Books in 2012

I read quite a few five-star worthy books in 2012. It's hard to get a five-star out of me. But these eight books will continue to be on my highly recommended list for a while.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is on this list. It's a reread, but it is my absolute favorite of the seven.

And before we get to my top books of 2012, here is a picture of my statistics from Goodreads.

Now in the order I read my 2012 five-star rated books:

Show and Tell in a Nutshell by Jessica Bell - Book Review

Show and Tell in a Nutshell by Jessica Bell is a writing craft book that is practical. Jessica shows the reader how to show in a very practical and dynamic way. She gives examples of telling and then switches them right around to showing. She also provides exercises and blank sheets of paper for the reader to try it all out on their own.

I could not believe the amount of scenes Jessica managed to create with such flair and intensity. The tone of each was so very different. I have never seen such obvious yet beautiful examples of showing. As an editor, I look forward to recommending this book to my authors. It has the ability to broaden a writer's horizon not just in showing but in the tone and temper used.

I received this book from the author for review.

Wright for America by Robin Lamont - Book Review

Wright for America by Robin Lamont is a thriller and a political statement and a personal story all wrapped up in one. The reader follows a radio host who is full of himself, a young actress sticking up for her twin brother, and an FBI agent who has fallen in love with the woman he is tailing. The twists and turns take the reader to unexpected places.

The book started out with a topic I was not expecting. The radio host, Pryor Wright, is an extreme republican. And by extreme I mean goading his listeners on to take their anger out on those they disagree with. Then a few chapters in there was a hospital scene between Maren and her twin brother, who was attacked by some of Wright's listeners simply for being gay, and I fell in love with the characters.

At the beginning the twists and surprises all felt trite and obvious. Wright was an easy villain with nothing to love. But at the end, everything culminated in a wonderful catastrophe and each twist went somewhere completely unexpected.

This book really made me think. Robin never forced her ideals on my, she just introduced them and let them simmer in my mind for a bit.

I received this book from the author for review.

The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt by Ilana Waters - Book Review

The Adventures of Stanley Delacourt: Book I of Hartlandia by Ilana Waters is a middle-grade story about standing up for what you believe in. An evil ruler has taken control of Hartlandia, and Stanley and his friend Sophie set out to stop it. Along the way, Stanley meets noble knights, silly professors, and the king of the elves.

The story was fun, and I instantly loved everything about it. I couldn't even tell Stanley was only ten years old until very late in the book; it wasn't childish at all. And even though it obviously has a message, it never felt soap-boxy.

The details were wonderful: the elves are cowards and that's why they keep to themselves when conflict arises; the witches spells are complex and deep poetry; and when people are losing their minds to the control of the evil king you feel as if you are as well.

I wasn't quite emotionally invested, but it was engaging nonetheless. Really a fun and adventure-filled book for young readers.

I received this book from the author for review.

The Unseen Wonder by Anne Van - Story Review

The Unseen Wonder by Anne Van is a sweet little story with a lot packed in. The family and characters are all wonderful and I really want to get to know them better. The ending was a bit anticlimactic. It ended well and good, but could have had more impact like the rest of the story. I was hoping for a bit more, but maybe these characters will show up in later writings and we can have more? The language was smooth and beautiful to read. All in all, a simple but nice, quick read.

I really look forward to seeing more from Anne.

You can also catch this story in Gaslight: A Golden Light Anthology.

I received this book from the author for review.

Bonded by Michelle Davidson Argyle - Book Review

Bonded by Michelle Davidson Argyle is a book made up of three novellas about magic and fairies and life. The three heroines find love, lose love, and learn a great deal. Cinders is a sequel to Cinderella continuing her life with the prince and how she really managed to snag a prince. Thirds is a retelling of Grimm's One Eye, Two Eyes, Three Eyes which embodies the original story and takes it far beyond what I imagined. Scales is a prequel to Sleeping Beauty, and wow does it dig deep to find reasons for the pretty princess to touch a spindle and fall asleep.

