The Battle of the Labyrinth

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book more than any of the others. There was more of a natural feel to Percy's reactions and thoughts in this book than any other. The plot was better fleshed out than any of the others. The action scenes were better written. It was just a better book all the way around than any of the others in the series so far. (Although The Spawn tells me The Last Olympian is "gonna blow my mind".) One thing that I love about this writer: he uses correct grammar while not making his writing stiff.

Pub. Date: April 2009


Series: Percy Jackson and the Olympians Book 4
 
Synopsis: Percy Jackson's fourth summer at Camp Half-Blood is much like his previous three-high-octane clashes with dark forces, laced with hip humor and drama. Opening with a line for the ages-"The last thing I wanted to do on my summer break was blow up another school"-this penultimate series installment finds Percy, Annabeth and the satyr Grover furiously working to prevent former camp counselor Luke from resurrecting the Titan lord Kronos, whose goal is to overthrow the gods. When the heroes learn that Luke can breach Camp Half-Blood's security through an exit from Daedalus's Labyrinth, they enter the maze in search of the inventor and a way to stop the invasion. Along the way they encounter a lifetime supply of nightmare-inducing, richly imagined monsters. Grover's own quest to find the lost god Pan, meanwhile, provides a subtle environmental message. Percy, nearly 15, has girl trouble, having become something of a chick magnet.
 
Recommended Reading:
The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan
The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

Slow Going

I've been struggling with reading lately. Blame Farmville. Blame work. Blame the kids. Blame housework - no, on second thought, don't blame housework. I'm not doing much of that either. You could even blame The Boy, except I don't see him much either. Point is: I'm a busy girl. I'm not in the mood to read lately.

I'm way below my goal for the year, oh hells, this year is the least I've read in about six years - including the year that I worked two jobs and had a baby. Looking ahead to 2011, I don't see things getting better as I'm adding college and (hopefully crosses fingers and toes) buying a house.

I definitely did not achieve the "other" reading goal I had: re-reading Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series, the Twilight series or Dickens' Tale of Two Cities (one of my favorite books from high school English). I have, however managed to cut my TBR shelf down to under 30.

The elephant in the room is still the totes and boxes of books in my closet. Unfortunately this has grown into a few piles scattered around my bedroom as well. I put my book swapping account on hold in April and haven't made it active again. I will need to do something about this soon. I have no desire to move all of those books just to shove them into a closet.

I have a bit of thinking to do about what my goals will be for 2011 and how I want to accomplish them. For the next few weeks I'm going to try to read a little more (wish me luck - this is my last free weekend until mid-January) and then I should be back to fill you in on what I've decided!

The Private Papers of Eastern Jewel

The Private Papers of Eastern Jewel by Maureen Lindley

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When I started this book, I couldn't put it down, but then the long chapters and long cast of characters wore me out (not to mention real-life intruding). The writing varied between very descriptive sex scenes and read-between-the-lines sex scenes, but there were alot of them. Some secondary characters could have used a little more fleshing out, but overall the story was well written.

Pub. Date: September 2009


Synopsis: An electrifying epic, based on the incredible true story of a Chinese princess turned spy.
Peking, 1914. When the eight-year-old princess Eastern Jewel is caught spying on her father’s liaison with a servant girl, she is banished from the palace, sent to live with a powerful family in Japan. Renamed Yoshiko Kawashima, she quickly falls in love with her adoptive country, where she earns a scandalous reputation, taking fencing lessons, smoking opium, and entertaining numerous lovers. Sent to Mongolia to become an obedient wife, Yoshiko mounts a daring escape and eventually finds her way back to Peking high society—this time with orders from the Japanese secret service.
Based on the true story of a rebellious woman who earned a controversial place in history, The Private Papers of Eastern Jewel is a vibrant reimagining of a thrilling life—a rich historical epic of palace intrigue, sexual manipulation, and international espionage.

