75-79

[fiveforsilver]

July:

75. Squire by Tamora Pierce (380)
76. Lady Knight by Tamora Pierce (409)
Rereads. Protector of the Small is my favorite of Pierce's Tortall series, in my opinion the best written with the least mary-sue-ish main character and the most developed plots.

77. *Marked by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (306)
78. *Betrayed by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (310)
79. *Chosen by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (307)
Not the best YA vampire books I've ever read. I kept reading parts and thinking "oh, that reminds me of" some other YA fantasy book. I'm just getting bored with teenage vampires in general, I think. I won't say that everything good has already been done, because that's silly, but it is the new "thing" and people are jumping on the bandwagon instead of coming up with new ideas. Still, these were enjoyable enough and I'll read the next book when it comes out.

79 / 110 books. 72% done!

32 / 75 *new books. 43% done!

3 / 10 ^non-fiction. 30% done!

24529 / 33000 pages. 74% done!

80-81

[fiveforsilver]

80. *The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger (546)

*may include slight spoilers*

This is a fantastic book. It was interesting to read a whole book that dealt with how people handled the time-traveling issue without dealing with the issue itself much until near the end. I actually thought that the time-traveling "disorder" was the weakest part of the book; after suspending my disbelief about it being possible for a man to slip in and out of time the way Henry does, I had trouble trying to reconcil it to be somehow natural. I would rather, I think, have not be given any sort of a reason at all.

But that is a minor part of the book and the rest of it was wonderful. Many of the time-travel-related issues have been dealt with in other science fiction books, but this is a more in-depth look at how people deal with it rather than at the mechanics of it (there are no "don't cross your timeline" or "touch your other self and the universe will implode" issues that are common in Doctor Who, for instance; however, Henry is unable to change even minor things that for him, have already happened).

After many recommendations both on LibraryThing and in real life, I am glad that I finally picked this up, it was a real pleasure to read.

81. *Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (341)

I will probably read this again some day. I like the added levels of detail in this book as opposed to the movies (which is expected, of course). The characters have so much depth. So far, this and Pride & Prejudice are my two favorite Austen books. I will probably not read another one soon; I need a break from that style of writing.

81 / 110 books. 74% done!

34 / 75 *new books. 45% done!

3 / 10 ^non-fiction. 30% done!

25416 / 33000 pages. 77% done!

82-87

[fiveforsilver]

I started listening to Doctor Who and Torchwood audiobooks and apparently I just couldn't stop. Interestingly, I have no desire to actually read any of these books myself.

They're all read by members of the cast. Most if not all are abridged (unfortunately).

82. *Doctor Who: The Feast of the Drowned by Stephen Cole, read by David Tennant (2h28m)
Very creepy. Clearly inspired in parts by the second Pirates of the Carribbean movie. David Tennant is a fantastic reader.

83. *Doctor Who: The Resurrection Casket by Justin Richards, read by David Tennant (2h25m)
The Doctor and Rose land on a planet that is in a area with no electricity (some sort of perpetual EMP sort of thing) and have to get the TARDIS off-planet and out of that field. Everything within it runs on steam, including spaceships and robots. Very steampunk. They get caught up in a space pirate mystery in the process of getting out.

Fairly predictable at times, but fun. It reminded me of a couple of Star Trek episodes at several points. I liked the end very much, and Kevin was definitely my favorite character.

84. *Torchwood: Another Life by Peter Anghelides, read by John Barrowman (1h12m)
An alien warrior starts possessing members of Torchwood. Is it out for conquest or just trying to get home?

The climactic scene with Gwen and Jack is moving, and also very in-character. I wish these books weren't abridged, though, because they all just seem like - well, it's not that the plot isn't there, but it seems like there are things missing. Depth, maybe.

John Barrowman is not my favorite reader. It's probably just be me, though - much as I like him (and Jack), his (American) accent always sounds just a bit off to me.

85. *Doctor Who: The Stone Rose by Jac Rayner, read by David Tennant (2h23m)
I really like this book - and just about the time that I thought it was wrapping up, I looked and it turned out it was only halfway done!

Rose has a bigger part in this than she (or any companion) has in any of the Doctor Who audiobooks I've listened to. I was not surprised to learn it was written by a woman.

86. *Doctor Who: State of Decay by Terrance Dicks, read by Tom Baker (57m)
No, really. Alien vampires. Tom Baker is a good reader, though, with a very pleasant voice.

87. *Torchwood: Border Princes by Dan Abnett, read by Eve Myles (3h30m)
Eve Myles (aka Gwen on Torchwood) is a pleasure to listen to. I liked this book, too. It was not predictable, for the most part, and I enjoyed the story.

86 / 110 books. 78% done!

40 / 75 *new books. 53% done!

3 / 10 ^non-fiction. 30% done!

25416 / 33000 pages. 77% done!
Audiobook hours: 13

88-92

[fiveforsilver]

88. *The Professor's Daughter by Joann Sfar (64)
Graphic Novel, recommended to me by my sister. Beautiful illustrations and a fantastic, hilarious story. I recommend it to pretty much anyone.

89. *Doctor Who: Pest Control by Peter Anghelides, read by David Tennant (2h24m)
The Doctor and Donna land on a planet being colonized by the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire. It's the middle of a war. But who is the real enemy?

Overall I found this a predictable and not terribly exciting story. It's always fun to listen to David Tennant read, though.

90. Peeps by Scott Westerfeld (304)
Reread. Without question one of the best YA vampire books. Westerfeld is a superb author.

91. *Torchwood: Hidden by Steven Savile, read by Naoko Mori (2h16m)
Naoko Mori has a lovely voice, but the story didn't make much of an impression. I didn't write a review immediately after I listened to it and now I don't remember what it was even about.

92. Soul Music by Terry Pratchett (373)
This is one of my favorite, if not my favorite, Discworld book. I love Susan and Death of Rats is fabulous.

92 / 110 books. 84% done!

43 / 75 *new books. 57% done!

3 / 10 ^non-fiction. 30% done!

26157 / 33000 pages. 79% done!
Audiobook time: 17h40m