Phantom of the Opera

By: Gaston Leroux (I'm not sure who translated the edition I read)

Gothic or Horror Classic: Classics Challenge

This was a surprise. I was already familiar with the story but not the book story which is different than all the movie renditions. I was pleasantly surprised.

"Rumors abound that a ghost stalks the dark passages and cellars of the Paris Opera House. No one has actually seen this Phantom, but Christine Daaé, a beautiful and talented young singer, has heard his voice. He is her "Angel of Music," coaching her to sing as she never could before. When the handsome Viscount begins to court Christine, the mysterious Phantom-consumed by jealousy-rises up to seek revenge."

Little Women

By: Louisa May Alcott

A Romance Classic: Classic Challenge

I really didn't like this book. I couldn't even finish it. It was too slow and boring. Not my cup of tea, at all!

"Grown-up Meg, tomboyish Jo, timid Beth, and precocious Amy. The four March sisters couldn't be more different. But with their father away at war, and their mother working to support the family, they have to rely on one another. Whether they're putting on a play, forming a secret society, or celebrating Christmas, there's one thing they can't help wondering: Will Father return home safely?"

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

 Translator: Simon Armitage

A classic originally published before 1800: Classic Challenge


"One of the earliest great stories of English literature after Beowulf, Sir Gawain is the strange tale of a green knight on a green horse, who rudely interrupts King Arthur's Round Table festivities one Yuletide, challenging the knights to a wager. Simon Armitage, one of Britain's leading poets, has produced an inventive and groundbreaking translation that helps liberate Gawain from academia."

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. It was okay, and a little strange. I loved the way this edition was laid out: one side original text, the other side translated. I'm glad I can check it off my list.


I do have a question though. This book was written before 1800, I'm not entirely sure it was published before then? I hope it was, otherwise it won't count.

The Story of Hong Gildong

Translator and Editor: Minsoo Kang

A Classic in Translation: Classic Challenge

"The Story of Hong Gildong is arguably the single most important work of classic Korean fiction. A fantastic story of adventure, it has been adapted into countless movies, television shows, novels, and comics in Korea. Until now, the earliest and fullest text of this incredible fable has been inaccessible to English readers.

Hong Gildong, the brilliant but illegitimate son of a noble government minister, cannot advance in society due to his second-class status, so he leaves home and becomes the leader of a band of outlaws. On the way to building his own empire and gaining acceptance from his family, Hong Gildong vanquishes assassins, battles monsters, and conquers kingdoms. Minsoo Kang’s expressive and lively new translation finally makes the authoritative text of this premodern tale available in English, reintroducing a noble and righteous outlaw and sharing a beloved hallmark of Korean culture." Amazon

Another classic lets me down. So far this year the only classic I've enjoyed has been A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. I had my husband read this and he didn't really care for it either. That said, the translation is so well done. I think this part fable, part adventure story was just to confusing and at times I had no idea what I was reading. You should try it out, it might have just been me and my reading preferences. 

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

By: Betty Smith

A classic by a woman author: Classic Challenge

Oh, how I loved this book. It played out slowly so the pacing was nice and relaxed.

"Francie Nolan, avid reader, penny-candy connoisseur, and adroit observer of human nature, has much to ponder in colorful, turn-of-the-century Brooklyn. She grows up with a sweet, tragic father, a severely realistic mother, and an aunt who gives her love too freely--to men, and to a brother who will always be the favored child. Francie learns early the meaning of hunger and the value of a penny. She is her father's child--romantic and hungry for beauty. But she is her mother's child, too--deeply practical and in constant need of truth. Like the Tree of Heaven that grows out of cement or through cellar gratings, resourceful Francie struggles against all odds to survive and thrive. Betty Smith's poignant, honest novel created a big stir when it was first published over 50 years ago. Her frank writing about life's squalor was alarming to some of the more genteel society, but the book's humor and pathos ensured its place in the realm of classics--and in the hearts of readers, young and old."

My grandmother was born in 1918 and although she did not live anywhere near New York, I saw a lot of her in this book. I miss you grandma.

