For Review:
edited by Stephanie Perkins, from NetGalley
That's it for me this week. How about you? Leave me a link so I can add to my list. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to visit Team Tynga's Reviews, our hosts.
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Stacking the Shelves - One I've Been Waiting For!
For Review:
Friday, March 11, 2016
(The New) Feature & Follow Friday - Pet Peeves
What are some of your biggest pet peeves with books?
Well, by far my biggest pet peeve is what I call "soap opera" books. You know, those ones that are just episodes of a bigger story. There isn't any resolution to the plot line. Now, some call this a cliffhanger, and it is. But it's WORSE than a cliffhanger. This is a book where the pages run out in the middle of the story. I abhor that and at times have refused to read the next "book" (in quotes, because I don't consider these episodes to be books!) OK. I'll stop ranting now.
Another pet peeve I have is when the romance in a book is unfulfilled because of lack of communication. The two parties can't get together because of misunderstandings or misinformation simply because they won't ask, or talk, or come clean. This is a cheap plotting device, and I find it frustrating and annoying as a reader.
The "choose your own ending" book. You are the writer, I want you to tell me the story. I don't want to decide what happened. Finish the story.
Fantasy books where the magic saves all. I like fantasy, I like magic. But I don't like it when every time the characters are in a sticky, dangerous position, magic saves the day. Every time. Very weak plotting. I need more from my fantasies.
I think that's about all. There are little things, but I think I'm fairly tolerant as a reader (except for those soap operas!) How about you? What bugs you? Leave me a link. Be sure to visit our hosts, Alison and Parajunkee, and "like" your favorite entrants. (I keep forgetting to do that, but I'm going to be better.) Thanks for stopping by and come back soon!
Thursday, March 10, 2016
Book Review: Fool Me Once by Harlan Coben
Maya, a former military pilot has just lost her husband as the story opens. They were in a park and he was shot by two thugs in ski masks. Maya ran to save herself. Maya has a two-year-old daughter. Two years ago her sister was also murdered, and Maya is trying to be a mother to her sister's two kids also.
Maya sees a strange thing when checking her nanny-cam. She sees her supposedly dead husband come and visit her daughter. This begins Maya's quest to find out what really happened to her husband. Along the way she'll find out a lot about her husband's family, her sister's death, and other seemingly unrelated things.
This is Harlan Coben, so it's all very twisted. I dare anyone to say they figured out what happened before the end of Fool Me Once. Totally unexpected and not at all a pleasant ending, however the journey is worth it. I literally couldn't put this one down and thought about it constantly if I wasn't able to be reading.
I always recommend Coben to my reluctant readers who enjoy a good thriller, because his books are page-turners and Fool Me Once is no exception. If you've never tried this author, I think Tell No One, my first taste of this author, will always be my favorite, but Fool Me Once is definitely a close second.
Published by Dutton, March 22, 2016
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
400 pages
Rating: 5/5
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner, DNF
The story is about three misfit kids trying to make it through their senior year. Each character narrates their part of the book. In the 25% I read, really nothing happened. They went shopping for school clothes. We got some background information about why each of the characters is a "misfit." It just wasn't enough to hook me.
The writing is fine, the format is good. I just didn't care enough about these characters to continue. The Serpent King got a nice blurb from John Corey Whaley, but his books have not always settled well with me either, so what do I know?
Just my opinion; you might love this one if you like character driven stories.
Published by Crown BFYR, March 8, 2016
eARC obtained from NetGalley
96/384 pages
Rating: DNF
Monday, March 7, 2016
Book Review: All-In, by Jennifer Lynn Barnes @jenlynnbarnes
The Naturals are a group of teens who help the FBI solve serial murders because they have special talents. Okay. I get that you have to suspend some disbelief, but I find that very easy to do with this series.
Cassie is our narrator. She's a profiler. All of these kids are talented, and they all come with a lot of baggage. Throughout the three books they have become somewhat of a family. The case is in Las Vegas this time and the details don't really matter. Suffice it to say this is some complex plotting. This case has to do with the Fibonacci Sequence. I'm a math person, so I know what that is, but if you don't, it doesn't matter.
The perpetrator isn't obvious. There are various suspects. As the kids try to crack this one, they become closer and we experience growing and changing relationships. Each character has a distinct personality and I feel like I've really come to know them personally. There's very little romance, but it's there, making this a good choice for girls or boys. I applaud Barnes for not dumbing down the plot for teens. It's sophisticated and engaging.
I can't say enough about how pleasantly surprised I am about this series. I was very happy to see the first book, The Naturals, on our Abraham Lincoln Award list of nominated titles for 2017. I said the second book, Killer Instinct, was better than the first, and now I like All In even better. If you have mystery lovers in your library, you definitely want to push this series to them. It's a winner.
