It’s been forever

know, I know…It’s been forever since I posted and there is a little residue guilt there but not a lot because I have had so so many issues since last I wrote. But then haven’t we all. 2020 was, to put it bluntly, a shit show. And 21 is struggling to be much better.

But we can only hope it gets better and all these vaccines coming out are going to do what they promise.

I can’t help think that, in the rush to beat covid there hasn’t been enough emphasise on the long term effects of the vaccines.

Is that because I have read far to many apocalypse genre books? Possibly but having several autoimmune diseases I am a bit wary of anything that I don’t know enough about.

Anyway enough depressing stuff. What new hobbies did you take up during lockdown?

I already have so many crafting hobbies but I added a few, cardmaking left me with dozens of cards that I now have enough cards for birthdays and Christmas for years to come lol. Bullet journaling is confusing but at least it’s useful and I can use a lot of the paper crafting products I have from scrapbooking for the last 16 years, as well as the many many pens I have. I can never resist buying nice pens so I have boxes of various types of markers and pens. I am a sucker for pretty pens lol.

Lockdown gave me a lot of time to do my favorite hobby, reading. I abused my poor kindle that I ended up buying a new one lol. I have so many books that need to be reviewed. I have jumped from author to author and will be bringing some reviews very shortly.

I want thank new subscriber Colorful Sisters for reminding me of the commitment I made to this blog. I have been neglectful of my poor wee blog and my subscribers. I shall endeavor to correct that.

Watch this space for book reviews and glimpses into the life of this broken kiwi.

The Dangerous Days Series–Baileigh Higgins

To be honest when I started reading this I thought it would be a cheap rip off of Dawn of the Dead, the first zombie scene with the woman trapped in the bathroom with her zombie husband outside the door wanting her brains for breakfast, I was almost ready to throw it aside within the first few pages but then it really picked up.

Set in South Africa, the three book series and prequel, follows the story of a small group of people who’s lives are changed in moments. This is a high speed, edge of your seat series. Even the inevitable romances are often fraught with danger. Nothing is set in stone in a zombie apocalypse.

I did find it a bit to co-incidental at times, I mean what are the chances of just running into so many people you know, in a large area, in the middle of a zombie apocalypse? I mean it could happen, if you had made a plan in advance but to just happen, and not once but quite a number of times? A bit unlikely but possible I suppose. And even with this flaw I found the whole series to be constantly exciting and interesting and I really have to say it, a nice change of scene, you read enough books set in America they start running together. Though to be honest, I expected more lions and wild life but that is just me stereotyping again lol. A zombie lion? hmmm no thanks.

Ok enough of the sidebar, there is a great range of characters here, my own favorite being Logan, the rugged loner more used to dealing with animals than people, who has a secret heart of gold for all his rough and tough manly man ways. He is a complex character with a dark past and very well written. Another unexpected favorite was Michael, but you will need to read the books to find out more about this deep and deadly character. Some of the characters acted in a completely expected way but some were just so surprising that you don’t see it coming. It really does keep the storyline fresh all the way through the series.

There are a wide range of directions taken in the books to, its not all about just surviving the zombies, there has to be other big bads right? so in the true tradition of the Walking Dead (would somebody just kill Negan already, its getting boring!) Our heroes have to face some truly vile people and save some desperate and traumatized people. But goodness should always prevail, it should but it doesn’t always. this is the zompoc in South Africa, anything is possible when so many cultures come together in one place.

I really enjoyed this series, for all its expected moments there are enough unexpected ones to make it a good solid series and you know I only review the books I enjoy and are happy to recommend. So next time your browsing Amazon for something new, look up The Dangerous Days series and let me know what you think.

Happy reading

Monday Muse on a Tuesday

Once again, well the first time in ages actually I am stealing Monday Muse for the Purple Booker and, since we are a day ahead down here, my Monday muse is on a Tuesday

Musing Mondays is a weekly meme that asks you to choose one of the following prompts to answer:

I’m currently reading…
Up next I think I’ll read…
I bought the following book(s) in the past week…
I’m super excited to tell you about (book/author/bookish-news)…
I’m really upset by (book/author/bookish-news)…
I can’t wait to get a copy of…
I wish I could read ___, but…
I blogged about ____ this past week…

Random Question: Why did you become a reader?

How could I resist such a question? Why did I become a reader? I have always been a reader, I learnt to read before I learnt to write my own name. One of my earliest memories is my middle brother, who is 4 1/2 years older than me, sitting me down and showing me his school book. I must have been no more than 3 at the time. The words and the pictures fascinated me and the fascination has never left.

Being a reader is just a part of me, like the freckles and the glasses. I can’t imagine not having a book to snuggle up with when I got to bed.

