Awaken Me Darkly (Alien Huntress, Book 1) by Gena Showalter

Awaken Me Darkly (Alien Huntress, Book 1) by Gena Showalter


A thorougly enjoyable read! Usually I try to read a series in order, but I've read the two YA books in this series - Red Handed and Black Listed - and enjoyed them, so I finally decided to go back and start the series from the beginning.

This book is definitely NOT Young Adult! There are some pretty steamy sex scenes and a lot of violence, so I think it's very interesting to see a series that mixes genres this way.

In this book, the main character is Mia Snow who works for A.I.R. - a group who is dedicated to hunting aliens who have commited a crime. She's part of a group who is investigating the murder of several men, and during the investigation, she discovers a lot more than just who the murderer is!

I can't wait to read the next one - and luckily I have it here :)

I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder

I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder


The only complaint I have about this book is that it's really short! Because it's written in verse, it's a really quick read. Still, Ms. Schroeder manages to pack a lot into it.

The book deals with a young girl, Ava, whose boyfriend, Jackson, has died. She is devastated, as she believed him to be her soulmate, and also blames herself for his death. And then he begins to visit her - she can't feel him or see him, but she knows he's there.

As the book progresses, Ava deals with her grief, her guilt, and her confusion about the "haunting." Her inner turmoil is dealt with very well, but that's really all. There's no room for any character development, the death of Jackson is briefly described, and there's really not much of a plot.

Even so, the book succeeds for what it has set out to do, and I definitely recommend it.

Evil at Heart by Chelsea Cain

Evil at Heart by Chelsea Cain

Wow!!! I could NOT put this book down - thank you to Lori LORI'S READING CORNER for sharing her ARC with me!!

This is the 3rd book in the series with Archie and Gretchen, and it's a great addition. It picks up 2 months after the 2nd book ends, with Gretchen on the loose and Archie in a mental hospital.

When some bodies are discovered, the police suspect that Gretchen is back to her old ways and Archie is pulled into the investigation, and back into Gretchen's reach.

Definitely a must-read!

Love Stories in This Town

Love Stories in This Town

This is a beautiful collection of stories. The first half are stand-alone stories of different women at different stages in life. One woman has lost her husband in the 9-11 tragedy. Another woman must choose between the life she knows and the unknown one with her boyfriend.

The 2nd half is a collection of "Lola" stories, and they are wonderful. Each story is like a snapshot of a different time in Lola's life. One story is from her mother-in-law's perspective, which gives a whole new dimension to Lola's story.

I love Amanda Eyre Ward's writing! Her novels How To Be Lost and Forgive Me are two of my favorites, and Sleep Toward Heaven will be moved much farther up my TBR pile!

Secondhand Spirits: A Witchcraft Mystery by Juliet Blackwell

Secondhand Spirits: A Witchcraft Mystery by Juliet Blackwell


I've been anxiously waiting for this book! I love the Art Lover's Mysteries written by Hailey Lind, who is actually a collaboration between Julie Goodson-Lawes and Carolyn J. Lawes. (BTW, I am absolutely THRILLED to read on their website that there WILL be another addition to this series!!!!!!! Arsenic and Old Paint will apparently be published in 2010.)

Anyway, as for this book... I loved it. It's more paranormal than cozy mystery, but if you're a fan of either genre, you should love this one too. The main character, Lily Ivory, is a witch who has finally settled into a community that she wants to stay in for a while. She has a vintage clothing store (Aunt Clara's Closet), some new friends, and of course, a mystery to solve and a demon to banish.

I can't wait for the next one in this series!

Untamed (House of Night Novels) by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast

Untamed (House of Night Novels) by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast

Book Four in the House of Night series - and another great addition! I think this one, though, is a bit darker than the first three in the series. As Zoey's power grows, it seems her battles get bigger. I love how she finds unusual allies in this book - but I don't want to say too much and give it away!

If you're reading this series, you'll love this one. And if you're not, you should!

Glass by Ellen Hopkins

I listened to the first book in this series, Crank, and to be honest, I didn't really care for it that much. It could have been the narrator, or just that I'm not as big a fan of audiobooks as I am printed ones :)

Still, I decided to go ahead and read the second. I checked it out from the library, and it sat unread until it was due back. A few weeks later, I checked it out again and this time, I READ it! And I'm so glad I did!!

