Here's what I've been adding to my shelves lately. I'm going the cheat sheet route and letting Goodreads do the compiling work for me. Feel free to weigh in on any of your favorites and push me into bumping any of these higher up on my TBR!
Saturday, December 13, 2014
Books I got
Ok, so it's been a REALLY long time since I've done one of these posts. You can attribute this entirely to laziness and fear of the daunting task of actually recording all these books in a post because, honestly, did you really think I was abstaining from acquiring books?
Here's what I've been adding to my shelves lately. I'm going the cheat sheet route and letting Goodreads do the compiling work for me. Feel free to weigh in on any of your favorites and push me into bumping any of these higher up on my TBR!
Here's what I've been adding to my shelves lately. I'm going the cheat sheet route and letting Goodreads do the compiling work for me. Feel free to weigh in on any of your favorites and push me into bumping any of these higher up on my TBR!
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Mini Review: The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry
I don't think this is a book I'll remember forever and ever, not will I feel compelled to reread it again and again (but maybe once again), but all that said, The Scandalous Sisterhood was a thoroughly enjoyable read.
I kind of hated Julie Berry's debut (debut? I think it was her debut...it sure did read like a debut) The Amaranth Enchantment, but she's clearly grown since then as an author because The Scandalous Sisterhood was a rip of a good time from start to finish (whereas TAE was...a sorry mix of regurgitation and weird).
The cast is huge but easy to tell apart because they're all caricatures, but in a good way (they even have little name descriptors to help you keep track of them all).
There are little romances scattered throughout the story (all aw-inducing, if not swoon-inducing), a central mystery that kept me guessing, and a perilous nail-biting "will they discover the murder were covering up" tension that kept me completely engaged. Also, there's treasure. How can you go wrong with treasure? You really can't.
I was rooting for these girls from page one, even if they were covering up a murder and one (or more!) of them was potentially a murderess.
But I couldn't care less about the moral implications of it all because all of the girls were just so gosh darn likable and, honestly, no one could possibly mourn the wretched deceased.
The whole thing had a bank robbery feel to it where, yes, we all know it's wrong to rob banks (and cover up murders), but it's near impossible not to root for our anti-heroes and hope they get away with it all in the end. Especially when it's as funny as The Scandalous Sisterhood (like, laugh out loud funny).
It's rare that I would do such a 180 with an author, but Julie Berry has gone from a total Do Not Want author for me to a definite Give Me That Book author. And I'm a reader who holds hardcore grudges, so that's really saying something.
I also couldn't help thinking this book would make a perfect movie (Kiersten Dunst as Smooth Kitty, please!). This is a nice standalone and pretty good for MG (especially MG), YA, and older readers and with such a large and varied cast there's sure to be a character for every reader to love.
ARC from the publisher, via NetGalley
Rating: 4 out of 5
_________________________________
Like this book? You might also like:
Click on the covers to go to my reviews
Tweet
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Tiny Reviews: Casting Spells and Blackmoore
One for the "Nice but forgettable" group and the other firmly on my Special Shelf.
Casting Spells by Barbara Bretton
Honestly, I read this book because I'm STILL going through Tradd Street withdrawals and I wanted something to fill that void. So, paranormal element? Check. Light romance? Check. Cozy town? Check. Mystery? Check. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.
Unfortunately, Casting Spells was no Tradd Street.
Nothing about it was BAD, but it really didn't stand out in any way. Thin characters, a barely there mystery, and while there were literal romantic sparks in the book, I felt none of them myself.
The worst really was the poor character development. I could deal with the lackluster mystery if there were good characters, but none of these people had any depth or made me care about them. They were all nice enough, but that's about it.
On the positive side, I liked the setting of the small, wintery Vermont town and the knit shop. I would love to have one of those never-empty yarn baskets.
Bottom line: Good enough to read to the end, but I don't think I'll be picking up the sequel.
Library book
Rating: 3 out of 5
Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson
I had high hopes for this book, and boy did it meet every one of them! I'm reduced to letting out swoony sighs, clutching my chest, and gasping about how achingly romantic every bit of Blackmoore turned out to be.
Kate is a heroine I can get behind. Her desire to break free of the constraints placed upon her, her noble sacrifice, her floundering to find her place, her hearbreakingly beautiful love, her independent spirit, her fortitude in the face of her shameful family...I adore every bit of her and cheered her on desperately hoping she would find happiness.
