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Showing posts from August, 2016

Journey's End by Renee Ryan

Brief synopsis (no spoilers) Story of a young woman coming to America (Ellis Island) - story begins as she arrives, but has 'flashbacks' or memories of what happened before. She comes seeking justice for wrongs done to her/family. (I can't make it sound better without giving away spoilers.) Category Christian Romance (I'm not sure if that's an official category, but that's what I'm calling it.) Why I chose this book Amazon Kindle Free book of the month. (And my husband didn't like it for reasons that made me think I might.) My personal opinion (the review) I enjoyed it. It wasn't a fast paced book, but it had a lot of thinking in it (main character). I liked to see how her relationships with others around her affected her own personality/goals and the goals, opinions, personality of those she met. I liked the love story. (of course! - a clean love story - my kind of book.) My synopsis doesn't sound like it's a great read, but it is better

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Brief synopsis (no spoilers) Clary is a typical teenager, who feels very isolated, but happy with her life. She can see things that others can't see. Jace is a typical "bad boy" teenager, who catches Clary's eye, and also happens to be demon killer. Clary follows Jace into a world of myth, story, and peril. Category YA Fiction Why I chose this book Kindle First, I think My personal opinion (the review) The story line jumped around too much, not explaining things that were important, but dwelling on the mundane. It was a pretty classic teen angst novel ("no one really gets me"), with the stereotypical vampires, werewolves, and demons. I'm glad I didn't buy it, and I don't plan to buy the next one in the series, but it was a fun, light read. Warnings Language: Minor Violence: Nothing graphic "Adult" situations: None Death: Referenced Movie rating equivalent PG-13 Protagonist description Clary is pretty flat, as character

Hungry Girl Clean & Hungry: Easy All-Natural Recipes for Healthy Eating in the Real World by Lisa Lillien

Concept: Hungry Girl recipes are focused on realistically eating yummy, healthy in the real world.  The recipes show ways to cut carbs, calories, ect, while still making food delicious. This book specifically focuses on "clean" or all natural recipes (meaning no refined sugars, processed food, or anything artificial). Author :  Lisa Lillien, aka, the Hungry Girl, is not a nutritionist and has no health-related or medical degrees, but she loves food and has been sharing ways to help people eat better for a long time. Her blog  with recipes, tips,  smart eating restaurant guides, and more can be found at http://www.hungry-girl.com/ . Food type: Everything Monologue score  (1-10) (how entertaining, not the recipes): 6-7 - after the introductions there isn't really any commentary or stories about the like you find in some cookbooks, but there are pictures of every recipe,  tips on most pages, and the pages are bright and colorful making it a "exciting" read.

Story Thieves by James Riley

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Owen sees his classmate Bethany jump into a book. He convinces her to take him into his favorite series of books to find out what will happen in the book coming out the next week. They get swept up into the story... Category: Juvenile  Why I chose this book: I like books that write about writing and the mechanics of what can and can't happen within the pages of a book and how it effects the "real" world (think time-turner like instances. How does changing something in a book change not only the book itself but the world outside of the book).  My personal opinion: Too many aliens robots for my taste. The idea of a war between Science and Magic is cool. but the vehicle of Kiel, the Magistrar, and Evil Dr. Verity just didn't do it for me. Kiel was annoying. Really it was Bethany and Own that kept me hanging on. I'm glad I stuck it out through this one though, because the second in the series is so much better.  Warnings Language:

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Parts One and Two by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany, Jack Thorne

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Takes place about 20 years after the end of the Deathly Hallows. We get a glimpse into the world where our favorite characters have grown up and are now "adulting" with a job and kids heading off to Hogwarts. Harry worries that Voldemort isn't really dead and his son Albus must deal with living in his father's shadow.   Category: Fiction Why I chose this book: read the others in the series My personal opinion (the review): No, no no, and NO! I really didn't have high expectations for this and it fell short of even those. So disappointed. You can tell some of the ideas might have been J.K. Rowlings to begin with, but then someone else took them and manipulated them. The main characters from the series (Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Draco, Professor McGonagall) felt all wrong. The only one who maybe worked out okay was Snape and he's only mentioned in one scene. I will admit there were a few good plot elements, but the

The Book Scavenger by by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

Brief synopsis (no spoilers):   Twelve-year-old Emily is on the move again. Her family is relocating to San Francisco, home of her literary idol: Garrison Griswold, creator of the online sensation Book Scavenger, a game where books are hidden all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles. But Emily soon learns that Griswold has been attacked and is in a coma, and no one knows anything about the epic new game he had been poised to launch. Then Emily and her new friend James discover an odd book, which they come to believe is from Griswold and leads to a valuable prize. But there are others on the hunt for this book, and Emily and James must race to solve the puzzles Griswold left behind before Griswold's attackers make them their next target.  (Goodreads) Category: Juvenile/middle grades Why I chose this book: I love books and treasure hunt stories. I thought it sounded a lot like Mr. Lemoncello's Library, which I also enjoyed.  My personal opinio

Genius: The Game by Leopoldo Gout

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): From Goodreads The Game:  Get ready for Zero Hour as 200 geniuses from around the world go head to head in a competition hand-devised by India's youngest CEO and visionary. The Players: Rex - One of the best programmers/hackers in the world, this 16-year-old Mexican-American is determined to find his missing brother. Tunde - This 14-year-old self-taught engineering genius has drawn the attention of a ruthless military warlord by single-handedly bringing electricity and internet to his small Nigerian village. Painted Wolf - One of China's most respected activist bloggers, this mysterious 16-year-old is being pulled into the spotlight by her father's new deal with a corrupt Chinese official. The Stakes:  Are higher than you can imagine. Like life and death. Welcome to the revolution. And get ready to run Category: YA, technology thriller Why I chose this book: Honestly, the cover.  My personal opinion (the review): I wanted to l