One Blood

 

Title: One Blood

Author: Denene Millner

Publisher: Forge Books

 
ISBN: 9781250276193

 

Thoughts: Engrossing family saga with a touch of magical realism, but I wanted more connection between the beginning and end.

Rating: 3/5

Stacking the Shelves: 11/26-12/30

Gift with Purchase at Barnes & Noble:

Gothic Tales by H. P. Lovecraft

The Cartographers

 

Title: The Cartographers

Author: Peng Shepherd

Publisher: Harper Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Imaginative and fast-paced fantasy, but there were just a few questions that I wanted answered.

Rating: 4/5

Booth

 

Title: Booth

Author: Karen Joy Fowler

Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: This expertly-crafted historical fiction novel is not about John Wilkes Booth, but about his siblings, which is a rather unique take.

Rating: 4/5

This Is Not the Real World

 

Title: This Is Not the Real World

Author: Anna Carey

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781683692812

 

Thoughts: More intense than the first book, but the nostalgia was lacking and the ending was not very satisfying.

Rating: 3/5

Tell Me Everything

 

Title: Tell Me Everything: The Story of a Private Investigation

Author: Erika Krouse

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

 
ISBN: 9781250839213

 

Thoughts: Interesting and intense look at the investigation of rape culture at a university missed with the author's own story as well as relevant historical cases.

Rating: 4/5

Nick and Tesla's High-Voltage Danger Lab

 

Title: Nick and Tesla's High-Voltage Danger Lab

Author: Bob Pflugfelder & Steve Hockensmith

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781594746482

 

Thoughts: While this progresses in a logical linear order (at least for an MG book), it seems a little confused as to what it wants to be, other than a story that adds in science experiments.

Rating: 3/5

Bride of the Tornado

 

Title: Bride of the Tornado

Author: James Kennedy

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781683693277

 

Thoughts: Highly captivating Midwestern gothic horror.

Rating: 4/5

In Love

 

Title: In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss

Author: Amy Bloom

Publisher: Random House Audio

 
ISBN: 9780593555989

 

Thoughts: Not a cheerful read, but very emotional and honest.

Rating: 4/5

The Secret Book of Flora Lea

 

Title: The Secret Book of Flora Lea

Author: Patti Callahan Henry

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

 
ISBN: 9781797155982

 

Thoughts: A historical mystery that will remind you of childhood fantasy novels while explaining the reason a specific trope of them exists.

Rating: 4/5

Mom in the Movies

 

Title: Mom in the Movies: The Iconic Screen Mothers You Love (and a Few You Love to Hate)

Author: Richard Corliss

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

 
ISBN: 9781476738260

 

Thoughts: Good as a coffee table book, but did not feel as comprehensive as it could have been.

Rating: 3/5

Stacking the Shelves: 11/19-11/25

Received in Blind Date with a Book from Serpent & Flame:

 

The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson

Amazing Grace Adams

Title: Amazing Grace Adams

Author: Fran Littlewood

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.

 
ISBN: 9781250334152

 

Thoughts: Littlewood manages to pull more feelings than expected from a novel about a woman going through an existential crisis.

Rating: 4/5

Violeta

 

Title: Violeta

Author: Isabel Allende

Publisher: Random House Audio

 
ISBN: 9780593558850

 

Thoughts: Allende's writing is so powerful that I kept forgetting that Violeta was not a real person.

Rating: 4/5

Stacking the Shelves: 11/5-11/18

 

Won:

The Busy Body by Kemper Donovan

Curvy Girls Can't Date Quarterbacks

 

Title: Curvy Girls Can't Date Quarterbacks

Author: Kelsie Stelting

Publisher: Kelsie Stelting Creative LLC

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Fun, positive, sweet YA romance, but some of the characterizations were a little too stock.

Rating: 3/5

Bad Summer People

 

Title: Bad Summer People

Author: Emma Rosenblum

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

 
ISBN: 9781250900845

 

Thoughts:  Good beach read with interesting characters, but there was not really the mystery as one would expect from the prologue.

Rating: 3/5

Homecoming

 

Title: Homecoming

Author: Kate Morton

Publisher: Mariner Books

 
ISBN: 9780063020894

 

Thoughts: Almost gothic in feel, this novel of mystery and family secrets is the best I have read all year.

Rating: 5/5

Stacking the Shelves: 10/15-11/4

Won at Bingo:

 

I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai

The Fraud

 

Title: The Fraud

Author: Zadie Smith

Publisher: Penguin Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: This had a strong Dickensian vibe to it (and not just because he was a character), and that made it very hard for me personally to follow.

Rating: 3/5

Stars, Hide Your Fires

 

Title: Stars, Hide Your Fires

Author: Jessica Mary Best

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781683693512

 

Thoughts: Rather uneven sci-fi romantic mystery with a choppy plot, little character development, and a "twist" that the characters should have seen much earlier than they did.

Rating: 2/5

Talking at Night

 

Title: Talking at Night

Author: Claire Daverley

Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books

 
ISBN: 9780593653487

 

Thoughts: Very melancholic character-driven story that flows in a way that makes it hard to put down.

