Sweet Peril

Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins

Maybe we should just start skipping the middle novel in a series?

Sweet Peril picks up where Sweet Evil ended.  Anna is still pining for Kaiden, who keeps her at arm’s length. 

 The only new piece of information is that Anna is “the one.”  The one nephilim that will end the reign of the dukes and send them to hell, releasing the nephilim to live their own lives.  For this they must have allies, and Anna spends the rest of the book finding and aligning them.  The end. 

Gone is the sexy, steamy interplay between Kaiden and Anna, replaced by the fact that Anna now has to remain a virgin if she is to wield the sword of truth. (which won’t be wielded until the third book!)  With that knowledge, the tension is simply gone.  There are some interesting scenes between the two but Anna’s choice is not real as it was in the first book, and this unspoken necessity makes the scenes more boring. 

That said, there is plenty of action, including further understanding of Kopano, traveling with her to find nephilim who will aid them.  And if you loved the first book, you will still want to read this one.  But do it quickly to get to the real ending!

Keeping the Castle

Keeping the Castle  by Patrice Kindl

17-year-old Althea needs to marry for money. 

She knows that the fate of her noble-but-impoverished family as well as the fate of the family castle depends on her ability to make a successful--i.e. a wealthy--marriage match.  At first, Althea is willing to marry anybody who is rich enough to pay the bills and repair the dilapadated ancestral home, but gradually she realizes that she would prefer to marry someone who is not only rich, but also well-bred, well-educated, well-mannered, good-looking, and smart enough to recognize those virtues in Althea herself.

Fans of Jane Austen's literary world will adore Althea and her eccentric family, and astute readers will immediately identify the character she should marry, even when Althea seems impossibly blind to his fine qualities.  This quick, charming book can also be a stepping stone to the world of Regency romance made so popular by Downton Abbey.

No sex or cussing (heavens forbid!); the sweet and funny romances in this story will mostly appeal to gently reared female readers ages 12 to adult. 

Rotten

Rotten  by Michael Northrop

 

JD returns from a summer "upstate" and discovers that, while he was gone, his mom has adopted a rottweiller from the local animal shelter's death row.  JD has some issues with authority, and the dog--named Johnny Rotten, after the lead singer of the Sex Pistols--has some issues of his own.  Both the guy and the dog could use a break.

 

JD tries so hard to be cool, but his friends (and the reader) will easily discern the truth about his feelings, especially when they find out where JD really spent his summer.

 

This quick-reading compelling contemporary narrative will mostly appeal to guys. Details about re-training a rescue dog are realistic, and the author earns a star for including these details without quoting extensively from Cesar Milan. 

 

Some cussing and "classic boy potty humor," references to off-page fighting, and a bit of yearning for a certain pretty girl who happens to like dogs.

 

Recommended for ages 12 to adult.