Discussion: fravorite city-settings in books

Hey guys!

I'm ashamed of the lack of original content on the blog lately .___. I don't even have a good explanation or excuse. I'm just... not really feeling it at the moment and the thought of writing a review gives me an anxiety attack. So I just... read like a maniac. And the books pile up. Hah. Not very productive but I can't not read.

Anyway, since I still couldn't bring myself to review any of the great books I've read lately (doing them justice makes me nervous) I thought of something I'd like to discuss.


Cities I love as settings for books

I grew up in a village of 700 people but since my mid-teens, I've wanted to live in a big city, so when I was 21 I moved to Zurich (biggest city in the country). I love to read about cities. They have so many different places where things can happen and where different types of people converge. There's this sense of energy and possibility. Every city has its own vibe and I think that also flows into the setting of a book.

I've never been to the US, so whenever a book is set in Europe for once, that already makes me want to read it. If it's by a US author and/or if the characters in the book are from the US and traveling to Europe, it's also interesting to see how someone from there sees my continent. One example for that is Just One Day by Gayle Forman.

Other of my favorite European settings are London (because I've been there so when the characters go to certain places, I know what it all looks like and where they are, which is cool and unusual for me) and Prague. I finally got to Prague last summer and that resulted in me being even more into it as a setting. There's just something so old about it, and it has a history of magic and alchemy that I find very appealing. Examples: Daughter of Smoke and Bone, City of Dark Magic, The Book of Blood and Shadows. (I feel like I'm forgetting some...). For London there are just too many to count. Some of my faves: The Infernal Devices trilogy, Kate Griffin's Urban Magic series, Soulless, ACID, Neverwhere, Mrs Dalloway, the Black Butler manga. Feel free to share your own faves!

Other cities I enjoy reading about are Venice and Paris. They give off this romantic or seductive vibe and I especially love them for historical novels, for instance Venom by Fiona Paul. And there's of course Dublin! I love it as the setting for Karen Marie Moning's Fever series.

As for American cities, I like New York as a setting because that city is just so big and full of possibilites, but it can also really drag you down. I'm not such a big fan of an L.A. setting though I'm actually not quite sure why. I'd LOVE to read more books, especially YA ones, set in San Franscisco! I have a big fascination with that city and feel drawn to it, but I've only read very few books set there. So if you have recommendations, bring them on! As soon as I hear about one, especially with a paranormal element, it goes on my TBR automatically. Another city I really enjoy reading about is New Orleans. I love Kelly Keaton's Gods and Monsters series, where she creates her own unique version of the city, and I also love Poppy Z. Brite's books, many of which are set there. And of course there's Anne Rice.

But really, if the author can make me feel like I'm 'there' I can enjoy pretty much any city as a setting. It just has to set the right mood for the story, in my opinion. What I haven't touched on here are made-up cities. There are many of those I love but that would make this topic too vast for me right now... feel free to point some out to me though!

EDIT: Epic fail!! I forgot Tokyo, or Japan in genral. I haven't read all that many books set there (a couple by a Swiss author, Federica de Cesco, as well as Ink by Amanda Sun and the Across the Nightingale Floor books, which were inspired by Japan), it was mostly manga, but I'd looove to read more stories set in Tokyo! Could be historical or contemporary, fantasy or not, I don't care! If you have recommendations, please share :)

So what are some of your favorite city-settings for novels? Are there any that catapult an upcoming book to your insta-buy list? Are there any you really dislike reading about? Or does it not matter to you at all what city a story is set in? If so, I'm interested to hear why!

Get to Know Me: When I went to Paris and met Oscar Wilde

Hey guys, I realized it's been a while since I did one of these posts!
I couldn't make up my minds about a 'favorites' post so I decided to pick another city I've visited and show you pictures. Lots of pictures. Click them to make them bigger.

And since I know a lot of people are into the idea of Paris... voilà!
I've been twice, once in 2003 or so and then another time in April 2010 with my mum :) It was kind of a mother-daughter only getaway and we had a wonderful time! We both speak French pretty well, my mother because she was once an Au Pair in Geneva for a year and me because I love languages and French was the first foreign one that I learned (it's also one of the 4 official languages of Switzerland, so it's mandatory in school). And it's true that French people are nicer to you if you at least try to speak their language.

We were only there for three days but we still saw quite a lot of things and also just soaked up the atmosphere of the city because neither of us is really into standing in looooong lines and being jostled by lots of tourists. We wanted some stress-free time and often just sat and people-watched :)

First off after dropping our luggage at the hotel, we went to see Sacré Coeur and Montmartre. For those of you who've seen the movie Amélie, there's a carousel there just like in the film that plays the film theme music!

