“People are more gullible and less compassionate than any of us want to believe.”
After escaping an abusive marriage, Lakshmi has worke 3.75 stars
“People are more gullible and less compassionate than any of us want to believe.”
After escaping an abusive marriage, Lakshmi has worked hard for over a decade to build up a good reputation as a henna artist in Jaipur. When her estranged husband appears with the younger sister she never knew existed, Lakshmi must work even harder to try and build a better life for them both.
I very much enjoyed this story, I honestly don’t know much about India and that they have (had?) a caste system that ruled the country. I was fascinated with the henna process and how meaningful it was. The best parts of the book for me were Lakshmi navigating the intricacies of all the families and clients. I honestly really didn’t care for the parts with her younger sister and was more annoyed by them. But overall a really solid story and I can see why this is a popular book club selection....more
“Nothing had changed. I was the stupid one again. I was the girl who never understood who she was to people.”
Tell the Wolves I’m Home is 4 stars!
“Nothing had changed. I was the stupid one again. I was the girl who never understood who she was to people.”
Tell the Wolves I’m Home is an adult fiction novel about 14-year-old June in 1987 and she’s just lost her beloved Uncle Finn to AIDS. June and Finn were very close and once he dies she feels lost and disconnected from everyone in her life. But after Finn’s funeral, June finds out about Toby, Finn’s boyfriend. The two begin to secretly spend time together and June begins to realize she’s not as alone as she thinks.
“Maybe I was destined to forever fall in love with people I couldn’t have. Maybe there’s a whole assortment of impossible people waiting for me to find them. Waiting to make me feel the same impossibility over and over again.”
First off, this book was recommended to me three years ago and I am only just now reading it (sorry Sandra, it took me a while but I am here now! Lol). I was really impressed with this book and the writing style. I had no idea this was a debut novel and that so far, it’s the only published work by this author. I am so sad that I cannot read more of her work!
I loved June as a character, a weird socially outcast child who no one really understands. I think many people can relate to her and what she went through during this time. When I was reading this book I was completely immersed in it. The writing and pacing were a breath of fresh air. I do think the idea of being in love was a little odd in this book (I won’t say why cause spoilers) and it took away from this book a bit for me, hence a 4 star rating and not 5. But by the end of this book I was in tears and that doesn’t happen a lot for me, so this book did have quite the impact.
I really hope Carol Rifka Brunt writes another book! I would be among the first in line to read it, I think she’s truly a great talent.
“That's the secret. If you always make sure you're exactly the person you hoped to be, if you always make sure you know only the very best people, then you won't care if you die tomorrow.” ...more
Malibu Rising follows the Riva siblings, children of the famous singer Mick Riva. From present day leading up to a massive party, to the pas 4 stars!
Malibu Rising follows the Riva siblings, children of the famous singer Mick Riva. From present day leading up to a massive party, to the past and the history of how their parents met and how the siblings grew up over the years. I won’t say much more than that because I don’t want to give anything away.
I have to say one thing about TJR, I went out on release day on my lunch break from work to buy this book from Barnes and Noble. She’s the kind of author that once she has a fan, they are loyal for sure. I don’t go out and buy books on release day, so that’s how I know she’s one of my all-time favorites.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, there are so many different reviews out there I went into this book a tiny bit wary. But the characters are well developed and excellent, the writing is on point, and I was compelled until the very end when reading this book. I will say, plot wise this book started very strong and then fizzled for me like a candle that’s been abruptly blown out. I didn’t love how every character just seemed to be “the best” at whatever they did. But I definitely enjoyed reading this and can see how much thought Reid put into it.
This is very much a thought-provoking novel and one I think is great for discussion. A must for book clubs, I can see all readers having different opinions they will want to share about this book....more
“One could construct a hundred different narratives, it didn’t make them true.”
Mexican Gothic is about Noemí Taboada, a striking and s 3.5 stars
“One could construct a hundred different narratives, it didn’t make them true.”
Mexican Gothic is about Noemí Taboada, a striking and spirited young woman in Mexico City. When her family gets a strange letter from her cousin, Catalina, Noemí is sent to check on her in her cousins’ new home, High Place, a house in the countryside. From the moment she gets there, Noemí senses something wrong about the house. But Catalina seems unwell and odd, and her husband refuses to let her leave the house saying she is too sick. But the longer Noemí stays at High Place, the more odd things begin to happen and she fears she might not be able to leave at all.
The first half of this book I absolutely loved. Like 5 stars this book is amazing. I loved Noemí, the setting of the book, the gothic tone, the commentary on racism and social classism. Loved all of that. And then about halfway through some things began to happen that started to make me feel really queasy while listening to this book. I’m the type of reader that likes scary spooky horror, I don’t do well with gory and graphic yuck horror and that’s where this book really took a turn for me. I’ll admit it, I am a wimp and this book got a little bit too intense, but I was already really invested in Noemí and had to see this story through to the end.
