From deep fo the valley filled with fatigue, exhaustion and feebleness rise the spark of hope and endurance.
I want this day to be a turning point for me and my addiction: Books!
ENJOY READING ....
Edi's Guidepost
The Lighthouse
News and information straight from the horse's mouth by Lighthouse keeper ediFanoB
- Reading progress
- Bits and pieces
The latest report from our shelf shop net correspondent Bona
- Boooks
- What a book addict needs
Messages from the depths of the blogosphere by spheronaut Bona Fide
- Old news
- A home for books
- Titanic week
- Above the clouds
- Fantasy metal
Movies
Remote control junkie Fide and his zapping highlights
- Pirate of the year
Quotes
The member of the house of quotes and a quote himself the Keeper of the minutes ( we call him Kotm) fished for you
German proverbs, sayings and idiomsSilly, intelligent
The Lighthouse
I continued reading on a good level last week. 525 pages is a bit less than the week before but still 35 pages above my expectations.
I finished
no book.
I'm
- 603 pages in The Sentient Fire (e-book, 2011) [where to buy] by D.W. Hawkins which is Book One Of The Seven Signs.
Only 182 pages left. There will be much more to tell in the second book. An impressive epic fantasy debut.
- 260 pages in Into the Valley of Death (ARC) by A. L. Berridge
More than 200 pages is a good progress. A. L. Berridge is an excellent writer. It seems like she had been an eye witness ....
- I could not withstand to start reading The Alchemist of Souls [ISBN-13: 978-0857662149] by Anne Lyle
The following two months - April and May - will be exhausting, relaxing, joyful and satisfying at the same time. There is a business trip to UK in April , I take part in two blog tours, two weeks at the Baltic sea coast, an awesome blog week in May, my wifes' birthday, Easter, UPDATE:
It can't be more interesting. End of May I will be either my own rising star or my own asteriod.
What's about you? Will you be as busy as I am?
Enjoy your weekend ....
Books
Dear readers, I'm the one to tell you about books - only books? What about novellas and other stuff? My name is Bona. I scour shelves, shops and the net for books. If you call me a book whore I would not gainsay you. But be aware I have my own, sometimes elusive taste.
Boooks - you think it is a mispelling? I added one "o" in order to show that I received three real books last week. I did not expect two of them because they have been published earlier than expected.
Let me start with a book which I discovered at the 2011 Frankfurt Book Fair. The Mammoth Book of Steampunk (April 2012) [ISBN-13: 978-1849017367] edited by Sean Wallace.
"Over 30 tales of extraordinary airships, clockwork automatons, intrepid adventurers, corsets and goggles from the best steam punk writers.30 stories means 30 authors to discover. And I must admit that even the list of contributors contains authors which I know by name but never read a book. This year I read/will read a lot of really long stories. So this book will be a diversion.
An anthology focusing on newer elements of steampunk, one which deconstructs the staples of the genre and expands on them, rather than simply repeating them, with a greater spread both in terms of location and character. This is steampunk with a modern, post-colonial sensibility.
Contributors include: Jeff VanderMeer,Caitlin Kiernan Paul Di Filippo, Mary Robinette Kowal, Jay Lake, Cherie Priest, Cat Rambo, Ekaterina Sedia, Catherynne M. Valente, Genevieve Valentine and many more. [Source]
Before I forget: April 5th isthe release date of the The Mammoth Book of Steampunk ebook edition [ISBN-13: 978-1780331355; ASIN: B005RZB5IO]. More food for your reader.
In January 2012 I posted about books I have ordered in advance.
The Alchemist of Souls (pb, 2012, UK) [ISBN-13: 978-0857662149] by Anne Lyle is one of these books.
"When Tudor explorers returned from the New World, they brought back a name out of half-forgotten Viking legend: skraylings. Red-sailed ships followed in the explorers’ wake, bringing Native American goods—and a skrayling ambassador—to London. But what do these seemingly magical beings really want in Elizabeth I’s capital? Mal Catlyn, a down-at-heel swordsman, is seconded to the ambassador’s bodyguard, but assassination attempts are the least of his problems. What he learns about the skraylings and their unholy powers could cost England her new ally—and Mal his soul." [Source]There are books where I can't withstand to put in my nose immediately and belongs to them. What I read so far is really, really good (to be honest that is definitely an understatement. It would not be a lie when I would write excellent in bold captial letters. But I think in this way it arouse more interest. In case you don't believe me then read the first three chapters for free HERE.
