romance

Based in Roman Egypt, Agora is about a female professor and philosopher, Hypatia, who teaches young men about science. Encouraged by her father, she surrounds herself with information in the great library of Alexandria and is constantly testing new scientific theories. She is quite content to live her life researching but several men would like to marry her, including Orestes, one of the disciples that she teaches, and Davus, her slave. Love, however, is not the only thing that Hypatia has to worry about. Although their world seems calm and peaceful, an uprising by Christians begins to brew

Things are going pretty well for Colleen O'Rourke:  she co-owns a tavern with her twin brother, Conner; has made more than a few love matches between the good people of Manningsport, NY; and is great at giving advice. Well, things were going well until Lucas Campbell comes back to Manningsport to see his dying uncle. Ten years ago they were in love—​Lucas living in Chicago gearing up to go to law school, Colleen in Manningsport to be close to her family while becoming a nurse. They had their life together planned out until secrets damaged their four-year relationship beyond repair. In their

This book has caught everyone’s attention (as Levithan’s books often do). The story centers around an attempt to break the Guinness Book of World Records longest kiss (over 32 hours) by ex-boyfriends Craig and Harry in protest of a hate crime. Add to that the love story of Ryan and transgendered Avery, Peter and Neil (a new couple ready to take the next step) and Cooper, a runaway obsessed with gay hook-up apps and the story is full of interesting and well rounded characters. To add to the complexity of the story it is narrated by a chorus of “shadow uncles” (gay men of the AIDS generation)

Becca Merritt needs help.  Her younger brother and only remaining family member is missing, leaving her a cryptic message which leads her to a tattoo shop called Hard Ink and Nick Rixey, former member of her late father’s Special Forces team.  Unknown to Becca, Nick has hard feelings toward her late father and, based on those feelings, dismisses her request for assistance in finding her brother.  However, realizing that there really is something going on and that Becca is in danger, Nick's Special Forces training and protective instincts kick in and he can’t leave Becca to fend for herself no

Lili DeLuca set aside her plans for grad school and took over managing her family’s Italian restaurant when her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer.  Now that her mother has completed her treatment, Lili, bullied as a child because she was heavy, still has a hard time believing that she should pursue her photography career instead of continuing to manage the failing family restaurant.  When she discovers Jack Kilroy, famous chef, has picked her father’s restaurant to be the showcase for his new television series pitting Jack against Lili’s father in a cooking contest. Lili finds things

When Haley calls home and no one answers the phone by the 2nd ring, she is figures her dad is sleeping. When no one picks up by the 10th ring, she hopes he is mowing the lawn. When no one picks up by the 20th, she knows something is wrong. Something is horribly wrong. She begs a ride from Finn, the editor of the school newspaper who has been nagging her to write for him. But the car is too small, Finn drives to slow, and something is wrong at home. Haley can't breathe, she can't think, she needs out! When a police car pulls up beside them at a stop-light, Haley is down to her last thread of

Tragically beautiful and real, Amour is a profoundly honest depiction of how a stroke can affect both members of a marriage. Though a French film and in subtitles, one hardly needs the translation to follow the emotions—shame, embarrassment, frustration, loss, fear, and above all, love—that both parties go through throughout the movie.

The movie follows the progression of an elderly couple whose lives change when Anne, the wife, has a stroke that leaves half her body paralyzed. Upon returning home from the hospital, Anne asks her husband, Georges, to promise never to take her back to the

What makes life worth living?  Will Traynor is struggling with this very question since an accident left him paralyzed from the shoulders down and often in excruciating pain.  Confined to a wheelchair and dependent on others to assist with even the most basic tasks of daily life, Will isn't sure life is worth living.  Then his mother hires Louisa (Lou) Clark as his daytime assistant/caregiver.  Two very different personalities, Will and Lou get off to a rocky and stilted start.

As they spend more and more time together Will realizes that Lou has very little experience outside of her small

Kresley Cole does it again with this amazing, riveting tale of Lothaire—an ancient vampire bent on ruling all of the Horde (evil vampires, btw)! But wait... his efforts thwarted by puny Elizabeth Pierce, a mere mortal. This book does not follow the same-old, same-old recipe I commonly find in paranormal romance novels. It's got sass, it's got vavoom, and I give it 5 fangs out of 5! In fact, I think I'm going to read it again.... and again...
 

Set in 1986, this story is filled with acid-wash, walkmans and punk music. Eleanor just doesn’t fit in, her red frizzy hair and eclectic wardrobe choices make her stand out like a sore thumb. Park’s goal is to fly under the radar, never at the bottom of the social ladder, but with no ambitions to climb to the top, he strives for mediocrity. But Park stands out when Eleanor climbs onto his bus one morning. With nowhere else to sit, Eleanor and Park become unwilling bench-mates. Over time, and without speaking the two begin to get to know each other. Eleanor reads comics over Park’s shoulder

I typically roll my eyes at romance novels--they are so fake! But Eleanor & Park is different. Perhaps because Eleanor and Park are different. Eleanor Douglas and Park Sheridan--the lead characters in this romance--are different from most romance novel characters, but also just different. Different from their boorish peers. Different from their lame teachers. Different from their parents. And it's their feelings of being different that brings them together in a glorious display of misfit love.

