I’ve actually been reading quite a lot lately, but two titles really stood out to me. The first was Morrigan’s Cross, the latest effort from uber-author Nora Roberts. It seems that she writes a mass market trilogy every year (last year it was the In the Garden trilogy, featuring Blue Dahlia, Black Rose, and Red Lily). This season she brings us the Circle trilogy, of which Morrigan’s Cross is the first. It is the tale of Lilith, an ancient and powerful vampire determined to destroy the world. In an effort to stop her, the goddess Morrigan recruits six people from different places and times to form an army. Each recruit brings a special skill: Hoyt, a powerful sorcerer from the past; his twin brother Cian, who was long ago turned by Lilith; Glenna, a present-day witch; Moira, a princess and scholar from the mythical land of Geall, and her cousin Larkin, a warrior and shape-shifter. Last to arrive is Blair, a tough demon fighter with Buffyesque sensibilities. This first part of the trilogy brings the fighters to Ireland, where they begin their training for the upcoming battle. Of course, the story isn’t all about war; it wouldn’t Nora Roberts without love. In the midst of all the fighting, Hoyt and Glenna find tenderness and passion; Roberts handles it deftly, making it both romantic and sexy. The remaining books in the series, Dance of the Gods and Valley of Silence, will be released at the beginning and end of October, respectively. I’m looking forward to them.

I also just finished New Moon, Stephenie Meyer’s sequel to the best-selling Twilight. If you’ve read Twilight, you know that it’s the tale of star-crossed lovers: Bella, a teenage girl, and Edward, the vampire who both loves her and who is dangerously drawn to her blood. New Moon opens with an incident that convinces Edward that Bella will never be safe with him; he ruthlessly breaks her heart and leaves her, promising that she will never see him again. His departure leaves Bella in a near-catatonic state; it is months before she can function again. She finds solace in her friend Jacob, and the two of them begin to form a powerful bond. Just as Bella begins to wonder whether she can live happily without Edward, all hell breaks loose: Jacob transforms into something dangerous, and becomes remote and withdrawn. Bella simultaneously discovers that Edward is determined to end his own existence and must do all that she can to save him. Her actions place her in the middle of two powerful and opposing factions, and she must struggle to save both her relationship with Edward and her friendship with Jacob. I won’t reveal whether Bella’s wish to become a vampire is granted, but I will tell you that Meyer has planned at least two more novels in the series, as well as a companion to Twilight, which tells the same story from Edward’s perspective. Delicious.

I just finished two very interesting books by British author Chris Wooding. Not only does he have fantastic writing skills, but he is only two years older than I am, and way more accomplished. On one hand, that kind of bums me out, but on the other, it gives me hope. People my age can be successful (and I’m talking success NOT of the Lindsay Lohan variety) and smart and talented…ooo, it’s almost too much to take in. Anyway, to the books.

The first was Poison, which falls into the fairy tale/fantasy stuff that I’ve been reading. It’s rather meta in a Hamletesque play-within-a-play sort of way, except this is obviously a book-within-a-book situation. In this tale we meet Poison, a sullen girl who lives with her family in a bleak and dangerous marsh. She is unhappy, but stuck with her life, until one morning the phaeries steal her baby sister away. Determined to rescue Azalea, Poison sets out to find the Phaerie Lord, and meets an interesting assortment of characters along the way: a bone eating witch, an evil fairy lord, a terrifying spider woman, a most unusual man, a scared young girl, and a very unnatural cat, among others. As she faces one trial after another, Poison comes to realize that the quest isn’t about Azalea at all; this is Poison’s story, and she holds the key to the whole adventure. A really cool read.

I followed it up with The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray, Wooding’s critically acclaimed gothic horror novel, which is being adapted into a film. Set in an alternate, 1900s-esque London, this is the story of a world gone wrong. Thaniel Fox is a young but accomplished wych-hunter, who seeks out and destroys the demons that haunt London’s streets. One night during his hunt, he discovers a beautiful, mad girl and feels compelled to bring her home. With the help of his friend Cathaline, Thaniel saves the Alaizabel from a fever, only to find that she is afflicted with something much, much worse. She brings out all of Thaniel’s protective feelings, and along with Cathaline and a motley assortment of London’s finest, he sets out to save Alaizabel and London from the grip of the Fraternity, a powerful, evil cult determined to unleash hell on earth. A little bit chilling, a lot gripping. I recommend it.

I’ve had Charles de Lint’s The Blue Girl sitting on my nightstand for more than a month, but I just couldn’t seem to get around to reading it. It first came onto my radar in March, when I heard it discussed at a Young Adult Fantasy session at PLA. Since I’d been reading "urban fantasy" books with teen protagonists, this made my list, and I finally managed to read it this weekend.

