I write Reviews! I write on Readwave.com!

I know, I know, that isn't shocking at all.  I'm collecting all the viral headlines I can find and re-using them as post titles.

All the blog-writing guides say that the key to blogging success is to sprinkle lots of keywords like "success" and "key"in your posts so that search engines can find you, and your blog can be discovered and people will follow it Alas, my follow link is broken until I get around to changing the blog template. I've been too busy to get around to it, what with the holiday and all.

What am I saying? I've been too busy WRITING!

I wrote a review of Blood of Tyrants for Goodreads.com. Here it is:

Blood of Tyrants by Naomi Novik
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Each time I grind through the first few chapters of one of the Temeraire books I think, "I will never finish this. This is the last one I will read." Every time, I change my mind after a few more, and I am always looking forward to the next adventure by the time I'm done with the book.

Naomi Novik has a distinctive writing style, and she makes no compromises in presenting her story her way. The narrative, heavy on internals, light on dialogue and subtle in description, takes some getting used to, and she writes each character's POV so distinctly that it takes a while to realize/remember that their observations are often distorted by through cultural bias and prejudice. The intersection between their assumptions and harsh realities inevitably advances the plot, and

That unreliable narrator aspect is emphasized in this episode, with Laurence lacking any memory of his own past for the first half of the novel. (It is a clever way to remind readers of early events in the series, and not overdone at all, unlike certain TV shows I could name.) The plot meanders more than some of the earlier novels, and I admit I was worried that it was going to end in one of my most-loathed tricks--a cliffhanger-- but in the end it wrapped up beautifully while still pointing to the next conflict.

Every one of her stories is a delightfully subversive exploration of prejudice and clashing cultures dressed up in scales and seasoned with historical events. Her descriptions of time and place are evocative and vivid, and her dragons are distinctive, fantastical and most importantly, inhuman. Well worth investing in.
View all my reviews (allll four of them. I'm new to this, remember.)

And I wrote this silly fluffy bit of ego-stroking self promotion.

As for the blog-writing advice...herm. I find it suspicious that most of the advice blogs are written by bloggers who specialize in offering writing advice to other writers and blogger. Seems a bit circular to me, but what do I know? All of my hits are from spam bots and referral sites so far anyway.

I do know one thing: I know this is fun.

And I know one weird trick... tune in next week to learn what it is!