Puss Reboots: Blog: December 2012: The Rules for Hearts

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Reviews
Are You Ready to Play Outside? by Mo Willems
Blackout by John Rocco
The Cereal Murders by Diane Mott Davidson
Danny and the Dinosaur by Syd Hoff
E-mergency by Tom Lichtenheld
Evernight by Claudia Gray
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (audio) by E.L. Konigsburg
Fullmetal Alchemist Volume 19 by Hiromu Arakawa
Golden Gate by Vikram Seth
Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword by Barry Deutsch
Hereville: How Mirka Met a Meteorite by Barry Deutsch
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Monoculture by FS Michaels
Museum Trip by Barbara Lehman
The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri
The Night Circus (audio) by Erin Morgenstern
NNNNN (audio) by Carl Reiner
No and Me by Delphine de Vigan
Of All the Stupid Things by Alexandra Diaz
Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
Perfect Shot by Debbie Rigaud
Press Here by Hervé Tullet
The Princess of the Silver Woods by Jessica Day George
The Rules for Hearts by Sara Ryan
The Shocking Pink Hat by Frances Crane
Sweet Revenge (audio) by Diane Mott Davidson
The Technologists by Matthew Pearl
There is a Bird on Your Head by Mo Willems
Three Black Swans by Caroline B. Cooney
What's a Ghoul to Do? by Victoria Laurie
Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett

Previous month

The Rules for Hearts: 12/31/12

The Rules for Hearts by Sara Ryan is the sequel to Empress of the World. It's not, though, a continuation of the summer romance between Nic and Battle. Rather, this is Battle's story of reuniting with her brother.

Battle has moved to Oregon to attend college. She has moved in with her brother and his thespian roommates. As the youngest and newest house member, she is the third wheel.

Like Empress of the World, the chapters are rather episodic — one challenge after another for Battle to face as she learns how to live on her own, tries to fit in with the household and discovers her brother's dark secrets.

If there is an over reaching plot arc, it's the presentation of a play put on by the housemates, and run by Meryl. It's a rather quiet and short novel — something to linger over.

Four stars