Non-comfort reading

[girlyswot]

In preparation for the journey, I made a brief visit to Barnes and Noble this afternoon. While there, I took the courageous decision to read things I don't normally read. All my purchases thus came from the various genre aisles that I normally eschew in favour of 'fiction/literature'.

My first stop was Romance where I found 'The Spymaster's Lady' by Joanna Bourne. I've read bits of this on Absolute Write and liked it, and I think moonette1 also enjoyed it, so I have quite high hopes for that one.

Next, I took a deep breath, thought of rhetoretician and turned into the SF/F aisle. Scary! I know there are people who find bookshops in general to be scary and panic-inducing places and I suddenly found myself having a lot of sympathy for them. The only book I recognised was 'The Princess Bride'. Most of the books had covers so awful that I couldn't even bring myself to read the blurb. I kept imagining what these publishers might do to 'Anat'. Finally I saw a familiar name - Lois McMaster Bujold - and clung to it in relief. I know some of my flist read and enjoy her books and, if nothing else, I'll be able to read more of ankaret's stories. I wanted 'A Civil Campaign' because of the Heyer links but they didn't have it, so I got 'Young Miles' which I think is a compendium of three novels.

Breathing a deep sigh of relief, I went to more familiar territory - the Crime section. I found an Amelia Peabody I haven't read and I was very pleased to also find 'Die for Love' which girlspell had recommended. I shall enjoy imagining stmargarets among all the romance writers.

I'll probably slip in a couple of ankaret's M&B's too. So now I'm all set. Well, I still have to pack...

Comments

[alkari.livejournal.com]

Glad you survived bookstore experience *hands over large box of chocolates for recovery*

Personally, I can deal with the various covers in the SF/F sections - it is the Romance aisle which I find truly terrifying and which I avoid like the plague. On the rare occasion I have had to venture there, it is all I can do to steel myself for the experience! Bullets and bloodstains in the Crime aisle are far less frightening than the heaving bosoms and supposedly handsome hunks of M&B ...

[girlspell.livejournal.com]

Yay...sound like some good ones. Which Peabody? You will LOVE Die for Love. That book has been around for a long time. I was afraid it would go out of print.

I would feel the same in the Romance section. Totaly lost. I would see hundreds of authors I've seen in the library..but never read. In fact, somethings went over my head in Die For Love. I didn't get the joke.

[owl]

The Sf/F is my comfort aisle :)

Ooooh, a possibly Bujold convert! I really think you'll like them. _Young Miles_ is laugh-out-loud hilarious, and touching and sad. If you don't like teenage Miles, go back ad try _Cordelia's Honour_, which is about his mother. Save ACC till the end, the payoff will be better.

[moonette1.livejournal.com]

Yes, I did enjoy The Spymaster's Lady. And it takes place in the Regency period, so maybe you'll see some good, historical stuff you'll find useful for your own story, or get some wheels turning.

Have a safe trip.

[ankaret.livejournal.com]

I do hope you like Bujold. I think you're right to start with the SF ones rather than the fantasies, which can be a bit of an acquired taste.

[grandma-kate.livejournal.com]

Safe Journey! You will be a great comfort to your Mum and Gran.

[stmargarets.livejournal.com]

Safe travels and happy reading! *hugs*

[crumplehornedki.livejournal.com]

If I'd known you were scared by the Sci Fi section I would have recommended you get The Eight by Katherine Neville which is a nice way to ease in as it isn't really out there. Plus it has two links to harry Potter, it's written by a Neville and is about chess (kinda)

Have as nice a trip as you can.

[rhetoretician.livejournal.com]

Regrettably, most SFF publishers have hideous taste in book covers. I have read wonderful novels whose dust jackets make me think of bad comic strips.

...On the other hand, most of the covers of Romance novels make me want to laugh out loud. What's to be done?

(...I do love that "edit comment" function...)

[tdu000.livejournal.com]

*TDU scratches head, trying to remember whether she has ever wandered down a sci-fi aisle, even by accident. Thinks, probably not!* I must have really limited reading habits because I hardly ever read crime or romance (other than Georgette Heyer) either.

I hope you enjoy your reading and that you have as good a trip home as possible under the circumstances.

[dogstar101.livejournal.com]

I did a similar thing recently i.e. bought a crime novel. First one since I burned through Agatha Christie' entire oeuvre as a kid. Ruth Rendell's first novel, if you're interested. Sci Fi doesn't frighten me. Romance aisle though? *ph4r*

Best wishes and hugs for a safe journey.