Tag Archives: Reading

Busy April

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I’m about halfway through beta-reading this book and I’m beginning to stress. I have six days to get to the end of the book and report back to the author what my thoughts are regarding his novel. No pressure.

I envy those people with a critical eye for writing. You know the people, the ones who can pick at loose threads in a story, the eagle-eyed readers who can pick out spelling and grammatical errors with relative ease, the type of person I’m endeavoring to become.

Like most people, I’m more critical about myself than I am others. I question my word choices, the direction my plot is going, and countless other things. I’m embarrassed by every little error, fearing that someone out in the ether is ready to pounce and mock each and every mistake. It hasn’t happened yet, at least the mocking. I make way too many mistakes.

My priority for the last week of April is to concentrate fully on what I’m reading, and I’ll set aside my own works, which have temporarily stalled anyway. I can’t quite figure out how to resolve the dilemma I’ve created for my character, but more on that in a future post.

There’s my job I’m juggling at the moment, but how many of us are free of the employment obligation? I’m not going to pretend I’m the only one who has to work, but the commute, a two-hour round trip, is a killer.

What’s really taking a lot of time is my truck. For those of you who don’t know, which should be most of you, I’m trying to clean up an old 93 Chevy pick-up.

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Here’s the before picture from February.

We’ve been taking it apart, cleaning things up, pulling dents, etc. Rear brakes have been replaced, as has the exhaust. It’s been tuned up, and I need to replace the entire A/C system. To make it even more fun, I decided to paint it. Here are a few more pictures, just to give you an idea.

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So I’ve been busy, all the while I’m trying to improve my golf swing. That isn’t going all to well, but I can’t complain. I have a lot going on, but it feels good. Beats lying around all day doing nothing. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m sure I should be doing something at the moment, I just wish I knew what!

Reading, writing, and I hate my job…

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This is the first time since last May that I haven’t posted a book review. It’s a little weird. I had considered reviewing the Divergent series just for the hell of it, but time got away from me. I’m not committing myself one way or the other for now. I do need to get myself a book to read.

Actually, I don’t. I’ve focused so much of my energies to reading and reviewing, that my own writing has suffered. I need to get back on track and do some real writing. As you know, I pulled out a piece I started working on back in 2012, and I think I’m going to finish it. Then I’ll let a few people read it before deciding what to do with it.

But first, I have a book I’m beta-reading for a friend. Allan Krummenacker is working on his second book, The Ship. It’s a simple read and comment job, meaning I’m stressing out about it. I have a three-day weekend starting Friday, so I’m planning on taking some time out to actually read and take some constructively useful notes to pass along. I want this one to be better than his first!

Between you and me, I’m in an odd rut. I’ve ended my twice monthly reviews. I’ve stopped posting on a regular basis, and I’m not writing a diligently as I should. I have come to realize that my job will likely take me no where, that despite all the hard work I put into trying to move into full-time, the reality is that hard work is not rewarded at The Home Depot, cronyism is. That kind of bums me out.

So, my out is to write. Retail is a horrid environment, that offers only part-time work, and routinely cuts hours, further pushing me into poverty. I never had this problem when I worked at Wal-Mart. They gave me a chance and I moved up into management there, though I wouldn’t go back no matter what they paid me.

I’m going to work on my writing and hope this pulls me out of my funk. I can’t rely on employers to do it. They only feed the maw of poverty and the welfare state. I want out of the rut, and I deserve it, or at least I think I do.

Just some thoughts for me to consider while I drive to work this afternoon. Hope your Tuesday has treated you kindly.

What are you reading?

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“The more that you read, the more things you will know.
The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
~Dr. Seuss~*

I bought the Divergent box set recently off of Amazon, and it has sat of my desk for several weeks, begging me to be read. I found some time on Tuesday to crack open the first book, and instantly found myself drawn in by the story. I stayed up until three in the morning reading the book before putting it down to sleep. I finished it the next morning.

I’ve started the second book in the series, Insurgent, and I’m loving it. I plan to be done with it by this evening, and maybe start reading the last book, Allegiant. Then there’s the movies. Divergent is in theaters, which I’m planning on seeing tomorrow after I get off work.

It’s been a long time since a book has captured my attention in this way. Rowling managed to do so with her Harry Potter series, and once I discovered it, So did Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. I read the Twilight novels, and I enjoyed them as well for what they were, and I fail to see why people reacted to viscerally against them, especially since most poking fun of the series probably have never read a book.

These are just a few of the books that have entered the popular consciousness to such a degree that they become inescapable. I’ve read plenty of other books by authors that have not cracked the Best Sellers lists. I’ve enjoyed many self-published titles, many I have reviewed for you here on my blog. On of my favorite author is Morris West, author of The Shoes of the Fisherman, and The Clowns of God.

I read to escape the tedium of life. I read to lose myself to the imagination. I read to transport myself into adventure. I read so that I may know, and in so knowing, to learn, to grow, and to better myself.

I’ve encountered strange ideas, thoughts that were at once foreign and alien to me, but once read, helped shape me into the person I am today. I soaked up ideas like a sponge, thirsty for knowledge, insatiable and unquenchable. I know I’m not alone.

