On My Wishlist #9

On My Wishlist is a weekly meme hosted at Cosy Books. Book Chick City started the meme. It’s where we share the books that are still on our wishlists, but that we have so far managed to resist the temptation to add to our TBR stacks.

For some of us, temptation can only be resisted for so long.

The book at the top of my wishlist is Nalini Singh’s Tangle of Need. Let me put it this way. I need this book. I’ve needed it ever since I finished the last book in her Psy-Changeling series (Kiss of Snow) last November. I don’t know what it is about these, because the description of the first book, Slave to Sensation, really didn’t grab me. But a friend made me read it anyway, and she was right. I’ve been hooked ever since.

Something in the combination of near-future earth, shapeshifters, ESP, convoluted politics, and that slight touch of SFR gets me every time.

However, I still think the US covers are abominable. Absolutely horrible. And Tangle of Need takes the prize for worst of the litter. Which I know I’ve said before.

Speaking of science fiction, or one of its cousins, urban fantasy, I really want to read The Minority Council by Kate Griffin. What I actually want is to read the whole Matthew Swift series. Minority Council is book four. This series starts with The Midnight Mayor, and it’s about an alternate London, in a way like Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere and Simon R. Green’s Nightside. A supernatural London that requires preternatural defenses and a mayor with extra-special powers. After all, even in our world, there are legends that if the ravens ever leave the Tower of London, the kingdom will fall.

So, that’s my wishlist. Well, that’s a bit of my wishlist. It keeps growing and growing. This was just a teaser. After all, I have to save some for next week!

What’s on your wishlist?

 

On My Wishlist #8

On My Wishlist is a weekly meme that’s currently hosted at Cosy Books, but was started at Book Chick City. It’s a way for us to share the books we’re drooling over, at least in the hypothetical sense. (Actual drool on real books is messy and disgusting. Actual drool on ebooks may result in failure of the device. Yes, I’m being snarky. I’ve been watching too much House recently.)

About those books I’m wishing for…

Midnight Rescue by Elle Kennedy just looks incredibly cool. I saw reviews at Fiction Vixen and The Book Pushers and I just want it. The story is a combination of military romance and romantic suspense. It sounds like something along the lines of Suzanne Brockmann’s recent Born in Darkness or M.L. Buchman’s The Night Is Mine, both of which I absolutely loved.  Except that Midnight Rescue involves both a band of mercenary male soldiers and a separate band of mercenary female soldiers who are going to have to learn to fight side-by-side. And eventually pair off as the series goes on.

Speaking of books I just plain want, I also want Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness. This is the sequel to A Discovery of Witches, her breakout debut from early last year. Everyone wants this one, so I’m not alone. The first book was an absolutely spellbinding combination of history, alchemy, witchcraft and romance. I expect the second book to be the same, as the forbidden lovers, vampire Matthew and witch Diana, continue their tale in Elizabethan London. It sounds like the perfect summer read. (I’ll admit, I’ve requested this one twice from Penguin through NetGalley, and haven’t received an answer. I’m keeping my fingers that the third time proves the charm!)

The summer book announcements are starting to heat up. Just think of the number of books we could all be adding to our wishlists! What’s on your wishlist this week?

 

On My Wishlist #7

On My Wishlist is currently hosted at Cosy Books, but was started at Book Chick City. It’s a way for us to share the books we’re wishing, wishing, wishing for, whether they’re already out (maybe long out) but we haven’t indulged ourselves yet, or they’re due sometime in the near or distant future, and we’re trying to resist purchasing them.

Or maybe resistance is futile, and they will be absorbed into our towering TBR piles.

Speaking of books where the resistance is probably futile, at least for me, it’s May, and that means its time for another installment of the Perils of Pauline…wait, scratch that, I meant another chapter in the continuing saga of the life of Sookie Stackhouse. It’s just not May without another Sookie book. This year Sookie is Deadlocked.

I think I’ve read an interview with Ms. Harris (unfortunately no relation at ALL) that there are a limited number of books left in this series. While I’m sad, it’s probably getting close to time. I’d rather be left wanting a little bit more, than watching the train wreck grind on a la Anita Blake.

