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Book Symposium Some books out there are so well written that once you 've turned the last page you can't help but feel sad that the story has come to an end, like wise there are some that you can't get through fast enough - they're just that bad. Either way these are the kinds of books you discuss with friends and family, the books you avidly recommend or the books that you warn others about. These are the books that I reccomend, and the ones I warn you to steer clear of.Joana's Rating System
A Charmed Death Second book in the Bewitching Mystery series by Madelyn Alt 
A Charmed Death is actually the second book in Madelyn Alt's Bewitching Mystery series, the first being The Trouble with Magic. That said, despite jumping into the series without a clear idea of how everything began and the back story behind certain characters I found myself able to follow along without much trouble. Granted I did not know the exact details that occurred in the previous book, but enough was repeated or mentioned in passing during A Charmed Death that a reader new to the series could keep up, and a returning reader could refresh their memory without feeling bombarded by the repetitive. That in itself is a difficult feat and Madelyn Alt managed it superbly.
A Charmed Death is told from the point of view of Maggie O'Neill a young woman nearing the big 3-0 who is still struggling to get completely out from under her mother's thumb in the small town of Stony Mills while trying to come to terms with her abilities. Raised as a Catholic girl, her abilities and the things her friend and boss (Fellicity Dow) can do fly in the face of how she was raised. It is refreshing to stumble upon a character that is not in complete and utter denial or far too "okay" with the idea of new found powers, which seems to be the two extremes most authors place their characters at. . .more Joana's Rating: 
Eragon First book in the Inheritance Trilogy by Christopher Paolini 
Now where to begin? Eragon holds much promise in a time where the stories told of dragons still depicts them as monsters and authors still tend to treat them as mindless beasts, with a few notable exceptions. However I must confess, I found the movie to be more enthralling than the book. Honestly, I think that the actors did an excellent job bringing the characters to life and giving them life and personality, a feat the author couldn't manage properlly.
Be forewarned fans of Anne McCaffrey, Tolkein, and even Star Wars fans, this book borrows heavily from these beloved authors and stories. The main plot of this story opens up and within the first ten pages one is already being reminded of stories with similar plots. Eragon is out hunting a deer to bring back meat for his family, meanwhile elsewhere an elvin princess and her companions face an overwhelming number of opponents. As a last ditch effort the elvin princess casts a spell and sends the object she is carrying, a blue stone, away from her pursuers mere seconds before she too is captured. The stone then appears in the clearing where Eragon is hunting, his story is about to begin. If you've ever seen Star Wars then you're probably suffering from a severe case of déjà vu. Unfortunately the coincidences don't stop there. The elf princess turns out to be named Arwen and becomes the love interest of Aragorn. What, you mean this isn't Lord of the Rings, are you sure? Ah yes, I got it straight now, Arya the hot elf princess clad in skintight leather who looks just like Arwen (sans green eyes), and has a rather similar name too, becomes the object of affection for our protagonist Eragon [pronounced EH-uh-gahn]. Wow, it's like Lord of the Rings meets Star Wars here. Christopher Paolini wasn't joking when he said he was heavily influenced by his favorite fantasy stories and authors. . .more
Dhampir First book in The Noble Dead Saga by Barb & J.C. Hendee 
I decided to post the book’s cover summary instead of an editorial review just because I absolutely loved it! Too bad the story wasn’t quite as exciting as the summary leads us to believe.
The book has a promising start, in the prologue we see the story set off from an unknown creature’s POV (later we assume it is Parko) as it slips lizard-like into an old woman’s bedroom, tricks her into giving it permission to enter and then kills her. Later the creature sees Magiere entering the village and whispers “hunter” before slithering off into the night. Begin chapter one, Magiere has been called to a village in order to do what she does best, rid it of menacing vampires. Magiere comes off as a strong, world-weary and hardened female who has dealt with so many villages before now that she as them figured out with a glance. Once she’s set her ridiculously high fee, which may cause the village to starve next year, she is all set to catch the vampire and invites some of the town to watch. Magiere creates an elaborate show and after getting knocked on her rear and tossed in the mud manages to stake the vampire and carry his body off for disposal. The shock, it’s not a vampire she just staked it is her half-elf partner in the scam Leesil . . .more Joana's Rating:
Dragonology: The Complete Book of Dragons by Dr. Ernest Drake 
To be frank I was quite leery of purchasing this book. I have read several books that attempt to be "ecyclopedias" of fantasy and fairy creatures and have been badly disapointed in the past. Dragonology is thankfully exceptionally amusing, entertaining, and a must-have/must-read for all dragon lovers. The book is purported to be the re-publication of an actual book written by a Dr. Ernest Drake in 1895, though whether such a individual so named Ernest Drake actually wrote the book or even existed is questionable. Regardless of this the book sets out to teach and educate the young in the science behind dragons and the studying of them, dragonology.
. . .more
Joana's Rating: 
Incubus Dreams 12th book in the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter Series by Laurell K Hamilton 
This was the much anticipated newest release in Laurell K Hamilton's popular series Anita Blake; Vampire Hunter series. The series is now tweleve books long and still going strong.
At least that is what Ms. Hamilton and her publishers would like you to think. At the beginning of the series Anita Blake the heroine of our series was a jaded young woman who had given her heart and body to a man only to be rejected in the end when her fiance's family found her lacking. Since then she vowed to wait for love and marriage before giving herself to anyone ever again. Over time we have seen her grow and flesh out emotionally, intellectually and spiritually. She has been caught up in a bittersweet love triangle with a master vampire and an Ulfric (wolf king) werewolf that could end up granting all parties involved ultimate power, or it could destroy them all. She is a master necromancer, a devote Episcopalian, Nimir Ra of the Man Eater's Wereleopard Pard, retainer to the police, a powerful animator and she loves penguins, coffee mugs with snarky messages and coffee. Anita Blake is known as the scourge of the undead, The Executioner yet here she is trying to set up house with the very monsters she is supposed to hate. It is a recipee for the ultimate series, yet somehow Ms. Hamilton has lost touch with her characters and story allowing the series to run rampant through the red light district of the town unchecked. . . .more Joana's Rating: 
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was this written as a form of torture
perfectly good trees were savagely murdered
it must have been written by a Divine being