If you’re not turned off by gore, I think this is the book for you. I loved almost everything else about it and I think Noemí is one of my favorite female heroines to read in a recent book.
“The future, she thought, could not be predicted, and the shpae of things could not be divined. To think otherwise was absurd. But they were young that morning, and they could cling to hope. Hope that the world could be remade, kinder and sweeter.” ...more
If I were to rate it, I would give it a 2. The writing did not flow and reading it felt like a chore. Anything Little Women reDNF about 100 pages in.
If I were to rate it, I would give it a 2. The writing did not flow and reading it felt like a chore. Anything Little Women related should not feel like a chore, it should be a friggin delight....more
“There were always a hundred reasons for disliking people and not nearly as many for liking them.”
Gosh I wish this book existed when I was a child “There were always a hundred reasons for disliking people and not nearly as many for liking them.”
Gosh I wish this book existed when I was a child. This is the perfect book for those kids who read the Little House series and want to read more. It’s also the perfect book if a parent doesn’t want their children to read the problematic Little House series. I feel like this book gives us the story that has been all but wiped from history and I am so glad Linda Sue Park wrote it.
Even as an adult, I feel I learned a lot from Hanna. Mostly she taught me that you can be strong in the face of awful things and to always be kind, even when someone isn’t being kind to you. ...more
“A warrior believes in an end she can’t see and fights for it. A warrior never gives up. A warrior fights for those weaker than herself. I 4 stars!
“A warrior believes in an end she can’t see and fights for it. A warrior never gives up. A warrior fights for those weaker than herself. It sounds like motherhood to me.”
Taking place during the Dust Bowl era, this story follows Elsa Martinelli. A wife, mother and a farmer, she works hard every day and doesn’t expect much else from life. When her family is hit even harder by their circumstances and some health issues, Elsa must decide if she can be brave and forge ahead for the sake of her children.
“Courage is fear you ignore.”
What an incredible and epic story! This is our modern day Grapes of Wrath. What struck me most when reading this book was how events 90 years earlier can parallel much of what is happening current day. I listened to the audiobook and was riveted every single second of it (Julia Whelan is a powerful narrator). At its core, this is a story about survival and the lengths we will go to save the ones we love. I can’t recommend it enough.
“It wasn’t the fear that mattered in life. It was the choices made when you were afraid. You were brave because of your fear, not in spite of it.” ...more
One of my favorite authors wrote a Victorian England time travel gothic romance? Sold. Didn’t even have to think twice about wanting to read 4 stars
One of my favorite authors wrote a Victorian England time travel gothic romance? Sold. Didn’t even have to think twice about wanting to read this book.
A Stitch in Time is about 38 year old Bronwyn who returns to Thorne Manor when her aunt passes away and leaves it to Bronwyn in her will. More than twenty years ago Bronwyn left the manor after a tragic death, and she also left behind an unbelievable secret. Returning to Thorne Manor, Bronwyn reunites with her young love William, who is not so receptive to her return.
I thought this book was a wonderful time travel romance. I don’t understand the science of it all in this one but I also don’t have to because it’s fiction so I went along with it. Second chance romance is my favorite trope in the romance genre, so I ate this book up so fast! I love Kelley Armstrong’s writing and the way she can deliver a good story with great characters. This was definitely the escape from real life that I needed right now....more
You know when you read a book that everyone loved and it was just okay for you and you feel like a weirdo? That was The Vanishing Half for me 3 stars
You know when you read a book that everyone loved and it was just okay for you and you feel like a weirdo? That was The Vanishing Half for me. My local library had a holds list of over 500 (yes, 500) people waiting to read this book, so I purchased my own copy to skip the line. All I can say is, it felt like I was reading a different book from everyone else.
The Vanishing Half has a very interesting premise, twin sisters born and raised in a small town in the middle of nowhere, not even on a map. Both girls are light skinned black girls, and once they grow up they go on two very separate paths. One deciding to pass as a white woman for most of her life, and the other marries the darkest man she ever met. This story spans about thirty years, covering their lives and that of their daughters.
I think this book was written incredibly well, the language of it was beautiful. My personal reading tastes, I need more than just beautiful writing. I need characters I can root for. And to be completely honest, there wasn’t a character in this book that I really liked. I don’t understand how both sisters could just leave their mother like that, and on top of that, one twin completely abandoned the other without a trace. I couldn’t wrap my mind around it. I also had trouble with the jumping perspectives, because just when I got invested in one character, that was that and onto the next one.
