Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Weather Events in the Title

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week is a Halloween Freebie. However, in October 2023 one of the themes was Books with Weather Events in the Title/on the Cover. At the time, I put this list of books together but I never got around to adding the commentary and pictures or posting it....until now! It's a bit scary that it has been sitting in draft all this time. See what I did there?

I am starting with some wind and storms, then moving onto sun, rain and snow.

Ill Wind by Rachel Caine - Rachel Caine has a whole series of books called the Weather Warden series that I could have picked for this prompt. This is the first book in the series. (my review)

Season of Storms by Susanna Kearsley - One of the lesser know Kearsley books but, as always, I couldn't resist the urge to include one of her books. Unusually for Kearsley this book is set in Rome.

A Taste of Italian Sunshine by Leonie Mack - Wine making in Italy. Yes please!  (my review)

Under a Greek Sun by Mandy Baggot - Moving on from Italy, this is set on a Greek island   (my review)

An Island in the Sun by Kate Frost - Another country, another island. This time it was Portugal. (my review)

Floodtide by Judy Nunn - I read this years ago and don't remember much about it other than one particular scene. Looking at my rating on Goodreads I didn't like it at all, but the title fits the theme. 

The Right Attitude to Rain by Alexander McCall Smith - This is the third book in the Isabel Dalhousie mystery series set in Edinburgh. (my review)

Midnight in the Snow by Karen Swan - In the past this author put out a summer book and a winter book. Guess which one this was.

Snowy Mountain Cattleman by Alissa Callen - The Snowy Mountains are actually a place in this instance, but they do get a lot of snow. This is the second book in the Bundilla series.

The Secret of Snow by Viola Shipman - I still haven't gotten over not enjoying the last Viola Shipman book I read. This one wasn't bad though.

Top Ten Tuesday: Stormy!

 Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's theme is Books to Read During a Storm (these can be cozy/comfy reads, books with storms in them, atmospheric reads for dark and stormy nights, light reads to combat the heavy weather, etc.) (Submitted by Astilbe.)

For my first three choices I thought I would share some books that have components of storms in the title. If there is a storm happening around you, there may be wind, there may be thunder and there may be rain. There could be other things, but let's start with those:

He Shall Thunder in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters - As a bonus this cover also has some lightning on it!

Ill Wind by Rachel Caine - Rachel Caine has a whole series of books called Weather Wardens where all the titles are weather related.

The Right Attitude to Rain by Alexander McCall Smith - This is one of the Isabel Dalhousie which is set in Edinburgh, so I imagine you would need to be used to rain!

And now lets move onto books with stormy titles.

Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale - A romance classic from the early 1990s!

Firestorm by Rachel Caine - This is another book in the Weather Wardens series.

Storm Front by Jim Butcher - Apparently I read this in 2008 and again in 2011 - who knew! I certainly didn't remember that!

The Night They Stormed Eureka by Jackie French - I recently started reading another Jackie French book but didn't get very far before I had to return the book to the library!

Season of Storms by Susanna Kearsley - Never miss an opportunity to get a Susanne Kearsley book into the a TTT post!

A Storm of Swords by George RR Martin -  this is the third book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, more commonly known as the Game of Thrones books.

The Storm Sister by Lucinda Riley - The second book in the Seven Sisters series by Lucinda Riley. I am currently listening to the seventh book in the series.

Rachel Caine signing

This afternoon I was very excited to go to see author Rachel Caine visit one of our local library branches, in an event that was organised by Collins Werribee! This is the second event I have been to recently that was jointly run between these two, and I think it is totally awesome that a local bookshop is working with the local library to do this kind of thing!

The other thing is that it is totally awesome to have a NYT best selling author come to our little corner of the world!

There were probably about 40 people there counting the kids, enough to have quite a few questions asked, but not too many to lose that feeling of intimacy.

The signing and publicity was all in honour of Bite Me, the tenth book in the Morganville Vampires series. I haven't actually read any of that series, but I am a big fan of the Weather Warden series that she writes. It is, however, a series that I have read from the library so I don't actually own of them. I did own the first Morganville book, and I bought the next three after that so now I have the first four Morganville books signed.

