Angieville

Today I'm lucky enough to participate in the Book Blogger Appreciation Week Blogger Interview Swap ! That's a fancy way of saying today you get to read my interview with the lovely Jena of Muse Book Reviews . Jena and I were assigned the task of interviewing each other and (as was the idea) we'd never run across each other's blog before. We were both amazed by that fact as we have quite a lot in common, both in our background and in our reading taste, and I have to say it was a treat getting to know her and browse Muse Book Reviews . Without further ado, my interview with The Muse! *** How did you get started blogging and what was your goal when you started Muse Book Reviews? Several of my teacher friends asked me to keep them abreast of my reading when I left teaching. One night I decided a book blog was the best way to keep track of my reading and to share it with friends and family who were looking for book recommendations. Have you always been a reader or was there ...

To help kick off Book Blogger Appreciation Week , and as part of the massive number of giveaways going on, I'm chipping in with my own. To one lucky commenter I'm giving away a brand new copy of Silent on the Moor by Deanna Raybourn . This book was one of my favorite reads so far this year and will undoubtedly be on my Best of 2009 list. It is the third installment in the Lady Julia Grey mystery series . Reading order: Silent in the Grave , Silent in the Sanctuary , and Silent on the Moor . Y ou can read my reviews of all three here , here , and here . This is a seriously enjoyable, well-written series and I am crazy fond of the intrepid Lady Julia and private inquiry agent Mr. Nicholas Brisbane. All you have to do is leave a comment and a way to contact you to be entered. For one extra entry you can become a follower. The contest is open to U.S. and Canada only and closes at midnight on Friday, September 18th. I'll be announcing the winner the next day. Thanks for stoppi...

I went through a pretty good Joan Lowery Nixon phase when I was about twelve or thereabouts. Along with Lois Duncan , Ms. Nixon kept me well supplied with tense, easily digested mysteries about young girls who encountered the horrifying and the deadly on a regular basis. As I was in the process of expanding a bit on my Nancy Drew addiction, I basically ate them up with a spoon. I collected used copies of most of Nixon's books and, at one point, had quite a group of them on my shelf; now they've been whittled down to the most memorable, sentimental few. Of her mysteries I held on to Secret, Silent Screams , The Kidnapping of Christina Lattimore , and The Dark and Deadly Pool . And while the first two are probably better crafted, more complicated tales, The Dark and Deadly Pool is my favorite because of its offbeat and lovable main characters--Mary Elizabeth Rafferty and her friend Fran or, as I like to call him--ManFran. Mary Elizabeth takes a summer job at the super ritzy Rid...

Adele over at Persnickety Snark has a superb post up entitled Bad Boys Make the YA-world Go 'Round . You should all go over and read it right now. Unless, of course, you're Team Peeta. Then you might just as well go back to snuggling up with your copy of Catching Fire and rereading all your favorite Peeta passages. Lol. Just kidding, Thea ! And Amy . And Lenore . And all the rest of you crazies. *shakes head* Seriously, though, Adele defines the "bad boy." She talks about her favorite bad boys of YA and TV. She even conducts a twitter poll to garner favorite bad boy suggestions. The whole post is loads of fun. And when she stated that her bad boy obsession dates back to George Cooper from Tamora Pierce 's Alanna books, I called out, "Comrade!" But never fear. Should you be good guy inclined and prefer Bingley to Darcy, Pizz to Logan, or Morelli to Ranger, she follows it up with a post dedicated to the Boys Next Door and the wonderful Gilbert Blythe is...

I can't imagine how time-consuming it must be to write two different series simultaneously, but I am seriously so glad I'm able to go to the bookstore and get my Patricia Briggs fix twice a year. When I first heard she was starting a series featuring Sam's half-brother Charles, I could hardly wait to start. I love the world she's created with her Mercy Thompson books and I can't get enough of anything to do with the Marrok himself--the leader of the North American werewolves. As he is Charles' father I knew we'd be getting more Bran, which could only be a good thing. My fingers are still crossed she'll embark on a third series centered on the Marrok. His ancient awesomeness deserves his own series. I enjoyed Cry Wolf , the first in the Alpha and Omega series, and was looking forward to more development in this second installment. Things are slowly progressing between mated Charles and Anna Cornick. For a man whose life revolves around being his father...

I have become a big fan of snippets. Well, of Ilona Andrews ' snippets particularly. Every so often she and/or Gordon relents and placates the fans by posting a tiny little bit of a piece of a story headed our way sometime in the not-too-distant future. My favorites of these are (for obvious reasons) the Curran-based snippets from the upcoming Kate Daniels book, in this case-- Magic Bleeds. But the very best is when Gordon writes a well-known scene from one of the previous books from Curran's POV . That's when the magic happens, people. My very favorite is the soup scene: Part I and Part II . Enjoy. Juliet Marillier 's website has a brand new design worth exploring and she has also posted the first chapter of Heart's Blood . Set in western Ireland during the 12th century this is a standalone novel that is very loosely based on the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. It is my most anticipated book of the fall and so I couldn't resist the lure of the first cha...

The shortlists have been released and voting is now open over at Book Blogger Appreciation Week ! Angieville was shortlisted for the Most Chatty category and I'm sitting here grinning. The category description reads: This blogger has a very "chatty" style. You feel like you could be sitting together, sipping wine, and chatting about life. I love it. And I love all of you who come and stay to chat with me. Some of my very favorite blogs are up for some very fun awards. So head on over and cast your votes ! The polls close at midnight on Saturday.