oooh yeah

I am irrationally excited for the Olympics. I will probably feature an Olympian from now until September--NBC.com has tons of athlete profiles.

This is soccer player Patrick Ianni, who I feel like I've met, for some bizarre reason.



Go USA!

mystery

My friend Becca lent me Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None.

What can I say? It's absolutely a classic. Ten strangers are stranded on an island and one by one, they die. Each person holds an awful secret--but what connects them? And who is the murderer?

Basically, at the end, you see why Christie is hailed as a brilliant mystery writer. If you like mysteries, try it.

Rating: 9/10

On a side note, I read a book about 10 years ago that took the basic idea of this book and adapted it. Gilbert Morris' Guilt by Association (now reissued as One by One) is the start of one of my favorite mystery series, featuring New Orleans detective Danielle Ross. Seriously, I love that series--it has interesting mysteries, excellent romantic chemistry and is more about characters than bloody mysteries.

pantsy pants

I had a nice fluffy read with Cathy Marie Hake's inspirational (aka Christian) novel Fancy Pants.

Lady Sydney Hathwell is fleeing a jerk who wants to marry her. She runs off to Texas to her uncle--except her uncle thinks she's a boy. And he makes some random statement about "no women." So, of course, she has to dress up and act like a boy!

To be honest, that was the most entertaining part. Her uncle's ranch manager (or whatever the right term is) tries to make Syd "Fancy Pants" Hathwell into a man...and kind of succeeds. Of course, her secret is revealed, leaving to tension, love, etc.

It's a light, quick read. The characters are fine; no one is annoying. Their faith is real and not drapped into the story. The only issue I had with the book is the jerk who wants to marry Sydney. He's part of the climax...but the solution to the problem he presents is so dumb. I actually wondered if I missed a few pages (I didn't).

It's summertime; you deserve light reading!

Rating: 7/10

Bleh weekend reading

My weekend reading was less than stellar. I started out with Snobbery with Violence by Marion Chesney and ended with Secret Society Girl by Diana Peterfreund. Both were disappointments.

Snobbery had odd writing--I felt like the point of view shifted or suddenly became omniscient. It was odd. And I couldn't get ahold of the main character. She shifted too much to really understand her; however, this is the first book in the series.

It also had a completely predictable plot. Seriously, someone mentioned a totally bizarre theory and somehow they managed to prove it. I was ticked off (let's just say it involved a crazy guy sleeping with virgins to try to cure his syphilis...and yes, this happened in the early 1900s). Did anyone actually believe that anymore, much less an Englishman living in England?

Rating: 4/10

Secret Society Girl was my own issue. I thought it was going to be a serious sort of book, one like The Night Climbers, which has an amazing cover:

Seriously, I love it. So gothic and a great representative of the book.

Anyway, the girl book turned out to be major chick-lit and more about who Amy, the main character, was sleeping with than the secret society. At one point, Amy realizes she wasn't the society's first choice; she gets all sad and is like, oooh, that makes sense, who'd want me? I was like, yeah, that's right, Amy; who would want you? I had to stop my bitterness and finish reading it since I was on a plane and had nothing else to do. Anyway, maybe it was just my not-into-sororities coming out or what, but I will not be continuing the series.

Rating: 5/10

wowzers

This is a re-read, but I like it so much I want to talk about it. Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl is an amazing book.

I stumbled across Pessl's book for the second time at Half-Price Books for $2. Um, yeah, snatched it up. It ended up being the UK version though. I don't actually get the flowers and the Spanish dancing drawings it has inside the cover. It's pretty, but doesn't fit the book at all. Whatever.

The story is about Blue Van Meer and her professor father Gareth. After Blue's mother dies, the two travel across America, living in about three towns a year. He teaches; she goes to school. Life is good--until Blue's senior year, when they spend a whole year in a little town in North Carolina. There she meets five students nicknamed the Bluebloods (no vampires involved) and teacher Hannah Schneider--and her whole world changes.

So it sounds like a typical bildungsroman but it's not. Here's what I like about it:
*It cites more books than any other novel I've ever read--but Blue works it into the story.
*It suddenly shifts into a murder mystery part way through.
*It has a jaw-dropping ending--seriously, everything falls together and hangs on a thread.
*It's postmodern--you don't know what the truth is at the end. It's like Daphne Du Marier's My Cousin Rachel in that respect--you don't know what to believe at the end (was Rachel truly evil or just a flaky woman?!?).

