Books of 2010

I’ve read a large number of books in 2010, and since I don’t see myself completing another book in the next two days, I’ve decided to post my annual list.  This year, I kept track of all my books using Goodreads.com.  I’ve tried to be accurate about when I finished a book; on those few occasions where I forgot the day, I’ve included only the month.  All rereads are marked with a ® symbol.  According to Goodreads, the longest book I read this year was Ruined, an omnibus by Simone Elkeles, at 779.  I don’t consider that my longest book, as the font was huge.  Instead, the longest book should be Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell at 752 pages.   As you can see from the rating (which is a range of 1-5), I’ve really liked most of the books I’ve read.  I’m not very discriminating in that sense.  The five star books are the ones that, for whatever reason, I absolutely loved.  Some, like Italian for Beginners, probably wouldn’t rank a 5 for most people.   You could call this the year of Meg Cabot.  I read (or reread) 14 books by Cabot this year.  Meg Cabot’s Insatiable (finished June 19th) was the first book I read on my nook.  Of the books I read this year, 26% were on my nook.  The rest of my stats break down like so:
Total number of books:  147
Total number of pages:  42,385 (this is actually lower than it should be, as a few of my ebooks are listed by goodreads as having 0 pages.)
5 star books: 27
4 star: 65
3 star: 12
2 star: 14
1 star: 3
ebooks: 39

To see the full list, click below:



The Full List:

Title	Author	Rating	Date
Kiss Me, Kill Me	Lauren Henderson	4	Jan 2010 ®
Revealers	Amanda Marrone	4	Jan 2010
Kisses and Lies	Lauren Henderson	4	1-2 ®
As Sure as the Sun	Anna McPartlin	4	1-2
Kitty’s House of Horrors	Carrie Vaughn	4	1-12
Venetia	Georgette Heyer	5	1-19
Lost (Audio)	Gregory Maguire	4	1-21 ®
When Lightning Strikes	Meg Cabot	4	1-27
While My Sister Sleeps	Barbara Delinsky	4	1-28
Code Name Cassandra	Meg Cabot	3	Feb 2010
Safe House	Meg Cabot	3	2-2
Sanctuary	Meg Cabot	3	2-3
Melting Stones (Audio)	Tamora Pierce	5	2-4
Days of Gold	Jude Deveraux	2	2-5
Dead Witch Walking	Kim Harrison	4	2-10 ®
Hush, Hush	Becca Fitzpatrick	4	2-11 ®
Missing You	Meg Cabot	4	2-14
The Coherence of Gothic Conventions	Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick	5	2-15 ®
First Drop of Crimson	Jeanne Frost	4	2-19
Graceling	Kristin Cashore	4	2-24 ®
The Dead Travel Fast	Deanna Raybourn	5	2-25
Silent in the Grave	Deanna Raybourn	4	2-27
Fire	Kristin Cashore	3	March 2010
Jane Eyre (Audio)	Charlotte Brontë	5	3-2 ®
Black Magic Sanction	Kim Harrison	4	3-11
Silent in the Sanctuary	Deanna Raybourn	4	3-12
Silent on the Moor	Deanna Raybourn	5	3-13
Wondrous Strange	Lesley Livingston	3	3-14
Kiss the Bride	Patricia (Meg) Cabot	3	3-17
Where Roses Grow Wild	Patricia (Meg) Cabot	4	3-17
Art of Darkness: A Poetics of the Gothic	Anne Williams	4	3-18
Frederica	Georgette Heyer	4	3-22
Mark of the Demon	Diana Rowland	3	3-24
Blood of the Demon	Diana Rowland	3	3-26
The Secret Year	Jennifer Hubbard	4	3-27
Darklight	Lesley Livingston	4	4-8
Thirteen Reasons Why	Jay Asher	4	4-9
Changeless	Gail Carriger	4	4-13
Enlightened Sexism: The Seductive Message that Feminism’s Work is Done	Susan J. Douglas	5	4-17
Embers	Laura Bickle	3	4-17
Heist Society	Ally Carter	3	4-23
Mairelon the Magician	Patricia C. Wrede	2	May 2010 ®
And Only to Deceive	Tasha Alexander	2	5-2
Silver Borne	Patricia Briggs	4	5-3
Kiss in the Dark	Lauren Henderson	4	5-3
Beautiful Creatures	Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl	4	5-6
Hourglass	Claudia Gray	3	5-7
The Accidental Wereworlf	Dakota Cassidy	3	5-9
The Lark and the Wren	Mercedes Lackey	1	5-11 ®
Runaway	Meg Cabot	3	5-13
Rules of Attraction	Simone Elkeles	5	5-13
The Girl Who Played With Fire	Steig Larrson	5	5-18 ®
Her Fearful Symmetry	Audrey Niffenegger	4	5-21
Leaving Paradise	Simone Elkeles	3	5-23
The Demon’s Lexicon	Sarah Rees Brennan	4	5-24
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest	Steig Larrson	5	5-28
Kiss of Death	Rachel Caine	4	5-29
Dead in the Family	Charlaine Harris	3	5-30
In the Woods	Tana French	4	6-6 ®
The Likeness	Tana French	5	6-10 ®
A Ring of Truth	Susan Beth Pfeffer	4	6-11
When it Happens	Susan Colastoni	2	6-11
Glimmerglass	Jenna Black	4	6-11
Lament: The Faerie Queen’s Deception	Maggie Steifvater	4	6-14
Insatiable	Meg Cabot	5	6-19
The White Cat	Holly Black	5	6-20
His Majesty’s Dragon	Naomi Novik	4	6-22
A Family Affair	Caro Peacock	4	6-26
Thirteenth Child	Patricia C. Wrede	3	6-27
The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker	Leanne Renee Heiber	2	6-29
Kitty Goes to War	Carrie Vaughn	4	6-30
Rage of Angels	Sidney Sheldon	4	July 2010
Hex Hall	Rachel Hawkins	4	7-3
Red Hood’s Revenge	Jim C. Hines	4	7-6
Discord’s Apple	Carrie Vaughn	4	7-7
Weddings Can Be Murder	Christie Craig	1	7-10
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake	Aimee Bender	4	7-11
A Conspiracy of Kings	Megan Whalen Turner	4	7-13
Faithful Place	Tana French	5	7-14
Front and Center	Catherine Gilbert Murdock	2	7-19
Linger	Maggie Steifvater	4	7-20
The Hollow	Jessica Verday	3	7-23
General Winston’s Daughter	Sharon Shinn	4	7-25
A Girl of the Limberlost	Gene Stratton Porter	4	7-27
Pride and Prejudice	Jane Austen	5	8-2 ®
Beautiful Lies	Lisa Unger	4	8-4
Shadow Bound	Erin Kellison	3	8-6
Persuasion	Jane Austen	5	8-7 ®
Emma	Jane Austen	5	8-12
The Boy Next Door	Meg Cabot	4	8-13 ®
Boy Meets Girl	Meg Cabot	4	8-14 ®
Every Boy’s Got One	Meg Cabot	4	8-15 ®
Size 12 is Not Fat	Meg Cabot	3	8-18 ®
Bet Me	Jennifer Crusie	4	8-19
Marked	Elisabeth Naughton	2	8-29
Scarlet Nights	Jude Deveraux	3	8-20
The Postmistress	Sarah Blake	3	8-23
Wives and Daughters	Elizabeth Gaskell	4	8-31
Maybe This Time	Jennifer Crusie	5	8-31
Jennifer Crusie Bundle (Charlie All Night, Strange Bedpersons, Getting Rid of Bradley, What the Lady Wants)	Jennifer Crusie	4	9-3
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie	Alan Bradley	3	9-7
Hush Money	Susan Bischoff	2	9-8
Evermore	Allison Noël	3	9-16 ®
Shadow Souls	L.J. Smith	1	9-17
Infinite Days	Rebecca Maizel	5	9-18
My Soul to Lose	Rachel Vincent	2	9-19
Faking It	Jennifer Crusie	3	9-23
Once a Witch	Carolyn MacCullough	4	9-24
Accidentally Demonic	Dakota Cassidy	2	9-26
Wild Ride	Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer	3	9-27
I Shall Wear Midnight	Terry Pratchett	5	10-2
Enchanting the Lady	Kathryne Kennedy	3	10-6
Italian for Beginners	Kristen Harmel	5	10-8
Don’t Judge a Girl by her Cover	Ally Carter	3	10-11 ®
Jane	April Lindner	3	10-13
Dark Road to Darjeeling	Deanna Raybourn	5	10-17
Scandal Sheet	Gemma Halliday	3	10-18
Family Tree	Barbara Delinsky	3	10-22
Lady of Skye	Patricia (Meg) Cabot	3	10-23
Ghost Town	Rachel Caine	5	10-27
Crescendo	Becca Fitzpatrick	3	10-30
Mistwood	Leah Cypress	5	November 2010
Blameless	Gail Carriger	3	11-14
Jekel Loves Hyde	Beth Fantasky	5	11-19
Slayed	Amanda Marrone	4	11-20
Hearts At Stake	Alyxandra Harvey	2	11-21
Heat Wave	Richard Castle	3	11-22
The Help (Audio)	Kathryn Stockett	5	11-23
Magic Under Glass	Jaclyn Dolamore	2	11-24
The Battle Sylph	L.J. McDonald	4	11-27
Pack Up the Moon	Anna McPartlin	3	December 2010
The Spirit Thief	Rebecca Aaron	4	12-2
Paranormalcy	Kiersten White	4	12-3
Sandman Slim	Richard Kadrey	5	12-9
The Absolute Sandman, Vol 1	Neil Gaiman	5	12-10
The Eternal Ones	Kirsten Miller	4	12-10
The Spirit Rebellion	Rebecca Aaron	4	12-14
Audrey, Wait!	Robin Benway	4	12-15
Fast Women	Jennifer Crusie	4	12-15
Agnes and the Hitman	Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer	4	12-17
Manhunting	Jennifer Crusie	3	12-19
Perfect Chemistry	Simone Elkeles	4	12-19 ®
Ruined	Simone Elkeles	2	12-20
The Little Lady Agency	Hester Browne	2	12-25
Serenity: The Shepherd’s Tale	Zack Whedon	3	12-25
Ascendant	Diana Peterfreund	4	12-29
His Lady Mistress	Elizabeth Rolls	3	12-30

