Category: Genre

Hannah’s Moon by John A. Heldt

Title: Hannah’s Moon
Author: John A. Heldt
Pub. Date: 8-Feb-2017
Rating: 5 Stars

Hannah’s Moon is the last book in the American Journey series. Do not worry if you have not read any of the other books in the series, because this one can be read as a stand-alone and you will not feel lost. In fact, I have only read one other in the series, September Sky, which is the first one. The entire series is based on a sci-fi, time travel theme. Expect also to get a little romance, suspense and WWII history with this one.

Claire Rasmussen wants nothing more than to have a child. After numerous attempts with the last one ending in a still birth she and Ron, her husband, decide to adopt. They soon discover that in 2017 this route is difficult and a very long process. Fortunately for them, a distant relative enters into the picture. Professor Bell, a relative of Claire’s, does have a solution and offers to send them back to 1945 where adoptions are much quicker and red tape a lot less. Continue reading “Hannah’s Moon by John A. Heldt”

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Title: Caraval
Author: Stephanie Garber
Pub Date: 1-Jan-2017
Rating: 4 Stars

Caraval is part fantasy, mystery, and romance all within a young adult wrapper. It is the first book of a series and, be warned, you are left with a huge cliff hanger on the very last page. If you hate cliff hangers you might want to wait until the sequel is out to read this one. That aside, this book is a suspense ride worth taking. It is full of twists that will keep you guessing all the way to the end.

Scarlett and her sister Tella live with their cruel father on a small remote island. Not only is he a cruel man, but he is a powerful man and they are desperate to escape his clutches. Scarlett thinks by going through with an arranged marriage she will finally be free of him. Then just days before her wedding a letter arrives with three tickets to the fabled Caraval. A yearly dramatic performance/game in which members of the audience can participate, if they so desire, with the winner receiving a magical prize. Continue reading “Caraval by Stephanie Garber”

The Confessions of Young Nero by Margaret George

Title: The Confessions of Young Nero
Author: Margaret George
Pub Date: 7-Mar-2017
Rating: 5 Stars

The Confessions of Young Nero is the first installment of a two book series that follows the life of Nero, as he rises, at a young age, to become one of the better known emperors in Roman history. The story is fiction but the facts behind the story are very real. The author takes us into the world of Roman royalty in which greed, deception and murder are a part of everyday life.

We enter the story when Nero is a young child of four. He is not yet Nero, but Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus whose father is dead and mother has been exiled. At this early age he is introduced to the savagery that is part of his heritage when his uncle, the emperor, tries to kill him. Upon his Uncle’s demise, Nero’s mother, Agrippina, is able to return to Rome and reunite with her son. She sees young Nero as a way to achieve her ultimate goal of ruling the Roman Empire. All she needs is the right pawn. Continue reading “The Confessions of Young Nero by Margaret George”

The Gods Who Walk Among Us by Max Eastern

Title: The Gods Who Walk Among Us
Author: Max Eastern
Pub. Date: 14-Mar-2017
Rating: 4 Stars

The Gods Who Walk Among Us is a fast paced thriller. There is plenty of action, suspense and twists in this story to keep any reader sitting on the edge of their seat. This is Max Eastern’s debut novel and a thriller that will have you wanting more; therefore, thriller lovers should be on the lookout for more from this new author.

The story is set in New York City where Adam Azoulay is a washed up attorney working as a paparazzo trying to survive on a merger living selling celebrity photos. By chance, one evening he captures a brief video of an African warlord with an American celebrity of sorts. This draws the attention of a nonprofit looking to make a name for themselves by presenting an award to an elusive, but well known, human rights advocate. To date they have not been able to reach the recipient. They recruit Adam to track him down. Continue reading “The Gods Who Walk Among Us by Max Eastern”

The Heirs by Susan Rieger

Title: The Heirs
Author: Susan Rieger
Pub. Date: 23-May-2017
Rating: 4.5 Stars

The Heirs is an exceptional story about the complexities of family ties. The story starts with the death of the family patriarch, Rupert Falkes, a wealthy and prominent attorney in New York City.  He dies leaving behind a wife, Eleanor, and five sons. Six months after his death a woman comes forth and declares that she had two sons by Rupert. At first, the family dismisses the claim as a gold seeker looking for a way to make money. As the story progresses and more family secrets are revealed the truth is slowly uncovered but not before the whole family is pushed into turbulence.

