Almost too busy to read.

What have you been reading?

Unfortunately, my life has reached a level of busyness that has rendered me almost too busy to read. What??? I didn't think it was possible.

I used to tell people that insisted that they were too busy to read that it would never happen to me. I have my priorities! But I'm struggling these days to get through a book in two weeks, sneaking in a few minutes of reading here and there wherever I can. What is the world coming to?

I have discovered two series that I'm enjoying.

I've started reading Kelley Armstrong's Otherworld series. Click here to visit Kelley's website.

The first book in the series is Bitten. It tells the story of Elena, the only female werewolf in the world, and her attempt to live a normal human life. Trouble in the werewolf pack draws her back into the supernatural world and into danger...

I'm currently reading the second book, Stolen. 

The other series that I've discovered is Nora Robert's Circle Trilogy. Click here to visit Nora's website.

The first book in the series is Morrigan's Cross. It begins in medieval Ireland with the sorcerer Hoyt battling the vampyre Lilith, but the action quickly moves to modern-day New York where we meet the beautiful and powerful witch Glenna. Hoyt and Glenna are charged by the goddess Morrigan to assemble an army to fight the vampyres and rescue humankind from annihilation...

I'll soon be heading to my library to borrow the second book in the series, Dance of the Gods.

Have you got any new favourite books lately? Any authors that I should be looking out for?

Happy reading :)

The Montmaray Journals by Michelle Cooper

A little while ago I blogged about some books that I was less than impressed with. Books that sucked me in with pretty covers and intriguing "blurbs" but didn't live up to their promise.

Today I'm going to tell you about some books that I absolutely adore!

Sophie FitzOsborne lives in a crumbling castle in the tiny island kingdom of Montmaray, along with her tomboy younger sister Henry, her beautiful, intellectual cousin Veronica, and Veronica's father, the completely mad King John.

When Sophie receives a leather-bound journal for her sixteenth birthday, she decides to write about her day-to-day life on the island. But it is 1936 and the world is in turmoil. Does the arrival of two strangers threaten everything that Sophie holds dear?

From Sophie's charming and lively observations to a nailbiting, unputdownable ending, this is a book to be treasured.

Forced to leave their island kingdom, Sophie FitzOsborne and her eccentric family take shelter in England. Sophie's dreams of making her debut in shimmering ballgowns are finally coming true, but how can she enjoy her new life when they have all lost so much?

Aunt Charlotte is ruthless in her quest to see Sophie and Veronica married off by the end of the Season, Toby is as charming and lazy as ever, Henry is driving her governess to the brink of madness, and the battle of wills between Simon and Veronica continues. Can Sophie keep her family together, when everything seems to be falling apart?

An enticing glimpse into high society, the cut and thrust of politics as nations scramble to avert world war, and the hidden depths of a family in exile, struggling to find their place in the world.

Before Alana's birthday, I wandered the aisles of a large bookstore, poring over the Young Adult section. There, amongst the thousands of black and red covers, (vampires anyone?), I found these two books. Enticing covers - check. Intriguing blurbs - check. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best, noting that a third book was still to come.

I needn't have worried. These books, by Australian author Michelle Cooper, are brilliant!

If you have ever enjoyed historical fiction, you'll love these books. If you appreciate the gentle irony of Jane Austen, then you'll love the voice of our narrator, Sophie. Honestly, some of the passages are so delicious that I found myself reading them out loud to Alana, even though she'd already read them herself!

The author assures me (via her blog) that she is "madly typing" the final chapters of Montmaray Three as we speak. Unfortunately, it won't be out in Australia until next year (so long to wait!).

The first two are out in the US now. Their covers might look a little different, so keep your eyes peeled. I highly recommend these books for both young adult readers and their mothers. In fact, I think any adult reader would enjoy these books.

Love, love, love :)

Bad Weather and Spending Too Much

It's been raining an awful lot at my place, which I know is nothing compared to the tornados that some of my blogging buddies have been suffering. But I have been feeling a bit housebound and the wet washing has been piling up!

I escaped the house to engage in a little "retail therapy" today. For me, shopping is only fun if I'm spending money. The more the better. Boy do I love spending money!

For a while now, Josh's bedroom has been a complete disaster area. Chris and I have decided to try to address it by getting him some new bedroom furniture.

This is the bedroom suite we have ordered for Josh, except we have chosen to get it in all white. We've also ordered a small wardrobe with some hanging space and shelves. We are getting it on an "interest free plan". I'm well aware that you must be very careful with these plans; you pay nothing up front and have small monthly repayments and it all feels so easy. But if you don't pay off more than the minimum monthly repayment you get into trouble when the interest free period ends and suddenly you're being charged a bajillion per cent on the balance owing. Lucky I'm so sensible and this will not happen to me :)

We're also going to repaint, so we've allowed Josh to look at some paint charts. He likes the look of a high voltage orange called "Energy". Believe me, this boy does not need anything that looks like Fanta in his bedroom! We already have trouble getting him to go to sleep before us at night. Seriously, Chris and I are having trouble finding "special mummy and daddy time" because I'm usually asleep before Josh is.

