Category: Young Adult
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A Tree Grows in Brooklyn: It’s a time machine
A Tree Grows in BrooklynBy: Betty SmithMy Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARSBest for: 16 and up Time travel is real! What defines a Classic Novel? At what point does a story transcend others and become eternal? It’s not age. It’s not genre. It’s not language, length, or style. Check the internet–I’m not the only […]
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Tress of the Emerald Sea: A joy to read
Tress of the Emerald SeaBy: THE Brandon SandersonMy Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARS (If only there were more stars to give! ALL THE STARS!)Best for: 12 and up What’s better than The Princess Bride? BrandoSando is. Ah, Brandon Sanderson. Thank you for sharing your stories. This was one of your best. If you’re not […]
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Green Angel, Green Witch: Pain and Whimsy
Green Angel (Green Angel, Book 1)Green Witch (Green Angel, Book 2)By: Alice HoffmanMy Rating: Four out of Five StarsBest for: 14 and up Pain and whimsy Clearly, Alice Hoffman knows pain. She writes sadness like it’s an old, unwelcome friend. But like any sad story, it’s not the pain that makes it great. It’s how […]
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Shadow and Bone Trilogy: A Love…Quadrilateral?
Shadow and Bone (Shadow and Bone, Book 1)Siege and Storm (Shadow and Bone, Book 2)Ruin and Rising (Shadow and Bone, Book 3)By: Leigh BardugoMy Rating: Three out of Five StarsBest for: 14 and up Everyone loves a good love quadrilateral, right? I figured it was time to give Shadow and Bone a go–I’ve had all […]
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The Inheritance Games: Knives Out x The Westing Game x every YA book, ever!
The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games, #1)The Hawthorne Legacy (The Inheritance Games, #2)The Final Gambit (The Inheritance Games, #3)By: Jennifer Lynn BarnesMy Rating: Four out of five starsBest for: 14 and up Knives Out x The Westing Game x every YA novel ever written It’s been a while since I read an actual factual YA […]
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Dark One: So that’s a graphic novel? Huh.
Dark OneBy: Brandon SandersonMy Rating: Four out of Five StarsBest for: 12 and up So that’s a graphic novel? Huh. My graphic novel experience has been limited to the middle grade stuff my kids like to read, so I don’t much experience to compare with Dark One. I’m happy to share my thoughts as a […]
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#Lux: More Reckoners? Yes, please!
Lux (Texas Reckoners, Book 1)By: Brandon Sanderson and Steven BohlsMy Rating: Four out of Five StarsBest for: 14 and up More Reckoners? Yes, please! I’ve been apprehensive about embracing Sanderson, Inc. In 2021, Brandon Sanderson released five books–Four 4 of them written (co-written?) by former students of his writing class at BYU. I’m nervous for […]
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Evershore: Brandon, Inc is getting better
Evershore (Skyward Flight: Novella 3)By: Janci Patterson and Brandon SandersonMy Rating: Five out of five starsBest for: 12 and up Excellent, but still waiting for more! Evershore is the 3rd Skyward Flight Novella that tells the story of what’s happening to Spensa’s friends while she is stuck in the Nowhere during the events of Cytonic, […]
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#Cytonic: I NEED MORE–NOW!!
Cytonic (Skyward, Book 3)By: THE Brandon SandersonMy Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARSBest For: 12 and up Sanderson Strikes Again…I just wish I didn’t have to wait so long for book 4! The Skyward series is fantasy-standard-bearer Brandon Sanderson’s first foray into Science Fiction, and it’s pretty great. Turns out, it’s less Science Fiction and […]
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#Unknown: More Augmented Reality, Please!
Unknown (Unreal, Book 2)By: Cindy GundersonMy Rating: Four out of Five StarsBest for: 12 and up AR?! Yes please! You know what’s cool? Augmented Reality. The possibilities are endless! At least, I thought it was cool–until crafty authors started telling stories about all the ways governments and corporations might use AR to passively exploit us […]
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Sunreach: A NOT Sanderson, Sanderson book
Sunreach (Skyward Flight: Novella 1)By: Janci Patterson and Brandon SandersonMy Rating: Four out of five starsBest for: 12 and up A novella? Ya right… Seriously, every time Brandon Sanderson writes a book that’s under 250 pages and calls it a “novella” I laugh out loud. It’s like he just wants to remind the other authors […]
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#ADeadlyEducation: Trust me, you’ve never read anything like this before…
A Deadly Education (The Scholomance, Book 1)By: Naomi NovikMy Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARS!Best for: 16 and up A magic school somewhere in England? A teen wizard tainted by a dark prophesy? No, you have NOT read this book yet, I promise. This magic school might have a familiar location, and there may be […]
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#Spellslinger: Oh, how I wanted to love this!
