Defiant by Lesley Livingston is the second book in the Valiant series and just as good as the first! I liked Fallon again in this one and was hoping the people she put her trust in would not let her down. It was heartbreaking when Ludus Achillea, home for gladiators, was overtaken by Pontius Aquila and Nyx. This book has lots of action and strategy.
I liked Cai and Fallon and Quint and Elka. I also liked how Fallon and Sorcha got to fight together to take back their home and stay free. There are many interesting supporting characters in this book which I liked. The plot was well developed but easy enough to follow. I loved it and recommend this series if you like adventure and fantasy!
(Karen's review, 5 stars)
Teaser from page 17: I might have felt a twinge of sympathy for them but, to be honest, in that moment, I couldn't have cared less. My friends and I were victorious, and that was all that mattered.
Gerard's review (5++ stars): Defiant by Lesley Livingston is the action-packed follow-up book to The Valiant. Things start out well for Fallon, but that quickly changes when the place she calls home is overrun and she is put into a cell! Will she have to fight for an enemy or can she somehow turn the tables on her enemies?
This book is just as good as the first. Fallon is a fantastic character and she carries the story very well. The other characters are developed nicely and really add to the story, especially her sister! This book is filled with lots of good action and the ending is great! I LOVED IT! If there is a book 3, I will read it.
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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Out of all the books Gerard and I have read this year, there were only 12 that we both absolutely loved. We highly recommend all of these to you! To see our reviews of these, you can use the search box on our blog. I also did some video reviews for: The Great Pursuit, Scythe, The Reluctant Queen, Undivided (all mentioned in this video below) and The Selection Series that Gerard did not read and Scar Island.
There are also books I read and loved but that Gerard did not read, and some he read and loved that I did not read. A separate video will be coming soon showing each of our top 12 favorites for the year (Karen's add'l 12 Favorites link to video). Visit my YouTube channel here.
The Reluctant Queen (Queens of Renthia) by Sarah Beth Durst is the follow-up to The Queen of Blood. Daleina is now the queen and protects her kingdom from the spirits. She has a secret though, and when it is revealed, trouble is not far behind. Only one thing can save her kingdom, but time is not on her side! I thought this book was just as good as the first one. I was lost in this book many times, and that is a good thing! Daleina is a fantastic character and her protector, Bayn the wolf, is always close by. I’m glad there is going to be a Book 3 in this series—long live the Queen!
(Gerard’s review, 5++ stars)
Karen's review (5 stars): The Reluctant Queen (Book 2 of Queens of Renthia) by Sarah Beth Durst is about getting an heir ready to take over for the dying Queen Daleina who has the false death disease. Ven and Alet find Naelin, a housewife that has lots of raw power over spirits but needs to be trained in how to control it. She is married with two young children. After much persuasion, she reluctantly agrees to be trained and eventually becomes a candidate. Will a cure be found in time for Queen Daleina? Who is killing the candidates and why? Will Naelin ever agree to be queen? I loved this book and did not want to put it down, even though the ending was strange! In fact, I got so lost in it on the bus that I passed up my bus stop by several stops going to work! There is a lot of action in this book and some mystery. I loved the two kids and the wolf, Bayn.
See our review of the first book in this series: Queen of Blood
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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
In Scythe by Neal Shusterman, there is no war, no disease, and nobody goes hungry in the world. The only problem is overpopulation! That is where being a scythe comes into play. You fix that problem. Citra and Rowan are both picked to try to be a scythe, but do not want any part of it! However, to decline is not in their best interest.
This book was way better than I thought it would be. Citra and Rowan are both really good. The story flows well and the twists and turns are well done to say the least! Do not miss this one--it's a must read! I look forward to book 2.
(Gerard's review 10/30/17, 5++ stars)
Teaser from page 29: But a perfect world needs no improvement. Like most everything else we do, education, from grade school through the highest of universities, is just a way to keep us busy.
We both also liked Unwind by this author too and also recommend that one.
