I Was Jane Austen's Best Friend by Cora Harrison

This is the 1 st book I have read by Harrison, and it is supposed to be a book for
children. However, I found it very entertaining and not at all "too young" to make
for interesting reading. While I took it for a work of fiction, never having heard of
Jenny Cooper in the reading I had done on the British author Jane Austen before
this, the story is made more fascinating because it is based on fact! The author
has done an excellent job taking an obscure tidbit of information about Austen
and her childhood, and turning it into this delightful tale.

The novel begins with Jane Austen (as a child) and her cousin Jenny Cooper at a
terrible school. When Jane becomes dangerously ill, Jenny risks all, her life and
reputation, by mailing a letter to Jane's mother to let her know of her daughter's
dire situation. By the time Mrs. Austen arrives at the school, Jane is recovering,
but Jenny herself is seriously ill, and the Austen's decide to take both girl's home
to recuperate. Jenny survives her illness and well, and thrives in the healthy
atmosphere of the active Austen homestead, making friends with Jane's many
brothers and the male students who are being tutored by the Rev. George
Austen. The girls make quite an impression on the family as they attempt to

teach a handicapped member of the family his alphabet, and the scene where he
saves other family members from roadside robbery was so brilliant it made me
weep.

In the end, Jenny finds happiness with the sailor who protected her during her
earlier adventure to rescue Jane, while Jane stays home and continues to write.
This book gives fans a look into life in the Austen home, unexpectedly painting a
less than complementary picture of Jane's beloved sister Cassandra, as well as
Jane's relationship with her mother. It is fascinating in that this book puts Jane's
brothers and parents more into center focus. While it deals with a juvenile Jane, it
is not for that reason uninteresting or immature. The book makes a little known
part of Austen's life into an adventure worth reading about, and gives us a
portrait of the verbally precocious person Austen may well have been. The author
has researched Austen's juvenile writings, and claims to have based many
passages on what Austen herself wrote. I would recommend this book to teens
and other Austen fans, who should find the subject matter as fascinating as I did.

Submitted by Gerti

A Darcy Christmas by Amanda Grange, Sharon Lanthan & Carolyn Eberhart

This is not the first compilation of stories based on Jane Austen's great novel "Pride and
Prejudice" that I have found lacking. But it is perhaps the most disappointing, mainly
because included in the trio of authors writing about Regency Christmas celebrations is
the fabulous Amanda Grange, who has done a series of masterful diaries by the male
heroes from several Austen novels. This work is way beneath Grange's usual standard.

The first story is written by relative newcomer to the genre Carolyn Eberhart, and while
her contribution is the strongest, the story itself is derivative. Eberhart chooses to write a
twist on the classic "A Christmas Carol" story by Victorian writer Charles Dickens. In this
version, it is Fitzwilliam Darcy, heartthrob hero of "Pride and Prejudice" who is visited by
the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future. The point of the visitations is that he
should marry Elizabeth Bennet, the woman he falls in love with in the Austen novel, but
who is saddled with a family that would make any prospective bridegroom blanch, not
only because of their lack of money and social status, but also because of their lack of
restraint and decorum. The story ends happily, but a reader of this collection needs to
gather up courage to go any further.

The second part of the holiday tribute to Jane Austen is written by Amanda Grange. It
involves Elizabeth Bennet, now Mrs. Darcy, having her first child around Christmas
time. Mr. Darcy is traumatized out of fear for his wife due to the memories he has of his
mother and her difficulty in childbirth. Doesn't sound like this tale is filled with Christmas
cheer, but at least it includes a cast of characters with whom most P & P fans are
familiar - like Lady Catherine de Bough, Mr. Collins, the Bingley's, and of course
Elizabeth's meddlesome mother. A true Austen fan can read it and enjoy it, but should
absolutely put the book down after this.

The third short story, written by Sharon Lathan, is an interminable read and impossible
to follow. It is the worst of the 3 stories in this Christmas collection, and is written in a
manner that I hate - where Lathan takes the original characters from P & P, and adds
generations, meaning that the reader needs pen and paper nearby to keep track of all
the new additions to the Darcy and Bingley clans. Lathan gives Elizabeth and

Fitzwilliam Darcy not just one or two but a pile of children, and then adds to the
confusion by giving those children lovers and children of their own. The Bingley's are
also included in this name-fest, which seems more like an exploded Baby Name Book
than a cohesive story. I find it tedious to try to keep track of who belongs to whom, when
none of the characters is well delineated and the writing is sooo out of synch with
Austen's own style. Lathan's sexual innuendos seem out of place when the style she is
basing her work on was so innocent and restrained. Basically, it took me 5 weeks just to
finish this boring story before the book was due back at the library. Just terrible. I
wouldn't have finished it at all if I hadn't had to write this review! Avoid at all costs.

Submitted by Gerti

Willoughby's Return by Jan Odiwe

The eponymous character of Willoughby is the same man who plays the villain in
Jane Austen's famous novel "Sense and Sensibility." In that book, one of the main
characters, the flighty and emotional Marianne Dashwood, falls in love with Willoughby
who carries her home after she twists her ankle during an ill-advised walk. Despite his
love for Marianne, Willoughby marries a wealthier young lady for economic reasons,
breaking Marianne's heart in the process. These actions make him the villain in the
Austen novel, while the strong, silent and slightly boring Colonel Brandon becomes the
hero. However, because Austen (and much later, the movie adapters of her books) have
made the character of Willoughby such an appealing heartbreaker, legions offans have
carried a torch for him, which is further aided by the casting of very handsome men in his
role.

