Catalina7's 2009 Reading List

I quite enjoy keeping track of all the books I read, so I have decided to join in on this group :)
I’ll read pretty much anything, though I tend to drift toward fantasy, historical fiction and young adult fiction. I keep a very long TBR list on my computer that is constantly growing (I welcome suggestions and comments—there's always room for more good books on the to read list :) )

My Reading Goals for 2009:
1. Read 150 books. I have almost made it the last two years, but not quite (138 in 08, 141 in 07).
2. Read 5 nonfiction books
3. Read 12 Newbery books (my goal is to eventually read all of the Newbery books)
4. Try some books that are different from what I normally read
5. Read a few books along with my 11 year old niece to encourage her to read more

1. I’d Tell You I Love You but then I’d Have to Kill You by Ally Carter
2. Circus of the Darned by Katie Maxwell
3. Fablehaven by Brandon Mull
4. Life, Love and the Pursuit of Hotties by Katie Maxwell
5. Kissing Coffins by Ellen Schreiber
6. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big, Round Things by Carolyn Mackler
7. The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
8. Megan Meade’s Guide to the McGowan Boys by Kate Brian
9. Teen Idol by Meg Cabot
10. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
11. Evolution, Me, and Other Freaks of Nature by Robin Brande
12. The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall
13. Carpe Jugulum by Terry Pratchett
14. Virgin: a novel by Robin Maxwell

15. Blue Shoes and Happiness by Alexander McCall Smith
Part of the ‘No 1 Ladies Detective Agency’ series. Set in Botswana about a woman who starts a detective agency and the cases she works on.

16. The Last Continent by Terry Pratchett
17. His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik

Welcome to our group.

welcome enjoy th reading!

Yay, another fantasy & YA reader! I've starred your thread :)

Welcome! Nice list...

Welcome! Prepare to be inundated with good books to read!

Welcome to the group! Looks like you have made a good start on the reading year.

Hi all! Thanks for the wonderful welcome!

18. Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik
19. The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
20. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: a Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures by Anne Fadiman (CR)

Throne of Jade sounds interesting; I'm adding it to my TBR list. Thank you.

Just found your thread--you are going to fit right in, Caitlin! We share 96 books, BTW!

What did you think of The Spirit Catches You.. ? I read it years ago. It really helped me change how I interact with patients from other cultures and how I help get their needs met. Well, some of the time.

Jadebird—Throne of Jade is the sequel to His Majesty’s Dragon, and is the second in a currently 5 book long series. I absolutely love the series and really enjoy the unique version on the Napoleonic wars (that is, adding dragons :) ). Both the people and the dragons are very gripping and interesting characters.

Ronincats—Thanks! Wow, 96! That must mean you have really good reading taste ;)

VioletBramble—I really enjoyed The Spirit Catches You…I read it for my independent study class in Medical Anthropology. I am premed and hope to use information like that obtained through reading this book to work well with patients from any culture (I also hope to work abroad some). I think it does very well detailing the progression of Lia’s illness and showing the conflict of culture and language and their widespread effects. If you don't mind my asking, what kind of health care work do you do?

>14 catalina7: Thanks, catalina7. I've read all the Broketails (Bazil Broketail more than once; I need new dragon books!

#14 Hi. I'm a nurse in pediatrics and pediatric research. I work in New York City ,so pretty much every day I have contact with patients and families from multiple countries/cultures who speak languages other than English. Luckily the hospital I work for has decent access to translators. They are also fairly open to some practices from other cultures. As long as fire is not involved.
Good luck with med school.

I love the Temeraire series. Well, the third one was kinda slow, but the rest are great.

Jadebird-I have never heard of the the Broketail books, are they really good? I will have to look into those.

VioletBramble-That sounds very interesting! I plan to go into pediatrics (at the moment I am aiming for pediatric intensive care, but I might just go into general pediatrics). I think that The Spirit Catches You really emphasized the need for translators in health care, it is good the hospital you work at has good access!

21. Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy by Ally Carter

22. Westmark by Lloyd Alexander
I love Alexander’s Prydain series, and am glad I decided to try this series! A grief-stricken king, a power hungry royal advisor, a printer’s apprentice on the run from the law, a mysterious and troubled young 'street' girl, an entertaining swindler and his dwarf attendant-how could it not be wonderful? :)

23. My Not-so-terrible Time at Hippie Hotel by Rosemary Graham

24. The Kestrel by Lloyd Alexander

25. Mumford Memoirs by James Gregory Mumford (CR)
This is a record of my family from 1655-1900 written by one of my ancestors and originally published in 1900. It was republished last year and we were able to buy a copy (my grandfather’s copy was lost after his death). My mom is currently working on tracing our genealogy and has so far gone back to the 1600s. I am finding the book exceptionally interesting, he seems to have been a good writer and tells the stories of the people very well.

> 17
I am a real Bazil Broketail fan. There are seven books in the series, I think. Rowley creates such a believable relationship between battle dragon and boy. The witches are terrific, too, the basis for their power well-presented and consistent. Each book is complete, but probably it would be the most fun to start with the first book.

#18: Wow! What a great treat to be able to read your family's history that way.

Jadebird-Broketail sounds great, I will definitely have to try those books!

alcottacre- Yes, it is very neat! I am so glad to have the book to read and learn about my family!

26. The Burning Bridge by John Flanagan
27. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
Absolutely loved it! I am so glad I decided to try this book (after reading so many positive things about it on LT). Now I just wish her next book was coming out sooner!

28. The Marvelous Misadventures of Sebastian by Lloyd Alexander
Very entertaining! A slip of the bow on his violin before a orchestra presentation leads to Sebastian's expulsion from the Lord's house he resides in, and many adventure and mishaps follow because of it.

29. Donorboy by Brendan Halpin
Rosalind's two mom's die in a car accident and she goes to live with the biological father (as she refers to him, the sperm donor) that she has never met. It is told in emails, ims, and journal entries mainly from Rosalind and her father

30. Exile by Grace Cavendish
A cute YA historical fiction/mystery series about a young girl in Queen Elizabeth I's court who secretly investigates crimes.

31. The Icebound Land by John Flanagan
I LOVE this series!! I just wish all the book released in Australia were also released in the US!
3rd book in a YA fantasy series about a young boy who is apprenticed to a King’s Ranger. The Rangers are a mysterious and elite group in the kingdom, valued by the nobility and feared by the general population who attribute their odd talents to magic.

#23: The only books of Alexander's that I have read were his Prydain series, so I wll have to look for that one.

I completely agree with you about the Flanagan series. I have read the first 4 and am (im)patiently waiting for whoever has it out of the library to return it so that I can grab it!

alcottacre: The books in the Prydain series were my favorite books for years when I was younger, and then a teacher passed Time Cat on to me back in middle school, which I loved (and which got me interested in historical fiction). I was browsing in the library recently and saw some other books by Alexander and decided to try them. I have enjoyed all the ones I have read so far (the first two books in the Westmark trilogy, as well as The Marvelous Misadventures of Sebastian ). Not quite the same level as the Prydain books in my opinion, but still wonderful and quite enjoyable.

32. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
Enjoyable...but it didn't quite live up to the raves about it I have heard from friends. Interesting premise, but I felt like there were a lot of points where not much was happening. And the girls got a bit on my nerves/annoying sometimes. I will probably go ahead and read the rest of the series, just because I want to know what happens (that's why I can never start and not finish a book, even if I am not totally enjoying it, I still want to know what happens!).

#5: Time Cat looks like a fun read. I will have to go back and re-visit Alexander at some point, including re-reads of the Prydain series.

>27 alcottacre:: Stasia, there are very few of Lloyd Alexander's books that I haven't read, not to mention enjoyed! I heartily endorse your revisit to his works in the future :)

#28: It may end up being a project for next year, Faith, but definitely one I will pursue. I remember (even though it has been years) how much I enjoyed his Prydain series.

33. The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory

34. Fairest by Gail Carson Levine

what did you think of The Boleyn Inheritance? I've heard the book mentioned here and there...

I just finished Fairest and enjoyed it--what did you think?

