Ins and Outs: February and March

Spoilers and Nuts has been very sparse in updates lately - I have said before that the new job takes much of my time, and the truth is that when I get home my head is so mushy that I do very little (to say nothing of my eyes, that after hours spent staring at a screen itch and ache and water at will). And so there was no Ins and Outs in February, and almost no reviews in March. That doesn't mean I haven't been getting more books and reading, although the latter has also been going a bit more slowly.

But here are the books I got and read in the last 2 months.

Ins

Bought

February

• El mapa del tiempo [The Map of Time] by Félix J. Palma *already read, but now I have my own copy!*
• Mi nombre es Jamaica [My name is Jamaica] by José Manuel Fajardo
• A storm of swords by George R. R. Martin
• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer

  

March

• Magic bites by Ilona Andrews
• Firebirds rising by Sharyn November and more
• Daughter of smoke and bone by Laini Taylor
• Fables. Vol. 2 : animal farm by Bill Willingham
• Breviário das más inclinações [Breviary of evil intents] by José Riço Direitinho

Bookmooch

March
Politically correct bedtime stories by James Finn Garner

Freebies

Won on a giveaway

February
Night reigns by Dianne Duvall
*Thanks to The Book Vixen and Dianne Duvall*

Gift

March
Mundo do fim do mundo [The world of the end of the world] by Luis Sepúlveda
Luis Sepúlveda was in Porto at the beginning of March, and my mum went to the book signing event and got me this book :)

Outs

February
The Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko [Review]


Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn
A rather sweet and fun book, lent by Jen7waters. I was surprised to like it as much as I did. Great as a fast read for when you need something sweet.

Rating: 4 out 5


The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker by Leanna Renee Hieber
I wanted to like this book, I really did. But the writing just didn't agree with me, and I didn't really care about what most of the characters where doing. I did like that it had some mythology in it, but overall, it was a bit disappointing.

Rating: 3 out of 5


Caravana [Caravan] by Rui Manuel Amaral
A collection of poetry and short fiction that I don't know where I got it from. Not my kind of read, and it felt too pretentious most of the times. Here and there I could find a turn of the phrase that I like, only to be followed either by a) the end, b) something that made no sense in any way, c) something vulgar, d) all of the above

Rating: 1.5 out of 5


The woman in black by Susan Hill
Also lent by Jen7waters, because I wanted to read it before going to see the movie. Not bad, but rather predictable. It does leave a eerie feeling.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5



Fullmetal alchemist. 7 by Hiromu Arakawa
The manga is still as good as the anime! 'Nuff said.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5


March
The Cloud Roads by Martha Wells
It took so long to read this (I blame it for being an ebook), but I'm glad I kept reading. Very cool worldbuilding, and a nice story. I will go on reading this series and this author!

Rating: 4 out 5


Politically correct bedtime stories by James Finn Garner
A collection of retelling of the famous fairy tales, now politically correct. At first it is rather fun, but then it gets repetitive.

Rating: 3.5 out 5


Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
Another that I wanted to read before going to see the movie (I have yet to see it). Reminded me a lot of Everything is Illuminated, although maybe not as wacky. At first I was loving it, both the story and the writing style. But as it went on I started to lose a bit of that love. Still, a good book, that really makes you think.

Rating: 4 out of 5


TBR change: +5 (From 220 to 225)

March Ins and Outs

March's Ins and Outs

Here is a long overdue post, but in my defense I wrote it quite a while ago, and managed to lose it between computers and thumb drives. I'm pretty sure the file will turn up once I finish up writing this.

March was the month I pick up the reading rhythm (Hurray!), although on the buying/mooching side it is pretty much the same - I might need to accept that I'm addicted to getting books. But on my defence they are mostly graphic novels, and once started, are gone in a flash.

And so, without further ado:

INs
Bookmooch
Although there are a lot of book here they came on just 2 packages - meaning I definitely tried to cut back on mooching, but decided to do it in bulk.

Volumes 1 to 6 of Full Metal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa
Ever since I watched the anime I wanted to read the manga, because hey, it's more of the same! Now I can start and see if I like it more than the anime.






The Riddle-master of Hed and Heir of Sea and Fire by Patricia A. McKillip
Books 1 and 2 of The Riddle-master trilogy. I want to figure out if I like Patricia A. McKillip or not. After reading Alphabet of Thorn I kind of liked the worldbuilding and the general idea but not the writing or the plot - it's kind of weird, really - so I'll give this author another try.

Bought (New)
Volume 2 of The Sandman - Doll's House by Neil Gaiman
I'm slowly making my way through this series - I've read Volume 1 and liked it. On other note, I found out that the Spanish edition of this is simply stunning (as with a lot of other graphic novels), that almost makes buy it (not reading, though).






Sunshine by Robin McKinley
Another author that I'm giving a second try - I read Deerskin and thought it was okay and kind of nice, and want to see if I can get more of a response from this one. Also, it has such a pretty cover (even if it's yellow). It has lots of spirals (I really like spirals) and it actually sparkles and glitters (and the irony that a book about vampires sparkles is not lost on me).







OUTs
Read books!
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
I spent most of February reading this one - actually I finished it on the 1st of March, which makes it a bit silly to appear here. I enjoyed this one a lot. You can find the review here.






The King's Wrath by Fiona McIntosh
I got this one from David Gemmell Award (as seen on the February Ins and Outs), so I started it as soon as I finished Jane Eyre.
Review






Sr. Bentley : O Enraba Passarinhos by Ágata Ramos Simões
This one was fast and amusing read. And also the first book I reviewed in Portuguese, as it world not really make much sense in English. Review in Portuguese here.





Valiant by Holly Black
I picked Valiant up, first because I wanted to read it, and second, because I thought a YA book might help me pick up rhythm. I wasn't wrong. I also loved this book which help a lot with speed - I was reading it anytime I had a chance - on the train, standing up and with very poor balance, while cooking, and...hmmm...while on the loo. Review in here.



The Princess & the Penis by R.J. Silver
This one was for free on GoodReads, so I downloaded it to my phone and read it at work when there was not much to do. Really amusing, and for a sort-of-parody, quite well written and with good messages. You can read it for free here.









TBR changes: +6 book - from 188 to 194 (it's frightening that I'm closing on 200 books to read)