Lovely Books and Things - 1.10.21

Lovely Books and Things
My Weekly Books and Films Update

Linking up with:
Sunday Post (details)
Mailbox Monday (details)

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HAPPY THINGS:

1. Energy and motivation to organize closet. Pre-spring cleaning ;-)
2. Surprise lasagne meal with oreo cookies for dessert from friend.
3. Creative plant presentations.

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Bought:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
MinaLima Edition
by J.K. Rowling
YA, Fantasy | Published: 2021 | Goodreads
Excited to see the interactive elements to this new illustrated edition.

Library: audiobook

The Down Days
by Ilze Hugo
Dystopia, South Africa | Published: 2020 | Goodreads

Library:

Artificial Condition
(The Murderbot Diaries #2)
by Martha Wells
SciFi, Novella | Published: 2018 | Goodreads

Freebies: from Free Little Library

Fortunately, the Milk
by Neil Gaiman
illustrated by Skottie Young
Middle Grade, Fantasy | Published: 2013 | Goodreads

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Virtual Author event: hosted by Strand Bookstore
Listen to archive of this and check out their calendar for future free author events (here)

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie
by Marie Benedict
Historical, Mystery, Agatha Christie | Published: 2021 | Goodreads

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AND watched: on Netflix

Bridgerton (2020)
Creator: Chris Van Dusen
Based on book by: Julia Quinn
Stars: Phoebe Dynevor, Regé-Jean Page, Nicola Coughlan
Drama, Romance, Regency | imdb | my rating: 5 Wealth, lust, and betrayal set in the backdrop of Regency era England, seen through the eyes of the powerful Bridgerton family.

LOVED the diversity take for this romance. Enjoyed the costumes and soundtrack (especially the Billie Eilish cover)

Someone Great (2019)
Director/Writer: Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
Stars: Gina Rodriguez, LaKeith Stanfield, Brittany Snow, Alex Moffat
Comedy, Romance | imdb | my rating: 3 After a devastating break up on the eve of her cross-country move, Jenny enjoys one last NYC adventure with her two best pals. Someone Great is a romantic comedy about love, loss, growth and the everlasting bond of female friendship.

CUTE moments and liked the growth spurts for each of the characters.

The Ridiculous 6 (2015)
Director: Frank Coraci
Writers: Tim Herlihy, Adam Sandler
Stars: Adam Sandler, Terry Crews, Jorge Garcia, Rob Schneider
Action, Adventure, Comedy | imdb | my rating: 5 An outlaw who was raised by Native Americans discovers that he has five half-brothers. Together the men go on a mission to find their wayward, deadbeat dad.

WESTERN tropes with fun and funny bits. And, interesting twists.

AND watched: on DVD

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
Director/Screenplay/Story: Wes Anderson
Story/: Hugo Guinness
Inspired by writings by: Stefan Zweig
Stars: Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, Mathieu Amalric
Adventure, Comedy, Crime | imdb | my rating: 5 | rewatch A writer encounters the owner of an aging high-class hotel, who tells him of his early years serving as a lobby boy in the hotel's glorious years under an exceptional concierge.

INSPIRED to rewatch this as I wanted to see the details and whimsy parts.

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* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

Thanks for stopping by :-)

Ghostly Game

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One of my favorite authors, Neil Gaiman, has created a game, Wayward Manor. It includes loads of ghostly encounters.

FIND out more about it here...

PeekInside:



There’s something to be said for shrouding endeavors in mystery, but some of you might desire proper context for what you’re looking at. Based on an original tale by Neil Gaiman, Wayward Manor is a new game for PC, Mac and tablets, due to be released Fall 2013.

Set in a 1920s Victorian Gothic pastoral estate, Wayward Manor focuses on the plight of a ghost whose hope of a peaceful after-life is interrupted by a remarkable cast of intruders. Awoken from his post-mortem slumbers, our ghost must find ever-more inventive and brilliant ways to scare them away. As the ghost learns more about the living characters, he also learns more about his own death and after-life, and the danger they are all facing.

