2012 book 190

Karen Engelmann's The Stockholm Octavo
It's a time of upheaval for Sweden when this story takes place--things have gotten pretty crazy because of the French Revolution and various plots against the king. When a young, ambitious man befriends a local card-game-hostess (I don't know) with talent as a Seer, the cards she reads for him may deal with more than his chances with romance. But will he ever stop looking at pretty ladies long enough to see the bigger picture? (Seriously, he spends a lot of time dwelling on pretty ladies. He is likable but somewhat silly at times.) Great atmosphere and great handling of political intrigue. I fully expect this to be a big Fall buzz book. A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in October.

2012 book 189

Guy Gavriel Kay's The Darkest Road
The third book in the Fionavar trilogy isn't predictable, but a lot of it feels inevitable. It's one of those epics that's going to culminate in a good vs evil battle, and those always go the same way. And I still haven't decided what I think about the gender roles in this series--I would have felt better if there was even one warrior woman (some of the women are powerful, but are sidelined during battle and/or only become sympathetic when they finally agree with the men). I mean, even Tolkien had Eowyn. Still, I totally cried like three times during the (long) ending and I did like Dave's story arc especially, which redeemed some things I liked less. B+.

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Update 7/19: The more I think about this book, the more problems I have with the ending in regards to the parallel world stuff. And the more I realize that Kay didn't bother to create backstories for the women at all. I'll let my original grade stand, but if I was grading it today it'd be lower.

2012 book 188

Guy Gavriel Kay's The Wandering Fire
The second book in the Fionavar trilogy is a little bit hard to follow--not just b/c there's a large cast of characters always going various places as things creep toward war, but b/c I'm not at all familiar with the Celtic mythology Kay is drawing on. I liked it more than the last one though due to the general lack of rape and/or torture. And I admit that I'm eager to see where the story ends up. B+.

2012 book 187

Guy Gavriel Kay's The Summer Tree
Sometimes you just have to read an epic book about five Canadian college kids getting whisked off to a parallel fantasy world on the brink of war. I mostly liked this a lot, but it's getting downgraded to a B for a lengthy rape/torture scene that I found very hard to read. Hoping Kay makes up for that in the second book (it's a trilogy).

2012 book 186

Robert Hellenga's The Sixteen Pleasures
Somehow I never knew this book existed, and I am so grateful to Sara (the convener of my lady doctor book group) for suggesting it to me! It's 1969, and a 29 year old woman whose plans to attend Radcliffe and have life adventures were altered by her mother's lung cancer is now working as book restoration expert at the Newberry Library. When she hears about the flood in Florence, she's determined to go to Italy and rescue some books--but isn't given the respect she deserves because she's a woman. She somehow ends up in a convent to help save their amazing library and discovers the nuns aren't what she expected at all--and then they find an extremely rare book of Renaissance erotica. And so it seems she may have some life adventures after all. A.

2012 book 185

Terry Pratchett's Dodger
A few days ago, this article appeared in my Google Reader. At the time I was like, "well, that's interesting or whatever" but it turned out to be perfect background reading for the new Terry Pratchett book, whose main character is a tosher--and Mayhew himself appears as well. It's a classic Victorian adventure story--in fact, I would go so far as to call it Dickensian, mainly because Dickens is one of the secondary characters, and the book is full of references to his work (and to other bits of London history and literature--I was delighted whenever I recognized a reference, and I'm sure there were many I missed). Dodger himself is clearly a relative of Dickens' Artful Dodger, and his landlord/father figure is an awesome old Jewish guy (don't worry, not very Fagin-like in the least, a relief to this Jewish reader). Anyway, things get going when Dodger rescues a mysterious girl from a mysterious attack, but of course it's never really that simple in a story like this. A very fun standalone one from Pratchett, for sure. A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.

2012 book 184

Kat Rosenfield's Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone
God, for someone who's ostensibly smart and about to escape her small town for a good college, the protagonist of this book is a COMPLETE IDIOT. Whether it's mooning over her equally idiotic boyfriend, mildly obsessing over a girl who was found dead in town, or randomly accusing other local idiots of murder, she manages to do the wrong thing every time. (This is especially annoying since the murderer's identity is obvious to the reader.) Her story alternates with the dead girl's, and at least she is likable and interesting. I know that this is a YA mystery, but the plot was really undercooked. C.

2012 book 183

Ann Patchett's State of Wonder
I have to say, this was a perfect book to read for my lady doctor book group, and I look forward to discussing it with actual medical professionals. At first I was reluctant to reread it--I remembered it being a massive tome for some reason, but it's not even 400 pages--but I'm so glad I did--I didn't remember the story well and had completely forgotten one huge plot twist. This totally held up to a second reading. Still an A.

2012 book 182

Cornelia Read's Valley of Ashes
I had read another boom by Read a few years ago and remember enjoying it a lot, so was eager to check out her latest. And then a few chapters into this book, the protagonist's backstory started to sound really familiar--it turns out that this is actually the fourth in a series that started with the one I read back in 2007. Unfortunately, it wasn't nearly as awesome as that one. It starts off with promise, as reporter Madeline Dare and her family have just moved to Denver for her husband's job, only he's being a total jerk and she's overwhelmed with their baby twins. When she starts investigating a string of local arsons for the paper, it seems like she's going to get sucked into some dramatic crime story--only things abruptly devolve into a REALLY BORING and pretty annoying domestic drama. The mystery this book is ostensibly about is never really addressed again. Seriously, I wanted to smack some sense into all of these characters because they were all weak morons. C.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 181

Jeremy Jackson's I Will Not Leave You Comfortless
Those of you who know me well, or who regularly read this blog, know that I generally have a complete lack of interest in reading non-fiction of any kind. I made an exception for this one, though--Jackson (author of the beautiful Life At These Speeds, written about here and here, and whihc I wish was available for Kindle, and which I cannot recommend enough!) has written a memoir that might as well be a novel, about just over a year in his life when he was ten turning eleven, and the things that happened to his family. The descriptions of their Missouri farm are entirely evocative, and his writing was stellar as always. Lovely stuff. A.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher (actually, the awesome Milkweek sent me a print copy after I had problems with the digital one, so big ups to them). This book will be released in October.

2012 book 180

Emmy Laybourne's Monument 14
Pretty compelling book about two schoolbuses of kids that get driven into a Target-like superstore during a near-future weather disaster (which quickly turns things into something much worse). The six high-schoolers, two eighth-graders, and slew of little kids must figure out how to survive and keep each other safe. Some parts of this were predictable, and I had SERIOUSLY mixed feelings about the ending, but I enjoyed this book a lot--I love near-future dystopias where the characters are well-stocked with supplies and thus have to deal with other issues. And the characters here are pretty strong ones (in terms of writing and the characters themselves). A-/B+.

