Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James

Title: Fifty Shades of Grey
Author: E. L. James
Page Count: 530
Rating: C
Keywords: Twilight, Love, Sex, BDSM
Genre: Erotica Fiction
Younger Readers: Not for children, check the genre

Synopsis from Goodreads:

When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms.

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires.

Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.

This book is intended for mature audiences.

My Review:

Alright...this book came out when I was in high school and plenty of people raved about it when I was an undergrad. A friend even loaned me all of the books at one point to try and get me to read them. I stubbornly resisted until this year. After watching the movie adaptations of the books I found myself curious enough to give the books a try.

I am sure you have heard that this started out as Twilight fan fiction. I absolutely loved Twilight as a teenage girl. It was my obsession. Fifty Shades of Grey is definitely similar in a lot of aspects but I almost found it harder to get into this book. The first one hundred pages or so were a bit on the boring side and the writing felt amateurish. Part of me wanted to just give up but I kept on reading.

Luckily, the writing did improve and I actually came to like some aspects of the book. Anastasia was awkwardly entertaining with her internal goddess, and there were even moments where she was weirdly relatable. At times the romance between her and Christian was interesting, but overall the scenes that were meant to be steamy just felt awkward and a bit much. Even with my very limited experience reading romance and erotica, I have seen much better romantic scenes.

I certainly did not love this book but I by no means am going to discourage anyone from reading it. With how many of my friends loved this book, I think it is definitely worth checking out. If you loved Twilight, or are just looking for a somewhat predictable book then check this one out. I am still debating reading Fifty Shades Darker. I have heard it was better and incorporates a mystery. I'll keep y'all updated if I do.

Reading List for School

As some of you may have noticed by now, I am a grad student! I graduated last month with my MA in International Security. Grad school comes with endless reading, constant writing, and many exhausted days but I am studying something I find completely fascinating and so it brings me great joy.

I decided to share the two books that I had to read for one of my favorite courses. First, the class was about emerging powers in the international system and how shifts in the system can alter world order. We focused on many different countries that are rising in power and influence, but I always gravitated towards writing about and researching Russia. If you're new here, Russian culture and language are sort of my passion.

So here are two books that we read and a few notes on them if you're interested in international relations or any related fields. And just because I have read these books does not mean that I agree with the authors' views. Political Science involves exposure to many different views and evaluating them on your own.

Title: World Order
Author: Henry Kissinger
Page Count: 374
Younger Readers: Just note that this was read for a graduate level course. Content was not graphic in any way but it could be difficult for a child to comprehend both the vocabulary and scope of the subject matter.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Henry Kissinger offers in World Order a deep meditation on the roots of international harmony and global disorder. Drawing on his experience as one of the foremost statesmen of the modern era—advising presidents, traveling the world, observing and shaping the central foreign policy events of recent decades—Kissinger now reveals his analysis of the ultimate challenge for the twenty-first century: how to build a shared international order in a world of divergent historical perspectives, violent conflict, proliferating technology, and ideological extremism.

There has never been a true “world order,” Kissinger observes. For most of history, civilizations defined their own concepts of order. Each considered itself the center of the world and envisioned its distinct principles as universally relevant. China conceived of a global cultural hierarchy with the Emperor at its pinnacle. In Europe, Rome imagined itself surrounded by barbarians; when Rome fragmented, European peoples refined a concept of an equilibrium of sovereign states and sought to export it across the world. Islam, in its early centuries, considered itself the world’s sole legitimate political unit, destined to expand indefinitely until the world was brought into harmony by religious principles. The United States was born of a conviction about the universal applicability of democracy—a conviction that has guided its policies ever since.

Now international affairs take place on a global basis, and these historical concepts of world order are meeting. Every region participates in questions of high policy in every other, often instantaneously. Yet there is no consensus among the major actors about the rules and limits guiding this process, or its ultimate destination. The result is mounting tension.

Grounded in Kissinger’s deep study of history and his experience as National Security Advisor and Secretary of State, World Order guides readers through crucial episodes in recent world history. Kissinger offers a unique glimpse into the inner deliberations of the Nixon administration’s negotiations with Hanoi over the end of the Vietnam War, as well as Ronald Reagan’s tense debates with Soviet Premier Gorbachev in Reykjavík. He offers compelling insights into the future of U.S.–China relations and the evolution of the European Union, and examines lessons of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Taking readers from his analysis of nuclear negotiations with Iran through the West’s response to the Arab Spring and tensions with Russia over Ukraine, World Order anchors Kissinger’s historical analysis in the decisive events of our time.

