The Art of War, by Kelly Roman

The Art of War, by Kelly Roman, 352 pages

This graphic novel is dark, gory, and very much adult.  Consider yourself warned! The story takes place in a dystopian America, where China controls the economy, day traders are vicious and often murderers, and Kelly Roman goes undercover to find out who murdered his brother- and why.  This puts him in the employ of the most ruthless broker of them all- Sun Tzu.  While the story isn't an adaptation of (the real) Sun Tzu's Art of War, it does juxtapose text from the classic war manual with the futuristic storyline- proving that war, strategy, cunning and deception are all timeless.
P.S., I got this book for free from a Goodreads giveaway- how cool is a free book??

The Mark of Athena, by Rick Riordan

The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus #3), by Rick Riordan, 586 pages

The Heroes of Olympus series, an offshoot of sorts of the Percy Jackson books, is a big fan of the cliffhanger ending.  The Son of Neptune (Book 2) left us with a Greek warship from Camp Half-Blood approaching New Rome- the Mark of Athena picks up at that very point.  Nothing is every easy for Percy Jackson or any of the other six demi-gods who embark on a quest that takes them through Kansas, Atlanta, and all the way to Rome (yes, the real one) to prevent evil Gaea's rising, save Rome, Greece, and therefore the rest of the world, and try to unite the warring demigods of New Rome and Camp Half-Blood.  No pressure.  The books are easy to read and fairly fun, if you don't get bogged down by how to pronounce ancient Greek terms and names.  And if you don't mind being left with another cliff-hanger ending, not to be resolved for another year.

American Gods, by Neil Gaiman

American Gods, by Neil Gaiman, 632 pages

Shadow is about to leave prison, where he has been behaving himself for the past three years.  Days before his release, he discovers that the only person waiting for him, his wife Laura, has died in an accident with the man who was going to give him a job.  With everything falling apart, Shadow is approached by a man named Wednesday, who offers him a job.  Upon taking the job, Shadow finds himself thrust into a world where obscure gods brought to America are real and all around us, a war is brewing between old gods and the new gods of media, electronics, drugs, among others, and where roadside attractions are the holiest places in America.  It's a sprawling work with alot of fun bits about mythology.

Ashen Winter, by Mike Mullin

Ashen Winter, by Mike Mullin, 576 pages

This is the sequel to Ashfall, and the second book in what should be a trilogy.  After a super-volcano in Yellowstone exploded and sent the world (but especially the Midwest) into an ash-covered nightmare, Alex survived and found his way to an uncle's farm in Illinois with the help of Darla, his more-than-a-girlfriend.  Now Alex decides it is time to find his mom and dad, who ventured back into the now-treacherous country of Iowa to find him.  Alex might find his parents, but it might be at the expense of the love of his life.

This is a thrilling read- every chapter end compels you to read "just the next chapter."  This volume is even a little scary, with a touch of McCarthy's The Road as an influence.  I would recommend for both young adults and adults.

Reflected in You, by Sylvia Day

Reflected in You, by Sylvia Day, 338 pages

In book 2 of the Crossfire series, things are as hot and heavy as in the first novel, Bared to You.  Eva and Gideon have a pretty passionate relationship, but old jealousies and insecurities threaten to tear them apart.  What is Gideon hiding, who would attack Cary, and why can't Eva just chill out?  This is a pretty steamy read for fans of erotica, but it's also a pretty annoying read for fans of plot and sympathetic characters.

Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn

Gone Girl, by Gillian Flynn, 419 pages

It's Nick and Amy's five year anniversary, only it looks like Amy has been murdered and all of the clues point to Nick.  This book is masterfully manipulative, jerking the reader's emotions (as well as understanding of the truth) back and forth, and really providing a gripping story that will keep you reading until the late hours.  This book is a journey through a marriage, and raises alot of questions about honesty and authenticity.

Whenever I get a book like this that I was on a long wait list to read, it always has to prove itself to me, that it was worth the wait.  This one was worth it- the only drawback is that if you're anything like me, you'll be desperate to have someone else to discuss it with.

Songdogs, by Colum McCann

Songdogs, by Colum McCann, 224 pages

Conor Lyons is searching for his mother through his father's photos and through a road trip that follows their footsteps through Mexico, across America, and back to his birthplace of Ireland.  His father, once a vibrant young photographer, is now an aging man approaching his end, and provides little more than his photographs for Conor to discover what happened to his mother.  What Conor finds is not resolution, but certainly a sense of understanding.

