Category: characters

Book Review:  Don’t Let In the Cold, by Keely Parrack

Image belongs to Sourcebooks Fire.

Title:  Don’t Let In the Cold   
Author:  Keely Parrack
Genre: Mystery/thriller    
Rating:  4.0

It was supposed to be just one night in the cabin: one night for Lottie and her brand new stepsister, Jade, to try to get along. When a solar flare causes a massive blackout―no power or cell signal―Lottie knows they’ve got a long night ahead of them.

Then, in the dark, someone else shows up at the cabin―a stranger named Alex, claiming to be lost and needing shelter from the coming snowstorm. But later that night, Lottie spies him in the driveway talking to two mysterious men in a pickup truck, and she’s sure he’s lying about why he’s here.

Before Lottie can find out more, a fire forces her, Jade, and Alex out into the blizzard, where they must rely on one another to get to safety―wherever that is. In the remote, freezing Tahoe wilderness, they have to survive more than just the elements. Soon it becomes clear that Alex’s accomplices are hunting for all three of them, in a scheme that’s gone too far and taken a chilling, deadly turn.

This was a decent read—but only because I’m not reading it in the winter! To me, Alex was a red flag from the very beginning, but I liked him well enough, eventually.  I liked how the story was so focused on these three characters and their world—all the drama was condensed into a small, concentrated package.

Keely Parrack lives in San Francisco. Don’t Let in the Cold is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Sourcebooks Fire in exchange for an honest review.)

The Best Books I read in August (2022)

In August, I read 22 books, bringing my total for the year to 159 books. I also DNFed 12 books—that’s a LOT. There were some solid reads, some “meh” reads, and a handful of really good reads. The three I liked the most were:

Unwritten, by Charles Martin. I haven’t read many of Martin’s books—yet. I’m definitely going to plow through his backlist, because I’ve adored everything I’ve read of his, and this is no exception. His stories and characters just draw me in from the very first page.

Hello, Goodbye, by Kate Stollenwerck. This was at times an emotional read, but I enjoyed every single day. Gigi was such a great character, and I just loved her.

Lucy Checks In, by Dee Ernst. It was so nice to read a middle-aged MC for a change. One that’s having adventures, changing her world, and growing as a person. A lovely read!

Book Review and Blog Tour:   The Thread Collectors, by Shaunna J. Edwards; Alyson Richman

Image belongs to Harlequin/Graydon House.

Title:  The Thread Collectors     
Author:   Shaunna J. Edwards; Alyson Richman
Genre:  Historical fiction
Rating:  4.5 out of 5

1863: In a small Creole cottage in New Orleans, an ingenious young Black woman named Stella embroiders intricate maps on repurposed cloth to help enslaved men flee and join the Union Army. Bound to a man who would kill her if he knew of her clandestine activities, Stella has to hide not only her efforts but her love for William, a Black soldier and a brilliant musician.

Meanwhile, in New York City, a Jewish woman stitches a quilt for her husband, who is stationed in Louisiana with the Union Army. Between abolitionist meetings, Lily rolls bandages and crafts quilts with her sewing circle for other soldiers, too, hoping for their safe return home. But when months go by without word from her husband, Lily resolves to make the perilous journey South to search for him.

As these two women risk everything for love and freedom during the brutal Civil War, their paths converge in New Orleans, where an unexpected encounter leads them to discover that even the most delicate threads have the capacity to save us.

I really enjoyed this read! New Orleans is one of my favorite cities, but I don’t think I’ve ever read anything with quite this setting—it was both heartbreaking and inspirational. I liked all four main characters and was invested in their journeys, and it was lovely to see such hope in the midst of such a dark struggle. I love that this is inspired by both the authors’ family histories, and I truly enjoyed this tale.

Shauna Edwards lives in Harlem and Alyson Richman lives in Long Island. The Thread Collectors is their newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/Graydon House in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:   Lucy Checks In, by Dee Ernst

Image belongs to St. Martin’s Press.

Title: Lucy Checks In    
Author: Dee Ernst   
Genre: Romance   
Rating:  5.0 out of 5

Lucia Giannetti needs a fresh start. Once the hotel manager of a glamorous NYC hotel and intimately involved with the hotel’s owner, Lucy had her entire future planned out. But when the owner disappears, taking millions of dollars with him, Lucy’s life as she knows it falls apart.

Two years later, forty-nine years old and unemployed, Lucy takes a job in Rennes, France to manage the Hotel Paradis. She pictures fur quilts and extravagant chandeliers, but what she finds is wildly different. Lucy is now in charge of turning the run-down, but charming hotel into a bustling tourist attraction. Between painting rooms, building a website, and getting to know Bing, the irritatingly attractive artist, Lucy finds an unexpected home. But can she succeed in bringing the Hotel Paradis to its former glory?