Eleanor and Park meet on the bus. It's 1986 in Omaha, Nebraska. Eleanor is the new kid at school

Not being a regular romance reader, I can’t say how Silk is for Seduction compares to its romance brethren. I will say, while I found the story to be absolutely ridiculous, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Marcelline Noirot, along with her two sisters and daughter, has clawed her way out of poverty and a cholera epidemic to become a contender in the English milliner business. In the hopes of winning a key customer from her sole competitor, Marcelline travels to France to woo the Duke of Clevedon. No, not for his affection, but for the money he would bring to her shop should his intended bride to have

A wakes up every day in a different body. Guest for a day, A tries to do no harm, walk through that person's life changing as little as possible. Until A meets Rhiannon. Waking up as Justin seems like any other day. Justin is kind of a slob, kind of a slacker, and not all that extraordinary. A thinks it will be just like any other day, making it to class, figuring where Justin sits at lunch, if he has an after-school job. Everything changes when A meets Justin's girlfriend Rhiannon. She is beautiful and different, and A is drawn to her. They decide to skip school and spend a day on the beach

Hazel has been hovering on brink of death for over 2 years. At 12 she was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and just when all was lost she was entered into a drug trial which holds the cancer at bay, never curing her, but keeping it from killing her. But she knows her time is limited. Because of the disease she cannot go to school and mostly sits around the house reading and watching America's Next Top Model.

One fateful day, her mom forces her out of the house to attend a cancer support group where Hazel first meets Augustus Waters, who will change her world. Augustus is a cancer survivor, who

I am not exactly a huge football fan...ok so about the only reason I will attend a football game is to watch the marching band. However, there is one book that has gotten me more than a little interested in the sport, Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock.

The book follows the summer of DJ Schwenk, who works on her families struggling dairy farm in Wisconsin. Her family's life, and the lives of everyone in town, revolves around high school football. DJ's brothers were both football stars who have moved on to college scholarships and a chance at the NFL. DJ is shocked with the coach of the

I know that you are supposed to start your road trip at the beginning of summer, but sometimes things don't always work out according to plans. As I get ready for my road trip I thought I would share some of my favorite road trip books with you!

John Green is the king of road trip books. An Abundance of Katherines was one of my favorite road trip books. After Colin is dumped by his 19th girlfriend named Katherine (not a bad name to be obsessed with, but Kate is better), he sets out with his best friend Hassan in an attempt to create a mathematical formula that will predict his future

Have you ever read a book and been completely amazing but also completely unable to describe it? I have a feeling that this is not going to be the best review I have ever written because I loved Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King, but I don't even know where to begin telling you about it. In a nut shell the story is about love, in all its messed up forms. As it is almost impossible to describe I will tell you the facts:

• Vera is a 17-year-old pizza delivery technician.
• She lives alone with her dad, a penny-pinching accountant.
• Her mom left when she was twelve to live a more exciting

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins is a novel told in verse follows 5 teens. Each one is trying to find love and each one ends up selling their body by the end of the book. Eden's father is an evangelical minister who cares deeply about setting a good example for his flock. So when Eden falls for Andrew, a non-believer, she knows she must keep it a secret or face her parents wrath. Seth lives with his father working on the family farm in rural Indiana. Seth's mother died from cancer without ever knowing her only son is gay and he is afraid to tell his homophobic father. Seth goes looking for

If you know me you know that I am eternally the fan of the girl power book/movie. Being a tomboy growing up I am always a fan of girls who unabashedly kick butt. I had some pretty high hopes for Whip It! and I was so excited to see one of my favorite sports being featured in a movie with an all star cast! I excitedly went out and read the book Derby Girl by Shauna Cross (recently retitled Whip It, the inspiration for the movie) .

Both the book and the move follow Bliss Cavendar (indie punk girl) growing up in the small conservative town of Bodeen, Texas. Bliss' mother is obsessed with beauty

For those of you who love ol' Billy Shakespeare but never could really get into the language check out the new anime Romeo X Juliet. A futuristic cross gender tale of undying love! Scene: Neo-Verona, sometime in the future Characters:

• Romeo: son of Capulet leader who has succeeded in wiping out his Montague rivals.
• Juliet: little did Capulet know that Juliet, daughter of Montague family survived and is raised by surrogate parents, unaware of her heritage. Also, for some reason they make her pretend to be a boy.

Plot: Juliet discovers her family legacy and decides to dress up as a caped

One of my favorite books is being made into a movie, it is just one of those books that as you are reading you are selecting cast members in your head. I Love You, Beth Cooper is the story of one teen's experiences at the end of high school. Denis Cooverman has always been a geek. For as long as he can remember he has been the butt of every joke, getting swirlies in between classes and practical jokes played on him ever day. Denis knows that he wants to be remembered differently, he wants to make his mark on Buffalo Grove High School class of 2007. So in his valedictorian speech at graduation

Fan's of Nick and Nora won't know what hit them when they watch the movie adaptation of this famous bookby David Levithan and Rachel Cohn. Now, although this movie does not follow the book (practically at all) it is still an excellent movie! I was a big fan of the book before I saw it and although a little piece of me was sad about how much they changed I can also respect that the movie is totally awesome on it's own! Even if you haven't read the book go check this out!

The movie opens with Nick, our hero, in the depths of despair because of the loss of the love of his life, Tris. Nick also

Have you planned your escape route in case of a zombie attack? I know I have. But there is no need to run from the zombies of Daniel Waters' new book Generation Dead. This is the sweet, heart-warming story of a goth chick, Phoebe and her zombie boyfriend. OK, maybe it isn't all that sweet. The world changed two years ago when teens stopped dying. Well, more accurately, they wouldn't stay dead. A few hours after a teenager dies the are reanimated. This only happens to teenagers and scientists still aren't sure what is cause, some say it is the devil some say it is a type of fungus. Who knows