Christopher Paolini, Eldest (audio) & reading/writing

Definitely better than Eragon. I seriously enjoyed this one. Although at this point, I'm fantasied out and I cannot bring myself to begin Brisingr. I can't even really write about it because I have a serious need for other topics and genres.

I'm even writing no fantasy now. I need something else. So I'm in the works of creating a more romantic sweet story. I finally got the basic plot line together and now I need to really get the idea of how I want it to work and how I want to write it.

I'm also planning my first RP that I will be running. Josh and I are doing a Hero-based WWII RP. He's running the European Campaign and I'm doing the Pacific Campaign. I finally have all of the base material for probably a year's worth of the campaign. I do not know anything about WWII, so I'm using it as an excuse to do some fairly intensive research. This will certainly be interesting.

John Eldredge, Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secrets of a Man's Soul

The male counterpart to Captivating. I enjoyed this one, but not as much as Captivating. Probably because I am female and relate better to something that discusses a woman's soul more than a man's soul. I used this as a jumping board for trying to understand a male character I'm writing for. I recommended it to my father, who absolutely loved it. And hopefully Josh will get to read it before too long.

Christopher Moore, You Suck

A week before Turn Coat came out, I was perusing the library looking for audio books to keep me entertained. I knew I'd be driving a few hours during a business trip and that I'd need something to keep me from exploding while waiting for the Turn Coat release. I hadn't really read any other Christopher Moore (I own Lamb but haven't read more than a few pages) and came across You Suck. I knew that it would be humorous, so I picked it up in hopes that this would help the waiting process go by.

Well, it was definitely the right pick. While it took me a few CDs to decide that I actually liked it, I found it light-hearted and entertaining. And Abby Normal is hysterical (speaking of, I saw a t-shirt last night paying homage to Abby Normal). She was definitely my favorite part of the story. I'm definitely interested in reading/listening to some of Moore's other work.

LM Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea

The second book in the Anne series. This one has Anne helping Marilla raise the twins she is temporarily taking care of, which gives the reader a chance to really see how much Anne has grown since the beginning of the first book. Davy is troublesome, and he asks all kinds of questions that Marilla doesn't know how to answer. So Anne helps with a lot of this. He also wins over their hearts pretty quickly. Anne is also teaching at the Avonlea school and has created (with the help of friends) the Avonlea Village Improvement Society (AVIS).

I really liked this one, probably because I could relate to Anne more than I could in the first one. I'm glad I waited until later to read this one, and I definitely want to keep reading. Next is: Anne goes to Redmond!

JRR Tolkein, The Return of the King

This was absolutely the best in the trilogy! I loved every second of this book. I decided to take it with me on a business trip and read most of it on the plane. It was one of the fastest plane trips thanks to that book. My only disappointment was that I had been hoping there would be a little more explanation as to how Faramir and Eowyn fall in love, but such is life. It's still an amazing story.

And despite the fact that all my friends adore Aragorn the most, I have to say my favorite character is Faramir.

L.M. Montgomery - Anne of Green Gables

I never read this series growing up and I always wished I had. It was definitely worth it. Anne is a good-hearted girl who has a tendency to get into trouble. An orphan adopted by Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert, she goes to school and makes her first friends in Avonlea. The first book of the Anne series covers ages 11-16, so it really covers a lot of growth for Anne as she goes from gangly child to pretty young woman. She learns how to properly behave while staying true to herself and her imagination. This is a beautiful coming of age story, and I'm so glad I finally had the chance to read it.

Jim Butcher - The Dresden Files & Turn Coat

This is one of my favorite series ever. I love the characters and how they develop over the course of the series. Butcher pulls in mythology and geekery everywhere he can, which enhances the story if you know it but doesn't ruin it if you miss it (and I probably miss a lot more than I catch). Butcher writes in a way that's easy to read and is very addictive. Reading the series over again has me reading deeper into the story and asking more questions.

Turn Coat:
I've finished Small Favor in October, so I had to wait about six months to read Turn Coat. There were things I thought I had figured out but I definitely didn't. I feel like I took two steps back in terms of figuring out what's going on. This was the saddest of the series so far, which leaves me wondering where Butcher is going to take it next. The characters actually disappointed me with their actions, which is purposeful on Butcher's part, and makes me hope that maybe they can redeem themselves during the rest of the series. Butcher also didn't bother with his usual introduction chapter. The first page opens with Morgan knocking on the door bloodied up and asking Harry to hide him from the Wardens.

I'm excited for the next one, but I'm not dying to read it like I was between Small Favor and Turn Coat. It may also take a little time before my impatience wears me to the point that I can't wait any longer for the next book.