2012 book 179

James Meek's The Heart Broke In
Meek--author of the awesome The People's Act of Love (excuse the lack of capitalization in that very old blog entry)--brings another book full of complicated and kind of hilarious characters. This book deals with romance, science, blackmail, fame, and family among a large interconnected group of people, including a former rock star turned reality tv producer, his scientist sister, her newsman boyfriend, and a whole host of others. Meek's writing is outstanding and this is going to be a crowd-pleaser (or so I hope). A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in October.

2012 book 178

Elizabeth Haynes' Into the Darkest Corner
OH MY GOD, THIS BOOK WAS TERRIFYING. Completely terrifying. And the worst part was how realistic it was. It's like a very well-written PSA about domestic abuse. (I don't mean that in a negative way or to say it sounds canned, b/c it isn't at all like that.) It's about a young woman who was in a relationship that we know went very badly (though the details emerge gradually), and how four years later she's still struggling to recover. And it is absolutely TERRIFYING. A/A-.

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Note that this isn't really a mystery, more of a psychological thriller, but I always categorize those with mysteries, so . . . 

2012 book 177

Margo Lanagan's The Brides of Rollrock Island
Lanagan, author of Tender Morsels, delivers a less creepy, but no less lovely, troubling, or weird new novel. And I mean all those adjectives in the best possible way. In this one, different characters take us back and forth in time, narrating the history of an isolated island--and the story of why taking a sea-wife is maybe not a great idea. To say much more would be giving too much away, but this is another winner from Lanagan. A/A-.


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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.

2012 book 176

Patrice Kindl's Goose Chase
Another completely charming story from Kindl, involving a young Goose Girl gifted with beauty, hair that sheds gold dust, and tears that become diamonds--which turn out to be unwanted gifts when they lead local royal to imprison her in a tower till she decides which she will marry. And that's just the start of her adventure. Plus her geese are super awesome. A-.

2012 book 175

Katie Kitamura's Gone to the Forest
A well-written, but at time very hard to read, book about a weak-willed son, his domineering father, and the young woman who comes between them. I will say that I was a bit distracted by trying to figure out where/when this was in history--the family is mostly oblivious to a coming revolution, and there are multiple references to "natives"--but I still couldn't figure it out. I know that was on purpose but I found it mildly annoying. B.
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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 174

Patrice Kindl's Keeping the Castle
I'd never heard of Kindl until this book came out, and my gosh, have I been missing out. This was GREAT! It takes place in Regency/Jane Austen times, and is the cutest and funniest book ever about a girl determined to marry for money to save her family estate. Most of it was predictable, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable. A.

2012 book 173

Jay Caspian Kang's The Dead Do Not Improve
I was intrigued by the description of this first novel by Kang, who works on Grantland--it's about a youngish Korean-American man whose elderly white neighbor is killed in what seems to be random gang gunfire, but then he gets drawn into a much larger mystery. The writing is excellent and I enjoyed some parts of this a lot (primarily the descriptions of the protagonist's childhood/teen years in North Carolina, where he and his Jewish friends were super into rap, and his meditations on Korean-American identity) but some parts were less appealing to me (I think this is more of a dude book, I didn't understand the end AT ALL, and I wanted to know more about the protagonist's family [though I understand why the latter maybe wasn't relevant]).  Mainly my problem was that the mystery made no sense to me--I get that this isn't a traditional mystery novel, but still. But like I said, excellent writing, and should be popular among dudes. B.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 172

Leigh Bardugo's Shadow and Bone
Sometimes when a book gets a lot of critical raves, it can never measure up to the hype, and I worried that would be the case with this one--but I liked it a lot. It take place in a fantasy version of historical Russia, where various people have various magical powers, but our orphan protagonist's magical power is the magicalest (it always is, in these kinds of books). Luckily, most of the rest of the story isn't (too) formulaic at all, and I really liked how things proceeded. Definitely a strong start to a trilogy--I look forward to seeing where it goes next. A/A-.

2012 book 171

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice
Sometimes you just have to reread a classic--and I always am delighted anew on rediscovering how hilarious this book is. Plus Elizabeth is just a little bit bitchy--which is why I like her so much!

2012 book 170

Peter Heller's The Dog Stars
It's the semi-near future and a flu has killed 99 percent of the people on earth (and most of the animals are dead too, climate change or something). One man, Hig, lives in relative peace with his only neighbor, with Hig patrolling in his little airplane and his neighbor being all into guns and defense, and between the two of them, they're mostly safe. But the nine years of near-solitude are taking their toll, and Hig wants to know what else is out there. Parts of this book strain credulity, but it's a great example of a literary dystopia (a genre I can fully get behind) and Hig is a really, really strong character. A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 169

Liza Klaussman's Tigers in Red Weather
This was a deeply weird and kind of messed-up book about two cousins, best friends, who just after WWII are both in less-than-ideal marriages. And then the story jumps back and forth between the 40s, 1959 (when their children make a grisly discovery), and the late 1960s (where their young adult children make even weirder decisions than their mothers). Part of the problem here is that I didn't feel like I knew most of the characters that well, and the ones that I did know well I mostly despised. Not that unlikable characters inherently make a book bad, but this one kind of goes beyond the pale. A lot of the plots felt half-baked, and the end reveals were just completely bizarre. I don't understand what is supposed to be good about this book, and if it's supposed to be "interesting"--well, then it doesn't go far enough. C-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publishers. This book will be released in July.

2012 book 168

Jonathan Tropper's One Last Thing Before I Go
Tropper's This Is Where I Leave You was one of my favorite books of 2009, so I was eagerly anticipating his latest book, which is about a washed-up musician from a one-hit wonder band, leading a mess of a life--divorced, estranged from his daughter, working in wedding bands. But then he finds out if he doesn't have heart surgery he could die at any time--and also, his Princeton-bound daughter is pregnant, and his ex-wife is about to get remarried, and he's determined to be a better man. This may all sound super dramatic, but it's Tropper, so it's actually very funny, and the protagonist is amazingly charming considering what a jerk he can be. Plus his dad is a Rabbi forcing him to attend various life events, which I loved. Another great one from Tropper. A.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 167

Margaret Atwood's The Year of the Flood
I've been meaning to read this for a few years, and don't know why I didn't read it sooner--it's a sequel/companion to Atwood's Oryx and Crake, which I remember liking. Of course, I read it before this blog ever existed, so all I remember is  . . . someone sitting on a beach? Luckily, Flood works just as well as a standalone, focusing on two women who've survived the plague in isolation, spending their time remembering their shared past in a vegetarian cult (b/c of course they know each other--this book has way too many coincidences like that). I admit to wishing they'd meet up sooner rather than later, but the story is still fairly compelling until that point, and pretty action-packed after. I do love a dystopian novel and this was a good one. Apparently it's also the middle part of a trilogy, which I find extra-intriguing. A-/B+.

2012 book 166

Sarah Dessen's This Lullaby
After that last book, I wanted to read something on the fluffier side, so decided to try this Dessen book that I'd missed (it came out in 2002, before I was reading YA). And it was pretty good--Dessen is a reliable writer, though this one was a tiny bit heavy-handed for me (though still very entertaining). And I can never decide if her dudes are realistic or not. Dexter is way too awesome. B/B+.

