"Possessions" by Nancy Holder

Wow! Where do I begin?? This book is about a girl, Lindsay, sent to a boarding school following a nervous breakdown. Lindsay thinks she can start a new life here, only to discover eerie happenings, ghostly pranks, and rumors that the school is a centuries-old former insane asylum for wayward girls - and an operating theater with evidence lobotomies were performed. Now Lindsay is left to wonder if the events of the academy are real - girls are being possessed by the spirits of these long-dead wayward girls, or if she's losing her mind...again. I will admit, I DO NOT scare easily, but this book thoroughly creeped me out. I found myself turning on the hallway light if I had to get out of bed at night because I was just so on edge. This book is amazing. It's truly hard to find a SCARY book, but this one really is frightening. I couldn't wait to get my hands on the sequel! I will also definitely be looking into getting the rest of Nancy Holder's books. If I could give this book more than 5 stars, I would in a heartbeat!

"The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner" by Stephenie Meyer

I was expecting this book to be as good as the Twilight Saga since it is essentially a Twilight novella. But alas, it fell kind of short. It seemed kind of disjointed and hard to follow at times. I was very disappointed not to encounter any Twilight characters until the last 20 pages of the book. I have to say though, as far as seeing the epic battle fight between Victoria's army and the Cullens through another point of view, this book definitely did that. I think it would have been much better had the book been longer and its descriptions of people not as vague. It did make me want to re-read Twilight again and would buy another novella should Stephenie Meyer write one.

"The Reformed Vampire Support Group" by Catherine Jinks

I bought this book because the idea of vampires "reforming" and attending support groups sounded hilarious. Unfortunately, the first actual support group meeting doesn't take place until the epilogue. The story is very well written and engaging. All of the characters are quirky and stand out. The "support group" sets off to find the killer of one of their members, launching them across the australian outback. The author has a completely different view of vampires and their strengths and weaknesses, so that kept the excitement going. I will be buying the sequel ("The Abused Werewolf Rescue Group") when it releases next year. My only real complaint with this book, besides being slow starting on the action, was the title was a bit misleading on the support group part. Otherwise, it was a good read!

"Picture the Dead" by Adele Griffin

I won a copy of this book through Goodreads First Reads. I was initially curious about the book because it sounded like a new twist on the usual ghost story. WOW! I completely devoured this book. I couldn't put it down! The main character, Jennie, loses her brother and fiance in the Civil War and is left grieving with an unsupportive distant aunt and uncle. The book picks up when her cousin returns from battle and the family turns to a photographer who can supposedly capture the images of the deceased in photos. This was a haunting love story, filled with twists and turns. I generally don't read anything historical, so for me to be so enthralled with this book really says something about the author's writing. The book is beautifully illustrated with Jennie's "scrapbook" of photos, letters, and mementos that give us extra glimpses into her life.

As an additional bonus - I was thumbing through the book and realized on the title page a note from the author, Adele Griffin, that had been inscribed so close to the book's beautiful title that it looked like a piece of lace - "Embrace the Unexpected". This book certainly taught me to do just that!

"Intertwined" by Gena Showalter

This book initially intrigued me because the main character has 4 souls trapped inside his head--kind of like a paranormal multiple personality disorder. It was difficult to get into because you have to try to keep up with the main characters and the companions in his head, all of which have a point of view. On a 5 star rating, I was considering giving it 3 stars...then I hit the middle of the book. WOW!! New characters were introduced, action picked up, plot twists came out of nowhere and I found myself not being able to put it down! Around page 200, I was online ordering the sequel so I would have it waiting on me as soon as I finished this one. I am truly glad I stuck out the initial slowness. Definitely a 5 star book, with a completely unexpected, exciting ending!

JK Beck's "When Pleasure Rules"

Another winner from JK Beck! I was very excited to delve back into the world of the Shadow Keepers and all the same characters from book one (plus some new and exciting ones)! I thought it was a little harder to get into than the first book, despite being familiar with characters/setting, but the action picked up and never stopped! I will be eagerly awaiting the release of book three at the end of this month!!

"Mini Shopaholic" by Sophie Kinsella

This was a really good Sophie Kinsella book. Pretty "standard" Becky behavior throughout. Her daughter Minnie, though, is HILARIOUS! And this book had a surprise ending and definitely makes you truly hope Sophie writes another Shopaholic book! Loose ends...ahhhh!!!!!