dreaming of fictional worlds

I went into this book blind, not knowing at all what to expect, and I was pleasantly surprised.

The first line of the book really grabs hold of you and plunges you into the story. "My name is Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973." The harsh realism of the rape and murder and the way that Susie's family copes is portrayed so wonderfully my heart just breaks over and over again. I cried so much I don't remember there being a moment when I wasn't bawling my brains out. One of the saddest things was seeing Susie's younger sister grow up while Susie was stuck at 14 in her own "heaven." Then of course was the way Susie's father had such a hard time dealing with her absence.

Basically, the book is just amazing and amazingly sad.

Don Tillman is a professor of genetics. As he's approaching his 40s, he thinks it's about time he married. In his attempt to to find a wife he develops a survey meant to narrow down his choice of women to someone who fits his incredibly specific standards. Enter Rosie. Don rules out Rosie as a candidate for the Wife Project, as he calls it, very early on though he continues to see her after to assist her in a personal problem. Rosie is trying to find her biological father.

Don Tillman is a very quirky character. He reads a lot like Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory. He has everything scheduled down to the minute and is consistent in all his behaviors. He has a lot of problems socially because he has trouble following social conventions and can't properly determine what is acceptable. There are implications that he has Asperger's syndrome which is sort of glossed over in the book, but I guess that was intentional to add a little humor albeit at Don's expense. 
Rosie is a wonderful character. I liked how she wasn't just there to be the love interest and had a mission of her own which basically dominates the book. I like how her influence changed Don. It wasn't so in-your-face like teaching him how he should behave but rather she opened him up to things he wouldn't have ordinarily done. 
The Rosie Project was so cute and funny. I spent a lot of the time I read it smiling or hugging the book to my chest. I loved it.

Jane Eyre is one of those books that I can talk about for hours on end, but whenever I try to write a review on it I get stuck. Let's give this another go.
Jane is taken in by her aunt after her parents died. Originally it was her uncle who had claimed her but before he died as well he asked his wife to raise Jane and love her as her own child. Jane was taken care of per say but she is not shown much love. After an incident involving Jane standing up to her cousin she is sent to a boarding school in the hopes that it'll straighten her out. After finishing her studies Jane takes on a job as governess at the Rochester residence where she develops a nontraditional romance with Mr.Rochester. Jane Eyre is the story of a girl in unfortunate circumstances making the most out of her situation and trying to find something that will bring her satisfaction and joy.
The amount of love I have for this book is endless. Jane is such a wonderful character. She has been such an influence on my life for a few years and I adore her character so much. All throughout the book she is unhappy to different degrees but she never dwells too long on her unhappiness and rather tries to do something that will change it. My favorite thing about her is how she is so realistic about her situation. Several times even though it was hard for her to do it she left because it was in her best interest. Her independence, especially in her time period, is an inspiration to me