Off the Bookshelf: RANGER'S APPRENTICE #1: The Ruins of Gorlan, by John Flanagan

This book is proof of the adage that the best book promotion is word of mouth.

I was prepared to like it and be hooked even before I found it at the bookstore. Because a writing friend has talked about it several times. She and her husband listen to the audio books of this series on long drives, and they got started because their grandsons love the books.

So yeah, I'm going to be looking for the rest of the books as soon as I have more room on my to-be-read shelf.

What's the story? Young Will is our hero, an orphan, growing up as a Ward of Baron Arald. The Wards don't have parents to guide them into crafts or guilds or apprentice them, so choosing day is their chance to grab onto the future they want. The other 4 Wards his age know what they want, and have proven their abilities, so being accepted into their chosen fields of study is easy. Not so for Will. He's too small and thin to enter battle school -- but that's what he wants because he believes his father was a warrior who died a hero in a massive battle just before Will was born. His only real option is to go into farm work.

At least, until Halt the Ranger says he thinks Will has what it takes to be a Ranger. The problem is that Will doesn't really know what Rangers do, other than a lot of somewhat frightening rumors. But what choice does he have? It's an adventure, learning what Rangers do, learning the truth behind the rumors.

As Will and the rest of the fief learn, he made the right choice. Even someone young and small and afraid can do important things, even if they seem small. It's the impact of your choices that matter.

I'm gonna love this series.

Off the Bookshelf: THE STARK NAKED 21-DAY METABOLIC RESET, by Brad Davidson

This is one of those situations where you start reading a health-related book and you think, "This is too good to be true, there's gotta be catch."

Then you get far enough into it and you realize no, it's NOT too good, it's very true. The catch is that it's gonna take some dedication and discipline and planning to make it work.

*sigh*

On one level, the author makes the whole change-your-eating-habits-and-fix-your-metabolism-and-have-all-the-energy-you-want proposition sound so common sense and DO-able. And yet when you realize what you have to put into it, the rearranging in your schedule and your pantry ...

*ouch*

For three weeks, you have to stick with the eating plan, the limitations, the cleansing of your system to, yes, reset your metabolism. After that, you reintroduce foods into your menu, paying careful attention to the impact of each new food, so you can determine whether it's friendly to your new, rearranged digestion and energy and habits. Sounds simple, right?

*whimper*

I want to do this, but ... I'm a sugar addict. And that's just one of my excuses. I think I'll start off slow, applying a few principles at a time from the book, until I get acclimated to better habits, like no carbs in the morning and drinking hot lemon water first thing, and essentially build up the strength to take the plunge. Yeah, that's the coward's way, but a wise woman knows her limits.

Off the Bookshelf: DARK IN DEATH, by J.D. Robb

Thank goodness for e-book borrowing capabilities at the Cuyahoga County Public Library!

I reserved this book 4 months ago, and when the book showed up in the stores, started checking my place in the queue waiting to read the next book in the adventures of near-future homicide detective Eve Dallas. I was 91 -- but my position in the line dropped quickly. Either the library had a lot of e-book copies, or people did like me and read fast! As in neglected other duties to read....

This particular adventure has some uncomfortable parallels with both popular movies (Stephen King's Misery) and current crime events, where people take out their frustrations on innocent parties. In this case, a successful crime writer has a wacko fan who turns quickly from adoration to menacing. The fan, who intends to be a writer too, decides that the writer has stolen her work of genius and warped it. It won't do any good to point out that the book was in pre-production before the fan sent the completed manuscript to her, without permission, wanting feedback.

The fan decides she's going to prove what a good writer she is by writing and improving on murder scenarios. She's decided villains are the real heroes. Yeah, warped. Eve and her allies are in a race against time to figure out who the next victim/target will be and prevent another murder, while identifying the wacko writer-wannabe fan. Chances are good she'll finish "rewriting" by killing the writer whom she once adored. Oh, yeah, and "write" Eve into the story line, too.

My favorite part of these books is the ever-developing relationships and interactions and the changing dynamics among the characters. Great fun to jump back into the familiar world, despite the murderous circumstances.