What We're Reading #6!

Welcome to July's "What We're Reading" blog party! 

Ricki Jill and I are avid readers and love to hear about the books you are reading. 

A friend once told me "There's no better gift than a suggestion of a good book."  I agree! 

So link up your latest reading post below.

Because we traveled in June I actually read a lot this past month.  Here's what I've been up to.

I really should keep up with where I hear about certain books in my to-read list on goodreads.com.  I am sure I'll remember when I put it on the list, and then I rarely do.  Case in point - A Discovery of Witches by Deborha Harkness.  I gave it 3 stars and did enjoy the writing.  The author is a university professor and this is the 1st of a 3 part series.  I am not sure I will read the other two when they come out.  Recommended for:  all you Twilight lovers.  Lots of readers like this because it's a more grown up series involving witches, werewolves, etc.

When we were planning for our trip to New York City last month I knew I needed a guide to help me plan our days.  On amazon this Frommer's guide had the highest reviews so I ordered it.  And it did not disappoint.  I gave it 5 stars.  Not only was it arranged really well but it had tons of tips, maps, and suggestions for off-the-beaten-path excursions.

I read this second Flavia de Luce mystery while we were in New York City.  I thought it was fantastic.  I might have liked it better than the first.  Flavia is an 11-year old budding chemist who gets herself in all sorts of scrapes in 1950s England.

And here is another that I cannot remember where I picked up the title.  But I'm so glad I did.  It's similar to The Hunger Games but set in Chicago in a dystopian time in the U.S.  It's very highly rated on goodreads.com as well.  I'm looking forward to the others in this series.

Confession:  I had never read a Jane Austen novel until July 2011!

I know all the movies and story lines but I had never sat down and read one.

For Mother's Day David and the boys got me the anthology of her 7 novels and I finally sat down and read one.

I chose Emma because my book club is reading Pride and Prejudice later this year and because Emma is the inspiration for one of the best movies ever made:  Clueless! (I unashamedly love Clueless)

I enjoyed Emma but did get bogged down in the language just a little.  It doesn't help that the book that I'm reading from has tiny print and it's a reminder that this 40-year old really needs to get some good reading glasses.  ugh.  It's hard to actually like the character Emma, but one can certainly sympathize and relate to her.  And of course, Mr. Knightley is awesome.

And I ended my reading marathon this month with the latest Stephanie Plum novel - Smokin' Seventeen.  I love the humor and will always read this series.  But I really get deja vu with these books.  The mystery story lines are always different, but really, are they?  And Ranger vs. Morelli.  I get sucked into that little triangle with these books.  I'm hoping Katherine Heigl does Stepahnie Plum proud in the movie coming out sometime next year.

Because you asked last month, I'll tell you that the Litwits (the local, really fun book club I'm a member of) is reading The Hunger Games this month.  We meet next week and I can't wait to hear how everyone liked it.

So what have you been reading lately?

Please link up below!

Happy Reading!

~~Bonnie and Ricki Jill

You can find my previous book review posts by clicking here