A Tapestry of Spells by Lynn Kurland

Last year, Lynn Kurland became one of my favorite authors. I've read quite a few of her novels now, and the majority of them have been fantastic. I've only come across a couple of Kurland's books I haven't liked as much as the others, and one was a short story. With her newest offering, A Tapestry of Spells, the next in the Nine Kingdoms series that I adore, Kurland proves that she's a master of fantasy romance.

Sarah of Doìre, daughter of the village witch, worries her brother will use his dark magic to destroy the Nine Kingdoms, so she requests the help of the local mage, a man most of the villagers fear. His name, Sarah learns, is Ruith, and he's not the crotchety, centuries-old mage everyone thinks him to be. After a horrible incident at a well when he was ten years old, Ruith buried his magical powers and happily spent the next twenty years in seclusion. When Sarah arrives on his doorstep, begging his assistance in stopping her brother from wreaking havoc on the Kingdoms, Ruith strangely finds himself wanting to aid her on her quest.

I loved this book. I loved the unfolding layers of plot and character, and was fascinated to discover that Ruith and Sarah's story takes place at the same time that Morgan and Miach's story does in Star of the Morning. Kurland isn't just a storyteller, she's a story weaver, and the threads she weaves together create the most breathtaking, enthralling stories. I was hooked from the beginning, and was left craving more Sarah and Ruith at the end. I cannot wait for the next book in the series to come out!

5/5

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf--her wolf--is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human . . . until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human--or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

As with a lot of the books I read, I first heard about this book on a couple of other book blogs I frequent. The reviews were pretty good, and I became more and more excited to read Shiver. When the copy I ordered for one of my sisters' Christmas gifts didn't come in before her package had to be mailed (she lives in Scotland, so it had to be mailed early), I bought her another copy and kept the one I'd ordered for myself. As soon as my other book reading obligations were done, I delved into Shiver. And it was fairly interesting at first. But as the story progressed, the relationship between Sam and Grace just became a bit too unbelievable for me. This, coming from the girl who devours Twilight at least once a year... I don't know why I had such a problem with their relationship, when it was pretty much the same as Edward and Bella's. Somehow, Sam and Grace just rubbed me the wrong way. Edward slept in Bella's bed and I had no problem with it, but once Sam began sleeping in Grace's bed I knew things would progress to a level that bothered me, and I was right. Also, the dialogue was just so cheesy at times that I had to roll my eyes. The middle part of the book was slow, too, and my interest didn't pick up again until close to the end.

Speaking of the end, I thought it was perfect. No need for a sequel, although I know there's already a sequel planned for release later this year. And while I don't think a sequel is necessary, I plan on reading it anyway.

So, I liked Shiver, but I guess my expectations were too high. I need to learn how to not expect so much from books, I guess, because I've been disappointed a lot lately. I did love the cover, though, and I loved that the text in the book was blue.

3.5/5

Deadly Little Lies by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Book two in the Touch series, after Deadly Little Secret, Deadly Little Lies picks up the story of Camelia four months after Ben broke her heart and left town. A new school year is starting, and rumor is that Ben is coming back. Ben has the gift of psychometry, the ability to sense the future through touch, and since he touched Camelia that first time when he saved her life, Camelia has been experiencing her own strange premonitions. Has Ben's gift rubbed off on her? She's eager to talk to Ben about it all, but he avoids her like the plague. When warning notes start showing up in her room and at school, Camelia is convinced that her life is once again in danger. She longs for Ben to touch her because one touch from him will reveal whether the threat is real, but Ben continues to avoid contact with her. Deciding that it's time to move on, Camelia agrees to go out with the new boy at work, Adam. As the threats against her life continue, secrets about both Ben and Adam come to light, and Camelia isn't sure who to turn to.

I enjoyed Deadly Little Lies. This series is definitely entertaining enough to keep me reading, even knowing that there are three more books to come. I don't know why five books are needed to tell Camelia's story -- I thought DLL was a bit drawn out, as it is -- but I'll keep reading because I'm intrigued by Camelia and Ben, and I want to know what happens to them. I do wish that Camelia would choose either to trust or not trust Ben, and then stick with her decision. As in the last book, she flip-flopped on the trust issue a lot, and it was really annoying.