2012 book 165

Shani Boianjiu's The People of Forever Are Not Afraid
I was intrigued when I heard this book was about a group of young women serving in the Israeli army (I studied abroad in Tel Aviv and was friendly with some Israelis, but they didn't talk about the army much--plus it was 2000 and things were relatively peaceful there then)--but this book was so much more INTENSE than I was expecting. The three main characters are all somewhat damaged before they even get to the army, but their experiences there . . . well, it made me extra glad that I live a cushy American-Jewish life.  It's a great, great book and should be popular with literary fiction readers (it's already getting a lot of buzz), but parts of it are very hard to read. A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.

2012 book 164

Sharon Creech's Walk Two Moons
I swear, no author makes me straight-up weep like Creech does, which is a little bit crazy since she writes for middle-schoolers! Anyway, this one is about a girl on a road trip with her (hilariously cute) grandparents, telling the story of her friend Phoebe--and telling her own story as well. Creech is just a masterful, masterful storyteller. A.

2012 book 163

M.L. Steadman's The Light Between Oceans
It's 1926, and a WWI vet and his young wife live on an isolated Australian island where he serves as lighthouse-keeper. After they suffer a series of miscarriages and a stillbirth, a boat washes up holding a dead man and a small living baby, and the wife convinces the husband not to report it so they can raise the baby as their own. Obviously that's not going to work out that well, but how things happen aren't at all predictable. Great characters and atmosphere--I think this should be a sleeper hit for book groups--lots to dissect here. A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 162

Ernest Cline's Ready Player One
I was not at all excited when I found out this was the next FYA book club book, b/c I DID NOT want to read a book about a dude in a virtual reality world. But it started off strong and I was actually kind of interested . . . until like halfway through when it got SO BORING. Maybe if I'd been a slightly older nerd in the 80s I'd have liked it more, but even the pop culture references I loved got boring after a while--not to mention the endless, ENDLESS video game playing. And not to mention the weirdly tacked on and completely ridiculous romance angle. It did pick up a bit toward the end but man, this book was not my thing at all. AT ALL. C.

2012 book 161

Suzanne Collins' Mockingjay
I honestly don't think this series could have ended any other way and I find this book very satisfying even on my third read of it. I really don't know how the next two movies will convey Katniss' emotional state--I mean, Jennifer Lawrence is a great actress, but dang. And yes, Gale is totally a terrorist.

2012 book 160

Suzanne Collins' Catching Fire
I'm constantly baffled by the people who are surprised at the stuff that went down in Mockingjay--like, did you not read the first two books in this series? In this one, especially, Collins is saying some Stuff about War and Society. I mean, almost all the characters have super severe PTSD! This is not a glamorous world, despite all the fancy food and dresses in the Capitol. This is a deeply messed up world that has deeply messed up the people in it. Totally riveting read, still.

2012 book 159

Nicole Krauss' The History of Love
This was actually the third time I've read this book, and the second time for a book group, and I'd forgotten how GREAT it is. This book has everything I like it in--Judaism, history, books, everyone loving and talking about books, secrets to be unraveled, etc. Well worth the re-read.

2012 book 158

Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games
Seeing the Hunger Games movie for the third time last night made me realize that I didn't remember all the details of the book, since it had been almost two years since I read it last. Obviously that had to be rectified! And though the movie is super awesome, it really doesn't hold a candle to the book. I'm dying to dive right into Catching Fire, but one of my book groups meets on Wednesday and I haven't even started that one yet. Ah, but it's so hard to resist the lure of Katniss.

2012 book 157

Vaddey Ratner's In the Shadow of the Banyan
Based partially upon Ratner's own life and history, this is the story of a young girl from a branch of the royal family, and what happens to her and her relatives during the reign of the Khmer Rouge. Despite the subject matter, things aren't too harrowing--it weirdly reads at a bit of a remove and I had no idea it was based on the author's life until I read the afterword. Still, the writing itself is very strong, and Ratner certainly evokes the period well. Fascinating story, for sure. B+.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 156

Sheila Turnage's Three Times Lucky
My brain was tired after slogging through March and needed something fun to restore it, and this MG story about a girl with a mysterious past living in an eccentric small town that gets caught up in a murder mystery definitely fit the bill. Super cute and occasionally harrowing and full of twists. A-.

2012 book 155

Geraldine Brooks' March
I have been actively avoiding reading this book for years, despite liking all of Brooks' other books, because I just didn't want to read a book about the dad from Little Women off doing things during the Civil War. And at first, I thought I was going to be kicking myself for not reading it earlier, because it starts off pretty interestingly. But at a certain point, reading it felt like doing homework. Man, Mr. March is ridiculously annoying and unlikable. I'm not sure how intentional that was--certainly Bronson Alcott, on whom he's based, was a real piece of work--but it didn't make for enjoyable reading at all. Not to mention how hard it is to read all of the overt and more subtle/paternalistic racism going on (both Marches are totally racist despite being fervent abolitionists). B-.

2012 book 154

Emily Arsenault's Miss Me When I'm Gone
Arsenault is one of the writers working in one of my favorite genres--literary mysteries. I loved her first book, The Broken Teaglass, and also really liked In Search of the Rose Notes, but this definitely feels like a bit of a step up. It's about pregnant Jamie, who's appointed literary executor for her friend Gretchen after Gretchen dies in an accident after a reading for her very successful first book (an Eat Pray Love-style book about country music). But Jamie's efforts to untangle Gretchen's notes for her second book lead to a much more complicated story than she'd imagined, and to a whole slate of mysteries from the past. Things drag a little bit toward the end--as Jamie's investigation gets super intense, the interruptions of excerpts of the country music book got on my nerves (but of course made me eager to get past them to get back to the good stuff). A-.


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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in July.

2012 book 153

Emma Straub's Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures
This was a surprisingly moving story about a girl growing up in Wisconsin, where her family runs a summer theater program. After a family tragedy, she moves to California to try and make it as an actress in the Golden Age of Hollywood. The story follows her ups and downs as an actress--and her family ups and downs as well. Highly recommended for fans of literary fiction, historical fiction, books about movie stars, and fans of Anne Helen Petersen's awesome Hairpin series Scandals of Classic Hollywood. It also reminded me a little of Herman Wouk's Marjorie Morningstar, which I only remember vaguely so that shouldn't be taken too seriously. Straub totally nails the LA atmosphere across the years, and Laura is a GREAT character--I'm hoping this will be a hit because I loved it. A.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.

2012 book 152

Lydia Netzer's Shine Shine Shine
I honestly wanted to read this book because of its beautiful cover, and didn't know a thing about it. It turned out to be a very unusual--but also very readable--book about the love story between a completely bald woman with an atypical upbringing and a genius guy, who, while she's pregnant with their second child, is on a mission to colonize the moon with robots. Great characters and I liked the writing a lot too. Fans of literary fiction should be into it, and I'd also suggest it for anyone who likes a little bit of genre-bending and is willing to read something a little bit weird (I mean that in a good way). A-/B+.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in July.

