The Kari AnnAlysis

Release: July 1, 2006

Oh, where do I begin with this book? Reed Brennan is leaving her small town to go to Easton Academy where she has received a scholarship. She quickly realizes she doesn’t fit in. She doesn’t have money like the rest of the students and she’s never been good at making friends.

The first night on campus she is mesmerized by a group of girls in a dorm acorss from hers. They are all beautiful and drinking wine. She soon learns that these are the Billings Girls. They’re the most popular, prettiest and she decides she’ll do anything to be part of them.

She gets that chance, although it consists of running around and grabbing them lunch. Not what she expected, but better than nothing.

She’s also met a boy, a senior. Thomas is a hottie and they hit it off quickly. But Thomas is keeping a secret and she realizes there’s going to be a lot of ups and downs at Easton. From grades, to boys, to the Billings Girls. You never know what the next day has in store for you.

If you’ve been following me for a whlei, you know I love, love, love private schools. I thoroughly enjoyed my schooling and growing up where and how I did, but something in me has always been intrigued my private schools. So of course, from the get go, I love this series.

This book reminds me a lot about my teen years. All the drama, all the trying to fit in and egt good grades and getting boys to like you … I sure don’t miss that. I do like living it vicariously through others though. As long as I don’t have to deal with the pain, I can handle it.

This is a very quick, dramatic read that left me wanting more. And that is a good thing because I have the first 10 in the series on my book shelf along with the prequel.  I have already fallen for some of the characters. There are some that I love (Taylor), some that I hate (Thomas) and some that I can’t decide because they’re like ice and fire (Noelle). I am eager to get through this series though and I don’t think it’ll take me too long.

I give Private four bookmarks (yes, I know I’ve been very bookmark happy in the past month. I’ve been reading some great ones).

Release: April 2008

Oh Sookie, poor Sookie. When will she ever learn? No matter the amount of money, being at a vampire conference is not worth it. Hopefully after this installment, she’ll remember that.

It’s time for the vampire summit. It had to be moved because of Hurricane Katrina, but it’s finally time. Sookie is tagging along with the Queen of Louisiana so she can read other humans minds to make sure nothing will happen to the Queen. But in a summit this big, you better believe there will be drama.

It starts when a few vampires end up dead in their rooms, a “bomb” is found made out of a Dr. Pepper can and oh yeah, there is a mass casualty situation. Sookie is trying to figure it all out. Of course she does, and there’s one killer you can probably guess and one you definitely won’t, but when the book is over, you’ll find yourself saying, “That makes sense.”

All of the popular characters are in this book. Bill, Eric, Pam, the Queen and her entourage, and even previous vampires Sookie has come across. Amelia is still staying with Sookie and Jason marries into the werepanther family.

I absolutely loved this book. Everyone that I have come to love in this series made an appearance. Some of them were small ones, but it was fun to have everyone around at one point or another.

I loved that Harris based this book around Hurricane Katrina. It affected the lives of so many people and she made it affect the vampires too, like they are really part of society.

There were a lot of little plot twists that kept you thinking. When Sookie explains how all the drama went down at the end, I couldn’t help but think, “man I read a lot of drama without realizing it until now.”

This is so personal opinion about the characters, but I am head over heels for Quinn. First of all, he’s a tiger. I mean, how can you not love a tiger? Also, in this book, Quinn took action into his own hands when someone wronged Sookie. Got to love the strong type.

I only have one more Sookie Stackhouse book left on my shelf. It is going to have a hard time living up to this one. I give All Together Dead 5 bookmarks.

Sookie Stackhouse Series
1. Dead Until Dark
2. Living Dead in Dallas
3. Club Dead
4. Dead to the World
5. Dead as a Doornail
6. Definitely Dead

Books Read:
Poseur: Petty in Pink
One Amazing Thing
Definitely Dead
The Time Traveler’s Wife
LA Candy
To read the reviews for these books, click here.

Pages Read:
1653

Bookmarks Given:
1. 0 Bookmarks
2. 0 Bookmarks
3. 1 Bookmark
4. 4 Bookmarks
5. 0 Bookmarks

Favorite Book:  I would probably go with The Time Traveler’s Wife. I really enjoyed LA Candy, but The Time Traveler’s Wife was written very well. I am still wondering how she came up with such an awesome plot.
Least Favorite Book: This month this is tough, I really liked all the books I read, but if it goes by bookmarks, Petty in Pink only got 3. Every other book got 4.

