"Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen" by Sarah Bird

Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen by Sarah Bird tells the fiction story of Cathy Williams.  Born into bondage, her mother never let Cathy believe she was just a slave.  One day the Union army took her and made her be a cook's helper.  At the war's end, she made a decision that would change her life forever!


This book kept me engaged from page 1.  There is good action and the book had good flow to it.
(Gerard's review, 5 stars)

Teaser from page 11:  Terrill leaped forward, grabbed me roughly, and promised, "I shall personally ensure that he is delivered to headquarters, sir."  Then he shoved me in the direction of a bunch of soldiers, yet still I would not turn loose of Mama.

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"Among the Wicked" by Linda Castillo

Among the Wicked by Linda Castillo is a story about Chief Kate Burkholder going undercover as an Amish women moving to Roaring Springs, New York.  She agrees to temporarily join the community to try to get evidence about some nasty rumors about the Bishop and look into the suspicious death of a 15-yr.-old girl that was found dead of hypothermia in the woods near where she was living.   Kate is determined to see through the assignment in spite of being in very serious danger and Tomasetti's objections. 

I enjoyed this book but once again, typical of Linda Castillo's Amish mysteries, Kate Burkholder bravely solves the mystery with near death experience.  She is brave but not too bright.  Kate's escape from death is hard to believe. 
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Teaser from page 49:  I'm loath to admit it, but I don't want leave.  Already, I miss him.  Already, I'm apprehensive about what lies ahead.

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"Tear Me Apart" by J. T. Ellison - WOW!

In Tear Me Apart by J. T. Ellison,  Mindy is a downhill skier.  She has a bright future ahead of her, but then she gets into a horrible crash during a competition.  She is taken to a hospital where they discover that not only is her leg broken, but she needs a stem cell transplant as soon as possible!  The good news is that her parents and her aunt are there.  One of the three has to be match to give Mindy the blood she needs.  Right?

WOW!  This book is so good!  All the characters were very well developed.  The story line is believable and the twists and turns in this book will make your head spin!  Do not miss this one!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Teaser from page 31:  Yet, as they wheel her away, Lauren has a moment of sheer panic.  A premonition of sorts.  Something is not right with their world.  Little does she know, this is only the beginning.

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"White is the Coldest Colour" by John Nicholl

White is The Coldest Colour by John Nicholl is about a child Psychiatrist who is a sexual predator and part of a ring of many pedophiles in Wales. This is a work of fiction, but is based on the author’s experiences as a police office and child protection social worker. This book reflects the reality of how much harm sexual predators inflict on their victims. This book shows the depravity of man and is a very disturbing read! It also includes physical abuse and a lengthy investigation.

I can’t say I enjoyed this book because it is so dark and the doctor was a horrible human being! I had to keep reading to find out if the cops would find the missing 7-yr-old boy in time and see the doctor brought to justice. The ending was better than I expected; however, I would have liked the story to have continued on a bit to end on a happier note. It seemed to end too abruptly.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Teaser from page 6: If a respected doctor such as himself could abandon any semblance of a conscience, learn to fully embrace his true nature, and view life and death from a purely Darwinian perspective, why the hell couldn’t Sherwood do likewise? That was the one thing which may have saved him.


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"That's Not What Happened" by Kody Keplinger

That's NOT What Happened by Kody Keplinger is a book about six survivors of a school shooting who try to piece together what actually happened.  In a small town at the local high school, a shooting took place.  Flash forward three years and this came out to tell the story of one girl who had words with the shooter.  But one girl knows the real story of how it went down and wants the truth to come out!

If you are looking for an action book, this is not it.  It is an interesting look of how a group of teens each have their own version of what happened.  For the most part, this book kept me engaged.  The down parts were few and far between.  The best part of this book were the letters on the strength of that, I give this book 5 stars!
(Gerard's review)

That's NOT what happened by Kody Keplinger is about six survivors who actually were with classmates when they got shot.  This book focuses on the aftermath and how these six dealt with their traumatic experience.  When a story develops that isn't true about how Lee's best friend was killed, Lee decides she has to set the record straight.  She gets all the survivors to write letters telling their stories of what happened to them.

