And Now, The Content

Bessie (we'll stick with this for now) is loaded up with a bunch of books, but as I said, I've been reading three pretty consistently.  Haven't finished any of them, but since this appears to be what will suck up all of my July, let me give you a quick run-down, even though there's not a ton to say.

That's because I started out my Kindle collection with solid contenders.  I'm too cheap to take risks with my money.  The Wise Man's Fear, by Patrick Rothfuss, was pretty much a sure thing.  It's the sequel to The Name of the Wind, second in the trilogy, and the only thing I don't like about it is how long I'll likely have to wait for the next one.  Also, some parts are so good and exciting that I have to stop reading for a little while, because I'm so worried about Kvothe and what's going to happen.  It's a perfect Kindle book, because it's a THOUSAND PAGES LONG (this is not hyperbole, though the capitalization is added for emphasis).  This means that if I look at the little percentage tab at the bottom of the screen and multiply by 10, that's how many pages I am into the book.  380 or so, now, and it's so good--textured, compelling, epic and personal at the same time.  Love it.

Angelica, by Sharon Shinn, is very good.  As others have said before me, it's a very similar story to Archangel, the first in her Samaria series, and of course the first time she did this story, it had more impact.  Really, it's a romance novel with a sci fi premise and a fantasy feel.  The fact that I've read this story before and know what will happen is really pretty irrelevant, because I love the characters.  I actually kind of appreciate the will-they-won't-they-oh-wait-it's-a-romance-of-course-they-will story arc of it all.  There are always moments in her books where I just sigh with happiness over the description of a meal, or a walk in the country, or someone learning to sing, and this book is no exception.

Finally, Divergent, a new YA novel by Veronica Roth.  I'm sure it was recommended to me, probably by someone online.  It's the first book I bought because I read the sample and didn't want to stop when I got to the end.  Really, it's not that different from any other YA dystopia novel, of which there are so many these days, but it's a nice parallel to something like Matched.  It's not about a beatific, ideal, oppressive society, but a very structured one that is rough around the edges.  There's a love interest, but it's not the main point, which I really appreciate, and there is this idea of factions.

Society is composed of groups who pursue different virtues, and each teenager has to choose their affiliation and live a life constrained (in behavior, privilege, and occupation) by that choice.  Beatrice was born Abnegation--the faction of people who value selflessness, and do much of the governing and actual work of running society.  But, unsurprisingly, she chooses to leave that faction and join Dauntless, who value bravery and defend against any dangers in their world.  What these dangers are and what that defense consists of will likely make up the rest of the trilogy, though right now we're in the middle of an engaging training-and-friend-making montage.  I'm caught up.

So, that's my July.  All of it, if you'll believe it.  I blame the video game Mike gave me for Christmas last year that I just started playing on my DS, and Kindle ramp-up time.  Tune in for August, a 10 book month if ever there was one!