The Bluest Eye (Lovely prose, but not my cup of tea)

The Bluest Eye
by Toni Morrison
2/5 stars
⭐⭐


The Bluest Eye is about some young African-American girls and their lives and the things that happen, and the things they hope for.

I tried something new with this book, and I listened to it as an audio book.
While it was nice to hear the different inflections, etc, I kind of had a hard time following the action and the storyline, and I doubt I will do this again. For me seeing the words and reading them makes the story more linear and it makes it easier for me to understand.

As far as the story itself, It was just OK for me, I felt like it really jumped around.
It started with the 2 little girls, then talked about Polly the Mom, then the Charlie the Dad, then some other people who I wasn't really sure how they fit in...

The prose and writing are lovely, but the story is just all over the place.
I get that it's a very important topic and very powerful and resonates strongly with some groups, but it just didn't hit that note for me.

Afterlife -The Arcadia Chronicles-Book One (Total Garbage IMHO)

Afterlife
The Arcadia Chronicles-Book One
by JK Ishaya and Kenneth Mader
2/5 stars
⭐⭐


Afterlife is the story of Elaine Ways, whose husband is brutally murdered on the night of their anniversary. 
Her husband Derek, had been a key designer of a mysterious project that "treated" children with a very specific type of brain tumor. The tumor affected the children in a way that caused them to have psychic gifts. Halfway through the book, after the main character undergoes a transformation her name just "changes" to Arcadia because she dreamed it that way. Really?? Give me a break. 

Those sentences pretty much sum up the first part of this very confusing and unclear book. 
So much gobbledygook science here.  Everything from astral projection to hypothermia to gyroscopes. 
I'm sorry, but I AM actually a scientist by trade, and this book was just garbage to me.  
If you can get past the first half of this nonsense, some of the action is OK, the interpersonal storylines are nice, however, there is a lot of description of various Asian weapons etc., so perhaps some explanation of what these are would be nice if this is intended to be a Book #1. 
Be aware some of the descriptions of what is done to the children by the villains is very graphic and disturbing.
I cannot in all good conscience recommend this book, for me it was a hot mess.  

I received a free ARC from NetGalley for my honest opinions which are my own. 

The Little Shop of Happy Ever After (A Treat for Every Book Lover!)

The Little Shop of Happy Ever After
by Jenny Colgan
4/5 stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐


Jenny Colgan is one of my favorite authors.
I know what I'm going to get in her stories, but I still love them.
She loves books, baking, Scotland, love stories, and I'm a sucker for all of those things.

In this adorable tale, Nina gets sacked from her job in a library that is downsized and buys a van which she fills with books and turns into a mobile bookshop in Scotland.
There are hurdles to overcome, love stories gone wrong, and families getting help from a whole town as well as fun Scottish festivals and dances.
What more could you want?

Although it took me a while to read this, it's not because it was a hard read, it was just on and off my reading stack, and I often have multiple books going at once, prioritizing the ones that have to be returned to the library or reviewed for NetGalley first.

I could read Jenny Colgan every day- she is delightful-

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows ( A fun and Sexy East meets West Adventure!)

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows 
by Balli Kaur Jaswal
4/5 stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐


This book is about a young British girl, Nikki, who is trying to find her way in life, and take on teaching what she thinks is going to be a creative writing workshop for Punjabi women, hoping to do some feminist consciousness-raising. She is surprised to find out the organizer means for her to actually teach the women how to read, beginning with ABC's and then the women themselves, who are all widows, give the workshop a decidedly different turn.

With fun, well-told erotic stories, a mystery and a love story sprinkled in between, this is a delightful and fast read, as well as being a fascinating glimpse into a different culture.

The writing is lovely, and very descriptive, painting a great word picture for the reader. In addition, the mystery aspect plays out well, without giving everything away too early as many do. I also loved the aspect of using the widows to tell the stories, how they still have so much yearning and love, with no one to bestow it upon. The viral character of how the stories grow was tons of fun.

