Have you ever read a book that has hooked you with the plot, but you really don’t like the characters all that much? The Jane Austen Marriage Manual was like that for me. I finished the book in two days because I wanted to keep reading and see what happened (doesn’t hurt that the last half of the book took place in Europe, more or less), but I had no sympathy for Kate or her predicament.

Kate Shaw has just turned forty. She’s also just lost her job, her beloved grandmother, and her house. I think we can all agree that that’s not a pleasant situation to be in. Her solution? Marry for money.

Okay, it’s a little more complicated than that. She’s writing an article for a fashion magazine about how the tactics Jane Austen’s characters use to secure a husband apply to today’s modern world. Then she decides to live the article and find herself a rich husband. (Anyone else see parallels to How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days?) Maybe it’s because I just don’t like the shallow, money-hunting version of Kate that she becomes. Her friends claim that she’s no longer the Kate that they know and love. The readers never really get to know that Kate before she turns shallow, so it makes her harder to love.

Other characters in the book will draw you in, though. Griff, of course. And I like Kate’s sister Ann a great deal. The plot had plenty of twists to make you keep wondering what would happen next (while being predictable in the chick-lit-romance-novel sort of way – that’s to be expected). It was a good read, but not a great one. It does explore some interesting questions: Is love essential in a marriage? What does it take to marry for money and security? It definitely was a fun look at trying to make Jane Austen apply today.

There have been a lot of pictures of stacks of books on here this week. Between a trip to the library (my Library Loot post) and a used book sale (The Wonder of Library Book Sales), my house is getting more crowded by the day. But what better to fill it with than books?

I also posted a review of Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu this week.

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig (Very enjoyable! I also checked the sequel out of the library, although I think I may save it for last so I can spend more time anticipating it.)

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover Bartlett

Probably The Lavender Garden by Lucinda Riley. It's on the top of my stack of library books, and that cover keeps drawing me in.

Friday, I discovered that our library was having their biannual book sale. Which meant that Saturday, I had to go. Especially since Saturday is cram-anything-you-can-into-a-paper-bag-for-$5 day. I took full advantage of this. Three paper bags and $15 later, here's what I came home with:

The stack on the right is my husband's (aka, the Enabler - you can see why that name is fitting. Who do you think lugged those three bags around?). The other four stacks are mine. I found 49 books, although I think I ended up with a couple duplicates of some I already own. But at $5 a bag, what does it hurt to throw it in, just in case? Here's a closer look at my four stacks. . .

Now I just need bookshelf space to put them on and time to read them all!

How about you? Have you ever loaded up with books at a library book sale?

I've been trying to stay away from libraries for the past couple of months. During the school year, I don't get nearly as many books read, which means the due date deadline causes more stress than it's worth sometimes. (I know, I know, I could check out fewer books and that would solve the problem, but I have yet to leave a library with less than 5 books in hand. Usually twice that.) This week, I visited the library twice (although that second time was not my fault) to pick up books I had requested. And I have an excuse - reading challenges. We've got just over two months left in 2013, and I've got several reading challenges I need to finish up. Couldn't I just read books I already own? Well, yes, for most of them. But then I wouldn't get that library thrill!

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig
The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig (I've heard a lot of good things about this series, and they have colors in the titles! Two for one!)
The Lavender Garden by Lucinda Riley (Another color title, and it takes place in France.)
Sixpence House by Paul Collins (A man moves to a town in Wales known as the "Town of Books." I have a feeling I'll want to move there too after I read this book.)
The Man Who Loved Books Too Much by Allison Hoover Bartlett (Rare book collecting is a crazy world.)
The Mao Case by Qiu Xiaolong (I never would have picked this book up if the author's last name didn't start with X. I finished it earlier this week, and discovered that I am woefully ignorant about Chinese history.)
Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler (Ever since I read The Great Gatsby in high school, I've been fascinated by the Fitzgeralds.)

This is really two books in one. The first half of the book introduces Hazel and Jack – two best friends who rely on each other for everything. We follow Hazel through her school day of getting bullied and not fitting in. And then we see her with Jack after school, and they just fit. The second half of the book is a fairy tale. Think Hans Christian Andersen or the Brothers Grimm. Jack is kidnapped by a snow witch, and it’s Hazel’s task to enter the enchanted forest to bring him back to reality.

This dual story is both this book’s greatest asset and its greatest liability. It’s an asset because it sets this book apart from every other book following two best friends who grow apart. It’s a twist you would never expect, since the first half is regular realistic fiction. But even though I like fairy tales and I like the idea of the twist, I liked the first half of the book better. Ursu’s writing is phenomenal. Her descriptions of the characters and their feelings are so spot on. When Hazel entered the enchanted forest, though, some of that seemed to get lost. The fairy tale elements became the focus. It was almost as if Ursu was cramming all of the oblique fairy tale references she could into the narrative. Hazel’s progress as a character took a backseat. And the ending, to me at least, was rather anticlimactic. If the second half had lived up to the promise of the first half, this book would be on my to-buy-immediately list. As it is, I’ll definitely keep an eye out for a copy to add to my classroom library. This is a book many children would enjoy.

I have to reiterate that I loved Ursu’s writing and her grasp on the characters. Hazel was such a realistic character, almost as if Ursu was living inside the head of a fifth grade girl. I’ll gladly pick up other books by Anne Ursu just to re-experience seeing the world through her eyes.

Just two this week! It turned out to be a busier week than I expected.
Reviewlets - Going Clear; 365 Nights; Ex Libris
A to Z Bookish Survey (this was a lot of fun!)

