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Reading meme and other things...
Nov. 25th, 2017 10:14 pm1. Good news the acid reflux and heartburn appear to have retreated, bad news, I have had a scratchy throat all day, and am wondering if I'm developing a cold or allergies.
Drinking tea.
2. Longmire S6 is better than S5, which went quite dark in tone, and made me wonder if the writers intended to turn the lead into an anti-hero. Also the leads, all of them, were horribly and rather violently tortured throughout the season. I found it scarier than Stranger Things. The very last episode of the season had my favorite character staked out in the middle of the desert and left for dead.
But S6 is resolving some of that, and is a bit lighter in tone. Not overly so, but in comparison to S6.
The series is about a sheriff in Wyoming, near the Crow and Cheyenne reservations. His best friend is an "Indian" (aka Native American) -- they still call them Indians in Wyoming. (It's all Columbus's fault, the Europeans came here, thought they were India but they were geographically challenged and none too bright, and called the natives "Indians". The term is not flattering to the Europeans who invaded the Americas for their own greedy reasons. Actually American history isn't flattering to Europeans. Sorry, it's not.)
Anyhow, this is a modern Western, there's a lot of Native American religious themes and politics. And it reminds me at times of Tony Hillerman's mysteries. They are based on a series of mystery novels, which I'm told are very different from the series.
MD talked me into trying it, well, MD and my parents, who are hooked on it.
3. Finished True Pretenses by Rose Lerner -- it's a distinctive historical romance in how it subverts or goes against various conventions yet remains within the guidelines. The writing style is reminiscent of Georgette Heyer, and I believe it takes place during the Regency era, but honestly I can't tell.
It does drag a bit in places though. Although overall, better than most, and innovative in that the hero is a Jewish Swindler and not an English Lord. And the heroine sort of makes a deal with him to get her money. Deals with politics a bit, but it's more background. Heavy themes are economic disparity, classicism, anti-semitism, and a little on LGBTQ. (The heroine's brother is gay and in the closet -- because honestly you'd have to be at that time.)
The British don't tend to come out well in these books. Making me wonder what the British think of the Americans writing them. Also how realistic the fictionalized settings are, or the history. Although this one feels well-researched and rather accurate, even if I can't quite place the time period. (I'm usually skeptical -- romance novels aren't known for their historical or cultural accuracy. Actually none of the genres are -- it's one of the big critiques of genre.) Americans have a love/hate relationship with their British and European forebears sort of like kids irritated at their parents.
Started reading Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber -- who apparently was in the Buffy fandom at one point. I can tell because at one point in the book she replicates a crime blog with comments, and one of the commentators is "spuffyshipper". (I'm guessing she wasn't a spuffy shipper, because the commentator comes across as a nitwit in the book.) It leaped off the page at me and smacked me on the nose. (People? You need to be careful about that in books. Yes, it makes it more real. But you don't know who is picking up the book. OTOH, does it matter? I don't know. I had an epithany of sorts recently -- in that I was nicer before I came online. Somehow the combination of the events that brought me into the Buffy fandom and what occurred afterwards...along with being online under the name shadowkat...brought out a snarky somewhat dry bitter wit, that while funny at times, can be unintentionally biting and critical at others. Mostly it's harmless and directed at myself...but even then, hardly helpful. I was angry and the internet stoked that anger into a burning rage. Now, I'm working to change it. Ranting on the net is not good for you, no matter what you might think. Nor is complaining about things you have no control over. Sometimes it's better not to say or write what you think, no matter how witty it is inside your head.)
The book is a suspense thriller mystery novel about ...eh, I'm going to cheat and put the description from Good Reads...
( vague spoilers as to what it is about and my issues with it to date )
So we shall see. But so far True Pretenses was better written and more thoroughly researched. Nothing in that novel kicked me out of the story. Oddly, Historical romance novels I've found to be better written than a lot of the best-selling suspense thrillers and contemporary romances -- and more realistic. It's weird. You'd think it would be the opposite. But the contemporary writers are a tad lazy when it comes to research and assume they know stuff about certain things. They don't. Particularly in regards to criminal and police procedure. Not to mention various occupations such as journalism, marketing, finance, and running a business.
I'm in a bit of a reading slump. Nothing I've read has surprised or blown me away of late. But then it may well be what I'm reading ...which are cheap books on Kindle. Or my mood. This one was on sale for $1.99. (It's not self-published, it was published by Simon and Schuster. They need better editors.)
