Plants galore

First of all, I really like Franz Ferdinand. Their latest CD makes me want to have a party--or workout (seriously, they make working out and running so much better).

Anyway, I've been reading everywhere about Margot Berwin's Hothouse Flower and the Nine Plants of Desire. Is the hype justified?

Hmm, well, isn't that a pretty cover? No, just kidding, the book was interesting and I really enjoyed the focus on tropical plants, along with their mystical qualities. It's probably just so different (a bit of magic realism combined with plant lore) that it stands out.

Here's the plot: Lila is a recently divorced, youngish, NY advertising executive. She meets a hottttttt plant man who sells her a tropical plant. She discovers that she loves plants, which leads her to this random laundromat filled with plants--including the nine plants of desire. A few mistakes later, the plants are stolen and Lila must make it up to the laundromat owner, Armand. So they travel to Mexico to locate replacements and Lila learns more about the plants and realizes how full her life can be.

I liked the book; however, I think you can see where plotting and symbols tighter. Still, Berwin shows a lot of promise and definitely offered up a unique twist with her focus on tropical plants.

On a side note, it's been pretty darn hot here and I don't have air conditioning (by choice--I love being warm!), so I could really feel her descriptions of the jungle and heat.

Rating: 6.5/10

More, more!

I've reached the end of Carol Goodman's writings--or at least her books. I'm a bit sad about that.



The Ghost Orchid is probably her best in terms of atmosphere. The story is set in an old mansion in New York, complete with decaying gardens and fountains. There's two plotlines going on: present day and a story from the Victorian Era. And, to be fair, an even earlier story from the 1700s...but Goodman ties them all together.

The story does focus on mediums and has a prominent ghost theme, which I don't care for, but I like Goodman so much I went for it anyway. Her imagery is lovely, though.

Sadly, my favorite part of the book is a short interview with Goodman at the end of the book and she mentions that her books do focus on water (Lake of Dead Languages, Seduction of Water, The Drowning Tree)--and that in Ghost, she purposely placed the water underground. I adored her interview--it was interesting, had great insight into her work--and how she works--and yeah, made me more of a fan.

Rating: 8.5/10

Trends

This winter is my Carol Goodman season, where I'm going to devour everything she's ever written. Yay for favorite new authors. Up next is the one that made her name: The Lake of Dead Languages.

The reviews for this book are accurate: it is fast-paced, with creepy atmosphere and secret after secret being revealed. Honestly, I was a bit surprised because I was able to pretty much figure everything out before Jane, the main character, did. Perhaps Goodman wanted us to know before Jane did? Because I'm honestly not that clever at mysteries.

Here's the summary, from Goodman's website: "Twenty years ago, Jane Hudson fled the Heart Lake School for Girls in the Adirondacks after a terrible tragedy. The week before her graduation, in that sheltered wonderland, three lives were taken, all victims of suicide. Only Jane was left to carry the burden of a mystery that has stayed hidden in the depths of Heart Lake for more than two decades. Now Jane has returned to the school as a Latin teacher, recently separated and hoping to make a fresh start with her young daughter. But ominous messages from the past dredge up forgotten memories. And young, troubled girls are beginning to die again--as piece by piece the shattering truth slowly floats to the surface..."

Seriously, the atmosphere just drips in the this story. I had the shivers by page 10 or so, when Jane starts discovering literal pieces of her past showing up, haunting and taunting her. While I think Goodman's writing has improved and I still like The Night Villa the best, The Lake is definitely a good read.

In good English major fashion, I've noticed a few trends in Goodman's writing. These includes: water as a major player, myths/fairy tales, a slightly older woman (think early 30s or so) and a younger woman who generally turns out to be trouble. And yet she manages to create a completely different story each time with these favorite themes. I'm intrigued to see if her other three books do, too.

Rating: 9/10

Labyrinth of the mind

Kristen Heitzmann does an excellent job of writing creepy, suspenseful novels. I've liked everything I've read by her and The Edge of Recall was no exception.

Tessa is a landscape architect, specializing in labyrinths. When she receives a phone call from an old friend/love requesting she join him on a special task, she reluctantly agrees to at least check out his offer. The project ends up being a unique labyrinth that she can't resist. So, she and the friend, Smith, end up working together...and possibly end up as more.

