The important thing is that Jacqueline Carey, author of the Kushiel's Legacy series, has another series in the works right now. The first book of which, Santa Olivia, I have read. Now, while the original book didn't quite tickle me pink I did find it to be relatively enjoyable and many of my problems with it are fixed by it being the beginning of a series rather than a stand-alone. All of the plot that I felt didn't get address is obviously just waiting for the rest of the series to see it bloom to fruition and that is perfectly alright in my book. Many of my all-time favorite series have a first book that, on it's own, leaves too many holes for my little OCD soul to accept.
So, when I found out that Ms. Carey was writing Saints Astray, I was very excited. Then I saw on Facebook that she was going to offer signed copies on a first-come-first-served basis to bloggers so that we could give them away to our readers.
I think I exploded in a joy-gasm at that moment. Not only am I going to get a continuation of this story that intrigued me but I could share it with other people - which, let's be fair, is obviously one of my favorite parts of good books or I wouldn't blog about them. So now I need a contest to go with the give away and I am going to use it to find more books that I might enjoy. Because, you know, that way I can trick people into giving me reading recommendations and I'm currently out of books to read.
Good luck and if you haven't read Santa Olivia, then go to your local library or bookstore and pick up a copy.
My most recent "popcorn" book would probably have to be Wither by Lauren DeStefano. It was OK, nothing particularly grabbing about it, but like you, I feel like the rest of trilogy is where the story is going to take root.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
David
tapestry1000@yahoo.com
Hmm my favorite Popcorn book is likely to be Sebastian by Anne Bishop. The book is interesting but as your popcorn description explains, it isn't one that popped out as a winner. Until the end that is! The book takes a minute to get into and by the end when I found out it had a sequel (and now is part of a trilogy) I was very excited. It was like devouring that fist bucket of popped kernels and then remembering you ordered the special large combo with free refills! Yes! The other books in the series are Belladonna and Bridge of Dreams.
ReplyDeleteWhile I don't read a lot of books that would fall into the "Popcorn" category, I would have to place Wicked here. I forced myself to finish it and felt dissatisfied at the end because it was so hyped up. On the brighter side, I'm seeing Wicked on stage this weekend, and can't wait because I've heard it's REALLY awesome! :)
ReplyDeleteJenna A.
jjoydc@gmail.com
I don't particularly have a favorite popcorn book, but one I remember that kept me mildly entertained as I read it was The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse by Ronald Rankin. It took me about 1/4 of the book to finally get into a "groove" while reading it, and I was disatisfied with the ending (though I have absolutely no recollection of why)once I did get into it.
ReplyDeleteGreat contest!
Rose
rose-potter@uiowa.edu
I think my most recent popcorn book would be Fallen by Lauren Kate. While it was an ok story it didn't really pull at me to get the next book right away, though I have hopes for the trilogy.
ReplyDeleteRebecca
rgw1990@ymail.com
I would say that most "chick lit" style books are my popcorn books, the most recent being The Nanny Diaries by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus. Cute, mildly amusing, but didn't leave a great big "TELL YOUR FRIENDS TO READ ME!!!" tattoo on my brain.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMy most recent popcorn book was Night Pleasures by Kenyon Sherrilyn. I picked it up b/c my sister had a copy and I was at her apartment and had nothing better to do at the moment. Once I started it was over before I realized I had spent almost the whole day reading. Unfortunately it has not compelled me to start the next one yet.
ReplyDeleteLove this giveaway
Dragana
dpekez@gmail.com
"The Mortal INstruments" series by Cassandra Clare. I don't remember reading them, but I must have, because they are in my bookcase, and I must have enjoyed them, because I would have gotten rid of them otherwise... I'll probably read them again, because they are in my bookcase, obviously for a reason...
ReplyDeleteMy most recent popcorn book was "The Dog Who Spoke With Gods" by Diane Jessup. I picked it up randomly while perusing the library shelves. It wasn't the worst book I've ever read, nor the best, but I couldn't put it down. I liked it enough, but I can't say I'd re-read it.
ReplyDeleteAmanda
athena.marz@gmail.com
My favorite popcorn book is "Hush, Hush" by Becca Fitzpatrick. I had just finished Ms. Carey's "Naamah's Curse", and was bummed that we had to wait a whole year for the conclusion in "Naamah's Blessing". My usual taste in the younger aged books runs the lines of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson series, but I had to have something. So, this teen level story about fallen angels was exactly that....popcorn. Not nearly the excitement I am used to, nor the depth of character info...but it was enjoyable. I was actually surprised some months later to discover a sequel had been written, "Crescendo". It was a little more exciting than the first, and actually left me looking forward to the latest in the trilogy, "Silence".
