Jumper Cable by Piers Anthony

About This Book

In the thirty-third thrilling escapade in Piers Anthony’s rousing Xanth fantasy series, an adventurous arachnid named Jumper must assume human form to save the enchanted realm from a cosmic peril.

A cataclysmic battle between two all-powerful Demons has severed a mystical connection that joins Xanth to our own world. The key to restoring it is hidden within a cryptic prophecy that Jumper discovers when he is suddenly transformed from spider to man. As he sets out to discern the prophecy's meaning, he gathers about him a half dozen alluring damsels who do their best to help him solve the riddle while vying for his attentions.

But a seductive siren and her demonic consort have determined to use their wiles to lure Jumper and his lovely companions away from their urgent mission. In a madcap adventure that is alternately harrowing and hilarious, they soon discover that danger, deception, and even true love may be found where they least expect it.

In Jumper Cable, master storyteller Piers Anthony spins a wild and witty web of wonder that is sure to captivate fans of fantastic adventure everywhere!

Let me preface this by saying I adore Piers Anthony. I love his fantasy books. They are the only ones I read in the fantasy genre. I adore Xanth. And I adore the puns. However, I do not adore Jumper Cable.

Piers Anthony began the Xanth series with the intention of it being a trilogy. Due to its popularity, Piers Anthony developed Xanth into a longer series. First a trilogy times three, then squared which would have brought the series to a whopping 27 books. Honestly, I think Piers Anthony should have stopped writing the Xanth series a while ago.

This book is a bit indulgent and is just all about S-E-X. Everyone just wants to sleep with someone or is trying to. It was getting a bit tiresome. And it just didn't seem to go with the whole Xanth vibe. It used to be a bit more wholesome and just hinted at naughty things. Now naughty things are said and done outright.

Definitely not one of my favorite Xanth books. Will I read his next one? Probably, but I won't rush excitedly to pick it up like I've done in the past.

Sam's Letters to Jennifer

I decided to go with Sam's Letters to Jennifer by James Patterson for my next read.




About This Book

Dear Reader,

Have you ever gotten a letter that changed your life completely? It happened to me once. I still can feel the urgency that overtook me as I opened the envelope and the hunger I felt for whatever that letter would say. It seemed as if my entire life hung in the balance as I read.

Sam's Letters to Jennifer is a novel about that kind of drama. In it, a woman is summoned back to the town where she grew up. And in the house where she spent her most magical years she finds a series of letters addressed to her. Each of those letters is a piece of a story that will upend completely the world she thought she knew - and throw her into a love more powerful than she ever imagined could be possible. Two extraordinary love stories are entwined here, full of hope and pain and emotions that never die down.

I hope you'll enjoy this novel as much as I've enjoyed writing it. It's not often that you get a letter that changes your life. But it should happen to everyone at least once.

Yours,
James Patterson

The book starts you off wondering "Who is Sam? Who is Jennifer? And who is Danny?" Are they involved? What happened to Danny? Are Sam and Jennifer couple? These were just a few, okay more than a few, questions that ran through my head as I started off the book.

The background is set. We learn that Sam, whoever he is, and Jennifer are extremely close. And that Jennifer is still, even after a year and a half, heavily mourning the loss of her husband, Danny.

Jennifer receives a phone call that tells her that Sam is in a coma and is needed by her side. Here we learn that Sam is Jennifer's beloved Grandmother who practically raised her and has been her support since her parents were gone.

Back in Grandmother Sam's home, Jennifer discovers a set of letters addressed to her. When she reads the first letter, a bomb is dropped. Grandmother Sam never loved her Grandfather Charles despite their 50+ years of marriage.

As Jennifer reads her letters from Sam, she learns that Sam finds love despite being in a loveless marriage. Jennifer also discovers that she can let herself love again when she finds romance with a childhood friend, Brendan, who is back in town visiting his uncle. She learns to live life to its fullest despite the losses she has suffered with her husband's terrible accident that cost him his life and her subsequent miscarriage. Brendan teaches her to live every day "from the crack of dawn until I closed my eyes."

