BooksEtc Issue 10 | December 2020
cover image: Tracy @caffeineandcurses
Magazine
Inside YOUR GUIDE TO ISSUE NO.10
10 12 series of Christmas The amazing Kim has created a fun take on the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas song reflecting the number of books in a series...check it out!!
15 Why Iceland wins Christmas Vicki investigates exactly why Iceland WINS Christmas!!! :D
21 Smaller aussie #bookstagram accounts you need to be following!!! Blue checks out some smaller Aussie accounts you should be following!! :D
25 What do you do on December 25th? With diversity in mind, Ellie finds out what people do on December 25th.
29 Author Interview Maria V Snyder image: image: Chloe Chloe @chloes.readingcorner @chloes.readingcorner
Our guest contributor Shauna got the chance to speak to her favourite author Maria V Snyder.
Hiya! from the editor
Well hello again!!! Deck your halls, break out the tinsel and crack open a cracker, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmaaaaaaaas!!! This month's issue is bursting a the seams with holiday fun - from books we've loved to films we are devouring, this issue is gonna be eppppppppic! I do have to make an apology, my life had been very busy leading up to the release of this issue and it hasn't been fully proof read, if there are any spelling/grammar mistakes, please blame me. I will do better!!! (My time management SUCKS right now!) From all of us here at Books Etc, we'd like to take the chance to thank YOU for reading our little magazine. We REALLY hope you are enjoying what we create and that you may have found your next favourtie read!
Jayse x
Get in touch!!
BOOKSETCMAG@GMAIL.COM @BOOKSETC_MAG WWW.ISSUU.COM/BOOKSETCMAGAZINE
Editor Jayse - @Itsmejayse SPECIAL THANKS TO: Cover by Tracy - @caffeineandcurses Contributors Tamika - @Paperbackandflickchick Blue - @Bluesfairytales_ Ange - @Pnrbookloverreviews Casey - @Through.thepages Ellie - @Labsandliterature Vicki - @AntipodeanBookclub Kimberly - @Enchanted.Bookshelf
Copyright Š 2020 Books Etc Magazine All rights reserved, material in Books Etc Magazine is protected under the Commonwealth Copyright Act 1968. No material may be reproduced in part thereof or in whole without written consent from the copyright holders. Copyright responsibility for supplied material rests with the provider. The opinions expressed in Books Etc Magazine are those of individual contributors and not necessarily those of its editors and publishers. Every attempt is made for accuracy, however information and figures contained in this magazine have been provided to us by the advertisers and their sources. No warranty is given by Books Etc Magazine as to the accuracy of any figures or information contained in this magazine. Perspective purchasers are urged to rely on their own enquiries.
by Jayse Review The Christmas Chronicles If feel good Christmas movies are your jam, The Christmas Chronicles should be your go-to this holiday season... This movie is actually so, so sweet. Christmas is totally the time for sweet movies. Kurt Russell shines as Santa, is there anything he cant do? This movie leaves you feeling so good, it is uplifting, it is fun, its Christmas!!! Yes, you may see the twists and turns coming and it is quite predictable, but there were shrieks of delight and woops of enthusiasm coming from my lounge room at this one. While the critics have panned the film calling it over-done, forgettable and more, I found it to be lovely. If you are looking for a Christmas movie this holiday season this one should be high on your list. Kate and Teddy have a plan, a plan that they think will lead to them catching Santa Claus. When their plan goes haywire, they are whisked off on an incredible, magical journey to save Christmas with the man they were attempting to capture and his helpful elves.
DID YOU KNOW? When the red Dodge driven by Santa is in midair, the skid plate mounted underneath for the stunt is visible. See if you can pick it when you watch the film yourself.
Review
Synopsis: A whirlwind Christmas romance builds as cynical Dash and optimistic Lily trade dares, dreams and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations around New York City. Are you wanting a cute, whimsical, magical, holiday romance to help get you into that holiday spirit? But are you also wanting something that gives you those jolly feelings for longer than your average Hallmark movie? Well my friend, this series Dash and Lily is for you! Honestly, I watched all the episodes in one sitting because I was hooked from the opening scene. I mean come on when a show opens in a bookstore you’ve got me,
but when said bookstore is in New York at Christmas time and there are magical Christmas feelings from the get-go? You have me twice over! This TV series is actually based on the book Dash and lily’s book of dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn. Which having seen this now I am super keen to read the book because the show was awesome and we all know, nine times out of ten the book is better than the adaption. Plus, there are more books in the series and I desperately want to see what else Dash and Lily get up to. Now back to the show itself. It is basically the cutest teenage/ YA holiday romance where one main character is a total Christmas lover and the other
by Tamika is an absolute grinch. This series will make you feel a little bit of everything from joy to wonder, anticipation, sadness and happiness, its chock full of emotions and teenage angst. I also loved the representation in casting and characters, I honestly feel there is a character in this series that everyone could relate to at least a little. I also personally loved how quirky it was as well, from some of the dares to outfits to underground Jewish punk shows hosted by drag queens, this show has a little bit of everything.In conclusion this show is perfect to get you into the holiday feels. It has great representation and diversity and is filled to the brim with wonder, whimsy, anticipation and romance. I had no choice but to rate this one 5 out of 5 stars.