Here, much as I expected any author to do, Jane Odiwe tries to redeem the character of
John Willoughby. Since so many fans can't bear to hate him, Odiwe has done her best to
make him un-hateable. He is still the gorgeous man he was, with tossled hair and velvet
jackets. She trots him into the storyline several times, and each time, he comes to a
breathless Marianne bearing words of apology and love. Odiwe also caters to Austen fans
original impressions by allowing Brandon to remain awkward, and taciturn to a fault. As
a result, even Marianne, whom he has married and with whom he now has a child, begins
to doubt his love for her, alljbe while trying to fight off the advances of Willoughby.

In the end, it is all happily resolved, as Marianne chooses her husband over her old flame,
and Brandon realizes that he should have been more open and attentive to his wife. There
is a side plot, with Marianne's younger sister, Margaret, being of similar character, very
nearly getting her heart broken as well. But that plot also resolves itself happily, however
implausibly. For true Austen fans, however, Margarets ending up like Marianne will
seem a bit far-fetched. Her character, as seen in Austen, is romantic, but during the
course of events in "Sense and Sensibility" she's only a child. Her studious side is also
evident then, and at least I imagine that she would have turned out more like Mary
Bennet in "Pride and Prejudice" than her silly sister Marianne.

That said, however, this was an enjoyable book to read, and I preferred to read its
premise much more eagerly than the other dozen faux Austen novels I have in my living
room. It is nice to have another look at the beloved characters, even ifOdiwe's vision of
their life beyond the original Austen novel differs from my own. The writing is pleasant,
neither too arcane nor too modern, which is sometimes where these post-Austen authors
ere. And reading this book has not deterred me from my plan to read Odiwe's other book,
about what happened to Lydia Bennet after she marries the villain from "Pride and
Prejudice." So in summary, Odiwe has clever ideas, and knows her subject matter well,
yet while she is a good writer, she's certainly not the best currently writing in this post-
Austen novel genre.

Submitted by Gerti

The Hunger Games Triology by Suzanne Collins

I will admit I wasn't sure I was ever going to read this series. It sounded like something I would like but I held off. It didn't help that they were really popular and I could never get my hands on them. Even librarians have to wait in line. I actually still had to wait for book two and three even though they have been out for awhile now.

The Hunger Games was my favorite out of the three. Catching Fire was my second favorite and I really didn't like Mockingjay. Mockingjay just didn't sit well with me. I thought it moved slowly and then at the end it was like boom it ended. I liked that she gave the reader a glimpse into Katniss's future but I was disappointed in the way the series ended. I think the love triangle could have been developed better. I enjoy the romance in a book and I enjoy a good love triangle and I didn't find myself falling in love with either one of the guys like I normally do. That could be due to the fact I found Katniss hard to love.

From the website:

The Hunger Games

Katniss is a 16-year-old girl living with her mother and younger sister in the poorest district of Panem, the remains of what used be the United States. Long ago the districts waged war on the Capitol and were defeated. As part of the surrender terms, each district agreed to send one boy and one girl to appear in an annual televised event called, "The Hunger Games." The terrain, rules, and level of audience participation may change but one thing is constant: kill or be killed. When her sister is chosen by lottery, Katniss steps up to go in her place.

Catching Fire

Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she's afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her more is that she's not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol's cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can't prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying.

Mockingjay

Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.

Twisted by Gena Showalter

This is book three in the Intertwined series and the good news is that there will be a final book four. Bad news is that the release date is unknown. Another good piece of news is that there will be a spin off series about Riley's brothers Max and Nate. That is pretty great I think.

This book was crazy. Unraveled had left Aden dead and Victoria had brought him back to life as a vampire. Now Aden has a darkness in him that he's not sure he can control. Victoria is becoming more human, while Aden is become less. Aden takes to being vampire king quite nicely. Mary Ann ran away so she wouldn't hurt Riley but ends up doing so anyway. The ending is just insane. I don't really want to say more without giving any of the juicy details away. What I will say is that Ms. Showalter has her work cut out for her in book four because I want everything tied up in a nice bow. I don't think that is asking too much :).

Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

This is the third book in the Beautiful Creatures series and I have really enjoyed them all. I didn't devour this book as fast as the first two but I read it at a steady pace. Ethan and Lena have returned home but their previous actions had consequences and strange things have been happening. Swarm of locusts, record breaking heat, and devastating storms are only the tip of the iceberg. Someone needs to be sacrificed but who will it be.

If this was the last book in the series I was less than satisfied with the ending. When a series ends I like when everything is cleared up and I have an idea to what the future holds for my beloved characters. I guess I do know what the future holds but I didn't like it. I'm crossing my fingers that there will be another book but the authors website doesn't say.

Legend by Marie Lu

Sometimes we get ARC copies of books. Which are Advanced Reader Copies. A lot of times these copies are not edited or the book is damaged in some way. The pages of the this book wasn't cut right but I could still read the story and that is all I care about. I am always excited when Karin brings me books back from her Children's Meetings. I think I got this book back in October but I wasn't sure if the library was going to buy it so I held off on blogging about it. Then I got caught up in computer training and didn't blog at all.

I loved this book. I was sucked in from page one and couldn't put it down. The world as we know it is no more. What was once the western part of the US is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with it's neighbors. Fifteen year old June was born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts and is a military prodigy committed to her country. Born into the slums of the Republic's Lake Sector, fifteen year old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. June and Day have no reason to cross paths until the day June's brother Metias is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. June gets an early graduation from her military academy to hunt Day and the boy she finds isn't what she expected. Day is in a race for his family's survival and caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse. Together June and Day uncover a shocking truth about the Republic and the sinister lengths to which it will go to keep its secrets.

I'm hoping there will be more books but the authors website doesn't say.