I recommend this highly- so fun, read it, you'll love it!

A Longer Fall by Charlaine Harris- (Pretty Good, but not a Wow)

A Longer Fall
by Charlaine Harris 
3/5 stars 
⭐⭐⭐


A longer fall is the story of Lizbeth Rose a "Gunnie" or hired gun, who is hired along with a few others in a crew to protect a mysterious chest on a journey into a southern country called Dixie in what seems to be an Alt-USA. The story depends heavily on the existence of people who are some type of wizard called Grigori, trained in the old Holy Russian Empire, descendants of Rasputin.

I liked the book OK, I felt it was well-written, but then it is by Charlaine Harris, who is the author of the Sookie Stackhouse (True Blood) books, so we know she has writing chops. 
The story moved along OK, but maybe I just suffered as a reader because this is book #2 and I have not had the opportunity to read book #1. Still, I do think books should be written to stand alone, and then enhance if you have read others in the series. 

I also felt that the concept of the Grigori and why their vests were so important needed more explanation, but maybe this was accomplished in book #1. Same point for a character named Dan that seems to have some importance towards the end of the story- I didn't understand who he was or why he mattered. 
I was also confused with the geography- A map of the various regions might be helpful- where is Dixie, Texoma, etc. I mean you have an idea from the names, but a map would be even better. 
I read an e-version, maybe a print version will have one. 

The action in the story moved along well, and action sequences were well-written, however, I know this author can write steamier bedroom scenes, so it must have been a conscious choice here to write the bedroom scenes in a very dry fashion. All in all this book was a fairly enjoyable read, not the worst or best of the year, but not bad. 

Thanks to NetGalley for a free ARC of this book, my opinions and reviews are my own. 

https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2019?int=yyib_sa

Crazy fun visuals about my year in books from Goodreads!

On Division (A worthwhile diversion)

On Division
by Goldie Goldblum
4/5 stars 
⭐⭐⭐⭐


What a joy to read a coherent, beautifully written book, 
with fully realized characters that follows an actual plot line!
(Can you tell I've read some stinkers lately?)
This book is about an older Chassidic mother who unexpectedly conceives twins,
 and how this affects her relationships with those around her.
It's a fascinating glimpse into a community many don't know much about.
This was a very fast read, and extremely well-written.
In addition, you always knew when the action was taking place, 
and who the narrator was.
By the end of the book, I really felt like I knew Surie and her family,
the characters were described well, 
and I appreciated the family tree at the front of the book as well,
although I would like to have known more about the ancestors.
I recommend this book with no reservations!

Fleishman is in Trouble (and so is this Book!)

Fleishman is in Trouble 
by Taffy Brodesser-Akner
1/5 stars
⭐

Well, another book I just did not like at all.
I just felt like this book was the equivalent of literary masturbation.
A lot of the time I simply could not figure out who the narrator was,
(WHY not just start the chapters by noting WHO is speaking and what day it is?? 
One of my pet peeves ) and even when I could, none of the characters were likable, 
and they all seemed so self-indulgent and whiny.
I guess I just basically rejected the whole premise of this book which was that marriages can't be happy, and that "if you are a smart woman, you cannot stand by and remain sane once you fully understand, as a smart person does, the constraints of this world on a woman."
Brodesser-Akner, Taffy. Fleishman Is in Trouble (p. 368). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

I feel like the last few books I've read are so incredibly poorly written, that it is simply shocking. I just don't know how this drivel gets published.
I am absolutely aching for a decent story that I can at least give 3 or 4 stars to, where there is a coherent narrative thread, and gasp! maybe a chronological story actually told.
There were entire chapters of this book where the story was just repeated over and over.
I get that it was to illustrate the mental breakdown of the character in question,
but it was just tedious to read by the third or fourth go round.
and I still don't know WHO the hell she was talking to.
I can NOT recommend this book at all. 