To Be Read pile...

Sorry for my absence, ahem, my excuse - a huge TBR!

We now resume our regular challenges...

A Lady in Disguise

By: Sandra Byrd

This book was SO good on so many levels. The weather here in the Pacific Northwest has been rainy and stormy. I started this book at night after everyone was in bed. I could hear the rain and the wind, and it was dark. Oh what perfect reading weather for this book! Suspenseful, mysterious, romantic, delicious! This is the third in the Daughters of Hampshire series by Sandra Byrd. I received this book from the publisher for an honest review.

The story takes place in Victorian London where our main character, Gillian Young is trying to find out not only how really did her father die, but why? Was her father living a secret, not-so-honest-life even though he was a respected police officer?  As Gillian works her new job as the principal costume designer at the renowned Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, she reaches out to help young ladies that could end up in harms way. Is there anyone she can trust? Even when she meets the Viscount Thomas Lockwood I wanted to scream, RUN! But has her father left evidence that will clear up this huge mystery? Where is it? and will she find it in time? Who is trying to stop her? The whisperer at her door? The menacing footsteps always behind her? Ah, the suspense!

Note: I do not normally read romance. I just don't care for it. If you are like me, don't discount this book from your TBR. This is a big story that has more in it and will appeal to a large audience.

Release date is March 21, 2017

Fate of the Tearling

By: Erica Johansen

I was so, so sad to finish off this trilogy with a book I didn't like. I spent time and energy reading these three books and so when the third book was such a huge disappointment, ack!

By the middle of the third book everything from Katie's perspective started to feel very now and very political. We must go back to another world since we don't know how to do abortions and we are running out of birth control. Really? Come on. And those pesky superstitious Christian folks. What will we do about them? This faith thing must be stopped. Sigh.

I am a Christian. I don't expect to read non-Christian books by non-Christian authors and have Christian themes in them. But I don't want to read fantasy and have political, earthly themes of the current day so obvious it brings me out of the fantasy world. I read fantasy because I'd like to experience a different world.

Can I say it felt as if the author just got bored by the third book? This isn't the first time I've read a currently written trilogy that, by the last book, just ran out of steam. I want the full deal. Like Lord of the Rings, I want a Return of the King which should be epic and amazing. This was not close. Characters that were in the beginning of the first book, and had bigger story lines, were left without closure. Existing characters that are still with us in the third book go sideways. New characters are introduced that I just didn't like. Can you say Katie?

I literally couldn't read for a full day after this book. I couldn't shake my disappointment.

Moving on...

What are you reading?

Anything interesting? I usually read more than one book at a time. I read different types of books so I don't get them confused. Right now I'm reading: a classic, a Dickenesque book, a fantasy novel, a non-fiction and a book of short stories. I have 3 paper books, 2 audio books and an ebook so all my bases are covered.

I suppose there is a science to how I choose the books I'm going to read but I'm not sure what it is. Some books grab me and won't let me go until I have finished them in one huge gulp. Some books I read fairly quickly and some books I find myself reading slowly. Usually the slow books I enjoy have lovely language that I want to spend time in.

What are you reading? Anything exciting? Let me know in comments below. It might just be my next favorite book.

The Eight

By: Katherine Neville

"Katherine Neville's debut novel is a postmodern thriller set in 1972 ... and 1790. In the 20th century, Catherine Velis is a computer expert with a flair for music, painting, and chess who, on her way to Algeria at the behest of the accounting firm where she is employed, is invited to take a mysterious moonlighting assignment: recover the pieces of an old chess set missing for centuries.

In the midst of the French Revolution, a young novice discovers that her abbey is the hiding place of a chess set, once owned by the great Charlemagne, which allows those who play it to tap into incredible powers beyond the imagination. She eventually comes into contact with the major historical figures of the day, from Robespierre to Napoleon, each of whom has an agenda.