I was somewhat confused, thinking this was about the Columbine shooting; however, it is a fiction story that appears to be loosely based on that which I found kind of distasteful.  It's well written and certainly interesting. 
(Karen's review, 3 stars)

Teaser from pg. 11:  And there is so much that you--and they--don't know.  So many stories that had gotten mixed up, confused, or misrepresented.

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"After Anna" by Lisa Scottoline

After Anna by Lisa Scottoline is about Maggie, a mother who loses custody of her baby girl because of her husband having her declared unfit due to her postpartum psychosis.  She remarries a widower who is a doctor named Noah and becomes a stepmom to his 9-yr-old son, Caleb.  They have a happy family until Maggie gets a call from her daughter asking her to come to the college to meet.  Maggie's sees a news article about her ex-husband dying in a plane crash and is ecstatic about finally seeing her 17-yr-old daughter after being separated for so long.  Will Anna finally become part of a happy family after feeling abandoned for so many years?  Will Noah be welcoming?  Is Anna a nice girl or a manipulative brat?  Did Noah get framed for murder or did he really kill his stepdaughter?

 I felt bad for Noah all through this book and was rooting for him and Maggie to be happy together once again.  This was a very entertaining read for me.  I liked the trial parts and was completely surprised by the unexpected twist.  Unfortunately, the twist was unbelievable and Maggie being the heroin really was far out.  I would have preferred the book be written in chronological order but it was cool how the story got told by much of the trial.  I liked it and was happy with the ending.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

 Teaser from page 2:  His life had exploded like a strip of firecrackers at a barbecue, igniting the patio furniture and spreading to the house until everything was blazing out of control, engulfed in a massive fireball.
His entire world destroyed.
It had all started with Anna.  

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"Bright We Burn" by Kiersten White (Book 3 of And I Darken series)

Bright We Burn by Kiersten White is the third and final book of the And I Darken series.  The author saved the best for last!  This book is fantastic!  This is full of action.  Lada is so Good!  Nobody had better get in her way!  She is so "bad ass."--LOVED IT!  In this book, Lada controls her land, but she wants ore and wants it known that she is in charge!  However, not everyone goes along with that and the fighting begins!  This whole series is really good!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Teaser from page 219:  "How could a woman do this?"  Ali Bey's voice was filled with equal parts wonder and disgust.

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"Night Blood" by Elly Blake

Night Blood is the third, and sad to say, the final book of the Frost Blood series by Elly Blake.   It was a fantastic series!  Ruby must bring the Frost Blood and the Fire Bloods together to hold back the beasts that will take over the world! 

I liked that this was action packed from start to finish.  Ruby was a great character and had good interaction with the other people in the book.  It has a very good ending too!  I LOVED this series!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Teaser from page 33:  The cold of Arcus's fingers on my wrist did more to penetrate the angry haze than that single pleading word.  I lowered my hands but kept them molten hot.

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"A Gathering of Secrets" by Linda Castillo

A Gathering of Secrets by Linda Castillo is a murder mystery that is extremely sad.  Right from the Prologue, this book blew me away!  It is downright gruesome at times with some suspense.  The Chief of Police, Kate Burkholder gets herself into a couple dicey situations in this book.  When she discovers what a slime bag the 18-yr-old Amish boy really was, it becomes a struggle for her to hunt down his killer.

This book had some surprises but I came close to figuring out who the murderer was.  I thought the plot was interesting and kept my attention throughout the book.  I finished this one in just two days.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Gerard's review (3.5 stars):
In A Gathering of Secrets by Linda Castillo, a teen-age boy is found burned to death in his own barn.  Foul play is suspected.  It is up to Kate to find out who did this and why.  This book is pretty much the same as her other books with it set in the Amish community, her in danger while trying to solve the case, and some of her personal life.  The names and incidents change, but pretty much follows the same pattern.  I thought it was okay.

Teaser from page 6:  Meet me in the barn at midnight.  I'll make it worth your while.

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"Cathy--Clover Springs Mail Order Brides Book 11" by Rachel Wesson

Cathy, Book 11 of the Colorado Springs Mail Order Bride series by Rachel Wesson is about drug addiction in the 1800s. When Cathy’s adoptive parents died in a boating accident, the doc gave her some medicine to which she became addicted. Her cousin, Archibald, was appointed her guardian and her father suggested they marry. No love between them though. With the help of Cathy’s maid, she ran off to Clover Springs to find her long lost sister, Mary. Cathy was afraid Archibald was poisoning her and he threatened to put her in an asylum! Shortly after arriving in Clover Springs, she fainted in the street which was how Abe O’Malley met her when he carried her over to the doctor’s office.

