Brand New 52 - June Edition

art by Risa Rodil

Truer words have never been spoken, especially this month. I've been so busy with social engagements and so stressed out and exhausted the rest of the time that I feel like I've barely read a thing for the challenge this month. Okay, so 5 books is nothing to complain about, but it's still less than I usually read. Here is what I managed to actually read this month

Honeyed Words (Sarah Beauhall #2)

by J.A. Pitts 

416 Pages

Sarah Beauhall is a blacksmith, has a night job as a props manager for a low-budget movie, and spends her free time fighting in a medieval re-enactment group. Her world falls apart when she discovers that dragons are real and live among us as shapeshifters; in fact, it is they who have been the secret masters of our world from time immemorial. On top of all this, it appears that Sarah has managed to reforge an ancient sword that everyone suddenly wants... and those who don't want the weapon want Sarah to take on her destiny and become humanity's saviour.(☆) 

As Sarah tries to make her way in this new world, she discovers just how little she knows of reality. Fairies and dwarves and giants abound, the fault line of the Pacific Northwest is rife with ancient Norse magic. Odin himself appears with ravens at his side and cryptic advice for the fledgling heroine. And the cherry on the sundae? The discovery that Sarah's girlfriend (⚥) is from a family that has been battling these forces for generations and they look to Sarah as their last best hope.

What's a girl to do when the powers of the world decide that you're responsible for cleaning up the magical mess?

I have been looking for this for this book everywhere! For some reason, no copies of this book exist in Toronto, so I eventually just ordered it in. It's not as good as the first book, which is often the case with middle books, but it was still pretty good. This book is more about the consequences of the previous book and how it affects their normal and magical lives. There isn't as much reaction to events as I would like. An acquaintance gets kidnapped at the beginning, and they try and fail to stop it, but that doesn't seem to have any lasting effect on them. The next day they are out exploring the city and picnicking in the park. It's very odd.

I'm very much looking forward to the last book in this series (if I can find it) as I imagine it will actually wrap up all of these plots that are left hanging.

Towers of Midnight (The Wheel of Time #13)

by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson 

863 Pages (38:24 Hours)

The end draws near....

The Last Battle has started. The seals on the Dark One’s prison are crumbling. The Pattern itself is unraveling, and the armies of the Shadow have begun to boil out of the Blight.

The sun has begun to set upon the Third Age.

Perrin Aybara is now hunted by specters from his past: Whitecloaks, a slayer of wolves, and the responsibilities of leadership. All the while, an unseen foe is slowly pulling a noose tight around his neck. To prevail, he must seek answers in Tel’aran’rhiod and find a way--at long last--to master the wolf within him or lose himself to it forever

Meanwhile, Matrim Cauthon prepares for the most difficult challenge of his life. The creatures beyond the stone gateways--the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn--have confused him, taunted him, and left him hanged, his memory stuffed with bits and pieces of other men’s lives. He had hoped that his last confrontation with them would be the end of it, but the Wheel weaves as the Wheel wills. The time is coming when he will again have to dance with the Snakes and the Foxes, playing a game that cannot be won. The Tower of Ghenjei awaits, and its secrets will reveal the fate of a friend long lost.

This penultimate novel of Robert Jordan’s #1 New York Times bestselling series--the second of three based on materials he left behind when he died in 2007--brings dramatic and compelling developments to many threads in the Pattern. The end draws near.

Dovie’andi se tovya sagain. It’s time to toss the dice.

Things are finally coming together in the Wheel of Time. I guess they have to when it's the second last book of the series. This is a great book even if it's not focused on the characters we want all the time. My favorite plot line is always Mat's. The much anticipated trip to the Tower of Ghenjei was worth the wait and made this book for me.The other plot lines are pretty good too; hunting the Forsaken in the White Tower (#), the battles between the wolves and Slayer, Graendal's plots and plans (⚥), even Aviendha in the Waste was interesting. Not to mention, we finally find out what's in Mat's letter from Verin! I can't wait to read the next one! (!) 

Devil's Punch (Corine Solomon #4)

by Ann Aguirre

316 Pages

"The power swelled inside me, burning, hurting, but I let it center me. Pain means I’m still here, fighting. I envisioned it swelling in my hand in a seething rush, gathering, gathering, and then I sent it out on my resolve like a dark and winged thing riding the magickal wind."

As a handler, Corine Solomon can touch any object and learn its history. Her power is a gift, but one that’s thrown her life off track. The magical inheritance she received from her mother is dangerously powerful, and Corine has managed to mark herself as a black witch by dealing with demons to solve her problems.

Back home, Corine is trying to rebuild her pawnshop and her life with her ex Chance, despite the target on her back. But when the demons she provoked kidnap her best friend in retaliation, Corine puts everything on hold to save her. It’s undoubtedly a trap, but Corine would do anything to save those she loves, even if it means sacrificing herself…

This book goes straight to hell, literally. When Shannon gets kidnapped by demons, Corina, Chance and Butch (^..^) actually head down to the Demon Underworld to rescue her. Unbeknownst to Corine, her Solomon blood (☆) carries the Queen of the Sheol, who begins to speak with her and then slowly starts to take over. The melding is done so well that it's hard to figure who is actually in control some of the time. The lines between good and evil is definitely blurred and we begin to see that maybe we've misjudged the demons. It's an interesting concept that is pulled off thanks to Aguirre's writing. As always, I'm happy to have read another good book by her.

Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell (The Cosmere)

by Brandon Sanderson

2:07 Hours

Originally appearing in the Dangerous Women anthology and now available as a solo ebook, Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell is a chilling novella of the Cosmere, the universe shared by Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series and the #1 New York Times bestselling Stormlight Archive.

When the familiar and seemingly safe turns lethal, therein danger lies. Amid a forest where the shades of the dead linger all around, every homesteader knows to follow the Simple Rules: "Don't kindle flame, don't shed the blood of another, don't run at night. These things draw shades." 

Silence Montane has broken all three rules on more than one occasion. And to protect her family from a murderous gang with high bounties on their heads, Silence will break every rule again, at the risk of becoming a shade herself.

2:07 Hours

When I read the above description, I was excited to find out that all of Sanderson's books take place in the same Universe.

The Cosmere is the greater universe in which The Stormlight Archive and all other Brandon Sanderson's adult fiction books take place. That is, each book he writes is set on a unique world, and each of these worlds is set in the same Cosmere. All of the books share a single creation myth, a single cosmology and are connected by an overarching story. However, none of them dominate the storyline of any of the books.

