WEDNESDAYS IN THE GARDEN | Why Are There So Many Bison in My Life?

Hello there internet!  How lovely, shiny and exciting you are!   I've been living in a cabin in the woods for the last ten days and have been brutally cut off from you except for a surprisingly strong 4G signal on my phone.  I dutifully wrote the below post up in a word document and then tried to post it at the closest small town library but their wi-fi was not up to the task.  So it feels good to be taking a brief break back home and be able to play with you again.  You're the best!

OUTSIDE and LIFE (Because they have become one for the time being)

First week out in the wilds of Western Iowa and it’s been quite nice.  The first couple days, it did nothing but rain and my first day in the field didn’t go smoothly but it was all minor setbacks.  The place where I am staying is so beautiful and it’s up on a hill so I actually have some cell and 4G coverage.  The only thing I am having to adjust to is no running water.  Indoor plumbing is a serious luxury that I shamefully take for granted!  There is a nice bathhouse ~ a 3 minute walk away but it seems more like 567 years when it’s pouring rain or 3 in the morning (or both) and you have to … ahem…use the facilities.  Anyway, here are some pictures:

Bur oak acorns with their adorable fuzzy caps

One of my favorite butters - the Regal Fritillary. I did part of my grad work on this species

Sulphurs puddling

The view from my cabin in the woods

WATCHING, READING and BLOGGING

Detailing what I have been WATCHING is easy because that would be nothing.  Out in the sticks y’all!

Reading

I’ve been driving myself batty with the reading.  I can’t decide what I am in the mood for. I’ve picked up two different books read about 30 pages and put them down again.  No fault of their own, just me being finicky and weird.  I think I just want some fluffy historical romance and of course, though I brought like 15 physical books plus my kindle loaded with books, I don’t have exactly what I am looking for… #bookpeopleproblems.  Since writing this I have finally settled into a couple of books but am still feeling a little edgy...

Finished (in the) Last Week (and a half):

• World After by Susan Ee: The second book in the Penryn and the End of Days series.  It's super grim - grimmer than book one - and I loved it.  What is wrong with me?
• The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater:  I really loved it but I am so worried about what the series has in store for all the characters!
• Doctor Who: The Monsters Inside by Stephen Cole:  My other two device audio books (Of Noble Birth and The Founding) are not doing it for me so Doctor Who it is!
• Skin Game by Jim Butcher:  I am officially caught up with the Dresden Files Series.  *twiddles thumbs*
• The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Cathrynne Valente: I was a little bored by this book at first but by the end really loved it!
• The Shadow Cabinet by Maureen Johnson:  This is the third installment in a fun YA paranormal mystery/Urban fantasy series.  
• Romancing Mr. Bridgerton by Julia Quinn:  This was a re-read of a book I thought I should have adored but just liked.  Upon re-reading?  I still just like it.  
• Red by Alyxandra Harvey:  This was a real disappointment but a very fast read. 

NOTE:  So, I can apparently get some reading done with no TV, Blogging + a lot of driving. I'm a little impressed with myself:0).

Currently Reading:

• Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe: So maybe some day I'll pick this up again?  Until then it will sit here on the currently read and look encouraging.
• The Founding (The Morland Dynasty #1) by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles: This is the first book in a series that follows a single British family through numerous generations into modern times.  This first book takes place in the early 15th century.  This is such a fascinating idea and I have high hopes but I have to say the characters in this first book are shallow and are doing nothing for me.  This book is officially on hold at the moment but I'll get back to it one day soon. 
• Of Noble Birth by Brenda Novak: I may DNF this one.  Despite the presence of pirates it is not making me happy mostly because of deficient humor and boring main characters. 
• Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone:   Despite my real misgivings about the number of series I'm in the middle of, I pick up a new one.  And it's good.
• The Duchess War by Courtney Milan:  This is a historical romance novelist that I've head great things about.  This is my second book by her and while I totally get all the praise, her books and I aren't really getting along.  
• Unfinished Business: Women, Men, Work, Family by Anne-Marie Slaughter:  This is an non-fiction ARC addressing work-life balance and feminism.  
• Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier:  I actually read the second book in this series first (horrors!) and while I was out in the wilds last year so this seemed appropriate. 

