The To Be Read Tag

Another Swap-Bot challenge :D

How do you keep track of your TBR pile?
Good Reads is fantastic, whenever I get new books (Yule or birthday usually) I scan them into my To Read list and then I can shelve them without worrying about forgetting them, or piling them by the bed and forgetting them. I also tend to scan books I want to borrow from the library in future.

Is your TBR mostly print or ebook?Mostly print or not-yet-obtained. I have a few on my amazon wish list but I tend not to use my kindle app much.

How do you determine which book from your TBR to read next?I like taking part opinion "pick my next read" swaps as I struggle to choose otherwise, I tend to end up reading things I've already read before. I fear new reads, I don't want to like any characters only to have them die on me :p

A book that's been in your TBR the longest.Here are the ten books that have been in my goodreads queue the longest. It's a weird mix of Classics and silliness.

A book you recently added to your TBR.
The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury, and a whole lot of Loki.

A book in your TBR strictly because of its beautiful cover.

Eragon, I wouldn't exactly say it's a beautiful cover, but it IS an interesting cover. However after trying to watch the movie, I don't imagine I'll ever actually read it. I was tempted to say "Bound Lilies" by Nico Murray, but that's a bit cheeky since I designed the cover :D

A book in your TBR that you never plan on reading.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, or Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger, or Lord of the Flies by William Golding. They're on the list because I know I should read them, should probably have read them in school, but I really really can't be bothered. There are neither spaceships nor dragons, and I don't have time for books that lack should basic elements.

An unpublished book in your TBR that you're excited for.
I adore Terry Pratchett's books and always get the Discworld ones as soon as they come out. The next one that's due is a Tiffany Aching YA book, which I don't currently read (though I will get them for my toddler once he's old enough) so I'm not that excited about it, but there'll hopefully be another Discworld one soon.

A book in your TBR that everyone recommends to you.
Probably The Pillars of The Earth by Ken Follett, it's only on my list cos it was given to me.

Number of books in your TBR.
96

Recipes To Blog About

This is part of a challenge from swap-bot to cook a recipe recommended by another swapper and then blog about it.

Carbonara

Lima recommended this carbonara recipe. Carbonara is something that always sounds nice but Italian restaurants in England tend to include mushrooms so I never order it.

Ingredients:
• Four egg yolks + 1 egg
• 100 g/a half cup of grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• 150g/5.5 oz of diced guanciale or a good quality smoky bacon
• 320g/12 oz of spaghetti
• Two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper

First cook your pasta as per the instructions. Keep the salt low because both the meat and the cheese are already quite salty. In a separate pan sauté the bacon in a thin layer of olive oil. Once the bacon is golden and crispy, take it off of the heat and leave it to cool for a few minutes.

In a bowl, whisk together the four egg yolks plus the whole egg until completely mixed. Add the grated cheese, mix it in well, and after add the black pepper. If the sauce seems to be too thick, you can thin it by adding the pasta water a little at a time. Here Now add the bacon which has, by this time, cooled a little. Mix everything together, and with that, the sauce is ready.

When you drain, leave the pasta a little moist -- don't get rid of all of the water. This will help to thin out the sauce so it coats all the pasta. Now, mix it together, and once the pasta's coated, serve it right away.

Thoughts
I can't watch YouTube videos so I made this entirely from the instructions and I got really worried when they didn't mention actually cooking the egg. As a child of the 80s I have a deeply ingrained fear of raw egg. I also couldn't get Pecorino Romano cheese so I ended up using mozzarella as that's what we had. I was actually quite relieved when the cheese bunched up and the egg ran out when I spooned the pasta out of the pan. I wouldn't make this again, as I try to make food that's suitable for our whole family and this really isn't suitable for a one year old.


Mint and Basil Zucchini (Courgette) Salad

Over the last few years we've started growing our own fruit and vegetables. So far the most successful vegetable has been our courgette (or zucchini) plants, we can usually get 5 strong plants in containers to produce more courgettes than we can find a way to eat. One of the recipes suggested by my swap partner Lima was Mint and Basil Zucchini Salad, I'd never thought to try them with mint before!

Ingredients:
Courgette 800 g
1 tablespoon coarse salt
Extra virgin olive oil to taste
Salt & Pepper to taste
4 basil leaves
4 mint leaves
1 clove of garlic

Wash the courgette under running water. Pat dry with a cloth and the cut off the two ends. Divide the courgette in half.

Cut it in half again in the direction of the length and then made wide slices of about 1.5 cm. Now take a large pot, fill it with water and bring to a boil. Pour the sliced ​courgette in boiling water.

Add a teaspoon of salt and simmer for 10 minutes. After ten minutes, drain the courgette with a colander and let them cool. Then transfer them to a baking dish and drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil.

Add salt and pepper to taste and add a diced clove of garlic.

Then add the chopped mint and basil leaves. Mix everything together with a fork or a spoon and your courgette salad with mint and basil is ready to be served and eaten either warm or cold. If not serving immediately, keep it in the fridge until ready to eat it!

Thoughts
I really didn't expect the combination of basil and mint to work but it really did! I would definitely make this again but I'd probably blend everything but the courgette to get a more even coverage. Will definitely make this again.

Ten Top Tens!

These prompts came from the Carpe Librum 1 Year & 100 Members Celebration

10 of My Favourite Authors

• Terry Pratchett
• Neil Gaiman
• Anne McCaffrey
• Mark Hodder
• Agatha Christie
• Philip Reeve
• John Le Carre
• Philip Reeve
• Alan Moore
• HP Lovecraft

10 of My Favourite Books

• Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
• The Fifth Elephant - Terry Pratchett
• American Gods - Neil Gaiman
• Years of Rice and Salt - Kim Stanley Robinson
• Small Gods - Terry Pratchett
• Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
• Phantom - Susan Kay
• The White Dragon - Anne McCaffrey
• Otherland - Tad Williams
• Evil Under The Sun - Agatha Christie

10 First Line(s) From 10 Different Books

• "It was a dark, blustery afternoon in spring, and the city of London was chasing a small mining town across the dried-out bed of the old North Sea." - Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve
• "The Wind Howled. The storm crackled on the mountains. Lightening prodded the crags like an old man trying to get an elusive blackberry pip out of his teeth." - Maskerade by Terry Pratchett
• "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again." - Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
• "Mr Sherlock Holmes, who was usually very late in the mornings, save upon those not infrequent occasions when he stayed up all night, was seated at the breakfast table." - The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
• "The sun rose slowly, as if it wasn't sure it was worth the effort." - The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
• "Dirk Moeller didn't know if he could fart his way into a major diplomatic incident. But he was ready to find out." - The Android's Dream by John Scalzi
• "It was a nice day. All the days had been nice. There had been rather more than seven of them so far, and rain hadn't been invented yet. But clouds massing east of Eden suggested that the first thunderstorm was on its way, and it was going to be a big one." - Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
• "As Gregor Samsa awoke from a night of uneasy dreaming, he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect." - The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
• "The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel" - Neuromancer by William Gibson
• "The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents." - The Call of Cthulhu by H. P. Lovecraft

