Showing posts with label Dacre Stoker. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dacre Stoker. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Another Book Down

Thursday night I finished Dracula, the Un-Dead by Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt. It's not a bad book at all. While some of it dragged, I liked the way things moved, and their occasional commentary on the original. I think I liked the closing with a bit of an interview on the writing of the book as much as I did the book itself. It leaves itself open to a sequel, and I'd read it if it happens.

The takeaway from the book is: Make sure there's a body when you kill someone (or something).

And so move on the The Gathering Storm by Brandon Sanderson and Robert Jordan. I just got it at the library today, so I will give judgement as soon as I make one up.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Empowerment

What did I do yesterday?

Not much.

I'm reading Dacre Stoker's Dracula the Un-Dead, and since rock music doesn't go well with a turn of the century setting, I'm was listening to classical music in the gym. Two of the most motivating pieces of music came on: Richard Wagner's Die Meistersinger and Gustav Holst's "Mars: the Warbringer." That'll get your blood pumping.

And last night I did the big manly thing... I upgraded Jennifer's computer from Windows Vista to Windows 7. The only hiccup was when I tried to do it Monday night and had downloaded the 32-bit rather than the 64-bit version. Then this morning I finished up the install and got her mail program going. My only remaining bit now is reinstalling iTunes.

I got to thinking this morning about the Windows upgrades I've installed. My first computer came with Windows 3.1 (or was it 3.2?), and when I went to UK, I got the big Windows 95 upgrade. That was a lot of work, but I enjoyed it. Then when 98 came out, I got that too. I skipped Bob and Me, but XP excited me. Then with my latest computer, Vista came with it, and now I'm waiting for the upgrade disc to arrive. I rarely have any problems with upgrades, and that always gives me a big feeling of satisfaction.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Reading

I quickly read Genesis by Bernard Beckett.

It's a small book, and is mostly written as a transcript, so it's a fast read. It seems very much like an episode of The Twilight Zone.

The book was very entertaining at the beginning, and through the middle, but the ending was unsatisfying. I wanted so much more from some of the other characters. There was much left hanging, that I wanted to learn about.

I was glad it was small, so it wasn't a big investment of time, but I could have been a better and larger novel.

***

And so now I move on to the "official" sequel of Bram Stoker's Dracula, called Dracula the Un-Dead by Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt.

Dacre Stoker is the great-grand-nephew of Bram Stoker. I'm only into the first chapter, but I'm enjoying it. it is not written in a diary/letter format like the original, and it seems intriguing already. It begins 25 years after the end of the first book.