Spellslinger (Spellslinger, #1)Shadowblack (Spellslinger, #2)Charmcaster (Spellslinger, #3Soulbinder (Spellslinger, #4)Queenslayer (Spellslinger, #5)Crownbreaker (Spellslinger, #6)By: Sebastien de CastellMy Rating: Three out of Five StarsBest For: 14 and up Oh, how I wanted this to be amazing! I’ve had this series on my TBR for a while. I pre-purchased the first four books and was just waiting for […]
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#Unreal: Why am I such a nerd?
Unreal (The Unreal Series, Book #1)By: Cindy GundersonMy Review: Four out of Five StarsBest for: 12 and up Sigh. Why am I such a nerd? I’m such a nerd when it comes to AR. (That’s Augmented Reality for everyone less nerdy than me.) It’s when you use a computer to change what your eyes see. […]
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#BeforetheBrokenStar: Meh for me, but maybe not for you!
Before the Broken Star (The Evermore Chronicles #1)By: Emily R. KingMy Rating: Three out of Five StarsBest for: 12 and up So…meh. I think there are probably some teenage girls who’ll really enjoy Before the Broken Star. This dad of teenage girls, unfortunately, did not. At some point, the book must have been on sale […]
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A Book Club Guest Review of Huckleberry Finn
Huckleberry FinnBy: Mark TwainReviewer Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARSBest for: 10 and up The boy who became a hero by doing what he thought was wrong.Review by: Kirsten Johnston Huck is wise in some of the dangers of life, such as alcoholic parents. He is a smart, smooth lier. But in other ways he […]
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#ThickasThieves: The only thing you know is you don’t know anything!
Thick as Thieves (The Queen’s Thief, Book 5)By: Megan Whalen TurnerMy Review: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARSBest For: Advanced 12 and up Finally, a new book in The Queen’s Thief series! Book 5, Thick as Thieves, was published 7 years after book 4! This reader chose to wait an additional 3 years to read it […]
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#AConspiracyofKings: It’s a cantputitdowner
A Conspiracy of Kings (The Queen’s Thief, #4) By: Megan Whalen Turner My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE STARS! Best for: Advanced 12 and up Oct 2020 The great The Queen’s Thief re-read of 2020 continues! I’ve just finished book 4, and thus ends the “re-read” part of my re-read. Book 5 was published in […]
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#TheKingofAttolia: How to be awesome.
The King of Attolia (The Queen’s Thief, #3) By: Megan Whalen Turner My Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARS! Best for: Advanced 12 and up October 2020 This series re-read is going beautifully. My re-read of both book 1 and book 2 made me wish I’d left book-specific reviews the first time instead of the […]
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#TheQueenofAttolia: This is how you do it.
The Queen of Attolia (The Queen’s Thief, Book 2) By: Megan Whalen Turner My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE STARS Best for: Advanced 12 and up October 2020 I’m enjoying my re-read of this wonderful series! Going through a second time, I find myself wishing I hadn’t only left a series review the first time. […]
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#TheThief: A slow build to the big reveal. And it’s awesome!
The Thief (The Queen’s Thief, #1)By: Megan Whalen TurnerMy Rating: Four out of Five StarsBest for: 12 and up Oct 10 to Oct 13 2020Wow, I really gushed over this series the first time. I’ve just finished my re-read of book 1, The Thief, and I’m wondering if I was a little too dramatic. I […]
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#FasterThanFalling: Hope you’re not scared of heights…
Faster Than Falling (The Skylighter Adventures, Book 1)By: Nathan Van CoopsMy Rating: FIVE out of FIVE STARS!Best for: 12 and up Nathan Van Coops has created a wonderful new story set in a wonderful new world. Faster Than Falling is a scyfy-pirate-steampunk-adventure, and it was a BLAST to read! On this world, the sky is […]
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#WarCar: It’s as fun as it sounds
War Car (Kingdom of Engines, Book 2) By: Nathan Van Coops My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up Sword Fight: Kingdom of Engines, Book 1 was a Mad Max/King Arthur/[Insert teen drama TV series here] mashup I loved and didn’t even know I needed. It was a blast to read, […]
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#SwordFight: Mad Max+King Arthur+Beverly Hills 90210=a mashup I didn’t even know I needed
Sword Fight (Kingdom of Engines, Book 1) By: Nathan Van Coops My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best For: 14 and up Nathan Van Coops, time-travel extraordinaire, has changed gears with his latest–Sword Fight: Kingdom of Engines. It was the perfect summer popcorn read, and I had a BLAST with it! What’s a popcorn […]
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#TheHeroandtheCrown: WE HAVE DRAGONS!