I think Brit Bennett is very talented and I would absolutely continue to read her books. The Vanishing Half, while obviously a very important and beautifully written book, wasn’t a book that I loved....more
This would be the second pandemic themed book I’ve read in 2020 and I think at this point I should just bite the bullet and read The Stand. Just kiddiThis would be the second pandemic themed book I’ve read in 2020 and I think at this point I should just bite the bullet and read The Stand. Just kidding, I’m not ready for that yet. Were there always this many pandemic themed books and I just missed them until now? I digress.
Pull of the Stars takes place during the 1918 influenza pandemic in Ireland. It follows the life of a nurse in a maternity ward for two days, detailing everything she does in her job. I have to say, this book was waaayyyy more medical than I thought. And as a childless millennial it probably prolonged any ideas of bearing children myself for a lonnnggg time because there was a lot in this book that was traumatizing surrounding childbirth. If you are triggered easily, this is not the book for you.
I will say, this book was incredibly compelling. For a story that never really leaves one setting, you are gripped until the very end. Ultimately, I enjoyed this book. But as a librarian whenever I read a book I think one thing: will I ever recommend this book to anyone? And for this one, I can honestly say no. Unless someone comes up to me and asks for a novel set during the 1918 pandemic, I wouldn’t spread the word on it. So three stars for enjoyable but didn’t love....more
I think 2020 fucked with my reading tastes. . . . Normally a book like this would be like catnip for me, but by the end of the book I just wan 2.5 stars
I think 2020 fucked with my reading tastes. . . . Normally a book like this would be like catnip for me, but by the end of the book I just wanted to be done and had to push myself to finish the book.
A retelling of Sherlock Holmes with a female lead. There were parts of this that were really good. But I honestly don’t even remember the mystery and it’s been two days since I finished this book. Even the promise of a slow burn romance didn’t save this book for me. Since I was able to finish this book, I would say 2 stars “it was ok”.
I’m just gonna go cry in the corner right now since I can’t seem to find a book that’s a winner for me lately. ...more
“If I have learned anything in this long life of mine, it is this: in love we find out who we want to be; in war we find out who we are. 4.5 stars!
“If I have learned anything in this long life of mine, it is this: in love we find out who we want to be; in war we find out who we are.”
In the midst of World War II, this book follows two sisters. Vianne is left at home to care for her child while a German is stationed with her. Isabelle longs to join a resistance and fight against German invaders. Throughout the war they fight to do what women do best…. survive.
“Men tell stories. Women get on with it. For us it was a shadow war. There were no parades for us when it was over, no medals or mentions in history books. We did what we had to during the war, and when it was over, we picked up the pieces and started our lives over.”
Gosh what an enthralling and heartbreaking story! I’ve been meaning to read this book for years, I was shocked when I realized it came out five years ago because in my mind it was maybe two. I knew almost nothing going into this book and I’m glad about that. A WW2 book from the perspective of women is an almost refreshing take on this war. We’ve heard/seen/read about the soldiers, but the daily life of those left behind was often a footnote if it was even thought of.
Loved this story of two very different sisters, who may not understand each other, but their lives became more similar than they expected. I loved reading both perspectives, there wasn’t a sister I liked more than the other. Both of them fought in their own ways and suffered the consequences of trying to do the right thing. I *might* have had tears in my eyes reading the last few pages. But I would deny it if you asked me.
“But love has to be stronger than hate, or there is no future for us.”
“We were a chocolate-box family, I thought. Brightly wrapped on the outside and oozing sticky darkness within.”
The Night Tiger revolves 3.5 stars
“We were a chocolate-box family, I thought. Brightly wrapped on the outside and oozing sticky darkness within.”
The Night Tiger revolves around two characters: Ren, a young boy tasked with saving his old masters soul, and Ji Lin, who finds herself in possession of an unwanted item. Taking places in 1930’s Malaysia, Ji Lin works to pay off her mother’s mahjong debts. Ren works as an assistant to doctors. Both of their lives intertwine in a mystic story.
“In Cantonese, two was a good number because it made a pair. Three was also good because it was a homophone for sang, or life. Four, of course, was bad because it sounded like death. Five was good again because it made a complete set, not just of the Confucian Virtues, but also for the elements of wood, fire, water, metal, and earth.”
There were parts of this book that I really liked, but overall I found it to be mostly okay. Honestly, I skimmed a lot of the chapters from Ren’s perspective because I just wasn’t interested in his story. When Ji Lin and Ren’s stories began to intertwine I paid more attention. I think this book has a lot of things going for it and readers will love the magic realism and historical fiction aspects. I mostly liked it, but cannot see myself owning or rereading this book.
“Most of all, though, I wanted my mother to forgive me, and bless me, and tell me everything would be all right, just as she had when I was little, and there were only the two of us in the whole wide world. But perhaps that was part of not being a child anymore.”
