Check It Out: A guide to joining the forces of evil

Yesterday I joined StubleUpon, as a way to help drive traffic to my website and blog, and now I have a nifty little Stumble button on my toolbar that chooses random websites for me to look at. And now I also have something new to distract me and keep from getting any work done. And I thought Twitter was bad.

My new favorite StubleUpon discovery is this awesome website http://www.darksites.com

A Step-by-Step Guide to joining the Forces of Darkness

Congratulations on your decision to join the forces of darkness! Evil always needs more tools... I mean... agents... for its unholy army of the night, and by joining now you can rest assured that your remaining years will be spent pursuing the 'good' things of life: lust, greed, debauchery, the slaughter of hapless innocents... Your favorite hobby can become a lifelong career! Thus, this handy guide has been created to nurture any potential lunatic into a lifetime of evil and destruction.

They offer a quiz to help you determine your evil potential, a guide for choosing the best villainous career for you, assistance in pinpointing your objectives as an evil doer, suggestions for good lair locations, a guide to finding good evil henchmen and much more deliciously fun advice on how to pursue a career as an evil guy (or gal)

Here is a sample from their Careers For Evil Doers page:

The career of necromancer is an excellent choice for evil-doers who are not a "people person." Though some might say there is not much point to turning the earth into one gigantic graveyard, these people are fools and will never understand anyway. Good career entry points for becoming a necromancer include occultists, dabblers in voodoo, grave diggers, morticians, possessed eight-year-old girls, and inheritors of scary books wrapped in human flesh.

So if you have ever contemplated joining to forces of evil, or simply want a good laugh, check out http://www.darksites.com

Now back to work...

Currently reading Or Challenges of finding a good book

I finished Brandon Sanderson's Warbreaker, last night, and I am prepared to declare it the best fantasy book I have read all year. Lately I've been reading a lot of urban and contemporary fantasy and I forgot how great a real fantasy book can be; the kind that skillfully creates whole new worlds, religions and systems of magic. It's been a long time since a fantasy book has engaged me as wholly as Warbreaker has and I loved every minute of it.
After finishing Warbreaker I was feeling a little bereft that the book was now over and its characters have all gone on their own way. So I was delighted to receive The Unit, by Ninni Holmqvist, in the mail today, a book I have been eager to read for a while now.

But before jumping from one book to the other, I wanted something lighthearted and fun to serve as a sort of "palate cleanser" between books.
I thought it would be easy to find some kind of paranormal romance or urban fantasy to provide a quick enjoyable read before I move on to The Unit, which I expect to be somewhat dark and heavy, as many dystopic novels are.

But quick enjoyable reads seem to be hard to come by. I started Rosemary and Rue, by Seanan McGuire, but it wasn't quite what I was looking for. The introduction, where October gets turned into a fish, forcing her to abandon her partner and daughter for fourteen years, depressed me. I don't like stories that involve abandonment of children. And then when she returns to human form and her boyfriend and daughter refuse to even meet with her, I just couldn't suspend my disbelief. I mean, even if they were upset at October's disappearance, they had no reason to think that it purposefully done. They should have been overjoyed to have October back when they thought she was dead. The idea that they wouldn't even meet with her to find out what happened was too implausible for me and made it difficult for me to continue the book.

So I moved on to Ravenous, by Sharon Ashwood which wasn't too bad except that it reminded me of so many other vampire books that I have already read that I just wasn't compelled to continue after the first few chapters.

Next, I decided to give Some Girls Bite, by Chlo Neill, a try. I've seen this book recommended by a few blogs so far but I haven't been tempted to read it mostly because I don't like the title or cover (yes, I do judge books by such things). But after so many other books have failed to interest me I'm feeling determined to find one that I can full-heartedly enjoy. But a few chapters in, and I don't think this book is the one for me either. I thought it was strange that Marit was so unaffected after her transformation into a vampire, other then being a little woozy. Most vampire books go into great detail as to the physical challenges and intense blood lust a vampire experiences after being newly turned but Marit is just dropped off at home where she behaves in a disappointingly human manner; having a good cry with her roommate and then going off to break the news to her parents about her new undead status. I just thought that it was rather unbelievable, or as unbelievable as a book about vampires can be.

Am I being too picky here?

