Hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

Princeps’ Fury and First Lord’s Fury by Jim Butcher

These are the last two books of the Codex Alera series.  The whole series is the story of Tavi, a farm kid who is growing up without any magic in a society where everyone is able to harness the power of at least one element.  As one of his friends later says, it makes his brain tricky.  He’s able to find creative and unexpected solutions to problems.  These books tell the story of a war against an invader that is destroying the world.  Things aren’t going well for most of the books.  By the last one it is mostly descriptions of battles after battles which was boring for me but I liked the overall story of the series. 

Already Home by Susan Mallery

Jenna, a professional chef, moves home to Texas after her divorce. On a whim she signs a three year lease on a retail space in order to open a kitchen supply store. She has never worked retail. She ends up relying on her staff, a former street kid to make a successful shop. Then her aging hippie birth parents show up.

Georgia’s Kitchen by Jenny Nelson

Georgia gets fired from her chef’s job and breaks up with her fiance on the same day.  She gets a temporary job as a sous chef in a new restaurant in Italy. 

This was a cute story about a woman starting over.

Playing for Pizza by John Grisham (audio)

I haven’t read any of his books in years.  Rick was a third string NFL quarterback who has a disasterous performance in the AFC championship game.  He is fired and can’t find another job except for a team in Parma Italy. 

I liked this book because I like football and food.  You have to be interested in both to properly appreciate this book.

Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World by Lisa Bloom

Disgusted by the survey that 28% of women would rather win America’s Next Top Model than win the Nobel Peace Prize, the author looks at why a generation after fighting for equal rights women are now more interested in pop culture than using their brains. 

This book was funny.  There isn’t really anything new in here but that may be the point.  She complains about a lot of things that bother me like cable news focusing on Missing White Girls instead of the millions of girls in slavery around the world.  She advocates cooking at home and using the money you save on takeout to hire a twice a month cleaner because housework is “not your job.” Hire a professional.  Spend the time you save reading books to broaden your mind.  The nonfiction list she recommends includes lots of books I love.  

The Devil Colony by James Rollins

This is part of his Sigma series but you really don’t have to have read the others to read this.  This story mixes Jefferson’s study of Native Americans, nanotechnology, and Mormon history into an action thriller.  Seriously.  Somehow it works.

I like this author because he is a veterinarian so when there is an animal in the story you know that he will be ok in the end.  A dog has a big part in this one.

New Where Am I Reading entries – Utah