Book End Review 2012

[elvenavari]

Books of 2012

A lot of people don’t understand challenging yourself to read, mostly my students. Of course, these are students who have never been encouraged to read and don’t understand the magic that can happen when you find a book that just gets the gears in your head turning.

Well, I consider myself to be a competitive person so giving myself this challenge each year gives me something to work toward. And, being an English major, I love to read. That being said, my challenge for this year was to read 75 books, 15 less than last year as I anticipated being really busy with school. I’ve learned when I get behind on my reading goal (Goodreads starts yelling at me) that reading a gay fiction on my Fire is a great way to catch up.

Books with a * at the end mean they were read for school/work. If I read 75% or more of these then they counted.

Start: 1/1/12
End: 12/27/12

1. Black Boy - Richard Wright*
2. Make Me Wanna Holler: A Young Black Man in America - Nathan McCall*
3. Halo - Alexandra Adornetto
4. The Heart of Darkness - Mark A. Roeder
5. Wolfsbane - Andrea Cremer
6. Temptation University - Mark A. Roeder
7. The Chocolate War - Robert Cormier*
8. The Future of Us - Jay Asher & Carolyn Mackler
9. Secretariat - William Nack
10. The Color of Water - James McBride*
11. Maus Volume I - Art Spiegelman*
12. Maus Volume II - Art Spiegelman*
13. The Scorpio Races - Maggie Stiefvater
14. Promises - Marie Sexton
15. Resistance - by L.M. Turner
16. Tyler's Cowboy - Amber Kell
17. Soul Bonds - Lynn Lorenz
18. Altered - by Laura Burks
19. Unshakeable Faith - Lisa Worall
20. Song in the Dark - P.N. Elrod
21. Essentials of Young Adult Literature - Carl M. Tomlinson*
22. Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception - Maggie Stiefvater
23. The Longman Anthology of British Literature, Volume 2A - Kevin J.H. Dettmar*
24. The Reading/Writing Connection: Strategies for Teaching and Learning in the Secondary Classroom - Carol Olson*
25. Joust - Mercedes Lackey
26. Integrating Computer Technology Into the Classroom: Skills for the 21st Century - Gary Morrison*
27. The Scent of Jasmine - Jude Deveraux
28. Heartwishes - Jude Deveraux
29. Chalice - Amber Kell
30. The Help - Kathryn Stockett
31. Getting Gabe - Amber Kell
32. Hunting Henry - Amber Kell
33. Juliet - Annie Foster
34. Unholy Night - Seth Grahame-Smith
35. Highland Avenger - Hannah Howell
36. City of Lost Souls - Cassandra Clare
37. The Wedding Letters - Jason F. Wright
38. The Lost Crown - Sarah Miller
39. Orlin's Fall - Amber Kell
40. Heart of Texas - R.J. Scott
41. Dark Road Rising - P.N. Elrod
42. The Freedom Writers Diary - Erin Gruwell, The Freedom Writers
43. Alta - Mercedes Lackey
44. Moonlight in the Morning - Jude Deveraux
45. Bunheads - Sophie Flack
46. The Complete Stories - Zora Neale Hurston*
47. Haunt Me Still - Jennifer Lee Carroll
48. Texas Winter - R.J. Scott
49. Touch Me Gently - J.R. Loveless
50. Sanctuary - Mercedes Lackey
51. Long Way Home - Carolyn Gray
52. Stranger in the Moonlight - Jude Deveraux
53. Nothing But Ghosts - Beth Kephart
54. The Autobiography of Malcolm X - As told to Alec Haley*
55. Iron Legends - Julie Kagawa
56. Green River, Running Red - Anne Rule
57. 50 Essays - Samuel Cohen*
58. I Hunt Killers - Barry Lyga
59. The Scent of Rain and Lightning - Nancy Pickard
60. The Inquisitor’s Key - Jefferson Bass
61. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot*
62. One Breath Away - Heather Gudenkauf
63. Look Again - Lisa Scottline
64. Tuskegee Love Letters - Kim Russell*
65. The Last Letter from Your Lover - Jojo Moyes
66. Loveless Vol. 9 - Yun Koga
67. The Lost Prince - Julie Kagawa
68. Word Smart - Adam Robinson*
69. The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight - Thom Hartmann*
70. Aerie - Mercedes Lackey
71. Swift’s Temptation - J.R. Loveless
72. Prayer Waltz - K.Z. Snow
73. No Going Home - T.A. Chase
74. Hero Type - Barry Lyga
75. Silver Moon - Rebecca A. Rogers


1. Black Boy - Richard Wright* - 3 stars - I enjoyed this book more than the others I had to read for this class. There was more story and body to it. I liked the author's voice as well.

