Naked Empire - Terry Goodkind

Title: Naked Empire (Sword of the Truth #8)
Author: Terry Goodkind
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.5/5
# pages: 660
Date read: September, 2009

Ancient sorcerous barriers have been accidentally toppled, freeing the unpleasant "Imperial Order" to rape, loot and pillage the rest of the world. The Emperor and his chief minion are revolting creatures whose sadism begins where Vlad the Impaler left off. Bandakar, a land of pacifists, has little chance of survival until someone gets the bright idea of giving the admired liberator Lord Rahl - that is, Richard - a dose of slow-acting poison. There is no antidote until he, personally and more or less single-handedly, frees Bandakar from the invading horde while, as pacifists, the natives will stand clear and disapprove of the slaughter. Some lessons in ethics and realism need to be learned here...

I read the first 6 books of the Sword in Truth series years ago and LOVED them. Especially the first three are some of my all-time favourite books. Then I read Pillars of Creation... Terry Goodkind really dropped the ball there. I missed Kahlan and Richard as the main protagonists and it just didn't work for me, so I never got around to reading the rest of the series.

Now that they're all out, I figured it was time to finish up - I owed it to the first books ;)

And with Naked Empire Goodkind got back on the horse. Just as captivating as the first 6 books, it drew me right in, and I finished the 660 pages in just two days. I'm now utterly immersed in the universe and wish I had time to reread the rest of the series.

That's not to say it didn't have its flaws. I certainly don't remember the first books as having this much monologuing, and there were some issues I felt weren't properly explained near the end of the book - it seemed like that was more a case of forgetfulness than because Goodkind couldn't figure out how to explain it though.

So yes, I do see the book's short-comings... but I still loved it.

What Einstein Told His Cool - Robert L. Wolke

Title: What Einstein Told His Cook
Author: Robert L. Wolke
Genre: Non-fiction
Rating: 3.5/5
# pages: 350
Date read: September, 2009

Why do recipes call for unsalted butter--and salt? What is a microwave, actually? Are smoked foods raw or cooked?

What Einstein Told His Cook offers answers to these and 127 other questions about everyday kitchen phenomena. Using humor (dubious puns included), Wolke, a bona fide chemistry professor and syndicated Washington Post columnist, has found a way to make his explanations clear and accessible to all: in short, fun.

Robert Wolke uses both knowledge and humour to answer a book-full of more or less intelligent questions about food and cooking. Some of these are pretty intuitive, others inspired a light-bulb moment. Well-written, and if some of the answers are more interesting than others... well, it's easy to skip the not-so-interesting ones.

Not a book you can read in one sitting, but good for occasional 'dippings'.