"After Annie" by Anna Quindlen is Fantastic!

After Annie by Anna Quindlen blew me away!  WOW!  Annie dies all of a sudden and leaves her husband who has no house cleaning or childcare experience at all and works all hours of the day!  Their 14-yr.-old girl now has to look after her three young brothers and keep the house clean.  As far as cooking goes, she knows how to make toasted cheese sandwiches but little else.  Will this family pull together and remember what their mother taught hem and told them, or will it fall apart?  

This book is about true life!  This is my favorite book so far this year and I highly recommend you read it!  If you only read one book this year, make it this one!  (Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

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"The Only One Left" by Riley Sager is Amazing!

The Only One Left by Riley Sager, is the best book I've read this year by far!  It starts out a bit slow, but boy, does it pick up!  It's about Kit, a caregiver, who is hired to take care of a paralyzed person who was suspected of murder and lives in a big spooky house at the top of cliff.  Kit is hired soon after the previous caregiver mysteriously left.  This book has it all--mystery, suspense, action, devious characters, creepy fathers and lots of surprise twists with a great ending!  This was crazy good!  Loved it and highly recommend it.  (Karen's review, 5 stars)   

Gerard's review 10/2023:

In The Only One Left by Riley Sager, Kit becomes a caregiver for Lenora Hope.  It is believed Lenora killed her parents, but no proof was found.  Kit is afraid after a few days but needs the money so stays on the job.  She is soon to be a lot more frightened!  This book is amazing!  It has lots of twists and turns with an easy storyline to follow.  The characters are great too.  If you think you know how it all plays out, trust me, you do not!  Must read this one!  (5++ stars)

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"This Time Tomorrow" by Emma Straub

In This Time Tomorrow, Alice's dad is very sick with tubes in him as she is on the verge of turning 40.  She remembers the fun times she had with her dad.  On her birthday, she wakes up back in time when she was 16 and her dad was healthy.  This book could have been so much better if it was about Alice and her dad instead of time travel!  (Gerard's review, 3 stars)

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"Dark Horses" by Susan Mihalic

In Dark Horses by Susan Mihalic, Roan, 15-yr-old girl, has a love for riding horses in shows.  She wants to be in the Olympics like her dad who won a bunch of medals and now oversees Roan's training.  However, when a boy moves into the picture, things get complicated!  If you enjoyed V. C. Andrews' old books, this is for you.  I did and got through this one quickly!  It has a good storyline, interesting characters and the ending was one for the books!  (Gerard's review, 5 stars)

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"The Umbrella Lady" by V. C. Andrews is Touching--We Both Liked This!

The Umbrella Lady by V. C. Andrews centers on a young girl named Saffron who is the narrator of the story.  She is left alone at a train stations that her dad took her to and then he just left her there telling her to wait for him.  As she waited, and waited, and waited, an old woman with an umbrella invited her to come home with her to wait for her father who never showed.  Saffron refers to her as the Umbrella Lady.   I really, really enjoyed Saffron.  The byplay between her and the Umbrella lady is great!  Also, Saffron's interaction with other kids when she finally went to public school was priceless!  I would have liked more action, but Saffron more than made up for that.  I look forward to the second book this fall.  (Gerard's review, 5 stars)

Karen's review 4/6/2021:  In The Umbrella Lady by V. C. Andrews, after a fire burns her home and kills her mother, 8-yr.-old Saffron is abandoned by her father at the train station and found by the Umbrella lady.  Saffron thinks of the lady that way because she always carries an umbrella with her, even if it's sunny.  The lady takes her home but leaves a note for the dad who supposedly would be back to get Saffron after he bought a few things for their new home.  Saffron reluctantly goes home with the nice old lady, but expects her father to show up soon to get her.  Will he ever come back?  What will become of Saffran?  Are the dad and the Umbrella lady in cahoots?  Is the dad really sending letters or is the Umbrella lady making them up?  

This was a very good book!  I loved it and thought about it even when I wasn't reading it.  I was always eager to get back to it and was sad to see it end, but happy to see there will be a sequel.  I loved the growing relationship between Saffron and the Umbrella lady (Mazy Dazy).  Mazy had lots of wisdom quotes and was constantly introducing Saffron to new words.  Mazy was a former teacher and home schooled Saffron, challenging her to learn something new each day.  I also enjoyed Mazy's white cat, Mr. Pebbles the third.  I highly recommend this one, especially to any teachers, retirees or even teens.   (5 stars)

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"Daughter of the Reich" by Louise Fein

In Daughter of the Reich by Louise Fein, Hetty is a young German girl of a high ranking Nazi officer.  Hetty is loyal to the Reich and ready to do her part.  But as time goes on, Hetty begins to learn that all she believes to be good might not be so.  She will not turn her back on her old friends.  

