Celebrate the Author Challenge

Celebrate the Author Challenge!!!!

Hosted by: Becky
When: January 1 - December 31, 2008
What: Read at least one book per month of an author whose birthday is in that month. For more information, click on the link above.

My list (alternative authors in parentheses):

January

Isaac Asimov. Naked Sun - finished 1/19/2008

February:

Karen Joy Fowler. Sister Noon -- finished 2/29/2008

March:

John Irving. The Fourth Hand -- finished 3/22/2008

April:

Douglas Clegg. The Attraction -- finished 4/22/2008

May:

Harlan Ellison. Ellison Wonderland -- finished 5/24/2008

June:

Tess Gerritsen. The Sinner -- finished 6/17/2008

July:

Michael Connelly. The Black Ice -- finished 7/23/2008

August:

Barbara Hambly. Magicians of Night -- finished 8/19/2008

September:

C.J. Cherryh. Rider at the Gate -- finished 9/9/2008

October:

Charles Stross. The Family Trade -- finished 10/19/2008

November:

Guy Gavriel Kay. The Summer Tree -- finished 11/27/2008

December:

Patrick O'Brian. Desolation Island -- finished 12/8/2008

Desolation Island by Patrick O'Brian

First sentence:

"The breakfast-parlour was the most cheerful room in Ashgrove Cottage, and although the builders had ruined the garden with heaps of sand an unslaked lime and bricks, and although the damp walls of the new wing in which this parlour stood still smelt of plaster, the sun poured in, blazing on the covered silver dishes and lighting the face of Sophie Aubrey as she sat there waiting for her husband."

Description:

"Commissioned to rescue Governor Bligh of Bounty fame, Captain Jack Aubrey and his friend and surgeon Stephen Maturin sail the Leopard to Australia with a hold full of convicts. Among them is a beautiful and dangerous spy -- and a treacherous disease that decimates the crew. With a Dutch man-of-war to windward, the under-manned, outgunned Leopard sails for her life into a freezing waters of the Antarctic, where, in moutainous seas, the Dutchman closes." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I liked this nautical adventure featuring Captain Jack Aubrey and Dr. Stephen Maturin. There were lots of edge-of-the seat moments as the Leopard had to flee the Dutch ship and later find a place to land for repairs. I look forward to reading the next book in the series, The Fortune of War.

Date read: 12/8/2008
Book #: 88
Series: Aubrey/Maturin #5
Challenges: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Fall into Reading Challenge 2008
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Nautical Adventure

ISBN-10: 039330812X
ISBN-13: 9780393308129
Publisher: W. W. Norton
Year: 1978
# of Pages: 325
Binding: Trade Paperback
LibraryThing Page

The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay

First sentence:

"After the war was over, they bound him under the Mountain."

Description:

"It all began with a lecture that introduced five university students to a man who would change their lives, a wizard who could take them from Earth to the heart of the first of all worlds -- Fionavar. And take them Loren Silvercloak did, for his need -- the need of Fionavar and all the worlds -- was great indeed.

And in a marvelous land of men and dwarves, of wizards and gods -- and of the Unraveller and his minions of Darkness -- Kimberly, Dave, Jennifer, Kevin, and Paul discovered who they were truly meant to be. For the five were a long-awaited part of the pattern known as the Fionavar Tapestry, and only if they accepted their destiny would the armies of the Light stand any chance of surviving when the Unraveller unleashed his wrath upon the world. . . ." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this fantasy which started in this world and continued in the world of Fionavar. I especially liked how each character had his or her own skills to learn and challenges to overcome. I look forward to learning what happens next in the Fionavar Tapestry in The Wandering Fire.

Date read: 11/27/2008
Book #: 83
Series: Fionavar Tapestry, #1
Challenges: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Fall into Reading Challenge 2008
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fantasy

ISBN-10: 0451451384
ISBN-13: 9780451451385
Publisher: Roc
Year: 1992
# of Pages: 383
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page

The Family Trade by Charles Stross

First sentence:

"Ten and a half hours before a mounted knight with a machine gun tried to kill her, tech journalist Miriam Beckstein lost her job."

Description:

"It begins the day she is fired.

