The Ladies’ Room, by Carolyn Brown

This gently paced book has a sweet story about someone changing her life around after overhearing a conversation in the ladies’ room.

Trudy’s Great-aunt Gert has passed away.  Trudy remembers spending pleasant summers with her cousins, Marty and Betsy, at her aunt’s house.  In more recent times, she recalls a few obligatory visits to the house now stuffed with knick knacks and a critical old woman.

Nature calls during Gert’s funeral.  While in one of the bathroom stalls, Trudy overhears Marty and Betsy talking about how Trudy is such a good, dependable person, “bless her heart,” — and how gullible she is in believing all is as it appears on the surface with her own family.  Trudy is shocked by the revelations and the fact that her cousins have done nothing to help her see the truth.

After the reading of the will, Trudy realizes it’s time for a change.

One of my favorite parts of the novel was when Trudy tells her new neighbor Billy Lee that she’s done with being nice.  “I’d rather have honest than nice,” she says.  And then she follows through without being mean.

I kept turning pages to see what would happen next — Trudy receives some good news, exacts some righteous revenge, makes a good friend, and finds a purpose in life.  The book will keep you entertained for a pleasant afternoon.

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The Sixty-Eight Rooms, by Marianne Malone

What girl doesn’t dream about shrinking down to play in her dollhouse? This premise, with a time travel twist, is the genesis for the story The Sixty-Eight Rooms. The titular rooms are the Thorne Miniature Rooms housed in The Art Institute of Chicago. They are meticulously crafted rooms depicting late 1200s to 1930s Europe and 1600s to 1930s America. Ruthie and Jack visit the exhibit on a field trip and Ruthie, in particular, is mesmerized. Intrigued to see what the rooms look like from the staff-only area that runs behind the exhibit, Jack manages to talk a security guard into showing them backstage. That’s where Jack finds the key.

At first when Ruthie holds the key, she feels it grow warm in her hand, and the sensation of a breeze blowing by. Later, when she holds the key in the vicinity of the rooms on a return trip to the exhibit, Ruthie is stunned to find herself shrinking! Jack and Ruthie soon realize that the key and the rooms were meant to be used together and they begin their adventure. Even more surprising than all they’ve seen so far is the revelation that the windows and doors built into some of the Thorne Rooms actually lead to the time and place they recreate. The only way they’ll have the time and privacy to explore all the Thorne Rooms have to offer is to hatch a secret, overnight visit to the exhibit—Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler-style.

The Sixty-Eight Rooms is followed by Stealing Magic: A Sixty-Eight Rooms Adventure. After all, Ruthie and Jack have 68 Thorne Rooms to explore.

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Love? Maybe, by Heather Hepler

If your birthday is also Valentine’s Day, you probably either love all things hearts and flowers, or hate every pink and red bit of it. The fact that Piper’s birthday falls on Valentine’s Day means that she typically receives many heart-themed birthday gifts each year, but does not mean she believes in love. This year though, her best friends Claire and Jillian are determined that the three of them will not be alone on the most romantic day of the year. They devise “The Plan.” Some of “The Plan” involves things you might expect, such as hair highlights and new makeup techniques. Then the girls take things one step further.

When she’s not at school, Piper works at Jan the Candy Man, a candy store known for its creative confections. Piper, Claire, and Jillian borrow the kitchen one evening to make a new, special type of chocolate. A chocolate that incorporates the recipe Jillian found for a love potion. When the girls’ crushes start to notice them after eating the chocolates they are sure it’s coincidence—right?

Reading Love? Maybe is like watching a fun romantic comedy. You begin to root for the main characters in their struggle to find love. The subplots are also entertaining and even secondary characters have personality. Even Valentine’s haters will find something to love in this one.

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Frost, by Marianna Baer

What Leena expects to be a perfect senior year at boarding school begins to fall apart from the first moment she sets foot back on campus. She’s excited to be living in Frost House with her two best friends, and will have a room to herself until their other friend returns from a semester abroad. Leena can’t wait to be out of the dorm, and moving into Frost House is a special treat because it was repurposed as women’s housing just for her and her roommates. Her excitement is soon dulled, however, by the news that she will be sharing her sanctuary with a roommate after all.

Celeste is eccentric, arty, and attention-seeking. So when she starts to complain about Frost House, Leena doesn’t quite know what to believe. Leena loves living in the old house and feels completely at home. Celeste feels like she is being watched, claims her belongings are being tampered with, and swears it smells like something died in her closet. Could Celeste be making it all up or is there really a presence in the house that Leena can’t sense? Why would Leena feel so comfortable in the house if there was really something wrong? Celeste certainly has a history of being unreliable, but even Leena can’t argue with the strange, if disparate, effect Frost House seems to have on them both.

