Book Review: Dead to the World, by Charlaine Harris

Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Another good, rollicking Stackhouse mystery. This book in the series features Eric more than Bill, so if you're an Eric fan, you'll love it. (Count me in that category.)

As a writer who has witch and Wiccan characters in my own novels, I love the way Harris portrays witches and Wiccans in hers. There are good, there are bad, and in her world, witches and Wiccans are different. As someone with a bad memory and a long time between books, I love the way Harris gently fills in backstory. Though she's probably doing it for new readers, I've found it immensely helpful.

If you're just familiar with the True Blood TV series, you should read the books, too. One does not spoil the other. They combine to give a rich view of the happenings in Bon Temps.

Book Review: Dracula the Undead, by Dacre Stoker

Dracula the Un-Dead by Dacre Stoker


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I've been a Dracula fan since the early Hammer films. I've also read Bram Stoker's book, so it's not just that I'm in love with the film presentations.

I actually listened to the audio version, but I'm putting my review on a book version because my comments aren't on the audio. The audio (from Audible) is, as with all the Audible productions I've listened to so far, excellent. The voice talent is fantastic and the production is clear and professional. So, no problem there.

I had no problem with the story taking liberties with the plot lines (Mina actually was in love with Dracula). Some of the anachronisms of vampire lore jerked me out of the story for a second, but only a second. For example, modern vampire lore uses the adjective preternatural a lot, a term I don't remember hearing pre-Anne Rice. It might have been in Stoker's original and I just don't remember it, but when I hear that term, I think of post-Rice vampires. That sin can be forgiven, though; I myself use it in my novels, whose vampires are more Dark Shadows era than Rice era.

I had no problem with the tone of the book. It was deliciously old-fashioned, much like the original Stoker. That, I felt, was a strong point.

The plotting, though, had too many stretches. Dacre Stoker tied in Jack the Ripper and Elizabeth Bathory into the Dracula story, which could have worked, but I think there were just too many plot irons in the fire. When the time came to wrap them up at the end, it seemed a little rushed just because there was so much to wrap up.

Your experience reading it as opposed to listening to it might differ. When reading, one pauses and mulls things over more, I find. Yes, I can pause my iPod, but I find that I don't. I don't know why; certainly when reading a physical book, I will stop and look away from the page to savor a scene or to remember the foreshadowing of certain plots. For some reason, though, I don't do that when listening.

Still, I found it enjoyable, and worth a read for any Dracula afficianado.

Podcast Episode Posted

I just posted a short episode of Vampires, Witches, and Geeks on www.vampireswitchesandgeeks.com

This episode contains news and announcements.

Online Author Conference

Now this should be fun -- CoyoteCon is a completely online conference for authors! Not only are there no travel costs associated with this conference, there are no costs, either! That's right, free. (You do have to register, though, because space is limited.)

The conference runs May 1-31, 2010, though most of the events happen on the weekends.

Gotta love this error message :-)

Got this error message on my iPod Touch when I tried to look at I Can Has Cheeseburger while not connected to the net:

No Can Has Cheezburger.
No can find cheezburger. Did kitteh unplug network?

Found a picture of it on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ahkitj/3847189427/

I just love it when programmers are allowed to use humor in error messages!

Broad Universe at Borders, Shrewsbury, MA 3/6/2010

Join local members of Broad Universe today to celebrate National Women's History Month with an introduction to some of the greatest women writers of science fiction, fantasy and horror. Broad Universe is a non-profit international organization with the primary goal of promoting science fiction, fantasy, and horror written by women.

Join them for short presentations and rapid-fire readings. All events are free and open to the public.


March 6, 2010, 1 pm

Note: Elaine Isaak sprained her ankle and won't be able to present on James Tiptree, Jr. today.

Borders
476 Boston Turnpike
Shrewsbury, MA 01545

Jennifer Pelland -- Octavia Butler
Trisha Wooldridge -- Madeleine L'Engle
Pheobe Wray -- Connie Willis
Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert -- Marge Piercy

March is National Women's History Month

From the National Women's History Project web site:

"The overarching theme for March 2010 is Writing Women Back into History. In 2010, in celebration of our 30th Anniversary, we will be highlighting themes from previous years. Each of these past themes recognizes a different aspect of women’s achievements, from ecology to art, and from sports to politics."