The Twelve Series
OF CHRISTMAS By Kim
Happy Holiday Season fabulous people! I hope no matter what you are celebrating it brings you joy, happiness, wonderful memories and of course BOOKS. Since we are here to talk about books let’s dive in. You may be familiar with the Christmas Carol Twelve Days of Christmas? Well today we give you the Twelve Series of Christmas. Each one selected by how many book are in the series. So whether you love a shot series or a longer read, I’m hope there is something for you on the list. On the twelfth day of Christmas P.C. and Kristin Cast gave us the House of Night On the eleventh day of Christmas Meg Cabot gifted us tiaras and The Princess Diaries On the tenth day of Christmas Diana Gabaldon took us through time with Outlander On the ninth day of Christmas Naomi Novik rocked up with Temeraire On the eighth day of Christmas Sarah J Maas made us fall in love with Throne of Glass On the seventh day of Christmas C. S. Lewis took us on an adventure with The Chronicles of Narnia On the sixth day of Christmas Richelle Mead sucked us in with Vampire Academy On the fifth day of Christmas Rick Riordan let us dance with the Gods in Percy Jackson On the fourth day of Christmas Julie Kagawa showed us the power of friendship with The Iron Fey On the third day of Christmas Cassandra Clare toyed with our hearts in The Infernal Devices On the second day of Christmas Michael Crichton had us on the edge of our seat with Jurassic Park On the first day of Christmas Sally Thorne made us swoon with The Hating Game
'Blood will spill. Death awaits ... But who will pay the price?'
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Why
ICELAND wins Christmas By Vicki
Iceland has always been on my travel bucket list; a land of fire and ice where the Aurora Borealis shimmers in the winter skies. Plus which, how can you not love a country with a radio station dedicated to Christmas that starts broadcasting every November! Three Icelandic bookworms, Áróra, Kristjana and Harpar, have kindly shared their insider tips and tales with us, adding up to five reasons why Iceland may just be the very best place on Earth at Christmas. - Christmas lights are a BIG thing December is the darkest time of the year in Iceland. Being tucked up so close to the Arctic Circle, winter days are short whilst the sun hardly sets in summer. The Winter Solstice falls on December 21st and according to Kristjana, on December 20th the sun rises at 11.22am and sets again at 3.29pm giving only four hours of daylight. All that darkness, however, is the perfect backdrop for copious amounts of twinkling Christmas lights. You might think that a white Christmas is guaranteed in Iceland, but not always. The Icelandic Met Office faithfully try and predict the chance of snowfall every year and show records on their website of the weather at Noon on Christmas Day for the last seventy years.
