Tag: book review

Book Review: Weekends with You, by Alexandra Paige    

Image belongs to Avon and Harper Voyager.

Title: Weekends with You  
Author:  Alexandra Paige     
Genre:  Fiction    
Rating:  4 out of 5

Flowers have always been the best communicators. They’ve mastered falling over one another in the perfect way to announce exactly what they need: sunlight, water, space. They do not rush. They do not bloom before their time. They do not take without giving in return…

They are nothing like the rest of London.

Between trying to keep her north London flower shop, The Lotus, afloat and falling for a flatmate, Lucy Bernstein is going to have to rethink everything she knows about “creative arrangements.”

Unwillingly becoming one of eight flatmates in a quirky warehouse conversion would have been difficult enough without any romantic entanglements, but when Lucy lays eyes on Henry Baker, the traveling photographer who only comes home twelve weekends a year, she knows her hands will be full with more than just posies. As each weekend progresses, Lucy also finds herself unexpectedly falling for all her new flatmates, along with this bustling but ultimately sweeter home.

Can Lucy learn from the flowers she tends to and bravely reach for all that she needs to bloom?

I really loved the whole flatmate aspect with the weekend adventures—this sounds like so much fun! I like Lucy a lot, but Henry really had some issues that I did not care for. If I’d been Lucy, I’d have let that whole situation go after his first or second stupid move. I really enjoyed the friendships between all of the flatmates, though, and the adventures they had. Those were a lot of fun to read.

Alexandra Paige lives in New Jersey. Weekends with You is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Avon and Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review:   To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, by Molly X. Chang 

Image belongs to Random House/Del Rey.

Title:  To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods    
Author: Molly X. Chang        
Genre: Fantasy      
Rating: 3 out of 5

She has power over death. He has power over her. When two enemies strike a dangerous bargain, will they end a war . . . or ignite one?

Heroes die, cowards live. Daughter of a conquered world, Ruying hates the invaders who descended from the heavens long before she was born and defeated the magic of her people with technologies unlike anything her world had ever seen.

Blessed by Death, born with the ability to pull the life right out of mortal bodies, Ruying shouldn’t have to fear these foreign invaders, but she does. Especially because she wants to keep herself and her family safe.

When Ruying’s Gift is discovered by an enemy prince, he offers her an impossible deal: If she becomes his private assassin and eliminates his political rivals—whose deaths he swears would be for the good of both their worlds and would protect her people from further brutalization—her family will never starve or suffer harm again. But to accept this bargain, she must use the powers she has always feared, powers that will shave years off her own existence.

Can Ruying trust this prince, whose promises of a better world make her heart ache and whose smiles make her pulse beat faster? Are the evils of this agreement really in the service of a much greater good? Or will she betray her entire nation by protecting those she loves the most?

Leaving aside the whole colonizer/slave romance questions—which I see a lot of talk about in reviews—I thought the storytelling itself was a bit superficial. I mean, I felt like a lot of things were skimmed over and only touched on on a superficial level. Ruying was supposed to be an assassin, but none of that was shown at all, and it was barely even mentioned. There was the immediate connection between Ruyang and the prince—which wasn’t the slightest bit believable to me, considering the circumstances and who they were—but how their feelings grew weren’t shown, leaving me feeling like I’d missed on a whole lot of development.

Molly X. Chang is from China and now lives in London. To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Random House/Del Rey in exchange for an honest review.)

Sundays are for Writing #275

This was a solid writing week: I got in five fiction sessions, and two book reviews, The British Booksellers, by Kristy Cambron and The Reappearance of Rachel Price, by Holly Jackson. Busy week with family in town, a birthday party for my nephew, and my aunt in the hospital, so I’m pleased I stuck to my writing.

Happy writing!

Book Review:  The Reappearance of Rachel Price, by Holly Jackson   

Image belongs to Random House/Delacorte Press.

Title: The Reappearance of Rachel Price
Author: Holly Jackson   
Genre: YA     
Rating:  4 out of 5

Lights. Camera. Lies.

