Blue Bloods by Melissa De La Cruz

Ok, this book has been in our house for a couple of years or so - it is my older daughter's book and I had not read it because I had read the Twilight books and a couple of other vampire series and I was just tired of the whole vampire bandwagon. But, I was dying for some escapism fiction so I picked it up and started reading it - and I really liked it! It is a bit of a different twist on the whole vampire genre. In this book, vampires are fallen angels with glow in the dark blue blood that begins to manifest when they are around 15 years old. Before that, they are not aware that they are vampires. The story follows several young teenagers who are beginning vampires and there is romance and danger and I don't want to go into more detail because you should just read it for yourself. It really is good. I am now going to read the next book in the series!

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks

This is a well-written book, and I liked it, but it was too sad.
John is a young man who joined the Army, then later meets the girl of his dreams, Savannah while on leave visiting his father.  They fall in love and plan to marry, but after 911, he re-enlists and she decides she won't wait for him.  So sad.

Sundays at Tiffany's by James Patterson

"What if your imaginary friend from childhood was your one true love?" It would be a delightful, wonderfully imaginative story, which this book certainly is. Jane, whose mother Vivienne is a powerful Broadway producer, had a fantastic imaginary friend named Michael when she was a child. When she turned 9, he had to leave as all imaginary friends do. He told her she would not remember him, but she did - and he remembered her as well. Now, when Jane is in her thirties, Michael appears in her life again. Is he real, or imaginary?
What a fun, fantastic romantic fantasy!

A Kiss In Time by Alex Flinn

Such a fun book!  I really enjoy Alex Flinn's re-told fairy tales.
This is the story of sleeping beauty, a princess named Talia, who is cursed to prick her finger on a spindle and fall asleep along with her entire kingdom before her sixteenth birthday.  Her parents spend her whole life trying to shield her from spindles to no avail.  The deed is done, a forest grows around the kingdom and it is not until 300 years later when Jack, a teenager from the USA on tour in Europe decides to skip the tour of yet another museum and while looking for the beach, stumbles through the forest to the sleeping kingdom of Euphrasia, sees the beautiful sleeping princess, kisses and wakes her and the adventure begins. 
Fantastic book, humor and adventure - really loved it!

Never More: The Final Maximum Ride Adventure by James Patterson

My son said it best. It was obvious that the author was trying to end the series. I liked the series, but was not thrilled with this last book. The bird kids are trying to foil a plot to kill off 99% of the world and only leave "enchanced" humans like themselves alive. The scientists are evil, Ari is resurrected yet again, Jeb and Dr. Martinez are involved, the whole flock is reunited and Max choses between Dylan and Fang. We find out who "the voice" is and then it is the end of the world as the Maximum Ride series knows it.

The Power of the Prophetic Blessing by John Hagee

The image on the cover of this book is an open treasure chest with golden light spilling out from it. It reminds me a bit of "Raiders of The Lost Ark". I think it is about as valid Biblically as "Raiders of the Lost Ark" is as well. I have not read anything by John Hagee before, but I had heard his name and wanted to see what he had to say and was interested in reading the free copy of the book I got to review. I was sadly disappointed with the book. The author has a clear agenda and he picks and choses Bible verses and stories and just says that they support his points. For instance, he claims that "be fruitful and multiply" is both a blessing and a command and therefore must imply that marriage should only be between a man and a woman. What about people who can't or don't want to have children? Are they disobedient or not blessed?  He also claims that Jeremiah 1:4-5 "clearly declares" that "God has called children to a divine work and has sanctified them for that work while they were in their mother's wombs". Really? It seems to me that verse is only about Jeremiah - not about all children. The book goes on and on in the same vein with the author giving Bible verses and saying that they support his views when they have nothing to do with them in reality.
He also says "If you do not passionately believe it - you will not achieve it!" That sounds like the power of positive thinking to me rather than the power of God. It takes matters out of God's hands and makes the results directly linked to the ability of the believer to believe passionately. If you don't achieve it, you obviously did not believe passionately enough.
I was not impressed at all with this book.

The Birth House by Ami McKay

In 1916, Dora Rare, age 17 begins working with Mrs. B, the midwife in their town in Nova Scotia. The story chronicles her life as a doctor comes to town touting medicated births and paid "assurance" - an early form of health insurance. Many of the town's men leave to fight in WWI, Dora continues to help women with their female ailments, gets married, and is diagnosed with "hysteria" by the doctor who "treats" the "ailment" with a vibrator. Dora gets an up close view of the women's sufferage movement and eventually continues working as a midwife.