Also, if you're interested, I read this interview with Marisha Pessl last year and really enjoyed it.

I'm giving it a 10 because it's a book that has impacted me. It does have its flaws (too wordy at times, can take awhile to get into, etc.) but I still think it's amazing and unique.

Rating: 10/10

Monday, Monday

Hello Monday! Today's candidate is Pharrell Williams.

He has a very chiseled face. I like him in purple, too. And while he may look 26, he's actually 35. Way to rock that, Pharrell (p.s. I think you have a cool name). And speaking of cool.........

This hat is AWESOME. Happy Monday.

June = brides

In my prowlings on Amazon, I've run across Madeline Brent's Moonraker's Bride several times. People seem to LOVE it. So when I found it at my local Goodwill, I bought it.

It was good! Lucy Waring, who shares the same name as the heroine in Mary Stewart's This Rough Magic, is an orphan living in a mission house in China. Lucy, the daughter of British missionaries who died when she was very young, has been raised basically Chinese. I really like Brent's characterization of Lucy--people from different cultures think differently and he reflects that nicely.

Lucy ends up being sent over to England right around the time of the Boxer Rebellion. She struggles to adjust and make a new life for herself. There is romance involved, but I wouldn't call this a romance novel (although the cover begs to differ with me--"a novel of romantic suspense").

Basically, it was an interesting and sweet historical read. All those Amazon reviewers ended up being right.

Rating: 9.5/10

for a change...

I'm breaking the mold and featuring a hott blond tonight! It's summertime, so let's break out the sunshine.

It's Paul Walker, who starred in one of the worst Christmas movies I've ever seen: Noel. You'll feel depressed, alone and very unjolly after watching it. Even Paul--as an abusive cop!--couldn't save the show.

However, just looking at this poster of him once left me giggling so hard that I couldn't speak or breathe:

Even surrounded by Disney dogs, you're still hott, Paul.

si

My friend Kim lent me Isabel Allende's Daughter of Fortune, with her high recommendations. I've been meaning to read one of Allende's works, so I gave it a shot.

First of all, pretty cover except for the blatant "Oprah's Book Club" sticker. Whatever Oprah--sure, her sticker gets quality books more exposure but I'm just not a fan.

Anyway, this book was written in Spanish and translated into English. Allende spent part of her life in Chile, so her experience set up part of the setting for this novel. Eliza is an abandoned orphan, raised by an English brother and sister who are living in Chile.

Eliza falls in love but then her lover leaves for the Gold Rush in California. That's when the action takes off. Eliza travels to California to find him, making friends like Tao Chi'en, a Chinese doctor.

The book explores all of the character's pasts, while adding to the story itself. The style of writing is somewhat reminiscent of magic realism and Gabriel García Márquez's writing.

If you're in the mood for excellent Latin American writing, give this a try.

Rating: 8.5/10

I forgot

I forgot two things: Hottie Monday and the other book I read last week. Um, sorry about the guy...sometimes my inspiration is weak.

However, I thought that the guy who played the groom in Panic At The Disco's "I write sins, not tragedies" video had beautiful eyes (and I'm not a girl who usually notices eyes). So meet Daniel Isacc:

Evidently he took this photo himself. Whatever, watch the video to see him in action.

The book I forgot was the one I actually wanted to talk about: Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen by Susan Gregg Gilmore.

The cover convinced me to read it--you can't really see it, but the stars in the background are very pretty and combined with that font, well, I was hooked. Also, in a rarity, the cover copy described perfectly what happened in the book, without giving away anything. Congrats, copywriter--you rocked.

This is definitely southern lit. Catherine Grace Cline, a preacher's daughter, dreams of the day she'll be able to leave her tiny Georgia town. The book follows her from elementary school days to past high school, tracing her dream all the way. The big issue is whether she'll be content with her down-home boy and ordinary life with him, or whether Atlanta will make her happy. (Guess what happens.)

The book is kind of surfacy--most of the characters are almost caricatures of typical Southerners. (At least I think...what do I know, I'm a Yankee.) And the ending of the book was kind of weak...plus the author threw in a major curveball that went no where. That whole aspect really bothered me...it was a new character that shouldn't have been added.

Basically, it just reminded me of a typical debut novel--good but definitely room for improvement. I think this author will get much better in time.

