A disappearing act...

Sorry, I kind of vanished last week. After the big hoopla of the reading on Monday and with the holiday on Thursday, I went into stealth mode ; ) My inner hermit needed time to recooperate.

This week, I've got the Local Author Book Fair in Pekin, Illinois. I'll be at the Pekin library on Friday and Saturday. I'm not entirely sure what time on Friday, but pretty much all day in Saturday. If you're in the area, please be sure to stop by!

I've been reading voraciously the last couple of weeks. I go through periods like that now. I used to read constantly. I'd feel bereft if there wasn't a book waiting for me after I finished the one I was currently reading. But with writing as much as I do (though, never enough!), I find that I go through phases where I can't read enough and other times when my brain is so full with what I'm writing, I don't seem to have time or inclination to read. : ) But here's a list of some terrific books I've discovered in the last month or so...

Industrial Magic by Kelley Armstrong -- another book in the Otherworld series. Narrated first person by a witch. Witches, werewolves, vampires, necromancers, oh my! It's a terrific series and this is one of my favorites.

The Fairy Godmother by Mercedes Lackey -- I picked this one up after hearing much discussion on the Paranormal Romance Listserv. I typically do not like fantasy novels, but this one is terrific! The true story of how fairy godmothers get their jobs and how all those fairy tales keep happening : )

Flashpoint by Suzanne Brockmann -- Suzanne Brockmann is one of the few contemporary romance novelists that I really enjoy, even without so much as a hint of paranormal in her stories. Exotic and dangerous locales and honorable military men...*sigh* my knees are weak!

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine -- A MUCH better book than the movie. A young woman is cursed by her fairy godmother. She is given the "gift" of obedience. She has to do whatever someone commands. Throw in an apathetic father, evil stepmother and stepsisters, and a handsome prince who loves her for her humor but doesn't understand why she behaves the way she does, and you've got a great story! This is a young adult book. It is a Newberry Award finalist, I believe.

Wives and Sisters by Natalie R. Collins -- Fabulous, fabulous suspense story. A young woman raised in the strict Mormon church struggles to find the truth behind the disappearance of a childhood friend and the connection between that and all the bad stuff that keeps happening to her now. I haven't cried at a suspense novel in...well, I don't know if I've ever cried at a suspense novel, except this one. Truly, you will run the gamut of emotions with this book. Also, a fascinating look at the Mormon tradition/religion from a thoroughly disenchanted narrator.

And finally...
The Taken by Dean Koontz -- I used to read Mr. Koontz's books all the time as a kid...I must have had a much stronger constitution. This one kept scaring me! This one follows the adventure (if you can call a desperate bid for survival an adventure) of a couple in the midst of what appears to be first alien contact. But there is so much more to it that what it appears to be at first...

Also, make sure you check out Meg Cabot's blog today. She has a hysterical entry about what NOT to say to the writer(s) in your life!