"The Secret Place" by Tana French

This novel is about a young teen boy found dead on the grounds of an exclusive all-girls school.  One day someone puts up a card on the school bulletin board that they know who killed him.  Do they really or is it just a plot to get some excitement going?

This book is told in two parts:  (1) the action that led up to him being killed, and (2) the two lady detectives trying to figure out if any of the girls know who did it.  Both parts kept my interest and were told very well.  I would have rated it higher if it didn't have so much foul language in it.  The plot is very good though and worth reading.
(Gerard's review, 5 stars--no pluses due to bad language)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"The Dog Who Could Fly" by Damien Lewis is one of the Best Books I Read This Year!

The Dog Who Could Fly by Damien Lewis is the true story of airman Robert Bozdech and the bond he forged with a dog named Ant during World War II.  I loved this book!  It is an incredible story of how Ant even went on flying missions with his master.  You do not have to be a dog lover to appreciate this book though.  Please read this book--it's a story you need to hear!  It doesn't get any better than this!  This is my book of the month so far and will be in my top 10 for the year!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"A Day to Pick Your Own Cotton" by Michael Phillips (Book 2 of Shenandoah Sisters Series)

Image source:  Goodreads (Read on Kindle)

A Day to Pick Your Own Cotton by Michael Phillips picks up right where Angels Watching Over Me left off and is just as good!  This series is about two white girls and two black girls all working together to run a plantation by themselves during the post-Civil war days when racism in the south was rampant.  Katie, the orphan of the plantation owners, has a warm heart and even though she is barely managing, takes in yet another young white girl to care for whose mother died and whose father is mean to her since being back from the war. 

The story is told by both a plantation owner's daughter and her former slave girl friend, but mostly from the slave girl's point of view.    This second book is about courage to survive and has both happy and sad parts to it.  Although it is the second of a series, it could also stand alone.  I loved it and can't wait to read the next one of this Shenendoah Sisters series.  It has interesting character development, excitement, suspense and a very good plot.  It's hard to put down and I highly recommend it!(Karen's review, 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"Prodigy" by Marie Lu (UPDATED 4-16-13)

Starts Slow But Picks Up--Stick With It

Prodigy by Marie Lu is as good as her first book of this series, Legend. This book goes quick because it’s so good! Day and June alternate narrating chapters and the action kept me turning pages. The Republic is on the verge of a revolution and Day and June join forces on the same side, but is it the right side? Who can they trust? Who is telling the truth? Can Day continue to trust June? Tess, developed a major crush on Day and he begins to see her in a different light. The author has a good balance between strong, likeable characters and action and suspense. Prodigy is about friendship, loyalty, trust, and fighting for freedom and social change. I highly recommend this YA read.
(Karen's review, 5 stars)

Prodigy by Marie Lu is the follow up after Legend.  Legend was fantastic; however, Prodigy started very slow.  I would have liked more action but the second half picked up and I really got into it!  I look forward to reading the last book in this series too! 
(Gerard's review, 4 stars)

This is the sequel to Legend which we both liked! You should really read that one first.

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"The Darkest Minds" by Alexandra Bracken (Updated)

If you enjoyed "Hunger Games", "Divergent" and "Starters," then I'm pretty sure you would like The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken. The story is about young teens on the run from the U.S. government. It moves along really well and the lead character, a young teen girl is FANTASTIC! There are lots of "wow" factors for me in this book and the last 100 pages or so were page turners to the max! I hope there will be a sequel! LOVED IT! Do yourself a favor and read this one!
(Gerard's review, rating 5++ stars)

On Gerard's recommendation, I read this one too (Updated 1/30/13):

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken is a page turner that is about loyalty, friendship, isolation, survival and manipulation. This book is about Ruby, Liam, Chubbs and Zu, four friends who try to keep their freedom and remain true to themselves but who have “special” powers of different kinds. The plot was a bit confusing to me at times, but I liked this book because of the characters. Ruby is able to see into people’s minds to not only see their memories but also is able to erase memories and plant thoughts into people’s heads. The only problem is that she can’t control it until she gets lessons from another kid with the same abilities whose practiced his whole life! If you like YA fiction with adventure and fantasy, this is a great book for you! “The darkest minds tend to hide behind the most unlikely faces.” Pg. 456.
(Karen's Review)

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ne of Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop prompts this week is "What are you reading?" so I linked up. You can too!

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"Starters" by Lissa Price--Fun Read full of Surprises

Starters by Lissa Price takes place in the future but isn't too far out that it is unbelievable. After a war, people lived longer, 150 to 200 years old was common and Prime Destinations developed a way for old people to rent the body of a young person, usually a teen. I loved the idea of the old people getting a new body but keeping all their experience and knowledge. Callie decides to rent out her body for a big sum of money that would be enough to provide a home for her and her little brother who is also sickly. After three rentals, she'd get paid; however, the third rental didn't work quite right and she found herself in a terrible situation and is not sure who she can trust.

