All the Books.

"Sometimes a book comes along where you think you know what to expect and then the author up and pulls the world out from under your feet. An unflinching, powerful look at the struggles we all face, emotions, mental health, keeping up appearances, families trying to keep it together and most importantly, people being human, just trying to get by. This was a rough one but it was worth it." 4 Stars.  Pros:  Henderson tackles some seriously difficult issues but she handles it all with grace, poise, and a painfully human voice/The ending gave me goosebumps.  Cons:  The author trying to fit segregation in just seemed kind of forced, like it was an afterthought.  Full Review:  Tilly's husband is away on business and the apartment is still filled with boxes, they haven't even had time to plug in the phone. But when labor pains start and she's forced to call upon her estranged Father for help, Tilly's whisked away back to the year she was eight years old and her en...

"What I had hoped would be a surreal deep dive into peoples dreams and them interacting with their dream-selves and somehow being able to affect or alter their actual lives, was instead more of a mystery novel with secrets being kept etc. It wasn't what I was expecting and I enjoyed it but i felt it could have been a lot more interesting and have that slight "fantasy" feel like The Immortalists." 2 Stars.  Pros:  The idea of being able to solve problems in your life by tapping into your dreams using lucid dreaming was an interesting one, but they didn't explore it in that much depth/The secrets that Keller and Gabe kept from Sylvie were surprising and frightening, and all in the name of research, yikes.   Cons:  I felt that they missed an interesting opportunity to delve into the idea of lucid dreaming, being able to know and control what your dreaming and using that as a way to try and better your life/The non-linear storyline was a little confusing but aft...

"Dark and grisly from the get go, this is a hard hitting, no holds barred, stomach churning exploration into one perverted man's fantasy and what makes it even worse is that there are people out there in the real world who would do this exact same thing. It's not an easy read, by any means but Hutchison managed to make it flow and keep your attention even though you were horrified at the mere idea of plot."  3 Stars.  Pros:  Inara's narration was blunt, scathing but at the same time, the reader appreciated her honesty, she didn't sugarcoat anything, nor should something like that be sugarcoated.  Cons:  Sometimes the switching of POVs between Inara's first person narrative and Victor's third person narrative was a little confusing, but eventually it smoothed out.  Full Review:  Inara Morrisey is sitting in an interrogation room. There are cuts and burns all over her body and her voice is scratchy from smoke inhalation. But she's alive, coherent and...

"A hilarious and honest look into Tina Fey's humble beginnings; her rise to fame and continuous journey of work/life/love and trying to balance everything, as we all are. Fey has a refreshing narrative voice that leaves you laughing so hard you're crying but also understanding and sympathizing with her struggles. She just wants to live her best life and in turn, encourages the reader to the do the same."   4 Stars.  Pros:  There were definitely some moments where I was laughing so hard I was crying, Tina Fey is hilarious.  Cons:  Some parts of the book where she describes the inner workings of how a TV show is written/shot etc were a little tiresome but they didn't take away that much from the book overall.  Full Review:  I haven't followed Fey's career much, though I do know that what I've seen of her work is both insane and hilarious. So I was eager to find out more about her. And Bossypants did just that. It was an open, honest telling of ...

"What had the potential to be a real, "edge of your seat" thriller instead turned into a confusing, blurred, reality distorted mind trip that left me feeling irritated and wondering aloud, "What the Hell did I just read?" 2 Stars Pros:  Reid has a definite knack for making you feel cold and alone, he has the creepiness factor set to 11.  Cons:  The dialogue between the protagonist and Jake eventually turned into what felt like the author trying to convince the reader that they were smart and well spoken, arrogance in its most obnoxious form/What started out as a promising thriller, ended on an unexplained, hard to decipher, fever dream IE Wallace's Infinite Jest  and I was left wondering what the Hell did I just read?  Full Review:  A young couple who are just starting their relationship are going to his parents house. The girl (as of unnamed through the whole book) is eager to see where he grew up and what his parents are like. He's intelligent, eloque...

"A beautifully written, very visually stunning first novel that introduces the readers to the Kingdom of Valleyda and the old traditions that people adamantly adhere to lest their way of lives be changed, damn the consequences to the others who may be affected. It was kind of a retelling of "Beauty and the Beast" but the Beast in this sense, really wasn't beastly at all. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to continuing the series." 4 Stars Pros:  Whitten's way with words is beautiful, she's able to paint the first sinister and then beautiful scenes in the Wilderwood so vivdly/The concept behind the Wolf and the Second Daughters, first starting as legend but Red learning more, it was interesting.  Cons:  The ending was a bit contrived, very much, "I know things are rough but for right now, let's hold each others hands and go home" but I can understand why Whitten did what she did/Every now and again Whitten re-use words, I can't recall ...

"Picking up right where Alice   left off, the reader follows Hatcher and Alice in their quest to find the long lost Jenny and their hopeful search of peace and paradise. The reader as well as the characters quickly learn that life never works that way and what they find is just as dark and desperate as what they left behind." 3 Stars.  Pros:  Not dealing with too many new faces, which is always welcome/This book was almost as bleak as the first and kept a good, steady rhythm going/Alice's growth as a character is a welcome change.  Cons:  Having grown up with the Carol Channing "Made for TV" Version, I wanted the White Queen/Red Queen to be more interactive, frenemies if you would, but Henry takes it on a darker path, which is par for the course with this series/Again, it all seemed rather easy and convenient at the end there.  Full Review:  ***SPOILER ALERT*** Having defeated the Jabberwock and all the local "bosses" in the Old City, all except f...

"A visually appealing and fun read that took you along for the ride that was the creation of "Star Wars." Offered glimpses of storyboards from famous scenes like the Death Star trench run, the Battle of Hoth and the destruction of the second Death Star, this brought the original trilogy to life in a way that was new and exciting." 3 Stars Pros:  Visually some of the storyboards were incredible. To think that the artists had to draw these on the fly, at the whim of the writers and directors, is astonishing/It was interesting to see the artists different styles, some storyboards almost lifelike while some were more cartoonish.   Cons:  A literally very heavy book, it was hard to hold and read/The commentary that accompanied some of the storyboards were interesting little tidbits of what went on behind the scenes but for the most part, they felt a little extraneous.  Full Review:  If you love drawings, sketches and creating a story and if you're a big fan of "...