Something Blue by Emily Griffin

I finished this a week or so ago after my sister loaned it to me. I read Something Borrowed and gave it to her. She told me I needed to read this book and I am slightly glad I did. It obviously painted Darcy in a much better light, but I already loved Rachael. This book was cute and sweet, but it just left me with a sour taste. Something Borrowed seemed to have some substance to it, but this book could have been a Harlequin book of the week. It just was too airy and fluffy and perfect. I need some imperfections, something I don't expect, and this book was amazingly easy to predict. I think this book is a decent sequel and you should read it, just to say you have, but I won't read it again.

Fish! Tales

I just finished this book, mostly because I want to pass it on to the CEO at my place of employment. I love the ideas in the book: play, be there, make their day, and and choose your attitude. I have been able to apply all of these in my real life and tried to employ these same principles at my last job. The people there didn't enjoy my gestures as much as I enjoyed doing these things for them, but they thought it was a ploy from the terrible upper management. I think this is a great book to read and to share. Please find a copy!

Dead Reckoning - Charlaine Harris

I read this book on my summer vacation. I liked it, but I feel like I could have liked it much more. It took on too many ideas, strands, themes, and had too many open endings to be satisfying. I miss Sookie, Alcide, and Eric when there is no book to read, but I just want the book that I do read about them to be good... This book was good enough. I do anxiously await the next one.

The Lost Symbol

I finished this novel today. It took me quite a while to actually read it because it seemed that it went on a little long. The book was based on uncovering Masonic secrets and highlighted the intelligence and code-breaking skills of Robert Langdon, who was previously seen in Angels and Demons and The Davinci Code. I really do like these books. I like to feel like I am solving a puzzle and am part of the adventure. The books seem to be slowing down, though. The action is not as dramatic as it was before and at a certain point, I am able to put down the book. To prove this point, I started reading this book the day it was released and stopped shortly thereafter, only to pick it back up this week.

Do I recommend this book? Maybe. It isn't a horrible read, but it is a long slow ride.

Falling Angels

When I started reading this book, I was shocked by all the sexual imagery and themes. When I got to the middle of the book, this abruptly stopped. The book was just strange. There were women fighting for the vote, children growing up, murders, affairs, and all sorts of strange things. I just did not like the book. I finished it and was ready to take it to work and drop it off immediately, but I waited until the next day.

I do not recommend this book at all and I have some hesitation about reading anything by Ms. Chevalier because of this book.

Something Borrowed by Emily Griffin

When I'm reading a really good book, I sometimes forget that I am not the main character. Last night, when I was reading a certain section of the book, I was overtaken by this sense of betrayal and sadness. I felt hurt and wronged. I was the main character, Rachel,  until I woke up this morning and went to work. When I got home, the excitement was building because I knew I could get back to the book. I jumped back into the book this evening and finished it. I was glad with where things went, but there was no happy resolution to the conflict that was presented. I suppose that is where the sequel, Something Blue, comes into play.

I highly recommend this book. When I read it, I experienced every emotion that Rachel did. I fell in love, felt scared and alone, felt happy. I related in a way that isn't always so easy. I want to give this book to my sister, but I also want to keep this book. It was  so much fun and so relaxing. This book was like taking a great spa day for me. I really, really liked it.

Sloppy Firsts

I started this book at the beach and finished it up today while a storm raged outside. The main character, Jessica Darling, is the same age as me, but this book is set during our sophomore year. I will go ahead and say I wish I had read this when I was in high school. I identified with Jessica in so many ways. The feelings that she describes related to Marcus Flutie, one of the leading male characters, remind me of the feelings for my high school crush. I cringed with her during the embarrassing moments, felt sad with her, felt unbelievably hopeful that her life would be great. The book was late '90s at their best. I wish I had my Delia's and Girlfriends catalogs again to really immerse myself in the times. It was a great time in life and I am so glad this book was here to take me back there. I want to pass it along to someone, but I don't know who. The book is slightly sexually explicit and there is a lot of cursing, so I can't really give it to one of my kids, but I don't know if my friends want to reflect on high school. Maybe a friend I'm having lunch with tomorrow will want to read it.

Verdict: Generation Y, read this book. You know you miss high school. Go back for a couple hours.