I enjoyed this book very much because of all the unexpected things that happen to Callie and the interesting concept. I thought it was a fun read and definitely recommend it! (Karen's review)

Starters by Lissa Price:  WOW!  You will meet Callie, a young girl whose parents are dead, and her 7-yr.-old brother, Tyler, is very sick.  Her only hope to get money is to rent her body out to old people to use.  She really doesn't want to do it but gives in to help her brother.  Everything goes fine at first, but then takes a turn for the worse!  I devoured this book in just two days; kept those pages turning to see what would happen next.  Can't wait for the second book to come out in December!
(Gerard's review)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading! We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"A Dog's Purpose" by W. Bruce Cameron

A Dog’s Purpose by Bruce Cameron is touching and at times funny. The dog narrator will made me question how my dog feels how good a dog owner I am. The dog has several different lives with various owners throughout this book, but is loyal to the end to the boy, Ethan. I especially enjoyed reading about the dog’s life as Ellie, the search and rescue dog and laughed when the dog said the cats he lived with had no purpose. The dog’s relationship with Ethan shows how loyal dogs are and was heartwarming. This is an emotional read because when some people mistreated the dog, I felt a lot of anger rise up in me. Although the dog dies, it’s not too sad because it is reincarnated as another puppy and gets another life! I recommend this book to any dog lover. (Karen's review 6/27/12)

 I really enjoyed A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron. This is told by a dog who knows he needs to find a purpose for his life. He meets a boy named Ethan, then he becomes a search and rescue dog with a fantastic and touching ending! If you are a dog lover, you will love A Dog’s Purpose. I sure did! I highly recommend you read this book! (Gerard's review 7/27/10)

 Other book by this author that we both liked is A Dog's Journey Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.

"Shatter Me" by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi is a fast-paced teen science fiction romance that kept my interest. I thought it was sort of a strange book because Juliette, a teen, has some super power of being able to kill people she touches although the book never explained why her power is only effective with certain people but not others. I didn't understand that part. I liked the adventure parts where Adam and Juliette ran away together from the asylum but didn't care for all the strikeouts throughout the book. I found them to be distracting. Maybe that was the idea of them, I'm not sure.

Overall, I think the theme is to realize you are unique and accept yourself. At the beginning, Juliette has been confined for a long time in solitary and is feeling very depressed. Then gets a cell mate who she recognizes from her past and is nice to her because he's always liked her but pretends he doesn't know her. Eventually she becomes hopeful for a future and a happy life ever after.

If you like teen romance with a twist, I recommend this one.  I saw a lot of teasers from this that got my attention but was a bit disappointed in this book.  I liked Legend by Marie Lu much better!

(Karen's review:  My rating: 3 of 5 stars)

Gerard's review:
If you like science fiction books with romance, this is it.  A young boy and a young girl fight against an evil government that wants to use them, especially the girl whose touch is lethal.  I liked this book a whole lot!  It kept my interest throughout with lots of good action.  I look forward to the sequel if there is one.  This is the author's first book--very well done!

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents to KIVA this month to help the

poor change their lives for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs.

"Legend" by Marie Lu (UPDATED 1-4-12)

Legend by Marie Lu is teen fiction that takes place in a futuristic Los Angeles.  It is told by a young boy named Day and a young woman named June.  Day is an outlaw and is wanted by the Republic.  June is a member of the Army of the Republic.  They are on opposite sides, or are they?  Legend is so good that the movie rights have already been sold.  If you loved "Hunger Games" and "Divergent," you will love Legend too.  I look forward to the second book in this series.
(Gerard's review)



Legend by Marie Lu is a futuristic teen romantic thriller about a fugitive 15-yr.-old, Day from the slums, who is passionate about protecting his family and helping people, even if it means going against the Republic. When June, a Republic agent and military prodigy from a wealthy family, thinks Day is responsible for killing her brother when trying to steal the cure for the plague to cure his youngest brother, she hunts Day down. This is a fun, adventurous novel that is a page turner. 

Favorite quote from this book:

“I never did ask you about your street name. Why 'Day'?”
“Each day means a new twenty-four hours. Each day means everything's possible again. You live in the moment, you die in the moment, you take it all one day at a time.”

I liked how the author alternated telling the story between Day and June.  It kept my interest and was also easy to follow.  Although somewhat predictable, I enjoyed it very much and was rooting for Day and June to become friends from the start.  I recommend this to anyone who likes action and romance.

(Karen's review:  My rating: 5 of 5 stars)


Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

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