The other book that I just plain want to read is Blood and Bullets by James R. Tuck. All the reviews have been so awesome and I love urban fantasy. And, I miss Harry Dresden. I like the idea of reading an Urban Fantasy series with a male narrator again. Although it sounds like Deacon Chalk gets his act together considerably faster than Harry did, which is probably a good thing, Chalk’s circumstances start out way worse. Blood and Bullets is definitely different, but in good ways I want to sink my “teeth” into. But not like the were-spiders! Eeew.

So come on, share with group! What’s on your wishlist? Will you be able to resist bringing it home?

 

On My Wishlist #6

What’s On My Wishlist this week?

I just started seeing the cover love for Jacqueline Carey’s upcoming book, Dark Currents, even though the book isn’t due out until October. And I must say, it looks absolutely yummy. Based on the summary in Goodreads and elsewhere, this looks like urban fantasy. Howsomever, the main character is an incubus’ daughter who managed to get named “Daisy”. Daisy? Daisy!

Carey is the author of two of my favorite series of all time, Kushiel and the Banewrecker/Godslayer duology. Kushiel is the one she’s famous for, but if you haven’t read Banewrecker and you have an interest in subverted high fantasy, it is definitely worth your time. It’s a Lord of the Rings-type fantasy told from the supposedly evil side, and it’s a chillingly well-written reminder that the victors always write the histories, and that if you’ve won, your ends always justified your means, no matter who you crushed along your path.

Speaking of cover love, the cover pictures for the sequel to The Seduction of Phaeton Black are starting to appear. I’ve seen the cover and blurb for The Moonstone and Miss Jones, also by Jillian Stone, of course, and also due out in October, and the cover looks just as scintillating as the first book in the series. (I wonder if the moonstone in the title has anything to do with Wilkie Collins’ famous Moonstone? I digress…) I still haven’t managed to score a review copy of Phaeton Black, either.

Maybe next year I’ll go to RT. I’ve heard there were lots of copies there.

And I think I’m just wishing for interestingly odd steampunky, urban fantasy-type books this week. The reviews for Wicked as They Come by Delilah S. Dawson aren’t universally over the moon, but they are absolutely fascinating, every single one. It just sounds different. I’m intrigued. I want to read and it and see if it’s as different as it sounds.

So…what’s on your wishlist? Do tell! What type of stories are you in the mood for this week?

 

On My Wishlist #5

I fell in love with historical mysteries a long time ago, courtesy of Ellis Peters and Brother Cadfael. And I’m probably not alone.

There are two “private inquiry agents” operating in historic Rome. Marcus Didius Falco, created by Lindsey Davis, is the more sarcastic one. Falco doesn’t have a new book this year. Damn.

The more serious of the two is Gordianus the Finder. His author, Steven Saylor, has written a book exploring Gordianus’ earlier life. It’s a prequel story. It’s also the story of how Gordianus met his exotic wife in Egypt while on a trip to see the wonders of the world. I’ve always been curious about how he got his start. Maybe I’ll finally get to find out in The Seven Wonders: a novel of the Ancient World.

 

Michelle Sagara announced the on-sale date for Cast in Peril, the next book in her Chronicles of Elantra series. I read the previous  seven books in one big, delicious gulp, and I’m impatient for the next book. This series is fantastic. It reads like urban fantasy, but the world it’s set in is more of a high-fantasy type world. The combination is incredibly marvelous. And Kaylin Neya is a character I still want to know more about, even after 7 pretty long books.

I’ve seen so many terrific reviews for Discount Armageddon by Seanan McGuire that I want a copy of my very own. It looks like an absolute hoot! Sort of like Sanctuary, only much, much snarkier. Maybe I’m wrong on the comparison, but I definitely want to find out!

Okay peeps, I’ve told you mine, now you tell me yours! What’s on your wishlist?

 

On My Wishlist #4

This is the first On My Wishlist that’s going to be officially linked to the new site at Cosy Books.

