The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

Summary (via the author's site): "The most powerful advisor to the King of Sounis is the magus. He's not a wizard, he's a scholar, an aging solider, not a thief. When he needs something stolen, he pulls a young thief from the King's prison to do the job for him.

Gen is a thief and proud of it. When his bragging lands him behind bars he has one chance to win his freedom-- journey to a neighboring kingdom with the magus, find a legendary stone called Hamiathes's Gift and steal it.

The magus has plans for his King and his country. Gen has plans of his own."

Review:  Fun! What a fun, likeable book. The plot twists were hinted at enough for me to kind of know they were coming, but not enough that I was bashed over the head with them.

I'm a fan of Gen. I didn't get a clear look at him from the outside (which is what often happens when you write in first person), so I don't know what he looks like or how old he is.

I would very much like to see a movie version of this book.

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, funny, is-or-would-be-a-good-movie, nook-ya

Rating:

Check it out, you guys!!

I made an Etsy shop! It exists and everything!

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

Summary (from here): "The Mortal War is over, and sixteen-year-old Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She's training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And—most importantly of all—she can finally call Jace her boyfriend.
But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering Shadowhunters, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second, bloody war. Clary's best friend, Simon, can't help her. His mother just found out that he's a vampire and now he's homeless. Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side—along with the power of the curse that's wrecking his life. And they're willing to do anything to get what they want. Not to mention that he's dating two beautiful, dangerous girls—neither of whom knows about the other one.

When Jace begins to pull away from her without explaining why, Clary is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: she herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. The stakes are higher than ever in City of Fallen Angels."

Review: Um. THAT JUST HAPPENED.

So here's my thing. This is the first book in a trilogy. (Or, y'know, the fourth book in a sextet. Whatever.) And so there's a little bit of closure to the storyline, but mostly ... it's a cliffhanger. So it's compelling and tense and I couldn't put it down (as it were), but now... the story isn't over. And I kind of needed it to be.

Because of course, now I have to WAIT...

Goodreads Shelves: addictive, fluffy, funny, is-this-a-kissing-book, my-kind-of-woman, nook-ya, read

Rating:

Resources for those of us who are obsessed with Twilight... in a bad way.

"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference."

-Elie Wiesel

-If the question is "What EXACTLY is wrong with Ms. Meyer's writing, hmmm?" the answer is found here.

-If you want to know what happens when your boyfriend /brother /father /friend who is a boy takes you up on the "you should READ it before you mock it!" challenge, go here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

-If you want a snarky play-by-play, go here.

-If you want to see what happened when NPR read it as a "cultural experiment," if you will, go here, here, here, and here.

-If you love Twilight without irony, do not click on any of the links above.

-If you have something to add, PLEASE TELL ME WHAT IT IS.