3.5/5

2009 review

I read 119 books last year, which was an all-time high. I had hoped for more, but December was a really slow reading month for me. I'd at least wanted to finish reading Dreamquake, the second book in the Dreamhunter Duet, but that obviously didn't happen. I'm still not finished, but I am hoping that I will be by tomorrow. Then I may blog about both books. We'll see.

My favorites of 2009? I honestly don't know. Looking back at my list (not at my ratings because I'm too lazy to do a search right now; I'll go by the titles that stand out to me at this point): anything by Lynn Kurland, especially the Nine Kingdoms series (which has a new book out on Tuesday!). Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. Graceling and Fire by Kristin Cashore. The Ordinary Princess by M.M. Kaye. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. As Shadows Fade by Colleen Gleason. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. The Percy Jackson books (especially books 4 and 5) were pretty good, too.

So, there you have it.

Happy 2010!

Books read in 2009

DECEMBER

119. Dreamhunter (Dreamhunter Duet #1) - Elizabeth Knox

118. The Duggars: 20 and Counting! - Michelle & Jim Bob Duggar

117. On Mystic Lake - Kristin Hannah

116. The Forgotten Garden - Kate Morton

115. Resistance - Anita Shreve

NOVEMBER

114. Deadly Little Secret (Touch #1) - Laurie Faria Stolarz

113. Heat Wave - Richard Castle

112. The Household Guide to Dying: A novel about life - Debra Adelaide

111. Twilight - Stephenie Meyer (reread)

110. New Moon: The Complete Illustrated Movie Companion - Mark Cotta Vaz

109. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - John Boyne

108. Impossible - Nancy Werlin

107. Forest Born (The Books of Bayern #4) - Shannon Hale

OCTOBER

106. The Bright Side of Disaster - Katherine Center

105. Fire - Kristin Cashore

104. Not Lost Forever: My Story of Survival - Carmina Salcido with Steve Jackson

103. Three Times Blessed (Belles of Timber Creek #2) - Lori Copeland

102. Twice Loved (Belles of Timber Creek #1) - Lori Copeland

101. The Christmas List - Richard Paul Evans

100. Still Alice - Lisa Genova

99. Jane Austen Ruined My Life - Beth Pattillo

98. The Help - Kathryn Stockett

97. Homecoming - Cynthia Voigt

96. The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment - A.J. Jacobs

95. The Best of Times - Penny Vincenzi

94. Everyone is Beautiful - Katherine Center

93. The Cinderella Pact - Sarah Strohmeyer

SEPTEMBER

92. The Last Song - Nicholas Sparks

91. Little House in the Big Woods - Laura Ingalls Wilder

90. From This Moment On (de Piaget #8) - Lynn Kurland

89. Resilience: Reflections on the Burdens and Gifts of Facing Life's Adversities - Elizabeth Edwards

88. Love is a Four-Legged Word - Kandy Shepherd

87. The Sleeping Beauty Proposal - Sarah Strohmeyer

86. When Love Blooms - Robin Lee Hatcher

85. The Convenient Marriage - Georgette Heyer

84. Thirteen Reasons Why - Jay Asher

83. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins

82. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins (reread)

AUGUST

81. The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson & the Olympians #5) - Rick Riordan

80. Rebecca - Daphne du Maurier

79. Stargazer (Evernight #2) - Claudia Gray

78. Evernight - Claudia Gray (reread)

77. The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson & the Olympians #4) - Rick Riordan

76. The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson & the Olympians #3) - Rick Riordan

75. The Sea of Monsters (Percy Jackson & the Olympians #2) - Rick Riordan

74. The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson & the Olympians #1) - Rick Riordan

73. With Every Breath (MacLeod #8) - Lynn Kurland

72. And the Groom Wore Tulle [from Veils of Time Anthology] (MacLeod #3) - Lynn Kurland

71. The Very Thought of You (MacLeod #2) - Lynn Kurland

70. A Dance Through Time (MacLeod #1) - Lynn Kurland

JULY

69. Thanks for the Memories - Cecelia Ahern

68. Twenties Girl - Sophie Kinsella

67. This Is All I Ask (de Piaget #6) - Lynn Kurland

66. I Am the Messenger - Markus Zusak

65. Dreams of Stardust (de Piaget #3) - Lynn Kurland

64. A Bride in the Bargain - Deeanne Gist

63. Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict - Laurie Viera Rigler

