This last semester of school, I was flying though some books and I thought I might list some of them and give a short review :) These are not listed in the order I read them.
The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling was in my October PopSugar Box. It was the first book I had read by Rowling (yep, I never read Harry Potter) and this book was underwhelming. It is supposed to be an adult book, but most of the book focuses on the teenage characters. It took foreeeever to pick up momentum and it wasn't until the middle that the story really started to move forward. The story, the characters, and even the place this story takes place just gave me this really grungy, dirty feeling. The ending is very sad and unexpected- this is not a "feel good at the end" kind of book. 
A friend from the hospital that I volunteer at is loaning me the books from the JR Ward Black Dagger Brotherhood series. The first book she loaned me was Dark Lover and she told me "you have to read this, you are going to love it!" I read through it in less than a week and it was fantastic! It was a different take on vampires (I like when each author makes up a different vamp history) and the characters were vibrant and lovable. The story line has a good mix of sci-fi, romance, mystery, and thriller. The great thing about this series is you don't have to read them in order! Each book is kind of a stand alone and based on each of the brothers and references the other characters, but not enough to confuse you or make you feel like you missed part of the story. This one is about the "brother in charge" so it was a good one to start with. There is a list of words in the beginning of the book with definitions, but don't let those scare you off. They are just terms used in the book and the definitions are there in case you need/want more of an explanation.
After I returned the first one, my friend then loaned me Lover Eternal which was just as good! This one is about one of the brothers who falls in love with a woman that is very sick. Again, the characters are great and the story really draws you in. You can not help but love all the guys in the brotherhood and the descriptions of the "bad guys" makes them totally creepy! The ending is both heart-breaking and happy and makes you want to grab the next book.
Single in Suburbia by Wendy Wax was kind of a let down for me...but it was my fault. I went in thinking this book would be about a working professional woman in the suburbs that is having trouble finding the right man....but no. It's about a woman who's husband leaves her and they are going broke so she does everything she can to provide for her children and in the process she finds, essentially, the perfect man. I would have know this if I read the back of the book! I totally could not relate to this book as I am not divorced/separated/or dating and I do not have children. I have another book, Hostile Makeover, which is in my next book rotation.
Wicked by Gregory Maguire- I confess, I have never seen the play so I figured I could read the book. Elphaba is one dark girl! Who knew? This was a pretty good read, in the sense that I liked the back story on the Wicked Witch of the West. This is not anything like what I expected after seeing the Wizard of Oz movie. I think the story was pretty interesting and and there are very interesting events that happen that surprised me. Maguire has a great imagination and is able to create these vivid pictures with his descriptions of the people and places.
Fairyville by Emma Holly- See that price sticker remnant in the corner? This book was on clearance at BAM for like $4....and now I know why. It is a quick read, and thank goodness for that because it has such a dumb story line. A woman who is psychic and sees fairies and wonders why she is single....not to mention there is a quote about Holly being a great erotic fiction writer and the first sex scene in the book is a gay sex scene between two men. Later in the book, the hetero-scenes were not nearly as graphic or detailed so it really made me wonder about the author. I didn't really like the ending and I could have done with out having this book in my rotation.
I have a love/hate relationship with reading P.C. Cast books. I either love them or hate them. I hated this book Goddess by Mistake. The girl ends up back in time or in another realm or something and she ends up married to a half man-half horse guy and there are some awkward scenes of the girl riding the guy's back and getting off. I was never into horses as a girl..... I liked the aspect of the story line where the woman ends up leading her people better than the woman she switched places with and it has a feel-good ending though. If you want good ones by Cast, read Goddess of the Sea and Goddess of Spring. Both of those are fantastic because the story lines are good and the characters are enjoyable. Goddess of Light is in my next book rotation and I am hoping for the best.
I also read Goddess of Love and really liked this one as well. It about Venus and it is funny, a bit sad, unpredictable, and has a great ending. I read this one in 2 days and I was giggling the whole way through. Some very racy sex scenes in this one!
OK! I think those are all the ones that I read in the last 3 months! I am not reading Demon's Kiss by Maggie Shayne. It is in a trilogy and I am about 1/3 of the way in. So far I like it! Again, another author gives her take on vampires and I am really enjoying the characters. It says this is a romance book, but I have yet to hit any of "that" content. In case you were wondering the other 2 in the series are Angel's Pain and Lover's Bite.
If you have any suggestions of books that you love and you think I should read, please let me know in the comments below! I got a Kindle Fire HD for my graduation present and I am dying to download a book on it that I don't already own in paperback!
Jenn
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