I did not see a forum for leisurely reading, so I guess I will post this here.

I just wanted to recommend a series I thought everyone might enjoy. Author Kim Harrison has a series of books in which the main character is a bounty hunter witch. They are a cross between Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series and Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series. For those of you unfamiliar with either author, let me say that the series is action filled, but not overly violent and with a bit of humor. I've found her settings and plots to be original and entertaining. Here is a link to Kim Harrison's website, where you can read about the books.
Kim Harrison

I thought it might be useful to begin a thread reviewing some book series strictly for entertainment. I'll begin with a few that I am fond of by pasting a synopsis of the series in addition to my opinion of the book. Personally, I am always on the look out for a new series, so please add.

Kim Harrison's Rachel Morgan Series:

"In the vein of blockbuster supernatural thrillers like Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake sequence and Charlaine Harris's Southern Vampire saga comes Kim Harrison's debut novel, Dead Witch Walking, about a sexy witch and bounty hunter who will do anything to bring criminals to justice.
Set in and around an alternate Cincinnati where Inderlanders (witches, vampires, werewolves, faeries, etc.) have officially been recognized, the novel begins with Harrison's leather-loving hero, Rachel Morgan, quitting her job as a runner (a kind of supernatural bounty hunter) for Inderland Security. The only problem is that no one walks away from Inderland Security -- and lives. Her boss, an ill-tempered ghoul named Denon, immediately puts out a contract on her, and within a matter of hours, her life is officially forfeit. She finds herself evicted from her apartment and almost assassinated on a city bus.

Thank God for friends. With the help of Ivy Tamwood, a non-practicing vampire, and Jenks, a temperamental pixie, Rachel tries to begin a new life by starting an independent investigation service based in an old church in an area called the Hollows. But first she must survive the week!" (Barnes and Noble Review)

I found the concept for the book clever: a bounty hunter witch with her living vampire partner and pixie sidekick. The first book is the slowest of the series, but the action definitely picks up in the later books. Of the many supernaturally based series that I read, I think Harrison has the best grasp on witchcraft, making the heroine seem more authentic. It is the perfect series for people who enjoy strong female characters, a healthy amount of action and magic, without being overtly violent. I've listed the books in the series below.

1. Dead Witch Walking
2. The Good, the Bad, and the Undead
3. Every Which Way But Dead
4. For a Few Demons More (released March 2007)

Jim Butcher's Dresden Series

I couldn't find a good review of the series, so here is my own:
The main character of the series, Harry Dresden, is a wizard working professionally in Chicago as a private detective. Consequently, the series takes on the theme of a supernatural detective novel. I think that the book does a good job at portraying the image of a wizard operating in modern times, which in the first few books translates into him being a bit of a geek. However, I think the author becomes a better writer as the series continues, making Dresden wittier and the plot more exciting. By the third book, the characters and plot get a bit livelier, making the series a worth while read. The book may be a bit dark at times for some. I definitely recommend it to the male members of ODSS, as there are few entertaining male-oriented fantasy mysteries out there. The SciFi channel is currently piloting the drama Dresden Files, taken from the books. Here are the books in the series listed in order:
1. Storm Front
2. Fool Moon
3. Grave Peril
4. Summer Knight
5. Death Masks
6. Blood Rites
7. Dead Beat
8. Proven Guilty
9. White Knight

I'm glad you recommend those books, Bear. I've always shied away from Nora Roberts because she was too"romance" for me, but I will have to give those a try.

Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum Series

Among my favorite books to read are the adventures of bounty hunter, Stephanie Plum. The series takes place in exotic Jersey City with a thirty year old woman out of a job and needing to pay the bills. So, Stephanie blackmails here cousin into giving her a job as a bail enforcement officer, and the humor and excitement take off from there.

This is the one series I will laugh out loud from when I read. Essentially, Stephanie's experiences as a bounty hunter reflect what would happen if you took the average woman off of the street, gave her a pair of handcuffs, and told her to go catch a criminal. Aside from the unbelievably funny scenarios within the series, the cast of supporting characters is very entertaining. Evanovich is a master of writing about characters that you can relate to because you have them in your own life, but taking them to the next level of absurdity and humor.

I highly recommend this series without warning to everyone. It seems equaling appealing to men and women. It is action and humor filled, but with the lighter edge of a romantic comedy. The first book in the series is the most serious of the bunch, with the rest far less dramatic. Toward the latest books in the series, it gets a bit formulaic, but it is still a fun read. Here are a list of the books in order:

1) One for the Money
2) Two for the Dough
3) Three to Get Deadly
4) Four to Score
5) High Five
6) Hot Six
7) Seven Up
8) Hard Eight
9) Visions of Sugar Plums (Christmas)
10) To the Nines
11) Ten Big Ones
12) Eleven on Top
13) Twelve Sharp
14) Plum Lovin' (Valentine's Day)

I've read some of these, their fantastic!!