Recommended Reading:
Fall of Giants by Ken Follet
The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Half-Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

The Titan's Curse

The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book more than the others of the series. I thought the mythology factor of the story was better explained in this book than the other books. I look forward to reading the next book. As soon as The Spawn finishes it.

Pub. Date: April 2008

Series: Percy Jackson and The Olympians Book 3

Synopsis: When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped. And now it's up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. They must find Artemis before the winter solstice, when her influence on the Olympian Council could swing an important vote on the war with the titans. Not only that, but first Percy will have to solve the mystery of a rare monster that Artemis was hunting when she disappeared—a monster rumored to be so powerful it could destroy Olympus forever.


Recommended Reading:
The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan
The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan
The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer

DreamFever

Dreamfever by Karen Marie Moning

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book 3 of the Fever series left the reader hanging. Book 4 picked up exactly where the last book left off: Mac is being turned into a sex addict by Fae princes. The first few pages I worried that KMM was going back to her "all sex all the time" way of writing, but was happy to see that she didn't. She stuck with the amazing characters she created, deepened the plot and the mystery and on the last page, left me hungry for the next book.

Pub. Date: August 2009
Series: Fever Book 4

Synopsis: They may have stolen my past, but I’ll never let them take my future.
When the walls between Man and Fae come crashing down, freeing the insatiable, immortal Unseelie from their icy prison, MacKayla Lane is caught in a deadly trap. Captured by the Fae Lord Master, she is left with no memory of who or what she is: the only sidhe-seer alive who can track the Sinsar Dubh, a book of arcane black magic that holds the key to controlling both worlds.
Clawing her way back from oblivion is only the first step Mac must take down a perilous path, from the battle-filled streets of Dublin to the treacherous politics of an ancient, secret sect, through the tangled lies of men who claim to be her allies into the illusory world of the Fae themselves, where nothing is as it seems—and Mac is forced to face a soul-shattering truth.
Who do you trust when you can’t even trust yourself?

Recommended Reading:
FaeFever by Karen Marie Moning
DarkFever by Karen Marie Moning
BloodFever by Karen Marie Moning

The Sea of Monsters

The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this second book, but not as much as I expected. It lost some of the surprise factor that the first book held. The plot was so-so, slightly predictable. I thought the main characters displayed a lot of naivete in order to make the plot work, which made it unbelievable [in a "duh" not a "wow" kind of way]. There were good comedic moments and lots of action.

Pub. Date: March 2007
Series: Percy Jackson and The Olympians Book 2

Synopsis: Percy Jackson's seventh-grade year has been surprisingly quiet. Not a single monster has set foot on his New York prep school campus. But when an innocent game of dodgeball among Percy and his classmates turns into a death match against an ugly gang of cannibal giants, things get well, ugly. And the unexpected arrival of Percy's friend Annabeth brings more bad news: the magical borders that protect Camp Half-Blood have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and unless a cure is found, the only safe haven for demigods will be destroyed. Percy and his friends must journey into the Sea of Monsters to save their beloved camp. But first, Percy will discover a stunning new secret about his family one that makes him wonder whether being claimed as Poseidon's son is an honor, or simply a cruel joke.

Recommended Reading:
The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan
The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan

The Last Summer (of you and me)

The Last Summer of You and Me by Ann Brashares

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

As a fan of The Traveling Pants series, I wanted to really like this book. I struggled reading it. I found it depressing. The character relationships were too distant and complicated for me to understand. The one character I wanted to get to know and understand wasn't given much of a plot.

Pub. Date: June 2007


Synopsis: Set on Long Island's Fire Island, The Last Summer (of You and Me) is an enchanting, heartrending page-turner about sisterhood, friendship, love, loss, and growing up. It is the story of a beach community friendship triangle-Riley and Alice, two sisters in their twenties, and Paul, the young man they've grown up with-and what happens one summer when budding love, sexual curiosity, a sudden serious illness, and a deep secret all collide, launching the friends into an adult world from which their summer haven can no longer protect them.