I think I'm going to give up on trying to find a PNR or urban fantasy for now and tomorrow I will start on The Unit. I believe my palate has been cleansed enough for today.

The Apex Book of World SF: An eclectic assortment of science fiction, fantasy and horror

The Apex Book of World SF is an eclectic assortment of science fiction, fantasy and horror stories, collected by Lavie Tidhar from authors across the globe. Some of the out-of-the- way places where these stories originated include Malaysia, China, The Philippines and Croatia. Though the stories in the collection run the gamut from science fiction to horror to surrealism, Tidhar definitely shows his affection for the weird.

The writers of this collection, though writing primarily in English, come from different backgrounds, and this creeps into their style and the individual voices in which they write The unique nature of this collection is found most exquisitely in the story, The Kite of the Stars, by Dean Francis Alfar, from the Philippians. In this gem, Alfar uses his unique voice to profound effect as he weaves a wild dream and a jumble of ideas and facts into an amazing unforgettable journey.

Maria Isabella decides to catch the eye of an astronomer - But the butcher's boy sadly informs her, "He only has eyes for the stars." And so Maria devises a wild plan; She will sail to the stars in a kite to catch his eye! She meets with the world’s greatest artisan and he draws up a fantastic list of impossible items necessary to create a design found only in dreams. Maria then sets out on a great journey, accompanied by the faithful butcher's boy, to collect the list of items

"It may take a lifetime to gather everything, " the artisan warns her.

"A lifetime is all I have," Maria Isabella replies.
It took almost sixty years. Read More

Read an Interview with author, Lavie Tidhar

The final contest winners

This is a bit belated, but congratulations to the two final contest winners of the Book-A-Day Giveaway.

Li-Or, from Hadera, will be receiving Brandon Sanderson's new book Warbreaker (I'm actually reading this now [my own copy] and it is AWESOME!)

Itai, from Ashdod, has been sent a copy of The Apex Book of World SF, compiled by Lavie Tidhar.

I hope all of the contest winners enjoy their new books and I'd love to hear what you thought of them, after you finish.

I had a great time giving away with this contest; giving away books was really a lot of fun. I'll definitely try to do it again sometime soon.

On the Edge by Ilona Andrews

Ilona Andrews' new fantasy novel, On the Edge , introduces Rose Drayton, a young woman struggling to support herself and her two younger brothers after the death of her mother and the abandonment of her father. Good jobs are hard to come by for an illegal like Rose, who is a native of the Edge; a narrow ribbon of land located between the Weird, a world of magic and the Broken, a magic-less world of electricity and technology.

It doesn’t help matters that Rose’s brothers are not your average children. Eight year old Jack shape-changes into a cat and ten year old Georgie resurrects the dead, a talent that is slowly draining his life away. Rose herself is able to flash white, an ability that she worked hard to perfect and which has caused her no end of trouble. And so when a good looking, blueblood aristocrat from the Weird appears at Rose’s door one day, Rose assumes he is there to try to ensnare her for her flashing power. Although Rose would like nothing better then to send Declan on his way she soon finds herself maneuvered into agreeing to marry him if he successfully accomplished three challenges of her devising.

But a haughty blueblood is not the worst of Rose’s troubles for suddenly the people of the Edge are being attacked by evil, frightening magical creatures called the hounds. Nobody knows where they came from or how to get rid of them. To her dismay, Rose finds herself forced to join forces with Decan in order to fight the hounds and save her family and friends.

Fans of Ilona Andrews’ Kate Daniels series are sure to enjoy this new book with its feisty heroine; lovable, mischievous children; macho, good looking men and interesting world building. The central characters are well developed and engaging. I was reluctant to finish the book because I didn’t want to leave them behind, though I really liked the ending. I also really appreciated the fact that the story was wrapped up in the end, rather then ending with a cliffhanger, forcing readers to wait a year to find out what happens next. While there will be a second book in the series, that story will focus on William, one of Rose’s suitors from On the Edge, and a character I'm eager to learn more about.

There is definitely more of a romantic focus in On the Edge then in the Kate Daniels books, but for me that wasn’t one of the book’s strong points. While I generally enjoy a dash of romance in my books, the story line here reminded me too much of those numerous historical romances in which the female protagonist gets maneuvered into an unpleasant situation against her will (usually marriage) by the good-looking male character but eventually falls under his sway due to all of his wonderful characteristics that were hiding beneath the surface. It always annoys me when this happens in romances and I didn’t like those similarities cropping up in On the Edge, but overall Andrews does manage to carry it off due to the protagonists' strength of character and humor.