When everyone loves a book you thought was meh. Honestly, reading this book was like watching all the stressful parts of the movie Tit 2 stars
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When everyone loves a book you thought was meh. Honestly, reading this book was like watching all the stressful parts of the movie Titanic. I had a very hard time with this book, I honestly did. I think as I get older, I am more sensitive to the suffering of other people. I cry when I read news articles about people dying because they cannot afford insulin, I cry when I see people in cages on the news. I’m not trying to get political, but I find I really take these injustices and the suffering of others to heart. And that’s all this book was to me, it was all I could see.
I can see how the author wanted to tell a story that is not typically taught or talked about. It wasn’t for me.
I think Curtis's voice was spectacular, but the plot fell a little bit flat for me. I laughed out loud at all the parts when Bud described 3.5 stars
I think Curtis's voice was spectacular, but the plot fell a little bit flat for me. I laughed out loud at all the parts when Bud described librarians, and enjoyed all of his antics. Listening to the audiobook was a lot of fun, but overall I felt a bit lost for the majority of the book on where it was going. Great characters and a great job describing the time it takes place, but overall it wasn't a huge win for me.
“It’s a cruel, cruel world. And the people are the worst part.”
I listened to this audiobook on the recommendation of a friend and I real 4 stars!
“It’s a cruel, cruel world. And the people are the worst part.”
I listened to this audiobook on the recommendation of a friend and I really enjoyed it. Dread Nation is a book that's been in the back of my mind and I am really glad I read it, especially because there's another book coming out.
Dread Nation is about a young woman named Jane about 15+ years after the Civil War. The twist is, the Civil War ended in this world because all the dead rose up and became "shamblers" or basically, zombies. In Jane's world, black girls are sent to schools by the government to learn how to fight so they can kill the dead. But in a world quickly being overrun by the dead and dirty politicians, Jane finds herself in places she never expected.
“My momma always said the best way to get what you want from people is to give them what they think they want. They expected me to be stupid, so I used that to our advantage.”
I really enjoyed this book, I thought the characters and world building were fantastic. Some of my favorite parts involved Jane and Katherine and their development from enemies to friends. There were some questions I had left unanswered, and I hope they are addressed in the next book. While I was listening I kept wondering when certain mysteries would be solved and then they weren't so that took away my enjoyment a little bit.
If you're into audiobooks I recommend you listen to this one, the narrator did an amazing job. And I recommend this book in general because I enjoyed it very much and think many other readers will too.
“Sometimes you have to live down to people's expectations, Kate. If you can do that, you'll get much further in life.”
“I have plucked snowdrops at Midwinter, died at my own choosing, and wept for a nightingale. Now I am beyond prophecy.”
Finished this se 3.5 stars
“I have plucked snowdrops at Midwinter, died at my own choosing, and wept for a nightingale. Now I am beyond prophecy.”
Finished this series and I am a bit underwhelmed. Loved the first two books and the first half of this last book, but I found myself skimming a lot in the last 100 pages or so. Overall this is an amazing fantasy/historical combo trilogy and I will definitely be reading whatever Arden brings to readers in the future.
“She bent forward to breathe into his ear: "Never give me orders." "Command me, then," he whispered back. The words went through her like wine.”
“Every time you take one path, you must live with the memory of the other: of a life left unchosen. Decide as seems best, one course or the 4 stars
“Every time you take one path, you must live with the memory of the other: of a life left unchosen. Decide as seems best, one course or the other; each way will have its bitter with its sweet.”
I have to say this book isn't what I expected... in the best possible way. Most second books in a trilogy (or an author's second book in general) tend to be filler and much of the same as a first book. That is not the case with this book. So much growth and development, and it went places I never would have expected. I loved that about this book.
In The Girl in the Tower, Vasya makes her way to Moscow. Terrified of being married off and shoved in a tower, or made to be a nun and shoved into a convent, she deceives the Prince and those around her by disguising herself as a boy. When bandits begin destroying villages nearby, she works with the Prince to find the bandits and help right the kingdom.
“Witch. The word drifted across his mind. We call such women so, because we have no other name.”
As I said before this second book show such growth. There were lots of themes present that I found interesting, mostly the concept of freedom versus confinement and the role of a woman in medieval Russian society. We still had the concepts of the old ways fading because of new practices and the damage that may cause.
Because I am always and forever a romance junkie, I wish there was more of Vasya and Morozco. I also love that this book was about Vasya's journey and struggles and she didn't really have time to deal with her feelings/relationship with him. I was skimming a few parts with some of the political stuff but overall I really liked this book and want to read more asap!
“Think of me sometimes," he returned. "When the snowdrops have bloomed and the snow has melted.”
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