Colourful Reading Challenge Wrap-Up

Colourful Reading Challenge

Thanks to Rebecca for hosting it! It was a fun way to get some books off the TBR list.

Here's my list:
1. Empire of Ivory by Naomi Novik
2. The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson

3. Black Hills by Nora Roberts
4. The Fortunes of Indigo Skye by Deb Caletti
5. Keep Your Mouth Shut and Wear Beige by Cathleen Gilles Seidel
6. Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning by Danette Haworth
7. The Red Leather Diary by Lily Koppel
8. Little White Lies by Gemma Townley
9. Revelations: a Blue Bloods novel by Melissa de la Cruz

My favourite was Empire of Ivory, because I love the series. I also really liked Black Hills and The Fortunes of Indigo Skye. While not my favourite by Maureen Johnson, The Key to the Golden Firebird was also good. The rest were pretty much average. I'd say my least favourite was Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning - it wasn't bad, it just felt like I'd read it all before.

Review: The Fortunes of Indigo Skye

The Fortunes of Indigo Skye by Deb Caletti
4 stars

Reasons for reading: I've enjoyed some of Caletti's other books; Colourful Reading Challenge

Description: "Eighteen-year-old Indigo Skye feels like she has it all - a waitress job she loves, an adorable refrigerator-delivery-guy boyfriend, and a home life that's slightly crazed but rich in love. Until a mysterious man at the restaurant leaves her a 2.5 million-dollar tip, and her life as she knew it is transformed.

At first its amazing: a hot new car, enormous flat-screen TV, and presents for everyone she cares about. She laughs off the warnings that money changes people, that they come to rely on what they have instead of who they are. Because it won't happen...not to her. Or will it? What do you do when you can buy anything your heart desires -- but what your heart desires can't be bought?

This is the story of a girl who gets rich, gets lost, and ultimately finds her way back - if not to where she started, then to where she can start again."

First lines: "You can tell a lot about people from what they order for breakfast. Take Nick Harrison, for example. People talk about him killing his wife after she fell down a flight of stairs two years ago, but I know it's not true. Someone who killed his wife would order fried eggs, bacon, sausage -- something strong and meaty."

My thoughts: I really enjoyed this book - Caletti writes wonderfully. Indigo is very likeable and Caletti has some great turns of phrase like "spring delicious." Of course Indigo does have to become horrid to learn that money doesn't buy happiness, but that's par for the course for this kind of story. I really liked that Indigo truly enjoyed being a waitress because she got to serve people comforting foods and help them through their day just a bit. She made lots of good observations about what's important in life and what money can do to people, particularly when it gives them power over others. Her little sister Bex's desire to help tsunami victims and her twin brother's obviously doomed relationship with his boss' daughter made them endearing secondary characters and Indigo's boyfriend Trevor is a true gem. Indigo's journey, while not overly surprising, feels genuine and her affection and concern for others (except for the brief lapse into obligatory bitchiness), as well as her sense of humour, made her a joy to read about.

Review: Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning

Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning by Danette Haworth
3 stars

Reasons for reading: sounded good, Colourful Reading Challenge

Description: "Spunky, headstrong Violet Raines is happy with things just the way they are in her sleepy backwoods Florida town. She loves going to the fish fry with her best friend, Lottie, and collecting BrainFreeze cups with her good friend Eddie. She loves squeezing into the open trunk of the old cypress tree, looking for alligators in the river, and witnessing lighting storms on a warm summer day.

But Violet’s world is turned upside down when Melissa moves to town from big city Detroit. All of a sudden Violet’s supposed to want to wear makeup, and watch soap operas, and play Truth or Dare! It’ll take the help of Violet’s friends, her Momma, a few run-ins with lightning, and maybe even Melissa, for Violet to realize that growing up doesn’t have to mean changing who you are."

First line: "When Eddie B. dared me to walk the net bridge over the Elijah Hatchett River where we'd seen an alligator and another kid got bit by a coral snake, I wasn't scared - I just didn't feel like doing it right then."

My thoughts: My verdict is that this is a good read for preteens but for an old person like me it was pretty much a read-this-all-before book. It's the usual girl coming-of-age stuff, trying on make-up and bras, a mean (ish) girl, worrying about losing a friend, starting to notice boys, etc. I did like the rural, Southern setting, it gave it a bit of an old-fashioned feel. Violet was spunky but typical for this type of book, fairly self-centered and not wanting to grow up.

