A Year In Review

So, I have been a terrible blogger this year. I started the blog with the best intentions and then life got in the way. I spent January though July taking classes in addition to my full-time job. Then I focused on work and a new relationship letting everything else take a back seat to love and money. I've read plenty of books. I've thought about blogging most of them. 2009 had me reading 30+ books and re-reading at least 4.

Quick list of 2009 reads:

Enemies and Allies by Kevin J. Anderson--Novel about Superman and Batman set during the 1950s. The two begrudgingly team up to stop the world from total destruction. 4 stars

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen--Classic chick lit. 5 stars

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith--The classic regency romance with added zombie mayhem. 4.5 stars

Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Jane Austen and Ben H. Winters--More classic literary romance with some slimy, tentacled or clawed disaster. 4 stars

Persuasion by Jane Austen--Classic tale of a girl letting herself get talked out of love based on a mistaken emphasis on wealth and status. To my knowledge there are no plans to add vampires or ghosts. 5 stars

Mansfield Park by Jane Austen--More classic chick lit. Poor girl lives with rich relatives and finds herself between the two worlds trying to find love and happiness. Also no plans to add any strange apparitions as far as I know. 5 stars

The Teahouse Fire by Ellis Avery--French-American girl goes off to Japan and become separated from her family through fire and choice. Passes herself off as a Japanese lady's maid in a respectable teahouse. 3 stars

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte--More classic lit about two selfish people and their love for themselves and each other and their inability to function in their worlds apart. 2 stars

The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown--Intrigue with a art history geek trying to solve the mystery, murder, and win the pretty girl. 3.5 stars

Angels and Demons by Dan Brown--Same hero as The DaVinci Code with a new mystery, murder, and pretty girl. 3.5 stars

White Oleander by Janet Fitch--Dysfunctional family at its finest. Plus a look into the foster care system through the eyes of a teen. 3 stars

Mary Called Magdalene by Margaret George--Novel of the possible and probably life of Mary Magdalene. Rich with history and a little possible blasphemy. 3.5 stars

Death of a Darklord by Laurel K. Hamilton--Weird novel filled with magic, zombies, and a witch hunter. 4 stars

Why Mermaids Sing by C.S. Harris--Murder mystery set in England. Part of a series. 3.5 stars

Chocolat by Joanne Harris--French lady opens a chocolate shop in a rural village and turns the town upside down. I believe I actually reviewed this one. 4 stars

The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster by Bobby Henderson--Hilarious blasphemy. No way to really explain this. You just have to read it. 3 stars

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini--By the author of The Kite Runner. About 3 separate females and how their lives intersect in Afghanistan. 5 stars

A Widow for One Year by John Irving--Reviewed last January. About a family and how their actions impacted them and those around them. 4 stars

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd--Reviewed already. About a girl looking for her roots and finding them in unexpected ways. 4 stars

Bright Lights, Big Ass by Jen Lancaster--Snarktacular chick lit. 4.5 stars
Such a Pretty Fat by Jen Lancaster--More Snarktacular chick lit. 4.5 stars
Pretty In Plaid by Jen Lancaster --Less snarktacular but totally hilarious chick lit. 4.5 stars

The Host by Stephenie Meyer--Alien being inhabiting human bodies and a band of refugees trying to survive without detection. 3 stars

Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyer (re-read)--Sparkly vampired and teen love. If you haven't already heard about Twilight; you're probably hiding under a rock. 4.5 stars

Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison--Can't even really describe it. 3.5 stars

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton--Mystery about a lost child with amnesia trying to find the truth and her granddaughter who finally figures it out. 4 stars

The Dangerous Days of Daniel X by James Patterson--Non-traditional Patterson safe for the whole family to read. Daniel is an alien hunter with a few advantages trying to get revenge for the death of his family by killing the most dangerous aliens in the U.S. 3.5 stars

Swimsuit by James Patterson--Killer on the loose ravaging models. Sort of standard for Patterson. 2.5 stars

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath--Whiny, depressed, suburban girl. 0 stars

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks--Love story spanning a few decades about reconnecting with first love. 4 stars

The Guy Not Taken by Jennifer Weiner--Short stories about everyday women finding their Prince Charming. 2 stars


I also failed two books (Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert and Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift). I may try them again later but I have plenty to keep me busy right now.

All in all it really wasn't a bad year for reading. Despite a lot of happenings I truly read 2-3 books each month with a full time job and classes.

Here's hoping 2010 is even better.