Miriam Beckstein is happy in her life. She's a successful reporter for a hi-tech magazine in Boston, making good money doing what she loves. When her researcher brings her iron-clad evidence of a money-laundering scheme, Miriam thinks she's found the story of the year. But when she takes it to her editor, she's fired on the spot and gets a death threat from the criminals she has uncovered.

Before the day is over, she's received a locket left by the mother she never knew-the mother who was murdered when she was an infant. Within is a knotwork pattern, which has a hypnotic effect on her. Before she knows it, she's transported herself to a parallel Earth, a world where knights on horseback chase their prey with automatic weapons, and where world-skipping assassins lurk just on the other side of reality - a world where her true family runs things." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this book of parallel worlds as Miriam discovers the truth about her mother and learns about a family she never knew. I liked how she uses her skills as a journalist to uncover secrets and I look forward to reading the next book in the Merchant Princes series, The Hidden Family.

Date read: 10/19/2008
Book #: 75
Challenges: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Fall into Reading Challenge 2008
Series: The Merchant Princes #1
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: SF

ISBN-10: 0765348217
ISBN-13: 9780765348210
Publisher: Tor
Year: 2005
# of Pages: 308
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page

Rider at the Gate by C.J. Cherryh

Description:

"Rider at the Gate is the first in a two-book series chronicling the existence of human colonists stranded on a planet whose only native life forms are linked by telepathy, sending sensory images to one another enhanced by powerful emotions. One of these species, the "nighthorse," befriends the humans, and together they form a bond of mutual protection--the nighthorses guard their riders against the planet's mind-clouding predators, while the humans provide them with food and shelter. Once matched, the two experience a companionship more profound than either has ever known before. The story continues in Cloud's Rider."-- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this story which featured people and horses who can communicate with each other using images. I especially liked the interactions between Guil and his horse Burn and between Danny and his horse Cloud.

Date read: 9/9/2008
Book #: 65
Challenge: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Initials Reading Challenge, Summer Reading Thing Challenge
Series: Nighthorse, #1
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: SF

ISBN-10: 0446603457
ISBN-13: 9780446603454
Publisher: Aspect
Year: 1996
No. of Pages: 496
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page

The Magicians of Night by Barbara Hambly

First sentence:

"'I think he's coming around.'"

Description:

"The two wizards, Jaldis and Rhion, had dared the dread Dark Well to answer the desperate call of a world without magic. Jaldis had not survived the dreadful Void. Now Rhion was alone in a world he could not imagine -- the world of Germany in 1940.
The four would-be wizards of the Occult Bureau welcomed him to their home in Schloss Torweg. They wanted his help desperately. But they would not heed his advice against the calling up of dark magic. They needed magic to overcome the enemies they claimed were trying to conquer their fatherland. To that high mission, nothing could be neglected, however dark and ugly.
They lied to him, claiming the Dark Well had been destroyed, removing his only hope of returning to Tally and his two sons. And soon he realized he was no more than a useful prisoner.
But he knew the Dark Well still existed. And somehow, despite whatever they did to him, he must find a way back across the Void!"-- from the back cover

My thoughts:

When I read the description, I wondered whether this fantasy featuring a wizard in early Nazi Germany would be clichéd with cardboard characters. However, Hambly skillfully creates great interactions between the wizard Rhion, his Nazi captors and the people he rescues. The only quibble I have is that the plot set in Rhion's homeworld seemed tacked on and not resolved very well.

Date read: 8/19/2008
Book #: 55
Challenges: Summer Reading Thing Challenge 2008, Celebrate the Author Challenge
Series: Sun-Cross #2
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fantasy

ISBN-10: 0345362594
ISBN-13: 9780345362599
Publisher: Del Rey
Year: 1992
# of Pages: 354
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page

The Black Ice by Michael Connelly

First sentence:

"The smoke carried up from the Cahuenga Pass and flattened beneath a layer of cool crossing air."

Description:

"Narcotics officer Cal Moore's orders were to look into the city's latest drug killing. Instead, he ends up in a motel room with a fatal bullet wound to the head and a suicide note stuffed in his back pocket. Working the case, LAPD detective Harry Bosch is reminded of the primal police rule he learned long ago: Don't look for the facts, but the glue that holds them together. Soon Harry's making some very dangerous connections, starting with a dead cop and leading to a bloody string of murders that wind from Hollywood Boulevard to the back alleys south of the border. Now this battle-scarred veteran will find himself in the center of a complex and deadly game--one in which he may be the next and likeliest victim." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

This story was an intense mystery with lots of suspense. I liked the way Harry followed his instincts even when it meant possibly losing his job.