I can't wait to read everything and put it all together. This was an interesting short story about a woman and her daughters who survive on the edge of a haunted forest by running an inn and taking on bounties. It shows the lengths women will go to to keep their families safe in unsafe times.  I really enjoyed this interlude into the Cosmere  

Apron Anxiety: My Messy Affairs In and Out of the Kitchen

by Alyssa Shelasky

272 Pages

Apron Anxiety is the hilarious and heartfelt memoir of quintessential city girl Alyssa Shelasky and her crazy, complicated love affair with...the kitchen.

Three months into a relationship with her TV-chef crush, celebrity journalist Alyssa Shelasky left her highly social life in New York City to live with him in D.C. But what followed was no fairy tale: Chef hours are tough on a relationship. Surrounded by foodies yet unable to make a cup of tea, she was displaced and discouraged. Motivated at first by self-preservation rather than culinary passion, Shelasky embarked on a journey to master the kitchen, and she created the blog Apron Anxiety (ApronAnxiety.com) to share her stories. 

This is a memoir (with recipes) about learning to cook, the ups and downs of love, and entering the world of food full throttle. Readers will delight in her infectious voice as she dishes on everything from the sexy chef scene to the unexpected inner calm of tying on an apron

I picked up this book at a free little library thinking that this would be the perfect book for me. I mean Aprons & Anxieties (#) are my things. lol. I was not mistaken. This book spoke to me on so many different levels. I have been in many of her positions in my life and I felt a deep camaraderie with her. This book seemed to revolve around love, but in the end, it was even more about loving yourself and appreciating your family and friends (⚥) and the amazing women in your life, oh and bringing everyone together with food. How wonderful!

I can't wait to try out some of these amazing recipes.

Books that I am currently reading

My Way to Hell (Hell #2)

by Dakota Cassidy
74 of 323 Pages

City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1)

by Cassandra Clare
266 of 485 Pages

A Memory of Light (The Wheel of Time #14)
by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
138 of 909 Pages (35:41 of 41:48 Hours)

Brand New 52 - May Edition

Books, books, books... So many books, so little time. What am I talking about? I'm already 87% into my yearly challenge and it's not even June yet! Still, there are always more books waiting to be read and I intend to read them all!

Here's what I read this month:

Magic to the Bone (Allie Beckstrom #1)

by Devon Monk

355 Pages

Using magic meant it used you back. Forget the fairy-tale, hocus-pocus, wave a wand and bling-o, sparkles and pixie dust crap. Magic, like booze, sex, and drugs, gave as good as it got. 

Everything has a cost. And every act of magic exacts a price from its user - maybe a two-day migraine, or losing the memory of your first kiss. But some people want to use magic without paying, and they Offload the cost onto innocents. When that happens, it falls to a Hound to identify the spell's caster - and Allison Beckstrom's the best there is.

Daughter of a prominent Portland businessman, Allie would rather moonlight as a Hound than accept the family fortune - and the strings that come with it. But when she discovers a little boy dying from a magic Offload that has her father's signature all over it, Allie is thrown into the high-stakes world of corporate espionage and black magic.

Now Allie's out for the truth - and must call upon forces that will challenge everything she knows, change her in ways she could never imagine ... and make her capable of things that powerful people will do anything to control.

I picked this book up for a couple of bucks at BMV hoping that it would be a good urban fiction. As I was reading it, I found that I was actually enjoying it. But the end ruined it for me and now I'm not sure I actually want to read the rest of the series.(!) (SPOILERS: I mean, memory loss? Why even write the book if you're just going to eradicate it in the end)

I like the use of magic in this book where everything that you cast has a physical or mental (#) price tag. And if you overuse it it can really damage you. I also thought it was interesting that you could pay someone to offload your magical price onto them.  What kind of money/spell ratio are we talking about? I want to know more about that. So maybe I will pick up the next book after all. I guess we will see.

Magic and Macaroons (Magical Bakery Mystery #5)

by Bailey Cates

304 Pages

For magical baker Katie Lightfoot, the only way to beat the Savannah summer heat is to whip up some cool treats for the Honeybee Bakery’s patrons. But when a meeting of the spellbook club is interrupted by a stranger collapsing on the floor of her shop, mumbling something about a voodoo talisman, Katie drops everything to begin investigating.

Her search for answers quickly leads her into a dangerous blend of Savannah’s infamous voodoo queens, a powerful missing charm—and a deadly witch who seems to be targeting the city’s magical community. And with the case getting hotter by the second, Katie will have to work fast to track down the talisman and the killer before the timer runs out…

I feel like every book series that has to do with magic (and always cop shows for some reason) inevitably play the voodoo card. Maybe they're running out of ideas? Maybe they want to take a new crack at it? I'm not really sure to tell you the truth. I just know that I find it cliche and never done very well. I feel bad for those people that do practice Voodoo (Vodou/Vodun/Voudoun) and have their religions misrepresented in such a blatant way. As far as voodoo goes though, this book handled it better than a lot of other ones that I've read (or seen) and mostly focuses on the positive side of the culture.
Katie is finally figuring out what being a Lightwitch (☆) means and finds a new mentor to help her along the way. It's mostly just Katie and Cookie working together in the book and not the usual full Book Club and their familiars (^..^). It was nice to get to know Cookie better, but I worry about her relationship with her new Husband. Perhaps it will get resolved in the next book

The Gathering Storm (The Wheel of Time #12)

by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

783 Pages (33:02 Hours)

Tarmon Gai'don, the Last Battle, looms. And mankind is not ready.

In this epic novel, Robert Jordan's international bestselling series begins its dramatic conclusion. Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, struggles to unite a fractured network of kingdoms and alliances in preparation for the Last Battle. As he attempts to halt the Seanchan encroachment northward---wishing he could form at least a temporary truce with the invaders---his allies watch in terror the shadow that seems to be growing within the heart of the Dragon Reborn himself.

Egwene al'Vere, the Amyrlin Seat of the rebel Aes Sedai, is a captive of the White Tower and subject to the whims of their tyrannical leader. As days tick toward the Seanchan attack she knows is imminent, Egwene works to hold together the disparate factions of Aes Sedai while providing leadership in the face of increasing uncertainty and despair. Her fight will prove the mettle of the Aes Sedai, and her conflict will decide the future of the White Tower---and possibly the world itself.

The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow.

This was the first book that came out after Robert Jordan's passing. All the fans of WOT cried out at this great loss and wondered what would become of our favorite book series. But there was still hope:

The final volume of the Wheel of Time, A Memory of Light, was partially written by Robert Jordan before his untimely passing in 2007. Brandon Sanderson, New York Times bestselling author of the Mistborn books, was chosen by Jordan's editor---his wife, Harriet McDougal---to complete the final book. The scope and size of the volume was such that it could not be contained in a single book, and so Tor proudly presents The Gathering Storm as the first of three novels that will make up A Memory of Light. This short sequence will complete the struggle against the Shadow, bringing to a close a journey begun almost twenty years ago and marking the conclusion of the Wheel of Time, the preeminent fantasy epic of our era.