Local members of Broad Universe, a non-profit international organization with the primary goal of promoting science fiction, fantasy, and horror written by women, will celebrate National Women's History Month with an introduction to some of the greatest women writers of science fiction, fantasy and horror.

Join them for short presentations and rapid-fire readings. All events are free and open to the public.


March 6, 2010, 1 pm

Borders
476 Boston Turnpike
Shrewsbury, MA 01545

Jennifer Pelland -- Octavia Butler
Trisha Wooldridge -- Madeleine L'Engle
Elaine Isaak -- James Tiptree, Jr.
Pheobe Wray -- Connie Willis
Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert -- Marge Piercy


March 13, 2010, 7 pm

Toadstool Bookshop
Lorden Plaza
586 Nashua Street
Milford, NH 03055

Jennifer Pelland -- Octavia Butler
Trisha Wooldridge -- Madeleine L'Engle
Elaine Isaak -- James Tiptree, Jr.
Pheobe Wray -- Connie Willis


March 18, 2010, 6:30 pm

Jacob Edwards Library
236 Main Street
Southbridge, MA 01550

Trisha Wooldridge -- Madeleine L'Engle
Pheobe Wray -- Connie Willis

Podcast interview with author & witch Dorothy Morrison

I posted the first part of my podcast interview with author & witch Dorothy Morrison a couple of days ago. We had a lot of fun doing it, too.

If you're not familiar with Dorothy, here's some background info.

Dorothy Morrison is the author of over a dozen non-fiction books on paganism and Wicca including

Everyday Magic
The Craft: A Witch's Book of Shadows
Magical Needlework
Utterly Wicked

With Kristen Madden, she co-wrote Dancing the Goddess Incarnate and is the creator of The Whimsical Tarot.

In the first half of the interview, I talked to Dorothy about storytelling, her first novel (Lucinda's Web), and the woes and wackiness of book touring.

A native Texan, Dorothy lives in Virginia with her husband.

Massachusetts residents: Don't forget to vote on Tuesday.

There's a special election to vote for the replacement for the late Senator Ted Kennedy. Whether you're for Coakley or Brown, vote. Apparently this election will be close.

Podcasting Pioneer Tee Morris Suffers Family Loss

As you know, I have a podcast. It isn't a major production and it isn't one of the top podcasts on iTunes, but it is a podcast, I do have listeners, and I've done it all myself. Well, mostly.

One year for Christmas I asked hubby for a book on podcasting called Podcasting for Dummies. One of the authors was Tee Morris, who, I later discovered, was the first podcaster to podcast a novel. The book was immensely helpful, and I began to listen to one of Tee's podcasts, The Survival Guide to Writing Fantasy. He's always seemed like a genuine, helpful guy.

Yesterday his wife died from complications of the flu, leaving behind Tee and a 7-year-old daughter. It’s so hard to believe that a man who was so giving would have something so precious taken from him.

One of his friends, fellow author Philipa (Pip) Ballantine has set up a ChipIn fund to raise money to cover their immediate expenses and to set up a fund for his daughter, who his listeners know as Sonic Boom. If you'd like to contribute, click the widget below or look him up on ChipIn.

Lynda Hilburn Reads

Just posted a new podcast up on www.vampireswitchesandgeeks.com. Linda Hilburn, author of The Vampire Shrink, reads from Dark Harvest. This is the second book in her Kismet Knight, Vampire Psychologist series.

This reading was recorded June 11, 2009. I've had a really busy summer and recorded way too many interviews around the same time. I just got carried away because it was so fascinating listening to these authors talk about their vampires, how their vampires were made, and what could kill them. I still have two more interviews, with readings, to post. Look for those after the new year.

Adrenaline Rush

I am thankful

... that I was looking straight ahead and not in my rearview mirror or down at my speedometer.

... that the speed limit on that section of road was not 65.

... that I have lived in this area long enough now to know that the whitetails around here usually don't travel alone.

... that I just had my brakes redone a couple of weeks ago.

... that I had enough tread left on my tires to come to a screeching halt when I saw deer 2 and 3.

... that there was no one behind me when I did.

... that all EIGHT deer made it across the road, just a couple of feet in front of my bumper...

It's beginning to smell a lot like zombies...

Those of you who know me know that I don't really care for Christmas because of all the stress.

So, what in the WORLD would make me hum Christmas carols before Thanksgiving?

Answer: This new book I heard about on Pod of Horror #57!