Michelle takes Cinderella, and really all of the heroines, down a very unexpected path. The depth and imagination involved in the stories astounded me. They all three grow and change and become something fierce in their own worlds. Yet all three worlds are connected with smaller characters and the concepts of fairies, elves, sprites, humans, and bonding.

I love the not so happy endings of Cinders and Scales; I love the happy ending of Thirds. These stories go beyond the moral of a fairy tale, and yet they encompass and enforce that moral. Michelle breaths new ideas into the originals and brings so much life into them.

I really can not say enough about how beautiful these novellas are. They have stuck in my mind long after I finished them. I'm pretty stingy with my five-star reviews, but this wasn't even a question. Even if you are not a fantasy addict (clears throat), these stories have so much to show you.

I received this book from the author for review.

Shifted Perspective by J. Bridger - Book Review

Shifted Perspective by J. Bridger is about a werewolf, but he's really only a were-spaniel. When Caleb suddenly turns into a Cocker Spaniel once a month, he and his father don't know what to do. Until they find out that his mother's side of the family all do it too.

The characterization in this book was wonderful. From the very beginning I loved everyone. They are all very authentic and complex. The beginning has this great little twist, and as the story progresses it just moves in ways that aren't normal but flowed well. The very ending was particularly good as it wasn't open, all the loose ties were neatly knotted, but a new idea was introduced and draws the reader in, ready for the next installment.

The theme of the book plays out well. Every mention of something dog like made the story that much more: Caleb wraps a present for his girlfriend in Peanuts paper; his cousin Kalista 'wolfed down' so much food; the family dog calls the telephone a talking box. The humor is engaging and fun without being condescending or stupid.

There was a bit too much setup, the real story didn't start until almost three quarters in. But it was never boring and was a great take on the typical werewolf tale.

I received this book from the author for review.

The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap by Paulette Mahurin - Book Review

The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap by Paulette Mahurin is about two women who love each other. Yep, I just came out and said it. But it's also about loyalty and friendship and gossip and prejudice. A historical novel based in the old west of Nevada, a small town learns of Oscar Wilde's imprisonment for gross indecency and blazes with fury.

First off, I could not put this book down. It's a simple story with a lot of depth and background. The exposition of the history is welcome, I hungered for more with each piece that was revealed. Sometimes, though, the internal feelings of the characters were too much. The integration and telling of the history was perfect.

I wasn't sure what to think of the subject. I wasn't incensed either way. Probably because it is told from the perspective of the victim. There were prejudice comparisons to black people and Jews as well as gays, but the comparisons weren't that obvious they were just a part of that time. It felt natural. It never felt like the author's statement but the character's circumstances.

The story covered the idea that our past affects who we are. The way we grew up is a large part of what we do as adults.

The climax was a very unexpected twist. But it flowed so well and made the story that much more of a story and not a rant about prejudice that it made me love the book even more. I was worried about blogging about this book - it's not my norm - but I really enjoyed it.

I received this book from the author for review.

Fathom by Merrie Destefano - Book Review

Fathom by Merrie Destefano is about Selkies and monsters and adolescence and confusion and love and courage. Kira lost her mother and sister when she was young. She believes that her mother killed her sister and then committed suicide. But her father and grandmother are keeping secrets. And something starts to change when a new group of kids shows up in town.

I have no words. It was beautifully written; it had a compelling cast of characters; it ended so smoothly with just a hint of a cliff hanger. From the very beginning the premise and the poetry of her prose gripped me. Kira had such real and true emotions. Every moment I felt just like a teenager again with the hormones and the confusion, so effortlessly shown through the waves of feeling.

The twists and turns kept coming, but everything was resolved by the end. The end was stunning and bittersweet but left enough room for more of a story without leaving the reader wanting. There were some truly eerie parts where I pulled the covers up higher and glanced around my room looking for monsters.

I was slightly confused by one thing because the story is based on the west coast of the States, but it seems the group of Selkies swam from Ireland (as far as I could tell). How did they do that? Other than that, I will highly recommend this book.

