Night Play by Sherrilyn Kenyon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It is very rare that I give out 5 stars to ANY book. But this one, the story of Vane and Bride (terrible naming aside…), really hit home for me in the main female character. Plus, it didn’t hurt that I have a natural affinity for wolves.

Night Play really delves into yet another aspect of the Dark-Hunter world: the Were-Hunters. The reader gets to see into the world that has only, before now, been hinted at. While Vane may be extremely over-powered for a ‘weak’ character (Because, really, if you had that kind of power would you put up with the amount of crap that he did? Not believable) he is absolutely hilarious in his attempts to be human. Going to other characters, those whom have been introduced, for dating advice had me rolling. Seeing Amanda step in to yell at the males for their terrible advice? Even more hilarious.

The glimpses of Ash warmed my heart as well. I could only imagine what damage he and Vane could do to the world if they really put their minds to it and decided to stop controlling themselves. Hell, Ash could do it by himself but–eh, I digress.

The character of Bride really hit home for me. She is a size 18 in a world where a size 5 is pushing the limit of ‘thin’. She had her heart and spirit broken by a man who was ashamed of who she was; he wanted to change her so that he wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen with her. But he needed her in order to further his career. Vane walks in, is completely smitten with the woman and refuses to let her think that she is anything less than absolutely amazing. Bride had to learn to accept herself and trust that someone loved her for who she was–all of her. I need to do the same.

Also? Loved Fang. I wish that his damage hadn’t been so great. Fury sort of stepped in to that chatty, awkward role, but he wasn’t the few pages worth of Fang that endeared him to me immediately. I was heartened to know that there is a Fang book down the road but I just do not think it will have the same tone as Vane/Fang interactions.

Kiss of the Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Wulf and Cassandra. This book wasn’t really about Wulf and his struggles, per se. It wasn’t even more about Cassandra. It was about the Appolites and Daimons that, until this point, have been presented in one way: bad. They are the enemies of the Dark-Hunters. The Apollites become Daimons. The Daimons hunt humans. The Dark-Hunters kill the Daimons. End of story.

Not so much.

As the reader, you finally get to see the other side. You learn more about the types of Daimons and Apollites, and get to see the psychological aspect from Cassandra. Her fears about her pending death. Her hope that maybe it won’t be so. Her heartbreak at finding love and knowing she will lose it.

I loved this book. When an author goes out of their way (sort of) to delve into the other side of the story, I pay attention. It gives everything much more meaning. As I continue in the series, I will now be thinking back to what I learned in this book and wonder about the characters killed off because of the Dark-Hunter’s code of honor. Could some of them have been saved? Are the Dark-Hunters really the heroes they are supposed to be?

On to the next book!

When I rule the world, I will have a harem to amuse me. I don’t need sex. I just want the pretties. Mark W. Salling would be among them. We could kick back, have some laughs…

People will be forced to take more classes in English with an emphasis on grammar and spelling, if only so that I can stop cringing when I read what other people write and type.

Turn signals will be mandatory.

Cellphone bans while driving will be lifted but only for those who can prove to be adept at talking on the phone and driving at the same time. Those who ruined it for everyone else get to continue with the ban.

Enough with the vampires in the media! There will be no more vampire-related movies or television shows until everyone decides to admit that Twilight is not the epitome of the genre. In fact, Stephenie Meyer is banned from writing until she can learn to be a better writer.

All television show cancellations will have to go through me. No more mid-season cancellations of a show that I just got into. No more denial of renewals for shows that have a large fanbase but just ‘didn’t bring in the numbers’ the network was looking for. Screw that. When the networks learn how to properly acquire ‘the numbers’, they can have that control back; I will still hold veto power. Third season of Legend of the Seeker, anyone? Firefly, perhaps? Dark Angel: 10 years later! (Side note, did you know that Dark Angel was canceled to make room for Firefly?)

Fashion models will be required to have a minimum body size of a US women’s 5. Let’s undo the obsession with stick-thin women!

Immigrants to any country will be required to learn the native language before being allowed entry. Fines and probably deportation will be the punishment for those who do not comply. Exceptions to this rule will be the young (who are learning), the elderly, and the mentally handicapped who do not hold the capacity to learn another language.

There is no such thing as “a happy period” and the lying commercials that try to tell you such nonsense will be banned.