We're also letting Alana pick some colours to repaint her room, especially after she told us that she felt like "the less favoured child" when we were picking out Josh's furniture.

I love picking out colours, but Chris has long given up on the idea of me actually doing anything helpful like painting. But it's super fun to look through paint charts and I tend to get a bit over-excited and imagine buying all new bed linen and curtains and lamps and throw cushions and... you get the idea!

I may also have "accidently" bought myself a couple of books. And visited the library to borrow a few more. What can be better than curling up with a good book when it's cold and rainy outside?

I couldn't resist Charlaine Harris' latest Dead Reckoning today.

It's the latest in the Sookie Stackhouse series which has been re-imagined as the True Blood TV series. Speaking of which, I believe it's only 23 days until the new series starts! But who's counting...

So, how's the weather at your place?

Done any shopping lately?

Channelling the Pioneer Woman

Do you know what? I have a totally awesome sister! When I arrived at her place for dinner last night, she had a surprise for me...a copy of Ree Drummond's book The Pioneer Woman Cooks.

Yay!!!

You may not remember, but a little while ago I was waxing lyrical about Ree Drummond's blog, especially the step-by-step recipes that she posts. Read about it here.

And you know how imitation is the sincerest form of flattery? Well here is where I posted one of my favourite recipes, inspired by the style of Ree's recipes on her blog.

So it's safe to say that I was excited and happy to receive the surprise present. And now I have a fantastic idea for a little project for me once I'm finished with all my assignments for uni. I'm going to cook a wonderful 'Pioneer Woman' feast for the next time my sis and her family come to my place for dinner!

Yay!!!

I've been browsing through the book, and I want to try and stick with a theme. I'm no expert on American cuisine, my knowledge has mainly been gathered from reading books set in various U.S. cities. So I have a very stereotyped view of what dishes belong to different areas.

Say New Orleans, and I think Cajun and catfish. Say 'the South', and I think fried chicken, iced tea and grits (even though I don't even know what grits are!). So as I look through the book, I'm trying to pick dishes that seem to say the same thing to me. But I could be totally wrong, and pick things that real Americans would never put together!

So far, here are the recipes that are catching my eye:

PW's Potato Skins (they have bacon, cheese and sour cream, and Ree suggests that I may have to field a few marriage proposals when I serve them).

Buttermilk Biscuits (like grits, these are something that we just don't have in Australia - except that what we call biscuits is what Americans call cookies).

Macaroni and Cheese (yes, we have this in Australia, but I have a feeling that it wouldn't have become such an iconic dish if it wasn't a bit different when done by a home cook).

Cornbread (we don't have this in Australia either, and it just sounds so quintessentially American to me).

Chicken-fried Steak (this just screams 'the South' to me - I imagine Sookie Stackhouse eating it).

Fried Chicken (ditto the above).

Cheese Grits (With great excitement, I checked the recipe so I could finally find out what grits are. Imagine my frustration when I note that the main ingredient is...grits! I think it's similar to polenta???)

Now this is just a small selection of the savoury dishes in Ree's gorgeous cookbook. What do you think of my choices?

As for sweets, I'm thinking either Mocha Brownies (brownies seem quintessentially American to me) or Red Velvet Cake (because I'm always hearing about it, but I've never eaten it).

So what do you think? Have you cooked or eaten any of these dishes, or ones like them? What dishes make you think of America, or of specific cities or areas of the U.S?

I'd love your feedback and ideas, and if anyone wants to send me recipes, then go for it!

I promise that I'll post pictures when I cook anything from the book, or any other recipes that you send me.

I can't wait to get started! Just a couple more weeks of writing fancy academic papers for my M Ed., and then the 'Pioneer Woman' extravaganza can begin.

Yay!!!

What I'm Reading and Other Assorted Stuff

Currently reading: The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen.

You will notice that this book appears on my "Must Read" list on the right hand sidebar of the page, along with a link to the review that inspired me to try it. When I'm finished I intend to write my own review.

So far, I'm really enjoying it. It's had a lot to live up to, reading it as I am directly after Dead Until Dawn by Charlaine Harris. A hard act to follow! It is quite different to Dead Until Dawn, its similarities being the magical elements and the lonely heroine.

Here's a quick snapshot that will warm the heart of any book-loving girl:

"She couldn't believe this was happening. She'd just kicked Jake out after he'd admitted he'd cheated on her.

