#1 The Kate in Between - Claire Swinarski
• I really enjoyed this book and didn’t want to stop. • I often found myself getting mad at the main character; Kate. She was a coward and very apprehensive about which way to go. Taylor was a “mean girl” and I just couldn’t get behind Kate being friends with her most of the time in the beginning. But I couldn’t get too upset because the first line is LITERALLY “Every story has a villain and in this one it’s me” well she did completely and utterly warned me beforehand. • As the story went on, I just knew that Taylor or one of the other girls had to be recording and recorded Kate throwing the hat, I just knew that was going to come out at the end. • But the great thing about this book is that it highlighted a lot of different and good messages: 1.) Absent parents who loved their children but wanted to chase their own dreams instead of taking the responsibility. 2.) Growing up and the pressures of being in the “popular” group to feel seen or have a sort of power, how you might justify someone’s actions, wanting to stand up and backing down and taking the insult because it wasn’t as bad as before, even the “mean girl” is a complex person with their own problems “hurt people hurt people”, new changes in social and emotional dynamics, vulnerability and wanting to run from issues. 3.) The pros and cons of social media and its impact on people and society. • A great message for kids and some adults. It really showcased a lot of different messages throughout that could really get someone to thinking. • I thought it was written so very well and would definitely recommend.
#2 How to Find a Missing Girl - Victoria Wlosok
• I will say this book kept me guessing and I like that when I’m trying to figure it out at the same time. A who-dun-it type. • At most times I found Iris annoying with all the guards she put up and pushing people away even when she verbalized she was wrong or didn’t want to keep up her shield, knowing how detrimental it was for herself and those close to her. I grudgingly had to keep moving past those moments because i know there needed to be room for some character growth. SPOILERS!!! • I never suspected Mr. Cooper but they never showed any inklings or suspiciousness. It was a nice twist, it actually reminded me of the video game Life is Strange where the teacher was the killer. It would have been a better twist if he was more throughout the book and I STILL didn’t guess him. • I had a thought that Iris copied the USB drives and hid them somewhere but then when she was devastated at their destruction I knew I must have been wrong BUT then when she kept asking him questions, it seemed like she was baiting him into admitting more confessions about his crimes and I really hoped that she was purposefully doing so to record him for evidence. And as the book nicely laid out, I was right and Iris was recording. • It did lack emotion and backstories that made me connect with the characters and care for them. • I think it was a great book with compelling and complex characters with their own unique set of skills pertinent to solving the case. • The twists and turns the book took were very nicely done.
#3 Made in Manhattan - Lauren Layne
•I almost DNF this book quite a few times. I didn’t start “liking” the book until about 85 percent in. I had to put in WORK to finish it. •Violet was supposed to be this uppity spoiled rotten upper East Side princess but she was actually quite kind, generous and considerate but definitely was stubborn (which is not necessary a flaw, it depends). I didn’t like how in the beginning Violet was already flustered and questioning things in her first interaction with Cain, felt unrealistic and bad writing for the trope the author was trying to go for. I absolutely hated when Violet would keep going back to Cain no matter what he did or said. •Cain… uhhhh….. a horrible character. He was obnoxiously uncouth and vulgar, especially with his interactions with Violet. His behavior was appalling and had no idea what Violet saw except apparently attractiveness. I also never got a backstory on why Cain was the way he was (not that it would have excused most of his actions) but it may have made his character less insufferable, I think. •Their relationship was NOT for me. Didn’t like their so called “chemistry” and Cain had a book full of inappropriate sexual statements and cold rude inappropriate behavior. I understood the frustration with his new found grandmother and new “makeover” but seriously, he knew what he needed to become to impress this board, either try or don’t but he whined and groaned the entire time. •Their relationship grew closer slowly over time but then it flipped completely to both being IN LOVE! Liking each other, fine, but in love. Come on! •To do an enemies to lovers is a really hard trope to pull off correctly and it doesn’t help if the male love interest is one of the worst characters I have ever read, even in the end. I know it’s also the grumpy/sunshine trope as well, it just didn’t work, again because of CAIN!!! •Edith and Keith were good characters, made sense, no complaints. •Ashley kept encouraging Violet to continue pursuing Cain and taking his side. Cain, a man that has messed with her feelings and treated her so poorly which was really disappointing and bad dating advice and also didn’t tell her that her BF cheated on her months ago! I think she was a “best friend” that is secretly jealous of Vi and wants the worst for her. Would had made more complexity to the story if Ashley was secreting undermining her the entire time. •The ending chapters felt rushed to hurry and get the characters together and end it which made the book even worse. •One of the other really good things was I did like Violet’s personal shift and the aspect of her trying to change him and ended up discovering herself in the process. I also liked her backstory on how she became what she did. I also liked her standing up for herself and realizing that she only pleased other people and never herself. EXCEPT WITH CAIN!!! •I truly would have liked this book better if she would have taken her new fierce strength of standing up for herself and would not have accepted Cain back (due to his vulgar language, inappropriate behavior and lack of respect and kindness) and just stayed friends, only if he could respect her, and maybe in a sequel we could see him change over time, which would have had to take a whole other novel and then they could have gotten together. •I just can’t recommend this book, it teaches women to pursue men who treat you like trash and just a piece of meat. It teaches women to stay with the bad guy and be there for him because he is sooooo misunderstood. No thank you.
