Fish Out of Water, Mary Janice Davidson

Fred the mermaid has taken the bait and chosen Artur, High Prince of the Black Sea, over human marine biologist Thomas. The existance of the Undersea Folk is no longer a secret, and someone needs to keep them from floundering in the media spotlight. Fred has all the right skills for the job, but not for when her real father surfaces and his presence complicates matters even more.

As civil war threatens to sink the merfolk, Fred can't stop thinking about the landlubber she left behind...

I really have enjoyed the extreme fluffiness of these Fred the mermaid books. And as much as I like them I'm kind of glad that the author gave Fred a real ending in this third and final book. It seems like some of these series go on and on with no need. I like that this one wraps things up. And I really love who Fred ends up with! Which is why I wouldn't be upset if Mary Janice Davidson ever wrote another Fred story, providing Fred & her marine biologist get to be happy together. Otherwise I'm fine with no more stories. Although it would be hilarious to read about Jonas planning Fred's wedding. So maybe I do want another installment. And I really think I might need to order the UK covers.

At any rate here is, perhaps, the most awesome part of The Little Mermaid in honor of Fred. I was reminiscing with Nora about how I distinctly remember as a kid thinking that I was watching something profoundly beautiful and serious when Ariel rises up on that sea rock and the waves crash behind her... deep stuff:

Swimming Without a Net, Mary Janice Davidson

It's not normal for a mermaid to hate being out in open water, but Fred never claimed to be normal. To visit the undersea realm of Artur, the High Prince, and the rest of the royal merfamily, she has to fin it to the Cayman Islands. Luckily, hunky marine biologist Thonas is along for the swim - in his custom-made underwater RV. He'll be able to explore where no "outlander" has gone before and give Fred a place to escape to when the Undersea Folk start getting on her nerves.

But as Fred tries to fit in with her own kind, she finds herself hooked on both Artur and Thomas, and caught between two factions of merfolk: those happy with swimming under the radar - and those who want to bring their existence to the surface...

This was another cute, light book about Fred the mermaid and her appealing love triangle with a marine biologist and a merman prince. The writing is funny and quick to read and the story is suspenseful but not stressful. And once again I am jealous of the UK covers. So much prettier. Perfect bathtub reading which leads to this:

Sleeping with the Fishes, Mary Janice Davidson

Fred is a mermaid. But stop right there. Whatever image you're thinking of right now, forget it. Fred is not blonde. She's not buxom. And she's definitely not perky. In fact, Fred can be downright cranky. And it doesn't help matters that her hair is ocean colored.
Being a mermaid does help Fred when she works at the New England Aquarium. But, needless to say, it's there that she gets involved in something fishy. Weird levels of toxins have been found in the local water. A gorgeous marine biologist wants her help investigating. So does her mer-person ruler, the High Prince of the Black Sea. You'd think it would be easy for a mermaid to get to the bottom of things. Think again...

I've always had more than a passing interest in mermaids. Most likely fostered by repeated (and embarrassingly heart felt) singalongs of this as a child:





SO GOOD!

And then there's the painfully awesome stage version of this put on by some local 4-6 year olds that I alternated giggling and getting misty eyed through: "You. Will. Not. Be. A. Pawt. Of. His. Wolwd. Awiel!"

Finally, having my hilariously-mermaid (and merman)-obsessed kindergarten student a few years back solidified the fondness in my heart for mermaids.

So when I saw this book I thought I should give it a try in spite of the ridiculous cover art. The prettier cover on the left is from the UK, of course. I do like the glittery tail on the US cover but the rest of it is icky.

As are some parts of the story. It is a little too vulgar in a few spots for my taste but overall I did enjoy this fluffy story. It was pretty funny and I liked the love triangle that closes the story. This is definitely a silly book but it was very relaxing for me after another week of bad-seed-children-induced-depression. I'm glad the library has the other two books in this series.

