All’s Fair by Julie Coulter Bellon

All’s Fair by Julie Coulter Bellon

Kristen Shepherd’s wedding day falls apart when she finds out that her fiancée tried to transfer funds from her bank account without her knowing, and she breaks things off until she can get some answers from him. Things get more awkward when she has to work with him to win a political campaign for her company. They used to work well together, but Kristen isn’t sure if she can believe her fiancées stories, especially when they include involvement in a possible terrorist group in the Middle East.

Ryan Jameson helps her when she arrives at her family cabin to get herself back together. Kristen tires to hide her old feelings for him since he has proven in the past that she can’t trust him. Besides, he’s now working on the staff of her client’s political opponent. Then terrorist forces capture her brother Brandon, who is serving as a doctor in Iraq. Brandon has to make a decision between following his morals, or potentially betraying his loyalty to his country.

Kristen uses all her contacts to organize a rescue operation for her brother, and explores the link between her former fiancée and his Middle East connections to see if they have any answers.

Sorry for lack of posts. I’ve been working 50 hour plus weeks for the last three weeks. I’m way behind on reviews of books I’ve read. This newest release from Julie Bellon is a fast-paced suspense that has clever plot twists and an enjoyable story. The characters were decent, but ultimately they kind of fell a bit flat for me. I liked them, and wanted to read their story, but I kind of wished for a little bit more depth and emotional complexity from the type of situations they were put in. I felt like Brandon decided far too quickly and easily how he was going to react to his ethical situation. The internal conflict there could have been more intense, and as a result more powerful. Still, an interesting read with a look into the war in Iraq, with a strong quick paced plot with two romance threads woven throughout. I think a broad audience of people will enjoy this one.

Julie's Website:http://www.juliebellon.com/

Blogs at:http://sixldswriters.blogspot.com/

Widow's Revenge by K.L. Fogg

Widow’s Revenge by K.L. Fogg

Wesley Mackey should be the luckiest boy ever. His father is the Snake Stalker on a famous television show, but that doesn’t make his life easier. Instead it makes him the target for bullies, and when he decides to fight back he gets suspended from school. So, Wesley is paired up with a geeky tutor, who used to be a Navy SEAL. Then his baby sister goes missing and it looks like his former “mom” is behind it. Imogene wants to make a swap--Wesley for his baby sister Emily. Being kidnapped is no picnic, but with the help of his parents and friends they may be able to bring the evil Imogene down for good. I’m very happy to report that this is an awesome sequel to the first book in the series. I didn’t like it as much as the first one, but still really enjoyed it. I liked how she developed new characters in the series, and developed stock characters from the first book into more fleshed out characters. The plot is adventure filled, and yet takes time to focus on character development, a combination I adore! I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series; the ending left me wondering exactly what will happen.

Her Good Name by Josi Kilpack

Her Good Name by Josi S. Kilpack

Chrissy tries her best to be a good member of the church, a kind sister, and a hard working employee, and an honest person. So it doesn’t make sense when she doesn’t pass a background check for new employment, and suddenly has a fair credit score when trying to buy a new dishwasher. Chrissy is starting to get a clue that her identity has been stolen. Yet, this identity theft isn’t only looking for a quick buck, and Chrissy watches as her carefully constructed life begins to fracture apart piece by piece.

Micah, a man that she met during an awkward blind date, has also had his identity stolen, and when they find similarities between their cases they decided to work together to solve this crisis. Taking a piece of Micah’s advice to heart Chrissy decides to set out, and restore her good name.