Review: His Lady Mistress

His Lady Mistress by Elizabeth Rolls

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book had no redeeming qualities whatsoever. But I liked it nonetheless.

This book followed the conventions of the romance novel more closely than most I've read in recent years. The structure of the plot was very simple:

1. Protagonists meet under extreme circumstances
2. Years later, protagonists meet again. The heroine, Verity, recognizes the male lead, Max, but he does not recognize her. Verity has remembered him fondly from that first meeting, and she has a warm spot in her heart for him.
3. Max feels drawn to Verity, and offers her the role of his mistress. He believes she is a mistreated servant, probably raped by her employer (he's seen the son of the household accost her), and he's offering her his protection.
4. Misunderstandings ensue.
5. The misunderstandings are resolved, and before the protagonists can experience more than a few hours of happiness, they misunderstand each other again.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 as necessary.

Rolls tried to find every way possible to create misunderstandings and confusion between Max and Verity, constantly finding ways to delay the gratification of their union. If I'd been seriously invested in these characters, I would have probably found that annoying, but I didn't care enough to invest in them. Instead, I simply enjoyed the romp through Regency England. I don't know if I'll bother to read more by this author, but if Barnes & Noble were to offer anything else by this author as a free download (which is how I got this copy in the first place!), I'll gladly add it to my nook.



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Review: The Little Lady Agency

The Little Lady Agency by Hester Browne

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


I liked this book, but not enough to reread it. It's a cliched chick lit novel, and while I did find it funny, it was not unique enough or interesting enough to stand above the chick-lit crowd.



When I was nearly done with it, my husband asked me if this book was a "trash novel." (This is what he calls mass market romance novels.) I had to tell him no. While there is a romance in the novel, it's a secondary feature of the story. This is, primarily, the story of how an underprepared woman attempts to make a dignified living in London.



As with so many other chick lit novels, our protagonist, Melissa, is in her mid-to-late twenties and worried about becoming a "spinster." She's been unlucky in love, and her younger sister is getting married, thereby throwing Melissa's status into relief. Melissa believes she's fat when everyone around her knows that she's really just sexy and curvy. She's just been fired ("made redundant" is the term her office uses). Melissa lives with her best friend and confidant, Nelson, in an entirely platonic situation. Of course, everyone thinks they're dating, but, really, they're not. Finally, she's struggling under a crippling debt.



Sounds familiar, doesn't it?



This book tries to make itself unique by placing Melissa in a situation over which she has no control--her father is a Member of Parliament, and he's the one that loaned her 10,000 pounds. Unable to find a job, and unprepared to work in any real situation, when Melissa is offered a job working for a former teacher, she jumps at the chance. She thinks she's going to work as a companion, only to find out that this is a prostitution ring. Shamed and horrified, Melissa opens a business of the kind that she thought she was going to work for--becoming a "little lady" to organize men's social lives and fill the role of the missing women in their lives (no funny business, though). To protect herself and her family, Melissa recreates herself as "Honey" using a blonde wig.