Girlunderglass- I enjoyed it. There were some historical inaccuracies…but I read historical fiction expecting that most of the time, so it didn’t bother me. I really enjoyed the characters (Anne of Cleaves, Katherine Howard and Jane Boleyn). The portrayal of Jane Boleyn is a little more sympathetic than those I have read of her before. Katherine’s narration annoyed me a little at times, as it was very superficial. Overall, I really enjoyed the book and loved reading about a time of Henry VIII’s rule that I haven’t read much about.

Ronincats- I did really enjoy it as well, though I don’t think it was as good as Ella Enchanted. I loved the gnomes! And the illusing was a very interesting talent.

35. The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley

Okay, you can't read The Blue Sword and not say anything about what you thought of it!!!! Give it up, girl!

ronincats- :) it's a reread for me, I absolutely love it! I love the story, I find it really compelling, and the mix of current happenings and snipets of history as well as action, a good story line and magic is neat. And the characters are all very well developed and likeable. I especially like Narknon.

36. The Redheaded Princess by Ann Rinaldi
A good YA historical fiction about one of my favorite historical characters, Queen Elizabeth I. (I decided to start reading about her when I was little and found out she had red hair like I did, and I have been continuing to read about her ever since then). Not an especially original portrayal, but still an enjoyable read.

>37 catalina7: Yup, it's a many time reread for me as well. And of course, the cat character is the best! I also think that my love of Kipling heightens my interest in the setting. And I love Harry and the story line.

37. Queen's Own Fool by Jane Yolen

#40: How is Queen's Own Fool? I have read several of Yolen's books in the past year, but not that one.

alcottacre- I really enjoyed it. I didn't know much about Mary Queen of Scots other than what I had encountered when reading about Queen Elizabeth I. I liked the narration coming from the point of view of someone other than the queen. The story's protagonist is Nicola, a young Italian girl who Mary invites to court to be her fool and who accompanies her in the following years as she moves from France to Scotland. I thought Nicola was a very interesting character and liked Yolen's development of her story.

38. Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz
This has been recommended to me a few times, so I decided to finally try it. Though I felt it started out a bit slow, I ended up really enjoying it. I liked the interesting portrayal of vampires as part of the social elite in NY.

39. The Twentieth Wife by Indu Sundaresan
Very compelling portrayal of the life of Mehrunissa, the 20th wife of Emperor Jahangir, a women who exerted an uncommon amount of power in the empire for a woman. The only thing that bothered me was that some facts about the characters and their relationships to each other were repeated multiple times in the story. But I found Mehrunissa to be a well developed character and I enjoyed reading about her.

(And I am so happy to actually have time to read again as exams/classes are finally over:) Of course, in two weeks that time ends as I start working...but at least its fun working-in Brazil in a biology lab.)

#42: Thanks for the additional info. I will see if I can locate that one.

#44: Congratulations on completing your exams and on the fun job. You can read a lot of books in the two weeks you have in between :)

40. Figures in Silk by Vanora Bennett

41. Anna of Byzantium by Tracy Barrett

#46: Looks like a couple of good historical fiction books that I need to track down. Thanks for the mention!

alcottacre- I really enjoyed both of those books! Anna of Byzantium was about a time period and place I didn't know much about, so it was interesting to learn about it. Figures in Silk was an interesting look into the business world of historical england.

42. Men at Arms by Terry Pratchett
A reread of one of my favorite authors! Always entertaining and fun to read!

And now my reading is going to slow down, as I am in Brazil (yay!) until August and, as I can't read Portuguese, have only the books I was able to bring with me to read! (though they took up a good part of my luggage ;) )

43. The Virgin Queen's Daughter by Ella March Chase
A good historical fiction about the fictional daughter of Queen Elizabeth I. A really enjoyable read about my favorite historical period/location. And was surprised when I found out the author is from the same small Illinois town as my mom.

44. Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
A fun reread about a 12 year old criminal mastermind determined to restore his family's fortune...by stealing gold from fairies.

45. The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
I really enjoyed this book and am glad I listened to the suggestion to try it! Now I just wish I had Fforde's other books!

Looks like you have been reading some good books this year. I will be lurking to see what else you read.