#4 A Killer Kind of Romance - Letizia Lorini
• There were parts that I liked and parts I didn’t (most of them). • Freckles (cute nickname) was insufferable. She was a walking red flag. Her behavior was childish and over dramatic, her inability to control her actions or emotions, throwing tantrums. Like when in the courtroom, she yelled at the judge (THE JUDGE) and couldn’t keep her mouth shut even when her lawyer told her to (I would have dropped her as a client). • There was tension between Raphael and Scarlett in the beginning but it became more of a chore for him to keep her from pushing away (plus her just asking to have sex in the car that first night was just weird). After a few chapters, the tension seemed to fizzle out and felt forced. • Also she was a “not like other girls” because she hates romance and just can’t fall in love. Girl needs therapy. • I understand why he thought he liked her from that day of her birthday (which was sweet and genuine) but I didn’t understand why Grey continued to like her overlooking all her red flags. • I did really like that Grey did really see HER. I liked that he watched tv as she liked to read while she ate, which was so kind and considerate. Other than that, I didn’t see the appeal of Grey except that he was apparently attractive and his “dirty talk” was weird, cringy and completely out of place for me. • I didn’t like when Grey assaulted a 16 year old boy and made fun of his penis (that was weird) and then vandalized his car and Scarlett first opposed it but then accepted it because it was Grey. • They were a red flag couple, this relationship is NOT a romcom and would never last. • There were a lot of subplots, at first it was unique and different and then became too much. I didn’t mind the brother and grandparents subplot but focused on it too much. • I liked the definition at the top of each chapter but then became too much again. • I liked that the murderer was using the podcast to kill like in the books, I wish the book actually focused more on that. The town didn’t seem to panic at all, like this was just a normal occurrence. • This book was just one giant cliche. • I wanted to see more of the mystery killer part, most of the book was just weird interactions with Grey and Freckles. • I did like her best friend’s girlfriend being obsessed with her, I would have liked to see more hints dropped through the book and I personally think SHE should have been the killer (but needed to be a reveal instead of a discovery). • Now personally I could NOT STAND the smut or use of GD. I cringed every time I had to read it. (But I didn’t dock stars for those reasons since that is my personal religious preferences and not from my readers standpoint, just to be transparent). • This book had SO MUCH potential to be really good. Like so much, I’m so disappointed. 😔
#5 The Van Gogh - Deron R. Hicks
• I could have really like this book but I wouldn’t read it again but I would recommend but only for the art history and the concept of the book. • The QR codes to see the paintings that were mentioned throughout the book was a very inclusive and unique way of showcasing the art, instead of just describing it. That was an excellent idea and was done well, which was one of the few things done right. • Now even though I’m not a big art fan, I always respected the talent and the love it was given but I will say it actually made me have a deeper and even better understanding and respect for art then I did before. • I enjoyed the art history dialogue without sounding too much like a school history lesson. • I thought the characters Art and Camille were somewhat resourceful in their own ways given their age but lacked connection with the reader. • I think the bad guys were not very intelligent characters and a little bit unrealistic, real bad guys would not have made some of the decisions and ultimately mistakes that they made which made it almost comical when statements like “I don’t know what happened” or “it all happened to fast” were made… A LOT. • I was mad at the officer that gave away Mary’s home address and phone number, but it was actually quite realistic of real police officers that are human and make mistakes and rather go to lunch and take easy shortcuts instead of going through the extensive process when they have other cases to look at. • I thought Mary and Detective Evans were bland characters that didn’t impact my emotions, just a character simply a means to an end. • One thing I didn’t like was the lack of knowledge of technology, like the “tracking software” that didn’t sound at all how to track a phone and the scrubbing of the hotel security camera, like how? Why didn’t they write how they did that or when Evan’s brought it up why not then explain how the security guy was rendered unconscious or something. • Also, one thing there were a lot of unlabeled POV chapters so you have to read a few paragraphs before you can figure out which character POV you were at now, there should have been a title on each chapter stating who POV it was. • Another was there was no emotion in this book, I didn’t resonate with the characters, feel why they are feeling or feel for them. I didn’t laugh, cry or be anxious in any way. Just reading words on a page. • I thought the mystery to unravel as the memories slowly come back and the more confident Art grew was “good” but predictable. • I actually would have liked if his father was the art forger and the son decided to do the right thing and go against his father and steal the journal. That would have been more drama and not predictable and made for a unique father son dynamic and given Art a tough dilemma of choosing his father or the right thing to do in the end. • I believe the ending was rushed but I did like Art pulling off the Art piece to activate the alarm and bars but would have like him and the father to get in the secret passageway when the smoke hit. • I believe it would make a good movie or one season mini series, if done correctly and change a few things… actually a lot of things.