Of course, identity crisises loom as well as desperate situations that belong in a sitcom like Three's Company rather than a novel. I liked Melissa well enough, but her retro feminity reminded me of nothing so much as Susan J. Douglas' analysis of what she calls the "New Girliness" in her recent book Enlightened Sexism: The Seductive Message that Feminism's Work is Done.



I'm a tough audience for chick lit. While I do like it, I need it to have something outstanding--writing, characters, plot--to make me forgive its problems (as well as the typical sexism). Unfortunately, this book did not rise above the pack in any meaningful way. I don't necessarily regret the time I spent reading it (there were a few good jokes, after all) but I won't give any of my time to the sequels.



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Review: Ruined

Ruined by Simone Elkeles

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


After over two months, I finally have to accept the fact that I don't really like this book. I've tried to finish it many times, but I just can't force myself to complete it. The cover is fantastic, but the contents aren't quite as good.

This book is an omnibus of three novels: How to Ruin a Summer Vacation, ,i> How to Ruin My Teenage Life</i>, and How to Ruin Your Boyfriend's Reputation. As the seal on the cover explains, this omnibus is currently only available at Borders.

The first tells the story of Amy Nelson's summer visit to Israel. Her father is Israeli, and he wants to take her home to visit his mother, whose health is failing. Amy has some serious issues with him--he's never seemed to want her as much as she wanted him to, and she's developed a strong resentment of the very limited role he plays in her life. Needless to say, she doesn't want to visit Israel. On arrival, she learns that his family never knew he'd had a daughter in Chicago. This is the last straw--she's miserable and feels horribly unwanted and out of place. Of the three novels, I liked this one the best. The fish-out-of-water aspect of Amy's life at the moshav in the Golan Heights is entertaining. However, it's also predictable. Obviously, Amy has no understanding of what went wrong in her parents' relationship. She is angry at her father for allowing her to push him away, but she can't see what her actions do to him. Separated from her comfort zone, Amy will have to confront some parts of herself that she simply did not expect.

One of my favorite parts of the book was Amy's blossoming interest in Judaism. Elkeles presents a fresh and believable portrait of what it means to reconnect with the faith of your ancestors.

However, even though I liked the first book quite a bit, I was rather annoyed with the later two. I won't present any plot summaries of them, as those summaries would be spoilers for the first book. That said, I can add that I found both of them to be too predictable. Amy is a young character; I accept that. Sadly, she didn't grow as much as I would have liked to see over the time span of these three books (one year). Each one seems to start with Amy being just as obnoxious as she can be and learning a lesson by the end of the book. I did skim through most of the third book in an effort to interest myself in the plot, but it just didn't work for me.

Quite frankly, I did not find this series nearly as entertaining as I did her Fuentes brothers books. Some of Elkeles' fans will like this early series better. I am not one of them. As I've tried to make clear in this review, this series did not work for me, but that does not mean it's a bad series.



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Review: Perfect Chemistry

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


There are any number of books (and movies) out there that tell the story of a romance between the bad boy & good girl or the poor kid and the rich kid. It's a tired, worn out sort of plot. But there's a reason that people keep writing it--when it's done well, it can be a lovely, wonderful story, as it is in Perfect Chemistry.



Alex and Brittany attend the same school; it's a semi-urban (rather than suburban) district that includes both gang territory and the rich shores of Lake Michigan. Alejandro is a member of the Latin Bloods, and he aspires to be the first member of his family to graduate from high school. Everything stands in his way. Brittany is a pep squad beauty whose only desire is to graduate and attend Northwestern so that she can live at home with her disabled older sister.



The star crossed lovers plot, as I said, is not new. Elkeles brings sympathy to her portrayal of these characters, and that's part of what makes the book work so well. As Cherry Valance says in The Outsiders, things are tough all over. However, the genius in this book lies in the fact that no one actually says that line. Love is a gradual process in this book; it has some basis in lust, but these characters don't truly love one another until they have been able to see beyond each other's facades.



This is an extraordinarily well-crafted book, and it is part of the reason why this plot line will always be used. A good writer can still use it to tell an amazing, touching story.



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Review: Agnes and the Hitman

Agnes and the Hitman by Jennifer Crusie

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I love Jennifer Crusie's books. I read this one in a few hours last night, finishing it after midnight. Not only are her books fast reads, but they're also engrossing enough to distract me from my own life whil I read. Last night, that was a blessing.