This is beautifully written, and would make for an interesting book club selection.

The Pledge, by Kimberly Derting

The Pledge, by Kimberly Derting, 323 pages

Charlie lives in a society that is strictly divided by class, where each class speaks their own language in an effort to keep themselves segregated.  Charlie has a secret, however- she can understand every language she hears.  This secret could result in her own execution, since her country is ruled by a deadly and desperate queen, determined to punish anyone who is different.  When Charlie meets a handsome young man in an underground club, things begin to spiral out of control- for both Charlie, the queen, and the entire country.  It wasn't my favorite, but this is worth checking out by those who enjoyed series such as Divergent, Matched, or other young adult dystopias.

This is How..., by Augusten Burroughs

This is How..., by Augusten Burroughs, 240 pages

This is marketed as a humorous self-help book for helping anyone, with any problem.  Burroughs has chapters ranging from "How to Find Love," and "How to be Thin," to "How to End Your Life." What initially sounds like dark humor harboring grains of truth, actually felt, to me, like a mockery of people who find comfort in self-help books.  Burroughs' chapters on dealing with alcoholism, suicide, or a dying loved one feel authentic because he has lived through those experiences.  However, chapters on topics as diverse as anorexia, rape, and telling a child that they're dying, came across as smug, and "Well, let me tell you what I would do in this hypothetical situation that I will never have to encounter- it's so easy."  Real people, with real lives and real problems, would probably not appreciate having Mr. Burroughs give them instruction on how to deal.

The Tarot Cafe, v 1, by Sang-Sun Park

The Tarot Cafe, volume 1, by Sang-Sun Park, 176 pages

This is a collection of stories, all featuring a tarot card reader with an atypical clientele.  Pamela reads tarot cards for a magic cat who wants his owner to be happy (preferably in love with him), a blind vampire with a case of really bad luck, and an alchemist who creates humanoid dolls that teach him alot about humanity.  These were light and fluffy reads, and you could read them independently of each other.  It's not something I personally feel compelled to read the rest of, but if it's in the doctor's waiting room and you have time to kill, it's not bad leisurely reading.

100 Months, by John Hicklenton

100 Months, by John Hicklenton, 170 pages

This is one of those books that you read more because of the book's back-story than the actual appeal of the book.  John Hicklenton, a talented comic artist, struggled for years with multiple sclerosis, before deciding to take his own life with the help of an assisted suicide group.  100 Months was his salute to the rage of life and death, and the last work he produced, knowing that he was going to kill himself upon its completion.  The work itself is stark, bloody, and evocative of our most visceral fears of death.  While it's a small book, the text requires concentration and thought, and you will definitely have to read it more than once in order to put together even the roughest meaning.  It was dark, but brilliant.

Beauty Pop, volume 1, Kiyoko Arai

Beauty Pop v 1, by Kiyoko Arai, 200 pages

I put this on hold after seeing another staff member's review of it.  It sounded like something I would like.  Kiri works at her family's salon, and she has mad hair-styling skills.  She uses her skills and a disguise to help out girls who need nothing short of magic to look beautiful.  She finds out that there is a Scissors Project at her school- three talented makeover artists who are known for giving girls makeovers and securing them true love.  Kiri and the Scissors Project's main hairstylist instantly clash, and it is decided that only a hair battle will determine who is the better stylist.

I have no real compulsion to finish the series (although I confess I consulted an online scan just to see how the battle ended), but it was cute and light, and good for anyone looking for some fluffy manga.

Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Colfer

Artemis Fowl, by Eoin Colfer, 396 pages

Artemis Fowl is Irish, a genius, a criminal, and twelve years old.  But his most daring caper is to come, when he decides to kidnap a fairy and hold her hostage for gold.  Full of magic, trolls, goblins, and other characters, this might appeal to fans of Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and other young boy heroes- but with less humor or heart.

Bossypants, by Tina Fey

Bossypants, by Tina Fey, 288 pages

While Tina Fey's character Liz Lemon on 30 Rock sometimes makes me as uncomfortable as the cover photo on this book, I found the voice of Tina Fey to be entirely different.  She is funny, but she is also incredibly intelligent.  Her book discusses growing up as a theater nerd, working for Second City in Chicago, and making the life-changing jump to a writer on Saturday Night Live.  But more than that- Fey asks why female bosses are asked questions male ones don't receive- like "Do you find it hard being in charge of people?" or "Isn't it hard to juggle work and your home life?"  While this book had me laughing out loud at many parts, it was also thought-provoking.