Review: Keep Your Mouth Shut and Wear Beige

Keep Your Mouth Shut and Wear Beige by Cathleen Gilles Seidel
3.25 stars

Reasons for reading: Colourful Reading Challenge; recommended by a friend

Description: "Darcy Van Aiken is doing just fine, thank you. She’s an ICU nurse with an “amicable” divorce from her ex-husband, Mike, two great kids, and a prescription for Ritalin. Then her older son, Jeremy, gets engaged to Cami Zander-Brown---daughter of a wealthy New York family---and her world gets turned upside down. The source of her trouble, much to Darcy’s surprise, is not in the form of Rose Zander-Brown, Cami’s elegant and accomplished mother. Nor is it in the form of Guy Zander-Brown, Cami’s charismatic and wildly successful literary agent father. Instead, lurking in the shadows of Mike’s new life is the beautifully dressed Claudia, a self-described “managed perfectionist.” The Zander-Browns have money. Lots of money. The plans for their daughter’s dream wedding grow more fabulous by the day, and loving every minute is Claudia. With her perfect taste, Claudia can’t help thinking she would make a much better mother of the groom than Darcy. This wedding is her chance to entrench herself in Mike’s life---and take credit for the two sons Darcy has worked so hard to raise right. It’s a battle of will and wits. . ."

My thoughts: My friend Vidalia recommended this book and I believe she had just been the mother of the groom at a big society wedding (I doubt she wore beige, though I think she worked very hard to keep her mouth shut against some rather ridiculous in-laws-to-be). This book seems fairly realistic - Claudia's "managed perfectionism" is extreme, but you can imagine having to deal with someone like her. Darcy and Mike seem to have had a fairly amicable divorce but issues still come up and one of their younger sons is more trouble than the stellar first-born. The Zander-Browns' youngest son is mentally challenged and suffers from life-threatening food allergies. All pretty plausible stuff. One of the interesting themes about this book was that of friendship for older women - how it's harder to make friends, how you've got an image of yourself that keeps you at a distance from people, and how having children with serious problems can change you in ways your friends might not be able to handle. I also thought it was interesting that Mike still sort of acted like they were married, expecting Darcy to handle the little details of family life that he had never bothered with, like his mother's travel arrangements, even though he had apparently left Darcy because she wasn't organized enough for him.

It's definitely a good (Darcy) vs evil (Claudia) story, although perhaps Claudia isn't actively evil - she just really doesn't seem to know how normal people behave and while she knows everything about style, colours, table-settings and hem lengths, she doesn't have much common sense or courtesy. Darcy has lots of both, but is lacking in Claudia's stylishness, which makes her feel ill at ease.

The secondary characters were well done, except maybe for the older son, the groom - almost everything he said was the he wanted his bride-to-be to be happy, which was sweet. Little Finney Zander-Brown was a lovely little boy and the author portrayed his mental disability with skill, he was never either a cariacture or too precocious. Annie Zander-Brown developed nicely - starting as a beautiful princess but turning out to have her own problems and worries, mainly about her family. Darcy's retired pediatrician father was even great, he would be a welcome addition to anyone's family!

I wasn't blown away by the book, but I did root for Darcy and also Rose, two women who need friends. And the title is a hoot! Probably a better read for anyone who has grown kids who have gotten married, but still entertaining even without that background.

Review: The Red Leather Diary

The Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming a Life Through the Pages of a Lost Journal by Lily Koppel
3 stars

Reasons for reading: sounded really interesting; Colourful Reading Challenge

Description: "For more than half a century, the red leather diary languished inside a steamer trunk. Rescued from a Dumpster on Manhattan's Upper West Side, it found its way to Lily Koppel, a young writer, who opened its tarnished brass lock and journeyed into an enthralling past. The diary painted a breathtaking portrait of a bygone New York—of glamorous nights at El Morocco and elegant teas at Schrafft's during the 1920s and '30s—and of the headstrong, endearing teenager who filled its pages with her hopes, heartaches, and vivid recollections. Intrigued, Koppel followed her only clue, a frontispiece inscription, to its now ninety-year-old owner, Florence Wolfson, and was enchanted as Florence, reunited with her diary, rediscovered a lost younger self burning with artistic fervor."

First line: "Once upon a time the diary had a tiny key."