The Guest Book by Sarah Blake - 1/5 stars

The Guest Book 
by Sarah Blake
1/5 stars
⭐

The Guest Book was a complete stinker for me.
I would absolutely not have wasted my time finishing this book if not for the fact that my book club had picked it.

SO BORING.
I just kept thinking, why should I care about these people?
It was like the first 7/8 of this interminable volume was the setup and you finally got the pay-off only at the very end, and even that wasn't much of a pay-off.
The characters I was really interested in, (Elsa and Willy) we never really find out much about, and the other characters, Reg and Len, just sort of disappear after a pivotal scene.
Just a lot of blather about guilt because we are so white and so privileged, blah, blah, boring.

I don't even really understand why the title is the Guest Book.
They should have called it "The Island" or "Guilty Island"
They only even refer to the eponymous guest book maybe once in this whole bloated tome.
Anyhow, this is a phenomenal stinker- don't waste your time!

Fire & Blood by George RR Martin.

Fire & Blood 
by George RR Martin
2/5 stars
⭐⭐

This was a real slog to get through
In retrospect, I'm not even sure why I bothered to finish it.
I was hoping to get more about Viserys and Danerys and the fall of the Targareyns,
but it never even got that far, it really only went about 1/3 of the way into the dynasty and you learned more about Mushroom, the fool, than anyone else.
I think Martin should forget about this nonsense and finish writing GOT already!
This was absolutely NOT the book I was hoping for-
it was a very dry history, long recitations of names,
with little empathy and character-driven writing.
Pass.

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

Pachinko
by Min Jin Lee
⭐⭐⭐
3/5 stars

Pachinko is the story of Sunja, the daughter of a crippled fisherman, who falls for a wealthy stranger at the seashore near her home in Korea. He promises her the world, but when she discovers she is pregnant--and that her lover is married--she refuses to be bought. Instead, she accepts an offer of marriage from a gentle, sickly minister passing through on his way to Japan.

Overall, I liked this book well enough but I had a few issues with it.
First, there is no mention of or interaction with Pachinko at all until maybe halfway into the book. I kept wondering “ why the heck is this book called pachinko?“

Also, even though the story mostly followed Sunja, in the last third of the book especially I felt like the narrative was really wandering all over and I felt like there was never closure in the relationship between Sunja and Hansu.

I do want to say the writing was very good and compelling and I loved how strong the women were, and how resourceful they were, how they were finding ways to support their families. The book also exposed a whole other side of Korean culture and history that I was unaware of, which was very interesting and poignant. 

So I would tend to recommend this book, but be aware that it is on the longer, more rambling side.

House of Gold 2/5 stars

House of Gold
by Natasha Solomons

2/5 Stars
⭐⭐

Think I love everything I read? Not so!
This is mostly the story of Greta Goldbaum, a girl from Vienna, child of a wealthy banking family, who marries her distant cousin Albert Goldbaum of London.
The story takes place as WW I is brewing.

So first what I Liked.
I DID like the storyline of Greta and Albert, and how their relationship grew.
I also liked the storyline of Greta's lady gardeners and would have liked more about them, and the budding feminists of the time.

Now what I hated:
Was SOOOO Bored with all the Banking talk. I really don't know what half that stuff means, and it was incredibly boring to me and they went on and on and on about it. I get that the story was about a banking family, but I don't need to know about whether the bonds were subscribed or whatever the hell that was.

I really don't know all that much about WW I and the backstory behind it, so it was just plain confusing to hear about the political figures and the battles, etc. I have read other books set in wartime, where it is more interesting and the war stuff isn't so booooring.

So overall, not my fave, I really would not recommend it.

A Court of Wings and Ruin

A Court of Wings and Ruin (Book 3)
by 
Sarah J. Maas

4/5 stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐


This is the final book in the Court of Thorns and Roses Series.
I just loved this series of books and couldn't read them fast enough!
In this book, Feyre, Rhysand, and their "family" finally battle the King of Hybern.
There are a few interesting twists and turns, and there is a nice resolution of all the outstanding issues.