On the BLOG LAST WEEK:

SUNDAY: Fifth Longmire post featuring the last three episodes of season 2.
TUESDAY: Review of Hostage Taker by Stefanie Pintoff

On the BLOG NEXT WEEK:

I've got one review post ready to schedule and I am going to try and get a couple more ready while I'm here in internet land.  However, my time is brief in this shiny land so I'm not going to hold my breath.

REVIEW | Hostage Taker by Stefanie Pintoff

Hostage Taker by Stefanie Pintoff

Publication Year: 2015 (August 18th)
Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Crime
Series: Eve Rossi #1
Awards: NA
Format: Advanced Reader Copy provided through NetGalley by Random House-Bantam Dell Publishing - Thanks to them for providing this free advanced copy!  Receiving the book for free does not effect my opinion or review of it.
Narrator: NA

I requested this ARC because I am a huge fan of Pintoff's historical mystery series featuring Simon Ziele as a police detective in turn of the 20th century New York.   Hostage Taker represents a complete departure from that series as it has a contemporary setting and it leans closer to the thriller end of things then a straight mystery.  The setting is still New York and it centers around a female  FBI agent, Eve Rossi, whose specialty is hostage negotiations.

When we meet Eve she is on a self-imposed extended leave from the FBI because of a spectacular failed hostage negotiation which made her switch jobs and then the additional blow of her mysterious CIA agent stepfather's violent death.  She gets pulled back into her job when an unnamed hostage taker asks for her by name.  She is intrigued despite herself because the kidnapper has chosen the iconic St. Patrick's Cathedral as his target and his actions are atypical for a hostage taker.  For one thing, asking for Eve by name, for another his only demand is to assemble a group of five people who are seemingly completely unrelated.

Once Eve is sucked in she insists on bringing in her crew - a secret unit of the FBI that is made up of ex-convicts which has been disbanded since she's been on leave.  The crew are all pretty well stock characters that are exactly what you might expect. There's Eli, an awkward accountant type who is such a genius with financial systems he couldn't help but do a little embezzling.  Mace is an alpha male basketball hustler, a man of action with street knowledge and cred. Garcia is a troubled career military warrior who knows explosives and guns and infiltrating difficult places.  Finally, Haddox, a charming Irish rogue who is an expert at using technology to spy and rip people off.  He and Eve have "a past" because of course they do.  He's Irish, and charming and roguish after all.  Round out the cast with an FBI administrator who cares more about politics than being a good boss and you've got a big old pile of rather stale characters but more about that later.

The format of the book was fairly unique.  Chapters are short with the intention of moving the action along and alternate between news bulletins, short diatribes by the mastermind of the hostage taking and narratives of Eve and her team as they try to figure out who the hostage taker is so they can resolve the situation.  The hostage taker is by far the most interesting character in the book.  He/She is mysterious but we do get a peek into their heads.  At first it is confusing because it is unclear who it is that is talking to us in the intermittent chapters that slowly reveal the motives and plan of the hostage taking.  The slow roll out of the hostage taker's intimate feelings interspersed with the desperate activity of the people trying to understand and stop the crisis, works well and still allows for many twists and turns along the way.

As you might guess from the above paragraph, I do think that this part of the book, the actual thriller part, is complex and creative and interesting.  I think for most it will be a page turner.  It kept me reading for sure but perhaps not terribly obsessively which was likely not the book's fault.  Contemporary thriller's are not really my cup of tea.  Set a thriller plot on a British sailing vessel in 1830 or make one of the twists an inter-dimensional time shift and I am riveted but your modern day run of the mill, FBI, blah blah blah thriller is just okay for me.  I took a chance on this book because I love the author and it's a testament to her that I did like the book quite a bit but overall it was just okay.  Not bad, just fine.

