Beartown: A Novel by Fredrik Backman

You don't have to be a hockey fan to appreciate this story about a small town in rural Sweden hyper-focused on their junior team.  Rich in character development, this story is centered around hockey, but is more a tale of human nature, dealing with adversity, and choices people make when scandal erupts. (432 pages) -Amanda

The House that Hustle Built by Nisa Santiago

Pearla, head of a shoplifting ring, and Cash, an adroit car thief, get together.  All is well (?) until they get greedy and start turning friends into enemies.
I probably won't be reading the rest of the series.  (300 pages)

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo

This is a sweet, sad story about a china rabbit who learns to love.  (102 pages, ebook version via Hoopla) -Amanda

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

The title stems from the fact that his birth, of a Xhosa mother and Swiss father, was a punishable offense.  This amazing memoir of growing up in South Africa is educational, funny, and incredibly heartfelt.  (304 pages)  --Amanda

Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover

Tara chronicles her childhood growing up in rural Idaho largely isolated from others outside her family.  The family dynamics are unique; her father is a prepper, fundamentalist, and struggles with mental illness.  Tara's journey to break free and seek a life outside of what she knows is a long and difficult one.    (334 Pages, Hardcover Edition, but paperback seems to be only in large print.) -Amanda

The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich

Pluto, North Dakota, is a white town on the edge of an Ojibwe reservation. Like many small towns, the town is  dying. Evelina, a girl of mixed Indian and white descent, belongs to a 'BIA' family. She likes to listen to her grandfather's family stories, from whom she learns about the town’s long, bloody history, including the slaughter of a white farm family and the hanging of innocent Native Americans unfairly targeted as the perpetrators of the crime.

Descendants of both the victims and the lynching party intermarry, creating a tangled history. The consequences are still being felt by the community and the reservation, even after many generations.
Three narrator tell the collective stories of two interwoven communities, which ultimately come together to reveal a final wrenching truth.


324 pages

Two Old Women: An Alaska Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival by Velma Wallis

Based on an Athabascan Indian legend passed along for many generations from mothers to daughters of the upper Yukon River Valley in Alaska, this is the tale of two old women left alone to die by their tribe. During a winter famine, with the entire tribe on the verge of dying, the women, who have been pampered and looked after by the younger members of the tribe for many years, won't be able to survive on their own.

Except - they do. They push their bodies to their limits, and used the wisdom they had gained over their long lives to not only survive, but thrive. And they eventually even save the tribe.




160 pages

Time's Convert by Deborah Harkness

This book delves into the stories of the characters from the All Souls Trilogy. We see Marcus' past as a soldier in the American Revolution and his transformation into a vampire and doctor. His mate, Phoebe, is undergoing her own transformation in the present day, and my beloved Matthew and Diana (main characters from the trilogy) are having some interesting problems with their half vampire half witch twins.

I was really excited to read this book and it didn't disappoint. It doesn't have the same feel of adventure from the trilogy, but I liked the deep delve into Marcus' history.

Rating: 4/5
                                     Pages: 436

Sky Without Stars by Jessica Brody

Sky Without Stars by Jessica Brody
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a YA space Sci-Fi that is a reimagined and futuristic take on Les Miserables. Let’s just appreciate that strange meshing of worlds for a moment.

Overall, I enjoyed this novel, including the multiple POVs and the fascinating world/universe. Occasionally, it felt a big sluggish, and I think in this instance, the story would be better if it was tighter and the pacing faster. Probably the 3 POVs ended up slowing the story down, though I found them quite interesting and necessary to showing the depth of the world.

This story is also a bit rambling at times, and I did zone out occasionally and have to force myself to refocus. It’s occasionally guilty of throwing too many unnecessary details at you at once, which becomes too much to absorb, but then it recovers pretty quickly. In addition, the plot lingers at times, when it should just press forward, so instead of an action-packed adventure, it sometimes feels like more of a character study.

Despite some of those issues, I enjoyed the character building and growth, though with a novel of this size, I do wish it had run even a bit deeper than it does. I’m happy this is a series, because I think this is a good step in the right direction, and I’m curious to see what comes next. I remain very hopeful that this is one of those series where the first book is busy laying the groundwork, but it’s the later books that make you love the world beyond compare.

OTHER FUN PERKS:
---the French influences
---the wildly different worldviews of the 3 POVs
---the social hierarchy

WOULD LOVE TO SEE IN THE FUTURE NOVELS:
---more diversity
---more twists and surprises
---more complex relationships between characters

This is a great pick for YA Sci-Fi and fantasy fans, as well as for those that like unique retellings/reimaginings, and/or multiple POVs.

Pages: 592


View all my reviews

Books Galore

This is the end of the romance package, because I finally discontinued it.  Also, I think I technically read these in February and never posted them. 

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Fresh Catch
by Kate Canterbary

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not a bad little read. It had some interesting perspective.

Pages: 240

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Hard Pressed by Kate Canterbary
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

After reading and enjoying book one, this was meh. Too boring. It lacked the charm and excitement of book one, as well as the honesty. The characters behave in ways that don't really make sense nor seem to align with who they are supposed to be as people. Their motivations are screwy, and the logic feels pretty illogical. Everything feels silly and false. I found myself wishing it would end already.

It's not the worst story ever, which is why I kept going. It has some cute moments, but that's pretty much it. Nothing else really seems to be holding the story together, not even a real plot or some character development. The side characters are particularly useless and underdeveloped.

It's mostly a lot of endless baking, but it's not even presented in a particularly interesting way. You aren't going to learning recipes or baking techniques, or anything like that. Just a bunch of--I'm baking. And now I'm baking again. I'm sharing treats. I'll bake some more. Share some more. Okay, let's buy groceries, so we can bake again. And now we will---wait---no--Yep. You guessed it. Bake again. And then buy more groceries, so that we can do the dishes and bake again until-- *entire hallelujah chorus dies in agony*. The baking horse is both dead and thoroughly beaten.

I recommend just stopping at book one, unless you tend to enjoy directionless fluff with nonsensical drama at the end. I was originally going to give this 2.5 stars, and therefore round up to 3, but the last 1/4 of the book was such silly mess that I couldn't do it. It's a 2 star read for me.

Pages: 259

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Love and Lists
by Tara Sivec

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Generally amusing, though not as strong and compelling as some of her later works.

Pages: 254

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Passion & Ponies
by Tara Sivec

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Not as great as the first book. Some humorous moments but just lacks depth.

Pages: 220

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Baking and Babies
y Tara Sivec

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I love this author, but this isn't her best work. It has some moments, but overall could be a stronger story.

Pages: 223

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Lucky Suit by Lauren Blakely
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is basically a meet cute. They meet. It is cute. That is almost the whole story.

Since it’s a novella, that works for me. Just don’t expect them to overcome any issues or anything. There isn’t time for that. Meet. Cute. Happy. And done.

Pages: 100

The Dreadful Lemon Sky: A Travis McGee Novel by John D. MacDonald

Carolyn Milligan was only aboard McGee’s boat for one night. She came to drop off a hundred grand for safekeeping. What Carrie really needed was someone to keep her safe. She said she’d be back in a month. Instead Carrie is killed in a dubious roadside accident. Now McGee is left with a fortune—and a nagging conscience.

So McGee takes a trip to the seedy little town of Bayside, Florida, to look into Carrie’s life before she showed up on his boat. What McGee finds only pushes him further into the corrupt world of drugs and blood that Carrie was trying to escape. McGee is used to high stakes, but when the bodies start piling up, even he may be in over his head.


291 pages

Pale Gray for Guilt: A Travis McGee Novel by John D. MacDonald

Travis's old friend Tush Bannon has a small "boatel" that happens to sit right in the middle of a 500-acre tract of land targeted for a major re-development deal. He is being squeezed to sell out; when he declines, the local corrupt political machine sees to it that he looses everything. He then commits suicide - or does he?    

As Travis investigates, he finds level upon level of corruption fueled by greed. He and his friend Meyer run a scam on the perpetrators, thereby providing a nice survival fun for Tush's widow and three small sons.

321 pages

Wicked Women of Missouri

 Wicked Women of Missouri
by Larry Wood
Pages: 144
Rating: 5 out of 5

While male outlaws have a lot of name recognition, not many female outlaws do. Here's a collection of women who were born in or lived in Missouri during their crimes as well as a couple of ladies who didn't do anything illegal just "scandalous." A fun, quick historical read.

