I got some good reading done in May

Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed by EL James. I'd heard so much about these books that I just had to read them. All three in three days. That's over 500 pages per book, y'all. I love vacation! But back to the books. Yes, they were just as erotic as I'd heard they were. Darn near pornographic. But there is a story in there. Anastasia Steele, a 21 year old college senior, interviews Christian Grey, a 27 year old billionaire businessman. Their attraction is immediate and so begins a strange love affair. Christian has only known pain; Ana is able to bring him into the light. Within four months of meeting, they are married. Soooo realistic. The biggest problem for me was Christian himself. Yes, I understand that he has more baggage than should be allowed. But he is controlling. He is jealous to the point of obsession. He is angry. He will fight over the same point, ad nauseum, and never get anywhere. And young Ana puts up with it because "she loves him". He's abusive and she tolerates it because he is damaged. I had a hard time tolerating it, regardless of his damaged psyche.

Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris. The next Sookie Stackhouse book. Let's face facts- I love me some True Blood. But the series has deviated so far from the books that I can't even remember what's going on in the books anymore! Long story short- Sookie is in a near death experience. Again. Bill still loves her. Eric is distant. The fae all go back to Faery. That's about it for this installment! Same Sookie, different book. I feel like I love the TV series more than the books now.

Bewitching by Alex Flinn. Other modern day fairytale. In this one, the witch from Beastly makes another appearance. Only this time, she has a much bigger role. Kendra has been a witch since 1666, when she lost most of her family in the Plague. She has been involved in a lot of famous fairy tales and actually shares the real stories. Hansel and Gretal. The Little Mermaid. To name a few. In this story, it's a little bit of Cinderella. Only the ugly stepsister isn't ugly, just insecure. And she's definitely not evil. This time, Cinderella is! Sometimes, when Kendra tries to use her witchcraft to help, it backfires. This time, she's successful. And finds her first real friend in hundreds of years in the stepsister! I love Alex Flinn's writing. It's creative, it's quick, it's always enjoyable. While I do like all of her books (see March's readings), her reworkings of fairy tales are my favorite!

Helen Keller in Love by Rosie Sultan. I think that historical fiction might be my new favorite genre. This one is about (shocker!) Helen Keller and her one love affair. I feel like everyone has heard of Helen Keller (for Pete's sake, there's a song about doing the Helen Keller and talking with your hips). But I didn't really know a lot about her. She fell in love with Peter Kagan during 1916. He allowed to her experience things that her family and Annie Sullivan were never going to allow. They planned to elope and he never came to get her. She called that time in her life an island of happiness. She never fell in love again and never married. It was a fantastic book!

Let Them Eat Cake by Sandra Byrd. I don't think I realized when I bought this book that it was Christian chick lit (which can sometimes be a little much for me). But this one was great! Lexi is a recent college grad (French studies major, bien sur!) She has to move home, deal with her parents moving and find a new job. She ends up at a French bakery, where she realizes her love of French culture and her love of food might just create a whole new career for her. She finds a place to live, love and a new path in life. All while realizing that if she truly has a relationship with God, everything else will fall into place. For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jer. 29:11. It was just enough God to remind me of which relationships are truly the important ones, but not enough to make me feel overwhelmed. I'd rather read my Bible than an overwhelmingly religious work of fiction any day of the week