Dazed, she turned around...and tripped over a book on the floor.

She looked down at it and sighed. She'd half expected this. Whether she liked it or not, books always appeared when she needed them."

Cool, huh?

On the "To Be Read" pile: the host by Stephenie Meyer

This was ready to pick up from my local library on Monday. Again, this is one of the books on my "Must Read" list. You can check out the link to read the review that convinced me to give this a go.

On reserve at my local library: Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris

I can't wait for this one to become available! Dead Until Dark was such rollicking good fun that I'm hanging out to get my teeth into the next instalment!

So...now onto the other assorted stuff...

Alana (my 11 year old daughter) has just been offered a place at a prestigous selective high school for next year. It's a great opportunity for her, but she's not so sure that she wants to accept the place. At the moment a high school is being built within our very own suburb, only a 20 minute walk away from home. It's due to open for the start of next year, and all Alana's friends are looking forward to going there together. They will be the first group from her primary school that will be able to stay together and go to their very own high school, instead of splitting up and travelling to schools further afield. It makes it a tough decision for Alana. Wish us luck!

My last uni assignment for this semester is "in the mail" as they say. After my disastrous result last time, I'm just going to be super happy to pass!

I'm trying to find a vacancy at a caravan park for my family to take a week away over the Christmas/New Year break. Everything is already booked solid! I'll keep trying...

I bought my sister a copy of the Lost in Austen 2 disc DVD for her birthday. I'm very much hoping we can watch it together sometime, then I can count it towards the Everything Austen challenge!

Today I am pleased to host an interview with my daughter Alana! We are going to talk about the Twilight saga by Stephenie Meyer.

So Alana, I've noticed that this seems to be the first book series that you have become seriously obsessed with! Why???

Well...I needed to know what was going to happen next. The story is unpredictable, and I like the characters.

Your friends at school are all into it too. What do you like talking about with your friends the most?

My friends all started reading the books after me, so I like asking them where they're up to and reliving the story with them.

Who are your favourite characters, and why?

Alice - because she has a very friendly, nice and bubbly personalilty.

Bella - because the story is written from her point of view, I can relate to her.

Edward - he's so protective with Bella, I think he's nice.

Emmett - he's a good, playful big brother.

Seth - he's awesome, he's my favourite werewolf. He's like a kid, a puppy, enthusiastic.

Did you find anything about the books difficult to read? Were there any bits that you didn't really understand, or you felt were a bit old for you?

Not really, just sometimes I needed to ask because I didn't quite grasp what was meant.

Do you like it that I've read, and loved, the books too? Do you like being able to talk to me about them?

Yes, especially since noone else in the house lets me.

What age group do you think these books are suitable for? Girls or boys?

Definitely girls, I think boys would find them too romantic and not interesting. I think any mature readers of my age (11) will enjoy them, right up to adults. So you should try them!

What aspect of the style of books do you like best? The romance? The supernatural stuff? The fact that the main character is a teenage girl?...

All of the above. All of these put together make them perfect.

Is there anything else you want to say?

I enjoyed reading these bits best:

In Twilight, the blood typing class in Biology.

In New Moon, when she thinks she's dreaming because Edward is there with her after their confrontation with the Volturi.

In Eclipse, when she punches Jacob after he kisses her and calls Edward to come and get her.

In Breaking Dawn, when she becomes a vampire and I really like Renesmee!

Thanks for talking to me Alana!

No problem!

Guilty Pleasure

I have just finished reading Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer, a partial draft of a novel which is Twilight from Edward's point of view. Stephenie explains on her website how the draft was leaked by a trusted friend, which upset her so much she couldn't continue writing. But after some thought, she decided to make the draft available to her fans, and hopes to go back to it some time in the future. The draft is in pdf form, but can only be read on the screen, as it can't be printed. So I put in some serious screen reading time to get through the 264 pages!

I LOVE IT! I love it even more than Twilight because now I finally see what all the fuss is about Edward! Unlike many others who immediately fall in love with Edward (and even dream of him!!!), I never really got it. (I rather fancied Jacob, who at least is warm and has a heartbeat!) But reading from Edward's viewpoint, and getting inside his head, makes me like him a lot more. Unfortunately the draft only makes it as far as just before Edward takes Bella to the meadow to show her his skin in the sunlight, so I'm feeling unsatisfied. I really hope Stephenie finishes and publishes it.

I talked to my lecturer, and I'm definitely going to pass the subject that I failed the assignment for, so that's a relief! Now I'm just waiting to get the last assignment (for the other subject) back. I'm really hoping for a great result, but after my rather embarrassing predictions for the last one, I'm not going to commit to my hoped for marks in print!