What I'm Into: My August 2015 Wrap-Up Post

All righty guys, here's a wrap-up of what's been going on chez moi this month. Is it just me, or is 2015 flying by? Hello September! And then fall! And then the holidays, phew!

Reading

I had a huge book rut this month. I barely read any pages at all for the first two weeks of the month. So I ended up only finishing seven books this month (of which three were re-reads!), which is my lowest month in several years.

The Good 

• The Convenient Marriage and Bath Tangle, both by Georgette Heyer. Neither of these is my favorite of hers, but they're both fun. Bath Tangle is particularly witty and political - one of Heyer's most clever novels. 
• Along the Way: A Journey of a Father and Son, by Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez. I looooved the Martin Sheen chapters. And I spent most of the Emilio Estevez chapters wanting to smack him for being so pretentious. 
• Icarus by Deon Meyer - a really smart police procedural set in South Africa. The story is centered around the death of a man who founded an app called Alibi, which helps create elaborate alibis for those engaged in illicit affairs. Reading Icarus in the same week as the Ashley Madison hack story was a bit surreal! 
• What Alice Forgot - Liane Moriarty's books are always so fun. This one is about a woman named Alice who is 40, has 3 kids, and is separated from her husband. Alice falls and hits her head, and wakes up thinking she's 30, happily married, and pregnant with her first child.

The Bad 

• Nothing! That's the one good thing about being unmotivated to read. I just quit all the books I wasn't loving.

The Awesome

• Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. Yes, I did listen to this book for the third time in less than a year. I'm officially obsessed. I have an inexplicably strong love for Levi and Cath and Reagan.
• The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay. This is what finally broke me out of the book rut mid-month. It's about 14 hours long, and I listened to it in less than 48 hours. I could not get enough of this story. It's the story of several very troubled teenagers, and it's reeeeeally hard to describe without spoiling anything. So do what I did - don't read reviews of it! Just start it! And then see if you're blown away with the surprise that happens a couple of chapters in, just like I was. It's the only book I planned to read this month, and actually followed through on. 

Watching

Noel and I have been watching Catastrophe on Amazon Prime. It's hysterically funny, I literally keep laughing out loud, but warning(!): adult language (!). So, recommended with a caveat. The basic premise is: American man on business trip has fling with Irish teacher in London. She gets pregnant, they decide to try to raise the baby together, he moves to England, lots of hilarity and pregnancy hormones and awkwardness ensue.

I also snagged True Detective Season 1 at Bookmans this week, hooray! So we're going to try and start watching it this weekend. I asked a former co-worker, to put a copy on hold for me if she found one. She agreed to, but said that she would do so only if I promised her that I would pretend that Season 2 never existed, ha! So I guess we'll watch Season 1 and then think really hard before watching Season 2.

Eating 

Less! Actually, it seems like about 2 days a week I eat more. And then I'm good about 5 days a week to make up for it. (I recently made totchos for a girls' night - tater tots loaded with shredded cheese and bacon and chives. Mmmmmmm.) I've been in a little weight-loss challenge group where we weigh in each Wednesday. I generally don't care much about the actual pounds, more about how I feel, and how my clothes fit. 

But having 2 other people know exactly what I weigh, and knowing that whatever I'm eating will be reflected in the scale each Wednesday has been really motivating. So in the last 8 weeks I lost 10.5 lbs. I'm hoping to keep that up for another month or two, and then maybe I'll fit back into the clothes I fit into just post-Juliet. (I lost the baby weight super fast with her: within 4-5 months, but then almost all of it crept back on over the last year, blah.)

But anyway, I've been trying to make generally healthier choices, and then not worrying too much about a splurge here and there.

Voxing

I joined the Sorta Awesome Facebook group a while ago, and then the Sorta Awesome Voxer Chat. I almost quit the chat a couple of times, because it can be a little overwhelming - sometimes 150+ messages a day! But I decided to dive in, and not be afraid to "Mark All As Read" on the days I can't keep up, and I'm so glad I did. 

Having a group of about a dozen friends to talk about books and babies and sleeplessness and work and race relations and everything under the sun with, has been amazing. Sometimes being a mostly stay-at-home mom is really hard for me: I can't handle the monotony of the mundane tasks and baby-level conversations, so having adults to chat with during the day has been a lifesaver!