I really enjoyed it. The "verse" style was a little hard to get used to right at first, but I quickly got used to it, and began to really appreciate it. Very unique and easy to read.

As for the story, it is just heartbreaking - for Kristina, the young girl who is addicted to crank, her mother, her son, her siblings. As someone who has an addict in her family, I know all to well how painful it is to watch someone destroy so much of their life. These books are from Kristina's point of view, and it's hard sometimes to like her when she's doing such horrible things.

I highly recommend this series! And I look forward to the next book in the series!

The Housekeeper and the Professor: A Novel by Yoko Ogawa

The Housekeeper and the Professor: A Novel by Yoko Ogawa

It's not often that a book moves me the way this one did. After devouring most of it yesterday, even staying up late in the night, I finally finished it this morning, with tears streaming down my face.

This is a beautifully written novel (written by Ms. Ogawa in Japanese and translated by Stephen Snyder). It's a simple story of a woman who is the housekeeper for a mathematical genius - one who survived a tragic accident almost 20 years before leaving him with a short-term memory that lasts only 80 minutes. Each day, she must re-introduce herself when she comes to work. The Professor lives with notes clipped to his clothes, reminders to help him live. When he meets her son, he insists that she bring him with her every day. Nicknamed Root, the son and the Professor develop a fascinating relationship, sharing a love of math and baseball.

I could go on and on describing this book, its loveliness, and its love in every single page. Instead I will just say, please please read this book.

Serendipity: A Novel by Louise Shaffer

Serendipity: A Novel by Louise Shaffer

From the back of book: Louise Shaffer brings to life three generations of Italian American women in this stunning novel of surprises, secrets, and serendipity. A child of theatrical royalty, Carrie Manning is having a hard time getting her own act together. Thirty-seven, aimless, and having just buried a famous mother she never understood, she is desperate to uncover her family's mysterious past in the hopes that it will help her understand herself.

Review to come...

Finger Lickin' Fifteen (Stephanie Plum Novels) by Janet Evanovich

Finger Lickin' Fifteen (Stephanie Plum Novels) by Janet Evanovich

Sadly, this book is not getting the rave reviews that earlier Stephanie Plum books have gotten. When I first started this series, I would laugh out loud, read late into the night, and pass the book along immediately to a friend.

The first thing I noticed about this book is that it's short - oh, it tries to bulk up by using larger print and wider margins, but I read it in one day - and not because I couldn't put it down.

I really really want to love this series as much as ever, and in some ways, I still do. Stephanie and Lula and Grandma are hilarious, Morelli and Ranger are sexy. But the things that had me rolling on the floor just aren't there anymore - or at least not as much. Stephanie's failed attempts to capture her FTA are funny, but sometimes the way she would actually succeed are funnier. The cars getting blown up used to be funny - now it's just recycled. She's breaking up and making up with Morelli and hot for Ranger... Nothing's new, and that's the saddest part of all.

Maybe the next installment will bring new life to Stephanie.

Girls in Trucks by Katie Crouch

Girls in Trucks by Katie Crouch

From Amazon / Publishers Weekly
An unenthusiastic Southern debutante copes with the cruelties of postcollege New York life in Crouch's amusing debut. Sarah Walters is neither a misfit nor the queen of the Camellia Society cotillion scene growing up in Charleston, S.C. But when she and her fellow Camellias try to make a life in New York City, they find themselves coping in unexpectedly dangerous ways—from standard substance addictions to Sarah's fixation on preppy ex-boyfriend Max, a smooth and sadistic child of wealth. While the formula of young women in the big city seems destined for cliché, Crouch subverts most expectations; Sarah almost purposely misses an opportunity for happiness and stability with the gentle lover she met in Europe, and her ploy to ignite sparks with a college friend goes painfully awry. When Sarah goes back to Charleston and faces a perhaps too over-the-top family crisis (it involves suicide and lesbianism), the reader's left with the hope that the worst is over. Though this feels almost like a collection—each chapter its own story with its own narrative technique—Crouch's portrayal of a young woman's self-sabotage and the pitfalls facing young women in a cold world is wise, wry and heartbreaking. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

I just can decide whether I really loved this book or am annoyed with it! On one hand, I could not put the book down - I had to keep reading to find out what Sarah would do next, what was going on with her friends and family, etc. But the book just jumped around too much - one chapter might be about the summer before college, then the next would be 10 years after college, and then back again to a friend's perspective from during college! I had a hard time keeping track of the timeline throughout the book.