No one knew what to think of a new author taking over. Lucky for us, we had nothing to worry about. Brandon Sanderson picked up the mantle and held it with pride. He breathed new life into old characters (⚥) and blended his voice almost seamlessly with Jordan's. I can't even pick out which parts each of them wrote. This may actually be one of my favorite books of the series. Egwene and Rand steal the show in this book, which is a nice change for their characters. (!)



The Shattered Court (The Four Arts #1)
by M.J. Scott 

313 Pages

Entangled in a court ruled by tradition and intrigue, a young witch must come to terms with newfound power and desire—and a choice between loyalty and survival.…

The royal witches of Anglion have bowed to tradition for centuries. If a woman of royal blood manifests powers, she is immediately bound by rites of marriage. She will serve her lord by practicing the tamer magics of the earth—ensuring good harvests and predicting the weather. Any magic more dangerous is forbidden.

Lady Sophia Kendall, thirty-second in line to the throne, is only days away from finding out if she will be blessed—or perhaps cursed—with magic. When a vicious attack by Anglion’s ancient enemies leaves the kingdom in chaos, Sophia is forced to flee the court. Her protector by happenstance is Lieutenant Cameron Mackenzie, a member of the royal guard, raised all his life to be fiercely loyal to the Crown.

Then Sophia’s powers manifest stronger than she ever imagined they would, (☆)and Cameron and she are inextricably linked in the process. As a witch unbound by marriage rites, Sophia is not only a threat to the established order of her country, but is also a weapon for those who seek to destroy it. Faced with old secrets and new truths, she must decide if she will fight for her country or succumb to the delicious temptation of power.…

I took a gamble on this book, not knowing if it would be a really good fantasy or a really terrible romance book. I was happy when it turned out to be somewhere in the middle. Yes, it falls into bad romantic fiction at some points, but it was done well enough that I was okay with it. The plot was actually pretty good and I, like Shophie, wanted to get to the truth of the matter of magic. Although not all my questions were answered, I'm hoping that the story will continue to unfold in the next book (whenever it comes out) (!)

Alien: Out of the Shadows
by Tim Lebbon

4:31 Hours

An Audible Original Drama
As a child, Chris Hooper dreamed of monsters. But in deep space, he found only darkness and isolation. Then, on planet LV178, he and his fellow miners discovered a storm-scoured, sand-blasted hell - and trimonite, the hardest material known to man.
When a shuttle crashes into the mining ship Marion, the miners learn that there was more than trimonite deep in the caverns. There was evil, hibernating and waiting for suitable prey. Hoop and his associates uncover a nest of Xenomorphs, and hell takes on a new meaning. Quickly they discover that their only hope lies with the unlikeliest of saviors....
Ellen Ripley, the last human survivor of the salvage ship Nostromo.

It's been a long time since I've listened to a radio drama. Perhaps War of the Worlds when I was in elementary school. I came across this while on Tumblr and quickly looked it up on Audible.  They've decided to start doing Drama productions and this was one of their firsts. Now, I can't resist the Alien franchise and was super excited about this. I downloaded it and started listening to it immediately. It takes place between Alien and Aliens and I had no idea how they were going to make everything cannon. As in a typical Alien movie, once the discovery of Xenomorphs is made, everything else goes to hell in a hand basket (or a transport ship in this case). Throw in a rogue AI who's interfaced with all the computers and wants to capture an Alien for further study and and a woman who's seen it all before and is suffering the consequences (#) and you're in for a crazy, scary fun story. The voice actors were amazing and Laurel Lefkow, who played Ripley, sounded exactly like Sigourney Weaver. I actually wondered if it was her for awhile.
Seriously though, if you're a fan of this series you need to check this out pronto.



The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2)
by Maggie Stiefvater

437 Pages (12:45 Hours)

If you could steal things from dreams, what would you take?
Ronan Lynch has secrets. Some he keeps from others.(⚥) Some he keeps from himself.
One secret: Ronan can bring things out of his dreams.
And sometimes he's not the only one who wants those things.
Ronan is one of the raven boys - a group of friends, practically brothers, searching for a dead king named Glendower, who they think is hidden somewhere in the hills by their elite private school, Aglionby Academy. The path to Glendower has long lived as an undercurrent beneath town. But now, like Ronan's secrets, it is beginning to rise to the surface - changing everything in its wake.

I didn't like Ronan in the first book. He always seemed angry and annoying, but maybe it was just because I didn't know Ronan. They never really get into any of his stuff other than he has a starnge history with his father's murder, a quick temper and a raven named Chainsaw (^..^). But this book is all about Ronan and what he can do. We find out more of his history and the secrets he's been keeping from the others. He can pull things out of dreams, but what he pulls out aren't always good things. Nightmares sometimes leak out too. So what happens when other people start discovering his hidden talent? Some want to hunt his down, some want to teach him. Some just want his friendship. This is a story about Ronan. Sure, Everyone else is around too. Gansey is forever Gansey, as is Blue ever Blue. Adam, whom I loved in the first book, continues to spiral out of control trying to figure his life out. I can't wait to read the next book.




Godslayer (The Sundering #2)
by Jacqueline Carey

416 Pages

IF ALL THAT IS GOOD CONSIDERS YOU EVIL, ARE YOU?
Once human but now immortal, Supreme Commander Lord Tanaros fled the realm of Men and chose darkness when he killed his adulterous wife and his liege king who cuckholded him. A thousand years have passed in service to his master, the dark god Satoris. The world view Satoris as Evil Prime and the name of Tanaros is the byword for treachery.
The races have united in their quest to rid the world of the Dark God and his minions. The key to the prophecy is the beautiful Elvish princess Cerelinde—and Satoris has captured her.
Yet not all tales told are true and evil may have another face. Satoris refuses to act like the monster that he is made out to be for he recognizes in Cerelinde a spark of the love that he once bore for his fellow gods. But this spark of light might prove to be a danger to Satoris...and a greater danger for Tanaros and all that he holds dear. For Cerelinde might remind him that the heart that he willed to iron an eon ago is still very much mortal.

