#45 Shakespeare's Christmas: A Lily Bard Mystery by Charlaine Harris

My Rating: 8 out of 10 stars

Another great entry in the Lily Bard Mystery series. In this one, Lily travels home during the holidays to be a bridesmaid in her sister's wedding, and of course trouble follows her... as does her sexy new boyfriend Jack! ;)

We learn a bit more about Lily's background in this one as she stays with her family during her homecoming. This is really the first time she's been home since the incident which scarred her both physically and emotionally.

I'm looking forward to reading more of this series!

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#44 Shakespeare's Champion: A Lily Bard Mystery by Charlaine Harris

My Rating: 8 out of 10 stars

This is the second book in the Lily Bard Mystery series. I'm really beginning to like Lily cuz she kicks ass! :P Granted, I may not always agree with her "need to be alone" attitude but I can understand where it comes from. Like the other reviewers, I liked this one a bit more than the first one as there was definitely more action here, and more setup there.

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#43 Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu

My Rating: 7 out of 10 stars

Zahrah lives in the northern Ooni Kingdom, where fear of the unknown runs deep. She is born dada, with vines growing through her hair and believed to have special powers. Besides their fear of dada, the people of the Ooni Kingdom also gravely fear the Forbidden Greeny Jungle, which begins on the outskirts of their small village. But when Zahrah notices changes going on within her and is then faced with having to save Dari's life, she's ready to confront all her fears head on, and challenge everything she's been taught.

This was a fun adventure. I enjoyed Zahrah's trek through the jungle and the various creatures she met therein. Because this is a children's book (ages 9–12), it also teaches a few important lessons, many which I believe strongly in to this very day. That one being to not believe everything you're told if you don't feel comfortable with it. It's okay to challenge old, outdated beliefs to forge the way for the future. Another is that you are definitely stronger than you think when faced with seemingly impossible odds.

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#42 Julian's House by Judith Hawkes

My Rating: 8 out of 10 stars

I really enjoyed this story. It was very atmospheric, and I enjoyed it more so because there wasn't so much blood and murder as opposed to suspense and psychic happenings due to the haunted house. The characters were portrayed well, and though i can't say that I really cared for David all that much, I had the same feelings of dislike towards Sally in the beginning as well... until I began to empathize with her situation a bit further along.

My only complaint about the book might be that sometimes I felt the paragraphs went on a bit too long for my taste, and that if they were split up, it might've been a bit easier to read. But I think a lot of that could also be due to the fact that I've been reading a lot of the more contemporary and/or YA authors lately, whom tend to stick to smaller paragraphs to make for easier reading. Certainly the paragraph lengths the author used here weren't outside the boundary of acceptable writing. I've just found shorter to be better for me personally in holding my interest and keeping me from getting too distracted. Obviously a lot of contemporary authors have jumped on the same bandwagon.

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#41 Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

My Rating: 7 out of 10 stars

Aislinn has always been able to see faeries, as could her mother and grandmother. But she's always lived by Grams's rules: Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries; Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries; and most importantly Rule #1: Don't ever attract faeries' attention.

But now the rules have changed, and Aislinn is no longer safe from the faeries that have begun stalking her. What is it they want from her? And how far are they willing to go to get it? Can Aislinn continue to live by the same rules, ignoring their existence, when she seems to be their prime interest?

I found this debut novel from Melissa Marr an interesting entry into the YA urban fantasy genre. There were a few grammatical mistakes here and there, presumably because this was an Advance Reader's Edition. Like the faeries in Holly Black's novels, these are not your sweet, winged creatures, but reflect the true spirit of the Fae and the various courts.

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