Still... there's no denying that Sarah's story is compelling. And throughout the book, the one connecting thread is that she was a Camellia (the group of women who were debutantes, daughters of debutantes...) and this keeps her grounded and connected in ways she didn't always realize. She may have left home and her Southern roots, but she couldn't escape the Camellias.

Unlike most books, this one doesn't end with everything all wrapped up and tidy. You still don't know how much more Sarah will struggle, but you do at least feel that she's grown and will make more mature decisions with her life - which I guess is all any of us can hope for in our own lives.

Overall, this is a solid 4 stars, possibly even 4 1 /2 for the great writing that kept me reading late in the night.

The Summoning (Darkest Powers, Book 1) by Kelley Armstrong

The Summoning (Darkest Powers, Book 1) by Kelley Armstrong

Chloe Saunders sees ghosts - and more... After having a terrifying episode in her school, she's sent to Lyle House - a home for troubled teens. While she's there, though, she begins to uncover sinister acts and makes friends with some of the other kids who seem to have other supernatural talents. As they become closer, they realize that they might be in danger.

Chloe and the other characters were well-written, but I'm hoping they will be more fleshed-out in the next book. This book seems to be mostly about setting things up for the rest of the series. I'm not sure how many books are planned - the next one, The Awakening (Darkest Powers, Book 2) by Kelley Armstrong, is available (and I'm very anxious to read it!).

Overall, this was a very good book, just obviously unfinished.

Next up:

Girls in Trucks by Katie Crouch

Dark Places: A Novel by Gillian Flynn

I absolutely loved Gillian Flynn's first novel, Sharp Objects, so I was anxiously waiting to get my hands on this one.

In this book, Libby Day is a survivor of a mass murder of her family - and her brother Ben is still serving time for the murders of her mother and two sisters. She lives in almost paralyzing inertia, living off a trust fund that started with donations for her care after the murders. The novel begins 25 years after the murders. Libby's money has run out and she's contacted by a man who wants to pay her for memorabilia and a personal appearance with his "Kill Club" - a group who has been attempting to solve the mystery.

As Libby begins to finally face what happened that night, she begins to question her own memories - as well as her own testimony that her brother had committed the murders.

I highly recommend this book - and if you haven't read Sharp Objects, be sure to pick that one up as well!

Recent Reads

The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano

From Amazon / Booklist
After 20 years in the Federal Witness Protection Program (WITSEC) and eight aliases, Melody Grace McCartney hardly knows who she is. On the run since she and her parents stumbled on a gruesome murder by mobster Tony Bovaro when she was six years old, Grace saw WITSEC’s promised protection fail her mother and father when they were killed 12 years later. Now she feigns personal danger to be relocated just because she’s bored and wants a change. But before her new case officer can move her from suburban Maryland to rural Wisconsin, Tony’s son, Jonathan, tracks her down to present an alternative: protection from his family and a life of more safety and freedom than she has ever known. While federal officials pressure her to stay in WITSEC and show her Jonathan’s violent side, her attraction to him grows, and she must decide a course for the rest of her life. This is a compulsively readable, skillfully constructed first novel with well-drawn characters and a plot that twists and turns to what seems the best possible conclusion, marking Cristofano as a writer to watch. --Michele Leber

I read this book in about a day, and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's always a joy to read such a well-crafted novel. I thought it was such an interesting idea of a character who couldn't be herself - literally! Melody hasn't been able to be "Melody" since she was six years old, and when Jonathan calls her by name, she can't resist listening to him and his proposal. It did make me think about how closely tied we are to our name and hometown as a big part of our identity - to have those taken away would make me feel very lost in the world.

I look forward to more books by Mr. Cristofano.

