130 books read in 2007:

1. "Lady with a Black Umbrella" by Mary Balogh


2. "The Famous Heroine" by Mary Balogh


3. "Truly" by Mary Balogh


4. "Silent Melody" by Mary Balogh


5. "Simply Love" by Mary Balogh


6. "Slightly Married" by Mary Balogh


7. "Slightly Wicked" by Mary Balogh


8. "To Rescue a Rogue" by Jo Beverly


9. "Slightly Scandalous" by Mary Balogh


10. "Slightly Dangerous" by Mary Balogh


11. "Promises" by Lisa Kleypas


12. "Rose in Bloom" by Stephanie Laurens


13. "The Lady Chosen" by Stephanie Laurens


14. "A Gentleman's Honor" by Stephanie Laurens


15. "In the Prince's Bed" by Sabrina Jeffries


16. "To Pleasure a Prince" by Sabrina Jeffries


17. "One Night With a Prince" by Sabrina Jeffries


18. "Pacific Vortex" by Clive Cussler


19. "The Mediterranean Caper" by Clive Cussler


20. "The Seducer" by Madeline Hunter


21. "The Saint" by Madeline Hunter


22. "The Ring of Fear" by Anne McCaffrey (again)


23. "HP and the Order of the Phoenix" by JK Rowling (again)


24. "HP and the Half-Blood Prince" by JK Rowling (again)


25. "The Charmer" by Madeline Hunter


26. "The Sinner" by Madeline Hunter


27. "The Seduction of an English Scoundrel" by Jillian Hunter


28. "Dark Prince" by Christine Feehan


29. "Dark Desire" by Christine Feehan


30. "Dark Gold" by Christine Feehan


31. "Dark Magic" by Christine Feehan


32. "Dark Challenge" by Christine Feehan


33. "Dark Fire" by Christine Feehan


34. "Dark Dream" by Christine Feehan


35. "Dark Legend" by Christine Feehan


36. "Dark Guardian" by Christine Feehan


37. "Dark Symphony" by Christine Feehan


38. "Fear the Darkness" by Sherrilyn Kenyon


39. "The Wizard of London" by Mercedes Lackey


40. "Lover Revealed" by J. R. Ward


41. "And Only to Deceive" by Tasha Alexander


42. "A Poisoned Season" by Tasha Alexander


43. "The Dream-Hunter" by Sherrilyn Kenyon


44. "The Last Templar" by Raymond Khoury


45. "The Last Voyage of the Valentina" by Santa Montefiore


46. "Dark Descent" by Christine Feehan


47. "Dark Melody" by Christine Feehan


48. "Dark Destiny" by Christine Feehan


49. "Dark Hunger" by Christine Feehan


50. "Dark Secret" by Christine Feehan


51. "Dark Demon" by Christine Feehan


52. "Dark Celebration" by Christine Feehan


53. "Moon Called" by Patricia Briggs


54. "Danse Macabre" by Laurell K. Hamilton (again)


55. "The Rest Falls Away" by Colleen Gleason


56. "Stolen" by Kelley Armstrong


57. "The Secret Pearl" by Mary Balogh


58. "The Harlequin" by Laurell K. Hamilton


59. "Witch Fire" by Anya Bast


60. "Blood Bound" by Patricia Briggs


61. "The Scent of Shadows" by Vicki Pettersson


62. "The Taste of Night" by Vicki Pettersson


63. "Lady Beware" by Jo Beverly


64. "The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever" by Julia Quinn