There's also a huge psychological aspect to the story. Tessa is haunted by nightmares of monsters and labyrinths. In a way, I was reminded of Susan Howatch's work (which is a compliment). There were deep-seated issues that she had to address and conquer in order to be a whole person again. Sometimes I did think she was a little crazy but it all works out in the end.

The story tied together nicely and yeah, creeped me out at parts. While this is labeled as Christian fiction, that shouldn't scare anyone away. It was part of the story and part of Tessa's healing, but there definitely was no preaching. And the labyrinth part was actually very interesting, too. I like learning about new topics and now I know a little bit more about mazes vs. labyrinths.

Rating: 8.5/10

The smartest monster ever

As I've been reading "light" fiction lately, I thought it was time to break out another classic. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was my pick.

I surprised myself by actually enjoying it. (What a cool cover! And yes, electricity was a big part of the book.)

First of all, I'm fascinated by Mary Shelley. She's the daughter of feminist authoress Mary Wollstonecraft and philosopher William Godwin. She married Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. She wrote Frankenstein when she was 18. Wow.

Anyway, the plot of this novel is familiar, so I won't go into that. Let me just say that the monster is not at all what I expected. He's very....introspective. And literate. And emotional.

Rating: 9/10

I'm off to Tennessee tomorrow, but I've packed my bags full of good reading. Here's hoping I get to read all of it!

Too boring

I picked out Sarah Andrews' In Cold Pursuit because it is set in Antarctica. I stopped reading it because it was so boring.


The cover is so gorgeous that it's a shame the copyeditors didn't pay more attention to what was inside it. Seriously, I have never seen such lousy proofing! Quote marks were ALL OVER the place. I honestly wonder if Andrews wrote the book without using any quote marks and then some poor entry-level editor had to go in and add them--and then really screwed it up.

The plot is this: a gorgeous, exotic-yet-very-waaaaay-too-self-conscious grad student goes to Antarctica to study ice. Her adviser is in jail, charged with murder, and she decides to clear his name. But she's not a detective--she doesn't fool anyone with her "questioning" and subtle "hi, we just met, but why didn't my grad adviser kill this random guy."

Also, the main character, Valena, is so preachy on the topic of global warming. I could handle some subtle work-ins of the topic, but nooooooooo, she preaches it to everyone. Seriously, she met this random guy (and that's another whole issue--way too many one-bit characters; I lost track of everyone) and starts talking about global warming. His responses were so lame--literally, Valena talked about greenhouse gases and his response was "oh, I guess that's a bad thing, huh?" and her response was, "Yeah, it is! And here's another page-long rant on the topic." Sarah Andrews, that's not dialogue. Psssh.

So, I don't recommend this book. It's boring, heavy-handed on global warming, poorly edited and just not worth your time. Even the description of Antarctica parts were dull and science-laden, which made me sad.

Rating: 4/10

I was afraid

So Anna Karenina may have put me off Russian novels for quite awhile. Therefore, I was a bit hesitant to read Eva Ibbotson's A Company of Swans. However, it only featured a few Russians, so no worries! When I opened the first page, I saw it was dedicated to Patricia Veryan, a fun Regency/Jacobian romance and mystery writer. I figured if they were friends, the book had to be good.

Gorgeous cover! I love tulle and ballet. It's so fluffy.

The story follows Harriet Morton, who grows up in a bleak home with her academic father and nasty old maid aunt. Her only bright point is her ballet class, which she thrives in. One day, a Russian choreographer (I think? maybe he's a manager?) offers her a position in his ballet corp. The company is going to travel to Brazil and the Amazon and offer ballet for the rich rubber barons. Harriet sneaks away and joins the company (and you cheer for her--Ibbotson does a great job at describing an ordinary--yet so bleak--life). Harriet ends up meeting (and falling in love with) Rom Verney, who just may have a connection to her old life. People chase after Harriet and there's drama. The book ends happily, though.

The book is so full of Nature--but in a good way! (See, I'm not totally against "Nature" books!) The descriptions are so vivid of the Amazon. It's fabulous. A Company of Swans had its funny moments, too. The secondary characters are great and actually add to the story.

One of my favorite aspects is the clever weaving Ibbotson does. Earlier, Harriet and Rom discuss someone else's opinion of Romeo and Juliet. Their conversation ties in beautifully at the end--and it involves a chicken feather. I like crafting in a story and there's definitely craftsmanship in her writing. Incidents aren't just random, but hold meaning. That's a sign of a good book.

