strange and random happenstance

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
Published by: Everyman's Library
Publication Date: 1911
Format: Hardcover, 240 Pages
To Buy

When my mom was little Peter Pan was her favorite Disney movie. I have spent more time that I can count having to listen to innumerable stories about being taken to Disney films when I was little and freaking out so bad that I had to be taken home. In an ironic twist of fate my brother would do this to me with The Jungle Book and I never knew the ending until it was re-released into theaters when I was a teenager. There was literally only five minutes left! HE COULD HAVE WAITED! Usually my mom took out these stories as amusing anecdotes, after all she'd seen all the films when she was younger so my losing it on seeing the mice in Cinderella was funny. But she was different about Peter Pan. I remember when it was re-released as we took our seats at Westgate with her sister and niece she looked at me and told me point blank, there would be no "Cinderella" freak out. No matter what happened we were staying. While the movie isn't close to my favorite Disney movie it did spawn a love of the book in me. One year for Christmas my parents got me and my brother a HUGE set of Children's Classics and the plan was to have nightly readings in the library. This actually happened once, perhaps twice. But I do know that the only book we read was Peter Pan. I was the one reading it aloud at the beginning and I don't know at what point I became so involved in the story that I didn't notice that my audience had left but leave they did. But I didn't leave that big uncomfortable pink wingback chair until I finished the book. I think that was the first book I binged in one sitting.     

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Children's Classics, Cinderella, Disney, J.M. Barrie, Library, Mice, Movies, Peter Pan, The Jungle Book, Theses Are a Few of My Favorite Things

Things in Jars by Jess Kidd
Published by: Atria Books
Publication Date: February 4th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In the dark underbelly of Victorian London, a formidable female sleuth is pulled into the macabre world of fanatical anatomists and crooked surgeons while investigating the kidnapping of an extraordinary child in this gothic mystery - perfect for fans of The Essex Serpent and The Book of Speculation.

Bridie Devine - female detective extraordinaire - is confronted with the most baffling puzzle yet: the kidnapping of Christabel Berwick, secret daughter of Sir Edmund Athelstan Berwick, and a peculiar child whose reputed supernatural powers have captured the unwanted attention of collectors trading curiosities in this age of discovery.

Winding her way through the labyrinthine, sooty streets of Victorian London, Bridie won’t rest until she finds the young girl, even if it means unearthing a past that she’d rather keep buried. Luckily, her search is aided by an enchanting cast of characters, including a seven-foot tall housemaid; a melancholic, tattoo-covered ghost; and an avuncular apothecary. But secrets abound in this foggy underworld where spectacle is king and nothing is quite what it seems.

Blending darkness and light, history and folklore, Things in Jars is a spellbinding Gothic mystery that collapses the boundary between fact and fairy tale to stunning effect and explores what it means to be human in inhumane times."

True Gothic goodness!

Out of the Attic by V.C. Andrews
Published by: Gallery Books
Publication Date: February 4th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The twisted, beloved Dollanganger legend began two generations before Corrine Foxworth locked away her children in Flowers in the Attic. The second book in a new prequel story arc, Out of the Attic explores the Dollanganger family saga by traveling back decades to when the clan’s wicked destiny first took root.

Married to the handsome, wealthy Garland Foxworth following a wildfire romance, and an unexpected pregnancy, young Corrine Dixon finds her life very different from how she imagined it. Often alone in the mansion of Foxworth Hall, she can practically feel the ancestors’ judgment of her as insufficient - as not a Foxworth. Stern portraits glare at her from the walls, and the servants treat her strangely. Nothing in the vast place is truly hers.

Even her son, Malcolm Foxworth, born in the luxe Swan Room and instantly whisked away to a wet nurse, feels alien to her. With a husband alternately absent and possessively close, Corrine doesn’t yet realize that she’s barely scratched the surface of what lies beneath Foxworth Hall’s dark facade and the family that guards its legacies.

With the fortieth anniversary celebration of Flowers in the Attic, and ten new Lifetime movies in the past five years, there has never been a better time to experience the forbidden world of V.C. Andrews."

I am one who devoured all those Lifetime movies, especially this past August, and am in need of a V.C. Andrews fix!

