Tag: Books

Updates

September and October Recap 2016

Geoff W

2016-09-06-event-design-at-homeIt has been a LONG two months. I didn’t even realize I forgot my September recap until half way through October. So you get a half-assed double month recap 😀

I had my first major event in September at my new job and it went really well. We had over 230 people attend and it was an absolutely stunning location. Those posters in the photo were actually really cool backlights. They are printed on transparency type paper and then light put in behind them and they glow really nicely. I should’ve gotten a photo of them.

Continue reading “September and October Recap 2016” →

Updates

August Recap 2016

Geoff W

2016 08-07 Working OutThe big news of the month is that I’ve achieved my 31 day goal of meeting my exercise, move and stand goals on my Apple watch! It’s not at all book related, but I’m excited because I’m slowly getting back into the habit of walking every day.

I’ve somehow managed to balance this with reading (six books this month), work offices moving to a new location, and two trips out to Tanglewood to see the Boston Pops and the Boston Symphony Orchestra perform. I don’t know if I’m going to keep it up because honestly at some point in the first few days of September I’m taking a rest day, or at least an easy day. I’m pretty sure I can hit all my goals without having to go on a two(+) mile walk but I’m not 100% sure. But what you’re all really here for is the books, so on to the books! Continue reading “August Recap 2016” →

Books

Book 454: The Book of Life (All Souls Trilogy #3) – Deborah Harkness

Geoff W

Where do I begin with this?

It’s very rare that a series starts off and continues to pick up steam the entire way through. In my previous experience, there is usually a middle-book slump. In the case of Deborah Harkness’ All Souls Trilogy the middle book of the trilogy, Shadow of Night, was the stand out, followed closely by The Book of Life and in a distant third, the trilogy opener A Discovery of Witches.

This could be because the entire series takes place over about a year (give or take a few months because of time travel), but more than likely I think it has to do with the amount of action continuously increasing as the series moved forward. This wasn’t necessarily a good thing as I’ll talk about below, but that’s my conjecture. Continue reading “Book 454: The Book of Life (All Souls Trilogy #3) – Deborah Harkness” →

Books

Book 453: Shadow of Night (All Souls Trilogy #2) – Deborah Harkness

Geoff W

Picking up where A Discovery of Witches leaves off we are right back in the story of Diana and Matthew! It’s hard to hide spoilers, especially the one at the end of the first book because it sets up the entire second book, so if you plan on reading the series skip my response!

I shouldn’t be as surprised as I am, but I am a little surprised at how much I enjoyed book two of the All Souls Trilogy. For everything that was missing in book one, Harkness made a great effort to bring it back to this book. She reined in the over descriptions, she brought a little more sass to her characters, and she wrote 16th century Europe wonderfully. Continue reading “Book 453: Shadow of Night (All Souls Trilogy #2) – Deborah Harkness” →

Books

Book 452: A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy #1) – Deborah Harkness

Geoff W

I probably would have read this book closer to its release, but unfortunately it’s part of a trilogy (this followed by Shadow of Night and  The Book of Life) and I didn’t want to read the books as they came out so I waited to read it. I really wanted to read it a lot sooner because a lot of my blogger friends who really enjoyed it. That being said, I’m a little grumpy as I’ve just found out that Harkness will continue writing in this universe with the release of The Serpent’s Mirror next year. So bah.

If I had to break this down into a one sentence review it would be: Harry Potter meets Twilight for adults. That’s definitely a bit reductionist, but as I was reading that’s what I kept thinking. It wasn’t as much of a compulsive read as either of those series, but A Discovery of Witches definitely stands on its own.

Continue reading “Book 452: A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy #1) – Deborah Harkness” →