Monday, August 31, 2015

Review: Beyond This Moment

Beyond This Moment Beyond This Moment by Tamera Alexander
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dr. Molly Whitcomb escapes to the Colorado territory to be a schoolteacher, but she can't hide her secrets.

I see why this novel won some awards--it's a well written, sweet love story with plenty of Old West adventure.

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Review: The Target

The Target The Target by David Baldacci
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Will Robie and Reel just kiss already? All this tension is driving me nuts! They save each others lives all the time--why not add some romantic drama?

This time North Korea is the bad guy, and the Korean assassin was a fascinating character.

Yes, things are a bit trite, but, hey, it's an adventure spy novel--no one ever said it was going to be high literature.

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Review: Silver in the Blood

Silver in the Blood Silver in the Blood by Jessica Day George
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Enjoyable tween historical paranormal novel. Whew.

Dacia and Lou are New York City fashionistas, but aren't too thrilled to be exiled to Romania for a few months. Their mothers are from there, and evidently it's time for them to learn more about their family. Mysteries abound, and, of course, the two young ladies must save the day.

I didn't mind the paranormal twist when it came--there were enough new details about the critters that I found it interesting.

Some things wrapped up too neatly for me though to give this 4 stars. But it was a quick read--I enjoyed the setting and time period.

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Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Review: Bullseye

Bullseye Bullseye by David Baldacci
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Quick little short story only available as an ebook. So glad my library has 3M Cloud Library and ebooks like this are purchased!

And it was great to see the lead characters of two of Baldacci's great series coming together to solve a crime.

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Review: The Courtesan Duchess

The Courtesan Duchess The Courtesan Duchess by Joanna Shupe
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Good smutty historical fiction!

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Sunday, August 23, 2015

Review: The Mirror Empire

The Mirror Empire The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Whew--this high fantasy novel took a lot of work. So many characters! And the chapters just around, so just when I was figuring out what was going on, I'm dealing with another character! Ugh!

This book started out great--good worldbuilding with a mirrored empire, blood witches, war and ethnic cleansing, and diverse characters. One world even has men and women reversed--the women are warriors, and the men wear girdles and exist to sexually please their wives.

But by the time I got to page 350 or so, my interest waned. I ended up skimming the rest of the novel--I wanted to know what happened, but I didn't want to spend hours of my time doing so.

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Review: The Tudor Secret

The Tudor Secret The Tudor Secret by C.W. Gortner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm a sucker for anything about the Tudors. In this novel, Brendan Prescott, an orphan raised by the Dudley's housekeeper, discovers that he is more than just an orphan. Court intrigue is at a highpoint when he turns 20--King Edward is dying, Princess Mary is a dreaded Catholic, and Princess Elizabeth isn't allowed at court because she's nothing but trouble. The Dudleys are trying to keep control of England with deceit and lies, but Elizabeth's protector William Cecil is trying to get his lady on the throne.

Ahhh, the intrigue.

I enjoyed this--Prescott is a likable character, even if he is fictional!

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Review: Thank You for Your Service

Thank You for Your Service Thank You for Your Service by David Finkel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I loved this author's The Good Soldiers and was on the committee that gave it an Alex Award. So I was looking forward to reading this one, even though I knew it was about a horrible topic--PTSD in soldiers after Iraq and Afghanistan. It really is disheartening, and I found the comparisons to Vietnam intriguing. Fighting a war where nothing is gained (as in yards or cities) is difficult for soldiers. Simply patrolling and being on the lookout for IEDs and snipers is a different kind of war, and some people can't handle it. I liked how Finkel touched on how some soldiers break and some don't, and what kinds of therapies work for some people. There is no one formula that works, unfortunately. Suicide kills so many of our veterans, and this audiobook helped me understand what is currently being done and what programs/therapies offer hope.

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Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Review: States of Confusion: My 19,000-Mile Detour to Find Direction

States of Confusion: My 19,000-Mile Detour to Find Direction States of Confusion: My 19,000-Mile Detour to Find Direction by Paul Jury
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another college graduate with a degree that doesn't result in an instant awesome job. Sigh. Why do parents let their kids major in things like film studies and rack up the college debt? I'm telling you the same thing that I tell my daughter--if she's majoring in something that makes no money, she will go to community college. Only. If she wants to be a lawyer or doctor or engineer, I'll fork over the big bucks for a high dollar school like Rose Hulman a few miles away or Illinois. But I'm not paying huge bucks for her to major in English. It's not going to happen.

Okay, rant over. Paul is a recent college grad and isn't sure if he wants his law school attending girlfriend and her place in Chicago. And so he decides to wander around the country, eating PB&J, and trying to find purpose in his life. He really is the kind of man I don't like--never happy, always complaining, and wondering why he can't find a $80,000 job he loves after majoring in film.

Sigh. Entitlement, folks.

On the other hand, this book was an easy read and Paul grows up a little on his trip. I'm sure his blog posts were enjoyable as he tried to find the positive in each day of his trip. It does seem like he spent way too much driving instead of living though--this isn't the kind of traveling I ever want to do.

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Monday, August 17, 2015

Review: The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Minnow Bly is in juvie, so we know she did something wrong. But, she's been horrifically wronged, too--she is missing her hands. As she slowly acknowledges her grief and works through her past with the Kevinian cult, the reader finds out what happened. It's fast-paced, even though most of the action takes place in prison and through flashbacks. Nothing fancy here--just fascinating storytelling.