When Sam wakes up from her coma, Jennifer is hit with more devastating news. Brendan who she is slowly falling in love with, has cancer. He has the kind of cancer that the only treatment is experimental, radical surgery with extremely high risks. Brendan had returned to his childhood haunt for one last enjoyable summer. But for her, Brendan is willing to take the risk. Sometimes you just have to take the chance for love...

I kept getting the feeling I read this book before. There were parts that I thought, hey I read this before, and then there were parts that were totally new to me. I am leaning towards my not having read this book before, but rather that the storyline is a bit predictable somewhat along the lines of Nicholas Sparks. It is a sweet, romantic read, nonetheless.

ETA: I've heard a new song lately called According To You by Orianthi. The sentiment of the song makes me think of the relationship Sam had with her husband.

Plum Pudding Murder by Joanne Fluke

Yay, my first book of the year. And I started with a good one.



Product Description

The Cookie Jar's busiest time of the year also happens to be the most wonderful time...for Christmas cookies, Hannah's own special plum pudding - and romance! Holiday orders are high, and Hannah's slated to provide dessert at the Reverend Knudsen's upcoming nuptials. She's busy as can be and loving it. She also gets a kick out of 'Lunatic Larry Jaeger's Crazy Elf Christmas Tree Lot', a kitschy carnival taking place smack-dab in the middle of the village green. Larry thinks he's crazy like a fox with his wild business schemes, but this time, the entrepreneur may have bitten off more than he can chew. Rumour has it that Larry's in the red - an idea that takes a sinister turn when Hannah discovers the man himself dead as a doornail in his own office...

It seems quite a few people would have liked to fill Larry's stocking with coal and then bash him with it - including his bitter ex-wife, his ex-partner's daughter, a woman he was wooing, and the Crazy Elf Tree lot's extremely exasperated investors...

Now, with so many suspects to investigate and the twelve days of Christmas ticking away, Hannah's running out of time to nab a murderous Scrooge who doesn't want her to see the New Year.

I really like the Hannah Swensen series by Joanne Fluke. Plum Pudding Murder did not disappoint. Hannah Swensen is the resident cookie maker of picturesque Lake Eden with a knack for finding bodies. What is this, book number 12 for the series and a dead body for each? Something tells me that I would not want to live in Lake Eden, although Hannah's cookies might be strong temptation....

Hannah and Lisa, owners of the The Cookie Jar, have their hands full baking for the holiday season. Along with their regular customers, they are supplying the Crazy Elf Christmas Tree Lot with cookies to sell. Larry Jaeger is the crazy owner of the Crazy Elf Christmas Tree Lot with questionable business practices, as Hannah discovers through the Small Business Practice class that she is taking with her mother. Apparently Larry's motto is "We sell below cost and make it up on volume." Not exactly kosher business happening here. And it seems that someone else agrees. Hannah and Norman find Larry and his big screen television victim to a gun toting murderer.

Hannah sleuths around while baking delicious goodies, trying to keep Moishe (her cat) from destroying her Christmas tree and heirloom ornaments, tracking the whereabouts of Norman's mother to find out why she has been acting so mysteriously lately, and still bouncing back and forth about her feelings for the two men in her life, Norman and Mike. Yes, Hannah is a busy lady.

The discovery of the murderer is a bit convoluted, but very Hannah. And the ending leaves us with a major cliffhanger that you could see coming a mile away.

Oh, and the recipes.... there were so many recipes in Plum Pudding Murder that I want to try. I will be back to update how yummy or not so yummy they are.

2010 Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge

Reading with Tequila has a great challenge that I want to try to. I know I'll be reading some great books! I am shooting for Level II, subject to change if I'm feeling ambitious.

1. Anybody Out There? by Marian Keyes
2. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
3. In Her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner
4. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
5. Teen Idol by Meg Cabot

Level I met! Yay! I have a feeling that I might not get to Level II.

6. Shadowland by Meg Cabot
7. Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
8. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen
9. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
10. Unwed and Undead by Mary Janice Davidson

Level II! Success! Yay!

Book bloggers are my favorite source of book recommendations. More than any other source, they consistently introduce me to books and authors that impact my life. Therefore, I have created the Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge.

