Monday 9 January 2012

MONDAY FOUR

Hello, Dear Readers! Here we are again. The weighted rubber mallet of Monday has slammed inevitably into our skulls. If you're anything like me, you're clutching your head and staggering around making muffled whimpers of suffering (no? Just me? Oh, well). But fear not! I offer the wet flannel of randomness to drape over our foreheads and soothe the ache.

1) Daughter of the Flames Kindle edition became an Amazon bestseller in several categories for a brief moment last week and this weekend. This was mostly to do with the fact that it was part of the Amazon Twelve Days of Kindle sale, and the price was reduced to 99p. Of course, as soon as the sale was over and the price went back to the (still rather reasonable!) rate of £2.69, it dropped off the bestselling chart like a lead balloon. But it was still fun to see it there in the company of such luminaries as Cassandra Clare, Chris Priestley and Joss Stirling for a while. A very nice start to the New Year!

2) This weekend I was on Twitter, bemoaning the fact that one of my all-time favourite songs, 'All I Need' by Within Temptation, is written in a key which makes it impossible for me to sing along without my voice breaking. Well, ask Twitter and ye shall receive: lovely Twitter people brought this cover of the song to my attention, and I loves it:

3) This picture which a lovely reader sent me a while back and I forgot to share. My heart still melts whenever anyone takes the time to show me my books in the wild, especially where the book's clearly been displayed with such enthusiasm.<3


4) The Hunger Games Trilogy. Although I was determined to wait until the film came out and so not spoil it for myself (as the book is pretty much always better) I finally gave in over the weekend and read them. I'm still dehydrated from all the weeping. Holy Emotional Devastation, Batman! Ms Collins pulls no punches, and I'm in awe - I couldn't write something that bleak, something that *truthful*. The places she must have had to go, internally, to create this world! Normally I can call who will live and die fairly reliably early on, but the utter pointless randomness of the deaths in these books...eugh. So truthful, especially amid the alien decadence of the setting. I WILL NEVER GET OVER THESE BOOKS.

8 comments:

The_Book_Queen said...

Yeah, congrats on Daughter of the Flames making it to the Amazon bestseller list. That's a great accomplishment, whether it's for a week or for life, so be proud! :D

I look forward to reading Shadows on the Moon soon--I have an e-book ARC of it from the publisher and will be starting it later this week, with a review coming closer to the release date (US that is). :) I'm sure it will be great though!

And I am glad you finally read Hunger Games--that is one of my all time favorite series, I love it. She did a truly amazing job with it, and while I can't wait for the movie, I know it won't live up to the book's awesomeness! :D

Enjoy!
TBQ
http://tbqspersonalbookpalace.blogspot.com

Zoë Marriott said...

TBQ: Oh, I'm quite happy to take what I can get! Any bestselling at all is good enough for me :)

I really hope you like Shadows. I know most writers claim that they don't have favourites among their books, but Shadows is a favourite, and I'll always be especially proud of it.

Yeah, there's no way a film could capture the true awesomeness of HG. In a way I'm sad that I won't be able to enjoy the films as much now, but... I just couldn't hold out anymore!

Megz said...

Yay! Some great news up there ;)

I'm having a half horrible and half okay time. I just don't know what I'm going to do with my life. So many problems. Argh.

Zoë Marriott said...

Megha: I'm very sorry to hear that, honey. I know how it feels. I always try to remember that saying 'The only way out is through'. Basically, hang on long enough and things always get better in the end. Keep pushing on, OK? *Hug*

Isabel said...

I knew you would enjoy The Hunger Games! I would say you're even later than I am, but then again, I haven't gotten around to book two yet. :( I think probably my biggest issue with continuing on, despite how much I loved THG, is because I really don't like the romance. It's definitely unique and exciting, but not for me. I don't like the fakeness of it, and how there can never be any true emotion between Peeta and Katniss that won't be partially because they were forced together in the first place.

Bonnie @ A Backwards Story said...

Aren't they amazing? I'm so glad you loved them. And you're right--it's not a series you can easily get over!

I know a lot of people don't like the third book, but I love how it was so realistic. War changes you. War isn't pretty. War breaks you. War destroys you. Everyone who didn't expect a dark book...well, I don't know what to tell you! I loved it :)

Zoë Marriott said...

Isabel: I can't say anything about that without inadvertantly spilling spoilers! Because I read the whole trilogy, so I know just how it turns out. I think you have a point, but I think Ms Collins did that on purpose. I just can't say WHY I think that.

Bonnie: After everything that the writer set up in books one and two, a neat and pretty resolution would have been a complete cop-out. I mean, I wish in my heart of hearts that certain things had come out differently, that maybe certain characters had been saved... but I can't understand anyone who thought they were going to get something other than what we did. It was inevitable. Which is how you can tell what a great writer Collins is, I think!

Isabel said...

Zoe: I guess I'll have to read on, then! ;)

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