Love the Artemis Fowl books... the first four are my favorite, I believe. I haven't read the most recent one yet, but it's sitting in my TBR stack, waiting! Did you know they're also making it into a film? Not quite sure how that'll go over, though...

dianestm- Thanks! I've certainly enjoyed them (and enjoyment is the goal of reading for me at least :) ) Though unfortunately, I have read less so far this year than usual, due to increased school work and actual work.

dk_phoenix-No I didn't know they were making it into a film! I'll cross my fingers that is turns out good! it does have potential for a good fantasy film...

46. The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain
I really enjoy Twain's writing (which I realized when I got past the point where I was forced to read and analyze them in school), and when I got to the point where I wasn't being forced to read and analyze and decided to start reading some more of his books. I actually started this book a while ago, but it got misplaced during a move, and I recently thought to find it online to read.

47. Tithe by Holly Black
I liked this much more than I expected. I got really caught up in Kaye's story and I really liked Roiben.
Kaye, a teenage girl who still believes she had fairy friends as a young child, movies back to her grandmother's home. Walking down a road one night, she encounters and saves the life of a man who had been shot with an arrow and realizes he is a fairy. Her adventure progresses from there with her slowly discovering more and more about the fairy world and about herself.

48. Anne of Avonlea by Lucy Maud Montgomery

One of my favourite Anne books! Did you enjoy it? I love, love, love the ending :)

I did really enjoy it and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series. (I somehow missed out on reading these when I was younger).

49. Mademoiselle Boleyn by Robin Maxwell
A good read on the early life of Anne Boleyn, mainly set while she is in the French court. A bit detailed on the 'debauchery' of the French courtiers. While I did like the book, I didn't enjoy it as much as the other books I have read by Maxwell.

50. Mates, Dates, and Inflatable Bras by Cathy Hopkins
Cute, quick, light read

51. Now You See It... by Vivian Vande Velde

52. PCR Technology by Henry A. Erlich
Background reading for my research project

53. Too Great a Lady by Amanda Elyot
A historical fiction told from the view of Emma Hamilton, nee Emy Lyon, a girl who left the English countryside to work in London during the late 1700s and rose up through society to eventually become Lady Hamilton, wife of the English Ambassador to Naples, and then the mother of Horatio Nelson's only child.

54. Do-Over by Niki Burnham

55. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Very good read, though something revealed toward the end of the book upset me a bit. Will definitely read the others in the series.

#67: I have seen several good reviews of that one. I really must get my hands on a copy.

alcottacre: I really enjoyed it. A friend saw me reading it, read the back cover, and thought it sounded good and borrowed it as soon as I finished. And then she read it in 2 days :)

56. The Privilege of the Sword by Ellen Kushner
I really liked the main character, Katherine, and enjoyed the personal growth she goes through in the book. Interesting secondary characters as well and I was really happy with the ending of the story (I like my books to have happy/good endings :) ). I think I will probably try some of Kushner's other books.

#69: I put it on hold at my local library, so I hope to have a copy to read very soon.

alcottacre-Let me know what you think of it.

Ahh, how have I missed your thread before?? I've just read through it and added 15 books to my wishlist! You are going to be dangerous to me. :)

lunacat: I'm glad I have some interesting books on my list! Hope you enjoy any you try!

57. The Blood of Flowers by Anita Amirrezvani
Good historical fiction about a young girl living in the 1600s in Persia and her personal struggles to survive and to follow her dreams.

58. The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer
I just love the Artemis Fowl books, they are so entertaining!

59. Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde
So glad I finally tried this series! Lots of fun.

#75: The Blood of Flowers looks like something I would enjoy. Thanks for the recommendation!

The Blood of Flowers has gone onto the wishlist. Darn you!

I hope y'all enjoy The Blood of Flowers!
(I have added so many books from other people's reading lists to my to-read list...my list is therefore really, really long :) )

60. Masquerade by Melissa de la Cruz

61. The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer

62. City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
Really enjoying this series, even with some of the odd plot twists/occurences. But the cliffhanger ending of this one was just evil! I wish I had already gotten the third book from the library!

63. Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn
The island of Nollop is named after its citizen who created the sentence "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." A monument to Nollop, complete with the sentence he is famous for, resides in the city center. After the 'Z' falls off, the City council leaders decide Nollop is commanding them to strike 'Z' from their language, written and spoken. Difficulties ensue as more letters continue to fall....
I can not imagine how difficult it must have been to write parts of a book not using certain letters! I don't think I would ever have the patience/skill to do that!

