What are you reading, Jesse?

I am currently looking forward to a stack of vacation reading, including two Pelecanos and I forget what else. Also probably cheesy magazines.

I'm with Skyzy on The DaVinci Code. It had some interesting ideas but was ruined by bad structure, bad dialogue, and a major plot twist that was far too predictable.

They're planning to make a movie out of The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code irritated me muchly. So much so that I didn't care if any of the ideas had anything to back them up.

The Da Vinci Code irritated me muchly. So much so that I didn't care if any of the ideas had anything to back them up.

I especially was irritated with the historical inaccuracies. Part of the bad thing about being an almost history major is that anything that isn't accurate, I notice.

I especially was irritated with the historical inaccuracies. Part of the bad thing about being an almost history major is that anything that isn't accurate, I notice.

As a former medieval history tutor, I haven't dared read the thing. I'm afraid my head would explode.

Coming in way late to the party, I finally read Weaver.

Deb, this was such a beautiful book. I was really blown away by how dense it is (in a good way). When I picked it up, I thought, "Hm, fewer than 200 pages. I'll have it finished in a day." But I just couldn't read it that fast. I was putting it down at every break to both process and savor all the information you had put in. It seemed like you picked each word to convey the maximum amount of information possible. I wish I could explain it better.

I loved the story and the characters. If I try to go on anymore, I'll just gush everywhere and make a mess. I really loved it.

Is there any recording of the music available? I'm not that familiar with traditional music, although I used to listen to my dad's Peter, Paul & Mary albums when I was a kid. I have loved the little bits of traditional music I've heard, and I think I may need to start investigating it further.

I don't know enough about history to notice anything other than a few historical inaccuracies, but the whole structure of DaVinci Code drove me nuts. Way too many obvious misdirects, way too much time spent on useless stuff, way too obvious a "twist" at the end is it still a twist if it's something that's introduced as a possibility about 20 pages in and then dismissed with an "explanation" that a five-year-old could find holes in, then introduced again 20 pages from the end as if it's an entirely new idea that no one had ever considered? Also, the way that the first 20 or so chapters ended with something like, "He knew the answer to her questions, but that would have to wait until later..." I'm fine with suspense, I'm fine with the characters having more information than the reader. But the author taunting the reading with information like that is just annoying. Once is fine. By the time it had happened 20 times, I'd figured out most of what it was, and the "big reveal" wasn't terribly interesting at all.

Loving justkim.

It seemed like you picked each word to convey the maximum amount of information possible. I wish I could explain it better.

That's the best explanation - it's why I don't do epics. I like words that act like freight trains; carrying as much as possible. Cleaner that way, for me, anyway.

Is there any recording of the music available?

Oh, you betcha, and for all the books to follow.

For the title ballad of Weaver, the ultimate version belongs to Steeleye Span, sung by the divine Maddy Prior, on their album Parcel of Rogues.

The second book (focussing on Penny) shares a title with Martin Carthy's drop-dead chilling ghost-kissed version of "Famous Flower of Serving Men", off his Shearwater CD. Ringan is slightly sorta kinda based on Martin. Loosely.

And the third book is a take on a very famous song, covered by quite a few people, including Joan Baez. But my favourite version of "Matty Groves" is from Fairport Convention's Liege and Lief CD.

The fourth one, Cruel Sister, will depend on how the first ones do...

But I'm glad you liked it. The music is sublime.

But the author taunting the reading with information like that is just annoying.

I hate books that every character in the book knows what is going on, but the reader does not. Ttell me already! And you know the whole reason they're keeping you in suspense is to keep you reading, because otherwise, you wouldn't finish the book...at least for me it's that way.