Book Review: The Hundred Secret Senses

What an odd book. This is one of those I never would have picked up had it not been for my book club, and another one of those reasons I’m glad I’m in a book club, and that I use it to help me read outside of my comfort zone. I’m still not entirely sure […]

Winner of the 2011 Global eBook Award for Science Fiction

Yes, that’s right, The Immortality Virus has won the 2011 Global eBook Award for science fiction! Winning something like this is salve for the soul. Writing is often an isolated business, without daily feedback. It takes years to get published and more years for the public to really notice you’ve been published. So each day, […]

Ghost Story (The Dresden Files)

This may be the most difficult review I’ve had to write, because I love the Dresden Files, and have been consistently rating them 5 enthusiastic stars for a long time now. I am totally a fan of Jim Butcher and will continue to look forward to the next book in the series, BUT… I have […]

On Becoming Rich and Famous

Last week, while I was watching America’s Got Talent, I was struck by something one of the musicians said. In truth, it wasn’t so different from what many others have said, but this time, it got to me. He said he’d given up music entirely for a few years because he didn’t think he would […]

AGT YouTube

I didn’t do my normal run-through last night, and I can’t get excited about doing it today. The truth is, I wasn’t impressed with the YouTube show. Actually, I wasn’t impressed last year, either, even if they did get one act out of it. This year’s selection, while all basically good, did nothing to wow […]

Call me Christine

Names are a strange thing. They carry within them the power of self-identity, even though this is something they were probably never supposed to do. Who are you? You’ll probably answer with your name. Who am I? Christine. For those of you who remember Babylon 5, you may recall a scene in which Delenn is […]

Tips for Writers: Inspiration on Endings from Jim Butcher

Tuesday night, I attended a Q&A and book signing with Jim Butcher. I went as a fan, not a writer, and most of the questions he answered were fan-based questions about characters and plots. He received a surprising number of questions from people who seemed to want spoilers. (Really? Don’t you want to enjoy making […]

Book Review: Kiss of the Highlander

***Warning: This title and my review are not fit for children.*** This is pure, no-holds barred, romantic fantasy at its most basic and primitive level. This entire series is one of those guilty pleasures for me, because if you try to think about it with logic, it falls apart. But if you just let go […]

Book Review: Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor

Short, sweet, and poignant. Six-year-old Holly stops speaking after her mother dies in a terrible car crash, leaving her orphaned and in the care of her two uncles, Mark and Sam. Mark, who never wanted children, steps up and falls easily in love with the little girl, though he worries about her. Then one day, […]