So it's a little late, but gratitude is always in season

I was going to post this on Thanksgiving but missed it...

The books I am most grateful for

Or 

The books I like best

(In order to be a part of this list I have read the book at least three times (or in the case of new release, plan to make it part of my reread) however, they are not in an order (while these are my favorites, I won't show further preference!))

Juvenile/Young Adult:  

• Harry Potter series by JK Rowling
• The Host which is far better than that other series she wrote and Twilight (but not any of the books that follow) by Stephenie Meyer
• The Ordinary Princess by MM Kaye
• Howl's Moving Castle and Castles in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones
• Dealing with Dragons and Searching for Dragons by Patricia C Wrede
• The Sisters Grimm series and N.E.R.D.S. by Michael Buckley
• Any of the Young Adult/Juvenile books by Rick Riordan (I didn't like his grown up books)

Picture:

• The Jazz Fly by Matthew Gollub
• Once Upon a Cool Motorcycle Dude by Kevin O'Malley
• The Kiss that Missed by David Melling
• John, Paul, George, and Ben by Lane Smith
• I Wanna Iguana by Karen Kaufman Orloff
• Don't Let the Pegion Drive the Bus by Mo Willems actually pretty much anything by Mo Willems because I really love the Elephant and Piggie books
• The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka 
• Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst
• The Paper Bag Princess by Robert N. Munsch

Adult: (So, I can read grown up books--I just don't want to! And while there are some series that I like, this list is about love!)

• The Lady Emily mysteries by Tasha Alexander

Classics: 

• Northanger Abbey  by Jane Austen
• Eight Cousins, Rose in Bloom, and An Old Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
• The Jeeves and Wooster adventures by PG Wodehouse 
• North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
• The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy

Well, that looks good to me.

Truth, Justice, and the Austrian Way...

Dunlap, Susanne. The Musician's Daughter. New York: Bloomsbury, 2009.

For someone who likes music, mysteries, and gypsies, this book had everything I needed. It is set in Vienna during the late 18th century. The heroine, Theresa, is the daughter of a first violinist in the  Esterházy orchestra. On the first page, or maybe the second, her father dies under mysterious circumstances. Setting out to find out the truth of her father's death, or at least what happened to his violin, Theresa embarks on an adventure leading her to a series of more and more unlikely places.

Bad news about this book...Dunlap insisted on speaking German, Hungarian, and what ever language the Gypsies spoke. It was kind of annoying to me because she didn't tell me what they were saying except for the one time I already knew. Grrr!

More bad news...the story wrapped up so beautifully at the end I was left thinking "Really? That's convenient. Seriously, you're going there?" and not in a good way. And then she said..."but that's another story" like some cheesy 50s serial..."Tune in next time when we find out if Theresa can escape the dreaded blah blah! Same battime same batchannel!" It made me want her to say, "Meanwhile, back at the ranch..." but she didn't.

What I liked best about this book was that the author has a PhD in music history from Yale and an some kind of music something-something from Smith (in other words, she's no moron). She incorporates a lot of that passion for music (and music history) into the story. "Theresa" talks about how music is how her soul speaks which, as a musician, I can appreciate. On the other hand, she longs for a violin rather than her viola. Which I think is crazy, violas are way prettier than violins.

JK (The just kidding kind not the Rowling)

I revoke my blessing on the Iron Fey series. The third one was horrible. The only reason I read 82 pages is because I didn't want to go out to my car to get another book. BOO!! HISS!! Seriously, next person who writes about an immortal guy falling in love with an average girl and how they can never make it because eventual she will die and then he will kill himself. I'm burning it! Twice!

That said, I am still going to give the fourth a go. It's told from his perspective and he's all angsty and hot.

Even though it's Harlequin...Fabio is not involved!

Kagawa, Julie. Iron Fey. Ontario: Harlequin Teen

So, Harlequin has a stigma. This is not it! There is no bodice ripping, bosoms heaving, and there is definitely not Fabio.

Disclaimer: I can only testify to the quality of the first two--I just assume that the other two are good.

The Iron King is told from the perspective of  Meghan Chase. It starts the day before her 16th birthday...and everyone knows that when you turn 16 you find your true love in the form of a handsome prince who carries you off into the sunset. Those are her words not mine. Awesomeness ensues!!

