Life doesn’t have to be sweeping vistas and larger-than-life dreams. It can be small and ordinary and still be filled with God and love. For Kara, life is best lived in the mundane, everyday routines that fill her life, and God meets her there and opens her eyes to the beauty and grace that surrounds her.
I don’t have kids or a small farm like Kara does, but I enjoyed every page of this read. Kara’s writing isn’t flowery, but every sentence is filled with a simple grace that touched me. Peace and simple joy fill every page, and I highly recommend it.
Kara Lawler is a mother and a writer. Everywhere Holy is her newest book.
(Galley courtesy of Thomas Nelson in exchange for an honest review.)
Title: The Prized Girl Author: Amy K. Green Genre: Thriller Rating: 4 out of 5
Virginia lives on sarcasm and depression, with a side helping of torture in the form of weekly dinners with her distant father, overly controlling and needy stepmother, and her annoying younger half-sister, Jenny.
But when pageant queen Jenny is found murdered, Virginia decides the cut-and-dried answer of who killed her—the cops say it’s the most obvious suspect, an obsessive fan—might not be the truth, and decides to investigate herself. So Virginia starts asking questions. And the answers she finds lead her both back to her own path and down a path that is far more twisted than she imagined.
I finished reading this just to find out who killed Jenny. But…I didn’t like any of these characters. Virginia has issues-with-a-capital-I, and these issues get in the way of life for her, much less seeing the truth of any situation involving a figure from her past. Her Dad is a jerk, and his secret doesn’t make his treatment of his family okay. Her stepmother was horrible. Even the scenes from Jenny’s viewpoint didn’t make me like her. Did I figure out who the killer was? No. Did I have any liking for any of these characters, also no. The writing was solid, but the characters made me dislike the whole story.
Amy K. Green lives in California. The Prized Girl is her debut novel.
(Galley courtesy of Penguin/Dutton in exchange for an honest review.)
Divya Sharma is a queen. Or she is when she’s playing Reclaim the Sun, the year’s hottest online game. Divya—better known as popular streaming gamer D1V—regularly leads her #AngstArmada on quests through the game’s vast and gorgeous virtual universe. But for Divya, this is more than just a game. Out in the real world, she’s trading her rising-star status for sponsorships to help her struggling single mom pay the rent.
Gaming is basically Aaron Jericho’s entire life. Much to his mother’s frustration, Aaron has zero interest in becoming a doctor like her, and spends his free time writing games for a local developer. At least he can escape into Reclaim the Sun—and with a trillion worlds to explore, disappearing should be easy. But to his surprise, he somehow ends up on the same remote planet as celebrity gamer D1V.
At home, Divya and Aaron grapple with their problems alone, but in the game, they have each other to face infinite new worlds…and the growing legion of trolls populating them. Soon the virtual harassment seeps into reality when a group called the Vox Populi begin launching real-world doxxing campaigns, threatening Aaron’s dreams and Divya’s actual life. The online trolls think they can drive her out of the game, but everything and everyone Divya cares about is on the line…
And she isn’t going down without a fight.
Don’t Read the Comments is about serious subjects—cyberbullying and sexual harassment—but the tone and voice of the novel are light and personal. I loved both the main characters, and I think the author did an excellent job with both male and female viewpoints. Divya’s growth from someone who doesn’t read the comments the trolls post to a warrior who stands up and takes action is organic and believable. She doesn’t just change overnight. And Aaron finally realizes his own strength and dares to stand up for himself. I loved the voice in this, and I’m not a gamer at all and still found it thoroughly enjoyable.
Eric Smith is an author and literary agent. Don’t Read the Comments is his newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin TEEN/Inkyard Press in exchange for an honest review.)
In the aftermath of the events in the High Halls, there are loose ends. One of those loose ends is the fieflord, Candallar. In an attempt to understand his involvement—with the Barrani, with the High Court, and with the much hated Arcanum—Kaylin has been sent to the fiefs.
She has mixed feelings about this. There’s nothing mixed about her feelings when she discovers a very unusual building in the border zone between two fiefs, and far more questions are raised than are answered. Her attempt to get answers leads her back to the Imperial Palace and its resident Dragon librarian, the Arkon.
