Tiger's Voyage by Colleen Houck (book 3)

WOW! Just when I didn't think things could get any better, this book comes along and just blows me away! This is definitely the best one in the series so far.

The relationship between Kelsey and the 2 princes was front and foremost in this book. I tended to "switch teams" a lot during this one, but my heart had been on Kishan until the last few chapters of the book. I still am not sure who I like best, but Ren's personality stood out the most. Before this book, I felt that Kishan was the pushy, arrogant, bad boy who would fight for Kelsey the hardest. And now I feel like Ren took over that part, being the dominant one.

During all of this, the 3 of them go in search of the 3 gift, Durga's pearl necklace in the 7th Pagoda. Traveling by boat/yacht, and with the help of the 5 dragons, they have to fight with almost their lives to retrieve it in the Indian Ocean. Still having to worry about Lokesh and his determination to get what he wants from the tigers.

This is a series that I will keep and read many times. I have fallen in love with the characters, and I can honestly say this is one of the best stories I have read. I wish there had been more books like this one when I was a young teen or young adult to read. If you enjoy good clean romance, with lots of action, and a place you can leave reality for a while, this is it!           

The Vampire Diaries

I know I am behind the times, and it is really showing now, but....

I just had to read this book. I had heard so much about it and thought "what the hay". I have NEVER seen the television series, so I figured I had nothing to compare it to. It was not what I expected.

Elena seemed to be quite the little brat at first, marching around, demanding things from her friends like she owned the world. I felt so sorry for Matt who seemed to get dumped on and kept giving Elena what she wanted... his trust.
Of course, Stefan was the mysterious bad boy who ends up really being the good guy... Well, good vampire anyway. I do feel like Elena ends up learning about giving instead of demanding from others.
In the end, I ended up enjoying it more than I thought I would. 

Breaking Dawn - Part 1, The movie

This song was so perfect for the whole series! 

Wow, wow wow!  I can honestly say that the movie made the book!  Breaking Dawn, the book,  was very difficult for me to get through.  I loved it until I was half way through the book, then I thought it just got too weird.  I have read the series at least 4 times, but I have only finished Breaking Dawn 2 of those 4 times. I could have lived without the baby in all honesty.  I realize that it explained Jacob and Bella's love for each other, but to me this was a love story.  Now that I have experienced the movie, I was completely moved by the whole thing.  My heart was pounding every minute during the movie, either out of suspense (even though I knew what was coming), or out of emotion. 

Can I just say that I teared up many times?  Especially for my Jacob.  I have always been "team Jacob", but what a sad sad boy! Jacob was so broken, but yet still so devoted to Bella even after she made such wrong decisions, in his mind, every time breaking his heart.

The ending was full of blood, either from Bella drinking it through a straw, or of her own, spilled while trying to save the baby and Bella as well.  It actually wasn't as bad as I expected it to be, as bad as the book made it out to be, that part didn't bother me. Of course it was fun to look around me and see the faces of others, hands over mouths, squinting, trying not to look, almost like a horror film.  I loved it! 

Action!  There was so much action, fighting, wolves and vampires.  I found myself rocking back and forth in my seat, my hands gripping the bottom of cushion.  I must have looked pretty silly myself! 

As a silly 40-ish Twilight Mom, I have reached beyond the "mid-life-crisis" stage. Is there such a thing as "Post-mid-life-crisis-stress-disorder"? There should be!