It's all about the accent...

Davis, Heather. Never Cry Werewolf. New York : HarperTeen, 2009.

This is another in the long line of paranormal teen romance set in the Pacific Northwest. It is a really short book; I read it in like 2-3 hours. (Ok, I don't remember either of the main characters names if that says anything about the book. I'm going to call the girl Bella and the boy Jacob. In other words, this story is about a normal brunette girl who finds herself mixed up with a werewolf.) Best parts: 1.) "Jacob" is British in this book and "Bella" says something about how much she loves accents and has to listen carefully so as not to miss a word he says. 2.) Like another book involving Bella, this "Bella" is somewhat obsessive about the way the hero smells and the color of his eyes which seemed to change. (I guess Davis forgot that that happens to vampires not werewolves.) Personally, I thought...been there done that. But I was kind and just went with it. Here's where the best part comes in. She says that his smell is like "kryptonite for girls." BUT what would have made it better would be is if the put the two things together. "Accents, I love accents. They're like kryptonite for girls."

I am not spellbound

Stringer, Helen. Spellbinder. New York: Feiwel and Friends, 2009.

I have a rule: if the book is not amazing in fifty pages, I put it down. Sometimes, I look at the end to see if it’s worth it and sometimes I just give it a miss. Now it takes a lot for me not to be wowed. Someone put a lot of work into their story and I can appreciate that. (Anna Karenna read the first fifty pages and the last fifty. Sadly, the story still made sense. Makes me not wonder what was in the middle ten thousand.) This book didn’t make the cut. I didn’t even look at the back to see what happened. And it had such potential. L

It has Capt. Wentworth and Mr. Darcy! It can't be that bad!

Bebris, Carrie. The Deception at Lyme, or, The Peril of Persuasion. New York: Tor Books, 2011.

Ok, this series is my deep dark secret. I want to be above it, but I keep reading. This is book 6! It's based on Jane Austen's characters. (Pass on the first two. They have paranormal activities and it's too jarring to have Fitzwilliam Darcy talking about ghosts and Dorian Gray style stuff. After those, they're much better.) This one involves the Persuasion characters: Captian and Mrs Wentworth and the whole Elliot clan. The first time the reader meets Wentworth, he's soaking wet. That should be enough to whet your appetite for this book or should I say "wet"...no I shouldn't.

I think Bebris does a great job at staying true to the Austen characters while making them her own at least for the most part. A million times better than say...Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. (Why would Darcy talk to Elizabeth about his balls even if he is referring to the musket kind? Seth Grahame-Smith, get your obvious dudeness out of P & P! It's a chick book. Hence the long string of hotties who have tried to live up to Mr. Darcy: Colin Firth...does the list really need to continue? When he jumps in that nasty water at Pemberley...sigh...another excellent example of "wetting" your appetite, eh? No, I just can't do it. )

I think someone should write about a rhombus

Condie, Ally. Crossed. New York: Dutton Books, 2011.

I am very tired of reading about love triangles they make my heart ache. I think real writers should choose a new shape. I suggest a rhombus, but I am also open to squares, stars, and octagons. Actually, I changed my mind an octagon is way more exciting than a rhombus.

In other news...I really liked Matched. I just regularly liked Crossed. To me, the two voices telling the story weren't strong enough. Sometimes, particularly when I took a break from the book, I had to stop and think who is I? because it was difficult to tell if it was Cassia or Ky talking. Bad news since their stories are so different.

Like Riordan's last book this is the awkward middle child. Hopefully, the best is yet to come.

Get your religion out of my fairy tale!

Stanley, Diane. The Silver Bowl. New York: Harper, c2011.

Mixed feelings…If this book wasn’t choking me with medieval Catholic dogma, I would give it two thumbs up. Sadly, it does. I remembered too late that Ella at Midnight, also by Stanley, had the same problem. To me, if you are going to write fantasy, then write fantasy and don’t spoon feed me real religion. On the other hand, I did love the characters and even the love triangle which is not something I ever thought I’d say. Generally, I get too caught up in the characters heartache. Jacob, Bella, and Edward almost killed me (The Twilight Saga). And I’m not sure I’ll make it through Ky, Cassia, and Xander (Matched). I love both of them! How I’m I going to make it two more books?

