Book Review: Touch The Dark by Karen Chance

Touch the Dark by Karen Chance



The blurb from the back cover:

Cassandra Palmer can see the future and communicate with spirits - talents that make her attractive to the dead and the undead. The ghosts of the dead aren't usually dangerous; they just like to talk ... a lot.

The undead are another matter.

Like any sensible girl, Cassie tries to avoid vampires. But when the bloodsucking mafioso she escaped three years ago finds Cassie again with vengeance on his mind, she's forced to turn to the vampire Senate for protection.

The undead senators won't help her for nothing, and Cassie finds herself working with one of their most powerful members, a dangerously seductive master vampire - and the price he demands may be more than Cassie is willing to pay ...

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I wanted to like this book, really I did, but in the end it was just okay. Which was kind of disappointing since I had read her short story "Day of the Dead" (which can found here - http://www.karenchance.com/books_dayofth...) and liked it.

While reading this book I felt like I was missing something and found myself confused for the most part. The constant explanations and descriptions in the middle of conversations and actions between characters contributed to that. I know they are necessary to set up the world and characters in the first book of a series but I found my eyes glazing over on more than one occasion. I may have even nodded off a time or two as well! I did keep reading however, hoping it would improve and it did slightly, mostly towards the end.

Despite my so-so experience with this book, I will read the next book in the series, and hope that it does indeed get better as I've heard.

View all my reviews >>

What I've been reading ...

How to Murder a Millionaire by Nancy Martin


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This was a fun read. I like a bit more romance with my mysteries but what there was picqued my interest enough to search out the rest of the books in this series.

3.5 stars

View all my reviews >>

Sorry, still no stitching.

Perhaps ...

"Reading With Camels" may be a more appropriate name for this blog right now! That is all I appear to be doing at the moment - if you are a member of Goodreads, you may have noticed that!

I can't remember the last time I picked up a needle and thread, all I know is that it has been a while. I'm sure the desire to stitch will eventually return but right now I'm content in my world of books :) I'm currently having fun re-organising my bookcases and entering my books into an Excel spreadsheet (I'm sure it would go a lot faster if I could just stop getting distracted by the blessed things!). A lot of the books I read are part of a series or the author is quite prolific, and I need to keep track of what I have and what I need to buy so I don't double up. It is also giving me a chance to put aside a pile for the second-hand book store. I don't like to part with my books but I have a few that I couldn't get into and didn't finish, and I'd rather have their spaces taken up with books that I do enjoy and will read again.

Unfortunately, all this reading hasn't included keeping up with my Google Reader and I'm very much behind on what's been going on out in the stitching/blogging world. I shall just have to keep trying to read a few a day to catch up!

Books, books and more books!

I have become obsessed with them! I've read 13 books so far this month (I'm a recluse - I don't go out much and sleep is highly over-rated IMHO :)). I've been making my way through the pile I bought home from the US but I'm also becoming very well known in my local Border's :) I'm sure the security guard thinks "OMG, she's here again!!!" every time he sees me walk in - lol. Well, I am in there at least twice a week while the kids are at their guitar lessons - the music school is in the same shopping centre and very conveniently within a five minute walk to Border's - and I invariably walk out with at least one or two (or more!) books to add to my collection.

I blame my obsession on Goodreads :) Keep discovering new series and authors, and more recently, monthly challenges that peak my interest which then sends me on yet another quest to Border's. At the moment I'm fantasizing about turning our guest bedroom into a library - wonder what DH's reaction to that would be, LOL?

I haven't completely abandoned my stitching though. I've been making slow progress on Plum Gothic and Dark Cherry but not much else. Will upload pics in the next day or two.

So, there you go. I'm around, just have my nose stuck in a book and in some alternate reality :)

Wanna see how many books I bought home?

I think I've forgotten how to stitch!

Oh, and by the way, I read 13 of those books while away too :)

Hello, New York!

