June wrap-ups + a book haul

June has been a busy month. I attended my very first book release here in Malmö. I changed the design of my blog, a project so troublesome, I wrote a whole essay about it. And I wrote a total of six reviews:

Full Fathom Five, by Max Gladstone - 4 stars
A heart-wrenching story set in the most fantastic world.

Dawn of Rebellion, by Michelle Lynn - 3 stars
This book was exciting and had a lot of potential, but fell short when it came to characters and writing.

Lords of the Sith, by Paul S. Kemp - 3 stars
Barely any Darth Vader in this action-packed space adventure. A very disappointing read.

Demon Eyes, by Scott Tracey - 5 stars
One of the strongest sequels I have read.

The Best of All Possible Worlds, by Karen Lord - 3,5 stars
A great love story, but I expected more, considering all the praise this book got.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows - 5/10 stars
Mindless popcorn entertainment. I wouldn't have watched it if it weren't for the free tickets.

Also, a few books were purchased. And by "few" I mean "six":

A Maze of Death, by Philip K. Dick
An old classic that my brother and I really wanted to buy.

Complete Ghost Stories, by Charles Dickens
Bought in on a whim, because it was crazy cheap. Now I have something to read on Halloween.

Dune, by Frank Herbert
One of the many books that have been on my TBR forever.

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
Now I have the original English version too.

The End of Eternity, by Isaac Asimov
A couple of more titles by Asimov, and I will have to clear an entire shelf for this guy.

Trettio Nyanser av Saknad - an anthology
That's the book from the book release.

I honestly don't know what I'm going to do next month. I have a couple of reviews scheduled, but other than that, I don't have any specific plans. A part of me wants to take a break from book reviews and try something else. We'll just have to wait and see.

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Summer Reading

Schoolz out for the summer! For the next two months, I won't have to learn anything new about odontology, medicine, or the physical properties of dental cements. Also, I can finally read for fun again . I mentioned in one of my previous posts that I have fallen out of love with reading, and at that time it really did feel that way. Now, I feel like I'm getting my bookworm mojo back, and I'm already working on my next book review. I have also assembled a short and preliminary list of books I want to read this summer. Some of them are new to me, but there are a few re-reads as well. I bought my copy of The House of Binding Thorns on a whim because I loved the cover. Also, I almost never read anything by French authors, and I'd like to change that. Endymion is, of course, the third book in the Hyperion Cantos series. The first two books completely blew me away. Honestly, not a day goes by that I don't think about those stories. The two re-r

Book Review: The Silent Steppe: The Memoir of a Kazakh Nomad Under Stalin

Title: The Silent Steppe: The Memoir of a Kazakh Nomad Under Stalin Author: Mukhamet Shayakhmetov Translated by: Jan Butler Year of publishing: 2007 Publisher: The Overlook Press Source: Purchased Genre: historical nonfiction This is a first-hand account of the genocide of the Kazakh nomads in the 1920s and 30s. Nominally Muslim, the Kazakhs and their culture owed as much to shamanism and paganism as they did to Islam. Their ancient traditions and economy depended on the breeding and herding of stock across the vast steppes of central Asia, and their independent, nomadic way of life was anathema to the Soviets. Seven-year-old Shayakhmetov and his mother and sisters were left to fend for themselves after his father was branded a "kulak" (well-off peasant and thus class enemy), stripped of his possessions, and sent to a prison camp where he died. In the following years the family travelled thousands of miles across Kazakhstan by foot, surviving on the charity of rel

Big Site News (I'm Moving!)

What's up guys! It's been over a week since I got back from Montreal and I can't believe it's all over now. But life goes on, and I sure have a lot of stuff to cross off my list before the end of summer. First, there's Campnanowrimo, which I do every July (and April). I took this opportunity to finish the first draft of my new novel. I'm also moving! No, I don't mean like to a new city (or Canada). I'm moving this blog to Wordpress. I've been wanting and planning to switch to Wordpress for a long time, and now finally seems like the right time. Nothing will change. I will be posting book reviews, discussions, and an occasional Top Ten- list. But I will be doing it on a platform that will allow me to be more creative, and to grow as a writer. I want this to eventually become an author website, with that author being... well, me. The official date for the move will be announced as soon as I'll finish building my Wordpress site and transport

Dinara Tengri

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