The Sea of Monsters

The Sea of Monsters (Percy Jackson & The Olympians Book #2) by Rick Riordan

read April 2010

I didn't like this as much as the first Percy Jackson book, but it really didn't disappoint. Percy is now in seventh grade and he (along with his friends) must travel to the Island of the Cyclops, grab the Golden Fleece (yep, the famous one) and return it to Camp Half-Blood before the camp is destroyed. I can't wait for my BFF's oldest daughter to get into this series....maybe another year or two.

Summer Reading List - Updated 5/9

Okay - I purchased a few more books today (Mother's Day), so I must update my summer reading list.

I posted this entry on my "regular" blog.....but then realized, "Hey! I have a blog just for books! What am I thinking???" So I'm posting this entry here as well!

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I went to Barnes & Noble this afternoon in search of a book club selection for May. I've decided that I miss my reading friends and want some excuse to have them over again in a month to drink wine and talk.... I also went to Target where I happened to find a few more good reads. I found sooooo many great books. I bought a few. Okay - more than a few. More like 8. But I have my summer reads all selected. Here's what I'll be reading this summer:

1) Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer. This is the third of her New Moon series. I've read it before (several times), but the movie comes out on June 30th, and I want to be fully prepared. If I remember, this one was my favorite. I'm still a Jacob fan.

2) The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson. I hadn't heard anything about this one, but it looks pretty good. It's the story of a man who, while recovering from a car crash in a hospital burn unit, meets a woman. Said woman claims they were lovers in medieval Germany. Interesting, no?

3) My Fair Lazy by Jen Lancaster. Okay - if you haven't read anything by Jen Lancaster, get off your ass and go buy one (or all four) of her books. My favorite of all of them was Pretty in Plaid, which was her I love Target.

4) The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton. This one may be my book club pick for May. It's about a girl who is abandoned on a ship headed for Australia in 1913. She arrives totally alone with clothes and a book - a book of fairy tales. The dock master and his wife raise her and, on her 21st birthday, they tell her the truth about where she came from. So off she goes to trace her real identity. It sounds really good, and it has a reader's guide in the back of the book. I'm a sucker for books with reader's guides in them.

5) Little Bee by Chris Cleave. This is the other contender for May's book club selection. I've heard about this book, but for some reason never checked it out before today. I think it's new to paperback, which is what caught my eye. Anywho, the back of the book says, "This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face. Two years later, they meet again - the story starts there...." Hmmmmm......I'm intrigued! The book's a bestseller and has won a bunch of awards. True, a bunch of awards does not always equal a great book. But the author's from the UK. And you know how I love all things British.....

6) Mistress of Rome by Kate Quinn. Historical fiction is my favorite genre. It's about first-century Rome, the Emperor Domitian, gladiators, etc.... I probably picked it up because I've been watching that series "Spartacus" on Starz lately. Interestingly, the author wrote her first story at age seven after seeing the movie "Spartacus" with that famous guy....I can't remember his name.... She said that she always wanted to write a book about a gladiator and this novel is the end result of that first "book" she wrote as a kid. Cute story, huh? That alone was enough to make me buy the book!

7)The Anglo Files: A Field Guide to the British by Sarah Lyall. This book has mixed reviews on GoodReads.com, but it looked good to me. I bought it last year and, although I've started it, I keep putting it down and forgetting about it! I know....you're probably thinking, "Well, it can't be THAT good then". But, really, it is! It's about a woman who moves from NYC to London in the early 90s. I'm going to finish it....soon.....

8) The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan. This is the 3rd book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I really enjoyed the first two. I've been waiting a few weeks to buy it in hopes of scoring one at Half Price Books. My mom (who I have reading them too) said that they told her that since the movie came out, there haven't been any of the Percy Jackson books handed in. Bummer. So I broke down and bought #3 today.

9) The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. This is book #1 of Riordan's new series, The Kane Chronicles, which is about Ancient Egypt.

10) Dead In the Family by Charlene Harris. If you haven't aready gotten into the Sookie Stackhouse series, this summer is a good time to do so. True Blood (on HBO) is based on this series by Ms. Harris. They're really, really good books. I think this is the 10th Sookie book. When I reviewed my summer reading purchases with my BFF, she kindly pointed out that I had forgotten to purchase this. I fixed that situation today with a trip to City Books. Book #3 is my favorite....if you've read them then you will know why.