18-year-old Bel has lived her whole life in the shadow of her mom’s mysterious disappearance. Sixteen years ago, Rachel Price vanished and young Bel was the only witness, but she has no memory of it. Rachel is gone, long presumed dead, and Bel wishes everyone would just move on.

But the case is dragged up from the past when the Price family agree to a true crime documentary. Bel can’t wait for filming to end, for life to go back to normal. And then the impossible happens. Rachel Price reappears, and life will never be normal again.

Rachel has an unbelievable story about what happened to her. Unbelievable, because Bel isn’t sure it’s real. If Rachel is lying, then where has she been all this time? And – could she be dangerous? With the cameras still rolling, Bel must uncover the truth about her mother, and find out why Rachel Price really came back from the dead . . .  

I never quite figured out what was going on here! I suspected some things, but I was never sure. Kudos to the author for that! Bel’s prickly was actually quite appealing to me, although she went a little too far a few times—but at least she realized she’d gone too far, and backtracked. There are a lot of secrets in this novel, and some are very well-hidden. I enjoyed this thriller read and stayed up late to find out what was going on.

Holly Jackson is a bestselling author. The Reappearance of Rachel Price is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Random House/Delacorte Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The British Booksellers, by Kristy Cambron   

Image belongs to Thomas Nelson.

Title: The British Booksellers
Author: Kristy Cambron     
Genre: Historical fiction   
Rating:  4.5 out of 5

A tenant farmer’s son had no business daring to dream of a future with an earl’s daughter, but that couldn’t keep Amos Darby from his secret friendship with Charlotte Terrington . . . until the reality of the Great War sobered youthful dreams. Now decades later, he bears the brutal scars of battles fought in the trenches and their futures that were stolen away. His return home doesn’t come with tender reunions, but with the hollow fulfillment of opening a bookshop on his own and retreating as a recluse within its walls.

When the future Earl of Harcourt chose Charlotte to be his wife, she knew she was destined for a loveless match. Though her heart had chosen another long ago, she pledges her future even as her husband goes to war. Twenty-five years later, Charlotte remains a war widow who divides her days between her late husband’s declining estate and operating a quaint Coventry bookshop—Eden Books, lovingly named after her grown daughter. And Amos is nothing more than the rival bookseller across the lane.

As war with Hitler looms, Eden is determined to preserve her father’s legacy. So when an American solicitor arrives threatening a lawsuit that could destroy everything they’ve worked so hard to preserve, mother and daughter prepare to fight back. But with devastation wrought by the Luftwaffe’s local blitz terrorizing the skies, battling bookshops—and lost loves, Amos and Charlotte—must put aside their differences and fight together to help Coventry survive.

This was such a good read! I love that it was both World War I and World War II fiction. I loved young Charlie’s POV, but her adult self’s POV was just as interesting.  Seeing Eden’s adventures with the garden girls—and the handsome American Lawyer—was enthralling, too, but what I enjoyed most were all the literary references. Highly recommend this read!

Kristy Cambron is an award-winning author. The British Booksellers is her newest novel.

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

Sundays are for Writing #274

This wasn’t a great writing week: I wrote one book review, Love, Unscripted, by Denise Hunter, and four fiction sessions. This is the first week all year I haven’t met my goal of five fiction-writing sessions each week. :/ Work was tough this week, though, and I was exhausted. Hopefully next week will be better!

Happy writing!

Book Review: Love, Unscripted, by Denise Hunter

Image belongs to Thomas Nelson.

Title:  Love, Unscripted  
Author: Denise Hunter
Genre:  Romance
Rating:  4.5 out of 5

The perfect boyfriend only exists on paper…doesn’t he?

Fresh off the heels of a bad breakup, Chloe Anderson poured her heart into penning the perfect boyfriend—and the result was an off-the-charts debut beach read that resonated with women worldwide. Now, Chloe’s scripted hero is headed for Hollywood, with her book destined to become a major motion picture.