The Hero and the Crown (Damar, Book 2) By: Robin McKinley My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up Yea! Dragons! When I read The Blue Sword, Robin McKinley’s pioneering YA Fantasy, I said any story that features a strong girl who wields a magic sword and rides a cool horse […]
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#TheBlueSword: Strong Girl + Magic Sword + Cool Horse = Classic 80’s YA Fantasy!
The Blue Sword By: Robin McKinley My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best For: 14 and up Ah, the 80’s! The music! The movies! The clothes! The books? Wait…the books? Yes! The 80’s were a glorious decade for books! Steven King and Tom Clancy were at the top of their games. So were John […]
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#Unwind: Teenagers beware…
Unwind (Unwind, Book 1) By: Neal Shusterman My Rating: Three out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and Up I’m gonna give this a “meh.” Unwind has been on my Mount TBR for years, and I finally decided to give it a try because I loved Scythe, another Neal Shusterman book (that I highly recommend). […]
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#TheKingdomofBack: To never be forgotten…
The Kingdom of Back By: Marie Lu My Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARS!!! Best for: 14 and up I love fantasy. I love historical fiction. I love music. I love to be surprised. I love learning new things. I love books that inspire me. The Kingdom of Back is all of those. I loved […]
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#TheDelphiTrilogy: X-Men, 2020
The Delphi Effect (The Delphi Trilogy, Book #1) The Delphi Resistance (The Delphi Trilogy, Book #2) The Delphi Revolution (The Delphi Trilogy, Book #3) By: Rysa Walker My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 16 and up Here’s X-Men, 2020. True story: In 1978, the US Military sponsored a program that investigated the […]
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#TheToll: Thou Shalt Kill. Folks, we have a winner!
Scythe (Arc of a Scythe, Book 1) Thunderhead (Arc of a Scythe, Book 2) The Toll (Arc of a Scythe, Book 3) By: Neal Shusterman My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE STARS! Best for: Advanced 14 and up What a great story! I loved the Arc of a Scythe trilogy. It’s original, new, relevant, exciting, […]
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#Thunderhead: Still Kills
Thunderhead (Arc of a Scythe, Book 2) By: Neal Shusterman My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars Best for: Advanced 14 and up Book 2 is done. I’m still impressed. It’s original, new, relevant, exciting, interesting, thoughtful… …and uncomfortable. How’s this for our future: The “Cloud” grew up, became sentient, and took over the world. […]
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#Scythe: This book kills.
Scythe (Arc of a Scythe, Book #1) By: Neal Shusterman My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars Best for: Advanced 14 and up I’m impressed. Scythe felt original, new, relevant, exciting, interesting, thoughtful… …and uncomfortable. How’s this for our future: An impartial, flawless AI has taken over the world government. Government is perfect. Everyone is […]
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#Singularity Series: ScyFy + Religion…when opposites attract.
The Legacy Human (Singularity, #1) The Duality Bridge (Singularity, #2) The Illusory Prophet (Singularity, #3) The Last Mystic (Singularity, #4) By: Susan Kaye Quinn My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 16 and up Ah, the treasure hunt. I’m a dork, I know. It’s just that there are few things as satisfying in […]
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#ForgettingYou: If the Hallmark Channel were a book series…
Forgetting YOU By: Hillary Ann Sperry My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 16 and up I don’t love romance novels (because they’re barf), but I do love supporting family friendly literature, friends who are authors, local-to-me authors, and undiscovered authors who deserve to be known. So when a talented, local friend publishes […]
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#Matched: Hunger Games Lite. Kinda.