Things that were lost in the dim past were not, perhaps, destroyed or obliterated—and what remains appears to be in the hands of a fieflord and his allies—allies who would like to destroy Kaylin’s friends, the Emperor, and possibly the Barrani High Court itself. This is bad.
What’s worse: The librarian who hates to leave his library has a very strong interest in the things that might, just might, have been preserved, and—he is leaving his library to do in person research, no matter what Kaylin, the Hawks, or the Emperor think.
He is not the only one. Other people are gathering in the border zone; people who believe knowledge is power. But power is also power, and it might be too late for the Empire’s most dedicated Historian—and Kaylin and her friends, who’ve been tasked with his safety.
As always, I love the books in this series! I feel like Kaylin, with her fierce desire to help others, tendency to speak—and act—without thinking, and ability to find trouble even when not looking for it, could be me. The relationships in this series grow deeper and more complex with every novel, and the world and cultures more vibrant. I was eager to see where this adventure led—and of course it did not disappoint! Highly recommended!
Michelle Sagara is the author of The Chronicles of Elantra. Cast in Wisdom is the newest—and fifteenth—book in the series.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)
In 2018, Morgan Christopher’s life has been put on hold. Serving three years for a crime she didn’t commit, she’s given up all hope of a career in art and just wants her prison stay to be over—until a stranger offers her a deal that will mean her immediate release: restore an old mural in a small southern town. Morgan knows nothing about art restoration, and the deadline is something not even an experienced restoration artist could meet, but as Morgan starts work on the painting, she realizes it hides evidence of madness, murder, and lies in a small town.
In 1940, Anna Dale wins a contest to paint a post office mural in North Carolina. She’s thrilled for the opportunity—but Edenton isn’t what she expected at all. Her life in New York gives her no frame of reference for understanding this small southern town—full of prejudice, secrets, and expectations she refuses to meet—which just might end in murder.
I didn’t immediately connect with the characters, but I ended up loving this book! I connected with both Morgan and Anna, and I admired them both. They are such strong women. They don’t always make the best choices, but they do stay true to themselves and grow from their experiences.
Diane Chamberlain is a bestselling author. Big Lies in a Small Town is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)
Nia Imani spends her time traveling through the stars and time—where mere months pass for her, for everyone she knows, decades and lifetimes pass—so apart from her crew, she has no other relationships. The job is her life. Until a mysterious naked boy crashes on an agricultural planet and his care is given to Nia.
The boy doesn’t talk. Instead, he spends his time playing an old flute and following Nia around the ship. They become a family of two and Nia finally has someone to care about besides herself. But the boy might possess powers only rumored before—making him a target for the greedy and powerful, and Nia will do whatever she can to keep him safe.
While the writing in The Vanished Birds is wonderful, I was not a fan of the story. I didn’t care about any of the characters. I’m not sure what the first 15% of the story had to do with anything. I felt sorry for the boy, but there were so many references to things in the past that might have made me connect with him or the other characters but remained only references, leaving me frustrated and annoyed. In short, the author has skills, but I don’t feel like this was a good choice for me.
(Galley courtesy of Random House/Del Rey in exchange for an honest review.)
A Neurosurgeon’s Look at Faith, Doubt, and the Things We Think We Know
Dr. Lee Warren, a practicing neurosurgeon, had seen enough cases of glioblastoma to know when he diagnosed the patient, that he’d seen the end of them. With a 100% fatality rate, he knew how it was going to end. But that never stopped him from praying for his patients, even as he knew there was no hope. Even as he experienced doubts about just what God was doing. Even as he asked Why, God? It wasn’t until Lee faced a personal tragedy that he finally came to the end of himself—and rekindled the hope that had been hiding in the darkness for so long.
I’ve Seen the End of You was an incredible read! I don’t normally get enthralled in nonfiction, but I could not put this book down! Dr. Warren’s raw honesty about his fears, his questions, his grief resonated with me, and the strength it must take to face such seemingly hopeless cases every day with a prayer and an offered bit of hope is inspirational and uplifting. For anyone going through any kind of tragedy, this is a wonderful read!
Lee Warren is a brain surgeon, inventor, Iraq War veteran, and writer. I’ve Seen the End of You is his newest book.
(Galley courtesy of WaterBrook in exchange for an honest review.)
