Lissa and Rose are best friends. Although their friendship runs deeper than most. Lissa is a vampire as well as a princess. Rose is a dhampir, half vampire/half human, she hopes someday to be Lissa’s guardian and protect her from the Strigoi. They are being returned to St. Vladimir’s Academy where they escaped just two years earlier. St. Vladimir’s isn’t your normal boarding school. It teaches vampires in the ways of magic and dhampirs how to protect. The two girls are once again in the midst of drama and mischief. Lissa is no longer queen of the school and the new queen, Mia has no intention of letting her reign again. Rose is the blunt of vicious rumors. But she doesn’t have time to dwell on them, when Lissa begins to be mysteriously targeted. Someone knows Lissa’s secret and she may not be safe at the academy.

Okay, Wow! I really liked this book. Dare I say I loved it?! I can’t believe I waited so long to read it. If you are a vamp. fan you will simply devour this book! Rose was one of the funniest characters I’ve met in a while. She is the biggest smart-ass and I loved it! I admired the friendship between Lissa and Rose. It was so believable and realistic, because they balance each other perfectly. Vampire Academy has a little bit of everything, action, mystery, forbidden romance, humor and suspense! I can’t wait to read the next book Frostbite.

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The Princess and the Hound really starts in the prologue. It tells of the tale of King Richon and the Wild Man. Basically, King Richon is turned into a bear for his misdeeds toward animals by the Wild Man’s possession of animal magic. Since that time the animal magic has been feared, those who posses the traits are killed or must keep their talent hidden forever. Prince George posses the magic as did his mother. He is forced to keep it secret and thus isolates himself.

At the age of seventeen, George agrees to marry Princess Beatrice. George does not expect to love Beatrice nor does he want to become close to someone, the marriage is strictly a political alliance. But once he meets Princess Beatrice he is drawn to her and her relationship to Merit, her hound. Although George knows the Princess does not posses the animal magic, her relationship with the hound is something all together different. The Princess may have her own secret as does George.

I thought that The Princess and the Hound was well written and intriguing. I was hooked from the Prologue! The story is focused on self-acceptance, which both George and Beatrice struggle with. It is lengthy but I never found myself bored. I enjoyed getting to know the characters and that made the story even better. I do recommend this book, especially for fantasy lovers.

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Katie and Michaela are sisters. They aren’t only sisters, but they are best friends, who share all their secrets. They love living in New York City, and they both love ballet. Things turn upside down when the girls are uprooted from the city life and plopped into the small town of Fir Lake. Katie thinks it is the end of the world and she doesn’t understand why Michaela doesn’t feel the same way. Soon Michaela has a group a friends and even a boyfriend. Katie can’t help but notice the distance that is building between her and her sister. When Katie discovers that Michaela is keeping a huge secret from her, she can’t believe her sister, her best friend, would keep something like that from her.

This was a cute story, but I have to admit that The Year My Sister Got Lucky isn’t going to be one of my favorite books. I liked the focus on the bond between sisters and what it is like moving to a new town, but at times I found myself bored. I felt like there were a lot of things in the plot line that were unnecessary and didn’t really add to the book, like the weird neighbor Emmaline, I understand that she was someone that Katie felt she could confide in but, it didn’t really go anywhere. Also the focus on the girls dancing was a little overbearing, yes I realize they are dancers, but it was too much at times. I understood how Katie felt betrayed and upset toward Michaela, but I didn’t feel sorry for her. She had her mind set on how things were going to be and then she seemed surprised when things happened that way. On a positive note it does show the bond and the importance of having your sister, and that sometimes your sister isn’t your friend, but she will always no matter what be your sister. If you were planning on reading this book because it sounded like something you would like, by all means do read it. I hate to write something negative in my reviews, but remember it is only my opinion! I’ve read other reviews that have enjoyed this book.

