Bookworms Only


Those that know me, know I'm an avid reader. I used to read mostly (ok, only) fiction/fantasy. I've since branched out to non-fiction, primarily Christian living books and/or devotionals. I'll be adding titles to these categories if I find they are a noteworthy read.

Fiction

This book was amazing! If you like the story line of Pride and Prejudice (whether the movie version or the real book version) you will love this. It has modern themes and laugh out loud moments. All the characters from the original version are in this story, they just have modern story lines and problems. The plot remains very similar to the original, but you'll enjoy the modern points. 
I had this one on loan from the library for 7 weeks before I finally finished it. Overall, I liked the book. It was different from what I usually read. There are different plots that all connect together in the end. It took me a bit to understand where the author was trying to take the story, but once I got into the story it became clearer. My favorite part of the book was the epilogue. It took you on a journey of "what might have been." I would recommend this book. Definitely one of the best epilogues I've ever read. It didn't just tie up the whole story in a neat bow....
OK, so I had high hopes for this one since I loved the first book. If I'm honest, it was a bit of a disappointment. I hated the ending. The romance part was a little, for lack of a better word, "blah" for my tastes. I'm including it on this list only because it is a sequel to a book I loved. 
Heartbreaking romance is an accurate description. It's a page turner for sure. You should figure out where the ending is headed, so it may not be that much of a tear jerker (it wasn't for me). I loved it and am excited for the sequel coming in late September.
This is the first novel by Katherine Reay. It's similar to her other book (below). The main character has a troubled past she is trying to work through. In this story, our character is an aspiring writer (journalist) who receives an anonymous grant to go to grad school as long as she supplies the grant provider with letters about her progress. The style of writing is in first person letter format from the main character to "Mr. Knightly." Knightly "replies" a couple of times either as himself or via his assistant. There are numerous Austen references throughout as the girl find friends, family, trust, and love along the way. I found parts to be a bit predictable, but it's definitely worth the read.
This book is about a chef who is troubled by her past and it starts to hinder her cooking abilities. She takes some time off to spend with the family she left many years ago to try and find her way back. If you like food and Jane Austen references, this is the book for you.
I've read all 8 of these wonderful books twice. The last time I even did it in less than a week. They also have movies based off the books, which are also good. I've already ordered my boxed set off Amazon. You can catch the movies on the Hallmark Channel sometimes. The later ones don't follow the books all too well, but they're still a great story.

This was a nice read about a girl who finds herself the object of a movie star's affection. She tries to ignore him, but we all know how this will end. Still, it's a great read.

This book literally had me laughing the whole way through. The wit of these characters is amazing! No, this has nothing to do with Shakespeare's characters.

This is Amish fiction, but it's a great read. If you like Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew" or the late 90's film "10 Things I hate About You," you'll love this book.

This is a dystopian version of Jane Eyre. I could not put it down. I had to keep downloading the next book in the series.

Since I loved her other book (mentioned above), I knew this one would be hilarious, too. It definitely was. Check out this link on Amazon for a good description.


This is a bit of historical fiction. It takes place in the early 1800's in the US during the times of slavery. This book is a companion novel to "The Kitchen House" (which I'm about to start reading), but it can be a stand alone novel. The tale is about a boy who looks white but had a mother who was half white and half black. He poses as white almost his whole life. People from his past send him on a journey that could jeopardize his livelihood.  It was a great read. However, I will warn that it is somewhat graphic in the treatment of slaves. I would probably rate the graphic detail about a PG-13. It will prick your heart throughout parts of the book as the main character goes on his journey.



This is the companion book to my previous read (see above). You don't necessarily have to read this one first, but it will help you know the characters a bit more for the following book. This is a heartbreaking tale about the times of slavery in the early part of our country's history. You learn about the origin of the main character in "Glory Over Everything" and the characters that shaped who he is. You also learn a little about why one of the antagonists is the way he is. That is a heartbreaking tale in its own right. Just so much heartbreak and injustice in this book. It's a great read. As a person who will probably never have to endure what the people in this book had to endure, it's such a reality check to what people used to experience. The way some people were treated as property to be done with at the master's will is just appalling. Give them both a read.