The Top 25

1. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling
2. City of Bones - Cassandra Clare
3. Twilight - Stephenie Meyer
4. The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
5. Hush, Hush - Becca Fitzpatrick
6. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
7. Graceling - Kristin Cashore
8. Outlander - Diana Gabaldon
9. Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
10. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
11. The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
12. The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho
13. Eragon - Christopher Paolini
14. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
15. A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle
16. The Host - Stephenie Meyer
17. The Thorn Birds - Colleen McCullough
18. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins
19. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling
20. Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
21. The Clan of the Cave Bear - Jean M. Auel
22. The Mists of Avalon - Marion Zimmer Bradley
23. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
24. 11 Minutes - Paulo Coelho
25. Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer

Click here to see the entire 2009 Book Blogger Recommendation List.

The Levels:
Level I - Read 5 books from the 2009 Book Blogger Recommendation List
Level II - Read 10 books
Level III - Read 15 books
Level IV - Read 20 books
Level V - Read 20+ books

The Rules:

• Challenge will run January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010. Participants can join anytime throughout the challenge.
  
• Create an intro post, linking back to this post.
  
• Sign up with the MckLinky below. Please link to your challenge intro post, not your blog home page.
  
• Chose your own books from the list. You can decide to read books only on the Top 25 list or from the entire recommendation list. You do not have to make a list of books before the challenge begins.
  
• All forms of books acceptable (audiobooks, eBooks, etc.)
• Rereads do not count towards the completion of the challenge. The challenge is about discovering books that are new to you.
• You don't need a blog to participate.
• Reviews, while always appreciated, are not mandatory.
  

2010 TBR Challenge

I've decided to tackle the 2010 TBR Challenge from MizB's Reading Challenges.



Here are the rules:

** Pick 12 books – one for each month of the year - that you’ve been wanting to read (that have been on your “To Be Read” list) for 6 months or longer, but haven’t gotten around to.

** OPTIONAL: Create a list of 12 “Alternates” (books you could substitute for your challenge books, given that a particular one doesn’t grab you at the time)

** Then, starting January 1, read one of these books from your list each month, ending December 31. )

By the end of the year you should’ve knocked 12 books off of your TBR list! (of course, if you’re anything like me, you’ll have added *at LEAST* 12 more to the ever-growing pile by then! LOL).

The good news is, though, that you’ll be making some progress! ;o)

Additional rules/guidelines for this challenge:

* the challenge is to read 12 TBR books in 12 months — you can read those all in one month if you want, or one a month, or however you wanna do it.
* you should have a list posted somewhere for others to see
* you CANNOT change your list after January 1st, of the current year!!!
* you can create an Alternates list of MAXIMUM 12 books, if you want, in order to have options to choose from (you can read these in place of books on your original list).
* audiobooks and e-books ARE allowed
* re-reads are NOT allowed, as they aren’t TRUE “TBRs”
* you CAN overlap with other challenges
* OPTIONAL: you can join the Yahoo! Group created for participants of the TBR Challenge, if you want to have a place to keep your list, or just to share with others about how you’re doing!

**************************************

Okay, I didn't strictly adhere to the rules because I only found out about this challenge 2 days ago and only decided to join last night! But I have created my list and promise not to change it after I post it today.

TBR List

1 - The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

2 - The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

3 - Drums of Autumn by Diana Gabaldon

4 - The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

5 - The Girl Who Played With Fire by Steig Larrson - will read

6 - The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs

7 - Her Fearful Symmetry by Audry Niffenegger

8 - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby

9 - Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult

10 - Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi

11 - The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

12 - The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

Alternate List

1 - The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon

2 - The Kite Runner by Khaled Hossein

3 - The 8th Confession by James Patterson

4 - Katherine by Anya Seton

5 - Life of Pi by Yann Martel

6 - She's Come Undone by Wally Lamb

7 - The Stand by Stephen King

8 - A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

9 - Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian

10 - The Broken Window by Jeffrey Deaver

11 - Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich

12 - Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

ETA - Titles in Boldface have been read.

2010 Reading Challenge

I have my new reading challenge for 2010. My friend, and fellow booklover, came up with this one. I will concede and even applaud her because now I do not have to think of one myself!