 Here are some more pictures of the area. It's also a good place to get a big view of Paris, and a great artistic little place behind the church!

Lots of people just go there to hang out, and there are often street musicians and dance groups on the steps.

After that, we went to the Cimetière du Père Lachaise because I love old cemeteries and because Oscar Wilde (among Jim Morrison, Edith Piaf and lots of other famous people) is buried there and I really wanted to visit his grave! That cemetery is a really special place, a whole city of the dead, and I even wrote a short story about it afterwards.

Bottom left is a whole manuscript! There were also flowers, fruit, letters, black lipstick...

I'm not sure whether I think of all the scribbles as defilement or a show of extreme dedication. The whole area around the grave is now walled in with glass, which I think is a pity.

This poem dropped there really moved me.

Me, looking awkward ^^'

This was a really special moment for me, and I'm so grateful my mum spent so much time wandering about the place with me (we had lots of trouble finding the grave because the cemetery is so huge!).

 

Sorry to those of you who have a problem with cemeteries, I promise I'm done now ;)

In the evening, we went to the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Elysées! The view of Paris and the Eiffel tower at night was fantastic, my pics of it less so I'm afraid...

Arc de Triomphe. You have to walk up a ton of stairs, but then...

Paris at your feet.

This flame burns eternally for all the unknown soldiers who died in WWI.

 

The next day, it was Eiffel Tower time! We didn't get to go all the way to the top (we would've had to wait a long time for other people to come down) but I wasn't too sad about that because I have a bit of a problem with heights and the top is supposed to be swaying when it's windy ~.~ The view is spectacular though!

The building with the golden roof is the Dom des Invalides, where Napoleon is buried.

La Défense, the modern architecture part of Paris. I didn't go there this time but the first time I was in Paris I did. Highest building's I'd ever seen. Lots of shopping malls and stuff.

And off we were to Notre Dame and the Quartier Latin (university/students neighborhood). We didn't enter Notre Dame because of all the tourists and the high entry fees but we took a lot of pictures nevertheless. Picture taking within the church is forbidden anyway...

Gargoyles!

I love gothic architecture!

We also did a bit of shopping that day, saw Remember Me in English with French subtitles (Robert Pattinson, why did you have to mumble so much?! I had to rely on French quite a lot to understand you), and then walked around some more. Here are some random shots, also of the Tuilleries gardens, unfortunately on an overcast day.

The Obélisque and the Eiffel Tower

Tuillerie Gardens

The Louvre is across the gardens. We had no time to visit though :(

The metalwork on this building is fantastic!

...And one last shot of the Seine.

That's it! I hope I could give you guys a bit of an impression of the city! I could have taken photos everywhere because I love the architecture and the dress and habits of the people! Next time I go, I really want to go to some of the old bookstores and I want to actually visit selected places of the Louvre, best with someone who actually knows their way around the place a bit. But as a quick holiday with my mum it was great the way it was!

Have you ever been to Paris? What was your experience? Or if you haven't been, why do you want to go and what would you like to see most? Have you been to the grave of a favorite author? Also, do you even like these types of posts or do you find them boring/annoying? Should I rather do a favorites post next time (and about what)? I'd love to hear from you :)

Waiting on Wednesday: The Golden City, by J. Kathleen Cheney

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine to spotlight upcoming book releases that we're excited about.



This week's pick:

Release date: November 5, 2013
Publisher: Roc Trade
Format: Paperback, 352 pages

Goodreads description:
For two years, Oriana Paredes has been a spy among the social elite of the Golden City, reporting back to her people, the sereia, sea folk banned from the city’s shores....

When her employer and only confidante decides to elope, Oriana agrees to accompany her to Paris. But before they can depart, the two women are abducted and left to drown. Trapped beneath the waves, Oriana’s heritage allows her to survive while she is forced to watch her only friend die.

Vowing vengeance, Oriana crosses paths with Duilio Ferreira—a police consultant who has been investigating the disappearance of a string of servants from the city’s wealthiest homes. Duilio also has a secret: He is a seer and his gifts have led him to Oriana.

Bound by their secrets, not trusting each other completely yet having no choice but to work together, Oriana and Duilio must expose a twisted plot of magic so dark that it could cause the very fabric of history to come undone...

This books sounds so unique and amazing! Spies, sea folk, uneasy allies, Paris... Ocotber can't come soon enough :)
What do you guys think of my pick? Have you heard of it or read any early reviews? And what book are you highlighting this week?