10 Mini Reviews of 10 Different Books

• Yellow Blue Tibia - Adam Roberts. A masterly cold war romance that will leave you as certain of the nature of reality as Philip K Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.
• Small Gods - Terry Pratchett. A clever, cynical and poignant look at why gods stop doing miracles once they have an established priesthood. As relevant today as the day it was written.
• Color Out of Space - HP Lovecraft. Lovecraft's stories often lose their power when he describes the monster in detail or goes for the "it was too terrible to describe" line. But with Color Out of Space Lovecraft finally mastered the balancing act that is a truly scary tale.
• Dune - Frank Herbert. One of the best ever examples of universe building and hugely influential on so much modern sci-fi. A must read for any thinking person, absolutely NOT a book that you can understand from a mere film (sorry David Lynch!).
• Red Shirts - John Scalzi. Have you ever watched a sci-fi and wondered why no one seems to notice that it's always the same character who gets into trouble or that things always go south in the first 7 minutes of a diplomatic mission? Turns out some of them HAVE noticed, and they're pissed. Hilariously geeky look at inter-universal influences.
• The Penultimate Truth - Philip K Dick. The first time I've ever wanted to travel back in time to punch an author. An excellent book, but not for people who like completion!
• The War of The Flowers - Tad Williams. A modern take on the changeling concept and the true nature of Faerie. Really clever, compelling characters, great world building.
• Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy - John Le Carre. George Smiley is no James Bond. He's the exact opposite of James Bond in fact and by the end of this spy thriller you'll love him for it!
• Anno Dracula - Kim Newman. Infinitely more interesting than the original by Bram Stoker, this is the tall of what would have happened if Van Helsing had been less efficient. Nice gentle introduction to the world of alternate histories.
• Stardust - Neil Gaiman, a return to the good old days when fairy tales were full of sex, violence, horror and magic. Don't accidentally read the adult version to your kids though, it isn't the movie. If you can find the original Charles Voss illustrated edition you'll cherish it forever.

10 Quotes About Reading

• "A good book shop is just a genteel black hole that knows how to read"- Terry Pratchett
• "There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all." - Oscar Wilde
• "For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you." - Anne Lamott
• “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.” - Dr Suess
• "I was born with a reading list I'll never finish." - Maud Casey
• "Eating and reading are two pleasures that combine admirably." - C.S. Lewis
• “In a good bookroom you feel in some mysterious way that you are absorbing the wisdom contained in all the books through your skin, without even opening them.” - Mark Twain
• “A good library will never be too neat, or too dusty, because somebody will always be in it, taking books off the shelves and staying up late reading them.” - Lemony Snicket
• “Books are a uniquely portable magic.” - Stephen King
• “If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.” -Oscar Wilde

10 Book Worlds You'd Want To Live In

• The Net literary virtual reality from Tad William's Otherland Quadrilogy
• Terry Pratchett's Discworld Universe
• London Below from Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere
• The Victorian Steampunk world in Philip Reeve's Larklight Trilogy
• Frank Herbert's Dune Universe
• Anne McCaffrey's dragon filled planet of Pern
• I'd have loved to go to Hogwarts, but sometime in the ten years of peace BEFORE Harry got there!
• Faerie in Tad Williams' War of the Flowers
• The Europeless alternate history of The Years of Rice and Salt
• Ann Rices's vampire rich New Orleans

10 Favourite Characters From 10 Different Books

• Wednesday from American Gods
• Lord Vetinari from The Discworld Series
• Severus Snape from Harry Potter
• Erik aka The Phantom Of The Opera
• Claudia from Interview With the Vampire
• Edward Fairfax Rochester, Jane Eyre's love interest
• The unnamed narrator of Daphne Du Maurier's Rebecca
• Hester Shaw the prickly heroine of Mortal Engines
• !Xabbu one of the heroes of Otherland
• Cadfael from Ellis Peter's medieval mysteries

10 Books I Want to Read, But Haven't Yet

• Beowulf
• Odd and the Frost Giants - Neil Gaiman
• A Red Sun Also Rises - Mark Hodder
• Happy Hour in Hell - Tad Williams
• Swiftly -Adam Roberts
• The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern
• The Curious Incident of The Dog in The Night-Time - Mark Haddon
• The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In a Ship of Her Own Making - Catherynne M Valente
• Pride And Prejudice and Zombies - Seth Grahame-Smith
• The Court of The Air - Stephen Hunt

10 Books I Read Most Recently

• Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
• Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell - Suzanna Clarke
• The Gospel of Loki - Joanne A Harris
• Red Shirts - John Scalzi
• Where's My Shoggoth - Ian Thomas
• The Long Earth - Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter
• Fringe: The Zodiac Paradox - Christa Faust
• The Ocean at The End of The Lane - Neil Gaiman
• Professor Moriarty: the Hound of the D'Urbervilles - Kim Newman
• Expedition to The Mountains of The Moon - Mark Hodder

10 Favourite Dewey Codes

• 847
• 730
• 401
• 753
• 646
• 521
• 774
• 344
• 564
• 935

55 Book Related Questions

1 Favourite childhood book?
Anne McCaffrey's The White Dragon. I loved Ruth and always wanted a time travelling dragon!

2 What are you reading right now?
The Gospel of Loki by Joanne M Harris

3 Do you go to a library? If so, what do you currently have checked out there? If not, is there a reason?
Yes our local library is excellent (especially since my friend works there so the science-fi/fantasy section is always well stocked!) I currently have three books checked out- The Rise of The Nerds by Cory Doctorow, Twenty Trillion Leagues Under The Sea by Adam Roberts and Happy Hour In Hell by Tad Williams.

4 Do you collect any authors/series or certain types of books?
I have pretty much every book by Mark Hodder, Neil Gaiman (including graphic novels and German translations) and Terry Pratchett. I'm currently working on replacing my Anne McCaffrey collection with early editions, I love the art work.

5 Do you have a yearly goal on amount of books you want to finish?
No, I have too much going on in my life to be able to predict how much reading time I can get in.

6 Do you have an e-reader?
No, but I have an e-reader app on my phone. I rarely use it though.

7 Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
I usually have at least one non-fiction, one new fiction and one re-reading fiction on the go at once.