2012 book 151

L.M. Montgomery's The Blue Castle
I think, now that this is out for the Kindle, my life is complete. No, really. It's always been my favorite Montgomery book and my old paperback is pretty tattered. I'm not sure why I find this so appealing--it is pretty funny, and romantic. But it's not like it would hold up to a strenuous critical view. Who cares, Valancy and Barney 4-eva.

2012 book 150

Chris Bohjalian's The Sandcastle Girls
Don't be fooled by the title--this is not a fluffy book where ladies drink cocktails and laugh and have romantic drama. It's about a fortysomething novelist writing the story of her grandparents--a Bostonian who accompanies her father on an aid trip to Aleppo in 1915, during the Armenian genocide, and the Armenian man she falls in love with. This back and forth between the past and the present makes it easier for Bohjalian to explain the historical context of a horrible event that most people don't know much about, and makes it not at all like a history lesson. The story of the protagonist-author's research, the story of the grandparents, and the stories of the other characters who come into play are all moving (and in some cases, tear-jerking). This is a great summer read for those who like meatier books--though it is about the genocide, it's much more about a few of the people involved, and frankly the scenes dealing with WWI are much more graphic, so don't be put off by the topic. I really hope this will be a hit--I loved it. A.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in July. 

2012 book 149

N.K. Jemisin's The Killing Moon
I really liked Jemisin's Inheritance Trilogy and was eager to read the start of her new series (which is just this and a sequel that comes out in like a week), apparently inspired by Egyptian mythology. And the world-building here is just as strong, though the characters are perhaps not as well-developed (I still liked the main characters, I was just not deeply attached to them). Anyway, lots of crazy magic and worship and politics are afoot and it's all pretty interesting stuff. B/B+.

2012 book 148

C.J. Redwine's Defiance
It's yet another YA romance-cum-dystopian-adventure, in a future where some sort of monster is menacing around and thus now there's a crazy dictator in charge (the world-building here is a little weak).  Of course it's a misogynistic society where women have no power and can't even be alone in public, but our heroine's father trained her to fight with swords and stuff. Also there is an attractive dude who invents things. The completely ridiculous dictator inspires a mission and also inspires revenge. I don't know, this is great for teens who loved Hunger Games and the Chaos Walking series, but I thought the writing here was . . . not great. I mean, the writing itself is fine, but there's way too much telling instead of showing, and I didn't really feel for any of these characters. It was all so . . . melodramatic. But like I said, teens should be into it. C.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 148

Meg Cabot's Size 12 and Ready to Rock
I seriously HATE the titles of this series, especially compared to how much I enjoy reading them. (SERIOUSLY, why is the protagonist's weight her defining trait when she has so many more interesting things going on?) Former pop star turned residence hall assistant director Heather Wells is back in a really engaging story that almost hardly counts as a mystery (in that there's nothing really to be solved, but there is still tension and crime) but is still a ton of fun to read. Perfect summer reading. A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in July.

2012 book 147

Juliet Marillier's Seer of Sevenwaters
Another satisfying entry in the series. I had mixed feelings about the druid-in-training tempted to give up her life for a dude, but was ok with the resolution. Good story here, loved the fairy tale elements. B+.

2012 book 146

Juliet Marillier's Heir to Sevenwaters
After that last one, I almost gave up on this series, and I'm really glad I didn't! The heroine of this one is a refreshingly normal girl who gets caught up in a fairy-tale like story involving a trickster king and a changeling baby. Plus the usual romantic elements (though this guy is mayyybe my favorite of the four so far, he's definitely the most interesting). Anyway, this one was much more up my alley--I love stories that are kind of about stories. A/A-.

2012 book 145

Juliet Marillier's Child of the Prophecy
The third Sevenwaters book took me a little while to read, mainly b/c the protagonist was SO ANNOYING, especially compared to the girls from the first two books! She was much weaker and whinier, had no agency, and was overly stupid about everything. And every time she'd start to get interesting and cool, she'd immediately go back to being annoying again. ARGHHHHH. Seriously. Good resolution to all of the warring and politicking from the previous books, but man, this was tough to get through. B-.

2012 book 144

Juliet Marillier's Son of the Shadows
The second book in the Sevenwaters series focuses on the daughter of the first one's protagonist and involves more war, politics, and other drama. I was mildly annoyed that obvious secrets weren't revealed in a more timely manner (b/c I HATE when books do that) but otherwise liked this a lot. Team Painted Man! A-.

2012 book 143

Juliet Marillier's Daughter of the Forest
I liked Marillier's upcoming YA fantasy book a lot (scroll down a bit for details) and wanted to check out some of her other work--this is the first in an adult fantasy series (apparently it was originally meant to be a trilogy but has stretched to 5 books, with a 6th coming), based on that fairy tale where a girl's brothers get turned into swans and she can't talk and has to hand-make them shirts to turn them back. This doesn't keep all the details of the story, b/c Marillier weaves a whole epic around it set in ancient Ireland, giving the reader time to get to know the girl and her brothers before the inevitable tragedy strikes (and then more and more tragedies . . . ). I swear I read this whole book with my heart in my throat, and was both happy with the end and vaguely relieved that it was done. Of course I'm starting the sequel right now. A-.

2012 book 142

R.J. Palacio's Wonder
I've been putting off reading this for a while (and this is actually the second time I've gotten it from the library on my Kindle) b/c it just seemed like a book about a boy with a genetic facial abnormality going to school for the first time was going to be a downer. And don't get me wrong, I straight up sobbed for large chunks of it. But it was also excellent and I'm glad I finally read it. A.

2012 book 141

Lyndsay Faye's The Gods of Gotham
Stellar mystery about a member of New York City's brand-new police force in the 1840s, and the case he gets embroiled in when he encounters a little girl covered in blood. There were several completely unexpected twists, and the resolution was pretty satisfying. Plus, Faye totally nails the atmosphere of 19th century NYC--especially the very weird politics and the anti-Irish sentiment. Fascinating read, perfect for summer. A/A-.

2012 book 140

Anne Berry's The Water Children
This book was a little bit too weird and messed up for my personal tastes, though it was very well-written. It's about four disparate people with ties to water (traumatic or otherwise) whose lives eventually intersect, which is all well and good. But things go completely off the rails in a very silly and overly dramatic way that I just found kind of annoying. B-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher.

2012 book 139

Roddy Doyle's A Greyhound of a Girl
I didn't even realize this was a YA book (actually an MG book, I think) until a review appeared on the FYA blog--b/c it's kind of mysterious and profound, and not at all typical of most MG books. It's about a 12-year-old girl whose grandmother is in the hospital, and how she befriends a mysterious old-fashioned young woman--who turns out to be the ghost of her great-grandmother. The four generations of women in this story are all absolutely wonderful, and even more wonderful and hilarious when they're together. It's a nice quick read--though I did cry at the end. A/A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher.

