. I have always found what he has to say to be illuminating.

As a lover of fiction and fantasy, I knew I needed to buy The Hitchhiker’s Guide…, but as a Catholic myself, and one that has an interest in science, Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial? also piqued my interest. At the time, I didn’t have any money to spare, and the little money I couldn’t spare was spent buying a copy of Ensnared to be signed.

Which brings me to yesterday. I had some time to burn, so I went back to B&N to browse and kill some time. I found The Hitchhiker’s Guide..., and I decided to buy it. I chose to wait until payday to the other book, but I had to buy a second book, reasonably priced. Since I’ve been wanting a new copy of it, I bought myself The Hobbit.

I’m almost done with Douglas Adams’ novel. I’ll probably finish it tonight. I may or may not read The Hobbit. I’ve read it so many times already. I do have other books on my too read pile so I have plenty to read, regardless. Either way, I plan to enjoy my day off and allow myself to disappear into another world for a few hours. It’s a nice way to get out of my own skin and into an adventure, all without leaving the comforts of home.

Now that I think about it, that sounds rather Hobbitish, and perhaps that’s not a bad thing. But I do have a rather Tookish desire for real adventure, just not enough to brave the cold and the snow.

 

*Society of Jesus, commonly known as the Jesuits.

Name, titles, and such

Posted on by
4

I’ve been wanting to rename my blog for some time and I’m at a loss. Since I started this, I’ve been content to simply use my name and I left it at that, but I never truly liked it. I want something flashy, a name with pizzazz, something that grabs hold of people and makes them want to visit my little corner of madness.

You know, that might work for my tagline….

But as for a title? Forget about it. I’m useless finding titles for projects. My books are titled by the first name of my main character. It makes it easy for me to find, but it might not be so great once I try to publish it. As for my site? It’s just my name. Talk about lazy and uninspired. I need a title doctor. Do they even exist?

I look at some of the names other bloggers use, and some are lame, some are cute, and some are so original that I want to weep. Why can’t I find a name? I cry out. Must I remain nameless forever?

Maybe it’s not a real problem, but it sure bugs the hell out of me. Is there a class I can take, a seminar of some kind, that teaches us poor wretches how to name important things, like blogs and books? I would find that class useful. I’d take it twice just to make sure all the information stuck!

I’ll keep wracking my brain until something comes out. Until then, you’re just stuck with Joe Hinojosa. Isn’t that a horrifying thought!?

Feeling better

Posted on by
1

It’s now the ninth of December, and whatever ailment that has kept me from doing anything meaningful is finally starting to wane. Thank you antibiotics! I was trying my best no to have to visit the physician, but come Sunday – a week after I started to become sick – and I could feel the junk building up in my chest. I knew that I had no choice but to go in and get myself checked out.

So my congestion is starting to clear up, I’m no longer coughing like a smoker hacking up a lung, and my voice is almost back to normal. It just sucks that I have to keep up the course of antibiotics until I’m done. Seven more days. Whoop-whoop! Now I can get back to what’s important and do nothing about writing until next week.

Well, not nothing. I’ve opened up my word file on Jasmine and I’ve started reading. I almost feel ready to tackle the second half of the book, rewriting what doesn’t work, and making the story a little stronger. I’m trying to make as few changes as possible because I quickly discovered what a fragile tapestry a story is. You pull one string and suddenly the whole narrative begins to unravel. It’s a little scary.

I’m going to sit back and start a little today. I work tonight and tomorrow night and then I will be back on days for good. I’ll be able to get into some loose rhythm, and maybe make some progress. At least that’s my hope. Then I’ll have a long weekend and I’ll head out of town, a trip that was beginning to look doubtful even a few days ago, and maybe I’ll feel relaxed and ready to tackle my goal.

NaNoWrimo 2014: Day 5

Posted on by
Reply

I hit a hiccup yesterday. Well, it was more of an impenetrable brick wall into which I slammed head first, then went careening over a cliff, only to die in a blaze of glory when I came to rest at the bottom, with no one to witness my unfortunate demise. Luckily, I got better and I’m back today.

The brick wall is still there, but instead of trying to break it down by brute force, I went around the damned wall and started the next chapter instead. I was utterly lost and had no idea what to do about my story so I decided to introduce a new character, the antagonist who will work to destroy my M.C.

Before I go on, I think it’s funny how the escort/prostitute is the hero in my story while the Cardinal is the villain. Shouldn’t the holy man be the good guy and the woman who sins for a living be the bad guy? Yeah, but then the story would not be what I want to write. I want it to be about what’s in a person’s heart rather than what they appear to be.

But back to my point….

My story was meandering. I couldn’t find a way to go forward. Giada was in Rome. She moved back to Rome. Look at how much Giada is in Rome, for the first time in ten years, back in Rome. Did I mention she’s back in Rome? For the first time in ten years? Here, let’s show her again in Rome, where she used to live ten years ago, but then moved. She’s back, and it only took her ten years!