- Never mind one, they have THIRTEEN Santas Every night from the 11th December, one of the thirteen Santas or Yule Lads will visit Icelandic children who have put a shoe on their windowsill and leave them a small gift or perhaps a potato if they’ve been naughty! Áróra describes these thirteen brothers as “tricksters.” Originally trolls, their names in English are Sheep-Cote-Clod, Gully Gawk, Stubby, SpoonLicker, Pot-Scraper, Bowl-Licker, Door-slammer, Skyr-gobbler, Sausage-Swiper, WindowPeeper, Doorway-Sniffer, MeatHook and Candle-Stealer. Their descriptive names suggest their favourite way of causing mischief. Just to be clear, Doorway-Sniffer has an unusually long nose with an
acute sense of smell with which he can sniff out Christmas goodies from the doorway and let’s just not get into WindowPeeper. - There’s a Christmas cat But it’s not one that you’d want to snuggle up to on a cold winter’s night. Closely linked to the tale of the thirteen Yule Lads, the Christmas Cat belongs to their mother Grýla. Both Grýla and her cat hunt badly behaved children. According to Harpar, to avoid “going to the Christmas Cat,” traditionally children needed something new to wear for the Holidays. A new pair of socks would be enough to stop the cat from swiping you! Immortalised in a poem by Johannes ur Kotlum, the cat is described as huge with bright, glaring eyes,
bristle-sharp whiskers and a taste for men rather than mice! - Baking is a Christmas tradition Not only Christmas cookies, but also Laufabrauð or traditional leaf bread. These thin fried breads are decorated with leaf or snowflake patterns, hence their alternative name of Snowflake bread. Dating back to at least 1736, they’ve been a longstanding part of Icelandic Christmas tradition and families will often get together to decorate them. For Áróra, as for most Icelanders who celebrate the Holiday, Christmas dinner is eaten on Christmas Eve. Her family has glazed ham with sugar browned potatoes, sauce and other side dishes. The traditional Icelandic Christmas drink is Jólaöl. This mix of Malt and Applesín, an orange soda, causes vigorous debate about the correct order to mix the two ingredients, a little like the ageold debate of jam vs. cream first on a scone. - You can legitimately spend Christmas in bed with a book! Books are as much a part of Christmas in Iceland as fairy lights and Snowflake bread. Each year the publishing industry gears up between September and December to release their new titles in a phenomenon known as Jólabókaflóð or the Christmas book flood. There’s even a special book catalogue called Bókatíðindi where Harpar picks out her Christmas gifts. As a writer and a publisher, she cannot imagine Christmas without books and after opening presents on the night of the 24th December, she notes that for many people the rest of Christmas Eve and even Christmas Day is dedicated to
reading! For Áróra, Christmas isn’t Christmas without having at least one book as a present and Kristjana reports that both fiction and Nordic Noir books are popular choices. The most popular Icelandic crime writers of recent years have been Arnaldur Indriðason, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir and Ragnar Jónasson, but if you’re looking for other Icelandic books and authors to try, Kristjana also recommends Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir (Afleggjarinn/The Greenhouse and Ör/Hotel Silence) and Guðrún Eva Mínervudóttir (Englaryk/Angel dust and Ástin, Texas/Love, Texas)
Wishing you all a Gleðileg Jól (Merry Christmas) and a Gleðilegt nýtt ár (Happy New Year!) Thank you to these very special people for sharing their Christmas with us, head over to Bookstagram and show them some Christmas cheer Áróra @icelandicbookworm Kristjana @janahjorvar Harpar @bookfairies_iceland
IRON & INK DESI GNS
WWW.IRONANDINKDESIGNS.COM
You're a winner baby! @Lonley_Reader YOU'VE WON $150 worth of audio books from Bolinda Audio. Please contact us via Instagram to claim your prize!!
SMALLER AUSSIE #BOOKSTAGRAM ACCOUNTS YOU NEED TO BE FOLLOWING!!! We tracked down a whole heap of 'NEWISH' Australian Bookstagram accounts and decided to feature them here. These accounts are all so creative and the people behind them are just brilliant. If you'd like to, go give them a follow and support our emerging grammers!!
WHAT DO YOU DO ON DECEMBER 25TH? By Ellie
2020 has been an unprecedented year of stress and as it draws to a close I wanted to focus on the holiday period to spread some joy and draw a light on how people celebrate. Christmas is not a holiday that everyone recognises or celebrates but I am confident in saying that the vast majority of the world knows of and about the holiday. For me the holidays are all about coming together and spending time with friends and family so thank you to all who shared their traditions and experiences for this article. Christmas is a holiday observed on December 25th every year. It is both a sacred religious, cultural and commercial holiday celebrated almost worldwide by Christians and non-Christians alike. For two millennia people have been celebrating the holiday with traditions that are both sacred and secular. Christians celebrate December 25th as the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, a spiritual leader whose teachings formed the basis of their religion. Sacred traditions include attending mass and the telling or performing of the nativity story. Secular traditions include family meals, the exchanging of gifts, decorating Christmas trees and houses and of course, Santa Claus. However, not everyone celebrates Christmas the same way and some
do not celebrate at all. Other holidays celebrated in the month of December include Chanukah, which is an eight day Jewish celebration that commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem following the Maccabean Revolt. The witnesses to the rededication lit the menorah in the temple but discovered there was only enough oil for one night. Miraculously, the menorah burned for eight nights. Chanukah is celebrated between the 10th - 18th of December. Iceland celebrates Yule or JĂłl and has many associated traditions in the days leading up to Christmas. One of these traditions are the Yule Lads. Icelandic children enjoy not one but thirteen Father Christmases. They are merry but mischievous and take turns visiting
children on the 13 nights leading up to Christmas Day, leaving candy or small presents for the good and shoes with rotting potatoes inside for the naughty. My personal Christmas differs from year to year because I am a health professional. But my traditions start on Christmas Eve. I get up before dawn and head to the markets to get fresh seafood for dinner - prawns and oysters kilpatrick usually. At night we settle in with our seafood and watch Die Hard (yes it is a Christmas movie) and Love Actually and then if I’m still awake we go look at Christmas lights. On December 25th, there are years where I am required to be on call and have spent Christmas Day with patients requiring emergency procedures. When not at work I spend the day with my family having a big lunch.