Rating: 4/5

Cults

 

Title: Cults: Inside the World's Most Notorious Groups and Understanding the People Who Joined Them

Author: Max Cutler & Kevin Conley

Publisher: Gallery Books

 
ISBN: 9781982133542

 

Thoughts: Insightful and disturbing look into some of the world's most infamous cults.

Rating: 4/5

Late Bloomers

 

Title: Late Bloomers

Author: Deepa Varadarajan

Publisher: Random House

 
ISBN: 9780593498026

 

Thoughts: Delightful story about four family members learning about love in all it's forms.

Rating: 4/5

Notes on an Execution

 

Title: Notes on an Execution

Author: Danya Kukafka

Publisher: Audible Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts:  I enjoyed the characters and their development, but some parts of the story seemed to be left hanging or go against previous events.

Rating: 3/5

1984

 

Title: 1984

Author: George Orwell

Publisher: Penguin Books

 
ISBN: 9790141036144

 

Thoughts:  The concepts Orwell presents are well-thought-out and terrifying realistic, but it felt a little more like a fictionalized dissertation than an actual story.

Rating: 3/5

Beasts and Beauty

 

Title: Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales

Author: Soman Chainani

Publisher: HarperCollins

 
ISBN: 9798200743568

 

Thoughts:  A dark and melancholic collection of fairy tale retellings.

Rating: 3/5

The Princess and the Fangirl

 

Title: The Princess and the Fangril

Author: Ashley Poston

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781683690962

 

Thoughts:  A fun, geeky retelling of The Prince and the Pauper even if the reason for the switch is rather thin.

Rating: 4/5

Stacking the Shelves: 10/8-10/14

 

Bought on Amazon:

 

Good Night by Julia Blohberger & Roos Neeter

Work It Out

 

Title: Work It Out: A Mood-Boosting Exercise Guide for People Who Just Want to Lie Down

Author: Sarah Kurchak

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781683693921

 

Thoughts:  Excellent and slightly irreverent look at exercise with mental health in mind.

Rating: 4/5

The Book of Gothel

 

Title: The Book of Gothel

Author: Mary McMyne

Publisher: Redhook

 
ISBN: 9780316393119

 

Thoughts:  Rich retelling of the origin of Gothel from Rapunzel, but the frame story, while immensely fascinating and atmospheric, was not needed.

Rating: 4/5

The Elenium

 

Title: The Elenium

Author: David Eddings

Publisher: Del Rey

 
ISBN: 9780345500939

 

Thoughts:  Excellent high fantasy trilogy, even if the third book does devolve into a political numbers game for quite a few chapters.

Rating: 4/5

The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store

 

Title: The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store

Author: James McBride

Publisher: Penguin Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts:  There were a lot of characters, and the narrator's sonorous voice lulled me so much, that I had trouble remembering who was who and what the connections were, so that hindered my enjoyment.

Rating: 3/5

Stacking the Shelves: 9/10-10/7

Bought on Amazon:

 

Curvy Girls Can't Date Quarterbacks by Kelsie Stelting

Hanging with Vampires

 

Title: Hanging with Vampires

Author: Insha Fitzpatrick

Publisher: Quirk Books

 
ISBN: 9781683693413

 

Thoughts: This is a fun and informative guide for middle graders interested in an introduction to vampire lore.

Rating: 4/5

The Anomaly

 

Title: The Anomaly

Author: Herve Le Tellier

Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio

 
ISBN: 9780593501139

 

Thoughts: I am not sure if the original, the translation, or the narration made the story boring, but something did, and there was actually so many plot points that should have made it exciting.

Rating: 3/5

The Whispering Dark

 

Title: The Whispering Dark

Author: Kelly Andrew

Publisher: Scholastic Press

 
ISBN: 9781338809473

 

Thoughts: There was an interesting concept here, but the story was riddled with holes, either hastily patched or just plain ignored, and the characters were unevenly developed and often lacking likeable features.

Rating: 2/5

Romantic Comedy

 

Title: Romantic Comedy

Author: Curtis Sittenfeld

Publisher: Audible Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Fun, escapist read that still shows all the very realistic aspects of life and love.

Rating: 4/5

Sex Cult Nun

 

Title: Sex Cult Nun: Breaking Away from the Children of God, a Wild, Radical Religious Cult

Author: Faith Jones

Publisher: Audible Audio

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Fascinating and disturbing look at growing up within the Children of God.

Rating: 4/5

Oak Avenue

 

Title: Oak Avenue

Author: Brandi Reeds

Publisher: Amazon Originals

 
ISBN: n/a

 

Thoughts: Good bones for a creepy, haunted house story, but it really needs to be developed into a full-length novel.

Rating: 3/5

Beasts of a Little Land

 

Title: Beasts of a Little Land

Author: Juhae Kim

Publisher: HarperAudio

 
ISBN: 9780063093607

 

Thoughts: With a story that takes place overtime, there are often many characters who are somewhat difficult to keep straight, as happens here, but what made it a little more difficult were some of the creative choices the author made that I could not follow as I could not see the reason, which may be because I was listening to the audiobook.

Rating: 2/5

Stacking the Shelves: 8/27-9/9

Bought at Barnes & Noble:

The Steel Prince by V. E. Schwab

Night of Knives by V. E. Schwab