11) The Queen of Bedlam by Robert McCammon.

12) A Patriot's History of the United States by Larry Schweikart. I picked this up at Target today. I don't know if I would necessarily consider myself a patriot, but it looked good.

There are definitely more books I'm interested in....but this will get me started. Now if only I had a beach and a smokin' hot island man to serve me pina coladas all day, I'd be set!

A Reliable Wife

A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick

read March 2010

So this was one of those books that where you knew what would happen about 20 pages into it. However, I kept reading it and.... I. Loved. It! Really good book. From Barnesandnoble.com because I'm too lazy to paraphrase it myself...

It's a frigid mid-October night in 1907 and Ralph Truitt, a wealthy industrialist living near the Canadian border, is meeting the train. It carries Catherine Land, his mail-order bride, who answered his newspaper ad for a "reliable wife." As happens in all small towns, Truitt's private business has become public. Waiting on the railroad platform, he's surrounded by curious neighbors, most of whom his mills or mines employ.

When the train finally arrives, the exotic beauty who exits the private railroad car Truitt sent to fetch her is clearly not the same woman whose photo he holds in his hand. But with so many curious eyes upon them, Truitt hustles her off to avoid a scene, yet delivers a warning: "This begins in a lie. I want you to know I know that."

Great book. Quick read. I couldn't put it down.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith

read March 2010

This is the same author that wrote "Pride and Prejudice for Zombies", which I never read but kept picking up at the bookstore. So because vampires are the latest craze, and because it was on sale at Target, I gave this one a try. In this book, the author meets a vampire (Henry), who gives him a bunch of Lincoln's old journals. As the author reads, he lears that Abraham Lincoln was a prolific vampire killer. See, according to the story, Abe's mother dies from the bite of a vampire, and her sickness was passed off as "milk sickness". From this moment on, Lincoln vows to destroy as many vampires as possible.

This was a pretty good book. I kept wanting there to be more of it. There's enough historical background in it that you keep thinking, "Hmmm....could it be???" I already have "Pride and Prejudice for Zombies" on reserve at the library. I'll let you know how that one turns out!

Wench

Wench - A Novel by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

read March 2010

I first read about this book in February's issue of Oprah Magazine. And, of course, because it was recommended by Oprah, I was like 80 millionth in line for it at the library. But my turn came up quicker than I though, and I was super excited to pick up the book on Monday. I read this in 2 days. It is an AMAZING book. It's the story of four slave women whose Southern white owners take them to a resort every summer for vacation. The resort is in free state Ohio and it takes place pre Civil War. The book is fiction, but the resort that's mentioned in the book (Tawawa Resort) did exist. It was close to Xenia, Ohio, and the author mentions that it is documented by historians that Southern slaveholders frequented the resort with their slave mistresses. Interestingly, the resort was only open for four years and was then sold to The Cincinnati Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1963, this property was purchased and renamed Wilberforce University, which is the nation's oldest, private, predominatly African-American University. Interesting, no? I can't even begin to describe the different emotions I went through when reading this book. The relationships between the slave women and their masters, the women with each other, the women with the slaveholders' wives were all fascinating. This is the author's first novel. If you look at her picture, she looks awfully darn young to have written such an awesome book! Good for you! It's one of the best books I've read in a long time.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians #1

Percy Jackson and the Olympians - The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan

read March 2010

Yes, I do realize that you will find these books in the "Ages 9-12" section of Barnes & Noble. Honestly, though, they're pretty good! Almost as good as the Harry Potter books. They're all about Percy (short for Perseus) Jackson, who discovers that he's a half blood. That's half human, half Greek god. I won't tell you which one...that would ruin the surprise. I haven't seen the movie that's out (I think it's still out, right?). In general, I find that movies just are never as good as the book. They're quick reads, of course, but I'd definitely recommend them. I've already ordered the 2nd one, which should be here any day!

Where the God of Love Hangs Out

Where the God of Love Hangs Out by Amy Bloom

read March 2010

Okay, I admit. I didn't read this book completely. It's basically a collection of short stories. I read about it .... probably in People magazine .... and checked it out from the library. But I was so into other books at the time and I didn't get around to starting it until yesterday. And it's due tomorrow. (Not renewable, of course, because it's on someone else's reserve list.) I don't love it enough to rack up late fines either. It's an okay book. I didn't like the first story at all, but I liked the next two enough to put this back on my list to read again soon.