This book is pretty good.  It drew me in and kept my interest throughout.  The story has good flow to it and the characters were brought out very well with a good ending.  (Gerard's review, 5 stars) 

Teaser from page 22:  Everything looks calm and friendly, but I can feel the evil hovering outside the safety of our iron railings, and I shudder.  I imagine a great big guard dog, patrolling the garden.  Just the idea of it makes me feel safer.

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Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult

Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult deals with the issue of what to do when the "right" thing is illegal.   Charles is married to an alcoholic and has a 4-yr.-old girl.  Not only that, but he discovers his wife is cheating on him with Victor and they get divorced.  Charles "rescues" his little girl by taking her from Arizona to live with him in New Hampshire under new names (Andrew and Delia) instead of returning her home after his day with her.  Delia grows up happy but doesn't remember much of her mother.  Ironically, she grows up and helps detectives and police search and rescue missing people with her dog, Greta.  Thirty years later, he is arrested for kidnapping.  Will he be found guilty and spend 20 years in prison?  What will Delia think of him for lying to her practically her whole life?  He told her that her mother died in a car accident.   Will she marry her long-time friend, Eric, a recovering alcoholic and lawyer, or choose her other long-time friend Fritz, a journalist.

This book was pretty good because it had a surprise ending and I liked the tension between liking Andrew even though he did technically kidnap his daughter.  I felt a little bad for the mother and Delia.  There were some parts that I did not care about, but they didn't last long.  I did not like the way the book jumped around between the past and present, but the story line was good and I did like Delia and her father, Andrew, the main characters.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Teaser from page 75:  On the one hand, I was his child, and he must have been doing what he felt he needed to do.  On the other hand, I'm a mother now, and he committed my worst nightmare.

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"The Good Father" by Diane Chamberlain

The Good Father by Diane Chamberlain centers on Travis and his 4-yr-old daughter, Bella.  Robin was very sickly and fragile when he got her pregnant and did not want the baby so Travis got full custody.  When his mother's house burns to the ground, he finds himself and Bella homeless.  Then he loses his job and moves to Raleigh to follow a job lead.  He meets a woman at a coffee shop, Erin, who is still grieving over the loss of her child but hits it off with Bella.  His job is not what he thought it would be and finds himself mixed up with drug dealers.  He left Bella with Erin while he went to work, but didn't come back!  What will Erin do with Bella?  Will Travis get out alive and see his daughter again?  What about Robin?  These are all questions answered when you read the book.

I enjoyed this book, although it started off a bit slow.  It really has three story lines about the three main characters, Travis, Erin and Robin.  This book looks at parenting and grieving.  This would be a good book for a book club to discuss.  It has discussion questions in the back.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Teaser from page 8:  The only thing was, she might be too good.  The kind of person who'd call the cops on me.  I just had to trust her not to.

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"The Art of Hearing Heartbeats" by Jan-Philipps Sendker

The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philipp Sendker is a very unusual love story that is told to Julia. She just graduated from law school and then her father just left.  Her family lives in New York City.  She looks for clues and decides to try to track him down in Burma when she finds an letter from someone named Mi Mi at an address in Burma.  When she arrives, she meets an old man in a tea house who seems to know all about her and begins telling her the story of Tin Win, her father! His story is quite amazing!  You will have to read this for yourself to find out about it.

This is a very slow moving, tender love story between a blind boy and a crippled girl.  I liked Mi Mi and felt sorry for both Mi Mi and Tin Win.  I almost quit on this about a third of the way in; but decided to finish and I'm glad I did.
(Karen's review, 3 stars)

Teaser from page 165:  Waiting was so interwoven with the rhythm of her life that it almost disturbed her when anything happened right away.  She was mystified by people who were always hurrying things along. A time of waiting offered moments, minutes, sometimes even hours of peace, of rest, during which, as a rule, she was alone with herself.     

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"The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise" by Dan Gemeinhart

The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart is a heartwarming children’s story about a father and daughter on a road trip. They just bought a bus and drove all over together for five years after the wife and other two daughters were killed in a car accident when Coyote was 7. The father tries to forget by changing their names—he Rodeo Sunrise and the girl Coyote Sunrise. At 12 years old, Coyote gets talks on the phone to her grandmother and finds out the park is being torn down in a few days. Coyote is determined to get there to dig up the box her and her sisters and mom buried just before they died but needs to get her father to go somehow. As her and her dad travel from Florida back home to Washington State, they pick up some travel companions along the way: a cat she named Ivan, a boy and his mother, a musician, the boy’s aunt, a runaway girl, and a goat!