2. Make Me Wanna Holler: A Young Black Man in America - Nathan McCall*- 3 stars - Easy to read, interesting, good voice.

3. Halo - Alexandra Adornetto – 1 star - One of the few times a pretty cover has lied about what's inside. "Halo" had a lot going for it but it completely missed the mark.

4. The Heart of Darkness - Mark A. Roeder – 4 stars - This was a fun adventure. There were so many things I loved about this book (a few I didn't), mostly the implication that such famous authors had gotten to go to the mystical world... makes me want to try! XD

5. Wolfsbane - Andrea Cremer – 1 star - That's it. I'm finished with this series. Once again I found myself loving the characters but bored to tears by the events and writing. I struggled through the entire book just because I was so bored.

6. Temptation University - Mark A. Roeder – 5 stars - Okay, I might be a little bias but I love Brendan and Casper. They are my fave couple from the series. But beyond that I do enjoy a good temptation story. I was convinced that there would be some cheating at some point but I like the way things played out. I can't say I particularly liked Dorian in the beginning, but he grew on me by the end, he's still not my fave but better.

I'm still dying to know what Casper ends up doing. I know he and Brendan buy a small farm and Brendan becomes a football coach but I can't recall if it was ever said what Casper did. In this book he tells Brendan that he won't be taking care of the farm while he's teaching. I always had this image of Casper becoming a college professor but after this book that turned into a writer, something he can do from home... but we already have a writer in the series. It's burning a hole in my mind.

7. The Chocolate War - Robert Cormier* - 2 stars - If I had read this back in high school I may have enjoyed it more. The writing was simple but the story fast paced.

8. The Future of Us - Jay Asher & Carolyn Mackler – 5 stars - I cannot say how much I loved this book. The characters had great voices, although for the majority I really disliked Emma. I thought Emma was extremely selfish up to the last couple of chapters. The story was interesting and I found myself giggling more than once.

9. Secretariat - William Nack – 3 stars - I think I was expecting more... story and less facts. The story that was there was still fascinating but that is probably only because I love horses and the KY Derby.

10. The Color of Water - James McBride*- 4 stars - I really enjoyed McBride's voice. I wasn't crazy about how the book jumped around but at the same time it worked due to McBride's mother's whimsical personality.

11. Maus Volume I - Art Spiegelman* - 3 stars - An easy, interesting read... but not my favorite.

12. Maus Volume II - Art Spiegelman*- 3 stars - An easy, interesting read... but not my favorite.

13. The Scorpio Races - Maggie Stiefvater - There's something I've come to discover about Stiefvater's books. Each book that I've read by her starts off slow but then at some point picks up and sucks me in. The Scorpio Races is no different. It didn't grab me until ch. 37, consequently that chapter also gave me nightmares (and is my fave). But once I got to ch. 37 I had no problem finishing the book. I never really got attached to any of the characters except for Finn, whenever he appeared he just melted my heart. I liked that the romance didn't have that forced feeling but what I really loved was the connection the main characters had with the horses.

14. Promises - Marie Sexton – 3 stars - Well, it wasn't the deepest thing I've ever read. It certainly wasn't written by Lord Byron. But I liked it. There was enough to the characters for me to grow a bit attached to them, for my eyes to widen and tear up when certain events happened. An easy read overall.

15. Resistance - by L.M. Turner – 4 stars - So much fun dialogue and drama and angst!

16. Tyler's Cowboy - Amber Kell – 3 stars - One of Kell's better books. I really liked the characters and there were cowboys. As always... it needed to be longer and more developed.

17. Soul Bonds - Lynn Lorenz – 4 stars - Well paced, interesting and quite delicious... that last chapter was just... wow.

18. Altered - by Laura Burks - Alright, someone please tell me... what am I missing?

Usually reviews on Goodreads are pretty spot on so I was really excited for this "mysterious" and "darkly romantic" read. However, to my surprise, I get to reading this book and there is nothing that I would call mysterious or darkly romantic about it. Maybe I don't find cards fascinating enough but even the final game wasn't all that for me. I can't even say there was build up in this book, things were just going and going at the same pace.

