The Stepsister Scheme - Jim C. Hines

Absolutely a fantastic book! There are few books that I can't put down and must burn the midnight, early dawn and into daytime oil to finish in one sitting. This was one of them. The Princess' stories are straight out of Grimm and NOT Disney. If you're looking for sweet and light, look elsewhere. If you're looking for good plot, good writing and good character development, look no further, The Stepsister Scheme has it all. Light humor and Dark delights, this book will draw you in and won't spit you back out until you're finished. 5 of 5 berries for this one. You DON'T want to miss it!

Isle of View

I have been reading Isle of View-A history of South Manitou Island by Charles M. Anderson. It gives a personal history of the South Manitou Island in Lake Michigan. It tells of life on an island in a different era. There are stories about how life was both from historical, practical day to day and personal point of view. It is from an era when people lived on the island instead of it being a part of the national park system. Some of the personal stories are very funny like when the author's sister's soup exploded at the one room school house they went to. For those of you who love local history, this is a 5 out of 5 Pith helmets.

Playing With Fire by Katie MacAlister

(Katie MacAlister is also known as Katie Maxwell)

Playing With Fire opens up as May Northcott is attempting to steal an artifact from a powerful Mage. She has a particular aptitude for this since she is a Doppelganger, a being created when another being decides to forfeit one of their character traits to a Demon Lord. (in May's case it's her "twin sister's" common sense) Gabriel Tauhou is the Silver Wyvern, the leader of the Silver sept of Dragons. I think I'll leave the rest for y'all to find out. :o)

This is the first book in a new series by Ms. MacAlister and it promises to be good fun. There is some sex in the book and it's explicit but it's FAR less so than say LKH. MacAlister doesn't shy from calling a penis a penis either and I was SO very glad that I didn't have to giggle over phrases like "throbbing rod of love" or "his pulsing love spear".

The book is billed as a Paranormal Romance but, although there is romance in the book, the story is far more than just that. I'm really enjoying how Ms. MacAlister is fleshing out her Otherworld creation and Playing With Fire got me to be interested in another series of hers, The Aisling Grey, Guardian books. (I'd recommend reading those first if you don't want to be spoiled for the ending of the first book. And possibly others in the series as well.) Aisling and her crowd make more than just an appearance in this book.

As I said, this book is more than just a Para-Romance. It has intrigue, comedy and some fantastic Urban Fantasy elements as well. Fans of Ms. MacAlister's "Goth Faire" books (written as Katie Maxwell) would find these to be a grown up version...minus the faire. (sadly minus the faire.)

Besides, where else can you find a 3000 year old demon cum Newfie named Jim that is a canine version of Bob the Skull? (see Jim Butcher) (Jim first appears in You Slay Me, the first Aisling Grey, Guardian novel and he has some FANTASTICALLY hillarious lines in that!)

Recommend these books for anyone wanting a fun light fast read who doesn't mind reading the word "penis" during a sex scene.

4.5 berries for this one folks!

Dangerous Book for Boys

This book has been out for a while and even though I am a bit old for it, I was curious about the book. It is an interesting book and a fantastic idea book for boys and girls. I put in both since I think ther is stuff in it that would interest boys and girls even though it is aimed at boys. It is a combination of information abd activites for boys. It covers a lot of area and would serve as a way to get boys interested in the world around them. I was impressed with the reading list, the activites and the whole book. I was also impressed that it dared have the ten commandments in it when they have lost some of their popularity.

5 out of 5 Pith Helmits.
Read it with a boy that is in your life.

"Fables" Graphic Novel Series

The "Fables" Graphic Novel Series by Bill Willingham are fantastic. The first book, "Fables : legends in Exile" starts out with a murder mystery, and quickly pulls the reader in. (No, I won't tell you whodunit, either.)
Eventually the reader learns that all the "fables", from a thousand different fairytale worlds, have moved to modern-day New York City (or a Farm in Upstate New York for the non-human Fables) and are living there, while their non-fable neighbors (called "Mundys", presumably for "mundanes") are in complete ignorance.
The scripts are excellent, but you really DO need to read ALL the books in the Fables series (currently Fables 1-11, plus "1001 Nights of Snowfall") to get the full story and understand why certain things happen the way they do.

Quite a few liberties are taken with various characters and their backstories (including the "compression" of Snow White from "Snow White & Rose Red" and the Snow White from "...and the Seven Dwarfs" into one character), but the stories are written in such a way that it works.

There's a good story, quite a bit of humor, and good illustrations. Excellent series.
4.5 out of 5 bones.

Accidental Sorcerer by K.E. Mills (Karen Miller) Book 1 of the Rogue Wizard Trilogy

Accidental Sorcerer starts of a little heavy, ponderous, wordy. However, after the first couple of chapters are over, the book fairly soars with fun, intrigue and danger.

Gerald Dunwoody, a Third grade level wizard, isn't having a good day at his current job. In fact, it's such a BAD day, Gerald gets fired...

And then the adventure begins.

Accidental Sorcerer is a sort of cross between Harry Dresden and light epic fantasy. Not quite as "dark" as the Dresden Files, there's still enough intrigue, danger and laughs to capture any Harry fan.

I really enjoyed this book. Ms. Mills (Miller) has started a new trilogy with a bang (and a pop!) that has left me hungering for the next book, Witches Incorporated. (due out June 30th!)

4 out of 5 berries for this one!

Wisconsin Lore and Legend I & II

I was combing through the shelves of one of my favorite local used bookstores and I found two neat books- Wisconsin Lore and Legends Volume I &II. They are a collection of newspaper comics done very much in the same genre of Ripley Believe it or Not! but focused on Wisconsin. A very enjoyable and quick read. Too quick. They are a bit on the thin side but otherwise very enjoyable read. Try them out if you can find them.

4 out of 5 pith helmets.

The Convienent Marriage by Georgette Heyer

I liked this book even though it felt a bit disjointed at times. Horry wasn't the lovable heroine you come to expect from Heyer's oeuvre, but she was very likable. Rule was less obviously "masterful" than other Heyer heroes, but you never got the sense that he couldn't BE masterful if he wanted to be so. I found him to be extremely likable and I think he might be one of my all time favorite romantic heroes. I wish he'd have had even more "page time".

I can't express just WHY I liked this book. In fact, I really feel like I shouldn't have liked it because it WAS so very disjointed. The reader sometimes gets lost as conversations wind around things that have nothing to do with the plot and events happen that leave you wondering "what??"

But that might be just why I like it. All in all I'd say, if you're a fan of Heyer and you haven't read The Convenient Marriage, do so. If you're just getting into Heyer's works, save this one for later. Start with Frederika or Cotillion.

4 berries out of 5.

Made From Scratch: Discovering the Pleasures of a Handmade Life by Jenna Woginrich

A delightful book filled with the author's experiences in creating her own homemade life and details on how YOU can create your own, Made from Scratch is probably one of the better books I've read in a long time. (not including the rereads I've been doing because I haven't been able to find something NEW that interests me!)

Ms. Woginrich takes us along on her journey in discovering the joys of raising chickens, keeping bees, dog sledding, creating music and vegetable gardening among other things. The chapters are short and end with information on how you can get started as well.

The book is well put together, funny and at times a bit sad as well. The author can be a bit..."granola" at times but this wasn't as off putting as it could have been. A fact for which I am MOST grateful and I am hoping that Ms. Woginrich will be putting out another book with more of her reminisces about her homesteading efforts. Her words are truly inspiring.

You can visit her farm at www.coldantlerfarm.blogspot.com

Giving this 4 out of 5 berries.