This book started out a bit slow and at first, I felt sort of bombarded with a bunch of new characters. I would have liked more of Cathy’s married life with Abe. I thought there should have been more catching up with the sisters. This book seemed to end abruptly. Wilma and her girls were just like a little distraction in this book which focused almost completely on Cathy and Abe. I liked it, but not as much as the others in this series.
(Karen’s review, 3 stars)

Teaser from Loc. 570-71 on Kindle: “My parents, the people who adopted me, hid them from me. My letters to Mary are in the bag.”


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"I Am Still Alive" by Kate Alice Marshall

In I Am Still Alive by Kate Alice Marshall, life is not going too well for Jess.  Her mom is dead.  Now she is in a remote wilderness with her dad, who was not around for much of her life until now!  She is not in good shape either.  Can things get any worse for Jess?  I thought this book was pretty good.  It goes back and forth in time for a bit.  Jess was a great character.  I had some trouble with the ending so that brought my rating down to a four.  It was a good read except for the ending.
(Gerard's review, 4 stars)

Teaser from page 16:

I'm going to die, I force myself to think, and then I say it out loud, shout it, because I need to believe it down in my gut or I'm never going to be able to move.
"I AM GOING TO DIE," I scream across the lake.

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"Eleanor" by Rachel Wesson - Book 10 in Clover Springs Mail Order Brides Series

Eleanor by Rachel Wesson is another good 1800 historical fiction story about how the ex-slaves longed to find their family members that they got separated from as slaves.  Eleanor is the new school teacher in Clover Springs who came from England.  This is a beautiful story of true friendships between blacks and whites as well as how racism still existed after the slaves were freed. 
(Karen's review, 5 stars)

Teaser from Kindle Loc. 207-8:  Seems I was an embarrassment to my family.  Despite my pale skin, I am the daughter of an ex-slave.

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"Nyxia Unleashed" by Scott Reintgen (We Both Loved This One)

Nyxia Unleashed by Scott Reintgen is the follow up to Nyxia.   Emmett and the rest of the Genesis 11 and 12 must now explore a new planet and collect Nyxia for Babel.  I enjoyed this book much more than the first one!  There is lots more action for one thing and I liked how the author had new stuff coming up.  I never really knew what was going to happen next!  The ending was full of action and I look forward to the third and final book in this series to see how it all plays out.
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)


Karen's review:
Nyxia Unleashed by Scott Reintgen is book 2 in the Nyxia series that I am loving!  This book picks up where the last one left off as Genesis 11 and 12 land on Eden.  The world building is phenomenal but left me slightly confused.

I really enjoyed all the humor in this book and that the two "teams" really became one and worked together against Babel who was lying to them the entire time.  I felt very bad when two of the group died.  There were some surprises and twists and kept turning pages to see what was going to happen next.  The thing I really didn't understand was that only one shipment of Nyxia got sent back and no one even questioned it.  I thought that was odd.  I was also a bit confused as to what Jacqueline Requin was doing on Eden as a queen or whatever--at least she had a lot of authority.  This series is so awesome, a very interesting read that I couldn't put down.  I am so disappointed that I have to wait until next year for the last book--UGH!  I have so many unanswered questions!  I liked this one as much as the first, if not more.  I highly recommend this series.
(5 stars)

Teaser from page 20:  The blood's soaking through his uniform.  Azima holds a rag to the thing, trying to stop it.  This isn't exactly the welcome we expected on Eden.

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"Christmas in Clover Springs" by Rachel Wesson (Book 8)

Christmas in Clover Springs by Rachel Wesson is Book 8 of the Clover Springs Mail Order Brides series. This one is about Alecia and how she realized what she had been taught to believe about people was not right. She came from Boston to Clover Springs by a chance meeting with Father Malloy on the train. One kind deed changed her life completely for the better.

I read this in one morning! I liked how Alecia and Father Malloy brought 30 more orphans to Clover Springs. This was predictable, but I still enjoyed it very much. I liked seeing how Alecia’s prejudice fell away once she got to know people and re-evaluated her beliefs. I also liked the surprise twist at the end.
(Karen’s review, 5 stars)

Teaser from Kindle location 1001-2: She smiled slightly. Her mama would have swooned if she knew her only daughter stood in the middle of a school yard covered in mud from head to toe conversing with an Indian.


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"Thanksgiving in Clover Springs" by Rachel Wessen

Thanksgiving in Clover Springs (Clover Springs Mail Order Brides Book 7) by Rachel Wesson centers on Little Beaver and Asha, a pregnant Indian girl from a rape by a white soldier. It has very little to do with Thanksgiving which was only right at the end of the book! Some Indian customs and life on an Indian reservation are revealed. Little Beaver is a great character so I enjoyed this book about him.
(Karen’s review, 3 stars)

Teaser from Loc. 119 on Kindle: A bundle of what looked like rags shrank back from him. It wasn’t an animal but a child.


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"The Cabin at the End of the World" by Paul Tremblay

The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay is one of the dumbest books I ever read! I should have known I wouldn’t like it when I saw Stephen King praising it. I just kept reading because I thought it must get better, but it never did. Two gay guys and their adopted Chinese daughter are at a cabin in New Hampshire on vacation when four strangers come to see them. Practically the entire book takes place inside the cabin. The only action in this book is killing people. The writing was annoying to me as well, very wordy. I was glad when it finally ended! It’s a stupid scenario and depressing. Maybe Stephen King fans would like it, but I really hated it. I give it zero stars if I can. It’s really the worst book I ever read and finished and feel like it was a big waste of my time. I should have quit on it from the start when I thought about it. I would not recommend this one to anybody.
(Karen's review)

Teaser from page 25: “We are not here to hurt you. We need your help to save the world.”


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"CatWoman--Soul Stealer" by Sarah J. Maas

Catwoman Soulstealer by Sarah J. Maas does what she does best--writing about a young female who kicks butt that you better not mess with!  Her name in this is Selina.  I would describe this book as an adult comic book because it has Catwoman and Batman as the main characters!  I enjoyed Selina very much and lots of action kept me turning pages!  This is a standalone with a really good ending.
(Gerard's review, 5 stars)

Teaser from page 6:

That's what the match emcee was declaring down the hall.  Selina could just make out the croon of words:  The undefeated champion, the fiercest of Leopards . . .

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"Legendary" by Stephanie Garber (Book 2 in Caraval series)

Legendary by Stephanie Garber is the follow up to Caraval.   This time the story is told by Tella.  The first book was told by Scarlett.  Tella has a very good reason to win the game that goes along with Caraval, but it will not be easy!

WOW!!  This book was so good!  It was great to be back in Caraval.  Tella tells the story very well and all the other characters are really good too.  I loved the action in this book.  What was real and what was just part of the game kept me guessing.  I hope there is a third book!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)


Teaser from page 6:  "I wish I'd never found these cards," she whispered, "but I will tell you about them if you swear to never though this deck, or another deck like this, again."

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"See Jane Run" by Hannah Jayne

In See Jane Run by Hannah Jayne, Riley Spencer is a good high school student with over protective parents.  When she comes across a secret her parents have kept from her, she goes on a personal quest to find answers and the truth.  In the process, she puts herself in danger.

This book moved along quickly and I liked how she became friends with an unlikely guy.  I felt it was a bit simplistic as I figured out the truth very early on.  None of the characters were well developed and Riley sometimes got on my nerves because she acted so stupid.  It was not very realistic.  Still, it was an enjoyable read that is geared to teens.
(Karen's review, 3 stars)

Teaser from page 14:  "Are you going to ask your parents about your phantom sister?  Tread lightly; they might knock you off next."

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"Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann is a non-fiction book about the Osage Indian  murders during the 1920s.  The Osage Indians were among the richest people when oil was discovered on their land!  All of a sudden, they were being killed off and they wanted answers soon!

This book was interesting for sure.  It details how the authorities went looking for answers.  The pacing and telling of this story were very well done!  You can tell a ton of research went into this book.  It is worth reading!
(Gerard's review, 5 stars)

Teaser from page 15:  Then he screamed, ""Oh Papa!"  By the time his father reached him, the boy had crawled onto a rock.  He gestured toward the mossy edge of the creek and said, "A dead person."

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