ReplyDeleteMine would have to be the Godspeaker trilogy by Karen Miller. There were certainly points where things picked up and whatnot, but overall I was just kind of reading them to read something. At the very end I was sorely disappointed because it was only then that I realized just how much I had started to like some of the characters! I've re-read the books since that first time and enjoyed them better as a second helping than a first.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to go with "Elantris" by Brandon Sanderson. It was a totally random pick. I NEVER pick up standalone books. I have no idea why I got it. But this blackout-style "popcorn" rating fits perfectly for it. When I was reading the description, I thought of "Elantris" right away. What a great way to rate your books :)
ReplyDeleteThe Immortals After Dark series by Kresley Cole...I don't read romance very often, but a good friend said I had to read it. While the books were interesting and a good read, nothing really stood out. And yet, I couldn't stop reading them :-)
ReplyDeleteRemmy
remmygodd[at]gmail[dot]com
Charmed Thirds (and everything after) by Megan McCaffert. It's the third book in her Jessica Darling series, and I read it the first one was awesome and the second one was slightly less awesome, and the third one is... well, it's okay, I guess. I can haul it out and read it when I'm not really in the mood to pay attention.
ReplyDeleteWow, I love your description of "popcorn" books! It perfectly describes my feeling toward a series I read. It's not my favorite series per se, but I can't help reading the next one. I haven't even read any of them twice, but I will always read the next one. It's The Noble Dead Saga, written by Barb and J.C. Hendee. I bought "Dhampir" on a whim at the airport when I wanted something to read on the airplane, and I've been reading them ever since. Most recently, I've read "Through Stone and Sea," which sounds like a reference to Jacqueline Carey's Moirin, don't you think? There are some elements in the novels which make me wonder if the authors are Jacqueline Carey fans themselves. For example, there are gypsy-like characters (their name escapes me though) in one of the Noble Dead Saga novels, which are *very* similar to the Tsingano in Carey's novels, even their language. Coincidence? Who knows?
ReplyDeleteI have often caught a bit of grief over this but my popcorn book would be "Twilight" by S. Meyer.
ReplyDeleteI remember finishing it and thinking "meh". I probably wouldn't have remembered it much at all if it hadn't soared in popularity and spawned several movies. It wasn't bad and it wasn't great. Just popcorn.
My popcorn book would be Stray by Rachel Vincent. It was a good read but it never motivated me into reading any of the others in the Shifters series.
ReplyDeleteI would love a copy of this!
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to know what to recommend for a "popcorn" book. But I guess I was really entertained this year, in different ways, by Patrick Rothfuss's "The Wise Man's Fear" and Libba Bray's "Beauty Queens," even though there are things in both that I don't like.
I do think "Santa Olivia" was probably my favorite book so far this year, and one of the most entertaining.
(email: markraven [at] gmail.com)
Hmm. Honestly this is really difficult for me. I'm a little bit picky about the books I read since I hate starting a book and not getting into it.
ReplyDeleteI'd probably have to say Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke. It was alright but there were parts that I would read and then just be a blur. Not one of my favorites.
The best book I read this year is Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss, followed by Naamah's Blessing in close second.
Thanks and good luck to everyone!!!
email: LSF87@aol.com
My favorite popcorn books would be a tie between 2 series books. Hush hush and crecendo is the first. Dragon Ore, Inherited Danger, Call of the Herald, by Brian Rathbone is the other. Both were entertaining enough, but not nearly as much depth of character as what i'm used to. They definately did not make my re-read list of books.
ReplyDeleteI'd have to agree with Twilight, but for different reasons - I felt compelled to finish it (and the others), but definitely got that dissatisfied feeling once I'd finished and started looking back and realising how light, fluffy and slightly unhealthy it had all been.
ReplyDeleteillumina3(at)hotmail.com
Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin. I couldn't stop reading it even though I was didn't want to finish reading it. Wasn't happy with the end and the over all over consumption.
ReplyDeleteI really want this book, thanks for the contest.
myworldofbooks18 at hotmail dot com
I would say mine would probably be the Keys to the Kingdom series. It wasn't my favourite perhaps because it's written for children so not as "sophisticated", but it was really entertaining to read and I just couldn't stop reading them!
ReplyDeleteemail: wuz_sup [at] hotmail .com
My popcorn book(s) are the Twilight Saga. Sorry to all you Edward lovers, but I just felt so.. unfulfilled at the end. I read all four because they were vampire novels and I won't have it said that I missed a single novel out there that was vampire related, but they were just... alright.
ReplyDeleteI have so many favorites, but I'll have to go with "Foreigner" by C. J. Cherryh. Whether I win or not, if you haven't read this series, you should! "Foreigner" was originally announced as book 1 of a new trilogy. HA! I am currently awaiting the soon to be released first book in the FIFTH!!! "Foreigner" trilogy. How wrong can I be if there are already 12, going on 15 books, in this series! That many book buyers (plus me) just can't be that wrong, can we? The books to date are: "Foreigner;" "Invader;"Inheiritor;"
ReplyDelete"Precursor;" "Defender;" "Explorer;"
"Destroyer;" "Pretender;" "Deliverer;"
"Conspirator;" "Deceiver;" and "Betrayer."