Check it out:
It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Zombies


Oh, yeah. Earworm. Definitely earworm.

"I saw mommy chewing Santa Claus..."

Lynda Hilburn, author of The Vampire Shrink

Just posted: Interview with Lynda Hilburn, author of the Kismet Knight, Vampire Psychologist series which includes The Vampire Shrink and Dark Harvest.

Poor Lynda. We actually recorded this interview way back in June 11, 2009, but then vacation and an over-full schedule of appearances and signings made my podcast post-production worse. I think I had one or two I still needed to produce when I interviewed hers, which didn't help.

I had forgotten how interesting the interview was and how much fun we had! It was a real pleasure to listen to it again as I cleaned up the sound. Hope you enjoy it. In addition to being a paranormal romance writer, Lynda makes her living as a licensed psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, professional psychic/tarot reader, university instructor, and workshop presenter. Makes for a good combination!

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

In the United States, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. You can find out more information at http://nbcam.org/

If you'd like to fund a free mammogram for someone in need, visit this site and click the button for free mammograms:

http://www.thebreastcancersite.com

Thanks!

Saturday at Rock n'Shock

I joined fellow New England Horror Writers (NEHW) at Rock N'Shock, which is being held at the DCU Convention Center, 50 Foster St., Worcester, MA 01608.

NEHW has a table in the vending area, which is an experience in itself: DVDs, posters, original art, makeup, masks, magazines, and books packed into a convention hall. Unlike your normal business or industry convention, though, the color palette here was dark and rich. No corporate greys and blues here. This convention was rich reds, various hues and saturations of black, and various colors and shades of putrification, punctuated with, of course, the traditional bright orange of Halloween.

Yesterday I was at the table from 3-7 pm. Today I'll be there from 1-6 pm.

Podcast back

My "Vampires, Witches, and Geeks" podcast is back. There was a technical problem at the hosting site. I don't know what it was or if it was computer-related or a natural disaster in the area, but they're back now.

This, of course, brings up the question about what I'd do if they hadn't come back up. I'm very satisfied with my experience at Podbean.com (this is the first outage I've been aware of in over a year), so I'd definitely try to hang tight and hope they'd come back online soon. If it looked like it was going to be a long time, I'd move my files over to a temporary site and redirect listeners there.

And now I'm off to get ready for Rock n'Shock in Worcester.

Rock N'Shock

Rock N' Shock (Oct 16-18, 2009)

I'll be joining fellow New England Horror Writers (NEHW) at Rock N'Shock, which is being held at the DCU Convention Center, 50 Foster St., Worcester, MA 01608.

I'll be at the NEHW table Sat 3-7 pm and Sun 1-6 pm.

October: National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

In the United States, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. You can find out more information at http://nbcam.org/, which also has links to articles for those affected by breast cancer, including how to read a pathology report, where to find support, and how to stay informed.

If you'd like to fund a free mammogram for someone in need, visit the Breast Cancer site and click the button for free mammograms:

www.thebreastcancersite.com

Live Interview on BlogTalk Radio

Live Interview on BlogTalk Radio (Sunday, Sept 27, 2009), 4:00 Eastern Time.

This should be fun... gulp! Host Karagan is going to interview me LIVE on his popular Witchtalk show.

He's had some really interesting guests: Gothic magician/vampire Vlad (Interview with a Vampire - Interviewing Vlad), Vinnie Russo (Sicilian Witchcraft - with Rev. Vincent Russo), Oberon Zell Ravenheart (The Ways of the Wizard - a conversation with Oberon Zell Ravenheart), Christopher Penczak (The Temple of Witchcraft - an interview with Christopher Penczak), Raven and Stephanie Grimassi (Ways of the Strega - a conversation with Raven and Stephanie Grimassi), and more -- all since June of this year! Those are hard acts to follow, but I know Karagan is a warm and gracious host, so it should be fine.

Karagan is a Witch and also a professional trained actor and director. Born in Lisbon, Portugal, his journey into Witchcraft and Wicca began 15 years ago (in Portugal). He now lives in Salem, Massachusetts.

If you happen to listen to the show live and want to call in, the number is (718) 664-9228.

If you can't listen to it live, you can listen to the recorded episode later at www.blogtalkradio.com/witchtalk

Hope to hear some friendly voices asking me about vampires, the witches in my novel, and anything geeky -- honest!