This book is a fun read with lots of touching moments and some wild, fun times. I liked both the dad and his daughter and her best friend, Salvador. As soon as Coyote got a kitten, I was hooked! This book has a good lesson: don’t judge people by how they look and most people want to help others if they can. Although this is a children’s book, it kept my interest all the way. It is a quick read I enjoyed! (Karen's review, 5 stars)

Teaser from page 26:  Ivan, superstar kitten that he was, managed to keep his grip on Rodeo's neck through all the screeching and the leaping.  Once Rodeo had shot to an upright position, Ivan decided he'd rather not be attached to a screaming, vertical hippie.


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"Everless" by Sara Holland--We Both Gave This 4 Stars

Everless by Sara Holland is her debut novel. It is a fantasy about mystery, magic, betrayal as Jules goes searching for an answer to why her father told her to never let the queen see her and to run if she ever saw Liam Gerling, once a childhood friend who banished her and her father from Everless. I liked Jules, but it didn’t make sense to me that she wouldn’t listen to her father and not go back to Everless, a dangerous place for her. She discovers her papa kept lots of secrets from her which leads to her searching for even more answers!

As with any fantasy, some things didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me, but I enjoyed this book anyway. It has a lot of interesting characters and an angle I haven’t come across before with the blood iron—stealing people’s years of life by draining some blood from them. This was a hard concept for me to really understand. The character interaction is what kept my interest. I didn’t like that one of my favorite characters was killed.
(Karen’s review, 4 stars)

Gerard's review:
Everless by Sara Holland is fantasy and this author's first novel.  The concept was a new one that I have never read before.  It deals with blood and you can store it up to live longer.  The main character is a young girl named Jules who I liked.  I was engaged for the most part.  The ending was wild to say the least, but I liked it enough that I will read book 2--Evermore!  (4 stars)

Teaser from page 16: If I hadn’t pulled Roan out before the flames could catch, he would have been burned alive. And as my reward, we had to flee the only home I had ever known, because Papa was afraid of what Liam would do to me if we stayed at Everless, knowing what I had seen.


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"Educated" by Tara Westover (Hubby and I disagree on this one!)

Educated by Tara Westover is her memoir of leaving her Mormon family in Idaho to pursue a formal education.  This is a long journey.  Tara is from a large family whose father owned a scrap yard and who kept her working for him as long as he could.  It is an amazing story of how she was accepted at BYU and went on to Cambridge and Harvard without having graduated high school!  In fact, even her "home schooling" was not at all regular.

I found this book very hard to read.  The father and brother made me very angry and it was difficult to fathom how dysfunctional this family was.  In some ways it reminded me of The Glass Castle and A Child Called It.  The domestic violence and abuse is heart wrenching.  I did enjoy Part 2 better when she got away from her family and into college.  I was never engrossed in this book and for the most part had to plow through.  I would have liked to know what kind of actual job the author wound up with after all that education.
(Karen's review, 3 stars)

Gerard's review:

Educated by Tara Westover is a true story and what a story it is!  Tara first stepped foot in a classroom at the age of 17, but now she received a BA degree from Bringham Young University and a scholarship to Cambridge in England where she was awarded a PHD in history!  WOW!  She tells her story so well.  She wanted more of a life than her family could give her, and overcame long odds to do it.  She went through a lot both in and out of the classroom!

I highly recommend this memoir, don't miss it!  Put it on your TBR list right now!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Teaser from page 39:  There was never any more talk of a hospital.  The moment for such a decision had passed, and to return to it would be to return to all the fury and fear of the accident itself. 

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"The Second Opinion" by Michael Palmer

The Second Opinion by Michael Palmer is an interesting book with about a medical conspiracy, greed, betrayal, murder and a dysfunctional family including two adult children with Asperger's.  Their father who is a prestigious internist at a well-known hospital is in a coma from being involved in a hit-and-run accident.  His oldest son, Dimitri who has Asperger's, believes it wasn't an accident, but only his sister, Thea, believes him.  She also has Asperger's and came back to Boston from working with Doctors Without Borders in Central Africa to see her dad.  She believes there is a slight chance he could recover but the twin brother and sister want to let him go.  Thea agrees to take over her father's patients and senses something is off.  Her life is threatened shortly after she starts asking too many questions.

This is quite the mystery that also includes a bit of romance, suspense and insights into adult Asperger's.  I liked it once I finally started it and looked forward to getting back to it.  I liked Thea and her devotion to her dad.  The ending was a shock to me that I did not see coming.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)  

Teaser from page 25:  There remained unfinished business between them.  The man had never, in all her memory, told her that he loved her, nor had she taken the initiative and told him.  At the very least, she needed that exchange to happen between them before the end.

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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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"The Last Namsara" by Kristen Ciccarelli is GREAT!

The Last Namsara  by Kristen Cicarelli is a fun, adventurous read!  If you like fantasy, I highly recommend this.  Asha is a girl who was scarred from being badly burned by a dragon but lived.  Her father has promised her to marry someone she does not like who is very controlling.  Fortunately, her father gave her a way out if she brings him the head of Kozu, the first dragon--the one who burned her as a child. She is determined to do it!  There are many secrets though and as they are revealed, everything changes!