Bite Me!, Melissa Francis

"AJ Ashe isn't your typical seventeen-year-old vampire—as if there is such a thing! She's stuck in the middle of a huge fight between her two BFFs. Her ex-boyfriend—whom she's still totally in love with, by the way—is now her stepbrother. A former classmate—who, um, she may or may not have turned into a vampire—is stalking her. And now, apparently, the fate of humankind lies in her little undead hands. What ever happened to the good old days, when all a vampire girl had to worry about was the occasional zit and hiding her taste for blood?"

This book was so cute! It was a great relaxing and entertaining book to read in the midst of my January doldrums. I love stories like this that are suspenseful and funny but also just really light and non-stressful.

My only quibble is that at the moment in the story when everyone was conspiring against the main character her formerly supportive mom turned on her too. That was the only false note to me. I know because I have a supportive mom and she would never believe that I cheated on a test, had an affair with a teacher, and did several other things I cannot even remember at this point if I told her I hadn't done it. I was tired when I read this so I can't remember all the details.

This book was also worth reading for this: "I think if I could just Hulk Smash her one time, I'd be able to move on." (p.152) That made me think of Nora who is always threatening to "hulk out".
I'm looking forward to reading the sequel!

Megan Meade's Guide to the McGowan Boys, Kate Brian

Boys. 7 of them, to be exact.

Megan is used to moving from place to place -- it's typical for an army brat. But she drew the line at South Korea. She insists on staying in the States to finish her last two years of high school. So her parents made arrangements for Megan to live with their friends, the McGowans...and the McGowans' 7 sons.

Turns out, living with 7 boys might as well be a foreign country! The boys are messy. They are cliquey (who knew?). And worst of all, two of the oldest boys are H-O-T. (A problem considering they are supposed to be Megan's "brothers.") Megan is definitely in enemy territory. She needs to win over the boys' hearts without totally crushing her own.

And when Megan starts falling for one of them, sibling rivalry takes on a whole new meaning....

What is a girl to do?

This book was so cute! I went in with appropriately low expectations and was so pleasantly surprised to be reading fluff of the highest quality. I consider myself to be a teen fluff connoisseur and this book definitely met my standards.

It fulfilled all my fluff requirements: likable main girl, plethora of cute boys, & a plot with a non-stressful amount of romantic tension & escapism followed by a happy ending. All these elements combined to help me forget my horrifying week back in first grade hell. I might be purchasing this one for further de-stressing purposes.

And I've got my fingers crossed for a sequel!

Prada & Prejudice, Mandy Hubbard

This book is cute, high quality fluff. It is ranks up there with my favorite Simon Romantic Comedies. My only complaint was that I think even a ridiculously uninformed and naive 15 year old would understand that "Lady Henrietta" is a title and not a snub to anyone addressed as "Miss Rebecca". That rankled me a bit but the rest of the book is cute and fun. Good escapist stuff.

Crush Du Jour, Micol Ostow

Another super cute and super fast reading Simon Romantic Comedy. This one was a little weak on leading man but strong on spunky heroine and funny one liners so I was ok with that. I liked reading all the descriptions of the food at the restaurant, the cooking class, and of Laine's own creations. Cuteness all around. And now I am a happy teacher who just has to grit her teeth through one more day with demon babies until vacation!

Prom Crashers, Erin Downing

This was another cute (I always write that but its because so far it has always been true) Simon Romantic Comedy. I like that I have a stockpile of these to turn to when I am having an emotional breakdown (thankfully, not the current situation) or when I am dying of a childhood infectious disease as an adult (sadly, the case today).

I did like Erin Downing's Drive Me Crazy better than this one though. Drive Me Crazy had more well developed characters. Prom Crashers felt like a screwball comedy- which isn't really a bad thing.

I was seriously relieved on the last few pages because near the end I was worried the story was taking a "hooray for being single, I don't need a man" stance that I can't support in fluffy teenage fiction. No one wants to read a story where the girl ends up alone... especially when you are reading books about teenagers while hacking up a lung on Halloween night. Luckily, this book ended with a perfect & cheesily romantic prom night.

Something Borrowed, Catherine Hapka

This was entertaining and cute and seriously fluffy. But the good kind of fluffy not the stupid kind. The only part that was difficult for me to suspend my disbelief about was how many, many, many guys this girl had in her little black book. Let alone how many guys she had as friends, former boyfriends, flirty acquaintances, attractive co-workers, etc to pick from. It was insane how many potential wedding dates she had. I do realize that was the point and main substance of the plot but it was pretty out there in wish fulfillment land for me to wrap my brain around. Maybe that is just a revealing statement about the lack of beaux in my own life. But all in all a very cute book!

Dark of the Moon, Rachel Hawthorne

I still maintain that the first book in this trilogy was the strongest... it is just on a different level of quality than this one & book #2. I did enjoy this story but it was definitely a high-fluff bordering on meh read for me. I think that Kayla's story in book #1 is so much more intense because there is an element of mystery and suspense about her new friends... once you know the secret its harder to care quite so much.

The part of me that is having a hard time handling stress & tension lately was relieved that there wasn't any major angsty heart fail going on once the big reveal happened in this one. It was kind of refreshing that Connor didn't care once he knew...

Love Off-Limits, Whitney Lyles

Ahhh... another relaxing Simon Romantic Comedy. I love the books in this series & I find it really interesting that even though they are written by different authors who all have different voices & styles all of the books I have read have been the absolute perfect blend of fluff and entertainment in a non-insulting to the reader way. In some ways they remind me of the cozy/gentle mystery genre... the stories are all different but you know what you are in for in terms of the reading experience. Sometimes that is just what I need- somewhere non-stressful to go to mentally (usually while mermaiding it up in the bathtub).

I am going to be really sad when I have read all of these books- they better keep writing more! This one was particularly fun because I love Halloween and fall in general plus who doesn't love the (always fictional) problem of multiple nice guys in your life that you have to choose from. I want to read more of Whitney Lyles... she reminds me of Jennifer Echols which is a very good thing.

Mediterrean Holiday

This is some intense fluff even for me. Which is saying something pretty big.

A few years ago I spent an ill-advised day watching a marathon of Footballers Wives on BBC America. It was so bad but I just couldn't look away (yay, cliches!). And that is an entire day of my life that I will never get back. And a memory of a hermaphrodite baby that has always stuck with me.This is the book that I imagine one of the wags would stuff into her bag on her way to a private island vacation and then get bored with and stop reading. But I am not a wag and I persisted in finishing it anyway.

I do love fluff but this one just went too far. I read stuff like this to relax and turn my brain off at the end of the day but that is impossible for me to do when the book is this silly.

Evermore & Blue Moon, Alyson Noel

Maybe someday I'll be done reading fluff and feel the need for something deeper but that day has not arrived. In fact being back at school with a whole new batch of babies has made me even more frazzled in turn leading to more fluff.

I've seen these books around for a long time but never felt much of a draw. But then on the first day of school I was out running errands completely exhausted and saw these. I read them that night and enjoyed them. They are very light and I kind of tuned out for a big chunk of the supernatural explanations but I enjoyed the story. I wish there had been more about the whole reincarnating to find each other over and over romance story line- that was way more interesting to me than all of the complications over staying immortal, powers, etc. I'll definitely read the next one when it comes out. I always have to know how things like this end even when I think they are silly.

Word Gets Around, Lisa Wingate

I've been reading a lot but not writing about any of the books until today. I honestly can't remember much about this one. It's a cute story but not as compelling as the Tracie Peterson stories I read earlier this summer. I do have another book by Lisa Wingate so maybe I'll give that a try.

Sleepless, Terri Clark

This was fluffy yet creepy and very reminiscent of Fade & Wake with the whole lucid dreaming, entering other people's dreams thing going on. I could have done without the creepy crime element but an overall fluffy, relaxing book.