#6 A Duet for Home - Karina Yan Glaser
• This was a cute but simple book. • I did like the different perspectives and I actually think it would have been better if we had multiple perspectives by different characters. There was Tyrell and June but it would have been nice to see Ms.G, MacVillian, Abuela, Domenik, Ms. Yang, Marcus and even Tyrell mother. But only a few chapters at certain pivotal moments. I think that would had added to the story. • I also wished to see more backstory on the characters to make me resonate with them, their backstories were very cut and dry without much emotion. • I would have also added some flashbacks on the characters like Junes dad dying and Tyrell’s dad being a murderer. • It was a very slow book with not a lot of climactic moments and even the “big” moments were not described correctly to make me feel something. • The ending felt rushed and unrealistic. I think this could have been a 5 star book if it was rewritten with more complexity, added character flashbacks, more emotional complexity, more climatic moments and more character perspective. • Given the name of the book, I thought music would play a bigger part than it did. • Overall though I did like the fact that they brought attention to grief, homelessness and political policies affecting people. I would have just liked it done a bit differently to help me connect more though.
#7 The Mystery of the Radcliffe Riddle - Taryn Souders
• At first it was really hard to distinguish what characters were who when talking, it did become clearer after a few pages. • The story was kind of… slow. Had moments of excitement but then slow again. • Grady was a good character, he was determined, smart and vulnerable from grieving his mother • Clemmie was definitely a type A personality, smart and bossy. • Thad, well I thought Thad was a useless character that didn’t add anything and truly possibly took away from the story in a lot of moments. Was more just a rage character for Clemmie to banter with. • I think it should have been good with just Grady and Clemmie without the distraction of Thad. SPOILERS! Things I DID NOT EXPECT: 1. Arliss getting killed. It was kind of sad that Grady saw him that night before his death. 2. Muggie being the culprit, I truly thought it was some treasure hunter out of towner or something and even if I thought someone from town did it I just didn’t guess her. 3. Eudora mail being the “real treasure”, when Grady went to give Burns the mail, I didn’t clock that he still had the mail found in cat food bag and why it was important enough to tell us. I should have though. 4. That they would become rich after the cross was rightfully given back to its true owner. I thought this was gonna end with a not so much unhappy ending but a realistic one, usually I would prefer an “unhollywood” type ending but I liked this one and how it was handled. • One thing I could not understand what the “timbre” in the piano clue. I didn’t see the connection to that and the Knee Scraper. I do think it was explained poorly. • Overall, the mystery was good and the research and knowledge behind every clue. I liked the history and the diary entries, kind of wished to see more old documents pages and entries throughout. Would have felt more like I was involved.
