Adulthood is a Myth by Sarah Andersen

If you haven't seen the little comic strips by Sarah Andersen yet, then you might be living under a rock. I think we've all see the one about the money conscious girl who only goes crazy spending at the bookstore. That little gem was created by this woman.

I adore this book. I was given it for my birthday by my fiancée because when I was looking at it at the bookstore, I kept remarking how every panel was exactly like me. I could relate so hard with so much of what she draws that it kind of surprises me a little.

I've read this through cover to cover probably about 5 times now. Every time I end up running over to my guy and showing him bits and pieces exclaiming how "me" and how "us" it is. 

He got it for me because he thought I could look at it every time I get sad and feel a little less alone and a little bit better about things. (Yes, he's the best. Totally taken though, sorry girls!)

If you're a twenty-something trying to figure out this thing called life then you need to pick this up. It will make you laugh and you will feel better, I assure you!

Oh, and she has another book coming out soon!! Can't wait!

Recommendation: For the ones who need a little uplifting funny to go with life. You won't regret it! 

Malice at the Palace by Rhys Bowen

I was in a bit of a hurry the other day while searching for goodies at Chapters. They had a whole deal going on that you needed to buy so many books and get some percentage off or something (like I need a reason to buy books) and I had a gift card, so I grabbed this book. 

I had seen this series before at the bookstore and it had always piqued my interest. It's about a girl whose cousins with the Royal family in England. It's set back in the 1930's and it involves murder, intrigue, spying, and a woman doing things for herself. In this particular story, Lady Georgiana Rannoch is tasked with being a companion to a Princess from Greece who is to wed the King's son George. Prince George has always been a bit of a play boy so keeping the Princess unaware of his past is a big task. When one of the prince's former flings is found murdered, Lady Georgiana searches for the killer while helping out the highest powers that be from having things turn into a scandal. 

This one is the 9th in the series, and I didn't know too much more about it till I grabbed this one. This was the kind of book that catches your eye and you read the back a couple times before taking the plunge one day and reading it. 

Honestly, I confused this one with another series I was planning on reading but it turned out totally okay as I enjoyed this book! The other series had a female protagonist and dealt with spying too but that's okay. I'll get to that one eventually. 

This book felt a little slow going at the beginning. For a cozy mystery, this one was little bit more complicated that I had thought it would have been. It did get into a groove around the half way mark, so I'm happy I kept with it. 

 There were lots of hints at past exploits without giving too much away which I liked because that gives me a reason to go back and read more. I wouldn't say that this is a series that I need to collect and put on my shelves but I do think that if I come across more of them at the library then I would definitely read them.  

Recommendation: For the lover of a good mystery, especially one about England back in the day. Detailed and interesting. Give it a go!

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

This book had a lot of hype for about 15 minutes when it came out. It's one of those books that are for the lovers of thrillers, like Gone Girl and the like. Way back I had a long love affair with thrillers and it's only been the last couple years that I've felt differently about them. I think I find them too repetitive and almost too predictable sometimes. This one had a story line that was a little reminicent of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express in that the mystery happens in an enclosed space where no one apart from those on board could have done it. Anyway, back to this book.

This book takes place on a boat trip with a small group of people. The main character is convinced she saw someone who supposedly doesn't exist, and then she heard someone get killed. There are twists and turns, and a whole lot of mystery surrounding the story. 

I'm not exactly sure how I feel about it. There was a lot of back and forth that wasn't really necessary with forshadowing coming events that I could have really done without. It kind of drove me nuts. I didn't feel like it added anything. It distracted me more than anything because I felt like we didn't know enough yet to really believe them. It's hard to explain without actually giving away spoilers which I refuse to do. 

The story was told from the point of view of the main character but so much of her story was about feelings which weighed down on me. I couldn't really connect to her, I felt her to be so focused on emotions rather then really buckling down and figuring out what was going on. There wasn't enough I could get behind as a character. 

This story was a fairly quick read. I don't think it had quite enough meat for me. I wanted more. I did make me think though, and I am curious about what will happen next for these characters. I felt like the book ended almost without me noticing which I guess is a good thing. 

I didn't hate this book. I read it all the way through and I didn't give up on it. I just wanted more I think. It wasn't mind blowing like all the reviews said it was going to be (then again, I didn't like Gone, Girl at all so that should have told me something right there) 

Recommendation: If you liked Gone, Girl and other thrillers of that nature, you will really like this. 

Wise Blood by Flannery O'Connor

A lot of the books I find to read either happen by accident, I hear about them on Instagram, or while roaming the book store. This was kind of an accident and kind of something I had heard about on Instagram.

I wasn't aware of this author until the last couple months and the reason I was aware of it was because I heard about her through a couple posts made by a blogger I really like. Thing was, Flannery O'Connor apparently had written things of a more specifically religious nature and while that's not really my thing, I was interested in her writing anyway. 

I found this in the fiction section of my library totally by accident one day as I was wandering through the bookshelves. I saw her name on the spine and I figured, why not! This was her first book.

This one does have a religious bend to it, but it's fiction, and it's a story. I picked this up totally to experience her writing, which was totally great, but I think a lot of it went over my head. 

It's about a guy named Hazel Motes who is basically looking to get away from God without actually being able to. He even starts his own church, but can't actually get away from God at all. He meets a blind man and his daughter, and a strange guy who has "wise blood". I don't want to say more really, because I don't know how much I'd be giving away that people may not want to know before hand. With this book, I don't even know what the spoilers are and what they aren't.

There was no doubt a deeper meaning to this story than I was getting, and I think maybe since I missed it, it left something to be desired once it was done. It felt almost like a book we had to read in school, one of those ones that feel intense but in an old time period that we can't connect with, about people who live lives we never will. 