8 Do you have a blog where you post about books? Do you follow any blogs about reading/books? Which ones?
My book and personal musings blog is here- http://phantoms-siren.blogspot.co.uk . I follow bookandbiscuit.com and I've just started reading Perpetual Pageturner too.

9 Least favourite book you read this year (so far in 2014)?
Overcoming Depression by Paul Gilbert, I'm reading it for a study and it's really hard going and upsetting.

10 Favourite book you’ve read this year (2014)?
Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett. I'm liking the progress that Ankh Morpork is making, the Patrician is my favourite character, I really want to see his plans succeed!

11 How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
At least once a year I try to read something different.

12 What is your reading comfort zone?
Quality sci-fi and fantasy, academic books and bizarre humour. I really can't be bothered with fiction writers who don't think outside boring reality.

13 Do you read for enjoyment or to gain knowledge?
Both. I love to discover new things.

14 Favourite place to read?
The bath lol!

15 What are your thoughts on book lending?
I love to borrow books from series that I'm not sure about buying, or I borrow books I won't re-read from libraries that pay royalties to the author.

16 What are your thoughts on pirated books?
Authors earn so little money from sales, it's not fair to steal from them.

17 What are your thoughts on "Banned" books?
Banning book seems to mostly be about pretending kids don't know words/concepts that repressed adults find uncomfortable. It just makes the books more famous and tempting (in some cases undeservedly).

18 What are barriers you have to reading more? (work, family, ect)
I have an 11month old baby and I work from home so there's very little space for leisure time.

19 How many books have you read in the last six months?
Five, I joined Carpe Librum in the hope of motivating myself to read more

20 What makes you love a book?
Characters I can really care about and anything that inspires me to do further research (for example all the classic rock 'n' roll references in Terry Pratchett's Soul Music)

21 What will inspire you to recommend a book?
Either it has to be amazing on a universal level or it should appeal to the specific tastes of the person I'm recommending too. In terms of universally amazing I mean something like American Gods or Years of Rice and Salt that touches on history, science, fantasy, spirituality, personal relationships and global issues.

22 5 of your top read genres
Sci-fi
Alternate history
Science-fantasy
Comedy-fantasy
Historical mystery

23 5 authors you read a lot
Neil Gaiman
Terry Pratchett
Mark Hodder
Alan Moore
Tad Williams

24 Do you read non-fiction? Biographies?
Yes, non-fiction tends to be either historical, art focused or scientific. Biography has to be someone I'm really interested in and I'm usually disappointed.

25 How many times do you read a week?
I try for at least 10 minutes every day

26 Do you feel you read better with or without noise?
Better with something I know well like familiar music or classic TV. Quiet=suspicious

27 What influences your book choices?
I have to admit to being initially attracted to a good cover design but it needs a good blurb to seal the deal. Personal recommendations from people with good taste help too.

28 Favourite reading snack?
Nutella on toast but it can get a bit messy so not with library books!

29 Do you literally judge a book by its cover, title, or author?
I will judge something that looks poorly designed or excessively like a "Mills and Boon" romance novel. I do give some authors more benefit of the doubt that others, some books I've regretted reading the most were by my favourite writers.

30 What is the longest book you have ever read? The shortest?
Les Miserables is probably the longest non-compilation book I've read, though I did read the entirety of Lord of the Rings (including appendices) in a single monstrous volume.

31 How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
I feel hesitant about giving some authors negative reviews, especially if it's a first attempt or self published. I once received a free copy of a book in order to review it for a magazine and it really wasn't worth the paper it was printed on, but I chickened out of saying so in the review. Unfortunately our local library bought the whole series on the back of my lukewarm review and I felt so guilty I stopped doing magazine reviews.

32 Do you make up stories, or ever think about an alternate ending for a book because you want to?
Yes, I adore fanfiction but lack the writing skills to commit my daydreams to paper. But Severus Snape is alive and well in my head and that's good enough for me :)

33 Most intimidating book you’ve ever read?
Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo, the prose is so dense and he goes off on so many tangents, it was very hard to keep up with what was going on!

34 Most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C Clarke, I know I should read it but I fear it'll be as long and dull as the movie.

35 What book do you try to steer people away from?
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. I have a serious irrational hatred of that book!

36 What book do you recommend most to others?
Depending on how serious the person is I recommend either Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett or Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson

37 Do you ever re-read books?
Yes, I re-read Dune by Frank Herbert every year, Lord of the Rings, Jane Eyre and Good Omens every two. I've read all of Pratchett books multiple times too, I have Fifth Elephant in English and German.

38 Favourite fictional character?
Lord Vetinari from Discworld universe. He's phenomenally intelligent, devious, sarcastic and has hidden depths of assassin skills. Stephen Briggs, who voices the audiobooks, has absolutely perfected the portrayal of the character- you can hear the eyebrow raising!

39 Favourite fictional villain?
I mostly like anti-heroes but for villains I'd have to pick Hannibal Lecter, he's so smooth and creepy. I adore his mind palace and his one liners.

40 Books I’m most likely to bring on vacation?
I used to either pack light and run out of things to read or pack too many books and get nothing done. I try to budget for new books when I plan a holiday now, that way I get to visit fun new book stores. It drives my husband mad!

41 The longest I’ve gone without reading.
The last 18 months have been really hard for me and I haven't really done much reading in the last 10 months or so. I've missed it but my brain hasn't felt like concentrating.

42 Name a book that you could/would not finish.
Blameless by Gail Carriger. I had a lot of trouble with the first two books in this series, the concept of a crime fighting steampunk lady really appealed but it quickly turned to the kind of chick lit tropes I really can't stand.

43 What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
Only my son waking up from a nap and declaring reading time to be over.

44 Favourite film adaptation of a novel?
Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula, best portrayal of Dracula until Richard Roxburgh.

45 Most disappointing film adaptation?
The Gerard Butler version of the The Phantom of the Opera. I've seen every movie adaptation of that book from the classic silent movie, through the 1970s rock opera and the Robert Englund gore fest and I can't find good points about all of them. But a Phantom who ISN'T disfigured and CAN'T sing?!? Ridiculous.

46 The most money I’ve ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
£150 ($250, €190) on text books for university (plus a copy of Nick Cave's When The Ass Saw The Angel, cos all work and no play gets you better than a 2:1)

47 How often do you skim a book before reading it?
Rarely, I accidentally spoilered myself skimming through a mystery but didn't realise until I'd read half the book.

48 What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
Sexual assault, anything more than briefly pregnancy related, cats dying will make me bin a book, whilst some violence/supernatural stuff can make me put a book in fridge for a day or two.

49 Do you like to keep your books organised?
I tend to organise by size so I can get the maximum number of books on the shelves, but where possible I buy all the same issue of series so all the books are the same size and have matching covers. My signed first editions and graphic novels are kept separate.

