"Hood"

Robin Hood is one of my favorite legends, so I was happy to find this take on his story. Stephen R. Lawhead sets his version of Robin Hood in the 1100's in Wales. (In his comments, Lawhead makes his case for this being a more accurate version of the story than the English Sherwood Forest version we are all familiar with.) I found this book a little slow, but the story of how Bran ap Brychan was driven to the forest by the loss of his kingdom was fascinating. There is a slightly supernatural aspect to how Bran becomes "the Hood," wearing a black cape that resembles a raven.

This is the first book in a trilogy, which is a good thing because Bran barely becomes the Raven King before the book ends. "Scarlet," the second book in the trilogy came out last month, and I will certainly be reading it soon to find out what happens to Bran.

"The Wilde Women"

I debated about whether or not to post a review on this book, but I laughed so hard reading it that I couldn't resist! Paula Wall's "The Wilde Women" is the most enjoyable book I have read in a long time. Living in Depression-era Five Points, Tennessee, Pearl and Kat Wilde are sexy and self-confident but share the family curse of falling for the wrong men. When one day Pearl catches her sister Kat wearing Pearl's favorite pair of shoes and her fiance, Pearl leaves town for three years and then comes back with a vengeance. Her return has an effect on every person in town, and we hear all their stories.

This book is primarily about the relationships between men and women, wives and husbands, lovers and want-to-be lovers. It is also about sex--although there is very little sex that actually happens in the book. The author's slyly insightful comments about male-female relationships are hilarious, as are the colorful characters who reside this southern town. I loved the people of Five Points and couldn't wait to find out more about them.

Usually I don't discuss books with David that I am reading because he just isn't interested. With this book, he kept wanting to know what I was laughing about. Then I would read him lines from the book and get him laughing. This book is not graphic, but it is "racy"--the type of book where you might think, "I can't believe she just said that!" I loved the humor, the twisting plot, and the outrageousness of the characters.

"Grave Sight" & "Grave Surprise"

A Halloween treat for me! I just discovered that Charlaine Harris (author of the Sookie Stackhouse vampire books that I like) has another recent series of books--just strange enough to be fun at this time of year.

Harper Connelley and her step-brother, Tolliver Lang, spend their time traveling around the country looking for bodies--yes, that's Harper's job. When Harper was 15 years old, she was struck by lightening. She is left with a few lingering side effects--one of those being the ability to find the dead. When she knows where the body is, she can sense the cause of death and sometimes the name of the person. Her brother manages her career, and they travel together to earn a living. Strange, I know, but the books remind me of one of my favorite TV shows, "Supernatural."

The mysteries that Harper and Tolliver solve are fairly typical and not particularly gory (thank goodness), but the supernatural aspect is what interests me. I tend to like quirky stories--what can I say?

Ranger's Apprentice books

I just wanted to put a plug in for the Ranger's Apprentice series of books by John Flanagan. We chanced into the first book, The Ruins of Gorlan, when we were searching for some books on CD for a road trip last fall. Everyone in our family enjoyed the book very much. We didn't realize that it was part of a series until months later when we came across The Burning Bridge, the second book in the series. Brian, Erin, and I all read it very quickly.

The books are set in some indefinite Medieval time and center around a teenage boy named Will. On Choosing Day, Will is hoping to be sent to Battleschool to become a knight, but instead he is made the apprentice of an intimidating Ranger named Halt. Although this is a fantasy book (not usually my favorite genre), the emphasis is on the characters rather than mystical creatures and magic. The life of a ranger (predecessor to the modern "spy") is fascinating, and the books emphasize positive values like friendship, loyalty, and integrity.

Flanagan is an Australian writer. Although three of his Ranger's Apprentice books have been released in the United States, I understand that he has already published six in Australia. On Amazon.com the books are labeled for 9-12 year olds and 4th to 8th graders. These books will hold definite appeal for boys, but the female supporting characters add interest for girls as well.