Personal Challenges
Authors
Agatha Christie.
A Caribbean mystery. A classic mystery story. This is the 10th installment for Miss Marple detective series.
There is no rest or relaxation for Miss Marple. Agatha Christie's most appealing sleuth returns in this classic baffler of a vacation-turned-deadly.
Nephew Raymond West has given his favourite aunt a vacation at a beautiful resort in the Caribbean. While there she encounters an old wind-bag. One of his stories is about meeting a murderer. He has a snapshot. Suddenly he hesitates, and gets flustered. By the next morning he is dead, seemingly of natural causes. Miss Marple has doubts.
And well she should.
The other is mentioned above- The clocks. The 30th installment in the Hercule Poirot detective series.
Stephen King
Under the dome, this book was adapted to a tv series. Probably is very different from the adaptation. I have yet to watch it anyway. This will be the second time I will read this story. I hope I enjoy it as much.
On an entirely normal, beautiful fall day in Chester’s Mill, Maine, the town is inexplicably and suddenly sealed off from the rest of the world by an invisible force field. Planes crash into it and fall from the sky in flaming wreckage, a gardener’s hand is severed as “the dome” comes down on it, people running errands in the neighboring town are divided from their families, and cars explode on impact. No one can fathom what this barrier is, where it came from, and when—or if—it will go away.
Dale Barbara, Iraq vet and now a short-order cook, finds himself teamed with a few intrepid citizens—town newspaper owner Julia Shumway, a physician’s assistant at the hospital, a selectwoman, and three brave kids. Against them stands Big Jim Rennie, a politician who will stop at nothing—even murder—to hold the reins of power, and his son, who is keeping a horrible secret in a dark pantry. But their main adversary is the Dome itself. Because time isn’t just short. It’s running out.
Full dark, no stars. I know nothing much about this work. This was picked on my project of reading SK's work in publication order. I assume this will be a fantasy-suspense thriller- short stories collection. He has more stories collections than what I had expected.
"I believe there is another man inside every man, a stranger..." writes Wilfred Leland James in the early pages of the riveting confession that makes up "1922." the first in this pitch-black quartet of mesmerizing tales from Stephen King. For James, that stranger is awakened when his wife, Arlette, proposes selling off the family homestead and moving to Omaha, setting in motion a gruesome train of murder and madness.
In "Big Driver," a cozy-mystery writer named Tess encounters the stranger along a back road in Massachusetts when she takes a shortcut home after a book-club engagement. Violated and left for dead, Tess plots a revenge that will bring her face-to-face with another stranger: the one inside herself.
"Fair Extension," the shortest of these tales, is perhaps the nastiest and certainly the funniest. Making a deal with the devil not only saves Dave Streeter from a fatal cancer but provides rich recompense for a lifetime of resentment.
When her husband of more than twenty years is away on one of his business trips, Darcy Anderson looks for batteries in the garage. Her toe knocks up against a box under a worktable and she discovers the stranger inside her husband. It's a horrifying discovery, rendered with bristling intensity, and it definitely ends a good marriage.
John Grisham
The runaway jury. A legal thriller.
Every jury has a leader, and the verdict belongs to him. In Biloxi, Mississippi, a landmark tobacco trial with hundreds of millions of dollars at stake begins routinely, then swerves mysteriously off course.
The jury is behaving strangely, and at least one juror is convinced he's being watched. Soon they have to be sequestered. Then a tip from an anonymous young woman suggests she is able to predict the jurors' increasingly odd behavior.
Is the jury somehow being manipulated, or even controlled? If so, by whom? And, more importantly, why?
The Partner. Another legal thriller, this one was the first I read and I have lost count of how many times I have reread it. This will be the first time I annotate it.
Michael Crichton
A case of need under the pseudonym Jeffrey Hudson.
Set against the ever-building pressure and pace of a large Boston medical center, the tensions flare-and explode-when a surgical operation tragically ends in death, raising countless questions. Was it accidental malpractice? A violation of the Hippocratic oath? Or cold-blooded murder?
Easy go / The last tomb under pseudonym John Lange. This gives me a Tomb raider vibe, I think this will be better fit for me comparing to the two works that I picked last month.
When he finds clues to an ancient treasure, an Egyptologist plans a very modern heist
Brilliant Egyptologist Harold Barnaby has discovered a message hidden inside a particularly difficult set of hieroglyphics. It just may lead him to a secret tomb holding the greatest riches of the ancient world. Barnaby could put his name to the most fantastic archaeological find of the century. But he doesn’t just want to dig it up. He wants to steal it.
With the help of a smuggler, a thief, and an English lord, he plans his heist. They find that tomb raiding is trickier than they thought, and those who steal from dead Egyptians face dangers worse than a mummy’s ancient curse.
Latin
La ciudad fantasma: Relato fantastico de la ciudad de Mexico Bernando Esquinca. This is a collection of myths and legends that comes from prehispanic times.
La tristeza de las cosas, Maria Jose Ferrada. Is a poetry collection.
Other series Series
Deadpool Classic vol 11, Victor Gischler. COLLECTING: Deadpool : Merc With a Mouth 1-13, Lady Deadpool 1. I expect this to be over the top, gorey and nonsensical. Because I have a mild level of humor- I will limit the amount of volumes read per month.
Under contract with A.I.M., Deadpool ventures into the Savage Land to obtain the ultimate biological weapon...his own dang head! Yup, Zombie Deadpool's decapitated head makes its glorious return, and he's tired of being carried around everywhere. Deadpool will have to keep his own head on straight if he hopes to survive these Savage Land shenanigans and collect his bounty. Then, as if the zombie thing wasn't enough, it's alternate universe mayhem as Deadpool encounters a multitude of malevolent mirror images: S.H.I.E.L.D Major Wilson, Wanda Wilson and the Deadpool Kid! But what happens when Deadpool, A.I.M. agents and his foxy new ladylove travel into the Marvel Zombieverse to try to return "Headpool" home?