Double-Booked for Death (Black Cat Bookshop Mystery #1)

 Double-Booked for Death (Black Cat Bookshop Mystery # 1)
by Ali Brandon
Pages: 325
Rating: 4 out of 5

Darla inherited her aunt's bookstore in New York City. It is a big change for a small town girl from Texas but she's loving it. However, the book market is tough with Amazon taking business from small shop owners. She is thrilled that a popular teen author has agreed to a book signing at her shop. But an accident leads to bad publicity and the suspicion that it wasn't an accident. Can Darla solve the mystery and save her business and new home?

How to Talk to Your Cat About Gun Safety: And Abstinence, Drugs, Satanism, and Other Dangers That Threaten Their Nine Lives

 How to Talk to your Cat about Gun Safety: And Abstinence, Drugs, Satanism and Other Dangers that Threaten their Nine Lives
by Zachary Auburn
Pages: 144
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Collection of essays on how to talk to your cat about important life issues from gun safety to drugs to cults. Parody of parenting guides with a liberal bent.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Life Lessons from the Cat: 101 Tales of Family, Friendship and Fun

 Chicken Soup for the Soul: Life Lessons from the Cat: 101 Tales of Family, Friendship and Fun
by Amy Newmark
Pages: 352
Rating: 5 out of 5

Collection of stories from our feline friends and the lessons they can teach us each day. They provide unconditional love, companionship, and are warm fuzzies. Touching stories to make your day. Part of the proceeds of this book go to the American Humane Society.

The Annotated Night Before Christmas

 The Annotated Night Before Christmas

by Martin Gardner

Pages: 253

Rated: 4 out of 5

A collection of a wide-variety of versions of the Night Before Christmas including different cultural versions, regional, occupational etc. The book also gives the history of the original poem and it's animated versions too. 

Green: The Beginning and the End

 Green: The Beginning and the End
by Ted Dekker
Pages: 400 pages
Rating: 4 out of 5

The Circle has lost hope. Samuel, Thomas Hunter's cherished son, has turned his back on his father. He gathers the dark forces to wage a final war. Thomas is crushed and desperately seeks a way back to our reality to find the one elusive hope that could save them all. 

Four Novels, Two Worlds, One Story. 

White: The Great Pursuit (The Circle #3)

 White: The Great Pursuit (The Circle #3)
by Ted Dekker
Pages: 400
Rating: 4 out of 5

Time Is Running Out In Two Realities.

In one world, a lethal virus threatens to destroy all life as scientists and governments scramble to find an antidote. In the other, a forbidden love could forever destroy the ragtag resistance known as The Circle.

Thomas can bridge both worlds, but he is quickly realizing that he may not be able to save either.

In this mind-bending adventure, Thomas must find a way to rewrite history as he navigates a whirlwind of emotions and events surrounding a pending apocalypse.

The fate of two worlds comes down to one man's choice--and it is a most unlikely choice indeed. Life. Death. Love. Nothing is as it seems. Yet all will forever be transformed by the decisions of one man in the final hours of the Great Pursuit.

Sabrina

 Sabrina
by Nick Drnaso
Pages: 204
Rating: 4 out of 4

A woman's disappearance affects different people in numerous ways. As a graphic novel this story is told both in words and pictures. I don't want to give anything away so I'll just list the book's awards here: The first ever graphic novel to be nominated for the Man Booker Prize. It's a New York Times Notable Book and is on 20 Best of 2018 lists including the Washington Post, NPR, Newsweek and the Guardian.

The Secret of a Heart Note by Stacey Lee

Summary: "An aroma expert embarks on what she fears will be a life of solitude and dreams of a normal high school existence before an accident leads to an unexpected forbidden romance."

Well, darn. The Secret of a Heart Note was not quite as good as Under a Painted Sky. The aromatherapy aspects were quite unique and interesting, but at times, it overpowered the various storylines and characters. The concept is cool and interesting, but the the various scents of people and places are overwhelming and boring. The heroine is also a bit dim and frustrating. I wanted more from her! 

But there's a good chance that someone else will love this book, so go for it!

MOBIUS | goodreads

376 pages

Aisling Grey, Guardian Series by Katie MacAlister

I needed something light after Clash of Kings and turned to my favorite paranormal romance series. The books are fast-paced and funny, especially scenes with the demon-lite, Newfoundland dog named Jim (or Effrijim if you want to be technical). The series follows her entrance into the "Otherworld," coming into her powers as a Guardian and demon lord, and falling in love with a hunky dragon named Drake.

Rating: 4/5

Total pages: 1,356