Book Review: Pastors' Wives by Lisa Takeuchi Cullen

I received a copy of this book from the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.  I enjoyed it, a lot more than I thought I would.  The story is told from 3 points of view and this is an effective way to move the story along.  I feel there is something to be admired in each woman without watering her personality down too much.
Ruthie is the wife of a man called to be a pastor at a time when her own faith in God is failing.  The two move from New Jersey down to Atlanta for him to become the Associate Pastor at a "megachurch."  She is an honest and complex character, one I felt would be overlooked in an average "chick lit" or "beach read" type book.  She is a born and raised Catholic, and while she attends her husband's new church each week and doesn't hesitate to work there without pay, she also never feels fully embraced by it either.
Candace is the wife of the Pastor of the megachurch, one who is not paid but nonetheless spends every minute just as immersed in the life of the church as her husband.  She was my favorite character--I love female characters who know how to get things done while maintaining a ladylike demeanor.  (I'm from the South, and to me, Candace is a classic Southern Lady.)  But I also love her relationship with God, how much time she spends in prayer herself, and how she is brave enough to go where the Holy Spirit guides. 
Ginger is the 3rd woman in the story, and she is married to Candace's son.  With 2 children under the age of 5 and an absentee husband who is off saving the world, she 's left alone to make it through the day as best she can.  Candace is an overbearing presence to her, as many mother-in-laws are, and Ginger has reason to fear: her past is not what everyone believes, it's much dirtier, and living the lie each day is the real challenge she is facing.  While I found the choices she makes to be hard to believe, they're also valid, well-thought-out and add a surprise twist to the story I didn't see coming.
I highly recommend this book to readers who love women's fiction but need something new to make them excited about the genre again.  I also think fans of Christian lit will enjoy the book; as I said, Candace's faith is a shining example of what we can all aspire to have as our own. 4 stars out of 5

Books I Read in 2012 30-54

So here's my final list of the year 2012.  I originally set myself a goal of 40 books, but passed that limit with a few more months of the year to go.  So I upped my goal to 60, and completely read 54.  Not too shabby!

Books 1-30 are listed here.

31. Shadow Kin: A Novel of the Half-Light City by M.J. Scott – 4 stars and I’m looking forward to reading book 2: Blood Kin

32. Touch the Dark (Cassandra Palmer, Book 1) by Karen Chance – Another series I’m re-reading, but in this case, it’s to catch up to the next book in the series. One of the best Urban Paranormal series!

34. Claimed by Shadow (Cassandra Palmer, Book 2) by Karen Chance - 4 stars

35. Embrace the Night (Cassandra Palmer Series, Book 3) by Karen Chance - This was another re-read, and I love it still!

36. Grave Witch (Alex Craft, Book 1) by Kalayna Price - Loved it! 5 stars

37. Throat by R.A. Nelson - Didn't hold my attention well enough to follow the story but what I read was good; I skimmed rather than read. 3 stars 

38. Red-Headed Stepchild (Sabina Kane, Book 1) by Jaye Wells - Laughed my butt off at several parts, so a very enjoyable and unique urban paranormal - 4 stars

39. Once in a Full Moon by Ellen Schreiber - This is one of those books classified as "YA" that really are meant for their age level. I believe young readers, especially girls in the 9-12 range, will enjoy it. As an adult though...there was nothing unique or intriguing about this story. 1 star

40. Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card - If you want a book to make you think, deeply, about time travel--this is exactly for you! But I don’t... 3 stars

41. Magic Bites (Kate Daniels, Book 1) by Ilona Andews - This is my absolute favorite urban paranormal series, and Kate Daniels is on my Top 10 list of favorite characters EVER! This is the 3rd time I've read books 1-3; I have books 4 and 5 now, so I'm going to go ahead and list them all. Oh, and 4 stars on this one--it's a bit of a slow start.:) 

42. Magic Burns (Kate Daniels, Book 2) Again, 5 stars Seriously, this has one of the best endings in any paranormal book ever!

43. Magic Strikes (Kate Daniels, Book 3) Excellent book, and the romance begins to get really hot in this one! 5 stars 

44. Magic Bleeds (Kate Daniels, Book 4) Great ending--love this series so much!

45. Magic Slays (Kate Daniels, Book 5) - And yet again, another great ending. One of the best things about this series is that the endings are complete enough to leave you satisfied, but also interesting enough to make you continue on to the next book.

46. Divergent (Book 1) by Veronica Roth - 5 stars, and I'm very excited to continue the story in "Insurgent.” However, book 3 is not out til Fall 2013!

47. Insurgent(Book 2) by Veronica Roth was just as excellent - another 5 stars, and I eagerly await the next part of the story.

48. Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake - WOW! A great (and scary as all get-out) story, this is right along the same line as “Supernatural” on TV, so I really enjoyed it.

49. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick - I’ve tried to finish this over and over and just can’t. I’m listing it because I made it most of the way this time. This is one of several popular YA superstar books that I just don’t “get;” to me, there is zero appeal. Maybe it’s the gorgeous cover art.... 1 star

50. The Splendor Falls by Rosemary Clement-Moore - Another spooky story, this one set in rural Alabama and described so well that even if I wasn’t from Birmingham, I’d be able to understand how much the setting impacts the story. 4 stars

51. Hourglass by Myra Mcentire - a time-travel story I absolutely loved (but still made me want to sit down and draw a timeline, lol.) I can’t wait to read the next book, Timepiece. 4.5 stars

52. Shadow Blade by Seressia Glass - set in Atlanta, this novel was unique because of the use of Egyptian and and ancient African "good vs evil" basis. I really enjoyed this one and I look forward to spending more time with the characters.  4 stars

53. Hating Heidi Foster by Jeffrey Blount - I received this book through the Early Reviewers group, and this was a good story.  It had a deeper meaning than I expected, and the twist at the end is particularly unexpected. 3.5 stars

54. Angelfall (Penryn and the End of Days) by Susan Ee - Great!!  Very original and I can't wait for book 2!!  A great book to end the year with :) 4.5 stars

Books I've Read in 2012: 1-30

My original goal was 50, and it looks like I'll hit that by July 4th.  So I'm setting my goal higher--I'm aiming for 60 books this year now :)

This post has the list of books 1-30 - the sidebar gadget gets too crowded for me to leave the entire list up.
1. A Dirty Job: A Novel by Christopher Moore 4 stars--a subtle, intellectual humor--my favorite scene is Charlie feeding the Hellhounds kitchen appliances ;P I've already bought another book by this author.
2. Spin: A Novel by Catherine McKenzie which I received from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers. 4 stars and a fun read, reviewed here.
3. Frost Moon (Skindancer, Book 1) by Anthony Francis 5 stars! I love this book. My husband says I love all my books lately, but this is a great world I can't wait to get back into in book two!
4. A Blue So Dark by Holly Schindler 3.5 stars--see my review here.
5. The Cubicle Next Door by Siri L. Mitchell 1 star, I did not like this one at all. I have nothing nice to say about it.
6. The Ivy by Lauren Kunze 1 star, and once again, nothing nice to say.
7. Hex Hall (Book 1) by Rachel Hawkins 3.5 stars Nothing bad, I'm just rather overloaded on the paranormal school storyline. I'm not going to get the rest of this series.
8. Shadowcry (The Secrets of Wintercraft) by Jenna Burtenshaw 5 stars; similar to Graceling by Kristin Cashore
9. Delirium by Lauren Oliver I like it, I think it's a great idea for a dystopian society. It's a little slow in the beginning, then you get hooked and can't put it down. 4 stars
10. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Well, I hate to admit it, but I'm totally hooked. If you've been putting this one aside because of it's "over-hyped" reputation, read it anyway! It will be clear within the first 3 chapters or so why this book is destined to become a Hollywood blockbuster.
11. Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) by Suzanne CollinsVery awesome, but a little slow (yet this perfectly embodies Katniss's feelings in this book.)
12. Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, Book 3) 3 stars :(
13. Darkness Becomes Her by Kelly Keaton See my review--5 stars!
14. The Dust of 100 Dogs by A.S. King 2 stars
15. Fallen Angel by Heather Terrell Not bad, kept me interested; 3.5 stars
16. The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda which I received from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers. At times, the story was very exciting, but mostly it dragged. 3 stars
17. The Thirteen: A Novel by Susie Moloney which I received from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers group. I'm at a loss for words. This is not a book I'd recommend at all. 2 stars
18. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor This novel was on Amazon's Best Books of 2011, and I can see why. I was extremely into this book, but then it took a hard left turn and lost me. 3.5 stars
19. What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty With this one, I don't know.... How can you forget all 3 of your children being born and growing up? I was curious enough to see where it lead, but it was just...odd.  3 stars I think this is a very talented author though--see #23!
20. White Cat (Curse Workers, Book 1) by Holly Blackwhich was very original, and I even enjoyed reading it a second time – 4 stars
21. Red Glove (Curse Workers, Book 2) by Holly Black which was interesting enough for me to want to continue the series, but I’m giving it only 3 stars
22. Poison: A Novel of the Renaissance by Sara Poole 2 stars for me, but I think it would be better for those more familiar of the time period and politics
23. The Hypnotist’s Love Story by Liane Moriarty, an ARC from LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers group - This book continued past where I thought it would have ended, and that additional part of the book was the better part (does that make sense?) I liked this more than What Alice Forgot - 4 stars
24. The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan was extremely awesome, with a twist I truly didn’t see coming, and I wish I had the next book already! Don’t you love that feeling? - 5 stars
25. Feed (Newsflesh Book 1) by Mira Grant This was slow going for me, and then my zombies drowned—my book got water damage, lol. So no rating....
25. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Re-Read)
26. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Re-Read)
27. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Re-Read)
28. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Re-Read)
29. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Re-Read)
30. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Re-Read)

Book Review: Spin by Catherine McKenzie

I received Spin from LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program and I'm so glad I did!  I've been in a reading rut lately: it feels like all I ever read is YA or Paranormal Romance.  I tend to stay away from bestsellers, and the people who usually recommend books to me have been as busy as I have with the holidays and simply Life in general.  Also, if I have to choose to spend money on books or art supplies--I have plenty of books, so art supplies are where my attention has been directed.