Straight on Till Morning by Liz Braswell
Published by: Disney-Hyperion
Publication Date: February 4th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 496 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"What if Wendy first traveled to Neverland...with Captain Hook?

Sixteen-year-old Wendy Darling's life is not what she imagined it would be. The doldrums of an empty house after her brothers have gone to school, the dull parties where everyone thinks she talks too much, and the fact that her parents have decided to send her away to Ireland as a governess-it all makes her wish things could be different.

Wendy's only real escape is in writing down tales of Never Land. After nearly meeting her hero, Peter Pan, four years earlier, she still holds on to the childhood hope that his magical home truly exists. She also holds on to his shadow.

So when an opportunity to travel to Never Land via pirate ship presents itself, Wendy makes a deal with the devil. But Never Land isn't quite the place she imagined it would be. Unexpected dangers and strange foes pop up at every turn, and a little pixie named Tinker Bell seems less than willing to help.

But when Captain Hook reveals some rather permanent and evil plans for Never Land, it's up to the two of them to save Peter Pan-and his world."

I am rather a sucker for all things Peter Pan.

Snug by Catana Chetwynd
Published by: Andrews McMeel Publishing,
Publication Date: February 4th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 136 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Why bother getting out of bed when you could stay bundled up with that special someone and a book of cozy, cute comics. From the author of the bestselling Little Moments of Love comes Snug, a collection of comics that perfectly captures the honest, playful, and relatable snapshots of romantic life.

Chetwynd’s second book has the same charming and inviting style as her first and includes 50 percent new, never-before-shared comics. Snug is a celebration of the quirks and peculiarities of every one of us - and the magic that happens when we find our matching puzzle piece."

I've liked the Catana comics I've seen online so was excited for this book, I got a digital ARC. BUT the digital ARC crashed my computer repeatedly and what I did read before the inevitable crash didn't impress me. So for me, this is a pass, but I guess someone could use it as a gift for Valentine's Day, AKA that most exclusionary of holidays. 

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Catana Chetwynd, Gothic, Jess Kidd, Liz Braswell, Out of the Attic, Peter Pan, Snug, Straight on Till Morning, Things in Jars, Tuesday Tomorrow, V.C. Andrews, Victorian

Bookstore: Dickson Street Bookshop

Location: Fayetteville, Arkansas

Why I Love Them: So, to recap for those who didn't read last Friday's post, I was still on my road trip for my friend Sarah's wedding and now we'd reached Arkansas, the final destination state. The wedding itself was taking place in Eureka Springs, a quaint yet odd town full of dichotomies, bikers surrounded by prosperous frontier town opulence with a religious bent. But my friend Matt and I arrived early and went to Sarah's home in Fayetteville. Knowing we were there a day early in order to help and then haul whatever needed hauling to Eureka Springs I didn't do any prep in advance as to sightseeing in Fayetteville. Yet Sarah knows we well, in fact she's known me since I was fourteen so she took me straight to a bookstore. Ah, the Dickson Street Bookshop, a bookstore that knows what a bookstore should be, stretching farther and farther back, steps up into other buildings, shelves precariously packed, and aisles you could barely squeeze through. The gauntlet that every book lover hopes to run. I could have spent days in there and not discovered everything. There was even a side annex that just had science fiction laid out on tables. Tables and tables of cheap paperbacks, it was almost too much to hope for! If I had had more time who knows how much money I would have spent! But as it turns out, this wouldn't be where I spent most of my money, that honor was reserved for the gift shop at the Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home and Museum that we stumbled upon in Missouri. But I still found something... one can never leave a bookshop without finding something!

Best Buy: Sometimes before really digging into a bookstore I do a quick sweep. I basically name-check all my favorite authors and if the store has them then I know it's worthwhile to dig in deep. Mitfords, check, Durrells, check, I knew I'd find something here! So a bit of history. Ever since I was younger I've been collecting the Everyman's Library Children's Classic Series. It started with Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan and has expanded as often as I can stumble on the editions. My copy of Little Women was even bought at Orchard House! In fact on a few recent outings I added three new volumes, two in one day, and I couldn't believe my luck. The problem is that the website list that Penguin Random House has posted is incomplete! It omits editions that have gone out of print, such as Little Men. So while they say there are 58 volumes in the series, and I have 37, there are certainly more than 21 volumes I need to still find... which is why my trip to the Dickson Street Bookshop was so fortuitous. I had scoured the store. All the back rooms, all the weird nooks with history books, and I'd even gone through some of the science fiction. My friend Sarah even offered to help because if my traveling companion Matt doesn't eat on time he becomes obstreperous and it was dinnertime. So my time looking for books was coming to a close even with Sarah's help. As I was about to give up I was right near the counter, heading for the door and I saw this "special edition" section. It was rather small but there were two books from the Everyman's Library Children's Classic Series! Two! One of them was The Pied Piper of Hamelin. Do you think the book was trying to tell me something?

