The Golem and the Jinni is a beautifully written tale that combines fantasy with history. It’s a story of life and longing and of the desire to truly break free. When the book was chosen as my May Random Read, I was excited because I’d had a chance to meet the author and hear her speak about the exhaustive research that she put into this book. It truly showed. I was not disappointed! The negatives: […]
“Debut novelist Blankman’s account of life in Munich prior to Hitler’s 1933 elevation to the chancellorship is completely engrossing….Blankman creates riveting tension for her heroine and pulls readers through with an irresistible subplot featuring forbidden love.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review) “I’m in awed envy of the daring with which Anne Blankman plunges into her difficult and sensitive subject matter. To read Prisoner of Night and Fog is to be immersed in a breathtaking evocation […]
Title: You Look Different in Real Life Author: Jennifer Castle Release Date: June 4, 2013 Pages: 355 Goodreads Rating: 3.63 Stars My Rating: 4/5 stars My Content Rating: PG-13 (Somewhat mature situations) Summary from Goodreads: For the rest of the world, the movies are entertainment. For Justine, they’re real life. The premise was simple: five kids, just living their lives. There’d be a new movie about them every five years, starting in kindergarten. But no one could have predicted what the cameras […]
Title: Anomaly Series: Anomaly #1 Author: Krista McGee Release Date: July 9, 2013 Pages: 312, Paperback Goodreads Rating: 3.84 Stars My Rating: 4/5 stars My Content Rating: PG (No sexual content, murder and death discussed but nothing is graphic) Summary from Goodreads: Thalli has fifteen minutes and twenty-three seconds left to live. The toxic gas that will complete her annihilation is invading her bloodstream. But she is not afraid. Thalli is different than others in The State. She feels things. She asks questions. […]
Title: Not a Drop to Drink Author: Mindy McGinnis Release Date: September 24, 2013 Pages: 320, Hardcover Goodreads Rating: 3.89 Stars My Rating: 4/5 stars My Content Rating: PG-16 (Nothing more than kissing, though sexual assault is referred to, Violence) Summary from Goodreads: Regret was for people with nothing to defend, people who had no water. Lynn knows every threat to her pond: drought, a snowless winter, coyotes, and, most importantly, people looking for a drink. She makes sure anyone who comes near […]
Title: Cruel Beauty Author: Rosamund Hodge Release Date: January 28, 2014 Publisher: Balzer & Bray Pages: 352, Hardcover Goodreads Rating: 4.05 stars My Rating: 4/5 stars My Content Rating: Adult or Mature YA (Lots of references to sex, though it is not directly shown) Summary from Goodreads: Graceling meets Beauty and the Beast in this sweeping fantasy about one girl’s journey to fulfill her destiny and the monster who gets in her way-by stealing her heart. Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty […]
Title: Allegiant Series: Divergent #3 Author: Veronica Roth Release Date: October 22, 2013 Pages: 526, Hardcover Goodreads Rating: 4.07 stars My Rating: 4.5/5 stars My Content Rating: PG-16 (Sex is not directly described, but some intense violence) Summary from Goodreads: One choice will define you. What if your whole world was a lie? What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything? What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected? The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured […]
Title: Insurgent Series: Divergent #2 Author: Veronica Roth Release Date: May, 2012 Pages: 525, Hardcover Goodreads Rating: 4.3 stars My Rating: 4.5/5 stars My Content Rating: PG-16 (No more than kissing, but some intense violence) Summary from Goodreads: One choice can transform you, or destroy you. Every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves, and herself, while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics […]
I finally caught up with the rest of the world and read Divergent!! And I have to say that I completely see what all the hype was about. This book had me hooked from the very beginning and I did not want to put it down! (Luckily, I had book #2 in hand, which I am now reading, so I really didn’t have to). I loved, loved, LOVED this book and can’t wait to read books […]
Title: The Elite Series: The Selection #2 Author: Keira Cass Release Date: April 23, 2013 Pages: 323, Hardcover Goodreads Rating: 3.94 stars My Rating: 3/5 stars My Content Rating: PG-13 (Nothing more than kissing) Summary from Goodreads: The hotly-anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestseller The Selection. Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Illea. America still […]