So I went to the mountains this weekend and picked up Empire of Ivory on the way, and finished it by midnight last night.

Unspoilered response: I enjoyed it. It covers a lot of ground, there's a lot of action, and the ending was something of a surprise.

Spoilery comments: I was impressed and intrigued by Lawrence's decision at the end, and by the complicated structure of the Tswana peoples, where dragons and humans are not differentiated in the political and legal life of their empire. (Although presumably only important people get to be reincarnated as dragons.) Both of those, along with the many references to the abolition movement, really reinforce the concept of dragons as independent sapient people.

Of course, we're left with a hell of a cliffhanger. My prediction is that the treason is covered up and Lawrence loses his official position but ends up sent somehow on a mission to the New World... they can't afford to lose Temeraire, and they know they can't have him without Lawrence. But they're not going to let him get away scot-free, either.

More amusingly, SPN fans should take note of the names, personalities, and relationship of two young characters introduced about partway through the book. t snickers

SPN fans should take note of the names, personalities, and relationship of two young characters introduced about partway through the book.

Hee! I thought I caught that, but since I'm not a SPN-watcher, it didn't completely jump out at me. If that makes any sense.

Has anybody read the book of The Ring ? That the movies were based on? It's our book club selection this month and I'm wondering if it will freak me out too much. I didn't think the American version of it was very good but it caused me not to be able to sleep for DAYS. And I had to turn off the ads for the sequel and for the dvds of it because it bothered me so much.

I didn't know it was a book! Huh.

I didn't know it was a book! Huh.

I know, right? I've been saying all year that I was skipping October but then I had to miss September's book and meeting due to busy and I'd hate to miss two in a row. but I'm not reading something that's going to freak my shit out!

Good to have a scary book for October...and that's all I've got. I didn't even know it was a book.

Can someone give me the cliff notes with spoilers for The Road ? I don't want to read it without knowing how it turns out.

I have a coworker who keeps insulting my reading and writing tastes, as best as I can tell without any awareness that she's doing so. (She's a nice person in many ways, but the Tact Fairy was NOT present at her christening.) She knew I'd written and unsuccessfully attempted to market a romance, which seemed to flabbergast her--IIRC, she even said something along the lines of being surprised that such an obviously intelligent person would choose to write trashy books. (!)

Anyway, today she was asking what I was writing now and why I'd changed genres. I described what I was working on now--alternate history, but basically historical adventure--and that the appeal for me, as a reader and writer, was the epic sweep of the plot and the idea that one person's actions could have a meaningful impact upon the world. She then said, "But isn't that really a teen fantasy--I mean what YA books are all about? Is there really an adult market for that sort of thing?" I happened to have Naomi Novik's latest with me, and I said something like, "Well, she writes something along the same lines, and she's doing pretty well for herself." Cow-orker replied, "But do adults read these things? I mean, besides you?"

(Just to clear up any possible confusion, I love good YA and would happily write it if I had a suitable idea--I only resent it being suggested that my tastes in fiction are a mark of emotional immaturity, and that real grown-ups don't enjoy adventure stories or books with dragons on the covers.)

She looked at the book and decided it maybe looked like a good idea, and then said, "How come she's published and you're not?" I sputtered something about her having finished the first book in her series at least a couple of years ago, while I only started my WIP at the beginning of the summer. I mean, I waffle between thinking I'm brilliant and I suck, sometimes within the course of an hour or two, so I don't even pretend to know how my writing compares to Novik's. But I do know I can't sell what I haven't written!

Believe it or not, from my other interactions with this person, I'm sure she likes me and means well. But I dread when she corners me to ask about my book.

That woman needs a tact transplant.

"I Don't know...if I knew that, would I be talking to you?" Or for the Ron White fans: "I can *get* published. You can't fix stupid."

Cow-orker replied, "But do adults read these things? I mean, besides you?"

If she mentions it again, you can tell her that you should certainly hope so, as she's an award-winning author whose series has been optioned by Peter Jackson.