Quick Lit: May 2015

My goal for this year is to read 36 books - 3 a month - after only finishing 24 last year. I'm slightly ahead of schedule, with 15 books completed so far in mid-May. Here's what I've finished in the last month.

Return to Me by Lynn Austin

Lynn Austin is one of my absolute favorite historical fiction authors. Her "Chronicles of the Kings" series helped me wrap my mind around which biblical prophets appear with which kings of Israel. Her "Refiner's Fire" series fed my love of the Civil War era. And now this new "Restoration Chronicles" series will shed light on the exiled Israelites' return to Jerusalem. I'm working my way through reading my Bible in a year - chronologically, so the writings of the prophets will appear alongside the historical books - and I love how this book put images in my head of what things must have been like for the Israelites. I already have book #2 requested at the library!

Thirteen: The Last Thirteen #1 by James Phelan

I'm reading a few of the books for older readers that I sell with Usborne, so I can better offer recommendations for or against them. This is a series of 13 books in a sort of Divergent-meets-Harry-Potter. "Sam wakes from his nightmare to discover the terrifying reality: it will come true. Kidnapped from school and finding out his parents aren't who he thinks they are, Sam is suddenly running from danger at every turn. Nothing will ever be the same again. With his life and identity shattered, Sam's salvation is tied to an ancient prophecy. He is in the final battle to save the world, up against an enemy plotting to destroy us all. He alone can find the last 13." I enjoyed it, though not enough to make me want to immediately get the next book. But I can definitely see it appealing to the age group it was created for.

Minna's Quest by K.M. Peyton

Another book from Usborne. I'm always a sucker for a good horse story... "Minna is just a blacksmith's daughter, yet she succeeds in raising a sickly abandoned foal, turning him into the pride of the Roman cavalry. Her stubborn determination and fiery nature burn brightly in the quiet fort of Othona and soon attract the secret admiration of the proud commander, Theo."  I think I will look into the other two books in this trilogy. I do wish it could have been longer, I could see there being more character development and small interactions between the characters that would have added to the story. For a book that's considered Young Adult, this was fairly short at 186 pages.

Linking up today with Anne at Modern Mrs. Darcy!


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