The third and final book I received last week covers my love of fantasy, history and archers. The bow is my favorite weapon in games like Skyrim. As you may know I buy mostly paperbacks and of course digital copies since I own an eReader. Therefore it can take a while until I get a book. The hardback of Hereward (pb, 2012, UK) [ISBN-13: 978-0857662149] by James Wilde has been published in 2011. And now I got my paperback copy.
For more information about Hereward read APOCALYPSE THEN by James Wilde over at the Historytellers. When it comes to historical fiction I trust the Falcata Times reviews. And the Hereward review is no exception."1062, a time many fear is the End of Days. With the English King Edward heirless and ailing, across the grey seas in Normandy the brutal William the Bastard waits for the moment when he can drown England in a tide of blood.The ravens of war are gathering. But as the king's closest advisors scheme and squabble amongst themselves, hopes of resisting the naked ambition of the Norman duke come to rest with just one man: Hereward...
To some a ruthless warrior and master tactician, to others a devil in human form, Hereward is as adept in the art of slaughter as the foes that gather to claim England's throne. But in his country's hour of greatest need, his enemies at Court have made him outlaw. To stay alive - and a freeman - he must carve a bloody swathe from the frozen hills of Northumbria to Flanders' fields and the fenlands of East Anglia.
The tale of a man whose deeds will become the stuff of legend, this is also the story of two mismatched allies: Hereward the man of war, and Alric, a man of peace, a monk. One will risk everything to save the land he loves, the other to save his friend's soul... [Source]
What does a book addicted need? The answer is quite simple: BOOKS!
Today I want to show you two books which are directly linked to the books I received last week.
To my pleasure the story of Hereward continues in The Devil's Army (pb, July 2012, UK) [ISBN-13: 978-0593065013] by James Wilde.
"1067 - the Battle of Hastings has been lost and the iron gauntlet of William the Bastard slowly throttles the life out of England. The length and breadth of the country, villages are burned and men, women and children put to the sword as the brutal new King attempts to impose his cruel will upon the unruly nation.
One man stands in the way of the Norman duke's savage campaign: Hereward, warrior, master tactician, and the last hope of the English. As adept at slaughter as the imposter who sits on the throne, he has vowed to meet blood with blood and fire with fire.
In a Fenlands fortress of water and wild wood, his resistance is simmering. His army of outcasts grows by the day - a devil's army that comes with the mists and the night and leaves only bones in its wake.
But William is not one to be cowed. Under the command of his ruthless deputy, Ivo Taillebois - known and feared as 'the Butcher' - the invaders will do whatever it takes to crush these rebels, even if it means burning all England to the ground.
Here then is the tale of the bloodiest rebellion England has ever known...the beginning of an epic battle that will echo down the years..." [Source]
I talked about The Mammoth Book of Steampunk above. I know that Constable & Robinson has a growing Mammoth Books section. They of more than 100 titles. I could not resist and opened the link again.
Since I started to read the original Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle my interest in Sherlock Holmes is growing. And it seems I'm not the only one.
The Mammoth Book of New Sherlock Holmes Adventures (pb, 2011) [ISBN-13: 978-1845299262, Kindle edition ASIN: B003DQ4WN4] edited by Mike Ashley is one of the current mammoth book highlights.
"The biggest collection of new Sherlock Holmes stories since Sir Arthur Conan Doyle laid down his pen.The biggest collection of new Sherlock Holmes stories since Sir Arthur Conan Doyle laid down his pen - nearly 200,000 words of superb fiction featuring the Great Detective by masters of historical crime, including Stephen Baxter, H. R. F. Keating, Michael Moorcock and Amy Myers.