The plot is not fast and does not have a central mystery to propel events forward. This is more like a Jane Austeny type of plot where all the focus is on character interactions. And the building slow burn romance, of course.
That said, I never felt bored or impatient. I sped through the (short!) chapters and often pushed my bedtime later and later so I could squeeze in just one more chapter. I was utterly engrossed in the characters, the setting (SO palpable!), and the progress of their story.
This is definitely the type of book I'll return to again and again, both in whole and flipping to my favorite parts (the tower scenes! *sigh*). Highly, highly recommended to fans of Jane Austen (particularly Northanger Abbey and Persuasion), Keeping the Castle, and Georgette Heyer (if my one foray is any indication of her body of work).
Library
Rating: 5 out of 5
Special Shelf
Tweet
Honestly, I read this book because I'm STILL going through Tradd Street withdrawals and I wanted something to fill that void. So, paranormal element? Check. Light romance? Check. Cozy town? Check. Mystery? Check. I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.
Unfortunately, Casting Spells was no Tradd Street.
Nothing about it was BAD, but it really didn't stand out in any way. Thin characters, a barely there mystery, and while there were literal romantic sparks in the book, I felt none of them myself.
The worst really was the poor character development. I could deal with the lackluster mystery if there were good characters, but none of these people had any depth or made me care about them. They were all nice enough, but that's about it.
On the positive side, I liked the setting of the small, wintery Vermont town and the knit shop. I would love to have one of those never-empty yarn baskets.
Bottom line: Good enough to read to the end, but I don't think I'll be picking up the sequel.
Library book
Rating: 3 out of 5
_________________________________
Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson
I had high hopes for this book, and boy did it meet every one of them! I'm reduced to letting out swoony sighs, clutching my chest, and gasping about how achingly romantic every bit of Blackmoore turned out to be.
Kate is a heroine I can get behind. Her desire to break free of the constraints placed upon her, her noble sacrifice, her floundering to find her place, her hearbreakingly beautiful love, her independent spirit, her fortitude in the face of her shameful family...I adore every bit of her and cheered her on desperately hoping she would find happiness.
The plot is not fast and does not have a central mystery to propel events forward. This is more like a Jane Austeny type of plot where all the focus is on character interactions. And the building slow burn romance, of course.
That said, I never felt bored or impatient. I sped through the (short!) chapters and often pushed my bedtime later and later so I could squeeze in just one more chapter. I was utterly engrossed in the characters, the setting (SO palpable!), and the progress of their story.
This is definitely the type of book I'll return to again and again, both in whole and flipping to my favorite parts (the tower scenes! *sigh*). Highly, highly recommended to fans of Jane Austen (particularly Northanger Abbey and Persuasion), Keeping the Castle, and Georgette Heyer (if my one foray is any indication of her body of work).
Library
Rating: 5 out of 5
Special Shelf
Tweet
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Mini Review: To Be Queen by Christy English
Release Date: April 5, 2011Pages: 380
Received: Bought
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads
Eleanor of Aquitaine is a tough lady to like, and Christy English's version is no exception. Eleanor is haughty and bold, which can be totally fine if the lady backs up her sass with badassery. Unfortunately, this Eleanor does a lot more "talking the talk" than actually "walking the walk."
Is that Christy English or Eleanor? I'm inclined to put more of the blame onto the author with this one because unlike Katherine, Eleanor was actually right in the middle of all the juicy political turmoil and was definitely a key schemer.
And, to be fair, many of the events were mentioned. Eleanor did face kidnapping attempts and she did go on Crusade and her power struggles with her (first) husband's men were mentioned. But this was all very surface and often took a back seat whenever Eleanor felt some lusty urges (both rumored real and totally fictional).
It doesn't bode well when more detail is spent describing Eleanor's passion for her lover of the week than on her political intrigues, events, the historical setting, or deeper character development (doubly so when said romantic dalliances are also historical liberties).
Sure she talked about her power and what she wanted to ultimately happen but that's all it was. Talk. And it was pretty weak talk at that in a very "Eleanor Rules, Suger Drools" kind of simplistic end game.
She sounded like a petulant child stomping her foot and relying on "BECAUSE I'M QUEEN" to get her way when it should have been "Because I will politically DESTROY YOU, and let me explain in great detail the jaw-dropping scope of my plan."