This book was my TBR for the month. I read the first one last year and wasn't really sure how I felt about it, so I kept putting off reading the second one. I like when there is a clear cut villain in a story so I know who the good guys and the bad guys are. In this story, the lines are blurred. The POV is from the "evil" character's perspective and you come to realize that they are not as evil as they have been made out to be, yet they are forced to make hard choices that make you hate them a little. The "good" guys are no better. They've been indoctrinated their entire lives to believe that the war they bring is righteous in it's cause and that they serve the greater good. You can't help but hate them even though you'd be cheering for them if the perspective was the other way around. It's very confusing not knowing who to cheer for and knowing that all the characters will break your heart in the end.
(^..^) (!) (#)




Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper
by Diablo Cody

212 Pages

Decreed by David Letterman (tongue in cheek) on CBS TV’s The Late Show to be the pick of “Dave’s Book Club 2006,” Candy Girl is the story of a young writer who dared to bare it all as a stripper. At the age of twenty-four, Diablo Cody decided there had to be more to life than typing copy at an ad agency. She soon managed to find inspiration from a most unlikely source— amateur night at the seedy Skyway Lounge. While she doesn’t take home the prize that night, Diablo discovers to her surprise the act of stripping is an absolute thrill. This is Diablo’s captivating fish-out-of-water story of her yearlong walk on the wild side, from quiet gentlemen’s clubs to multilevel sex palaces and glassed-in peep shows. In witty prose she gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at this industry through a writer’s keen eye, chronicling her descent into the skin trade and the effect it had on her self-image and her relationship with her now husband.

My best friend bought me this book purely for the name of it. Candygirl is his long standing nickname for me. Not only is the name perfect, but I find her whole journy to be fastinating. It can be hard to be a woman and embracing our sexuality is something that is never encouraged, so reading about her journy and her courage to get up on that stage was exihilerating! Not to mention funny, shocking (⚥) and hard to put down.  This was also a TBR book that I wish I had picked up sooner.




To Kill a Kettle Witch: A Novel of the Mist-Torn Witches (The Mist-Torn Witches #4)
by Barb Hendee 

336 Pages

National bestselling author Barb Hendee returns to the world of the Mist-Torn witches, as two sisters who can see the secrets of the past and the mysteries of the future begin a quest to save the family they never knew existed.…
Powerful prince Malcolm is facing ruin in the wake of a curse that has destroyed his harvest. He blames the band nomadic Móndyalítko who summer in the meadow below his castle—and he is determined to root out the people who caused the blight by any means necessary.
When Céline and Amelie Fawe, descended from the Móndyalítko, learn that their mother’s people are under suspicion of sabotage and treason, they set out to use their magical gifts to save their estranged relatives and learn about their own origins.
Now it’s up to the sisters—along with their motley escort, including a prince’s lieutenant, a shape-shifter, and an old woman with a murky past—to discover the source of the curse to restore life to the ravaged land and protect the innocent from unfair vengeance.

This book was good. It wasn't great, which was too bad, because this series has been up until now. The story was interesting, but I felt like it didn't really go anywhere. Most of the side plot was dropped without much of a resolution. It just seemed like there were no consequences to anyone's actions through the whole book, leaving more questions than answers. I love that Amelie and Jaromir finally get together, but the thing with Céline and Marcus and their past life connection seemed weird and unresolved. It was nice to finally get to know Helga a bit better and worked out favorably in the form of a flash back, even if it was a little long winded.
Not every book can be gold, but when most of them are it's hard when they are just silver. I will keep reading these books for sure

Books that I am currently reading

My Way to Hell (Hell #2)

by Dakota Cassidy

of  323 Pages

Towers of Midnight (The Wheel of Time #13)
by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

of 863 Pages ( of  38:42)

City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1)
by Cassandra Clare
of 485 Pages

Brand New 52 - March Edition

art by Regina Vega

I can't believe that March is over and that I've actually read as much as I have.

yup, that's right. It's only March and I'm already over halfway to my reading goal of this year! How crazy is that? I don't even feel like I've been reading all that much, but I guess I have.
Here's what I read this month:

Fudge Cupcake Murder (Hannah Swensen #5)

by Joanne Fluke

304 Pages

Bakery owner Hannah Swensen just can't keep her hands out of the batter when murder stirs things up in Lake Eden, Minnesota, leaving the sheriff dead, an innocent deputy accused, and a killer still on the loose...

For Hannah, life seems to be lacking a certain flavor. It's not that she doesn't enjoy teaching a weekly "Potluck Cooking Class" at the community outreach center. Or that she's not excited about her sister Andrea's bun in the oven -- watching the very pregnant Andrea try to sit on a stool at The Cookie Jar is worth it every time.

Maybe it's this year's sheriff's election that's got her down. For years, Sheriff Grant's been the iron hand in town. But now, Hannah's brother-in-law Bill is giving the old blowhard the fight of his long, dubious career -- and Grant's not taking it in stride, especially once the local polls (and The Cookie Jar gossip) show Bill pulling ahead.

But before anyone can get a taste of victory, things go sour. Just as Hannah's emptying the trash, she makes a very unappetizing discovery: Sheriff Grant's body in the dumpster behind the high school where she's teaching her cooking class. And if that weren't bad enough, the poor man still has fudge frosting on his shirt from the cupcake she gave him earlier. She'd been trying to find the secret ingredient left out of the recipe. Now she has a more important mystery to crack.

The number one suspect is none other than Bill. In fact, he's the only suspect. But Hannah's not swallowing it. Plenty of people had reason to hate Sheriff Grant, starting with all the deputies whose cases he stole during election years just so he could take the glory. Soon, Hannah's dishing up scandalous secrets, steaming hot betrayals, and enough nastiness to keep the gossip mill at The Cookie Jar going through several pots of decaf. And the closer Hannah gets to the truth, the closer she gets to smoking out a murderer with a very nasty recipe for silencing people. Will Hannah be able to stand the heat when someone wants her out of the kitchen... for good?

I wish the book was filled with as many bad baking puns as that summary was. That was just delicious! But puns aside, this book was actually quite fun. Maybe I finally gave up on trying to put logic to the plot and just let it take me for a ride instead, because I found that I liked it much better than any of the previous books. I love that it doesn't even phase Hannah any more when she finds the murdered bodies of people she knows. She just goes home and watches TV. Sure, she's going to investigate it for some thin plot point or another. To be honest, the plots in these books never really changes; she finds someone she knows who's been murdered, she decides to investigate for some reason, the police tell her not to, she does anyway. Blah, blah investigation, blah blah can't decide which man she wants to commit to, figures out whodunit, somehow gets trapped by them, gets saved, happy ending...

Seriously though, 5 books in and she still can't get out of her very boring love triangle. Also, this book totally would've fit into my trends from last year (@)

Ah, who am I kidding,,, I'm in it for the recipes

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1)

by Marissa Meyer 

387 Pages

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

I've wanted to read this book since I started my fairy-tale kick.  It's not the best one that I've read, but I did find that I enjoyed it for simple YA. Enough so that I think I will read all of them. Without saying so on the back, you can pretty much figure out by the cover that this is a Cinderella tale.
I giggled through the twists like moon people with glamours, felt moved by the plight of the people lost to disease and looked forward to the inevitable loss of her foot. !