I got to 80% (reading the Kindle version) and I was amazed that I had gotten that far with nothing happening. The only redeeming quality that this book had was the three main characters (Jenna, Jess & Pops). Each of the three main characters were well developed and interesting. To bad they never did anything.

19. Unshakeable Faith - Lisa Worall – 4 stars - I really enjoyed these characters. And the events/dialogue of the story tugged at my heart strings more than once.

20. Song in the Dark - P.N. Elrod – 3 stars - This was probably the best book in the series... until the end. It just ended, not even a cliffhanger. Just... end.

21. Essentials of Young Adult Literature - Carl M. Tomlinson* - 4 stars - Really liked all the lists of books that this text provided. Great classroom resource.

22. Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception - Maggie Stiefvater – 3 stars - Very enchanting. The lore was fascinating. The characters were, for the most part, interesting. I'm looking forward to the next one.

23. The Longman Anthology of British Literature, Volume 2A - Kevin J.H. Dettmar* - 5 stars - Excellent collection of literature/poetry.

24. The Reading/Writing Connection: Strategies for Teaching and Learning in the Secondary Classroom - Carol Olson* - 3 stars - A very useful and informative text.

25. Joust - Mercedes Lackey – 4 stars - Finally! A book with awesome dragons! I greatly enjoyed the characters, especially the dragons. Only compliant is too much description and not enough dialogue.

26. Integrating Computer Technology Into the Classroom: Skills for the 21st Century - Gary Morrison*- 2 stars - Most of this stuff is outdated now. And the test questions that came from the book's website made no sense compared to the content of the chapters.

27. The Scent of Jasmine - Jude Deveraux – 4 stars - Deveraux's characters never fail to amuse me. I want a man like Alex... or any of Cay's brothers for that matter. I always love the stories Deveraux weaves, though this one had more typos than I've seen in a long time.

28. Heartwishes - Jude Deveraux – 5 stars - Deveraux captured me with her characters once again. If only Dr. Tris were a real man, I'd seek him out. Maybe I would be his true love. I hope the next Edilean novel is about him.

29. Chalice - Amber Kell – 4 stars - One of Kell's better books. Heated, interesting and enticing.

30. The Help - Kathryn Stockett – 4 stars - Touchingly heartfelt and funny, some parts were real eye openers.

31. Getting Gabe - Amber Kell – 3 stars - I love it when books make me giggle and this one certainly made me giggle.

32. Hunting Henry - Amber Kell – 2 stars - This was a 3-star book until the end. I believe Kell was setting up for the sequel but I'm not sure. As it was, all the build up was for nothing.

33. Juliet - Annie Foster – 4 stars - Though I was never, truly, swept away by this novel... I did find it extremely interesting, entertaining and captivating. I love books that take a piece of history and put a spin I've never thought about on it.

34. Unholy Night - Seth Grahame-Smith – 4 stars - A very interesting point of view on one of the most iconic images in history. Grahame-Smith did it again!

35. Highland Avenger - Hannah Howell – 4 stars - I think this may have been my favorite of Howell's books yet. Brian and Arianna were to die for. I really loved the tale that Howell spun in this one.

36. City of Lost Souls - Cassandra Clare – 5 stars - I do so adore Clare's wit. It makes me giggle. I also hate her cliffie's. They make me want to pull my hair out. This book really made it hit home how much of an idiot Clary truly is. The thing I really loved about this book was the way the relationships were built, toyed with and in some cases...broken. I can't wait for the final book.

37. The Wedding Letters - Jason F. Wright – 4 stars - -siiiigh- This book makes me want to find The One and get married just so I can get my own set of Wedding Letters. Wright took a truly beautiful idea and wove it into a touching and romantic, if at times surprising tale. An excellent continuation of the first book.

38. The Lost Crown - Sarah Miller – 3 stars - Cute and charming. The author captured each character's voice beautifully.

39. Orlin's Fall - Amber Kell – 3 stars - Kell's books would be so much better if she would just expand and go into detail! These are interesting characters and they would be so much better if they had a world truly built for them.