This book was given to me by the author for review.

Twelve Months by Steven Manchester - Book Review

Twelve Months by Steven Manchester is a novel about living. Don is diagnosed with stage four cancer and is given a year to live. So he lives. The book follows his journey through a bucket list and back to his family's side.

I definitely teared up at the end. But I'm having trouble voicing my opinion on this one. It was a lot of telling, but in a way that is different from the norm. I didn't feel like I was being chastised or lectured. I felt like I was getting to witness someone else's experience, but it felt so perfect that I couldn't really believe it. I wasn't emotionally involved except that the writing pulled emotions from me.

The writing was great. It was poetic at times and portrayed daily life in a beautiful manner. I didn't necessarily love any of the characters, but I certainly loved the prose. Perhaps it's better that way because you are allowed to be a bit numb while reading about someone dying. It wasn't gruesome, and it seemed that Don (though it was first person) hid a lot of his pain and feelings from his family and the reader.

I liked it, but as with any controversial book, I'm torn. It's hard to get a message like this one across smoothly. It has some great messages, some real gems, but they were too obvious for me. I will recommend this one for the writing alone, as that hooked me.

I received this book from the author for review.

The Toadhouse Trilogy: Book One by Jess Lourey - Book Review

The Toadhouse Trilogy: Book One by Jess Lourey is an adventure for readers. If you've ever wanted to hop into stories like they were real worlds, pick this one up. Aine and her brother Spenser don't realize it, but they are living in a book. And they have an adventure awaiting them that takes them to places like The Time Machine and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

This book was so refreshing. It completely swept me away and didn't let up until the very end. It was never too easy for the characters (which I find happening a lot in adventure/fantasy fiction). As the characters travel through the books, Jess comments and analyzes the stories but without making it feel like an essay. She simply points out things that one would not typically notice, like how Mr. Hyde looks like each person's worst nightmare and that is what makes him ugly.

I had disappointments. We never find out which book they begin in (though a hint is mentioned in the back of the book). The narrator jumps from character to character when it is not truly an omniscient narrator. The ending seemed a tad bit deflated, only because the object they were searching for was not something that was planted early on in the story or was a well-known object from a well-known story so that the reader could employ a bit of detective work.

All in all, I loved this one. I can't wait to see the next two.

I received this book from the author for review.

Chasing Paris by Jen Carter - Book Review

Chasing Paris by Jen Carter is one of those books that I will be highly recommending this year. It's about a girl. Her biological grandmother dies, but all of her life she knew another woman as her grandmother. More and more secrets come out as she searches for the truth.

It's about sisters. It's about love. It's about finding identity. It's about understanding. This book is about so many things. And right from the beginning the reader is thrown into the story. The pace was simply perfect. And the multiple plots fit like puzzle pieces, but they weren't so parallel that they were identical. The author gave away so many big secrets at the beginning of the story that I was worried the ending wouldn't be a big revelation, that it would be played up too much for the hype it deserved. It deserved the hype. The ending wasn't mind-blowing, but it wasn't disappointing. It rang true and natural.

The characters really intrigued me. One reminded me of Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream (Kim, if you are wondering who I mean) and the others I simply couldn't get enough of. I had a little trouble with the college boys, they weren't quite 'boy' enough. They said things that were simply too sensitive for a college boy to say. I loved them nonetheless. One other pet peeve of mine, there were a lot of typos - missing words - and it threw me off, but not enough to dislike the story.

Honestly, you must read this book. It was a great escape for such a normal, everyday adventure.

I received this book from the author for review.

Audrey's Guide to Witchcraft by Jody Gehrman - Book Review

Audrey's Guide to Witchcraft by Jody Gehrman is the story of a new witch, Audrey. Her mother disappears, a mysterious cousin shows up to babysit, and she has foreboding feelings about it all.

The voice in this book was flashy and fun. There was just enough high school mixed with new-witch-hiding-her-identity. I was completely in love with the 'cousin,' Sadie. She's eccentric and cool all at the same time. And the book is all around fun without being vapid and girly. The love story felt natural, with their awkwardness being very endearing. It wasn't love at first sight but there was definitely a lot of attraction.