Game-Playing

Eleanor and I have been loving games lately. You can see a full round-up of games we like here. But our recent favorites are:

• Mermaid Island (which she got for her birthday). It's nice because it's a cooperative game, so for at least this one game we are guaranteed a fun time without bad sportsmanship! All the players work together to get the mermaids to the island before the Sea Witch catches them.
• Yahtzee Jr. Ours is the Toy Story version. She's getting really good at the math of it. It's way simpler than regular yahtzee; you just try to roll 5 of each thing (Jessie, Buzz, Mr. Potato Head, etc.)
• The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game. Another Bookmans score - it was only $7, and it was still new in the packaging! It's so fun, kind of like Hi Ho Cherry-Os, but you have to use these little squirrel tongs to pick up the acorns, so it promotes dexterity, in addition to color matching and adding and subtracting. Juliet loves to "play" with us on this one.

Weather-Surviving

We've had a spectacular monsoon season. Four nights this week we had at least an hour or two of rain, and last night we had an insane storm. Trees were down everywhere, the power was out for hours, and it was just all kinds of excitement in our house. (In related news, I need to buy batteries. Because trying to do things by the light of an Ikea tea light is not easy.) 

Now if only we could get things to cool down in the day time... I am so so so so ready for fall. But alas, I've got another six or eight weeks to go before we drop below 90 for daytime temps. In the meantime, I'll just be over here shoving ice cubes into my bra for the walk to the school bus stop. (Sorry, that's probably TMI, but it actually works pretty well, if anyone else is a sweat-hater like I am.)

Blogging 

I didn't blog a lot this month, because of the aforementioned book rut. But, if you missed it, be sure to check out my #bookwormproblems (and get your own ready to link-up next month!), and my 57 Fantastic, Imaginative, and Dystopian YA Titles. I had a lot of fun putting that post together.

What are YOU into?

I'm planning to link up with Leigh Kramer today!

5 Minutes for 5 Books: What We're Reading

Guys, I had planned a completely different post today. But my blogging time did not happen last night (thanks to a huge storm: we had 4-5 hours of power outage, and there are trees down all over our neighborhood, I'm so sad!). 

Anyway, I have about 10 minutes till I have to head for the bus stop to get Eleanor. So I'm going to try and sum up our favorite reads of the week in about 5 minutes, do a quick proofread for typos, and then grab my flip-flops and head out the door!

1. Happy Birthday, Maisy! Juliet is obsessed, as I referenced on the Quirky Bookworm Facebook page. We've read this book about 10 times a day since we bought it at Bookmans. It has really cute flaps and pull-tabs, plus the usual fun Maisy illustrations.
2. The Beekeeper's Apprentice. I'm still enjoying this audiobook. It's a Sherlockian mystery - I'm about 2/3 of the way through. I like that Sherlock Holmes is older in this series, sort of passing the torch to his young protegee Mary Russell.
3. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. I've read the first four chapters of this one now, and it's gut-wrenching. It just makes me so sad to read about the double standards in law enforcement/prosecution/etc based on race.
4. The Devil of Delphi. This is a mystery set in modern day Greece. It's pretty funny actually, and, oddly, the second book I've read this month about fake alcohol sales. (In this particular case, counterfeiters are mixing nail varnish, water, etc, into a potent mixture called "bomba", and then slapping real vodka labels on the bottles... causing deaths in Athens.)
5. Pirate School: The Curse of Snake Island. We grabbed a handful of these at the library on a whim, and Eleanor's really been enjoying them. I'm happy to see her taking a break from her usual princessy obsessions!

What are you (or your kids) reading?

Where I've Been Reading: A Mapping Update

I've fallen woefully behind on my project to map the locations of all the books I'm reading this year. As you can see, I've read 98 books this year, but I've only mapped 29 of them. Granted some nonfiction titles without specific locations are hard to map... but I'm still about 50 books behind. And, I haven't even started my usual annual book stats spreadsheet!

So I'm not sure if it's all worth the effort. I do love the book stats posts I do at the end of the year (pie charts are the best!), so part of me wants to hurry up and make a spreadsheet. But the other part of me just thinks that it isn't worth it. It would take several hours to catch up at this point - and maybe I should spend those hours reading different books instead!

What I will say about the mapping challenge is that it's made me quite conscious of the setting of the books I'm reading. And, whenever possible, I'm selecting the more unusual locale. For example: in this month's batch of books for Shelf Awareness, there were mysteries set in London, Philadelphia, Greece, and South Africa. I chose to read the Greek and South African ones - and they were both great. (Icarus by Deon Meyer and Devil of Delphi by Jeffrey Siger, for the curious among you.)

So I'm glad that I set the mapping goal, even if I don't keep up with it fully, since it's making me more aware of what I'm reading. But, the checklist loving part of me is still kind of sad about not making all my graphs and charts this year! Maybe I'll get a babysitter some afternoon soon, and spent a couple hours doing bookish data entry...

