Cali Girl Book Blog

It is fathers day today and as I do every year on this day I think about you. Well really I think about you far more often than that but this time of year especially. I think about you because yes it is fathers day after all and it is traditional to think of ones father on this day, but also because fathers day has always been my reminder that it is your birthday in a few days. Of course you had no way of really knowing that I was thinking of you this time every year. Our communication skills were never that great. This seems to be an inherited defect which I got a double dose of from both sides of the family tree. I should probably hang a sign saying correspondence not part of my genetic make up, if you would like to keep in touch with me you're going to have to initiate it. It has never been for lack of wanting to communicate. Communication is a little like a library book for me. I take one out and I am all excited about it. Filled with the resolution that this time I am really going to get that library book back as soon as I finish reading it which I do usually within a day or two of taking it out. Then life happens and I go shoot I should take that book back and of course I don't and it becomes a niggling little worry in the back of my mind until some strange compulsion comes over me that prevents me from even attempting to take the library book back because it would just be too much. The thought is actually overwhelming. Eventually a year or two later I say to myself well this is ridiculous it is just a library book, it is not that hard to do. So I don my dark classes and sheepish grin, take the damn library book back, pay my hundred dollar fine and skulk away into the darkness saying I will never use the library again...I will buy all my books from now on until next time. It was a while ago that I had one of those breakthrough moments where I realised that this is ridiculous, you are my father and we need to talk more. By this time I had lost a number somewhere along the line and I only had your work number for the hardware store which I called. When I asked for you the person on the line sounded uncomfortable and said you did not work there anymore. Months after that Lorraine found me on Facebook and told me the news that you were gone. I am not going to go into the emotions I went through when I found out but it was a pretty bad time for me and really I had nobody to talk to about this, no funeral to go to and no closure. Honestly I am still processing it all. I am not sure I will ever get over the processing phase. I know we loved each other madly but I do not know why we did what we did. What made us the way we are. Now I am left with the memories good and bad. The bad memories are mostly the times without you when I wondered what I had done wrong and why I was not good enough. There are many good memories though and things that you gave me that I will always have in my heart. They are the very special us memories that nothing can take away. Starting with the letters you sent me as a child. I wish I still had them, I loved the little pictures you used to draw for me, they were amazing and awesome and I carry them in my mind and heart, seeing them clearly as day even though Its been about 30 years since I saw them last. Sandton City will always be a place that reminds me of you and our special trips to Brittan's sweets to buy Halva. I will always think of you when I see a red grape Liquifruit, wooden bowls, avocado's, brocolli, Milo, Monis grape juice, Postum, Golfers, joggers, squashers, Staffies named Rufus, Rinkaals snakes,Yoga, Simon and Garfunkel, Margherita pizza and Spaghetti Napoli. It really isnt much when you compare it to a lifetime of knowing each other but it is what I have along with Braagies bregies, brixton bregies and Golliwog.
One day I hope that we will get out reunion in another world where the only thing that will mater will be the love we had for each other.
Until then Dad I love you, Happy Fathers Day and Happy Birthday.

Golliwog

It is Tagalong Friday! This is an 18 and older event.

What is everyone reading right now?
I am about to start Shinobi by Sessha Batto and I am pretty excited about it because I have heard some really good things.http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/64681

Death is sad, love is agony.

Max was her next job. She got his name just before he died and it was for her to lead his soul to heaven. She was a Bringer.

Then Max started pleading (as they often do), but not for himself, for his son, James.

Would she look after him, would she comfort him as he grieved for the loss of his father? James was a sensitive young man. He would take his father's death very hard.

Well, Bringers don't do that sort of thing; their exclusive role is to usher souls to heaven. They are not allowed to get involved in earthly affairs.

However, when she saw James, she felt something she had never felt before – an emotion, a shock.

She was a Bringer. Bringers do not have emotions.

Yet she couldn't help herself. She found herself being drawn inexorably towards James and his life, against every instinct she had ever had, against every law of the universe.

And she fell in love.

For a Bringer, that is a terrifying fall.



Lucyna is a Bringer! She lives an emotionless existance performing her duties of guiding the newly released souls to The Light. Then she meets Max who's tearful entreaty to watch over his son reaches a place in her heart that she never knew existed. Her journey of self discovery that follows leads her down paths that she never expected to a conclusion that she could never have predicted.