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu (review coming tomorrow)
The Mao Case by Qiu Xiaolong

I have now completed half of my A-Z Reading Challenge!

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig

If all goes well with the book I'm reading now, I'll probably pick up the sequel next - The Masque of the Black Tulip. Otherwise, I've got a whole stack of library books to choose from!

I recently discovered this survey by Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner. I'm a little behind the times, because she posted it two months ago. . . but I'm participating now because it looks like tons of fun!

L. M. Montgomery, Lori Wick, C.S. Lewis and Georgette Heyer

I spent a lot of time thinking about this, and nothing came to mind that I could really call the best sequel ever. So instead I thought I'd pick a book I wish had a sequel: Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke.

The Mao Case by Qui Xiaolong

I read while I'm eating breakfast every day, but I don't think that counts. If I'm just sitting down to read for awhile and it's the least bit cold outside, it's hot chocolate all the way.

Physical book. And that would still be my choice even if I actually owned an e-reader. I love the size and the pages and the smell of physical books. E-readers just aren't the same (although the convenience-while-traveling argument is pretty convincing).

Gareth from The Once and Future King by T.H. White. A cheerful, good, kind knight? Yes, please!

The Flames of Rome by Paul Maier. It was much denser reading than I expected, having read other books by him. But I persevered until the story hooked me, and I'm glad I did! This book fueled my desire to visit Rome, which I was blessed to be able to do in 2010.

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein. Okay, it might not be that hidden because I've seen it pop up on a few book blogs this summer. But it's amazing and everyone should read it! You can check out my review here.

Discovering the world of book blogging. I can't believe I didn't even know this community existed before January! And I'm so excited to be part of it now!

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

Paranormal stuff. I read the Twilight series, but that's it. I'm out.

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

To Kill a Mockingbird. I just read it for the first time a few weeks ago, and I can't believe how amazing this book was.

Seven in my house, five in my classroom. And I still have piles of books on the floor with nowhere to go!

Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. Okay, I may have cheated a bit because that's really seven books. But I can't help it, I love them all!

Summer - outside in the sun
Winter - in my comfy chair upstairs in my library, with my feet propped up on the nice, warm radiator

"He's wild, you know. Not like a tame lion." - describing Aslan in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I love the picture that gives of God: He is so much more than we can expect or imagine!

Having waited so long to read To Kill a Mockingbird. I'm glad I wasn't forced to read it in high school, but there's been a good ten years since then when I could have had this experience.

Morgan Llywelyn's Irish Century series. I read the first four before I went to Ireland in 2007. It's about time I read the last book in the series!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Pretense by Lori Wick, and Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery

Jasper Fforde. I love his Thursday Next series, and you should, too!

Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo. I'm really looking forward to the happy ending of this series.

Buying more books than I have room for or can possibly read in a reasonable time frame.

All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot

Barnes & Noble trip this weekend resulted in adding Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan, The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen, The House I Loved by Tatiana de Rosnay, and Drop Dead Healthy by A.J. Jacobs to the piles of homeless books on my floor.

Someday, Someday, Maybe by Lauren Graham

I wasn’t planning to review this book, figuring I’d be too embarrassed to write about it (or admit I had read it). After all, the author has sex with her husband every day for an entire year. Not my typical reading material. But after I started reading, I realized that other women need to hear Muller’s message. The book is really a memoir of her entire marriage, not just that one year. It’s reassuring to know that many people run up against the same obstacles in their marriages. This is a great book to read for any married woman, especially if you have kids (which I don’t, but it was still relevant!).

Highly recommended for any lover of books. Fadiman is a superb essay writer, discussing everything from marrying libraries to sesquipedalians (one of my all-time favorite words). A reminder that all of us bibliophiles are not alone – there are others out there who have quirks just as weird as ours!

I noticed (halfway through, unfortunately) that Dewey's 24 hour Readathon was this weekend. I guess I missed out this time. I actually had a relatively free Saturday that I could have spent reading, too! Ah, well. I'll jump in the next time around in April. Did any of you participate in this readathon?

The Wicked Day by Mary Stewart (It's the story of Mordred, which is a really interesting take on the standard Arthurian legend)

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu (This is one of those books you pick up because of a reading challenge - a U author - and end up absolutely loving)

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig (I've heard a lot of good things about this series, and I'm excited to give it a try!)

There are a lot of different takes on time travel out there. It started as the province of science fiction, but has certainly branched out since then. Nowadays, it seems to be especially prevalent in YA fiction (but since I don’t read tons of YA, I could be wrong). I read Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier this summer, which is a YA book about time travel. I enjoyed it, it was a fun read, and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series. Then I read The River of No Return. And maybe this wouldn’t have struck me if I hadn’t read them so close together, but here’s my big observation:

Time travel in adult fiction is treated more deeply and more seriously than time travel in young adult fiction.

I know, nothing like a sweeping generalization, right? (And feel free to disagree with me!) Time travel in The River of No Return matters. Not just to a few people here and there, but to societies of people across the ages. There are twists and motivations and hidden motives. War is involved, as well as the end of the world as we know it.

The River of No Return starts out unassumingly enough. Nick Falcott unintentionally jumps forward in time two hundred years. Now he has to learn how to navigate a new time and a new culture with technology that wasn’t even dreamt of when he was born. Honestly, following that premise would have been enough for me. That would make a very interesting story. But Ridgway was not content to leave it at that, and I am oh-so-glad she didn’t.

The River of No Return is time travel for grown-ups, but most of all, it’s just an all-around, really good story. Even if time travel isn’t your thing, you would enjoy reading this book. And if it is? Hold on to your hat – you’re in for a great ride!