Agnes is a lifestyles columnist in the newspaper, writing about food. She's also the author of a popular cookbook called Mob Food. Her friend Joey "the Gent" posed on the cover for her. Her life is going well right now. She's happy in her work, starting a new venture with her fiance, she's bought the home she loved all her life . . . and it's all going to fall apart when a young man tries to steal her dog.



The dognapper dies (while Agnes's blows to his head with a frying pan didn't help, he died when he fell through a basement door), and this event becomes the catalyst that will change Agnes and her life forever. Joey calls in his nephew because he knows Agnes isn't safe. He's concerned that the events of 25 years ago are going to come to light, destroying numerous lives in the process. Joey knows Shane will keep Agnes safe, but he doesn't realize how much that one call will change Shane's life.



I dearly loved this book. It was funny, entertaining, sexy, and a simply good read. I've only read this the once, but I have a feeling that it may go on my list of comfort reads. It comforted me last night, and I'll remember that.



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Review: A Great and Terrible Beauty

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


Orientalist trash.

This was, without a doubt, one of the most irritating books I've ever read. It continues and reinforces Orientalist characterizations without a single qualm. As a scholar of nineteenth-century British literature, I'm used to seeing Orientalist tropes used in books from my period. While they are regrettable, they're also part and parcel of the time in which they were written. While this novel may have been set in nineteenth-century Victorian India and England, there was no need for Bray to continue those same tropes. As this is a fantasy novel, that sort of realism in the setting was not necessary, especially when it is never condemned within the novel.

It's been six years since I read this book, and it still makes me angry. Sometimes, I think I would like to reread it just to confirm that it was as hateful as I first thought. However, that tends to be a passing urge. Life is simply too short to waste on bad books--especially when I have a dissertation to write.

Oh, if you need to understand what Orientalism is, look to this book: Orientalism by Edward W. Said.



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Review: The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1

The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1 by Neil Gaiman

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book is simply stunning. These are the comics that made Neil Gaiman famous, and justly so. I was lucky enough (back in 2006) to buy this from Amazon for $14.95. It was a very special offer that they gave out for a very limited time--and it brought this beautiful edition within my price range. As I was a newbie fan of the Sandman, I would not have been able to convince myself to buy this book at the full price. However, after owning it, I more than willingly paid $60 or so for volumes 2 & 3. (I have yet to buy volume 4.) If you aren't sure whether you're going to love this book or not, and you're hesitant to spend the money on it, buy Preludes and Nocturnes. It's the first book in the Sandman series, and it'll convince you that you want more. (However, it is worth noting that the storytelling got progressively better with each volume. If you're still hesitant after the first book, the second one will seal the deal.)

I don't know why it took me four years to finish this book. It's huge, yes. But it's also beautiful and horrifying and dreamy and terrifying. I wanted to take this slow and draw out the pleasure of reading each story. I don't think I'm going to have the same discipline when it comes to the next volumes . . .



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Kiss of Death

Kiss of Death by Lauren Henderson


I love the previous three books in this series, and I'm eager to read this one, too. It'll be released May 10, 2011--just under six months from now.

Isn't that cover lovely? Each of the books in this series has a fantastic cover, usually combining extreme close ups with high attention to detail and a loss of focus in other parts of the image. While I'm not fond of the fact that the girl's face is obscured by her hair in this image, I love the use of flower petals in her hair on the surface below her.





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Review: The Battle Sylph

The Battle Sylph by L.J. McDonald

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I downloaded this book for free through Barnes & Noble's Free Book Fridays promotion.

Once again, the editors in charge of the free books have outdone themselves. They've consistently managed to recommend books that are not major bestsellers but are still intriguing nonetheless. I enjoyed this book greatly, and while the general content was only worthy of three stars, the sheer originality of the worldbuilding took it up to four stars, easily.

In this world, men are allowed to create a bond with sylphs. These sylphs are beings from another dimension, almost like elemental spirits. Different kingdoms have different rules about who can bond with a sylph--in some, the king doles out the bonds, and in others, even middle class families can have a sylph. Only the priests know how the summon sylphs, so even in the least restrictive kingdoms, there are still gatekeepers that decide who can have a sylph and who cannot. Most sylphs have the power to manipulate one element--air, earth, fire, water. However, there is another class of sylphs--the battle sylphs. These are given only to the king's most trusted men, whether they're nobles, commoners, or soldiers. To summon a battle sylph is not easy, and it requires the death of a virgin female.

