Ah, summer vacation. It's a time to relax, enjoy the weather, and most importantly, read.
I spent a week on the beach this summer. Yes, fun, but with my knee condition, swimming was out of the question. Most of my trip was spent either in a chair on the beach, or in a chair on our balcony. This gave me tons of time to read.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

A no-fail choice by Stephenie Meyer, her debut novel follows Bella Swan, the police chief's daughter, through her new life in rainy forks, a move of self-exile from sunny Phoenix where she lived with her mother. In Forks, Bella meets some interesting new friends, one set of them being a family of vampires. Edward Cullen, one of the vampires, thirsts for Bella's blood as much as she thirsts to be with him. But being in love with a vampire is dangerous business, especially when the scent of your blood is like wine to an alcoholic.The easy read novel was fast paced, an interesting page turner. Certainly not what I expected from a first-time author when it came to vampire novels. Five stars.

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

The sequel to Twilight, New Moon picks up after summer vacation. An unexpected turn leaves Bella empty and alone, and she feels as though her insides are practically gone. However, a rekindled friendship with Jacob Black helps Bella feel whole again, as she races to do anything that could help her hear her beloved Edward's voice again. But will conflict between Jacob and Edward drive Bella over the edge?Definitely the best sequel I've read in a long time. Worth a read. Five stars.

The Second Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares

The sequel to the bestseller The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, this second summer promises to be a delightful journey. Lena strives to figure out why her past seems like her only future. Bridget chases her late mother all the way to Alabama. Tibby realizes that the hardest thing to do, is sometimes the best thing to do, and wonders if popularity is worth losing a friend, and Carmen goes through family trauma once again, only to realize that maybe her happiness isn't the only happiness.Overall, a good book. I preferred this one to the first book. Four and a half stars.

Girls in Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares

The girls prepare to head off to college, and major roadblocks occur. Lena, who dreams of art school, figures out that she needs to either pay her way, or change her goal. Tibby learns courage from her little sister, and about taking leaps that can be dangerous. Carmen seems like the good girl helping with her mom's pregnancy, visiting Katherine, and taking care of Valia, but she worries that if a new boy finds out about Bad Carmen, she'll lose him. Bee runs into an old flame and wonders if she can ever feel completely whole again, and if she can compete with his new girlfriend.Not as good as book one or two, but still worth the read. Four stars.

After Anne by Roxanne Henke

Two unlikely friends, one story. Olivia is a harsh writer, who at first doesn't like Anne, her daughter's piano teacher and new woman in town. Anne instantly takes a liking to Olivia, nicknaming her Libby, and does her best to be Libby's friend. Eventually, the two DO become friends, and when Anne gets diagnosed with cancer, and then gets pregnant, these two have the biggest friendship test they could imagine. Can these women stand strong through the problems? Can Anne be a witness to unbelieving Libby? Is there any way for this to turn out good at all?This book made me cry time and time again. Friendship through thick and thin, this book is a good lesson to everyone about how to be a good friend. At first I found it a little hard to get in to, but after a few chapters, these ladies felt real to me, as though they existed somewhere. If I would have rated from the beginning, this is a three star, but based on my overall perception of the book, a five star. That evens out to four stars.

Bite Me if You Can by Lynsay Sands

Another witty vampire romance by Sands, this book struck close to home.Kansas City resident Leigh gets bitten by a rogue vampire, nearly gets caught in a house fire set by fellow vampires, who happen to be rogue hunters, gets rescued by said vampires, and falls in love. Lucian, the rogue hunter and an old vampire, is used to getting his way. Then fiery Leigh comes along and changes everything. A Kansas City resident, Leigh seemed so close to me, the dangers of walking alone at night in Kansas City so real. After reading this book, going to Kansas City almost makes me fear a bite by a rogue vampire. Also interesting, Leigh's new love interest, Lucian, is Canadian, as is my boyfriend.This book is filled with action, adventure, romance, and even a few erotic scenes. Three stars.

I hope to get in plenty more reading in before the end of summer, and dreaded school. My current read is A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray, and Eclipse, Stephenie Meyer's third book in her series, is out on August 9th. I'll be picking up a copy of that for sure.