All the Books.

"It began with a Birthday party and ended in a blood bath. The Folcrum Party Massacre destroyed so many lives and the repercussions of that horrible night are still rippling and making waves, decades later. Though Leewood Folcrum never wavers in his story, that he is innocent, there are those who are determined to find out the truth, no matter the cost. This was an intensely dark, edge of your seat, riveting thriller and I couldn't put it down."   ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros:  Torre’s pacing was great and all the big reveals were jaw dropping. Cons: Though Perla was a terrifying character in her determination, she was also creepy in seeing her daughter as competition for her husband's affections.  Full Review Leewood Folcrum is currently serving life in prison for a crime he claims he didn't commit. The Folcrum Party massacre which began as an innocent Birthday/Slumber party for Jennifer Folcrum ended in a blood bath. Leewood was found with his daughters' body in his arms and ...

"Every family has its past, its secrets and its struggles and the Fall family of Paradise Springs is no exception. The fact that all the descendents of the Fall family are cursed doesn't make things any easier. Things finally start to change when a rainbow-haired girl named Cassidy shows up and helps all the Fall children understand that goodness and love can grow even in the darkest of times."  ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pros : Nelson doesn’t shy away from the rough parts of life but through it all there’s always light and hope/The ending of Part 3 was quite a shocker/When all the pieces began fitting together it definitely improved the story.   Cons:  Miles and his obsession with sex, it got rather obnoxious/The lineage of the Falls was a necessary part of the story but I do wish people would just be honest with one another/Except for Cassidy, every other character bothered me for different reasons.  Full Review:  The Fall family has not had an easy time of things. Theo Fall...

​ "It's been two years since Addison stumbled onto the road, bloody and bewildered. She was lucky enough to be picked up by a kind-hearted truck driver and given the chance to create another life. But just as her new life starts to come together, someone from her past, who can tell her everything that happened and fill in the gaps, appears. This was an engrossing read, simply because I was curious as to what had happened to Addison to cause her amnesia but in the end it felt overdone and honestly, a little bit silly."  ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pros: It did pique my interest because I'm a terribly curious person/Ed and Gigi seemed like genuinely kind and caring people.  Cons: Blythe was rather obsessed with wealth and stature and a bit of a snob/From Part III to the end explained everything that had happened but it all felt overdone and shady, like no one would have started asking questions about Cassandra's whereabouts?  Full Review:  It's been two years since Addison came to...

"The story of Achilles, renowned for his strength, speed and skills at warfare but as told from his ever faithtful friend and companion, Patroclus. Though it had its cliche moments as every romance will, I was pleasantly surprised at how true Miller stayed to the original source of The Illiad . This was a pleasantly surprising and unique take on Homer's epic tale."  ⭐⭐⭐ Pros:  I liked that it was told from Patroclus POV/Miller stays true to The Illiad , which I greatly appreciated.  Cons:  Lots of “burning pleasure” and “fierce, fervor”, all the romance cliches/Achilles arrogance is staggering but that's what Hubris is and that's why it's always the heroes' downfall.   Full Review:  When Patroclus is exiled from his father's kingdom for inadvertently killing a boy and sent to Phthia, he's alone and terrified. At first, he goes unnoticed by basically everyone. When he first sees Achilles, the young Prince, he's enraptured but far too shy to say ...

"When life-long friends, Sadie Green and Sam Masur decide to take a chance and work together to create a video game, they know they're creating something truly special. What follows is a story full of wins, losses, love, lies, friendship, betrayals and the list goes on. It's impossible to properly describe this book. It's one of those stories that you have to read to understand and appreciate."   ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros: Marx is a genuinely good, caring, kind person and friend/The NPC part of this novel had me close to tears. It was heart breaking and beautiful.  Cons:  A lot of the drama could have been avoided if the characters were just honest with each other but, then there'd be no conflict/Sadie and Sam drove me a little insane and I wanted to smack them both at times.  Full Review:  Sadie Green first meets Samson Masur in a Children's hospitals in California. Sadie's sister is battling Leukemia, while Sam has gone through multiple surgeries to try and repair ...

