Summer Update part deus

So, I covered three books yesterday in my summer reading update. 

Today, I'm going to blame someone else for making me read the next two. 

Once Upon a Time, my sister (who, like my mother, doesn't even read magazines she's so "not a reader"- which is translated in my brain as "is from another planet") was going on a beach vacation with her boyfriend to Cabo San Lucas. She needed something to read, and I guess a book was far too cumbersome to carry in her backpack, so she asked to borrow my kindle so she could read 50 Shades of Grey. I let her borrow the kindle, and then even went so far as to download the book for her, since I wasn't sure of her aptitude for that task. 

I was a little disappointed that the book would be on my kindle, but what can you do?

Fast forward to a few weeks ago, and KC finally decided to read that little book that I was so obsessed with that one time, Outlander. I talked to her midway through the second chapter, and she said it was slow. I promised her it would pick up and she'd be obsessed. I'm sure she thought I was nuts. 

Until I got texts from her cursing me for ever introducing her to the books because she was staying up until four am each night/morning? reading. I told her that I was reading primarily from my iPad, and also had the next five books in the series downloaded on my kindle, and she was welcome to have it and read them. She was thrilled (her husband- notsomuch.) 

I charged up the kindle, and then decided to see how far the sister ever got on the grey book. Turns out she didn't get past page four (not even kidding), but that got me to reading it a bit. 

And we all know that once I've read a few pages, I've got to finish the book. I've got to know what happens to the characters. I'm invested. 

And since I read the first one, I had to read the second one too. (I've been able to hold out on reading the third one. The writing is that bad.)

The thing is... these were very quick reads. Anytime there was anything risqué going on, I skimmed over it until I got back to dialogue or plot. As you have probably heard, that cut out about 60-75% of the novel for me. It wasn't too bad after that. The second one was the same way. There was also something about her "inner goddess", and I skipped that part too, because it was just plain stupid. 

So, this is where my whole summer reading plan got derailed, because I found a blog that mentioned some books she was reading and so I wrote them down. One sounded intriguing. 

And so, on Friday night, I started reading Dear Mr. Knightley. I really do have a thing for Austen novels, and this one referenced both Austen and Jane Eyre often (and she is probably the literary character I most identify with and love the most).

It was written in letter/diary style, and so Saturday night, when I sat down to read some more, I just kept reading one more entry, and then one more entry, until it was 2:30 am and I was finished.

I woke up Sunday morning and reread a bit of it again.

This book was rather predictable, and I knew who Mr. Knightley was well before I think I was supposed to, but it was sweet, and a nice change after reading the other tawdry novels that I had just finished.

I like that word tawdry.

So, now the question lends itself... do I read from the list or go rogue again?

(Answer: I just bought the physical book The Giver,  and I can't even imagine why I didn't put it on the list. So that's next up on deck.)

Tomorrow: a Text Message Tuesday showing why my friends are freaking hilarious.