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Another Kind of Cowboy by Susan Juby

Alex has always loved horses. When Alex was six, he had a horse named Del Magnifico le Noir, except it wasn’t exactly a horse, but more of a bicycle that Alex pretended was a horse, he had reins and everything! Alex also falls in love with the riding style of dressage at an early age. He never thought in a million years that his father would win him a horse playing poker. From there on out is was Turnip and Alex. Alex loved riding Turnip and winning shows riding western style, but his true love was still with dressage.

Cleo loves horses too. She collects them, the plastic kind. She has no desire to ride a horse, but her mother throws her into it. Never being around or on a horse really limits your riding abilities. So Cleo really just falls into dressage, because there is no way she is going to jump a horse. Cleo attends a private boarding school and when she complains about her lacking coach her mom finds her a new one, much to Cleo disdain.

And then they meet, Cleo and Alex at their dressage lessons. Alex is a talented rider and very hardworking, and Cleo is rebellious, selfish, and lazy. The story alternates between Cleo and Alex’s stories and struggles. Cleo struggles with her past mistakes and tries to rise above them. Alex struggles with his hidden sexuality and acceptance by his father.

Another Kind of Cowboy is enjoyable and refreshing! My grandparents used to raise Palomino horses, in turn, I’ve always been a horse fan. So, I couldn’t wait to read this book. But it is about so much more than horses. The story itself is well written and the characters are likable. Another Kind of Cowboy is a contemporary story that deals gracefully and humorously with issues of teen pressures and sexuality. This was my first read of Susan Juby, but I think I will have to look into reading more books by this author! I absolutely recommend this book!

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Girl Overboard by Justina Chen Headley

Who wouldn’t want to have everything, a huge house, a name that is well known, and billionaires for parents. Syrah Cheng that’s who. It may seem like Syrah has everything, but we all know that line about judging something by it’s cover.

Syrah wants nothing more than to be a pro snowboarder, but as soon as she tears her ACL that dreams goes down the drain. The almost boyfriend she thought she had was only using her, well he was only hoping to use her name. Her parents are never around and her step siblings hate her. Syrah thinks her life can’t possibly get any worse. Then Syrah meets Amanda, who has been diagnosed with leukemia, and she does what the Chengs are known for. She rises to the occasion and arranges a fund-raiser to make a difference. Along the way she discovers herself and the family she never knew she had.

Girl Overboard was a story of self discovery and personal growth. When I first started reading I have to admit that the poor-little-rich-girl routine really REALLY annoyed me, but after Syrah met Amanda and she realizes that things can be much worse, I rejoiced! Finally, I got to see the Syrah that I knew was in there! The girl that fights for the person she wants to be and wins the respect of her family. As well the story itself I also enjoyed the insight into a new culture. Overall, it was a good story. Personally, I didn’t get into the book until about chapter 20, but I still recommend it as a good read.

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The Off Season by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

D.J. is back at it again in the sequel to Dairy Queen, The Off Season. Things are finally on the upside for D.J. She is friends again with Amber and even Amber’s girlfriend Dale, and she is still sort of dating cutie quarterback Brian Nelson. She couldn’t be more happier than playing football for Red Bend and the guys actually accept her as part of the team.

But as we know, D.J.’s life has been anything but easy. She injures her shoulder during practice and has to decide between continuing playing football and possibly sustaining her shoulder injury, which would keep her from playing basketball. A basketball scholarship is D.J.’s ticket out of Red Bend. Then things with Brian start to go downhill, he seems fine when they are alone, but he never wants to be with her in public. To top that all off, Win is injured and D.J. flies across the country to take care of him for her parents.

I almost thought it was to much for D.J. to handle, I know it would be more than enough for me. Ultimately D.J. prevails like I knew she would. Of all the books I’ve read, D.J. is one of the few characters I’ve found myself truly admiring. The Off Season was more than I expected and I sincerely hope this isn’t the last of Miss D.J. Schwenk.

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