#80: I brought home City of Bones from the library today. I hope I like it as much as you have been enjoying the series.

alcottacre: I hope you enjoy it as well! For me, it was one of those books where I just really liked the characters and really connected with them, so I just wanted to keep reading to find out what would happen to them.

64. The Reformed Vampire Support Group by Catherine Jinks
Entertaining, light read, though I didn't find it quite as humorous as I was expecting. Still enjoyed it though.

65. Evermore by Alyson Noel
Another book where I was just pulled in by the people and the story and I really wanted to find out all the secrets being hinted at. Really enjoyed the book! (I just wish my library had the second one, it's "on order")

66. The Opal Deception by Eoin Colfer

67. Revelations by Melissa de la Cruz

68. Enchanted, Inc. by Shanna Swendson
Reread :) (the frequency of "comfort" rereads I read increases as the school work increases lol)

69. The Amaranth Enchantment by Julie Berry
Interesting Cinderella-esque story, though I wasn't entirely happy with the way it ended.

70. The Queen's Man by Sharon Kay Penman
Rereading the first of the series so I can read the rest! (I read it a while ago but got sidetracked and didn't end up finishing the series)

#86: I like Penman's Justin de Quincey mystery series. I hope you enjoy the rest of them as well.

71. Once Upon Stilettos by Shanna Swendson

72. The Last Knight by Hilari Bell
A young nobleman decides to leave his life at home and be a knight errant-the only knight errant, as that "career path" went out of style many years ago. Along the way, he picks up a squire, a young con man who was about to be sentenced for his crimes. They rescue a lady trapped in a tower...but then find out the situation is not quite what it seemed and must work to correct their errors. Entertaining read, and again, my library fails by not having the rest of the series! Used book store shopping time...:)

73. Dial-a-Ghost by Eva Ibboston
A lost heir inherits a castle estate his conniving uncle was expecting to inherit. in order to scare the young heir crazy, he goes to the ghost agency and asks to adopt a family of terrifying ghosts...but the orders get mixed up with those from a nunnery.

74. Alcatraz Smedry Versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson
Foster child Alcatraz meets an old man claiming to be his grandfather, who takes him on a dangerous and exciting quest to get the powerful sands Alcatraz received on his birthday, back from the Evil Librarians.
Loved it! Already have the second on order at the library. I really enjoyed the writing style and humor in the story. Definitely one of my favorite YA fantasy books.

75. In the Garden of Iden by Kage Baker
A recommendation that I am really glad I tried.
A young girl in the dungeons of the Spanish Inquisition is saved by a mysterious man and told she will be made immortal. She is sent to a base camp in Australia to train for the Company, a group from the future who work to preserve rare things from the past. She trains as a botanist and then goes on assignment to Tudor era England.

76. Damsel Under Stress by Shanna Swendson
Comfort reread :) (Now I just wish her publisher would want to publish the 5th book in the series!).

Congratulations on 75 books!

Congrats!

Thanks everyone! :)

Congratulations on reaching 75! Of your last set of books, I have #s 73, 74, and 75 in my library. I love the first, the Ibbotson, absolutely hilarious. I'm reserving judgment on the second, Alcatraz, as a promising children's fantasy but with the author's voice being a little too smugly patronizing in his asides for me. Bumps me out of the story. Kage Baker's series is good--I bogged down about 4 books in, just because they are dense and although I have the last 3, I am going to have to reread the first 4 to remember exactly what is going on in them, and haven't had the time or energy to invest yet.

>ronincats: Thanks! I have read a couple of Ibbotson’s and really liked all of them, especially Countess Below Stairs. I liked the asides in Alcatraz, but I usually enjoy asides/footnotes in fiction books, perhaps because of early (around age 12) exposure to and love of Terry Pratchett’s novels, which pretty much all come with hilarious footnotes in them :). My father had the same problem with the Kage Baker’s and is also about to reread them and try and finish the series.

77. Queste by Angie Sage
Fun YA fantasy series. I find them to sometimes be kinda predictable, but I still enjoy them a lot and I really love all the characters.

