Let's catch up on books!

My new year's eve consisted of a three hour nap so I knew I was getting sick. I'm sure some child at Disney infected Terry and I over our Christmas vacation. I thought this would be a great time to catch up on what I've been reading!

1. Gray Mountain
John Grisham
384 pages

A quick compelling read? YES. But where did the rest of the book go?!? I was invested in several characters and then there was no ending. Seriously. The book ended in what felt like the middle of the story. I'm usually a huge fan of John Grisham because I can appreciate a well thought out lawyer/jury/crime book. But this one? Yikes.

Did the main character return to the big city and get a new job?
Did the love interest turn into anything?
Was a certain death caused by sabotage?
Did the coal family receive the benefits they were entitled to?
Did anyone take over the multi billion dollar lawsuit again the coal companies?
What happened to the stolen documents that were an integral part of the plot?

These are all things that we are left not knowing at the end of the book. I have to say I agree with the Amazon rating here.

2. Secrets of the National Parks

Random House

270 pages

This was such a good book! If you follow along on Facebook, my mom and I make a habit of visiting different national parks. This book helped us plan out a list of all of the parks we'd like to visit someday. It has great pictures, advice, directions, and descriptions and we are really looking forward to our next trip! Maybe the Channel Islands or Yellowstone?

Great reviews!

3. Degree of Guilt

Richard North Patterson

720 pages

This book is currently in progress. I have certain books that I read during breakfast, during the day, at work, and before bed. This is my "before bed" book and I like it a lot. I'm trying to stay away from reading the reviews because I don't want to spoil the plot twist (which I haven't figured out yet) but there aren't any one star ratings so that has to be a good thing!

4. The Blinding Knife

Brent Weeks

704 pages

This is the second book in The Lightbringer series and one of the stories I listen to at work. I included the first of the series (The Black Prism) in my previous book blog. I enjoyed this one more than the first one, though there were still some problems I had. One is the occasional rambling diatribes - there would be certain chapters focused on characters not well known that were completely unnecessary...and lengthy. Overall, I would still recommend it to others.

5. The Broken Eye

Brent Weeks

816 pages

Also in progress and the third in The Lightbringer series. I think I'm about halfway through and I'm happy to be done with the long unnecessary passages. I'm enjoying the writing style because it can be hard to make a person absolutely hate a character but really like and enjoy reading about them at the same time. I hear the ending of this one is awesome.

6. The Magician's Land

Lev Grossman

416 pages

The last of The Magicians series and for me the most disappointing. I liked the previous two books so much and had high hopes for this one. It just didn't do it for me. I felt a little disenchanted by the whole thing and it seemed like the fun of the series was left out here. I realize that I'm one of the few that didn't love the book, so the Amazon rating is higher than my personal opinion.

7. The Wise Man's Fear

Patrick Rothfuss

1120 pages

This is the second book in The Kingkiller Chronicles and on top of my latest recommendations list. The first of the series (The Name of the Wind) is extremely good and the second one is entertaining as well. Unfortunately the first book left a lot to live up to, but I have high hopes for the third in the series. There is still so much left to happen so it will be interesting to see how it all falls into place.

8. The Clan of the Cave Bear

Jean M. Auel

495 pages

This is a classic (written in 1984). And a re-read for me. I remember walking through a used bookstore as a teenager with my mom and she handed me this book. It's been about ten years since I read it last and I'm glad I picked it up again. It's also my current "read while eating breakfast" book. I can always count on my mom for good reading recommendations.

9. Death in Yellowstone

Lee H. Whittlesey

440 pages

I came across this book while doing some research on Yellowstone and was immediately intrigued. Not only is there a fair bit of history on the park itself, but it highlights the accidents and deaths that have occurred there since Yellowstone was made the first national park (and a few from the Indian wars before that). While this may sound a bit morbid, it provided a lot of good insight on what to watch out for when visiting - and how extremely stupid some people can be around wild animals, cliff edges, and hot springs. 

Books coming up!

1. Off the Wall: Death in Yosemite 

Michael P. Ghiglieri, Charles R. Farabee Jr.

608 pages

After visiting Yosemite and reading the Yellowstone book, I was pretty interested in this one too. In Progress.

2. All the Light We Cannot See

Anthony Doerr

544 pages

Voted one of the best books of 2014 so I'm excited to start this one.

3. Gone Girl

Gillian Flynn

422 pages

I watched the movie. I liked it. And books are usually better.

4. The Grizzly Maze

Nick Jans

268 pages

I came across this one after reading Death in Yellowstone and while researching Denali National Park. Grizzlies are terrifying.