The Californians

Can you believe it? I'm writing another post already!

So I was looking at my previous posts and I realised that I have done posts on some of my favourite series, but I haven't written about a series that I have read about 4 times!

So I read the first book and really loved it. I didn't know that there was a second book and so I ended up reading the first book again. Within a month of reading it the first time!
After that I found out that there was a second, third and fourth book!
Imagine my glee! :D

It's by Lori Wick and the series is called: 'The Californians.'

If you read this, beware, there are major spoilers!

The first book is called: 'Whatever Tomorrow Brings.'

It's about the eldest girl of three children, they live in Hawaii with there missionary parents. On her twentieth birthday Kaitlin's parents tell her they are all going to California to visit their aunt.

When they get there however they find out that visiting their aunt is not the main reason for this visit.

Heart break befalls them and after some discussion they decide to stay in California, however their father must first go back to Hawaii, to gather the rest of their things and let the missionaries there know that they won't be back.

They were to stay with there aunt, but something happens and they end up in Santa Rosa.

Kaitlin gets a job as a teacher, as she was one back in Hawaii. Her 14 year old brother Sean has to stay with the man who runs the general store in town, as there is not enough room in the small house rent. Sean ends up getting a job there, leading to Kaitlin and their little sister Marcail spending more time around the general store manager Rigg.

In the midst of difficulties and family turmoil, Kaitlin and Rigg manage to fall in love.

The Second book is: 'As Time Goes By.'

This one is about Rigg's half brother, 'Jeff.'

Jeff once hurt a girl from his school so deeply that she left town.

For FIVE YEARS!!!

When she comes back she ends up work with Jeff at his father's shipping depot.

They become good friends, but as she is considering a marriage proposal, it is nothing more than friendship. After Bobbie, (the girl he hurt) rejects the marriage proposal she was considering, things take a turn toward the romantic, but after an unplanned kiss, Jeff must work fast if he wants to keep the girl of his dreams.

The third book is: 'Sean Donovan.'

This story is about the second eldest Donovan child, Sean, (pronounced the same as Shaun).

Sean becomes bitter with the continued absence his father in Hawaii. He falls in with some bad friends and starts drinking. At age seventeen he takes his money and runs away from small town Santa Rosa and his family.

He tries some different jobs, but his last is as a bodyguard to a bank robber, he ends up assisting with a robbery and is caught. He is trialed and sentenced to be hung. But due to the sheriff's belief that inside he is a good man, an old law is found. That law leads to his marriage to Charlotte (Charlie) Cooper. She only marries him for his strength, given that she owns a livery and needs a new blacksmith. After a rocky start they get along well together and Sean who cam back to his faith in the jail cell, leads her to faith as well. In the end they start a new life with love and laughter and God.

The last book in the series is called: 'Donovan's Daughter.'

It's about the youngest in the Donovan family. She is very small and petite, and being the youngest she is treated like a child. She wants to make her mark on the world and become a teacher like her mother and sister. She becomes the teacher of a small town, pretty much run by a bitter old lady.

  Due to a traumatic experience, muddied by time, Marcial has a terrible fear of doctors. So when a snow storm forces her to the doctor's home one dark night she is understandably frightened. But when the town learns that she spent the night at the doctor's home, pressure and a lack of students, force her to marry the town Dr.: Alex Montgomery. They have a strained relationship, with Marcial avoiding him at all turns, and Alex trying to make it work. After a time they become close, but Marcial still doesn't open up completely. Spending some time with both their families, it's Marcial's brother in-law that finally helps them talk to each other and make the marriage a love match.   

I highly recommend them, they are all Christian romances, and they are very hard to put down!

Thanks for reading and sorry about the spoilers! :D

The Lunar Chronicles

I read 'The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer' awhile ago, but I was reminded of them when Mum saw them on the internet and said they had great reviews, I told her I had already read them but that I had enjoyed them. So she asked me about them and I thought that I should do a post.
So I'm going to try and write this without too many spoilers, I'll probable just write things that are on the back covers.

So the first one's called Cinder and you probably guessed that its a takeoff of 'Cinderella'. Its set in Japan and it's about a cyborg mechanic who stepmother and step sister are mean to her, one day the prince walks up to her spare parts stall and asks for help with his broken robot, she of course agrees and they form a friendship. A lot of other things happen in the book but I don't want to give anything away, so I suggest you read it for yourself.

The second book is called Scarlet and its a takeoff of 'little red riding
hood'. That is if little red riding hood carried a gun. So I really quite enjoyed this one as well, I can't give much away, but I will say this: Scarlet's grandmother goes mysteriously missing so she sets out to find her, she takes along with her a mysterious street fighter called 'Wolf''.










The third one is a Rapunzel retelling and is called Cress in this one a girl has been trapped in a satellite since she was about seven, her evil mistress uses her to hack into things and find out information about things down on earth. She manages to get a message out and help is on it's way. But everything doesn't go according to plan.

The fourth book is a retake on 'Snow White' and is called Winter this one is about a princess named Winter who lives on the moon and has magical abilities, but she doesn't want to use those powers because she doesn't wish to hurt anyone. So she keeps them bottled up inside and that makes her go a little crazy. She gets help from her friend and guard and he helps her not to lose it all together.






There are also extra books about certain characters in the series but I didn't read them. I only knew about the one and it was a bio of the evil queen, making her sound more human, but I didn't want to give myself any reason to feel sorry for her so I didn't read it.

Its number 3.5 and I'm just going to copy the back cover to tell you about it.

Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her "glamour" to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story—a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

Then there are some other shorts telling about other characters and their beginnings, I have never read any of these and I didn't know they existed so I'm not going to put any reviews on these, partly because I haven't read them and partly because and reviews that I could copy would give things away. So I'm just going to put the names here.

The Little Android
Glitches
The Queen’s Army
Carswell’s Guide to Being Lucky
The Keeper
After Sunshine Passes By
The Princess and the Guard
The Mechanic
Something Old, Something New

I strongly suggest The Lunar Chronicles to those who love fairy tales, sci-fi and romance. As every one of these books are romance. I really enjoyed them and I think you will too.

New Series

I have just finished a series by Melanie Dickerson. I really enjoyed these books, as they were fairy tale retellings and I love fairy tales.

                                        

                               

                                              

Great Author

I have just finished reading four books written by Sophie Masson. She has written a lot more but I've only read these ones, they are called: Moonlight and Ashes, Scarlet In The Snow, The Chrystal Heart and Hunter's Moon. They are all somehow taken off princess stories. For instance: Moonlight and Ashes has noticeable similarities to Cinderella. And Scarlet In The Snow is obviously off Beauty and The Beast. The Chrystal Heart has a few things in common with Rapunzel. And Hunter's Moon is a version of Snow White.
I really enjoyed all of her books and I think if you like princess books and movies you will like these.