Our challenge is a 52 book challenge. It will be a hodge podge of challenges:
A) 24 books -- the genre challenge (2 books from each of the categories from last year)
B) 7 books -- from the banned books lists (from here and here)
C) 7 books -from award-winning books (like the Booker Prize or the Pulitzer)
D) 7 books that start with "J" or have the name Jennifer in them (our name)
E) 7 books with numbers in their title

I was surfing the web last night and came across a few other challenges that caught my eye as well:
2010 Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge from Reading with Tequila
2010 Pub Challenge from 1morechapter.com
Countdown Challenge 2010 also from 1morechapter.com
2010 Reading Resolutions Challenge from Jenny Loves To Read
2010 DIK Book Reading Challenge from DIK (Desert Island Keepers)
2010 TBR Challenge from MizB's Reading Challenges

I know it's already the 4th of January but I am still thinking about which challenges to commit to. I like the Book Blogger Recommendation Challenge and the TBR Challenge and will most likely do those. I really like the Countdown Challenge but I believe that will prove to be too overwhelming for me. It would mean another 55 books on top of what other challenges I may decide to do. I think I will keep it in mind for next year....

2009 Reading Challenges

Okay, I didn't succeed in blogging about all my books. I really, really tried. I really did. But I realized that I'd rather read than write about what I read.

So on with my reading challenges. I started out the year with the intention to do a 50 book challenge. A friend, a fellow booklover who did a reading challenge with me in 2008 as well, and I decided to do the ABC Author challenge and the Genre challenge - reading 2 books from 12 different genres. I decided to up the ante by only recognizing new authors (authors I have never read before) for my ABC Author challenge.

As the year started, on one of the sites I frequent, I found out about the New York Bestseller's challenge and decided to go for that as well. I aimed for a 10 book goal.

Then as the year progressed, I had difficulty sticking to my challenges. I kept reading books that grabbed my interest - read books from authors I like; therefore not new to me. I soon realized that I read enough extra books to actually create a list for an ABC Title challenge. In that manner, I ended up with maintaining 4 challenges. I almost made it. I was shy one book for my ABC Title challenge. I was reading up to the last day of the year, but I fell asleep before I could finish the book and the year! I guess that's what happens when one reads well into the night for days in order to finish up a reading challenge! I'm not as young as I used to be and cannot keep up with all these late nights!

I am proud of what I was able to achieve. The book count, I believe, is at 101 books. I am not counting my childrens' books and books on CD.

This was a great year of reading for me.
- My New Author challenge forced me to read books from authors I am not familiar with. I confess that I am guilty to sticking with particular authors. Once I like an author I have tendency to read everything I can grab from them. I have read from at least 26 new authors last year. I know that is a first for me.
- I read a few classic which is something I have been wanting to do for some time but have been hesitant to commit to.
- I have begun reading an amazing series, Outlander by Diana Gabaldon.
- I have been reading from genres that are out of my comfort zone - nonfiction, memoirs, classics and comedy.
- I have been introduced to new authors that I will definitely read from again - Katherine Howe, Cassandra Clare and Michelle Moran.
- I read Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series in record time.
- I am part of two in real life book clubs that I actually keep up with.

Here's to hoping 2010 is just as good!

2009 New Author Challenge - DONE!!

• Albert, Susan Wittig - Thyme of Death
• Baer, Judy - The Baby Chronicles
• Clark, Mary Jane - Lights Out Tonight
• DuMaurier, Daphne - Rebecca
• Everson, Eva Marie & Shepherd, Linda Evans - The Secret's in the Sauce
• Fergus, Jim - One Thousand White Women
• Gabaldon, Diana - Dragonfly in Amber
• Harris, Charlaine - Dead Until Dark
• Irving, John - The World According to Garp
• Johansen, Iris & Roy - Silent Thunder
• Kalogridis, Jeanne - I, Mona Lisa
• Lutz, Lisa - The Spellman Files
• Meyer, Stephenie -Twilight
• Neill, Fiona - Slummy Mummy
• Osborne, Denise - Positioned To Die
• Pelecanos, George - The Turnaround
• Quinn, Sherrill - Seducing the Moon
• Roughan, Howard & Patterson, James - Sail
• Scotch, Allison Winn - Time of My Life
• Tyler, Anne - The Accidental Tourist
• Updike, John - The Witches of Eastwick
• Vanderbilt, Gloria - Obsession
• Wilshire, Taylor - The Book of Mom
• Xu, Xiaobin - Feathered Serpent
• Yates, Richard - Revolutionary Road
• Zutell, Irene - Pieces of Happily Ever After

2009 50 Book Challenge - Genre DONE!