"Aleys believes she's meant to serve a higher purpose, that her life should be devoted to love and serve God. When her father offers her hand in marriage to a wealthy merchant, she gets her chance as she runs off to join the Franciscan brotherhood as a way to escape her fate. Little does she know that her service to God will take her places she probably never imagined."  ⭐⭐⭐ Pros:  The plot was complex and intricate enough to keep me reading/Marte was a great character, thoughtful but quiet, rarely letting on how much she notices or hears. Cons:  Aleys could be a bit overbearing and arrogant at times/The tension with Friar Lukas at the end was just cringe-worthy. Yes, it led to the insane conclusion but at the same time, parts of it were just gross and unnecessary.  Full Summary: Aleys has always loved the stories from her mother's Psalter. She doesn't understand the words but the images and teachings have always stayed with her. She knows she's meant for some...

"When Zelie, the daughter of a powerful Maji (person gifted with magical abilities) helps the princess Amari escape with a sacred magical artifact, in hand, it sets them on a dark, dangerous and deadly course with cataclysmic consequences."  ⭐⭐⭐ Pros:  Adeyemi is unflinching in her portrayal of an oppressed people and you truly feel for the Diviners and hope the Monarchy pays for its horrendous crimes.  Cons:  It wasn't until about halfway through that I felt the book hit its stride/Betrayal, forbidden love, enemies to lovers, this book had its moments where it was one cliche stacked upon another.   Full Review:   Orisha was once a land flowing with magic. The 10 tribes of Maji, people gifted with control of a certain aspect of Sky Mother's soul (power over earth, air, fire, water, metal, disease, time and even death) were immensely powerful. And of course, Saran, the King of Orisha, was terrified that all that power would turn against him. So, he had ...

"Like "Mary Poppins" only with books, Fay Revil and her magical Bookshop appear when you need it most. Luckily for Jo, Kye and Adelaide, they'll discover the Midnight Bookshop together and it will change their lives for the better. It was silly and cliche but sometimes a book that doesn't require too much thought is a nice change of pace."  ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️ Pros: It was quaint and fun at times. Predictable but sometimes that's nice.  Cons: The solution to Adelaide’s problem was very convenient/The book coulld very easily have ended 50 pages sooner.   Full Review:  Jo, is in her early twenties, with well off parents and so, she's never really wanted for anything. Her Mother is obsessed with appearances and is always disappointed in her daughter, who's never amounted to much. She dropped out of University and spends most of her days reading, when not getting a cheap thrill from shop-lifting.  Kye is living with his sick mother and his drug-dealer brother., ...

​ "Kate Harker and August Flynn's dissonant notes collide to create a beautiful ending to this truly unique symphony by Schwab. It had a real Urbany Fantasy, "Romeo and Juliet" feel and in her seeminly effortless way, Schwab just made it work. This was definitely an interesting series."    ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros: August and Kate do have good chemistry/Ilsa is just a genuinely good soul/The ending kind of broke my heart but it worked.    Cons: Kate’s attitude can get a little tiresome, the whole, "I'm the only one who can do it"thing/The ending felt a bit rushed, like Schwab was running close to deadline.  Full Review:   ***Disclaimer***If you have not read This Savage Song   by Schwab, please do so and then come back and read this at your leisure. That way you'll know what I'm talking about 🙌.*** It's been six months since the harsh end of This Savage Song. Six months since   Kate and August went their separate ways .  Kate made her way to the t...

"Though dark, disturbing and at times, truly disgusting, Blakemore has created an unforgettable character in Tarare and his sad, sordid tale. This is a book that will stay with me for a long time for many different reasons and to me, that's a sign of a great read."  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐ Pros: Tarare wasn't a monster, it just seemed that the world was against him/I liked Lozeau and his strange band of misfits/Dr. Dupuis seemed like a genuinely good person, or at least, he had his moments.  Cons: Some of the timeline/people of the French Revolution were just white noise to me/Courville was a despicable man.  Full Review:  The Bottomless man, the Glutton of Lyon, Tarare the Terrible. The man who has many titles but who's name is simply, Tarare, is dying in a hospital in Versailles. Citizen Doctor Tissier has written to his friend, Dupuis, in hopes that he'll be able to cure this mysterious illness that plagues Tarare. For now though, he lays, chained to his bed and waits for...