65. "Not Quite a Lady" by Loretta Chase


66. "Love Only Once" by Johanna Lindsey


67. "Tender Rebel" by Johanna Lindsey


68. "Gentle Rogue" by Johanna Lindsey


69. "The Magic of You" by Johanna Lindsey


70. "Say You Love Me" by Johanna Lindsey


71. "A Loving Scoundrel" by Johanna Lindsey


72. "Captive of My Desires" by Johanna Lindsey


73. "Dangerous Desires" by Julia Templeton


74. "Night Fire" by Catherine Coulter


75. "Night Shadow" by Catherine Coulter


76. "Midsummer Magic" by Catherine Coulter


77. "The Offer" by Catherine Coulter


78. "My Lady Notorious" by Jo Beverly


79. "The Companion" by Susan Squires


80. "Beware a Scots Revenge" by Sabrina Jeffries


81. "My Steadfast Heart" by Jo Goodman


82. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by JK Rowling


83. "A Matter of Scandal" by Suzanne Enoch


84. "The Countess" by Catherine Coulter


85. "The Heir" by Catherine Coulter


86. "Never Lie to a Lady" by Liz Carlyle


87. "Charming the Prince" by Teresa Medeiros


88. "The Bride and the Beast" by Teresa Medeiros


89. "Shadow and Lace" by Teresa Medeiros


90. "Heather and Velvet" by Teresa Medeiros


91. "Yours Until Dawn" by Teresa Medeiros


92. "A Whisper of Roses" by Teresa Medeiros


93. "The Obedient Bride" by Mary Balogh


94. "Thief of Hearts" by Teresa Medeiros


95. "An Unwilling Bride" by Jo Beverly


96. "Indiscreet" by Mary Balogh


97. "A Visit from Sir Nicholas" by Victoria Alexander


98. "In the Company of Secrets" by Judith Miller


99. "The Mad Earl's Bride" by Loretta Chase


100. "Devil May Cry" by Sherrilyn Kenyon


101. "The White Dragon" by Anne McCaffrey (again)


102. "The Stolen Bride" by Jo Beverly


103. "Let it be Love" by Victoria Alexander


104. "A Lady of High Regard" by Tracie Peterson


105. "Dime Store Magic" by Kelley Armstrong


106. "A Lick of Frost" by Laurell K. Hamilton


107. "The Wyndham Legacy" by Catherine Coulter


108. "The Nightengale Legacy" by Catherine Coulter


109. "The Valentine Legacy" by Catherine Coulter


110. "Warrior's Song" by Catherine Coulter


111. "Stitch in Snow" by Anne McCaffrey (again)


112. "Devil's Bridy" by Stephanie Laurens (again)


113. "A Rake's Vow" by Stephanie Laurens (again)


114. "Scandal's Bride" by Stephanie Laurens (again)


115. "A Rogue's Proposal" by Stephanie Laurens (again)


116. "A Secret Love" by Stephanie Laurens (again)


117. "All About Love" by Stephanie Laurens (again)


118. "All About Passion" by Stephanie Laurens


119. "The Devil's Love" by Julia London


120. "Saving Grace" by Julie Garwood (again)


121. "Castles" by Julie Garwood (again)


122. "Ransom" by Julie Garwood (again)


123. "The Heir" by Johanna Lindsey (again)


124. "Devil in Winter" by Lisa Kleypas (again)


125. "Scandal in Spring" by Lisa Kleypas


126. "The Taste of Innocence" by Stephanie Laurens


127. "Midnight Angel" by Lisa Kleypas (again)


128. "Prince of Dreams" by Lisa Kleypas (again)


129. "The Devil Who Tamed Her" by Johanna Lindsey


130. "Defy Not the Heart" by Johanna Lindsey

Labels: books

Posted by Laura at 11:22 AM | Permalink | Comments

I started reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows last night at 7:30. I read the last page at 3:30 in the morning.

It's over. Rowling did a good job. She also did a lot of unexpected things. But in the end it was well done.

I'm kind of numb, though.

Any readers out there who have finished the book e-mail me so we can talk about it!

Labels: best things, books, crack

Posted by Laura at 9:34 AM | Permalink | Comments

I was driving back to work today after meeting Calvin for lunch and then going home for a few minutes to put a meatloaf in the crockpot. NPR's "Talk of the Nation" was discussing the habits of book readers, specifically those people who read the ending of a book first. The story was prompted by the fact that the release of the final Harry Potter book is this Saturday.

Regular readers will recall that I posses this very bad, sacrilegious "end reading" habit. I'll read the very last page, regardless of if it's a full page of text or has only two lines, and then go back to page one and read through. I have actually been thinking of how I will address "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" when it is delivered to my house this coming Saturday. It's the final book of the series, and I really want to savour it. But will my willpower be strong enough to resist the urge to read the end first?

The people discussing this "end reading" phenomenon on NPR had an interesting point. Authors (of course) want readers to curl up with their books for hours and thoroughly enjoy every word, every description, every aspect of character development, and arrive at the end in a linear fashion, without reading ahead. But some people tend to read faster just because they want to find out what happens, and thereby miss or skim the meat of the book in their rush. It is thought that perhaps people who read the end first are then able to go back to the beginning and read in a more relaxed fashion, without that feeling of needing to hurry up and find out what happens.