(Karen's review, 5 stars: LOVED THIS BOOK! SO GLAD I READ IT!) Scythe by Neal Shusterman is about a utopia future where humanity has overcome disease, aging, crime, and natural death. Government has been replaced with the Thunderhead that makes sure everyone in the world has what they need. It watches everything that happens and stores people's memories. (Anyway, guess we'll find out more about the Thunderhead in book two.) People can still get hurt, but what normally would kill someone like falling 12 stories from a window now makes them "deadish." They can be taken to a revival center where they get good as new in just 2-3 days and get delicious ice cream when they wake up. Since there is a problem of overpopulation, a special group called Scythes do the service of "gleaning" people on a random basis. Gleaning is just a nice word for legalized killing. The Scythdom have their own set of laws they must follow. When Citra and Rowan are chosen by Scythe Faraday to become his apprentices on the road to becoming a scythe, both reluctantly accept for different reasons. Scythes have power not only to take life, but also to grant immunity from being gleaned to people and Scythe's families have immunity as long as the Scythe lives. I was very intrigued by this book. It is well written and very thought provoking with several twists tossed in that really shocked me! I loved this book so much, I think I will actually re-read it just to make sure I didn't miss anything. Citra and Rowan come from very different backgrounds but are both smart, moral and find themselves in difficult situations. I also liked all the humor, some of which made me actually laugh out loud, and really cool things in this book like being able to "turn the corner" and go back to being any age you want, having years named after animals, and having healing nanites so wounds can heal themselves. I highly recommend this to older teens or adults who like thought provoking books about the future. This is one of my top 2 favorites of the year, the other being Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst.
SPOILER ALERT - STOP HERE IF YOU HAVEN'T YET READ THIS BOOK. IF YOU HAVE, I'D LOVE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS ON THESE QUESTIONS:
(1) Exactly how did Scythe Faraday fake his own death and how did Scythe Curie know about it?
(2) Why did Citra's fingers turn really cold when Scythe Faraday let her try on his ring, but when Scythe Goddard gave his ring to Rowan to take over giving immunity to the loved ones of those they gleaned, nothing happened. Nor did anything happen when Rowan put it on after decapitating Scythe Goddard (which I really liked by the way). I thought it was funny he put it in the dirty water bowl at the monastery.
(3) I thought the ending was fantastic and was so happy it didn't end with a cliffhanger as to which one was chosen or stop before knowing if the winner gleaned the loser. What did you think about the ending?
Endure by Sara B. Larson is the third and final book in the Defy Series which we both highly recommend. Alexa again has her hands full trying to hold off the enemy and make sure King Damian is safe! This book is probably the best of the series. It has tons of action from the outset and the pacing of the book is very good! I just had to see what was going to happen next! This is one of the top series that I have ever read! I LOVED IT!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)
Karen's review 3/19/16: Endure by Sara B. Larson is not only the third book of the Defy trilogy, but also the best! Good characters are motivated by love and loyalty while evil characters are motivated by greed and power in a struggle to survive. Alexa and Damian’s love story continues on throughout this book and is heartbreaking. Alexa’s fight against Armando and his black sorcerers is amazing! There is lots of action in this book as well as the tender moments of friendship and love.
I loved this last book of the series which is captivating and even made me cry near the end. When Alexa left King Damian after his proposal to rescue her friend, Rylan, I thought she was nuts and was proved to be right! I actually felt she made a very bad decision there and didn’t have as much sympathy for her during her captivity as I otherwise would have. I felt it was her own fault for being so stupid to go back to Dansii with Eljin to save Rylan.
At any rate, this is a very entertaining and adventurous
fantasy/clean romance series I highly recommend, especially for anyone
new to fantasy. I was never bored and it moved along well.
(Karen's review, 5 stars)
This series reminded me a lot of THE THRONE OF GLASS series by Sarah J. Mass. I discuss some differences and similarities in this video:
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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Bear Town by Fredrik Backman is about how a small town got so wrapped up with their boys’ hockey team having a shot at the championship that it became the town’s priority. This book deals with rape and how people always assume the girl brought it on herself, or deserved it, or wanted it, especially when the accused rapist is a popular, well-liked boy who is captain of their beloved hockey team.
