The Last Runaway

My Rating: 4/5 Review: This was a wonderful story about a young Quaker woman who travels to America from England, and is ultimately introduced to the Underground Railroad. The author has such a special way with character development, as well as, scenery. I was drawn in immediately, and was hooked through to the end. In fact I was sad to end my growing friendship with the main character. I wanted to see where her next road would take her. I wanted to spend more time with her. I absolutely must read more Tracy Chevalier books.

O Jerusalem -Mary Russell #5

My Rating: 4/5 Review:This book ranged from completely boring to edge-of-your-seat excitment. Luckily, it had more exciting and interesting parts, than just plain boring parts. Book Description:At the close of the year 1918, forced to flee England's green and pleasant land, Russell and Holmes enter British-occupied Palestine under the auspices of Holmes' enigmatic brother, Mycroft. "Gentlemen, we are at your service." Thus Holmes greets the two travel-grimed Arab figures who receive them in the orange groves fringing the Holy Land. Whatever role could the volatile Ali and the taciturn Mahmoud play in Mycroft's design for this land the British so recently wrested from the Turks? After passing a series of tests, Holmes and Russell learn their guides are engaged in a mission for His Majesty's Government, and disguise themselves as Bedouins--Russell as the beardless youth "Amir"--to join them in a stealthy reconnaissance through the dusty countryside.

Modern Day Western

My Rating: 4/5 Review: I loved the beautiful descriptions, the great banter among the characters, and Walt Longmire. Good stuff! Book Description: In this outstanding first novel, Craig Johnson draws on his background in law enforcement and his deep attachment to the American West to produce a literary mystery of stunning authenticity, and full of memorable characters. Walt Longmire, sheriff of Wyoming's Absaroka County, knows he's got trouble when Cody Pritchard is found dead. Two years earlier, Cody and three accomplices had been given suspended sentences for raping a Northern Cheyenne girl. Is someone seeking vengeance? Longmire faces one of the more volatile and challenging cases in his twenty-four years as sheriff and means to see that revenge, a dish that is best served cold, is never served at all.

There is No Left

My Rating: 4/5 Review: A wonderful, interesting, moving, humorous, and thought provoking novel. I must read more Lisa Genova books. Book Description:Sarah Nickerson is like any other career-driven supermom in Welmont, the affluent Boston suburb where she leads a hectic but charmed life with her husband Bob, faithful nanny, and three children—Lucy, Charlie, and nine-month-old Linus. Between recruiting the best and brightest minds as the vice president of human resources at Berkley Consulting; shuttling the kids to soccer, day care, and piano lessons; convincing her son’s teacher that he may not, in fact, have ADD; and making it home in time for dinner, it’s a wonder this over-scheduled, over-achieving Harvard graduate has time to breathe. A self-confessed balloon about to burst, Sarah miraculously manages every minute of her life like an air traffic controller. Until one fateful day, while driving to work and trying to make a phone call, she looks away from the road for one second too long. In the blink of an eye, all the rapidly moving parts of her jam-packed life come to a screeching halt.

The Fault in Our Stars

My Rating: 5/5 Review:This was such an amazing book! It warms the heart, saddens the soul, and delights the mind all at once. The ending touched me more than I can say. Book Description: Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

Anne Shirley!

My Rating: 5/5 Review: I loved the book as much as the mini-series, though it was quite different. Anne Shirley has always been one of my favorite characters, and her story is just so much fun to read. You just never know what kind of mischief she's liable to get into. The scenery is also lovely, and it truly makes me want to travel to Prince Edward Island someday. Book Description: Everyone's favorite redhead, the spunky Anne Shirley, begins her adventures at Green Gables, a farm outside Avonlea, Prince Edward Island. When the freckled girl realizes that the elderly Cuthberts wanted to adopt a boy instead, she begins to try to win them and, consequently, the reader, over.

Pollyanna

My Rating: 3/5 Review: It was very different from the movie, and I didn't like how the characters spoke, but it was enjoyable. Book Description: When orphaned 11-year-old Pollyanna comes to live with austere and wealthy Aunt Polly, her philosophy of gladness brings happiness to her aunt and other members of the community.