When Chloe gets wind that silver screen bad boy Liam Hamilton has been cast as the ideal-in-every-way hero of her novel, she’s horrified by the film director’s choice. How could a player like Liam possibly do Chloe’s perfect hero justice? Unafraid to speak her mind, Chloe lets her executive producer know she’s one hundred percent opposed to the casting. And oops—the call is on speakerphone, where the annoyingly attractive Hollywood star hears Chloe’s unbridled outrage firsthand.

With Liam’s reputation already on the rocks, his agent concocts a PR plan to upgrade Liam’s image while putting the story—and the film—in the spotlight. The catch? During the movie’s filming in Chloe’s cute hometown of Stillwater, North Carolina, Chloe and Liam will fake a wholesome, committed relationship. Both stand to gain something from the arrangement. Liam’s fans will see him in a new light, while Chloe can boost her struggling social media following and further her writing career. What could possibly go wrong?

As author and actor navigate the waters of the PR relationship, they’re unpre­pared when their professional agreement turns into an actual friendship. And when serious sparks start to fly—well, that’s an unread chapter for both of them.

Like Denise Hunter’s other books, this was a sweet, fun read. I enjoyed the chemistry between Chloe and Liam from the beginning, when they were basically enemies, as they got to know each other and grew closer. So many misunderstandings here! I loved the small-town feel of this—even though I don’t envy small-town life—and was invested in these characters from the very beginning.

Denise Hunter is an award-winning author. Love, Unscripted is her newest novel.

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

Sundays are for Writing #273

This was a decent writing week: I got in five fiction sessions and wrote one book review, The Trail of Lost Hearts, by Tracey Garvis Graves. I really enjoyed this read quite a bit.

Happy writing!

Book Review: The Trail of Lost Hearts, by Tracey Garvis Graves     

Image belongs to St. Martin’s Press.

Title:  The Trail of Lost Hearts
Author:  Tracey Garvis Graves     
Genre: Fiction      
Rating:  4.5 out of 5

Thirty-four-year-old Wren Waters believes that if you pay attention, the universe will send you exactly what you need. But her worldview shatters when the universe delivers two life-altering blows she didn’t see coming, and all she wants to do is put the whole heartbreaking mess behind her. No one is more surprised than Wren when she discovers that geocaching―the outdoor activity of using GPS to look for hidden objects―is the only thing getting her out of bed and out of her head. She decides that a weeklong solo quest geocaching in Oregon is exactly what she needs to take back control of her life.

Enter Marshall Hendricks, a psychologist searching for distraction as he struggles with a life-altering blow of his own. Though Wren initially rebuffs Marshall’s attempt at hiker small talk, she’s beyond grateful when he rescues her from a horrifying encounter farther down the trail. In the interest of safety, Marshall suggests partnering up to look for additional caches. Wren’s no longer quite so trusting of the universe―or men in general―but her inner circle might argue that a smart, charismatic psychologist isn’t the worst thing the universe could place in her path.

What begins as a platonic road trip gradually blossoms into something deeper, and the more Wren learns about Marshall, the more she wants to know. Now all she can do is hope that the universe gets it right this time.

I thought I was just going to read a little bit of this before going to bed. I ended up staying up until 1 a.m. to read the entire thing. I enjoyed the voice and style tremendously and couldn’t wait to find out what would happen with Wren and Marshall.

Wren really went through the wringer! I cannot even imagine having my life upended like this, and the fact that she’s still trying is inspiring. The chemistry between her and Marshall was great, and I loved their banter and growing closeness. I just had to stay up and see how things turned out!

Tracey Garvis Graves is a bestselling author. The Trail of Lost Hearts is her newest novel.

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

Sundays are for Writing #272

Despite traveling/being gone for work this week, it was still a solid writing week. I got in five fiction sessions, and three book reviews: Expiration Dates, by Rebecca Serle (not sure how I feel about this read), The Last Bloodcarver, by Vanessa Le (excellent read), Sincerely, the Duke, by Amelia Grey (solid romance read). I also wrote my March reading post, and my best books of March post.

Happy writing!