Staff Review: The Raven Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt

I hesitated before writing this review. The Raven Prince, Elizabeth Hoyt's first novel, was originally published in 2006, so I feel like I'm a little late to the party. Plus, it's a romance novel. A very steamy romance novel. No really, I'm blushing a little bit as I type this. The chemistry between the main characters is intense, and things do eventually get rather graphic, after quite a lot of longing glances.

There's also some delightful banter, and some creative profanity, as the two misfits stumble their way towards Happily Ever After. Mrs. Anna Wren is an incredibly proper and respectable widow, whose finances are becoming increasingly desperate. Edward de Raaf, the Earl of Swartingham, is the explosive, pockmarked, long absent lord of Ravenhill Abbey. His unexpected return has the Little Battleford gossips whispering, and they only get louder when Anna takes a position as Swartingham's secretary, an unheard of career for a woman in 1760.

Add in a vividly drawn cast of supporting characters, a fast-paced plot that manages to be clever instead of contrived, and fun nods to other favorites, and it's easy to see how I found myself up until 3 a.m. so that I could finish this book in one sitting. A book that opens with a variation on the meeting of the scene where Jane meets Rochester in Jane Eyre was bound to be one I either loved or hated. I'm happy to say that The Raven Prince charmed me completely, and it's taking all my will power not to go on an immediate Elizabeth Hoyt reading binge.


~Sarah, Adult Services

Staff Review: Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

I don't read a lot of speculative fiction, I usually go for more urban fiction or fantasy.  I saw a plug for Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer on some review site I was reading (I honestly can't tell you which one at this point) and thought "hey, that looks interesting".  When I checked out the book I was excited to see that it is only 195 pages long.  From what I could tell this book takes place is some sort of dystopian future.  As with most dystopian stories, something happened that isn't really explained, causing weird things to occur. In this book, the weird thing is actually an area.

Area X has been cut off from the rest of the continent for decades. Nature has reclaimed the land and human civilization in Area X has disappeared. Expeditions have been sent to try and figure out what happened, and is continuing to happen. The first expedition returned with reports of a pristine, Eden like landscape; all the members of the second expedition committed suicide; the third expedition members turned on one another and died in a hail of gunfire; the members of the eleventh expedition returned as shadows of their former selves, and within months of their return, all had died of aggressive cancer.

Annihilation is the story of the twelfth expedition.  This group is made up of four women, a psychologist, a surveyor, an anthropologist, and our narrator, a biologist.  Their mission is to the map the terrain, collect samples, and record all of their observations in journals. They are dispatched with what amounts to primitive tools, a camera, and a few guns for protection.  They have no way of communicating with anyone outside of Area X.  Even though they arrive expecting the unexpected, nothing could prepare them for the reality of Area X. 

This novel is based on the biologist first person account of the expedition.  Vandermeer never gives you the names of the expedition members. They are just referred to by their job titles.  Initially that was a little disconcerting,  I really wanted to know names.   By the end of the book, I didn't care.  Names weren't important.  The writing style is vivid with descriptions of colors and sounds.  But everything that happens seems so other-worldly, almost dream-like.  I couldn't put this book down!  I wanted to know what was going on.  What happened to to create Area X?  What happened to the other expeditions?  Why would people still volunteer to go on these expeditions when they all seem to end badly?  What is Southern Reach?  Some of these questions were answered, many more were not.  Be warned, this book is creepy.  Not bump-in-the-night creepy, but unsettling creepy. 

Annihilation is the first in the Southern Reach trilogy.  The second book, Authority, is due out in May, the third, Acceptance, in September.  I can't wait to read them both. If you want to dip your toe into speculative fiction give Annihilation a shot.  It is short, suspenseful, intriguing, and leaves you wanting more. 

~ Amy, Adult Services

Little Wolves - 2014 All Iowa Reads selection

Founded in 2002, the Iowa Center for the Book established  the All Iowa Reads Program in 2003.  The purpose is to foster a sense of unity through reading.  Each year Iowans statewide are encouraged to come together in their communities to read and talk about a single book title.

The titles are chosen by a committee and are based on the following criteria:

• Raise universal social issues relevant to Iowans
• Lend itself to sustained, spirited, and in-depth discussion
• Be accessible to adults and high school aged youth
• Be available by January 1st of the selection year in paperback, unabridged audio, large print and/or downloadable eBook

The 2014 All Iowa Reads Selection is Little Wolves by Thomas Maltman.

Set on the Minnesota prairie in the late 1980s during a drought season that's pushing family farms to the brink, Little Wolves features the intertwining stories of of a father searching for answers after his son commits a heinous murder, and a pastor's wife (and washed-out scholar of early Anglo-Saxon literature) who has returned to the town for mysterious reasons of her own. A penetrating look at small-town America, Little Wolves weaves together elements of folklore and Norse mythology while being driven by a powerful murder mystery; a page-turning literary triumph. (from the publishers description)

Little Wolves is available for check-out at the Circulation desk. The Let's Talk Books: Book Discussion for Adults, will be held on May 13 at 7:00 p.m. in the 3rd floor Aigler Auditorium.

For more information on All Iowa Reads, including past titles, please click here. 

Carnegie-Stout Public Library has Books-In-A-Bag discussion sets for all the past All Iowa Reads selections.  If you are interested in using one for your book club, please contact the library at 563-589-4225 and ask for Inter-Library Loan. 

April Magazines of the Month: Kiplinger's and Consumer Reports Money Adviser

April is not just tax season, it's also Money Smart Week! An annual opportunity to take a look at your personal finances and budget to see if there's anything you could be doing better.

If you need a tax form, we have some of the federal forms available in the library, and can help you print others from the state and federal websites for 10 cents a page. We're also partnering with other local organizations for Money Smart Week. Don't miss Community Shred Day from 9-11 a.m. on Saturday April 12th or the Money Smart Kids READ event from 4-5 p.m. on Thursday, April 10th.

In honor of fiscal responsibility, we've selected Consumer Reports Money Adviser and Kinglinger's Personal Finance Magazine as our April magazines of the month! Be sure to check them out, along with the other titles on our Money Smart display on the second floor.

You can also check out Kiplinger's Personal Finance on your tablet or computer through our Zinio app.