Improper English, Katie MacAlister

This was a cute and implausible romantic story. I liked that it was set in London and there were a few funny moments. Mostly I was just waiting for the main characters to get together which they did in a predictable smut fest. The characters in this are not very believable but I can be forgiving when a book takes me just over an hour to read and successfully distracts me from my back and its mysterious injury.

Big Boned, Meg Cabot

I think this might be my favorite in the Heather Wells books because.... Heather finally gets her man! I was so ready to be disappointed in this if the unrequited love was continued. So I am relieved and excited because I read that Meg Cabot is planning writing more stories in this series. Hopefully it will be soon!

Size 14 Is Not Fat Either, Meg Cabot

My envy of Meg Cabot continues to build along with my enjoyment of these Heather Wells books. They are definitely the strongest Meg Cabot titles I have read and they are so entertaining.
This one made me laugh out loud.

"Where does that jaded cynicism even come from? It can't be because I'm a washed up former pop star trying to put my life together, only to be told I have to take remedial math." (p.68)

"I'm too old for a singing-songwriting career," I tell him. I mean, have you seen those girls on MTV? I can't wear short skirts anymore. Too much cellulite."
"Don't be silly," Dad says dismissively. "You look fine. Besides, if you're self-conscious, you can just wear slacks." (p.89)

I love that Dad advice! Right to the heart of the problem. You've got cellulite? No problem, pull out the slacks and you'll be ready for your music video instantly!

"I have them throw in a GET WELL SOON bear for good measure, after first making sure the GET WELL SOON banner comes off, so Manuel can regift the bear to a girlfriend or niece. You have to think about these things when you're giving stuffed toys to a man." (p.191)

"But not everyone seems to find their incredibly slim waists (how do all their internal organs even fit in there? I mean like their liver, and everything? Isn't it all squashed? Don't you need at least a 29 inch waist in order for everything in there to have enough room to do its job?) freakish." (p.235)

Size 12 Is Not Fat, Meg Cabot

The Meg Cabot fluff fest continues as my school year crawls to a close. I have to say this is my favorite Meg Cabot title (so far). It's another grownup title but fortunately had no smut, hooray! I also loved the premise of the book. The thought of a teen pop tart being forced into a real career and a real body was very funny. After reading this one and She Went All The Way it's really easy to imagine Meg Cabot as an US Weekly subscription holder (she has just got to be into celebrity news; which I say with absolutely no malice. Clearly, I am into celebrity news too. The Target clerk who felt the need to point out to me that the 5 high quality magazines I was buying on Saturday all had the same picture on their covers clearly is not a fellow traveler in the world of celebutainment. As if the same pictures might be a reason to not buy all 5. )

Heather is a very likable, relatable character and I enjoyed the mystery element to this story as well. My only complaint is that I want Heather to land herself a man. I don't like when stories about chubby girls feel the need to show how empowering it is to be fat and single. Because that is just a lie. I get that some people feel discouraged if the only fat girl narrative is that happiness (& a hot man) only arrive with weight loss but in reality what single, fat girl wants to read about how great it is to be single and fat. We (I'll be the chubby, single girl spokesperson) want to read about the many interesting ways a single girl like ourselves might meet Mr. Right and/or get thin. It's called escapism and wish fulfillment!

Here's hoping Heather gets her man soon (she can stay fat but I will revolt if she is just so self actualized that she doesn't need to be with a man and/or get thinner at some point in this series)

The Secret Life of a Teenage Siren, Wendy Toliver

I am a fan of the Simon Romantic Comedies and their powerful relaxing fluffiness. Some are stronger than others (Jennifer Echols , you are the winner!) and this one wins for being the fluffiest and also the one that asks you to suspend disbelief in the biggest way.

Basically Roxy is a plain Jane band geek until her sixteenth birthday when she magically turns into a siren (sans mermaid tail). All of a sudden she is a supermodel and if she plays her flute she can enchant any man into doing her bidding… so yeah there’s a lot of suspension of disbelief going on in this story. Eventually she comes full circle and ends up with her geeky best band geek guy friend who liked her before she was a siren and then continued to like her in spite of her siren-ity.