I can see why de Lint is so reknowned. This book has everything: ghosts, fairies, monsters, bullies, friendship, love…It was a pretty great read. The book is set in the fictional town of Newford, which de Lint has visited in more than one of his novels. It tells the tale of Imogene and Maxine, two high school girls who are social outcasts. Imogene is outgoing and strange, while Maxine is smart and controlled by her domineering mother. Recognizing kindred spirits within each other, the girls become best friends. But when Imogene’s reckless bravery captures the attention of the school ghost, he inadvertenly unleashes a world of trouble on the girls. "Aided" by a band of malicious fairies, the ghost accidentally siccs the soul-sucking anamithim on Imogene, and she and Maxine must use all their wits and courage, not to mention a little magic, to save themselves.

Patricia McKillip’s Solstice Wood is a slightly different sort of fantasy from what I’ve been reading lately. It’s such an unusual book, I’m not entirely sure how to describe it. In fact, I was probably about halfway through the book before I finally got a firm grasp on what was going on. Sylvia Lynn, who fled her childhood home seven years ago, has returned for her grandfather’s funeral. Summoned by her grandmother, Iris, Sylvia reluctantly returns to the town of Lynnwood, but hopes to make her visit a short one. Unfortunately, things begin to go wrong almost immediately; Iris is not what she seems, Iris’s close friend Owen is harboring a dangerous secret, Sylvia’s cousin Tyler is in desperate trouble, and Sylvia grandfather has willed to her the one thing she wants least: Lynn Hall, the estate where she was born. As Sylvia comes to terms with her grandmother’s secret identity and tries to rescue Tyler, she is forced to admit just exactly what she is and why she ran away so many years ago. A most unusual book.

As part of my quest to further explore the fantasy and horror genres, I just read Libba’s Bray’s duet A Great and  Terrible Beauty and Rebel Angels. Set in the late 1800s, they are the story of Gemma Doyle, a British girl raised in India, whose world is turned upside down when she begins experiencing disturbing visions at the exact moment of her mother’s murder. Sent by her father to a British boarding school, Gemma must contend with bratty classmates and a dreary roommate. However, she soon discovers a mysterious diary that tells the story of Mary Dowd and Sarah Rees-Toome, two former students who experienced visions like Gemma’s. Determined to find the two women and understand what is happening to her, Gemma begins to explore her power. She, along with three other students, seeks out the magic of the Realms, a mysterious world that was once controlled by a group of sorceresses called The Order. Heady with their newfound powers, the girls use their magic recklessly, but the consequences soon catch up with them. Gemma is being stalked by a mysterious group called The Rakshana, and eventually discovers her mother’s own terrible connection to The Order. But things turn even worse when Pippa, one of her friends, becomes trapped in the Realms, perhaps forever.

Rebel Angels picks up the story here; it is Chrismastime, and Gemma and her friends Felicity and Ann are spending the holidays in London. But their vacation will not be carefree; in addition to a whirlwind of balls and social engagements, the girls must restore order to the Realms, which have grown wild in the absence of the Order. Gemma must also contend with the attentions of the attractive Simon Middleton, her father’s depression and drug use, and the fate of her friend Pippa, who is still trapped in the Realms. She is also desperately trying to decipher the ravings of a madwoman who knows the secrets of the Realms, all the while dodging the ever-closing net of the evil witch Circe, who longs to take the magic for herself.

An intriguing pair. I’m curious to see whether Bray will make them a trilogy.

So, how many of you have ever toyed with the idea of writing a novel? My guess is a lot. I know I have. I’ve dreamed of writing a novel for years; and while I’m pretty sure I have the technical skill, I never seem to have any good, complete plot ideas. My husband has the opposite problem. His idea is so complete, so in-depth, I think it’s intimidating to try to write. It’s grown beyond his control.

Enter nanowrimo, which actually stands for National Novel Writing Month. Held every November, this is what it’s about:

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.
Valuing enthusiasm and perseverance over painstaking craft, NaNoWriMo is a novel-writing program for everyone who has thought fleetingly about writing a novel but has been scared away by the time and effort involved.
Because of the limited writing window, the ONLY thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It’s all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.
Make no mistake: You will be writing a lot of crap. And that’s a good thing. By forcing yourself to write so intensely, you are giving yourself permission to make mistakes. To forgo the endless tweaking and editing and just create. To build without tearing down.

This is especially cool for me, since my birthday is in November. Perhaps I’ll write a book as a present to myself.