I’ve been following his website keenly for some time waiting for word of the latest book, and it finally came this spring. Now they’d had release dates in the past and the books haven’t always lived up to those dates, so I was skeptical. But this time, they were right on the money and “A Dance with Dragons” was released in July as promised.

I made it through the 900+ pages in about a week. This is the fifth book in the series, but it really is meant to be read along with the fourth book – they were just both too many pages to release in a single volume. But the events in both books are happening concurrently, which can be a challenge to wrap your head around, especially if it’s been a year or so since you read “A Feast for Crows“. I read “Dance” and then went back and re-read “Feast”, so just know that you’re going to need to refresh your memory.

The first book in the series is “Game of Thrones”, which was recently made into an HBO miniseries. I HIGHLY recommend “Game”. It’s one of my favorite books of all time. There’s love, there’s intrigue, there’s treachery and the characters are so real that you’ll find yourself loving and hating almost every one of them. Martin tells each chapter from a different character’s perspective. So one character might hate another and you find yourself thinking, “That so and so is a real jerk”. Then you read a chapter from the “jerk’s” perspective, and suddenly you have to change your thinking. It’s an awesome way to tell stories (really it’s what Gregory Maguire gets so much credit for with “Wicked”) and makes for a fun and exciting read.

Be forewarned that Martin will kill ANY character, and I mean ANY character. The man is ruthless.

Thank you to my mother-in-law for loaning me her copy of this book while she went on a 12 day cruise. I think she got the better end of that bargain but I’m still really glad you let me read it while you were gone.

It doesn’t all wrap up in a neat and tidy bow, which I admire. It’s not a fluffy little piece of fiction that you’ll pick up and read in 60 minutes in the tub. And it’s guaranteed to bring tears to your eyes at some point, maybe multiple times.

I’ve never lived in the South and I’ve certainly never hired help and yet it didn’t take but 10 or 15 pages to get completely immersed in the story. I don’t know that I’d say that this book changed my life, but it was very engaging and most importantly, thought provoking. This feels like required reading for high schoolers.

This is the perfect Christmas gift for the woman in your life. Men could enjoy this book as well, but it’s so much about female relationships, that I think some men would struggle to understand the rich subtext.

To say more could ruin it for you so I won’t because these books are worth reading, especially if you have the time to really spend sinking in to the past. What Gabaldon does best is research, you will really feel like you’ve traveled back in time.

My biggest disappointment with “Breath” is the way things end with Roger and Bree where it seems like something major that could’ve taken up two or three chapters gets whittled down to a paragraph or two and tied up in a neat package.

Still, that’s a small criticism in the context of such a long book.

Your favorite characters are there, of course: Claire, Jamie, Roger, Brianna, etc. along with plenty of new characters who seem immediately familiar and welcome (such as the Hunter family). Lord John features prominently in this book for those of you who’ve been reading her side series about him.

I’ve NOT read them and yet found it easy enough to follow his story line.

If you haven’t read any of her books before, they’re sweeping action/adventure/romance novels  primarily set in Scotland and America with tons of historical and medical references. These are not light reads and they’re not Harlequin romances. Characters are complex, relationships are sometimes painful and circumstances are often bloody and/or gruesome.

While most of the readers of this series are probably female, I do know men who’ve enjoyed them as well. There are enough battle scenes and talk of honor and revenge that most guys will find something that appeals to them.

Of course, the thing that shines through these novels the strongest is the relationship between Claire and Jamie. Star crossed lovers to be sure, but their love for each other seems to be so rich and deep that you almost eat these books up with a spoon.

She tells this story from a variety of characters’ perspectives, which is something that I enjoy about George RR Martin and Christopher Paolin’s books as well. If you feel like you’re getting bored/weary with one character, just keep reading, odds are good that you’ll soon get to read about someone/something else.

What “The Reader” has that “The Graduate” does not, is a great plot twist that makes us think, even as it sets you reeling. It’s also incredibly short and easy to read.

While it’s romantic, is it for women only? Definitely not. Much like “The Graduate”, my guess is that “The Reader” probably appeals nearly as much to men as to women.

The story is told from a young man’s perspective who’s vulnerable and foolish. Our heroine is not your typical soft and feminine lady. While the characters may not catch your fancy or engender your sympathies, they will draw you in.

If you like “The Reader”, check out “The Book Thief”, a more mature, more complex cousin.

Turns out, he knows a lot. While at first, I was a bit alarmed that this was going to be a VC Andrews-esque use of a small coal town in Virginia, my fears quickly proved unfounded. Baldacci does use the Appalachain mountains as a character in this novel and he does it well.

Lou and Oz (sister and brother) are charming but it’s Louisa, the great-grandmother, of the novel who will capture your heart. This is not a funny novel; in fact, I was crying by the end of the first chapter (of course, I cry easily). It doesn’t get a whole lot happier as the book continues.

Coal mining and farming have to be two of the harder professions, and the book brings the risks and rewards of them sharply into focus. If you’ve ever wondered why someone would stick with small farming when the money is so unreliable and the work is back-breaking, read this book.

My only complaint would have to be about the mountain lion. That seemed a bit over the top (it also seems to be a theme, I had the same issue with “Low Country“).

Like “The Notebook“, “Water for Elephants” is taking place in both the present (as an old man) and in the past (when he was young). While there is a strong love story, this is NOT what I’d call a chick book. There’s plenty of blood and guts to appeal to male readers (I wouldn’t suggest this book to someone who gets queasy easily).

If you like “Water for Elephants”, you might also enjoy “The Mermaid Chair” by Sue Monk Kidd or “I Know This Much Is True” by Wally Lamb. Be forewarned that Lamb’s book is a slower read than “Water for Elephants”.

And for fantastic fiction (that is incredibly well researched) on most any topic, check out Jodi Picoult (click here to read my review of her book “My Sister’s Keeper“).

Liesel can’t read, but her adoptive father, Hans, teaches her.

The story takes awkwards twists and turns that somehow just work with the story. You grow to love Liesel even as you hate what is happening to her town and in her life. Her adoptive mother appears hateful and then somehow gains your affections.

There’s a lot to love about this book. It’s a sizable tome, so don’t pick it up if you’re scared of large books. It has occasional sidebars from Death that I grew to enjoy (but I can see how some people find them distracting). What it says about the human spirit is what matters.

Someone has compared this to “Life of Pi” and I disagree thoroughly. While “Pi” is interesting and off the wall, it’s not a concrete story to latch onto and love.

I highly recommend “The Book Thief“. It’s absolutely worth the time to sit down and explore Liesel’s world.