By the end of the book though, Audrey's motivations were weak. She went somewhere she didn't absolutely feel compelled to go and that frustrated me. The book was an easy read, but I'm frustrated it wasn't finished. You all know how I loathe open endings. This one wasn't quite open, but I don't think it required a sequel either.

If you like a fun read involving witches and sort-of zombies, with well rounded characters and a horrific highschool enemy, then pick this one up for sure.

I received this book from the author for review.

Diaries of a Teenage Bride by Jillian Amodio - Book Review

Diaries of a Teenage Bride by Jillian Amodio is exactly what it sounds like, in a very wholesome and honest manner. Jillian was married at the age of eighteen, for love. And this book gives her personal account of marrying that young, the ups and downs of marriage, and the continuing adventure of married life.

I feel that just from reading this book I am now friends with Jillian. Her writing style is simple and honest without making the reader feel like they are hearing a sermon. It's just Jillian's story with a few good advice tidbits thrown in. She has opened her heart and laid it before the reader so they can witness her experiences and glean what they can.

I read her book in just a few days because I couldn't put it down.

A few of my favorite lines:

"Marriage is life, but marriage is life that you get to experience with someone who loves you." page 88

"...I know that marriage is what you make it." page 90

I received this book from the author for review.

Broken City by D.D. Chant - Book Review

Broken City by D.D. Chant is a post-apocalyptic novel. Financial ruin forces the world into tribes fighting amongst themselves for survival. Deeta, the main character, has quite the adventure that opens her eyes not only to the world she has been kept hidden from, but also to love.

This was one of those wild rides where I felt like I needed to close my eyes and simply hang on for the pleasure of it. The story didn't really get going until almost halfway through, but at that point I didn't want to stop. The characters were very engaging (I absolutely love Deeta's sister Jan, she is a hoot!), the world was intriguing with its history and murder plots and all-out war, and the love story was so natural I couldn't help but smile when they finally, finally kissed.

But (and this might be a big but) my editor's eyes could not get past a lot of things. There were typos, forgivable, but then there were run-on sentences. I think I actually found an instance of too much showing. I was drowning for such a long time in the non-information that I almost gave up.

I am so glad I didn't, because once I turned off my brain and just enjoyed the ride I really liked it.

I received this book from the author for review.

Little Sacrifices by Jamie Scott - Book Review

Little Sacrifices by Jamie Scott is an historical novel about the American South just after World War II. But it's also about a young woman dealing with life and its curve balls.

I was instantly drawn in to the story. So much so that I'd forgotten I was reading and wasn't sitting in a hot car under the Savannah, Georgia sun myself. The characters are interesting and the history was well-integrated. The dialogue was a little hard to follow at times because the characters all seem to have the same dialect and there weren't always tags in long conversation.

The voice was authentically teen. Her feelings rang true with me. But for some reason I wasn't emtionally drawn in. Nothing was plucking my heart strings. I think it's because there wasn't a unified story. There were multiple climaxes and story arcs that followed a similar theme but didn't mesh well together.

This is a book I couldn't put down, and I definitely recommend it.


I received this book from the author for review.

White Horse by Alex Adams - Book Review

I'm very stingy with five-star ratings. That privilege is reserved for those books that really strike a chord with me, the ones where I'm flying through them but at every other sentence or so I have to stop and reread to savor the words. Last year I read one book that was five-star, Never Let Me Go by Kazuro Ishiguro. This year I have had an exceptional year and have read four so far that I rated that high.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
The Getaway Car by Ann Patchett

And White Horse by Alex Adams. I love a mixture of genres, especially literature and magic. Well this one was science fiction and literature...and wow. The writing I just wanted to drink up, lap it up like a kitten with milk. I spent a lot longer reading this book than I normally would have because (well, it scared me because it's creepy) but also because I kept rereading certain hauntingly beautiful sentences.

