It's Monday, What Are You Reading? (Dec. 6, 2010)

It's Monday, What are you reading is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.  (I hope Sheila's trip to Honduras is going well.)

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading, is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.


We received our first big snowstorm of the season. But it wasn't very much of a storm. We got about 8 fluffy inches of the stuff from late afternoon on Friday until Saturday morning. Luckily, there was no wind to speak of. The huge flakes were coming straight down and not sideways. Since I didn't have to drive anywhere, I found it kind of lovely and peaceful. Now, if I had had to travel, I would have reacted very differently.


I also spent some time trying to get organized. I have made a spreadsheet of the books I have received for review. Since I made it sortable by the book's publication date, it will be easier to keep track of what I need to read and review. It somehow seems less overwhelming when I can look at the list and see how I'm doing. 

What I read:

I finished Virals by Kathy Reichs which was her debut Young Adult title. I thought that it would be appropriate for middle graders too. Tory Brennan (Tempe's great niece) is the main character. This is a mystery and a science fiction story. There are lots of details about Charleston and the area around it. I found it both exciting and very readable. My review is here.

Trio of Sorcery by Mercedes Lackey include three novella about three different female witches. Two of the stories revisit characters Lackey has written about before and the third is about a modern new techno-mage. They were all entertaining stories. My review will be posted on Dec. 11.

These were all from my review list.

Winter Wishes by Vivi Andrews, Vivian Arend, and Moira Rogers contains three sexy paranormal stories centered around Christmas and the winter season. I liked all of the stories but liked the first one best because it added some touches of humor to the sexiness.The book comes out on Dec. 6 and my review will be posted on Dec. 8.

Trickster's Girl by Hilari Bell is a futuristic young adult novel that will be published on Jan. 4. It tells the story of a girl who is reeling from the death of her father and who meets a boy who wants her to believe that magic exists and can save the world from the abuses mankind has done to it. I liked the story's combination of science fiction, myth and magic. My review will be posted on Dec. 8 at Ms. Martin Teaches Media.

Grounded by Kate Klise was sent to me for review a while ago. The book was published on Nov. 8. I just had a chance to read it. It is a middle grade story told from the viewpoint of a 12-year-old girl who lives in a small southern town and who tells the story of the year after her father, older brother, and younger sister are killed in a plane crash. It was filled with quirky characters and the rebirth of hope and life after tragedy. My review will be posted on Dec. 11 also on Ms. Martin Teaches Media.

I am currently reading:

Side Jobs: Stories from the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. I am a big fan of the Dresden Files and it is nice to have a collection that pulls all of the stories together. I have read some of them before in a variety of anthologies but there are some new stories too.

Planned for next week:

No Mercy by Sherrilyn Kenyon is the most recent in the Dark Hunter series. This book qualifies as a guilty pleasure for me. I'm looking forward to reading it.

Savannah Grey by Cliff McNish is a book for review. This book won't be published until April 1, 2011 but I got the Adobe Digital Editions version of this title and it expires in 42 days. I got this book from Carolrhoda Lab via NetGalley. It is a book of historical fiction set around the time of the Civil war and is also supposed to be a horror story.

Pegasus by Robin McKinley is a carryover from last week's plans. I hope to really get to it this week.

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willis has been sitting on my TBR stack for a while. It is the start of a series and is about a famous spy of the Napoleonic Era and the modern researcher who is studying the spy. I like historical fiction especially about that era and can't wait to finally start this book.

That was my week. How was yours? Leave me a link and I'll come visit.