The Janus Affair (Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences #2)

by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris

416 Pages

Certainly no strangers to peculiar occurrences, agents Wellington Books and Eliza Braun are nonetheless stunned to observe a fellow passenger (⚥) aboard Britain's latest hypersteam train suddenly vanish in a dazzling bolt of lightning. They soon discover this is not the only such disappearance - every case inexplicably unexamined by the Crown.

Oh, where do I begin with this book...

I read this book because I initially put the 3rd one on my TBR list without realizing it was the 3rd, so I went out and bought the 2nd book only to find out it was the 4th. These books are terribly labeled!  So I ended up having to order in the 2nd book (which is this one) and I figured I might as well get it out of the way so I can read the 3rd one later.

I was hoping that this one would be better than the 1st book, and it was, just not by much. I was intrigued by the Suffragist movement, that was having it's members whisked away by bright flashes of lighting. What devious plot would want to undermined this movement so badly? Turns out a terrible plot that had nothing to do with the movement at all. To be honest, the story kind of fell apart the closer to the end that it got. 

It also bothered me that they took the entire premise of the book (a buddy-cop story but with a tough, gun toting female and a bookish male) and swapped it so that the bookish male was the hero who could suddenly out shoot his counterpart and saves her and the day, while she didn't do much of anything. Sigh...!  

Knife of Dreams (The Wheel of Time #11)

by Robert Jordan

783 Pages (32:19 Hours)

The Wheel of Time turns, and Robert Jordan gives us the eleventh volume of his extraordinary masterwork of fantasy.

The dead are walking, men die impossible deaths, and it seems as though reality itself has become unstable: All are signs of the imminence of Tarmon Gai'don, the Last Battle, when Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, must confront the Dark One as humanity's only hope. But Rand dares not fight until he possesses all the surviving seals on the Dark One's prison and has dealt with the Seanchan, who threaten to overrun all nations this side of the Aryth Ocean and increasingly seem too entrenched to be fought off. But his attempt to make a truce with the Seanchan is shadowed by treachery that may cost him everything. Whatever the price, though, he must have that truce. And he faces other dangers. There are those among the Forsaken who will go to any length to see him dead--and the Black Ajah is at his side....

Unbeknownst to Rand, Perrin has made his own truce with the Seanchan. It is a deal made with the Dark One, in his eyes, but he will do whatever is needed to rescue his wife, Faile, and destroy the Shaido who captured her. Among the Shaido, Faile works to free herself while hiding a secret that might give her her freedom or cause her destruction. And at a town called Malden, the Two Rivers longbow will be matched against Shaido spears.

Fleeing Ebou Dar through Seanchan-controlled Altara with the kidnapped Daughter of the Nine Moons, Mat attempts to court the woman to whom he is half-married, knowing that she will complete that ceremony eventually. But Tuon coolly leads him on a merry chase as he learns that even a gift can have deep significance among the Seanchan Blood and what he thinks he knows of women is not enough to save him. For reasons of her own, which she will not reveal until a time of her choosing, she has pledged not to escape, but Mat still sweats whenever there are Seanchan soldiers near. Then he learns that Tuon herself is in deadly danger from those very soldiers. To get her to safety, he must do what he hates worse than work....(!)

In Caemlyn, Elayne fights to gain the Lion Throne while trying to avert what seems a certain civil war should she win the crown....

In the White Tower, Egwene struggles to undermine the sisters loyal to Elaida from within....

The winds of time have become a storm, and things that everyone believes are fixed in place forever are changing before their eyes. Even the White Tower itself is no longer a place of safety. Now Rand, Perrin and Mat, Egwene and Elayne, Nynaeve and Lan, and even Loial, must ride those storm winds, or the Dark One will triumph.

Book Eleven is where the story line finally starts to resolve it's self and that is a really really great thing. Plots that have taken books to cover are finally coming to a close so that the characters can finally start focusing on the fact that The Last Battle is approaching.  It's where things start to get really interesting, especially Egwene. I originally thought her story line was going to be dull, but it's actually one of my favorites. (⚥)
Sadly, this was the last book that Jordan wrote before passing the torch to Brandon Sanderson and passing away. He is still greatly missed.

The High King's Tomb (Green Rider #3)
by Kristen Britain

656 Pages

More than a thousand years ago the armies of the Arcosian Empire, led by Mornhavon the Black, crossed the great sea and tried to conquer the land of Sacoridia using terrible dark magic. Eventually Mornhavon had been captured, and his evil spirit imprisoned in Blackveil Forest, protected by the mighty D'Yer Wall; and in the centuries since the war's end, knowledge of the working of magic had disappeared from Sacoridia.
Karigan G'ladheon was now a seasoned Green Rider—a member of the magical messenger corps of the king. But during her first year as a Rider, a rogue magician had cracked the D'Yer Wall. The spirit of Mornhavon, sensing the weakness, had begun to wake, seeking vengeance. Karigan had managed to transport the spirit of Mornhavon into the future, buying valuable time for her king and country. But how far in the future was Mornhavon now? There was no way to tell.
And though Karigan and her fellow Riders scoured the land searching for lost magical knowledge, they were unaware of a threat to their kingdom that lay far closer: the descendants of ancient enemies had spent generations honing their powers of dark magic—a force against which the Sacoridians had no defense. The High King's Tomb is the thrilling third installment of the Green Rider series.

I'm really enjoying this series. This one went back to it's roots a little more and had Karigan actually out on Rider business and all the fun, crazy, amazing trials that went with it, including staying at a brothel (⚥), going to get more of their special horses (^..^) and meeting a deity and also, you know, saving the realm (!) I really love how her story isn't the only focus, that there are multiple story lines going on that take their own time and pace. I really love reading about the Wall and what's going on with the spirits inside. This is the kind of writer that I want to be and I find it inspiring




A Treasury of Royal Scandals: 
The Shocking True Stories of History's Wickedest, Weirdest, Most Wanton Kings, Queens, Tsars, Popes, and Emperors
by Michael Farquhar

324 Pages

From Nero's nagging mother (whom he found especially annoying after taking her as his lover) to Catherine's stable of studs (not of the equine variety), here is a wickedly delightful look at the most scandalous royal doings you never learned about in history class.
Gleeful, naughty, sometimes perverted-like so many of the crowned heads themselves-A Treasury of Royal Scandals presents the best (the worst?) of royal misbehavior through the ages. From ancient Rome to Edwardian England, from the lavish rooms of Versailles to the dankest corners of the Bastille, the great royals of Europe have excelled at savage parenting, deadly rivalry, pathological lust, and meeting death with the utmost indignity-or just very bad luck.