Coming out the other side I'm not sure what to make of it. It was dark, strange, and weird. Her writing was wonderful otherwise I don't think I would have finished this book based on the story. Her writing kept me glued to the page even though I had no clue what was really going on. I hopped over onto Goodreads to see what people were saying and I guess the consensus is its a Southern Gothic novel, and no one can say a whole lot about whats going on either. 

Recommendations: If you want to read something out of the norm, looking to experience different writings, and different stories, then read this. This isn't the book for the usual book worm. 

Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

This book has been all over Instagram and because it's classified as a young adult book I didn't really look into it too much at first. I still have a bit of a thing when it comes to reading young adult books, but I am expanding my horizons and enjoying it.

This book was no exception. I loved this book! It was fun and easy to follow. Best part was that it was a western, written like a western with the lingo and the mannerisms. It was lovely. I totally wasn't expecting that when I first picked it up and it was a nice surprise!

I hate to admit it, but all the years I spent living at home with my parents and only having one t.v. meant that I watched a lot of western movies with my dad, and I actually kind of enjoyed them. There was another series I read last year that followed two cowboy brothers around that I really quite liked too.

Vengeance Road follows Kate Thompson, a young woman, in her pursuit of the men who killed her father. She must follow them as they travel towards the location of a hidden gold mine that was written in a journal they stole from her father to seek her vengeance. There's murder, intrigue, a bit of surprising turn of events, and a whole cast of interesting characters that take you on a ride through gold mining country back in the day. It was thoroughly enjoyable!

Now, I know what you might be thinking, that since this is a young adult book that it's perhaps something more sweet and innocent then westerns really are, but it's not. There's death and killing without apologies. Yes, there is a little bit of love thrown in there, but it's not a sweet light western following just a regular sweet girl. This is grittier than that, and I loved it!

There is a new book coming out by this author later this year that is in the same western style, but sadly it doesn't feature the same characters. Everything gets wrapped up at the end of this book but there is always more to know! New characters or not, I will be reading it. I love this old western style with which the author uses to add a little something extra to her books.

Recommendation: Read this if you love good stories, if westerns pique your interest,  and if you're looking for something different. This book will not disappoint!

Murder and Mendelssohn by Kerry Greenwood

Stop reading right now if you are totally sick of Miss Fisher's murder mystery reviews. I'd apologize, but honestly, I'm not really sorry I'm reviewing another one! They are just too much fun!

This one was a little different than the usual ones. This one featured an old friend of Phryne's from her time spend in the war. The interesting thing was her friend now has a companion who, as it turns out, is a little like another famous mystery character that most of us know and love! (He resides at 221B Baker street) It might actually bother hard core Sir Conan Doyle fans, but although it was obvious the relationship between her characters was based on those famous men, they were still written different enough to be their own separate entities.

I will say that moments got a little weird, a little overly sexual is the best way to describe it, and although I could have done without a lot of that bit there in the middle, it was a good book.

The mystery might have been a little secondary to the storyline of the two gentlemen, which, depending on what you read these books for, can be a little tiresome. I, for one, love the stories about Phryne and her entourage as much as I like a good old murder mystery. A bit of drama and romance is alright by me (at least when it comes to these books!)

There was a choir, a ghastly murder (or two), some romance, old flames, new flames, spies, the war, and much more in this one. All in all I'd have to say it was a pretty darn good book!

Recommendation: As always, lovers of murder, of old time divas in spectacular clothing, women living life to the fullest for themselves, and a great story will love this book and this series as a whole!

The Elven Tales: The Company of the Rose by Fabi Ghittoni

Let me start off by telling you that I was given an e-book form of this book by the author to review.

I came across Fabi on Instagram and through following her I found out she was looking for reviewers for her new book called The Elven Tales: The Company of the Rose. Anything to do with Elves and other creatures like that I am all over it, so of course I asked if I could read and review it!

This book is about a girl named Prudence who is going about life as a normal girl living with her best friends family. After being attacked, she finds herself in a new place with new creatures who are telling her she needs to help them stop this evil being Alanel who has escaped from prison. She must help retrieve the King's runes and learn about who she really is in order to save Arkana. She is aided by the warriors who make up The Company of the Rose who are by her side through the harrowing journey. It's got action, adventure, a little intrigue, and a lot of fun.

First off, the book is gorgeous! It's really stunning! Even the pages are beautiful! It's just an amazing looking book. Every chapter had a different picture in shades of grey on its chapter page and it was just visually interesting to read.

Now, have you ever been so excited about a book that you had to immediately explain the whole entire story to a friend in order to get them to understand how great it was? Well, reading this book felt a little like that.

There were moments where everything was sped up so quickly that I found myself being a little left behind in some places. Like the story teller was saying, yes, those moments are important to the story, but so is this and this and this and this. Like a friend was hurrying to get to her favorite part and didn't have time to slow down and explain it all.

Some parts of the book totally slowed down though, and I felt like I was actually with the characters experiencing what they were experiencing (which is what I love). There were a couple places towards the end that totally grabbed me up and really engaged me which is why, if I had to give this book a rating, I would give it a 3/5.

The bones of this story were so good though. It was such an interesting idea and I was excited to see how it was going to turn out. I did feel though that I had many questions that weren't getting answered and that did take away a little of the fun for me. All in all, it was a good first book from a new author.

Recommendation:  Check this book out on Goodreads and on Instagram. If you are interested in the synopsis, don't pass this by. You kind of have to work with this book for it to work for you, but the story is pretty cool!