I truly loved this book and give it my highest recommendation. It is poignant, soulful and heart wrenching. There is nothing better than reading a debut novel and being completely blown away by how amazing it is.This story had a wonderfully unique concept that kept me enthralled the entire length of the novel. The characters were soulful and endearing. I hurt when they hurt and I laughed when they laughed. There was a nice twist that actually caught me by surprise which is not easy to do. This book actually kept me guessing much of the way through.

In a genre that is not known for it's realism there is a very realistic element to the story. Every day essentials were not taken for granted and while I do not usually care one way or the other I found this quite refreshing since it improved the story instead of making it clunky. Samantha Towle has a wonderfully easy style to her writing and I am truly looking forward to hearing more from her.

If there ever was a cautionary tale it would be this one! When I was growing up I reached an age right around 11 or so when my friends and I started taking interest in the darker things in life. Things to which we had previously been blinded. We talked in hushed whispers of playing glassy glassy, saying bloody mary 3 times in front of a mirror and experimenting with Tarot. We told ghost and occult stories, the more gruesome the better and we revelled in any subject remotely mysterious. One day having gotten wind of my sudden interests my mother sat me down for a talk. I have never forgotten her words that day and I have stuck by them my entire life. She told me that only people who open themselves to evil influences can be invaded by them and that playing with the occult is an invitation to any entity to take control of our lives.

Djinn is the story the quirky, endearing and vivacious Cindy who embarks on a horrifying and twisted journey the day Sasha her favourite book store owner hands her a book more mysterious than she has ever had the pleasure of laying her hands on before. Cindy who has a penchant for anything occult especially if it is in the form of an ancient tome instantly knows that this book is incredibly special. This book that seems to live up to the name Djinn right off the bat. At this point in the book I was honestly rooting her on, open the book, open the book. Who doesnt want their very own genie in a book that can make their every wish and dream come true? But it seems there are entities out there that do not want Cindy to succeed and will do anything in their power to prevent her from the magic of he Djinn and so starts a ride so dark and hard I was left breathless and shaking at every turn in the story. This was probably one of the most intense, scary and heart breaking books I have ever read and I honestly cannot wait to pick it up and read it all over again just to catch the lil bits I might have missed. If you are familiar with Poppet's unique and heart pounding style of writing then you will not be disappointed in any way shape or form. This is probably one of her best works yet. If you are unfamiliar with her work then Hold on enjoy the ride of a lifetime.

When I am in the mood for a quick and indulgent read I usually grab the closest romantic comedy I can find. (Brit-Chick-lit if at all possible) So that is all I was expecting from this novel. What I got was entirely different! First of all this is no quickie romance, at 496 pages it is definitely a full length novel. A novel that managed to play out the wonderful stories of the supporting characters beautifully without detracting in any way from Miranda's story. The story of the wonderfully kind hearted, quirky and over the top Miranda who shares her lunches with a homeless man and dotes on her elderly land lady. Her kind hearted nature triggers a sequence of events that lead us on a journey of comedy, romance, wicked revenge, heart break and love that I loved every rip roaring moment of.
Jill Mansell has an uncanny ability to make you care for every single character in her novel. There was a tragedy mid way through this book that affected me so deeply I almost feel as if it was a true story. Three days after finishing the book and my heart still twinges whenever I remember this scene and for that alone this book will go down as one of my favourites of all time. Even without that though this was still a wonderful book that I enjoyed every moment of.

TG

Would you care for a book with what is at first a strong heroine, turned lukewarmly submissive with a negligible rebellious streak? Hmm, I didn't see the change coming at first, and so I read through anyway.

The premise of Dawn's The Charmer was brilliant. A woman transported randomly into an alternate land where all the men cannot help but lust for her. Unfortunately, she has eyes for only one. Her original capturer, Keilor.

Through some meet and greets, she finds out her best friend, whose name turns out to be Rihlia, is really a princess or something who was lost to the human world. They just found her now, and she was arranged to be married to Jayems, which makes for a wonderfully unexplored secondary romance.