Other than that, I really did enjoyed on the Edge and I would certainly recommend it, particularly if you enjoy a strong romantic element in your fantasy.

My Very first Reading Challenge: DystopYA

I've never done a reading challenge before, although they look like fun, because I just can't find the time to read books outside of the SF&F genres. But Books on the Nightstand is issuing a challenge that coincides nicely with my current interest in dystopic novels so I'm going to be participating in my very first Reading Challenge. I'm quite excited.

While I'm not exactly clear on all of the rules (I don't have patience for reading the small print), the basic idea is that I have until December 31, 2009 to read 3 dystopic YA novels. After reading the books, I'm supposed to write a review of each one and to post a link to the reviews on the Books on the Nightstand Goodreads or Facebook page. I also added the little picture that you are meant to include as proof of your participation (see above).

I'm going to try reading The Giver, by Lois Lowry, Candor by Pam Bachorz and The Maze Runner by James Dashner. I think I must have read The Giver at some point, but I really can't remember. Candor, I recently heard about and thought it sounded interesting and now that Anne recommended it I certainly have to read it (Anne and Michael rarely steer me wrong).

Anyone want to join me? For more information about the DystopYA Reading Challenge, visit Books on the Nightstand

The Tel Aviv Dossier: Something new and unusual

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I picked up The Tel Aviv Dosseier, by Nir Yaniv and Lavie Tidhar. Apocalypse novels are not usually my thing but a story about the destruction of Tel Aviv involving a fireman, a yeshiva guy and a film maker sounded intriguing enough that I decided to give this book a try.

The Tel Aviv Dossier opens up as Hagar, a documentary film maker, is in the process of filming the arrival of the Darfur refugees from across the Egyptian border. As she attempts to adjust the lightening on the camera, to accommodate the suddenly darkened sky, the earth begins to shake and a column of air appears, into which everyone and everything gets sucked into and torn apart. People run screaming, cars are thrown around and Hagar keeps her camera rolling as she attempts to escape from the sudden destruction that has taken over Tel Aviv.

The next chapter is narrated by Eli the psychotic fireman who has been waiting for just such an event to take place. In delight at the chaos and destruction, he grabs a fire truck and jumps into the foray, taking pleasure in adding to the madness and running down anyone that get in his way.

Each of the following chapters continue to describe the carnage taking place in Tel Aviv, through a different person’s eyes; a young boy left at home alone, a young woman at the beach writing to a friend, a Lubavitcher yeshiva student, a member of the UFO Research Society. Each chapter is narrated in the first person and many of the narrations are broken off, to be picked up later in the book, or sometimes not at all (usually due to a bloody demise).

The second part of the book focuses on three particular characters and their individual reactions to the current apocalypse. These characters include the fireman, the yeshiva student and the documentary film-maker, along with an animated severed head, which adds a dash of the absurd to the already strange story.

The third part of the book takes place a year after the apocalypse began and introduces a new cast of characters who arrive in Tel Aviv, from Jerusalem, each with an individual purpose. But these recent arrivals are not prepared for the anarchy and lawlessness of this new Tel Aviv and they find themselves floundering to survive, as the residents of Tel Aviv gear up for the final battle and the possible arrival of some sort of messiah.

If you are looking for something different and unusual, this book is it. While dark and weird it also manages to be humorous, which I found to be an interesting and disconcerting combination.

I did find that the chapters in the first part of the book, describing the apocalypse sounded rather repetitive after a while. Even though each of the people narrating these chapters were vastly different, their voices and tone came out sounding rather similar, which I was a little disappointed with. I would also have liked to see little more variety in the reactions that were expressed. If the yeshiva guy was going to tear off his clothes and go running in the street, perhaps the guy emailing a letter to his friend, full of crude language, could have suddenly become religious.

I read The Tel Aviv Dossier while on a bus to Tel Aviv and I arrived at the bus station just as I was reading about its detailed destruction in the pages of this book, which I thought added a little extra spice to the reading experience. But whether you are in Tel Aviv, or not, if you are in the mood for something different and unique, give The Tel Aviv Dossier a try.