So my kids have been off for spring break. DH took off Friday so that we could go out to the Great Salt Lake and hike. (See the picture above). It was a fun day and the weather turned out beautiful -- we could see forever.

And I've recently started reading again (almost seems like a binge after being unable to with our move) and thought I'd share some of the things I liked about the books I've read.
Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George
Very fun book! Jessica's style reminds me of a fantasy great, Patricia Wrede.
1) I liked that the prince doesn't rescue her -- she has to rescue herself. (That's not giving anything away, since it tells you that on the back cover). And she does it more than once.
2) I liked the creativity that she used to make the story interesting...and to keep the plot moving along without you knowing exactly what was going to happen every minute.
3) Great characters that I really cared about.
Overall, a great read and I highly recommend it. My daughter is planning to read it now.

Then I had to see what all the fuss was about (late to the party -- I know, but I have been moving, LOL). So I read the three Twilight books by Stephenie Meyer...Twilight, New Moon, and Eclipse.
1) I like that she makes unconventional characters likeable (usually these characters are the bad guys). It's an interesting twist that drew me into the story. And I have to say that I rooted for these characters throughout the novels. (Some characters more than others, but I won't go into my opinions on each book individually).
2) I also liked the role reversal that she has going -- where the victim is not really the "victim" but wants to be (I know that's beating around the bush but I'm trying not to spoil anything for anyone that is behind my reading schedule. There might be someone).
I will read the Breaking Dawn when it comes out despite the fact that I had vampire nightmares the entire time I was reading Eclipse (Finally just stayed up until 2 a.m. to finish the book and avoid the dream I knew was coming :) ) Very mild vampire story, which is what makes that whole dream thing laughable. Unique idea.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. This book is about a writer with a secret. How could I not read it when I read the back cover. A few things that I liked about this was:
1) The plot twisted and thickened and I wasn't sure what was going to happen or how it would unravel until the very end.
2) Very unique interaction between twins and the connection between them gave me something to ponder. Compelling story that kept the reader intwined in the character's lives.

Also read A Curse Dark as Gold by Elizabeth C. Bunce right before moving (Had to hurry and get Robinellen's book back to her). Loved the beautiful prose and well plotted story. Beautifully done. I highly recommend this as well.

And last but not least, I'm slowly moving along on my novels. Spent time today developing the characters in my mind and then writing up a character sketch on each one to help me keep them straight and get to know them (I haven't done this on all my novels but for some reason, I felt compelled to do it with this one and just like the companion novel that I wrote previously), working on the 2nd chapter on WIP B and hoping to finish it tonight. Got some plot ideas figured out for WIP A. So overall, a good day. (Although I didn't do laundry, clean house, or paint the second coat of the guest room). I still have until Friday to have my house ready for some out of state visitors...there's still time, right?

Hope you have a great week!