Rachel talked a bit about how she came to be Rachel Caine, after she had started writing under two other names, about her reading and writing habits and more! She spoke very naturally and was a very interesting speaker, so I was glad to have made the effort to go and see her. In addition to getting my books sign we also got awesome bookmarks (holographic isn't the right word, but you know the ones where if you move it one way you see one picture, and something else when you move it the other way - one of those)

And for posterity

Afterwards I went for coffee with a few friends and had gorgeous waffles with strawberries and icecream and lots of melted chocolate! Yum!

I have realised though that every photo I have put up of myself over the last few months shows me wearing grey shirts. I promise I only own two! Going to have to think about wardrobe choices going forward!

My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding Anthology

Werewolves, vampires, witches, voodoo, Elvis---and weddings

An “ordinary” wedding can get crazy enough, so can you imagine what happens when otherworldly creatures are involved? Nine of the hottest authors of paranormal fiction answer that question in this delightful collection of supernatural wedding stories. What’s the seating plan when rival clans of werewolves and vampires meet under the same roof? How can a couple in the throes of love overcome traps set by feuding relatives---who are experts at voodoo? Will you have a good marriage if your high-seas wedding is held on a cursed ship? How do you deal with a wedding singer who’s just a little too good at impersonating Elvis?

· L. A. Banks
· Jim Butcher
· Rachel Caine
· P. N. Elrod
· Esther M. Friesner
· Lori Handeland
· Charlaine Harris
· Sherrilyn Kenyon
· Susan Krinard

Shape-shifters, wizards, and magic, oh my!

My main reason for picking up this short story collection was so that I continue working my way through Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series. An unfortunate side effect is that I am pretty sure I read something out of order for the Harry Dresden series, but what can you do really? I am not 100% sure if some of the other stories were parts of series as well because that will really knock my "only read a series in order" mantra around a bit as well!

In Spellbound by L A Banks, the Hatfields and the McCoys have been feuding for generations, "working roots on each other, casting evil spells, dabblin' in hoodoo". When Odelia Hatfield and Jefferson McCoy fall in love, the one thing that can be guaranteed at the wedding is problems! It doesn't really help that the wedding was something of a surprise to all parties who thought they were coming to town to celebrate individuals graduations!

L A Banks is an author who I only ever seem to read in anthologies, but I do like her voice, and will maybe try to make an effort to read more of her longer books!

I really enjoy reading Jim Butcher's Dresden files stories, and Something Borrowed was no exception. Wizard Harry Dresden is a last minute replacement best man for his friend's wedding, but there just isn't quite something right about the bride! Once he puts his finger on what the issue is, it's a matter of life and death and Harry has to pull out all the stops to save the big day!

The only thing that was a bit annoying for the OCD in me, is that this story should be read between Dead Beat and Proven Guilty (books 7 and 8 in the series) and I am only up to book 3. I have previously read another short story out of order as well! Let it go Marg, let it go!

Dead Man's Chest by Rachel Caine was a really fun read. At first I was really confused at where the author was trying to take the story, but in the end I think this will be one of my favourites from the collection.

Cecilia couldn't believe her luck when romance cover model Ian Taylor fell for her. Only problem is that things are going a little bit fast for her when suddenly she is whisked onto an old style sailing ship to be married in what appears to be a ship wench outfit. Turns out there is something strange about the crew, and suddenly Ian doesn't seem to be quite the catch either. Lots of fun.

All Shook Up by P N Elrod was another fun read. Frankie is catering at a celebrity wedding reception when she is completely shocked to see that the entertainment is a VERY good Elvis impersonator. Whilst she is an excellent caterer, she also has another gift - seeing the future, and she is not sure that she likes what she sees, but Elvis seems to be doing a good job of distracting her for now! Another author that I only seem to read in anthologies. Last time I reviewed one I said I can definitely see myself reading more by this author. Same still applies - I just need to get around to starting a whole book by her.