Goals for March: FINALLY begin the Private series and finish up the books I have about Sookie Stackhouse. I am reading one and have one left on my shelf. Also, I am looking forward to adding some books to my YA Challenge. My goal for the year is 25. I have read 2

Looking forward to in March: Hopefully nicer weather so I can sit outside and read

Release: June 16, 2009

Follow Lauren on Twitter

What would it be like to be on a reality show? In this book, we find out. Jane and her BFF Scarlett move to LA. They’re fresh out of high school and ready to be on their own. Jane is starting an internship with a very well-known event planner and Scarlett is going to USC.

They’re only in LA a few days getting a feel for the city when they are approached at a bar by a TV producer. It just so happens this producer is looking for some girls to be on a new show about life in LA. Who better to join the show than two girls just getting their feet wet?

Jane and Scarlett agree, along with two girls they don’t meet until a night of filming, Madison and Gabby, to do the show. Soon it becomes apparent to everyone that Jane is the star of the show. This just doesn’t sit well with one of the girls and she’ll do anything to bring Jane down. And yes, this includes a little payoff with the paparazzi to catch Jane in an uncompromising position with a very handsome, but very *not* her boyfriend.

First of all, I had a hard time letting these characters be themselves. There were many times I’d try to imagine, “Now is that Heidi or Audrina?”. It took me a while to not think about Lauren’s real life in this book. I agree with write what you know, and who knows better about reality? I guess I just needed to clear my slate a little better before I started.

With that said, I really liked the book. I liked how she used real places, like Les Deux, the bar where they are discovered. I felt like I got enough from the characters, but then again, not so much that I am bored with them. I will definitely pick up Sweet Little Lies when it comes out in paperback.

I think Lauren did a nice job writing and keeping me reading. It was a quick, fun read and it’s one of those books that although its fiction, I feel like I learned about a new life and place from it.

One of the things I liked after the book was that there were little messages, tweets and pics from Lauren from the book tour. I like getting into the lives of the authors. I feel like I get to know then when I read their thoughts, but diving a little more into their lives amazes me. (Not that I don’t know everything possible about Lauren Conrad after years of Laguna Beach and The Hills.

I give LA Candy 4 stars.

Release: May 2004

Henry DeTamble isn’t your normal man. One minute you’ll see him, the next you won’t. That’s right, he’s a time traveler. He meets Clare when she is 6. He is 36. He leaves her with a list of dates so she knows when to come back, bringing him clothes and food. This continues until she is 18. Then, they are on a 2 year hiatus. In that time, it is up to Clare to catch up with Henry in the present and explain to him why she knows so much about him, but he hasn’t met her yet. He won’t time travel to back her a few more years. Clare and Henry end up married, like they both knew they would and try their hardest to live with Henry’s time travel, try to solve it’s mystery and have a child.

This is one of the hardest descriptions I’ve ever had to write. There’s so much that goes on and for a while in the book, you’re not sure where you’re going to go next, so you’re not sure where to book mark as an important part. There were some parts that came up again that I had to go back and reference when they were brought up the first time, remembering vaguely that I had heard this before.

Audrey Niffenegger is a genius. This is an unbelievable book. And it puts her up on the list with JK Rowling as someone I’d like to have coffee with and pick their brains. She’s one of those people who make you sit and wonder “how did they think of that?”.

This book was very well written and very well thought out. When Clare was little, the writing sounded like a 6 year old. When she was in college, the writing changed to match her intelligence. When we were with little Clare, I could imagine her reading her story to me herself.

I normally like a book that is a little lighter. Yes, this is a love story, but it does not have a happy ending. It ended up being a terribly sad story of a girl who falls in love at the age of 6 and spends her whole life waiting for Henry. I felt sad for Clare so many times as she was wondering where her love was, wondering if he’d come back safe, wondering how much longer she’d had with him and if they’d ever found a cure. I admired Clare for her commitment to Henry. Many women would not have waited around for him or even believed he was a time traveler in the first place. And most probably wouldn’t have been able to put up with the stress. That’s a love to admire.

I look forward to seeing the movie that coincides with the book, but I am going to have to wait a while. I am not sure if I can go through the heart break so soon.

I give The Time Traveler’s Wife 4 bookmarks. While I enjoyed it and I felt it, it is not something I think I’ll read again. At times I wondered if I was ever going to get through it, it was over 500 pages long.