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Friday, August 14, 2015

Review: Go Set a Watchman

Go Set a Watchman Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm glad this was published, but I'm so glad Harper Lee re-wrote it and created To Kill a Mockingbird years ago. It was nice to "come home" to familiar characters in Maycomb, and I didn't mind getting an inside look into Atticus. I felt like this book was mainly about how people can make excuses for racism, which is still going on today. I guess I'm not as forgiving as Scout.

And I really didn't like the sections that were written like this: "Look sister, we know the facts: you spent the first twenty-one years of your life in the lunching country, in a country whose population is two-thirds agricultural Negro. So drop the act" (178). The whole Jean Louise talking to the reader/self thing didn't work for me.

And then it switches to "You are fascinated with yourself. You will say anything that occurs to you, but what I can't understand are the things that do occur to you. I should like to take your head apart, put a fact in it, and watch it go its way through the runnels of your brain until it comes out of your mouth" (175). So now Scout is trash-talking directly to Hester, a woman she went to school with.

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Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Review: The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner The Maze Runner by James Dashner
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is one of those books that I really, really thought I had read and just forgotten to blog about. Until I watched the movie in the theater with my daughter and realized that none of it seemed familiar! And so I listened to the audiobook and was thoroughly entertained. Great listen along for families--lots of action and lots to talk about!

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Review: From a Distance

From a Distance From a Distance by Tamera Alexander
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Ahhh, this was just what I needed today--a sweet romance about a spunky woman determined to make it on her own in the Wild West. Nothing new here, but it read easily.

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Review: Educating Alice: Adventures of a Curious Woman

Educating Alice: Adventures of a Curious Woman Educating Alice: Adventures of a Curious Woman by Alice Steinbach
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Alice Steinbach is an amazing writer--that's not why I rated this book as okay. However, as she traveled the world learning about new cultures and actually taking classes in other countries, I kept thinking--how does she have the money and time to do this? In every essay I read, I kept seeing glimpses of privilege that prevented me from connecting her with her. I guess she was a bit too classy for me? What she does while traveling is great, but I don't have the time or the money to run off and take classes in Japanese culture for a few weeks or enroll in a Ritz cooking class in Paris. I like books like What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding and The Good Girl's Guide to Getting Lost: A Memoir of Three Continents, Two Friends, and One Unexpected Adventure better.

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Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Review: N is for Noose

N is for Noose N is for Noose by Sue Grafton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My Goodreads doesn't show it, but I know I read these books when they came out. However, I forget where I left off! So I jumped in with N and it didn't seem familiar, so I'll continue. It's funny how memory works--I remembered Kinsey's elderly, hunky, cooking neighbor, as well as her tendencies.

In this book, Kinsey is hired by a recently widowed woman to find out why her husband was stressed out before he died. Of course, Kinsey ends up almost dead, but ends up saving the day. She'll always be one of my favorite private investigators!

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Monday, August 10, 2015

Review: Shatter Me

Shatter Me Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It's the end of the world again. Juliette has been in solitary confinement for months and then suddenly she gets a roommate. A cute one. Next thing we know, she's rebelling against the creepy government leader and running away, all while trying not to touch anyone because her touch kills. Except for the cute roommate guy, and, as it turns out, the evil leader.

There are touches of Hunger Games and Divergent and superhero movies in this novel, but I really understand why it's popular with teens and tweens. My eyebrows went up too many times for me to say that I really enjoyed the read, but I know what kind of kid I can hand this book off to, so, yay!

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Friday, August 7, 2015

Review: Servant of the Underworld

Servant of the Underworld Servant of the Underworld by Aliette de Bodard
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When was the last time you read a detective novel set during the time of the Aztecs?

Yeah, that's what I thought.

I loved two things about this novel--the setting (Tenochtitlan was the Venice of the Americas), and the main character, Acatl. He's a reluctant high priest who just wants to give people the last rites instead of playing politics like the other priests in the city. When his brother is accused of murdering a beautiful woman, Acatl steps into investigate. Lots of magic (or gods, whichever you prefer) here and they anger easily and don't always play nicely. Acatl manages to never sleep and I picture him as an American Wallander--stressed, rumpled, and not having time to eat.

I found out about this book on a list of diverse fantasy and I'm glad I did!

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Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Monday, August 3, 2015

Review: The Innocent

The Innocent The Innocent by David Baldacci
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Even though I've listened to umpteen Baldacci audiobooks now, the gunshots still always make me jump! I swear, those things come out of nowhere in the narrative....

I accidently listened to Book #3 in this series first, so I had to go back with #1. We are introduced to Will Robey, the #1 assassin that the US government hires (secretly, of course). But when he's ordered a hit on a kid, he can't pull the trigger. Turns out that his handlers are corrupted--people start dying around him, and everything revolves around some men who served in Iraq together in the First Gulf War. What made this one good is that Robey develops a relationship with a teenage girl--he's never had to care for anyone before, but that smart whippersnapper has him saving her life all over the place.

Awww, the killer man has a heart!

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Review: Love May Fail

Love May Fail Love May Fail by Matthew Quick
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Stopped on page 214 (halfway through) and then skimmed around the end.

Portia is a pretty, rich, wife who catches her porno-maker husband playing with one of his actresses. Um, duh. In an attempt to save herself, she finds her favorite high school teacher and tries to save him (he's disillusioned since one of his students broke his legs with a baseball bat). And that's where I stopped. Some of the banter was witty, but I never grew attached to any of the characters. When the section started from the POV of the teacher's mother, I quit reading. I won't give up on Matthew Quick though, since I've enjoyed so many of his other books.

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