2012 book 138

Juliet Marillier's Shadowfell
I've never read any of Marillier's work before, but this start to a new YA fantasy trilogy makes me want to! It's not too far from the YA fantasy norm--a girl with special gifts in a land with a tyrant king who will want to either kill her or use her horribly, a mysterious and helpful man, lovable magic folk, etc. But Marillier weaves it all into something really riveting. I loved the protagonist and her journey and her friends and can't wait for the sequel. A/A-.

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A e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.

Drama!

I don't usually review graphic novels in a formal way (b/c I don't count them toward my yearly book totals) but got an advance copy of Raina Telgemeier's Drama and wanted to talk about it b/c it's awesome! Telgemeier is, of course, the author of Smile, the MG graphic novel that has won more awards and acclaim than any other that I've ever heard of (deservedly--it's cute and very compelling too), as well as adapting the Babysitter's Club GNs. Telgemeier manages to avoid sophomore slump with Drama, a work of fiction about the stage crew of a middle school play. There's lots of boy drama and drama-drama, but heroine Callie is completely adorable and relatable, and I loved this. Telegeimeier totally nails middle school in a really fun way.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. Drama will be released in the fall.

2012 book 137

Jennifer Miller's The Year of the Gadfly
I do love books about shenanigans at elite schools, so this one, about a 15 year old wannabe journalist (who has conversations with an imaginary Edward R. Murrow) with a sad past uncovering secrets at her new school that involve her charismatic and eccentric biology teacher and a mysterious secret society, was pretty much right up my alley. The conclusion was a little bit messy but I was pretty satisfied anyway. B+.

2012 book 136

Anouk Markovits' I Am Forbidden
I'd never heard of this book until reading about it in Entertainment Weekly (mentioned twice in the latest issue) which my mom also read, prompting her to buy this and rave about it to me. And if your mom recommends a book to you on Mother's Day, I think you're morally obligated to read it. Luckily this book is excellent, despite the mixed reviews on Amazon--I think the fact that it takes place in such a Hasidic environment throws some readers off, but my mom and I are pretty comfortable reading about such things. :) Anyway, it's the story of a Transylvanian Jewish Hasidic family from WWII to the present--and especially of two little girls who grow into very different adults. (Interestingly, the one who is more like Markovits is much less present in the second half of the book.) Very sensitive portrayal of Hasidism (well, mostly) and though some parts are just like WHAT I liked this a lot. A-.

2012 book 135

Mark Helprin's Winter's Tale
This was my FAVORITE book when I was in high school and college, and I used to reread it at least once a year . . . though it's been about ten years since I last read it, partially b/c my old paperback copy (actually my dad's old paperback copy) completely fell apart, and partially b/c when I tried to read the fancy new paperback edition that came out in like 2005, it was a) too heavy, and b) I bogged down about halfway through and didn't have the heart to keep reading it in case I didn't love it anymore.

Which is perhaps too much backstory for this blog, but whatever. A Kindle version finally came out, which made me much more eager to try reading it again (though, be warned, it has a million stupid typos of the sort that happen when a book is converted to a digital file for the first time). And it holds up pretty well. The first third--set in the very early 20th Century, focusing on mechanic/burglar Peter Lake and his love-at-first-sight with one Beverly Penn (side note, somehow they are making a movie of this book starring Colin Farrell and Lady Sybil from Downton Abbey in these roles, with Russell Crowe as a crime boss and Will Smith as some part I haven't figured out yet) is still the strongest--this book is like 800 pages long, and the middle is kind of slow, and everyone falls in love at first sight with someone, and there's a pretty uninteresting interlude where a guy runs for mayor for no reason, and I STILL haven't figured out what political/philosophical thought I am supposed to take away from this book, besides "Yay New York I guess"--mainly b/c Peter Lake is the BEST. And frankly this book is a little weird, all flying horses and Baymen and a rainbow bridge to the future (it came out in 1983, but the last chunk takes place in 1999). I like the flying horse a lot, but trying to explain this story is nigh impossible. Anyway, turns out I do still love it despite its flaws.

2012 book 134

Gwenda Bond's Blackwood
This book has a GREAT premise--on Roanoke Island, the town outcast girl pairs up with the police chief's son (who hears the voices of spirits) to investigate the Lost Colony when 114 residents of the town suddenly vanish. And even the explanation for all that is interesting. And things start off strong, but . . . My problem was with the main characters--there's just way too much telling instead of showing for their investigation, and for their very annoying romance. They weren't fully fleshed-out at all. And the ending is supremely goofy. Now, this book does get props for NC music shoutouts (the Rosebuds) but in general was not at all satisfying. C+.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.

2012 book 133

Louise Erdrich's The Round House
Louise Erdrich is a writer who, for me, can almost do no wrong. I think I love all of her books, and her latest is no exception (honestly, I think she's getting better and better, which is amazing since she apparently was undergoing treatment for breast cancer while writing this). I'm not sure if it's because the central character is a 13-year-old boy who likes Star Trek: TNG or the narrative voice, but this reminded me at times of Junot Diaz's The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (high praise). Anyway, this book is about what happens when a boy's mother is brutally attacked, and how their family tries to recover from the traumatic event. And it's about friendships, cultural traditions, religion, and love. It's set on the same reservation as a lot of Erdrich's other books (Nanapush is briefly featured) but I think these characters are new. None of that is really relevant, but I thought I'd lay it out for fellow Erdrich fans. For the rest of you, her books are great, and this one especially is a stellar work worth reading. A.

ETA: This book is actually kind of a continuation of the story in A Plague of Doves, according to some internet research (I honestly almost went to the library to check out a book that's a dictionary of Erdrich's characters, b/c I recognized some of the names but couldn't remember which books they were from).

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in October.

2012 book 132

E. Lockhart's The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks
I was delighted to reread this for my young lady nerd book group--I love what a deliciously evil genius Frankie is. And I love her quest to reclaim all the neglected positive words. Lockhart is a super fun writer and this is easily her best book.

2012 book 131

Jackson Pearce's Purity
An excerpt of this was featured on Jezebel last month, but when it popped up in my RSS reader, I didn't realize it was a novel and was like, whoa, this story is crazy. Unfortunately, the book doesn't live up to the premise and is completely and thoroughly predictable. Frankly, it almost reads like a Disney Channel movie (though slightly more sex-positive than anything on that channel could ever be). It was all very . . . blech-y. Pearce has written a couple of pretty-good takes on fairy tales that are worth checking out, but this is one to avoid. C.

2012 book 130

Michael Chabon's Telegraph Avenue
Sorry for the lack of posting--I had a super-busy weekend (loved the Avengers movie!) and this book was kind of long and I wanted to take a little extra time with it, b/c OMG NEW MICHAEL CHABON. (!!!!!)

