Random House's Sizzling Summer Readathon Results

For the month of July I accepted Random House's reading challenge to

Join our Sizzling Summer Readathon and challenge yourself to read as much as you can this summer.

This I have done, with very good results. At first I guestimated that I would read 3000 pages over the month of July. After the first week I realized that I was capable of much more, so I adjusted my number to 8000 pages. I am pleased to announce that I ended up with 9292 pages in total. Following are the books I read:

1. The Heist by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg: 295 pages
2. Hidden Prey by John Sandford: 233 pages
3. The Hit by David Baldacci: 390 pages
4. Affliction by Laurell K Hamilton: 527 pages
5. Broken Prey by John Sandford: 254 pages
6. Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts: 484 pages
7. Deck Z: Titanic by Chris Pauls: 202 pages
8. The Night is Watching by Heather Graham: 392 pages
9. Stolen by Allison Brennan: 360 pages
10. Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch: 390 pages
11. The Water Rat of Wanchai by Ian Hamilton: 400 pages
12. Invisible Prey by John Sandford: 249 pages
13. Phantom Prey by John Sandford: 228 pages
14. Deadly Forecast by Victoria Laurie: 294 pages
15. Bomb Shell by Catherine Coulter: 400 pages
16. Cold Copper by Devon Monk: 400 pages
17. The 9th Girl by Tami Hoag: 416 pages
18. The Bridgerton 2nd Epilogues by Julia Quinn: 384 pages
19. The Husband List by Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly: 227 pages
20. The Storm by Clive Cussler and Graham Brown: 394 pages
21. Wicked Prey by John Sandford: 218 pages
22. Storm Prey by John Sandford: 216 pages
23. Buried Prey by John Sandford: 266 pages
24. The Last Word by Lisa Lutz: 329 pages
25. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs: 318 pages
26. Stolen Prey by John Sandford: 409 pages
27. Magic Rises by Ilona Andrews: 327 pages
28. Silken Prey by John Sandford: 289 pages

This was a fun challenge and I enjoyed every single book I read. I'll let you know if I win any of the prizes.

Carniepunk is now in stores!

Carniepunk by Rachel Caine

My copy is ordered, and while I wait for it to arrive I thought to let you know that you too can enjoy this wonderful anthology that includes stories by all these wonderful authors:

• Rachel Caine
• Rob Thurman
• Kevin Hearne
• Seanan McGuire
• Jennifer Estep
• Allison Pang
• Kelly Gay
• Delilah S. Dawson
• Kelly Meding

What's not to like?

You can purchase this in Canada from:

• Amazon
• Chapters and Kobo

If you are in the US you can go to the Simon & Schuster Website for all the usual links.

Happy reading!

Kelley Armstrong's Omens

Omens: The Cainsville Series by Kelley Armstrong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had the privilege to read an advance copy of this book. I have long been a fan of Kelley's Otherworld series and I knew that I would enjoy her writing. It's always a leap of faith when an author asks you to forget established characters and meet brand new ones. Fortunately for me, Kelley's new world is as engaging and enjoyable as the Otherworld was. This one is a must-read for all Kelley Armstrong fans and for anyone who enjoys their mysteries with a twist.

Well done, Kelley, and thank you once again for another great story!

View all my reviews

It's a Wonderful Life at the Lion's Den Theatre

On Sunday I attended the Lion's Den Theatre production of Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life. They put the play on like an old-time radio show and we were the live studio audience. It was fantastic. The actors all did a wonderful job. It was easy to sit back and follow along while His Honour, played by Eric Fitzpatrick (the gentleman on the left), explained to Clarence, Angel Second Class, how this might finally be his chance to earn his wings.

Bedford Falls came alive in our imaginations through the superb acting and excellent live sound effects by Shawn Maggio and Mark Penny. The All-Female Trio: Girlband leant their voices to the songs of the era and I've never heard better.

I'd give this production 5 thumbs up! Job well done.

Way hey and away we go

Way hey and away we go
Zombie walking, zombie walking
Way hey and away we go
Walkin’ like a zombie.

Was you ever in Halifax
Chompin’ sailors on their necks?
Waitin’ for some yummy brains
Walkin’ like a zombie!

Blatantly appropriated from the lyrics of the traditional 19th century sea chanty and sung to the arrangement recorded by Great Big Sea. My sincerest apologies to anonymous and Great Big Sea! And thanks to the Zombie Bride for permission to post the picture.

Kelly Gay's The Darkest Edge of Dawn

The Darkest Edge of Dawn by Kelly Gay

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Charlie Madigan must now face the consequences of what she wrought in The Better Part of Darkness. Her daughter has turned the hellhound into a pet. Her partner Hank's voice mod is fused to his throat restricting his siren power in a way that was never intended. And her ex-husband's deal with a revenant has just added another level of stress into her life. Because, not only has darkness fallen over the city (and everyone is blaming her for it), but her DNA is slowly being re-written, and no one has any idea what the end result will be (except Kelly Gay, hopefully!). Oh, and her sister Bryn is now involuntarily addicted to ash, the off-world drug of choice. Charlie certainly has her work cut out for her in this, the second book in the series.

Ms. Gay has done a fantastic job with this book. I zoomed through the story and can't wait to see where she will take the characters next. In this installment we learn a little more about ash and how it affects humans, as well as about the history of the Adonai and Charbydons, and—holy smokes!—if she continues Charlie's evolution in this direction...eek!

I loved this story. Way to go, Kelly!

Walk Like a Zombie

Yesterday a friend and co-worker looked at me and said "You look like death warmed over! Let's go walk like zombies." So there we were, strutting our stuff down the streets of Halifax with various and sundry other undead. It was a great event. Quite a few of us showed up (I'd guess over 200) and the costumes were excellent. Another pal brought her dog Lester, who totally got into the spirit of things.

You can go look at more pictures on the Metro News site where they have posted a lovely shot of Lester. You can also see me in the 6th picture (on the right side in the orange and black dress), which happens to be the shot they printed in today's paper. There goes my 15 minutes of fame!