I love Leo! and now I miss him!

Riordan, Rick. The Lost Hero. New York: Disney * Hyperion Books, 2010.

I had to reread this book in preparation for The Son of Neptune release. I love Rick Riordan! Leo has got to be one of the funniest and unexpected heroes ever! I can’t get enough of him.

Riordan, Rick. The Son of Neptune. New York: Disney * Hyperion Books, 2011.

I know he’s coming back, but I missed him. Percy, Frank, and Hazel were just not as funny, although I did love Ella. Who wouldn’t love a bibliophile randomly spewing what she read? J

This is the second book in the Heroes of Olympus trilogy. There was action, adventure, Greek and Roman gods/villains, and killer grain! (Yep, grain.) I loved it, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want Leo back.

I got nothin’

Osterlund, Anne. Academy 7. New York: Speak, 2009.

This book was weird and jumpy and weird. And really weird.

Not only is “It’s a Small World” one of the most annoying songs ever, it is now terrifying! Thanks for that, really thanks.

Pearson, Ridley. The Kingdom Keepers. New York: Disney Editions, c2005.

First book in The Kingdom Keepers series and I loved it. I had previously read Peter and the Starcatchers (and subsequent books), but I wasn’t sure how Pearson would do without Dave Berry. He did great. However, if you’ve never been to a Disney park—you should give this book a miss. He definitely expected you to know the parks set up and attractions; he doesn’t describe them in much, if any, detail. Didn’t bother me, but I’ve been (and recently). 

Perhaps, they should have stayed “Lost”

Flannagan, John. The Lost Stories. New York: Philomel Books, 2011.

Dear John, (Hee hee)

You can’t stop while you’re ahead (that was at least 3 books ago) so just do us all a favor and stop period! I mean honestly, this is the eleventh book (the fourth I’ve purchased because I “couldn’t wait”) and they’ve lost the magic. In the beginning our heroes fought worgals and kalkara in the lovely fantasy world Araluen: Redmont Fief. In the last book we hung out with a Roman legion and Japanese ninjas! I know you called them something else but I don’t remember what that was. Yes, I can remember worgals and kalkara, but not the name of your not so fantastic “fantasy.” Actually, what was most annoying in this book is that the character bios changed. Don’t worry, I took a pencil to my book and fixed it. What on earth do you pay you editors for and why don’t you know your own peeps?

Love, Amy

PS Are you really plugging your new series in this book? Well, played. You’ll probably trick me into reading it.

And who am I kidding, I’ll buy it.

Ah! Why am I such a glutton for punishment! We have a serious love-hate, John. You should just know that.

I just don’t know…

Crossley-Holland, Kevin. The Seeing Stone. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2001.

I loved the story and the format (one to two page chapters), but while it was acceptable for husbands to beat there wives in 1199, it is NOT acceptable now!!!!!! And in one line Crossley-Holland left a sour taste in my mouth when the hero said that he knew his father beat his mother, but would never do it in public. That ruined the book for me. I don’t want to read the other two books in the series. Even if it was historically accurate, this book was published in American in 2001 and that’s not ok message. This was seriously, a small part of the book. My rant was longer than then incident. But this line wasn’t needed. I got that the other fellow was a scoundrel without Crossley-Holland telling me the hero’s father was abusive.

Ok, I might have a trippy double standard, because it didn’t bother me when the guy got his hand cut of for “thieving.” Hmmm….I need to think about this…

Mission One?!? Please tell me there aren’t more! There was too much in this one.

Butcher, A. J. Spy High: Mission One. Boston: Little, Brown, 2004.

A boarding school that trains teenagers to be spies, romance/teenage angst, global warming, social prejudices, a villain claiming ancestry to a famous fictional character who quotes the bible...and this book was only like 200 pages and I read everyone. Oh, my gosh!! I almost forgot the mutants! There were mutants, too. Really creepy mutants not like X-men mutants…

BTW, there are apparently five of these books.

The thoughts of an open bibliophile...

So, I love books. True story. And I read a lot of them. Since it has come up more than once this month, I am writing a quick note about the books I read.