Six years after a global pandemic, it turns out that the End of the World was more like a big pause. Coming out of quarantine, 2 billion unsure survivors split between self-governing big cities, hippie communes, and wasteland gangs. When the father of a presumed-dead pop star announces a global search for his daughter, four lives collide: Krista, a cynical event planner; Moira, the ex-pop star in hiding; Rob, a widowed single father; and Sunny, his seven-year-old daughter.
As their lives begin to intertwine, reports of a new outbreak send the fragile society into a panic. And when the government enacts new rules in response to the threat, long-buried secrets surface, causing Sunny to run away seeking the truth behind her mother’s death. Now, Krista, Rob, and Moira must finally confront the demons of their past in order to hit the road and reunite with Sunny — before a coastal lockdown puts the world on pause again.
A Beginning at the End wasn’t your typical end-of-the-world dystopian novel. Apart from a few brief flashbacks, the story doesn’t spend a lot of time with the actual end of the world. Instead, it’s firmly grounded in the rebuilding phase of life after a global pandemic.
My heart went out to Rob. He’s been keeping a huge secret from hid daughter Sunny for years—and now it has caught up with him and he doesn’t know what to do, so he’s floundering. Moira has been running for so long she doesn’t know how to not run. And Krista…well, I didn’t like her for most of the book, as she’s selfish and a bit ugly to people around her, but she fortunately has an epiphany about herself that changes her. I loved that this novel left the large-scale view alone, and focused on a handful of individuals, their lives, and their emotions, as this made everything much more vivid and realistic.
Mike Chen is a lifelong writer, from crafting fan fiction as a child to somehow getting paid for words as an adult. A Beginning at the End is his newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/MIRA in exchange for an honest review.)
In 1852, Maggie has a young daughter who’s been abused and an abusive husband who will kill her if he can find her, so she signs up to join a wagon train to California with 43 other women eager to find husbands. Maggie doesn’t care about the husband part; she just wants to keep her daughter safe. She’s not even sure her own husband is alive—if he’s not, she’s sure to be accused of his murder.
She soon learns she’s not the only woman in the group with secrets: Mary, whose family treated her like a slave, just wants freedom, and on the trail her large size is good thing. One of the women used to be a prostitute. One is also running from an abusive man. One is hiding a secret in plain sight. Throughout the journey the women—and the two minsters accompanying them—must learn how to fend for themselves and become more than who they were.
I loved the premise of Westering Women. I was a bit disappointed in the execution, though. The women’s stories are amazing, but their presence on the page was scattered and fuzzy at best. Even Maggie, supposedly the main character, seemed more like a bit player most of the time. Some of the transitions were very abrupt and came out of nowhere, too (when the men one of the girls was running from showed up randomly). A great historical jaunt, but the writing didn’t do it justice. Judging from other reviews I’ve seen, this is clearly a case of the book just not being a good fit for me.
Sandra Dallas is a New York Times-bestselling author. Westering Women is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)
Sarah Smith loves her little bookstore in tiny Ashford, Connecticut. She swears her books talk to her, and she’s happy with her life, her tight-knit group of friends—and their pastries—and her boyfriend, globe-trotting journalist Ridge. Except he’s gone so much, and Sarah is a little bit bored. So, when her Parisian friend Sophie offers a six-month bookshop exchange, Sarah finds herself flying to Paris to take care of Once Upon a Time, a famous, and popular, bookstore on the Seine.
But Sarah’s dreams of quiet time spent reading, forays to explore Paris, and getting to see Ridge as he travels the world fade quickly once she arrives in Paris. The staff at the bookshop are suspicious and uncooperative. The customers are rude. There’s barely time to breathe, much less read. And instead of spending time with Ridge, their relationship is reduced to occasional quick phone calls. But Sarah has had enough. Christmas is coming and she is determined to get things sorted out, no matter what.
I loved this book! I didn’t realize until I finished it that Rebecca Raisin also wrote Rosie’s Traveling Tea Shop, which was also a lovely read…but it all makes sense now. The Little Bookshop on the Seine made me want to visit Paris, which has never been on my Places to Go list, but I’d pack right up for a chance to work in Once Upon a Time, and Sarah, with her love of books and reading contrasting with her desire to experience life is so me that I related to every page. I highly recommend this!
Rebecca Raisin loves books. The Little Bookshop on the Seine is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/HQN in exchange for an honest review.)
Tomorrow Is Another Day 