G's Good Reads of 2017

It's that time of year again, folks. Christmas trees and decorations adorn our house, family and friends are visiting (or are being visited), and B has allowed my one post a year on "our" blog. She really is quite generous, don't you think? :)

So, the moment I know you've all been waiting for all year, the one blog post without which the year would not be complete: G's Good Reads of 2017. Without further ado, here they are, in no particular order.

1. Terra Incognita: The Edge of the World, by Kevin J. Anderson.

This one is a bit of a departure for me, as I'm not much for fantasy novels. The Edge of the World is the first book in Anderson's Terra Incognita trilogy, a sweeping, large-scale story about the religious and political conflict between the nations of Uraba and Tierra, both of whom are convinced that their particular interpretation of their shared faith is the only correct version (sound familiar?). There are many characters and many locations, but Anderson does a good job of weaving all the individual threads of the story together into a great tapestry. I listened to this one via Audible, and the narrator did an outstanding job portraying each of the characters.






2. Invasion Rabaul, by Bruce Gamble.

Most of us are probably somewhat familiar with at least the generalities of World War II's Pacific Theater: Pearl Harbor, Midway, the island fighting, the bombings of Japan. Invasion Rabaul focuses on a small portion of this conflict--specifically, the Australian garrison of Rabaul in the Southwest Pacific, the Japanese takeover of this strategic location in early 1942, and the Australians' fight to survive in the jungle while being hunted by the Japanese. Rabaul became a key logistics and operational base for the Japanese during the conflict in the Pacific, and Gamble does a fantastic job of illuminating this (to me) little-known theater of the war. This is also the first book of a trilogy; I've already read the second, Fortress Rabaul, and intend to finish the trilogy in 2018.


3. The Short Victorious War, by David Weber.

Weber continues to deliver in this, the third book in his Honor Harrington series. The People's Republic of Haven has decided that they need a "short, victorious war" to shore up their economic problems back home, and end up in a fight with Manticore in the process. Honor Harrington, now commander of a heavy cruiser, is (as usual) right in the middle of the action. I continue to thoroughly enjoy Weber's description of space combat, even if it is a real departure from other sci-fi stories like Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica. Weber always adds a good layer of political intrigue (and in this case some social/political commentary as well), which gives depth to the fleet engagements.





4. Abbadon's Gate, by James S.A. Corey.


The continuing adventures of James Holden and the crew of the Rocinante find them dealing with the fallout of the titanic events at the end of Caliban's War. Holden (haunted by a ghost from his past who drops obscure hints about what is going on and what it means) and a few new faces are confronted with a new situation that affects all of humanity and could either increase or relieve the pressure between Earth, Mars, and the Belt. I know this all sounds vague, but this is a good series and I'm really trying not to drop any spoilers. If it sounds interesting, start at the beginning with Leviathan Wakes.







5. Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942, by Ian W. Toll.

It never ceases to surprise me how much I think I know about World War II, and how little I actually know. While I feel that I have a good handle on the Pacific conflict, Pacific Crucible illuminated and connected some events in ways that I had never considered. While the main focus of this book is on the actual combat between the attack on Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Midway, Toll also delves into the Japanese political and military situation that led to the Japanese attack on U.S., British, Australian, and Dutch holdings throughout the Pacific in December 1941. This is another book that I listened to via Audible, and again the narration was top-notch. In particular, Toll's description of the fight at Midway is superb, and had me on the edge of my driver's seat several times (even though I know how it ends). This is the first book in a planned trilogy; I plan to read (or listen to) the second book, The Conquering Tide, in 2018, and the third book is coming out later in 2018.




There you have it! My good reads for 2017. In 2018, I'm looking forward to finishing Gamble's Rabaul trilogy, advancing the story in The Expanse series and the Honor Harrington series, and trying to finish the Temeraire series. Oh, and the next Gaunt's Ghosts book is finally here--The Warmaster, by Dan Abnett. Definitely need to see where Abnett is taking the Tanith First-and-Only in this latest adventure.

Happy New Year!

When GRLZ Weekend Meets BOYZ Weekend

We've left the family behind and are now with friends! This is our Christmas gift to ourselves that keeps on giving! You know you're with friends when they pretend they're still listening while you remind them - maybe for the 4th or 5th time - about your first class experience.

