Mortal Instruments: City of Souls by Cassandra Clare

How I love these books!  I finished this book with mixed feelings.  On one hand I wanted to see it all end with a neat and tidy bow, happily ever after, but then oh how I wanted there to be loose ends so I would know she is writing more.  And I beleive that there will be more!  The story is picked up right after the previous book and takes on a ride to ride Jace and figure out how he and Sebastian aka Jonathon escaped. Sebastian and Kyle's characters are developed more as well as Alec and Magnus.  Jace was not himself in theis book and I missed his quick wit, although Simon tried to pick it up.  A lot goes on this time around and as characters are added it gets tough to follow who is who and who is doing what but I LOVE following each of them on thier journey.  I can not recommend this series more than I already have.  Once you read the first one you will be hooked for the long hall!

The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines

Another YA about the termoil of chooseing between two boys.  These boys however turn out to be best friends and cousins.  I enjoyed this light read.  The character development was good and I did very much become attached to the main character of Ash and the bad boy of Beau.  The only part that I am hesitant to recommend is the redudant mention of how she was a "good girl" but really was "bad" on the inside. I think that the author could have delved deeper into her feelings and used stronger adjectives to explain why she felt the way she did.  A lot of social complication could have been played out with her being a preachers daughter and high expectations.  It kind of reminded me of Footloose, in a very basic way, of course dancing wasn't a part of it.  Overall it has some twists and turns that kept me reading and was a quick and fun read for sitting in the sun on my porch.

On The Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves

I found this book highlighted in many magazines and on my amazon account and it looked interesting.  I was immediatley into the stranded on a desert island idea, as I am a Survivor fan.  I really liked watch them trying to survive alone and with limited knowledge.  Obviously, being from Chicago, they did not spend their weekends watching Survivor Man or anyother NatGeo show.  I thought I might fare better.  The real draw to this book was the fact the the characters were very different, in that the 30 year old teacher was hired to tutor the 16 year old boy for the summer.  The love interest between the two was very gradual and although it makes you wonder, deep down I thought....I would have totally gone there as well.  They were on the island for three years so it all ended up being age appropriate.  The one item that kind of picked at the back of my brain was the boy had been in remission for Luekemia.  It wasn't dwelled on or discussed much in the book after the initial introduction.  i worried through the book, and the trailer even said that they worried the cancer would return while they were on the island, but it wasn't really a story thread that continued through the book..I have to recommend this book as a really good summer read.

The Fault In Our Stars by: John Green

Wow! That's what I am left with after reading this book.  I read the review of this book in a magazine and when I saw it available through Scholastic Book orders I jumped at the chance to read it.  It is about a girl named Haxel that has cancer.  Through her support group she meets Augustus, another cancer survivor.  Together they struggle with terminal cancer and the affects it has on those they love.  I can't tell you more for fear of being a spoiler.  I picked this book up yesterday afternoon and didn't put it down until I finished it.  Which means I actually worked out on the eliptical for an hour so I wouldn't have to put the book down.  This book is another of those books that sticks with you and leaves you wanting more.  I even read the acknowledgments in hope of grappling more from the author.  Excellent read, although a deep subject matter.

Drawn in

As a crazed reader I read everything!  From the Sports magazines to whatever is available.  Guess that is why I love!  my kindle.  I can carry hundreds of books so I am never without a goodread.  Tha being said I am always reading and hunting magazines and online recommendation sights.  So.....I was intrigued by the buzz about FIFTY SHADES OF GREY.  Primarily because I have read some Twilight fan fiction and thought it was pretty good, as well as I have actually written some.  So I bought the book and sstarted reading it and for the first few chapters I kept waiting for a vampire to appear.  Not goon happen!  The author took the THEMES in Twilight and went with them.  I thought I would just read one and that would be it, but after I got pulled into the first, I immediatley bought the rest of the trilogy.  The author is a screen writer in London and she does an excellent job of building a story and by the middle of the second book the erotica part of the story really starts to be replaced by the emotional turmoil the characters go through.  I personally loved the books and read them non stop until I was finished.  For the adult reader I can't say enough about them.  Definitly not a YA!

Beautiful Disaster by Jaime McGuire

I was directed to this book after purchasing similar books on Amazon. (I love that feature) 
It is an inexpensive kindle book and I would have paid full price.  It had a good story with great characters.
Abby is the main character who had left her Kansas home to attend a small college far away from her past.  She is drawn into an underground fight club by her best friends boyfriend.   Ans as expected...she falls for the fighter.  The turmoil comes when her past comes past to haunt her and she is faced witht he fact she may be heading straight back to the life she tried so hard to escape.
At times I wanted to take the book and smack the characters in the head and Yell!  Talk to eachother!  But I felt the obsessive behaviors and chaotic emotions the characters expressed where spot on for that age group. 
Was a quick read and recommend it.  Definitly for the older YA.

Drought

Drought, by Pam Bachorz is a book I got with my teacher bonus points from Scholastic Books!
I was sucked into this book and couldn't put it down.  Not especially because it was so great, but because I kept waiting for something to happen.  It kept me hanging...tempting me and then I didn't feel it really delivered.  It had an interesting story line of a group of people in a type of cult that were hidden in the woods collecting cups of supposedly "Magic" water.  They had lived for 200 years in the woods and were waiting for their savior to come and save them. It reminded me of the Holocost in the sense that they were submissive and waiting for someone else to save them instead of saving themselves...but I was unclear on why they lived for so long and why they were living in the past and it was present times.  So I guess I have to say I liked it but felt it could have been  developed more.