Provocative and articulate, blending historical insight with geopolitical prognostication, World Order is a unique work that could come only from a lifelong policymaker and diplomat.  


Title: The Second World- How Emerging Powers are Redefining Global Competition in the Twenty-First Century
Author: Parag Khanna
Page Count: 341
Younger Readers: This one would be easier to grasp than World Order with easier concepts and language. However, references to prostitution and other illegal activity might not be appropriate for young children. High school age should be fine, perhaps some mature middle school aged children.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

In The Second World, scholar Parag Khanna, chosen as one of Esquire’s 75 Most Influential People of the Twenty-First Century, reveals how America’s future depends on its ability to compete with the European Union and China to forge relationships with the Second World, the pivotal regions of Eastern Europe, Central Asia, South America, the Middle East, and East Asia that are growing in influence and economic strength.

Informed, witty, and armed with a traveler’s intuition for blending into diverse cultures, Khanna depicts second-world societies from the inside out, observing how globalization divides them into winners and losers–and shows how China, Europe, and America use their unique imperial gravities to pull the second-world countries into their orbits. Along the way, Khanna explains how Arabism and Islamism compete for the Arab soul, reveals how Iran and Saudi Arabia play the superpowers against one another, unmasks Singapore’s inspirational role in East Asia, and psychoanalyzes the second-world leaders whose decisions are reshaping the balance of power.

Book to Movie Adaptations Coming Soon

Here are two books being made into movies that have caught my attention recently! I will update the blog with reviews for the movies as I see them. The Beguiled is due out on June 30, 2017 and My Cousin Rachel was released on June 9, 2017. My Cousin Rachel appears to be playing in fewer theaters so I might have to wait until it comes out on DVD/Blu-ray. If you are interested in creepier tales, consider giving these a try!


Title: The Beguiled
Author: Thomas Cullinan
Page Count: 384
Keywords: Civil War, Boarding School, Horror
Genre: Fiction
Younger Readers: I have not read this personally but the content sounds potentially problematic for young readers.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The basis for the major motion picture directed by Sofia Coppola--named best director at the Cannes Film Festival for The Beguiled--and starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Kirsten Dunst, and Elle Fanning

"[A] mad gothic tale . . . The reader is mesmerized with horror by what goes on in that forgotten school for young ladies." --Stephen King, in Danse Macabre

Wounded and near death, a young Union Army corporal is found in the woods of Virginia during the height of the Civil War and brought to the nearby Miss Martha Farnsworth Seminary for Young Ladies. Almost immediately he sets about beguiling the three women and five teenage girls stranded in this outpost of Southern gentility, eliciting their love and fear, pity and infatuation, and pitting them against one another in a bid for his freedom. But as the women are revealed for what they really are, a sense of ominous foreboding closes in on the soldier, and the question becomes: Just who is the beguiled?

My Thoughts on the Film (Updated 6/29/17)

...oh lordy I wanted to really enjoy this movie. The reviews were fantastic and the trailer painted a fantastically creepy Civil War era story. But I just could not bring myself to enjoy it by any means and convincing people to go see this with me has now cost me choosing rights for at least a month. I truly hate writing negative reviews but here it goes.

The good: the actors did well with their parts and it was a truly appealing film visually...except the gory bits.

The bad: for a serious movie, the audience was laughing quite a bit. Nothing ever seemed to really happen throughout the nearly two hour movie other than, as another moviegoer mentioned, there was an abundance of sunrises and sunsets. The sex scene was just odd, the ending abrupt, and the plot unsatisfying.

No one else in the theater had anything truly good to say about the movie. Here are a few examples of statements made:

Credits start rolling: "That's it?", "You've got to be kidding me", "Seriously?", "That was awful" and just general laughter.

Crowd outside of the theater/in the bathroom: "What a waste of $10.50"

So it is clear that just about everyone who was at the same showing as me was not a fan of this movie by any means. I could see some people enjoying this...sort of? It was slow, flippant, awkward, and rushed. I'd hate to say it but it might have been better if a bit longer, to have a bit more going on. But I don't know how much that would have really helped. Honestly, I enjoyed the bonding of experiencing a truly bad movie together above everything else. I really hope that the book is better...it usually is.

Final verdict: Only see it if you REALLY want to...and maybe wait to watch it at home?

Title: My Cousin Rachel
Author: Daphne du Maurier
Page Count: 391
Keywords: Mystery, Inheritance, Death
Genre: Fiction
Younger Readers: Same as above.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Soon to be a major motion picture starring Rachel Weisz and Sam Claflin!

-From the first page...the reader is back in the moody, brooding atmosphere of Rebecca.- -The New York Times

From the bestselling author of Rebecca, another classic set in beautiful and mysterious Cornwall.

Philip Ashley's older cousin Ambrose, who raised the orphaned Philip as his own son, has died in Rome. Philip, the heir to Ambrose's beautiful English estate, is crushed that the man he loved died far from home. He is also suspicious. While in Italy, Ambrose fell in love with Rachel, a beautiful English and Italian woman. But the final, brief letters Ambrose wrote hint that his love had turned to paranoia and fear.

Now Rachel has arrived at Philip's newly inherited estate. Could this exquisite woman, who seems to genuinely share Philip's grief at Ambrose's death, really be as cruel as Philip imagined? Or is she the kind, passionate woman with whom Ambrose fell in love? Philip struggles to answer this question, knowing Ambrose's estate, and his own future, will be destroyed if his answer is wrong.

Bonus Reading Group Guide Included

Praise for Daphne du Maurier

-Miss du Maurier is... a storyteller whose sole aim is to bewitch and beguile. And in My Cousin Rachel she does both, with Rebecca looking fondly over her shoulder.- -- New York Times

-Double-distilled readers' delight.- -- Manchester Guardian

Mystery Monday! The Missing Ones by Patricia Gibney

Title: The Missing Ones
Author: Patricia Gibney
Page Count: 424
Rating: B
Keywords: Ireland, Mystery, Church, Murder
Genre: Mystery
Narrator: Michele Moran
Duration: 13 hours and 56 minutes
Younger Readers: Sexual assault, language, and drugs are all present

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The hole they dug was not deep. A white flour bag encased the little body. Three small faces watched from the window, eyes black with terror.

The child in the middle spoke without turning his head. ‘I wonder which one of us will be next?’

When a woman’s body is discovered in a cathedral and hours later a young man is found hanging from a tree outside his home, Detective Lottie Parker is called in to lead the investigation. Both bodies have the same distinctive tattoo clumsily inscribed on their legs. It’s clear the pair are connected, but how?

The trail leads Lottie to St Angela’s, a former children’s home, with a dark connection to her own family history. Suddenly the case just got personal.

As Lottie begins to link the current victims to unsolved murders decades old, two teenage boys go missing. She must close in on the killer before they strike again, but in doing so is she putting her own children in terrifying danger?

Lottie is about to come face to face with a twisted soul who has a very warped idea of justice.

Fans of Rachel Abbott, Karin Slaughter and Robert Dugoni will be gripped by this page-turning serial killer thriller, guaranteed to keep you reading late into the night.

My Review:

A decided to give this series a chance after listening to a brief sample from the audiobook. I loved Michele Moran's reading! It was fun and she fit the read perfectly, giving it life and personality beyond what I had expected.

As far as the writing went, it was an interesting mystery that at times felt like a newer writer but was enjoyable overall. The feeling of newness wore off as the story progressed and I was able to get more into the story of Lottie Parker. At times she comes across as a bit rough and difficult to like but I found myself warming to her over time. She is a grieving widow doing her best to be good at her job and take care of three kids on her own.

Sometimes I did notice that the mystery could have gone a bit deeper, that certain elements could have been explored more. This was my main complaint with the book. It was certainly enjoyable and interesting. There were just times that with a bit more thought and exploration it could have been turned into something not just good, but great. Despite this, I would be open to reading the next book in the series and see how both the author and Lottie develop.

I would not recommend this book to anyone sensitive to sexual assault or that could be offended by the topic of church officials conducting said abuse. However, if you do not mind reading these sorts of topics then I would definitely give this series a try.

The Loneliest Alpha by T. A. Grey

Title: The Loneliest Alpha
Author: T. A. Grey
Page Count: 424
Rating: A
Keywords: Paranormal, Werewolves, Mystery, Murder
Genre: Erotica
Younger Readers: Refer to the genre

Synopsis from Goodreads:

One look will change their lives forever.

Lingerie designer Alicia Clarkson just had to open her stupid mouth. Now thanks to trying to defend a fellow pack mate, Alicia’s been blindfolded, tied up, and carted off to the new alpha of the Oregon pack—Gavin MacKellen.

However, the blindfold doesn’t come off so soon as Gavin reveals he’s searching for a mate. But Alicia’s curiosity gets fired up when Gavin refuses to reveal his face to her. Just what happened to him? He talks to her from shadowy corners and behind closed doors. The man is as illusive as a squirrely fox. But Alicia doesn’t play games and the quiet spoken, hoarse voiced alpha doesn’t stand a chance against her. They settle on an agreement, thirty days for them to get to know each other because that’s the only way this cowboy alpha will have it.

