Dream Doctor

The second book of this series wasn't as amazing as the first, but it was still enjoyable. I think because the dreams were all over the place and the characters were sort of struggling to fill new roles (or we were introduced to new characters altogether).

I'm still enjoying the characters, Sara in particular. She's witty and strong, while struggling through something that most people wouldn't even come close to understanding. I just hope that this series can keep up its track record and I can enjoy these characters for a little longer.

Dream Student

I often go into my free reads with low expectations. This was another. But it was a pleasant surprise.

This book was engaging and interesting without the inanity that I often find in books of similar structure. I'm looking forward to continuing with this series.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

This was an interesting little read. While it's short, it packs quite a powerful tale in just a handful of chapters.

The book is different than the many depictions of Jekyll and Hyde that are out there, but in a sense, somewhat the same. The story is above all the story of man's duality - the good and the evil. Hyde is purely evil. He is composed of all the evil impulses that Jekyll has, but instead of being able to rein those impulses in, Hyde fully feeds into them, going so far as to commit murder for no reason other than because he could.

I enjoyed reading this story.

A Tale of Two Cities

I really enjoyed this book. It's kind of hit and miss with these classic novels that have been popular for a crazy long time. This was a hit.

Granted, before I actually sat down to read it, the only thing I knew about the book was the famous opening line. I didn't know any of the story, what the plot was, who the characters were, none of it. I went into this book blind.

It did not disappoint me at all. Dickens created his characters in a way to make them endearing (or hateful depending on what character we're talking about). By the end of the book, I truly cared about Lucie, Doctor Manette, Charles Darnay, and even Miss Pross.

Not only where the characters amazing, the story was engaging. It takes place over two centuries ago, but the way the book was written made it feel like the events of the French Revolution and the Guillotine happened not too long ago.

Overall, a very satisfying book.

Moby Dick

I have to say, I did not particularly enjoy this book. In fact, the word I would use to best describe it would be tedious. I probably only really like 15% of the book total, while the other 85% could have easily been taken out to make the story actually passable.

There is so much of this book that is utterly unnecessary to the story of Ahab and Moby Dick. Heck, you don't even really have Moby Dick until the very end anyway. There is an insane amount about the anatomy of whales and the history of the whaling industry, but it really is unnecessary. It just had chapters that read very textbook to me instead of novel, to the point where I started wondering if I was going to be tested at the end about what I learned about whales and whaling.

I will always remember my experience with this book, but I am not likely to ever read it again.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

How can one not love this last book? The darkest book in the series, it also manages to clear up some burning questions from previous books. There ends up being new feelings for characters that have been known since the beginning, but who have not really been revealed as far as their true nature is concerned.

I have found myself feeling things that I often feel while I read a great book. I get connected to certain characters who don't make it to the end (not sharing who doesn't make it) and find myself crying over their loss.

I think this book shows Harry finishing the maturing process that he needed to do while finding a way to defeat Voldemort once and for all. His journey isn't easy and he has to make decisions that no 17 year old should have to make. He is essentially forced to be a man when he still very much wants to be a boy like some of his friends.

I'm sad to have finished this beloved series again, but I know that, like an old friend, it will always be waiting on the shelf for me when I need it the most.

Lost

I'm going to be honest here, this was a bit of a disappointing book. I'm a huge fan of other stories by Gregory Maguire, but this was just not up to what I expect of his writing.

I think my biggest problem with it was that it seemed like there were at least three separate story lines going on simultaneously, but none of them really meshed together. It was also really jumbled. Like you got thrust into the middle of the story and just had to figure out where you were.

The main character, Winnie, is said to be a descendant of the man who had inspired Ebenezer Scrooge in Dickins' A Christmas Carol. But her character in general bothered me. She was both a little whiny and a little scatter-brained. I wanted to like her because she obviously had a story to tell, but I think because she kept getting lost in her own head, I found that I was just annoyed with her.

Hell, none of the characters really made me feel anything but some annoyance or even disdain. Only one made me laugh - a supporting character by the name of Ritzy Ostertag, a medium who Winnie goes to regarding a ghost in her step-cousin's flat. He was the only character that I wanted to know more about.

Even finding out the back story on Winnie (which takes most of the book to really come out), I didn't feel anything for her but a mild annoyance that she couldn't get herself out of her own mind long enough to focus on what was happening.

Like I said, it was just a disappointment after the enjoyment I've found in Maguire's other books.