How Mysterious....

I love a good mystery. I watched Murder She Wrote religiously (I still love watching repeats!) and I got hooked on Nancy Drew, Encyclopedia Brown, The Three Investigators, Trixie Belden, The Bobbsey Twins, Agatha Christie, you name it. If it was a mystery, I read it. So I just finished Murder at Longbourn by Tracy Kiely. This is not really a Young Adult novel, but mystery lovers of any age would enjoy this book. In case you couldn't guess by the title, it was Inspired by Pride and Prejudice. The two main characters, Elizabeth and her Aunt Winnie are big Jane Austen fans. Aunt Winnie has just opened a B&B on the Cape and is hosting a Murder Mystery Dinner for New Year's Eve. Well, you guessed it. Instead of the staged murder by a troupe of professional actors, a guest at the party is really killed. What follows is a super fun mash-up of traditional whodunit featuring the usual suspects, with a dash of literary references thrown in for good measure. While there is nothing new or mind-blowing about this book, it's a fun read for fans of mystery.

Loved the title, liked the cover...did not love the book. It was OK. That's the perfect description of this book. Just OK. It was an easy, quick read; perfect for the beach or pool. The title character, Megan Meade is likeable enough, but the whole plot device to get her living with the McGowan boys in question was weak. She's an Army Brat who is sick and tired of moving. So, when her mom & dad get deployed to South Korea, she puts her foot down. Her whole reason for not wanting to move to South Korea was that she didn't want to leave her friends, school and sports behind. Yet, she ends up moving to another state anyway, to live with her dad's friends and their seven boys. Um, hello? How is that not leaving your friends, school & sports and life behind? But whatever. I was willing to suspend disbelief and just enjoy the book. And that's kind of what you have to do to enjoy this book. Just accept it for what it is, and don't look for deeper meaning.

April Fools Indeed

OK, Mother Nature. You win. You are the Queen of April Fools jokes. Snow, again? Really? Boo! I'm so ready for Spring! OK, enough about the weather. Let's talk about Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce. I finally finished it!! (Great cover, hm?)

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I loved the March sisters, Rosie & Scarlett (the 2 main characters). They were feisty, strong heroines, but portrayed very realistically, struggling with feelings of guilt, loss, fear and love. In this retelling of Red Riding Hood, the wolves are called Fenris, and can cloak themselves as attractive men, the easier to lure young, unsuspecting girls in with charm and good looks. Rosie & Scarlett excel at pretending to be these young, unsuspecting girls, and once cornered, turn into fierce warriors. There is a lot of violence and fighting, but fear not, there is also some love and romance. There is one big plot twist, and I don't like to brag, but I totally guessed what it was. Go me! I don't want to say too much more, of give anything away, but if you like fast-paced adventure books with great characters, you will love this!

P.S.- I almost forgot-library shout out; A major part of the book was research done in the library. Hooray for libraries! Thanks Jackson Pearce!