What’s the On My Wishlist meme? A way for bloggers to share the books they really, really want to read, whether it’s stuff that isn’t out yet, or just books they haven’t been able to get around to.

Which books are on my personal wishlist right this minute?

Redshirts by John Scalzi. I want this book, I really, really want this book. Now would be just fine! I put this on my list of most anticipated books for 2012, I want it so bad. What is it? John Scalzi, the author of Old Man’s War, which is fantastic science fiction, writing about a space ship crewed entirely by “Redshirts”. Yes, those redshirts. Exactly what you’re thinking. The ones who always died in the first five minutes (seconds) of any classic Star Trek episode. Except this crew knows what they are, and they all want to live. At PLA I asked the folks at the Tor booth to send me an Advance Reading Copy, and I am so hoping it will be in my mail soon. I’ve also entered a giveaway on Goodreads. I really want this book bad and June 5 seems so far away.

My ongoing thing for Sherlock Holmes also needs a fix. The next Sherlock Holmes/Mary Russell book by Laurie R. King, Garment of Shadows, comes out on September 4. I’ve requested it on Edelweiss, and I’m stalking it on NetGalley, hoping it will appear miraculously there. (I have a better chance on NetGalley) I’ve read ALL the Holmes/Russell books. I reviewed The Pirate King and Beekeeping for Beginners. September is much too far away. I listed Beekeeping for Beginners as one of the best ebook romances of 2011 at Library Journal. I’m so up for Garment of Shadows.

So tell me, what’s on your wishlist?

 

On My Wishlist #3

 

 

 

 

On My Wishlist is a meme in transition!

Up until now, this very popular tradition has been hosted by Book Chick City. Next week, the linky will be up at Cosy Books.

In the meantime, we all seem to be sharing our addiction through the comments at Cosy Books. Mucho thanks goes to Book Chick City for starting this popular book blog meme and to Cosy Books for stepping up and continuing the love.

I’ve got so many books incoming this week, I’ve been trying to keep the wishing to a minimum. It’s not easy, and it will probably break out in a rash next week. But in the meantime, there’s this one book I’ve seen on other people’s wishlists (there needs to be an acronym for that, maybe OPW?) that I can’t resist.

The Dirty Streets of Heaven by Tad Williams
Bobby Dollar #1
Sept. 4, 2012
Urban Fantasy
Penguin

Tad Williams wrote some of the best books I ever read. I still have my print copies of The Dragonbone Chair, The Stone of Farewell, and To Green Angel Tower. That epic fantasy series was awesome, and I’ve always meant to re-read it. And I adored Tailchaser’s Song. But I never made it to Otherland, although my husband liked the series and we do have them. I have high hopes for this urban fantasy series because it’s Williams and I love a good, gritty urban fantasy. We’ll see what happens. The cover is awesome!

Stop the presses! I have an update on a previous wishlist title! If anyone out there agreed that Liz Williams’ Worldsoul sounded like an awesome book, it is now available on NetGalley.

 

 

On My Wishlist #2

 

On My Wishlist is a fun weekly event hosted by Book Chick City and runs every Saturday. It’s where I list all the books I desperately want but haven’t actually bought yet. They can be old, new or forthcoming. If you want to know more click here.

So what’s on my wishlist this week?

Sherlock Holmes is back, and he’s being chased by two assassins. Surely I’m not serious.

I try very hard not to be serious too often, and Shirley is my mother.

Sherlock Holmes and the Swedish Enigma
Barry Grant
April 1, 2012
Severn House
Mystery
Before the BBC brought us a 21st Sherlock Holmes in the form of Benedict Cumberbatch, Barry Grant tried a totally different approach in The Strange Return of Sherlock Holmes. He postulated that Holmes fast-froze when he fell over Reichenbach Falls, only to be medically thawed in the 21st century, and brought back to rather astonished and astonishing life in the present day. Strange Return, and the second book in the series, Sherlock Holmes and the Shakespeare Letter, were actually quite good. The latest in the series, Sherlock Holmes and the Swedish Enigma, comes out in April. I’m curious to see if the author can keep this thing going.