Are YOU keeping book stats?

Do YOU have trouble quitting goals?

Sunday Funday: Links and Staycationing

The last few days have been nice and lazy in the Howard household. Noel and I decided last month to take a "staycation" this weekend: so I ruthlessly turned down all social invitations, and he took Friday off work. We went out to breakfast on Friday, hit Eegee's for lunch yesterday, and we might even order pizza tonight! 

We relaxed screen time rules for the girls, and since my in-laws are out of town, we spent a good chunk of yesterday hanging out at their house, enjoying their cable and neighborhood swimming pool. Since I had the foresight to clean the house really well on Thursday, and do some batch-cooking ahead of time, I haven't had to do any house-y things, which really does make it feel like a vacation, all for the cost of only a couple of meals out, and without any packing, ha!

Anyway, while lazing around, I've stumbled on some fun book links, and I decided to do a linky post again this week. That's two weeks in a row! Maybe it'll become my Sunday thing.

• This is fascinating, but so sad. Someone edited the Harry Potter films to only the lines spoken by people of color. Out of the 1207 minutes of the entire film series, only 5 minutes and 40 seconds were spoken by people of color, and a couple of those were CGI people!
• I've only read 10 (well, 8 totally, plus 1/2 of two others) of the 51 Fantasy Series You Need to Read Before You Die from Buzzfeed.
• I found this one via BookRiot: For 3 days, in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, anyone who was reading a book could ride the bus for free. How great is THAT?! 
• And thanks to Shelf Awareness, I discovered the tumblr Awesome People Reading. Yessss, so much awesome!

I'm happy to report that my book rut has ended - this week I read What Alice Forgot, started Icarus, an excellent South African mystery, devoured The Sea of Tranquility on audio, started The Beekeeper's Apprentice on audio, and kept plugging away at Little Women for the YABMC. (I'm honestly not enjoying it as much as I remember liking it as a kid/teenager.)

I'm also part of a Voxer book club where we're reading/discussing Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. It's intense, so it's slow going, I can only read a chapter or two at a time before stopping and processing.

What are YOU doing this weekend?

Book Review: Lauren Willig's The Lure of the Moonflower

Lauren Willig (That Summer, The Other Daughter) has wrapped up her excellent Pink Carnation series with another excellent entry. You guys know I love these books, they're just perfect fun reading... and I generally learn some historical tidbit while reading them, which makes it feel a little bit less like book candy.

In The Lure of the Moonflower, which finishes the story begun 12 books earlier in The Secret History of the Pink Carnation, the intrepid British agent, aka the super-spy known as the Pink Carnation, aka Miss Jane Wooliston, finally gets a love story of her own. 

Jane is in Portugal, desperately attempting to find the queen, who was spirited away when the rest of the Portuguese royal family fled to Brazil as Napoleon's troops invaded. In spite of all her other espionage-related talents, the Pink Carnation doesn't speak Portuguese. She turns for assistance to the notorious Moonflower, aka Jack Reid. Jack is an Anglo-Indian turned French agent, then turned back into British spy, and Jane can only hope that his assistance is reliable.

With a dour and wintry Portuguese setting, The Lure of the Moonflower isn't quite as frothy as some of the other books in the series. But it includes Willig's characteristic tongue-in-cheek humor, and the framing modern story, which continues the shenanigans of Eloise, academic researcher of early 19th-century espionage, is sure to make readers laugh out loud. Something like Bridget Jones meets The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Lure of the Moonflower is a must-read for lovers of chick lit and historical fiction. With tidy conclusions to Eloise's modern-day romance and to Jane's escapades nearly two centuries earlier, The Lure of the Moonflower is a fitting finale for a fun series.

It wasn't my favorite of the series, but it did wrap things up nicely. And it didn't have the sexy interludes that The Passion of the Purple Plumeria had (listened to that one on audio...aaawwwkward...)

Are YOU a fan of the Pink Carnation series?

I originally wrote most of this review for Shelf Awareness. And this post contains some of my affiliate links.

57 Fantastic, Imaginative, and Dystopian YA Novels

I've read a lot of YA in the last few years. And I started a YA Book & Movie Club. So I figured it was about time for me to write this post! I have personally read every book in this post, so keep reading for my honest opinions!

The Legend Trilogy

From the publisher: What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

My take: I really enjoyed these books. June is a tough girl, and Day is deceptively sweet. I liked watching their stories play out - and I loved how imaginative this version of the future is. Like Antarctican society? So cool! (Haha, pun intended.)

