Recent Kindle Downloads

aka What Manda is Going to Read

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Currently Reading...pretty good so far!

 

Switched 

My next read on the top 100 list, thought it sounded interesting.

Fools Rush In

Looked cute and was FREE. :)

In the last week or so I've downloaded about 60 books to my Kindle. All but about 3 of them were FREE. I am totally 100% addicted to my Kindle and am having a blast reading on it. I'll probably start doing these little what Manda is reading posts to keep those who care updated. :)

My to read list of paper edition books is still pretty large and I'm going to have to start going back and forth between Kindle editions and paper ones. I still love holding a real book in my hands, but I am pretty in love with my Kindle.

A Daring Proposition by Jennifer Greene Review

A Daring Proposition
by Jennifer Greene
Publisher: Carina Press

Leigh Sexton is desperate to have a baby, and Brian Hathaway would be the perfect bio-dad. One of Chicago's most notorious playboys, Brian is no family man, which suits Leigh just fine. An heiress and successful CPA, she is more than capable of raising a child alone. Now all she has to do is work up the nerve to ask Brian to impregnate her...artificially. Leigh has no interest in conceiving the old-fashioned way, despite how her heart races whenever she's near him.

Brian is intrigued by Leigh's request. He's not into commitment, even with a woman as attractive as Leigh, but he's also not the type to make a deposit and then disappear. If he goes along with her scheme, he's got one demand of his own: marriage before conception. He agrees to keep things clinical—he can get sex elsewhere—but having a wife at home will keep the husband-hunters at bay.

It seems like the ideal compromise—until they start falling in love.


A Daring Proposition by Jennifer Greene
Review by Me
3.5 Squees/5 Squees

I had a hard time with this book in the beginning. I just wasn't pulled in right away. Leigh was going through a lot in the beginning of the book and everything felt really stiff and blah. I continued reading because I wasn't completely bored.

The book really started picking up about halfway through when Leigh and Brian go to visit his family for Christmas. Up until that point everything seemed forced and drawn out. I loved the book at this point and forward. I really loved the chemistry that started to build between Leigh and Brian and I loved her chemistry with his family. All the way through the end of the book I was a very happy reader. It was almost like a was reading a different book at the halfway point.


All in all I enjoyed this story and thought it was read worthy.  I just wish the author didn't take so long in the beginning to really get it going. I wouldn't have minded more of the relationship building and romance that was in the second half of the book.


I enjoyed the characters, and would recommend this if you're into the romance genre and just looking for something so-so to read.

Announcement Announcement Announcement!!!

I can now review books in KINDLE format!!!

That's right ladies and gentlemen, I crossed to the dark side and got a kindle. I absolutely LOVE it! Now if only I had money to actually fill it with books. Looks like I'll be entering some of those Amazon Gift Card contests.

Now don't think I've crossed over completely. I still have plenty of books in real book form and I will always buy books. It's just nice to have them all in the palm of my hand.

Ok that's all. Catch ya later.

Populazzi by Elise Allen Review

Populazzi
by Elise Allen
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Synopsis:
WHAT WOULD YOU DO if you had the chance to erase your past and reinvent yourself as the person you’ve always wanted to be?  Would you grab it?  Would you stick with it, no matter what the consequences?

Cara Leonard always wished she could be one of  those girls: confident, self-possessed, and never at a loss for the perfect thing to say.  One of the Populazzi.

It always seemed impossible… but now could be her chance.

When Cara moves to a new school just before junior year, her best friend urges her to seize the opportunity and change her life… with the help of The Ladder.  Its rungs are relationships, and if Cara transforms herself into the perfect girlfriend for guys higher and higher on the Popularity Tower, she can reach the ultimate goal: Supreme Populazzi, the most popular girl in school.

The Ladder seems like a lighthearted social experiment — a straight climb up — but it quickly becomes gnarled and twisted.  And when everything goes wrong, only the most audacious act Cara can think of has a chance of setting things even a little bit right.

Populazzi by Elise Allen
Review by ME
5 Squees/ 5 Squees

This book was made of pure squees. I've read a lot of "heavier" books lately and this was a refreshing break from that. Elise Allen wrote this typical teen story with a girl striving to rise in popularity. I loved her take on such a normal story though. Her characters were charming and I really felt for Cara through out the whole book. I definitely oohed and awed through many pages and even let a few squees out during some of the more "cutesy" moments. I'm a big fan of these type of high "fluff" stories. I don't know if it was my lack of high school social skills or that I just wish I was young and naive again. This book will bring you back to those days of longing to fit in and you'll wish you could be by Cara's side through some of the tougher moments. All in all this was a great teen read, and I definitely enjoyed it.

The Clearing by Heather Davis Review

The Clearing
by Heather Davis
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Synopsis: Amy, a sixteen-year-old recovering from an abusive relationship, moves to the country to start a new life with her aunt–all she wants is for everything to be different. In the clearing at the back of Aunt Mae’s property, she makes an amazing discovery—Henry, a boy stuck in the endless summer of 1944. Henry and his world become Amy’s refuge and she begins to learn that some moments are worth savoring. But when the past and present come crashing together, both of them must find the courage to face what is meant to be, even if it means losing each other forever.



The Clearing by Heather Davis 
Review by Me
5 Squees/5 Squees

I don't even know how to begin this review. When I read the synopsis of this book, I thought it sounded really strange. It seemed different though, and I like different. I loved this book from the beginning. The character of Amy is just so relate-able. She is a realistic girl who is going through real and painful things.  She goes to get away from things and ends up meeting Henry. Henry is that good, respectable, country boy that EVERY girl dreams about. He couldn't be more perfect.  I love that even though he seemed so perfect for Amy, Heather Davis made him have problems too. I love that both characters have to struggle through a lot of things and their outcome isn't necessarily the happy fluffy one that is expected in books of this genre.  I really enjoyed all characters in this book, down to Aunt Mae's dog.  The author really made this world she created realistic, while still making it interesting and exciting.  I love the outcome of the book, even though it wasn't my ideal ending. I really like where Heather Davis took this story and how she made it possible and believable all the way through the last page.  I was happy for everyone in the end and I loved that things turned out the way they did. Makes you curious huh? You'll have to check this one out for yourself.

The Birthday Ball by Lois Lowry Review

The Birthday Ball
by Lois Lowry
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt


Synopsis: Princess Patricia Priscilla is bored with her royal life and the excitement surrounding her sixteenth birthday ball. Doomed to endure courtship by three grotesquely unappealing noblemen, she escapes her fate-for a week. Disguised as a peasant, she attends the village school as the smart new girl, "Pat," and attracts friends and the attention of the handsome school master. Disgusting suitors, lovable peasants, and the clueless King and Queen collide at the ball, where Princess Patricia Priscilla calls the shots. What began as a cure for boredom, becomes a chance for Princess Patricia Priscilla to break the rules and marry the man she loves.


The Birthday Ball by Lois Lowry
Review by Me
4 Squees/5 Squees

This book was incredibly cute. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. It was for a younger audience then what I usually read, but the storyline was pretty cute, so I decided to check it out. I read this in one sitting and loved every minute of it. Princess Patricia Priscilla was super adorable and lovable from the start. I love that the whole book starts out with her being bored and wanting to fix her boredom. Lois Lowry did a great job with her characters and each one was distinct and enjoyable. I loved the personalities of the suitors. Each was very unique and highly over the top, which made them very entertaining. I also enjoyed the growing relationship between the servants and the relationship between the princess and the teacher. All in all this was a great children's story and I know girls of all ages will enjoy this one.