Good Omens: the Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Good Omens: the Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch, by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman, 412 pages

Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett team up to write a very funny and very British book about the end of the world.  When the devil decides that it's time to send the Antichrist to earth in order to get started on the apocalypse, an angel and demon accustomed to the ways of London scheme to prevent the world's demise.  This book was very funny, full of typical Pratchett footnotes, names, and turns of phrase.  There are actually several interlocking storylines, including a young witch who has a book detailing the end of the world, a gang of kids who don't know that one of them is the son of the devil, and the four horsemen of the apocalypse, who actually ride motorcycles.

Junky, by William S. Burroughs

Junky, by William S. Burroughs, 208 pages

Junky is William S. Burroughs' semi-autobiographical story of his years being addicted to heroin.  For someone who led such a fascinating life (fun fact: he accidentally killed his wife by drunkenly playing a William Tell-style game), his drug-addicted years related in this book really seem to be the least interesting.  Every day of addiction is one of finding money to buy drugs, hanging around with people he can't stand because they have access to drugs, feeling miserable when he stops taking them, and never being able to quit. And that's about it- very much a downer. The book was not much of a story- more of just him relating how he got hooked, and how he never got un-hooked. There are occasional glimmers of the man who would one day write Naked Lunch, but those are rare. Burroughs' fans will want to read this in order to form a more rounded image of the author, but I would not recommend this to the average reader.

The Feast Nearby, by Robin Mather

The Feast Nearby, by Robin Mather, 272 pages

This non-fiction work is a combination of short essays and recipes.  The author, a food journalist, lost her job and husband in the same week.  Her retreat was to a tiny cabin in rural Michigan, where she set about raising chickens, bartering for goods with neighbors, preserving up a storm, living on $40 a week and re-discovering herself.  The short sections made this easy to read, several of the recipes were worth copying, and if you are someone prone to dreaming about running away to the middle of nowhere and homesteading, this might be worth your attention.

Delicate Edible Birds, by Lauren Groff

Delicate Edible Birds, by Lauren Groff, 306 pages

This was a collection of short stories that I grabbed solely based on the cover art.  As is usually the case with short stories, some were just alright, while others were quite touching.  Each story revolves around the life of a woman.  "Lucky Chow Fun" is about a teenager preparing for college; "L. Debard and Aliette" is a bittersweet love story that takes place after WWI, but during the Spanish Flu outbreak; "Majorette" was a story I found especially touching, about a girl who grows up, becomes a mother, and reflects on life as a female in America; "Blythe" is a story about outgrowing your friendships; "The Wife of the Dictator" is about an American woman who marries a Latin American dictator (and that can only end one way); "Sir Fleeting" is about life and love, and realizing that people are not just the collection of our memories of them; "Watershed" is about love and marriage that literally made me cry; and the titular story takes place during the fall of France in WWII and how friends can turn on each other.

Only the Ring Finger Knows, vol 1: The Lonely Ring Finger, by Satoru Kannagi

Only the Ring Finger Knows, vol 1: The Lonely Ring Finger, by Satoru Kannagi, 210 pages

I was tricked by this cover into thinking I was picking up manga, when actually, there are just a few illustrated pages.  That was okay, though- the story was still classic, sweet yaoi.  At Wataru's school, wearing matching rings with your girlfriend/boyfriend shows your commitment, but Wataru just wears his because he likes it.  When he discovers, though, that the most popular boy in school, Yuichi, has the same ring, they embark on a journey of self-exploration and young romance.    It is a sweet story, and the frustrating lack of communication in a young, taboo relationship rings strikingly authentic.  I would recommend for older teens or adults interested in romantic manga, with an understanding of yaoi

How to Find Out Anything, by Don Macleod

How to Find Out Anything, by Don Macleod, 272 pages

Spoiler alert: you can't find out everything.  But in this ambitious work, Macleod gives alot of helpful pointers for research and finding out a whole lot of things online.  My favorite parts included tips on using the advanced features of google, how to research public and private companies, and what goes into filing a freedom of information request.  I don't know that this would be especially interesting to many people, but those who work in reference or who find themselves wishing they were better at online sleuthing might pick up a tip or two.