Drinking tea.
2. Longmire S6 is better than S5, which went quite dark in tone, and made me wonder if the writers intended to turn the lead into an anti-hero. Also the leads, all of them, were horribly and rather violently tortured throughout the season. I found it scarier than Stranger Things. The very last episode of the season had my favorite character staked out in the middle of the desert and left for dead.
But S6 is resolving some of that, and is a bit lighter in tone. Not overly so, but in comparison to S6.
The series is about a sheriff in Wyoming, near the Crow and Cheyenne reservations. His best friend is an "Indian" (aka Native American) -- they still call them Indians in Wyoming. (It's all Columbus's fault, the Europeans came here, thought they were India but they were geographically challenged and none too bright, and called the natives "Indians". The term is not flattering to the Europeans who invaded the Americas for their own greedy reasons. Actually American history isn't flattering to Europeans. Sorry, it's not.)
Anyhow, this is a modern Western, there's a lot of Native American religious themes and politics. And it reminds me at times of Tony Hillerman's mysteries. They are based on a series of mystery novels, which I'm told are very different from the series.
MD talked me into trying it, well, MD and my parents, who are hooked on it.
3. Finished True Pretenses by Rose Lerner -- it's a distinctive historical romance in how it subverts or goes against various conventions yet remains within the guidelines. The writing style is reminiscent of Georgette Heyer, and I believe it takes place during the Regency era, but honestly I can't tell.
It does drag a bit in places though. Although overall, better than most, and innovative in that the hero is a Jewish Swindler and not an English Lord. And the heroine sort of makes a deal with him to get her money. Deals with politics a bit, but it's more background. Heavy themes are economic disparity, classicism, anti-semitism, and a little on LGBTQ. (The heroine's brother is gay and in the closet -- because honestly you'd have to be at that time.)
The British don't tend to come out well in these books. Making me wonder what the British think of the Americans writing them. Also how realistic the fictionalized settings are, or the history. Although this one feels well-researched and rather accurate, even if I can't quite place the time period. (I'm usually skeptical -- romance novels aren't known for their historical or cultural accuracy. Actually none of the genres are -- it's one of the big critiques of genre.) Americans have a love/hate relationship with their British and European forebears sort of like kids irritated at their parents.
Started reading Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber -- who apparently was in the Buffy fandom at one point. I can tell because at one point in the book she replicates a crime blog with comments, and one of the commentators is "spuffyshipper". (I'm guessing she wasn't a spuffy shipper, because the commentator comes across as a nitwit in the book.) It leaped off the page at me and smacked me on the nose. (People? You need to be careful about that in books. Yes, it makes it more real. But you don't know who is picking up the book. OTOH, does it matter? I don't know. I had an epithany of sorts recently -- in that I was nicer before I came online. Somehow the combination of the events that brought me into the Buffy fandom and what occurred afterwards...along with being online under the name shadowkat...brought out a snarky somewhat dry bitter wit, that while funny at times, can be unintentionally biting and critical at others. Mostly it's harmless and directed at myself...but even then, hardly helpful. I was angry and the internet stoked that anger into a burning rage. Now, I'm working to change it. Ranting on the net is not good for you, no matter what you might think. Nor is complaining about things you have no control over. Sometimes it's better not to say or write what you think, no matter how witty it is inside your head.)
The book is a suspense thriller mystery novel about ...eh, I'm going to cheat and put the description from Good Reads...
( vague spoilers as to what it is about and my issues with it to date )
So we shall see. But so far True Pretenses was better written and more thoroughly researched. Nothing in that novel kicked me out of the story. Oddly, Historical romance novels I've found to be better written than a lot of the best-selling suspense thrillers and contemporary romances -- and more realistic. It's weird. You'd think it would be the opposite. But the contemporary writers are a tad lazy when it comes to research and assume they know stuff about certain things. They don't. Particularly in regards to criminal and police procedure. Not to mention various occupations such as journalism, marketing, finance, and running a business.
I'm in a bit of a reading slump. Nothing I've read has surprised or blown me away of late. But then it may well be what I'm reading ...which are cheap books on Kindle. Or my mood. This one was on sale for $1.99. (It's not self-published, it was published by Simon and Schuster. They need better editors.)