Once Upon a Time in the North by Philip Pullman

Once Upon a Time in the North is about the aeronaut, Lee Scoresby, when he is about 24 years old. He has just won his balloon in a poker game and is flying from city to city looking for work and adventure. He lands in Novy Odense and meets some very interesting characters there, including talking bears! He decides to help a ship captain with a customs dispute and mayhem ensues.

This book is very cute. I read it in about an hour and a half as it's only 95 pages long. It's not part of the His Dark Materials trilogy, but it has some of the same characters. It takes place 35 years or so before The Golden Compass. I really enjoyed reading about Lee Scoresby when he was young. He's my favorite character from The Golden Compass, so I definitely found this book interesting. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who liked His Dark Materials. I haven't read Lyra's Oxford yet, but I'd like to. It's similar to this book in that they are both about some of the same characters from the trilogy but are not actually part of the trilogy themselves. Anyway, Once Upon a Time in the North was a very quick, easy read, and very enjoyable.

5 out of 5 stars

Two for the Dough by Janet Evanovich

This is a sequel. Don't read this review unless you have read the first book, One for the Money, as this contains spoilers.

Two for the Dough is the second book in the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. It continues the story of Stephanie's life as a bounty hunter. This time she's looking for Kenny Mancuso, a guy who shot his friend in the knee. Joe Morelli is back on the force and is getting in Stephanie's way. They're both looking for Kenny while also trying to solve a mystery involving missing caskets.

This book was so fun to read! I really like this series. I just wish everyone else didn't love it so much, too, because it's very hard to get from the library. I sat on the waiting list for over a month before I got the book! Well, it was worth the wait. Two for the Dough was fast-paced, funny, and easy to read. I love that Stephanie has to try very hard to be a bounty hunter (and not a very good one at that!). I'm tired of the books about people who "fight crime" with the ease of a superhero. It makes Stephanie seem more real and makes the story more believable. These books remind me of Meg Cabot's Size 12 is Not Fat books. I see many similarities between Stephanie Plum and Heather Wells. I can't wait to read Three to Get Deadly! I guess I should put it on hold at the library now...

5 out of 5 stars

So, on a personal note...

My husband and I bought a house just over a month ago, and we have been completely redecorating it. I don't want to ever touch a paintbrush again in my life, but we're still not finished. We've been spending a lot of time at the house, so I haven't had as much time to read. I will try to keep updating, but we'll be moving in soon, so that will take time also. We're moving to a different county so I will be using a different library. I hope it's as good as the one I'm currently using!

The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King

Warning! This is a sequel to The Gunslinger. If you haven't read the first book yet, don't read this review as it contains spoilers.

The Drawing of the Three is the second book in The Dark Tower series by Stephen King. It continues the story of Roland's search for the Dark Tower. Roland must "draw" three people to help him on his quest. All three are from different times in New York City. Roland enters their minds and draws them into his world. The first is Eddie, a young drug addict; the second is Odetta, a schizophrenic; and the third is Jack, a serial killer. In some way or another, all three of these people are important to Roland's quest for the Dark Tower.

This book was definitely better than the first. It was easier to read and introduced more characters. They are really what makes the book interesting. We still don't know very much about why Roland is looking for the Dark Tower or what the tower is, but I assume eventually that will be revealed. The book was definitely pretty graphic in the violence department (it wouldn't be Stephen King without the violence, though). Overall, this book was way better than the first, and made me want to read the third book, The Wastelands.

4 out 5 stars