50 Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you’ve read them?
Depends on whether I expect to re-read or refer to the boom later. I keep about 80% of the books I buy! I'm locking down carbon and insulating the house honest.

51 Are there any books you’ve been avoiding?
The Hunger Games trilogy. I know I'll have to read it eventually but I don't particularly want to.

52 Name a book that made you angry.
The Penultimate Truth by Philip K Dick. I threw it across the room when I read the ending, but you'll have to read it yourself (or read my other blog post on the subject).

53 A book you didn’t expect to like but did?
I actively avoided the Harry Potter books for five years until I found out that Alan Rickman (owner if the sexiest voice known to human ears) would be in the movies and realised I'd have to read the books after all. I borrowed Philosophers Stone from a friend, read it in one sitting, then immediately went out and bought Chamber of Secrets. Now it's one of my favourite series and one of the few occasions that I've gone to a store at midnight to buy a new release.

54 A book that you expected to like but didn’t?
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, I feel terrible for saying this but it wasn't a real book, it was a short story that got out of hand and really should have been left to grow up into a proper book before it was published. Or it should have had the violence toned down and been released as a kids book.

55 Favourite guilt-free, pleasure reading?
I love classic crime/mystery series like Mrs Bradley, Poirot or Cadfael that I can dip into when the mood takes me. I usually remember who did it but I still enjoy the process.

Last ~ Current ~ Next

Last Read
The Dirty Streets of Heaven (Bobby Dollar #1) by Tad Williams. I'm a big fan of Tad Williams' modern fantasies, so I was excited to see that he'd written a classic gumshoe detective story with the twist of added angels. Reminiscent of his War of the Flowers, which I also found to be very good.

Current Read
I'm currently reading a few different books-
Overcoming Depression by Paul Gilbert. I'm reading this for a study into the benefits of self help books, some of seems sensible and some seems like hokum!
Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Suzanna Clarke. I'm about 20% of the way through this, so far I'm  enjoying it, it's nice to reminisce about my university city.
The Gospel of Loki by Joanne M Harris. I've been dipping in and out of this one since February, the trickster really drags you along for the ride but I've not been in the mood for mischief recently.

Next Read
I can't decide between-
20 Trillion Leagues Under the Sea by Adam Roberts. I've enjoyed some of his other writing, particularly Yellow Blue Tibia, but others like New Model Army and By Light Alone have had disappointing conclusions.
BooksRapture of the Nerds by Cory Doctorow and Charles Stross. This feels like the sort of book I "should" have read by now, like William Gibson's Neuromancer or Difference Engine, but I fear it'll be beyond my frail mind and disappoint me.

A to Z Book Survey

For Swap-bot, based on the survey on Perpetual Pageturner.

Author you’ve read the most books from: 

Terry Pratchett! I've read all the books in the Discworld series, including the Young Adult ones, and most of the stand alone books, though I'm still waiting for book 2 of The Long Earth series to arrive in our library.

Best Sequel Ever: 

Hannibal. I'll not spoil it for you but it has the outcome for Dr Lecter that I always wanted.

Currently Reading:

The Gospel of Loki by Joanne M Harris

Drink of Choice While Reading: 

Hot chocolate with cinnamon!

E-reader or Physical Book? 

Physical book. I'm the place good books go to die, I've destroyed two copies of American Gods over the last few years via spills, tears, broken spines etc. An E-reader would be a very expensive paperweight after 5 minutes in my hands!

Fictional Character You Probably Would Have Actually Dated In High School: 

Newton Pulcifer from Good Omens, I always got the losers!

Glad You Gave This Book A Chance: 

The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson, it changed my philosophy on death

Hidden Gem Book:

Burton and Swinburne in the Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack by Mark Hodder. I highly recommend this to any fans of sci-fi, alternate history, historical adventure or just bat-poop crazy writing.

Important Moment in your Reading Life: 

Reading Jane Eyre in high school and realising that classics weren't all dull gossiping women

Just Finished: 

Red Shirts by John Scalzi

Kinds of Books You Won’t Read: 

Anything that's sold in the “Chick-Lit” section, I have enough trouble with real life!

Longest Book You’ve Read: 

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

Major book hangover because of: 

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux, it's lasted 19 years so far!

Number of Bookcases You Own: 

Eight floor-to-ceiling and two waist height.

One Book You Have Read Multiple Times: 

I read Dune by Frank Herbert once a year or so

Preferred Place To Read: 

The bath! LOL

Quote that you like, from a book you’ve read:

 “Sometimes you wake up. Sometimes the fall kills you. And sometimes, when you fall, you fly.” - Sandman: Fables and Reflections by Neil Gaiman

Reading Regret: 

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro. We were forced to read it for A-Level English Lit and frankly it was the worst book I've ever read.

Series You Started And Need To Finish(all books are out in series): 

The Sookie Stackhouse novels, I kinda lost track around book 10.

Three of your All-Time Favourite Books: 

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
Lord John and the Private Matter by Diana Gabaldon
Necronomicon (the collected works of HP Lovecraft)

Unapologetic Fangirl For: 

Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve. Cities roaming the nuclear wastes of Europe, brilliant

Very Excited For This Release More Than All The Others: 

The novelisation of The Dark Crystal surprisingly. The written version of the Labyrinth was excellent and perfect bedtime reading for the baby.

Worst Bookish Habit: 

Folding pages to mark my place, my favourites scenes/quotes and then not knowing which is which and having to start over.

X Marks The Spot: Start at the top left of your shelf and pick the 27th book: 

Ubik by Philip K Dick

Your latest book purchase:

George RR Martin's Dance with Dragons part 1 & 2 for my husband. I won't read them.

ZZZ-snatcher book (last book that kept you up WAY late): 

Terry Pratchett's Raising Steam. I read it in one sitting.

The Lyrics of Abney Park

For more then twenty years “Captain” Robert of Abney Park has been creating a world. Each song he’s written is like a tiny window revealing a new detail or character in this lush UNIVERSE. This book is a collection of all the lyrics to all the songs that shape the World of Abney Park. It also contains hundreds of full color illustrations by -

Artists: Juan Pablo Valdecantos Anfuso
Rachel Esmeralda Schwarting
MANDEM
Delucienne Maekerr
Desiree Kern
Miles Graves
Alex Thomas
Myke Amend
Bethalynn Bajema
Phantoms Siren
Model Maker: Matthew Slater
Photographer: Jonathan Happs

Copies are available for purchase in the Abney Park Marketplace.

All Hallow's Read

All Hallow's Read by =phantoms-siren on deviantART

It's October! Time for All Hallow's Read! For more information on All Hallow's Read please go to - http://www.allhallowsread.com/

Available as a shirt without the moon text on RedBubble.

