Geeky Confessions

I'd say it's safe to consider myself somewhat of a geek. I don't rabidly follow fandoms, but I sort of belong to a couple. I tend to like fantasy novels, comic book based movies (Avengers- Loki rules!), science fiction movies, fantasy & sci fi TV shows, etc. That said, I don't participate in everything, so here are my confessions to that effect:

1. I don't Cosplay.

Costumes are great. People are really creative with quite a lot of them. I am not one of them. I don't have the time/patience/money to fool around with creating a costume, nor do I have the figure for most of the ones I would like to do. That doesn't stop all cosplayers, but it's a deterrent for me.


2. Tolkien bores me to tears.

This one shocks all my die-hard geek friends. I'm sorry, but the books were overblown (how many times can you read "I am so-and-so, son of so-and-so, son of so-and-so" and not want to scream?) and I've tried reading them at various stages in my life with no luck. The movies were way longer than they needed to be, but they did beat hell out of reading the books.


3. I no longer enjoy RPG's.

Not table-top or live-action. I've been in some groups that were really good, and I've been in some groups that went straight to hell because none of the players could agree on what kind of campaign we were in. Hack & Slash is fine if that's what EVERYONE wants to play, but I'm one of those players who likes character development & interaction. The last group I was in devolved into giant whine-fests and just totally turned me off gaming forever.


4. I'm not a fan of video games either.

I play things like Candy Crush & Cookie Jam because they're simple, mindless, and designed for solo players. I don't like fiddling around with controllers and buttons and all the faff you have to do to make a character take two steps and fire a bow or what-have-you.


5. I don't like Cons.

This is mostly attributed to my social anxiety disorder/dislike of crowds. I've been to several and enjoyed aspects of them, but was just to uncomfortable to really enjoy myself. Also, while I would love to meet more of my favorite actors/authors/whoever, I can't stand in those lines and I'm not paying that kind of money to meet anyone!


6. Blood & Gore? No thanks.

I admit to liking certain horror movie franchises, despite the gore content, but overall I can live quite nicely without it. I had to stop reading vampire novels because so many authors went over the top in graphic details. Ditto for shifters. And I loathe zombie stories.


7. I LOVE LOKI.

Well, Tom Hiddleston's version, anyway. I've always had a thing for bad boys (Michael Fassbender's Magneto is another one I would happily molest given a chance) and he hits all the right notes.

Goblinproofing One's Chicken Coop- Reginald Bakeley

I read an article online somewhere (and am too lazy to look it up now to tell you exactly where) about an "Odd Title of the Year" contest. This was the winner. (Other titles included such gems as God's Doodle- The life and Times of the Penis and How To Sharpen Pencils)



Here's the Amazon Blurb:

Help is on the way! In the tradition of Lemony Snicket and Roald Dahl, Goblinproofing One's Chicken Coop shows how to banish those pesky dark Fairy creatures who are ready to thwart every last pleasure, be it gardening, country hikes, or even getting a good night's sleep.


In this charming guide, "fairy hunter" Reginald Bakeley offers practical instructions to clear your home and garden of these unsettling inhabitants, and banish them from your chicken coop and kitchen cupboard forever!

In Goblinproofing One's Chicken Coop readers will discover:

Why a bustle in one's hedgerow may be cause for alarm

Why a garden fumigator may come in handy on evenings at the pub

Why a toy merchant, a butcher, and a Freemason are among your best allies in the fight against the fey


Goblinproofing One's Chicken Coop is the only complete manual on how to identify, track, defend, and destroy those bothersome brownies, goblins, dwarves, scheming flower-fairies, and other nasty members of the fairy realm.

My take: It was amusing. I would have liked it better had there been some Lady Cottington-type pressed fairy illustrations to accompany the text, but it was fun nonetheless.  I wound up buying on my Kindle because none of the bookstores in my area had it. (I DID get some very weird looks when I asked for it at B&N and Books-a-Million) Amazon was back-ordered on print copies at the time and I decided to go the instant gratification route. I don't know that I would recommend paying full price for it, but it's worth reading if you like twisted fairy tales and that sort of thing.

Cirque du Soleil- Worlds Away

I love Cirque du Soleil. I've seen several of the live shows and own several more DVD performances. I picked this one up at the library and was a bit disheartened to see that James "Egomaniac" Cameron was involved in it. Luckily, the performances made up for a lot. It seemed kind of disjointed at first, and then I caught on to what I was seeing. They filmed sections of the various shows that are currently running in Vegas and turned it into a movie. I enjoyed the bits from "O", which I have seen. There were some scenes from Ka & Mystere, which I want to see. Then they went into Viva Elvis & The Beatles tribute show and I almost turned the damned thing off because I loathe the Beatles. (this came about after being forced to listen to them ad nauseam at the bookstore  for 5 years) But I stuck it out and was rewarded with an aerial ballet at the end that made the whole thing worth it. For the record, the aerial ballets are my favorite part of any Cirque show.

5 Books Due In 2013 That I Am DYING To Read...

Jen writes fiction as well as she writes humor!



 WANT. Seriously. THIS should be EPIC.

Written by my favorite Fantasy author, illustrated by one of my favorite artists- WIN

Culinary mystery with a paranormal splash...

