September Reading List

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I didn't get a lot of reading done this month. I couldn't find anything I wanted to read, and then there was that huge gap in the middle where I discovered Vampire Diaries and spent two weeks frantically watching season one so I'd be ready when season two started...

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Sometime in the near future, aliens have invaded and humans have been conquered. The "souls" insert themselves into human bodies and take over the brain, and most humans simply fade away. But not Melanie Stryder. She's too strong-willed, too determined to get back to her brother and the man she loves, and the soul who was chosen for her body, Wanderer, comes to love them, too.

I am not a science fiction fan by any stretch of the imagination, but I'll read anything Stephenie Meyer writes. This was the third time I'd read The Host and I think it gets better every time.

French Kiss by Sarra Manning
Kiss and Make Up by Sarra Manning

Edie has just moved to Manchester from Brighton, and doesn't think she'll ever make friends. Then she meets Dylan, and sparks fly.

I'm reviewing these together because I couldn't make myself actually read the second book of the series; I just skimmed it. It's the nature of diaries-as-fiction for the main character to come across as self-centered and dramatic, that's what makes for an entertaining story. Edie, though, is just annoying. She's one of those girls who creates drama for herself and then whines when her life is dramatic. Dylan is one of the least appealing, least romantic heroes ever. I prefer characters who rise above a bad family life to become good people rather than using it as an exucse for all sorts of bad behavior.

Bad Kitty by Michelle Jaffe

Jasmine Callahan wanted to stay in LA for the summer and do an internship at the police station. Instead she's been dragged to Las Vegas for a family vacation and has to put up with her airhead cousin. Then a cat lands on her chest while she's sunbathing by the pool, she's chased by a large man in a tiny swimming suit, and ends up knocking a bride - and a five-tiered wedding cake - into the swimming pool. And that's before she finds out about the escaped murderer in their midst...

Michelle Jaffe has some strange writing quirks, like describing boys in terms of breakfast foods and using footnotes that distract from the story. But for the most part this was highly enjoyable and I liked it enough to buy the sequel when I found out the library didn't have it.

Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard

An American living in London starts a romance with a Frenchman, begins spending long romantic weekends in Paris, and eventually marries him.

This was less cookbook, more memoir, than I was hoping for, and the recipes were mostly of the "Ew, who wants to eat that?" variety. I loved the first half of the book, but the second half was too much about How My Husband Became a Success, which wasn't nearly as interesting.

Climax of Passion by Emma Darcy

A rude sheikh jumps to conclusions about a pretty woman in a hotel.

Basically I should know better than to read books I liked in 7th grade. Especially if they are Harlequin romance novels.

Happy All the Time by Laurie Colwin

This is a hard one to summarize; not much happens so it's easy to make it sound boring. Guido and Vincent are cousins and best friends. They meet girls and get married. Life is mostly happy.

I love Laurie Colwin's books Home Cooking and More Home Cooking, but this is the only one of her novels I actually enjoy. It's a bit Jane Austen-ish, nothing terrible or dramatic happens but the way Laurie Colwin describes everyday life, and emotions, and people, makes it interesting.

Writing Jane Austen by Elizabeth Aston

When a publisher finds an unfinished Jane Austen manuscript in a file, Georgina Jackson is asked to write the rest. Gina has no interest in Jane Austen but she needs the money and finally agrees to do it. What follows is a tale of Janeites, crazy literary agents, writer's block, and just a hint of romance.

If I could recommend just one book from this month it would be this one. It's funny, not as airheaded as some chick-lit can be, and full of likeable characters.