The Eight is a non-stop ride that recalls the swashbuckling adventures of Indiana Jones as well as the historical puzzles of Umberto Eco which, since its first publication in 1988, has gone on to acquire a substantial cult following" Publisher Weekly

I didn't care for this book. It was a little to slow.

Zora and Nicky: A Novel in Black and White

By: Claudia Mair Burney

I really enjoyed this book. It takes on hard to write about subjects in an honest way. As a Christian book I expected it to be squeaky clean and sometimes that comes off as false. The need to be careful is a thing but the need to be real is also a thing and this book proves you can do both, at the same time.

There were parts I thought were annoying and sometimes the characters were too whiny but they are young and I am not, so I forgave them. Some of the characters, especially the fathers of both, tended towards the cliché. I would have preferred some humanity but then Zora and Nicky wouldn’t be who they are without that influence. The character of Richard was a knock off of Brennan Manning but again I forgive the author. I happen to love Brennan Manning so it was nice to see him in fiction. (Yes, I like the book and am forgiving everything!)

“The voice of beautiful Zora Nella Hampton Johnson-her name echoing the author of her favorite novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God-will take you up and carry you along until she utters her very last syllable. Anger, laughter and delight come from Zora's sharp, sassy tongue as if she is talking out loud. Burney's gift for voice is not limited to her heroine, though it takes her longer to get the other main character, Nicky Parker, the handsome but poor son of a racist pastor, to shine as distinctly as Zora. At this novel's heart are love and race-what happens when a self-described BAP (black American princess), the daughter of a famous megachurch leader, falls in love with a young white man. Zora and Nicky's dialogue about race is unflinching, with attitude, honesty and occasional humor. Burney pushes her prose to the edge of the edgiest in the "Christian fiction" genre, and then barrels right over. She doesn't sugar-coat, especially when it comes to sex, yet she manages to create a love story that's both erotic and chaste. Faith in Jesus comes to life on the page through Zora and Nicky's intense, if imperfect, soul searching. Though parts are a bit melodramatic, Burney gives readers a page-turner for all audiences, Christian and beyond.” Publishers Weekly

The Great Gatsby

By: F. Scott Fitzgerald

20th Century : Classics Challenge

So, I admit I'm not very good at writing reviews instead I usually post from Amazon or Goodreads. I'm going to give it a shot though with this one.

I really did not like this book. I have to admit that I usually don't read anything that has to do with the 1920's, flappers, or mobsters. This book was set in the 1920's. Maybe it's because that time was so frivolous and devastating and you just know what's coming for a good part of the country. It's all gin and sex.

Jay Gatsby is a wealthy man in love with Daisy Buchanan. There are ridiculous parties that seem to go on forever and a lot of drunk people that have ridiculous conversations. Did I mention decadence and excess...it reminds me of the French during Marie Antoinette right before the blade fell. Did I mention Daisy is married...to someone else? Gatsby and Daisy meet before our story begins and, although they fell in love, it was not meant to be. Gatsby never gets over Daisy even though she's married to a royal jerk, Tom Buchanan.

The writing is very simple and clean. It's a small book, at only 179 pages, that does seem to throw a big punch at that time.

I'm glad I can say I read it but I did not enjoy it. I wish I had just binge watched something on Netflix instead.

Classic #2 finished.

Invasion of the Tearling

By: Erika Johansen

This book is book two to the Tearling trilogy. It moves quickly and you barely have time to catch your breath. I stayed up a couple of nights cause there just isn't any good place to stop and put the book down!

"Kelsea Glynn is the Queen of the Tearling. Despite her youth, she has quickly asserted herself as a fair, just and powerful ruler.

However, power is a double-edged sword, and small actions can have grave consequences. In trying to do what is right - stopping a vile trade in humankind - Kelsea has crossed the Red Queen, a ruthless monarch whose rule is bound with dark magic and the spilling of blood. The Red Queen's armies are poised to invade the Tearling, and it seems nothing can stop them.

Yet there was a time before the Crossing, and there Kelsea finds a strange and possibly dangerous ally, someone who might hold the key to the fate of the Tearling, and indeed to Kelsea's own soul. But time is running out..."