Wow! I mean what can one really say about this book, other than Wow!
If I didn't know that this was History, I would've laughed and assumed that it was just crazy fiction.
It's amazing that people let the monarchy get away with a lot of this stuff and also amazing that we as a society today would never stand for any of this, which I think is both good and bad. I certainly have no issues with royalty and such loving as they wilt (⚥) but the murders and torture were just awful and unimaginable!
It also amazed me how much mental illness there was (#) It certainly made me feel less alone in a weird way.
This was one of my TBR books for the year and I was surprised that I actually finished it as quickly as I did. There were times where I just had to keep reading to see what outrageous thing happened next.



Half a King (Shattered Sea #1)
by Joe Abercrombie

368 Pages

“I swore an oath to avenge the death of my father. I may be half a man, but I swore a whole oath.”
Prince Yarvi has vowed to regain a throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains, and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea. And he must do it all with only one good hand.
The deceived will become the deceiver.
Born a weakling in the eyes of his father, Yarvi is alone in a world where a strong arm and a cold heart rule. He cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he must sharpen his mind to a deadly edge.
The betrayed will become the betrayer.
Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast and the lost, he finds they can do more to help him become the man he needs to be than any court of nobles could.
Will the usurped become the usurper?
But even with loyal friends at his side, Yarvi finds that his path may end as it began—in twists, and traps, and tragedy.

This was a good book, good enough that I think I will read the rest of the series. I felt sorry for poor Yarvi in the beginning. All he wanted was the join the Ministry and give up his life as a Prince, but when his Father and older Brother are murdered, he is forced to become the King he never wanted to be and to swear an oath to avenge the family he didn't even really like. But when he's betrayed and sold into slavery, becoming King and fulfilling his oath seem to be the only things that matters. Despite the hardships that he goes through, everything seems to continually fall into place for him. He always seems to know the language of anyone he meets, he rises quickly through the slaves and he always gets what he wants pretty much right as he needs it. (!)
I found the further along the story got and the closer her got to reaching his goal, the less I liked him as a character. I found that it was very to do that with your main character.



Transformers: Windblade
by Mairghread Scott & Sarah Stone

106 Pages

In the aftermath of Dark Cybertron, Windblade takes the planet by storm! But where did she come from - and what does her secret mean to the future of the Transformers?

Wow, that description tell you absolutely nothing. This is the story of Cybertron in the aftermath the war where Starscream, of all bots, runs Cybertron. Windblade is a city speaker who can speak with the city-bot itself who has neen badly damaged (#) and is in need of fixing. Windblade is trying her hardest to help it fix itself, but someone is trying to sabotage it and blame someone else, including Windblade. It was pretty good, although I felt like I was missing a lot by not reading the comics that lead up to it. I'm loving that they are finally making more female transformers and I'm loving Windblade.



The Sorcerer's House
by Gene Wolfe

302 Pages

In a contemporary town in the American midwest where he has no connections, Bax, an educated man recently released from prison, is staying in a motel. He writes letters to his brother and to others, including a friend still in jail, to whom he progressively reveals the intriguing pieces of a strange and fantastic narrative. When he meets a real estate agent who tells him he is, to his utter surprise, the heir to a huge old house in town, long empty, he moves in. He is immediately confronted by an array of supernatural creatures and events, by love and danger.
His life is utterly transformed and we read on, because we must know more. We revise our opinions of him, and of others, with each letter, piecing together more of the story as we go. We learn things about magic, and another world, and about the sorcerer Mr. Black, who originally inhabited the house. And then knowing what we now know only in the end, perhaps we read it again.

I started reading A Time of Exile (Deverry #5) by Katharine Kerr  and could not get into it. I finally decided that I have wasted too much time and money on a series that I don't even like and I really don't want to invest in 10 more books just to say that I finished it. So I did what I should've done years ago and took the series to my nearby free little library and washed my hands of them. Since this book was on my TBR list, I needed to replace it with a different book, so I chose this one (which was the first book I took from a free little library last year).
Although this book went faster, it certainly wasn't better. It might have even been worse.
The entire book was written in letters, which would be really dull if you were on the receiving end of such letters. He goes into way too much detail and isn't consistent to whom he writes to, so no one is getting the full story, which I imagine is confusing for them. This is another case of everything falling into the main character's lap: a house, money, ladies (one is a fox familiar {^..^}) even servants and more land. It really doesn't make any sense. He also doesn't seem to really care about anything and accepts everything as it happens like it's no big deal. The blurb above says that once you find out what happens at the end you'll want to read it again, so I was expecting something profound to happen that would change the whole thing (like the Sixth Sense) but that totally didn't happen at all. In fact, the end was left totally open to interpretation and obviously left out something important. I was disappointed.



Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
by Susanna Clarke

849 Pages (32:30 Hours)

Two magicians shall appear in England. 
The first shall fear me; the second shall long to behold me...
The year is 1806. England is beleaguered by the long war with Napoleon, and centuries have passed since practical magicians faded into the nation's past. But scholars of this glorious history discover that one remains: the reclusive Mr Norrell whose displays of magic send a thrill through the country. Proceeding to London, he raises a beautiful woman from the dead and summons an army of ghostly ships to terrify the French. Yet the cautious, fussy Norrell is challenged by the emergence of another magician: the brilliant novice Jonathan Strange. Young, handsome and daring, Strange is the very opposite of Norrell. So begins a dangerous battle between these two great men which overwhelms the one between England and France. And their own obsessions and secret dabblings with the dark arts are going to cause more trouble than they can imagine. 

This book was super long and quiet slow, but still very good. It was to be my TBR book for last month, but it took me much longer to read than expecpted. I was having a hard time reading it, so I decided to skip the next WOT book and listen to this instead. This made it go much faster. As this is an alternate history, the author took the time to go into all that was different with the world and it's magic, citing book passages and stories and I was impressed (as well as often bored) with the amount of effort she put into creating this AU. The magic was quite fastening, except when being explained by Mr. Norrell, who is quite a dry character.
There was a great subplot in the book about The Man With The Thistledown Hair (the fairy Mr. Norrell uses to bring back young Mrs. Pole) and his distaste for the magicians and his liking of a servant, Stephen Black, whom he is constantly whisking away into fairie.
(^..^)  (#)




Books that I am currently reading

The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Girl Geeks

by Sam Maggs

20 of 208 Pages

Rosemary and Rue (October Daye #1)
by Seanan McGuire
285 of 346

Brand New 52 - February Edition

With February being the month of love, it seemed fitting to talk about how much I love books. What would life be without them? Dull and boring, that's for sure.
Some of the best dates I've ever had have taken place in bookstores and it wasn't just my Man's good looks that drew me to him in the first place, but also his bookshelf.