Almost all the stories here are specially written; the cases presented in the order in which Holmes solved them. The result is a new life of Sherlock Holmes, with a continuous narrative alongside the stories that identifies the 'gaps' in the canon and places the new and hitherto unrecorded cases in sequence. Plus an invaluable complete Holmes chronology" [Source]
That reminds me that I still have to think about which books I want to read during my holiday end of April. But that is another story.....
No more today, see you next week ......
Blogosphere
Hey, I'm Bona Fide. I just came back from my last foray through the blogosphere. What can you expect from me? I tell you: Everything from Art to Fart as long as there is any faint connection to books. And here is some honey from the beehive blogosphere...
What do I mean by old news? With one weekly post it is impossible for me to be up to date. Of course I follow other blogs in order to be up to date. But there are news which are of some importance for me and therefore I like to share with you.
Leviathan's Wake by James S. A Corey (pen name of Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck) has been my 2011 top read.
Therefore Some Big News About The Expanse by Daniel Abraham lead me jump around the table. I do not want to quote the whole post (just follow the link for that). The pure facts will easily explain my reaction:
- Caliban's War which is the second book in the Expanse series will be published in June 2012
- Abaddon's Gate which is the third book in the Expanse series has been written
- Publisher Orbit has signed on for three more Expanse novels and five novellas set in the same universe!
Be sure I come back to you with more old news next week.
Now the time has come to show you some pictures. Most readers have space problems when it comes to books. Maybe you and I need some fresh ideas. So follow me again to the impressive Dark Roasted Blend blog. I'm sure Bookshelf Heaven: Awesome "Containers" for Books will give you some inspiration.
A hundred years ago a famous ship hit an iceberg and sank. I'm sure you know a talk about the RMS Titanic. There will be an interesting Titanic Week (including book reviews historical background and more) from April 9 to April 15 over at Historical Tapestry.
I live near the Frankfurt Airport (just 20 minutes by car). So you can imagine that there are a lot of vapour trails in the sky. Do you know how impressive these trails look when you see them from board of a plane? Have a look at Jets & Clouds Effects: An Ephemeral Sky Show over at Dark Roasted Blend.
Fantasy and metal music - does that fit together? I'm not the only one who would answer this question with a distinct YES.
Thanks to Jamie Gibbs who is the guy behind Mithril Wisdom we will get more information about it. He takes part in
Jamie Gibbs:
"This year my theme is the A to Z of fantasy metal. That means that for each letter of the alphabet I'll be showing an artist, album or song that I feel particularly highlights a certain aspect of power metal, folk metal, symphonic metal or progressive metal that ties in with the fantasy genre." [Source]
I will definitely read each post. Read the full introduction HERE.
That's it for today. Come back next week for more ......Thanks to Jamie Gibbs who is the guy behind Mithril Wisdom we will get more information about it. He takes part in
Jamie Gibbs:"This year my theme is the A to Z of fantasy metal. That means that for each letter of the alphabet I'll be showing an artist, album or song that I feel particularly highlights a certain aspect of power metal, folk metal, symphonic metal or progressive metal that ties in with the fantasy genre." [Source]
I will definitely read each post. Read the full introduction HERE.
Movies
Hey, it's me Fide. I'm a remote control professional. I'm that fast that I can watch two movies at the same time.
But don't worry. All the stuff I present to you will be shown at normal speed.
After a long time my wife and went to to cinema tonight. We saw a movie which will hit the cinemas over the pond in April.
I'm a big fan of Shaun the Sheep
and all the other creations from the Aardman Studios.
It is unbelievable what the do with clay.
And that is what we watched tonight: The Pirates!
We have had a lot of fun. Excellent characters from pirates overCharles Darwin to the Queen and to forget the monkey who express himself with words on plates as in a silent movie and the masked female pirate. The locations are detailed. London looks great.
That's all for today. See you next time....
Quotes
I 'm the Keeper of the minutes. But I don't mind when you call me Kotm. No, no. I don't explain to you how to pronounce.
Silly, intelligent - add a few words and you get a quote which makes sense:
"If people never did silly things, nothing intelligent would ever get done.”
Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austrian philosopher (1889 - 1951)
Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austrian philosopher (1889 - 1951)