Published by Disney-Hyperion, 2015
Copy obtained from the library
378 pages
Rating: 5/5
Saturday, March 5, 2016
Stacking the Shelves - New Author
For Review:
The Last True Love Story, by Brendan Kiely from Edelweiss
Pretty cover! That's it for me. How about you? Leave me a link so I can add to my list. Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to visit our hosts, Team Tynga's Reviews.
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Book Review: Through the Woods by Emily Carroll
There are five short stories in Through the Woods and each of them are macabre. I get that. But some of them didn't make sense to me. They just end after something violent. I'm really bad at stopping and studying the pictures -- which is my problem with graphic novels in general -- so that might be why.
The drawings are very good. They convey a very dark, creepy tone that goes with the story. Lots of red blood.
My lack of attention when reading graphic novels coupled with my usual unhappiness about the lack of details in short stories really worked against Through the Woods.
However, if you are a fan of the macabre and enjoy the graphic format, Through the Woods might be just up your alley.
Published by Margaret K. McElderry, 2014
Copy obtained from the library
208 (unpaginated) pages
Rating: 3/5
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Book Review: The Forbidden Orchid by Sharon Biggs Waller @Sbiggswaller
Elodie's father seems to have abandoned her mother and her nine sisters. Her father collects plant specimens from exotic locations, but he always returns at least once a year. This time he has been to China. It's during the Second Opium War (1857-1860), and her father has been injured. He has returned to England, though, and won't answer any correspondence from any of them.
Because her father hasn't fulfilled his contract to bring a very rare orchid from China, the man he works for has vowed to take all their possessions which would leave their father in debtors' prison and put the children in the work house or orphanage. Elodie vows to do something about this and visits her father.
He is a broken man. But she convinces him to return to China to retrieve the orchid specimen in order to save the family. Even though it's highly unacceptable, Elodie stows away on the ship her father is travelling on so that she can help him finish his assignment.
We have an adventure on the sea and then a harrowing trip through the Chinese wilderness during a time of unrest. There is a man racing them to the orchid and trying to sabotage their efforts. The atmosphere is richly created and brings you right into the story. While I did think there were some slow parts, I still enjoyed the journey. If you can't believe the characters, a book like this would not be effective. The desire to see these characters achieve their goal is what makes the journey compelling.
There is also a budding romance, and it's more complex than we first understand. We learn more and more about these characters' pasts as the story unfolds which also keeps the reader entranced. The danger feels real, but some of the lucky breaks are a bit contrived. However, it all serves to get us to the Happily Ever After.
At the end, Waller includes factual descriptions of the events and places in the novel and an extensive bibliography, which I love. I think this book will have to be pushed to teens. Those who are historical fiction fans and maybe have enjoyed her other book should be directed to The Forbidden Orchid.
Published by Viking BFYR, March 8 2016
eARC obtained from NetGalley
416 pages
Rating: 4/5
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
2016 EBook Reading Challenge - Post You March Reviews Here
How's everyone doing? Hopefully you are continuing to make progress on your 2016 EBook Reading Challenge. How's it going?
You can sign up for the 2016 EBook Reading Challenge here.
You can see my progress on my 2016 Reading Challenges Page.
Here's a link to the February Reviews Page.
Thanks for participating!
Post your March reviews here:
Monday, February 29, 2016
Book Review: The Steep and Thorny Way by Cat Winters @catwinters
It's the1920s and Hanalee is out to avenge the death of her father. When the kid who went to prison for hitting Hanalee's father with his car is released, Hanalee comes after him with a pistol. He convinces Hanalee that he's not the murderer. That he was framed. That Hanalee's new stepfather, the doctor, is the real killer.
Hanalee begins to investigate, including a couple of visits with the ghost of her father. Turns out, the story is much more complicated. Hanalee's father is black and her mother is white. The Ku Klux Klan has a strong presence in 1920s Oregon and they do not accept Hanalee or any other person of color.
I don't want to say too much about what happens. The tension mounts, as Hanalee begins to understand the truth about her father's death, and she finds herself in great danger because of it.
Winters writes characters that you can't help but sympathize with. It's easy to think the worst of people, but in some cases that's not the truth. And, of course, sometimes those we trust turn out to be the worst! The Steep and Thorny Way is a multilayered story that I couldn't put down. I wasn't really sure about what happened until it was revealed.
I will recommend this to my students along with Winters' other novels, In the Shadow of Blackbirds, The Cure for Dreaming, and The Uninvited. I gave them all 5/5 ratings.
Published by Amulet, March 8, 2016
eARC obtained from NetGalley
352 pages
Rating: 5/5
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