The Divergent Trilogy

From the publisher: Beatrice Prior's society is divided into five factions—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). Beatrice must choose between staying with her Abnegation family and transferring factions. But the newly christened Tris also has a secret, one she's determined to keep hidden, because in this world, what makes you different makes you dangerous.

My take: These are fun, but not very well-written. (I mean for starters: the five factions' names should at least all be the same parts of speech! It should totally be Amicable instead of Amity, etc.) I thought the ending of the trilogy was really brave, but I found it incredibly exasperating that although Allegiant is told alternately from Tris and Four's points of view, you couldn't even tell their voices apart. I've only seen the first movie - but I think this is the rare exception, where the story translates better on film than on paper.

The Lunar Chronicles

From the publisher:  Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth's fate hinges on one girl. . . . Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world's future.

My take: I love these books so much. Marissa Meyer does a great job of twisting fairy tales (Scarlet is a reworking of Little Red Riding Hood, Cress is Rapunzel, and Winter is going to be Snow White). They're clever and romantic and action-packed, and I love how each book builds on the book(s) before it.

The Hunger Games

From the publisher: Do you really need a publisher summary for these? Really?

My take: Loved the first two books a lot. Was underwhelmed by book 3. But I was pleasantly surprised by Mockingjay part 1, the movie, so we'll see if Mockingjay part 2 can hold up.

Graceling Realm Books

From the publisher: Kristin Cashore’s best-selling, award-winning fantasy Graceling tells the story of the vulnerable yet strong Katsa, a smart, beautiful teenager who lives in a world where selected people are given a Grace, a special talent that can be anything from dancing to swimming. Katsa’s is killing. As the king’s niece, she is forced to use her extreme skills as his thug. Along the way, Katsa must learn to decipher the true nature of her Grace . . . and how to put it to good use. 

My take: I liked Graceling a lot. Fire, the companion novel, was really good too... but kind of the same thing over again (themes of a girl who's scared of her own talent, etc). Bitterblue, the sequel to Graceling, was ok. I appreciated what Cashore was trying to do, but it fell a little flat for me. 

The Grisha Trilogy

From the publisher: Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life--a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

My take: These books are FANTASTIC. They're dark and romantic, and creepy, and just really good reading. Ravka is clearly inspired by Imperial Russia, and I loved the aspects of the story that dovetail with Russian history. The mystical leaning of these books makes them super magical and, oh how I love a character that is introduced in book 2... (don't worry, I won't say any more, I don't want to spoil things!)

The Birthmarked Trilogy

From the publisher: Sixteen-year-old Gaia Stone and her mother faithfully deliver their quota of three infants every month. But when Gaia's mother is brutally taken away by the very people she serves, Gaia must question whether the Enclave deserves such loyalty.

My take: I really enjoyed the fact that Gaia was a midwife, not a fighter, so these books weren't as battle-oriented as some of the other books mentioned in this post. Plus it brought up some surprisingly thought-provoking discussion on reproductive rights, gender roles, and such. Because women are in such high demand in this future world, Gaia actually ends up in a love square, instead of the typical YA love-triangle.

The Matched Trilogy

From the publisher: Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

My take: I thought the beginning was inventive, I really liked the world-building. But there wasn't a ton of plot to books 2 and 3... just a lot more love triangley-ness. They're fast, romantic reads though, if that's what you're in the mood for!

The Raven Cycle

From the publisher: Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them--until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.

His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can't entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little.

My take: These books are AMAZING. Hands down, if you only read one series off this list, pick this one. They're magical, and weird, and dark, and brilliant, and unputdownable. I have raved time and again about what a gifted writer Maggie Stiefvater is, and these books are her best work to date.

The Ruby Red Trilogy

From the publisher: Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era! Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

My take: These are pure book candy. Romantic, set in England, with time-traveling! What's not to love? Don't look too hard at the time-travel logic, or you will quickly see holes in the theory. But Gwyneth is a great character, Gideon is, of course, a dreamy bloke, and the books are perfect beach reads.

The Red Rising Trilogy

From the publisher: Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children.

But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and lush wilds spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.

Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity’s overlords struggle for power.  He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society’s ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies . . . even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.

My take: These are dark and reeeeally violent, but also really good. I like the Martian world-building, and the class issues that come up, making Darrow question the nature of his own humanity. I'm reading Golden Son slowly, since it's still a few months before the last book comes out.