I think I am one of those people. I feel a certain anxiety (retarded, I know) when reading a book, to know what happens ahead of the point that I am at. But if I know what to expect, I can then relax and enjoy the book without rushing.

So. I am still undecided about what to do with this book. I really want to read it from page one, slowly and with relish, and arrive at the end when it arrives. Without reading ahead. But this is a pivotal point in pop culture - the END of the Harry Potter series (!) - so how am I supposed to keep myself from succumbing to the urge to peep at the end?(*)

What will you do, dear readers, when faced with this very same dilemma?

(*) There is, of course, the option of reading the book twice in a row, should the first reading be too rushed in my desire to get to the end and find out what happens. (**) It's not like I've never done THAT before.

(**) Calvin is SO going to harrass me about this.

Labels: books

Posted by Laura at 1:16 PM | Permalink | Comments

In conjunction with my last entry, some more much-anticipated pre-orders from Amazon that are shipping straight to my door like little miracles from the book gods:

A Lick of Frost - Laurell K. Hamilton (November 11th)
Lover Unbound - J.R. Ward (October 2nd)
HP and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling (July 21st - happy birthday to me!)
The Harlequin - Laurell K. Hamilton (June 13th)

Labels: books

Posted by Laura at 8:55 AM | Permalink | Comments

I just got done exercising a bunch of gift certificates I had for Barnes and Noble. Jen and I went to lunch together at the mall today, and afterwards spent a nice twenty minutes browsing around the book store. I didn't buy anything then, but the book buying bug did bite me, so this evening I got on-line and placed a very satisfying order. Two weeks from Saturday ends my (mostly) self-imposed book reading hiatus, and oh my goodness do I have a selection to choose from!

Which is where you guys come in. Here are the books I just ordered, and the books I have waiting for me on my dresser. Give me your recommendations on what to read first! Or, if you know of a great book that's not on the list, send me the title. It's not as if I'm going to stop buying books any time soon.

(As an aside, on the whole I have found Amazon's prices to be quite a bit better than B&N's, even with B&N's "membership discounts". Amazon doesn't require a membership, and in every instance of the books I just ordered the copies from Amazon were dollars cheaper. But! I had the gift certificates from B&N, so it's to B&N I went.)

(As another aside, I was going to hyperlink the titles of the books, but then I realized I don't feel like it.)

The Dream Hunter - Sherrilyn Kenyon
Dead Witch Walking - Kim Harrison
Moon Called - Patricia Briggs
And Only to Deceive (A Novel of Suspense) - Tasha Alexander
The Illuminatus! Trilogy - Robert Shea, Robert Anton Wilson
Last Voyage of the Valentina - Santa Montefiore
The Hallowed Hunt - Lois McMaster Bujold
The Outstretched Shadow - Mercedes Lackey, James Mallory
The Rest Falls Away - Colleen Gleason
Good Omens - Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman
The Eyre Affair - Jasper Fforde
Love at First Bite - Compilation with Sherrilyn Kenyon
A Walk in the Woods - Bill Bryson
Prague - Arthur Phillips
City of Shadows - Ariana Franklin

Jen's gonna be mad at me - there's like, three books on that list that were gifts from her, and I haven't read them yet. I will! I promise!!!

Labels: books

Posted by Laura at 6:12 PM | Permalink | Comments

Stolen from Jen. I was surprised at a) how many I've read; and b) some of the books that made the list.

-------------------

You know the game. Bold ones you’ve read, strike out any you didn’t finish or thought were awful.

The BBC's "Big Read" - Top 200 best books as voted by BBC viewers: http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/bigread/

1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie

Also:

According to British Librarians - Top 30 Books to Read Before You Die: http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,1721526,00.html

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Bible
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by JRR Tolkien
1984 by George Orwell
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
All Quite on the Western Front by E M Remarque
His Dark Materials Trilogy by Phillip Pullman
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
The Lord of the Flies by William Golding
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
Tess of the D'urbevilles by Thomas Hardy
Winnie the Pooh by AA Milne
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham
Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
The Prophet by Khalil Gibran
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
Middlemarch by George Eliot
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzenhitsyn

Labels: books, meme

Posted by Laura at 12:42 PM | Permalink | Comments

I've posted a few new pics over on Flickr, and I've begun listing the books I've read this year on the sidebar - scroll down below my "things" under "Stuff". Thanks to Jen and the 50 book challenge community over at LiveJournal for the idea!

Labels: blogthings, books, meme

Posted by Laura at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments