September! What are you reading?

[Rowan]

I have Salt to the Sea to start.

[Sílvia]

I'm still reading Lord of the Flies and hating it with a passion. I'd actually given it up yesterday and gone online to read a summary, but then decided to finish it just because it's such a classic and so short. Most people who hate it seem to feel that way because it's horrifying, but I just hate the writing style. Plus I found the beginning intensely boring.

[Rowan]

Yesterday I read Salt to the Sea by Ruta Septys. I liked it but maybe i wasn't paying attention because I'm not sure what happened to one of the characters. Let me know if anyone has read this that can help shed some light for me.

Today I finished All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood which has a ton of controversy because it involved statutory rape. I liked the book but I can see why there's lots of discussion on it.

Not sure what's next on the pile but I got a stack so I'm not worried!

[Sílvia]

Ooh, I just marked Ruta Sepe...? 's previous book as "want to read". Those sound up my alley, Ro.

All the Ugly... is on my list, too. Statutory Rape is when an adult has sex with a minor in the US, right? No matter the age? Even if the minor's 17? Please enlighten me. Niko has a friend who's 13 older than his wife, and when they started dating she was 14 and he was 27 (!!). I don't think it's a crime here. They're still together 24 years later and have 3 kids.

I finished Lord of the Flies I'd give it minus 1 star if I could. I'm also reading my friend's book, which is... no good I feel awful and will obviously tell her good things about it. There are good points. But ugh.

I'm reading the sample of The Girl You Lost by Kathryn Croft and will probably buy it.

[Rowan]

Syl, yes but the age of consent is designated by the state not federal government.

[Sílvia]

Ok, thanks, Ro.

I'm reading the Kathryn Croft and I don't like it. I don't like the writing, it's very uninspired and amateurish. The plot's not bad, and it moves at a decent pace, so I'll probably finish it. I briefly considered asking amazon for a refund, which is something I learned from a friend you can do if it's been only 1-2 days after a purchase, but I was already more than halfway through and it only cost 3 dollars. But I feel bitter about wasting my time. Oh well.

[Bugsy]

I am in such a reading slump all of a sudden! All I've been reading for the last couple of weeks are Amsterdam guide books.

[Spudd]

I finished "The Duke and I". It was fun, I enjoyed it. I found it a little too simplistic but not excessively so.

Then I started trying to read "Euphoria" by Lily King but had the opposite problem, it was too complex and difficult to read. I made it through 2 chapters and then abandoned ship. Maybe I'll read it later, but for now I couldn't manage it.

[Bugsy]

Spudd, "Euphoria" is a bit rough at the beginning, but it gets so much better.

[Rowan]

I ready Harmony by Carolyn Parkhurst. I liked it and it was an easy read. I read it in a night which I never do anymore. But not because it was that good but just because it was quiet and i could.

[Sílvia]

Euphoria has been on my radar forever, but hearing about a rough beginning is not doing anything for it. I'm too old for slow starters. Hook me by page 5 or don't hook me at all.

I'm reading such an adorable Brazilian YA. It's about an overweight girl who becomes a plus size model after surviving the hell of high school years. I wish I'd read it in my teen years, but alas, the author hadn't been born yet She's 24. I also wish it were translated into English, but the chances of that happening are slim.

[Spudd]

I remembered what I started after I abandoned Euphoria. "The Selection" by Kiera Cass. It's a total Hunger Games ripoff crossed with The Bachelor. But it's pretty entertaining.

[Rowan]

Spudd, I read all those Keira Cass novels. *ducks in shame*

[Spudd]

You must be where I got the recommendation from! It's funny because it's one of those books where the intellectual part of you is like "I can't believe you're reading this" but the escapist part of you is like "yeah! this is fun! give me more!".

[Sílvia]

Finished the Brazilian YA. At first I'd given it 3 stars because the ending was too hollywoodian, but in the end I went back and gave it 4. I loved every minute of it, and it was totally an "I can't believe you're reading this" thing, too, Spudd!

Then I started What She Knew by Gilly Macmillan.

[Rowan]

It's funny because it's one of those books where the intellectual part of you is like "I can't believe you're reading this" but the escapist part of you is like "yeah! this is fun! give me more!".

I totally agree Spudd. They get less good as they go along but yes they're silly and fun.

I read Leave Me about an overworked wife/mother who has a heart attack and isn't recuperating well so she just ups and leaves her family. Awful that I daydream about that. I would never do it but I think about it.

[Spudd]

I finished "The Selection" and was quite distraught to realize it didn't have an ending, you need to read the next 2 books in the series. So I read the sample from "The Elite" last night but it was so short. I'm going to see if I can get them from the library.

[kayley]

I am reading Good Harbor by Anita Diamant. It's light reading, though has some serious topics in it. It's an easy read, and I'll probably finish it on the bus today. I have so many books that I don't even know how they got in my house, and I'm dedicating more time to reading lately, so I am reading that now, mainly so I can get rid of it. I bought a pile of books when I was last in the states. Can't wait to get started on those!

[Sílvia]

Look who's visiting! Hi, Kayley! Tell us, what else have you brought?

I finished What She Knew last night. LOVED it (sorry, Mellen, I saw you marked it as to-read.) I liked it from the beginning, and the end was edge-of-your-seat stuff. I was super irritated because I had to stop reading at a crucial point and didn't go back to it for several hours.

Then I started the sample of The Truth About Melody Browne by Lisa Jewell because I needed something lighter and have been curious about LJ. I've never read anything by her. Chick lit, they tell me? Some of her books don't sound super chick lit-y.

[Sílvia]

Meh, I have post-excellent book blues. Nothing seems good. I'm at my third sample and nothing has grabbed me yet. This last one was The Burning Air by Erin Kelly, which I saw Blush gave 4 stars too. It started out great, but I was already slightly bored towards the end of the sample. I'm sure it's just me, and I might still buy it.