Random Thoughts: A Good Book

What is a good book for you? What qualities does the bank have to contain to make it a page-turner or even a keeper?

Some would attribute it to having reached the bestseller's list. After all, if a lot of people from all walks of life buy the book, it's bound to be excellent, right? Still others rely on recommendations, whether it be from a family member, a friend, a blogger or a review site.

I've since come to the realization that one book can be a lot of things to many people. There's a book I've read that I want to use for target practice, yet, some bloggers gush and couldn't say enough good about it. There's still another story that I liked, but another commented that she found it too childish. Hence, reading and loving a book is a very subjective experience.

A good book for me is one that touched my heart, that brought out all the emotions within me, wherein I was able to identify with the characters. It is also one that made me want to keep the book forever on my shelf, to be taken out and read over and over again until it's yellowed and the pages are dog-eared. It's to be shared with friends and family who are fellow book lovers, but to take note to whom I lent it to so I can get it back. LOL

Off the top of my head, books I consider keepers include: This Heart of Mine by Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Not Quite A Husband by Sherry Thomas, Once and Always by Judith McNaught, Something Wonderful by Judith McNaught, Paradise by Judith McNaught, the Wind Dancer series by Iris Johansen, This Fierce Splendor by Iris Johansen, and Sleepless at Midnight by Jacquie D'Alessandro.

What's a good book for you?

Random Thoughts: On Shiekhs...

At a time when Harlequin and Loveswept (yes, for those who still remember this imprint, I was also already around when the first Loveswept book came out) feature lots of shiekhs as heroes, I couldn't understand the attraction. Who wants to read about living in deserts when I could be lolling around in air conditioned rooms?

Then I saw this picture and I magically understood. With those looks, coupled with astounding business and financial acumen, he's one irresistible hero for sure, the very epitome of a man who radiates power and authority. And I'm sure sheikhs these days don't live in deserts any longer. Or do they?

Random Thoughts: I Thought I Would Live Forever...

I thought I was invincible. I thought life would always be this way. I took a lot of things for granted, but recent experiences have taught me to sit back and take stock of the things that are important to me.

My health, for example. No, I'm not going to die. That is, not for a long, looooong time, I hope. But something's wrong with my eyes recently. I see things I've not been seeing (um, not ghosts), and my eyes are dry and tire easily. One of my friends mentioned a possible retinal tear, so I went on the Net and researched and what I saw terrified me. If the condition aggravated, a retinal detachment is possible, which could lead to blindness.

Okay, maybe I'm just good at scaring myself, coz I latched onto the word "blindness" and imagined all sorts of scenarios. But I don't want to be blind! I'm barely 40, there are still lots and lots of things I want to do, things I want to experience. And if I were blind, what job could I do? I started thinking of occupations the blind could engage in and I came up with blank!

I spent several worried sleepless nights thinking about my condition. It's hard to describe the fear and the worry and the hope. But this did make me pray more, and I wondered if this is a test that God has sent me, that maybe He's reminding me that He's there watching over me and that all I need to do is to turn to Him.

Also, this made me more sympathetic to the plight of the blind, especially those less forturnate than I am, and I started wondering what I could do to help make their lives easier.

I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, and I'm hoping that he'll tell me it's nothing, just dry eyes and irritation that eye drops could cure. Then I would go on with my life, but with a few changes and with more appreciation.

We'll see. Could really need all those good thoughts and prayers right about now. :)

Random Thoughts: The Dearth of Lawyer Books

No, this does not refer to books on law, which we know there are a lot, if you'll just take a look at that particular section in the bookstore. I'm referring to lawyer romances, where either the hero or heroine or both are lawyers and their story revolves around a law case or their practice as lawyers. Okay, The Firm by John Grisham comes to mind, but it's not a romance, so it doesn't count.

I did a research in my library and in Amazon and I came up with only a few books that I'm interested to read. These are:

1.  Practice Makes Perfect by Julie James (contemporary) - I've got this book! Review coming soon!

2.  Just the Sexiest Man Alive by Julie James (contemporary) - Yup, got this too! Review coming soon.

3.  Ties That Bind by Kathryn Shay

4.  Lawyers in Love by Shawn Lane (contemporary M/M)

5.  Tell No Lies by Julie Compton (contemporary) - I don't think this is a romance per se, since the hero is a lying, cheating jerk, but a reader's endorsement makes me want to read it. By the way, in case you're wondering, "courtroom drama" are the magic words.