*I didn't care for some of the language and I also didn't care for all the rape talk. It's usually just inferred but there is one scene where Lily is actually raped by her husband. Some people won't have a problem with this but...yucky.

Jane Eyre

By: Charlotte Bronte

19th Century : Classic Challenge
The following information was found on Amazon about this title. My review will follow.

"Jane Eyre (originally published as Jane Eyre: An Autobiography) is a novel by English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published on 16 October 1847, by Smith, Elder & Co. of London, England, under the pen name "Currer Bell." The first American edition was published the following year by Harper & Brothers of New York. Primarily of the bildungsroman genre, Jane Eyre follows the emotions and experiences of its title character, including her growth to adulthood, and her love for Mr. Rochester, the master of fictitious Thornfield Hall. In its internalization of the action—the focus is on the gradual unfolding of Jane's moral and spiritual sensibility, and all the events are colored by a heightened intensity that was previously the domain of poetry—Jane Eyre revolutionized the art of fiction. Charlotte Brontë has been called the 'first historian of the private consciousness' and the literary ancestor of writers like Joyce and Proust. The novel contains elements of social criticism, with a strong sense of morality at its core, but is nonetheless a novel many consider ahead of its time given the individualistic character of Jane and the novel's exploration of classism, sexuality, religion, and proto-feminism."

Reader, I hated this book. I just slogged through it. I liked the character of Jane. I did not like Mr. Rochester. I liked her spirit and tenacity through some very tough times. I did not like Mr. Rochester. I liked the Gothic bits and I liked how there was family looking for her after all. I say take the money and run, Jane! I thought Mr. Rochester was twisted. You might disagree but the only way I could read the parts with him speaking were to listen for Benedict Cumberbatch's mental voice over! 

But I got classic #1 finished and now I am on to The Great Gatsby. 

Wish me luck!

Dark Matter

by: Blake Crouch

I think this is a 3.5 stars but alas. I really liked this book and I had trouble putting it down but the last 1/3 of the book I started to fall off the 'suspend my disbelief' wagon.

“Are you happy with your life?”
 Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious.
 Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits.
 Before a man Jason’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.”
 In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible.
 Is it this world or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could’ve imagined—one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe.
 Dark Matter is a brilliantly plotted tale that is at once sweeping and intimate, mind-bendingly strange and profoundly human—a relentlessly surprising science-fiction thriller about choices, paths not taken, and how far we’ll go to claim the lives we dream of." Amazon

It was interesting and encouraged me to have a down to 'dark matter, dark space' conversation with my science daughter!

The Queen of the Tearling

By: Erika Johansen

I could not put this book down! I was annoyed that we had to go to a family event on Saturday since it was going to cut into my reading time with this book.

Just Me: Blast! Why does this freeway have to be so curvy! It's making me too sick to read.
Husband: I chose this way cause it's faster than the other freeway.
Just Me: Faster! Why would you pick the fast way!!??

It's a thing. At least I was able to put the book down after some of the action had wrapped itself up.

This book moves forward like a runaway train.


"Magic, adventure, mystery, and romance combine in this epic debut in which a young princess must reclaim her dead mother’s throne, learn to be a ruler—and defeat the Red Queen, a powerful and malevolent sorceress determined to destroy her.

On her nineteenth birthday, Princess Kelsea Raleigh Glynn, raised in exile, sets out on a perilous journey back to the castle of her birth to ascend her rightful throne. Plain and serious, a girl who loves books and learning, Kelsea bears little resemblance to her mother, the vain and frivolous Queen Elyssa. But though she may be inexperienced and sheltered, Kelsea is not defenseless: Around her neck hangs the Tearling sapphire, a jewel of immense magical power; and accompanying her is the Queen’s Guard, a cadre of brave knights led by the enigmatic and dedicated Lazarus. Kelsea will need them all to survive a cabal of enemies who will use every weapon—from crimson-caped assassins to the darkest blood magic—to prevent her from wearing the crown.