I liked this book because of all the different characters and their interactions with each other. I liked how parenting played a big part in this book as well as the hockey team. It is well written and was never confusing. I got into this right from the start and my views about some of the characters changed for me along the way. My favorite characters were Amat, Peter (the GM), Benji and his sisters, the teacher (“Sweet Cheeks”), and Ramona. I liked the surprise ending too! (Karen's review 5/24/17, 5 stars)
Gerard's review, 5/19/17:
Welcome to Bear Town by Fredrick Backman, author of A Man Called Ove. Bear Town is a small town that is excited because its junior boys hockey team has a chance to win a championship, but this book is so much more than just hockey! The writing is fantastic! The characters in this book are so real that I got sucked in early. You need to read every page because the author includes so much that you might miss a game changer if you skip parts. The ending is perfect! This book will be high on my top book list for 2017--that I know!
(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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
The Red Hunter by Lisa Unger is a mystery with complex characters and surprises about seeking justice/revenge. At the center of this novel is an old “haunted” farmhouse that was Zoey’s childhood home where her parents were murdered years ago and one Claudia has inherited and is renovating. Some cops justify stealing $1 million from a drug dealer and after the agreed upon cuts, Zoey’s dad hides it. The story line with Claudia centers on her marriage, her teenage daughter Raven and the renovation while Zoey’s story centers on her hunting down and killing the men who murdered her parents and tortured her as a kid. This novel is fast-paced and kept my attention, peaked my interest and challenged me to think about the difference between justice and revenge. I liked both Claudia and Zoey. The ending was great but also a bit shocking. The only thing I didn’t really like was that abrupt switching between story lines without any transition. I really liked this one though in spite of that and highly recommend it if you like crime novels that weave in normal lives.
(Karen's review, 5/18/17, 5 stars)
Gerard read this first:
In The Red Hunter by Lisa Unger, Claudia wants a new start. She is trying to deal with a horrible assault on her that she will live with forever. She is going to fix up an old house that was in her family for her and her daughter. Zoey Drake had a terrible ordeal too and wants revenge in the worst way! What these two women have in common is that house and the secrets that still exist in it, none of which Claudia has any idea about.
This is good stuff! The first part of the book sets it up and the last part of the book shows how it all plays out. Lisa Unger is always good! This is another good read by her and I look forward to her next one. (Gerard's review, 5/8/17, 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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
A Court of Wings and Ruin is the third book of A Court of Thorns and Roses series and did not disappoint! It starts off with Feyre back with Tamlin in the Spring Court where she creates some havoc with her mischief, but soon moves back to Valeris. Feyre and Lucian’s friendship is strengthened and he proves. In this book, other courts come into play and more new characters are introduced. Feyre’s sisters have a major part in this book and some romance starts to blossom. Rys and Fayre are reunited and work together so well throughout the book. There is a lot of banter and adventure.
This is a page turner that was hard for me to put down once Rys and Feyre were reunited. I was happy to see Tamlin come through for Feyre and her flying lessons with Azriel were pretty funny but paid off in the end. I loved how this book brought out a wide range of emotions for me and of course had some surprises along the way. I look forward to the next book in this series. (Karen's review, 5 stars)
Gerard's review:
This is the third book in this series written from Feyre's perspective. WOW! This book is really good! It has plenty of action and I loved the dialogue between all the main characters. That really added to the enjoyment of the book for me. The ending is full of surprises and I had a hard time putting it down for the last 150 pages. With this book, Sarah J. Mass shows once again why she is one of the best! I give this 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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
The Kommandant’s Girl by Pam Jenoff is a very interesting story about a Jewish girl, Emma, doing whatever she needs to do to survive the Nazi rule. Emma is just 19 and recently married to Jacob, a leader in the resistance movement, at the start of the book. When Jacob leaves Emma alone to work on dangerous missions for the resistance, Emma goes to live with her parents, but finds that they have been taken away to a Jewish ghetto. She follows them but with the help of the resistance, escapes to her husband’s Aunt’s house who she then lives with. When the aunt throws a dinner party for high ranking political officials, Emma takes on a whole new identity and begins to work for the Kommandant at Nazi headquarters. Will she ever be reunited with her husband? Will the Rabbi’s little boy who lives with her survive? Will he ever know about his Jewish heritage?
