Mondays with Megan: Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken Review

I have some exciting announcement for this lovely Monday afternoon. The new edition of The Inside View is available. This is exciting because now you can see all of the fun programs that are coming up this spring and summer. For example, Skin Care and Makeup for Teens, a Dance Party, and Tie Dying are just a few of the things I have planned. Check your mail, or stop in to the library to get your copy today. There will also be a practice SAT test offered May 1st at 9:30. If you are interested please call or register online.

Tomorrow is another Teen Scene in the Basement day. Stop in for snacks and video games. For a special treat there will also be KARAOKE! This is a one-time deal so don’t miss out.

That’s all for my exciting announcements, on to some of the exciting books I finished. First of all, I must confess that I only finished 2 books this week. In my defense I was busy doing important things like learning to play Dungeons and Dragons. If anyone is interested in starting a teen D&D group in the fall please let me know.

Now, as many of you know, I have recently discovered and fallen in love with the Bloody Jack series by L.A. Meyer. Well, the third book (or in my case, audiobook) does not disappoint! Jacky finally makes it back to London to reunite with her true love Jaimy, but of course things don’t go according to plan. Jacky finds herself sent back to sea, this time against her will, on a Royal Navy ship. She finds herself in some precarious situations with a lecherous captain, but it turns out that is nothing compared to the trouble she finds herself in after being declared a pirate! Another cliffhanger ending leaves you wanting more, and luckily, there is more. The next in the series is In the Belly of the Bloodhound and since both the book and the audio are checked out I am being forced to listen to something else. This is a good thing, really. So while I wait I am starting another series. The first book in the Keys to the Kingdom series is Mr. Monday, by Garth Nix. I have just started it, but I think I am going to enjoy this fantasy series. I’ll keep you posted.

The books that I managed to finish this week are Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken and Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins. Both are by debut authors and both are fantastic. Hex Hall is the first in a series about Sophie Mercer, a teen witch sent to a reform school for naughty magical teens. Her roommate is a vampire, her enemies are the popular witches, and her crush is totally dreamy and mysterious. When someone starts targeting the witches everyone naturally blames the vampire, but Sophie can’t believe it. As she works to clear her friend’s name she uncovers some startling information about both her self and the hottie Archer. Fun, fun, fun. Enough said. Read it.

I am not sure if Brightly Woven is going to be a series. It had a nice ending, but I would definitely read more about Sydelle and the wizard Wayland North. In any case, Brightly Woven works just fine as a stand-alone book. Sydelle Mirabel lives in a draught stricken village. One day the rains came, along with north, a mysterious wizard. As his reward for bringing rain North requests that Sydelle accompany him on an important but dangerous quest. Together the two set out to deliver an important message to the Imperial Sorceress. Secrets and betrayals plague the tenuous relationship between Syd and North, but with war imminent the two must work together maintain peace in the kingdom. This is a promising start for Ms. Bracken and I look forward to more from her.

Once again, I have gone on and on…so let me wrap this up with a little list.

Currently Reading: Aries Rising by Bonnie Hearn Hill
Currently Listening to: Mr. Monday by Garth Nix
To Read: Fly on the Wall by E. Lockhart and Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Happy Reading!

˜Megan

Mondays With Megan: Show the Library Some Love, It’s National Library Week

Hello all, it’s Monday again. The first Monday after Spring Break…must be tough. Sorry, but some of us haven’t had a spring break in years and are maybe just a teeny tiny bit jealous. Anyway, let’s change the subject.

This week is National Library Week. Show your library some love-check out a book or attend a program (or go crazy and do BOTH!). Here at RRPL it’s not too late to join in the disco ball making fun (Wednesday April 14, 6pm in the auditorium). Sign up now to make your very own disco ball out of the library’s scratched and discarded cds. This program also fits nicely with April’s “green theme” in honor of Earth Day.

This week also marks the return of Glee (my new love) on Tuesday night!

And here’s a little heads up for you: this week there will be some changes made to the computer system at the library so we will be closed on Friday.