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Alice in Wonderland, Dickson Street Bookshop, Everyman's Library Children's Classic Series, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little Men, Little Women, Peter Pan, Support Your Brick and Mortar, The Pied Piper of Hamelin

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Ahab by Gideon Defoe
Published by: Pantheon
Publication Date: October 4th, 2005
Format: Hardcover, 160 Pages
Rating: ★★★★★
To Buy (different edition than one reviewed)

After the main-mast falls over for the third time in a week the pirate with a scarf reluctantly and cautiously approaches the Pirate Captain about perhaps getting a new boat. After admitting to his number two that perhaps covering the holes in his quarters with dashing pictures of himself isn't the best way to keep a boat afloat, seeing as a stiff breeze could conceivably kill off half the pirate crew and the Pirate Captain himself has never bothered to learn to swim he agrees that they go to Nantucket and Cutlass Liz's boatyard. There they run into two interesting people. One is Ahab, a dour whaler who is searching the world for the great white whale who took his leg off with a big chomp, the other is the Pirate Captain's Nemesis, Black Bellamy. Black Bellamy eggs the Pirate Captain on to buying a boat, The Lovely Emma, which the crew can in no way afford. Desperate to quickly get the cash for fear of Cutlass Liz and her ways of dealing with those who don't pay the pirates go in search of treasure! When that fails they try gambling. When that fails they try putting on a Vegas show. When that fails the pirate in red suggests perhaps they try some piracy? When that fails they just might take up Ahab's quest, they keep running into him and he's now offering a reward equal to the cost of their new boat. But can the Pirate Captain and his crew really succeed where Ahab has failed? And if they do can they succeed before Cutlass Liz gets violent?

What seems like years ago now, probably because it was, I remember seeing a few of Gideon Defoe's Pirates! books at Half Price Books and thinking they looked rather fun. I promptly forgot about them because do you realize the number of books I look at on a daily basis? It's seriously staggering. But shortly thereafter Lauren Willig mentioned them in passing as being hilarious so this confluence of events led me to order the first two books, handily sold as one volume, and I put it on my bookshelf and promptly forgot about them again. Fast forward to 2012 and Aardman Animation has adapted the first book for the screen. David Tennant, Hugh Grant, Russell Tovey, no wait, not Russell Tovey in the US, grumble, grumble, but once again I thought of the books and again promptly forgot. For some reason all my encounters with Gideon Defoe's work was promptly forgotten until his third book, The Pirates! In an Adventure with Communists, was picked out of the hat for book club in 2016. Not being one to start in the middle of a series I picked up my copy of the first two books, promptly fell in love, ordered the next three books and plundered my way through them all.

The thing is, I've always had a soft spot for pirates. This started quite young with my parents reading Irene Haas's The Maggie B. to me. A young girl wishes for a boat to travel the world in with her little brother. I wanted a boat just like it for myself. A pirate ship in miniature with flora and fauna and the coziest rooms you could ever imagine that weathered all storms. As I grew up there were Lego pirate ships and Playmobil pirate ships that actually floated helmed by my Star Wars figures. There were hideouts down by the railway tracks and in my back yard with hammocks, just like on a real pirate ship. There were other books too like Peter Pan and The Princess Bride, and tons of movies from The Goonies to Muppet Treasure Island to Hook. Finally there was Pirates of the Caribbean, opening night at Point Cinema on the UltraScreen with my girlfriends. Some were there to see Johnny Depp, some to see Orlando Bloom, and some to see an anvil three stories tall. I was there for the pirates!