I would like to say:  I’ve never had a desire to visit France—except when I read books that make it seem so magical I absolutely must go. This was one of those books. Except the setting was really the Hotel Paradis, not France itself, so really, I want to go to this hotel and live.

I enjoyed this book immensely. I love that the main character was not a woman in her 20s or early 30s, but one almost 50. I love Lucia’s journey back to finding herself and confidence in herself just as much as the journey to restore the hotel. I also loved that romance took a backseat, not the driver’s seat in this story. This is just a wonderful book!

Dee Ernst is from New Jersey. Lucy Checks In is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:  Bend Toward the Sun, by Jen Devon

Image belongs to St. Martin’s Press.

Title:  Bend Toward the Sun    
Author:  Jen Devon  
Genre:   Romance
Rating:  4.5 out of 5

Rowan McKinnon doesn’t believe in love. With a botany PhD, two best friends who embrace her social quirkiness, and some occasional no-strings sex, she has everything she needs. But she hides deep wounds from the past—from a negligent mother, and a fiancé who treated her like a pawn in a game. When an academic setback leads Rowan to take on the restoration of an abandoned vineyard, she relishes the opportunity to restore the grapes to their former glory.

She does not expect to meet a man like Harrison Brady.

An obstetrician profoundly struggling after losing a patient, Harry no longer believes he is capable of keeping people safe. Reeling, Harry leaves Los Angeles to emotionally recover at his parents’ new vineyard in Pennsylvania.

He does not expect to meet a woman like Rowan McKinnon.

As their combative banter gives way to a simmering tension, sunlight begins to crack through the darkness smothering Harry’s soul. He’s compelled to explore the undeniable pull between them. And after a lifetime of protecting herself from feeling anything, for anyone, Rowan tries to keep things casual.

But even she can’t ignore their explosive connection.

Rowan was a little challenging for me to like at times, just because she was so self-focused and really couldn’t be bothered to try to understand what Harry is going through. I loved the family dynamics in this—I’d definitely read anything written about them—as well as the friendship between Rowan and her two best friends. The vivid supporting characters made this a wonderful read, and Harry was pretty great, too. Sign me up to live at a vineyard and work with plants!

Jen Devon lives in Ohio. Bend Toward the Sun is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:  Hello, Goodbye, by Kate Stollenwerck

Image belongs to SparkPress.

Title:  Hello, Goodbye    
Author: Kate Stollenwerck
Genre:   YA
Rating:  5.0 out of 5

Fifteen-year-old Hailey Rogers is sure her summer is ruined when her parents force her to spend a few days a week helping her grandmother, Gigi. Although she only lives across town, she never sees her grandmother and knows little about her. But Gigi is full of surprises–and family secrets. Throw in the gorgeous boy down the street, and Hailey’s ruined summer might just be the best of her life.

Then tragedy strikes, lies are uncovered, and Hailey’s life suddenly falls apart. After unearthing clues in an old letter written by her great-grandfather, she takes off on a road trip to solve the family mystery with the only person she can trust. In a forgotten Texas town, the past and the present collide–and Hailey is forced to choose what she truly values in life.

I loved this! I think Hailey is a great character, and I loved seeing how her mind works and how she changed through the course of this book. The family dynamics were intriguing, and I really wanted to know what was going on with Gigi. I enjoyed the Beatles obsession—and the car. I just thoroughly enjoyed this from the very first page.

Kate Stollenwerck lives in Florida. Hello, Goodbye is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of SparkPress in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:  Love and the Dream Come True, by Tammy L. Gray

Image belongs to Bethany House.

Title:  Love and the Dream Come True
Author: Tammy L. Gray
Genre:   Christian, romance
Rating:  4.5 out of 5

When Cameron Lee’s music career takes a nose dive, he reluctantly returns home, where he falls fast for single mom Lexie Walters. But fantasies only last so long, and soon they have to face the real world, one fraught with heartbreak and disappointment and questions that can only be answered on your knees.

This was such a sweet read! I can’t relate too much to Lexie and her always-positive attitude—as well as her being so forgetful and always running late—but I really enjoyed her story arc with Cameron:  ending up with your childhood crush/rockstar is a pretty sweet fantasy come to life. Cameron’s struggle with forgiveness was hard to read, but I loved how that worked out. This was just a solid romance read, with faith woven seamlessly into the characters’ lives.