Favourite part: It actually comes near the beginning, when Lily finds the trunks in the Dumpster. There's a wonderful description of the hotel and ocean liner labels:

Each label was a miniature painting, a dreamy portal into a faraway destination. Elephants paraded past exotic geishas twirling parasols. Pink palms swayed, hypnotizing passengers aboard the Orient and Round the World Dollar Steamship Line. Flappers frolicked. . . An orange ship sailed through a fuschia pagoda. Two women sat under an umbrella in Cannes. Giraffes kicked off the Around Africa Cruise. . .

I'd love to have a collage like that on my wall!

Other thoughts: I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the book. Most of the book is Lily recreating the events described in the diary (which actually only had room for a few lines per day) in almost novel format. She's obviously done lots of interviews and research, but I almost would have just preferred the diary.

And Florence was quite the young woman! I didn't quite know what to think of her. She was constantly having love affairs with girls/women and a few boys/men, from age 14. "In those days it was fashionable for girls to have relationships. Like Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West." explains 90 year-old Florence. But gosh, it seemed like rather a lot of sex for someone so young during what we think of as a "purer" time (I think we're wrong!). And she comes off as a bit of a poor little rich girl, even though her parents were well-off but not very wealthy. She wanted to be a writer, an artist, a musician. . . in her later teens she held literary/philosophical salons in her parents' apartment. I found myself thinking it must've been nice to have so much time on one's hands and so little to worry about. But the ways she was able to fill that time, from age 14, in New York City is amazing - teas, operas, plays, museums, horseback riding in Central Park. . . We'll never see that again.

I think I might have been happier with a book just about New York during this period, which I find fascinating. But Koppel clearly loves the city and its history, and that comes through well. Apparently it inspired her to write some articles about New York during the time and find places that still existed (like the last typewriter salesman), which I wouldn't mind reading. And Florence is certainly an exciting tour guide for the period!

Review: Black Hills

Black Hills by Nora Roberts
4 stars

Reasons for reading: I've always thought I should read a Nora Roberts book; I visited the Black Hill last year; Black for Colourful Reading Challenge; NYT Bestseller for Four Month Challenge

Description: "Lil Chance fell in love with Cooper Sullivan pretty much the first time she saw him, an awkward teenager staying with his grandparents on their cattle ranch in South Dakota while his parents went through a messy divorce. Each year, with Coop's annual summer visit, their friendship deepens - but then abruptly ends. Twelve years later and Cooper has returned to run the ranch after his grandfather is injured in a fall. Though his touch still haunts her, Lil has let nothing stop her dream of opening the Chance Wildlife Refuge, but something - or someone - has been keeping a close watch. When small pranks escalate into heartless killing, the memory of an unsolved murder in these very hills has Cooper springing to action to keep Lil safe. They both know the dangers that lurk in the wild landscape of the Black Hills. And now they must work together to unearth a killer of twisted and unnatural instincts who has singled them out as prey ..."

First line: "Cooper Sullivan's life, as he'd known it, was over."

My thoughts: I can see why Nora Roberts is so popular! While at times I felt the book was a bit....slick because she's clearly written so many of them, I still enjoyed it. The ending was a crazy whirlwind with an unexpected (to me, at least) twist. I was glad that I've seen the Black Hills and Deadwood, it added a lot to the book for me to be able to picture the setting. I sometimes don't like it when an author has clearly done of a lot of research on a topic and includes a ton of it in the book, but Roberts' information about the big cats was interesting it fit in well. I'm not a big wildlife person, but I actually loved the cats - they had their own personalities and the Chance Refuge treated them all with such respect and care. It made me wish it really existed and I could go and see Boris the old tiger and Baby the cougar.

The love story between Lil and Cooper was pretty well done. I liked that she set it up from their childhood, with Cooper thinking South Dakota was hell and Lil not being able to imagine living anywhere else. It was really cute. I did think it was a bit angsty with all of the "You hurt me!"/"But it was for your own good!" debates between them. I liked that Lil was really strong and smart, but also able to admit (eventually, reluctantly) that she needed his help. He was maybe just a bit too take-charge, throw-her-over-his-shoulder romance-novel hero at times, but overall they were a good match.

The buildup to finding out who is preying on Lil was well done. Just when I was starting to think that it was time to tell us who it was, Roberts did. And what a weird, psychotic villain she comes up with! Definitely bonus points for having an interesting predator who really fit into the South Dakota setting.

The verdict: A good read, I can see why she's an instant best-seller. I think I'll look into her work a bit more and maybe read a few of her "greatest hits."

