33/100

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Warning: This whole review is basically one big spoiler alert.

Going in, I knew this was the book in the series that most people loved, or hated. I was one of the lovers. I thought it was the best in the series, maybe because it was the most grown up.

We start off with Bella and Edward planning their wedding. They get married, go on a honeymoon, and FINALLY have sex. Unfortunately, Edward is a little too strong and winds up injuring Bella, so he decides they can't do it anymore. Before long, Bella starts to feel ravenous and then nauseous. Uh oh. Sure enough, Bella is pregnant with a spawn.

The baby turns out to be too strong for Bella and is basically killing her. She needs to drink blood to stay alive. Eventually, they need an emergency C-section to get the baby out and Bella is on her deathbed. Edward injects her with his venom to turn her into a vampire.

I think I liked this book because there was more action than the other ones. I am still not a fan of Jacob and I found his portion a little annoying. I also thought the ending left a lot to be desired as it was kind of a whimper instead of a bang. But at least they lived happily ever after.


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32/300

The Rest of Her Life by Laura Moriarty

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book was given to me by a coworker who recommended it, so I thought I would give it a try. It is the story of a high school senior who accidentally kills a girl while she is driving. The girl and her mother never had the best relationship, and this sort of takes off after the accident and how their relationship is now basically in ruins.

I liked this book because it kept me turning the pages, but I felt like a little something was missing. It was a quick read, and I would recommend it to others.


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31/100

A Place Called Here by Cecelia Ahern

My review

rating: 1 of 5 stars
I tried this as an audiobook after someone recommended it and I just couldn't get into it. It was too much like Lost without any of the sexiness and excitement. It took place in Ireland and I found the narrator's accent to be incredibly annoying.

It is the story of Sandy Short, a woman who is obsessed with finding things. She even runs an agency to find missing people. One day she is running and poof! she is lost. She winds up in a place where all the missing things go. Think the land of left socks with no rights. It was just too out-there for me, and I think my mind was too preoccupied to pay enough attention to it.

I gave it a 1 because after the library emailed to tell me my new PG audiobook was in, I returned it about 3/4 finished.


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30/100

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
After I finished this book, I thought about what I would write for a review and realized I wasn't really sure how this book possibly took up 600 pages. All I really remember is the climax. Hmm.

I liked this book better than Twilight, but probably less than New Moon. Jacob continues to treat Bella like absolute crap, even forcing himself on her, and she continues to feel torn between him and Edward. It is starting to get old.

Edward tells Bella that in order for him to make her a vampire, she must marry him. She says they must have sex first so she can experience life fully as a human. I don't think this is too much to ask, but it hasn't happened as of yet.

Bella's arch nemesis Victoria is killed without even much of a whimper. The Volturri show up and don't really do much. There is a lot more violence in this book with vampires being ripped limb from limb. Other than that, a lot of the same ole vampire-werewolf drama. The last book is up next and I hope it resolves everything somewhat neatly.


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29/100

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I got this book on audio and I absolutely love it. It is told from the perspective of a dog, Enzo, who goes through trials and tribulations with his master. I was really nervous from just the first chapter, because I was afraid I would wind up bawling. The book begins at the end of Enzo's life as he is looking back on everything he and his master Denny have been through together.



When Denny gets Enzo as a puppy, he is single. Eventually he meets and marries Eve, and has a daughter, Zoe. Before anyone is aware of it, Enzo sniffs out a brain tumor in Eve. She eventually passes away and Denny (and Enzo) must fight to keep the family intact. The book is really heartwrenching at times, but it is always wonderful. The love Enzo has for his people is amazing and I love his omnipotent presence. I highly recommend this book.


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28/100

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I like this book much much more than Twilight. At the beginning of the book, Edward's brother, Jasper, has a bad reaction to seeing Bella's blood and tries to attack her. This makes Edward realize that Bella is not safe hanging out with a bunch of vampires, so he basically decides to dump her and move away. Bella goes into a deep depression and basically gets a death wish, so she starts doing crazy things. One of those things is buying a motorcycle. She takes the motorcycle to family friend, Jacob, to be fixed and they become best friends. She starts to feel alive again.

Jacob is obviously in love with Bella, but Bella's heart belongs to Edward. They have a functioning relationship until Jacob basically goes crazy and refuses to talk to Bella anymore. Naturally, this is because he is a werewolf. And werewolves and vampires are mortal enemies. But I digress.

In the middle of it all, Victoria, the vampire who's boyfriend was killed by Edward last book when he tried to kill Bella, is back, trying to kill Bella. Jacob, and his werewolf pack try to protect her. Bella gets overwhelmed and decides she wants to jump off a cliff for fun. Alice sees this as her committing suicide so Edward thinks she is dead and decides to commit suicide himself, the only way a vampire can: he goes to Italy to have the Volturi, a band of vampires, kill him.

Alice and Bella jet to Italy to save Edward. For whatever reason, the airline speaks in French, even though they are in Italy. Maybe I need to get out more because I didn't get this. Anyway, they manage to save Edward but they have to promise the Volturi that they will make Bella a vampire. Everyone returns to Forks and Charlie is pissed that Bella left and he is still mad at Edward for making Bella sad so he hates Edward now.

I liked the book because I wanted to keep reading to see what would happen. Obviously, I still think the premise is a bit ridiculous. The spelling mistakes also drive me a little nuts (to vs. too? Seriously???) But I am glad I continued to give the series a try and I will finish it.


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27/100

The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory

My review

rating: 2 of 5 stars
Blech. This was so so so not the normal Philippa Gregory book. It just was not interesting. This was another audio book for me and it was only 5 CD's compared to the usual PG 16. It was just not a developed book and I did not care about the characters. The audio quality was also pretty bad with cheesy music and the same guy, yes guy, reading all the characters.



This book begins right after the death of Queen Mary (Bloody Mary) and after her sister, Elizabeth, takes the throne. Elizabeth seemed very weak and always at the helm of a man, be it her longtime adviser, Cecil, or her lover, Robert Dudley. Dudley is Elizabeth's first lover and she swears up and down that he is her longtime love. Dudley is already married, to Amy, and he seeks to get out of his marriage in order to marry Elizabeth. Poor Amy, who has stood by Robert through thick and thin, constantly tries to win back his love, but Robert continues to be a bitter jerk to her.



SPOILER-

At the end, Elizabeth basically throws Dudley under the bus and ruins his life. So much for love. Poor Amy pays the ultimate sacrifice. I appreciated the book's chilling ending.


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