Nico Murray: Interview With The Author

Nico Murray has just published her first novel and novella, and I was lucky enough to design the cover for the latter. You can meet her at the BinarySoul chainmail booth in the Dealer Hall at Dragon*Con in Atlanta, GA USA over the Labor Day weekend (August 31 - September 3, 2012). In the meantime here's a short interview with details of the books.

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I live in Toronto, Canada, with my husband, and my strange little dog. When I'm not crafting strange tales, I work as a goldsmith by trade, while finding many ways to indulge in vodka, coffee and cupcakes.

So, what's the deal with this series?

That's a tricky question. I love vampires, and it's an idea that percolated in my head for a long time.

What I wanted, and found wanting in the great heap of vampires in media was a character who was relatively angst free, and perhaps average, not powerful, rich, or angry. Someone who was going to live life on his own terms. Or his unlife, as it might be. I also wanted vampires who accepted blood drinking, and that the mortals in their life were not just food, but a connection to their own humanity. The Council that Sascha answers to is largely hands off save for big matters.

The series will go from Sascha getting his freedom, but getting saddled with a huge responsibility, but also his own research lab, to have a chance to make things right for the people who need it, while protecting his own people and dealing with the risks of modern society when it comes in the front door.I have vague ideas for books beyond 2, and largely it tends to depend on what unfolds in book 2. Turning Night revealed twists to me that I could not have ever planned. Trying to avoid being spoilery here!

Is the novella Bound Lilies different to the main novel Turning Night?
The novellas are planned as a sort of side-story to the novels, a chance to get behind the scenes, or behind closed doors, or into secondary characters stories where they might not fill a novel entirely. The first novella was created out of a bit of joking between Asher and James, and suddenly I felt I was watching these two getting up to a bit of fun. I liked the play between them, and what was a one off short story just rolled out into this interesting little tale.

The novella also presents a kink/bdsm relationship in a different light. I'm not fond of the standard "Dominant Man/Naive Girl" thing, I wanted characters who knew what they were getting into, and delving into what I think is the pull of kink to some degree, the psychological stuff, catharsis, confronting one's boundaries, but done in a respectful, balanced and equitable way between the dominant and submissive. I mean, you can't have one without the other.

I have some ideas for novella 2, but it likely won't be quite so...graphic. I have no shame writing sex scenes, I think the aversion to that, but a general acceptance of all manner of full on violence seems odd to me. I also presented most of the immortals as somewhat fluid in sexual orientation, the joke being "you're warm, you're squishy, you're consenting? good enough." I sort of pictured that after 200 years you'd be pretty much down with whatever happened to stumble in to your arms.

So that's where its at.

Where can we buy the books?

Paper books at Createspace -
Bound Lilies ($10)
Turning Night ($15)

Paper books at Amazon -
Bound Lilies ($10)
Turning Night ($15)

One of the differences between Createspace (an Amazon company) and Amazon is that shipping from Createspace is not a very friendly option for those overseas. The localized Amazon flavour is likely your best bet if you’re quoted high prices for delivery.

eBook exclusively at Amazon’s Kindle shop
Bound Lilies ($3.99)
Turning Night ($5.99)

Where else can we find you online?

I have a tumblr where I post my own pics I take for novel ideas, and random flotsam and jetsam related to the writing at nicovamp.tumblr.com (occasionally NSFW) and my author page at nicomurray.ca.

You can also find the artists who created the Turning Night artwork here- MANDEM Mythpunk Art Noir.

Wordless Reading Wednesday

Books by =phantoms-siren on deviantART

Zombies, Run! Playlists!

I'm a huge fan of Zombies, Run! (see fanart here for proof). It's life changing. I'd never willingly run any where without a reason before I got this game. Ok, so I still don't run a great deal even now, I'm usually at a fast walk, but I am getting better and faster.

Due to chronic pain exercise is not fun for me. Will never been fun for me. It hurts. It will always hurt. This game is great for distracting from the pain, but when it comes to the music I have a dilemma. I have a very strong sense memory when it comes to music, so if I listen to songs I love when exercising I can't listen to them at other times because my brain makes me feel pain. An example would be when I broke my ankle at a Gary Numan show so now I can't listen to his 'Jagged' album any more.

So I ended up putting together these two playlists of stuff I like but don't listen to any more. I swear my musical tastes aren't really stalled in 2005!!

Rock Mix

• Links 2 3 4 - Rammstein


• Don't Stop Me Now - Queen


• Welcome To The Jungle - Guns N Roses


• Dragula - Rob Zombie


• Du Hast - Rammstein


• Edgecrusher - Fear Factory


• Scum Of The Earth - Rob Zombie


• Bodies - Drowning Pool


• Disposable Teens - Marilyn Manson


• Firesoilslave - Nerve Harvest


• Living Dead Girl - Rob Zombie


• Dr Who On Holiday - Dean Grey


• Down With The Sickness - Disturbed


• Meet The Creeper - Rob Zombie


• Rock is Dead - Marilyn Manson


• Wollt Ihr Das Bett In Flammen Sehen - Rammstein


• No Time To Cry - Cradle of Filth

Goth EBM Mix

• Dead Enough For Life? - Icon Of Coil


• Weisses Fleisch - Rammstein


• Until The End Of The World - Apoptygma Berzerk


• Hemoglobin - Beborn Beton


• Tier - Rammstein


• Call The Ships To Port - Covenant


• Floorkiller - Icon Of Coil


• Derezzed - Daft Punk


• Engel - Rammstein


• Everything is Poison - Ego Likeness


• They're Coming To Take Me Away - Neuroticfish


• Shelter - Icon of Coil


• Feuer Frei! - Rammstein


• Dead Stars - Covenant


• Love Never Dies (Part 1) - Apoptygma Berzerk


• You Just Died - Icon Of Coil


• One World One Sky - Covenant


• Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) - Eurythmics

The Ladykillers vs Chronic Pain

I'm known for my occasional bouts of fannish insanity. Once in a while I'll get it into my head to do something nuts and move heaven&earth to achieve it. I've taken solo trans-Atlantic flights to see a single gig, I've run all over Germany with like minded fans to see every gig in a tour, and I once had to rescued from Edinburgh by the very people I was following. Not all of these plans have ended well, such is the way with fandom. As my health has deteriorated in recent years my ability to do crazy things has been curtailed. The last time I went to a gig alone, I went to a Gary Numan gig with a broken rib and had to be rescued twice due to being near collapse. That calmed me down a lot and I've resisted even looking at the dates for most tours and shows since then. If it's not showing in Sheffield and I can't get someone to go with me, I'm not going to think about. Last week I broke my own rules.