Sarah Maas does a great job of writing this exciting trilogy.
The action really pulls you along, and when Feyre is learning to fly you really feel her pain, and the soreness in her muscles as she struggles to do something so challenging.
The ending is really great as well, with some nice poetic balance to Feyre's own storyline.
(no spoilers here).

If you are a lover of Fantasy and Fae, I really can't recommend this series highly enough.

Before the Broken Star
by
Emily R. King
4/5 Stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book is the story of Everly, a young woman, who, following a mortal wound, has had her heart replaced by a clock mechanism of sorts. She tracks her "killer" through various adventures and misadventures to a remote and dangerous island.
What will happen next?
Will she get her long-desired revenge?
What secrets will she find on Dagger island?

I enjoyed this book and found it to be a pretty fast read. It was fun reading about Everly's adventures with her "partners in crime" and what happens along the way. Some of the mythology was a bit hard to follow for me, but the descriptive language was good.
I really didn't understand how the portals etc worked and the various worlds worked when the group reached their destination. Although there was somewhat of a resolution, it was only a partial resolution, as this is apparently the first book in a series, and I didn't personally care for the ending that much. I did like the hint of more romance that was foreshadowed at the end of the book.

Overall this is probably a good YA book for those who like fantasy-adventure, and don't mind a bit of cliff-hanging till the next book.

A Court of Mist and Fury
Sarah J Maas
4/5 Stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐


This is the 2nd of 3 books in the Court of Thorns and Roses series and I just can't put them down!
Feyre has been saved from under the Mountain by Rhysand in the most unexpected way.
Now they have to move forward and see if they can save the rest of their world.

Feyre has to heal and learn about how she has changed, as well as come to grips with her past.
This book was great for me.
The writing is excellent, and all the characters are so well written.
There are many different facets to all of them, and you really feel like you understand the interplay between them.
I think this would make an excellent film series as well.
You can just see the characters in your mind's eye and think about who would be the best to play each of them, each one sexier and more alluring than the next.
I'm already about 1/4 of the way through the 3rd book.
What will I ever do when I'm done???
Love it love it!

Tunnel of Bones  (Cassidy Blake #2) 
by Victoria Schwab
4/5 Stars 

⭐⭐⭐⭐


In Tunnel of Bones, Cassidy Blake and her Ghost sidekick Jacob travel to Paris with her Ghost "Inspecter" parents to film another episode of their TV show. This one inside the spooky catacombs. This is a great tale, just scary enough and long enough to be perfect for a YA audience.

The author spins the yarn elegantly, weaving in threads of other times and other stories, with just enough Savior faire, to make the reader feel like they are on a visit to France.

Cassidy and Jacob have a new adventure and come across a new challenge, but of course, they rise to the occasion. It is also nice that we get the opportunity to learn more about Jacob's backstory.
I can't wait for Vol#3!

The Vine Witch 
Luanne G Smith
3.5 / 5 stars

⭐⭐⭐



In the Vine Witch, we meet Elena who has spent the past 7 years under a curse, living as a toad.
She returns to the vineyard where she grew up to find it has been sold to a city lawyer, Jean-Paul, who, because he shuns magic, has been unable to produce a decent bottle of wine. Chemistry blooms between the two of them and he is willing to have her help him, but of course, doesn't want her to use magic.

I loved the idea of there being different kinds of witches that had different connections to different trades. There was a pastry witch also, and there are potion witches and a fire-Jinni.

There is however some black magic going on, with animal exsanguination, and Elena must solve the mystery before she is implicated.  I thought a lot of the plot was very predictable, and I could see many of the action points coming a mile off. (so why couldn't they?)

I did like the idea of magic going into making a delicious wine, because maybe it really does, and the bits of French were delightful,  but it just didn't quite rise to 4 stars for me. I could maybe go 3.5

Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, my opinions are my own.

