2 Mini Reviews & BEA Announcement

I have been struggling recently with being in a reading funk. Nothing is grabbing my attention, nothing is really WOW'ing me. I keep reading a few pages, putting it down, starting a new one - and the cycle goes on and on. So, to try and break the rut, I picked up a few books in some of the series that I enjoy, hoping they will grab me and keep me interested. These two helped me get through the funk so I wanted to write up a couple of small reviews ... Also, I am going to be attending Book Expo America later this month in NYC as a Power Reader. I have the best mom ever ... she's taking me for my birthday & we'll be spending a few days in NYC before BEA! Very exciting! So, much of my time lately has been spent planning for my trip and being nervous about attending BEA for the first time! I'll definitely post here about the trip for those interested in how it goes! Okay, on to the reviews ...

Lover At Last by J.R. Ward
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

OK, I struggled with rating this one for a few reasons ... although I loved the fact that we FINALLY get the Quinn & Blay book and I think she handled their relationship very well, I am tired of having there be a series of other story lines going on which have no connection to the story being told. The books used to be primarily about the unfolding of a couple's story and the brotherhood. But, now there are all of these other extra things going on which I think ultimately muddy up the overall impact of each book. Although I understand that she needs to start creating additional story lines to keep the series moving, I felt that the other stories dominated a bit too much in this novel. I like the Xcor and Assail characters and I am interested in seeing more at some point but I felt the amount of content on them in this Quinn/Blay novel was overkill. And then there was this whole other Trez story line that started up in this one. I like where she's taking all of those pieces but I think she spent way more time on them in this novel than was effective for the overall novel. I get that she's setting up future books but it felt a little heavy handed to me. Anyway, that is my big beef with this novel. The only other thing that came to mind was that I may be getting tired of some of the language that Ward uses in the book ... the made up words (especially the verbs) in particular. But, that won't keep me from continuing with the series. All in all, I enjoy the escape from reality and can overlook the small things that annoy me. If you enjoy the series, you'll probably enjoy this one.

A Perfect Blood by Kim Harrison
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Enjoyed this one ... solid continuation of this series. I continue to enjoy the world and characters that Harrison has created here! I've been in a bit of a book funk and this was a great book to keep me interested! Can't wait to read the 11th book in the series! (I enjoyed #9 a bit more than this one but this one was still really good).

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Review: Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

As someone who works full time in corporate America while also juggling my responsibilities as a wife and mom, I found this book really interesting. There was a lot in this one that made me think about things in a new way. There are things that didn't resonate with me but much of the book did. There is quite a bit of food for thought here, things that I've never thought of as well as things that I've never thought of within a larger context. This book is very readable and interesting. I was never bored or felt it was moving too slowly which can happen with these sorts of books.

I will acknowledge that there isn't a lot here for single parents or for those without economic resources - much of the content makes assumptions about socioeconomics that just aren't an option for some women. I understand many of the criticisms that I've read about this book. However, I didn't experience it in the way many of the critics did. I found quite a bit in the book that has helped me begin to re-think how I behave at work and how I might not be helping myself in the workplace. That alone makes this book work for me.

I think this is a book that might resonate if you're a woman navigating the corporate ladder and would like to successfully move into leadership positions at some point in your career. And perhaps that is why I enjoyed it more than some - I saw this book as Sandberg educating the reader on her own successful career while providing helpful advice around how to do the same. If nothing else, I think this book begins a conversation that needs to happen about women and work.

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Review: Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow! What a fantastic little book! This one packs quite a large emotional punch! I was so taken with the story that I found myself sobbing at several points in the book - and not bad sobbing but GOOD sobbing! The kind of sobbing you do when something really touches you, when an author makes you FEEL something genuine!

Although this book could be characterized as a romance, I think it's so much more than that. It definitely does romance well but it also tackles a number of subjects that you wouldn't ordinarily find in a romance. It has a level of depth that I don't typically associate with the romance genre. I was taken by the characters and the world that Moyes builds in this novel. I loved getting to know them and coming to care about them.

Jojo Moyes does a phenomenal job at keeping the reading experience light and easy without making it into a fluffy romance. This isn't in any way a difficult read but it is so much more than fluff! I think what resonated with me most was how emotionally attached I became to this story and the characters that Moyes creates in this novel. I was honestly sad to finish the book!

I highly recommend this one! Please don't be off put by the fact that it appears to be a romance because I promise that its so much more than that! This is a moving and thought provoking novel that I think most readers would really enjoy!