THE 25TH IS MY ONLY DAY OFF, SO I USUALLY JUST HEAD TO MY PARENTS HOUSE AND CHILL.
Merry Christmas!
BREAKFAST/ BRUNCH WITH FRIENDS.
Chinese food and a movie!!!
, s a m t s i r h c o d it e s W e m i t e ek e and soam w a t can l stwo... or
THE 25TH IS MY ONLY DAY OFF, SO I USUALLY JUST HEAD TO MY PARENTS HOUSE AND CHILL.
A huge day of eating and laughing with family!! Food, pre sents nd traditioan at the c...Always nema boxing id ay However you spend December 25th this year I wish you a safe, happy and healthy holiday period. May your 2021 be everything you hope it to be.
SAY HELLO TO THE AMAZING
MARIA V SNYDER By Shauna With the final book in the Sentinels of the Galaxy series out now, we took a moment to speak to the amazing Maria V Snyder with thanks to Harlequin books. What can we expect from our favourite characters in Defending the Galaxy? You can expect them to be in the middle of trouble, outnumbered but not outsmarted. They come together as a team and don’t give up even when the stakes are high. But they’re not perfect. I try to make my characters three-dimensional and human. What would you say is your favourite part of writing a new series? The first book is always the most fun to write. I usually have a vague direction for the plot and basic characters and a hint of what the world is going to be like. It’s fun to discover the details when I’m writing (I don’t plot my stories, but let things develop as I go!). By the second book, I’m limited to what’s been established in
book 1. For example, in Sentinels of the Galaxy, I knew Lyra and her family would be travelling to another planet, but had no idea that the Interstellar Class space ship would resemble a big fat frog until the ship appeared in orbit. What has been the most enjoyable aspect of writing a sci-fi series? For this Sentinels of the Galaxy series, I attended Laundpad at the University of Wyoming. It was a six-day astronomy workshop for writers that was taught by Dr Michael Botherton and Christian Ready. They were 12-hour days and we learned so much about astronomy and how to get the science right in science fiction. Of course there is always a bit of ‘hand-wavinum’ like my crinkled space, but the rest should be as accurate as possible. Despite the long days, I had a blast with my fellow writers. We were able to visit the giant telescope on Jelm Mountain and discuss all the books, movies, and TV shows that either got it right or so very wrong.
Can we expect any short stories or novellas from Sentinels of the Galaxy much like the Study series?
dabbling in making jewellery. I also fancy myself a photographer (doesn’t everyone?). ;)
When I finished Defending the Galaxy, I thought there could be another story. It would be fun to explore some of the changes in their world – maybe jump 10 years into the future. However, I’m not promising anything! I do plan to put together all my Study/Glass short stories into a collection along with a few new ones. I hope to have that out in 2021.
If you could live in any of your fictional worlds which one would you choose and why?