Book Giveaway - Lori's Reading Corner

Head over there and enter to win:

LORI'S READING CORNER: Book GIveaway - A Fatal Appraisal by J.B. Stanley (Autographed)

and then take a few minutes to browse her blog :)

Vision in White by Nora Roberts

Vision in White (The Wedding Quartet, Book 1) by Nora Roberts

From Amazon: Two out of three isn’t bad, right? Mackensie “Mac” Elliot had the perfect job and the best friends in the world, Emma, Laurel, and Parker. Together, the four were Vows, Connecticut’s hottest wedding-planning company. So what if Mac hadn’t found her own Mr. Right yet. Then Mac literally bumps into shy, scholarly, yet surprisingly sexy Carter Maguire when he turns up for his sister’s wedding-planning meeting, and Mac quickly discovers exactly what is missing from her up-until-now satisfactory life. After blending paranormal and fantasy elements in her last four romance trilogies, consistently engaging Roberts returns to basics and her literary roots. The result is a thoroughly charming contemporary romance that neatly showcases this reigning romance author’s flair for sharp, clever writing and realistically complicated characters in a compelling celebration of the power of friendship and love. --John Charles

OK - Normally I'm not a big Nora Roberts fan, but I really enjoyed this book! It's not great literature, true, but it's not meant to be. I liked the characters, I liked the story, and I liked reading about wedding details. It's fun chick-lit, and great summer reading.

Like the description says, this book was about Mac - the photographer who meets a great guy. Unfortunately, he's just not her type. Well, of course we all know right away that he's exactly her type, and fortunately she soon realizes it too. There are few surprises in this book, but that's ok - it's a nice comfy sweet ride.

I plan to continue this series - the next one comes out in December!

Shanghai Girls: A Novel by Lisa See

Shanghai Girls: A Novel by Lisa See



Lisa See has an amazing gift for making the history of Chinese women come alive. Her novel Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is still one of my favorite all-time books.

In Shanghai Girls, we are introduced to Pearl and May, sisters living in Shanghai just before World War II. Through a series of frightening events, they eventually come to America and live in Los Angeles' Chinatown. The novel takes us to the 1950s, when they experience the fear that the communist witch hunts brought about.

I'm normally not a big "historical fiction" reader, but when a book is as well-written as this one, where the history is so expertly woven with the story, I am entranced by it. This is a definite must-read!

Lust, Loathing and a Little Lip Gloss by Kyra Davis

Lust, Loathing and a Little Lip Gloss by Kyra Davis

Finished reading this today - and I loved it!!! I think this series is just getting better - this one had a lot of depth, humor, mystery, and hot romance!

Sophie is trying to buy a new home, and the seller is giving her all sorts of crazy restrictions - but she's getting a great deal, so she tries to work it out. But things of course are not what they seem, and before you know it, there's not just one but 2 dead bodies that Sophie finds!

Highly recommend this series if anyone hasn't started them yet!

Too Far Behind

I've been awful about keeping up with this blog! Part of the problem is that I really haven't read anything lately that I'm just so enthralled with that I have to talk about it.

Right now, I'm reading:

Lust, Loathing and a Little Lip Gloss by Kyra Davis

So far, so good, and hopefully I'll finish it soon and write a review!

I've gotten lots of ARCs to review, and will hopefully be getting to those soon.

In the meantime, here are a few of my favorites so far this year:

Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum - fantastic!!!

Marked (House of Night, Book 1) by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast - great start to a good series - I've also read the 2nd one in this series, and have the 3rd one waiting...

and in getting ready for the movie, if you are one of the very few left who hasn't read Harry Potter - start the series now! Don't worry about it being considered "young adult" - this is an amazing series and well-worth the read.

And now, I have the choice of either reading or putting together an Ikea bookshelf - I think I'm going to read :)

In the Dark by Brian Freeman

In the Dark by Brian Freeman

What a great book! This is the 4th book in the Jonathan Stride series, and it's awesome.

Jonathan is pulled into an investigation of his late wife's sister's murder when her friend comes to town with plans to write a book about the murder that took place in 1977.

Mr. Freeman does a fantastic job tying the past to the present, and even bringing in a current-day investigation that ties into the murder.

Highly recommend!!