The thing that could have offset my general ennui with the book and bumped it up from good to excellent is if I had fallen in love, engaged with, been interested by...SOMETHING...with the characters.  There is a hint of a bigger story with Eve that could be developed into something interesting in future books but the problem here I think is that there was just too much to do.  You can tell by the cover art, Pintoff was going for a fast-paced wild ride of a novel and pulling that off while introducing five ensemble characters is nigh on impossible.  In my opinion, the characterization suffered and fell back on cliches and tired tropes.  There was no time for more development which was a shame.  I compare it with another completely unrelated series which is on my mind because I have been reading a lot of it lately; The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher.  The Dresden Files books are super duper fast paced, non stop action and suspense but I feel like I also have a very high level of affection and knowledge of the characters so what's the difference between this series and Hostage Taker?  I realized that in the Dresden Files we are really only in the head of Harry and really only know him well from the get go.  The large cast of characters who I have great affection for have all been developed slowly piece by piece over 15 volumes.  So Hostage Taker was super ambitious to try and develop reader-character rapport with five characters all at once OR perhaps I just need to give the series a little time to flesh them out.  Finally, and this is the last I'll say about it, we are introduced to these characters in the middle of their relationships which is frequently a problem for me.  I generally like to see things developed from the beginning but if Pintoff had taken that road, it would have involved even more time with the characters and the book would have lost its momentum.

FINAL VERDICT:  I guess it all comes down to what you are looking for.  If it's an action packed police procedural thriller?  This is your book!  It's a solid and even inventive example of this type of book. I liked it but would have loved it, if more attention had been given to character and relationship development among the ensemble cast.  3 out of 5 stars.

LONGMIRE | Thoughts | S. 2 | Eps.11-13

A periodic post recording my ever so slightly obsessive watching of Longmire

The last three episodes of season 2:  You've got Omar and Jim Beaver in one episode, Lucian in another and then a season finale that will make your head spin.  It at least should make Walt's head spin.  Things get very very crazy doodle.  I like how these three episodes also perfectly illustrate how law enforcement in the rural Wyoming of Longmire is very different than other crime procedural shows.  They investigate a murder tied to an elk poaching case, a case that originated with stolen dinosaur bones and finally the beating of a man by an Indian vigilante with his own code.

Here are my thoughts on the episodes:

************

Episode 2.11  | Natural Order

This is how the ep starts. Jeepers Walt, that looks like it hurts.

Short Synopsis: A young Game Warden is found murdered right next to a poached Elk. Turns out it's all related to a Chinese Health Supplement.

Short Review:  The solution is truly a surprise and again it is hard to feel totally against the "bad" guy.  This episode also has one of the more effective scenes of the entire show.  Jim Beaver! Grade: A

Random Thoughts:

• So Walt was a high school football star.  Not sure how that fits into his persona.  
• Jim Beaver!  I LOVE Jim Beaver.
• I actually really like Omar even though he is a sexist ass hole.  He has a code and hates poachers.  He's okay in my book.  Mostly.  
• Henry' story of he and Walt's first meeting that he tells Branch is nicely illustrative.  Walt's innate protectiveness was obviously an early developed trait.
• David Ridges.  Oh how he will haunt the next many episodes.  I'm almost sorry to hear his name come up for the first time.  
• The scene between Lee (Jim Beaver) and his wife is another one of those scenes that this show does so well.  Very emotional and true - it has yet to fail to make me cry right along with Lee and his wife.  And it is the supporting actors once again that steal the show. 
• WALT: "I know I had some problems with Branch in the past but I've got to let that go.  I've got to let a lot of things go.  Maybe I'm just starting to mellow." Cady: "I should get hit by a car more often." 

Episode 2.12 | A Good Death is Hard to Find

Henry's "Listening to Cowboy Poetry" face.

Short Synopsis: Walt is mailed a safety deposit box with a severed finger which leads him to the prison death of a James Notley who was put behind bars by Lucian. 

