A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

This was one of my favorite books as a child. I found the story, and still do, so poignant and so richly drawn. I love the main character, she is so solemn and intelligent. She is also courteous and kind. In a lot of ways I wanted to be like her when I was a kid. She was pampered but not spoiled and she wondered if she would still be a good person (a princess) if her circumstances were not so kind. Even as a child I found this a very adult book in some ways. There are complicated undertones to the story that you really only appreciate as an adult, this is why I continue to read and re-read this book. It's still a wonderful children's story but it is also a coming of age story and a commentary on social class. I love it. This particular edition has absolutely gorgeous illustrations by Graham Rust. I have an edition of The Secret Garden with the same illustrator.

Rating: 5 stars

Recommendations: Read the Secret Garden by the same author.

192 pages took about an hour and half

The Darkest Road by Guy Gavriel Kay

This is the third and final volume in the Fionavar Tapestry. It is the brightest, deepest, saddest and most glorious of the three. I cry throughout pretty much the last third of the book, because it's so sorrowful, so lovely and there is so much beauty. I love these books, they echo into my life and that is powerful.

Rating: 5 stars

Recommendations: Any of Kay's books.

448 pages took me about 5 hours, I was simply crying too much.

The Wandering Fire by Guy Gavriel Kay

This is the second book in the Fionavar Tapestry. I think it suffers a little from being the second of a trilogy. A lot of this book is concerned with setting up the last book. Now don't get me wrong, a lot happens and like the first book it completely absorbs me. I read this book in one day. There is so much woven into this story, so much depth that speaks to me so much. This book was much deeper and sadder than The Summer Tree* and the last book of the trilogy is even more again. This trilogy is one of those books that I don't take to work, it's too private for me, I don't want to explain why it is so sad and so glorious.

Rating: 5 stars

Recommendations: Anything by Guy Gavriel Kay!

400 pages took me about 4 hours

* denotes a book reviewed on this blog.

The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay

I wish sometimes I were a poet so I could adequately convey how beautiful and moving I find this book. This is one of my favorite books that I've ever read, however I can only read this book very occasionally. Unlike say, The Lord of the Rings which I read about once a year or so. I read this book, and the rest of the trilogy, so seldom, because I cannot bear to read it more than that. This story is so rich and so all consuming for me that I simply cannot read it more often than every 4 or 5 years. I think this might be my 3rd or 4th reading. Now, I am the sort of person that can read a book and then turn right around and read it again, if it's something I loved. This book ties together so much mythology and brings it so very alive. It reads like it should be a spoken epic. The language is so rich and simply drips off your tongue. I simply love it.

Rating: 5 stars! 6,7,8 stars!!

Recommendations: The rest of the Fionavar Tapestry of course. Book two is The Wandering Flame. Everything I've ever read by Kay, I am very fond of Tigana and The Lions of Al-Rassan.

400 pages, I honestly don't know how long it took me to read this book, I am completely swept away when I read this book

Basic Butchering of Livestock & Game by John Mettler

This isn't exactly the sort of book you can just read. It is much more a manual than that. But I wanted to get sort of the flavour of the book. It gives, fairly clearly and concisely instructions on how to kill, dress, and butcher just about any sort of meat animal. There are some nice diagrams to further illustrate. There are also some recipes for cooking various cuts of meats, but there are other better books for that. I learned a few things and I think, when we have livestock of our own, this book will be valuable.

Rating: 5 stars

Recommendations: I don't really have any, I think now I would like more cooking/preparing/storing type of books. Any suggestions?

208 pages took me only about an hour, but like I said this isn't really a book to just read :)

Chicken Tractor by Andy Lee & Patricia Foreman

This book has a great spirit to it, very infectious while still being full of practical advice. You just want to get out there and get going. It also doesn't get bogged down in a lot of technical details. It just gives you the philosophy behind the chicken tractor idea and enough practical knowledge to get you started. If you want a lot of technical details then there is a nice bibliography.

Rating: 5 stars

Recommendations: Try Joel Salatin's Pastured Poultry Profits.

324 pages only took me a little over 2 hours.

Skirting the Grave by Annette Blair

This is one of the first cozy mystery series I've read. The author also writes romance and it shows, this series is a lot more steamy than your typical mystery. I like it. The main character, Madiera, is a vintage clothes seller and clothing designer. She is also psychometric, she gets visions sometimes when she touches clothing. She also has two men in her life, and is trying to choose between the two. I absolutely love the interplay between Mad and her two men. And also the relationship between Mad and her family. It's charming. I also loved the mystery in this one, there were so many twists and turns it was excellent.

