In anticipation of a major snowstorm that was supposed to hit my city last week, I went to the library to pick up a few things thinking I would be spending a whole day stuck in the house with loads of reading time on my hands. That storm turned out to be nothing (other places did get snow, just not my city), and I spent the day at work like any other Wednesday. I was disappointed as all hell but I still have some good books to read so there’s that.

Side note: Funny how I didn’t run to the grocery store for milk, bread, and toilet paper but went to the library for books instead. To be fair, I had all of the above. Also, I grew up in an area that got a lot of snow so snow panic doesn’t set in for me.

Oh, the books.

Lord of the North by Bernard Cornwell – I started this series probably two years ago and I’m finally getting back to it. It’s the third book in the Saxon Tales series and pretty good. I’m flying through it. Also, I just finished up Mary Stewart’s second book in her Arthurian legend series, The Hollow Hills, last week and wasn’t ready to say goodbye to this setting so this seemed like a good place to start in on the library haul.

Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson – I blame Elizabeth over at Dark Cargo for this one. She was talking about it, evangelizing really, and it made me want to read it. My library, which doesn’t always have a great selection of science fiction (it’s getting better or I’m just discovering new authors, not sure, but either way it makes me happy) had a copy. Thanks to an early flip through the book, I can say it looks really interesting.

At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft – I read my first Lovecraft a few weeks ago. It was The Shunned House and so, so good. I needed more and it turns out my library had this one. Also, it has an introduction by China Miéville! China Miéville, people! And it takes place in the Antarctic. I think this might be the next to tackle in the library pile.

Swamplandia! By Karen Russell – I don’t read much contemporary fiction but this is one I’ve wanted to read for a while. But since it was on the bestseller lists and everyone was loving it, I had to avoid it. I’m like that. I don’t like to read books on bestseller lists or books that everyone seems to be in love with at any given point in time. So, I avoided. Russell had a new book out, everyone is raving about it again, and for as much as I want to read it, I’m avoiding and going back to the first one I didn’t read. We’ll see how it goes.

I’m now going to step outside and run some errands. My husband’s conference is in town this weekend and he’s been working non-stop the last two days and I’ve barely left the house. But, on the bright side, I did clean many things and read like a fiend ** so there wasn’t much reason to leave. However, the sun is out and it’s warm so I think I’m going to get some vitamin D. Besides, I hear books can be read outside.

Happy Sunday.

** I’m also reading Clockwork Phoenix 4 edited by Mike Allen and while I’m only a few stories in, I can’t wait to tell you more about it because you’ll want to read it too.