Short Review: I do love a Lucian episode and there's all the angst between Walt and Vic  - these are the things in it's favor.  And yet while the mystery involved dinosaur bones and chopped off human fingers being sent to Walt, it's just not my favorite.  Grade: B+

Random Thoughts:

• Lucian's a poet! Henry's face during the poetry is hilarious.  
• This is one episode that splits up Walt and Vic and has Walt and Branch working together.  I like to see he and Branch working together but I find it odd that Vic has all this time alone to pursue Ed Gorsky.  I also don't buy her being as afraid and panicked as Katee Sackhoff  plays her.  I think Vic would be pissed off more than anything.  Sure she'd be scared but it wouldn't be so obvious. 
• Lucian: "And some people can kiss my once magnificent rump." I do love Lucian and he was certainly a different kind of sheriff than Walt. 
• Branch's obsession with David Ridges is already beginning.  I thought it hadn't really started until after he is almost killed by him but apparently it starts earlier.  What's driving this little obsession at this point? Cady, yes?
• Yay Ferg!  Ferg's skills are developing - Walt doesn't compliment him but reveals a secret proud little smile.  
• Lucian: "Every one of those fingerless pissants had it coming." 
• Walt is a pretty good actor when it comes to getting folks to open up to him. 
• Vic and Walt Update:  Walt shows a lot of concern for Vic when he finds her sleeping in the cell and even though they are interrupted before she confides in him, he comes back to it as soon as he can.  Would Walt do this with any/everybody else in the office (this is my gauge for Walt's feelings)? Probably.  His concern does seem a little more acute with Vic.  After she reveals all, his response is very intense, obviously angry that she is being threatened and immediately insists that she stay with him while Sean is away.  His identity as protector is a major part of his character so this situation is the type that would really awaken that side of him  - it's unclear if his response is more intense because the situation involves Vic or if this is how he would respond if any of his deputies were threatened.  Ruby certainly senses the intensity when she walks into his office.  Walt is also somewhat old fashioned and I can see him having a slightly more violent response when a woman is threatened versus one of his male deputies.  And then there is the situation with Lizzie.  I think Lizzie's response and immediate assumptions that there is something between Vic and Walt is more based on her own past experiences and her observation of Vic's feelings.  It's not really some thing she has picked up on between them like she implies.  At this point, at least on screen, it doesn't feel like Walt has definitively shown any interest in Vic. And Oh My God is that SUPER awkward for Walt and Vic. And the threatening of Gorski?  With his damn badge on?  He would certainly have done this for Ruby or Cady and really perhaps any woman being threatened so I don't know that it is special for Vic. 

Episode 2.13  | Bad Medicine

Fales is such a jerk.

Short Synopsis:  David Ridges appears to have sabotaged Cady's car and then committed suicide, rather inconveniently.  Meanwhile, Ed Gorski shows up beaten all to hell and Vic tries to contain his malice. Walt starts working on two fronts to save Vic and figure out about Ridges. In the middle of it all Detective Fales shows up with search warrants.  Basically everything goes to shit.

Short Review: Things get really hairy for Walt and they are just going to keep getting hairier into season 3.  This is a crazy and awesome season finale! Grade: A-

Random Thoughts:

•  So I get really confused by the whole scenario with Gorski.  Why didn't Walt tell Henry to call off or not even approach Hector with Vic's proposal when he decided he was going to do something about it? Or even after he made the threat?  It seems like a really stupid lack of communication.
• It's nice to see Branch and Walt on the same wavelength, working and talking together about Cady's accident.  Too bad it doesn't last long.
• I don't really get what Gorski is about exactly.  Especially when he doesn't file the report? 
• Vic's a pretty good actor as I think she sells the story of her beating up Gorski pretty well and seems genuinely surprised by the thought of Hector doing the beating.  Seriously, what the hell happened with the whole Hector hiring debacle.  
• The actress playing Cady does a great job in the scene with her mother's ashes and the police searching the house. 
• Vic: "You can't protect everyone Walt." Walt: "Well it's kind of my job to try." This pretty much sums up Walt's character perfectly.  
• When Fales tells Walt he's arrested Henry we get to see what happens when Walt's feelings escape from the place he usually keeps them buried. Yikes.
• Henry's arrested, Branch's shot and Vic's terrified for her life.  Quite an end to season two!
• Vic and Walt Update:  By the end of season 2 Vic is obviously smitten with Walt and Walt's feelings are a little more murky and unclear.  With the advent of Gorski, their "personal" lives have become a little more entwined.  Walt obviously feels a sense of loyalty and protectiveness towards Vic but these are common feelings Walt exhibits for his friends.  

*************** 

Season two is the perfect intermediate between seasons 1 and 3.  It still has plenty of episodes with the straightforward crime procedural mystery structure that season one introduced but it also builds on the personal drama which will play a huge role in season three.  I've encountered some fans who were disappointed by the escalating melodrama in the show but I'm not really one of them.  I maybe have a little nostalgia for the simpler days and I am bummed by Branch's descent into obsession but I am also a big fan of character and relationship growth.  I also understand that the stakes, they must be upped sometimes to keep things interesting.  Regardless season two has a nice balance and is a really strong season.

My Favorite Episodes - Season 2:

2.1 Unquiet Mind
2.2 Carcasses

2.6 Tell it Slant
2.10 Election Day 
2.13 Bad Medicine

So what thought have you regarding season 2?  What are your favorite episodes from this season?  Who was your favorite guest character/actor?

 

Saturdays in the Garden - I'm Off to Hunt Butterflies

OUTSIDE

Well I haven't taken a single picture this week and don't feel like I've spent any time outside at all really.  Not truly outside. I took some time this morning and cleaned up the garden; removing the dead sugar snap, tomato and zucchini plants and pulling some weeds.  I also went ahead and planted some more sugar snap pea and radish seeds in the spaces where I pulled things just to see if I could get a fall crop.

Harvesting has been mostly of cucumbers, green beans, blueberries and the Juliet tomatoes.  With the tomatoes I don't have enough yet for any canning and they're not very good just slicing and eating.  I don't really have time to process them because life is about to get very hectic for the next 6 weeks - I likely shouldn't have planted them this year.  Ah well.

LIFE

As I alluded to above, I am headed out to do field research for the next six weeks or so.  I'm looking forward to it but also nervous because it makes life super complicated.  I'll be spending most of my time hiking around here:

I head off tomorrow and I'm pretty well prepared.  I'm stocked up on books, the dogs have been groomed and are ready to stay in rentals, and the car has had an oil change and some tender loving care.  Bring it on!

WATCHING, READING, and BLOGGING

Watching
I've been desultorily (awesome word alert!) watching Avatar: The Last Airbender for the 478th time.  It's nice to have on in the background while I futz around with other stuff.  I've come to the realization that as much as I just want to universally love everything about this show, Season 3 does disappoint me more than a little bit.  I need to move on to Korra but I can't deal with Aang being dead. 

Reading

Finished Last Week:

• In the Garden of Iden by Kage Baker:  Immortal cyborgs in Elizabethan England!  Despite an awesome premise that is fairly well executed, the characters did not draw me into this one.

Currently Reading:

• Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe: So maybe some day I'll pick this up again?  Until then it will sit here on the currently read and look encouraging.
• The Founding (The Morland Dynasty #1) by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles: This is the first book in a series that follows a single British family through numerous generations into modern times.  This first book takes place in the early 15th century.  This is such a fascinating idea and I have high hopes but I have to say the characters in this first book are shallow and are doing nothing for me.  This book is officially on hold at the moment but I'll get back to it one day soon. 
• World After by Susan Ee: The second book in the Penryn and the End of Days series.  It's super grim - grimmer than book one - and I'm loving it.  What is wrong with me? Almost done with this one.
• The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater: I am almost done with this and so far I have really loved it but I am so worried about what the series has in store for all the characters!
• Of Noble Birth by Brenda Novak: I may DNF this one.  Despite the presence of pirates it is not making me happy mostly because of deficient humor and boring main characters. 
• Doctor Who: The Monsters Inside by Stephen Cole:  My other two device audio books (Of Noble Birth and The Founding) are not doing it for me so Doctor Who it is!
• Skin Game by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files #15):  This will officially catch me up with the Dresden Files series.  I'm a little sad there will be no more.

