Memorial Day Weekend

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Memorial Day Weekend

Hi everyone. I just wanted to tell you I’m taking a break from blogging over the long holiday weekend.

Everything’s fine, it’s just been kind of a crazy week and I need some downtime. I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe weekend and I’ll be back Tuesday.

Unthinkable, By Brad Parks ~ 4.5 Stars

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Adult Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: July 27th, 2021

352 Pages

Synopsis: From international bestselling author Brad Parks comes a new thriller about an ordinary man who may be able to save the world as we know it—but to do so, he must make an impossible choice.

Nate Lovejoy is a self-proclaimed nobody, a stay-at-home dad who doesn’t believe he’s important to anyone but his wife and their two daughters. So it’s a shock when members of a powerful secret society kidnap and spirit Nate away to a mansion at the behest of their leader, Vanslow DeGange, who claims to know the future. He’s foreseen that a billion people could die—unless Nate acts.

It seems improbable, especially given what DeGange says will set this mass casualty incident in motion: a lawsuit against the biggest power company in Virginia, being brought by Nate’s wife, Jenny.

Nate quickly smells a scam being perpetrated by the power company. But at every turn, it becomes apparent there’s more to DeGange’s gift than Nate wants to acknowledge. A billion people really could die, and Nate might be the only one who can save them.

All he has to do is the unthinkable. (Goodreads)

As I believe in full disclosure, I want to warn you that Unthinkable  takes far-fetched to a whole new level. If you’re willing to leave rational thinking and skepticism at the door though, this is a wild ride that I guarantee you’ll find impossible to put down once you’ve started!

The big question is: What would you do if you were told that in order to save millions of people, you have to murder a person, and not only that, but it’s someone you love. This isn’t an entirely new concept. Various versions have been previously debated with one of the more popular hypotheticals being if you could go back in time, would you kill Hitler. So, take that, throw in the Butterfly Effect, and you have the basis for Unthinkable. 

The story is told through the alternating POVs of Nate and Jenny, and I was equally invested in each of their characters and what they were going through. The plot itself is a crazy roller coaster of a ride with plenty of twists and turns and an intriguing mystery teasingly woven through the narrative. 

In summation Unthinkable is an unputdownable thriller that is a fantastic concoction made up of a bit of existentialism and philosophy, likable characters, head-spinning twists, and a breakneck pace. Honestly, this is the epitome of a perfect Beach Book, so if you have vacation plans this summer, or even if you don’t and you’re looking for a great escape that you’ll likely finish in one or two sittings, mark your calendars for July 21.  And, if you’re thinking this would make for a great movie, you’re absolutely right. I’m already creating my dream cast!

Bright Ruined Things, By Samantha Cohoe ~ 4.0 Stars

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Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Shakespeare Retelling, Suspense, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 26th, 2021

352 Pages

Synopsis: ‘A deftly-plotted tale about ambition and belonging, Bright Ruined Things takes Shakespeare’s The Tempest and brilliantly reimagines its themes of family and love. Cohoe writes with a magic that dazzles and cuts right to the core.’ – Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights

Forbidden magic, a family secret, and a night to reveal it all…

The only life Mae has ever known is on the island, living on the charity of the wealthy Prosper family who control the magic on the island and the spirits who inhabit it. Mae longs for magic of her own and to have a place among the Prosper family, where her best friend, Coco, will see her as an equal, and her crush, Miles, will finally see her. Now that she’s eighteen, Mae knows her time with the Prospers may soon come to an end.

But tonight is First Night, when the Prospers and their high-society friends return to the island to celebrate the night Lord Prosper first harnessed the island’s magic and started producing aether – a magical fuel source that has revolutionized the world. With everyone returning to the island, Mae finally has the chance to go after what she’s always wanted.

When the spirits start inexplicably dying, Mae starts to realize that things aren’t what they seem. And Ivo, the reclusive, mysterious heir to the Prosper magic, may hold all the answers – including a secret about Mae’s past that she doesn’t remember. As Mae and her friends begin to unravel the mysteries of the island, and the Prospers’ magic, Mae starts to question the truth of what her world was built on.

In this YA fantasy, Samantha Cohoe wonderfully mixes magic and an atmospheric historical setting into a fantastically immersive world, with characters you won’t be able to forget.

Bright Ruined Things is an imaginative retelling of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, cleverly combined with a page-turning mystery/thriller, that had me on the edge of my seat almost the entire time I was reading. Although it’s set in the 1920s, you don’t really see much of the time period except for one party that could have been taken from The Great Gatsby, so I was slightly disappointed about that. I also didn’t exactly like Mae, but I did find her extremely interesting. She’s flawed and very complicated as are most of the characters, and it was entertaining to find out their backstories and watch how they interact with each other. If you think you’ll know what happens because you’ve read The Tempest, think again, because Cohoe includes plenty of twists in here to keep readers guessing. Bright Ruined Things is a unique, action-packed retelling full of Shakespeare-esque drama, double-dealing, and mysterious intrigue that I believe will hold a wide audience of readers spellbound.