We're big fans of The Thick of It in this house, and as mentioned in my last post they were recently filming the fourth season. As such I thought that Peter Capaldi's run in The Ladykillers had ended. [Some background- The Ladykillers is an adaptation of the Ealing comedy being performed in London, which is 3-4 hours from here by train. Far too far for me to consider normally.] I was good, I didn't intentionally look into it, or google the show or anything. Then a friend on Twitter retweeted that it was actually closing on Saturday and that there were some tickets on sale at a reduced price.



If you're not part of a fandom you might never have felt that creeping grip of "gotta do it, gotta do it" excitement that such news brings, but it's a bit intoxicating and, considering my health, a bit frightening. I decided to go, I was feeling better than I had in a while and it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Then overnight my health crashed and I started to panic. I wanted to go but I couldn't go alone any more. Thankfully a dear friend was willing to join the insanity and less than 24 hours before the matinee show we had tickets and a plan.

Getting to London was the first trial, since it involved a bus and two trains, none of which I cope that well on. Sitting for long periods for me can be worse than standing and going through tunnels is horrible since I can't correct the pressure in my ears. There was the fun of getting from St Pancreas Station to Shaftesbury Avenue. I can't travel by underground any more, they give me flashbacks to 15th June 1996, so we ended up walking/limping the 2 miles from the station to the theatre, including a brief detour caused by the giant gold Freddie Mercury statue on Oxford Street. We arrived 30 minutes before the show started and managed to squeeze through the press of people to our seats. Aisle seats are great on one hand because you can actually stretch your legs out, but less great when you have to keep standing up to let people pass whilst juggling a cane, program and drinks.

On to the show itself. A lot has already been said about this elsewhere online, but the set really was amazing. A long time ago, in another life, I wanted to be a theatre designer, and I think if I'd seen this show then I wouldn't have given up on it. We were sitting too far back to see the upper left corner (which was a bit plot critical) but what we could see was brilliant. You can see pictures of it towards the bottom of this page. It was a rotating set that included the front of the house, the roof at the back, the interior split into three levels and a train tunnel. The front of the house also doubled as the set for the most ingenious car chase I've seen in years. Each time a train passed by furniture in the interior set would move around and the various methods of getting the cast around the set were very clever. The set was practically a member of the cast as it moved, changed and interacted with each in turn, plus there was the ever present 'parrot' in a cage at the front of the set, which stole the scene on several occasions.

In terms of the cast, Peter Capaldi as Professor Marcus was the reason I wanted to go, but the entire ensemble was amazing. Sherlock's Stephen Wight was brilliant as the drug-addled Harry and had some fantastically well timed moments of slapstick comedy. James Fleet was adorable and charming as Major Countney. The big surprise for me was Ben Miller. I've always been a fan of the Armstrong and Miller Show, and I stuck with Primeval because he was so good as James Lester, but his performance as the psychotic Romanian with an irrational fear of little old ladies was spot on. In terms of skill Marcia Warren's portrayal of Mrs Wilberforce was a lesson in itself, maintaining the stooped and shuffling movements of an elderly person whilst managing half of a slapstick routine clearly took a huge amount of work.

One of the major themes of the physical comedy was that Mrs Wilberforce was constantly standing on Professor Marcus' scarf, and we heard some people complaining during interval that some of those moments looked a little bit forced. I've study acting, and the friend that was with me is a drama degree student, and the concentration necessary to hit a mark, get lines right, step on a moving strip of fabric that you CANNOT LOOK AT and not accidentally kill your co-star, is extraordinary. There are going to be occasions when one actor or another has to make an adjustment for the performance to continue to flow and if it's something tied around one actors neck, you have to be a bit careful with it. Seriously, if you're going to complain about tiny things like that in a live show, then go home and watch TV where they can do a hundred takes, that you don't have to see, to get it right.

Peter Capaldi's performance as Professor Marcus was definitely the highlight of the show. It was big, it was bold, it was just this side of camp and it perfectly mixed genuinely creepy with disarmingly charming. Great characterisation and attention to detail, especially when it came to movement and gestures. His accent did slip once or twice (as did Ben Miller's 'Romanian' accent) but since the character is supposed to be a fraud (and Peter Capaldi sounds awesome when he's angry) it wasn't enough to distract from the scene. I was a little concerned by the shots online where Peter's hair was slicked back in a very creepy fashion, but since he has had it cut for the new The Thick of It series, it looked much better. The character's faux horror film entrance was a brilliant sequence that had the audience laughing without a word being spoken, and the final fight between Marcus and Louis (Ben Miller) was a perfect showcase for both actors dramatic skills.

Overall the best non-musical comedy I've seen in a decade, two and a half hours of solid laughter, thrills, spills, robbery and murder. As I mentioned before the show closed on Saturday, but if you ever see a production being staged near you I urge you to go and see it.

After the show we went to the stage door in the hope of getting some autographs. First up we met the lovely James Fleet, who was charming, and got a bit flustered by my silver pen (a hold over from attending years of goth gigs where all merchandising is black). Then Ben Miller came out and was very sweet, also confused by the pen of doom and let us pose for photos with him. Unfortunately I was shaking really badly due to lack of food and pain meds (both of which I had to forgo in order to actually manage to survive the day), that's why I'm blurry but he isn't. I missed Stephen Wight due to being pushed by a really annoying autograph tout (who constantly asked if people 'were cast' and ended up with signatures from a lot of stage hands). After an hour waiting in the cold we had to admit that no one else would be coming out and head home.

One of the major issues with having a chronic condition is the long term effect of your actions. You can tell people that something will hurt or that it'll exhaust you but unless you've lived with it, or with a loved one who has it, the true effects can be hard to explain. We got home 15 hours after we left, having walked four miles across London and back, spent seven hours on trains and buses, stood in the cold for two hours and laughed in an over heated room for two and half hours. In that time I was unable to eat anything substantial (two biscuits) or take any of my pain medication. To paraphrase Robert Downey Junior's Sherlock Holmes - in summary: back spasming; left shoulder, hand & hip dislocated; right hand swollen due to cane use; broken rib bruised by laughing too much. Physical recovery: 6 weeks. Full psychological recovery: 6 months. Ability to function as a human being: neutralised.

Was it worth it? Yes. Would I do it again any time soon? No. But then I said that after the Gary Numan debacle. *shrug*

Snow Day!

Yesterday the UK was braced for snowmageddon, or possibly the snowpocalypse. I think we're all still traumatised by the snow back in November 2010, when it was really deep and the councils had no grit or plan to deal with said snow. I like that the photos on Wikipedia for that winter are from Sheffield, where the panic was worst due to the hills and the heavy snow on the peaks.