Gordon Ramsay will be my personal chef. =D

People who decide to have garage sales/yard sales will be required to have a checklist of DOs and DON’Ts because I am tired of the lazy-ass people who have no idea what they’re doing. They just waste my time and ruin the day for me. Learn to make proper signs. Learn to put up proper signs. For goddess sake, have cash on hand for change BEFORE people start showing up. Me having to scrounge through my change compartment in my car because you cannot break a $5 makes me want to give you the finger and leave. You didn’t even try.

People who eat with their mouths open and smack while they chew shall be banned from eating in public until they can learn proper manners. The only excuse that will be allowed is some sort of physical deformity or injury that prevents them from chewing with their mouth closed. A doctor’s note will be required to be kept on their person.

I’m sure I have a lot more changes that I would make but I just got bored with myself and am now going to couch surf with my book.

Off and on, I’ve been reading the blog from Aunt Becky at Mommy Wants Vodka and something caught my eye. She certainly talks about John C. Mayer a lot and usually in passing. Afterthoughts. So I read more in depth to discover that this is part of her own, special little prank and the merry band of pranksters she has called upon to continue her fun. She apparently loves screwing with the publicists.

In posting about this artist, in the way that she does, she currently holds the #3 spot for Google’s search list for the search for him, immediately after his twitter page, his fanpage, and directly above the wikipedia entry. Crazy, right? SEO, baby. Let’s have some fun.

Mark W. Salling is my pick. Why? Because he is amazingly hot, has gorgeous eyes, and would probably be a fantastic friend to just hang out with. I can’t even say anything bad about the guy! I can’t even poke fun at him! Now that I think about it… I completely fail in my quest to blog properly about Mark W. Salling in the way that Aunt Becky intended.

Oh well. At least I get to toss up a picture of Mark W. Salling and look at him for a few days while I view my blog. That alone is worth it.

Dance With The Devil by Sherrilyn Kenyon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Zarek and Astrid. We got to see a bit of Zarek in the previous book and understood that he wasn’t the psychotic killer that everyone made him out to be. But this is where he really shone.

This book goes into a really dark past for Zarek but it’s not the images that are conjured. It is the emotional result of this past that has shaped Zarek into the creature that he became. Being isolated outside of Fairbanks, Alaska for 900 years didn’t help things. There were days in the high of summer where he could not even leave his cabin to go to the well merely feet from his door because the ‘night time’ was just too short. It would be enough to drive anyone insane.

Astrid is sent to judge Zarek, see if he is fit to live or if he should be executed like the monster everyone claims he is. She is the daughter of Themis, a Justice nymph who apparently has never judged anyone to be Innocent. Ever. It is also around here that we see the ‘relationship’ between Ash and the goddess Artemis.

As the story unfolds, Astrid begins to see past the thorny exterior of Zarek and learns why he is the way he is; it is not enough to understand the Why of the man in order to judge him as innocent. And then the truth comes out, from the lips of a child demon (OMG! The Simi! I loves her so!) while they are being hunted by the Dark-Hunter slayer that Artemis had created almost a millennium ago.

The story wraps up with a happy ending, naturally, and we get to see even more about Ash/Artemis and just how powerful Acheron really might be. Again, I can’t wait to continue reading this series!

Night Embrace by Sherrilyn Kenyon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Talon & Sunshine. I don’t think this will be my favorite book in the series but it was still deserving of the three star rating. First and foremost, I liked the introduction of Zarek. The interactions between Z/Ash and Z/Nick had me cracking up. I also really liked that Ash was focused on just a teensy, tiny bit more. Clearly he is going to wind up being my favorite character overall; it is nice to see him slowly unfolding.

This book focuses on Talon and his soulmate, Sunshine. It was angsty, whiny, and full of sex as these two just couldn’t keep their hands off each other. Oh. And surprise! Apparently someone is the granddaughter of a goddess. Wait. What? Okay, I see where this is going.

In any event, this was a fairly easy and painless read. The author makes transitions near seamlessly and doesn’t focus on any one point of the story; she weaves it all together to make the journey enjoyable for the reader as everything unfolds. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the next one. Luckily, I have them all lined up, ready and waiting for me.

