Wednesday, August 3, 2011

book butterfly reviews -- july

Sadly, summer is coming to a close, and with it, all the yummy reading I've been able to do.  Soon enough, the only reading I'll be doing is from my boring Med-Surg book for class.  The thing weighs like 800 lbs, I swear.

Here's what I read last month:

Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, #2)

"Linger" by Maggie Siefvater

liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating)

I didn't like this one near as much as the first, but it was still a good story. The last 30 pages is the best. I'm now really looking forward to getting the 3rd one from the library so I can see how everything gets tied up. This is a fun fantasy series.

 

Sisterhood Everlasting (The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, #5)

"Sisterhood Everlasting" (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series #5) by Ann Brashares

it was ok it was ok it was ok

I wasn't so sure about this one at first...it takes place something like 12 years after the last book ends (the girls are all 30) and almost immediately there is a huge tragedy, so much of the book is spent in sadness. It has a very very different feel from the others, but in the end I liked it about as much as the rest of the series and like how it ended up.

 

Seven Up (Stephanie Plum, #7)

"Seven Up" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating)

I just giggle so much reading these. Totally fun.

 

 

 

If I Stay (If I Stay, #1)

"If I Stay" by Gayle Forman

liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) 1/2

I felt a close connection with this book because the plot is about a young gal that gets thrown out of a car and ends up in a coma in the ICU. There were so many similarities between what the character went through and what Danny went thru in 2001, it was scary. Many of the same injuries, surgeries, and treatments.

The story is told from her 1st person perspective--as a ghost of sorts outside of her body--as she watches all the comings and goings around her, deciding if there's enough of a life left for her to stay behind or if she should let herself pass and join the rest of her family in the afterlife.

Last chapter had me in tears. It was a good one.

 

Bossypants

"Bossypants" by Tina Fey

liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating)

This was really funny and made me appreciate Tina Fey (and most comedians) more, but holy toledo, does she have a potty mouth! It's just not necessary. Her stuff is funny without all the bad language.

 

 

Twilight (The Mediator, #6)

"Twilight" (the Mediator Series #6) by Meg Cabot

liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating)

This was a cute ending (I assume?) to this series. Suze wasn't nearly as annoying with the "I mean"s and the plot was an original one. I recommend the series; the books are light, very easy to read, somewhat PG rated due to language.

 

Hard Eight (Stephanie Plum, #8)

"Hard Eight" (Stephanie Plum series) by Janet Evanovich

liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating)

This was kind of a weird one...it was kind of a boring story and plot--the main person she was after wasn't even an FTA (Failure to Appear), and the FTA situation she WAS after had a really weird ending. I liked the addition of Kloughn in this one--he's kind of endearing in a Pillsbury DoughBoy kind of way, and I DID like the romantic parts of this book, but have to admit I'm getting kind of tired of all the teasing between Stephanie, Joe, and Ranger. 8 books in, is she finally picking one of them? I think not, cuz there's another 10 books ahead of me with the same complication.

 

Dearly Departed (Secret Sisters Mystery #2)

"Dearly Departed" (A Secret Sisters Mystery series #2) by Tristi Pinkston

liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating) liked it (my current rating)

The author was sweet enough to give me a copy of this book (I won it on her blog).  This was a really cute light mystery, starring a bunch of LDS Relief Society sisters out to find a murderer. It's the second in a series--it made me want to read the first one! :) 

(Incidentally, Tristi has about 2 weeks worth of giveaways going on her blog right now to promote her third book in this series, "Hang 'Em High".  Go enter!)

 

Juliet (Large Print)

"Juliet" by Anne Fortier

it was ok it was ok it was ok it was ok it was ok

Easily the best book I read all month!

Totally enthralling storyline and characters (and 3 Diet Cokes since noon) kept me up reading this until 3 in the morning. I read just about all of it in one day and absolutely loved it! This follows a 14th Century Romeo & Juliet as well as a modern-day one, combined with the mystery and excitement a la The DaVinci Code. There were a lot of characters in this book (told from both time periods) so sometimes I had a hard time keeping track of who was who, but in the end, I found it very enjoyable.

 

Where She Went (If I Stay, #2)

"Where She Went" (If I Stay series #2) by Gayle Forman

it was ok it was ok it was ok it was ok

I think I liked this better than its prequel (for obvious reasons--I was no longer reading about and reliving my husband's 5 weeks in the hospital) and I really liked the narration from the angsty boyfriend in this second book. Beware of bad language, but definitely pick this one up (after you read the first one).

 

Wings (Wings, #1)

"Wings" by Aprilynne Pike

it was ok it was ok

I liked the first half of this a lot more than the second half. I'm just not into fairy stories I suppose, and the more into the book I got, the more fantastical it got, and the less interested I got. IE I fell asleep a few times.
Not interested in picking up the next book.   :(

 

To the Nines (Stephanie Plum, #9)

"To The Nines" (Stephanie Plum series) By Janet Evanovich

it was ok it was ok it was ok

I'd even give this one 3 1/2 stars...I like that there was a change of scenery and a lot of the action took place in Vegas. And I like that Stephanie didn't have ONE car demolished in this one (3 in the last book I think)--that was getting kind of old.

Lula on a diet was pretty funny.

 

I'm also 75% done with a mammoth 1500 page book I started about a week ago, never believing I'd get all the way through it, but heck if I'm not almost done.  :)  A lot of just good books in there, one highly recommended in "Juliet" and the "If I Stay" series was definitely interesting.

What are you reading?

5 comments:

laurie said...

i just finished the middle place by kelly corrigan - it was so good!!! i was proud of myself for getting through a couple books this summer - your list is incredible! back to school for teachers today....

Lisa @ Fern Creek Cottage said...

I always enjoy reading your book reviews! I will have to look for Juliet. It sounds really good. :)

Casey Lu said...

Yes, Juliet was a fantastic book! Glad you liked If I Stay and the Sequel. Those were some of my favs too!

Anonymous said...

The Girl who palyed with fire by Stieg Larsson

leaner said...

Mortal Instrument series by Clarissa Clare. I just finished another vampires in high school series but wouldn't recommend it since I was miffed at the way it ended. (Its stupid.)