Solie decides to run away from her family after her father arranges a marriage for her with someone three times her age. However, before she can find refuge with her beloved aunt, Solie is kidnapped by soldiers and taken to the castle to be a sacrifice for the battle sylph. Something goes wrong in the summoning, though, and the sylph bonds with Solie rather than the young prince. A bond like this has never been heard of before, and Solie and the sylph find themselves hunted outlaws.

Their bond is the stuff that can destroy whole worlds . . . or make a new one.

The relationship between Solie and her sylph was a little too unbelievable for me. The novel walks a fine line between fantasy and some kind of romance/captivity/empowerment story. The fact that McDonald is still able to tell a coherent story while walking that line is remarkable. I don't know if I'll read the second book in this series or not. However, I am very glad that I downloaded this one. It was the perfect light read when I wanted to destress.



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Review: Magic Under Glass

Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


The premise of this book was quite promising, and Dolamore's writing was very good. However, I found myself deeply frustrated because the story lacked depth. Events moved too quickly--there was no building sense of dread, and I found myself unable to suspend my disbelief long enough to accept that the relationships among the characters developed as quickly as they did.



There are some similarities here to Jane Eyre, but I think Dolamore missed the long-building, slow burning, but incredibly intense relationships of that novel. Everything here moves so quickly that I cannot accept that characters would be willing to sacrifice so much for someone so unknown.



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Review: The Help

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I've seen this book around for some time, and it always vaguely drew my attention. However, I didn't really want to invest the time reading it; I'm working on a dissertation, and a big book like this one eats a lot of time. Further, this book is popular, and I'm always leary of books that make as big a splash as this one did.



However, a few of my friends gave it positive reviews, and that made me curious. Then, Julie gave the audiobook a fabulous review, and I knew what I had to do. I had to get the audiobook and listen to it on my Ridiculous Commute (1.5 hours each way, twice a week).



Listening to this book left me with one clear response: I wish my mom could read it. She passed away 20 years ago, and I know that she would have loved this book. She grew up in Detroit, and graduated from Cody High School in 1966. The Jackson, Mississippi of this book is a world away from the Detroit my mother knew (for instance, my mom was not in any kind of Ladie's League--that was far outside her social class), but she would have still recognized this world. She spent much of my childhood teaching my sister and I to reject racism. Having lived through the 1967 Detroit riots, she knew just how terrible things could be, and she wanted my sister and to be a part of making a better future.



Unsurprisingly, I think that's what the major struggle of this book is: characters seeking to make a new future. Skeeter Phelan is a recent college graduate, and she's returned home, unmarried, to discover that there's no real place for a woman like her in Jackson. All of her friends dropped out after getting their "MRS," and Skeeter's mother wants her to get a job primarily to find a husband. Getting a job for the sake of actually working is outside of anyone's experience. The only job Skeeter can find is writing "Miss Myrna" columns for the local paper--a cleaning and marriage advice column. With no experience in either topic, Skeeter asks her friend Elizabeth if she could talk to Elizabeth's maid, Aibilean, to get answers for these letters. Reluctantly, Elizabeth agrees, and this breakdown of the social barriers between Skeeter and Aibilean will lead to a friendship and to the book itself.



Jackson in 1963 is a city on the cusp of change, and everyone can feel it. Some people, like Hilly Hollbrook, try to resist the change. In additon to publicly segregated bathrooms, she's trying to get all of the local families with "help" to install a separate bathroom for their Afrian American employees. Murmurs of change from outside Jackson arrive throughthe TV every night. And Medger Evers is killed outside his home in Jackson.



Writing a book of interviews with household help is a dangerous task in Jackson at this time. Skeeter knows this, but she doesn't really understand the risk. All of the woman that work with her do understand, but all of them take this risk. They know that they have a chance to speak, finally, and the words must be said.



I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It is beautiful and terrifying, heartwarming and chilling. It is the kind of book that reminds us not only how ugly humans can be but how amazing as well. It's a book that understand that sometimes changing the future is as simple as telling a child "You is good. You is kind. You is special." It is one of the best books I've read in a very long time.





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Review: Heat Wave

Heat Wave by Richard Castle

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I was initially hesitant to read this book because it seemed too gimmicky. However, after my husband bought it at a garage sale a week ago, I gave it a spin.

For the most part, this is an entertaining book. It's extremely lightweight--both in length and in any kind of graphic detail. In many ways, the book read like an episode of Castle, although since it's supposedly written by Castle himself, it also read like a wish-fulfillment of his. To be honest, I didn't mind that part of the book. It was fun to see Beckett through Castle's eyes, see the way he lumps the other detectives together into "Roach," see him cast as being moderately heroic.