• Biography/Memoir - STori Telling by Tori Spelling
• Biography/Memoir - What Time Is It? You Mean Now? by Yogi Berra
• Chick Lit - Queen of Babble Getting Hitched by Meg Cabot
• Chick Lit - Shopaholic and a Sister by Sophie Kinsella
• Classic - Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
• Classic - Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
• General Fiction - A Year of Pleasures by Elizabeth Berg
• General Fiction - Firestorm by Iris Johansen
• Historical Fiction - The Nature of Monsters by Clare Clark
• Historical Fiction - The Other Queen by Phillipa Gregory
• Horror - Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
• Horror - Rose Madder by Stephen King
• Humor/Comedy - Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
• Humor/Comedy - The Yogi Book by Yogi Berra
• Mystery/Thriller - Case Histories by Kate Atkinson
• Mystery/Thriller - Death Walked In by Carolyn Hart
• Nonfiction - Harry, A History by Melissa Anelli
• Nonfiction - Marley & Me by John Grogan
• Romance - Foul Play by Janet Evanovich
• Romance - The Treasure by Iris Johansen
• Sci-Fi/Fantasy - City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
• Sci-Fi/Fantasy - The Dastard by Piers Anthony
• Young Adult - New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
• Young Adult - The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares

NY Bestseller's Challenge DONE!

• 2/6 Carrot Cake Murder by Joanne Fluke
• 2/6 The Host by Stephenie Meyer
• 3/1 The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb
• 3/25 Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult
• 3/25 Hold Tight by Harlen Coben
• 3/25 Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
• 4/20 Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah
• 4/3 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
• 6/15 Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs
• 7/17 The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe

2009 Title Challenge :(

• Alchemist, The by Paul Coelho
• Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
• Catered Christmas, A by Isis Crawford
• Catered Murder, A by Isis Crawford
• Catered Wedding, A by Isis Crawford
• Cell by Stephen King
• City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
• City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
• Diva Runs Out of Thyme, The by Krista Davis
• Dragonwell Dead by Laura Childs
• Espresso Shot by Cleo Coyle
• Everyone worth knowing by Lauren Weisberger
• Fire Kimono, The by Laura Joh Rowland
• French Pressed by Cleo Coyle
• Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The by Stieg Larsson
• Heretic Queen, The by Michelle Moran
• Immaculate Reception by Jerrilyn Farmer
• Jed Hunter's Reluctant Bride by Susanne James
• Killing Me Softly by Nicci French
• Killer Smile by Lisa Scottoline
  
• Laced by Carol Higgins Clark
• Murder with Reservations - by Elaine Viets
• Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult
• Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
• Perils of Paella, The by Nancy Fairbanks
• Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
  
• Queen of Babble In the Big City by Meg Cabot
• Red Chrysanthemum by Laura Joh Rowland
• Scandal of the Season by Sophie Gee
• Shopaholic and a Baby by Sophie Kinsella
• Silver Needle Murder, The by Laura Child
• Simmer Down by Jessica Conant-Park & Susan Conant
• Steamed by Jessica Conant-Park & Susan Conant
• The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
• Truffled Feathers by Nancy Fairbanks
• Up in a Heaval by Piers Anthony
• Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
• Way of the Traitor, The by Laura Joh Rowland
• Wise Woman, The by Philippa Gregory
• X, The Dangerous Days of Daniel by James Patterson
• You Belong to Me by Johanna Lindsey
• Zenith by Julie Bertagna - finally finished 1/5 :(
  

2009 Children's Books

• The Case of the House of Horrors by Megan Stine
• The Mystery of Monster Mountain by Robert Arthur
• The Mystery of the Cranky Collector by M.V. Carey
• The Mystery of the Kidnapped Whale by Robert Arthur
• The Mystery of the Silver Spider by Robert Arthur
• The Mystery of the Two Toed Pigeon by Marc Arthur
• The Mystery of the Vanishing Treasure by Robert Arthur
• The Secret of Skeleton Island by Robert Arthur

Books on CD

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• The Little Giant of Aberdeen County