I am sad to say that my reading list for 2017 is rather short! I was entrenched in graduate school and working and finishing my internship and the time for reading fiction just didn't happen very often. I did get a few audiobooks listened to as I drove to Cody for my internship. I found that there were many books I started listening to, but never finished as they just weren't holding my interest enough and with my shortened time to read I didn't want to spend it on books where I wasn't engaged in the story and characters. The big total for 2017 is a mere 22 books. I'm hoping 2018 will hold many more than that number.
Adult Fiction:
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis
I've always wanted to read this book and the drive to Cody gave me the opportunity to listen to the audio version. I thoroughly enjoyed it and it gave me a lot to ponder on and led to some rich discussions with Brian. Listening to it gave me the advantage to think about the themes in the book in more detail as I sometimes read too fast and miss those nuances. Highly recommend
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
The Washakie Museum here in Worland had an exhibit about the local ghost towns and part of the exhibit showcased Heart Mountain in Powell, WY. This was a Japanese internment camp during WWII. I had a friend loan me this book and it really opened my eyes to the plight of Japanese Americans during WWII. This story focuses on a Chinese American boy and a Japanese American girl and their friendship and choices they must make. Highly recommend
Killer Party by Lyn Cahoon
Here is another installment of my favorite mystery indulgence, Tourist Trap Mysteries. I think this series will be coming to an end soon and I will have to find another mystery series to lose myself in. Any suggestions out there? Highly recommend (just because I love it so much, not because it's an example of excellent writing or anything!)
Teen Fiction:
I read a few series this year, not all of them got good reviews from me. Some I kept reading just because I needed to know how everything was resolved.
Lynburn Legacy Trilogy:
Unspoken, Untold, and
Unmade by Sarah Rees Brennan
Gothic romance/fantasy series. In a small town in England, wizards make the residents do as they tell them. One family of wizards tries to stop them. It started out well, great plot and characters. By the time I started the last book,
Unmade, the violence was just too much for me and I skipped the entire middle part and read the last few chapters. I felt it was drawn out too long and the story could have been told in two books instead of three, especially if some of the graphic violence was left out.
The Girl of Fire and Thorns series:
The Girl of Fire and Thorns, The Crown of Embers, and
The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson
Rae Carson is one of my new favorite authors. Her fantasy series are full of drama and action that leads me to stay up too late to finish the books. In this series Elsa must use her powers that come from a Godstone to save her kingdom. She is an unlikely heroine, her sister is much more refined than she is and she has been sheltered much of her life, and yet she rises to the occasion and becomes a great leader for her people. Highly recommend
Under the Never Sky series:
Under the Never Sky, Through the Ever Night, and
Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi
This series is set in a post-apocalyptic world where people have had to stay inside pods to survive. I listened to all these books on my drive. The narrator for the first and third books was the same and she did a fine job. The narrator for the second book grated on me, which was a frustration. The story follows Aria as she is thrown out of the pod and has to learn to survive in the world whose atmosphere makes it difficult to survive. This series moved well enough to keep me listening to the end, but just because I really wanted to know how it would end. The ending was satisfying, but there were parts I didn't enjoy. I give this book an average rating. I did hear that Warner Brothers has bought the film rights so you may see this in the theaters. I'm not sure I'd want to watch it, however.
Walk on Earth a Stranger by Rae Carson (Book 1 in the Gold Seer Trilogy)
Another beginning of a great series for Rae Carson. This time the setting is the California Gold Rush. The main character has a magical talent for "hearing" where gold is buried. This puts her in danger of others who want to use that talent for their own gain. More than the magical aspect of this book I enjoyed the pioneer trek narrative as she traveled across the country to California. A story well told. Highly recommend
The Winner's Kiss by Marie Rutkoski (The Winner's Trilogy, Book 3)
I started this series a while ago and finally got around to finishing it. The first book is
The Winner's Curse and I really enjoyed it. The series ended well too, which is a plus. This is a typical fantasy story set in an alternate world with two kingdoms battling it out. The two main characters are likable and have good chemistry which is the best thing about the series. Good solid fantasy series.
Ruined by Amy Tintera (1st in a series)
I picked this book up while I was in the Pittsburgh airport waiting for my flight to Denver. I was pleasantly surprised how much I liked it. It does have a fair amount of killing in it, but I didn't seem to really focus on that as the plot moved quickly and the main characters had good chemistry. That being said I'm not sure I'm going to continue reading the series as I started the second book,
Avenged and it is a bit too blood thirsty for me.
Some stand alones:
Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore
I really liked reading
Splendor Falls by Clement-Moore and so when my sister told me about this book, I was excited to jump in. It did not disappoint. In a nutshell it's about getting rid of a ghost, but along the way some romance is thrown in which spices it up perfectly. Set in modern times, it's a nice spooky love story.
The Hundred Lies of Lizzy Lovett by Chelsea Sedoti
This is the Big Read for Overdrive (the online library that I download my ebooks and audiobooks from) for 2017. It is a realistic fiction about a girl who is coming to terms with another girl from high school and how she effects her life. I would go into more detail, but it would spoil the plot for everyone. It is very well written, but has some language and immorality involved that I would tell people about before I recommended it.
Love and First Sight by Josh Sundquist
This is an interesting story about a boy who is blind and who has the opportunity to have an operation that may restore his sight. I loved the insights into the blind world and the issues that were brought up that I had never known about. A great realistic fiction choice.
Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith
Alice wants to buy her best friend a lottery ticket for his 18th birthday, and guess what? He wins. Life changes dramatically for both her and him and their friends. This story moved along well and I felt it was a realistic look into what would happen if an 18 year old won the lottery. There is romance thrown in, of course. Good solid read.
Junior Fiction:
Forest of Wonders by Linda Sue Park (Wing and Claw Trilogy, book 1)
Park is one of my top authors, I've loved everything I've read by her with no exceptions. This first book in a trilogy is different from many of her other books which just shows what kind of depth this author has developed. The audio version was wonderful to listen to except that at times I wanted the narrator to read faster! This is a fantasy book that combines botany and magic as a boy seeks to use his apothecary gifts to serve those he loves. Highly recommend
Mark of the Plague by Kevin Sands (Book 2 in the Blackthorn Key series)
This is one I'm reading out loud to my kids and we love it. My sister just gave us #3 for Christmas and we will have it finished in a week. Great fantasy book set in London during the time of the Black Plague. Great characters with lots of adventure. Highly recommend
Baker's Magic by Diane Zahler
This is a simple fantasy book about a young girl who can make people feel emotions from eating the things she cooks. Whatever emotions she is feeling as she cooks, those same emotions are felt by those who eat her wares. Simple, quick read.