Date read: 7/23/2008
Book #: 47
Series: Harry Bosch #2
Challenges: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Summer Reading Thing Challenge 2008
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Mystery

ISBN-10: 0446613444
ISBN-13: 9780446613446
Publisher: Warner Vision
Year: 1993
# of Pages: 427
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page

The Sinner by Tess Gerritsen

First sentence:

"The driver refused to take him any further."

Description:

Not even the icy temperatures of a typical New England winter can match the bone-chilling scene of carnage discovered in the early morning hours at the chapel of Our Lady of Divine Light. Within the sanctuary walls of the cloistered convent, now stained with blood, lie two nuns-one dead, one critically injured-victims of an unspeakably savage attacker. The brutal crime appears to be without motive, but medical examiner Maura Isles's autopsy of the dead woman yields a shocking surprise: Twenty-year-old Sister Camille, the order's sole novice, gave birth before she was murdered. Then another body is found mutilated beyond recognition. Together, Isles and homicide detective Jane Rizzoli uncover an ancient horror that connects these terrible slaughters. As long-buried secrets come to light, Maura Isles finds herself drawn inexorably toward the heart of an investigation that strikes close to home-and toward a dawning revelation about the killer's identity too shattering to consider."

My thoughts:

This was a good mystery featuring detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles. I liked how they teamed together to solve the murders as well as learning more about their personal lives.

Date read: 6/17/2008
Book #: 35
Challenge: Celebrate the Author Challenge
Series: Jane Rizzoli/Maura Isles #3
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: mystery

ISBN-10: 0345458923
ISBN-13: 9780345458926
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Year: 2004
# of Pages: 355
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page

Ellison Wonderland by Harlan Ellison

First sentence:

"'Thing' was all I could call it, and it had a million tentacles."

Description:

"Classic Ellison collection: Buckle your safety belts for a journey to the wildest wonderland that never existed!

COMMUTER'S PROBLEM--Or what happens when you catch the morning express to somewhere out of this world!
NOTHING FOR MY NOON MEAL--Trapped on Hell, survival was a choice between the impossible and the unbelievable.
ALL THE SOUNDS OF FEAR--He was a man of many faces but the master of none.
THE SKY IS BURNING--Why was Earth good enough for dying?
RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY--But look out for that "other day"!" -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

Great collection of short stories! I especially liked "All the Sounds of Fear" (provocative look at method acting), "The Sky is Burning," (dying aliens in the sky) and "Rain, Rain, Go Away" (what happens when the "other day" arrives).

Date read: 5/24/2008
Book #: 30
Challenge: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Spring Reading Thing Challenge 2008
Rating: 4*/5 = great
Genre: SF

ISBN-10: 0451077172
ISBN-13: 9780451077172
Publisher: Signet
Year: 1974
# of Pages: 178
LibraryThing Page

The Attraction by Douglas Clegg

First sentence:

"Out on an empty highway, it called."

Description:

"The signs all along the desert highway read Come See the Mystery! But some mysteries should remain buried forever. Charlie Goodrow, owner of the Brake Down Palace Gas and Sundries, tells anyone who stops for a fill-up about the mysterious attraction in back. It’s the mummified remains of an ancient legendary flesh-scraper, whose job had been to scrape the flesh off the bones of human sacrifices…

When a car filled with teenagers gets a flat tire out in the middle of the Arizona heat, the kids figure they have time to check out the Mystery. Behind curtains, in a glass case, lies a small, withered corpse with very long fingernails. Above it, tacked on the wall, is a sign: Do Not Touch. Do Not Feed. But it has to be a hoax, right? How could the kids know that feeding the Mystery will be the worst mistake of their lives? How could they know that the flesh-scraper is hungry for flesh?" -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

Although some of the scenes and dialogue in "The Attraction" were clichéd, I liked the overall story of teenagers lost in the desert confronting an ancient monster. I also liked the second story, "Necromancer," especially how the narrator discovers the truth about his twin's death.

