I love Bujold's books because I think many of them meet Faulkner's challenge:

"It is [the writer's] privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart, by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past. The poet's voice need not merely be the record of man, it can be one of the props, the pillars to help him endure and prevail."

I'm not normally a big fantasy fan, but the writing in The Curse of Chalion and Paladin of Souls is luminous.

I certainly haven't thanked y'all enough for your recommendations. Thank you for the Tomorrow When the War Began series, Sorcery and Cecilia, Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation, Charlotte MacLeod et al.

Katerina, does Luca (Lusa? Lucia? seeing/hearing problem again) get to to keep the farm? (do enough goats make it so she has enough money?

It's a blessing and a curse to have to listen to every. single. word. on a book on tape. It takes longer, because, no skimming; OTOH, when the writing's lyrical, it's such a joy.

B. Kingsolver reads her own book, BTW. It's great.

Java: Yes, the goats save the farm. Yay! I THINK it's "Lusa," but I dunno. Will go fondle hardback tonight.

Kingsolver reading the book? Out loud? This I may have to hear for myself!

I've never read anything by Bujold. I'm assuming I should?

Jilli, she's on my very short list of authors whom I buy in hardcover. Her other books are SF, mostly about Miles Vorkosigan. For those, I think you're best off starting with the two books focusing on his parents, Shards of Honorand Barrayar, which are collected in Cordelia's Honor. They're pretty self-contained as book and sequel, but the ones after that get increasingly arc'y and need to be read in order.

I have Paladin of Souls in my hot little hands!

I love being married to a librarian.

Kingsolver reading the book? Out loud? This I may have to hear for myself!

Yup. It's nice. You know she's getting the character's voices right! Oakland Lib has it.

There's something different about Kingsolver that I can't put my finger on. Maybe it's just because I'm not in my 20's and weeping over Animal Dreams any more. I love her, she's one of the few authors I buy in hardback, but the experience isn't so immediate any more.

cereal re King: I had to quit reading him after I read a short story back when about a person who's shot in the head, but not killed by it or hurt badly, and who can't stop him(her?)self from pushing a pencil into the hole, just because s/he can Shudder! I'm a wimp.

I second the Bujold. I stumbled across her Miles Vorkosigan books which I love for their twisted evil little hearts. I didn't know about Chalion until it was out in paperback, so perversely I'm waiting for the paperback of Paladin. I looooooved Chalion and I'm hearing people say Paladin is better. So, the waiting for the paperback is tested more and more each day.

Thank you to everyone who offered their opinions of the books I asked about. I really appreciate it.

Has anyone read this Mercedes Lackey? It's apparently the first in a new series of fantasy from Harlequin.