A man-made virus changes the world, along with men changing the weather, and everything goes to crap. All  while we watch a woman search desperately in this messed up world for her lost love. It was so devastating and thriller-ish and well-developed and simply good. I think this one will stick in my mind for a long time.

Hym and Hur by Phillip Frey - Short Story Review

This short story, Hym and Hur by Phillip Frey, is so fun. Hym and Hur are two, well, I suppose you could call them sprites. They don't age and they like to wreak havoc. In this short story they make a deal with Death and watch as things unfold.

The characters are so bubbly and wonderful. Even Death, with his depressing outlook on life and his cynicism, I liked. There were a few moments that could have been silly or out of place, but Phillip's writing turned those moments around so they made sense and fit in perfectly. Hym and Hur could have used with a few more flaws for me to absolutely love them, but they seemed more like catalysts than protagonists - very much like Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Phillip manages to build up a world, introduce a great turn of events, and wrap things up all in a short story very well. I didn't want to put it down and I certainly wanted to keep reading after the story was over.

I received this book from the author for review.

Fabric by Jessica Bell - New Poetry Collection Review

Jessica Bell's new poetry collection, Fabric, is full of life. It reads like little stories in the lilt and cadence of her tone and voice with raw emotions ranging from anguish to giddyness to satire.

I am not a poetry reader, I really wish I were and that I had the ability to put words like that onto paper. I would love to let my inner self flow like that. But even though it's not my thing, I couldn't put Jessica's book down. I thought I would spend a few days, savoring a poem here or there. But I never stopped. And even after, I went back to taste again on a few of my favorites. I particularly love one called 'Once.' It goes forward and then takes the same lines backward - what artistry to make that happen, and then I found even more meaning behind it in the appendix. Stunning!

Jessica really wants everyone to understand that poetry can be for the every day reader. So please support the life of poetry today by spreading the news about Fabric. Hey, perhaps you might even like to purchase a copy for yourself? The e-book is only $1.99 and the paperback $5.50.

Here are the links:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Goodreads

About Jessica Bell:

If Jessica Bell could choose only one creative mentor, she’d give the role to Euterpe, the Greek muse of music and lyrics. And not because she currently lives in Greece, either. The Australian-native author, poet and singer/songwriter/guitarist has her roots firmly planted in music, and admits inspiration often stems from lyrics she’s written.

She is the Co-Publishing Editor of Vine Leaves Literary Journal, and co-hosts the Homeric Writers' Retreat & Workshop on the Greek Isle of Ithaca, with Chuck Sambuchino of Writer’s Digest.

For more information about Jessica Bell, please visit:

Website:

String Bridge (a novel) 
Homeric Writers' Retreat & Workshop 
Blog 
Vine Leaves
Facebook
Twitter

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green - Thoughts

This isn't so much a book review as it is my rambling thoughts. I probably should have typed it up right after finishing the book because at that point I was broiling with emotions. I wanted to let it settle, but I've waited too long. I want to discuss a few ideas so please chime in in the comments.

Whenever I read John Green I become this big blob of hormones. I cry, I laugh, I'm completely jealous of his characters and his abilities as a writer, I want to scream, and I can't put the book down until I'm finished. It's a complete overload of feeling. I love his books, but I can't read them too close together because his characters feel like the same people from book to book. The plots change, and I am still totally sucked in, but the characters all seem the same: angsty, overly vocabulary-capable (if that makes sense), too smart for their own good teenagers.

But the parents in The Fault in Our Stars, oh the parents. I loved them. They weren't nonexistent, they weren't distant and silly, they were there. Does anybody else find that annoying in young adult books? Parents are a big part of kids lives, even if they are distant and irresponsible. They still have huge impact.

The way he dealt with cancer was just, wow. I could not have done that. It was raw. But not awkward. And getting to see how a cancer kid treats another cancer kid while commiserating together over the way people without cancer react. It was simply well done.

I highly recommend this book (and John Green's other stuff) to anyone wanting to get into the young adult market who hasn't before. I always give my copy of Looking for Alaska to young adult newbies.