On a side note, the book is generally labeled YA, but adults will definitely enjoy it, too.

Rating: 8/10

I have conquered!

It's official: I FINISHED The Mysteries of Udolpho. Yay yay yay yay yay. I am so very happy!

Here's the plot summary from Wikipedia: The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe follows the fortunes of Emily St. Aubert who suffers, among other misadventures, the death of her father, supernatural terrors in a gloomy castle, and the machinations of an Italian brigand. It is often cited as the archetypal Gothic novel.

Here's the main things that happen:
-People die
-Emily cries
-Emily looks at the scenery
-Emily almost faints
-Emily cries some more
-Emily writes poetry
-Emily gets scared

Okay, so I'm making fun of this book, but it really wasn't that bad, once I got beyond the first 200 pages (the book had 632 pages in teeny tiny print). It was dramatic and I may have muttered "you have GOT to be kidding me" and "oh my word" and "pirates? oh yes, of course, pirates" a few times to myself.

I felt as if I had to finish it because This Rough Magic mentioned it, the fun "Northanger Abbey" Masterpiece Theater made fun of it, and two other random books that I picked up and skimmed a few pages all happened to mention this book. I felt as if it was DESTINY for me to finish it.

I was only confused about one thing: I had heard before I read the book that Count Ugo was such a bad guy, etc., etc. But he was barely in the book. I didn't understand it all, but oh well, her step-uncle makes up for it!

Anyway, earlier I declared it to be the most dramatic book ever, and just as proof, here's a few of the key plot elements that happened in the last 200 pages or so:
-Murder
-Pirates
-Nunnery
-Kidnapping
-Shipwreck
-Girl is FINALLY reunited with her lover, but oh wait, he's now a depraved rake with a gambling problem and a mistress
-Oh wait, he's not---now they can get married!
-Poison

The book is a 18th century soap opera and the main character cries/faints waaaaaay too much but I'm glad I forced myself to read it.

Rating: 6/10


Psssst....you want to read it, too? Download it for free here--but you're crazy if you want to read this entire book on the computer.

Still slogging

I'm about halfway through The Mysteries of Udolpho. I just wish it was exciting as this cover makes you think it is:


Yeah, it's not. It should be called Emily Weeps: A Story of Emily's Fainting Fits and Melancholy Spells. The heroine, Emily, has literally cried/wept/had a tear fall from her cheek/faint 200 times. Wow. And I'm still not sure why it's a gothic masterpiece yet. Here's hoping I figure that out soon!

I'm really not that picky...

So, I generally like most books I read, or at least I like them enough to finish them. Alas, I finished The Girl of the Limberlost, but I hated every minute of it.

With the help of this book, I've realized something very important: I don't like books written between 1900-1920. I hate the slang, the style of writing and yeah, I've hated every book that I've read from that time period. P.G. Wodehouse, I'm sorry, the one book of yours that I tried to read (written in the '20s, I believe) was even more annoying than this one.

Take a look at that cover. Would you like to meet this girl? I wouldn't---she seems annoying, all about Nature (that's nature with a capital N) and moths. Yes, moths fill this girl's every thought. Good thing Elnora (that's her annoying name) meets a guy who feels the same way! Oh, no, wait, he's engaged. Oh whew, he breaks it off because Elnora is PERFECT and wouldn't break off their engagement at a dance like that other tramp did.

Yeah, this book was all about moths and how perfect the main character, Elnora, is. Her hardship is that her mom doesn't love her and that they're poor, yadda, yadda, yadda, oh wait, her mom actually does love her, they're not poor (which the mom never realized BECAUSE SHE NEVER ASKED FOR HER BANK BALANCE---omg), and if Elnora catches butterflies, caterpillars and freaking MOTHS, she can buy nice clothes and the friendship of her peers. Oh, and yes, everyone loves Elnora because she's PERFECT. I can't stand perfect heroines. And I'm just not into nature. Some of L.M. Montgomery's books even go a little over the top on nature descriptions, but I can handle those because she's such a beautiful writer.

Suffice it to say that the only reason I finished this book is to see what the plot was, because I had no idea where the book was going. Her "hardship" (being poor) was solved in the first few chapters. I should've quit there. Take my advice and don't start this book (unless you're into moths and all that crap).

Rating: 4/10