I will say that it'd take a lot for a Chabon book to receive below some form of an A grade, just b/c I enjoy his writing so much, and so while this wasn't my favorite of his books (I mean, unless it was another book about Jews and comics, it was never going to be) it was definitely solid and I think should get pretty positive reviews. It's set in roughly 2003/2004 (based on contextual clues, like an appearance from a pre-Senator Obama) and focuses on a group of people who live and work in the Berkeley/Oakland area (semi-affectionately called Brokeland). Two of the major characters own a record store, so there's some great music stuff here, and also a lot of interesting stuff on family/relationships (primarily father/son) and on race/class (and blaxpoitation movies!). I do think it's worth noting--and I expect that some reviews will have Stuff to say about it--that there are really only two female major characters (as opposed to four main male characters and another 4 or 5 strong secondary male characters), and both are midwives. They are pretty great characters, though this is still pretty much a dude book. But I love Chabon's writing (there are some particularly nicely phrased sentences here) and liked his sense of humor in this one. A/A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in September.

2012 book 129

J. Anderson Coats' The Wicked and the Just
It's the year 1293, and an English young girl and her father move to Wales (b/c the government is encouraging English people to move to Wales to help settle and/or oppress the area). The story is told mostly from her POV, with occasional tidbits from her young Welsh servant. Things are primarily interesting for the historical perspective--this isn't really a well-known piece of history, at least not in America. The characters and story are fine, though, and the end is pretty well-done. B/B+.

2012 book 128

 Anna Jarzab's The Opposite of Hallelujah
When I read the description of this book, which is something like "A teenage girl's much older sister returns home after a long absence, and long-held secrets come out" I assumed the older sister was actually the teenager's mom and was relieved to quickly discover this wasn't that kind of book at all. In fact, it's pretty much as far from that as you can get, because the older sister is actually returning home after spending the last eight years in a convent, training to be a nun. So that's kind of weird for the protagonist, who's also dealing with general high school angst. Things did get a bit too melodramatic for my tastes toward the end, but I really enjoyed the protagonist's relationship with her friends, and thought her love interest was very likable and nicely quirky. I also was pleased at how much discussion there was of religion, and science, and religion & science. It was a bit more philosophical than the usual YA book. B.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in October.

2012 book 127

Kristin Cashore's Bitterblue
YAY the third book in the Graceling series is finally here, and it does not disappoint! It is, of course, the story of Bitterblue, about nine years after the events of the first book, as she struggles to make her kingdom work, and with being a queen in general, and with her horrible childhood memories. Of course things get shaken up a bit when she starts sneaking out at night, meets a couple of thieves, and starts to learn what's really going on in her kingdom. This was stellar stuff--I really liked Bitterblue as a character (though for someone so smart, it took her a little too long to figure out a couple of important plot points, which was a little frustrating--but this was tempered by her decoding skills, something I always enjoy in fiction for some reason), and it was nice to see Katsa and Po and other beloved Cashore characters again, and to read a YA book where romance isn't at all the main thing. AND there is a pretty great librarian character. I don't know if Cashore is planning on writing any more books set in this world, but I'd definitely read them if she did. A/A-.

2012 book 126

Rebecca Stead's Liar & Spy
Stead's last novel, the amazing When You Reach Me, won the Newbery Award and also is one of my favorite books ever. I was eager to read her new one, but worried it could never compare. And while it's not really on the same emotional level--I mean, I straight up SOB whenever I read When You Reach Me--it's still an excellent book, about a middle-school boy whose family suddenly moves from a house to an apartment when his dad loses his job . .  where he meets a new friend, a boy who's obsessed with spying on a mysterious neighbor. Meanwhile, he has to deal with increasingly annoying bullying from classmates and the upcoming class Taste Test, which prophecies either true love or a terrible demise. But is everything quite what it seems? The characterization here is great--Stead is really gifted at writing believable and unusual children--and I loved the resolution. A/A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2012 book 125

Joshua Henkin's World Without You
A year after their journalist son/brother/husband was killed in Iraq, a family reunites for his memorial and for the unveiling of his headstone. I love stories about mildly dysfunctional families reuniting for some reason or another, and this one didn't disappoint--there are all sorts of conflicts and secrets and disappointments to hash out. I had mildly mixed feelings about the portrayal of daughter Noelle, who randomly moved to Israel and fell into Orthodox Judaism (the family in theory is Jewish, but are exceptionally clueless even for Reform Jews--and I'm one, so I know) but her feelings of being adrift and apart from her sisters are pretty well drawn. There isn't a satisfying conclusion, but that's realistic too. B/B+.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in June.

2012 book 124

Patrick Ness' Monsters of Men
I had seriously mixed feelings about this as a conclusion to the Chaos Walking series. For one thing, after reading all three books in a row, I was SUPER SICK of Todd and Viola yelling each other's names all the time. And also, Todd is a complete moron. I swear, every third chapter (ie, every Todd chapter), I said out loud at least once, "Todd, STOP BEING STUPID!!" And I didn't love the end . . . by which I mean the last third of the book. The villain was completely ridiculous and I just got tired of the endless warring after a while. This wasn't bad, I just found it really annoying for some reason. B/B-.

2012 book 123

Patrick Ness' The Ask and the Answer
Jezz, the second book in this trilogy is even more relentlessly grim than the first one! I mean, it's GOOD, just so hard to read. There's no hope at all and everything just gets worse and worse all the time. Of course I have to read the third one right now and see what happens. Now I'm kind of glad I waited to read these--I can't imagine having to wait months and months with all this in my head and no resolution. B+.

2012 book 122

Patrick Ness' The Knife of Never Letting Go
I've been meaning to read this series since the first one came out to rave reviews, but it just seemed so GRIM that I kept putting it off. But when all three books went on supersale for the Kindle a few weeks ago, I bought them, and when it was announced this week that Charlie Kauffman is on board to direct a movie version, it finally seemed like a good time to get started. But dang, it is GRIM. I mean, it's about young boy growing up in a world without women, where you can hear all the men's thoughts (and the thoughts of everything, actually, including crocodiles) and it's super super unpleasant. Second of all, there's a lovable talking dog you just know something terrible is going to happen to, and every scene you're just like "please let the dog be ok." Things start happening when the boy hears a spot of silence in a swamp and suddenly is on the run, without really knowing the reason why. It's a really really good book, and a quick read, but not at all an easy one. A-.

2012 book 121

Natalie Babbitt's Tuck Everlasting
This is one of my all-time favorite books--I cry every time I read it--and I'm still really mad about that terrible movie they made starring Rory Gilmore. As an adult reading this book, I can't help but notice how evocative Babbitt's writing is--really impressive stuff for a children's book.

2012 book 120

Megan McCafferty's Thumped
The sequel to Bumped was less disappointing than its predecessor, or maybe my expectations were just lowered enough to find it less annoying. The writing is better this time, but it's still too short for any real character development--I'm just not really interested in either twin or their predicaments. And everything is super predictable. It's a quick read and more or less entertaining, but I really hope McCafferty goes back to writing contemporary stuff soon, b/c dystopias clearly aren't her strong point. B.