It's true, I love a man with lots of books


Anyhoo, here's what I read for the challenge this month:

Crossroads of Twilight (The Wheel of Time #10)

by Robert Jordan

704 Pages (26:04 Hours)

In the tenth book of The Wheel of Time from the New York Times #1 bestselling author Robert Jordan, the world and the characters stand at a crossroads, and the world approaches twilight, when the power of the Shadow grows stronger.

Fleeing from Ebou Dar with the kidnapped Daughter of the Nine Moons, whom he is fated to marry, Mat Cauthon learns that he can neither keep her nor let her go, not in safety for either of them, for both the Shadow and the might of the Seanchan Empire are in deadly pursuit.

Perrin Aybara seeks to free his wife, Faile, a captive of the Shaido, but his only hope may be an alliance with the enemy. Can he remain true to his friend Rand and to himself? For his love of Faile, Perrin is willing to sell his soul.

At Tar Valon, Egwene al'Vere, the young Amyrlin of the rebel Aes Sedai, lays siege to the heart of Aes Sedai power, but she must win quickly, with as little bloodshed as possible, for unless the Aes Sedai are reunited, only the male Asha'man will remain to defend the world against the Dark One, and nothing can hold the Asha'man themselves back from total power except the Aes Sedai and a unified White Tower.

In Andor, Elayne Trakland fights for the Lion Throne that is hers by right, but enemies and Darkfriends surround her, plotting her destruction. If she fails, Andor may fall to the Shadow, and the Dragon Reborn with it.

Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn himself, has cleansed the Dark One's taint from the male half of the True Source, and everything has changed. Yet nothing has, for only men who can channel believe that saidin is clean again, and a man who can channel is still hated and feared-even one prophesied to save the world. Now, Rand must gamble again, with himself at stake, and he cannot be sure which of his allies are really enemies.

This book is an odd one. I had to wait years for this book to come out in hardcover and it was not what I was anticipating at all. The whole book takes place around one event; the ending of book 10 when Rand clears the Source. Pretty much every other character is feeling or seeing the event from afar and it effects what everyone is doing. They all interpret the event differently and no one has any idea what's actually going on. Reading it in sequence and not having to wait for it makes a lot of difference in how I feel about it. It's much better as part of the story than a stand along for many years.  It's certainly not the best book in the series, but it's still pretty good. 

Sadly, this was when Robert Jordan was diagnosed and it was harder for him to write. 

I was happy to realize that this book has an interseting representation of being born into the opposite body (⚥); as Aran'gar is reborn into a female body, although can still channel saidin as if still a man.  As time passes, she starts to forget her life before as Balthamel. She finds her sexual attraction hasn't changed from before, but has widened to include both sexes.

Sanctuary (The Outcast Chronicles #3)

by Rowena Cory Daniells

559 Pages

The mystic Wyrds have been banished by King Charald, whose descent into madness grows ever steeper. Exiled and forced to set sail on the first day of winter, Imoshen’s people are packed onto seven crowded ships. Tensions flare under the pressure and the all-fathers and all-mothers are put to the test controlling their hardened warriors. Ronnyn and his sister Aravelle have been separated, just as they feared, and look to an uncertain future. Sorne is betrayed and captured on the seas. Tobazim faces a confrontation with the bloodthirsty All-father Kyredeon and his notorious assassin, Graelen. And, while Imoshen has promised the T’Enatuath a home with the Sagoras, the enigmatic scholars have not yet replied to her plea for sanctuary. This is the thrilling climax to The Outcast Chronicles.

They say thrilling climax, and the book is thrilling, but I found the ending left much to be desired, or at least, much unanswered. I really enjoyed this series and I found it left me on the edge of my seat for most of it, but when I finished it, the first thing I did was to check to see if there was another book in the series. I even checked the author's website, but all she says is that she might one day revisit the characters. What?! But I need answers now....

I still will recommend this series to people, but with a warning about the end. 

The representation is amazing (⚥) and the conflicts strike a cord with me, as they are based out of fear and I can easily see these types of prejudices reflected in our own society. 

Dragonvein (Dragonvein #1)

by Brian D. Anderson

308 Pages (10:43 Hours)

Carentan, France 1944 - Ethan Martin, a soldier in the 101st Airborne, is fighting for his life. But soon he will learn what peril truly is when he is ripped from his world and transported to a land of magic, swords, and dragons. And though the Nazis are now far, far away, danger is closer than ever. 

The Eternal Emperor, Shinzan has destroyed the mages and only a few dragons remain in exile. And now that Ethan, son of Praxis Dragonvein, has returned he must destroy him as well. Faced with unimaginable power, Ethan has only one hope - to reach the dwarf kingdom of Elyfoss before Shinzan can find him. 

This book was on sale for $3 on Audible and I figured for that price, I couldn't really go wrong. Well, maybe not wrong, but not really right either. This seemed like a very typical fantasy novel, where everything happens just at the right time. The right people always show up or show their true nature just when you need them to. The character's didn't have much depths and I found that I didn't really care about most of them one way or another. I did quite like Kat until she inevitably fell in love with the main character only to be rejected by him for being too young. After that, she becomes lovelorn and jealous and stops being interesting. Way to ruin a spunky, street-wise princess? kid. I hope she gets better in the other books, but to be honest, unless I also find them for $3 or less, I probably won't read them. But then again, this book has dragons, kinda (^..^) and that might be worth reading more about

Closer to Home (Valdemar: The Herald Spy #1)

by Mercedes Lackey

362 Pages

Mags was once an enslaved orphan living a harsh life in the mines, until the King's Own Herald discovered his talent and trained him as a spy. Now a Herald in his own right, at the newly established Heralds' Collegium, Mags has found a supportive family, including his Companion Dallen. (^..^)

Although normally a Herald in his first year of Whites would be sent off on circuit, Mags is needed close to home for his abilities as a spy and his powerful Mindspeech gift. There is a secret, treacherous plot within the royal court to destroy the Heralds. The situation becomes dire after the life of Mags' mentor, King's Own Nikolas, is imperiled. His daughter Amily is chosen as the new King's Own, a complicated and dangerous job that is made more so by this perilous time. Can Mags and Amily save the court, the Heralds, and the Collegium itself?