The parts that got to me were the tie-ins to the Disney/ABC empire. At various points, the book references the movie Up, the TV show The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, and Diane Sawyer. Every allusion is to a Disney/ABC product. Admittedly, this is a tie-in to an ABC show. And Disney owns the publisher, Hyperion. But it was a little much.

I know that this is not the first time a television show has launched a real-world spin-off like this. I can remember when an actress on Days of Our Lives recorded a duet called "Friends and Lovers in the 80s. In the real world, the song was released under her real name, but in the show, it was released by her character. The song actually charted for little while. More recently, at least two other soap operas have tried to release books--one by "Kendall" of All My Children. So far as a I know, despite initial success, those other tie-ins have pretty much always proven to be failures. Part of their problem is the inherent suspension of disbelief it takes to imagine these preexisting characters recast as successful artists (whether that is as a musician or writer). Also, the TV shows have, by and large, not been willing to continue the story line of character-as-artist. While it may be fun for Kendall to become a novelist in the short term, the TV show will not allow that to become her life's vocation.

Unlike those other shows, the concept of Castle is centered around a writer and his relationships in the "real world" of the TV show and how those relationships inform his fiction. So long as the TV show is on the air, I can easily see this book series continuing in popularity. Instead of a tie-in, or a gimmick, as I've called it above, it seems more like a companion. That's probably because this novel is actually fairly well-written. Personally, I'd like to see the book series develop further and tell more involved stories than what might appear on the TV show. I do think that this book was good enough that I will likely keep up with the books.

However, I'd really like to see an end to the Disney advertising.



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Review: Hearts At Stake

Hearts At Stake by Alyxandra Harvey

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


A reasonably entertaining first entry in a new paranormal series. The characters, Solange, Lucy, Nicholas, and Kieran, are fairly well drawn. The book moves swiftly and has a fairly action-packed plot.



While I have no serious complaints with this book, it wasn't my "cuppa," as we used to say at Readerville. I have very high standards for the YA fiction that I enjoy. Most of the time, being merely entertaining is not quite enough. I want my books to have something great about them--a fantastic mythology (this one was decent, but not amazing), excellent writing (as with Becca Fitzpatrick's books, fun characters (The Morganville Vampires), or a wonderful setting (the Gothic South of Beautiful Creatures).



I'm sure that a number of readers will enjoy this book. I did, too. But I didn't enjoy it enough to keep going with the series.



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Review: Slayed

Slayed by Amanda Marrone

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I would love to know if Amanda Marrone's books take place within the same world. So far, there have been no cross-over characters that I can find, but each of the books seems to live in the same world with similar rules.

Daphne Van Helsing is much like the other heroine's in Marrone's works. She is an older teenager with parents that simply cannot hear her. Unlike Marrone's other characters, Daphne has not turned to drugs or sex in despair; she understands that she needs to stay sharp for her job. Like her parents--and generations of her family before them--she's a vampire slayer. She has no magical powers, but she does know how to wield a stake and slay a vamp. She should--she's been doing it since she was 12.

In this story, the government and policing community knows all about vampires. Whenever a town is infested, they call in slayers to take care of the problem. Witnesses are bought off; they either sign a non-disclosure statement and take the money, or they disappear. Slayers, we quickly learn, are given great leeway when it comes to raising their kids--Daphne had been homeschooled until she achieved her GED. After that point, her parents stopped caring about education and brought her in as a full slayer, even though she was still a minor.

Very quickly, they learn that things in South Bristol, Maine, are worse than they appear. Something is attacking infants, draining their life force. And there are lots and lots of vampires--far more than a small town like this one should ever see. Worse, the government has also called in another slayer family--the Harkers. Far from welcoming the extra help, Daphne's parents are furious. Her mother hates Mr. Harker, for reasons that she refuses to explain to Daphne. But that in itself is not that unusual--Mrs. Van Helsing never explains anything to her daughter and refuses to discuss the past.

To make matters still worse, in her first night on the job in South Bristol, Daphne slays a vamp in front of a witness--Kiki Crusher, daughter of the famous kiddie rock duo known as the Disco Unicorns. Kiki wants to join in the action--she's been searching for a life with meaning every since her parents kicked her out of the family band when she was five.

Nothing is normal in this town, and Daphne and Kiki will need each other to find the answers and set it right.