But these Pirates! by Gideon Defoe, they are a breed apart. They are the love children of Blackadder and the briny deep, with historical cameos thrown in just as much as historical accuracy is thrown out. With this lovability that makes you just want to take them home give them a big feast predominately of ham and tell them a good bedtime story before tucking them in for the night. Gideon Defoe's writing combines the wit and love of footnotes of Terry Pratchett with the absurdity of Monty Python. Yet it's so uniquely his own that while I can draw comparisons all day it will never do justice to a series of books that need to be read for their hats and their love of ham. And I'm not joking that once you start you won't be able to stop until you've read them all. From Darwin and Bobo, the "man-panzee," to Ahab and what hunting the great white whale does to the Pirate Captain's sanity, to Wagner trying to blacken the name of Communism, to beekeeping on St. Helena where Napoleon causes quite a ruckus, to Byron and the Pirate Captain forming a true bromance while the Pirate Captain tries to woo Mary Godwin away from Shelley, you will just pillage your way through Defoe's prose.

Yet what makes this series really unique is that, aside from them being kind of hopeless as pirates, is that the characters names aren't really names, instead being character descriptions. There's the Pirate Captain and his faithful number two, the pirate with a scarf, there's the pirate in green, the pirate with rickets, the albino pirate, Jennifer, and every one's least favorite pirate, the pirate in red. While this could be viewed as just a humorous joke at the readers expense, I mean, think how many times we as readers when faced with a new story with oodles of characters has picked up on a character trait to remember them all by? Instead I don't think it's about readers and the inability to remember names, instead I think it's a clever conceit. While yes, there is a bit of poking fun at stereotypes, I think it actually goes beyond this and is making the character archetypes. The Pirate Captain is THE DEFINITIVE pirate captain. He's the only one that matters, suck it Black Bellamy! Just like the pirate with a scarf is the perfect number two, and the pirate in red is the perfect red shirt for us to hate on. These are the lovable essence of all the pirates we wanted to sail the high seas with as a kid and therefore we gleefully go with them wherever that may be. Even if there might be ghosts. And we all know how scared pirates are of ghosts!

In fact I think that the film by Aardman Animation, The Pirates! Band of Misfits, is doing a disservice to the books. While these pirates are true characters by making them cartoonishly animated it has turned them into caricatures. This movie has lessened them. In the books they are larger than life fiendish friends, on the screen they are a kind of boring movie. Which is really odd when you consider that Gideon Defoe wrote the screenplay. When I think back to when I first saw the movie, it in no way made me want to rush out and read the books, which is such a shame. Think of all those people out in the world who are judging these books based on that movie? The movie has far more "presence" and it's overshadowing these lovely, sweet, and comical adventures. When reading the books I thought how much they reminded me of the TV series Galavant. There's an absurdity and a gallantry and a sense of humor that makes it similar to The Pirates! Plus done as live action, there's a basis in reality with having actors like the brilliant Timothy Omundson bring the characters to life. This humor works best with the dichotomy of the absurd versus the real. Which leads me into my next point, when is there going to be a live action movie with Timothy Omundson as the Pirate Captain?

As for why I chose to pick their adventure with Ahab as my favorite? Partly it's because I had yet to read them hanging out with the Romantics last year, but also it has to do with this balance of fantasy and reality that elevates the humor in these books. In taking The Pirates! and placing them in their natural setting you get to see how atrocious they actually are as pirates. The fact that when they desperately need money to pay for their new boat that actual piracy is their second to last resort shows where their priorities lie. They'd rather look at clouds and have feasts with ham. Again and again it's brought home how not at home they are on the sea. They know nothing about whales! As for mermaids... well, the Pirate Captain did date a rather attractive halibut for three months thinking the rather normal fish was something more... While Black Bellamy may be a successful pirate, he isn't that enjoyable a pirate to be around. He's too suave, too together. I actually like my pirates a little on the lost side. Perhaps that is the one thing that the movie got right? They are a band of misfits, and I love them so much for not conforming to any stereotype. They are archetypes and I love them!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Ahab, Archetypes, Blackadder, Book Clubs, Galavant, Gideon Defoe, Irene Haas, Johnny Depp, Lauren Willig, Monty Python, Peter Pan, Pirates, The Maggie B., The Pirate Captain, The Pirates!, Timothy Omundson

1) Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens by J.M. Barrie - Because I adore this little short story that introduced the world to Peter Pan. Also, my copy is a tiny little paperback Penguin mini that hasn't aged very well, whereas this is a Facsimile Edition of the original with drawings by Arthur Rackham! Score! Bought at Frugal Muse.