Rating: 4 stars

Recommendations: The first book in this series is A Veiled Deception. It's best to read this series in order.

288 pages took about 2 hours!

Glossed and Found by India Ink

This is the latest in the Bath and Body mysteries. I've been fascinated by the characters in this series. They are very complex characters and I like learning about them and seeing how they interact. This time there is no murder but an abduction that must be solved. The mystery in this book is clever and has a great motive. There is something very mundane about some of the motivations of the villains (I won't give anything away!) that I like. I find that this author seems to understand human nature very well.

Rating: 4 stars

Recommendations: This is the third book in the series. The first one is Scent to Her Grave*.

257 pages took me about 2 hours

* denotes a book that has been reviewed on this blog.

Chapter and Hearse by Lorna Barrett

I had missed this series, I couldn't find this volume in the series for a while but now I'm back on track. The heroine of this series owns a mystery bookstore (some of the books I've read are recommendations from these books actually!) and seems to have the bad luck to be connected in a series of murders. I love this book and the earlier books because the heroine reminds me of me in a lot of ways, she loves books and she honestly wants to help people. The characters in this book seem a little more deep in your typical mystery series. I like it. The mystery almost is secondary to the personal relationships but that being said the mystery was clever.

Rating: 4 stars

Recommendations: The first book in this series is Murder is Binding.

352 pages only took me about 2.5 hours!

The Jefferson Key by Steve Berry

This was the latest in the Cotton Malone books, it was set in the US and featured pirates lol it was great fun. I finished it in one day. One of the things I like about this author is he does a lot of research and includes it in his books. In fact, in the afterword he talks about what in the book was based on fact and what was his own creation, I like that. I like the Cotton Malone books and Steve Berry in general. He tends towards the more believable end of the action adventure genre.

Rating: 4 stars

Recommendations: Any of Steve Berry's books are great. I especially liked The Third Secret.

480 pages took around 5 hours.

Hit List by Laurell K Hamilton

Hit List is the latest Anita Blake novel. I enjoyed it more than the last couple, although I was disappointed at the end. Hamilton had spent several books building up the main enemy and then *poof* she was dealt with at the end of this one. She also ended this book really abruptly, like I said *poof* evil vanquished and then no fall out. I'm sure it will be dealt with in the next book but I was still annoyed. There are still plenty of monsters to be dealt with and emotional baggage to be explored. That's one of the things I like about this series is how much the main character has changed and grown.

Rating: 4 stars

Recommendations: Read this series in order!! The first book is Guilty Pleasures. She also has another series but I just haven't gotten to it.

336 pages took me about 3 hours, I read it in one sitting.

Scent to Her Grave by India Ink

I really like this series, I like the main character, I like the mysteries, I like the secondary characters, it's just a great series. This is actually book one, I read book two (A Blush with Death) first by mistake. The main character is Persia and she is a nicely rounded likable heroine. Her friends and family are pretty well rounded as well. The mystery was a good one, I didn't figure it out ahead of time.

Rating: 4 stars

Recommendations: The rest of this series of course!

272 pages in about 3 hours

Battle for Commitment Planet by Graham Sharp Paul

I think this might have been my least favorite of the series. Mainly because it didn't go anywhere. Almost 400 pages and nothing was resolved, it's like there should be another book in the series. Plus, I really hate Michael's girlfriend, Anna. She is totally illogical, and very poorly conceptualized.

Rating: 2 stars

No recommends on this one!

384 pages in about 3 hours I was excited for this one, I figured it would end the series but I started to get suspicious about page 300....

Battle of Devastation Reef by Graham Sharp Paul

This was my favorite of the series. There was more thought put into this book, there was some exploration of how politics and tradition impacts the running of a war. The space battles were still poorly done but the overall arc of the story kept me in.

Rating : 4 stars

Recommendations: Same stuff lol Honor Harrington

368 pages I read in one stitting, three hours lol

Battle of the Hammer Worlds by Graham Sharp Paul

I liked this one a little better than the first book in this series, Battle at the Moons of Hell*, it still was a pale echo of some better series but I find myself warming to Michael. His character is starting to fill out a little and he's getting more interesting. Plus there weren't really very many space battles in this one to distract me.

Rating: 3 stars

Recommendations: Once again read the Honor Harrington novels!

336 pages once again about 3 hours