62. On the Way to the Wedding (Bridgertons #8) - Julia Quinn

61. It's In His Kiss (Bridgertons #7) - Julia Quinn

60. When He Was Wicked (Bridgertons #6) - Julia Quinn

59. To Sir Phillip, With Love (Bridgertons #5) - Julia Quinn

58. Another Chance to Dream (de Piaget #1) - Lynn Kurland

JUNE

57. Romancing Mr. Bridgerton (Bridgertons #4) - Julia Quinn

56. An Offer From a Gentleman (Bridgertons #3) - Julia Quinn

55. The Viscount Who Loved Me (Bridgertons #2) - Julia Quinn

54. The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow

53. A Rogue of My Own - Johanna Lindsey

52. Mistress Shakespeare - Karen Harper

51. If I Had You (de Piaget #2) - Lynn Kurland

50. The Actor and the Housewife: A Novel - Shannon Hale

49. Angels & Demons - Dan Brown

48. The Duke and I (Bridgertons #1) - Julia Quinn

47. Multiple Blessings: Surviving to Thriving With Twins and Sextuplets - Jon & Kate Gosselin

46. Till There Was You (de Piaget #11) - Lynn Kurland

45. The More I See You (de Piaget #7) - Lynn Kurland

MAY

44. The Ordinary Princess - M.M. Kaye

43. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet - Jamie Ford

42. The Lion's Lady - Julie Garwood (reread)

41. When I Fall in Love (de Piaget #4) - Lynn Kurland

40. The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever - Julia Quinn

39. Sarah's Key - Tatiana de Rosnay

38. Twilight Director's Notebook: The Story of How We Made the Movie - Catherine Hardwicke

37. The Lost Duke of Wyndham - Julia Quinn

36. When Twilight Burns - Colleen Gleason (reread)

35. As Shadows Fade - Colleen Gleason (reread)

34. A Promise to Believe In (Brides of Gallatin County, Book 1) - Tracie Peterson

APRIL

33. Mr. Cavendish, I Presume - Julia Quinn

32. The Mists of Avalon - Marion Zimmer Bradley

31. Stargirl - Jerry Spinelli

30. Pemberley by the Sea: a modern love story, Pride and Prejudice style - Abigail Reynolds

29. Evernight - Claudia Gray

MARCH

28. Bachelor Brothers' Bed & Breakfast - Bill Richardson

27. The Mermaid Chair - Sue Monk Kidd

26. Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry

25. Year of Wonders: A Novel of the Plague - Geraldine Brooks

24. Handle With Care - Jodi Picoult

23. Princess of the Sword (The Nine Kingdoms, Book 3) - Lynn Kurland

22. As Shadows Fade - Colleen Gleason

21. When Twilight Burns - Colleen Gleason (reread)

FEBRUARY

20. The Bleeding Dusk - Colleen Gleason (reread)

19. Rises the Night - Colleen Gleason (reread)

18. The Mage's Daughter (The Nine Kingdoms, Book 2) - Lynn Kurland

17. The Rest Falls Away - Colleen Gleason (reread)

16. Star of the Morning (The Nine Kingdoms, Book 1) - Lynn Kurland

15. The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox - Maggie O'Farrell

14. Inkheart - Cornelia Funke

13. The Vampire Diaries: Dark Reunion - L.J. Smith

JANUARY

12. The Vampire Diaries: The Fury - L.J. Smith

11. The Vampire Diaries: The Struggle - L.J. Smith

10. The Vampire Diaries: The Awakening - L.J. Smith

9. Briar Rose - Jane Yolen

8. Fire and Ice - Julie Garwood

7. Princess Ben - Catherine Gilbert Murdock

6. The Juliet Club - Suzanne Harper

5. All I Want For Christmas is a Vampire - Kerrelyn Sparks

4. Graceling - Kristin Cashore

3. Sweethearts - Sara Zarr

2. Paper Towns - John Green

1. The Tales of Beedle the Bard - J.K. Rowling