2012 book 119

Elizabeth Wein's Code Name Verity
Guys, this book was SO GOOD. It's about a young Scottish woman in WWII who's been captured by the Gestapo as a spy, and is being forced to write her confession. But what she writes is primarily the story of two best friends, herself and an amazing lady pilot, and how they met in the war, and the events leading to her capture. And then Wein turns everything on its head (more so than I even expected, and I suspected stuff was up). I will say that I spent the last third of the book basically crying, but that is because it was SO GOOD. This is being marketed as YA for some reason but is a great read for all ages. A.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on May 15.

2012 book 118

Nell Freudenberger's The Newlyweds
Freudenberger's latest was apparently inspired by a Bangladeshi woman she met on a plane, on her way to marry an American. So yes, this is about a Bangladeshi woman who comes to America to marry a man she meets on some sort of mail-order-bride/internet-dating website. The usual culture shock is compounded by various family secrets--I love stories involving both of those things, so this totally worked for me. A few times the tension was so thick I was almost too nervous to keep reading and had to put the book down for a breather. I really enjoyed this, and think it'd be great for more literary-minded book groups (or literary-minded readers in general). A/A-.
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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released May 1.

2012 book 117

Louisa May Alcott's Rose in Bloom
I wouldn't have though it possible, but this was even more boring than its predecessor, and with even more annoying morals! Plus some extra-weird gender stuff--20-year-old Rose isn't allowed to read French novels; her somewhat naughty cousin's behavior is blamed entirely on his mother. As for Rose, she's so GOOD and PURE that she's completely boring. She doesn't have any kind of personality at all. And I found it kind of awful that everyone assumed she'd marry one of her first cousins and she doesn't have any other suitors. This book was SUPER ANNOYING. No wonder I never reread it as a kid! Rose is no Jo. She's not even an Amy or Meg!

2012 book 116

Louisa May Alcott's Eight Cousins
I know I owned this (and the sequel) when I was a kid, but it wasn't one of the books I read over and over, and I didn't remember a thing about it. And now I know why! Alcott completely sacrifices plot for moral lessons on her pet topics--health, education, gender, whatever. Half the chapters are instructional and not entertaining at all. Even the hilarious ear-piercing chapter turns into a moral lesson little way down the line. I mean, there's still some great little stories and good characterization, but dang, take it down a notch, Alcott.

2012 book 115

Jennifer Nielsen's The False Prince
A very satisfying story about an orphan who unwillingly becomes part of a plot to impersonate a missing prince and take over a kingdom. I have to assume this is the start of a series, because it's ripe for a sequel, and I'd definitely read one. A/A-.

2012 book 114

Francesca Segal's The Innocents
It's pretty ballsy to rework a literary classic, let alone set your reworking of Age of Innocence in the insular London Jewish community. So I figured this had to be pretty great, or extremely terrible. I should say at this point that regarding the original novel, I'm in the minority in not seeing it as a tragic love story, but as a book about two complete jerkwads. Seriously. Archer and Countess Ellen Olenska suck. Team May! (Age of Innocence is still a great book.) Clearly I went into this prepared to be horrified, or at least annoyed. But Segal's writing is strong--occasionally heavy-handed, but she does a great job of evoking the nature of a Jewish community (and its many food-filled parties)--and her Ellie is slightly more sympathetic than the original. Her Adam is even more of a wishy-washy jerk than Archer was, though, and her Rachel is even more of a non-entity than May. I didn't think the GREAT LOVE between Adam and Ellie felt at all realistic or natural, which is a bigger problem (it happens more organically with Wharton). None of that is to say the book is bad--it's completely impossible to judge on its own merits, after all. But I'm never going to feel for a guy who's engaged to a woman who makes him happy, and then decides to cheat on her with her cousin, no matter how great the writing is. And it's just pretty solid here. B/B+.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in June.

2012 book 113

Rosamund Lupton's Afterwards
Lupton--author of Sister--manages to largely avoid a sophomore slump with her second novel, about a woman and her daughter badly injured in a school fire. As their bodies lie in the hospital, their disembodied selves (I don't know, just go with it) invisibly follow their family members and attempt to figure out who set the fire (a sister-in-law who's a police officer helps with this quite a bit). The premise completely strains incredulity, but I liked the characters and the mystery/plot twists enough to get pretty into it. I was WAY less into the ending, which veers into almost Jodi Picoult territory (that's a very bad thing in my book, but should help this one be popular). B.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book comes out on Tuesday.

2012 book 112

Nalo Hopkinson's The Chaos
So things start out almost completely normal--our protagonist is a teenage girl dealing with strict parents, a dance competition, and boy and friend drama. There are a few hints that things are weird but nothing too insane--and then the Chaos comes. And everything is SO WEIRD and makes no sense and there is no resolution to anything! None of my questions were answered at all! I felt like I was missed a chapter that contained key information. Yeah, I was not too into this. Props for featuring Baba Yaga and having a bunch of minority characters--too bad none of the characters were very well developed. B/B-.

2012 book 111

Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl
Flynn is one of my favorite writers--if you like dark dark dark stories and haven't read Sharp Objects or Dark Places yet, get on that--and I've been looking forward to this book for ages. Luckily it doesn't disappoint, because it's Flynn! Anyway, this is about one Nick, whose wife has gone missing after an apparent struggle. And the husband is always the primary suspect, right? I had about three theories about what had happened, and was pleasantly surprised to get some answers halfway through--but since it's Flynn, things just get more twisted from there. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, on the verge of freaking out for a great portion of it. I did call some of it, but Flynn laid the ground so nicely that I didn't even mind. Deliciously dark. A/A-.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on June 5th.

2012 book 110

Elizabeth Bear's Range of Ghosts
This fantasy book, set in a land that seems based on historical Mongolia, has gotten some great reviews. It focuses on a young man who's barely survived a great battle between the armies of his brother and his uncle over the throne, and a princess-turned-wizard going through some super boring rites of wizardry. The boy's story is pretty riveting; I was less into the woman's until they met up and things got more interesting. And then the end came, and I was not super into it, and of course it was all leading up to an inevitable sequel because no one writes stand-alone books anymore. I probably won't read the sequel b/c I honestly don't really care what happens to these characters and it seems like it'll all be war and annoying relationship stuff anyway. Though I did love the awesome horse. B-.

2012 book 109

Carol Rifka Brunt's Tell The Wolves I'm Home
It's 1987, and a fourteen-year-old girl's beloved uncle has just died of AIDS--which was still a super weird and scary thing back then. Feeling bereft, she finds herself secretly befriending his heretofore unknown boyfriend, the only person who understands her loss. Interesting family dynamics at play here--I really liked the stuff with the girl, her older sister, and a portrait their uncle painted of them. The plotting and writing is occasionally a tiny touch overwrought (especially at the end) but I loved this and totally cried. I think this'll be a big one for summer reading and book groups--not to make it sound less literary, but I think there's a lot to discuss. A.

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An e-galley was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in June.

