I, like many, eagerly awaited Laini Taylor’s DAYS OF BLOOD & STARLIGHT, the sequel to her amazing DAUGHTER OF SMOKE & BONE. From her website:

Art student and monster's apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is--and what she is. But with this knowledge comes anoher truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it.
 In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Karou must decide how far she'll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Days of Blood & Starlight finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life.
 While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. For hope. But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream?

And it was well worth the wait. While not my usual book, Taylor's contortion of the angel vs. demon saga in SMOKE & BONE hooked me. And then her witty, flawed characters kept me there. In BLOOD & STARLIGHT, Taylor succeeds in deepening her world, enriching her already complex cast, and leaving the reader flipping page after twisty-page. And get this, BLOOD & STARLIGHT is a NY Times Bestseller...guess I'm not the only one who pre-ordered a copy!

And even better (for some of us), there’s not nearly as much teenage girl swooning in this installment of the trilogy and a lot more of the action-packed fighting and great mystery -- which is what kept me enthralled in SMOKE & BONE. Now, I'm eager for the next novel!

I had the privilege of reading advance copies of these books, and I adore them all. Add them to your reading pile. Seriously, do it. In full disclosure, the authors are all my buds. But that doesn't mean they aren't some very talented writers.

Gorgeous and gothic, anyone? No? How about dark and romantic?

Twists and turns that keep you guessing, beautiful words and a swoon-tastic protagonist. 

Hugely fun, sexy, sexy, sexy, and quite lovely and touching. Plus, just LOOK at that cover.

From Goodreads:

“One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time.”

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy, affectionate. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen-year-old Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs her terrace and changes everything. As the two fall fiercely in love, Jase's family makes Samantha one of their own. Then in an instant, the bottom drops out of her world and she is suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A dreamy summer read, full of characters who stay with you long after the story is over

 This is the kind of book that you can sit down to read a few chapters and then look up four hours later and realize you've read the whole thing.  I loved meeting the Garretts, and it was easy to get lost in their world.  They're messy and loud, but so full of heart and personality that you can't help but want to be part of their crazy household.  Samantha's mother, on the other hand is a politician who is so concerned about appearances that she vacuums herself out of the house everyday.  Samantha is forbidden from socializing with the neighbors, but she spends hours on the roof outside her bedroom window watching them.  Jase has been watching her watch them, and one night he decides to join her on the roof.  It's sweet and romantic.  I swooned.  I laughed.  I  felt all the things.  I fell in love with My Life Next Door. 

This past weekend, I went up into the mountains with my kids and my mom and sister.  I brought my computer with me, but when I got there, I decided to take a day off and read.  Just read.  It was bliss.

I brought with me Siobhan Vivian's THE LIST.  I'd been wanting to read it because the premise is fabulous - a list that has been posted at Mount Washington High School every year for as long as anyone can remember.  It's not official, but carries and official stamp.  And it lists the ugliest and the prettiest girl in every class.  No one knows who makes the list or how the dubious honor of making it is passed on.  And no one but the girls on it really thinks about how it might affect them.

I also wanted to see how Vivian managed to write from eight points of view.  She writes in third person present tense, and each chapter is a close third with one of the girls on the list.  Each character gets the same attention.  Every character is well-defined and has those bright details that make us truly "see" her.

But what made THE LIST stand out in my mind was the idea that externally imposed concepts of beauty will affect a girl.  Not just the girls who are deemed "pretty" or "ugly" but all girls.  And all boys.  And that a person who uses such terms lightly is not doing anyone any favors.

From Goodreads:


An intense look at the rules of high school attraction -- and the price that's paid for them. 

It happens every year. A list is posted, and one girl from each grade is chosen as the prettiest, and another is chosen as the ugliest. Nobody knows who makes the list. It almost doesn't matter. The damage is done the minute it goes up.

This is the story of eight girls, freshman to senior, "pretty" and "ugly." And it's also the story of how we see ourselves, and how other people see us, and the tangled connection of the two.

Last week, I had the good fortune of attending the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) conference in Vegas and was on a panel for the Assembly on Literature for Adolescents (ALAN).  Although my world outside of writing is deeply involved in education and teaching, it was so energizing to see so many educators all in one room passionately talking about books and literacy.

On Sunday night, there was a wonderful mixer for the ALAN authors and participants.  The ballroom was crowded and the conversation lively, so it was hard at times to catch all the names as I was introduced to lots of new faces.  In fact, one name completely escaped me as my editor introduced me to a dark haired woman.  I'm sure my face was a little blank as she shook my hand, because my editor leaned in to say, "You might know her as the author of the Graceling books."

OMG!  I just met Kristen Cashore??  It was like meeting royalty!

I love the Graceling books, but I especially love FIRE.  If you are creating worlds, fantastical or contemporary, this is a book to read.  It will inspire your writing and your imagination.

From the Author's Website:  

Fire, Graceling's stand-alone prequel-ish companion book, takes place across the mountains to the east of the seven kingdoms, in a rocky, war-torn land called the Dells.

Beautiful creatures called monsters live in the Dells. Monsters have the shape of normal animals: mountain lions, dragonflies, horses, fish. But the hair or scales or feathers of monsters are gorgeously colored-- fuchsia, turquoise, sparkly bronze, iridescent green-- and their minds have the power to control the minds of humans.

Seventeen-year-old Fire is the last remaining human-shaped monster in the Dells. Gorgeously monstrous in body and mind but with a human appreciation of right and wrong, she is hated and mistrusted by just about everyone, and this book is her story.