Anyway, overall it was good summer reading and if you're in the mood for Southern lit, give this new author a shot.

Rating: 7/10

it's too nice out!

It's been so nice out that I haven't been spending much time inside--but I have been reading lots on my lunch break outside! I've read a few books this week, but I can't even remember them all.

For sure, I know I read:
Silhouette in Scarlet by Elizabeth Peters
The French Inheritance by Anne Stevenson
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson

The first two books weren't spectacular at all. I liked Miss Pettigrew the best...it's the classic Cinderella story. A frumpy (yet secretly delightful!) old maid stumbles into immorality, a makeover, cocaine, lovers and more. No, seriously, the books involves all those. It was written in 1938 and is probably a sort of last gasp of frivolity before WWII hits hard.

Rating: 7.5/10

The book was just made into a movie, too. I haven't watched it yet, but I want to after reading the book.

Doggy days

Well, we've got a crazy new Jack Russell terrier in our house. He barks at my necklace that jangled, he hops up on the kitchen chairs and licks everything. So it's perfect that I read To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis.

It's fantasy...or at least involves lots of time travel. Ned Henry, a historian, has been forced into duty for Lady Schrapnell, a wealthy American who is rebuilding a demolished cathedral. Lady S. has been sending historians and all other sorts of people back into time looking for "the bishop's bird stump," which you eventually find out is just a statute/vase.

The action, in my opinion, is a bit slow and confusing at first. I almost quit reading it, but I stuck it out and am glad I did. This is silly, but Ned was exhausted in the first 150 pages or so--all he wanted to do was sleep and I felt so bad for him. He'd go to bed, have an awful night's sleep and still be "time-lagged" (from all that time traveling). If he had been more rested, I could've enjoyed it more. Yes, I'm ridiculous.

After a beautiful historian named Verity accidentially puts their whole universe into jeopardy, Ned and Verity travel to Victorian England to set things aright. They try and try but eventually learn that life is self-correcting. The plot is clever, twisting and definitely gets better as you go on.

The secondary characters are excellent and make the plot. All of them play a vital role, too, which is nice. There's a bit of mystery, history, romance and humor. It's definitely a comedy of manners, so don't expect rip-roaring laughter.

The title (and maybe the book?) is partially a play on Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat. I have never read the book, so I'm not sure....anyone else know?

Rating: 7.5/10

I may be shallow...

I don't know anything about Robert Buckley other than what Wikipedia told me, but isn't he a hottie? I guess he's an actor and according to IMDB, he's a foot taller than me. I wonder if he likes "petite" girls?

Even better!

I've continued reading Elizabeth Peters' Vicky Bliss series and wow--this is definitely a case where the second book in the series was way more enjoyable. Street of the Five Moons was thoroughly enjoyable.
To be honest, I have no idea why this cat is on the cover. I don't get it. Whatever, let's talk about the book, which featuers Vicky Bliss, a museum curator in Munich. I talked about the first book in the series here.

Vicky, as a character, was far more enjoyable and less focused on proving her intelligence. She's more focused on sleuthing--and romance (well, kind of). There's a slightly complicated plot involving jewelry, metal work, lying, kidnapping and theft. The plot was interesting and kept the book moving, yet didn't overshadow the characters.

Speaking of characters, I really liked the introduction of John Smythe, who I guess will be in later books. He's a con man, thief, etc., who Vicky has a few romantic entanglements with--but there's a tension between how bad or good he really is. Vicky and John had great dialogue and interaction; the two of them make this book a definite re-read.

Overall, it was a satisfying read and my kind of mystery--interesting, filled with great characters and humorous.

Rating: 9/10

Not quite mayhem

Looking back on my reading past, I can't really pinpoint the time when I said "okay, sci-fi might not be so bad." It have been the Lord of the Rings series. I'm not hardcore by any means; books purely about aliens, spaceships and conquering new worlds don't really excite me. I like sci-fi books (or TV shows--yeah Firefly!) that are about people and just happen to be set in a different time, world and place.

So that's a long introduction to say that I like Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan saga. My latest read in that series is Miles, Mystery & Mayhem. It's actually three stories in one, but they do connect.

Yeah, cheeeesy cover. Why do most sci-fi books have super-cartoony covers?

