Books 41, 42, and 43

41) Perfect Fifths by Megan McCafferty: The 5th book in the Jessica Darling series. This book was good, but not as great as I was hoping the conclusion of the series to be. The section in the middle with the dialogue? (Yawn). I felt like I was reading Plato. First of all it was very difficult to keep track of who was saying what. Also, people my age just don't talk like that. I had a hard time understanding what they were saying half the time. Example "How can I possibly compete with someone who name-checks Jacques Lacan, Oliver Sacks,and Lord Byron?" "So ...more This book was good, but not as great as I was hoping the conclusion of the series to be. The section in the middle with the dialogue? (Yawn). I felt like I was reading Plato. First of all it was very difficult to keep track of who was saying what. Also, people my age just don't talk like that. I had a hard time understanding what they were saying half the time. Example "How can I possibly compete with someone who name-checks Jacques Lacan, Oliver Sacks,and Lord Byron?" "So you do know what a Lacanian theorist is!" Uh, what? There were some good parts though to make up for it.

42) An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon: The 7th book in the Outlander series. I loved this book for the most part, and I'm so sad I have to wait for years for the next one! While I loved the different storylines for the most part (The William/Lord John lines could get a little dull, although I like both of these characters), I felt the ending was way too rushed! After such wonderful detail in almost every other storyline in the book- the most important storyline at the end got the least attention, which was very disappointing. Other than that, can I just say how much I love Ian and the storyline with the Quakers? I think I could read a whole new series just about Ian. I also love Brianna and Roger and can't wait to see what happens with Jemmy and Roger- so crazy.

43) The Road by Cormac McCarthy: Okay, so this book was really depressing, but I loved the relationship between the father and the son. Plus the imagery was striking- the desolation just seeped off the pages. I'm not sure how I felt about the ending- it was somewhat hopeful but you can't help but feel that any kind of life in this post-apocalyptic world will be dreadful. This book raised some deep questions: like what is it that drives us to survive even in the most dire of circumstances? What maintains our humanity, and can we fault those people who are the "bad guys" in this world? (The author would say yes). It definitely was thought-provoking.