Good Books.

I love reading books. However, I cannot read all the time. If a book is good, I get sucked in and can't put it down. I love good books, but they tend to ruin my productivity; I have to wait for specific times of year to allow myself to be absorbed by a good book.

From here.

During exam break in January, I got completely engrossed in Deborah Harkness' A Discovery of Witches. I'm not really a vampires kind of girl, but this book completely blew me away. First off, the protagonist is a science historian (history of science being my favorite subject) which meant I pretty much wanted to be her, and secondly, the fantastic elements were presented in a very believable and accessible way. I started reading the novel around 8 pm, and didn't look at a clock until 2 am when I decided I needed to pee. If you like a little romance, a little history, a little suspense, and a little science mixed in with some magic, this book is all that and more. The science parts could get a little overwhelming if you aren't well versed (the male lead is a vampire/geneticist) and the history very detailed (I found myself going to wikipedia a couple times afterwards to remind myself which one Christopher Marlowe was again...) but that only adds to the book; at no point does any of this feel dumbed down. My only problem with the book is that it is the first of a trilogy - I have no idea how I am going to wait until July for part 2!

From here.

A couple of days ago, I got sucked into another book. This one I'd intended to last me all of Spring Break, but once I started reading, I could not stop and ended up reading the whole thing in one sitting. The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern, is also a suspenseful fantasy-romance, but from a different angle. The magic in this novel takes a different form from A Discovery of Witches supernatural; the protagonists are illusionists whose illusions are real. I loved the descriptions of the scenery, clothing, and acts in the traveling circus that forms the main setting for the novel. I found some of the characters under-developed, and the ending a bit weak (everything ended a bit too well tied together, and certain plot points left unexplained... things also seem to be set up for a possible sequel?) but it was a delicious read. The romance is not overwhelming (the lovers pretty much don't meet until half way through the book) but the narrative jumps around from different points of view, and different points in time. This book would not be for everyone (if you're not a fan of fantasy, I wouldn't go near it with a 10-foot pole) but it was a great bit of escape-ism. Just what Spring Break called for.

For the rest of Spring Break, I also picked up Bill Bryson's At Home, which hopefully will last me a bit longer.