— Bear

I soooooo love to read. One of my favorite fictional writers is Nora Roberts...must reads are (if you are into her)

The trilogy Three Sisters Island (about Witches)
Dances Upon the Air
Heaven and Earth
Face the Fire
I particularly love her spell rhyming

Circle Trilogy of the fight with vampires
Morrigan's Cross
Dance of the Gods
Valley of Silence

Garden Trilogy dealing with a pretty pissed off female ghost
Blue Dahlia
Black Rose
Red Lily



~Bear~

I read the Three sisters Island trilogy a couple years ago and really enjoyed them. Then I picked up a couple other Nora Roberts books and was sorely disappointed. Turned out that they were some of her earliest works. I decided to give her another shot and read the Circle Trilogy....LOVED them..read all three books in less than a week. Will have to look into the Garden Trilogy.

A series I have recently started to read is the Vampire Hunter D series by Hideyuki Kikuchi. Many Americans are familiar with the anime that was released in the 1980s, but the cartoon movie originated with books by the author billed as the Japanese Stephen King.

This series has just recently been translated, and so far six out of I think seventeen books are available in English. It takes a few minutes to get into the rhythm of the translation and adapt to the Japanese style of writing, but I've found the series to be an excellent source of mind candy. If you are familiar with the movies, the first movie is based on the first book, and the second movie is based on the third book.

Kikuchi creates a world in which humans were enslaved by vampires ("Nobles") around 1999. The series take place about 10,000 years later, when humans have regained control of their lives and must constantly fight against the mutant creations of vampiric genetic engineering. Our hero, Vampire Hunter D, is a half-human/half-vampire who travels the frontier hunting vampires and other dangerous creatures. With this setting, the novels take on a kind of scifi-spaghetti western feel. Each novel is about 225 pages worth of action-filled scifi western. I recommend the series to fans of science fiction and vampire fiction.

The translated novels in order are:
1) Vampire Hunter D
2) Vampire Hunter D: Raiser of Gails
3) Vampire Hunter D: Demon Deathchase
4) Vampire Hunter D: Tale of the Dead Town
5) Vampire hunter D: Stuff of Dreams
6) Vampire Hunter D: Pilgramage of the Sacred and the Profane
7) Vampire Hunter D: Demon Journey to the North Sea Part 1 (April 2007)

I really enjoy the Vampire Hunter D series, considering that I've not always been a fan of the Japanese style and I didn't like the anime versions of the stories as much.

But while we're all talking about our favorite series, etc...

I highly recommend the Sevenwaters Trilogy by Juliet Marillier. It's based on Celtic myths and stories, and the third book's main character is wonderfully proficient in magic. It was a very enjoyable series and well written.

I'm right there with you. I love to read for knowledge and for entertainment. My favorite author has got to be R.A Salvatore. I've read almost everything he has written. My absolute fave series is the "The Dark Elf". I am really big into fantasy sci-fi. The more dragons, elves, dwarves and such, the more I enjoy the book.

My husband also loves R.A. Salvatore. I enjoy his books, but they aren't my favorites. They sometimes take too long to drag me in.

My favorite author at this time is Sara Douglass. I have read all of her available books and wait impatiently for her others. lol
She has several series:
The Wayfarer Redemption
The Crucible
The Troy Game

And she has some stand alone books that I have not read. More information can be found at her site: www.saradouglass.com

I am reading Gregory Maguire right now. I had read his Mirror Mirror years ago. Just recently I read his Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister and I'm currently reading Wicked.
They are interesting since they are written from the "other side" of the story. You get to know the characters from their perspective and learn why they are as they are. At the end of the Confessions and Wicked books there are questions for a book club to discuss.

Nora Roberts I always need a brake between serious books I call it fluff reading, loved the garden and the sisters island trilogy�s she has the fairy ones too cant think of them now its been so long, it takes place in Ireland they all start with stones I think, I will have to look it up�

its:Jewels of the Sun(1999), Tears of the Moon (2000), and Heart of the Sea(2000)

And my youngest and I are reading Witch Child( Celia Rees) together right now. My gram gave it to me last year she is always passing books on to me, I read it and passed it on to my oldes and now it�s the 11 year olds turn, it�s a good read.

Ok and my oldest finally talked me into reading a series she loves and rereads often it�s the Banned and Banished series (James Clemens)I am on the second one Wit�ch storm.
Great books for teen readers, and I am enjoying them also..

I recently finished The Other Boleyn Girl and The Queen�s Fool (Philippa Gregory)
I enjoyed them both but loved the first..

And if you ever want to feel better about your child hood read The Glass Castle (Jeannette Walls) its an amazing book!!

O and another of my favorites is The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath)
Ok shutting up now!!