If there was one story in this collection that didn't really work for me, it was Esther M Friesner's The Wedding of Wylda Serene. There haven't been many events held at the exclusive Club, basically because absolutely anything could, and has happened. It is therefore something of a surprise when the local darling, Wylda Serene insists that she must get married there, especially when no one seems to have met the lucky man yet. Whilst I did enjoy the premise, and think that it is one that the author could have a lot of fun with (who couldn't have fun with a bunch of ancient and trouble making Greek Gods), I don't think I really got the mother-of-the-bride-zilla moments enough to be able save this story from being meh!

Lori Handeland seems to be yet another author that I only read in anthologies, and yet I liked the last story I read from her featuring characters from her Jager-Sucher series. In this story, Charmed by the Moon, Jessie and Will are about to get married when they find a love charm that has been hidden amongst their belongings. This leads them to question whether they are really in love or if they have been manipulated, and by whom?

Tacky by Charlaine Harris is set in the same world as the Sookie Stackhouse books, but Sookie isn't one of the characters. This short story examines what might possibly happen if a vampire decides to marry a werewolf. The main character is neither bride nor groom, but the bridesmaid. She also has to figure out what the bridesmaid's role in the wedding is meant to be, with a special focus on not ending up with a bridesmaid dress that looks tacky! There is also the fact that not everyone on either side is comfortable with this union, which leads to some problems on the big day, and then there is also the opinions of regular humans that might well get in the way as well.

A Hard Day's Night-Searcher by Sherrilyn Kenyon was the reason I read this book, and was in itself an okay story. It certainly didn't blow my mind though. Rafael Santiago's squire Jeff is a bit of a problem. He has published a story where he has changed the names, but other than that he has basically written about the Dark Hunter world, and now the top squires want to see him. They send Celina to pick up Jeff, but Rafael manages to stall by offering her a deal - he can get her to break the Squire within a week if she has to stay with him.

"...Or Forever Hold Your Peace" by Susan Krinard, was more a mystery than a romance, but I would love to read more set in this world. It is set in a alternate Victorian style world called Albion, where all the best families pass on not only land and treasures but also paranormal Talents. At the key moment in the wedding of Lady Emma Wakefield and Lord Edward Parish, a stranger bursts into the wedding and objects to the union. As he runs away from the wedding, he is killed. The next day, the bride goes missing and it is up to Lady Olivia Dowling and her friend, Kit Meredith, to figure out how those two events are connected. I really liked Olivia and Kit as a couple and you could easily see something more developing between the two characters.

Chill Factor by Rachel Caine

In Rachel Caine's Ill Wind and Heat Stroke, Weather Warden extraordinaire Joanne Baldwin, who protects the human race from monster storms, was killed, reborn as a Dijinn, and then restored to her original form. She's been through a lot - and stuck her neck out many times - to save innocent lives. Now she's rolling the dice to stop an infinitely powerful, deeply disturbed kid from destroying the world....

A teenager named Kevin has holed up in style at a Vegas hotel with the most powerful Dijinn in the world, planning who knows what kind of mischief. The Wardens' senior leadership is dead, Djinn are disappearing, and a secret society wants to help Joanne destroy Kevin, even if doing so kills her (again). But everybody in Vegas has a game going, and Joanne has to learn the rules fast because the stakes have never been higher - and all hell is about to break loose....

In this one, Joanne finds herself in Las Vegas, location of a terrible event in her past, and it seems that those events are about to come together with current events, leaving Joanne stuck in the middle of a dangerous situation!

Caine is really good at putting her main character into very dangerous situations, and then having to extricate her again. Not only does Joanne have to worry about whether the Wardens are going to catch up with her, and perhaps permanently alter her forever, but there is also a new group who have entered the fray, known as Ma'at, who believe that the Wardens are completely corrupted. Unfortunately they're not exactly on Joanne's side either.

When I read this I quite enjoyed it, but it was so long ago now that I can't say much more than that! I guess the thing is about this series, is that I like it.....but I don't love it! I'm not quite sure what it is that I am waiting to happen, but there's just something that stops the series from being a Must Read Right This Minute kind of series.

I was interested to see exactly where one thing that has happened with Joanne will go in this book, but I'm sure all will be revealed in the next book, which I have sitting here on my shelf ready to go.

Rating 4/5

Heat Stroke by Rachel Caine

Please note that there is a Spoiler for the first book in this series (Ill Wind) in the synopsis and throughout the review

Accused of murder, Weather Warden Joanne Baldwin was chased across the country - and killed - by a team charged with hunting down rogue Wardens.