As a prelude to the game’s release, this limited-time store has been conceived to offer the game for pre-order, as well as a multitude of unique products and experiences. Think of it as a pop-up shop, not only for Neil’s devoted fans, but also admirers of idiosyncratic gaming experiences.

Wayward Manor has been crafted through a collaborative effort of:

NEIL GAIMAN is…well, you probably already know who he is. Best-selling author, world-renowned thinker, wearer of black apparel. He is the recipient of numerous literary honors, including the Locus and Hugo Awards and the Newbery and Carnegie Medals. His past works include The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neverwhere, American Gods, The Sandman series of graphic novels, and Coraline, just to name a select few.

THE ODD GENTLEMEN is an award winning independent video game studio based in Los Angeles, California. Debuting with The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, and most recently releasing the Apple Editor's Choice Game, Flea Symphony, the studio strives to master unique and memorable gaming experiences. Purveyors of fine video gaming, they focus on games that are humorous and charming with fantastical worlds, quirky characters, and compelling stories that highlight creative and innovative gameplay.

MOONSHARK is a mobile game publisher start-up, co-founded by Creative Artists Agency (CAA), the world’s leading entertainment and sports agency. Their previous titles include Stan Lee’s Verticus and DancePad, released with Jennifer Lopez. Moonshark™ funds, produces, markets and publishes app concepts developed in partnership with creative talent and independent developers. Once they find a fourth team member, they’ll thankfully have enough to form a curling team.

More details about the game are here.

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* I am not much of a gamer, but this one is tempting to try out. How about you?

* image source: Athletic Ghost excerpt from 100 Ghosts by Doogie Horner

~~o)o Ghostly Ghosts schedule o(o~~

Stacking the Shelves - 7.06.13

Stacking the Shelves
hosted by Tynga's Reviews (details)
Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

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Bought:

The Ocean at the End of the Lane
by Neil Gaiman
-fantasy
WIN a copy of this at Paper/Plates here -expires July 12
I am sooo excited!
I will be picking up my copy tonight at Neil's author reading in Santa Rosa (sponsored by Copperfield's)!
AND, I get to see and hear one of my all-time favorite authors!

Murder Below Montparnasse
Aimee Leduc Investigations #13
by Cara Black
-mystery
~*~
For Review:

The Returned
by Jason Mott
-fantasy
ARC courtesy of publisher and Shelf Awareness
Thanks!
Enter to win an ARC of this on Goodreads here -expires July 30

The Wilful Eye
edited by Isobelle Carmody and
Nan McNab
-fairy tales
courtesy of ipg
Thanks Laura!
~*~
From Powell's Indiespensable club package (details):
Powell's subscription club delivers the best new books, with special attention to independent publishers. Signed first editions. Inventive, original sets. Exclusive printings.... Every six weeks, another installment to read and admire.

Plus, every package is stocked with exciting surprises!

This is package #40.

In the House upon the Dirt between the Lake and the Woods
by Matt Bell
-fairy tale

Bobcat and Other Stories
by Rebecca Lee
-short stories
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* comment and TELL me what you have acquired for your shelves recently

* per usual, check out the sidebar for my current giveaways offers

Ocean Views

The mermaids cleared away as fast as they appeared. Something from the bottom of the ocean simply called to them and they obeyed.

We shall never know what lured those sea creatures away. But thank goodness no one on board the Rusty Dagger fell for their seductive machinations.

Hmmmm, the vast ocean and its secrets.

Let's raise up our spyglass again and see what we can see.


The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

AFTER FOUR HARROWING YEARS ON THE WESTERN Front, Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia and takes a job as the lighthouse keeper on Janus Rock, nearly half a day’s journey from the coast. To this isolated island, where the supply boat comes once a season, Tom brings a young, bold, and loving wife, Isabel. Years later, after two miscarriages and one stillbirth, the grieving Isabel hears a baby’s cries on the wind. A boat has washed up onshore carrying a dead man and a living baby.

