6. Bad Heir Day by Wendy Holden 02/02/08
7. Sorcery and the Single Girl by Mindy Klasky 02/08/08
8. Girl Walking Backwards by Bett Williams 02/13/08
9. The Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club by Laurie Notaro 2/17/08
10. Tell Me Lies by Jennifer Crusie 2/22/08
11. Grecian Holiday by Kate Cann 2/25/08
12. Confessions of a Teen Sleuth by Chelsea Cain 2/27/08
Let's just dive in, shall we? I started February off by reading Bad Heir Day by Wendy Holden. Overall, I didn't really care for it. I didn't like several characters and found that I didn't care what happened to them. I hated that one of my least favorite characters never really changed, yet still got everything she wanted. Honestly, I don't even really want to talk about this book because it was that disappointing. Basically, I want to forget I ever read it. Sorry, Ms. Holden.
I haven't been reading too much chick lit recently, but Sorcery and the Single Girl reminded me how much fun it can be! I loved this one. I loved the first book in the series and I will continue to read more if Mindy will write them! I sent her an email after reading A Girl's Guide to Witchcraft telling her how much I loved her book. She replied, because she's 98 kinds of awesome, and I became a huge fan. I try to read at least 3 books by an author before declaring myself a fan, but for Mindy, I made an exception. Keep 'em coming and I'll keep reading! :)
Next, I read Girl Walking Backwards by Bett Williams. I'm not sure exactly how I feel about this book. It wasn't a happy go lucky kind of novel, I can assure you of that! Skye's world is complicated and she doesn't just breeze through life. It was like reading shades of grey. Nothing was very black and white, much like real life. I liked that and found it depressing at the same time. I felt for the main character and her relationships throughout the book. Overall, a good read but rather heavy by the end.
Then I read the Laurie Notaro book. Here's the thing. I had heard that she was funny and I was in the mood to read something light after finishing Girl Walking Backwards. However, I was surprised to find that I didn't care for Notaro's book at all! I didn't even crack a smile while reading. I'd like to think that if I heard her telling these stories, they would be much funnier. I have to believe that the magic of her story was lost in the translation from the spoken word to the written word. Honestly, there has to be a reason why I thought this book sucked! I'm willing to give her another try in the future, but wow, I was really disappointed by this book. I really think my life is more comical than hers, even without punchlines or exaggerations. As Stephen Colbert would say, Laurie Notaro, you are on notice!
So, Tell Me Lies by Jennifer Crusie was next and it was a little better. You see, I love books about small towns. I lived in a small town for about 6 years and I loved it. The gossip, the competitiveness, the insanity, and all the rest really appealed to me. So, naturally, when an author writes about the craziness that is small town life, I'm in! Overall, yeah, I liked the book. I did think the main character's obsession with what the neighbors think was over the top, but I don't doubt people like her exist. The romance genre is definitely not my favorite, but I do like most of Crusie's books because of the small town aspect. Tell Me Lies was no exception. I really liked Maddie by the end of the book. She became a great character that I'd want to be friends with in real life. Overall, an enjoyable read for sure.
Grecian Holiday was up next and it also proved to be an enjoyable read. Kelly's boyfriend wants her to join him on a summer vacation with his friends, but she's smart enough to realize that it would be a bad idea. They fight and argue and part on bad terms. Instead, Kelly decides to head to Greece with her friend Jade and Jade's friend Sarah. Jade is not a great character and annoying to say the least. By the end of it all, I started to think she was actually Jade from America's Next Top Model. Ha! But, the friendship of Kelly and Sarah really held my interest. In fact, I kind of wish we could have heard the story from Sarah's point of view. She comes off as the most changed by the end of the book and she had the most substance throughout. Oh well. Instead we get Kelly. Kelly has to figure out what to do about her difficult boyfriend and their relationship. Sometimes I found her a little annoying, but again, Sarah really made the novel for me. At the end of the day, I enjoyed it well enough.
Finally, however, I read Confessions of a Teen Sleuth, which just may be one of the best books I've ever read. I loved it. I giggled out loud while reading every few pages. If you decide to read this tremendously hilarious parody of Nancy Drew, please do me a huge favor. Please please please count how many times the author uses the word "titian". I don't know how she managed to use it so often, but it was one of the many things that continued to crack me up while reading. I don't think I can rave about this book enough. It was a fast read but so entertaining! One of my favorite parts had to be when Nancy described the relationship between her tomboy friend George and her roommate V. The whole thing took only half a page to describe, but the impact was absolutely hilarious! Excellent book, especially for a Nancy Drew fan.
Favorite book of the month goes to Confessions, with Sorcery running a close second. Least favorite books of February are the Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club and Bad Heir Day.
Number of books read in February of 2008: 7
Number of books read in February of 2007: 6