40. Heart of Texas - R.J. Scott – 5 stars - Scott created characters I could love and hate. She placed these characters in a state that is full of romance and fire. Between the cowboys and the richness I couldn't get enough. Oh, did I mention the cowboys? I do love cowboys.

41. Dark Road Rising - P.N. Elrod – 5 stars - Until chapter 14 I thought this was going to be another of the "eh, it was okay" Jack Flemming novels. But then... it got good, and by good I mean awesome. I couldn't put it down. I'm very curious if this is the end or if there will be more.

42. The Freedom Writers Diary - Erin Gruwell, The Freedom Writers – 3 stars - Some of the reviews had led me to believe this was going to be a tediously boring read. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the entries flowed easily and the stories were inspiring. There are too few teachers who were as dedicated to their students as Ms. Gruwell.

43. Alta - Mercedes Lackey – 5 stars - An excellent continuation of the first novel. Though, I'm still upset over a certain character's death. And, I'm excited about the budding romance between other characters.

44. Moonlight in the Morning - Jude Deveraux – 5 stars - I haven't loved one of Deveraux's books as much as this one in a long time. There was something about Tristan and Jecca (though I really dislike that name) that was purely addicting. I devoured this book in two days, probably would have been one if I hadn't had to work. Now I'm dying to find my own Edilean, or maybe I just need to find my own Cupid in the moonlight.

45. Bunheads - Sophie Flack – 3 stars - I really liked this author's writing. This was a quick and easy read, and interesting to anyone who loves ballet. Though, the end seemed a little rushed.

46. The Complete Stories - Zora Neale Hurston* - 2 stars - I might be one of the few but I dislike Hurston's writing. I appreciate what she wrote and the insight it gives readers to this time but I find it extremely difficult to read and boring.

47. Haunt Me Still - Jennifer Lee Carroll – 4 stars - This was going to get five stars until the end... like the first book the build up was a bit boring but once people starting dying it became more interesting. But the end... it just ended. I need closure!

48. Texas Winter - R.J. Scott – 4 stars - This book gave me so many warm fuzzies! Hayley was absolutely adorable and I'm really happy with the way Riley handled the situation... and Jack as well.

49. Touch Me Gently - J.R. Loveless – 3 stars - A lot about this book made my heart ache but the relationship building was excellent.

50. Sanctuary - Mercedes Lackey – 4 stars - I'm still upset over the character that died in the last book... every time they were mentioned I pouted. But it was really great to see Kiron and Ari coming in to their own. I liked the relationship building with Aken-ten and Kiron as well.

51. Long Way Home - Carolyn Gray – 4 stars - I love protective characters, so I adored Lee. There were more than a few typos that were very noticeable but overall it was a good, well paced book. My favorite scene involved the cell phone there at the end. It was so sweet.

52. Stranger in the Moonlight - Jude Deveraux – 5 stars - There was something very playful about this book. I loved all the banter between the characters. The chemistry between Kim and Travis was simply perfect. And now I'm curious about the next book.

53. Nothing But Ghosts - Beth Kephart – 1 star - I could not get into this book. I found it to be boring and none of the characters captured me.

54. The Autobiography of Malcolm X - As told to Alec Haley* - 3 stars - While part of me agrees with Malcolm X's point of view... a bigger part agrees with MLK's stance of not taking revenge. I base that on not being a very confrontational person. I did enjoy this book, though perhaps not as much as my students.

55. Iron Legends - Julie Kagawa – 4 stars - I fangirled so hard over all the extra info about the kingdoms, characters and creatures. The stories I had all read in ebook form before, aside from Iron Prophecy, and were all good. I like seeing what happens in the between times. And the sneak peek at The Lost Prince! I want it NOW!

56. Green River, Running Red - Anne Rule – 3 stars - While I found this book interesting... everything seemed to run together. It's possible that that is due to the amount of victims. I was also expecting a bit more excitement in the writing given the author's background as a true crime author.

57. 50 Essays - Samuel Cohen* - 3 stars - A very good anthology.

58. I Hunt Killers - Barry Lyga – 5 stars - Another win for Lyga. Once I started reading I could not put it down. This was the serial killer book I wanted when I picked up the book by Ann Rule about the GRK. Also, this needs a sequel.

