I May Not Have Been Posting, but I Have Been Reading

A ton of books. A ton! And some were real stinkers. Let's recap (briefly and in reading order):

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

In my official reviewing capacity, I would classify this book as "OK." I really like curmudgeons and there was a great one in this book. The ending was far fetched and ridiculous, but the book overall was entertaining enough. The setting was great.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

If you're looking for a romance with no sexual tension between a bossy vampire with no personality and a witch who could be interesting, but isn't. Well, this is the book for you! There were some disturbing parallels to Twilight. He sneaks in her window and smells her (*shudder*) she falls in love with him, his incredible need to protect her makes him so angry (so angry!) that sometimes he just can't take it. And they never have sex. Never. And it is really, really long.

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

This was really fun. I loved Rory, she was just a real appealing character. Loved the idea and setting. Wished there was more to it. I know it is the first in a series, but I didn't get a good enough sense of "why" to make me want to tune in for more. I reserve the right to change my mind though.

The Keeper of Lost Causes by Jussi Adler-Olsen

A Scandinavian police mystery where a cop has gotten shot and his bad attitude gets him hidden away in a newly created "Department Q" which will focus on cold cases. This was much lighter than Steig Larsson (thankfully - who could take more of his horrors?) and I had totally figured out what happened about half way through, but it was fun. I really liked Carl the cop and I would tune in again to find out more about his mysterious assistant Assad.