2012 book 108

Stephanie Burgis' Renegade Magic
I do love all these fantasy-historical combos--Victorian vampires, regency magic, etc. This sequel to Kat, Incorrigible is more of the same--very fluffy and entertaining, like YA magic story meets Jane Austen. The villains are way too villainous and there are a few too many stupid miscommunications, but I like the characters and the world-building pretty well. B/B+.

2012 book 107

Matthew Gallaway's The Metropolis Case
This book tells the story of four individuals who are all connected by their love of opera (and by other things that are REALLY EASY to figure out, and also GROSS at one point): two women singers in more-or-less present times, and two gay men, one in 1800s Europe and one in NYC right around 9/11. I was much more interested in the women's stories at first, and the men's were only occasionally compelling (I did get teary at one part involving a cat), but it all led up to an absolutely stupid and predictable ending. It's like Gallaway wanted to write his own version of something like Mark Helprin's Winter's Tale, but I don't think he succeeded at all. This book was super annoying. C.

2012 book 106

Diana Wynne Jones' A Tale of Time City
Any book could have seemed not-great when compared to Dogsbody, but this one held up tolerably well, being another Diana Wynne Jones book. Here, a young girl on a train of children being evacuated from London in WWII is whisked away by a boy from a mysterious city in the far-future. But she's the wrong girl entirely! Now they have to try and save the city and get her home--without getting into trouble with their parents (or the authorities). I didn't love the final resolution of this one, but everything leading up to that was pretty exciting. B.

2012 book 105

Diana Wynne Jones' Dogsbody
Neil Gaiman is absolutely correct in his introduction when he says that this is one of Jones' best books--which means it's an absolutely stellar book in every way (that pun was unintentional). It's the story of Sirius, the Dog Star, sentenced (for a crime he didn't commit) to live on Earth and find some mysterious object. And then he's born into a puppy and it's the story of one awesome dog--in the literal sense of the word awesome--and the girl who loves him. It made me cry twice. A.

2012 book 104

Ron Rash's The Cove
Rash's latest, after Serena (now filming, starring Jennifer Lawrence and . . . Bradley Cooper?), is also set in Western North Carolina, but a generation earlier. It's the midst of World War I, and a woman shunned by her superstitious town encounters a man on the run and convinced her war-wounded brother to let him stay and help on their farm. As more information emerges, it's obvious things are going to be complicated by the world outside. I had mixed feelings about the end--not what happened, but with the narrative style. It felt a bit abrupt. But it worked, I think. B/B+.

2012 book 103

Diana Wynne Jones' Fire and Hemlock
A bunch of Jones' books that have been out of print in America for ages have been reissues (with prefaces by people like Neil Gaiman), and I, for one, was super excited to have new books by her to read. This is kind of a weird one, but in a good way, referencing fairy tales I don't know, so it all seemed unfamiliar and exciting. 19-year-old Polly comes to realize that she has a second set of memories, and sets about trying to remember her childhood to find out what the heck happened, and how she came to forget a man who greatly influenced her, and how her whole world changed because of it. Plus she reads and talks about lots of excellent books. It's less convoluted if you read it yourself. A-/B+.

2012 book 102

A.M. Dellamonica's Blue Magic
The sequel to Indigo Springs is even crazier than its predecessor, as our intrepid gang starts trying to remake the world (or something). There's like ten thousand things going on in this book, and so we don't get too deeply into anyone's characterization (a secondary character, Juanita, felt the most fleshed-out to me--the two protagonists' inner thoughts just aren't enough somehow--and their romance was really unbelievable to me). So I wasn't exceptionally invested in what was happening, but I was still /interested/ in what was happening. I will say that Dellamonica really doesn't fall into using any of the usual tropes, which maybe is why this is so hard to describe in a concrete way. B/B+.

2012 book 101

Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go
My book group isn't discussing this till next week (and I can't wait to see what all the doctors have to say about it!) but I really wanted to read something excellent and knew this would fit the bill. This was my third time reading it (and 2nd time for a book discussion), but it's been several years and I only remembered the basic premise and that Ruth is a huge bitch (such a great takeaway!). I'd entirely forgotten that the writing was so great--though I'd expect no less from Ishiguro. And this came out seven years ago, it seems like he should have a new novel announced any time now. Crossing my fingers it's soon. A.

2012 book 100

Jacqueline Winspear's An Elegy for Eddie
The latest from Winspear is really a sub-par entry in the Maisie Dobbs series--Maisie spends way too much time being wishy-washy about her lovelife, which I couldn't care less about, and the mystery is overly convoluted as well as being boring. C-.

2012 book 99

Robin LaFevers' Grave Mercy: His Fair Assassin, Book 1
Set in Brittany in the late 1400s, this book involves a young woman who is marked as the daughter of Death (a local god/saint) and whisked away to his convent to learn the arts of the assassin. But then she's assigned to pose as the mistress of a local noble and gets embroiled in the very crazy politics of the day (which seem to be historically accurate). And of course gets embroiled in FEELINGS for the noble. Really fascinating setting and premise here, but I was less enamored of the romance angle (then again, this is a YA book) and the occasionally over-the-top writing. It's the first of a trilogy, but it looks like each book will focus on a different girl (this protagonist has two assassin friends) and their inevitable reluctant romances. I probably will read them anyway, though, b/c the whole girl assassin thing is pretty cool. B+.

2012 book 98

Charlotte Rogan's The Lifeboat
A young woman is on trial after some yet-to-be-revealed events on a lifeboat after a luxury liner's sinking in 1914. Pretty interesting and compelling stuff--I think this might make for a good choice for book groups. The narrator is complicated and calculating, and that sort of thing is great for discussion. B+.

2012 book 97

J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Rereading this one is still a little exciting, since I've read the other ones so many more times. I'm not that keen on the Dumbledore scene but still think this was an excellent end to the series.

2012 book 96

J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
I really hate that whole "the creature inside Harry" thing.

2012 book 95

J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
I think there are at least four entries on this blog that all say "traditionally this has been my least favorite HP book" (or some variation thereof--and search if you don't believe me!) but I liked it without reservation this time (minus the couple of plot holes)--maybe so many rereads have somehow made it work for me when it didn't the first couple of times? Who cares though, this book is worth any amount of shouty Harry for the introductions of Luna and Tonks!

2012 book 94

J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Rereading this one on my Kindle was interesting, b/c of course in the original book edition, Rowling erred when writing the scene with Voldemort's wand and had Harry's parents emerge in the wrong order--this version has the rewritten scene, which I hadn't read before. It doesn't really change the tenor of the story or anything, but it was fun to read something new in a story I've read so many times before.

I had planned to take a break from my HP reread b/c so many interesting-looking books have come out over the past couple of weeks, but who can stop reading this series halfway through? The rest of the books are all pretty long, though, so don't expect me to keep up with my previous book-a-day schedule. :)

2012 book 93

J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Sorry for the radio silence all weekend, I MAY have spent part of the weekend having a Cougartown marathon, and the rest of the weekend hanging out, eating crepes, and seeing Hunger Games again (still cried for most of it). But I did manage to finish another Harry Potter e-book, so yay!