February in Review

Well did that month go? Thankfully it means we are closer to spring now and hopefully leave the snow behind.

I had another great month reading. Keeping up with challenges and enjoying every minute of it.

Not all my reviews are up yet (been too busy reading), but then are almost done and will be coming out every other day until I am caught up.

Started the month out fairy tale style.

Red Riding Hood by Sara Blakely Cartwright - the movie comes out in a couple weeks, read my review I got some things to say about this one.

Red Riding Hood by Deanna Wadsworth - got it for $2.39 on my kindle. i won't be doing a review, suffice to say not for kids, of my!

The Red Garden by Alice Hoffman

The Secrets of the Tudor Court by DL Bogdon - from the Kindle Loaning Club on facebook

The Demon Trappers Daughter by Jana Oliver - YA Debut Author Challenge

Into The Wilderness by Sara Donati

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris - an audio book

An Acquaintance with Darkness by Ann Rinaldi

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison

Blacklands by Belinda Bauer

I got to add lots of new pins to my Where Are You Reading Map.

An Acquaintance with Darkness by Ann Rinaldi

Fourteen-year-old Emily Pigbush suspects that her uncle is involved in body snatching. Meanwhile, her best friend''s family is accused of plotting to kill Abraham Lincoln, and Emily is left unsure of whom she can trust.

I had a hard time getting into this book, putting it down a couple times, finally getting to that half way point and I just finished it off. This book involves 2 stories, the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and body snatching (not just from the graveyard). I really enjoyed other books by Ann Rinadli (A Break with Charity and The Coffin Quilt). Being MG/YA books I really don't expect to much detail. I found myself going to wiki to check things outs myself and seeing how close to fact her books are. This book though is more YA then MG, depending on who is reading some information about body snatching might be a little much for them

I found that Emily grew up in this book, really she didn't have much of a choice, her mother has just died, her best friends family is accused of being involved in the killing of Lincoln and she is living with her uncle, a doctor with secrets of his own.

The best past of the book was the authors comments at the end, going into more true facts about that time period. I enjoy learning while reading.

This book was added to Where Are You Reading

the demon trapper's daughter by jana oliver

Riley Blackthorne just needs a chance to prove herself – and that’s exactly what the demons are counting on…

Seventeen-year-old Riley, the only daughter of legendary Demon Trapper, Paul Blackthorne, has always dreamed of following in her father's footsteps. The good news is, with human society seriously disrupted by economic upheaval and Lucifer increasing the number of demons in all major cities, Atlanta’s local Trappers’ Guild needs all the help they can get – even from a girl. When she’s not keeping up with her homework or trying to manage her growing crush on fellow apprentice, Simon, Riley’s out saving distressed citizens from foul-mouthed little devils – Grade One Hellspawn only, of course, per the strict rules of the Guild. Life’s about as normal as can be for the average demon-trapping teen.

But then a Grade Five Geo-Fiend crashes Riley’s routine assignment at a library, jeopardizing her life and her chosen livelihood. And, as if that wasn’t bad enough, sudden tragedy strikes the Trappers’ Guild, spinning Riley down a more dangerous path than she ever could have imagined. As her whole world crashes down around her, who can Riley trust with her heart – and her life?

The debut for Jana Oliver, I have been wanting to read this book since it came out. I found the story line interesting, set in Atlanta, Georgia in the year 2018. I wasn't disappointed with the book on the whole, what happens to society was an interesting turn. How to do this review without an spoilers is hard. Riley has a hard life, but she isn't the only one, throughout the whole book she just seems to be in a bad mood, for the most part you can't blame her, with the things that happen to her. She reminds me of Bella from the Twilight series, (I even picture them looking the same) not happy and I don't get the impression she ever has been. I found her treatment of Beck throughout the book was constant and that got to be a bite much. Beck I liked, I found he to be well developed. Simon on the other hand wasn't. He just sorta appears and next thing Riley is in love. Ori was an interesting character and hopefully we will see more of him in the next book.