Tammy L. Gray lives in Texas. Love and the Dream Come True is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Bethany House in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:  How to Date a Superhero (And Not Die Trying), by Cristina Fernandez

Image belongs to HarperCollins.

Title:    How to Date a Superhero (And Not Die Trying)  
Author:   Cristina Fernandez
Genre:   YA, fantasy
Rating:  3.0 out of 5

Falling for a superhero is dangerous. You have to trust that they’ll catch you.

Astrid isn’t a superhero, not like the ones she sees on the news, but she has something she thinks of as a small superpower: she has a perfect sense of time. And she’s not going to waste a single second.

Her plan for college is clear—friends, classes, and extracurriculars all carefully selected to get her into medical school.

Until Max Martin, a nerdy boy from her high school, crashes back into her life. Things with Max were never simple, and he doesn’t keep to her schedule. He disappears in the middle of dates and cancels at the last minute with stupid excuses.

When a supervillain breaks into her bedroom one night, Astrid has to face the facts: her boyfriend, Max Martin, is a superhero. Double-majoring as a premed was hard, but now Astrid will have to balance a double life. This wasn’t part of her plan.

This was an okay read. Definitely an alternate reality setting, with superheroes and aliens accepted as commonplace, and the rest of the world more or less the same as ours. Astrid was…overwhelmingly selfish, frankly. Beyond obsessed with her schedule and infuriated by anything that dared impinge on it—or her life plans. This is a fairly light read, and if you can deal with a selfish and self-absorbed main character who’s oblivious to all the signs being put out by everyone around her, well, give it a shot.

Cristina Fernandez’s debut novel is How to Date a Superhero (And Not Die Trying).

(Galley courtesy of HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:  Master of Iron, by Tricia Levenseller

Image belongs to Macmillan/Feewel & Friends.

Title:  Master of Iron    
Author:  Tricia Levenseller
Genre:  YA
Rating:  4.2 out of 5

Eighteen-year-old Ziva may have defeated a deadly warlord, but the price was almost too much. Ziva is forced into a breakneck race to a nearby city with the handsome mercenary, Kellyn, and the young scholar, Petrik, to find a powerful magical healer who can save her sister’s life.

When the events that follow lead to Ziva and Kellyn’s capture by an ambitious prince, Ziva is forced into the very situation she’s been dreading: magicking dangerous weapons meant for world domination.

The forge has always been Ziva’s safe space, a place to avoid society and the anxiety it causes her, but now it is her prison, and she’s not sure just how much of herself she’ll have to sacrifice to save Kellyn and take center stage in the very war she’s been trying to stop.

I hadn’t read the first book in this duology, so it took me a few minutes to get into this, but then I thoroughly enjoyed it. Ziva’s point-of-view is well-done and really shows how her anxiety feels from the inside—and the things she notices about how people respond to it. A nice level of magic and an interesting culture, as well as vivid and likable secondary characters made this an above-average fantasy read.

Tricia Levenseller is from Oregon. Master of Iron is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Macmillan/Feiwel & Friends in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:  Violet Made of Thorns, by Gina Chen

Image belongs to Random House Children’s.

Title: Violet Made of Thorns     
Author: Gina Chen  
Genre:  Fantasy
Rating:  4.5

Violet is a prophet and a liar, influencing the royal court with her cleverly phrased—and not always true—divinations. Honesty is for suckers, like the oh-so-not charming Prince Cyrus, who plans to strip Violet of her official role once he’s crowned at the end of the summer—unless Violet does something about it.

But when the king asks her to falsely prophesy Cyrus’s love story for an upcoming ball, Violet awakens a dreaded curse, one that will end in either damnation or salvation for the kingdom—all depending on the prince’s choice of future bride. Violet faces her own choice: Seize an opportunity to gain control of her own destiny, no matter the cost, or give in to the ill-fated attraction that’s growing between her and Cyrus.

Violet’s wits may protect her in the cutthroat court, but they can’t change her fate. And as the boundary between hatred and love grows ever thinner with the prince, Violet must untangle a wicked web of deceit in order to save herself and the kingdom—or doom them all.

I enjoyed this story, but I have to say, Violet and Cyrus are both kind of unlikable jerks. Especially to each other. Cyrus’ arrogance is almost overwhelming at times, and Violet is just rude and hateful at least half the time. I enjoyed the culture and mythology, but their personalities were almost enough to make me DNF this. I’m interested in reading more about them—probably—but this isn’t a warm and fuzzy tale.

Gina Chen lives in California. Violet Made of Thorn is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Random House Children’s in exchange for an honest review.)