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