Anyway, the three books follow a basic theme: genetics and humanity--and what role humans play in controlling those two. Still, the books are fast-paced, interesting, have great dialogue and keep me entertained. There's basically no romance (at least so far)--and I still like it!

If you're in the mood for just a good adventure read, I'd recommend this series.

Rating: 8.5/10

old cover, but...

So I've never watched High School Musical, although I have caught my brother watching it (yes, he was a bit ashamed). I likely never will. Regardless, this cover featuring Zac Efron is hot.

I think this cover is from January, but whatever, I like it. Happy Hottie Monday.

Exotic lands

I read on Lauren Willig's blog that her current Pink Carnation book will be set in India--I'm so excited for that! Something about colonial India is just so fascinating to me.

That's one reason I picked up A Singular Hostage by Thalassa Ali.

It's set in Victorian India and follows Mariana Givens, a spinster whose last shot at marriage will likely be a soldier; after all, there's not many English women in India.

Instead, she falls into political intrigue, all centered around a toddler who is thought to have mystical powers. Marriage just may find its way into the intrigue, too....

It's a great look at India and its customs. Part one of a triology, I'm looking forward to reading more.

Rating: 7/10

Days later...

It's not a secret that I really like Stephenie Meyer's writing. I think she's amazing and has such an incredible imagination. Really, I could gush about her. (But I promise I'm not like the girls that dress up like her characters from the Twilight series or have a fansite; I just like her writing.) That being said, I was still a little "hmmmm" about The Host because it's about an alien.

First of all, what a mesmerizing cover! I had to flip it over to the back whenever I wasn't reading it because the eye was too intense.

The book itself was also intense--but so good! Here's a quick plot summary from Amazon: "Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. The earth has been invaded by a species that take over the minds of their human hosts while leaving their bodies intact, and most of humanity has succumbed.Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, knew about the challenges of living inside a human...But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn't expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind...Unable to separate herself from her body's desires, Wanderer yearns for a man she's never met. As outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off to search for the man they both love."

The awesome part of this book? It's not really about a love triangle--it's about defining what a human is and what connects people. The ending is powerful and beautiful (and happy! As you get into the book, you realize there can't be a happy ending, but again Meyer strikes with a perfect answer. I was so thrilled.)

Her treatment of love is great--you'll see that at the ending. Love is about a person's soul and not based on looks and lust. That's sadly a rare concept in many romance--and other--books.

That's enough; go read it. Days later I'm still thinking about it!

Rating: 10/10

JTT!

I was watching Veronica Mars tonight (a shocker, I know) and midway through the show, I thought to myself, "is that Jonathan Taylor Thomas in this episode? Or am I crazy?"

Great news! I'm not--JTT definitely starred in one episode. He's a bit stockier than I remember and he was pretending to be a crazy guy, but wow, JTT just brings back memories of the '90s.

On a side note, Zachery Ty Bryan, who was also on Home Improvement, also starred on Veronica Mars an episode or two earlier. Random, indeed.

Rule of boring

Okay, here's the thing: my friend Becca recommended The Rule of Four and let me borrow her copy. The book is advertised as an academic Da Vinci Code--but it's not. (I'm sorry I didn't love it, Becca--I really wanted to!)

However, 56% of the people who reviewed the book on Amazon.com gave it a one or two-star rating. I am not alone!

Really, I just blame the marketing; if it had been promoted as an academic novel (lots of Greek, philosophy, etc.) with a hint of intrigue, it would've been better. I just went into it with different expectations.

The book centers on four Princeton students' senior year. The book is sort of about their friendship, but it's more about this ancient, mysterious book that begins with an "H" and I can't remember now. Anyway, one student unravels the hidden meaning and it leads to action...but the most exciting action is only alluded to; seriously, it was a WEAK ending--you think someone is dead, but oh wait....five years later, maybe he's not? (FIVE YEARS later??? What a jerk friend!)

Anyway, if you're bored, give it a shot. If you want an awesome academic novel, try The Secret History by Donna Tartt--it's truly fabulous.

Rating: 5/10

Oh my

Andy Roddick, you are gorgeous and a talented tennis star. I also saw you depants one of your tennis friends while he was being interviewed on The Tonight Show.

So I may have had this plan where I would work at his charity foundation, meet him, we'd fall in love and then get married. Last I heard (via my dad, who watches hours of tennis a week), Andy is engaged to some model. Whatever. Andy, we could have helped so many children fight childhood disease and better themselves educationally.