I liked this book a lot because it was fast-paced with lots of adventure, an interesting plot including forbidden love and strong characters.  I liked Shadow and Kozu, the two dragons, very much!  My favorite parts of the book were when Asha and Torwin rode on the dragons.  The brother/sister dynamic was interesting as well.
(Karen's review, 5 stars)

Gerard's review, 4/1/18, 5++ stars:
In The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli, Asha is the daughter of the king, but she is also the Iskari--dragon hunter.  She has one more dragon to kill and only so much time to do it!  If not, well Asha does not want to think about that!  It will change her life forever, and not in a good way.

WOW, DID I LOVE THIS BOOK!  Asha is a great character!  Nothing or nobody keeps her down for long!  I really enjoyed the story line and the other characters were good also!  This kept me turning pages quickly!  I am really looking forward to Book 2.


Teaser from page 120:  "The Old One can try all he likes to stop me, but I'm going to find Kozu.  And when I do, I'm going to kill him."

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"My Brother's Keeper" by Donna Malana - Mystery

In My Brother's Keeper by Donna Malana, Karen hires Diane, a missing person expert, to track down her 14-yr-old daughter, Sonny, who she lost contact with while serving seven years in prison for killing her son and attempting to kill her daughter.  Karen wants to make sure Sonny is all right.  Diane tracks down Sonny and even sets up a meeting for her to meet her mother, but her mother doesn't show!

This is a dark, twisted mystery that I finished in one day.  It takes place in New Zealand and moved along quickly.  I thought this was a good mystery and felt bad for Sonny and the mother.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Teaser from page10:  'That's what I went away for.  I tried to kill my daughter.'

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"Now Is Everything" by Amy Giles

In Now is Everything by Amy Giles, Hadley has a bright future ahead of her.  She is pretty, an excellent student, and good in sports.  Her dad controls her though, and not always in a good way!  But, she puts up with it to protect her younger sister from him.  When a boyfriend enters the picture, the tension gets higher.

Teaser from pg. 39:  "The noise, the chaos, all belong to another world, another dimension.  Not mine."

I enjoyed this book very much!  I got into it quickly and was always ready to continue it.  The characters were true to life and there were no dull points.
(Gerard's review, 5+ stars)

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"This Adventure Ends" by Emma Mills is about Teen Friendship

This Adventure Ends by Emma Mills is about a group of friends and how they help each other. Vera and Gabe are twins whose mother painted until she died. Remy is Gabe’s best friend, Tash and Aubrey are Vera’s best friends Frank is a wealthy friend who likes to party. Sloane is a new friend who gets attention when she embarrasses the bully who was picking on Gabe at a party. Sloane’s dad is a teen romance writer who has writer’s block but gets inspiration from his daughter’s life. When one of the paintings gets sold that Gabe wanted to keep, Sloane decides to track it down for him and get it back.

This is an okay read if you like a bit of teen drama with a bit of romance. Of course, one of the relationships tossed in were a couple lesbians, but that was just a small part of the book. Overall, I thought the dialogue was done well but would have preferred less foul language. I liked how it ended and enjoyed the main characters. (Karen's review, 3 stars)


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"Protecting Marie" by Kevin Henkes

Protecting Marie by Kevin Henkes is a children’s book about a 12-yr.-old girl, her dad, and her dog. It is told in first person by the girl, Fanny. The dad is an artist and teaches at a university. This book focuses on the girl’s views and things that are important to her. She has a bunch of childish things she treasures and gets upset when her father runs a “stupid hunt” in her room to hunt down stupid things that can be thrown out She is mad at her dad over getting rid of their first dog, Nellie and has a hard time letting it go.

Teaser from page 13:  The whole idea of growing old is scary.  And a big birthday is so symbolic."

This book may appeal to a young girl, but I was not impressed with it.  The book cover is very misleading because it implies the dog is Marie, but it is not! I liked Dinner, the second dog in the book, but there was not much of a climax or great ending to this one.  The gist of the story is how Fanny and her dad mend their relationship. It just sort of fell flat for me. It was okay, but was eager to move on to something else.
(Karen's review, 3 stars)

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"She Rides Shotgun" by Jordan Harper

In She Rides Shotgun by Jordan Harper, Polly knows something it wrong when she finds her dad waiting for her outside of her school one day.  One, he never does that, and two, he is supposed to be in prison.  Even though Polly is 11 years old, she had her Teddy bear with her as usual and goes off with her dad for better or worse!

Teaser from page 54:   Polly put the bear down.  She picked up the phone.

Polly is a great character and when she was in the story, it was really good!  This book starts off strong and ends well; however, having so many characters made the middle of the book not so good.  That being said, on the strength of Polly and the story line, I still give it 4 stars!
(Gerard's review)

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