The Snow Spider by Jenny Nimmo

The Snow Spider by Jenny Nimmo - 146 pages
The Magician Trilogy - book 1

Gwyn is given five mysterious objects for his 9th birthday with the instruction from his grandmother to give them to the wind and see if he is a magician.  So he slowly starts feeding them to the wind, discovering magic and the ability to heal his family.

I listened to this on audio.  I really enjoyed the audio version of this story.  The story is interesting.  The narration is well done.  My only issue is that occasionally during high points in the story, quiet music plays in the background.  It is very distracting.

Ghost Diary, v. 1-3 by Seiju Natsumego

Ghost Diary, v. 1 by Seiju Natsumego - 180 pages
Ghost Diary, v. 2 by Seiju Natsumego - 180 pages
Ghost Diary, v. 3 by Seiju Natsumego - 180 pages

Sukami is desperate to find his older sister Hanaichi who disappeared while out on an exorcism job.  When he meets Chloe, a grim reaper who claims to be Haniachi's friend, they work together to complete the Ghost Diary, recover Chloe's memories, and find Hanaichi.

I am not really sure if I liked this series or not.  The characters were interesting.  However, the ending seemed rushed.  I also did not care for the direction the story took.  Although it was set up from the beginning I found some of the character motivations very disturbing.

Royals by Rachel Hawkins

Royals by Rachel Hawkins - 296 pages

Daisy has never wanted to be in the spotlight.  She leaves that to her older sister Ellie.  However, when Ellie becomes engaged to the prince of Scotland, Daisy's life turns upside down.  When Daisy's ex-boyfriend gives an interview about Daisy to the tabloids, she is summoned to Scotland for the summer so the palace can control her image.  The only problem is that the prince's brother and his friends keep getting her thrust into the spotlight over and over and over.

I picked this up to read for last month's challenge of teen books, however, I didn't get around to actually reading it until this month.  I really enjoyed the story.  It was light-hearted and fun.  I did think that Daisy let other people dictate her life a little too much but otherwise there wouldn't have really been a story.

Marrying Winterborne by Lisa Kleypas

Marrying Winterborne by Lisa Kleypas - 408 pages
Ravenels #2

Lady Helen Ravenel is determined to marry Rhys Winterborne even though he believes the relationship is completely over.  They have several barriers to overcome though.  Winterborne has severely insulted Helen's sister-in-law and her husband.  Helen has recently discovered who her father really is and that he and Winterborne hate each other.  And Helen is determined to save her newly discovered half-sister from a loveless life in an orphanage.  This relationship is doomed.

I listened to this on audio.  I really enjoyed the narration by Mary Jane Wells.  The accents she used were wonderful.  I especially enjoyed the Welsh accent she used for Winterborne.

The Teacher's Funeral by Richard Peck

The Teacher's Funeral: A Comedy in Three Parts by Richard Peck - 192 pages

Russell Culver, 15 years, is more than ready to be done with his schooling.  He thought his dream was come true when the teacher up and dies weeks before school starts, but it quickly turns into a nightmare.  His sister Tansy is hired as the new teacher at their one-room school.

This story takes place in rural Indiana in 1904.  The historical details are quite good.  I also enjoyed the male characters who thought schooling was useless -- in fact, it reminded me of my grandfather and his thoughts on not needing education past the 8th grade.  My only complaint with the book was that the narration would switch unexpectedly from being present tense in the 1904 to then including memories from an adult Russell.  It was very confusing.

The Snow Spider by Jenny Nimmo

The Snow Spider by Jenny Nimmo146 pages
The Magician Trilogy: book 1

Gwyn is given five magical gifts by his grandmother for his ninth birthday with the directions to give them to the wind in the hopes he is a magician.  If he is, he should be able to get his heart's desire -- his sister Bethan should come back after going missing three years ago.
I was making a "snow" display for work and put this book on the display.  I had read it when it first came out.  I decided to pick it up as I didn't remember much of the story.  I'm glad I did.  I really enjoyed reading it again and am definitely going to pick up books 2 and 3 to re-read also.