I’ve been a fan of Josi Kilpack’s for a two years or so now. I love how all the main characters of her novels are so diverse and have such unique, yet realistic, worldviews from each other. I know I’m always going to get a taste of something new and unique whenever I pick up one of her books. Chrissy’s character does not disappoint in this newest novel, she is a strong, vivacious, single, Mexican-American woman, who doesn’t give up when the hard times hit. I had a hard time putting this book down when I had tons of stuff to do. The suspense of finding her identity “double” is intense, as Chrissy never imagined her identity stolen by such an evil woman, who was part of a violent and dangerous liberation movement in Guatemala. Yet, this villain has realistic motivations, and a goal that the readers can easily identify with. I thought it was a bit far-fetched that Chrissy would go so far to hunt down and break into the places that her identity double had been frequenting, but it was really fun to read anyway. This really is a fantastic book, and I would recommend it to all. The ending leaves enough loose ends that a sequel is very possible (and I sort of want one), but still has a satisfying ending.

Josi's website:http://www.josiskilpack.com/Official_Site/Welcome.html

Josi's blog:http://www.josikilpack.blogspot.com/

The Castle Corona by Sharon Creech

The Castle Corona by Sharon Creech

Pia, a peasant girl and Enzio, her peasant brother, dream of going to live in the Castle Corona across the river and atop a sloping hill. They imagine often that they will go and live there to make their existence with their strict and demanding master more tolerable. Then their lives are interrupted one day when they see the royal guard chasing a thief through the woods, and they discover the treasure that he drops. Uncertain of what to do with the bag they keep it and wonder over its contents.

Meanwhile the royal family lives a luxurious life in their castle, but they are not satisfied with what they have. The king desires naps, softer clothes, and the answers to what has been stolen for his kingdom by a mysterious thief. The Queen desires a place to find serenity, and her very own hermit, Gianni wishes for the words to be a poet, Vito desires adventures, Princess Fabrizia—the tantrum thrower—wants to do something interesting. This full cast of characters is brought together through the actions of a mysterious and elusive thief, but what has been “stolen” brings reveals a secret that very few expected.

I enjoyed this book greatly, partly because the layout is so cool! It looks sort of like an illuminated manuscript on the inside, with pretty curly cues, and pictures, and bold letters. I’ve always loved illuminated manuscripts half because they are awesomely beautiful, and half because they frequently contain Latin. So, I love the quaintness that the style brought to the tale, and made it more fun to read. The writing is wonderful and smooth, and the characters are drawn with wit and humor. The plot is kind of sketchy, and I sometimes was wondering where exactly the story was going, but it fits with the story’s style, though, I kind of wish that the princes and princess had a little more plot line action. I wanted a sequel on account of the fact I felt like their stories didn’t really finish. The book really was about the characters and their little problems, and intrigues. Overall the book really was fun, interesting, and humorous to read.

Sharon Creech is an Newberry awards winning author, and you can find more information about her here: http://www.sharoncreech.com/index.html

boooyeah!

Ha-freakin'-zaah! I have a three column template! Take that evil code of doom!


Blog will be prettified shortly.

Fall Into Reading

So, I'm starting another reading challenge. Truly, having another cool image on my side bar was a mojor motivator to do this again. I'm a sad creature. Without futher ado here is my fall reading list. Also, if you want to join the fun just click the image on the right, which has a link to Callapidder Days, our host.

Peace Like a River by Leir Enger
Hero of Ages (Mistborn 3!) by Brandon Sanderson
Her Good Name by Josi Kilpack
Castle Corona by Sharon Creech
As Wide as the River by Dean Hughes
Facing the Enemy by Dean Hughes
Dragon's Bane by Barbara Hambly
Life of Pi

Summer Reading Thing

So, I did rather poorly on my Summer Reading Thing.
I read three out of the seven books I listed. (In my defense I read 19 for the Summer Book Trek.) Though, I did read part of Emma and I started the first chapter of Dragon’s Bane. The book I liked the most would have to be Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nihm because the story line really sparked my imagination, and left me wanting another story. The book I liked least was Emma by Anita Stansfield. I read about fifty pages into the book, and got more and more depressed about how I really wanted to like this book and just didn’t. I know I said before I didn’t like Stansfield’s style much anymore, but this was a so-so book for her. She can write better, but this one truly did read like a screenplay for me.