Why did they just find her now? Technical stuff, you wouldn't understand. Right, and why did you bring our wonderful main character Jasmine who is clearly human and not one of your kind there? Well, Rihlia wanted to say goodbye. If your eyebrows raised at that one, you're with me. Granted, the best part comes later.

Since Jasmine's nature as a human Charmer has been revealed, she is now forced to stay. And the only way to subdue her Charmer ways is to find her a mate who will have lots and lots of sex with her.

Ok, you had me at sex. And so the pages continued turning.

I ended up liking Dawn's story a lot more than I thought I would, but I wasn't impressed. I kept thinking the book would end, but then some new element would pop up and it would continue for fifty more pages. The plot was sporadic, the character's mostly disappointing and the more I reflect on it, the more I think she could have been a lot clearer with her storyline. It's a good diversion, but it's not an epic romance of any sort. The writing was good but not astounding.

Dawn's Charmer was a solid read that doesn't have me itching to go buy the other books in the series. It doesn't light a fire under my butt to keep going, keep reading until she's told me all the tale there is to spin. So, I'm going to call this book a diversion, but nothing more. You will spend time reading it, and if there's not anything else to watch on TV, you'll enjoy it.

Cheers,
Jay

I have noticed in the past few months a distinct change in perception towards the Twilight series. There are still the Twihards out there and while I was never truly a Twihard I did love the series which came out in a time when I really needed the distraction. I will forever be indebted to Stephenie Meyer for saving me my dignity as my husband walked out the door on my marriage. While I could have been crying and begging for him to stay I was instead deeply ensconced in the world of Breaking Dawn on a beautiful and bright Island with Bella and Edward.

It has occurred to me that the rise and fall of the literary publics esteem for Twilight mirrors the relationship I had with my husband in a few ways. (Stay with me now, I know this is odd)

When we first met Twilight we met a story that was fresh and new, filled with promise. As we got to know Twilight and its world we fell in love with the story and its characters. Then Twilight grew in popularity it seemed that everybody loved Twilight. People raved about Twilight to the highest of highs. More people read the books and loved them. Our esteem for Twilight grew and grew and before we knew it Twilight was placed on a pedestal so high few others could touch it. We hero worshipped this literary wonder, extolling its virtues to the highest of highs. There Twilight remained until finally our interests waned and we looked to other sources of entertainment. We realised that there were other wonderful works out there and some that were every bit as good or even better than Twilight. Then the inconcievable happened. Twilight fell.
The problem with being on a pedestal so damn high is that the fall is so much longer, harder and more brutal. People began ripping the works to shreds, claiming it drivel and literary incompetence. Over time people have begun to view it with disdain that it does not deserve. It seems the books have falled further down than they should have as anything put on too high of a pedestal will.
Twilight always has been and will always be a nice book series with good characters. A book with the ability to transport its readers out of their lives into a world of hope and promise they might not have in their own. Nothing more, nothing less. You might or might not figure out how this analogy might fit into marriage but unfortunately it does. So I leave off with this small piece of advice. Don't let anyone put you on a pedestal! Keep it real and the magic will last forever the way it is supposed to.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You
don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

Share the author and perhaps a link to the book so that folks can add it to their own TBR lists.
Link to the book:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Chosen-Soul-ebook/dp/B002YX0NX0/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1307428954&sr=1-1

Don't forget to pop over to the host site below.
http://shouldbereading.wordpress.com/2011/06/07/teaser-tuesdays-june-7/

Here are my teasers from The Chosen Soul by Heather Killough-Walden

For the first time in his life, real fear gripped Loki. Not a fear for his safety or his sister’s, but fear for all of life, itself. He feared for existence. He had the horrible, bone-chilling sensation that it was about to end and that there was nothing he could do about it.
Killough-Walden, Heather (2009). The Chosen Soul (Kindle Locations 3799-3801). Unknown. Kindle Edition.

She opened her eyes and gazed up at him. His molten mercury gaze held hers, penetrated her core, and scorched her soul.
Killough-Walden, Heather (2009). The Chosen Soul (Kindle Locations 3999-4000). Unknown. Kindle Edition.

Ok so they are definitely longer than a sentence but it was an AWESOME book and it deserved a nice lil teaser to go with it.

Happy reading.
TG