On the BLOG LAST WEEK:

SUNDAY: LONGMIRE - the second part of season 2. The fourth in a series of obsessive posts about this show.  Sorry. When will season 4 come out???
TUESDAY: Top Ten Tuesday: Authors I've read many books by.  Meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.
WEDNESDAY: RE-READ | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling
THURSDAY: Tough Traveling: Forbidden Love. A fun meme hosted by Fantasy Review Barn to explore all the beloved tropes of the SFF genre.

On the BLOG NEXT WEEK

SUNDAY: Fifth Longmire post featuring the second half of season 2.
TUESDAY: Review of Hostage Taker by Stefanie Pintoff

***The Blog is going to be on semi-hiatus for the next few weeks.  As far as I can tell I won't have reliable access to the internet during that time.  I'm hoping to write and schedule a few more book reviews but I don't expect to be able to participate in any memes. I guess we'll see.***

TOUGH TRAVELING | Forbidden Love

Tough Traveling is a fun meme that aims to tour all the tropes big and small, abhorred and loved that are littered across the fantasy landscape. It was conceived of and is hosted by Nathan at Fantasy Review Barn and here's how it's explained on the blog: 

Each Thursday, our copy of ‘The Tough Guide to Fantasyland’ in hand, we shall tour the mystical countryside looking for adventure and fun (and tropes) from all over fantasy.

This week's trope is Forbidden Love:

Even in Fantasyland parents are not always happy with their children’s choice of partners.

This topic totally rocks my socks so I'm sad that I couldn't really find many examples amongst my reading.  I am looking forward to other people's lists because I'll either a) kick myself for all the books I spaced ('cause that's fun) or b) add a bunch of new books to my TBR.  Probably both. Just like every week.

• Penryn and Raffe from the Penryn and the End of Days series by Susan Ee

This one is literally forbidden love - like forbidden by the big kahuna himself.  If Penryn (human) and Raffe (angel) get together they will create horrible monsters called Nephilim.  Not to mention that the angels in this book are almost universally great big jerks. 

• Seraphina and Kiggs from the Seraphina series by Rachel Hartman

Seraphina and Kiggs are kept apart out of loyalty to a friend.  Kiggs is engaged, in a royal arrangement, to his cousin Princess Glisselda.  Seraphina is Glisselda's music teacher and becomes her good friend.  Seraphina and Kiggs fall in love with each other but they don't want to hurt Glisselda.  In the end they resolve the problem by entering into a polyamorous sort of relationship which was pretty refreshing to see in a YA novel.  

• Marco and Celia from The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Marco and Celia are meant to be engaged in a battle of magic that must end in one of them dying.  So it's kind of inconvenient when they fall in love.

Source/Credit

• Yeine and Nahadoth from The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin

Nahadoth is a God of darkness and is pretty darn dangerous and all around probably bad news.  Yeine knows she shouldn't have the hots for him but she totally does. 

Source/Credit

• Clary and Jace in The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare

They briefly think they are brother and sister and incest is icky.  Spoiler Alert: they are not so it's all fine.  

• Ladyhawke (1984)

So I know this is a movie and not a book but I love it and it includes the ultimate example of forbidden love.  Navarre and Isabeau are in love but they have been cursed so that Navarre is a wolf at night while Isabeau is human and Isabeau is a hawk during the day when Navarre is human.  There's a few seconds at dawn and dusk where they are both human and it's heartbreaking and so sad. *sniff*  Matthew Broderick is reluctantly in the middle of it all.  I'm pretty sure I have not seen this movie since the 1980s so it may not be as good as I think it is BUT I'm going to stick with my belief that it is awesome.

