I'm Back!

Gasp! It's Alive!

Yes, yes, I'm back--please, hold your applause. Hard for me to believe, but it's been nearly two years since I last posted an entry to this blog. Please accept my apologies for abandoning you. Working full time, reading for pleasure, updating this blog, and attending college online to finish my Bachelor's degree (among other things) was too much. Something had to give, and that something was this blog, along with greatly reducing my recreational reading, so I could focus on school, work, and other somewhat more important things. I won't go into detail, but trust me, they were important.

As much as I enjoy reading and blogging, school was more important. If I'd have been happy with any old passing grade, I would have kept up the reading and blogging. However, at the time I gave up the reading/blogging, I was holding on to an "A" average and I wanted to keep that going. This became more important as I was invited to join both Alpha Sigma Lambda and Golden Key International Honor Societies, both for students with 3.75 GPAs or better. So I had extra pressure to maintain that "A" average. I am happy to report that I achieved that goal! I'm officially a graduate, with commencement exercises to occur next month in Baltimore. Can't wait!

Now that the pressure is off (for a while, at least),I can relax and pursue more pleasurable...pursuits. That includes reading and this blog.

In conjunction with that decision, I've joined the Summer Reading Competition on Facebook. Click here if you're interested. Click fast, because it starts June 15! Every book I read in the competition will be reviewed here.

As usual, I'll be reading and/or rereading some old books, as well as new stuff I've found. If you don't like the old stuff, sorry, but this is my blog, I read what I like, and I don't take requests (for now....maybe if you ask nicely, hmmm?).

Right now, I'm currently listening to The Golden Chance by Jayne Ann Krentz (an old re-read) and The Hollow City by Dan Wells. Kevin Hearne's latest in the Iron Druid series, Shattered comes out on Tuesday and I'll start listening to it about three seconds after I finish The Golden Chance. And just for fun--since I now have some "fun" time--I may go ahead and write reviews for some of the books I've read recently that I really liked. Tune in and find out!

Yes, I'm still alive

Wow, has it really been three and a half months since I posted? My, time sure does fly. I do apologize for not posting. It's not from lack of interest or not having read anything (heaven forbid!). No, it's more a matter of not having time. School took up a lot of my time this past quarter, not to mention all the writing I had to do for those classes. Add to that I started a new job at the end of March and you can understand why time and energy have been at a premium. So now here we are in summer, I'm not taking any classes--except for a self-study in algebra--and I have a pretty good handle on my new job. I have plenty of time to write reviews, which I am in the process of doing. I think I have about a dozen to write...I never really counted, but amongst the reviews to be posted are: 11-22-63: A Novel by Stephen King You Don't Know Jack and Jack in a Box by Diane Capri Hounded, Hexed, Hammered and Tricked by Kevin Hearne (Squee! Love these books!!!) Agent X by Noah Boyd A Kiss Before the Apocalypse by Thomas E. Sniegoski (Squee #2!) The Venetian Betrayal by Steve Berry ...and a few others. Or more than a few. Like I said, I haven't counted. I invite you to come back in a couple days and read a mini-slew of reviews. And I promise to keep updating on a regular basis...at least through the summer. Class starts at the end of August (only 9 weeks to go!)

With a Tear in our Eye...

...we say goodbye to 2011. I make my book count this year at 65 (okay, that should probably be 64 since one of them is a repeat).

So here are a few stats:

Top 5 of 2011

1. The Enemy – Lee Child
2. Collide – Megan Hart
3. The Keeper of Lost Causes – Jussi Alder-Olsen
4. X Plagues – Mary Nealy
5. White Wind – Susan Edwards

This would have been a Top Ten, but I didn’t read enough books this year to have ten that I absolutely loved. If I had to pick five more, they would likely come from Lee Child and Susan Edwards. And maybe one David Baldacci.

Favorite new-to-me authors:

1. Mary Nealy (X Plagues)
2. Jussi Alder-Olsen (The Keeper of Lost Causes)
3. Susan Edwards (White Dawn, White Dusk, White Shadows. White Wind)
4. Harry Dolan (Bad Things Happen)

There were more new-to-me authors this year, but these three were my favorite. I’ll keep an eye out for Mary Nealy to see if/when she writes another book, Jussi Alder-Olsen has written three books in his Department Q series, but since I don’t read Danish, I’ll have to wait for the other two to be translated to English and released here in America, and the next four installments in Susan Edwards’ White series will be out in February 2012.

I would like to add a fifth “honorable mention” favorite author: Steven James. I’m still reading his first book, The Pawn. Since it’s the year end and I’m still reading it, it hasn’t made my review list yet, but I already know I like his writing and he’ll be one of my favorites in 2012.

So thanks to my busier schedule, I haven’t read as much this year as I did last year (79 books in 2010, 65 in 2011), but with good reason. Going to the gym several days a week took some reading time away—though I compensate by listening to audio books as I work out—and starting school in October took away even more. I don’t like that I spend less time reading for pleasure, but given what I’m gaining in exchange (lost almost 60 lbs and working on a college degree), I’d say it’s for the better. I hope to read at least as many books in the coming year.

2010 saw a lot of Nora Roberts and Jayne Ann Krentz and 2011 was a blitz of Lee Child. I know 2012 will have a lot of Susan Edwards as I read the remainder of the White series, but I hope to discover more new-to-me authors that I will love as much as these.

How about you? Have you been inspired to read more in the new year?

Oh...and I suppose it goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway, yes, this blog will continue into the new year.