Despite her royal blood, Kelsea feels like nothing so much as an insecure girl, a child called upon to lead a people and a kingdom about which she knows almost nothing. But what she discovers in the capital will change everything, confronting her with horrors she never imagined. An act of singular daring will throw Kelsea’s kingdom into tumult, unleashing the vengeance of the tyrannical ruler of neighboring Mortmesne: the Red Queen, a sorceress possessed of the darkest magic. Now Kelsea will begin to discover whom among the servants, aristocracy, and her own guard she can trust.

But the quest to save her kingdom and meet her destiny has only just begun—a wondrous journey of self-discovery and a trial by fire that will make her a legend . . . if she can survive."

I can not wait to read the second book. I just heard there is a movie being made.


* There is, at times, some rough language, and there are some things happening in the kingdom that are pretty rough. There are hints at rape, and there is other abuse of many women. Although some believe this is a young adult book it is not. Just a caution.

The Choosing

By: Rachelle Dekker

This book surprised me. I loved it! I thought it was going to be a Christian slant on Selection or Divergent. It is dystopian and there is selection to it but it’s not what I thought. I didn’t think there’d be a serial killer or the strong message of worth.

The book deals with different strong issues.* Loving ourselves not because someone chose us but because we were born loved by a loving God. It’s a story about how not everyone can live up to the governments/populations standards. But what if those standards are wrong? Sound familiar?

Another issue, for me at least, is the misinterpretation of the Veritas by men who then make the rules for others. I was wondering as I read it if they were skipping pages or were the pages missing. But then this wouldn’t be the first time that men have completely convoluted God’s holy word.

If you are a fan of Ted Dekker this book was written by his daughter. However, she has her own voice. She won a Christy award for Young Adult novel.

I read this book in one evening, not because it’s short but because I couldn’t put it down!

*There is no cussing, or sex but there are some strong, violent couple of scenes of torture. This involves kidnapping, pouring bleach down the throat for cleansing, and finally death. So if you are not the type for this, you might want to skip it.

Soldier Sister, Fly Home

by: Nancy Bo Flood

I really enjoyed this book about a part Navajo/part white teen, Tess, who has to spend the summer on her own when her sister, Gina, not only enrolls in the Army but then is deployed to Iraq. Tess learns who she is, how to befriend her sister’s dreaded, half-wild horse, Blue, and mostly how to forgive and let things go.

I loved not only the diversity of this book but also the close family relationships portrayed that are so often missing in teen fiction.  I loved her poetry and her voice. I also loved the included pronunciation guide to the Navajo language included in the text. The descriptions in this book are beautiful.

Also, there is information about Lori Piestewa who, a real-life soldier, was killed in Iraq (the first native woman killed in a foreign war) and was a member of the Hopi tribe.

Another Reading Challenge...

How fun is this!! I can't wait to give this a try. Check it out -



FULL HOUSE READING CHALLENGE 2017 SIGN UP



Challenge Guidelines:

Challenge will run from Jan 1st to December 31st 2017
Write and publish a post stating your intention to participate. In the post please include the Challenge graphic and a link back to this post. Then link your intention post at the bottom of this post.  Make sure it is the actual post and not just a generic link to your blog.
Add your reviews back here on the link in this post. At the end of every three months there will be a U.S. $12 prize with a book of your choice from the Book Depository or U.S. Amazon voucher, for the entries. There will be a new linky then for the next quarter and so on to the end of December.
Reviews are not mandatory and if you prefer to keep a list of the books read and the category they cross off the card, then you can still enter for the completion of a Full House by linking to that list on the final linky or in a comment. The list could be kept on somewhere like Goodreads or in a Google doc.