2) Endgame by Ann Aguirre - The end of Sirantha Jax, weep, sob. Bought at Barnes and Noble.

3) Ghosts of Manhattan by George Mann - I have been wanting to get my hands on this book in George's Ghost series for awhile, and imagin my joy and finding both at once. There was almost a happy dance, I lie, there was a happy dance, once I had taken the books of the shelf and made sure no one would snag them from beneath my nose. Bought at Barnes and Noble.

4) Ghosts of War by George Mann - Ditto above, happy dance, yeah! Bought at Barnes and Noble.

5) The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron - I admit I know nothing about this book. But I had a 30% off one YA or Kids book and I saw this vaguely Steampunky cover and read the blurb and it said English Country Estate, so I was sold, if it's any good, only time will tell... Bought at Barnes and Noble.

6) The Curse of the Kings by Victoria Holt - So over on Lauren Willig's site, she was having a discussion/recommendation as the best "gateway" book for those who've never read Victoria Holt. I personally have never read her and when her recomendation was one about Egypt, I went straight to Amazon and bought it now. Bought at Amazon.

7) Parker Pyne Investigates by Agatha Christie - Another Christie facsimile I ordered with Mrs. Oliver, finally arrived from England! Bought at Amazon UK.

8) Third Girl by Agatha Christie - Ditto! Bought at Amazon UK.

9) The House of Velvet and Glass by Katherine Howe - I've been waffling on buying this one for awhile, so the fact that she was doing a signing at Murder by the Book swayed me to the yes category. That and I could get my copy of her first book signed! Bought at Murder by the Book.

10) Seizures by Katy Reichs - Again, another book I was debating that swung to the yes category by a signing at Murder by the Book. Bought at Murder by the Book.

11) Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr - Yeah, a new Melissa Marr book which everyone has told me is awesome. Though it's still hard for me to type "carnival" and not want to but an "e" on the end. Damn, I miss that show. Bought at Murder by the Book.

12) Ruby Red by Kersin Gier - Has been on my "to get" list for a long time and to tie in with the new book they re-released the first book (aka, this one) in a snazzy new and elegant cover. Bought at Amazon.

13) A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens - Did I know that they had released the book in the Everyman's Children's Classics Library? Uh, duh, no I didn't otherwies I would have bought it long ago! I love this series from Everyman's Library! Bought at Amazon.

Ok, now here will be the, damn, she went to a Fierce Reads author event with Marissa Meyer, Ann Aguirre, Lish McBride and Elizabeth Fama, so I couldn't NOT buy all their books... right? Also, I know you're jealous I was there and just won't admit it...

14) Enclave by Ann Aguirre - I was kind of kicking myself for not getting this book in the spring at the RT Convention where I first met Ann, so luckily I got my chance again! Also, right when Outpost came out, which leads too... Bought at Books and Company.

15) Outpost by Ann Aguirre - See, I couldn't just buy Enclave, now could I? Bought at Books and Company.

16) Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride - Serious cover lust and after hearing more about the book, it made me want to stop reading my current book and pick this up. Bought at Books and Company

17) Necromancing the Stone by Lish McBride - Perhaps even great cover lust, sigh. Bought at Books and Company.

18) Monstrous Beauty by Elizabeth Fama - Probably the book prior to the event I was least excited about, until I heard, evil mermaids, New England, and kind of like Frankenstein. Yeah, sold! Bought at Books and Company.

So, with all the work at school I've been stressed, and I tend to stress by books... it's weird, but it's like, I'm looking forward to when I have free time so I over buy books. Also, as a side note, perhaps it's unwise my doctor's office is like right near Barnes and Noble, so when I went in thinking I was breaking out in hives (I wasn't, just bug bites) to calm myself after, what better thing is there than books?

19) Foretold by Carrie Ryan - YA Anthology that I've been waiting for. Even better, it arrived at Frugal Muse so I got it for a quarter of the list price! Bought at Frugal Muse.

20) The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate by Scott Nash. Never heard of this book. Saw it and it looked awesome, so, yeah, I bought it. Bought at Frugal Muse.