This book is about Emma’s journey and raises some moral and ethical questions. I liked this book and was not disappointed. The double life that Emma found herself in was very interesting and I also liked both the Kommandant and Jacob. I could easily see how Emma could be unfaithful to her husband under the circumstances. It was fun trying to figure out who Emma could trust. It would be a good one for a book club to discuss. There is lots of aspects to discuss. I highly recommend this one! I read this book because I liked The Orphan’s Tale by this author so wanted to try another one by her. (Karen's review 5/2/17, 5 stars)
Gerard's review 4/29/17:
In The Kommandant's Girl by Pam Jenoff, Emma is a newly married woman when the Nazi's take over Poland. Her husband goes underground to fight the takeover. Emma wants to help too, but when circumstances give her a chance to do her part, it is very dangerous. One false move means death for her and those she loves!
This is good stuff! The story line is very good and I felt the tension grow. The characters are very believable too. (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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
The Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff is a gripping historical fiction book about two women protected in Germany by joining a circus during the 1940s when Hitler took over and rounded up Jews for execution. Noa rescued a little Jewish baby that was among many dead on a railcar and Astrid was a Jew whose German officer husband kicked her out when ordered to do so. Astrid was from a circus family and the competing circus took her in. Noa had no circus background, but the circus owner took in her and the baby to protect them and told Astrid to train Noa for the trapeze act.
This book was very good! I really liked the circus aspect of this book and enjoyed seeing Astrid and Noa's relationship develop. In this book, it showed how some were able to find happiness amid the terribly things going on. There is a lot of sadness in this but also light parts too to keep it from being too depressing. It is one I don't think I'll forget! I had to wait to write my review to give me some time to recover from the sad ending. I highly recommend this one! My favorite character in this was Astrid, who was yours?
(Karen's review, 5 stars)
Gerard's review, 3-1-17, 5++ stars:
In The Orphan’s Tale by Pam Jenoff is set in the early 1940s in Germany when Hitler and the Third Reich ruled., 16-year-old Noa has been thrown out of her parents’ house. Her husband leaves her and her newborn baby is taken from her. Now she is on the run and is not alone. She carries a secret that if found out will mean death for her and her companion. Astrid knows the circus life very well. She is one of the stars of the show, but every day she lives in fear that her secret will come out.
I enjoyed both Noa and Astrid. I found this book very hard to put down as the tension builds throughout. Loved it! It is now my book of the month for February!
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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Wow! After coming off A Court of Mist and Fury, I was doubtful if anything would come close to keeping my interest as much, but The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst did!
In this fantasy novel, humans are attacked by six different spirits: air, water, earth, ice, fire and wood who feel the land belongs to them. These spirits have two instincts: destroy and create. Certain humans have an affinity to control them in different degrees and The Queen is the most powerful and keeps everything in balance and protects the people. Over time though, the Queen can lose some of her power and so they have heirs trained and prepared to become Queen if the Queen dies. The kicker here is that the spirits are the ones to choose the next Queen and they give her more power. The main character is Daleina who as a child demonstrates she has the affinity to control spirits when her home is attacked. She is smart, nice, and determined to learn more so that she can become Queen and protect people from these spirits but do no harm. The Queen must be able to control the spirits, not just wipe them all out because that would wipe out their land as well.
I loved this book so much, I even read it at night to finish it! (I hardly ever read at night.) I got so engrossed in it that was almost late getting back from lunch and had to stop earlier than usual on the bus so I wouldn't miss my stop. It is a fun and interesting read that shows how important good leadership and teamwork are. There is a lot of killing in this book and I felt so bad for Daleina when her friends died. There is lots of action and humor which kept this from being depressing because of the killing. Daleina is such a great character who truly wanted to protect others. She befriends a wolf who proves to be a loyal asset to her and also is chosen to be trained by Ven who brings along a healer, Haman. The three of them work together to do what is best for the land. I really look forward to the next book in this series, Queens of Renthia.