Link Ups
Jan - March   now open
Each review can only be linked up once in the year. However it doesn't matter when you read the book in 2017 - which month, just link as you remember or have time. So if you read it in January you may not get around to linking it until say... May. That is fine.
Books may cross over from other challenges that you are doing. However a different book for each square, one book cannot cover two squares.
There will be a final post to link in a summary post for the challenge for those who have completed a full house. This will close on the 2nd January 2018  and a winner will be chosen using random.org for a U.S. $30 prize which again can be used to buy books at the Book Depository or be received as an Amazon voucher.
Completion Link will go here.
Complete the card below.  You can do it in any order you wish.  You are allowed "one free exchange", if there is something on the square you really dislike you may change it to something of your choice. Once you have played this free choice that is it. Mention the exchange in the final summary post.
Full House Reading Challenge 2017
* Book about books.  This can be fiction or non-fiction. It can be anything for example where the setting is a book shop for example.

* Not really for you.  This can be a kind of book you don't usually read, or it could be one you just DNF, or one you just didn't enjoy that much.
* Diversity.  Think ethnic, cultural, religious, and gender diversity and you may come up with something you think of as well, as the list is basic.  But it must be somehow quite different to you.

* Book from a list.   There are heaps of lists out there, from bestsellers to numerous Goodreads ones.

*Authors  UK/European author reads   UK or European author.

*Size Word in Title   e.g small, little, tiny, huge, large, big, mini....etc.

Update, Friday!

I did it! I read 4 books today. I admit they were small-ish but still I read all the books I wanted to read for Bout of Books. I work the next two days so there will be little time to read.

This has been a fun jump start to my reading year!

Now back to my regularly scheduled classics challenge.

Jane Eyre.

Happy Reading!

Books Read for BoB challenge:

Works of Edgar Allan Poe: Graphic Novel
Dracula: Graphic Novel
Frankenstein: Graphic Novel
Surprise the World
Christmas at Tennant Hall

Friday??, I've lost count...

Is it really Friday or is my calendar playing tricks on me?

I'm half way through my chosen reading, except Jane Eyre. I've polished off 25 pages of that little beauty and am on my way. I hope poor little Jane finds some happiness. So far her life looks pretty bleak.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I just finished the graphic novels and Surprise the World. I liked The Raven part of the Poe graphic novel. The rest of it read like B movie stuff. I didn't care for Dracula. Why did I pick such scary books? Surprise the World was good. I had some good takeaways from it.

I have another Christmas book to read and then I'll have finished my goals for Bout of Books. It was a good getting started challenge.

I've been enjoying Jane Eyre but like I said, I hope things start to look up for her soon. Bullying at it's finest by children and adults. Oh my!

Day 2, #boutofbooks, FAIL

Day 2 found me working, and laundry, and dishes, and, yeah that stuff!

No reading today, except for maybe 2 pages!

"Tomorrow is another day!" Scarlett

Day 1, #boutofbooks, and Classics

First day of bout of books:

I read my first graphic novel. Frankenstein. Boy was it depressing but really well done. I liked the illustrations but found that I ignored them as I plunged through the words.

I think I like the pictures that come out of my own imagination. I have a routine when I read, as I read images pop into my head. It was rather distracting to have my images, words and the illustrators images all at the same time.

Classics Challenge:

I've started Jane Eyre. It's much thicker than I thought it was. It shouldn't be hard to get through though. So far, it's beautiful.

Bout of Books

Happy New Year! 

I hope you had a wonderful season of holidays. I also hope your 2017 is full of joy, calm, and books! 

I recently signed up to participate in Bout of Books for this first week in January. I'm pretty excited. Although it's just a week long, I think it's a great way to activate your reading, especially if you're in a slump like I was. The holiday's, responsibilities (yes, I do to much), and illness (colds and flu bugs), really wore on my reading habits like an elf with a candy cane. Horrible analogy, I know, but still, onward...

My very short TBR for Bout of Books is as follows:

Surprise the World! - Michael Frost

Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven: A Graphic Novel

Frankenstein: A Graphic Novel

Dracula: A Graphic Novel

Christmas at Thompson Hall

and that's it. Remember, I will also be starting Jane Eyre!

I hope I can get through them all. I've had the graphic novels for some time. I'm not really a graphic novel reader but I'm willing to give it a try. I hope they aren't too scary!

What's on your reading list for January?