Review: Revelations

Revelations: a Blue Bloods Novel by Melissa de la Cruz
3 stars

Reasons for reading: Blue for the Colourful Reading Challenge; I'm interested enough in the series to see what happens

Description: "Schuyler Van Alen's blood legacy has just been called into question--is the young vampire in fact a Blue Blood, or is it the sinister Silver Blood that runs through her veins? As controversy swirls, Schuyler is left stranded in the Force household, trapped under the same roof as her cunning nemesis, Mimi Force, and her forbidden crush, Jack Force. When one of the Gates of Hell is breached by Silver Bloods in Rio de Janeiro, however, the Blue Bloods will need Schuyler on their side. The stakes are high; the battle is bloody . . . And in the end, one vampire's secret identity will be exposed in a revelation that shocks everyone."

My thoughts: I'm getting a bit of series fatigue with this one. It's getting hard to keep track of which "fallen angels" are related and how and they seem to keep introducing different ways of being born into vamp society, even though there are only supposed to be 400 of them, period. But I do still like de la Cruz's take on vampire lore, especially as it relates to New York's high society. I was getting really tired of bitchy Mimi, but by the end I understood her better and could see why she fights so hard for Jack. Random thought - I always see a very young Alexis Bledel when I think of Schuyler, it's kind of weird. I think I'll hang in there for the next book, The Van Alen Legacy, but I hope it's the last one, because it's getting pretty bogged down with a lot of different threads. I hope they come together and finish off the story.

Review: The Key to the Golden Firebird

The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson

3.5 stars

Reasons for reading: I love Maureen Johnson!; February author birthday for the Four Month Challenge and also for the Colourful Challenge

Description: "Mayzie is the middle sister, sent to private school because of her brains. Brooks, the oldest, is a beautiful athlete who's conflicted about her two loves: softball and Dave. Palmer is the youngest, tentative in all but her blistering pitches as the only freshman on varsity softball...When the unthinkable happens -- the death of their father -- a year passes in shattered silence. Brooks begins drinking, Palm withdraws, and May is left to fend for herself. She gets a job at a coffee spot, and hits the books. But the one thing she can't do alone is learn to drive. That's when Peter, her lifelong nemesis and all around thorn-in-side, assumes a surprising new role in May's life: he teaches her to drive, and the connection between them changes from childhood animosity to one that May can't understand, or doesn't yet want to. As May slowly starts to pick up the pieces of her life, her sisters struggle with their own demons. The Gold sisters have been changed irrevocably, and they are all but lost to one another, until the key is found. The key to their father's Pontiac Firebird."

First line: "Chome on," Palmer said, her words dulled from numb-tongue syndrome caused by the Icee she was slurping. "You haff to admit it wash funny."

My thoughts: This is definitely not my favourite Maureen Johnson book. I think that's still 13 Little Blue Envelopes. But it's still a good book. The reason I had put off reading it is that I (correctly) assumed that the death of a parent was going to cast a pretty big pall over the usual Johnson crazy-funny, and I was right. But that's not entirely a bad thing, it just makes it a different kind of book. It was really sad to see the way the Gold women completely fell apart. I felt sorriest for the girls, though, because even though I know the mother was suffering, too, she's the adult in the situation. But, of course, she had to support the whole family, so she ended up dumping most things on May and can't see that her one daughter is a drunk and the other has panic attacks so bad she never sleeps. But sweet Peter, who is definitely not May's childhood nemesis any more, continually steps in to save the day, so he's a real bright spot in the book. And there's definitely lots of Johnson's trademark humour, especially at the beginning (a plot to get naked photos of Peter) and the end (a highly illegal but wonderful stunt at a baseball game). By the end, the sisters have started to heal both themselves and their relationship with each other. And the Golden Firebird provides a nice link to their father - each girl has different memories of spending time in the car with him. And May's attempts at driving it are also humour high spots.

The verdict: This definitely feels like the earlier work that it is, but for a fairly quick read about an interesting trio of sisters, it's worth a look.

Review: Empire of Ivory

Empire of Ivory (Temeraire, book 4) by Naomi Novik
4.5 stars

Reasons for reading: this series is addictive; second book for the Colourful Reading Challenge

Synopsis: "Tragedy has struck His Majesty’s Aerial Corps, whose magnificent fleet of fighting dragons and their human captains valiantly defend England’s shores against the encroaching armies of Napoleon Bonaparte. An epidemic of unknown origin and no known cure is decimating the noble dragons’ ranks–forcing the hopelessly stricken into quarantine. Now only Temeraire and a pack of newly recruited dragons remain uninfected–and stand as the only means of an airborne defense against France’s ever bolder sorties. Bonaparte’s dragons are already harrowing Britain’s ships at sea. Only one recourse remains: Temeraire and his captain, Will Laurence, must take wing to Africa, whose shores may hold the cure to the mysterious and deadly contagion. On this mission there is no time to waste, and no telling what lies in store beyond the horizon or for those left behind to wait, hope, and hold the line."