You've read about our GRLZ and BOYZ Weekends before, but the last time the four of us were together at the same time was, I dunno, years and years ago.

I would love to regale you with all the stories of our exciting adventures, but the truth is that we spend an inordinate amount of time in our pj's, coffee (or wine) in hand, staring at the tree.

Meet Virgil the sloth. He's our spirit animal this weekend, and, if I'm being honest, most of the rest of my life.

The guys may or may not be playing XBox all the time. I don't really know where they went. I looked up from the latest episode of The Crown and noticed they're not here, so... 

Here's to spending the rest of 2017 in style. More soon, my friends. These pj's are so comfy...

Best Christmas Present Ever

First Class

So.

I think it's fair to say that while there are still many, many countries and locations on our Travel Bucket List, we've pretty much seen all there is to see transport-wise. We've done subways and ships and jets and cars and taxis and buses and safaris and hot air balloons and gliders and hiking tours and trains (and high-speed trains!) and bicycle tours and sleigh rides and, once, an ill-fated mule ride down some sea cliffs.

But. We're staying with G's family for Christmas and guess how we got here? We flew FIRST CLASS!

Now, that was a new experience. And we did it on the United Dream Liner because, hey, if you're gonna do it, do it right. We don't mess around.

We alternate between calling this our first class flight and our photo shoot because, well, we took quite a few pics. And honestly this post is redundant because I've texted you guys most of these already, but, oh let's look just once more. Shall we?

This would be my Prosecco. PRE-FLIGHT.

Um, please don't interrupt this celebrity while she tries to read, thanks.

Can you even see my feet? Way, way down there? On a FOOT REST?

 

During the final boarding phase (for the plebes, not for us, we had been seated, comfortably, for a while) when the pilots and crew went through the final pre-flight checks, when I usually begin my "pleaseGods," I was, instead, deciding which of the many reclining positions I wanted to try out first.

I mean, look at these options!

 

You guys. We had dinner. On like actual plates, and drinks in real glasses. I was like, am I on Singapore Airlines again?? This is the delish white wine that I had with dinner. Oh, yeah. I did it. I did it.

G was all, this may or may not be more comfortable than our bed...

Our seats were so far apart that we had to LEAN IN to talk to each other. It was so, so nice. I don't know how I'm going to back to *real* life again. And *real* travel. This was a one-time deal.

Our flight back, though, is in economy-plus, to help ease the transition.

The Requisite Wall Staring

Hello, loves. I bid a sweet and joyful adieu to the fall 2017 semester. Grades are submitted; I aced both my final literature classes; I survived another semester as a writing consultant. Time to stare at the wall and binge Netflix like the good introvert that I am.

Showdown at the Christmas Corral...

It seems that every semester I end up taking on odd jobs - grading for the Film department, TA'ing various classes for the English department - and this one was no different. I ended up as the Research Assistant for a new faculty member who's working on a book. It was a great opportunity and I ended up asking him to be on my graduate thesis advising committee!

Ahem. Which is next semester. "All" I have to do is write my MA thesis and put together my teaching portfolio. I've spent the last few weeks brainstorming about my topic and nailing down my committee members, and I'm going to use this break to do research and focus my ideas a bit.

My absolute favorite holiday pic this season.

We haven't done many of the traditional Christmas things - life just took over. No German Christmas Market, no driving around looking at the lights, no special dates or productions. We've been in survival mode and I have to say, it's enough just to stare at the wall and enjoy a break from the hectic pace.

I did manage to deep clean the library over Thanksgiving break. And I mean deep clean. I weeded out and organized all my books, arranged them, bought two new shelves (the ones on the floor under the bay window, behind the tree) and made two trips to Goodwill. It looks like actual adults live in the house now.

Also, like all of my students this semester enrolled in my Comp II class next semester. It's precious and I love them all and now apparently I have to up my game because they survived the first round. So. There's that.

We've got some adventures coming up in the next few days (no big trips - lower your expectations) and some silly times that I must tell you about. Meanwhile, I'm chain-reading books for fun. 'Tis the season.