(Karen's review, 5 stars)
In The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst, Daleina is a young girl whose community is torn apart and its people are killed by the spirits. This is not supposed to happen! The Queen is supposed to protect the people. Daleina decides to try out to be a champion. A champion is a person who protects the people and is an heir to be a queen. But the odds are long that she can become one. Is the queen losing her power?
I thought this book was very good. I was into it from page 1 because Daleina is a great character. This has plenty of action and a few twists that I did not see at all. I am looking forward to reading the next two books in this series.
(Gerard's review 12/23/16, 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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Here is a list of books both Gerard and I loved that we read in 2016 and would highly recommend. If you click the links it will take you to our reviews:
YA fantasycontinues to be a favorite genre for both of us. Books in this genre we both read and loved last year were:
We also each made a top 12 Favorites list for 2016 so some of these will not be on those lists because we had to narrow down our favorites to just 12--a very hard thing to do! I read 83 books last year and Gerard read 132. You can see both our favorites of 2016 here:
To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Wow! A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas is so good! This is the second book in A Court of Thorns and Roses series and is even better than the first! This review has some spoilers so read the book first and then come see what I thought of it. Definitely must read the first book before this one. If you like fantasy and magical kingdoms, this is a "must read." (This would be R rated for sexual content.) SPOILER ALERT: Feyre pretty much tells Tamlin to “jump in the lake” and chooses to stay with Rys who is her mate and challenges Feyre to use her skills. This book is full of new adventures with lots of wit and packed with both heartbreaking and heartwarming scenes and lots of good dialogue. I like all the characters in Rys’ inner circle and loved their trip to the Summer Court and how the wraiths came to save Feyre and Amren from drowning. I cheered when Feyre served Rys the food in the cabin, accepting the bond as mates. The ending is Great and I can't wait for the next book!
I was having a hard time deciding on my favorite read for December until I read this one which is the winner! (Karen's review, 5 stars)
Gerard read this first, 6-15-16: A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas is the follow-up book to A Court of Thorns and Roses and is like ten times better than the first one! Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to spring court, but at a high cost. She still has the bargain with Rhysard.
Wow, oh Wow! I really liked the characters, the writing and the action which all work together to make the story flow well. The ending is probably the best I have ever read! I want book 3 NOW!
(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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys takes place in 1941. Lina is preparing for art school and all that summer has to offer. Then the Soviet Secret Police break into her home and taker her, her mother and her younger brother away. Her father was taken captive too, but kept apart from them. Will they get back together? Will they ever survive? What do the Soviets want from them? I thought this book was outstanding! I was into it all the way. The writing was so good too that I could really picture it in my mind. A Must Read!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)
Karen's review, 5 stars: Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys is a very good historical fiction book about Lithuanians who were deported during WW II by the Russians. This book is about a 15-yr.-old girl, Lena, who is very brave and loves to draw. She is the cousin of Joana, one of the main characters in Salt to the Sea, that is taken by the NKVD during at night along with her mother and younger brother, Jonas. First, they are crammed into a train with a bunch of others who were "on the list" going to who knows where. Lena becomes friends with Andrius, a boy her age who is also on the train. The second part of the book is about her time at the farm where the Russians try to force them to sign a paper admitting they are criminals and willing to work on the farm for 25 years. Those who sign get treated slightly better than those who don't. Andrius signs but Lena does not so Andrius tries his best to help her and her family. Living in unsanitary conditions with barely anything to eat, she is forced to dig with a trowel all day or carry 50 lb. sacks of grain. Can things get any worse? Oh yes. The third part of the book takes Lena, her mother and brother to Siberia but not Andrius, way up into the Arctic Circle where they must use the bricks and wood that the Russians brought along to build barracks and a bakery for the soldiers. They have to make huts for themselves out of driftwood, moss and whatever else they can scrounge up from the trash the soldiers throw away during temperatures below zero! All through this book, you wonder along with them if they will survive and if they will ever be reunited with their father and Andrius.