Tom, who keeps meticulous records and whose moral principles have withstood a horrific war, wants to report the man and infant immediately. But Isabel insists the baby is a “gift from God,” and against Tom’s judgment, they claim her as their own and name her Lucy. When she is two, Tom and Isabel return to the mainland and are reminded that there are other people in the world. Their choice has devastated one of them.


The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

It began for our narrator forty years ago when the family lodger stole their car and committed suicide in it, stirring up ancient powers best left undisturbed. Dark creatures from beyond the world are on the loose, and it will take everything our narrator has just to stay alive: there is primal horror here, and menace unleashed - within his family and from the forces that have gathered to destroy it.

His only defense is three women, on a farm at the end of the lane. The youngest of them claims that her duckpond is an ocean. The oldest can remember the Big Bang.


Railsea by China Miéville

On board the moletrain Medes, Sham Yes ap Soorap watches in awe as he witnesses his first moldywarpe hunt: the giant mole bursting from the earth, the harpoonists targeting their prey, the battle resulting in one’s death and the other’s glory.

Spectacular as it is, Sham can’t shake the sense that there is more to life than the endless rails of the railsea—even if his captain thinks only of hunting the ivory-colored mole that took her arm years ago. But when they come across a wrecked train, Sham finds something—a series of pictures hinting at something, somewhere, that should be impossible—that leads to considerably more than he’d bargained for.

Soon he’s hunted on all sides, by pirates, trainsfolk, monsters and salvage-scrabblers. And it might not be just Sham’s life that’s about to change. It could be the whole of the railsea.

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READ more about one of these worlds...

--~ Book Giveaway ~--
WIN one of the books above. -- winner's pick

Open to all.

Offer ends: April 30, 2013--> extended to May 6

TO DO: (3-parts)

1. READ at least one of the special author guest posts below:

Guest post #1: Wynn by Ciye Cho

Guest post #2: The Mermaids of the Darian Coast by David Wesley Hill

Guest post #3: Mermaid from The Shifu Cloth by Prue Batten


2. LEAVE a comment or question for the author at the individual post.
(if you already did this previously -- then you're all set)


3. RETURN to this post, let me know in comments that you did the deed along with your email.

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Contest has ended - winner is here

