Seriously, I'm Kidding by Ellen DeGeneres

This may just be the funniest book I've ever read. It's all about how Ellen DeGeneres sees the world. If you haven't seen her show, GO NOW. If you like laughing I can almost guarantee that you'll love her. I don't have much to say about this other than I didn't give it 5 stars because well, it was sort of a biography... I don't know but it wasn't like Divergent where I fantasized about it day and night and found a book boyfriend and had book withdrawal when the series ended. It kept me reading though and made me laugh so that counts for something right?

"Accept who you are. Unless you're a serial killer.”

“My point is, life is about balance. The good and the bad. The highs and the lows. The pina and the colada.” 

“What’s not so great is that all this technology is destroying our social skills. Not only have we given up on writing letters to each other, we barely even talk to each other. People have become so accustomed to texting that they’re actually startled when the phone rings. It’s like we suddenly all have Batphones. If it rings, there must be danger. 

Now we answer, “What happened? Is someone tied up in the old sawmill?”

“No, it’s Becky. I just called to say hi.”

“Well you scared me half to death. You can’t just pick up the phone and try to talk to me like that. Don’t the tips of your fingers work?” 

“Leaning forward in your chair when someone is trying to squeeze behind you isn't enough. You also have to move the chair.” 

“It must be around forty, when you're "over the hill." I don't even know what that means and why it's a bad thing. When I go hiking and I get over the hill, that means I'm past the hard part and there's a snack in my future. That's a good thing as far as I'm concerned.” 

Those are just a few of the quotes in this book that made me laugh hysterically.  I can't wait to read her other books!

Glitter and Doom by Bethany Griffin

This novella added some much needed background for a few of the characters. I especially appreciated the part told by Kent's perspective on his time with Malcontent and building the fake bomb for the ship. It really supplemented the series.

P.S. I really don't write much for novellas so sorry in advance...

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Talk about tension! This entire book was full of anticipation, tension, and suspense. Sam could change back to a wolf and for good this time. And he and Grace only had a few short months together (not counting the 6 years people). The main vibe I got while reading this (besides the obvious growing tension) was hope. Hope that somehow Sam is different. That he can make himself not change like Grace did.

I decided to read this based off a couple of recommendations and finally ended up reading it for a challenge in one of my groups for February. And perfect timing too! All throughout the book, the tension is caused by the growing cold and right now where I live, it's been steadily getting colder for the past 3 days (the amount of time I needed to read this). It's been a cold winter!

So the characters. I got the feeling that Sam and Grace are a little like those tootsie pop lollipops. In the center, there's the sweet tootsie roll center and covering it in a thick layer is the sweet lollipop part. They are both old souls on the outside (and most of the inside) but somewhere, deep in there, they have youth. It was nice to see that the author included that - She could have just had them both be so hardened from their hardships that they had no youth left. However, she preserved that.

The plot was amazing. Sometimes in the middle, it seemed like I should have been bored but the growing tension throughout the book kept me immersed. And the end. What a roller coaster!

5 out of 5 stars!