So when we were told there was a 100% chance of snow yesterday we did what the British do so well- went to buy bread and milk. I don't really know why we do that, though back in 2010 the supermarker closest to the M1 (which was closed) did run out of both, OMG! I actually bought chocolate milk, cos it's better than plain and anyway, I don't drink tea :p

The first hour was pretty disappointing.


It picked up a bit later, but didn't get much past this by nightfall.



Fortunately we got enough overnight to make everything pretty but light enough that it isn'gt going to cause the complete breakdown of civilisation.



So we went for a walk in the park.









We have a labyrinth in the park. Not sure why. But it's awesome.





And the wisdom at the centre of the labyrinth? The secret you learn once you've face dangers untold and hardships unnumbered?



Classy.

The pond is partially frozen, and our neighbour cat is a foolhardy idiot.







Cute little paws though.

Easiest Indian Recipe Ever

I think I've mentioned our households love for all things Madhur Jaffrey. One of the first cookery books we got as a couple was her "Invitation to Indian Cooking", it was originally published in 1976 but our edition is from 2003. It's from that strange era when cookery books weren't full of colour photos and you basically had to guess what your dish was going to turn out like.

Our approach to Indian style cooking has always been to take the original recipe as a guide, often Madhur Jaffrey's recipes aren't spicy enough for our tastes, or the selection of spices too complicated for every day cooking. We only cook Rogan Josh on special occasions when we have time to stick to the recipe, but this is more of an every day dish, so we've simplified it. Takes about 30 minutes, though the longer it simmers the tastier it will become.

Streamlined Kheema (feeds 6)

One large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic
500 grams mince/ground beef or lamb
1/2 tsp chili (or more)
glug of lemon juice
200 grams frozen peas
1 1/2 tsp garam masala
Water

1. fry off the onion and garlic in a small amount of oil (or ghee if you're feeling fancy).
2. Once the onion is translucent add the meat and fry until browned.
3. Add the chili and lemon juice then stir to combine.
4. Add the peas and and garam masala.
5. Stir until the peas are no longer frozen, then add water until the meat is covered.
6. Bring to a simmer and then cover.
7. Cook for 15 minutes to an hour.
8. Serve with your favorite rice dish and a pitta bread or naan.

You can add other vegetables and spices to suit your tastes. Not all store bought garam masala mixes are equal, we've found one we really like, and we're happy to use it in place of making one at home. I'd recommend checking your local Asian supermarket for good brands, it's usually cheaper than buying all the spices individually.

This is a great meal for those who aren't that familiar with Indian flavours as it isn't too strong. It's also super yummy used in place of your usual cottage pie meat mix.

A Study In Sherlock

[caption id="attachment_158" align="alignright" width="245" caption="Fanart drawn at the request of a friend"][/caption]I'm no stranger to fandoms. In fact my main username "Phantoms Siren" originated during my involvement with my first fandom, or rather phandom, that surrounds The Phantom of the Opera. Which was way way back in the mid 1990s, long before the Gerard Butler movie, back when we were still protesting the case of Antonio Banderas in the lead role.

Anyway, there are some fandoms that take you over sudden like, without warning or reason (Tin Man would be my main example of that), and others take a while to develop. For example, I adored the Eighth Doctor Who but I wasn't bothered about the franchise as whole until midway through Ten's first season, at which point I became a devoted fan of Doctor Who. Somehow this devotion has survived an entire season of Catherine Tate as probably the most obnoxious character in the history of television, though I'm pretty sure that the fanbase it's self is a major reason for that.

Sherlock Holmes is super fashionable at the moment, thanks to the action packed bromance of the Guy Ritchie movie franchise and the more cerebral BBC version featuring The Cumbermountain and DentArthurDent. An awful lot of people seem to be totally polarised by the two productions and I've seen a lot of nastiness aimed at the Ritchie movies that wasn't nearly so bad when the first one came out.

Neither of those versions are my first Sherlock love, which has to be the wonderful Jeremy Brett who started in the role from 1984 to 1994. Sadly I was only 12 when he passed away and I have no real memory of seeing the show during its original run. The detectives I grew up with were the gloriously egotistical Hercule Poirot and the sweetly placid Brother Cadfael. I first discovered the ITV series starring Jeremy Brett via the endless daytime repeats on cable whilst I was at university.



I hadn't really paid any attention to the Holmes story before I saw those shows, I'd always pictured the main character as someone dully Victorian in a silly hat doing things that were rather dull, in black and white. So Brett's drug-fuelled manic depressive Holmes came as a rather wonderful surprise. His characterisation of the mood swings, the sulks and the manic energy was often much more interesting that the solving of the crime itself. And the fact that these were often based on real life experiences made them that much more compelling. The only real problem I ever had with the Granada series was Watson, specifically as played by Edward Hardwicke in the later episodes. He never really struck me as military man and seemed a bit too close to Hastings (Poirot's sidekick) in terms of bumbling incompetence. Then again it might also be his striking similarity to one of my relatives that makes him off putting.

The next time I really paid attention to the Sherlock Holmes universe was the release of the Guy Ritchie film version in 2009. I was always confident that Robert Downey Jr would do an amazing job, for exactly the same reason I loved the Jeremy Brett portrayal, and I was glad that Holmes would be put back into a more realistic age bracket. Remember, At his earliest possible date, Holmes was born in 1854 and Watson married in 1887, he'd only be 33 in the time period covered by the Guy Ritchie movies, and only 27 when Watson moved in (though the age could go as low as 21). In contrast Jeremy Brett was 51 when he first took over the Sherlock Holmes role. I was less sure of Jude Law but I find his frustrated but caring portrayal of Watson to be very charming and believable. The fact that the movie is in the action adventure genre rather than the mystery that most people expect of Holmes seems to be one of the major points of contention. Personally, I think that if they'd had action films back in Doyles days I'm sure he'd have had Holmes get up to even more insanity than he did to begin with, honestly I don't see any reason why Holmes on a bender wouldn't end up in those ridiculous situations, I mean, shooting holes in the walls is canon, as is the coke addiction, so I don't see why everyone insists that the rest doesn't fit.

Game of Shadows was almost as much fun the first movie, though I preferred the completely original story over the rewrite of several existing ones. Moriarty was excellent and their treatment of Reichenbach was clever but blessedly brief, they didn't keep the viewer waiting too long for confirmation of Holmes condition. The only issue (and it isn't really an issue) was Mycroft, a character that I've always rather liked, being played by one of the great human beings of all time, the irreplaceable Stephen Fry. I've always thought Mr Fry was quite dishy (though Hugh Laurie has vastly improved with age) and the role of Mycroft is one that I've always wanted to see him in. But I never thought I'd see... quite that much of him. Seriously that scene is burned onto my neural pathways such that I can't think about the movie without that vision of Mr Fry looming up in the background all the time. I'm almost afraid to buy the DVD in case this phenomenon infiltrates my everyday life, like Mol in Inception.