A better question for me would be why am I still a reader. That’s simple, to escape this hum drum world and have endless adventures. With my ever increasing disabilities and lack of mobility, I will never get the chance to travel and be completely free, so I read, not only is it an awesome distraction from pain but every new book is a chance for a new adventure.

So now I hand the torch, who will next in the Monday Muse challenge. And don’t forget to stop by and see the Purple Booker, she has a fantastic blog.

Happy Reading

RAgirl

Monday Musing on a Tuesday Night

I follow a blog from a blogger that calls herself The Purple Booker and every week she posts a Monday Muse posting that has a set of questions that are basically the same each week,

I’m currently reading…Soft Target – Iain Rob Wright
Up next I think I’ll read…An Assassins Tool – T U Darby
I bought the following book(s) in the past week…None, I’m trying to get through the back log of books on my kindle before I get any more
I’m super excited to tell you about (book/author/bookish-news)…The book I just finished which I will be reviewing on Thursday
I’m really upset by (book/author/bookish-news)…I don’t get upset about books, annoyed sometimes but not upset
I can’t wait to get a copy of…The latest addition to the Flowers vs Zombies series by Perrin Briar
I wish I could read the new Cassandra Clare book, but…its $12.28 usd, way to much for an ebook if you ask me.
I blogged about  nothing because I am incredibly slack this past week…Sorry, I need to get my act together and stop wasting so much time playing games.

Every week there is a random question, this weeks random question is: What do you do with your non keeper hard copy books?

I was pondering this question while starring blankly at my bookcase full of hard covered books that haven’t been moved since I moved into the house 3 years ago, except for the occasional dust around of course lol. Sometimes I look at them and think I should hand them on to someone who would appreciate them but then I read through the titles and can’t find a single one I would want to give away. I may be a kindle user now but there is something about holding a well bound hardcover book that just makes me feel happy. To me, each of the books in my collection are part of my journey and are precious. Last time I moved I sorted all the books in my overflowing bookcase and gave away a huge box full to my son’s (now ex) girlfriend, including my Twilight collection (yes I know, disgusting to admit but I really did quite enjoy the books…right up until the movies came out and ruined them lol.) but I would never part with my Raymond E Feist series, I have nearly all his books in hardback, well I did until my darling son started stealing them every time he comes home lol. But at least they are going to a good home so I don’t mind too much. I am giving him a Kindle for Christmas so maybe I will get them back lol.

So what do you do with your non keeper hardbacks? Do you keep them anyway, or do you give them away? Leave me a comment and let me know.

I do have another book review for you. I’ll post it on Thursday if my daughter will give me enough computer time, school holidays again which means a fight to see who can hog the computer the longest. Time she got her own I think, maybe Santa will bring her one, just so I can reclaim mine and get rid of all these dayum games she’s installed. She is a gamer girl and a complete geek, I am so proud of her, now if I could just get her into read more and loving Doctor Who I would be in nerd parent bliss lol.

have a great week one and all and watch for that post on Thursday, I have just finished the most interesting book, you’re going to love it.

thoughts on a Saturday night

This is just a random post, no book review tonight, to tired to think to much tonight but not quite ready to go to bed.

I have been doing a lot of art journaling lately, pretty much its a daily thing and has become a bit of an obsession. There is a lot of mix media art involved and when it comes to mixed media nothing is safe from becoming part of my projects, well at least that what I thought until earlier this week. I decided I need some old book pages on a page I was working on and since I have a book case (and several boxes) of old books that get neglected since I use a kindle now so I pulled out on that is pretty tatty, well loved I call it and I flicked through and thought I could use a few of the lose pages but I couldn’t do it, I couldn’t pull apart the book.

It suddenly dawned on me that I loved that book and if I pulled it apart it would be like ripping up an old friend. The book was written by the late great David Eddings, Book 5 of the Belgariad series which was one of my very favorite series for a long long time. To me there are three great fantasy writers

1. Raymond E Feist
2. David Eddings
3. Anne McCaffrey

you may argue with that and that’s fine, share your favorites with me, theses three have been in my list of favorite authors of all time forever and some of the few writers who I have read everything they have written and loved it all. I still have so many of their books that I can’t bear to part with, though I did hand on my love of books to my middle child and he did steal a few of Feist’s Magician series when he went away to university, the wee thief lol. Actually I didn’t mind at all, its so good to see the next generation develop a love for reading, so few of them have that passion and they don’t know what they are missing. btw my son is 25 and I know some of my followers are in the age group and I say to you…share your love of books, encourage your friends to read, let them escape into the worlds you love.

And now I am burbling so it must be time for bed, but first I need to get the paint off my fingers and put this book back where it belongs, even if I never read it again, its not going anywhere.

Have a fab weekend everyone. Happy reading.