So what are some of your examples of forbidden love in fantasyland?!  If you'd like to see other folks' picks, head on over to Fantasy Review Barn. 

RE-READ | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

I'm up to book three in my re-read of the Harry Potter series.  HP & the P of A was a lot more interesting read the second time around.  The movie is arguably the most interesting as well with the distinctive direction of Alfonso Cuaron.

In the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry and the gang are a little distracted from their impending fight against Voldemort and are instead focused on the past and sorting out who their other enemies might be.  Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban Prison and according to everyone in the wizarding world he must be hunting Harry.  Sirius' actions support this idea but are also mysterious.  In addition, being hunted by a violent murderer isn't all Harry has to worry about.  There's also the Quidditch cup, a feud between his two best friend's pets, and Hagrid's disastrous debut as a teacher thanks to Draco.  Speaking of which, look how friendly and goofy Buckbeak looks on the cover of the book - he's so full of joy to be alive, ha ha! 

  Some other thoughts on Book 3 of the Harry Potter Series:

•  This book introduces Remus Lupin (who I took even more of a shine to the second time around), Sirius Black, Rosmerta, Cedric Diggory, Crookshanks, Professor Trelawney and Hogsmeade (so it's not a character, sue me). 
• Is this the only book in the series where Voldemort does not make an appearance?  The focus of the story is very much in the past and not on what's to come.
• Again with Rowling's attention to detail:  In my post about Sorcerer's Stone I expressed confusion about how Hagrid could have borrowed Sirius flying motorcycle considering what's believed about Black.  Selah from A Bibliophile's Style set me straight, explaining that there was a gap of time in there before people "discovered" that Black had betrayed the Potters.  In this book, J.K. lays out exactly how Hagrid came to be using Sirius' bike and the precise timeline.  Seriously, how much detail did Rowling have planned out from the beginning?!? I'm in awe.
• The two most interesting characters in this book for me are:
• Severus Snape:  He becomes more interesting during a second read through of the series, because of what we end up knowing about him.  He is ridiculously vindictive in this book and at times downright cruel (torturing and denigrating Neville).  His hatred of Black and Lupin (but mostly Black) is incredibly dark and ugly.  His strong negative feelings towards Black are understandable when you consider not just what Black did to Snape (and we know the four friends, James Potter included, were really big jerks to Snape) but ALSO, he believes that Sirius is at least partially responsible for the death of Lily.   Is his behavior all, mostly, or just a little bit of an act considering his future role as double agent?  Or is Snape really a bitter, miserable jerk who just happens to have his moral compass adjusted correctly?  
• Hermione:  Several times in the story she is the one with the cooler and better head to the point where she defies Ron and Harry and does things that are very unpopular with them (threatening to tell about the map, telling McGonagle about the Firebolt). She does this while tackling a massive course load and even finds her inner feisty rule-breaker when she slaps Draco and walks out on Divinaton.  She's finding herself and it's kind of awesome.  Ron has a point about Crookshanks BUT as we know Crookshanks had a very good reason to be going after Scabbers.  Ron and Harry (especially Ron) come off not nearly so well as Hermione.  They act like pretty typical 13 year old boys which means they are clannish jerks to Hermione and I wanted to slap them both silly. 

• I've always been a fan of Ron and Hermione together but because of the above behaviors I am finding, this second time around, that I am feeling like Ron doesn't deserve her!     
• Is there any sweeter scene then the one between Sirius and Harry as they awkwardly try to reach out to each other? Sirius asking if Harry might want to live with him and Harry anxiously agreeing. Both of them have had a very rough 12 years without a lot of affection and it is just so poignant that things don't work out for them though maybe it's for the best?  I'm not entirely sure Sirius would be the best of influences on Harry - fine in short intervals but I'm not sure about 24/7.  
• Finally, I love the nicknames - Moony, Padfoot, Wormtail and Prongs.  They seem quite obscure and strange until the nature of each boys' animagus is revealed and then it's totally obvious.  