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~*~image source: ocean

~~~ On A Sea Voyage schedule ~~~

All Hallow's Read challenge

Our Alice floats now.

she tilts to the left

she tilts to the right

A video screen unfolds before her to reveal this...

All Hallow’s Read is a Hallowe’en tradition. It’s simply that in the week of Hallowe’en, or on the night itself, you give someone a scary book.
- so says Neil Gaiman

LISTEN more about this and check out Neil's zombies...



--~ Book Giveaway ~--
Do YOU want to be the recipient of a scary ebook from me?

OPEN TO ALL.

Prize: winner picks one of these kindle ebooks

Ashes
by Scott Nicholson
-horror, paranormal
A collection of six supernatural stories by bestselling Kindle author Scott Nicholson, including "Homecoming," "The Three-Dollar Corpse" and "She Climbs a Winding Stair."

These stories visit haunted islands, disturbed families, and forgotten pasts as Nicholson serves up chills, thrills, ghosts stories, and paranormal fantasy.

The Toothache Man
by Sal Conte
-gruesome horror
There is no pain like toothache pain.

Jim Roberts is a victim of today's economy. While he's lucky enough to have a job, his job has been keeping him temp for two years to avoid paying medical benefits.

When Jim gets a terrible toothache, a friend tells him about the Toothache Man, an unlicensed dentist where people like Jim can have their dental problems solved for a song.

Unfortunately, the Toothache Man turns out to be a lot more than Jim bargained for—with an old fashioned dentist’s chair, and a penchant for pain. Jim is about to discover a toothache is the least of his problems.

Offer ends: October 30, 2011

TO DO: (2-parts)

1. In less than 50 words, tell the creepiest, scariest, most chilling story you can possibly imagine. Blood-n-Guts or Campy-n-Fun.

2. Tell me which ebook you would like.

AND leave your email (if I already don't have it).

Participant entries:

Jason's tale:
When I got the text, my flesh turned to chicken skin. "We need 2 tlk about the smell frum the attik." While, there was no easy way for her to climb up and see for herself, I knew what it meant. She would have to be handled. Immediately.

who's next?

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* first spotted Neil at MJ Hearle's site

* first spotted challenge at the Daily Lit's 50 Word Frights here

sample:
Slowly wondering down the long corridor, when suddenly the light I was holding went out, leaving me in pitch blackness. Heavy breathing filled the passageway . Heartbeats echoed. I stumbled along when something cold and clammy grabbed my arm, pulling me. Hot morally offensive breath tickled my neck. Death encircled me. -WandaMaynard

* image source Alice by saramichaels

-+0+o+ October Trix-n-Treatz schedule +o+0+-

Creepy Claus

To continue with the Ho hO Horrific Holidays I present to you...

an adaption of Nicolas Was... by Neil Gaiman:

39 Degrees North: Christmas Card 2010 from 39 Degrees North on Vimeo.

Nicholas Was…
Older than sin, and his beard could grow no whiter. He wanted to die.

The dwarfish natives of the Arctic caverns did not speak his language, but conversed in their own, twittering tongue, conducted incomprehensible rituals, when they were not actually working in the factories.

Once very year they forced him, sobbing & protesting, into Endless Night. During the journey he would stand near every child in the world, leave one of the dwarves’ invisible gifts by its bedside. The children slept, frozen into time.

He envied Prometheus and Loki, Sisyphus and Judas. His punishment was harsher.

Ho.

Ho.

Ho.

Listen to Neil read his poem.

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* first spotted this at Fiction State of Mind

A Study in Emerald by Neil Gaiman

A Study in Emerald

by Neil Gaiman

A mystery. Wasn't expeceting that. However, it was a very interesting one that incorporates Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes with H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu. What a mix, eh?

Only thing that I'm mystified about is the emerald connection. Apparently, the title is a reference to the Sherlock Holmes novel A Study in Scarlet which I have not read. ergh, must read this for clarification and I don't have Sherlock Holmes in the house. must go book shopping. okay slated for the next read-a-thon...

This story is part of Fragile Things (anthology)

by Neil Gaiman

You can also read this whole story for free at Neil's site.

*part of my Read-a-thon challenge

*image source of emerald

*total pages read: 25

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

The Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman
illustrated by David Mckean

Published: 2008
Genre: Coming of Age, Ghosts, Paranormal
Hardback: 320 pages
Rating: 5

Inspiration: love Gaiman's work and to fulfill my challenges for R.I.P. iv, Helluva Halloween and Newbery Awards

Description from amazon:
Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy.

He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead.

There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy-an ancient Indigo Man beneath the hill, a gateway to a desert leading to an abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer.

But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family. . . .

Beloved master storyteller Neil Gaiman returns with a luminous new novel for the audience that embraced his New York Times bestselling modern classic Coraline. Magical, terrifying, and filled with breathtaking adventures, the graveyard book is sure to enthrall readers of all ages.

My thoughts:
In-a-word: Jack

Very Gaiman. Very entertaining. Very.

Life lessons spun into a graveyard setting. What a concept! and it works!

And, the velvet count was high! Some authors have favorite words they like to incorporate in their works. I noticed that Gaiman uses velvet at least once in all the books I've read to date. I love it! Of course, being that my name is Velvet I'm a bit biased.

Blogosphere bit:
When Neil was on tour last year he recorded the readings of each chapter of the book. I had the pleasure of listening to him live during the San Francisco reading of chapter six, Nobody Owens School Days.

If you don't have the book or would be delighted to hear Neil read Go listen to the whole book. It's free. GO.

Side note:
I couldn't help it. I was reminded of this poem I learned in Jr. High every time I came across Nobody's name.

I'm nobody! Who are you?
by Emily Dickenson

I'm nobody! Who are you?
Are you nobody, too?
Then there's a pair of us -don't tell!
They'd banish us, you know.

How dreary to be somebody!
How public, like a frog
To tell your name the livelong day
To an admiring bog!