Castles
By Julie Garwood
Bams Says: This book I got from Bunny. It was different from the two authors I usually read, but good nonetheless! It stars Lady Alexandria and Colin. A good read!

The Emerald Swan
By Jane Feather
Bams Says: This was the first Romance novel I ever read, ever! I can hardly remember it, but now after reading what Amazon.com said I remember it well! Oh this was a good book, for my first! Whee!

The Notebook
By Nicholas Sparks
Bams says: This book was a brilliant little read. It was smaller then some of the other books that I read, so it was a good one-nighter for me! It was soo cute and I can't wait for it to be made into a movie!

Note from Now: It's an unfortunate habit of mine to not fully remember books after I start the next one. i have read so many romances since The Emerald Swan, I am surprised I can recall even one detail from it. What do I remember? There is a necklace and some twins they get mixed up maybe? I remember reading two twin books right around each other so maybe thats not it? Oh well, there was definitely a necklace. And a garden sex scene that confused the hell out of 12 year old me. 

Castles I remember more for how interested I was in the flawed hero. When I say flawed, I mean physically. He had something really wrong with his leg and I remember massages and it not getting all fixed up at the end (maybe). I actually want to reread that once just for the memory I have of it.

Also I can't believe I read The Notebook before seeing the movie. That movie is awesome, and I remember the book just being sort of meh in comparison. Huh.I always thought it was because I read it after I saw the chemistry that is Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling. 

That was the last retro review! Unless I find some written ones somewhere I dont think there was a place pre-goodreads (and outside of this) that I reviewed books. Maybe on livejournal, but I doubt it. I am glad you all enjoyed this. I really loved finding them and noting the differences between myself now and myself ten years ago. I was a lot more praise-worthy back then... which I guess gives me some sort of link to the squee reviews of the teen demographic that I despise. Oh, how time passes.

RetroReview is a short series I am doing from old reviews I found on my old Geocities page, so pre-GR circa 2004. I was in high school so forgive the lingo. Bunny and Gary are my friends code names; Bams is mine. 

Lord of the Flies
By William Golding
Bams Says: I had to read this book for school. I thought it was really, ummm, messed up... I didn't really enjoy it all that much. But then some others found it totally wonderful. Eh..

Great Expectations
By Charles Dickens
Bams Says: Hmm. I thought I read the full version of this book but I don't remember it being 59 chapters... but nonetheless even if it was a child version I enjoyed this book, much to my surprise. It was a nice read. 

A Christmas Carol
By Charles Dickens
Bams Says: This book was a cute book. I've seen many movie versions of this over the years(my favorite being the Muppet's version) and the book was like every version of the movie I've seen combined. Word for word the movies were and I was a bit surprised! But I enjoyed the book very much so. A honored Christmas Classic!

Angels and Demons
By Dan Brown
Bams Says: An utterly spell binding and brilliantly written work of suspense. It takes place in Rome and Langdon, the main character, has to figure out clues before the crazy assassin kills the next priest! It is soo good. I could not put it down! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

The DaVinci Code
By Dan Brown
Bams Says: This book is the sequel, or the second in the series with Langdon! I liked it, couldn't put it down. But it didn't have the urgency as Angels and Demons. I find that I liked that one better then this one but it was still wonderful. I highly recommend this book also!

Notes from Now: Oh Dan Brown. The first Dan Brown book you read is great. Amazing even. In fact, I still count Angels and Demons as a tie for my favorite book. But the second you start to see patterns... then the third you have lost all fucks. The fourth you don't even bother. 

Angels and Demons though isnt just my favorite because I like the story and the city, but because I read it right before a trip to Rome, where I got to experience the book (somewhat) first hand. So it's the whole package. But I've read the book again since high school and still liked it... but it may be a case of rose colored glasses.

RetroReview is a short series I am doing from old reviews I found on my old Geocities page, so pre-GR circa 2004. I was in high school so forgive the lingo. Bunny and Gary are my friends code names; Bams is mine. 

Dune
By Frank Herbert
Bams Says: I liked this book, but it was a little bit to confusing for me. It's very Sci Fi, and I don't mind that. But I think I would like the miniseries [tv] better then the series [books].

Notes from Now: I read Dune for a boy haha. I think this was the first book I ever read that was straight up sci-fi. To be honest the details involve usually turn me off, but for some reason I love watching them. This miniseries was spectacular. And I remember it featuring a young James McAvoy.

Catalina's Riddle
By Steven Saylor
Bams Says: I had to read this for my Latin class, but I thoroughly enjoyed it! It was a lovely mystery book set in ancient Rome. A good read if you like that sort of thing.

Murder on the Appian Way
By Steven Saylor
Bams Says: This is the next book in the mystery series. This one I do not think was as good as the other one that I read in this series. But some of my friends likes this one better. To each there own. 

Note from Now: These two books were group reads for my Latin classes in high school. Both were mystery books set in Roman times. They actually aren't that bad. I remember liking them enough.