The storyline was good and original, Lucifer letting his demons loose on the world, the mystery of why the demons know Riley by name and who is the mysterious Ori. Looking forward to the next book.

WHERE ARE YOU READING? has been updated to show this book

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

I have heard so many good things about this book. Some said it took them until half way through the book to really get into it, others were hooked right away. I am one of the ones hooked right away. This book has been on my book shelf for about 2 years now, recommended by a good friend in Australia. Since getting my Kindle I have been on the prowl for cheap book, this one going for $5 felt like it finally talking to me to be read.

I love reading on the Kindle and this book was a pleasure to read.

Cases rarely come much colder than the decades-old disappearance of teen heiress Harriet Vanger from her family's remote island retreat north of Stockholm, nor do fiction debuts hotter than this European bestseller by muckraking Swedish journalist Larsson. At once a strikingly original thriller and a vivisection of Sweden's dirty not-so-little secrets (as suggested by its original title, Men Who Hate Women), this first of a trilogy introduces a provocatively odd couple: disgraced financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist, freshly sentenced to jail for libeling a shady businessman, and the multipierced and tattooed Lisbeth Salander, a feral but vulnerable superhacker. Hired by octogenarian industrialist Henrik Vanger, who wants to find out what happened to his beloved great-niece before he dies, the duo gradually uncover a festering morass of familial corruption—at the same time, Larsson skillfully bares some of the similar horrors that have left Salander such a marked woman.

I spent much of my time trying to figure out the ending, having read enough mysteries in my time that for some books it isn't hard to figure out. With this book I couldn't figure it out. I loved how everything fit together at the end. The book takes place in Sweden, so I found some of the names of places and political information confusing (since I am not familiar with them).

January in Review

Where on earth did January go? I think that I must have read too much and missed it, which is fine because I read some great books.

I got my Kindle and am thoroughly in love with it. Amazing how many free books I have acquired so far.

So what I have I read this month? My goal is for 111 books in 2011 and so far I am right on track.

1. Choker by Elizabeth Woods, part of the YA Debut Author Challenges (review)

2. The Awakening by LJ Smith

After reading the Twilight Series I shied away from vampire books, but thought I would give this series a try and I loved it. I find the characters (though spoiled and stuck up) are a little more believable, and the book is not just about one couple. I also purchased the first season on DVD, but was getting confused since the show is really not following the book exactly, so once I finish the first season I will continue with the books.

3. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein, audio, review (loved it btw) Whisper In My Ear Challenge

4. Gentle Ben by Walt Morley, review (loved it too)

5. Love You, Miss You, Hate You by Elizabeth Scott, part of the Off The Shelf Challenge, review

6. Dogsled Dreams by Terry Lynn Johnson, YA Debut Author Challenge, review

7. Coraline by Neil Gaiman, part of the Off The Shelf Challenge
Haven't done a review of this book, not sure that I will. Kinda a creepy book, but then I saw the movie last year so I knew what to expect.

8. Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly, part of the YA Historical Fiction Challenge, review LOVED IT!!

9. I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder, read it just because, heard it was good and a verse novel (never read one of those before). Enjoyed this book alot, for many reasons. One of the main reasons is the support that was given by the parents. There are so many books out about death and guilt, partying but the parents never play an active and supporting roll and I really liked that in this book.

10. Water Wars by Cameron Stracher, part of the YA Debut Challenge
When the list came out for the debut author challenge this was not one that I picked, but finding it at Amazon for my new Kindle and only $2.39 (at the time) I bought it. It was a good book, not a great one. I really can't put my finger on exactly what it was missing, but I had to force myself to read it a number of times. I didn't feel that Vera was portrayed like a 16 year old, I just got the impression throughout the book that she was younger.

11. The Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan, audio, Whisper in my Ear Challenge, review coming

12. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larrson, Off The Shelf Challenge, Kindle (only $5) review is coming