I have a love/hate relationship with books. It’s weird to describe it as that, because I really don’t hate books at ALL. But my brain gets all twisted up in a book and it’s difficult to explain. I shall attempt.
When I love a book, I *love* a book. I live with it, the characters become real, I want to move to the place where the book takes place. Putting it down is somewhat akin to someone dying. It is difficult for me to walk away and choose something new to read. It feels like a betrayal.
I’ve been known to read a brand new book, finish it, and go right back to page 1 and start all over again. I did with this book.
I have no regrets, either. Still one of my top books of all time. Then again, I love Nora. She and I could totally be BFFs if she knew I existed. I’ve never read a book of hers I didn’t love.
I also get into trouble if I start a series of books before all of the books are released. It does not make me a happy camper to have to wait a year or more for a book to come and fulfill my need for closure. The Harry Potter books just about killed me. I was there at midnight the day of the release of every book from Goblet of Fire on waiting for my copy. I’m not ashamed. In fact, I sort of miss those days. I’m also waiting impatiently for John Stephens The Black Reckoning (doesn’t have a link yet) and Kiera Kass’s The One. Not very patiently, either.
When the time comes that I finish a book, it is difficult for me to pick up something I’ve never read before. It’s like entering into a new relationship. I don’t know how I’m going to be treated or how things are going to end; how tied up my emotions are going to be or if I’m going to be bored or thrilled. It’s just HARD to invest myself. I often end up going back to read something that I know I love already. Not always, but a lot.
Maybe I’m just super weird.
However, when I really get into a book, you can barely get me to surface. This is another pro and con at once. The pro is that I read fast and plow through books. The cons are that it takes a Mac truck to get me out of the book, and that I read fast and plow through the book. That makes me sad.
So, these are what I’ve been reading and/or eyeing lately.
Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin. Reading the books, and loving them. I’ve watched the series from HBO, and I love the series, but the books are even better. The one thing I can say about seeing the show first is that I know how to say their names in my head now. That does help.
Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. This series has people who either LOVE it or hate, hate, hate it. You know that I can’t wait to dive into it. I’ve got it for my Nook, but haven’t started yet, since I’m currently in the middle of 4800 pages of GOT. I hear that the audiobooks for these are excellent as well, but I don’t think my public library has them, which is a bummer. I won’t buy them until I listen to them first. I’m so cheap.
Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts. I’ve read this at least twice, maybe three times, but I have it going on the side of GOT right now. Again. And I’m not sorry. I love that there’s a male lead in this book (a lot of hers are female), and that he’s so human – not perfect. I dig it. Plus, he loves his grandma.
Into the Mists by Serene Conneeley. I won this book during the book launch of Lucy Cavendish‘s new book, Spellbound, which I also love and is sitting beside me. I haven’t started Serene’s book yet, but it’s sitting on my headboard with a pretty bookmark waiting for me to dive in. It’s one that I almost am putting off reading because I want to wiggle down and relish in it, and right now life is a little crazy to be wiggling into a book. I might surprise myself and pick it up this weekend during the impending snow storm #9172364532 for this winter, though.
What are you reading? Care to weigh in and add to my list? I’d love to have personal reviews!!
xoxo
Chere Kaye 