30 Day Meme: Books
Day: 3 / 30
Subject: The best book you’ve read in the last 12 months

That’s actually fairly hard. But I guess I would have to vote for Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon. While the book wasn’t absolutely so amazing that it’s my favorite of all time, it did introduce me to this author and the world that she has created.

I quickly became obsessed and began trying to procure the rest of the series. Once that task was completed, I was prepared to sit down for the long haul and read, read, read. And then I moved and lost the box that the books were in. But I found them! And now I am sit down to devour them, one after the next.

But this book is what started it all. So. It’s the best book I’ve read in the last 12 months.

I may or may not have gotten Angel into Hell’s Kitchen after tonight’s premier. Robby had seemed interested last night when a commercial had aired so I recorded it–I’m a fan but I had just figured that I would wind up using Hulu or torrenting it to get my Gordon fix.

Raj. He is either genuinely insane or he is a plant to bring the WTF factor to the show. I do not see how a 50 year old man could act like that and not have been institutionalized by now. And how two others are gone before him is beyond me.

Sabrina. Bitch needs to figure out real quick how to play the game. Though I have to admit, the whole ‘glasses low on the nose with a dazed expression’ is very amusing to me. A good source of humor.

Emily. BOOBS. HELLO. Cover them up, sweetheart. You’re not that cute.

My biggest complaint was that they had this big sushi challenge in which one of the pair of men were cut from being considered for the challenge due to the uneven team numbers. It was easily decided; the sushi that would have been judged by Ramsay had basically been butchered and murdered. There was no way it would have passed at all. Lucky for the men. And yet they stuck that same man on the sushi station for the dinner service and expected him to perform differently. Ouch. I realize that it makes for good television but we’re only in the first (and second) episode and already I am feeling like it’s all staged.

Still. I love Gordon Ramsay. I adore that I didn’t have to wait too long before getting my next fix.

I miss JP!

30 Day Meme: Books
Day: 2 / 30
Subject: A book or series you wish more people were reading and talking about

The Kushiel series by Jacqueline Carey. Kushiel’s Dart, Kushiel’s Chosen, Kushiel’s Avatar and then the second trilogy’s Scion, Justice, and Mercy. There is a second trilogy out (two of the three books at least) but my focus is on the first two trilogies.

I love the writing style, I love the characters, I love just everything about the world that Carey created. Too many people don’t know about it and it’s just not talked about unless you’ve been a fan of the series ‘since the beginning’. Which is just plain silly.

It’s a great series. Go read it. Now.

The funny thing is that I enjoy the books so much and I do not actually have a favorite character. I think it’s the first series where this has happened to me. I generally wind up liking someone over the others. I have a love for many of the characters. Phedre, Joscelin, and Imriel expecially; which is funny because they are the main characters. I can’t choose! You can’t make me.

Ah, Glee. You stole my heart when you teased your pilot episode and didn’t actually start your inaugural season until months later. You dragged me in and made me obsessed, into a GLeek, and had me pining for more when you went on hiatus.

You gave me a wonderful night in NYC at your show. You made me stand in line for two hours while at San Diego Comic Con 2010 to see your panel.

But tonight? You excited me. You broke my heart. You redeemed yourself. And then you broke my heart again.

All in all, I cannot say I was disappointed in tonight’s episode because it still marked the return of Glee. Everything else aside, Glee is back and that is what mattered the most. I won’t love every episode. I have never loved every episode in any series. But to very nearly hate the season premier of something? It doesn’t please me and upsets me.

Still, I am a fan of the music (generally) and will be keeping up with the song releases. Hopefully there is more Sunshine down the road.

10 Thoughts on S2E01 of Glee!
1. Sunshine = absolutely adorable tiny thing with an amazing voice. Charice will be on my follow list from now on!
2. Sam = neutral on this subject. Not entirely a fan of his voice or his face.
3. Rachel. WTF. Went from being just obsessive about the spotlight to being downright bitchy and unrealistic. I’ve never before hated this character until this episode. Which saddened me immensely.
4. Loved “Telephone”!!
5. The Beast? Really? I will withhold judgment for now.
6. Loved seeing Quinn back in uniform.
7. Put. Finn. Back.
8. Not enough lines for Brit!
9. Santana and her summer decision. Really?
10. Not nearly enough Puck time. :3