Amanda Marrone is one of the few authors on my must-buy list. She writes amazing teenagers. These characters are flawed and real. They struggle with who they want to be in this life that they have not chosen. They struggle to find a path without parental support. And they try to support each other as they become responsible for their own lives.

As with Marrone's other books, Slayed is a wonderful exploration of teenage life. Her books remind me of the fabulous Joss Whedon series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. While Buffy had extraordinary powers, her greatest problems were always centered in how to compromise between her destiny and her need for companionship. Marrone's books walk a similarly fine line: the monsters are real, but so is each character's struggle to make decisions.

I cannot recommend these books highly enough. They're not for young teens--the drugs and sexual references may upset some parents--but they're still some of the best YA fantasy being written today.



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Remodeling

I've had this blog space for some time now, and I've neglected it horribly. If you've seen this blog in the past, you might notice that I've been making some changes. I plan to slowly continue those changes until this blog is something like what I had originally intended it to be.

Back when I was worried about the wisdom of shouting my thoughts into the ether, I allowed to this blog to be taken over by my teaching. However, I have deleted those posts and plan to revision this as a book review blog with only occasional reflections on life. Most of my book reviews will be synced with my GoodReads profile: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/754607

However, I do plan to write material specifically for this page as well. I look forward to my new vision for this blog and the opportunity to share my thoughts with others.

Review: Jekel Loves Hyde

Jekel Loves Hyde by Beth Fantaskey

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I loved Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side when I read it last year, and I've eagerly awaited reading Fantaskey's follow up. This book did not disappoint. In fact, it's safe to say that I was blown away.



As the novel opens, Jill Jekel is at her father's funeral. He was killed in a violent attack in a parking lot. Sadly, Jill's not receiving the sort of sympathy one would expect after having lost one's father; after his death, investigators learned that Dr. Jekel was apparently involved in illegal activities. Instead of giving sympathy, all her neighbors and classmates really want to do is gossip. As the mourners pass by, Jill is surprised to receive genuine comfort and sympathy from Tristen Hyde, the new kid from England. He tells her that he knows it will get better, and hugs her. From that no-so-casual encounter, Jill and Tristen establish a bond of sympathy and trust.



Several months later, Jill, Tristen, and Darcy Gray are invited to enter a prestigious science competition. They can work in pairs, and the teacher encourages Jill & Tristen to work together. He thinks a "Jekel and Hyde collaboration" will give them an edge at the competition.



Jill and Tristen do work together, but each has a different goal in their research. Jill needs the prize money for her education fund--apparently, one of the things her dad stole was her college money. Tristen needs the research to save him from a very dark secret that has been haunting him. As the teens start their work, they gradually become closer. Soon, their previous goals will no longer matter, and the only thing they'll want to save is each other.



This is a quick read, with chapters from both Jill and Tristen's point of view. Rather than feel contrived, the changing viewpoint allows for a deeper understanding of the events. In Jessica's Guide, the alternating POV was played for humor (most of the time). That is not the case here--this is not a funny book. It is intense. As with Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, this book asks readers to consider just what we want to change about ourselves and what are the possible outcomes of that change.



In sum, this is an excellent book, and I recommend it highly. While familiarity with Stevenson's novel is not required, it will help to make this book even more enjoyable.



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Review: Blameless

Blameless by Gail Carriger

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Carriger's prose is still delightful, but I found this book less enjoyable than the first two. Rather than fear the Templars, as I know I was should have, they seemed like Keystone Kops. If this were the first book in the series, I would not have read book two. However, I'm hoping this book was more of an aberration than a trend, and I'll read the fourth book when it comes out.



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Review: Mistwood

Mistwood by Leah Cypess

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Robin McKinley recommended this book highly in her blog. Personally, I recommend that you read her review, as she quotes long passages that help to explain just how marvelous this book is.



I've been reading YA fantasy and adult fantasy for over 25 years. McKinley's The Hero and the Crown was the first YA fantasy that I remember reading clearly. It set the bar quite high, and after that introduction, I've never been that patient with bad fantasy. After reading this book, I think Leah Cypress is going to join McKinley on my very short list of truly wonderful writers.



Mistwood is an amazing book, filled with plot twists that surprised even me, and truly wonderful writing. I really don't want to discuss the plot too much; others may be more perceptive than I am and guess some of the twists. Personally, I think this novel works best when you sit back and gulp it down without trying to second guess our narrators or the truths they've been told. Trust me. Read McKinley's review (if you dare!) and read this book. It's an experience not to be missed.



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