The author does a fantastic job of introducing the reader to other characters as Lena meets them so it is pretty easy to keep them straight. I really liked this book better than Salt to the Sea because it had better continuity with just telling the story from Lena's viewpoint. I couldn't help but thinking how I would react if I was in that situation. I'm pretty sure I would have given up. These people went through awful things but the book did have some high points with the romance thread, the birthday and Christmas celebrations. This book stayed with me after I was done and needed time to process it before jumping into my next read. I must say, I liked this as much as I liked The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah.
Also liked Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys but not as much as this one.
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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
What Was Mine by Helen Klein Ross is fantastic! Lucy has been trying to have a baby, but it is a no go. One day she sees a baby alone at a store and takes it! The next day, she makes up her mind to return the baby to its mother, but she decides otherwise and keeps it, raising the baby girl as her own. This story is told by a bunch of people that were affected by this decision, which really adds to the story. I was hooked from page one all the way through! This page turner is told very well and I liked the ending too, although not everyone may agree. Read it for yourself to see what you think.
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)
Karen's review, 5 stars: What Was Mine by Helen Klein Ross is an interesting contemporary fiction story about Madelyn whose baby, Natalie, is kidnapped by Lucy, a woman who wants a baby but can’t conceive. Lucy raises Natalie as her own, changing her name to Mia. Mia is raised with love and given the best education, never suspecting Lucy is not her real mother until she gets a friend request on Facebook from Madelyn. This book tugged at my heart and kept me turning pages to find out how Mia feels about her abduction and finding her real family, what will become of Lucy and will Mia keep her bond with Lucy or bond with her real mother? This book shows how good people can make mistakes that affect many lives for years to come. I found myself liking Lucy better than Madelyn even though Madelyn was the victim and suffered a major loss because of Lucy. I never heard of restitution justice until reading this book. I thought the ending was incredible but left me wanting more! I think this would be a great book club read and highly recommend it to anyone who likes good contemporary fiction.
Have you read this one? What did you think of it? Did you like the ending? Did you like Lucy? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling is the second book of this series which is about Harry’s second year at Hogwarts. I loved the action in this book and the relationships with Harry, Ron and Hermione. The ending had me on the edge. This was a page turner to the very end.
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)
I enjoyed Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J. K. Rowling. It's about Harry's second year at Hogwarts and is quite the mystery with adventures of an elf named Dobby, a flying car, changing into other people, attacking trees and huge spiders, and an attack on Harry's life! Harry proves to be very brave and very nice once again in this book.
I don't understand though why he just didn't keep that invisible cloak on when he went into the forbidden forest. It would save him a lot of trouble. Anyhow, I really like Hermione and felt sorry for her when her magic potion didn't work so well for her and when she got petrified. This is a very fun read and I plan to continue on with more of this series.
(Karen's review 6-1-15, 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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart is about an 12-yr.-old orphan boy, Joseph Johnson. He has lost just about everything he loved, but the one thing he can get back is his horse, Sarah, that was sold without his knowledge. Joseph is a great character and his adventures had me holding my breath! I so wanted him to get his horse back. I loved this book! It goes fast because it’s hard to put down. We also loved this author’s first book, The Honest Truth.
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)
Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart is a gripping story about a boy who goes on his own to track down his horse that was sold without his knowledge to a crooked horse trader. He has a strong sense to do his dead parents proud and do the right thing. Even though his parents and sister died, he still keeps their memory alive. The story is about how important family is. Joseph is very likable and I couldn't help but pull for him. He met a Chinese boy along the way so had a friend on part of his journey who was also on a mission. Both boys were very brave!
I loved this book and was surprised it was just as good as the first book by this author. It has lots of action and kept me turning pages. The recurring theme in the book was what Joseph's papa always said and what drove Joseph:
But Papa had said that when there's something that's got to be done, the thing to do is just to buckle down and do it the best you can.