Gavin MacKellen needs a mate. But he knows no good woman would ever want to look at his face after the incident he suffered. After one look at Alicia Clarkson all his plans fly out the window. The woman’s beauty has stunned him damn near speechless. She torments his thoughts and Gavin finds himself yearning to know everything about her. He admires her creativity and intelligence, the cool way she handles herself in stressful situations. Most of all, he aches deep in his chest to taste her lips. Those beautiful sweet lips, but in order to kiss her without showing her what a monster he was, he has to get creative.

A relationship forms and as love threatens to grow between them Gavin struggles to cope with his physical appearance in the face of the beautiful Alicia. Will she be the one to stand in the face of a monster and accept or will she turn her back on him as everyone else has?

My Review:

I have certainly read books that involve steamy situations. A passionate kiss that fades away as more is insinuated or maybe even a slight description of the act are fairly average in the various books I have read over the years. However, I had never read much from the erotica/romance section of the bookstore. This year I decided to challenge myself to try something new. The result? I didn't cringe nearly as much as I had expected...I actually really liked this book.

So I came across this series on my Kindle a few months ago. The Loneliest Alpha is actually free for the Kindle edition and its sequel is only about three dollars. When I first started reading the book the story felt awkward and bit overly romance novel-esque. I nearly gave up. But something nagged at me to keep going and I ended up staying up until roughly six hours past when I normally go to bed reading three quarters of this book and continuing to devour it the next day.

Yes, this book is sexy. The writing and characters develop beyond the awkward beginning and become actually interesting. Alicia is a strong character that never really annoyed me the way I expected a romance heroine to. She is feisty and an entrepreneur. And better yet, not involved in a love triangle.

No, this is not some masterpiece novel that will be remembered as one of America's greatest stories. Not every book has to be that though. This is just simply fun to read. There's pretty lingerie, a blossoming love story, werewolves (sort of), high stakes, and murder.

If you are like me and really enjoy supernatural elements (probably fostered by being a teenager during Twilight's craze) then absolutely give this book a shot.

Gizelle's Bucket List: My Life With a Very Large Dog by Lauren Fern Watt

Title: Gizelle's Bucket List: My Life with a Very Large Dog
Author: Lauren Fern Watt
Page Count: 256
Rating: B
Keywords: Coming of Age, Friendship, Addiction, Dogs, NYC
Genre: Memoir
Younger Readers: The writer does discuss some sensitive topics such as her mother's drug and alcohol addiction. Nothing is exactly inappropriate, just may raise some questions and strong emotions. Conservative readers may be uncomfortable with the casual discussion of sex, though it is not detailed.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The playful, epic adventure of a 160-pound English Mastiff and the twentysomething girl who grew up alongside her—Marley & Me for a whole new generation.

Lauren Watt took her 160-pound English Mastiff to college—so of course after graduation, Gizelle followed Lauren to her first, tiny apartment in New York. Because Gizelle wasn’t just a dog; she was a roommate, sister, confidante, dining companion, and everything in between.

Together, Gizelle and Lauren went through boyfriends, first jobs, a mother’s struggle with addiction, and the ups and downs of becoming an adult in the big city. But when Gizelle got sick and Lauren realized her best friend might not be such a constant after all, she designed an epic bucket list to make the absolute most of the time they had left.

Bursting with charm, this unique, coming-of-age story of a girl making her way through life is a testament to the special way pets inspire us to live better, love better, and appreciate the simple pleasures. Gizelle’s Bucket List is the humorous, poignant lesson our pets teach us: to embrace adventure, love unconditionally, and grow into the people we want to be.


My Review:

This book was given to me as a graduation gift because I am about to move with my own fairly large dog. I did enjoy this read and the gift was well intentioned but I was sobbing quite audibly by page five.

If you have ever read a book about a dog, you know that there are going to be tears. Usually, the book builds up to the heart wrenching devastation that has you ugly crying while strangers look on in concern. Not this one. Instead it begins at the end. I apologize to my own dog who got far more hugs than she would have liked during my time reading about the mastiff named Gizelle.

Aside from the normal crying that comes with a dog book, I did enjoy this coming of age story. Lauren is not some alien creature writing about something insane. She is a girl you could have found yourself knowing in school or through work. Her past has some dark moments and her present has its own struggles, but her adventures with Gizelle are quite simply a girl learning to be an adult with her best friend.