How did I do with my pile o’ books last week? Eh. I finished The Agency: A Spy in the House by Y.S Lee. I really liked this debut novel and look forward to reading more Mary Quinn mysteries. I also finished The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting, which was equal parts page-turning suspense and heart-melting romance. I would recommend this to fans of Lisa McMann’s Wake series (which I also loved). The only other things I managed last week were two graphic novels. The first was Twilight: the Graphic Novel, vol.1. I found the graphic novel version to be very pretty. Some of the characters were more manga-style than other, which I found a bit weird, but overall I think the story was condensed nicely. I am not sure why they chose to end it at the meadow scene…oh, who am I kidding? More volumes=more money. The other graphic novel that I read was Station by Johanna Stokes, which is about a death aboard the International Space Station. This was a quick and suspenseful read and I would recommend to anyone interested in space exploration.

Currently reading: The Naughty List by Suzanne Young and Wish by Alexandra Bullen
Currently listening to: Under the Jolly Roger by L.A. Meyer (almost done!)
Up next to listen to: The Maze Runner by James Dashner
To Read ASAP: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins and Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

That’s all for now. Go Tribe and Happy Reading

˜Megan

Mondays with Megan: The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan Review

Ok, I will admit that I am usually among the last to discover how true “the hype” often is. Examples of things that are totally cool that I ignored for quite some time before finally caving and checking them out:
Harry Potter
Twilight
Lost
Bloody Jack
and most recently….Glee!
Oh, I heard the talk around work and saw all my friends’ Facebook status updates proclaiming their love for Glee, and yet 13 episodes went by before I decided to find out what all these Gleeks were talking about. Well, I have finally seen the light! This show has it all-the quirky characters, the loveable underdogs, the villainous cheerleading coach (seriously), the music, the dancing, the romance. *Sigh* Glee is awesome and I am officially hooked!

Between marathon Glee catch-up sessions and hosting Easter for 15 I only managed to read 1 book this week. I did finish listening to The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley, which was just lovely. Young Flavia de Luce is wickedly entertaining and I certainly look forward to listening to more of  her adventures in crime solving and chemistry. I also started listening to Under the Jolly Roger by L.A. Meyer, the third in the Bloody Jack series. If you have been following my ramblings and reviews you will know that Jacky Faber is my new favorite character and book three does not disappoint! The story does take some dark turns and the series is definitely moving into the PG-13 range, but Jacky remains her usual spirited, clever and kind-hearted self.

The book I managed to finish was The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan. This is companion novel to her earlier book The Forest of Hands and Teeth. This book features new characters and new horrors for the survivors of The Return. For those of you who are not familiar with the first book here is a quick recap: The world as we know it is gone. The living dead have taken over and only small pockets of humans have survived. This second book picks up many years after the end of the first. Mary is grown and this story focuses on her daughter, Gabry. The Dead-Tossed Waves is full of heartbreak, despair, and loss but through it all there is still a small glimmer of hope. There is a shocking twist in the story and plenty of romance as Gabry wavers between two guys. The ending left me wanting to more, so I hope Ms. Ryan is working on a sequel!

Currently Reading: The Agency: A Spy in the House by Y.S. Lee
Currently Listening to: Under the Jolly Roger by L.A. Meyer
To Read: The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting and Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken.

That’s all friends. Happy reading and Go Tribe!

˜Megan

March Review

 

Yay Spring! That could you this warm, wonderful weekend! For all of you on Spring Break looking for something to read be sure to check out my list of books on the next page.

As April begins I think a March in review is needed. Wow did I read a lot last month. Where did I find the time to read/listen to 18 books! I am staying on track with my goal to add variety to my reading. Here’s the breakdown:
6 Fiction
1 Science Fiction
4 Debut Authors
1 Historical Fiction
2 Graphic Novels
3 Audio books (1 of these was a mystery, 1 science fiction)
1 Adult Fiction (also a bit of a mystery)

My favorites?
1. The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
2. Heist Society by Ally Carter
3. Curse of the Blue Tattoo by L.A. Meyer
4. The Spellman’s Strike Again by Lisa Lutz
5. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

In Library news the Disco Ball Program has finally been rescheduled and there is still space. If you want to turn scratched and trashed CDs into a disco ball sign up now and I will see you on Wednesday April 14th at 6pm in the auditorium. C’mon, you know you want to…and I will have snacks!

Happy spring, Happy Friday, and Happy Reading! I will meet you back here on Monday.

˜Megan