Mmm. What was awesome in December.

Okay! So, we--hopefully--all know that last month was my super vampire month, right? Yeah, every (well, almost) day I (tried) to do something about vampires. Well, you can't expect that I didn't do some major reading during that month. And I did. I just...can't remember every book I read. I really need to write things down sometime. Anywho, I do have a small few books that I read during December that proves that I didn't slack. And they are awesome books. I'd buy them if I had the money. =)

A few nights after Jessica Day arrives in Bixby, Oklahoma, she wakes up at midnight to find the entire world frozen, except for her and a few others who call themselves 'midnighters'. Dark things haunt this midnight hour – dark things with a mysterious interest in Jessica. The question is why.

I had no idea what I was getting myself in to when I got this book from the library. I was desperate for some good reads. I continuously scour the library YA section for some good stuff. I always ignored Westerfield, though. I think that I seriously disliked him because I read the first chapter of Uglies and thought that it was some superficial crap. That explains my reluctance to read Midnighters. But I did and it is so original and cool and I love it. I cannot wait until my actual reading list had diminished so I can once again make the trip to my library to get the second book.

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survival.

Just like Midnighters and the other book I'm going to list, I seriously have never read anything like this. This book came to my attention when I visited Stephenie Meyer's site and saw a post where it said that she liked the book. I looked it up and after a while decided that it wasn't for me. Regardless, I checked it out from the library and read it. It was great. Katniss was great, a true heroine to me and even though it was a life or death situation she still held compassion for one of her rivals in the Games and I respected her for that. And, I loved Peeta. He was, honestly, one of the greatest things in the Games for me. He was clever and protective for Katniss. I believed him instantly when he said that he loved her. I didn't believe that it was a ploy or strategy thing, like Katniss did. The ending broke my heart and I cannot wait until the sequal. I do say, though, that someone with a weak stomach shouldn't read this book. It gets pretty violent and bloody at times.

A modern girl's comedic odyssey in a school filled with the descendants of Greek gods.
When Phoebe's mom returns from Greece with a new husband and moves them to an island in the Aegean, Phoebe's plans for her senior year and track season are ancient history. Now she must attend the uberexclusive academy, where admission depends on pedigree, namely, ancestry from Zeus, Hera, and other Greek gods. That's right, they're real, not myth, and their teen descendants are like the classical heroes-supersmart and superbeautiful with a few superpowers. And now they're on her track team! Armed only with her Nikes and the will to win, Phoebe races to find her place among the gods.

I love mythology and this book was just a little treat for me--books? mythology? put them together for me and you've got one huge catagory that I love best. Almost more than my love for reading fantasy books. I loved each and every character. I couldn't relate to Phobe's love for running, but I could understand the determination she felt and the hostility towards people who didn't believe in her. I'm glad how she handles things and the ending was fantastic. I'd read it again, buy it, and read it once more. It's that good.

Hearts&Circles,
Tay-Toe