Monday Reads: Two JAFF, a YA, and an NA

Have you ever loved an author... like everything they say on social media is hilarious, or you think if you knew them in real life you'd be besties, or maybe you saw them at a conference or signing and thought they were so interesting? And I mean this in a totally non-stalkerish/non-crazy way, I swear.

Anyway, so then you read one of their books thinking you'd LOVE it? Then you just... don't.

Total bummer. So yeah, that's how I kinda felt about FABLEHAVEN by Brandon Mull.

My daughter read and LOVED the FABLEHAVEN sereis like crazy, so she insisted on coming with me to 2015's WHEN WORDS COLLIDE because Brandon Mull would be there. I hadn't read anything by him, but we went to all his panels and he was such a dynamic speaker. Seriously. If you have a chance to hear him in public- GO! Anyway, I finally gave the first FABLEHAVEN book a try a couple of weeks ago and... I liked it. I did. But I wanted to love it so bad, like Harry Potter type love, and I just didn't. I've since started book two- so obviously I liked it enough to want to read on in the series. But it got me thinking about the book and why I didn't connect with it like I wanted to.

Honestly, I think the main thing is I'm not into "creature" kinds of books. I've read other fantasy-ish novels that have had a lot of magical creatures or magical items in them, and they're just not my kind of thing. I like magical people, not regular people who run into magical stuff. And FABLEHAVEN is all about a magical preserve. The other thing was it lacked the humor of Harry Potter. There was this one really funny part which I loved (the whole cow-milking scene), but I wanted more funny, especially since it's MG. Anyway, I did enjoy the book. I loved the difference between the brave but sometimes foolish Seth, and the more responsible Kendra who finds her courage in the end. The world-building too was stellar. Already with book 2, I've found the plot to be more fast-paced, which is a bonus. So we'll see how this one goes. I know with HP, I didn't really LOVE them until PRISONER OF AZKABAN, so I'm giving FABLEHAVEN a chance.

The next book I read was MR. DARCY BROKE MY HEART by Beth Patillo. I'm just going to say I gave the book 3 stars and leave it at that. I've read amazing JAFF books, and this one didn't measure up like I wanted it to.

Then I read MORE THAN MUSIC by Elizabeth Briggs. SWOON! This book was everything I wanted it to be. I wanted a sexy and fun romance, and this was it. I can't wait to read book 2 in the series.

Lastly, I read another JAFF book, LETTER FROM RAMSGATE by Suzan Lauder. I got this as an advanced copy and loved every minute of it. It felt like reading Jane Austen herself, as if I was reading one of her rewrites of PRIDE & PREJUDICE. The changes made in this book were so clever, and so well done, that I could really see it. Definitely one of the best P&P variations I've ever read.

What did you read this week?