My thoughts: Another great book in this series! I usually get bored of a series after the second or third one because it starts to be the same book, but Temeraire is always going to new places and getting into new scrapes. I honestly can't imagine how he and Laurence will get out of them, it's very exciting! :-) In this book, Laurence and Temeraire discover why they were the only ones available to help Prussia against Napoleon in the previous book - all of the dragons in England are ill or dead. they have to take off to Africa, which is even more foreign than China, their previous location. I found it quite interesting to read about Africa during the 18th century, particularly as the slave trade is still flourishing and Laurence feels strongly about abolition.

As always, Novik fits the dragons into her alternate history world seamlessly. I like the way the dragons are treated differently in each country, since I'm sure that would be the case, everyone would adjust differently. They're revered in China, treated as a step above livestock in Britain, and believed to be the reincarnated ancestors of the tribespeople in Africa. And they all have their own personalities. We see more of Iskierka in this book, and the bratty little fire-breather has personality to spare!

The verdict: Another great installment plus the biggest cliffhanger so far in the series!

Review: Little White Lies

Little White Lies: a novel of love and good intentions by Gemma Townley
3 stars

Reasons for reading: first book for the Colourful Reading Challenge; snapped it up from the library booksale

Description: "What's one little white lie? Okay, so it isn’t that little. It’s kind of a whopper. It’s just that when Natalie Raglan ups and quits her job at a Bath advertising firm, breaks up with her loser-ish boyfriend, and moves–to London! Things don’t quite turn out the way she planned. Having made the brave move to the Big City, the lifelong country mouse finds that living chic is still a long way off. Even Cressida, the girl who used to rent her tiny flat, still gets more phone calls and mail there than Nat does. Come to think of it, Cressida Langdon’s life looks pretty appealing–especially when an invitation to the posh, exclusive Soho House club arrives, addressed to Cressida.

Before she really knows what she’s done, Nat has opened Cressida’s mail . . . and taken up her life. Soon Nat’s dating a gorgeous investment banker named Simon, giving “reiki healing sessions,” wearing wonderful clothes, and partying with the A-list at Soho House. But the best part really is Simon. He’s everything Nat has ever wanted. The problem is he thinks she’s someone else. And as her life and her lies begin to spiral out of control, Nat can’t help but wonder: Will she be exposed as a liar and a fake–or be saved from ruin by simply claiming good intentions. . . "

First lines: "Let me ask you a question. A theoretical one, if you’ll bear with me. Would you ever open someone else’s mail? No? Of course not, I knew that."

My thoughts: This was a good, fluffy read. Definitely typical Brit chick lit, you see the happy ending miles away, but Natalie is likeable and if the lies-upon-lies get a bit tiring after a while, she really does mean well. And I did feel for her, being lonely in the big city where nothing has turned out like she'd hoped. She's not vicious in her lies, she just wants her life to come together and the harder she tries, the worse it gets. And really, who hasn't imagined having a more glamorous life?

There are all the usual stock chick lit elements - the bitch boss, the jerk ex-boyfriend, the fashion references, the misunderstandings that almost come between the heroine and her would-be beloved, and, of course, the utterly happy ending. But it's a cute story with some funny scenes (the way Natalie gets out of having to do a reiki session is a hoot) and a quick read, so if you're in the mood for something light, this could be the one for you.

Colourful Reading Challenge

Colourful Reading Challenge


Hosted by Rebecca. Click the image for all the details, but basically it's nine books with nine colours in the titles.

Here's my list:
1. Empire of Ivory by Naomi Novik
2. The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson

3. Black Hills by Nora Roberts
4. The Fortunes of Indigo Skye by Deb Caletti
5. Keep Your Mouth Shut and Wear Beige by Cathleen Gilles Seidel
6. Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning by Danette Haworth
7. The Red Leather Diary by Lily Koppel
8. Little White Lies by Gemma Townley
9. Revelations: a Blue Bloods novel by Melissa de la Cruz