Fairest by Marissa Meyer

 In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.
Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series. 

I really enjoyed reading this book and it was a fairly quick read. I was warned before that if I read this book that I might feel sympathy for Levana before reading the whole series. But I figured if the book was labeled 3.5 so I should read it before reading "Winter".  I think it fit pretty well in this spot and it made things click into place. I didn't really end up feeling too much sympathy for her but I can see where someone could think that.    

Cress by Marissa Meyer

In this third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they're plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl imprisoned on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she's just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a higher price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.



While this book took me a little longer to get through doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy it to the fullest.  My life this last little while has been filled with a busy work schedule and a very active little toddler in my life.  This book was a bit longer than the previous two (550 pgs). But it was so good and I hated putting it down.  This series is so imaginative and by the time I had finished this book I had already put the next two on hold because I don't want to wait longer to find out what happens.

I'm going to attach a Youtube video of a review of this book. She does throw out some spoilers, so only watch the entire video if you want to get the spoilers.  Cress Book Review

I Said Yes by Emily Maynard Johnson

Millions know Emily Maynard Johnson from her unprecedented double appearances on The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. Millions also know that neither of the relationships from those shows lasted much longer than a commercial break.

Overcome with embarrassment following her nationally televised failures at romance, Emily finally committed her heart to the only one she knew would never leave her empty and alone. Abandoning her desire to be chosen by men and finding peace in the fact that she was already chosen by God, Emily found the joy she had been looking for in serving God.

In I Said Yes, Emily tells the story of her life before and after reality TV fame, describing the profound new reality she discovered when she forsook fame in favor of the Lord. At the end of a long, fruitless search for a man, this courageous young woman found the truest love of all waiting right in front of her. To that love, Emily said yes.

I found this book while browsing in the library and came across a few biographies, but this was seemed to stand out.  I watched her season when she was on the Bachelor and when she was on the Bachelorette.  But this book goes deeper and I learned about what it was like growing up for her and how to succeeded in being happy and finally finding her true love.  I would recommend this book to any friend looking for a good biography.

I found these videos on youtube. One is a teaser for the book and one is an interview she did.  Youtube Teaser.   Interview