59. The Scent of Rain and Lightning - Nancy Pickard – 5 stars - I'm really surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I went in expecting to like it...but ended up enjoying it much more than a simple "like" would suffice. I really connected with the lifestyle portrayed in this book, probably because I live on a cattle farm myself (though not a ranch). I also really liked the characters, especially Chase. I found another fictional character to add to my "wish I could marry him" list. I also loved the mystery that Pickard spun, I always enjoy when I fail to predict the who-done-it.

60. The Inquisitor’s Key - Jefferson Bass – 4 stars - I got lost on some details... but as a former art major, I loved the parts that dealt with the artists. I don't like the romance between Miranda and Brockton, it's a plot device that has been seen to many times. But the writing was good and well done.

61. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot* - 4 stars - Very interesting. I wasn't expecting it to be as interesting as it was.

62. One Breath Away - Heather Gudenkauf – 5 stars - In my personal opinion, Gudenkauf's best book to date! The characters captured me from the very beginning. The story was fast paced and the mystery held me as mysteries usually do, I figured out who the gunman was right before it was revealed.

63. Look Again - Lisa Scottline – 3 stars - I think I would have been more impressed with this book if I had liked Ellen more. While I can appreciate everything she did... I did not like how she did it. Will was adorable though. There were some word choices the author used that I found awkward. In the end though, I enjoyed this book and found it to be a fast paced read. I was very happy with the way things ended.

64. Tuskegee Love Letters - Kim Russell* - 3 stars - I loved the premise of this book...but I hated the format. I would have rather read the letters in...well, letter format.

65. The Last Letter from Your Lover - Jojo Moyes – 3 stars - I believe I was expecting more from this book than what I got. I did not enjoy it as much as I had hoped but by the end I did not hate it as much as I had been. If this book had had a bit more of the ease in writing in the beginning it would have been more gripping. As it was I was incredibly bored until around page 300...not good when the book is 390 pages. There were many times I wanted to close the book, return it to the library and never think about it again. But I finished it and am glad I did as I greatly enjoyed the ending.

66. Loveless Vol. 9 - Yun Koga – 4 stars - So much happiness when I found out that Loveless had been picked up by Viz Media. It's been about two years since I read vol. 8 and I don't have access to it right now so I couldn't refresh myself, hence the 4 stars. From what I could remember I liked the way this volume continued with the story but my favorite part was the art. Kouga's stark style is extremely pleasing to the eye.

67. The Lost Prince - Julie Kagawa – 5 stars - I have been waiting for this for so long it seems (though it really wasn't that long). I was extremely pleased to see one of my favorite parts of Iron Knight given the stage in this novel. I loved all the characters though I can't wait for the next novel to see how the suspicion and tension between Ethan and Keirran plays out.

68. Word Smart - Adam Robinson* - 4 stars - Excellent resource for vocabulary.

69. The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight - Thom Hartmann* - 4 stars - I found this to be incredibly interesting and it inspired me to do some good work around my community.

70. Aerie - Mercedes Lackey – 3 stars - This wasn't my favorite of the series. I'm still pouting over what happened to my favorite character in a previous book. But I did like the way the characters grew and how the book ended.

71. Swift’s Temptation - J.R. Loveless – 3 stars - I enjoyed this book but it was lacking in many areas for me to love it. I really loved Fagan's character, he was so sweet. It was really hard to like Xavier after everything he did.

72. Prayer Waltz - K.Z. Snow – 1 star - This book didn't flow to me. Maybe I missed something but there seemed to be two different plot lines, maybe three going on and none of them meshed well together.

73. No Going Home - T.A. Chase – 2 stars - It's difficult to make me feel "eh" about a book that centers itself on cowboys... but this one managed it. If there were ever a case of too much sex, this is it.

74. Hero Type - Barry Lyga – 4 stars - This is the first book by Lyga that took me forever to get into. Man though, once I did it really clicked. I wish this book had been out when I was in high school going through something very similar to Kevin. I could have used the arguments about free speech and saying the pledge. I was in JROTC and to not say the pledge was downright abominable to some. I really enjoyed how Kevin grew from the beginning to the end, it really gave the book a sense of completion.

75. Silver Moon - Rebecca A. Rogers – 2 stars - The story is decent but Candra is a main character that is extremely hard to like. Since the book is from Candra's POV... this makes it a difficult book to really enjoy. I'm curious to see where the plot goes so I will most likely pick up the next book in the series.