R.I.P. Eric Carle ~ June 25, 1929 – May 23, 2021

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R.I.P. Eric Carle

The prolific and much beloved children’s author and illustrator, Eric Carle has sadly passed away at ninety-one years young. Children, parents, teachers, and librarians owe him a debt of gratitude for the enormous contributions he made to children’s literature. A message posted online from his family said he died Sunday and included this poem:

In the light of the moon,

holding on to a good star,

a painter of rainbows

is now traveling across the night sky

Here is his obituary in the New York Times.

 

Cruella de Vil (Disney Parody

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Cruella de Vil, Song Parodies, Whitney Avalon

Whimsical Wednesday

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Animated Shorts, Aviv Mano, ”Game Changer”, CGMeetup, Ringling College of Art & Design, Whimsical Wednesday

Spam

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Spam

I don’t know how many of you are having this issue, but from yesterday through last night I received over 1,500 spams all from the same company advertising Cialis/Tadalafil. Last night, after spending over a half hour deleting them all through bulk editor and getting seriously annoyed, I used my mad librarian research skills (Google), and found an easy way to stop this. If you go into your dashboard, click on settings and then discussions, scroll down to the bottom and it gives you the option to type in words for Disallowed Comments. I listed the two drug names and voila! No more spam from this advertiser!

***UPDATE***

Fraggle has another easy way to solve this issue as well. Check this out:

https://fragglerocking.org/2020/12/06/spam/

I Am Margaret Moore, By Hannah Capin ~ 2.0 Stars

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LGBTQ, Mystery, Romance, Suspense, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release: October 12th, 2021

320 Pages

Synopsis: Lyrical and haunting, Hannah Capin’s I Am Margaret Moore is a paranormal thriller that tests the hold of sisterhood and truth.

I am a girl. I am a monster, too.

Each summer the girls of Deck Five come back to Marshall Naval School. They sail on jewel-blue waters; they march on green drill-fields; they earn sunburns and honors. They push until they break apart and heal again, stronger.

Each summer Margaret and Rose and Flor and Nisreen come back to the place where they are girls, safe away from the world: sisters bound by something more than blood.

But this summer everything has changed. Girls are missing and a boy is dead. It’s because of Margaret Moore, the boys say. It’s because of what happened that night in the storm.

Margaret’s friends vanish one by one, swallowed up into the lies she has told about what happened between her and a boy with the world at his feet. Can she unravel the secrets of this summer and last, or will she be pulled under by the place she once called home?

I really enjoyed Hannah Capin’s Foul is Fair, which is a clever modernization of Macbeth, so I was quite excited when I saw I Am Margaret Moore offered on NetGalley. Unfortunately, this didn’t work quite as well for me.

First, this was written in almost a prose style, and while I have liked that form of writing in various books, including in Foul is Fair, here the chapters are short and uneven instead of flowing and lyrical. I also found the symbolism vague and confusing which didn’t help. The multiple timelines were difficult to follow and made me scratch my head even more, and, as much as I tried I found it impossible to connect with any of the characters. None of them had backstories which were developed in any meaningful way, and because of this wound up completely unmemorable. The twist was predictable, but I did like the ending and it wrapped everything up neatly, however that wasn’t enough to save the story for me.

Although I Am Margaret Moore didn’t live up to my expectations, I’ll still give Capin’s next book a try. As always, I’d advise anyone whose intrigued by the premise, to check out other reviewers’ thoughts and not just mine.

Amanda in Malta: The Sleeping Lady, By Darlene Foster ~ Virtual Tour

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Amanda in Malta: The Sleeping Lady, Darlene Foster, Virtual Tour

It is my honor to be part of the virtual blog tour for Darlene Foster’s delightful children’s book Amanda in Malta, which is the eighth book in her Amanda Travels series. If you missed my review, you can find it here:

Amanda In Malta: The Sleeping Lady, By Darlene Foster ~ 5.0 Stars

Here is Darlene to give you some additional insight about Amanda.

Can you tell us more about Amanda?
Amanda is a twelve-year-old girl from Calgary, Alberta. She is the only child of Evelyn and Don Ross, both accountants. She loves to read, is interested in history and enjoys cooking. Her parents work long hours so she likes trying different recipes for them, especially ones from places she has visited. She is inquisitive and kind and always wants to help people. This gets her in trouble sometimes. She loves animals but has no pets of her own. Once she travelled to visit her Aunt and Uncle in the United Arab Emirates, she was hooked. She never passes up a chance to travel to someplace new.

Will Amanda always be twelve years old in the series?
Amanda stays the same age in all the books but I try to show different sides to her and have her grow as a person. The more she travels, the more she learns about herself, other people and the world in general. Once in a while, I have her do something totally out of character. Sometimes she even surprises me!

I love writing for tweens and once she becomes a teenager, I would have to write a different type of book. However, by travelling, Amanda does mature somewhat as she meets with different and sometimes dangerous experiences and has to think for herself. Travel does that to children, and to adults sometimes.