Yes, I'm in the Big Apple! It was a spur of the moment idea DH had about a month or so ago and the last few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind of organising dog/house-sitters, passports (had to renew the kids' passports before we left), etc, but here we are.

The weather has been a bit chilly but the first couple of days have been clear at least so we managed to get some great views from the top of the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center. Today was foggy and rain has been forecast this afternoon so we decided to just do some exploring on foot. DS wanted to find a Games Workshop outlet as well as a new scooter. I just wanted to find a well-stocked bookstore (I've been reading a lot more than stitching lately). We've walked quite a bit today and weren't very successful with DS's mission but I managed to find a Borders and cross off several books of my wish-list. I tend to read a lot of series (ie. Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter, Julia Quinn's Bridgertons, Keri Arthur's Guardian, Cheyenne McCray's D'Anu/Tuatha D'Danann series) plus a few new-to-me authors through Goodreads that I'm keen to discover :) I do have a regular bookstore in Dubai but frustratingly they will be missing a vital volume and I am quite anal about reading my books in order. Anyway, I've filled in a few gaps today and hope to find a Barnes & Noble or some other bookstore tomorrow to fill in a couple more that I couldn't today. DH's expression when he saw my armful of books was priceless - lol. I don't think he quite believes on how serious I am on hitting another bookstore tomorrow :).

Well, I must go and see if anyone is interested in dinner :)

I love my camera :)

The kids were out shooting some hoops with their friends before dinner last night when DD came running in yelling for me to come outside and bring my camera! I went outside and was greeted with this gorgeous sunset!

Got a bit carried away with the photos - sorry!

Stitching: I have been doing a little stitching although not huge amounts. I seem to have the reading bug lately and my stitching has suffered because of it. Anyway, it is the Christmas/Mermaids SAL on the HAED BB this weekend so I've pulled both Dream of Purple and Sea of Roses out with the intention of making some progress. I also had Plum Gothic QS out earlier this week and once this weekend is over I intend to get back to her and work on her until she is done. Well, that's this week's plan anyway :)

I'll post before and after pics of each after the SAL has finished. Right now I'm heading back to my chair for an hour's stitching before the kids come home from school!

I have been quiet!!

Received a reminder from Nicole* today that I hadn't blogged in a while - she wondered if I was still stuck behind the ironing board - lol! No, ironing is pretty much up to date (thanks to our maid who caught it up for me while watching the kids one night a couple of weeks back). I've been a bit restless and just haven't been in the blogging frame of mind. Anyway, thanks for the push, Nic, I seem to be getting into the groove of things again now :)

Okay, so what have I been up to since I last posted? Well, let's see I've continued to read a lot. I discovered The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan, the Heather Wells mysteries by Meg Cabot and the first of JA Konrath's Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels mysteries, Whiskey Sour, all of which I've enjoyed. I've also started Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer, from DS's bookshelf, which is also looking to be a good read :)

I have also been stitching. There was a New Start SAL on the HAED BB at the beginning of the month which is all the encouragement I needed really :) I chose Ching Chou Kuik's Dream of Purple.

My progress ...

I also participated in September's edition of the Yearly Challenge SAL with Verdure and managed to complete the first page plus a little of the second page :)



This past weekend was the Background SAL on the HAED BB and I chose to work on Molly Harrison's Fairy of the Sea. I had moved over to the top right of the chart and started on the background there a little while ago.

Before:

After:

I'm way behind on my PhotoHunt entries, so much so that I think I will stop participating in it for now. Maybe I'll just do my own random pic of the month type of thing or as and when I take a memorable or amusing pic.

Like this one ...



DS was home sick a couple of days this week with pharyngitis. On Monday, his first day off school, he'd come downstairs to talk to me but I was outside hanging out a load of washing. This is what I came back inside to :) Tikki decided she needed her rest too - lol. Oh, and DS is fine now :)

Right, time to take DD to her tennis lesson!

~o00o~

*If you haven't done so before go and check out Nicole's awesome progress on her St Nick in his Study WIP. The detail is just amazing!