River Readers

After falling from grace, Tess has tried to be a dutiful daughter to her mother and helpful sister to her twin sister. Still failing miserably to please her mother she strikes out onto the open road. Hartmann does a good job of evoking the feeling of wandering and the healing force of hitting the open road.
I also liked the way Hartmann wove feminist concerns into this adventure story.

When highborn entitled royalty are summarily dismissed from the PennyRoyal Academy with no thoughts to unruffling their feathers, you might be generating enemies. Book 2 of this series.

Nice conclusion to the Percy series. Sometimes what you think is planned is way off course. Percy believes he is fated to die on or before his 16th birthday, but is ready to sacrifice himself to save New York. However, this final clash isn't all about him. Luke, Annabeth, Grover and many others all play a part in this final clash. Who knows what the future holds when everyone works together. Life will go on or maybe not!

There were so many things I learned listening to this final book that I want to have a movie marathon and reread the books! Jim Dale's voice shows so many nuances that I missed I almost felt like it was a whole new book. I recommend listening to this series just to hear him. I miss this series as much now as I did when I read it the first time.

Mina is eagerly awaiting the hatching of her egg. In this world dragons control different aspects of the weather like rain, snow, wind, sun and lightning. Children are paired with the dragons and control all aspects of the weather. When Pixit hatches and it is revealed he is a lightning dragon Mina's family is skeptical. They can't believe she is fiesty enough for lightning. But soon Mina is at the lightning school learning how to work with Pixit. It is at school that Mina learns some interesting information about what the controlled weather is doing to the lands around them.

It's hard to make an honest living in a land brimming with magic and mystery, and treasure hunter Luvander is tired of being a penniless adventurer. Ever in search of gold and glory, she sets off for a fabled dungeon "the Dragon's Maw," an ancient labyrinth at the bottom of which slumber endless wealth...or certain doom!

There was so much in this story I didn't remember. I am enjoying this listening experience. Now on to the final book.

This was a sad segment in this story. Losing characters is never easy, but these were new friends. Listening definitely allows me to learn new facts and remember old ones. Onward through the saga of the gods.

It's not everyday you find yourself in combat with a half-lion, half-human. But when you're the son of a Greek god, it happens. And now my friend Annabeth is missing, a goddess is in chains and only five half-blood heroes can join the quest to defeat the doomsday monster. Oh, and guess what? The Oracle has predicted that not all of us will survive...
Goodreads.

There were so many things I had forgotten when I listened to this book. I find new facts every step of this listening journey. I can't wait to start the next one.

This is an almost satisfying conclusion to the Egyptian series. I would like to know how teenage life continues for the Kanes. The successfully juggle romance and life-and-death drama without breaking a nail, so I imagine high school will be a breeze. I like how they have to learn to rely on each other and that makes for a much stronger brother/sister relationship. Always a nice turn on those ancient myths that makes me wish magic was real.

More drama in the second book of the series. Hard to believe so much can happen to someone who hasn't even turned thirteen yet! Sadie's British wit is so much fun and Carter tries so hard to be the adult of the twosome. I think I would like my cat to become my guardian. Maybe I would find time to nap. I always laugh whenever the two dream and find themselves floating around with their heads on a chicken. Such an entertaining visual. It's easy to find the humor amid the drama.

This was an enjoyable audio for our trip to Dallas. The story was intense and the voices were done by a male, as Carter, and female, as Sadie. This added to the fun since Sadie was raised British and has an accent. Since they each encounter a romantic crush, the brother-sister teasing and drama gets lots of laughs too. Trying to remember who is who in Egyptian gods and pharaohs was a challenge, but got easier.

I liked this book a lot because it was a bit different. While the dysopian society is similar to others, I liked the idea of belonging to a passion. I'm not sure I would want that passion to decide my fate, but I guess in a way that is what choosing a career does - just not usually at seventeen. I had a little trouble keeping everyone straight, but the charts at the front were a good reference tool. I began to care for many of the characters and look forward to the next book to see how Brienna and the others fare.

This was not exactly what I was expecting. It was a much darker look at the fairy tales I love. While I enjoy a good fractured tale or a remake, this book had me looking at the stories in too much of a literal tunnel. The idea of Snow White being a 7-9 year old girl who "marries" the dwarves or the more pagan/Wiccan rituals that are suggested were not my cup of tea. I know Grimm's stories are much darker than Disney's, but that doesn't mean I enjoy looking at them through the eyes of a pedophile either.