I’ve never been that stuck before. One good thing is that I found her a love interest. I guess I should say I found someone who’s interested in her, but she doesn’t share his feelings. Too bad. He’s only in his early forties, tall, ruggedly handsome, and rich. He also accepts her for who she is and refuses to try to change her. He’s a good guy, but she doesn’t love him. She’s incapable of loving anyone, even him, and she feels bad for it.

But I couldn’t figure out how to write myself out of that corner. I didn’t know where to go, so I went to the opera. That didn’t help. Took her shopping then to dine where she ran into one of her clients. Still nothing. Frustrated, I lost control, hit the wall, went over the cliff and died. I think I only wrote 200 words yesterday.

I knew it would happen eventually, just not on day four. That’s okay. I’ll just skip ahead a bit and introduce someone new. I have to flesh him out a bit, discover his history and motivations. That’s what I’m doing now, and I’m up to 700 words for the day, and I’m just getting started. I should make my daily goal and make up for yesterday’s disastrous attempt. I hate being a day behind, but that’s not catastrophic. I just need to work harder so I don’t fall farther behind.

Book Review: Through Kestrel’s Eyes

Posted on by
9
Kestrel

Through Kestrel’s Eyes © 2013 Yvonne Hertzberger

Through Kestrel’s Eyes is the second book of the Earth’s Pendulum Series by Yvonne Hertzberger. I reviewed the first book, Back from Chaos back in August. All the major characters are back, except in this book, the story is a first-person narrative as told by Klast and Bresna’s daughter, a seer named Liannis.

Liannis is a young woman, newly come into her responsibilities. Chief among her abilities include the gift of foresight, usually given to her in a series of dreams from Mother Earth, and the ability to truth-tell, which she uses if a prisoner needs to be interrogated, of if someone’s loyalty is called into question.

The seer works for Earth, a goddess personified, who uses Liannis as an intermediary to maintain balance. Earth’s ability to provide for her inhabitants is strained by man’s refusal to live in harmony with one another. War, and man’s desire to subjugate a defensless populace, causes Earth to suffer, which in turn leads to drought and famine.

The book is roughly a two year span, between Liannis’ taking up the mantle of seer from her mentor, and the trails Bargia, her home, faces with the neighboring demenses, (what we would think of as a kingdom.) Though she has pledged no allegiance to any lord, having grown up in Bargia, she works primarily with Lord Gaelen and his allies.

Trouble comes to Bargia on two fronts, first from Lieth, where a weak lord is disposed and a ruthless despot assumes power, abusing the populace for his own enjoyment. Then from Gharn, where the lord has also been deposed but Dugal, his heir, seeks to reclaim his birthright. Lord Gaelen must choose where to focus his attention, Bargia not strong enough to fight two separate battles, though both threaten not only Bargia’s safety, but Earth’s ability to provide.

Through the conflicts, drought plagues the lands, putting further hardships on the land, making achieving a lasting peace all the more important. Liannis works tirelessly, even putting not only herself in danger, but also her loved ones, all for the sake of Mother Earth. At risk is not only her home demense of Bargia and her allies, but the survival of all mankind.

First let me say that trying to summarize the book is almost an impossible task, as there’s so much going on, with a cast of characters that come together to create a rich and complicated story. At its heart is our seer, Liannis, aided by a young man Merriest, who had the misfortune of losing a leg in his first battle.

There’s also the added dynamic of the seer and her parents, her father Klast, Gaelen’s most trusted adviser and spy, and Bresna, Lady’s Marja’s best friend. Woven into is her familiarity with the ruling family, and her duty to remain impartial for the service of Earth.

The story is much more about about the necessary evils a country must fight in order to achieve a lasting peace. It’s about the suffering her people endure, and how dependent the population is to her leadership for their survival.

But for me, the crux of the book is the Liannis’ personal relationships, not only with family and friends, but all those she serves. There’s a depth of warmth that is at once real and moving. She cares, and through her made me care. She loves, and I came to love her and the rest of the characters as well. The added friction of a potential romantic attachment, one that she believes to be taboo, is familiar and should resonate with everyone.

Through Kestrel’s Eyes is a well-written novel, as is the rest of the series. It moved me to laughter and to tears. I loved it so much that I immediately read the third -though you have to wait for my review – and I immediately wrote the author to tell her how much I loved her books.

It should be no wonder that I should rate this book highly, 5 out of 5 stars. Even after reading it for a second time, I couldn’t contain my emotions, my eyes tearing up from Liannis trials, that I had to stop often to dry them. It isn’t to often that a book does that to me. I cannot recommend this book enough.

Yvonne Hertzberger
Back from Chaos

List of Book Reviews
Next review –  Ensnared
Previous Review – Dark the Night Descending