Still, I think this plan of mine could work; I'm just going to have to find another hott guy who has started his own charity.

Tortuous

Not too long ago, I read Priced to Move. It was okay--okay enough that I decided to read A Steal of a Deal, the second book in the series.

Pretty cover; annoying writing inside. It's southern chick lit on overdrive--way too hick for me. (Yeah, it's set in Kentucky.) There was a lot of bad grammar (aka dialect), annoying asides, too many emotions and a lack of reasoning by the main character, Andie. Seriously, I wanted to smack this girl.

The plot is very similar to the first book. The stars of STUD (a home shopping network) go to an exotic place and get entangled in gem smuggling, murder and mayhem. Andie then struggles with her warring emotions toward Max, her STUD show co-star. She consistently suspects him of awful things, but you know that he's innocent. You just want to smack her for being so ridiculous.

What conclusively proved to me that this book wasn't so great is that I picked out the murderer in the first 40 pages or so--and a murder hadn't even occurred yet! It was just way too obvious.

At least it was a super fast and light read.

Rating: 4/10

The Pause That Refreshes

In honor of this last book that I read, I just finished off an iced glass of Coca-Cola. After all, reading For God, Country and Coca-Cola: The Unauthorized History of the Great American Soft Drink and the Company That Makes It made me thirsty for a nice glass of Coke.

It's no secret to my friends that I love Coca-Cola (which I learned, thanks to this book, is always hyphenated). That picture is of a train station I saw in Germany. What a fabulously huge advertisement.

Anyway, the book only covers up to 1990, but it's still a fascinating look at Coke. I learned all sorts of trivia like:
*Coke caused riots in France.
*For decades, Coke referred to Pepsi as "the competitor," "the enemy" and other names--but never by the P-word.
*The introduction of "New Coke" caused a huge uproar--so huge that Coke brought back the old formula.

If you like corporate history or Coca-Cola, you'll like this book. It was interesting enough to keep me entertained--and I generally don't read nonfiction!

Rating: 9/10

magical

While wandering at the library, I saw Pomegranate Soup. Out of curiousity, I picked it up. It's a story about three Iranian girls who move to Ireland and start a café. The cover blurb also promised hints of magic realism, which I love. (Magic realism: realism with hints of fantasy or magic.) Food and magic realism? I was in.


Marsha Mehran did a great job of combining cultures. Readers experience Iranian food (which sounds utterly delicious--Mehran provides recipes!), Irish scenery and an overall comfy feeling. The plot is simple: the sisters adjust to living in Ireland and try to run a café. Yet, there's much more--flashbacks, interactions and slow realizations that add spice to this book.

Characterization is great. All three sisters are very different, yet likeable. Secondary characters added depth to the story and never detracted. The writing was luscious and reminded me a lot of Suzanne Strempek Shea's Becoming Finola (also set in Ireland and absolutely a wonderful book).

Basically, it's an international best-seller for a reason. Check it out.

Rating: 9/10

Car rides

So I drove and rode to Tennessee this weekend, which meant I had some time for reading. And read I did!

I've been a bit unsure of starting Elizabeth Peters' Vicky Bliss series. I don't know why, but I was. Feeling brave, I picked up Borrower of the Night, book one in the series.

My overall opinion? Not bad. Vicky Bliss is beautiful, tall and smart. She's also very afraid of not being taken seriously in the academic world, so she works hard to prove her intelligence. Her struggle to prove herself takes her to Europe in search of a hidden art treasure.

The story was interesting, intelligent and filled with bits of humor. The art and history sprinkled in was great, as were the many characters--who I was actually able to keep straight! I've heard the second book is even better, so I'm going to keep on reading the series.

Rating: 7/10

My brother introduced me to a fabulous place: McKay Books. I only spent an hour there scouting through their used books (thanks a lot, family!) but I could've spent so much more time. Thousands and thousands of books...my mouth is drooling again. Evidently I was in a Elizabeth Peters because I picked up Greygallows by Barbara Michaels (who is also Elizabeth Peters) for only $.85.

Greygallows is very gothic; set in the early 1800s, a rich orphaned girl is basically forced into marriage with a handsome--but evil!--young man. Michaels did a good job depicting the helplessness of women in that era. Lucy, the heroine, is kept out of meetings concerning her own wealth and holdings and she couldn't do anything about it.