TheTestaments
Margaret Atwood
4/5 stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐


The Testaments takes place about 15 years after The Handmaids Tale. It centers around the stories of 3 characters, Aunt Lydia, a teenage girl growing up in Gilead, and a younger teenage girl growing up in Canada. The stories intertwine at some point.

The book was a great and fast read for me, but less earth-shattering than The Handmaids Tale.
Of course, it is not fair in many ways to compare the 2, as how could a sequel have the earth-shattering power and disturbing tropes of the first? We have already been exposed to the evil of Gilead, the Sons of Jacob, particicutions, etc, so we know what we are in for when reading the Testaments.

I found that It made me want to re-read the Handmaids Tale, even tho I have seen the Hulu series, I also felt that I could relate to the emotions and feelings of the characters, who were well-written. I just wish the chapters were headed with their names as well as their "subject#'s" because I had a hard time tracking that.

Overall I thought it was a good book although there are a few twists and surprises that are not really all that surprising.

A Court of Thorns and Roses 

Sarah J Maas

4/5 stars

⭐⭐⭐⭐



I just loved this book!
When nineteen-year-old Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin--one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world. As time passes on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into something quite different. But an ancient, wicked shadow over the faerie lands is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin--and his world--forever.

This book was right up my alley, I would go for 4.5 stars if I could!
This is the second book I have read by Sarah Maas, and I love her writing.
She has a way of taking the fanciful and making it real.
Her descriptive prose is so elegant, but not overly flowery.
I also loved the ending, which had several twists, and didn't at all finish the way I expected!
Brava, it's wonderful when the endings are not predictable, but do wrap up the entire story.
I really hate it when the end of a book is just an obvious cliff hanger for the next book.

I would recommend this highly for any reader in the fantasy genre!

Mercy Road 
by
Ann Howard Creel
⭐⭐⭐⭐
4/5 Stars ****

It's 1917, and young Arlene Favier’s home burns to the ground, taking her father with it. She must find a way to support her mother and younger brother. Job opportunities for women are especially few, but a daring possibility arises: the American Women’s Hospital needs ambulance drivers to join a trailblazing, all-female team of doctors and nurses bound for war-torn France. On the front lines, Arlene and her fellow drivers work long hours to aid injured soldiers and civilians. In between dangerous ambulance runs, Arlene reunites with a childhood friend, Jimmy Tucker, now a soldier, who opens her heart like no one before. But she has also caught the attention of Felix Brohammer, a charismatic army captain who may not be what he seems.

This was a very well-written book. It captured me from the very first chapter and help my attention through the very end. I did feel like the ending was a little unsatisfying, in that you wanted more justice. I also felt that parts were a bit unrealistic, in that none of the drivers were ever injured or killed, and in this situation, I believe many would have been.
The writer does a good job of describing how the characters are feeling, and what they are seeing, and how it makes them feel.
It would have been nice to include a map of France and all the locations the crew and AWH travel to as this would the reader to understand where they are.
Where is Meaux, the Marne, Chateau-Thierry, etc?
Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book in return for an honest review, my opinions are my own.

Four Bodies in Space
by Luna Harlow

3/5 Stars


This Story is a super short, super fast read!
It is more of a novella than a book IMHO.
The story centers on a psychically gifted alien character named Solaris.
Solaris is a science officer on an older, but elegant ship.
They are transporting members of another species than ar unable to communicate verbally, and mayhem ensues (no spoilers).

Solaris herself was well-written, as was maybe one or 2 other characters, however there were a lot of characters, and many of them were not well developed given the brevity of the book. Many also had very generic names like Richards and Johnson, and it was hard for me to distinguish them, and remember who was who.

I also felt that for a book about space and being in space there was very little descriptive language about the beauty of space, the starts, the darkness, the velvet deep, etc.  Not enough attention was given to the backstory of the main character for me, sometimes we hear about the beauty of the home world, etc.,  but not here.

