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melwilBook 34: Kristy and the Vampires by Ann M. Martin
"I gasped. There was a heavy white card inside, with writing all over it. And the writing looked like it had been done in blood!"
As I think I've mentioned before, I'm not a huge fan of the BSC Mysteries. But this one is better than most.
Kristy is hired to look after Derek Masters on the set of a television movie being shot in Stoneybrook - Little Vampires. Suddenly things start going wrong, with accidents occuring whenever Derek is around. The Baby-Sitters decide to solve this mystery, to protect Derek and make sure that the movie can be finished.
Derek is a good character, and I like seeing him back again. Kristy seems a more natural choice for narrator than some of the mysteries - she's the type to want to solve problems when they occur. The movie idea is sweet, though I spotted the 'baddie' miles away.
All in all a 3 out of 5.
Book 35: Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters
"She looked, I suppose, like a very pretty boy, for her face was a perfect oval, and her eyes were large and dark at the lashes, and her lips were rosy and full. Her figure, too, was boy-like and slender - yet rounded, vaguely but unmistakably, at the bosom, the stomach, and the hips, in a way no real boys ever was; and her shoes, I noticed after a moment, had two-inch heels to them."
This was a funny read, because I'd previously watched about half of the mini series, before putting it away for one reason or another. Therefore when I started reading the book, the distinctive accents remained in my head, giving it a little more 'oomph' than I expected. Then when I had almost finished the book, I watched the mini-series all the way through, so I finished them almost together, giving an interesting bent to the 'which is better' question.
The book tells the story of Nan Astley, who falls in love with male impersonator Kitty Butler when the latter begins performing at the local music hall. Nan becomes her dresser and her friend, eventually following Kitty from the oyster-parlours of Whistable to the bright lights of London. Then, as a way of making Kitty distinctive, Nan joins the act.
Tipping the Velvet moves from the hidden relationship between these two, to Nan working on the streets, to working for a rich sapphic socialite, to falling quietly in love with a labour activist. Personally I preferred the theatre parts of the book, with the wild emotions and interesting people. The ending of the book seems a little forced to me, when Nan comes back into contact with all the women she has 'been with'. The mini series does it better, with Nan just having to make a choice between her new love and her oldest love.
A 4 out of 5.
Women Writers Book Review
Siren Song: New York Times Review (May need to be registered to see it)
Book 36: The Birth of a New Moon by Laurie R. King
"A delicate sliver of bright new moon hung above her in the cloudless expanse of black sky, sharp-edges and brilliant among the hard points of a million stars. A new moon was a good omen, Anne decided - at least, Ana Wakefield was sure to think so."
Anne Waverly is a religion professor, liked and respected by her interested students. What they don't know is that she has another life, helping the FBI by infiltrating religious cults. After declaring that she won't take on any more assignments she is convinced to become Ana - and enter the Change cult.
This the the second non-Mary Russell Laurie R. King book I've read this year. This was was a quieter thriller than the Kate Martinelli book, with the threat always hanging around, but not becoming huge and overwhelming until crucial moments. Anne Waverly is an interesting character, prickly but kind, able to suspend herself when she needs to take on a new persona. Her past informs her actions in an entirely 'logical' way.
The other characters, from Glenn the FBI man, to Jason and Dulcie, the damaged children Ana befriends, are also interesting. One of Laurie R Kings greatest strengths is the richness of her language and this is no exception. An excellent read.
A 4.5 out of 5
Book 37: Bee Season by Myla Goldberg
"From the first time she steps to the microphone the words are there, radiant as neon. She hears the word and suddenly it is inside her head, translated from sound into physical form."
This was one of the most suprising reads I have ever come across. What looked like a book about a previously undistiguished girl who rises to the high reaches of the National Spelling Bee, and the family around her; turned out to be a book about Jewish Mysticism, Hare Krisnas, kleptomania, responsibilities to parents and children and the notion of perfectomundo.
Eliza Naumann is the odd one out in her family. Her father is a scholar and cantor at the local temple, her mother a brilliant lawyer and her brother was identified early for the Talented and Gifted program. In second grade Eliza is passed over for the TAG program by the classics educated teacher who fancies herself as working for the Fates. But in fourth grade she wins her class spelling bee, followed by the school bee, setting forth a series of events that will tear her family apart.
The book is written in a light manner, despite the heavy material, making it easy to rip through. It slips easily from one point of view to another, and back again. My only quibble is that occasionally it is difficult to tell if an event has happened in the past or present as the book is written all in present tense. The ending left me gobsmacked - I literally yelled out.
If you haven't read this book I suggest that you try to find it. Apparently it's been turned into a movie, which I'll be interested to see.
The Random House page including an excerpt
A readers group review/discussion Warning - gives away the ending!!!!
Bibliofemme review
"I gasped. There was a heavy white card inside, with writing all over it. And the writing looked like it had been done in blood!"