Flowers in the Attic by VC Andrews. :)
ReplyDeletemisusedinnocence@aol.com
As someone else has mentioned, I also don't read many books that fall into the popcorn category. The only one on my bookshelf at current that qualifies is Brothers and Sisters by Bebe Moore Campbell. I had to read it for a class - I remember having no problem picking it up to read so it must have been more enjoyable than ones average school assigned text, but I barely recall what it was really about. Popcorn. (Marvelous book ratings, there, btw.)
ReplyDeleteKat
glenin at gmail
my popcorn book would have to be charlaine harris murder mystery books
ReplyDeleteAurora Teagarden
Lily Bard "Shakespeare"
they are not great but they keepyou hanging on by the skin of your teeth till you have read them all.
Jayne
Jayne.riggs @ yahoo
Mine would have to be "The Women of the House" by Jean Zimmerman. This was a book I just grabbed because it sounded slightly interesting and it was on sale. Since I'm on a budget the vast majority of my books come from the bargain bin. The book itself was OK for being a historical novel but I probably won't read it again.
ReplyDeletes_batrez@yahoo.com
'For a few demons more' written by Kim Harrison. Perhaps I was just not in the right frame of mind for her style of writing.
ReplyDeleteShelley Daniels
Sassyred@sassyreds.com
I'd have to say I feel this way about most books by Fay Weldon. They're entertaining, I enjoy them at the time, but the plots seem to sort of run together afterwards, and later on, I can't always tell you what happened. Though I do still read new ones.
ReplyDeleteYou can find me at seak17 @ gmail.com
My latest popcorn book was by Marya V Snyder, the Study Series. I read them and I really like them, then I completely forget about them, then read about them again and I remember them and I want to read the new ones. It's weird.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the opportunity!
Ginevra
ginnibell@gmail.com
I love the Dresden Files books. I read the first one and was a bit confused as to why they were so popular. Then I picked up the second on a few months later... and just finished the 13th one two weeks ago. They're not life changing, but they're FUN and the main character's voice makes them too entertaining to put down.
ReplyDeleteJacqueline Carey's books, on the other hand... THOSE are life changing.
Kristen
kla33@cornell.edu
Hmm... Crooked Little Vein by Warren Ellis, although I think it straddles both the ideas of Popcorn and Junior Mint. =D I picked this book up at random and enjoyed it, although it's not my normal read. Dark, humorous, graphic novelesque, washed up detective meets sexy sidekick type of book, with conspiracy thrown in the mix.
ReplyDeleteFun contest idea, to get ideas for reading! Can't do better than a Jacqueline Carey giveaway! lol
flayme3697@yahoo.com
My latest popcorn book would have to The Rise of The Governor by Robert Kirk. My friends and I love zombies. We love Robert Kirk and it is such a fantastic book to lend and discuss. I love that Kirk went and explored he background of one of his most villainous characters from the graphic novel in a simple novel format. It added more depth to his world.
ReplyDeleteJessica Adamson
jpadamson AT gmail DOT COM
The entire In Death series by Nora Roberts under J. D. Robb qualifies. Her writing is entertaining, but there's no depth to it. For whatever reason, that doesn't stop me from buying each new entry in the series, though I have absolutely no compulsion to ever get the hardback. I'm perfectly fine waiting for the mass market paperback.
ReplyDeletecyndi (a) csiwebdesign (dot) com
I use the term "chocolate" books, with varying levels of cacao counts to determine how much depth vs. just entertainment I get from them. Dark chocolate books are fun but also a true aesthetic/thought provoking experience, while milk chocolate books are kind of throw aways. Anyway, my current favorite popcorn reading is the Sookie Stackhouse series - in chocolate terms they are like 45% cacao count. Also, Carey's Kushiel books are some amazing chocolate reading, and each book in the series ups it's depth/darkness, etc.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite popcorn book is The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It took me so long to get into the book, but halfway through I was hooked. It was a quick read and not super memorable, but enjoyable and I was sad when the series ended.
ReplyDeleteI would vote for the Myth series by Robert Asprin. Short, quick, and entertaining.
ReplyDeleteMy current reigning popcorn books is the Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay. Good reads, but not too much brain power. Yes, the show is based off a book!
ReplyDeleteI'd really love to win this book, since I love her but I just blew all my iTunes budget on the Dexter books!
Tamar
tsdaskin [at] mail dot com
Mine would be Magician by Raymond E Feist. Meant to be a classic I know, but I was left disappointed by it. I liked the concept and thought well of most of the characters but I was left feeling like it fell short of its potential.
ReplyDeleteRachael
littlemissperfect_321 [at] hotmail dot com
My current popcorn book would have to be The Gates of Sleep by Mercedes Lackey. And I think all of her Elemental Masters series are popcorn books for me. I grab the next one excitedly but am always left with a rushed, disappointed feeling.
ReplyDeletemjlee15 [at] gmail dot com