I’ve just realized something. This Holmes has a Watson, of course. His name is James Wilson. Just like in the TV series House. And Gregory House is a modern-day Holmes, brilliance, irascibility, addictions and all. The homage is homaged.

The Outcast Blade
Jon Courtenay Grimwood
March 26, 2012
Little, Brown
Alternate History, Fantasy

Last year I read (and recommended) a brilliant sad, mysterious alternate history version of Venice with assassins, vampires, witches and werewolves controlling courtly politics and performing deadly deeds in the dark of night. Serenissima, the city of Venice, was every bit as much of a character in The Fallen Blade as any of the human or supernatural characters who walked her streets. The second act of The Assassini has finally appeared. I want to sink my teeth into The Outcast Blade and savor every page.

Broken Blade
Kelly McCullough
November 1, 2011
Penguin
Dark Fantasy

Speaking of blades, I just read a terrific review of Kelly McCullough’s Broken Blade over at Flames Rising. I loved her WebMage series, but this is her first fantasy noir. Let me say again, I really loved her WebMage series, which mixes cyberpunk with urban fantasy with more than a touch of mythology. If any of that appeals, WebMage is the first book. But Broken Blade with its assassin-hero looks much more like dark fantasy or sword and sorcery. Both of which I like to begin with. And I like McCullough’s style. Sounds like a winning combination to me.

 

On My Wishlist #1

I give in!

Instead of buying more books to add to the ever-growing TBR piles and electonic ion storms, I’m joining On My Wishlist, a terrific meme that’s hosted by Book Chick City.

So instead of putting it on my Nightstand and buying it, I’m listing it here and saying why I want it. It doesn’t even have to be a new book. I just have to want it.

So not at problem! My problem is that I want to read more books than I have hours in the day.

Crystalfire by Kate Douglas
DemonSlayers #4
April 3, 2012
Kensington Zebra
Paranormal Romance

This is book four of the DemonSlayers series. I loved books 1, 2 and 3 (Demonfire, Hellfire, Starfire). Any time a sword talks back, and it’s snarky, I’m laughing. (Swords with attitude are fun, if you don’t believe me, read Mercedes Lackey’s Tarma and Kethry books in the Valdemar universe) But I’m also a pushover for romances and fantasies that cross over from a magic universe to ours.

Worldsoul by Liz Williams
June 6, 2012
Prime Books LLC
Science Fiction

This one had me at the opening of the description. I’ve got to find out what’s going on. Besides, I love Liz Williams’ Snake Agent/Detective Inspector Chen series, even if (ahem) I’m not caught up. I have The Iron Khan and haven’t gotten around to it yet.

What if being a librarian was the most dangerous job in the world?

Worldsoul, a great city that forms a nexus point between Earth and the many dimensions known as the Liminality, is a place where old stories gather, where forgotten legends come to fade and die—or to flourish and rise again. Until recently, Worldsoul has been governed by the Skein, but they have gone missing and no one knows why. The city is also being attacked with lethal flower-bombs from unknown enemy. Mercy Fane and her fellow Librarians are doing their best to maintain the Library, but… things… keep breaking out of ancient texts and legends and escaping into the city. Mercy must pursue one such dangerous creature. She turns to Shadow, an alchemist, for aid, but Shadow—inadvertently possessed by an ifrit—has a perilous quest of her own to undertake.

The Seduction of Phaeton Black: Paranormal Investigator by Jillian Stone
April 1, 2012
Kensington
Paranormal/Steampunk/Erotic Romance/Urban Fantasy/All of the above???

This is the one that got away at the Public Library Association Convention March 14-16. The cover looks so incredibly cool. And I tried to convince the folks at the Kensington booth to just let me have the display copy to review, but they weren’t having any of it. (I did cart away oodles of review copies, this was my only turndown).  Now I want to find out if the book is half as good as the cover.

There’s an additional thing on my wishlist that is not a book. We came back from the conference last night to discover that there’s a water pipe wonked out in our subdivision. We have no water. So the biggest thing on my wishlist today is for the plumbers to fix the pipes!