Junji Ito

Gyo by Junji Ito (Gyo #1-2)

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Title: Gyo
Series Title: Gyo
Author: Junji Ito
Date Added: September 14, 2017
Date Started: November 26, 2017
Date Finished: November 30, 2017
Reading Duration: 4 days
Genre: Manga, Science Fiction, Horror

Gyo coverPages: 400
Publisher: VIZ Media
Publication Date: September 2003
Media: Hardback (Library)

Something is rotten in Okinawa… The floating smell of death hangs over the island. What is it? A strange, legged fish appears on the scene… So begins Tadashi and Kaori’s spiral into the horror and stench of the sea. Here is the creepiest masterpiece of horror manga ever from the creator of Uzumaki, Junji Ito. Hold your breath until all is revealed.

Gyo is creepy story about dead bodies that remain active even within a state of advanced decay due to strange machines that attach to their bodies, powered by the gases of putrefaction.

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The State of the Writer: 7/29/18

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<–The State of the Writer: 7/15/18          The State of the Writer: 8/12/18–>

A biweekly post updated every Sunday discussing my current writing projects and any completed the prior two weeks.

Finished Projects: 3

Project: Story
Title: The Broken Rose
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Type: Fanfiction (FFVII) Novel
Current Word Count: 261,097
Prior Word Count: 260,966
Word Difference: +131
Status: Review
Progress: Chapter 11 Review

Depending on what I move to what chapter, I may have to re-edit/revise said chapter; however, I’m finally back on track with Chapter 11.  That’s where I decided to go back and revise so I’m back where I started.  I was up quite late last night doing some work on it.  My biggest issue with this chapter is organization and where to add in extra notes, but that’s where color-coding comes in 😉

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The State of the Reader: 12/6/17

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<–The State of the Reader: 10/25/17          The State of the Reader: 12/20/17–>

A weekly post updated every other Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list.  Title links go to Goodreads, and if you have an account there feel free to friend me!  I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.

Do people like reading news/updates in the beginning or end of regular posts?  I think I like the beginning so I immediately know what’s going on, but I’m sure some of you might prefer just reading the weekly, and then dealing with any news.  Well, as mentioned in my End of Hiatus post, I’m not going to be doing this weekly anymore, but rather biweekly.  I’m also cutting down on the number of books I read at once.  Instead of two Kindles, I’ll be reading one and only on on weekdays during my lunch break if I’m at work.  Instead of reading a classic and a non-fiction/reference, I’ll alternate between the two.  Since I just finished reading a classic and I’m already in the midst of a reference, the latter’s reading days will be moved to the former’s.  Once I finish the  non-fiction, I’ll read another classic and so on.  Then I’ll read one physical fiction/fantasy, which could be a book borrowed from the library; however, I’m not necessarily going to read an additional book from the library anymore.  I was going to keep it at three, but graphic novels/manga are really easy to breeze through.  Cutting down from seven books to four is going to help tremendously (it already has), especially considering I have a shit ton of reviews to catch up on.  So that’s my update.  Biweekly SOTR posts and less books at a time.

Books Purchased This Month: 0

Books Finished This Month: 5

Title: The Bonesetter’s Daughter
Author: Amy Tan
Date Added: August 16, 2012
Date Started: October 19, 2017
Date Finished: November 12, 2017
Reading Duration: 24 days

Media: eBook/Kindle

I think I might have read this book before, but forgot I’d finished it, so didn’t include it on my Read shelf.  Regardless, like Amy Tan’s other books, I adored it.  She tends to write about mother-daughter relationships using some of the most eloquent language possible, and I’ve been reading her novels since high school.

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The State of the Writer: 12/3/17

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<–The State of the Writer: 10/26/17          The State of the Writer: 12/17/17–>

A biweekly post updated every Sunday discussing my current writing projects and any completed the prior two weeks.

