The Night Circus

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, read by Jim Dale
Unabridged audiobook, 11 CDs

I got a real shock on the first CD of this audio, Jim Dale, who did the narration for the Harry Potter series, dropped the "f" bomb. It was a shock to hear him say that, but I also find it surprising that I didn't notice another single curse word in the rest of the book.

There is only one word for this book "Magical". Magical all the way through. This has to be one of the best of the year.

From the website:
The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. 

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway: a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them both, this is a game in which only one can be left standing. Despite the high stakes, Celia and Marco soon tumble headfirst into love, setting off a domino effect of dangerous consequences, and leaving the lives of everyone, from the performers to the patrons, hanging in the balance.

Deadlocked

Southern Vampire Series #12: Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris

Unabridged audio, 8 CDs, read by Johanna Parker

I love this series. I used to call them my Harliquins (since I don't read real Harliquins). Quick, easy reads that were total escape for me. They still are and I have read or listened to all of them several times.

Amazon has chosen to offer this only as an Audible download. Fine, except, I didn't want an Audible download, I wanted CDs. I don't like downloads all that much. I listen to most audiobooks in my car and I don't like taking an extra device to listen to, finding all the right connections and wires, etc and then remembering to turn off or pause the device when I get out of the car. It feels like a production to listen to downloads in my car! Anyway, I was almost in a panic because I usually buy everything from Amazon, but then a light bulb finally came on and I looked at the Barnes & Noble website and there it was on CD. B&N to the rescue!!

Tiny Spoiler Alert!

Poor Sookie, she just can't get a break. Ever since meeting the vampires and the werewolves and the twoies and the fairies and the demons, etc., she just can't seem to have any length of time going by without a major event. Good for us, bad for poor Sookie! I liked this book all the way through except at the end and I have to admit, I'm not surprised about the outcome with Eric, but that doesn't mean I have to like it!

Millennium Trilogy

The Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson

Unabridged audio

For all it's faults, this is a great series. The story that it tells is intriguing and held my attention through all three books. The first book is good, but the story really heats up in book two and leaves you with an awesome cliffhanger lead in for book three. The first book had a bit too much detail about publishing, the hero, Blomkvist, gets girls a bit too easily and the books tend to drag a bit in places, but overall, it was well worth the listen.  

Hunger Games: The Movie

I saw this movie when it first came out, but just now got around to writing my blog post about it. I actually saw the movie twice and as soon as DVD comes out, it will become part of my permanent collection. The movie was very, very well done. It left out or did not stress some of the things I wish it had (just how big a drunk Hamish is for one, lol), but overall, it was great.

I have always been surprised by these books. When they first came out, I thought that I would never read them because of the subject matter. So many people urged me to read them, that I finally did and they are amazing.