June, glorious June

June was pretty successful- 6 books, 1894 pages.  So let's dive in!

Crazy Hot by Melissa de la Cruz (271 pages).  The final book in the YA series The Au Pairs.  I figured, why not just finish out the series, seeing as I read book 3 last month?  In this one, the girls are back in the Hamptons, the summer after their freshman year of college.  Eliza is working on her fashion line, Jacqui is quickly becoming a top model, and Mara is back au pairing when her summer in Europe falls through.  But things always manage to work out for these girls!  A mindless pool read.  I finished it in a week (only 3 days of actual reading time).

Room by Emma Donoghue (321 pages).  This was my book club book, chosen by me.  Of course, book club had to be rescheduled until August.  But at least I'm now ahead on my reading!  This book was crazy.  Five year old Jack and his mom have always lived in Room, or so Jack things.  Room is everything to him.  And Old Nick, who visits them at night, brings anything they might need.  But Jack soon learns that there is a world outside Room.  And becoming accustomed to the outside world is a whole new adventure.  I feel like this was a fictionalized version of what it must have been like to be Amanda Berry's daughter (aka the victim of Ariel Castro's kidnappings).  I read the book in one day (hooray for pool time!)

Vampires of Manhattan by Melissa de la Cruz (225 pages).  It's been 10 years since the Blue Bloods series ended, when they defeated Lucifer and the Blue Bloods could live in peace.  Or so they thought.  Oliver Hazard-Perry, former Conduit and familiar until the Almighty granted him immortality, is now the Regent of the Coven.  He and his familiar, Finn, decide to resurrect the Four Hundred Year Ball.  But the sight of pentagrams popping up around the city has the Blue Blood Venatators (aka the vampire police) more than a little worried.  When they finally learn that vampire blood has been mixed with Lucifer's ashes to be peddled as a drug to unwitting humans, they realize that a new fight has begun.  I like the Blue Bloods series- it's an interesting twist on vampires and history to have them be Fallen Angels who live a cycle and then come back later for more cycles.  I finished the book in three days (only 2 days of actual reading time).

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige (452 pages).  No one loves an Oz story more than this girl!  In this one, Dorothy went a little power mad when she decided to return to Oz, and now a tornado has brought Amy Gumm from Kansas all the way to Oz (sound familiar?).  Amy is quickly taken in by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked, who have one goal.  To kill Dorothy in order to save Oz.  Soon Amy finds herself deep undercover in Dorothy's castle.  Can she do it?  Can she kill Dorothy?  All of the old characters are there- Glinda (who's gone bad), the Lion (who feeds on fear), the Tin Man (who is hopelessly devoted to Dorothy), the Scarecrow (who's a mad scientist now), the winged monkeys, and several characters from the other Oz books.  I finished the book in five days (only 2 days of actual reading time).

The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige (293 pages).  In for a penny, right?  Let's go ahead with the sequel, shall we?  Amy learns that if she can get the Scarecrow's brain, the Tin Man's heart and the Lion's courage, she just might be able to defeat Dorothy.  But little does she know that someone even more conniving has a bigger plan that just defeating Dorothy.  And when she learns that Oz's magic comes from the last place she ever expected, will it be too late for her to remember who she truly is and what she truly stands for?  I seriously, seriously enjoyed these books.  The only thing I didn't like?  The ending- I wanted more!  I finished it in four days (only 2 days of actual reading time).

Down the Rabbit Hole by Holly Madison (332 pages).  The TV show The Girls Next Door was always a guilty pleasure of mine.  And I always thought Hef was a fool to let Holly get away and end up married to that stupid Crystal.  Looks like Holly dodged a massive bullet by freeing herself of the Mansion.  At least, according to her.  Hef was verbally and emotionally abusive, frequently pitting the girlfriends against each other.  Once the show began airing and the girlfriends were down from 7 to 3, they learned that they could be each other's supports.  Holly was massively depressed during her time in the Mansion and when she learned that Bridget and Kendra were both leaving, she decided it was time for her to escape as well.  After leaving the Mansion (and enduring another bad relationship), she finally began to figure out who she was.  A successful Vegas show and TV show eventually led her to where she is today- happily married and a mother.  The things that TGND always seemed to imply she wanted with Hef.  Despite the fact that Hef and Kendra have both spoken out about Holly rewriting history, I've read another memoir from a former girlfriend.  And it honestly seems like the truth is probably somewhere in the middle, as seems to be typical.  I enjoyed reading Holly's side of things though.  I finished it in one day.