Legos and books

I saw this link over at Dear Author and just have to share, because it combines one of the things that has been all over my life this last week with my daughter's birthday, with my favorite thing in the world: Legos and books!

With the release of the Lego movie, the staff at Waterstones created famous scenes from books with Legos to put on display. Some of these are just so much fun, especially Pride and Prejudice. Go check it out!

A Three Dog Life by Abigail Thomas

One of the first books I finished this year as part of my annual reading challenge was a memoir from 2006 called A Three Dog Life by Abigail Thomas. The title and blurb are misleading. It's not really about dogs, nor is it truly about her husband and the tragic, random accident that left him with severe brain trauma. This is about Abby, a woman with children and grandchildren, settled in her ways, learning how to live and cope with the reality of being married to a man she both recognizes and doesn't, how to cope with loss and change, without losing herself in the process.

It was stunning.

The prose is simple and clean, very fast and easy to read in that respect, and yet there are observations scattered throughout the book that made me both love and hate her ease with words. She writes in present tense, using a non-linear method that in many ways is indicative of the way her husband's brain works. His injuries have taken away his past, as well as made his behavior erratic, so without being able to remember anything for more than five minutes (seemingly, some incidents are startlingly  insightful and a little eerie), he lives in the now. The author recreates that in her voice, her anecdotes jumping around from then to now to when she got the second dog, the first.

It won't be everybody's cup of tea. The key is most likely that you have to like and identify with Abby just a little bit in order to appreciate it best. She is funny and sad and insightful and very, very human, which means she is also a little bit selfish and harshly honest about her own fallibility. It also doesn't ever really resolve much of anything, because let's face it, life doesn't do that most of the time.

But I didn't care. I loved it.        

The ultimate product placement movie

So my family and I went to see the Lego movie over the weekend, much like a lot of other people in the US if the sales figures are accurate. It was my daughter's birthday weekend, and she's been clamoring to see it ever since we saw the first trailer. When that was what she wanted more than anything else, I could hardly say no to all of us going.

And...I liked it. True to form, a lot of the really funny bits are in the trailers, but I laughed out loud in quite a few places, and I walked out of the theater with a smile on my face. A big part of that is because of the last fifteen minutes, which were both quite clever and obvious after the fact. It's frenetic and loud and bright, but that's half the point, and for essentially being a feature-long commercial for Legos, manages to do so without being too annoying.

Except for that damn "Everything Is Awesome" song. It was cute the first time. But my family is still singing it a day later and it's driving me crazy.

I'm not so sure it's as smart as everybody keeps saying. I've seen smarter satire, but for a kids' movie, it works well. The absolute best part of the movie is that there are a ton of teeny surprises in it that made me squeal in delight. Details that don't really have much to do with the story but play up to the kid who grew up with Legos in all of us.

Did you see it? What did you think?

One week to my release!

Only one week until Enthralled in Silver comes out! I'm getting excited about it to say the least. I'm going to be doing a giveaway when it happens, a beautiful sterling silver Celtic triquetra necklace that's much like the silver emblem my boys need to wear:

Isn't it pretty? But more on that when the story comes out, though.

In the meantime, I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

My new Fitbit

I caved to what all my friends are doing. I bought myself a Fitbit.

Spending so much time on the computer means I have to force myself to move sometimes, and I'm hoping this is going to help. After talking to everyone and getting their insight, I ended up getting the basic zip one. I don't need a device to tell me how I'm sleeping. I know that all too well.

I'm on day one, so it's too early for me to have much of an opinion except that the hardest part so far was putting the thing together. I ended up passing over all five pieces to my husband (the holder, the device, the battery, a black thing that ended up being to open the back of the device, and the clear plastic piece that it came in), and making him put it together. I'm curious about your experiences, though. Who's had success with a Fitbit? Who's had frustrations? Share!

Almost Human

So who out there is watching Almost Human? I've been getting caught up on it and really enjoying it so far. It's got a ton of things going for it, like:

• Karl Urban. I would watch this man in anything. I love his wry tone and he's hot as hell.
• Lili Taylor. I know she's worked steadily in TV for the past fifteen years, but never in something that I actually watched, but I have loved, loved, loved her since Mystic Pizza and Say Anything came out. She was One of Us, not the prom queen who got all the boys but the funny or the smart one--and often both--who made you cheer right along with her. Her Captain Maldonado is nuanced and intriguing. I love what they're doing with her so far.
• Michael Ealy. I saw him in Last Vegas playing Morgan Freeman's son right before Almost Human aired, and spent the whole movie trying to figure out why the man looked so familiar. Oops. His acting is capable enough, but right now, I'm watching him for the pretty. Because look at him!

• The banter. The chemistry between Ealy and Urban, as well as their banter (especially when they're stuck in the car together), is fun and off the charts. I've laughed a lot with this show, which is always a good sign.
• Mackenzie Crook. His character might be a stereotype, but I love the chance to see him doing something smart.

Are you watching? What do you think?

Release Date!!!

I got the release date for my m/m/f menage, Enthralled in Silver, over the weekend. And it is...

FEBRUARY 14!

How is that for perfect? Valentine's Day for my hot, romantic menage. I couldn't have picked a better date myself.

To read the blurb and an early excerpt, head over to Ellora's Cave and check it out!