Frost is not your usual haunted house story, and you may end the story with as many questions as you began. With that said, I enjoyed the layers author Baer built, each one adding more and more depth to the story than the last. Are the events of the story the result of a character’s psychological deterioration, a haunting, or something more mundane?

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The Vanishing Game, by Kate Kae Myers

Kate Kae Myers, author of The Vanishing Game, wrote on her blog, “Smart teens interested in clues and codes (and fiction, of course!) are my target market.” I may no longer be a teen, but I am definitely a fan of fiction that incorporates clues and codes. That may have been what started me reading, but what kept me reading was the atmosphere, the suspense, and the plot. It is a mystery, thriller, noir, fantasy novel all weaved into one. It is suitably eerie as well as puzzling. Most of the time I had no idea where the story would twist and turn next, and I certainly didn’t guess the ending.

The overarching mystery in the story is whether Jocelyn’s brother Jack is dead or alive. Jocelyn was told that Jack had died in a car wreck, but shortly thereafter she received a letter in the mail. It was signed “Jason December,” a code name she and Jack had created as children. The only other person who knew that name was their friend Noah. Jocelyn, Jack, and Noah had all grown up in Seale House, a foster home where they were neglected. One of their diversions was making up codes to try and stump one another. The message Jocelyn receives from “Jason December” is a newspaper clipping about a fire that destroyed Seale House. Jocelyn is sure it is a clue, especially since it was sent after Jack’s death, but first she must track down Noah. At worst she can confirm that he did not send the letter, at best maybe he’ll help her find Jack.

Now you know as much as I did when I started reading The Vanishing Game. I wouldn’t deprive you the enjoyment of finding out the rest for yourself. Myers drops you right into the middle of the action and rarely gives you time to catch your breath. I also wouldn’t recommend reading this alone at night. Myers’ story is as creepy as it is suspenseful.

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Everneath, by Brodi Ashton

Nikki Beckett is a modern-day Persephone. One hundred years ago, Cole took her to the Everneath, where Everlivings like him feed off the lives of forfeits—mortals with nothing left to live for. But Nikki still had one thing left. She was supposed to retain no memory of her previous life. Forfeits shouldn’t even be able to function after they have been drained. But when Nikki woke, she was still herself. Cole realized that Nikki was very special and asked her to stay with him forever as an Everliving. Knowing that she would then be required to feed off of forfeits herself, Nikki turned him down, and her fate was sealed. Nikki would return to the Surface, but after six months she will be returned to endure a painful eternity fueling the Everneath.

When Nikki returns to the Surface only six months have passed since her family and friends thought she ran away. Now she has six months to make amends before the Everneath claims her again. All Nikki had intended was to set a few things right, say a proper goodbye, and keep to the fringes for the time she had left. But it turns out to be harder to stay uninvolved than she expected. Her father, her brother, and her best friend Jules all want answers. There is the added pressure of Cole, and his attempts to change her mind about becoming an Everliving. And there’s Jack. How can she say goodbye to the person 100 years in the Everneath couldn’t erase?

Everneath is the first in a planned trilogy that will appeal to paranormal romance and mythology fans alike. Look for the sequel, Everbound, in 2013.

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What’s Your Number?

We’ve all done it, everyone does it. It is fun, interesting, and only takes a few minutes of your time. You almost can’t help yourself, the lure is too great. You find yourself ensnared. You open yourself to the possibilities and believe all that you’re told. You decide when you’re done that you’ll never, ever take dating advice from a magazine article again.

In What’s Your Number? Anna Farris plays Ally Darling, a woman who reevaluates her love life after reading an article in a woman’s magazine that states that a woman is doomed to be alone if she goes beyond the magic number of boyfriends. Unwilling to jeopardize her future by exceeding the number, Ally sets her sights on tracking down all of her old flames to find “the one” that got away.

Colin Shea, played by Chris Evans, is Ally’s playboy neighbor. Not interested in commitment, Colin has a bevy of beautiful women in and out of his apartment. In most cases Colin hides out until the poor girls get the clue that one night with him does not make a relationship. So the two broker a deal. Colin will hunt down Ally’s exes, and Ally will do her part to get the girls packing sooner rather than later.

In some ways this is the typical romantic comedy.  You’ll get a few laughs, a few “aw” moments, and a girl that finds herself and love in the end. But what I enjoyed most about this movie was that the humor didn’t solely rely on crude jokes. There were jokes but mostly about the pitfalls of dating and life. Ally and Colin were equally matched and played by two funny and endearing actors. The chemistry worked and I found myself wondering how things would play out even though I knew I was guaranteed a happy ending. There is a small deception. After all, you need conflict even in a romantic comedy, but you are saved from the “Big Secret” that makes you wonder what the script writer was thinking. This is a fun movie that’s not too sweet to watch with your significant other or to enjoy with girlfriends so you can commiserate over all the bad dating advice you ever took from a magazine.

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