"We're given an interesting glimpse into a day in the life of Bast, Kvothe's student, who also just happens to be Fae. Some of it makes sense, some of it doesn't but through it all Bast shows that though he's powerful, he also has a heart and in the end, will do the right thing."  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pros: I do love Bast for the fact that he could easily kill all the people who come to him and yet he doesn’t. He has a heart, though he’s sly, dark and mysterious.  Cons : I’m curious as to what happened between Rike and Bast that created such animosity but the lack of an explanation didn’t take away from the book as a whole.   Full Review:  ***Disclaimer***If you have not read  The Name of the Wind  or  The Wise Man's Fear  by Patrick Rothfuss, please do so and then come back and read this at your leisure. That way you'll know what I'm talking about 🙌.*** Bast is sneaking out of the Waystone Inn early, for what purpose, we don't know but just before he ...

​ "A collection of stories, all set in the world of the Arc of a Scythe series by Shusterman. A Martian Minute  and Anastasia's Shadow were real standouts but after awhile they storie began to get repetitive and the lack of a singular narrator, iring. This was an interesting addition to the series but not as good as the series itself."  ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pros: Some interesting stories that add a bit more history to characters and the timeline of the series, such as the Cirrus expedition/What happens when you become Unsavory/ A Martian Minute and Anastasia’s Shadow were really well done.  Cons:  Though this focused more on the world of Arc of a Scythe, I did miss Rowan/Citra/Short stories are tough for me because they lack a linear storyline but that's just a pet peeve.  Full Review:  This was a collection of short stories that were all based in the world of rhe Arc of a Scythe series by Shusterman. Some stories were co-authored while others were written by his child...

"Love is a disease, the deadliest of them all.  Unfortunately for Lena,"Amor Delirium Nervosa" runs in her blood. It drove her mother to suicide and Lena's terrified that she'll somehow fall victim to it as well. She's a good, law abiding citizen and simply lives her life. As fate would have it, with her procedure mere months away, she sees a boy, their eyes meet and the rest is history. Though it had a good, dystopian, The Giver  vibe, Lena's painfully melodramatic naivete and Oliver's paragraph long descriptions were tedious."  ⭐️⭐️ Pros: The idea that love is a disease, "Amor Delirium Nervosa" was unique, a good hook/Oliver's truly built a world of her own with society twisted on its side, pure dystopia/Parts of the ending were surprising, which I appreciated.  Cons: Lena is painfully, obnoxiously oblivious/I almost DNFed with Lena's reaction to Alex's big reveal because it just seemed very unbalanced. Lena shared a dar...

"Monsters are real and they're crawling over Verity. Callum Harker and Henry Flynn offer protection to the citizens of V-City but each in their own way. Kate Harker, Callum's only daughter and August Flynn, one of Henry's adopted sons, who is also a Monster (a Sunai) want what all children want. A purposeful life and their parents love. Unfortunately, for them both, life is not easy, and they'll have to fight for both while trying to decide if they can trust each other. Schwab delivers in her usual, powerful, poignant and poetic way and I'm eager to see how the series progresses."  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pros: The idea of the Phenomenon, Monsters coming to life in the wake of violent deaths (Corsai), murder (Malchai) and mass killings (Orsai), was definitely unique/It left off perfectly open-ended, allowing for expansion or leaving it as a stand-alone//To me, Schwab is a master of Magical Realism.  Cons : As I have a soft spot for the "quiet, tortured hero" (...

"Obviously targeted to writers but honestly, anyone could benefit from Bradbury's practical yet poetic advice, this was a collection of esasys by Bradbury about his writing process and reflections on some of his greatest works."   ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros: