It's been a long, long time since I posted any book reviews. It's not that I've been a lazy reader... just a lazy blogger. LOL! Here is a catch-up on the books I've read the last few months.
"Cobra King of Kathmandu" is the third book in the Children of the Lamp series. It has taken me forever to finish this book! I think it was because I really didn't care for book two, "The Blue Djinn." However, once I got into this book, I really enjoyed it. It was much better than "The Blue Djinn." John and Philippa, the twin djinn, help their friend Dybbuk solve a mystery that led to the murder for Dybbuk's friend. I already have the 4th book in this series on order.
I've been hearing about this book for a while, but it was a long time before I finally picked it up. I enjoyed "Twilight" very much! In fact I loved it. Vampire boyfriends in a sappy teenage love story? You bet! LOL! My daughter (who is not a reader) finished this book in two days... she loved it. What extremes will Bella go to to stay with her vampire boyfriend, Edward? What extremes will Edward go to in order to keep Bella safe? What will Bella's "human" boyfriend, Jacob, do to keep Bella alive? You will have to read it to find out. I must admit that "New Moon" irritated me! I found Bella very irritating in that she was so helpless and whiny... but then she is a teenager... LOL!
The Dark is Rising series was written back in the 1970's. It has taken me until now to pick it up. The writing style is very dated. The story seemed to talk down to the reader. It's hard to explain. Imagine the Boxcar Children hunting for the holy grail, and you have "Over Sea, Under Stone." "Dark is Rising" was a lot more interesting and engaging. I may read the other books in this series, just not right away.
"Dragon Slippers" was a fun book! Dragons unlike popular opinion do not hoard treasure. They are collectors... this particular dragon happens to collect ladies footwear. LOL! So ensues a fight between dragons and humans that has a happy ending.
"Wicked Lovely" is a dark fairie book. The evil winter fairies and the good summer fairies are in conflict. The Summer King must find his mortal queen to gain full use of his powers before winter takes over the world. Unfortunately for him, his chosen mortal (a Goth girl) doesn't want to be a fairie queen. This book was just okay. I'd only recommend it to someone who could not get enough of fairies.
I checked this book out of the library because there was a story in it by Stephanie Meyers (the author of Twilight). It looks like the title is "Hello", but it is "Prom Nights from Hell"! This is a collection of bizarre and sometimes disturbing short stories. Definitely give this one a miss.
I picked this up because of the great reviews it got on Amazon. "Magic Lands and the Journey Beyond" has an intriguing title. However the "magic lands" is modern civilization. This is the journey of a young man's trip from his small village into the Beyond as a rite of passage to manhood. There he meets a girl and they run away together. I read this one aloud to the hubby and kids... we all breathed a sigh of relief when I was through. The writing style is very poetic. It's very hard to read and hard to listen to... akin to reading a Shakespearen play. Maybe we're not sophisticated enough to appreciate the story, but my whole family disliked this book. Sorry to end on such a sour note...
I had aches in my knee after running. But it's not the knee, it's the ligament that runs down the outside of the thigh from the hip to the shin. When the band comes near the knee, it becomes narrow, and rubbing can occur between the band and the bone. This causes inflammation and pain. ITB syndrome can result from any activity that causes the leg to turn inward repeatedly. This can include wearing worn-out shoes, running downhill or on banked surfaces, running too many track workouts in the same direction, or simply running too many miles. Unlike many overuse injuries, however, ITB pain afflicts seasoned runners almost as much as beginners.