Why is this series still going?  Yes, I realize that it says #1 up above, but really, this is just a continuation of an already too long and not all that good of a series. What's worse, is that Mags & Co. don't really need to be in it at all. If anything, they are all secondary characters in their own book. The main plot revolves around a really terrible Romeo & Juliet plot line that would have worked much better for one of her Elemental Masters series that take after fairy-tales and stories. 

Or if she really wanted it in this World, she could have easily replaced Mags & Co. with new Heralds that were more interesting. Also, as a new series, it relies a lot on you having read the other series, especially the last book where Mag's cousin mind-melds with him to upload new skills and information that would've taken too much story to actually teach him. 

 Every time I pick up one of these books, I tell myself that this one is going to be different. It's Mercedes Lackey, she won't let me down again, and every time I am disappointed.

Indexing (Indexing #1)

by Seanan McGuire

404 Pages (12:05 Hours)

“Never underestimate the power of a good story.”

Good advice...especially when a story can kill you.

For most people, the story of their lives is just that: the accumulation of time, encounters, and actions into a cohesive whole. But for an unfortunate few, that day-to-day existence is affected—perhaps infected is a better word—by memetic incursion: where fairy tale narratives become reality, often with disastrous results.

That's where the ATI Management Bureau steps in, an organization tasked with protecting the world from fairy tales, even while most of their agents are struggling to keep their own fantastic archetypes from taking over their lives. When you're dealing with storybook narratives in the real world, it doesn't matter if you're Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, or the Wicked Queen: no one gets a happily ever after.

Indexing is New York Times bestselling author Seanan McGuire’s new urban fantasy where everything you thought you knew about fairy tales gets turned on its head.

I'm finding that I'm really enjoying books that take fairy tales and giving them their own twist. I've read a lot of great fantasy and urban fantasy with these twists, but this one was one of the bests. Not only was the story great, but the performer who read it, did a really great job.
The characters, despite having their personalities aligned with their stories, are pretty well rounded. Sure they all fall into their tropes, but it's nice to see them fighting against it to have their own lives.
This is another great book for representation (⚥) Henry and her twin were born into a Snow-White/Rose-Red senario, but when Gerry transitions (FTM) the Story frees him and forces Henry into a regular Snow White. I really appreciated that the Story respects this transition, as do Henry and all of her friends. Sloane even dated him for awhile and they have very sweet interactions. It's nice to see this done right.  

Iron Kissed (Mercy Thompson #3)
by Patricia Briggs

287 Pages

I could smell her fear, and it satisfied something deep inside me that had been writhing under her cool, superior gaze. I curled my upper lip so she could get a good look at my sharp teeth. I might only weigh thirty or so pounds in my coyote shape, but I was a predator...
Mechanic Mercy Thompson can shift her shape - but not her loyalty. When her former boss and mentor is arrested for murder and left to rot behind bars by his own kind, it's up to Mercy to clear his name, whether he wants her to or not.
Mercy's loyalty is under pressure from other directions, too. Werewolves are not known for their patience, and if Mercy can't decide between the two she cares for, Sam and Adam may make the choice for her...

This book was pretty typical for this series. It wasn't great, but wasn't too bad either. There are a lot of things that I like and dislike about this series. I really don't like how the werewolves treat women and I've not enjoyed the ongoing fight over Mercy since the first book. Thankfully that has finally been resolved. I like that there is representation of both LGBTQA+ characters (⚥) who are being excepted into the world and that they are open to dealing with mental illness, or at least PTSD (#)

The anti-fey groups strike a nerve with me, as it reflects too closely to the hate and fear that we see in real life. I imagine that's the point though. That very much seemed to be a theme this month with a lot of the books I read.

Reflections (Indexing #2)

by Seanan McGuire 

325 Pages (12:18 Hours)

“For her to love me, she had to be willing to kill me. Anything else would show that her heart was untrue.”
The struggle against not-so-charming storybook narratives isn’t the only complicating factor in Henrietta “Henry” Marchen’s life. As part of the ATI Management Bureau team protecting the world from fairy tales gone awry, she’s juggling her unwanted new status as a Snow White, dealing with a potentially dangerous Pied Piper, and wrangling a most troublesome wicked stepsister—along with a budding relationship with Jeff, her teammate.
But when a twisted, vicious Cinderella breaks out of prison and wreaks havoc, things go from disenchanted to deadly. And once Henry realizes someone is trying to use her to destroy the world, her story becomes far from over—and this one might not have a happily ever after.

The first book was so good, I had to get the second one immediately so I could start listening to it right away. And had there been a third book I would've done the same. Actually, I'm kinda sad that there isn't a third or forth or fifth book. I totally would've read the whole thing. The whole crew is back (⚥) for another great book that takes you even deeper into the stories. Henry discovers the Whiteout Wood in her dreams where the Snow Whites of the past and present go once they've been poisoned. Each fairy tale has it's own version of the Woods and Henry must figure out how to navigate them when an Evil Snow White takes possession of her body, stranding her there.



Vision In Silver (The Others #3)
by Anne Bishop

493 Pages

The Others freed the cassandra sangue to protect the blood prophets from exploitation, not realizing their actions would have dire consequences. Now the fragile seers are in greater danger than ever before—both from their own weaknesses and from those who seek to control their divinations for wicked purposes. In desperate need of answers, Simon Wolfgard, a shape-shifter leader among the Others, has no choice but to enlist blood prophet Meg Corbyn’s help, regardless of the risks she faces by aiding him.
Meg is still deep in the throes of her addiction to the euphoria she feels when she cuts and speaks prophecy. She knows each slice of her blade tempts death. But Others and humans alike need answers, and her visions may be Simon’s only hope of ending the conflict.
For the shadows of war are deepening across the Atlantik, and the prejudice of a fanatic faction is threatening to bring the battle right to Meg and Simon’s doorstep…

This is another series that I love and can't wait for the next books to come out. Although I hate waiting for them, they are totally worth the wait.
Trouble is brewing amidst the humans, who have formed hate groups against the Others and although things are starting to look grim, the Others are still trying their hardest to make things work. With the help of Meg (☆) they are trying to help the other cassandra sangue settle into normal lives after years of living in captivity (#) by creating a how-to guide. Despite the anger and aggression of the Others, there is also a sweet naivety to them that is quite wonderful. I really enjoy watching their human-clan grow and envelope more people who are understanding and care about the Others.




Books that I am currently reading


Knife of Dreams (The Wheel of Time #11)
by Robert Jordan
214 of 783 Pages (9:27 of 32:19 Hours)

A Treasury of Royal Scandals
by Michael Farquhar
177 of 324 Pages

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
by Susanna Clarke
94 of 846

Fudge Cupcake Murder (Hannah Swensen #5)
by Joanne Fluke
150 of 304