Date read: 4/22/2008
Book #: 24
Challenge: Celebrate the Author Challenge
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Horror

ISBN-10: 0843954116
ISBN-13: 9780843954111
Publisher: Leisure Books
Year: 2006
# of Pages: 321
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page

The Fourth Hand by John Irving

First sentence:

"Imagine a young man on his way to a less-than-thirty-second event--the loss of his left hand, long before he reached middle age."

Description:

"While reporting a story from India, New York journalist Patrick Wallingford inadvertently becomes his own headline when his left hand is eaten by a lion. In Boston, a renowned surgeon eagerly awaits the opportunity to perform the nation’s first hand transplant. But what if the donor’s widow demands visitation rights with the hand? In answering this unexpected question, John Irving has written a novel that is by turns brilliantly comic and emotionally moving, offering a penetrating look at the power of second chances and the will to change." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

This book started with a touch of quirky humor but over time changed into a serious love story. I liked how Patrick learns about true love and compassion as he tries to win Doris' heart. I also found the insight into television news coverage informative.

Date read: 3/22/2008
Book #: 18
Challenges: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Numbers Challenge
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fiction

ISBN-10: 0345449347
ISBN-13: 9780345449344
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Year: 2002
# of Pages: 313
Binding: Trade Paperback
LibraryThing Page

Sister Noon by Karen Joy Fowler

First sentence:

"In 1894, Mrs. Putnam took Lizzie Hayes to the Mid-winter Exhibition in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park, where they both used a telephone for the very first time."

Description:

"San Francisco in the Gilded Age: great fortunes are being made and family dynasties established as new money erases the often unsavory pasts and shady dealings of their founders. It is a city bursting at its seams - each day bringing new monuments to unbridled ego and ostentatious bad taste - a city ruled by a self-selected elite grounded in gentility and fueled by gossip and greed.

By dint of birth, Lizzie Hayes is part of this elite. But Lizzie, seemingly so docile, hides within her a passionate heart. All she needs is the spark that will liberate her from the ruling conventions. And that spark is Mary Ellen Pleasant. With her appearance on Lizzie's doorstep, she brings not only mystery and a whiff of disrepute, but also the key that will unlock Lizzie's rebellious nature. 'You can do anything you want,' she tells Lizzie. 'You don't have to be the same person your whole life.'" -- from the inside flap

My thoughts:

This book was an interesting historical fiction set in late 19th century San Francisco. Appearances, both real and imagined, are important as well as maintaining one's reputation. I liked how Lizzie gradually broke away from convention to find her own path without relying on the opinions of others.

Date read: 2/29/2008
Book #: 13
Series: Winter Reading Challenge, Reading My Name Challenge, Celebrate the Author Challenge
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Historical Fiction

ISBN-10: 0399147500
ISBN-13: 9780399147500
Publisher: Putnam
Year: 2001
# of Pages: 321
Binding: Hardcover
LibraryThing Page

The Naked Sun by Isaac Asimov

First sentence:

"Stubbornly Elijah Baley fought panic."

Description:

"Solaria was a beautiful planet, but a sparsely settled one, The Solarians had so isolated themselves that direct contact with others was almost unbearable, and all interpersonal dealings were conducted by solid-seeming trimensional projections.

Now there had been a murder. The victim had been so neurotic that even the presence of his wife was barely endurable, But someone had been close enough to beat him to death while he was attended by his robots. Naturally, the robots couldn't have done it-the first law of robotics would not let them harm a human being. No weapon had been found.

It seemed a paradox. So the authorities sent for Lije Baley, who was delighted to find that his old partner, the human-seeming robot R. Daneel Olivaw, would join him. The partnership was back in business - a strange business, indeed."

My thoughts:

This book was a good mix of science fiction and mystery. There was a theme of overcoming fears throughout the book, whether it was Lije's fear of the outdoors or the Solarian's fear of personal presence. I look forward to reading the first book in the series, The Caves of Steel.

Date read: 1/19/2008
Book #: 4
Series: R. Daneel Olivaw, #2
Challenges: Celebrate the Author Challenge, Winter Reading Challenge, TBR Challenge 2008
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: SF

ISBN-10: 0345313909
ISBN-13: 9780345313904
Publisher: Del Rey
Year: 1983
# of Pages: 208
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
LibraryThing Page