21) The Twelve Rooms of the Nile by Enid Shomer - As I said on "Tuesday Tomorrow" it's about Egypt, so I'm sold, also, gorgeous cover! Bought at Barnes and Noble.

22) Dodger by Terry Pratchett - DUH! Terry Pratchett devote in the house! Bought at Barnes and Noble.

23) In a Witch's Wardrobe by Juliet Blackwell - Witchy fun, perfect for October! Bought at Barnes and Noble.

24) Alchemystic by Anton Strout - The proclaimed nemesis of Patrick Rothfuss, who donated money for every preorder... odd that I bought Pat's nemesis's book on Pat's recommendation... Bought at Amazon.

25) Death on a Silver Tray by Rosemary Stevens - The first in her Bean Brummell mystery series, highly recommended by Lauren Willig. Bought at Amazon.

26) The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King - I recommended the newest in this series about Sherlock Holmes recently and realized, I haven't read the first. So this is the first, fyi. Bought at Barnes and Noble.

27) Happily Ever After by Harriet Evans - I love Harriet Evans and have been wanting her newest book for quite some time but sadly every time I tried to get a copy it was damaged beyond belief, sometimes it astounds me what mailing a book does to it. But FINALLY I found a mint copy! Bought at Barnes and Noble.

Note on the bookstores:
Amazon.com - because sometimes, more often that not, your local Barnes and Noble didn't stock that ONE book you where looking for, and having prime means everything shows up so fast!

Barnes and Noble - the last big chain in the Midwest that everyone knows and loves or loathes accordingly.

Books and Company - Local bookstore, not local to Madison, but Oconomowoc, which isn't that far away. They have great signing events, I got to meet Erin Morgenstern through them last year!

Frugal Muse - local Madison, Wisconsin chain with two stores in town which sells both old and new books at wonderful prices (at a really steep discount for new books too) and is easily my favorite bookstore.

Murder by the Book - the best bookstore in the world! They're in Houston, Texas and have tons of amazing events and for every book you buy they'll let you send in three books to get signed. Love you all!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Agatha Christie, Ann Ag, Carrie Ryan, Charles Dickens, Elizabeth Fama, George Mann, Harriet Evans, Katherine Howe, Katy Reichs, Lish McBride, Melissa Marr, Peter Pan, Steampunk, Terry Pratchett

Dracula, The Un-Dead by Dacre Stoker
Published by: Dutton
Publication Date: October 13th, 2009
Format: Hardcover, 432Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"At last--the sequel to Bram Stoker's classic novel Dracula, written by his direct descendant and a Dracula historian

Bram Stoker's Dracula is the prototypical horror novel, an inspiration for the world's seemingly limitless fascination with vampires. Though many have tried to replicate Stoker's horror classic- in books, television shows, and movies-only the 1931 Bela Lugosi film bore the Stoker family's support. Until now.

Dracula The Un-Dead is a bone-chilling sequel based on Bram Stoker's own handwritten notes for characters and plot threads excised from the original edition. Dracula The Un-Dead begins in 1912, twenty-five years after Dracula "crumbled into dust." Van Helsing's protégé, Dr. Jack Seward, is now a disgraced morphine addict obsessed with stamping out evil across Europe. Meanwhile, an unknowing Quincey Harker, the grown son of Jonathan and Mina, leaves law school for the London stage, only to stumble upon the troubled production of "Dracula," directed and produced by Bram Stoker himself.

The play plunges Quincey into the world of his parents' terrible secrets, but before he can confront them he experiences evil in a way he had never imagined. One by one, the band of heroes that defeated Dracula a quarter-century ago is being hunted down. Could it be that Dracula somehow survived their attack and is seeking revenge? Or is their another force at work whose relentless purpose is to destroy anything and anyone associated with Dracula?

Dracula The Un-Dead is deeply researched, rich in character, thrills and scares, and lovingly crafted as both an extension and celebration of one of the most classic popular novels in literature. "

This week I present all new releases based upon previous material. Odd that, them all coming out at the same time...anyways...lets get to it. Dracula, The Un-Dead, is not the first time a descendant has tried to cash in on their families name. Though I find it extremely funny that they point out this is the first piece of "Dracula" lore since the Lugosi film to get the families approval...hmmm I wonder how that is, duh! I mean, it looks interesting and all, but I have to wonder if it will actually be any good. I mean there is no genetic proof that makes you able to emulate a dead relative's writing style you've never met is there? I get that he might in fact be a good writer, that gene does run in families, look at the Durrell's, but still, I'm hesitant.