The whole family is dysfunctional. Some of the characters I liked and some I didn’t. Eleanor’s character was the best by far mainly because she was the most believable. However, some of the sons lacked in development. They made stupid decisions, which all people make, I just never fully understood why and that detracted a little from the story. Nonetheless, it was not enough of a flaw to affect my overall rating of the book. Continue reading “The Heirs by Susan Rieger”

The Radium Girls by Kate Moore

Title: The Radium Girls
Author: Kate Moore
Pub. Date: 2-May-2017
Rating: 5 Stars

I almost don’t know where to begin because The Radium Girls is a tragic story.  It is probably one of the most difficult books, emotionally, I have ever read.  It is the true story of the young women who worked in factories that applied a luminous Radium paint onto watch dials so they would glow. Of course, the women did not know it was dangerous and their employers went out of their way to make sure they remained ignorant of the facts. Their struggle to get answers about why they were so sick and get justice once they discovered it was caused by the Radium is inspiring.

For these “girls”, some as young as fourteen, it was a dream of a job. The pay was excellent and to be working with the wondrous new element Radium, that almost every day some new benefit was found, was an added benefit. You were indeed lucky to be hired on to work in the painting studio. The Radium dust settled in the women’s hair and clothes causing them to glow. Everyone wanted to be one of the alluring luminous Radium girls. Even some privileged girls would work for a short period of time to experience it. Continue reading “The Radium Girls by Kate Moore”

The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger

Title: The Singles Game
Author: Lauren Weisberger
Pub. Date: 12-Jul-2016
Rating: 4 Stars

When I was offered a copy of this book I jumped on it, for two reasons, I loved The Devil Wears Prada and the book meets task one on the 2017 Book Riot’s challenge. The theme of this book is buyer beware because sometimes you get more than you bargained for.

That is exactly what happened to Charlotte “Charlie” Silver. After a devastating injury Charlie is not hearing the words she wants to from her coach. She is a driven young woman and being told she may not be able to play tennis on the same level again does not sit well with her. Therefore, she fires her longtime coach and hires Todd Feltner, a no nonsense coach, with a reputation of being ruthless on his players and expecting the same from them. Continue reading “The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger”

The Angel Alejandro by Alistair Cross

Title: The Angel Alejandro
Author: Alistair Cross
Pub Date: 25-Jan-2017
Rating: 4 Stars

At the core, The Angel Alejandro by Alistair Cross is about greed and lust and its effects when all restraints are removed. A true good versus evil story. The book is rather long (521 pages) and took longer than I thought to read. The reason for the slow read was not the speed of the plot, but I found myself totally absorbed in the story and wanted to go slower and savor all the details.

Alejandro is an angel that has been pulled into this world when Madison O’Riley fell from the roof of her home. He saved her life, yet he cannot remember who he is and strange things happen around him. He hears voices calling for help in his mind and when he responds to one such voice his powers are revealed to the entire world. There is an immediate media frenzy and everyone seems to want a piece of him, including another new comer in town, Gremory Jones. Continue reading “The Angel Alejandro by Alistair Cross”

Come Sundown by Nora Roberts

Title: Come Sundown
Author: Nora Roberts
Pub. Date: 30-May-2017
Rating: 4 Stars

Come Sundown is the story of the Bodine family and is part romance and part thriller. The story opens twenty-five years ago when Alice, the prodigal daughter, who ran off to California to become a movie star, is returning home. Just miles from her family home she is abducted by a stranger known only as “Sir”.

Skip forward to the present and Bodine Longbow, she is the fourth generation, now runs the Bodine resort which sits on a sprawling thirty thousand acre ranch in Montana. Vacationers and honeymooners alike come to the resort to experience the cowboy life and Bodine runs the show seamlessly with the help of a large staff. Continue reading “Come Sundown by Nora Roberts”

Fatal Option by Chris Beakey

Title: Fatal Option
Author: Chris Beakey
Pub. Date: 21-Feb-2017
Rating: 4.5

Fatal Option is about choices and consequences. How seemingly random decisions by various people can align into the perfect storm. This is exactly what happened to the Porters.

Stephen is still mourning his wife’s death and after an evening of drowning his sorrows in a bottle he receives a panicked call from his daughter. She was supposed to be spending the night at a friend’s house just a short distance from their home. However, she has lied and instead gone to a teacher’s home. Now she is scared and wants to leave, but her car has died and with a snowstorm raging outside she calls her father to rescue her. Continue reading “Fatal Option by Chris Beakey”