Five days later, Joanne had a lovely funeral and was posthumously cleared of all charges. Her human life was over, but she had been reborn into Dijinnhood. Now, until she masters her enhanced powers, Joanne must try to avoid being claimed by a human. But when a hazard that only a Dijinn could sense infiltrates Earth's atmosphere, Joanne must somehow convince someone to do something about it or the forecast will be deadly.

So who said being all-powerful was going to be easy?

This is the second book in the Weather Warden series after Ill Wind, and the story takes up practically where it left off at the end of that book.

Joanne has been reborn as a Dijinn - kind of. It turns out that the really lovely David has made her into a Dijinn by drawing off some of his own power. What a guy! That now means that they are able to have a look at all the strange stuff that is going on in the atmosphere. What is it? Where does it come from? And is there anyway to stop it?

Then there is also the matter of Dijinn training and not getting claimed by a different Warden and therefore losing her freedom and autonomy. Joanne has only a short time to learn enough to keep her alive, which isn't going to be easy in itself seeing as it seems as though a couple of the big men in dijinnhood aren't exactly fond of her.

Whilst this book was still entertaining,including some very funny moments, and the author does a great job of setting up the story for the next book, I struggled with this a bit compared to Ill Wind....amazing how hard it is to read properly when you had no sleep the night before! And now I can't remember what it is that kept me up all night. Oh wait...yes I can. Hmmm.

Overall I am giving this one a slightly lower grade - not sure if it is because I was too overtired to comprehend, or if it was the book. Either way, I will be continuing to read this series going forward.

Rating 3.5/5

Ill Wind by Rachel Caine

Joanne Baldwin is a Weather Warden. Usually, all it takes is a wave of her hand to tame the most violent weather. But now, she's trying to outrun another kind of storm: accusations of corruption and murder. So, she's resorting to the very human tactic of running for her life...

Her only hope is Lewis, the most powerful warden known. Unfortunately, he's stolen not one but three bottles of Djinn-making him the most wanted man on earth. Still, she's racing hard to find him-before the bad weather closes in fast...

I am sooo far behind on my reviews you wouldn't believe it!! When you add that fact to the fact that I don't seem to be able to do any formatting, spell checking, adding pictures (fortunately I had added the picture for quite a few of my outstanding reviews including this one before the change was made), anything at all in blogger...except type really.....it means that I am kind of distracted. If this continues, I might also need to brush up on my HTML skills....Uh-oh! It is a shame to be losing focus on this book a little, because not only was this a very enjoyable introduction to a new series that I am definitely planning to keep on reading, this was also book number 200 for the year for me!!

My reading goals for this year were to read 200 books, of which 25 needed to be books that I already owned at the beginning of this year. Whilst I have managed the 200 books with room to spare, I am not sure that I am doing quite so well on the 25 off of the shelf....I actually have only read 11. A while ago my plan was to reach 200, and then concentrate on reading some that meet the already owned criteria, but there are just so many other books that I want to read before the end of the year that I don't think I am going to make it!

Anyway, enough about that! Perhaps I should post something about this book!

Joanne Baldwin is on the run. She has been accused of the murder of one of the most powerful weather wardens in the world, and unless she can get help she is very quickly going to find herself either stripped of all her powers and a shadow of her former self, or really really dead! Joanne believes that help in this case will come in the form of Lewis, the single most powerful warden, but finding him means driving cross country, with not only her fellow weather wardens chasing her, but the storms themselves closing in on her. Then she picks up a sexy hitchhiker who seems to be too good to be true. Is it possible that he is the answer to her prayers, or is he really just as he seems.

This was an action packed read - not only are there the paranormal elements, but when the very weather is against you, what hope is there! I liked Joanne as a character. She was quite feisty and she was prepared to fight. It would seem that in some way she has some issues in relation to her judgement calls, but there would be no story otherwise! I have to say, without spoiling anything, the ending was a really big surprise to me, and gave the series additional longevity I think.

This is definitely a series that I plan to continue reading....I already have the next one out of the library to get to eventually.

Rating 4/5