Michaels doesn't come across as a strong feminist but certainly seems to support equal education for the sexes as well as equal intelligence, meaning men and women can reach the same intellectual heights. Rock on, sister.

Now, the book itself isn't bad, it's just dark and dreary. I did like that Lucy actually used her brain and didn't foolishly fall into traps or make awful decisions. It had a happy ending (yay!). Still, it just wasn't my favorite book.

Rating: 6/10

Hottie Monday, Monday, Monday

Today is an international version of Hottie Monday. Meet Takeshi Kaneshiro.

He starred in House of Flying Daggers. I can't remember if House has a happy ending; probably not, as I found out in my Asian movie period phase. (Typical ending: girl dies and the lovers don't end up together.) Takeshi Kaneshiro also starred in other movies like Mermaid Got Married. (Speaking of funny translations, if you have a spare moment, Engrish.com is really funny. And having lived in Japan, I know it's definitely true, too.)

Anyway, Takeshi is a very nice-looking young man, isn't he? Happy International Monday.

The smartest monster ever

As I've been reading "light" fiction lately, I thought it was time to break out another classic. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was my pick.

I surprised myself by actually enjoying it. (What a cool cover! And yes, electricity was a big part of the book.)

First of all, I'm fascinated by Mary Shelley. She's the daughter of feminist authoress Mary Wollstonecraft and philosopher William Godwin. She married Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. She wrote Frankenstein when she was 18. Wow.

Anyway, the plot of this novel is familiar, so I won't go into that. Let me just say that the monster is not at all what I expected. He's very....introspective. And literate. And emotional.

Rating: 9/10

I'm off to Tennessee tomorrow, but I've packed my bags full of good reading. Here's hoping I get to read all of it!

WIKIPEDIA!!!!! ARRRGH!

Okay, so I've been enjoying Veronica Mars. I get obsessed with a show, watch all the episodes and then move on--usually after the show is abruptly cancelled and disappoints me. It's happened so many times....Alias, JAG, Remember WENN (did anyone else ever watch this show? It was on AMC like a decade ago) and so many more...

So I decided to make Teddy Dunn my hottie tonight....who stars as "Duncan Kane" on Veronica Mars. Well, I did a little bit of Wikipedia research and then found out HE LEAVES THE SHOW in season two. Great--so he and Veronica won't ever be together!?! This is the problem of watching cancelled TV shows--you can find out waaaay too easily what's happened. I shall have to guard my eyes from now on.

So, although I'm a bit upset that you left the show, Teddy, you can star in Hottie Monday.

He looks like a teddy bear, doesn't he?

Stumbling

While I was searching for a decent link for Coil of Serpents, I stumbled across this Gothic Romance bibliography. Randomly, it's part of the Missouri Secretary of State's website. Although to be fair, it is part of (maybe?) their state library's pages.

If you click here, you'll find tons of bibliographies for all sorts of genres. I think I may go explore it now.

Four in one?

I've been a busy reading girl this week. (Since it's FINALLY warm enough to be outside for longer than 10 minutes, I've started eating my lunch outside, which translates to more reading time. It's amazing how surfing the Internet can eat your lunch break away. Hmmm.)

So in the past week I've finished and/or read:
A Broken Vessel by Kate Ross (the second mystery that features Julian Kestrel, who I really like)
--- Nice mystery, interesting characters, good twists
--- Rating: 8.5/10

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
--- Young Adult novel, fantasy adventure novel, mystery (kind of), great ending
--- Rating: 9/10

Coil of Serpents by Anne Stevenson (yeah, I couldn't find a good link for this book)
--- Good for fans of Mary Stewart: it featured a girl who travels abroad, looking for her "missing" (aka just hiding out, mooching off of people) stepfather who falls in love with a suspicious guy. Danger, adventure, traveling and history abound. I thought it was set in the 1950s...until it randomly mentioned a disco. Yeah, it's set in the 1970s, but it didn't end up bothering me. I'd re-read it.
--- Rating: 9/10

Book I did not finish:
The Silk Vendetta by Victoria Holt
--- So overdramatic and filled with the same lines over and over and over and over. It was dull and BORING.
--- Rating: 5/10

I'm heading off to Tennessee later this week and am hoping to get more good reading time in. Yay.