"The Grisha Trilogy" by Leigh Bardugo

          

There is something to be said about book covers... I know you are not supposed to judge the contents of a book by its cover, but these are just so pretty!!! And in this case, the books do live up to the expectations. I literally flew through the first two books, and had to really pace myself while reading the third one because I did not want to leave the world created by Bardugo. These are a real treat for fantasy lovers. Unlike most high fantasy books that loosely base their world on Medieval Europe, Bardugo got her inspiration from Russian/Eastern European medieval culture and folklore. 

My review below does not contain any spoilers, as I believe it is better to go into these books blind. The only thing I'd like to say is that Book 3 of the trilogy is by far my favorite in the series. In the first book, readers (along with the main character Alina) are confused by their feelings for the Darkling. He is powerful, mysterious, impossibly attractive, but also so very bad.... Some of us were hoping he wasn't really bad, and would at any minute turn into a good hero... Alas, never happened. In the second book, as Alina learns to master her power, she is still not sure of herself or her destiny. She is surrounded by three men vying for her love, and the one she really wants feels he has to give her up. Reading the second book, I still was not sure where Bardugo was going with the plot and what she had in store for Alina. The third book made all things clear and brought the story to a wonderful conclusion. I could not be happier with the way the story ended.

I am not going to comment on all the Slavic references "gone wrong" in this book. This is not historical fiction. It is a fantasy that loosely integrates bits and pieces of Eastern Slavic language and culture into the story. I thought Bardugo did a wonderful job with that and created a unique world that I loved immersing myself in. Enjoy the trilogy - I highly recommend it!

"To All the Boys I've Loved Before" by Jenny Han

This book is about three sisters whose mother had died when they were little and they live with their dad.  The oldest sister goes away to college, so the middle one - Lara Jean - has to be the "big sister" now, take care of 9-year old Kitty, be responsible, get over her fear of driving and yes, deal with some boy drama among other things. Lara Jean never had a boyfriend but she was in love several times - five times to be exact. Every time she wanted to get over a crush, she wrote him a letter, sealed and addressed the envelope and put the letter in a hatbox that her mother had given her a long time ago. This was her way of letting those unrequited infatuations go and move on. Well, one day, soon after her sister leaves for college, her letters get mailed by someone, and all of a sudden the quiet and day-dreaming Lara Jean has a lot of drama in her life...

I loved this book. It is so sweet and heart-warming, I literally could not put it down. It also made me happy and reminded me of all the good things about being a teenager. I loved reading about the Song sisters relationship. It's one of those books that you don't want to end and yet you can't stop reading. If you are feeling sad or down, read this book. It'll make you happy - it sure put me in a good mood!

"The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde

Reading this book was part of a promise I made to myself to read more classics. In fact I set a very manageable goal: to read three classic novels in 2014. Well, 9 months into the year, I realized I had read none, so I decided to pick up "The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde. I did not know anything about the plot going into this book. But I love Wilde. I adore his plays, he is always witty and his characters make me laugh out loud. Well, this book is a lot darker than his plays. As a lot of classical fiction, this novel explores human nature and deals with the subject of good and evil. What is the most valuable thing in life? Can one indulge in sin without consequences to their character? Is it possible to silence one's conscience? Is goodness utterly boring and only sin can bring joy? And ultimately, is a sinner capable of remorse and worthy of redemption? All are timeless questions and examined by a true master and an expert in human nature. Wilde shrewdly discerns character flaws and brings them to the surface. I really enjoyed the creativity of the plot and Wilde's witty writing. The only reason I did not give this book a five-star rating is because in a few places the narrative did drag for me. Perhaps the readers in Wilde's time had a longer attention spans and had more tolerance for lengthy descriptions. Other than that, it is an amazing excellent novel, and I highly recommend it. It is also very manageable in size - just over 200 pages.