78. Cruel as the Grave by Sharon Kay Penman
The series continues to be great :). Interesting mysteries, royal intrigue, interesting, well developed characters. Really great historical mystery. Now on to the third... :)

#95: I read the entire Septimus Heap series this year with the exception of the last one, Syren, which my local library does not have in yet. I enjoyed them all as well.

I also like Sharon Kay Penman's Justin de Quincey mystery series. I am hoping to read some of her historical fiction next year.

79. The Well of Lost Plots by Jasper Fforde
Just as entertaining and enjoyable as the others :)

80. Dragon's Lair by Sharon Kay Penman
Still really enjoying this wonderful historical mystery series.

81. Mates, Dates, and Cosmic Kisses by Cathy Hopkins
Some nice British teen light reading. slightly predictable, but still entertaining and not taxing on my tired-from-midterms brain :)

Glad to see you are still enjoying the Fforde and Penman series.

82. Another Day, Another Dungeon by Greg Costikyan
Not quite as funny as I was hoping, but still good.

83. Alcatraz Versus The Scrivener's Bones by Brandon Sanderson

84. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
I'm rereading the first two with the goal of actually finishing the series (i.e. reading the 3rd and 4th).

85. Mates, Dates, and Portobello Princesses by Cathy Hopkins

86. Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson

87. If the Shoe Fits by Jane Mason

88. Mates, Dates, and Sole Survivors by Cathy Hopkins

89. Midnight Pearls by Debbie Viguie

90. Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George

91. The Squire's Tale by Gerald Morris

92. Which Witch? by Eva Ibbotson

93. Let Down Your Hair by Jane Mason

94. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

#101: How was Dragon Slippers? I read George's Sun and moon, ice and snow recently and really liked it.

I really liked Dragon Slippers, it was a really cute story! I really enjoy stories with intelligent dragons like this one had. I was very caught up in figuring out what exactly was going on with the "dragon slippers". And I thought Prince Luka was a fun character, along with his 'bodyguard' Tobin. It is also the first in a trilogy (and unfortunately, my library doesn't have the second or third!). I would definitely recommend it, it was an engaging, fun, quick read.

It appears as if my local library has books 1 & 2, but not three. Oh well, I will probably read those and hope they get the third in soon!

The third book is very recently published, so there is a good chance your library will be ordering it if they already have the first two, Stasia.

I did not realize the third book was recently published. You are probably right, Roni, my library will be ordering it.

95. The Great Ghost Rescue by Eva Ibbotson

96. City of Glass by Cassandra Clare
This series was wonderful. For me, it was an “I can’t put this down, I have to know what happens” book. I love books like that. Not just a good story, or good writing, but totally absorbing, really pulling you into the story and leaving you dying to know what is going to happen next.

97. Vampireville by Ellen Schreiber

98. Parasite Rex by Carl Zimmer
Class book for my Parasitology class.

#107: I have City of Glass home from the library to read now. I hope I enjoy it as much as you did!

99. A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb
Sweet ghost love story.

100. Going Postal by Terry Pratchett
A hilarious reread as I start my final exams.

>110 catalina7: - Congrats on reading 100 books! And good luck on your final exams.

I already have A Certain Slant of Light in the BlackHole due to numerous good reviews here in the group. One of these days, I may actually get to read it.

Good luck with the finals!

Thanks!!

101. The Squire, His Knight, and His Lady by Gerald Morris

102. Feud by Grace Cavendish

103. The Ballad of Sir Dinadan by Gerald Morris

Are you joining us for the 2010 challenge? The group is up and running!

I am! I didn't realize it was already started, thanks for the heads up!

Glad you will be back with us!

104. Mates, Dates, and Mad Mistakes by Cathy Hopkins

105. Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Interesting concept (opening of a vampire themed restaurant in a world where were-people and vampires are known to exist, mysterious deaths in the city, a female protagonist with a werewolf best friend/love interest…) but it didn’t work out all that well. While I did enjoy the story, I felt some things could have been expanded upon a bit more during the course of the novel. I was really unhappy/unsatisfied with the ending, but I just discovered there is a sequel so I imagine the ending was made that way on purpose. I hope things work out better in the sequel, which I will probably read even though the book wasn’t a favorite, as I want to know how thing work out.