Month: October 2018

Fiction

Madly Truly Guilty

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Title: Madly Truly Guilty

Author: Liane Moriarty

Performer: Caroline Lee

Length: 17 hr, 20 min, 31 sec

Series: N/A

Publishing Date/Publisher: 2016 by MacMillan Audio

Format: eAudiobook

Review: Moriarty’s writing is on another level.  I am always stunned by her rare ability to write many layered characters.  By the end, you truly feel like you know them on a deeply personal level.  All of their flaws and quirks are laid bare and you can’t help but love them.

This book is arguably one of Moriarty’s best.  The relationships she creates are so wonderfully complicated and there is a lot of depth to each of her characters.  Even minor details prove to have larger significance as the story progresses.  Each big reveal is not only surprising, but adds increased depth to the story.

I was on the edge of my seat throughout the entire story, and I felt the characters emotions as if they were my own.  I was so caught up in each moment that I felt like I was actually living the experience through the perspective of each character.

The performer of this book, Caroline Lee, does all of Moriarty’s audiobooks.  Her voice infuses the story with just the right amount of snark and truly captures the seriousness, the wit, and the humor that is signature to Moriarty’s novels.

Reader: Bekah

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

Historical · Non-fiction

The Atlas of Disease

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Title: The Atlas of Disease

Author: Sandra Hempel

Page Count: Unavailable

Series: N/A

Publishing Date/Publisher: 4 October, White Lion Publishing

Format: eReader

Review: This is a book that will only appeal to a certain group of readers, but since I am in that group, I found it fascinating. Sandra Hempel offers a concise history of various diseases that have plagued the Earth for centuries (and in some cases, millennia), and writes in a very clear manner. It’s not bogged down with too much academic terminology, making it accessible for the general public, not just those studying the topic.

The structure of the book itself is amazing, and the maps are so informative. Hempel includes old drawings/political cartoons of the diseases, which helps show the historical impact of the disease. She also doesn’t focus too much on one disease; each chapter is relatively short, yet still provides a great deal of information. It takes a great deal of talent to be able to have something be in depth and short at the same time.

Bottom line: if you like to study history and disease, this book is for you.

Reader: Kymberly

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

Non-fiction · True Crime

Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy

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Title: Broker, Trader, Lawyer, Spy

Author: Eamon Javers

Page Count: Unavailable

Series: N/A

Publishing Date/Publisher: February 2010, Harper Business

Format: eReader

Review: Honestly, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did since I don’t have much interest in economics or business practices, but I really loved reading it. Javers discusses the game of corporate spies by giving case studies and tells them like stories, which makes them very easy to read.

He also conducted many interviews with both active and no-longer active spies, which really helps add to his book. It adds a level of credibility. I also liked that he detailed the ways spies both follow people and how people can tell if they are the ones being followed.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it, even if you aren’t into economics or business (both things honestly go over my head and I was still able to understand what he was talking about).

Reader: Kymberly

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

Fantasy · Fiction · Young Adult

The Girl King

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Title: The Girl King

Author: Mimi Yu

Page Count: 432

Series: Unknown

Publishing Date/Publisher: January 8, 2019 by Bloomsbury YA

Format: eBook

Review: This book falls in the category of  well-written with a decent plot, but not as good as I wanted it to be.  I should have loved this book.  It is a tale of two sisters battling it out for a throne, which in this case means a lot of political intrigue and ancient magic.  However, I just could not make myself feel invested in the story or the characters.  Though I liked it for the most part, there are a couple things that I found to be problematic.

First, the characters and setting were not nearly as developed as the plot.  Although we get some glimpses of the motivation that drives the two sisters, I did not feel like I really got to know either of them beyond a superficial level.  This is especially true with the character of Minyi.  Although she seemed to have had the greatest character arc, it all still felt very shallow to me and her naivety was annoying rather than endearing.

Second, Lu’s romance was poorly constructed.  It did not feel authentic and I personally prefer a slow build over instant love.  I think the author attempted to do this by making the characters initially at odds (for a very short period of time), but it just fell flat.

It is unlikely that I will continue reading if this book turns into a series (it most likely will), but there are some positive attributes that made this an enjoyable read.  Although I would have liked more from this story, it nevertheless featured strong female leads and closed with some pretty awesome magic.

Reader: Bekah

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

Fantasy · Fiction · Young Adult

SERIES REVIEW: The Cage, Books 1-3

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Image result for the cage by megan shepherdImage result for the hunt by megan shepherd18298581

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Series: The Cage

Titles: The Cage (Book 1), The Hunt (Book 2), The Gauntlet (Book 3)

Author: Megan Shepherd

Page Counts: 405 (Book 1), 368 (Book 2),  393 (Book 3)

Publishing Dates/Publishers: May 26, 2015 by Balzer + Bray, May 24, 2016 by Balzer + Bray, May 23, 2017 by HarperCollins

Format: eBook and Hardcover

Review: I decided to review these books as a series because my general feelings about all three are the same.  To sum it up, this series was bizarre.  I know, I know, you are probably thinking that science fiction in general is bizarre, but this series is on another level.

The first thing that bothered me is the explanation for how these teens end up locked up in an extraterrestrial cage.  It makes absolutely no sense, and the reasons why they were chosen for abduction make no sense either.

The other thing that I found supremely annoying was the romance between Cora and her abductor.  Why?  Because it was extremely anticlimactic (Spoiler alert: so is the ending).

Even with all this weirdness going on, I still liked the series.  If you can get past all the absurdity of the backstory, it is an amusing read.  I will also say that it is hard to predict where the story will go because the author keeps throwing in new elements that shake up what you know about the universe she has created.  I kind of enjoyed the fact that humans, who consider themselves intellectually superior to other species on Earth, are considered primitive by all the other beings in the story.  It really makes you ponder how extraterrestrials might view us should we ever cross paths with them in the future.

