April showers bring great television, as you’ll see in this month’s installment of Cortney’s TV Digest.

Game of Thrones

HBO premiered the first fifteen minutes of Game of Thrones on Sunday night, and audiences got a taste of the gorgeous cinematography, stellar acting, and killer violence that is sure to be a part of every episode of this new series. Based on George R. R. Martin’s best-selling A Song of Ice and Fire series of novels, Game of Thrones takes place in the world of Westeros, where many noble familes fight for control of the Iron Throne.

Game of Thrones stars the likes of Sean Bean, Peter Dinklage, and will be directed by Thomas McCarthy, best known for his work on The Station Agent and The Visitor.

Game of Thrones will premiere April 17th on HBO.

Rodeo Drive is rolling up the sidewalks for a while. The second part of the Beverly Hills Housewives Reunion has just aired and Jiggy Vanderpump is no doubt nestled in Lisa’s incredibly wealthy armpit once more. So, let’s reflect on season one.

After barely managing to get through the first episode of the Real Housewives of DC, I initially couldn’t be bothered to even record the newest franchise, Beverly Hills. Finally, in an act of holiday hiatus desperation, I settled in to give the NHOTB (much like NKOTB but sans any references to Hangin’ Tough or a Whalberg) a chance.

What stuck me was that for the most part, the women in this franchise differed from the other Bravo Housewives in two distinct ways:

These women are genuinely likable.

These women are legitimately filthy stinkin’ rich. Like, solid-gold-toilet rich.

In between all the shopping, cooking, and holiday planning, December is a great month to find some free time, curl up on the couch, and enjoy some quality television. Fortunately, this month is chock-full of that, with upcoming season finales of some of this season’s hottest shows, plus some new additions to the lineup.

Top Chef All-Stars

If you’ve read my TV Digests before you’ll know I really can’t stand most reality television, but Bravo’s Top Chef is one exception. Between Top Chef, Top Chef Masters, and Top Chef: Just Desserts, this series about up and coming chefs duking it out for the top spot is both addiction and appetizing.

This month, a new addition to the lineup is being added, Top Chef All-Stars. In this new show, 18 previous Top Chef contestants are returning to reclaim their honor, including Season 7 favorites Tiffany and Angelo. Top Chef All-Stars premiers December 1st on Bravo.

The Walking Dead

I’m sure I’m not the first person to tell you to watch The Walking Dead if you haven’t already, and I won’t be the last. AMC has finally given zombie fans a television show to love, with some amazing source material from The Walking Dead comics and an amazing showrunner in Frank Darabont.

The show’s sixth and final episode of the season will air on Sunday, December 5th on AMC, and while this season has been short, The Walking Dead has already been renewed for a second season with thirteen episodes.

Hold on to your implants, the Real Housewives have spawned another bedazzled and botoxed book. New Jersey hausfrau Danielle Staub has been twittering up a storm about her forthcoming tome The Naked Truth: The Real Story Behind the Real Housewife of New Jersey—In her Own Words, and it’s set to hit Amazon et al on May 4, 2010.

Staub, the divorced action-cougar who spends her time waiting for a wealthy man to “rescue” her and her two daughters is the evil nemesis of the Manzo sisters on the hit Bravo series. After no less than five other Housewives alum have penned their own moneymakers, Staub decided to cash in with the rest of them. Let’s review her predecessors:

Never Make the Same Mistake Twice: Lessons on Love and Life Learned the Hard Way by Nene Leakes and Denene Miller. The autobiographical story of Atlanta Housewife Nene Leakes’ struggle with domestic violence and her subsequent success as a realty diva and gay icon is sure to be a sudsy read.