Lady Macbeth's Daughter by Lisa Klein
Published by: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: October 13th, 2009
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Albia has grown up with no knowledge of her mother of her father, the powerful Macbeth. Instead she knows the dark lure of the Wychelm Wood and the moors, where she’s been raised by three strange sisters. It’s only when the ambitious Macbeth seeks out the sisters to foretell his fate that Albia’s life becomes tangled with the man who leaves nothing but bloodshed in his wake. She even falls in love with Fleance, Macbeth’s rival for the throne. Yet when Albia learns that she has the second sight, she must decide whether to ignore the terrible future she foresees—or to change it. Will she be able to save the man she loves from her murderous father? And can she forgive her parents their wrongs, or must she destroy them to save Scotland from tyranny?

In her highly anticipated follow-up to Ophelia, Lisa Klein delivers a powerful reimagining of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, featuring a young woman so seamlessly drawn it seems impossible she was not part of the Bard’s original play."

I love fun re-imaginings and re-purposing of things if done right. Fairy Tales and Shakespeare are great fodder for this because they are widely open to interpretation and can have a lot of updating. Lisa Klein successfully did this with Macbeth and her book Ophelia, so I'm excited to see how she handles Macbeth or if you want to be all theatrical..."that Scottish play."

Peter and the Sword of Mercy by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Published by: Hyperion
Publication Date: October 13th, 2009
Format: Hardcover, 528 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The year is 1901--it's been twenty-three years since Peter and the Lost Boys returned from Rundoon. Since then, nobody on the island has grown a day older, and the Lost Boys continue their friendship with the Mollusk tribe, and their rivalry with Captain Hook. Meanwhile in London, Molly has married George Darling and is raising three children: Wendy, Michael, and John. One night a visitor appears at her door; it's James, one of Peter's original Lost Boys. He is now working for Scotland Yard and suspects that the heir to England's throne, Prince Albert Edward, is under the influence of shadow creatures. These shadow creatures are determined to find a secret cache of startstuff which fell to London many centuries ago. The starstuff is hidden in an underground vault which has only one key: the Sword of Mercy, a legendary weapon kept with the Crown Jewels. Molly is determined to help, but when she suddenly goes missing, it is up to her eleven-year-old daughter, Wendy, to keep the starstuff out of the Others' clutches. She has heard her mother's stories of a flying boy named Peter Pan, and he may be her only hope in saving the world from a shadowy doom..."

In their forth Peter Pan book together (not counting those little skiny chapter book things, which I don't) Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson are back with a new book in their successful and fun continuation of the Peter Pan mythos. Since 2004 they have been expanding on the boy who never grew up, with the blessing of Disney. Personally I just think it's fun that though it's a different spelling, it's still a "Barrie," therefore extra easy to find at the bookstore. Speaking of bookstores, I noticed mine actually had this out a few days early...naughty, naughty (but at the same time yeah!)

These two will be extensively touring (see having Disney as your backers is a good thing). I have a feeling that this is not to be missed. However if you can't make it to an event, who knows, sometimes Target gets signed editions of their books. Why you ask? I still have no clue on that one!

October 12th New York
Barnes and Noble Upper East Side 5:00PM

October 16th Coral Gables, Florida
Book & Books

October 25th New York
Symphony Space, Books of Wonder

October 27th Haverford, Pennsylvania
Chester County Books

October 28th Washington, DC
Politics and Prose

October 29th Naperville
Anderson's Bookshop

October 30th Seattle
University Bookstore with Eoin Colfer

October 30th Seattle
Barnes & Noble

November 1st San Jose
Hicklebees

November 4th Phoenix
Poisoned Pen

November 5th Minnesota

November 12th St. Louis
St. Louis County Library 7:00PM

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:23 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Bram Stoker, Dacre Stoker, Dave Barry, Dracula, Lady Macbeth's Daughts, Lisa Klein, Peter and the Sword of Mercy, Peter Pan, Ridley Pearson, Tuesday Tomorrow