Boomp ba-da-ba-da

I'm watching The Stand right now. It's the final part. I forgot how good (and corny) the movie is. And how incredibly ridiculous the floating Mother Abigail head is at the end. The montage of fallen survivors, though, I like. I LOVED Rob Lowe in this movie. I was in love with him for a long time (well, his character, more like it).

I read Shaun Jeffrey's DeadFall today. Took me all of an hour. It's amazing how easy it is to zone out while you're tramping away on a treadmill at a +10 incline. I love my ebook reader because I don't have to hold it open while trying to hang on to the top of blasted treadmill so I don't bounce off backwards at a steep incline.

Anyway, the book is awesome. It's a little heavy on the Resident Evil similarities, but it's good nonetheless. Since writing an original zombie novel is impossible, the true test of merit is in retelling the same old story, and how a writer can make it their own. Shaun definitely succeeded, even if Amber Redgrave reminded me quite a bit of Claire Redfield. I definitely recommend it. Shaun's writing voice is very engaging and you'll be captivated by the story very quickly. It's an easy, fun read. Go buy it! I don't have a buy-now link, so go to his website and check him out. http://www.shaunjeffrey.com/

I also finished Jill Marie Landis's novel, Heart of Stone. It's an inspirational historical romance. Pretty good. I enjoyed it. It's about a former prostitute who has turned her life around and made something of herself. She's content until the local preacher-man starts sniffing around. She's terrified of her past catching up with her and she's determined not to let her past tarnish his future. Landis's writing is beautiful--very flowing and smooth. She has a talent for description and characterization. I especially liked Laura's (the heroine) attitude toward Brand's (the hero) kids. She wasn't all motherly and mushy-gushy.

The book stalled for a little while in the middle. I felt like Laura just needed to suck it up and get over her hard-heartedness a little quicker. It got old after a while and I was getting antsy for some interaction between the hero and heroine that wasn't Laura completely rebuffing Brand's attentions. Other than that, it's a GREAT book and I recommend it! Her website is http://jillmarielandis.com/

If you're a fan of dark speculative fiction, horror movies, music, art, and books, check out www.pretty-scary.net. It's a place for women in horror, run by women in horror. We're there to support and encourage women in a genre that's dominated by our male counterparts. We rock, basically. YOu'll love us! Stop by and hang out on the forums for a while. You'll find some new friends, I promise! MEN are welcome--but if we get a whiff of excess testosterone, we won't hesitate to go feminist on your ass! Love us, support us, enjoy us, but RESPECT us!