The Shakeress

by Kimberley Heuston A great tale of a young woman who is orphaned with three younger siblings. She must decide how to care for them and still be true to herself. Through interesting twists and turns and listening to her "intuition", she discovers happiness. GREAT for Young Adults. Clean. ****

A Northern Light

by Jennifer Donnelly Takes place in the Northeast (somewhere) during the early 1900's. The land and people are rugged and worn. A young girl is thrown into a household and children, among other things. She tells her story and how the death of another young woman inspired her to follow her heart. There is some language and suggestive situations, but is mostly clean. Most young women would find this story interesting. I liked it. ****

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

by Stephenie Meyer

I hesitated in reading this for a long time. I have really enjoyed Bella's view and didn't want to ruin that. However, I also love Meyer's writing (The Host), so I finally decided to go for it! I read it in a day (not surprising if you know me), and found it to be refreshing. I was great to experience a well-loved story from another point of view. If you haven't read this but enjoyed the Twilight Saga, read it. Today!

****

Ella Minnow Pea

by Mark Dunn

I found this book on the "sale" shelf at the library. It had a cute cover so I picked it up. As I read the first page, I thought I might be in over my head...vocabulary was way beyond me. However, as I kept reading and gathered the premise of the story, I found that it was great! The vocab wasn't a hindrance, but instead an expander. In this small community, words and the alphabet are key parts of life. When letters are outlawed one by one, it becomes increasingly difficult to communicate effectively. Some give up altogether. Miss Ella Minnow Pea is the only one who can solve this problem.

This was a quick read - a couple of days. Great story. Clean. Just fun - especially if you like words that aren't often used in colloquial (everyday) language.

****

Death Angel

by Martha Powers

I found this book on the "for sale" shelf at the library...$1 for hardcover. This adult drama was interesting, but sad. It was well-written and had great twists, etc. It is about a family who loses their only daughter to a brutal murder. The book follows the journey from death to peace. It has swearing (no F's) and some sexually explicit scenes - but it is written for adults, so....

***