The Princess and the Hound by Mette Ivie Harrison

This book was advertised as "Beauty and the Beast retold - but the Beast is a woman."  So I was expecting something more along the lines of Gail Carson Levine's Fairest, but it was more like Mercedes Lackey's Firebird or Orson Scott Card's Enchantment.  Which probably explains Card's front cover plug - that and the fact that the author is LDS.  This book reads more like a Grimm fairy tale than do most young adult fairy tale romances written in our day.  A little dark, a little more subtle and ultimately a little twisted at the end.  In summary - a moody prince and an unwanted princess agree to marry for peace between their kingdoms.  But the Prince's forbidden magic and the Princess's strange, but beautiful hound make things a little more complicated than they ever could have imagined. 

And with this book I think I'm ready to leave young adult fantasy for awhile.  :)  We'll see how long my resolve lasts.  If anyone has any suggestions for books wildly outside my "comfort zone", please let me know!

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephenie Meyer ★

Despite having no recollection whatsoever of Bree Tanner from Eclipse, I really enjoyed her perspective of the Twilight world.  It's too bad that Stephenie Meyer had already sealed her fate in Eclipse as it would have been very interesting to get to know her (and her vampire ninja bff) better.  A short, fast read - this novella compliments the Twilight saga nicely.

Ranger's Apprentice Book One by John Flanagan ★

The entire time I was reading Eragon and half of Eldest (yes, that's as far as I got) this is the book that I'd wished I was reading.  Not that there are any dragons but the epic "Lord of the Rings" adventure is all here without any of  the droning Paolini (or Tolkienian) descriptions of dwarves, fauna and languages.  Finally a series to modernize Lloyd Alexander's Prydain Chronicles.  Again, not that it has anything to do with a boy who keeps pigs or black cauldrons . . . What it does have is plenty of action, adventure and plot for the most disinterested young reader with at least a penchant for fantasy.  Despite working with somewhat cliche themes and characters the book is fast paced and very well written.  This is a series that I will keep reading!

Beastly by Alex Flinn

I saw a trailer for the movie based on this book awhile back and wasn't really interested.  Seemed like a variation of the Beauty and the Beast TV series in the eighties.  But then I found out Alex Pettyfer was going to be in it and after a cursory glance at Google images I decided the movie just might be worth seeing.  So of course I had to read the book first.  And I was not disappointed.  As a fan of fairy tales set in their "proper" eras I didn't think a modern NYC beast would be entertaining but I think Alex Flinn definitely pulled it off.  Let's just hope Alex Pettyfer does the same.  :)

The Kendra Chronicles
Beastly
Bewitching

Here Lies Arthur by Philip Reeve

I don't know why I keep torturing myself with Arthurian legends.  They are never written quite the way I wish they were, although I really shouldn't expect much 'happily ever after' from a legend with elements of incest, adultery and murder.  In any case - this one had promise as the main character was not legendary, but completely fictional.  A young girl is picked up by Merlin in his travels and becomes his companion and spy.  Sounds pretty good, right?  And it was for the most part.  I especially loved how dark it was.  Arthur was a grizzly, self-centered barbarian redeemable only in bardic song and legend.  If the book hadn't been so episodic and the romance so silly I probably would have loved it as it actually reminded me a little of Rosemary Sutcliff's  "The Shining Company".  Overall, not the worst rendition of Arthur but certainly not the best either.

The Eternal Kiss edited by Trisha Telep

Anthologies of short stories usually aren't my thing but this one had "vampire" stories by Maria V. Snyder, Holly Black and Cassandra Clare that I thought might be worth reading.  And those three did end up being pretty good, but I'm not really a huge fan of stories that end right as I'm getting into them.  The most interesting thing about this book is that it almost puts the fear back into vampire.  The stories aren't about Edward, but about Dracula.  Reminds me of the good ol' days when vampires were still afraid of the sun and never considered vegetarianism.

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

I should have known something was up when I had to re-read the first chapter of this book over and over again.  And not because it was boring.  When you get used to certain genres (like YA Fantasy) then you come to accept and understand the simplicity of the plot and environment.  Oh, we're in a castle, I've read plenty of books about those.  Skip five paragraphs of descriptions about gray stones and the chilling drafts in winter and you haven't missed a thing.  But not this book!  Half the story takes place in a living prison called Incarceron and the other half takes place in a distant future where everyone "pretends" to live in the dark ages.  As my mind is still reeling I think I'll go and have a lie down . . .