Chaos Walking

From the publisher: Todd Hewitt is the only boy in a town of men. Ever since the settlers were infected with the Noise germ, Todd can hear everything the men think, and they hear everything he thinks. Todd is just a month away from becoming a man, but in the midst of the cacophony, he knows that the town is hiding something from him -- something so awful Todd is forced to flee with only his dog, whose simple, loyal voice he hears too. With hostile men from the town in pursuit, the two stumble upon a strange and eerily silent creature: a girl. Who is she? Why wasn't she killed by the germ like all the females on New World? Propelled by Todd's gritty narration, readers are in for a white-knuckle journey in which a boy on the cusp of manhood must unlearn everything he knows in order to figure out who he truly is. 

My take: These were a little difficult to get used to at first, since you're reading everyone's stream-of-consciousness thoughts. But after a couple chapters it's addicting. And it makes you wonder how awful life would be if you couldn't keep your thoughts to yourself!

Starbound

From the publisher: It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone. Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they're worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help.

My take: I've only read the first book, These Broken Stars, which is the one described above. It works really well as a standalone, but it was fun and well-written, so I think I'll eventually get to the other books in the trilogy.

The Winners Trilogy

From the publisher: They were never meant to be together. As a general's daughter, seventeen-year-old Kestrel enjoys an extravagant and privileged life. Arin has nothing but the clothes on his back. Then Kestrel makes an impulsive decision that binds Arin to her. Though they try to fight it, they can't help but fall in love. In order to be together, they must betray their people . . . but to be loyal to their country, they must betray each other.

My take: These books were clearly inspired by Roman history/culture. I find it interesting that the publisher's description is so vague about Kestrel's "impulsive decision" - because what actually happened was that she bought Arin at a slave market. The writing isn't phenomenal, but it's solid. And the world-building is great. I'm excited to read book 3 when it comes out next year.

Ready Player One

From the publisher: In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the  OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. When Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.

My take: Are you ready for this?? A STANDALONE book. I really loved it a lot, it made me wish I was a gamer so that I would've understood all the references. And it was just so refreshing not to have to read a trilogy or quartet.

The Study Trilogy

From the publisher: About to be executed for murder, Yelena is offered an extraordinary reprieve. She'll eat the best meals, have rooms in the palace- and risk assassination by anyone trying to kill the Commander of Ixia. 
And so Yelena chooses to become a food taster. But the chief of security, leaving nothing to chance, deliberately feeds her Butterfly's Dusté and only by appearing for her daily antidote will she delay an agonizing death from the poison. As Yelena tries to escape her new dilemma, disasters keep mounting. Rebels plot to seize Ixia and Yelena develops magical powers she can't control. Her life is threatened again and choices must be made. But this time the outcomes aren't so clear—.

My take: Speaking of standalones, I kind of wish Poison Study was one. It's the first book, and it was exceptionally good. Then books 2 and 3 were exceptionally not. So honestly, I would just read the first book. It has a decently happy ending, and then you won't have to discover the massive plot holes in the later books.

Woodcutter Sisters

From the publishers: It isn’t easy being the rather overlooked and unhappy youngest sibling to sisters named for the other six days of the week. Sunday’s only comfort is writing stories, although what she writes has a terrible tendency to come true. When Sunday meets an enchanted frog who asks about her stories, the two become friends. Soon that friendship deepens into something magical. One night Sunday kisses her frog goodbye and leaves, not realizing that her love has transformed him back into Rumbold, the crown prince of Arilland—and a man Sunday’s family despises.

My take: I found Enchanted, Sunday's story a bit bizarre, but enjoyable, with its mishmash of multiple fairytales. I thought Hero, Saturday's story, was totally crazy. So I haven't yet decided if I should read Dearest, Friday's story.

The Heroes of Olympus

From the publishers: Piper's father has been missing for three days, ever since she had that terrifying nightmare about his being in trouble. Piper doesn’t understand her dream, or why her boyfriend suddenly doesn’t recognize her. When a freak storm hits during the school trip, unleashing strange creatures and whisking her, Jason, and Leo away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood, she has a feeling she’s going to find out.

My take: I would call the original Percy Jackson series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, a little more kid lit than YA, because the books start when he's 11. But this second series, the Heroes of Olympus, is a little darker, and more teenagery, but just as fun. And really informative - I learned so much about Greek and Roman mythology while reading these!

Other books I've been thinking about reading: the Selection books, and the Miss Peregrine books. 

Authors who didn't make my list, because I couldn't decide if their books were more YA or more kid lit: Robin McKinley, Madeleine L'Engle, Shannon Hale, Lloyd Alexander.

What else should I add to my list?

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