Fatherland
by Robert Harris
Bams Says: Another to read for school, but this one was so brilliant, I couldn't put it down. It's an alternate history thriller/suspense book that answers the question "What would have happened if Nazi Germany won WWII?" Sound intriguing? It is! Highly Recommended!

Note from Now: This book! Seriously this book is amazing. So. Good. And I can say that with a level of certainty because I've read it since high school. it is one of my favorite things to recommend people... which reminds me. I am going to have to nominate this one for book club!

The Lords of Discipline

by Pat Conroy
Bams Says: This book was so good! Very high on the entertaining scale, with twists turns and stuff that I didn't even think would happen. It has a lot of good lessons and by the end of the book I was so involved with Will, the narrator, if he would have ran into a rose bush and bled everywhere I would have started bawling and looking for a first aid kit. BIG RECOMMEND! As long as you don't mind the high profanity.

Note from Now: Oh, the soul crushing that was this book. My heart was ripped from me reading this. So good. I've been meaning to reread it (on what I think will be my third read through). I've been meaning to tackle other Conroy as I loved this one so. But alas! I have yet to get to them. 

Also I remember being really thrown and disturbed by the word "cunt" being in print. Oh how the internet has desensitized me to the point where I cant even empathize with my former self. 

Great, great book.

RetroReview is a short series I am doing from old reviews I found on my old Geocities page, so pre-GR circa 2004. I was in high school so forgive the lingo. Bunny and Gary are my friends code names; Bams is mine. 

The Flame and the Flower
By Kathleen E Woodiwiss
Bams Says: This is KEW's first book! I read it of course 30 years or so after it came out, but it was still as good as it could be! Heather gets abducted by Brandon Birmingham, a man married to the sea. What happens next? Read it, hehe!

The Elusive Flame
By Kathleen E Woodiwiss
Bams Says: The sequel to The Flame and the Flower staring none other then Beauregard Brimingham, who makes his first appearance in the aforementioned book! The pairing in this one, Beau and Cerynise!

A Season Beyond a Kiss
By Kathleen E Woodiwiss
Bams Says: This one is the third book in the Birmingham family. Jeffery is the star of this one, with his wife, Raeylnn (I love that name!). The book starts off a bit weird if you didn't read a little short story that she did on the couple, which I did not. But after your past that initial "What did I miss about 100 pages?" Then its amazing!

The Reluctant Suitor
By Kathleen E Woodiwiss
Bams Says: This one was really wonderful! Just writing this about it make me want to read it again! Adrianna and Colton, so cute, so cute, so CUTE! Highly Recommended!

Note from Now: One thing that always bugged me though was the names of the females in these books. They were always so strange and almost impossible to say. No one is every just named Mary or something haha. 

I think there are still one or two books that I have not read by her, but not many. I kind of want to finish it just so I can say I've read them all. Like if they were Pokemon cards. 

RetroReview is a short series I am doing from old reviews I found on my old Geocities page, so pre-GR circa 2004. I was in high school so forgive the lingo. Bunny and Gary are my friends code names; Bams is mine. 

Shanna

By Kathleen E Woodiwiss. 
Bams Says: This is, to date, my favorite romance novel I have ever read. Shanna and Ruark are my favorite couple. And this book has so much action and adventure and such a twisted plot that you wonder if they will ever be together! This one I highly recommend for the RN reader!

So Worthy, My Love
By Kathleen E Woodiwiss
bams Says: This was the first KEW book I ever read! My cousin, Erin, who got me into the Romance genre, gave me this book to read and I fell in love with the genre. Thank you Maxim and Elise! Highly recommended!

Come Love A Stranger
By Kathleen E Woodiwiss
Bams Says: AH! This is another one of my favorite KEW books. I absolutely LOVE Ashton and Lierin! And the best part, i found this book for $1.00 at a thrift store so its mine forever! The main character loses her memory. Very very GOOD! Highly Recommended!

A Rose in Winter
By Kathleen E Woodiwiss
Bams Says:A Classic Beauty and the Beast story with a new twist! Erienne has fallen in love with a Yankee, Christopher Seaton, but had been married off to Lord Saxton. What's a girl to do? Classic battle between loyalty and love. Highly recommended!

Note from Now: 

Woodiwiss was my gateway drug. I had read two romance novels before reading So Worthy, My Love, but it was the latter that just pushed me into romance fanatic. There are quite a few, so I am going to break them into two posts, so look forward to more.

Shanna is still my go to default favorite for romance. I haven't reread it in years though, so I wonder if that would hold up for me.  I remember snippets from all the others. I was so impressionable then. I really loved a lot of these, head over heals for these guys. I am sort of trepidatious about reading them a potentially ruining that childlike love that I have for them. 

Oh well, I am over thinking this. Enjoy.

RetroReview is a short series I am doing from old reviews I found on my old Geocities page, so pre-GR circa 2004. I was in high school so forgive the lingo. Bunny and Gary are my friends code names; Bams is mine.