Once Bitten, Twice Shy – Jennifer Rardin (Paranomal Chick Lit)

Well… er… at least it’s over? Oh wait, no, there are at least 3 more books in the series. Blarg.

Let me put it this way: The author tries too hard, the characters are unlikable and undeveloped, the plot and worldbuilding is inconsistent (where it exists, mind you), and the logic is sometimes… jumpy, at best. So, why did I bother to read past the second page?

Because I picked it up telling myself: “And now I am going to read some crap, just because I feel like it. And not good crap, either.” Turns out I was right. I don’t think I’ll be looking for any other books in this series… there are just too many other good books out there to bother with something this mediocre.

Rating: 1 coffee out of 5

The Book of a Thousand Days – Shannon Hale (Children’s Fiction/YA)

I picked this up based solely on the merit of good reviews from others here on Librarything. I didn’t even bother to read the description on the book, so imagine my surprise when I started reading and discovered that it was a re-working of a very little known fairy tale! I actually didn’t find that out until about halfway through the book – tells you how engrossed I was as soon as I started – and it definitely helped the second half of the book make more sense, if you will.

Without giving anything away, the climax wouldn’t have made a whole lot of logical sense if it wasn’t based on a fairy tale – especially because we see nothing like “that” earlier in the story – but with that in mind, it’s easier to accept changes in the way the world works at the drop of a hat.

I really enjoyed this book, and I’m glad I picked it up! It was a quick read, and definitely worth the time spent. I’ll be looking for more by this author in the near future.

Rating: 3 coffees out of 5

Tags: books, children's fiction