What the Wenches Are Reading

 



 The Wenches took a well-deserved break from blogging last week, but most of us were still reading. Rereading some favorites, checking out some new releases we got via ARCs, enjoying some historical fiction and some young adult titles. Click through to see who's reading what, and share your picks in the comments below.





 
Amanda:  This past week, I finished Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning. I took a tiny break and read The Flesh Cartel Season 2, Episodes 4 and 5 by Rachel Haimowitz and Heidi Belleau. TFC is the darkest, most tragic series I've ever read, and it is definitely not for most people. Now, I'm back to the Fever series, 7% into Bloodfever by Karen Marie Moning. I had forgotten some details, so I'm really enjoying the Fever refresher.

Angela: This week I read Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin #2) by Robin LaFevers and really enjoyed it. Far more than book one, Grave Mercy. If you are looking for a book which combines historical, with fantasy then this series is a great read. It's marketed at YA, but I didn't feel like it was a YA book.

Anne: I'm browsing through Gravedigger's Brawl by Abigail roux for an upcoming piece. It's a Halloween ghost story, so it's seasonally appropriate too!

Barb: After devouring the first two House of Comarre books, I've slowed down and am still on the third book. I should be able to finish it in the next day or so, and will be moving on to the next book in Nalini Singh's Rock Kiss series, Rock Courtship, a novella about the drummer and the band's publicist. Also on my agenda is the first Fear Street book in twenty years, Party Games. I hope it's as fantastic as the Fear Street books of my adolescence! Stay tuned, as I'm sure I'll tell you all about it.

Care:    Too many interests, too many directions, all at one time!  Ack!  The past few weeks I've gone through Rescued, Shock & Awe, Cut & Run, and The Everything Parent's Guide to Raising a Gifted Child. I've also started Why Smart Kids Worry, and made a bit more progress in Dragonfly in Amber. I'm all over the place!  I really need to get some focus back before I decide Ty needs a kilt, and Jamie needs a dog, and...  Yikes!

Kathi: Last week I read I Am Livia, which tells the story of Livia Drusilla, wife of Caesar Augustus, from her own (fairly YA) POV during her teens and twenties—through Caesar’s battles with Marc Antony and Cleopatra for control of the Roman Empire. Smart, politically savvy, ambitious, and outspoken, she becomes the matriarch of a political dynasty. Considered the most powerful woman in ancient Rome—whose husband shockingly granted her the right to administer her own financial interests—she has the reputation for being conniving, deceitful, and self-serving. (I described her character in the BBC production of I, Claudius as deliciously scheming, eeeevil. Seriously, she was a real piece of work, murdering and plotting.) This book suggests her reputation might in large part derive from the fact that she refused to behave like a proper female (you know, STFU and do needlework in the corner with the other women). This book portrays her as a loving wife and mother and a political advocate for peace: practical and ruthless as needed, but ultimately focused on protecting her family and the needs of the Roman people. It was an interesting and completely different view of the Livia I was familiar with. This week I've been reading The King's Curse, which is the last book in the White Queen series, set in the court of Henry VIII.

Merit: Still reading the Runes series by Ednah Walters. So far read 3 books, Runes, Immortals and Grimnirs. I just love this YA serious, the story is loosely based on the Norse Mythology, (Odin, Loki, Valkyrie and more.) It is beautifully written, interesting and refreshing enough. The dynamics between Raine Cooper,the main character, and her friends, mortal and immortal are engaging andamusing.

Natalie: Hello Wench Followers!  Well another Birthday has come and gone, and my waist is not happy for all the cake I've been eating.   I had a lovely time with friends and family and boy do they know me well, as my Barnes and Noble gift cards and my Half Price Books gift cards are all spent, mostly on the rest of the Outlander series and renewing my B&N membership.   I did get a little further but not much in Drums Of Autumn but once family left town and I had time to read again I got Seventh Grave and No Body by Darynda Jones as an ARC.  I loved it and if you give it a few weeks you will see my review of it.  Seriously if you've not started the Charley Davidson Series yet, you are missing out on a great humorous series.   It was worth the short break but now I'm dedicated to completing Drums of Autumn.  It is so fitting as the leaves are changing colors here in the Midwest of the US.   I hope everyone has a great week of reading!

Shau: I am suffering form reading funk, I just can't choose a book and start it. Nothing appeals to me these days. Sorry guys. I'm mostly re-reading stuff.