Deadpool classic vol 12, Victor Gischler. COLLECTING: Prelude to Deadpool Corps 1-5, Deadpool Corps 1-12, Deadpool Family 1.
Deadpool gears up for an intergalactic adventure, but to succeed, he'll need to assemble a crack team of special operatives! So naturally he recruits four other versions of himself! What could go wrong? Lady Deadpool, Kid Deadpool, Dogpool, Headpool and the original Merc With a Mouth form...the Deadpool Corps! First, the consciousness-sapping Awareness has wiped out the free will of millions of planets, and the Corps must stop it from destroying the galaxy! If they can keep the in-fighting and binge drinking to a minimum, they just might just stand a chance.
The dragon in the library
The monster in the lake, Louie Stowell. This is the 2nd installment in this children magical realism series.
When wild magic starts causing trouble at the park, wizard Kit and her friends investigate—and find themselves on another journey to save the world. A lively and witty sequel to The Dragon in the Library.
Kit may be the youngest wizard ever, but she sure doesn’t feel like the best wizard. Her magic just keeps going wrong, and other weird stuff is happening, too: talking animals, exploding fireballs, and a very strange new arrival in the local park. Even Dogon (the half dog, half dragon) is droopy! So Kit and her two best friends—animal-whispering Alita and studious Josh—set off with Faith the librarian to investigate this wild magic that’s causing so much commotion. Their journey takes them to a Scottish loch, where they meet an eco-conscious wizard and some very grumpy mermaids (careful, they pinch!). But the danger is greater than they imagined, and it will take everybody’s help to set things right again.
The wizard in the wood, Louie Stowell. The 3rd and final book. I really to keep up my mind to complete series. I'm still unsure if I will do a mid year series check in to see how I'm doing. We'll see what I decide later on.
Kit, Josh and Alita are heading back to school – and they’re excited to discover that they’re getting a brand new library, which also means getting their own wizard librarian… and a dragon! But when something VERY BAD happens at the new library, it’s up to Kit and her friends to save the world one more time.
Shadow Forest, Matt Haig. This children magical realism. I did go through the trouble of ordering this book- the least I can do it complete the series.
Samuel Blink and the Runaway troll.
When Troll-Son runs away from home, he decides to leave the Shadow Forest behind and move in with his idol, Samuel Blink. Samuel isn't thrilled with the idea of hiding a runaway troll, especially one who copies everything he does, even (ugh!) using his toothbrush. But should Samuel return Troll-Son to the Shadow Forest? After all, he's running from something . . . what danger still lurks there?
The Realm of the Elderlings, Robin Hobb
The willful princess and the Piebald Prince.
One of the darkest legends in the Realm of the Elderlings recounts the tale of the so-called Piebald Prince, a Witted pretender to the throne unseated by the actions of brave nobles so that the Farseer line could continue untainted. Now the truth behind the story is revealed through the account of Felicity, a low-born companion of the Princess Caution at Buckkeep.
With Felicity by her side, Caution grows into a headstrong Queen-in-Waiting. But when Caution gives birth to a bastard son who shares the piebald markings of his father's horse, Felicity is the one who raises him. And as the prince comes to power, political intrigue sparks dangerous whispers about the Wit that will change the kingdom forever.
If I have time I want to jump to the next series in the realm of the Elderlings- Tawny man trilogy
The first installment being: Fools errand.
Fifteen years have passed since the end of the Red Ship War with the terrifying Outislanders. Since then, Fitz has wandered the world accompanied only by his wolf and Wit-partner, Nighteyes, finally settling in a tiny cottage as remote from Buckkeep and the Farseers as possible.
But lately the world has come crashing in again. The Witted are being persecuted because of their magical bonds with animals; and young Prince Dutiful has gone missing just before his crucial diplomatic wedding to an Outislander princess. Fitz’s assignment to fetch Dutiful back in time for the ceremony seems very much like a fool’s errand, but the dangers ahead could signal the end of the Farseer reign.
The Raven Cycle, Maggie Stiefvater. This is also a reread and taking the opportunity to tab the series for the first time.
Blue lily, lily blue - the 3rd installment. This series as a whole is more character based. The overall plot is in itself very slow. But I love the characters enough that I don't mind their meandering.
Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.
The trick with found things, though, is how easily they can be lost.
Friends can betray.
Mothers can disappear.
Visions can mislead.
Certainties can unravel.
The raven king- the last in the series.
All her life, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love's death. She doesn't believe in true love and never thought this would be a problem, but as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she's not so sure anymore.
Classics
The phantom of the opera, Gaston Leroux a translated work that might be in play format.
First published in French as a serial in 1909, The Phantom of the Opera is a riveting story that revolves around the young, Swedish Christine Daaé. Her father, a famous musician, dies, and she is raised in the Paris Opera House with his dying promise of a protective angel of music to guide her. After a time at the opera house, she begins hearing a voice, who eventually teaches her how to sing beautifully. All goes well until Christine's childhood friend Raoul comes to visit his parents, who are patrons of the opera, and he sees Christine when she begins successfully singing on the stage. The voice, who is the deformed, murderous 'ghost' of the opera house named Erik, however, grows violent in his terrible jealousy, until Christine suddenly disappears. The phantom is in love, but it can only spell disaster.
Leroux's work, with characters ranging from the spoiled prima donna Carlotta to the mysterious Persian from Erik's past, has been immortalized by memorable adaptations. Despite this, it remains a remarkable piece of Gothic horror literature in and of itself, deeper and darker than any version that follows.
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