Fiction (Fantasy)

This was the biggest book I've read in a while....539 pages. It was a page turner that I had to spread out over the course of about 5 days. This book was recommended by a podcaster I listen to, Jamie Golden, from "The Popcast." It was her green light for episode 138 (give it a listen because the whole thing is just hilarious). The book is about a girl who is born and dies several times in several different ways throughout her life. Each life she senses her past lives and where they went wrong and tries to alter her course. If you like a somewhat historical context, this book is for you. It starts out in 1910 and goes throughout the first half of the 21st century. 
I'm just going to say it: I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! I heard about this book on one of my many podcasts, "Around the Table", where they had the author as one of their guests. This is a little outside my realm since it had virtually no romance in it. It was definitely a page turner. If I question whether or not I should go to bed or keep reading, it's a good read. The setting is post WWII in an alternate reality where the Axis Powers won the war. Now Hitler is running the show. I like this time period in history, so it was an interesting read for me. It has a strong female lead and a great plot. The lead character is able to skin shift due to the experiments they did on her in the labor camps when she was a child. This book is about her trying to get her revenge on Hitler. The sequel comes out this Fall, and I couldn't be more excited.



OK, so I love me some Twilight. I don't care what the haters say. When I heard this one was coming out, I was excited to read it. I even contemplated buying it. I don't buy books that often anymore since I get read for free on Kindle Unlimited or from the library. I'm so thankful that I didn't waste my money on this book. I read the whole thing just to see how it would end. It mirrors the original for the most part, but it has role reversals for most of the characters and an alternate ending that makes this a stand alone book. I'm not a fan of the Bella character with all her whining and thinking that this boy is the be all end all in her life. But y'all, it's even worse when that character is a guy. The human in this book is a seventeen year old boy who is pining for a female vampire. He is completely emasculated in this book with all the whining and hopelessness. Who thinks a clumsy, awkward guy is charming when he's mooning over a girl and being pathetic? Not me. I like my male leads strong and confident. It wasn't the worst read ever, but it's definitely not on my "must reads."

Unless you've been living under a rock the past 8 years, you've heard about this and probable have seen the movies. I don't care what the stigma behind these books/movies are, I love them and will probably read them again soon. I already own the whole movie collection.

Yes, I've read all the books. Yes, I own the movie collection. Again, unless you've been living under a rock these past few years, you've heard of this.

Again with the book and movie thing. I will own the movie series when it's completed. I loved the books!

I've read all 6 books (and the spin-off series). They made a movie out of the first book, but my guess is it didn't take off that well. I saw it....it was alright. This series is about a girl who is half vampire/half human (dhampir) and goes through school and obstacles to become a guardian of her best friend and future queen (who is a full blooded vampire called, Moroi). There's a romance involved, but it doesn't overwhelm the story line too much.

This is the spin-off series of "Vampire Academy." There are some characters that reappear throughout this series, but it focuses on a somewhat minor character that doesn't appear until book 5 or 6 in the previous series. It's about her struggles with her relationship with her family and this secret society they belong to, and her forbidden romance with a Moroi vampire. (they don't appear to have a box set yet on Amazon. This link will take you to the page where you can find all 6 books individually)

Yeah, this series just keeps going and going. They are quick reads and I'm on the latest book (14) and can't wait to see what happens. A girl gets kidnapped on her 17th birthday and taken to a hidden island. It's another one of those human/vampire love stories. However, this series throws in several twists and turns throughout. (no box set for this series. Book 18 due out late September 2015. The series keeps going.)


I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. It's a futuristic take on a classic fairy tale. The main character is a cyborg. Throughout the book she learns about where she came from and who she really is. This is the first book in the series. It took my about 50 pages or so to get into it. I'm glad I kept going because I read almost the whole book in one day because I couldn't put it down. I'm excited for the next book in the series.



Don't read it! Listen, it's not good. I found the book from "The Book of the Month Club" reading list. I thought the summary sounded interesting, so I checked it out from the library. I was sucked in at first, even though it was hard to follow at times. However, by the ending I felt totally let down. It was very anti-climatic. It's on this list as a cautionary tale.....





Non-Fiction (Christian Living)
  • The Bible
I have a Bible app on my phone that I can choose from several different reading plans on various topics. I've been doing this daily now since March 2015. You can bookmark verses and highlight them for future study/reading.
This was recommended to me by a good friend!

Non-Fiction

I heard about this book on a podcast I listen to. The author was a guest on the podcast and was talking about her book. It sounded interesting to me. I usually don't read memoirs or anything like that, but this fascinated me. It's not a romance....not really. It was definitely intriguing. This one is a good, easy read!

This book came to me by way of a fellow educator and friend. She mentioned that her school would have some openings and that I would be a great fit. She said they were doing a book study on this book because they were going to pattern their school after it. So since I'm a learner at heart, I checked it out at the library and gave it a read. If you're an educator, this is a must read. It's about inspiring leadership in your students. So much can be taught to a child if you build the right relationship with them and foster that leadership within them. 



*This page will be updated on a regular basis as I find books to share!


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