Reader: Bekah

Overall Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

 

Fantasy · Fiction · Young Adult

What’s Left of Me

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Image result for what's left of me by kat

Title: What’s Left of Me

Author: Kat Zhang

Page Count: 343

Series: The Hybrid Chronicles, Book 1

Publishing Date/Publisher: September 18, 2012 by HarperCollins

Format: eBook

Review: Readers who enjoyed The Host by Stephenie Meyer will probably enjoy this book.  It takes the same concept (two souls inhabiting one body, with one soul being more dominant) and adds a different spin to it.

I found the story interesting and I enjoyed the inner dialogue between the two characters, but the book lost me towards the end.  The world building was not the best, and I was not convinced as to why the lack of “settling” was such a taboo thing in their society, especially because it seems to be more common than people are led to believe.  I suppose this is probably fleshed out more in the next two books of the trilogy, but I did not find the story compelling enough to continue forward with this series.

Reader: Bekah

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

Fantasy · Fiction · Young Adult

Hero at the Fall

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Title: Hero at the Fall

Author: Alwyn Hamilton

Performer: Soneela Nankani

Length: 13 hr, 21 min

Series: Rebel of the Sands, Book 3

Publishing Date/Publisher: 2018 by Recorded Books

Format: eAudiobook

Review: This was a gripping conclusion to a fantastic trilogy.  I highly recommend this series to fantasy readers, and really anyone who enjoys YA fiction.  It is a clever, action-packed adventure with just the right amount of romance (whew that final love scene was steamy).  The author does an excellent job building characters and setting in her first two books, so this final book was deeply satisfying and thrilling as it wraps up the series.  I really like the way Hamilton incorporates legend throughout the story because it really highlights the importance of oral tradition and the way that heroes are remembered.

For people who enjoy the audiobook format, I think that you will find this performance enthralling.

Reader: Bekah

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

Non-fiction

A Beautiful Morning: How a Morning Ritual Can Feed Your Soul and Transform Your Life

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Title: A Beautiful Morning: How a Morning Ritual Can Feed Your Soul and Transform Your Life

Author: Ashley Ellington Brown

Page Count: 210

Series: N/A

Publishing Date/Publisher: February 27, 2018 by Leo Press

Format: eBook

Review: Mornings have always been tough for me.  I have trouble waking up, and before I had a baby, I was notorious for hitting snooze several times before finally getting up.  Now that I am an early riser (baby’s choice, not mine), I am trying to have a more positive outlook on starting the morning.

This book certainly gave me food for thought, but I found the interview portion (which makes up the majority of the book) to be a bit redundant.  Many of the women have similar backgrounds (life coaches, artists, yoga instructors, etc.), so it was difficult for me to relate to them.  I think the inclusion of people who lead lifestyles similar to my own would have made this book far more relatable to me.

The most useful information, in my opinion, was found in the final chapters of the book. These chapters summarized common themes shared by the interviewed women, and provided a list of suggested activities and exercises that can help you craft an enjoyable morning routine.  I especially liked that the author recommends that you start small, changing only one little thing at a time, until you have a routine that relaxes you and puts you in a positive mindset for the rest of the day.  I will be putting these ideas into practice as I create my own morning ritual.

Reader: Bekah

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold

Fantasy · Fiction · Young Adult

Bloodleaf

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Title: Bloodleaf

Author: Crystal Smith

Page Count: Unknown

Series: Bloodleaf, Book 1

Publishing Date/Publisher: March 5, 2019 by HMH Books for Young Readers

Format: eBook

Review: I found this book to be an enjoyable and quick read.  The main character is likeable, and the plot keeps a steady pace.

I did not know prior to reading this book that it is a retelling of a Grimm’s fairytale.  After reading the book, I looked up The Goose Girl and read a brief synopsis of the plot and primary characters.  My opinion of the book actually went up half a star after doing so, because I thought that the author was very clever in how she incorporated the elements of the fairytale throughout the story.  I also liked that the witch hunts and persecution of accused witches was pretty accurate to historical events.  This made the story more believable, and gave it an interesting twist.

The reason this book was not quite four stars for me is because I think that the setting and some of the characters, namely Kellan, really needed to be fleshed out more.  The plot was well-developed, but it was hard for me to picture events because descriptions of the cities and other locations were not very vivid.  As for Kellan, I did not really understand the relationship between him and the main character, Aurelia.  I assume his character will get more page time in the next two books, as this is slotted to be a trilogy, but I honestly felt that this book should have been a standalone.  The ending provided a lot of closure; so much so that I was actually surprised to find out that the story is going to be extended into two more books.

Reader: Bekah

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Goldhalf star

Fantasy · Fiction · Young Adult

The Traitor’s Game

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Image result for the traitor's game

Title: The Traitor’s Game

Author: Jennifer A. Nielsen

Page Count: 388

Series: The Traitor’s Game, Book 1

Publishing Date/Publisher: February 27, 2018 by Scholastic

Format: Hardcover

Review: This book was good, but for some reason I could not fully invest in the characters and I can’t really pinpoint why.  I suppose it may be because I have read a lot of YA fantasy series, and this one just didn’t wow me with anything incredibly new or original.  For me to give a high rating in this genre, the book has to really impress me.  This book reminded me vaguely of The Winner’s Curse trilogy by Marie Rutkoski, maybe because the names of the heroines are so similar (Kestra and Kestrel).  As mentioned previously, however, this is not a bad book.  Some people will really enjoy it, but it just was not for me.  I do not think I will be reading the next two books when they are released.

Reader: Bekah

Rating: 

All_Star_GoldAll_Star_GoldAll_Star_Gold