The real Eleanor was a little more cunning and not quite as one-note as Christy English portrayed. I would have really appreciated it if she had delved a little deeper into Eleanor's craftiness and political manipulations. That also would have gone a long way toward me, if not liking Eleanor (lady was a harsh mom), then at least respecting her.
Bottom line
Oh well. Despite all that, it was a good enough run down of some of the main events of the time that I'm glad I read it. And, despite Eleanor's thin portrayal, the author actually did give a decently nuanced characterization of Eleanor's first husband Louis VII. He was deplorably weak but also way more sympathetic and likable and his struggles were presented in a compassionate, thought-provoking manner. I'd recommend the book for Louis alone.
I will read the companion novel The Queen's Pawn, but I'll also be on the lookout for a better Eleanor book. Surprisingly, (or not), the Royal Diaries Eleanor installment is still holding strong in comparison.
Looking for another book like this?
You might like:
Click on the pictures to go to my reviews.
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Mini Review: The Corinthian by Georgette Heyer
I wasn't dead set against picking up a Georgette Heyer book, but I was somewhat reluctant (I was afraid she'd be boring, which is so far from reality it's laughable) and I was totally overwhelmed by her huge body of work. Enter Ruby. Again. She steered me toward the slim The Corinthian and I loved it.
Much as I did enjoy it, the first half of the book didn't completely hook me, but that's mostly because of main character Penelope. Her contentious relationship with Sir Richard was amusing, but she felt so young to me and I had a hard time connecting with her. At least in the first half.
Sir Richard was a completely different story. It was love at first sight and the more time I spent with him and his sly apathy and subtle sarcasm, the deeper that love grew.
Plot wise, the first half was a rollicking lark complete with concealed identities, jewel thieves, Austen-y families (of the groan and cheer inducing varieties), and the 19th century version of a Proper Quest. There was never a dull moment so it was easy to zip right through.
The second half? Total farce. I laughed out loud until I gasped for air at the absolutely perfect absurdity of it all. All the difficulty I had connecting with Pen completely evaporated and we became bosom friends, shooting each other covert eye-rolls amidst all the chaotic fun.
Of course, Sir Richard only grew in my estimation and the banter between him and Pen was epic. Also, Ms. Heyer totally gets the importance of THAT KISS and delivers all the knee-wobbling heel-popping, heart-clutching impact of a properly done kiss.
Looking for another book like this?
You might like:
Click on the pictures to go to my reviews.
Tweet
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Tiny Reviews: The Summoning and Magic Bites
Oh boy, I'm in the minority on this one. I hated it. Absolutely hated this book. The main character was astoundingly stupid and insufferably mean and judgmental (just because he has pimples doesn't mean he isn't a nice guy, Chloe). It didn't take long for me to start wishing her dead.
The plot didn't help things either because absolutely nothing happens (Chloe takes a good part of the book just to come to terms with the fact that she's supernatural not crazy *yawn*). The Summoning is book 1 of a series, but it could have easily been edited down to a few chapters.
And the writing. Yikes. I'm a fantasy fan, so by default I have a pretty high tolerance threshold for info dumps, but my god, Kelley Armstrong had Chloe Google "necromancer" and then read off the results. Remember when Bella Googled "vampire" and how cringe-worthy that scene was? Yeah, this was worse. At least Bella knew what the word "vampire" meant.
Own (but not for long)
Rating: 1 out of 5
_________________________________
I'm not really a big fan of adult paranormal romances, and while I can't quite put my finger on why, Magic Bites definitely hit my Do Not Want buttons. Maybe it's the grit? These books always make me think of dirt and darkness.
It's weird because a lot of the staples of the genre are definitely features I like: tough but wary main character, alpha male love interest, magic, quirky side characters. I can get on board with all of that (just so long as you add a dash of Southern charm, maybe?).
But there's just something about the way those things are handled in a lot of adult paranormal romance books that just doesn't work for me and didn't work for me here.
I never warmed up to Kate, her love interest was somewhat repellant, the side characters grated instead of endeared, and the magic did not interest me. Add in a plot that just never seemed to grab me and a vague off-putting vibe and I'm kind of surprised I finished this one. Call it peer pressure. I know Kate Daniels is beloved in the genre, but I don't think I'll be continuing on with her.
Library
Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Tweet
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