Finished This Month: 1

Project: Essay
Status: Finished Written – Editing Audio

I’d love that number to say “2,” but I’ve already spoken of my NaNo tale of woe, though I did write something in November for a collaborative project soon to be published.  The written part is entirely finished and proofread but I’d like to have the audio recording edited before it’s posted.  The essay is a comparative between two games that have had a long standing flame war with their respective fans, focusing on one aspect in particular.

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The State of the Reader: 9/20/17

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<–The State of the Reader: 9/13/17          The State of the Reader: 9/27/17–>

A weekly post updated every Wednesday detailing my current reading projects and where I am with them in addition to what new titles I’ve added to my to-read list.  Title links go to Goodreads to make it easier for interested parties to add any books that might strike their fancy.  I attempt to use the covers for the edition I’m reading, and I’ll mention if this is not the case.  If you have a Goodreads account feel free to friend me!  I’d love to see what you’re reading and/or planning to read.

Samples Read This Week

  1. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris: Kept – Now that I’ve added the correct book, I like it so far.   Vampire boyfriends are always cool with me.
  2. Half the World by Joe Abercrombie: Kept – Now that I’ve read the blurb, I have no idea why I was so reluctant to add this.  The main character is a young woman who is as shunned from warrior life/culture as Yarvi with his one hand was…if not more so.
  3. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas: Kept – I liked Maas’s Thorn and Roses series, so I’m hoping I enjoy this one, too.
  4. The Emperor’s Blades by Brian Staveley: Kept – There’s an ASOIAF vibe to it, but I suppose that’s going to be true of all fantasy, political dramas at this point.
  5. Don’t Close Your Eyes by Holly Seddon: Kept – Definitely a “fucked up” vibe to this one.  I believe this is the book about the two different women who don’t know each other at first, but tragedy brings them together.
  6. Winterspell by Claire Legrand: Kept (RWTR) – It’s been a while since I put a book on my really-want-to-read list, but I love retold fairy tales, and this is one for The Nutcracker.  I love the music to it and the magic of it, and this novel reads like both have been captured.
  7. Something from the Nightside by Simon Green: Kept – Not five minutes after I read the sample for this (and purchased it), one of my good IRL friends replied to one of my IRL BFF’s (I know so much internet speak OMG) about “the best Urban Fantasy.”  I didn’t have an answer for that since it’s not typically my genre, and though I believe there is one I really like, I can’t recall what it is.  My friend whom I’ll just refer to as Nightmare, since that’s his nickname AND he recommended Nightside, mentioned that novel, and it was one of those coincidental things I always seem to fall into.  I need to send him his birthday card with some money in it.  I made a promise!  Plus he’s trying to get a car and I have to help him out ♥
  8. Angelfall by Susan Ee: Kept – Angels fall and I buy.
  9. Heartborn by Terry Maggert: Kept – This is the second angel based novel I’ve sampled (and purchased, as you’ll see below), and I was looking up “seraph/seraphim” and “nephilim” yesterday for a book review.  Doing so put ideas into my narcissistic noggin.  I already have a huge angel head canon, but I kind of feel like writing it down again and maybe gathering more ideas.  The phrase “dark seraph” keeps popping back into my head.  I first thought about it when I was editing Northern Lights (shock), since that’s the perfect term to describe a particular fallen angel.  In shamefully narcissistic news, it’s a moniker I’d pick for myself of give to my mythical publishing company.  Dark Seraph Publishing sounds pretty boss, and Ash Rose the Dark Seraph sounds pretty final boss *headdesk*  (FYI – Ash Rose is my other and much older internet name).  You know…I need to figure out someplace to use that.  It sounds way too epic to pass by.
  10. Waste of Space by Gina Damico: Kept – I’m not usually one for either reality TV shows or bratty teens, but this seems like an absurd and comical Truman Show in space, and that’s too delicious to pass by.

Books Purchased This Week: 7

Title: Something from the Nightside
Series Title: Nightside
Author: Simon R. Green
Date Added: July 1, 2017
Date Purchased: September 17, 2017

Media: eBook/Kindle
Price: $2.99
Retailer: Amazon

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