And then we come to the cause of full blown fandom - the BBC modern version of Sherlock. I've been a fan of Mark Gatiss since the League of Gentlemen days (though not season 3, I've never forgiven them for the death of Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen) and I love his Lucifer Box spy series. My liking of The Grand Moff (Steven Moffat) is less secure, since he's written some amazing and some rubbish Doctor Who scripts, and the quality of the latest series really hasn't been up to scratch. I'm not sure why we completely missed the first broadcast of season one back in 2010, I think I was busy working insane hours, and we tend not to watch the BBC any more so won't have seen the adverts. We got the DVD of the season one over Christmas and pretty much watched it all in one go, this was probably for the best as I hate cliffhangers and would probably have spoilered the whole of season two if I couldn't have watched it straight away.

I have to admit that I have no issues of any kind with the castings in this- I adore Martin Freeman's tiny, stressed out but loved up Watson, Mark Gatiss is brilliantly creepy as Mycroft, Moriarty is fooking terrifying and Una Stubbs is a delight as Mrs Hudson. Whilst Benedict Terriblylongname seems to play his Holmes closer to the autistic spectrum than the traditional drugs element, but he manages to make him fascinating, irritating, cold and yet still emotionally compelling, something that wasn't ever quite as necessary in the other performances. That's especially clear in the portrayal of the Reichenbach situation, where Holmes being forced to say goodbye to Watson face-to-face even reduce the manliest of men to almost-tears. I have never read The Final Case, and I've always seen the film versions of the story secure in the knowledge that Holmes comes out at the other end. Since I've never really cared about Watson the scenario has never really bothered me, beyond seeing how Holmes wiggles his way out of it. But, whilst I think I can easily see how it was done this time around, I'm actually concerned for the characters- Martin Freeman gave us a Watson who is alone and vulnerable and that we just want to hug until it's all alright again. And that's impressive considering that we've know he's alright for over a century.

But as much as I adore the new TV version, I still see no reason to choose one version over any of the others. In some ways the various Sherlock's are like the many regenerations of Doctor Who- they're all different, they're all valid and whilst you can have your favorites they're all one and the same. I'd quite happily watch Brett, RDJ and the Cumbermountain back-to-back because they all add to the experience.

Right now, Sherlock and John (and, for some disturbing reason, Mycroft and Lestrade, I do not know what is going on there) are wandering about in my brain trying to compete with other, longer standing fandoms. I don't know it'll last until the next season in 2013, but I might as well give in and let them wreck up the place, cos I can't see any way to get them to leave.

Whoops!

Sorry, missed two weeks of posts! I forgot my password. Again. Chrome is supposed to remember them all for me, but it seems to purge itself ever few months. *sigh*

Anyway, I have a bunch of fabric scraps, from Spoonflower and the like, and I fancy trying my hand at some slightly more complicated quilting than I usually bother with. Most of my quilts have been of the sew-squares-to-other-squares variety, and I don't have enough of these fabrics to do that properly.

I found this quilt-a-long from Crazy Mom Quilts and I thought I'd give it a go but with black instead of white. Most of my fabrics are going to be pretty geeky. I'm going to try to fit as many fandoms as possible into one quilt :D To that aim here is the first panel-

Panel One - Doctor Who & Star Wars

The fabrics used are ELEVEN TRAVELING DOCTORS AND BLUE PHONE BOXES by Green Couch Studios and THAT'S NO MOON by ThirdHalfStudios. I only had a swatch of the Doctors fabric, took a while to workout how to cut it so that the Eighth Doctor (mmmm Paul McGann) was in the big panel.

Not sure I'll be doing a panel a week but I do intend to finish this by the end of the year. Next panel will probably feature a cephalopod or two :D

R'yleh Sweet R'yleh

I've not being doing all that well with the resolutions have I? In my defence I lost well over a week to a very nasty round of flu. But I'm back now, and I would like to take a moment to talk to you about dead Cthulhu, who lies dreaming in his great house at sunken R'yleh, awaiting the moment when the stars will be right, that he may return and consume the world utterly.

Well, the incredibly talented Picky Miss (whose awesome work I've previously mentioned here) has just completed the most amazing piece of cross stitch for me. Check this out -



Look at the detail! The Elder Sign, the squid, the 'Color Out of Space' themed flowers around the edge! Isn't it just fantastic?! Truly a must have for any devoted cultist, acolyte or H.P. Lovecraft fan.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, go to your local book store, or you're preferred internet book market, and buy this - The Necronomicon. Alternatively, WikiSource has a bunch of his stories for free, here.

Monday Make - Tool Belt

I'm not a huge fan of having too much heavy stuff tied around my waist, and a lot of the women's tool belts are basically aprons with extra pockets. Having all your stuff hanging over your knees isn't all that helpful (or safe) if you're working at bench or kneeling down in the garden. So I wanted to make something that would attach to my ordinary belt (between the belt loops on my jeans) and hang down to the side.

So I made these, one set of pockets for general stuff and one pocket for scissors (or similar cutting implements). I had some scraps so I made a loop for a carabina, useful for hanging stuff from.



This gorgeous fabric is from the Retro Spring collection by Renule on SpoonFlower.

I had planned on posting a pattern and how-to with pictures of the second set that I need to make, but sadly I did this to the iron this morning -



So further details will have to wait til I can replace my equipment :*(

Cinnamon Chocolate Diet Muffins

I like SparkPeople, it has some good tips and articles, plus being able to record your intake and exercise is really useful.

The one frustrating thing with it is the fact that most of the recipes are written in American. I'm gradually working out how to convert Fahrenheit (or just 'degrees' as it's often listed, burnt a few things making that mistake) to gas mark and cups to real measurements. As ranted about here. but one of the problems thats hard to get past is the random products that seem to exist only in America and that also seem to be really popular with dieting sites in general.

What is the obsession with apple sauce? It's a thing you buy to put with pork, leave in the cupboard and then throw out when it gets manky. Seriously, search on a site like mysupermarket and you'll find three varieties - 'own brand', 'cheap own brand' and Colmans. Considering that sugar is the third ingredient in each case I doubt it would be classed as diet food. It must be one of those things that doesn't export well, like canned pumpkin puree.

I found this recipe for Applesauce Oatmeal Muffins on SparkPeople, but had no real desire to make applesauce from scratch, so I replaced it with Nutella (any Hazelnut Chocolate Spread would do, check your calorie count not all spreads are created equal). I also replaced the two egg whites with one egg as it seemed like a waste of eggs.

The end result is a mildly chocolatey but very satisfying muffin for only 119 calories. And they freeze well so a batch will last a while.

Wordless Winter Wednesday