Geektastic Thursday: Richelle Mead

Last week Chris and I went on a date to the library.  I know, it is not one of those ideal evenings you picture newlyweds passing together, but it was really nice.  A) We got to spend an hour perusing books together and more importantly B) the library is free!  Honestly, though, it was nice to get out of the apartment and spend some time together without spending money or watching television.

While we were there I picked up a book I have been putting off reading for the past year -- Richelle Mead's Shadow Heir.  This is the last of her Dark Swan Novels, tying up her second series for adults.  If Mead's name sounds familiar it is probably due to her Vampire Academy series, a young adult series that has gotten a lot of acclaim along with its spin-off series, Bloodlines (I have only read the first of these, but I really like it).

I was reluctant to start on Shadow Heir because I had heard some disgruntled reviews.  You would think at some point that I would stop paying attention to other people's opinions.  Despite the evident fan dissatisfaction, I really enjoyed this conclusion to the series, the story of an Arizona shaman who learns she has ties to the world of the "gentry" aka fairies.  It tied up loose ends without rushing the conclusion and left just the slight possibility of another book.  At the same time, this was my least favorite of the series.  I applaud her decision to tie up the series after four books rather than dragging it out.  So many books, after much deserved success, seem to lead to sequel after sequel with no real structure.  Not so with any of Mead's series.

Recently I reread the first two books of Mead's other series for adults, which follows Georgina Kincaid, an under achieving succubus living in Seattle.  I know, it sounds like trash to a lot of people when you spell out the plot.  But they are really good!  Clearly, because I have read them twice.  Yes, there are gratuitous sex scenes, but her writing is witty and intelligent.  I like to think of them as healthy brain candy.  When you come home from a long day of paperwork and meetings it is really nice to just turn off the brain and read something that is not going to be a major struggle but still engages you on an intellectual level.

So, Richelle Mead. Check her out.  Your mileage may very, but I'm a fan.  And hey, the Vaginal Fantasy ladies have Succubus Blues as their alternative book this month.  Like I said -- brain candy.