#8 The Second Chance Year - Melissa Wiesner
• I really enjoyed this book. • It flowed smoothly and was a quick and engaging read. it never had any parts that I had to “just get through”. • I liked the main character Sadie. She wasn’t a character that was over dramatic with everything or make very stupid decisions, she actually thought at first that the life she lost was one she wanted (which we all can relate to at some point in our lives when they don’t go as planned). Plus she was a relatable and flawed FMC which was written well. • The moments between Sadie and Jacob was sweet and cute but I didn’t feel the passion. Their romance felt lackluster. But I can say I am glad for a read with clean romance, no spice. So because of the lack of romance in a book targeted as “romance”, I more so describe this book as a self-journey type of arc. • I did think the pastry puns were a little too overused. • Once she started the year over, I knew there was only 2 ways it was going to end. Either; 1.) Going back to her original reality or 2.) Having to continue on with the new reality and make it her own. • I did like how she went the opposite with her personality, like making herself small, which made sense. Of course, if she was trying to accomplish what she deemed important at that time, she would definitely go the opposite way and go too far. • The parents…. Of course, I loathed them. But their characters are very true to how some parents are, so they were done very well. • I liked that she couldn’t go back to the original, everything worked out exactly how it should be and better. (Usually how life works out). Examples of how 👇 1.) Kasumi got to do her passion (social media and got to admit what happened to her with Xavier which in turn gives Sadie and her an even better friendship than before) 2.) Jacob (a stronger and more passionate connection, his feeling reciprocated, overcoming some stage fright for Sadie) 3.) Xavier (got what he deserved and with Sadie’s actions it saved other girls from the same treatment with Xavier and Rob) 4.) Paige (ending up with Brandon showing that the right people will find each other despite any obstacles in the way) 5.) Alex (didn’t get to see but I like to believe he did grow at least a little bit from Sadie rejecting him) 6.) Zoe (Saved her business and got a good family at the cafe) 7.) Ms. K (forgot to spell her name, old woman at the cafe) (she finally got a family after being so lonely) 8.) Owen (he got to have a closer relationship with his sister, got to confess about his feeing on his job and what he truly wants to do and even though we don’t see him up and quit his job to start designing video games, I believe that he will start working towards that dream). 9.) Sadie (her real and enduring relationship with Jacob, a stronger and more understanding relationship with her brother, a stronger and more honest friendship with Kasumi, gained and appreciated the family she didn’t get with her new cafe family, learned to control her emotions while still able to stand up for what’s right, learned to accept the mistakes and downfalls that life offers, embracing who she is no matter who approves) • I liked that this book talked about some subjects (but kept it light enough) that most books don’t comment on; sexism, sexual harassment, societal norms, parental disapproval, GIGS and assimilation. Overall this book felt like a 90s rom com movie; predictable but you can’t help but love it. I would recommend someone read this book and after a few years I’ll probably read it again • I would truly give it 4.5 stars, I had to dock half a point for not seeing her brother quit and the lack of romantic chemistry between Sadie and Jacob.
#9 Kiss Her Once for Me - Alison Cochrun
• I have very little pros and several cons on this book. • Had to make myself get through this one. • The arrangement of the arrangement was kind of off, it just wasn’t set up well but the financial reason was understandable. • The same phrases of Jack’s thick muscular thighs and her crescent smile got repetitive and annoying. • Elle did present someone with social anxiety really well, even with interacting with friends and family. So that is a very scarce compliment for this book. • I liked the toxic mother aspect and watching Elle struggle and starve for her mother’s love, no matter how many times she was disappointed. It was raw and real. Another rare compliment. • Even though I didn’t care for the plot, I did think the book was an easy read, it flowed smoothly. • Elle’s internal monologue of phrases “this ain’t me” “I’m not this type of person” “I don’t do these things” well CLEARLY you DO! She only needed to say it a couple of times to get the message across but it was constant, like every chapter, it was extremely exhausting reading it and I don’t know much about the type of sexuality Elle stated she was and I don’t think the author did either, that part of her personality kept changing. • There was multiple times that the family kept pushing Jack and Elle together to do things intimate and alone and the worse moment was when the WHOLE family was CHANTING yes CHANTING for Jack and Elle (Andrew’s fiancé) to kiss under the mistletoe. Like if Elle and Andrew really were a real couple, that would mean you would be kissing your sister-in-law and that’s just so awkward and weird. • I didn’t care for Jacks character. Never understood why Jack blamed Elle for “ruining their romance twice” as if she didn’t just kiss her brother’s fiancé and had an entire secret wife the year before. • The unisex names were very confusing at times. • The insta-love was completely unrealistic and felt lackluster with the flashbacks and the unfaltering love after a whole year without communication was just no. It would have been better as an insta-infatuation, like with the movie Serendipity, where the characters always felt this magnetic feeling towards the other without it having to be love. The so called “chemistry” between Elle and Jack was non existent in present and past. • Elle’s depression of being a broken love struck puppy was childish and immature for someone who has only known the other person ONE WEEK!