Matched (Matched, Book 1) Crossed (Matched, Book 2) Reached (Matched, Book 3) By: Ally Condie My Rating: Three out of Five Stars Best for: 12 and up I keep hearing this series is the next Hunger Games, but I don’t see it. Hunger Games lite, maybe. There wasn’t much by way of hunger or games […]
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#Archenemies (Renegades #2): More superheros, anyone?
Archenemies (Renegades #2) By: Marissa Meyer My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up More superheros, anyone? The angsty-teenager-in-love-double-agent-superhero-book-full-of-YA-cliches is back for part two! It took me a book and a half, but I think I’m over the things that annoyed me in book 1. The eye-roll-inducing stuff is still there, […]
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#Renegades: Super! (Kind of…)
Renegades (Renegades #1) By: Marissa Meyer My Rating: Three out of five stars Best For: 14 and up A book about superheroes? Yes! Is the book super? Not really, but it’s okay. It’s total YA, so start plugging in all the necessities. The parents are dead, protagonist is an outsider, the adults are useless, token […]
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#Starsight (Skyward #2): I WANT MORE!
Starsight (Skyward #2) By: Brandon Sanderson My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars Best for: Advanced 12 and up Skyward was Fantasy-standard-bearer Brandon Sanderson’s first foray into Science Fiction, and it was awesome. It turned out to be less Science Fiction and more Space Fantasy, but that’s absolutely okay. That’s how I’d classify Star Wars, […]
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#Singularity: What defines a soul?
The Legacy Human The Duality Bridge By: Susan Kaye Quinn My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up Ah, the treasure hunt. I’m a dork, I know. It’s just that there are few things as satisfying in the reading word than finding an unknown story that deserves to be told. The […]
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#Flipped: I’m FLIPPED for Flipped!
FlippedBy: Wendelin Van DraanenMy Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars!Best for: 12 and up Well, dang. I’m flipped for Flipped. I LOVED this book! Empathy and and kids are like oil and water. Been to Junior High lately? My favorite books for young people are ones that help them see their life through a different […]
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#TheGreatLibrary: I guess I have a thing for books about books…
Ink and Bone (The Great Library, Book 1) Paper and Fire (The Great Library, Book 2) Ash and Quill (The Great Library, Book 3) Smoke and Iron (The Great Library, Book 4) Sword and Pen (The Great Library, Book 5) By: Rachel Caine My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best For: 14 and up […]
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#MyPlainJane: Jane Eyre + The Sixth Sense = The scratch for the itch you didn’t know you had
My Plain Jane (The Lady Janies #2) By: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 12 and up Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows: Authors. Friends. Committed to fixing history by rewriting one sad story at a time… …and killing it. My Plain Jane tells […]
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#MyLadyJane: Fixing history…and laughing about it!
My Lady Jane (The Lady Janies, #1) By: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE Stars! Best for: 14 and up Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows: Authors. Friends. Committed to fixing history by rewriting one sad story at a time… …and killing it. My Lady Jane re-imagines the story […]
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#Dune: So, you’ve never read it either?
Dune By: Frank Herbert My Rating: Three out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up You know how there are some books you hate to admit you’ve never read? That’s me and Dune. Except now I’ve read it. So take that, irrational, self-imposed guilt and embarrassment! Dune, published in 1965, winner of the Hugo, […]
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#TheGoblinEmperor: Unputdownable is a word.
The Goblin EmperorBy: Katherine AddisonMy Rating: FIVE out of FIVE StarsBest for: 14 and up The Goblin Emperor is still in my head! I was spellbound by this terrifically intricate drama. There’s not a lot of action, but action wasn’t needed to make The Goblin Emperor perfectly unputdownable. (Did you understand that? Then yes, it’s […]
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#Warcross: YA fiction = reality optional
Warcross Wildcard By: Marie Lu My Rating: Three out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up Warcross is good, YA fun. Really, that’s all you need. Because, you know…YA. All the stuff you love in your standard Young Adult novel is packed into the two books of Warcross. I could complain about them, but […]
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The #Winternight Trilogy: This is why I read.
The Winternight TrilogyThe Bear and the Nightingale (Book 1)The Girl in the Tower (Book 2)The Winter of the Witch (Book 3)By: Katherine ArdenMy Rating: FIVE out of FIVE StarsBest for: 14 and up Oh wow oh wow oh wow oh wow… The Winternight Trilogy is gush worthy. I’ll try to avoid crossing into obnoxious hyperbole–but […]
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#Beyond and #Before: Twilight + Ghost (but without the sparkles or the pottery)
Beyond Before By: Catina Haverlock and Angela Larkin My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars Best for: 14 and up Friends, I loved (A LOT) Beyond (book 1) and Before (book 2) by sisters Catina Haverlock and Angela Larkin. Wait…aren’t they YA Romance? Yep. Paranormal romance, actually. And aren’t you a 42-year-old dad with 6 […]
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#Skyward: Callsign–AWESOME
Skyward By: THE Brandon Sanderson My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars Best for: 12 and up What happens when the king of Fantasy writes Science Fiction? You get magical science fiction… …and it’s awesome! Three generations ago, humans crash landed on a deserted planet. Giant underground living spaces, tech manufacturing facilities, and layers of […]
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#TheSelectionSeries: a.k.a The Bachelor meets The Hunger Games…
The Selection (The Selection Series, Book 1) The Elite (The Selection Series, Book 2) The One (The Selection Series, Book 3) The Heir (The Selection Series, Book 4) The Crown (The Selection Series, Book 5) By: Kiera Cass My Rating: Three out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up The Bachelor meets The Hunger Games…no wonder everyone loves […]
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#SixofCrows and #CrookedKingdom: Sometimes the bad guys aren’t really so bad…
Six of Crows Crooked Kingdom By: Leigh Bardugo My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 16 and up Sometimes the bad guys aren’t really so bad. This duology is an Ocean’s 11 style caper, set in an industrial age where a form of magic exists and where bad things happen to good people. […]
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#ShadesofGrey: No, no no…not THAT Shades of Grey!
Shades of Grey By: Jasper Fforde My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE Stars Best for: 16 and up No, no, no! Not THAT Shades of Grey! Relax! No relations. I mean relation… Never mind. Shades of Grey is the smartest book I’ve read in a long time. It’s part dystopian fantasy, part social satire, a […]
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#AnUrchinofMeans (The Baker Street Series, #1): This Book is worth reading
An Urchin of Means (The Baker Street Series, Book 1) By: April White My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars I wish I could remember what made me pick up Marking Time, book 1 of April White’s Immortal Descendants series. Was it the time travel? The vampires and shapeshifters? The historical fiction? Jack the Ripper? […]
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#ReadyPlayerOne: Why haven’t you read this yet?
Ready Player OneBy: Ernest Cline, Audio Book narrated by Will WheatonMy Rating: Five out of Five StarsBest for: 16 and up 8/7/2017I had Will Wheaton read Ready Player One this time. Brilliant, obviously. Especially when Will Wheaton reads about himself in the book. Very meta. Two comments. 1) I still love this book. Belongs on […]
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#Percepliquis (The Riyria Revelations, part #6): The bibliophile’s dilemma…
Percepliquis by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 5 of 5 stars Question: What is the bibliophile’s dilemma? Answer: The books you can’t help but read as fast as possible are the same books you wish would never end. Solutions? I’d love to hear them. Until then, I hope to find more books that hurt […]
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#Wintertide (The Riyria Revelations, #5): And next comes the end…
Wintertide by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 4 of 5 stars Can’t…breath…must…keep…reading… Book 6 is a glorious 600+ pages. If you can’t tell, this is really great. Series review to come. Happy Reading. Series review: Question: What is the bibliophile’s dilemma? Answer: The books you can’t help but read as fast as possible are […]
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#TheEmeraldStorm (The Riyria Revelations, #4): The Empire just struck back.
The Emerald Storm by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 4 of 5 stars Oh no. The Empire just struck back. No time to talk, book 5 is next. Happy Reading! Series Review Question: What is the bibliophile’s dilemma? Answer: The books you can’t help but read as fast as possible are the same books […]
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#NyphronRising (The Riyria Revelations, #3): Good guys win!
Nyphron Rising by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 4 of 5 stars Yes! Good guys win awesomely! Sometimes that’s all the book review you need. Now leave me alone, I’m reading book four… Series Review: Question: What is the bibliophile’s dilemma? Answer: The books you can’t help but read as fast as possible are […]
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#Avempartha (The Riyria Revelations, part #2): Ah, now I get it!
Avempartha by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 5 of 5 stars Now I get it. Book one was poorly written and hard to read, but the story pulled me along. It was okay. I’m glad I stuck with it, because book two shot right passed okay, skipped pretty good all together, and landed somewhere […]
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#TheCrownConspiracy (The Riyria Revelations, #1): This book is naked!
The Crown Conspiracy by Michael J. Sullivan My rating: 3 of 5 stars I call it like I see it. This book has no clothes. Reviewers I trust promise things get much better from here. I’m going to keep going, but honestly this book was rough. Wooden writing, one dimensional characters, convenient plot resolutions. […]
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#CheatingDeath: Here’s an author you should be reading…
Cheating Death (The Immortal Descendants, Book 5) By: April White My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars (The One Man Book Club reviews for books 1, 2, 3, and 4) It’s a fun day when the final book in a favorite series is published. It’s a great day when the final book in a favorite […]
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#TheDiabolic: You might want to get to know S.J. Kincaid…
The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid S.J. Kincaid tells a great story. Too bad no one knows about her. The Insignia Trilogy is her first, and it’s worth checking out if you like YA light ScyFy that skews more toward young than adult and more toward fy than scy. It started out fun and got […]
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#LordoftheFlies: Tell Piggy to watch out for that rock!
The Lord of the Flies by William Golding Team reading this one with my 12-year-old. He doesn’t love it, and I don’t blame him, really. The language and tendency to use a bunch of words with out saying anything is kind of grating. According to my pre-teen: “This author just says ‘and’ over and […]
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Treasure Island
Treasure Island By: Robert Louis Stevenson My Rating: FIVE OUT OF FIVE STARS Best for: 14 and up I love that my 7th grader was assigned Treasure Island for English Class. In school my English teachers did their very best to kill my love for reading. Grapes of Wrath? Snooze. Thank goodness for Cliffs Notes. […]
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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)
5/5 stars Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7) by J.K. Rowling August 2016 re-read: Oh Dobby! What a treasure. The world is a better place because of Harry Potter. Originally read July 24th, 2007 What’s not to say about Harry? As a body, the 7 Harry books have to be in the […]
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Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter, #6)
5/5 stars Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Harry Potter, #6) by J.K. Rowling August 2016 Re-read: And now we come to the end. Originally read July 19th, 2005 What’s not to say about Harry? As a body, the 7 Harry books have to be in the discussion of all time best. ALL TIME BEST.
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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter, #5)
5/5 stars Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter, #5) by J.K. Rowling August 2016 re-read: I never realized Harry was an idiot in this book. This realization may or may not correlate with the fact that my daughter has also just turned 15… Originally read June 23, 2003. What’s not to […]
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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4)
5/5 stars Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Harry Potter, #4) by J.K. Rowling Sept 2019 Harry Potter journey with the kids: My 9 year old’s face as we read the graveyard scenes together…eyes like saucers, her intense focus on my face while I read. I think I’ve got her hooked. She’ll never be […]
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Dreams of Gods & Monsters (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #3)
4/5 stars Dreams of Gods & Monsters (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #3) by Laini Taylor Never Judge a Book… Of course, we would never… Because we’ve always been told not to. Certainly I would never… Judge a book by its cover? But it’s not judging if it’s obvious. Right? Because just look at these […]
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Days of Blood & Starlight (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #2)
5/5 stars Days of Blood & Starlight (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #2) by Laini Taylor Never Judge a Book… Of course, we would never… Because we’ve always been told not to. Certainly I would never… Judge a book by its cover? But it’s not judging if it’s obvious. Right? Because just look at these […]
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Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #1)
4/5 stars Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #1) by Laini Taylor Never Judge a Book… Of course, we would never… Because we’ve always been told not to. Certainly I would never… Judge a book by its cover? But it’s not judging if it’s obvious. Right? Because just look at these […]
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Calamity (Reckoners, #3)
5/5 stars Calamity (Reckoners, #3) by Brandon Sanderson If time flies when your having fun… If the speed at which time seems to pass is a measure of how much fun you are having, BS must have had the fun box cranked to an 11 when he wrote Calamity. That had to have been the […]
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Waging War (The Immortal Descendants #4)
5/5 stars Waging War (The Immortal Descendants #4) by April White These are a few of my favorite things… I can’t remember what made me pick up Marking Time, the first book of The Immortal Descendants series. Whatever the reason, it was most certainly a moment of brilliant insight on my part. Way to […]
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Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children, #3)
3/5 stars Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children, #3) by Ransom Riggs Not peculiar enough in some ways, too peculiar in others… While I’m a fan of Mrs. Peregrine and all her children, I found book 3 to be lacking just a bit. There were too little of the parts that made the first […]
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#TheWhitehallTrials: A pleasantly creepy surprise…
The Whitehall Trials By: Michelle Catherine Walker My Rating: Four out of Five Stars Best for: 14 and up #TheWhitehallTrials: A pleasantly creepy surprise… Those who follow my reviews know about my soft spot for indie authors, and when I find one worth sharing I like to let people know about it. Well, I found […]
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Tempting Fate (The Immortal Descendants #2)
4/5 stars Tempting Fate (The Immortal Descendants #2) by April White At Least as Fun as Book One! Tempting Fate, book two of the Immortal Descendant Series was at least as much fun as book one—maybe even more so thanks to a really cool historical-fiction background for the story. Time travel? Check. Often time travel […]
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Marking Time (The Immortal Descendants, #1)
Marking Time (The Immortal Descendants, #1) By: April White My Rating: Four out of Five stars Best for: 14 and up Time Travel and Vampires and Bears…Oh My! Cool, a time travel story! Whoa, there’s vampires in here? Wait…shape shifters too? AND a school for young descendants of immortals where they can learn to use […]
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Firefight (Reckoners, #2)
5/5 stars Firefight (Reckoners, #2) by Brandon Sanderson This Just In… Brandon Sanderson can do no wrong. Well, I guess he can almost do wrong. I just finished Firefight, and I thought it was awesome—better than Steelheart, actually. But now my heart is racing and my mind is buzzing—and I’m stranded mid-story until sometime in […]
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Catalyst
5/5 stars Catalyst by S.J. Kincaid Totally Surprised… The Insignia Trilogy was very good, and actually through the first two books I was surprised by how much I enjoyed them. This was just supposed to be a fun, easy popcorn read for kids. I never expected that by the end of the third book it […]
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Vortex (Insignia, #2)
4/5 stars Vortex (Insignia, #2) by S.J. Kincaid Series Review Vortex, book 2 in the Insignia Trilogy, is a lot of fun. There is still a definite “Harry Potter meets science fiction” thing going on, but now there is also a bit of “let’s use the powers we’ve been given to overthrow this oppressive government […]
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Insignia (Insignia, #1)
4/5 stars Insignia (Insignia, #1) by S.J. Kincaid Series Review 12/31/14 I decided to re-read Insignia before starting on the second and third books. I’m glad I did–it turns out I’d forgotten a lot more about the story than I remembered. My first review from a couple of years ago still stands. I’ll just add […]
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The Giver (The Giver Quartet, #1)
5/5 stars The Giver (The Giver Quartet, #1) by Lois Lowry 20 Years Old and Still Holding Its Own Was there such a thing as YA Dystopian literature before The Giver? I don’t know, but I’m quite certain we’d never know Katniss or Tris if Jonus had never existed. I missed out on reading The […]
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The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two (Fairyland, #3)
4/5 stars The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two (Fairyland, #3) by Catherynne M. Valente Maybe too many words this time? What’s the difference between Picasso and Catherynne M. Valente? One paints with paints, the other paints with words. The first two books in her Fairy Land series have been […]
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The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There
5/5 stars The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Catherynne M. Valente An adventure for adventure lovers… “A book is a door, you know. Always and forever. A book is a door into another place and another heart and another world.” You might have to be an authentic lover of […]
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The Girl Who Ruled Fairyland – For a Little While (Fairyland, #0.5)
3/5 stars The Girl Who Ruled Fairyland – For a Little While (Fairyland, #0.5) by Catherynne M. Valente A thirty-page prequel that tells the story of how Mallow became Queen of Fairyland. I found it to be a bit wordy. All the good stuff about characters you will recognize from Book 1 happens in the […]
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Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3)
5/5 stars Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3) by Marissa Meyer I’m so glad I picked up this series… …because it’s REALLY fun! Zero complaints. Each book introduces new characters and does an outstanding job of incorporating them into the story with out watering down the experience. The Luner Chronicles are perfect–funny, emotional, stressful, exciting. Strong […]
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Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2)
5/5 stars Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2) by Marissa Meyer Another great surprise! I was surprised how much I enjoyed Cinder, so I guess I shouldn’t be all that surprised I thought Scarlet was just as fun! I must admit though–it sounded gimmicky to write books loosely based on fairy tales. Turns out though this […]
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Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1)
5/5 stars Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1) by Marissa Meyer A Great Start! I’ve really got to do a better job of making sure I don’t get sucked into a series until all books are published…I hate waiting! Actually, this time I took one for the team and read Cinder before all the books were […]
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Spell or High Water (Magic 2.0, #2)
4/5 stars Spell or High Water (Magic 2.0, #2) by Scott Meyer Get ready to get your geek on… The first book, Off to Be the Wizard took a while to get into…mostly because it took a few chapters for.the story to get going and for me to get used to this authors voice. With […]
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Off to Be the Wizard (Magic 2.0, #1)
5/5 stars Off to Be the Wizard (Magic 2.0, #1) by Scott Meyer A fun surprise! Things started off rather slowly for me when I first picked up Off to Be the Wizard. I wondered if this would be another self-published flop. Turns out, it’s a self-published success! Once the story got going, I smiled […]
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Champion (Legend, #3)
4/5 stars Champion (Legend, #3) by Marie Lu Did you like Divergent? How about The Maze Runner? Maybe The Hunger Games? Then you’re going to love the Legend Trilogy! It’s the future. The polar ice caps have melted. Great floods changed the surface of the earth. The United States wasn’t able to deal with the […]
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Prodigy (Legend, #2)
5/5 stars Prodigy (Legend, #2) by Marie Lu Hunger Games? Divergent? Maze Runner? Meet Legend. What a story! This second book in the Legend trilogy was even better than the first. One more to go before I can say for sure, but I’m think I’m going to be really happy with how this one turns […]
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Legend (Legend, #1)
4/5 stars Legend (Legend, #1) by Marie Lu Better than Divergent, that’s for sure… I picked this one up a while ago, but just now read it. I’ve been turned off by all the trendy dystopian YA trilogies out there. Divergent and The Maze Runner nearly did me in. Legend has restored my faith in […]
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Earthman Jack vs. the Ghost Planet (The Earthman Jack Space Saga, #1): Harry Potter, meet Earthman Jack
Earthman Jack vs. the Ghost Planet (The Earthman Jack Space Saga, #1) By: Matthew Kadish My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE stars Harry Potter, meet Earthman Jack… WOW Wow wow wow wow wow wow. Wow. Okay, so pretend that poor, destitute J.K. Rowling was sitting in that little coffee shop writing Harry Potter in 2014 […]
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Hollow City (Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, # 2)
5/5 stars Hollow City (Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, # 2) by Ransom Riggs An Awesome Story That Grabs You in a Most Peculiar Way… I enjoyed the first Peculiar story. My only complaint about it was that as cool as the pictures were, it felt like the author wrote the story to match […]
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Mitosis (Reckoners, #1.5)
5/5 stars Mitosis (Reckoners, #1.5) by Brandon Sanderson Brandon Sanderson Writes Fast…But I Still Wish He Could Write Faster! I haven’t met a Brandon Sanderson story I didn’t like a whole lot. Steelheart was a great start to the Reckoners Series, and I broke my own rule and read it before the series was finished. […]
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Steelheart (Reckoners, #1)
Steelheart (Reckoners, #1) By: Brandon Sanderson My Review: FIVE out of FIVE Stars Must read! Stealheart is really, REALLY cool! The future has Superheros…but in this future, the Superheros are the bad guys. Get ready for a ride! 12 and up. Happy Reading!
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#TheLegendofEliMonpress: Five Books of Fun
The Spirit Thief (The Legend of Eli Monpress, #1) The Spirit Rebellion (The Legend of Eli Monpress, #2) The Spirit Eater (The Legend of Eli Monpress, #3) The Spirit War (The Legend of Eli Monpress, #4) Spirit’s End (The Legend of Eli Monpress, #5) By: Rachel Aaron My Rating: FIVE out of FIVE Stars Now […]
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The Lord of Opium (Matteo Alacran #2)
4/5 stars The Lord of Opium (Matteo Alacran #2) by Nancy Farmer There’s some pretty harsh reviews for Lord of Opium, but I don’t understand why. This follow up to The House of the Scorpion was very, very good!
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The House of the Scorpion
5/5 stars The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer Definetly a 5 star read for me. The story was moving, the characters were deep, and the ending was happy. Full of ethical quandries and thought provocing questions, there is plenty to talk about. While there is no actual drug use, the story is about […]
One Man Book Club 