As I think I've mentioned before, I'm not a huge fan of the BSC Mysteries. But this one is better than most.
Kristy is hired to look after Derek Masters on the set of a television movie being shot in Stoneybrook - Little Vampires. Suddenly things start going wrong, with accidents occuring whenever Derek is around. The Baby-Sitters decide to solve this mystery, to protect Derek and make sure that the movie can be finished.
Derek is a good character, and I like seeing him back again. Kristy seems a more natural choice for narrator than some of the mysteries - she's the type to want to solve problems when they occur. The movie idea is sweet, though I spotted the 'baddie' miles away.
All in all a 3 out of 5.
Book 35: Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters
"She looked, I suppose, like a very pretty boy, for her face was a perfect oval, and her eyes were large and dark at the lashes, and her lips were rosy and full. Her figure, too, was boy-like and slender - yet rounded, vaguely but unmistakably, at the bosom, the stomach, and the hips, in a way no real boys ever was; and her shoes, I noticed after a moment, had two-inch heels to them."
This was a funny read, because I'd previously watched about half of the mini series, before putting it away for one reason or another. Therefore when I started reading the book, the distinctive accents remained in my head, giving it a little more 'oomph' than I expected. Then when I had almost finished the book, I watched the mini-series all the way through, so I finished them almost together, giving an interesting bent to the 'which is better' question.
The book tells the story of Nan Astley, who falls in love with male impersonator Kitty Butler when the latter begins performing at the local music hall. Nan becomes her dresser and her friend, eventually following Kitty from the oyster-parlours of Whistable to the bright lights of London. Then, as a way of making Kitty distinctive, Nan joins the act.
Tipping the Velvet moves from the hidden relationship between these two, to Nan working on the streets, to working for a rich sapphic socialite, to falling quietly in love with a labour activist. Personally I preferred the theatre parts of the book, with the wild emotions and interesting people. The ending of the book seems a little forced to me, when Nan comes back into contact with all the women she has 'been with'. The mini series does it better, with Nan just having to make a choice between her new love and her oldest love.
A 4 out of 5.
Women Writers Book Review
Siren Song: New York Times Review (May need to be registered to see it)
Book 36: The Birth of a New Moon by Laurie R. King
"A delicate sliver of bright new moon hung above her in the cloudless expanse of black sky, sharp-edges and brilliant among the hard points of a million stars. A new moon was a good omen, Anne decided - at least, Ana Wakefield was sure to think so."
Anne Waverly is a religion professor, liked and respected by her interested students. What they don't know is that she has another life, helping the FBI by infiltrating religious cults. After declaring that she won't take on any more assignments she is convinced to become Ana - and enter the Change cult.
This the the second non-Mary Russell Laurie R. King book I've read this year. This was was a quieter thriller than the Kate Martinelli book, with the threat always hanging around, but not becoming huge and overwhelming until crucial moments. Anne Waverly is an interesting character, prickly but kind, able to suspend herself when she needs to take on a new persona. Her past informs her actions in an entirely 'logical' way.
The other characters, from Glenn the FBI man, to Jason and Dulcie, the damaged children Ana befriends, are also interesting. One of Laurie R Kings greatest strengths is the richness of her language and this is no exception. An excellent read.
A 4.5 out of 5
Book 37: Bee Season by Myla Goldberg
"From the first time she steps to the microphone the words are there, radiant as neon. She hears the word and suddenly it is inside her head, translated from sound into physical form."
This was one of the most suprising reads I have ever come across. What looked like a book about a previously undistiguished girl who rises to the high reaches of the National Spelling Bee, and the family around her; turned out to be a book about Jewish Mysticism, Hare Krisnas, kleptomania, responsibilities to parents and children and the notion of perfectomundo.
Eliza Naumann is the odd one out in her family. Her father is a scholar and cantor at the local temple, her mother a brilliant lawyer and her brother was identified early for the Talented and Gifted program. In second grade Eliza is passed over for the TAG program by the classics educated teacher who fancies herself as working for the Fates. But in fourth grade she wins her class spelling bee, followed by the school bee, setting forth a series of events that will tear her family apart.
The book is written in a light manner, despite the heavy material, making it easy to rip through. It slips easily from one point of view to another, and back again. My only quibble is that occasionally it is difficult to tell if an event has happened in the past or present as the book is written all in present tense. The ending left me gobsmacked - I literally yelled out.
If you haven't read this book I suggest that you try to find it. Apparently it's been turned into a movie, which I'll be interested to see.
The Random House page including an excerpt
A readers group review/discussion Warning - gives away the ending!!!!
Bibliofemme review
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no subject
on 2006-02-08 10:19 am (UTC)I would, however, like to borrow the DVDs from you one of these days, as I have a minor crush on Anna Chancellor, and Keeley Hawes always looks so Russellesque in the stills.
no subject
on 2006-02-08 01:54 pm (UTC)Ah, the Babysitters Club. Good times.