Review: When I'm With You - Book #3 Jane Austen Academy Series - Cecilia Gray - December 2012 Years ago, I stumbled upon The Jane Austen Academy series, and it's become one of those comfort reads I return to when the mood strikes. As a devoted mood reader, I have to wait for exactly the right moment to dive into each installment, and recently I found myself craving something fun and cozy. A YA retelling of Northanger Abbey? Perfect. When I'm With You centers on Kat, a character whose dual nature immediately captivated me. Off stage, she's awkward and naive, someone who hasn't quite found her footing in everyday interactions. But put her on stage, and she transforms completely confident, radiant, utterly alive. When she lands a position as Josh Wickham's PA on a real movie set over Christmas break, with the added bonus of working as an extra, it seems like a dream come true. What follows is a sobering education in the darker side of Hollywood glamour. Cecilia...

Review: Northanger Abbey - The Austen Project Series - Val McDermid - March 2014 This month's reading challenge is to clear my TBR bookshelves and focus on books that have been sitting there for a while. I decided to start by grabbing ones that I know have been there a long time, like this one that has been sitting on my bookshelf for nearly ten years. I wasn't sure how I would find this one as I do love my renditions but didn't know much of the story of Northanger Abbey as it isn't one of Austen's most known works and one people I have heard said is aimed at the younger audience due to the main characters age. The other thing was that Val McDermid is said to be the Queen of Crime and so I wasn't sure how she would transfer her skills to an Austen tale. After reading it, I can surely doth protest that Val McDermid did an amazing job as the book was so easy to follow and read and held my attention. In Northanger Abbey, we first met Cat Morland who has come to E...