The basic storyline of Spin: A Novel by Catherine McKenzie is that Kate is a journalist trying to get her dream job with a music magazine called The Line.  She finally gets an interview which happens to fall on her birthday.  To celebrate, she joins her friends the night before the interview and what starts out as "one drink, then I'll go home" ends up with her showing up at the interview looking as badly hungover as she is.  Needless to say, Katie will not be the best new writer at The Line.

One of the editors at The Line who witnessed Katie's hungover interviews is also the editor of a gossip magazine.  One of America's favorite young movie stars, Amber--The Girl Next Door--just entered rehab, and Katie is the perfect undercover spy for a tell-all feature by going to the same rehab center as Amber.  If Katie can pull this off, she'll get her dream job at The Line after all.

What begins as a job assignment soon turns into a serious reality check--instead of faking an addiction to get the undercover exposé of a movie star stripped bare in rehab, Kate sees how her own drinking has become out-of-control.  Against her own will, she's feeling all kinds of emotions she never expected and finds herself experiencing the 12 steps of her own.

I enjoyed this book immensely.  It's already an International Bestseller, and I think America will fall in love with Kate's story as well when it's published next month.  The story can become a little slow at times, but never so much that I had to switch to another book and come back to finish Spin later.  It took me about 2 days to read the whole book, although I did stay up late last night to finish it.

I love Kate's conversations with her conscious and I sympathize with her unwilling self-awareness.  I found Kate's unique way of naming the other characters in the story, (The Producer, The Banker, Mr. Fortune 500, etc. - even her target Amber is TGND) to be brilliant!  It's much easier to remember the characters this way.

I've saved my favorite thing about Spin until the end of my review: the story does not end at Kate's release from her 30 days of rehab.  I honestly assumed the book would end with Kate's decision to write the tell-all article for the gossip magazine or her refusal to hurt her new friend this way.  Instead, the story kept going, and Kate's (and Amber's) stories show what life is like after rehab.

I like the movie 28 Days, but it pretty much ends with Sandra Bullock's release from rehab.  Spin is an excellent novel that provides the satisfaction of knowing how the characters try to fit the lessons from the 12 steps into their real lives.

A solid 4 stars out of 5!

Book Review: Tempest by Julie Cross

I loved the movie Jumper, but unlike the movie, Tempest (Tempest Trilogy) by Julie Cross gives a detailed story that I stayed up all night to read. This is not a movie review, so I'll only add this: I wanted to know so much more about the main character, know why, where, how he got this power, etc, and the movie answered none of these. (BUT Twilight movie fans--Kristen Stewart is the daughter who answers the door when he goes to meet his mother!)

from Goodreads: The year is 2009.  Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. But it’s not like the movies – nothing changes in the present after his jumps, there’s no space-time continuum issues or broken flux capacitors – it’s just harmless fun.

That is… until the day strangers burst in on Jackson and his girlfriend, Holly, and during a struggle with Jackson, Holly is fatally shot. In his panic, Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but this is not like his previous time jumps. Now he’s stuck in 2007 and can’t get back to the future.

Desperate to somehow return to 2009 to save Holly but unable to return to his rightful year, Jackson settles into 2007 and learns what he can about his abilities.

But it’s not long before the people who shot Holly in 2009 come looking for Jackson in the past, and these “Enemies of Time” will stop at nothing to recruit this powerful young time-traveler.  Recruit… or kill him.

Piecing together the clues about his father, the Enemies of Time, and himself, Jackson must decide how far he’s willing to go to save Holly… and possibly the entire world.

So this is a story concerning time travel--specifically, being able to go back in time (but not forward.) The book is wonderfully written, with an engaging storyline and a complete story by itself, but is also the first book in a trilogy. (That's my favorite kind of the first in a trilogy books--I hate the ones that seem like the editors just took a large book and cut it in half.)

The characters are unforgettable, and have great personalities that defy generic titles such as "loving father" and "good guys vs. bad guys." The story also made me think about my own life and wonder if there are things I'd like to go back in time to experience again or to make right what I did wrong. But all choices have consequences, and that's another of the major themes of Tempest.

I received this book from the Early Reviewers group, and I'll be keeping my copy, as well as buying the next book when it's released.