Lauren is a quick and clean writer. She does not focus on unnecessary details and, unlike some other memoirs I have read, everything she writes down is for a reason. When you come to the last page and close the book you feel as if you have been told a complete tale rather than snippets of a life.

You might be wondering why I didn't give it an A rating if I liked the book, and the truth is that I just have a hard time connecting with memoirs. My interests in nonfiction tend to lean more towards history and cultural studies. But, if you enjoy autobiographies and memoirs I honestly believe you'll love this book. Give it a chance and just be sure to have tissues close by.....and maybe don't read this one in public.


****If you are looking more for a children's  fiction book about a dog consider A Dog's Life: The Autobiography of a Stray by Ann M. Martin. Check out my review for that book here****

July Moving TBR

I am moving in about a month for grad school so most of my books have been packed into boxes, which means now my reading is somewhat limited. Here is a quick summary of my reading material for the next month. This list includes one paperback, one Kindle book, and an audiobook.

Title: It
Author: Stephen King
Page Count: 1156
Keywords: Magic, Fantasy, Classic, Adventure
Genre: Horror
Younger Readers: Classic Stephen King with language, sex, and other adult content

Synopsis from Goodreads:

To the children, the town was their whole world. To the adults, knowing better, Derry, Maine was just their home town: familiar, well-ordered for the most part. A good place to live.

It was the children who saw - and felt - what made Derry so horribly different. In the storm drains, in the sewers, IT lurked, taking on the shape of every nightmare, each one's deepest dread. Sometimes IT reached up, seizing, tearing, killing . . .

The adults, knowing better, knew nothing.

Time passed and the children grew up, moved away. The horror of IT was deep-buried, wrapped in forgetfulness. Until they were called back, once more to confront IT as IT stirred and coiled in the sullen depths of their memories, reaching up again to make their past nightmares a terrible present reality.

My Thoughts So Far:

I am finding this book more creepy than downright scary. Currently, I am about 350 pages in and it has been a slowly building story that has drawn me in quite well as it jumps between the childhood memories and current lives of the children that were in Derry when IT was last a threat. Another interesting point is that the book is less clown focused than the classic movie. So far I am truly enjoying it.

Title: The Handmaid's Tale
Author: Margaret Atwood
Page Count: 324
Keywords: Dystopian, Women, Relationships
Genre: Fiction
Younger Readers: Similar to 1984 and Brave New World. Not appropriate for young children but high school aged children should be fine.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead. She may leave the home of the Commander and his wife once a day to walk to food markets whose signs are now pictures instead of words because women are no longer allowed to read. She must lie on her back once a month and pray that the Commander makes her pregnant, because in an age of declining births, Offred and the other Handmaids are valued only if their ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she lived and made love with her husband, Luke; when she played with and protected her daughter; when she had a job, money of her own, and access to knowledge. But all of that is gone now...

My Thoughts So Far:

I am finding this to be an engaging read but I am certainly not as enthusiastic as a lot of other reviews I have seen. It feels a bit like every other dystopian I had to read in high school, just written a bit more recently so it feels more current. I would definitely recommend it if you liked Brave New World, 1984, or Animal Farm.

Title: Mercer Girls
Author: Libbie Hawker
Page Count: 422
Keywords: Antebellum, Mail Order Brides
Genre: Historical Fiction
Narrator: Amy McFadden
Duration: 15 hours and 20 minutes
Younger Readers: This is an adult book, but I have not started it yet so I cannot comment on how appropriate it is or is not.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

It’s 1864 in downtrodden Lowell, Massachusetts. The Civil War has taken its toll on the town—leaving the economy in ruin and its women in dire straits. That is, until Asa Mercer arrives on a peculiar, but providential, errand: he seeks high-minded women who can exert an elevating influence in Seattle, where there are ten men for every woman. Mail-order brides, yes, but of a certain caliber.

Schoolmarmish Josephine, tough-as-nails Dovey, and pious perfectionist Sophronia see their chance to exchange their bleak prospects for new lives. But the very troubles that sent them running from Lowell follow them to the muddy streets of Seattle, and the friendships forged on the cross-country trek are tested at every turn.

Just when the journey seems to lead only to ruin, an encounter with a famous suffragist could be their salvation. But to survive both an untamed new landscape and their pasts, they’ll need all their strength—and one another.

My Thoughts so Far:

I just finished Gone With the Wind recently and was craving a book from the same time period when I saw this pop up as Audible's deal of the day. I have not started it yet but the small clip that I heard has me wondering if the narrator's voice is not as engaging as the past few that I have listened to (Rob Inglis and Caroline Lee). Hopefully it proves to be a good listen.