How did you come about the concept of the Q-net featured in the Sentinels of the Galaxy series? The biggest problem with having a story set in space is the vast distances between exoplanets. With our current technology, humans can only go so fast. I needed my humans to be able to travel without going into hibernation for centuries or through a worm hole. I thought of crinkling space as a shortcut, but recognised that the complex equations and details to make it possible would need to be handled by an extraordinary computer – something well beyond our current capabilities. So I created a next generation of internet that is able to do the calculations and handle transmitting messages that take minutes to arrive instead of centuries. I know enough of quantum theory to be dangerous and thought an internet that worked on a quantum level would fit this situation. So the Quantum Network was born and, as with all things, quickly shortened to Q-net. What hobbies do you have outside of writing? I enjoy travelling, playing volleyball and playing the cello. Now that both my fantasy and science fiction series are written, I’ve more time. Unfortunately, the pandemic is limiting the first two. Of course I love to read and have been
The Study and Glass series world! Mostly so I could hang out with my family. I’ve written nine books with these characters and they’ve become part of my herd. Plus they were in my head for over ten years of my life. And they’re still there, nagging at me to write those short stories that will tie up a few loose ends. One aspect of your books I continue to enjoy is the world-building. Do you base your worlds such as the Fifteen Realms and Ixia on real places? Some details of my worlds are influenced by real places, like the sand in Archives of the Invisible Sword, which was inspired by the Australian outback. Travel is one of my passions and I keep a journal when I’m travelling. I’ll note down interesting details and they’ll show up in my worldbuilding almost unconsciously. For the Fifteen Realms, I’d just returned from a cruise in the Baltic Sea. I needed to make a map of the world before writing the first book because I knew the characters would be travelling through the realms right away. I printed out a map of Eastern Europe and turned it 90 degrees then traced the countries until I had fifteen. I drew three realms in Russia’s large expanse! And I incorporated the mood and weather from my trip into the books. Your previous works (Healer and Study series) feature magicians, healers and assassins. What inspired you to write a sci-fi series like Sentinels of the Galaxy? I enjoy reading SF and actually have published another SF
series, the Insider series (Inside Out and Outside In). I have a meteorology degree from Penn State University and worked as an environmental meteorologist for over ten years so I have a pretty extensive science background. The inspiration for Sentinels of the Galaxy came from my fascination with the Terracotta Army. One theory is that they were built and placed in the emperor’s tomb complex to protect him in the afterlife. I wondered what they were protecting him from and what would happen if the statues were broken or removed from the necropolis. This story could have easily gone into the realm of fantasy, but then I sparked on the idea of having explorers discover these statues on other planets in our galaxy. Terracotta warriors in space! How could I NOT write that! ;) You also wrote a book titled The Eyes of Tamburah. Did ancient Egypt have an influence on this series? It did in a general sense. I’m not an expert nor did I do any research on ancient Egypt. I think the pyramids had some influence. There are ancient buildings buried by the sand in my series. These buildings have booby traps and labyrinths deep underground. The series definitely has an Indiana Jones vibe of digging for lost treasures. However, I was also inspired by the Australian outback for the setting. The extreme heat and reddish-orange sand forces the inhabitants to live in vast underground cities. As part of the Archives of the Invisible Sword series a second book is scheduled for release in 2021. Can we expect a third book in 2022? Yes. The King of Koraha, which is the third and final book, is already underway. Your two recent series, Sentinels of the Galaxy and Archives of the Invisible Sword, showcase a passion for archaeology and ancient
artifacts. Is this too one of your passions? Actually, no. Sentinels of the Galaxy was inspired by the Terracotta Army in China and I have visited the site where they were discovered in Xi’an (and I am fascinated by them). However, I’m not reading archaeology magazines and watching documentaries on ancient artifacts. For Archives of the Invisible Sword, the setting was perfect for lost treasures. Their world has been baked by the sun and covered in sand, so it was natural that future generations would dig into their past. ;) Maria's books are available from all major book stores. http://www.mariavsnyder.com https://www.harlequin.com/ shop/authors/22882_maria-vsnyder.html Maria V. Snyder is the New York Times bestselling author of the Study series, the Glass series, the Healer series, Inside Out, and Outside In. Born and raised in Philadelphia, she earned a Bachelors of Science degree in Meteorology from Penn State and a Master of Arts degree in fiction writing from Seton Hill University. Unable to part ways with Seton Hill, Maria is currently a teacher and mentor for the MFA program. Find her on the Web at MariaVSnyder.com.
PRESETS You've heard the term presets yeah? But what the heck are they? How are they helpful to bookstagrammers? How can they help you save time in editing your photos? Sit back and relax as I dive into the world of presets. Over the past month I have been using a preset on my photos. The middle and right column here has one by @TheLatteLaboratory applied. Presets are a bunch of pre set editing settings which can be applied to any photo with one click. This is a HUGE time saver and when used on a feed, offers a consistent look and feel. I have LOVED exploring presets you can find a number of them for FREE online and alternatively you can find businesses selling them.
Be sure to check out the new volume combining both books from the Queendom of the Sevenlakes duology + new, never before released content.
up Next A LOOK AT NEXT ISSUE
Happy New Read!! Lets have a look at the books releasing in 2021
Our top 10 reads of 2020 We check out the work of another of our favourite Bookstagrammers...will it be you?
Setting a Goodreads goal? We speak to some of our friendly bookstagrammers to get their take on setting a Goodreads reading goal. The good, the bad and the ugly.
image: image: Fabee Fabee @devoured_pages @devoured_pages
Cover Cover image: image: Tracy Tracy @caffeineandcurses @caffeineandcurses