There's a Harlequin I remembered reading, where the main characters are on opposing sides, but I forgot the title, sorry. Oh yes, there's also this series by M.J. Rodgers where, although the main characters are lawyers, there's no courtroom drama involved, and I want courtroom drama. Pleeeease. Maybe I should go watch Boston Legal. No, I haven't watched it yet. I've always been more of a bookworm than a couch potato.

Anyone's got any recommendations?

Random Thoughts: Broken Dreams

I didn't realize just how strong and compelling a fantasy can be.

Some time ago, I met a guy. I didn't expect anything when I first met him, but we had fun talking. He was easy to talk to and knowledgeable about a lot of things, and I looked forward to seeing him. We even found stuff in common. We built a rapport of sorts and that's when I made a wrong step.

I started fantasizing about him, making up stories about him in my head. I knew they were make-believe, of course, but they filled me with hope, which is more addicting than I realized.

To be fair, he didn't mislead me about anything. He was maybe just being himself--friendly, funny and smart--and maybe I read more into it than there was.

Just a few days ago, I found out he has a girlfriend. (I know, I'm stupid. I should've tried to find that out from the start, but I couldn't without prying.) I was...not shattered, but something close to it. My hopes lay in broken pieces around my feet and I was surprised when I even shed a few tears. (Too emotional for my own good)

The end of a dream would do that to a person, I think. I only thank God that I come to know of it this soon rather than later, when I probably would have fallen deeper into my self-created fantasy. I know it's not the end of the world, but I also know it would take some time for me to get over this. It's not everyday I find a man I like--really like--only to discover he's already taken.

Why couldn't my life be a book with an HEA after 300 or so pages?

P.S. I had the strongest urge to rename this blog "Broken Dreams", then realized it's not just my blog.

Random Thoughts: Book Reviews - For Good or Bad?

Originally, I wanted to make my title "Book Reviews - For Good or Ill?" But in the subject, the word "Ill" came out as "lll", so I changed it to "Bad" instead. Oh-kay, that aside, what I want to discuss here is: Did the book reviews I read online steer me toward books I want to read?

To a certain extent, I would have to say "yes". Because of bloggers' and readers' recommendations, I've found excellent books that I love such as Not Quite A Husband by Sherry Thomas, Roxanne St. Claire's Bulletcatchers series, and Practice Makes Perfect by Julie James. Indeed, my life would be far less richer if I hadn't read those books. Seriously! I love NQAH so much I told everyone about it and even lent my cousin my dearly beloved copy (she has orders to return the book to me in the same pristine condition on pain of death!). I can't wait to see what else Sherry Thomas has in store for me, and I hope I love it as much as NQAH. Julie James, too. In fact, I pre-ordered her next book, Something About You.

However, not all books are created equal, not even if they're written by the same author. I didn't like Private Arrangements by Sherry Thomas so much. In fact, I stopped reading after the first few pages and went on to other books before I came back to it.

With regard to the much lauded Tairen Soul series, I found it a bit tedious, the way the story was being dragged for sooooo long, over what--five books now? (Silver and I still disagree on this. We may write a conversation review some day. It's more exciting when parties have differing opinions.) I still like King of Sword and Sky because we see Fey'bahren and Rain's development as a character (which we didn't see in the previous two books), but neither Rain nor Ellysetta nor their relationship developed in Queen of Song and Souls, and the revelation of Ellysetta's origins and her time in Elvia just made for tedious reading, making me want to scream and put my claws onto Tairen Soul, the final book in the series, where I'm sure all the juicy details are.

That aside, I'd say book reviews do more good than bad for me. Without them, I wouldn't be brave enough to try new authors. I was burned once and threw away good money on an author who pens adult fiction with juvenile writing. Needless to say, I steered clear of her ever since, not even when her other series was being lauded by some bloggers/readers. I guess the saying "once bitten, twice shy" applies to me.

Also, there are so many good books out there and not enough time to read. Hence, it really helps that the good books are sifted out.

However, that's not to say I only read what bloggers/readers have recommended. No, I do still venture forth into the bookstores (both online and brick-and-mortar) and browse through the books to get the ones that catch my attention, whether it's the gorgeous cover, the back summary (like Stephanie Tyler's Hard to Hold) or the name of my favorite author.

And there are as many opinions as there are people. This is to say that a book that may be judged as good by one person may be disliked by another, as I've proven above. It's always good to see differing opinions on a certain book, although that does make it more confusing for the reader. Should I buy the book or not? I think, in such a case, I'll fall back to the library, and if it turns out that I love the book, I then go out and buy myself a copy.

What about you? How are your book buying patterns being influenced by book reviews?