Friday, August 26, 2005

Friday Book Recommendation

Whew! Sorry this is a bit late but what with Ryan's illness and a sudden overwhelming demand (okay, 2 people) for my bracelets, I'm a bit behind. So, to catch up, Ryan is better. I knew when he ate FIVE BOWLS of cheerios and milk for dinner last night (what? your mother never let you have cereal for dinner?) that he must be feeling better. I was just so happy that after two weeks of almost non-stop illness he'd finally gotten his appetite back. The poor kid has lost five lbs. and (unlike his mother) didn't have the lbs. to lose!

For item #2, the bracelets are now up on the website and available for sale. Tell your friends and call the "Times!" LOL!

Now on to the books. I'm just starting S.L. Viehl's latest book, "Afterburn", which is set in the same universe as her "Stardoc" novels, but follows a different set of characters. I highly recommend starting with the original series to get a feel for the universe and then branching out into the subsequent books.

Dr. Cherijo Grey Veil, the heroine of the "Stardoc" series is a really fascinating character (despite what some of the reviewers on Amazon who OBVIOUSLY didn't read the same book have to say) and I really enjoy the wide variety of aliens that people this particular universe. It's like the Mos Eisley cantina scene from "Star Wars" only on a much broader scale. S.L. Viehl puts her experiences as a real-life medic into play when describing the medical scenes. Of course, I've always been fascinated by all the "Life in the ER" type shows on the Discovery Health channel as well, so maybe it's just me, but it's really amazing to think of a doctor having to know not just human anatomy and how to repair it, but also having in depth knowledge of all the alien anatomies she comes across. And yeah, she's got some technology around that helps her out, but she's still pretty impressive. Of course, if you keep reading you find out that there's more to Dr. Grey Veil than just her medical skills...

There are several books in the original series as well as two branching-off series, the latest of which is "Bio Rescue" and "Afterburn." As far as I'm aware, all the books are available in paperback except these last two.

Okay, and now something I just have to get off my chest:

Dear Megan McTavish and other idiot writers at "All My Children",

JONATHAN IS BACK FROM THE DEAD? WHAT THE EFF???!!
I mean, dude, seriously. I get that those of us who watch soap operas are supposed to be drooling imbeciles (apparently) and that the "back from the dead" thing is a tried-and-true soap opera gimic, but COME ON! Not only was the guy shot in the chest but he had a freakin' bomb strapped to his back which BLEW HIM AND THE CAVE HE WAS IN TO SMITHEREENS! Somebody did a helluva cut and paste job on him because he doesn't even have any scars! Not that that would make this any more believable but still! I need the number of his plastic surgeon immediately!

And, if I'm to be forced to accept him (and his overdone really crappy acting which I could overlook if he was hot like Ethan or Ryan but he's not) back then why can't Princess Gillian come back? After all, she only got shot in the head and had her heart cut out and donated to pyscho-Laura. Her return is FAR more plausible, don't you think? Let's see, we get Dr. Death (aka David) to find her grave and dig her up (because he's looking for a substitute daughter now that Babe has told him to stick it) because he's come across psycho-Laura in a hospital somewhere and realizes that she's not been making good use of the transplanted heart he gave her (what with the whole psycho-freak-stalker thing and the fact that she NEVER calls her mother) and that the heart really belongs back with Gillian. So he puts the heart back and undoes the five or so years of decay she's undergone with one of his "designer" drugs. He leaves the bullet in because, let's face it, Gillian was never a brain trust anyway so what's an extra hole or two? Eh voila! Gillian is back from the dead more or less and now that Greenlee is exiting the show anyway, Gillian is perfect as the third leg for a love triangle with Kendall and Ryan.

See, even *I* could write this shit and I'm not getting paid for it! PLEASE, I'm begging you, couldn't we have just a LITTLE bit more intelligence in the show? I'm not asking for quantum physics or anything but just stop making me want to stick an ice pick in my ear. Otherwise, I may have to give up on your show even though it would mean doing without my Tad fix which would be really, really, really hard. I mean, how can you not love someone who works the expression "jinkies" into a soap opera.

Sincerely,

A loyal (but not for much longer) watcher since 1983

Okay, back to the regular programming now. I just couldn't hold that in any longer. But, for the first person who can tell me where the expression "jinkies" came from BEFORE Tad started using it on AMC...a free pair of earrings. And no, I'm not kidding.

Take care everyone and have a great weekend.

KJ

No comments: