"The Cost of These Dreams" by Wright Thompson

The Cost of These Dreams--Sports Stories and Other Serious Business by Wright Thompson is a collection of true stories about athletes and one story about fans of a team.  I thought these stories were excellent because they were so interesting!  They go beyond who won or lost and share about the personal lives of the athletes.  I feel like I got to know the real person.  Stories included their families and friends.  There was a great mix of people and the stories were varied like the people who they were written about.  I enjoyed it very much and even if you are not a die-hard fan, I think you would enjoy it too!  It certainly gives insight into the true life of a professional athlete.
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Teaser from page 13:  He described what the game meant to him.  He called it his "refuge" and the "place where I've gone when I needed to find comfort and peace."  Basketball made him feel complete, and it was gone.

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"Begging to Die" by Graham Masterton

There is a ton of stuff going on in Begging to Die by Graham Masterton. (1) A young girl is found in a cemetery crying for her mom. No one claims her and she talks a language no one understands. (2) Somebody is killing homeless people—why? And (3) a puppy mill is doing things against the law! It is up to Katie Maguire to figure out all this!

These story lines skip around, but I did not have a problem with it. With all this going on, you would think there would be no down time; unfortunately, there was. This book could have been at least 50 pages shorter and not lost a thing. That being said, I did enjoy it enough to give it 4 stars. It’s worth reading.
 (Gerard’s review)

Teaser from page 3: The grey-jacketed man started to run towards them, with an extraordinary limping lope, and Katie immediately swung Ana-Maria behind her, to shield her. She raised her right hand ready to fend the man off, if she had to.


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In Doubt by John W. Mefford

Image from Goodreads

In Doubt (an Ivy Nash Thriller, Book 3) by John W. Mefford is a thriller about Ivy Nash, a former Child Protective Services worker who now runs her own business of helping children in crisis. She is hired by a very wealthy businessman, Dillon, to watch his little four-year-old daughter. His wife is in a drug rehab institution. Dillon was shot at his fundraiser, then is accused of raping a minor. Ivy isn’t quite sure if he’s the loving dad she sees when Ivy is with him or if he’s a sexual predator. Then, her friend who she works with is charged with manslaughter for killing her step father that raped her! Her friend denies killing the creep but Ivy has some doubt.

This one seemed like just too much crime going on for my taste. The characters were not very well developed and the only one I really cared about was the little 4-yr.-old girl and Ivy. Ivy was portrayed as “super woman” who did her own investigating while still providing care for the little girl. I did not care much for this one, just too many similar story lines going on at once. I thought it was pretty unbelievable how Ivy and her friend fought off their strong, male, experienced abusers.
(Karen’s review 2 stars)

Teaser from page 174 (Loc. 2445-54): I shut the door and swallowed, a sob building in my throat. Then I headed downstairs to figure out if my friend and partner had committed murder.


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!

"Katt vs. Dogg" by James Patterson (Children's fiction)

Sometimes I enjoy a change of pace from what I usually read.  Katt vs. Dogg by James Patterson is one of those!  A cat and a dog get lost and have to find some way to survive before the forest is filled with predators!  Can they really help each other?  I liked Oscar and Molly very much!  The adventures these two got into were fun to read.  The book moved along quite well!
(Gerard's review, 4.5 stars)  

Teaser from page 63:  "We cats are nocturnal.  Means we stay up all night.  And since there's nothing good on TV this late--not to mention no TV out here in the trees--I decided I'd just hang out up here and watch you being miserable.  It's highly entertaining."

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"Out of the Wild" by Sarah Beth Durst (Children's Fantasy)

Out of the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst is a children’s book about Fairy Tale characters escaping “the Wild” and living under cover in the real world. This has lots of adventure and is totally silly. It reminded me of a cartoon. However, Julie shows persistence in solving the world’s problem and manages to arrive at a sort of compromise leading to a happy ever after ending.

 I had to remind myself that this is a children’s book because the whole plot is so silly. It has some funny parts and emphasizes the importance of being yourself. I liked Julie’s father the best in this. This is extremely whimsical so didn’t really appeal to me, but young children may find it very amusing and entertaining. I almost quit on this one but figured I might as well finish it since it would go quickly because it is a kid's book.
(Karen’s review, 2 stars)

Teaser from page 29: “We’re going to Grandma’s motel,” Julie said. She wondered if this was going to be a problem. In their fairy tale, Dad and Grandma weren’t exactly friends. “You knew her as Dame Gothel, Rapunzel’s witch. But don’t worry—she’s not evil anymore.”


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!