Circus of the Damned, by Laurell K. Hamilton

Circus of the Damned, by Laurell K. Hamilton

320 pages

In the third book in the series, Anita Blake has to train a new Animator, decide whether or not to date a high school science teacher, face a lamia, and try to stay out of a turf war between two vampires for St. Louis.

The Laughing Corpse, by Laurell K. Hamilton

The Laughing Corpse, by Laurell K. Hamilton

320 pages

"Harold Gaynor offers Anita Blake a million dollars to raise a 300-year-old zombie. Knowing it means a human sacrifice will be necessary, Anita turns him down. But when dead bodies start turning up, she realizes that someone else has raised Harold's zombie--and that the zombie is a killer."

Super fast read, just the right amount of cheese.

Guilty Pleasures, by Laurell K. Hamilton

Guilty Pleasures, by Laurell K. Hamilton

368 pages

Anita Blake is a vampire hunter and an Animator: she raises the dead and kills them, too. She's tough, although stereotypically pretty and petite. I like that she admits when she's scared, but puts up a fight anyway. The author is from St. Louis, and that's where she based these books. She puts a lot of fun references to the city in there, which is fun for me because it's where I'm from. It's neat to read a bestselling book that talks about taking Hwy 70 to the Zumbehl exit for some reason.

My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon, edited by P.N. Elrod

My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon, edited by P.N. Elrod

368 pages

Full of short stories by some big(ish) names. I really only enjoyed about half of them, the other half kind of seemed like they were trying too hard.

Clockwork Prince, by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Prince, by Cassandra Clare

528 pages

I liked this one much more than the first one, although at some points in the story it was a bit over the top cheesy with the romance. But it kept me interested, and it was a fast read despite the size of it.

The White Devil, by Justin Evans

The White Devil, by Justin Evans

384 pages

"

The Harrow School is home to privileged adolescents known as much for their distinctive dress and traditions as for their arrogance and schoolboy cruelty. Seventeen-year-old American Andrew Taylor is enrolled in the esteemed British institution by his father, who hopes that the school's discipline will put some distance between his son and his troubled past in the States.

But trouble—and danger—seem to follow Andrew. When one of his schoolmates and friends dies mysteriously of a severe pulmonary illness, Andrew is blamed and is soon an outcast, spurned by nearly all his peers. And there is the pale, strange boy who begins to visit him at night. Either Andrew is losing his mind, or the house legend about his dormitory being haunted is true."

I couldn't put this one down, it was really good. But it was also a very strange read!

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

source

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

335 pages

Truman Nominee 2012/13

This was a hard one for me to get into. This will completely age me, but it reminded me of the Buffy days...very girly and flippant and sarcastic. I am so not into girly reads, and I thought that if I had to read another page about what Evie was wearing, I might burst. But she won me over. Evie is one of a kind...the only person in the world that can see past Glamours. Every paranormal has a glamour that they project to the real world to hide their identity. And since every paranormal has to be identified and tagged, IPCA needs her. But she quickly learns that she is not a human with a gift, like she has always thought, but a paranormal herself. It sends her life spinning, wondering who she really is.