I read mostly for pleasure, but what I read can provoke me to think about the bigger picture. What is the book about? What is the author trying to say?  How is what I’m reading relevant to me and to the world at large? Good books promote lively discussions.

My question today – as you can probably guess by my not-so-cryptic title – is what are you reading now? What ideas are you gleaming from the book or article? Are you willing to share with us? Leave a comment and share with us your thoughts. I would love to know!

“A home without books
is a body without a soul.”
~Marcus Tullius Cicero~*

* – Quotes on reading came from ThinkExist.

New books, reading, and reviews

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Finally, after waiting for what seemed like an eternity, I received my latest package from Amazon, the Divergent box set. I get excited every time I buy a new book. I’m like a kid on Christmas morning, ripping open the box, inhaling the new book aroma, and basking in the aura of its splendor.

I could have ordered the books on my Kindle and had them available immediately, but sometimes I really like having the books in my hand. E-books are great, and I’ve read many books on my reader, but having an actual book is something that cannot be replicated on the glow of an LCD screen. Some may disagree, but they’re wrong. It’s possible I’m showing my age.

The books are resting peacefully on my desk, waiting for me to break into its pages, losing myself to an adventure unknown. I can’t wait to discover what secrets lie in the pages, written by a writer hoping to gain an audience. I think she succeeded, and the first movie comes out later this month. I want to at least read the first book before seeing the movie.

The only thing stopping me is a prior commitment. I have a book I need to read for next Monday’s book review, my last scheduled one. After that, I’ll be free to read it at my leisure. For now, I have to read The Trinity, the last book of the Fall of Venus Trilogy, after which I’m not going to review books on a regular basis anymore. I’ll do one occasionally, when the mood strikes me, but two a month burned me out.

Now, I can return to reading for my enjoyment again. That’ll be nice for a change, but I have to say, I did get to read a lot of good books while I was at it. I’ll continue to post occasionally, but I have my own book that needs attention, and life is urging me to get back to living, too.

That’s it for this Monday. I hope you have a great week and I’ll see you next time!

Book Review: Crimson Return

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Happy Monday everyone! Hope the weekend treated you well. Today I’m reviewing Crimson Return by Daelynn Quinn. This is the second book of a series, and also the second book of Daelynn’s I have had the fortune to review. If you haven’t read the first book, please be advised that there may be some spoilers in this review. You can find the author at Daelynnquinn.com, on Facebook and on Twitter.

Crimson Return

Crimson Return © Daelynn Quinn 2013

Crimson Return, the second book of the Fall of Venus trilogy, picks up a few months after the events of Fall of Venus. Once again, we follow Pollen McRae, a young woman, who like all the world’s population, has suffered unimaginable loss and grapples with the new reality, that their world is now uninhabitable.

Pollen is now safe from the Trinity, three of the worlds most rich and powerful, and orchestraters of the world’s demise, in the stronghold of COPS, along with her niece Evie, and Marcus, another escapee from the Trinity’s safehouse/prison, the Crimson Survivor Refuge. In the safety of COPS, they both have found a way to contribute to the continuation of the human race, to help escape the runaway global warming catastrophe facing them.

As they settle in, Pollen’s ex-fiancee Glenn mysteriously shows up. Glenn, who had sided with the Trinity and became a Crimson Enforcer, but ended up helping his ex and her niece and new boyfriend escape, His appearance triggers a crisis for Pollen and the COPS. Should Glenn be trusted? Should he be allowed to remain?

He upsets Pollen’s certainty in regards to her new boyfriend Marcus, and begins to drive a wedge in her relationship. Later, when plans go missing, and equipment sabotaged, this confirms to COPS and to her that Glenn cannot be trusted. Before his sentence is carried out, he delivers a bombshell, someone she believes to be dead is in fact being held captive by the Trinity.

Crimson Return is about survival against all odds, and fighting for what is right and for those who you love. It’s about the struggle against the establishment that puts their own financial well-being above the lives of the poor and weak. It’s about the value of life, and the premium we sometimes are forced to pay in order to live it.

But in its essence, it’s about the struggles of a young woman trying to live her life in the midst of an epic catastrophe. Can she do what is right or will she fail at the first sight of temptation? Will she be faithful to the love of her life, or will she be seduced by the memory of another?

It is in the setting then, that we see that even when facing such adversity, the will of the human spirit to persevere is great, and the dramas of life, both big and small, continue, bringing with it both great joy and terrible heartaches. There are consequences to accept, and new realities to overcome.

Of Pollen McRae, a young woman in her early twenties yet very much a child in thought, the events of this book will push her to the precipice and she will have to choose between the naiveté of youth, and the cold pragmatism of maturity. As the fate of the world is at stake, and as life succumbs to the stranglehold of a moribund planet, this is still one woman’s journey into adulthood.

Crimson Return sets the stage for the conclusion of the series, will Pollen accept responsibility? Will she be able to fight for the ones she loves and for the survival of a people facing extinction?

Of the author, Daelynn Quinn matured as a writer between the first book and second book. While I had some trouble getting into the first book, I fell back into an easy and comfortable rhythm with this one. She has done a fantastic job creating a world and populating it with characters you can care about. Not only do I recommend reading Crimson Return, I urge you to go back and read Fall of Venus. I know you will not be disappointed.

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