Didn’t really discover any new authors. I’d never read George Potter or F.E. Adcok, but I’m not going to go out and read everything they’ve written. Still want to read Barbara Hambly, and see if I like her. (I’ll confess, people, I reread Mistborn instead! The new book is coming out next month and I had to reread it! I’m obsessed! I haven’t been so excited for a book to come out since Harry freakin’ Potter!) Still want to read Jannette Rallison’s book; she really is a great author.

So, if you are coming to visit the blog over the next week then forgive the appearance. I'm currently experimenting with trying to figure out how to do a three column template. I'm not very good at code of any type and so a lot of trial and error is required.

Also if you haven't noticed recently posting is scarse, at least more scarse than my lovely three post a week splurge over the summer. I really would love to post more, but I'm working 40 hours a week, as opposed to not working very much during the summer. I'm starting to get back into the blogging thing as I figure out how to work my hobbies around my schedule, but all is not perfectly balanced quite yet.

I'm hoping to get some links up to other places that read, review, and discuss LDS fiction. I'll see if I can find similar places for Y.A., but that is a whole other huge ball park. Enjoy.

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

Gen claims to be the greatest thief ever, because he can steal anything. Then Gen messes up a job and gets thrown into the king’s prison to rot. There he stays until the King’s advisor Magus comes to him with a proposition. He wants Gen to steal an object for him in return for his freedom. This object, magically powerful is located in the land of Attolia. What more can Gen do than accept the job?

They travel deep into the kingdom of Attolia to an ancient temple that holds the powerful amulet they are looking for, but those who have entered before have never returned back out. Will Gen suffer the fate of those before him or somehow beat the odds and win the gods favor?

This book was so-so for me. Magus and his apprentices go on a long journey with Gen to find the object he is supposed to steal, and the journey got kind of boring for me, though I always enjoyed the characters. The main character is fun, solid, witty, and has a nice voice. I also really liked the world building, and the myths that the author made up about the world. It is very much a reflection of Greek history and culture, but the author made the setting and stories her own. I really enjoyed her creation myths. They are different from the Greek Myths, but have the same charm. I was really impressed, because they were very intriguing and fun to read. The ending also has a cool surprise twist that I wasn’t expecting at all. I had to go back and look in the book for clues, which was fun. A lot of the action is told in flashback after the fact, which makes it kind of flat. I guess my biggest problem with this book was that I wanted a bit more excitement out of it. I would still recommend it, and I plan on reading the next book because the set up for a sequel was interesting. Plus, I liked the characters, and wonder what happens to the little Prince Sophos.

Author's Site: http://home.att.net/~mwturner/

Renaissance Beauty Heather Simonsen

Avery Rose takes a trip to Italy with her grandparents after her high school graduation. They wander around Florence and while in the Uffizi Gallery falls in love with a painting of Lucrezia Panciatichi. On returning home from her trip to Italy she enters Relief Society, and starts college. Then the Relief Society president asks her to help Katelyn Jamison, who has become pregnant out of wedlock. Avery finds this assignment a challenge, as she and Katelyn didn’t really walk in the same crowds during high school, but as Avery explores the true meaning of beauty and love she learns to become the person she wants to be.

The beginning of this book was a little hard for me to get through. The writing was a bit choppy and some scenes awkwardly executed. I wasn’t sure that I would want to finish it, but then Avery’s trip to Italy ended and the book started to get more interesting. It was interesting to see Katelyn struggle with the decision to give her baby up for adoption, and to see Avery grow and become a better person despite her weaknesses. It was nice that the book didn’t make the adoption black and white, but treated the situation with the complexity that it deserved. There is also a really cute romance between Avery and her best friend Barclay, who has lived across the street from her. I wasn’t extremely into that part of the book, but I can see a lot of young girls swooning. I really wished the book was more polished, and didn’t like it extremely well. Though, I did end up getting into the story line and caring about the characters.

Author's Biography:http://www.springcreekbooks.com/authors/simonsen_heather.html