This one is actually out now in the UK, but probably won't be released in the US until next year.

Beauty and the Werewolf- Mercedes Lackey

Another outing in the 500 Kingdoms series. I rather liked it- Isabella isn't the usual sort of fainting/crying woman men expect. She's managed her family's household for years and is eminently calm and practical. She even manages to keep her head when chased by a wolf....who unfortunately bites her. Even more unfortuante is the discovery that the wolf is in fact the neighboring Duke and Bella may become a werewolf herself. She has to go live in his manse for 90 days until they can be sure she isn't infected. While there, she learns magic, becomes an apprentice Woodsman, and falls in love. Think Beauty & The Beast meets Little Red Riding Hood plus a few others thrown in for good measure.

Ruby Red- Kerstin Geir

From Goodreads: Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!


Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential.

Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.
 
My opinion:
I loved this! Although I had figured out a few of the plot twists, I don't know what caused them yet. (I'm sure that they will be explained in the rest of the trilogy) Gwyneth and her best friend are a delight, her interactions with the school ghost (who doesn't know he's dead) are amusing, and her family is just plain baffling. She handles her unexpected ability to time-travel fairly well, considering some of the situations she gets thrust into. I'm dying to know what has created the schism in time-travel factions, and what Gwyneth's mystery power will turn out to be.

Moon Over Soho- Ben Aaronovitch

Peter Grant is back in this second installment of Aaronovitch's series, and all I can say is "More, please!" I'd swear he's writing these things just for me- set in London, featuring jazz and a biracial hero, with a healthy dollop of paranormal activity thrown in. All things I love, and well written, to boot! I liked the fact that a critically injured character from the first book still appears in the second, and without being magically cured of the damage she suffered. It's hard for Peter (and Leslie herself) to deal with the aftermath, but it doesn't get glossed over. Peter's mentor is also still suffering the effects of his injuries from Midnight Riot, and Peter is left with a great deal less superivision as a result. This, for him, does not prove to be an entirely good thing as he is faced with a man-eating woman (literally), several unexpectedly dead jazz musicians, and yet another woman who wants Peter for her own. Good stuff!

Poetry Monday

I Sit and Think



I sit beside the fire and think


of all that I have seen,


of meadow-flowers and butterflies


in summers that have been;






Of yellow leaves and gossamer


in autumns that there were,


with morning mist and silver sun


and wind upon my hair.






I sit beside the fire and think


of how the world will be


when winter comes without a spring


that I shall never see.






For still there are so many things


that I have never seen:


in every wood in every spring


there is a different green.






I sit beside the fire and think


of people long ago,


and people who will see a world


that I shall never know.






But all the while I sit and think


of times there were before,


I listen for returning feet


and voices at the door.






John Ronald Reuel Tolkien

The Remarkable Miss Frankenstein

I love Minda Webber! I almost skipped this book but something made me go back and pick it up. What a hoot! If you like punnish humor, finding old friends in the oddest places, and a goofy romanctic entanglement or two, you'll like this book. I nearly fell out of bed laughing when the heorine and her erstwhile self-appointed protector fell out of a closet at an inopportune moment. Most of the classic horror stereotypes are here- vampires, werewolves, the Frankenstein monster (his name is Frederick and the family has adopted him)as well as a twist on some well known characters. Light reading, but worth it!

What the Mouse Found

This is a darling collection of stories that Charles wrote for assorted children in his life, based loosley on dolls & stuffed animals made by his wife. They're all delightful, but the last story nearly made me cry. The end was bittersweet, but over all it's a terrific collection that would be a wonderful way to get your little bookworm hooked on the Magic that is Charles's deLint's work.

Native Star

I really enojyed this book. Set in roughly the same time period as Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate series, only in the United States, Native Star is the tale of hedge-witch Emily Edwards and the deliciously named wizard Dreadnought Stanton. Emily accidentally winds up with a magic stone embedded in her hand and the story follows her as Stanton tries to take her to the wizard he thinks will best be able to get it out. Along the way they encounter Indians, killer raccoons, evil wizards, flying machines, and many other obstacles. Oh, and there's even a bit of a love triangle. Lots of fun!

The Sleeping Beauty

I've always loved Mercedes Lackey. The Tales of the 500 Kingdoms series has been a fun romp through the realm of fairy tales. This volume, to paraphrase a line from Lackey's intro, is a Snow White tale that gets hijacked by Sleeping Beuaty before crashing into the Ring saga. Add 100 princes vying for the hand of the princess, a lisping unicorn, and a magic mirror in love with a fairy godmother, and the results are pure bliss. Princess Rosamund is no shrinking violet, Prince Siegfried is surprisngly gentle and kind, Prince Leopold is a hoot (his reaction to the curse challenge had me in tears, I was laughing so hard), and some of the challenges the princes have to undertake are diabolical. This may be my favorite volume in the series so far.

Instructions

This little gem of a volume contains three of my favorite things- fairy tales, Neil Gaiman's writing, and the art of Charles Vess. I was lucky enough to score a deeply discounted copy from Amazon, but it's well worth purchasing at full price! The illustrations are gorgeous, making you feel like you're there with every step....er, turn of the page. The simple instructions for a successful journey through the Otherworld make you feel like you're on the adventure.