(Karen's review, 5 stars)
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The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah is a heartbreaking story of two sisters, Vianna and Isabelle, living in France during World War II. It is action packed with well-developed characters who the reader comes to care about. Both sisters are very brave in different ways. The sisters both find themselves in difficult situations and have to make some hard choices. What both sisters endured was horrible, but love prevailed. I didn’t realize the Nazis actually occupied France until I read this book. This novel gives insight into what it was like for civilians during World War II in France and also what great lengths parents would go to in order to protect their children. I was eager to get back to this book to see what was going to happen next. There is a lot of adventure, some romance, sadness and touching moments along the way. This is a fascinating historical fiction novel I highly recommend.
(Karen's review, 5 stars)
Gerard's review, 5++ stars: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah is set in France during World War II. Two sisters, Vianne and Isabelle, now live in a country that is run by the Nazis. Isabelle wants to fight for her country while Vianne does what she has to do to keep her family alive.
This is a fantastic read! It is fiction, but the events in the book really happened. The pages went by quickly as I became totally engrossed in this story. Books to do get much better than this! I LOVED it and am naming it my "book of the month." This is a must read! You won't be sorry!
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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas is the fourth book in the Throne of Glass series of 6 and all are great! These books get better and better in my opinion. Aelin a/k/a Celaena is her usual "bad ass" self and outwitting and outfighting everybody. She also has a new girlfriend that is also tough like her and the two of them together are just amazing! Rowan is back as well as Dorian and Chaol.
There are many "wow" moments in this book that I did not see coming! This book flows so well that there are not any dull moments. If you read the first three, you must read this one too!
(Gerard's review 10/30/15, 5++ stars)
Karen's review 11/15/15, 5 stars: Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Mass continues to provide lots of intrigue, adventure, suspense and romance in this Throne of Glass series. Celaena is now going by Aelin and is reunited with Aedion (her cousin), Rowan, Lysandra, Arobynn and Chaol. She fights another witch, Manon, and is amazing at both fighting and plotting. Even the reader is not informed of all her activities and plans which makes for some surprises and jaw dropping moments along the way. She is such an interesting character who has grown so much since the first book. She is a class act! It is good to see others step up and join forces to help her rescue her cousin, get her revenge on Arobynn and kill the king. I enjoyed this book and found myself cheering for her a lot. I also liked the parts with Manon and Abraxos. I was confused with Lorchan’s part, but other than that was able to follow what was happening for the most part with the exception of all the rings which got me puzzled somewhat. I’m sure Elide will meet her queen in the next book and look forward to that. Also, I am anxious to see Aelin set up her kingdom in Terresen with her court. If you started this series, I encourage you to continue on with this book which is very good! I strongly suggest, however, that if you haven’t read The Assassin’s Blade yet, that you read that before continuing on with the series. It is so good and provides the background that is referred to in the Throne of Glass series. (5 stars)
Both my husband and I are reading this series now, he is reading the book first and then I am reading it so be sure to come back and see my review of the book too.
Here's Gerard's review:
This is the second book in The Throne of Glass series which is action packed! There is so much going in in this second book! Celaena is such a bad ass, I love her! She knows what she is and is not afraid of anyone and makes it clear she is not one to mess with. The characters of Dorian and Chaol are further developed and some new ones are added. We learn a lot more in this book than in the first. Loved this book a lot! On to book 3--Heir of Fire.
(5++ stars)
(Karen's review, 5 stars)
In Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas, there are a few more characters introduced and lots of action. Celaena plays a dangerous game making the king think she is following his orders when she isn't really. She continues to pursue her own agenda, to find his secret power source and to seek revenge. There are quite a few scenes I liked a lot including some with Chaol, Dorian, the king, assassinations and her dog, Fleetfoot. I am still pulling for Chaol in the love triangle. A couple of her secrets are revealed in this book too!
I liked the humor in this book and the fighting she does seemed justified to me. She is very clever but way more curious than I would be. Can't picture me wandering through dark secret passageways below a castle alone! This is one brave girl! I also like how Chaol is always willing to protect her and help her anyway he can. There were lots of things I especially liked in this book but don't want to be more specific to spoil it for you. Read it and discover the mysteries for yourself!
Here is a discussion video on this book that Gerard and I did on our front porch yesterday:
See our reviews of the first book in this series: Throne of Glass.
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. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!