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Review: Looking for Alaska by John Green

Looking for Alaska by John Green
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What a fantastic book! I think this seals the deal for me ... I am an avid John Green fan! What a fantastic and thoughtful story! This is YA at its best! If you are a YA genre fan, this is one you definitely want to pick up. But, it's so much more than what one might assume a YA novel would be. Well written with excellent characters! I am so glad that I stumbled upon The Fault in Our Stars which ultimately led me to this one. I intend to read all of the John Green that I can get my hands on! I highly recommend this one!

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Review: The Bells by Richard Harvell

The Bells by Richard Harvell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a fantastic book that I wholeheartedly recommend! In fact, I'm asking myself why I waited so long to actually read it! It's beautifully written and well executed. I'm not sure what I was expecting but it was such a wonderful story about love - all kinds of love. Harvell writes about music and sound in a way that is unbelievable - some of the passages just took my breath away! There is something here for everyone - beautiful writing, an adventure tale, a love story, historical fiction at it's best ... and so much more. I can't adequately describe this book in any meaningful way but I can definitely recommend it. It's worth picking up and enjoying! If you enjoy books with a gothic feel and characters that leap off the page, this is one you should definitely pick up!

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Review: The Dinner by Herman Koch

The Dinner by Herman Koch
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This one just didn't do it for me. Perhaps it was the comparisons to Gone Girl that did it, perhaps its just that the novel never truly grabbed my attention. I'm not sure. It was just OK. I can't say I liked it at all - the characters were not in any way engaging but that is kind of the point of the novel, honestly. I think the premise had a lot of potential but it just never lived up to that potential. The writing was choppy for me, I just didn't find the pacing to be well done. I almost put it down as a 'do not finish' book at least 3 times but stuck with it because I kept hearing these Gone Girl comparisons and was worried I'd miss the thing that made it great if I put it down. Um, no need to worry. It never got better. It never came close to Gone Girl's punch.

If you get nothing else from this review, here is my message: DO NOT BUY INTO THE COMPARISONS TO GONE GIRL!!! This novel has none of the inventiveness or fun that Gone Girl brought to the table. Although we have some of the same ingredients (unreliable narrator, secretive plot points, sociopath behavior, etc.), the resulting novel is completely different. I'm frankly BAFFLED by all of the positive reviews. I just cannot understand it. It didn't work out for me and, unfortunately, I cannot recommend it. If you want to read something dark & twisty, with dark characters, etc., just grab Gone Girl which does all of that so much better.

I'm really bummed about my experience of this book because I was hoping this one would resonated with me and wow me in the way that Gone Girl did! I rarely say truly negative things about a book that I've read but this one was certainly a disappointment and has me honestly baffled. I just don't get the hype around this one. If you decide to read it, I hope your experience is better. For me, this one was as dud.

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Review: Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Let me start by saying that I strongly recommend that you read Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar BEFORE you read this one ... a friends suggested that to me and she was spot on! If you enjoy Cheryl's voice in Tiny Beautiful Things, then Wild is likely to really resonate with you.

So, a book that centers around hiking really didn't seem like a memoir that I'd have any interest in reading. I read it primarily because I loved Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar and thought even Cheryl Strayed could probably make hiking interesting to me. And was I right! This is a beautifully written memoir that is about so much more than hiking. It's worth every moment to experience this book!

Cheryl's voice isn't for everyone - she's a very complicated, flawed woman but I just love her voice. It speaks to me, resonates with me. I wish that I had an in real life friend like her. She has insight and a view of life that I really find compelling. I know that others have complained of the use of the f-word but that doesn't bother me a bit. In fact, it's a word that I believe is the best word for certain situations so I was fine with that aspect of the book. Is she self-indulgent? Perhaps but, honestly, most of us are. And I appreciate her honesty about even the ugliest aspects of her life and experiences. She doesn't shirk from the truth regardless of how it might make her 'look' to others. I respect that and think the world might be a better place if more of us lived authentically and didn't lie to ourselves about what we've done or what we want.

There is so much here that goes beyond hiking - the mother/daughter relationship, family dynamics, love, friendship, divorce, finding yourself, and owning your mistakes. I found all of it to be inspiring and honest and at times difficult to read. But, in the end, I feel like I'm a better person for having read this memoir ... and I am so glad that she was willing to show the world her true self - her mistakes, her monumentally flawed thinking (at times), her growth, and her journey to find herself and the life she wants. I found that inspiring, particularly since I'm in a place in my life where I'm doing some personal growth work.

Anyway, this is definitely a memoir that I recommend but know that it's not going to resonate with everyone. And, again, I recommend that you read Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar before you read this one. If her voice speaks to you in that one, then this just might be a book you'll appreciate as much as I did!

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