Five out of Five Stars:

The Movie  

At this point in the movie series, each one has been better than the one before and this movie from a cinematic point of view may be the best in the series.  Alfonso Cuaron's vision is unique and visually interesting.   I love the visualizations of the Dementors, The Night Bus and the Marauder's map.  However, while the first two movies stuck close to the source material there are a lot of changes made in Prisoner of Azkaban, some good perhaps and some which I think weaken the movie a bit.

The conflict between Hermione and the boys is mostly swept under the rug along with all of the plot points that go along with it - Crookshanks' role is mostly ignored and most of the Quidditch and the Firebolt controversy is avoided.  Snape is softened a bit in the movie - his edges sanded.   What Harry hears in his head when he encounters the dementors is also gentled.  In the book, he can actually hear his mother pleading with Voldemort, trying to save Harry's life and there is a lot more detail. It's heart wrenching.  I'm wondering if they thought that it would be too disturbing for the movie so instead they just had Harry hear some generic screaming.  The whole idea of the secret keeper is left out and the whole scenario is greatly simplified.  I do think these changes/omissions are slight weaknesses in the movie but they don't in any way ruin it.

In addition to its visuals the movie also has a few other things that I love.  The Bogart scene is so much fun and better than in the book where it is oddly dull. I also love the fierceness and timing of Hermione's punch of Draco. Such a good scene.  Finally, as is pretty much the case with most of the series there is so much good casting.  Davd Thewlis is perfect as Lupin and I am also quite fond of Dawn French as the Fat Lady and Emma Thompson as Professor Trelawney.

Four out of Five Stars:

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors I Read a Whole Bunch

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme for bloggers who like books and lists. It's awesome and is graciously hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

An entry on to this list seems to require a couple of factors.  They have to be an author whose writing I like very much or else I wouldn't have stuck with them for so many books.  Just as importantly however they have to be prolific writers.  Frequently they've written exceptionally long (and awesome) series.  Finally I have to say, thank goodness for Goodreads or this list would have been impossible!

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1) William Shakespeare - 21

Dude wrote a LOT of plays and while I haven't read them all, I have read most, totaling 21 in all.  

2) Patrick O'Brian - 20

There are 20 completed works in his amazing Aubrey and Maturin historical fiction series and I've read all of them and loved them.

3) Bill Willingham - 20

He's the writer for the Fables Graphic Novel series which I love.  I've read 20 books in this series.

4) Georgette Heyer - 16

She's the Grandmother of the Regency Era romance and her books are SO MUCH AWESOME.  And there are lots of them.  I've read at least 16.

5) Jim Butcher - 14

I'm almost caught up completely with his Dresden Files series and have read the first 14 books.

6) Lois McMaster Bujold - 13ish

She is one of my very favorite SFF writers and her most well known series  - The Vorkosigan Saga - includes a lot of books.  My goodreads tally says I've read 13 by her but I think the real number may be higher as I think I read a few of the Vorkosigan books in omnibus form.

7) Dorothy Dunnett - 13

I've read both the Lymond and House of Niccolo series which totals about 13 books.  Dunnett is my favorite historical fiction writer. 

8) Alyxandra Harvey - 12

She's one of my go to YA authors for fluffy, delightful fantasy with great characters.  I've read almost everything she's published which equals 12 books.

9) Agatha Christie - 11

This is another case where I think the actual number is higher but I don't think I have all of them logged in goodreads.  The real number is probably in the 20 book range.

10) Garth Nix - 10

Between his Keys to the Kingdom series and the first three books in the Abhorsen series I'm up to 10 of Garth Nix's books.  I plan on reading everything he's written and will write - he's fantastic!

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So who's the author you've read the most books by?