The Blurb:

 Amanda receives a postcard from her best friend, Leah, and is surprised to learn that she is in Malta with her aunt. Reading between the lines, she senses Leah is in trouble. Desperate to help her, Amanda travels to Malta with her classmate Caleb and his parents.

Amanda is intrigued by this exotic island in the middle of the Mediterranean, full of colourful history, sun-drenched limestone fortresses, stunning beaches and fascinating birds. But…who is killing the protected birds? Who stole a priceless artifact from the museum? And why is Leah acting so strange? She couldn’t possibly be involved in these illegal activities, or could she?

Join Amanda and her friends as they visit ancient temples, an exciting falconry and the enchanting Popeye Village, as they try to get to the bottom of the mystery of the Sleeping Lady.

Be sure to read all the books in this exciting Amanda Travels series!
1. Amanda in Arabia: The Perfume Flask
2. Amanda in Spain: The Girl in the Painting
3. Amanda in England: The Missing Novel
4. Amanda in Alberta: The Writing on the Stone
5. Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music
6. Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind
7. Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action
8. Amanda in Malta: The Sleeping Lady

The buy links:
Amazon Canada here – https://www.amazon.ca/Amanda-Malta-8-Sleeping-Lady/dp/177168237X/

Amazon UK here – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Amanda-Malta-Sleeping-Travels-Adventure/dp/177168237X

Amazon US here – https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Sleeping-Travels-Adventure/dp/177168237X

Barnes and Noble here – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/amamda-in-malta-darlene-foster/1137471066?ean=9781771682374

Chapters/Indigo here – https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/amanda-in-malta-the-sleeping/97817768237-item.html

My Bio:
Darlene Foster grew up on a ranch in Alberta, Canada, where her love of reading inspired her to see the world and write stories about a young girl who travels to interesting places. Over the years she worked in rewarding jobs such as an employment counsellor, ESL teacher, recruiter, and retail manager, writing whenever she had a few spare minutes. She is now retired and has a house in Spain where she writes full time. When not travelling, meeting interesting people, and collecting ideas for her books, she enjoys spending time with her husband and entertaining rescue dogs, Dot and Lia.

Social media links:

Facebook ~ https://www.facebook.com/DarleneFosterWriter
Twitter ~ https://twitter.com/supermegawoman
Blog ~ https://darlenefoster.wordpress.com/
Instagram ~ https://www.instagram.com/darlene6490/

The Book of Accidents, By Chuck Wendig ~ 5.0 Stars

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Adult Fiction, Child Abuse, Childhood Trauma, Horror, Science Fiction, Serial Killers, Social Issues, Supernatural Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Del Rey Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: July 20th, 2021

544 Pages

Synopsis: A family returns to their hometown—and to the dark past that haunts them still—in this masterpiece of literary horror by the New York Times bestselling author of Wanderers

Long ago, Nathan lived in a house in the country with his abusive father—and has never told his family what happened there.

Long ago, Maddie was a little girl making dolls in her bedroom when she saw something she shouldn’t have—and is trying to remember that lost trauma by making haunting sculptures.

Long ago, something sinister, something hungry, walked in the tunnels and the mountains and the coal mines of their hometown in rural Pennsylvania.

Now, Nate and Maddie Graves are married, and they have moved back to their hometown with their son, Oliver.

And now what happened long ago is happening again . . . and it is happening to Oliver. He meets a strange boy who becomes his best friend, a boy with secrets of his own and a taste for dark magic.

This dark magic puts them at the heart of a battle of good versus evil and a fight for the soul of the family—and perhaps for all of the world. But the Graves family has a secret weapon in this battle: their love for one another. (Goodreads)

I’m thrilled to say my 2021 winning streak of scoring outstanding horror books continues with Chuck Wendig’s The Book of Accidents. There are a lot of reviewers comparing this to classic Stephen King, and they’re not wrong. The Book of Accidents shares many elements from vintage King books; strong, complex characters each hiding secrets and battling inner demons, a creative and genre-defying storyline, heart-pounding action, and thought-provoking social commentary.  But make no mistake, it stands entirely on its own merits.

The majority of the story revolves around Nate, Maddie, and their teenage son Oliver, whose empathetic nature is far more advanced than his loving parents realize. Maddie is a strong, bad-ass sculptor, whose colorful language is startling yet funny at the same time. She has a fierce love and devotion for her son and husband and will do anything to protect them. And Nate, well, he’s a survivor of an abusive father, and he’s still dealing with the after effects from his traumatic childhood. They all form a tight family unit which is what they need to fight the unknown evil that’s facing them. 

The story itself is gripping with shocking twists that I didn’t see coming. It’s over 500 pages, yet it’s so tightly written that my full attention was completely engaged from the moment I started reading. Horror, science fiction, and the supernatural are all skillfully blended with social issues like child abuse and toxic masculinity. 

In the end, The Book of Accidents is a magnificent tour de force about the power of love and the triumph of good over evil. In a year that’s giving horror fans several magnificent reads, I guarantee this will be on the top of many readers’ favorites lists. If you enjoy these genres I highly recommend you either preorder this now, or put in a request to your library!