READING
Yes, I am reading! How magical.
No really. I have had my personal library stored in various boxes and inaccessible since October, and it was very depressing. But now I have my bookshelf set up and all my paperback babies out on display so I can finally READ again.
Back in So. Illinois, I had a deal with myself that instead of buying junk food, I would use that spending money from my job to buy books at the half-price bookstore instead. Some of them were gems, like "The Hallowed Hunt" by Lois McMaster Bujold or the first two books in the Charlie Bone series by Jenny Nimmo. But still, a lot of those fantasy paperbacks were only $3, so I splurged now and again on random titles that intrigued me. And now I'm finally going through my massive stacks of paperback fantasy stuff.
First and foremost, I am reading the COMPLETE works of H. P. Lovecraft. I binge read about ten stories a day, then take a break and turn to one of my fantasies. Currently my favorite Lovecraft stories are Polaris, the Cursed of Sarnath, the Outsider, The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, and At the Mountains of Madness. I'll add more as I read them, I'm sure. But so far, those are the favorites.
Now, for the fantasies, I have finished one and am halfway through a second. The first is called "Silver's Edge" by Anne Kelleher. It's pretty cool, being all about Celtic lore, the fae, the realm of Sidhe and man, and there is lots of political intrigue to be found within. It was pretty decent, I won't go too much into it. You can read the premise online. My main problem with it was that the ending was building up to this ermahgerd climax and then just sort of fizzled out into a hastily wrapped ending because "ermg, we need to make monies with a sequel". So I was not very happy with how that was handled. I'm sure the sequel is necessary. By the end of the book, there was still a LOT that needed to be done/answered, but she could have handled the first book's ending better.
Second one, the one I'm currently reading, is "Luck In the Shadows" by Lynn Flewelling. It's a story about spies and their encounter with magic. Or something. It's really a bigee when you're halfway through a book and there is no established plot. So far they just wander around, eating food, sleeping in inns, and listening to ENDLESS WORLDBUILDING..... ugh! I genuinely find the world intriguing. It's very rich and varied, and I would maybe like exploring it sometime, but the delivery is very... not good. Huge chunks are sprinkled throughout, and the characters drop these bizarre names of places, peoples, and historical figures at the drop of a hat to the point where I can't keep track of them all. And then there are also the random bombs they throw. See, the world was introduced as a very realistic one, for the most part. The strangest thing around seemed to be "oh yah, wizards exist". But while the characters are meandering around, they pass by a centaur. A friggin centaur. And they act like it's no big deal. I was like, "wait... a centaur? A real centaur? Omg. When did that get there? Those exist in this world?" It was really, really disturbing. And then it just kept happening... and it got annoying... really fast. Also, the lack of any real depth to the characters. I think they're ok in general, but there is no reason on earth why I want to care. I feel like the book wants me to care, but I have no reason to. UGH!
Ok, that was a bit of a rant. On to other things.
WATCHING
Anime.
Of course.
I'm not going to go on rants or big descriptions, I'm just going to tell you names and what to watch.
----------Noir
- Was... slow. Very slow. Pacing was awful. One of the most painful things I've ever sat through. Great story. Intriguing characters. Not-half-bad action. Just THE PACING!!!! D:
Would recommend for veterans.
----------Ookami Kakushi
- Think Higurashi but poorly done. Was interesting at the least, not as gory as I was hoping, and there was that weird pedophile-ish/rapey scene that really weirded me out until it was later explained but that didn't help much either. Ugh. Just go watch Higurashi.
Would not really recommend.
----------Akira
- Ermg, right in the feels. Futuristic powers out of control, sci fi elements, really well done. I loved it. No wonder it's a classic.
Would recommend, more for veterans, but everyone should give it a shot.
----------Angel Cop
- Rather boring. Both voice casts were mediocre. Characters were pretty 2D. Action wasn't interesting. Lots of senseless blood and gore. Not enough to be entertaining.
Would not recommend.
----------Future Diary
- Was very "meh" throughout, but the ending was gold. Very messed up, but in all the right ways. Yuno is the best yandere I've ever seen.
Would recommend.
----------Denpa Teki no Kanojo
- Short but perfect. Loved both episodes very much for how very DEEP they were. I loved the characters so much!
Would recommend!!!
----------Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun
- OMG! My favorite shoujo romance comedy ever. This one takes the cake! It was funny in all the right ways with very good taste in humor. The characters were SO 3D IT WAS TRIPPY! I loved all of them so much. The attention to each one of them was perfect! I loved the romance as well, and I'm very picky about my romance so that should say a lot.
WOULD RECOMMEND SO HARDCORE!!!!
----------Bludgeoning Angel Dokuro-chan
Best. Anime. Ever. Four episodes of absolute perfection.
WOULD RECOMMEND SO HARDCORE!
That's all for now. I'll talk about life or something next time.
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