So I think there is room to round this out more, and make it a better book, but maybe that is planned for future volumes, as this is marked Volume 1.
I did like how quickly the action moved, and how decisive some of the characters were. 
Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own

A Transcontinental Affair
by Jodi Daynard

4/5 Stars


I loved this book!
It was a great spin on an upscale “Hell on Wheels “ kind of tale.
Hattie and Louisa meet on a deluxe Pullman train headed from Boston to San Francisco and forge a friendship that will change the course of their lives.

The book is beautifully written with gorgeous descriptive language about the great American countryside of years past.

I recommend this book highly- a great story!

Sassafras
by Trish Heald
💥💥💥💥
(4 stars)


What a great book!
This is the story of Champs, a patriarch who has a cabin on the Sassafras River off the Chesapeake Bay.
We meet Champs shortly after his beloved wife of many years, Pat, has passed away.
We follow along as he learns to cope and interacts with his kids, grandkids, friends, and most of all, life without Pat. (I don't want to spoil a great story).

Having just lost my own Dad, this book really resonated for me, especially the wonderful and touching wisdom of Champs' neighbor Josanne, whose calling is making memorial cross-stitch samplers. There are so many funny, touching moments in the book, and it is really well written.

At one point Josanne says,
" We want so bad to figure out death, to get away from the hurt, to make it something else. I think death is a great fissure thrown in our path, like a crack in the earth. Now, some of us are gonna spend the rest of our time looking into that crack paralyzed and full of fear. Others are gonna be drawn into it and disappear in the blackness. There’s some fools gonna try to jump over it to the other side, where the grass is always greener, but they never really make it. the only way I’ve seen it work, is to build a bridge. And to build a bridge takes time, it takes materials, and most of all it takes other people. You can’t do it alone.”

This really resonated and hit home for me. So. Much. Wisdom.
A book about healing wrapped up in comedy and love.
One of the best things I've read in a really long time.
Brava!

Thanks to NetGalley for a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own.

Girl of Fire by Gabrielle Mathieu

Girl of Fire mainly follows the story of young Berona, who escapes her family farm to battle with an escaped Water Demon that terrorizes the land.
The story has a lot of magic and many characters.
The main group of characters, called the Mannites, are fairly well developed and sympathetic.
There is a side story about another kingdom called Vendrisi that feels a bit throwaway and is explored a fair deal in the beginning, and then just pops up again at the end. I have a suspicion this character will figure into another book in what is obviously going to be a series.
The writing is good, the author paints beautiful word pictures, and the concerns of a young girl are honestly addressed. I liked the way the different chapters are told in the voice of different characters so you know what they are all thinking and doing.
One thing I am not sure how I felt about is the number of characters who died. I do feel that is honest in a story like this to have at least some characters that do not survive, but it was pretty "Game of Thrones" in this story, and I felt like the number of deaths were a bit over the top for the intended audience.
The story takes a very long time time to build and then wraps rather quickly, and it's not at all clear to me how and why it came to the resolution it did, which s the main reason I am going 3 stars instead of 4.
Also, the ending was very unsatisfying to me, and obviously just OK, wait for the next book.
You don't know the fate of many of the characters at the end, which is not the way I want a book to end, even a series book.
Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.  My opinions are my own.

The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

This is the second book by Helen Hoang I've read and I really enjoyed it as much as the first.
She really nails the emotional relevance of her characters.
Stella is a brilliant econometrician (still not sure how that differs from an economist), who also has Aspergers, and is trying to figure out how to better relate to people.
She meets up with Michael who may relate TOO well, and sparks fly.
The details of that and the ending would be spoiling...

But what is so great is how she writes, and how well you understand what the characters are feeling.
Plus the love scenes are SO HOT!
I just can't hate on that at all.
I would recommend this for any number of reasons, it's really helpful in better understanding those who are different from us, as well as being a great read!

Hi all this is my first attempt at a Blog.

I am going to try and post some of my Book Reviews here.
I hope you enjoy them.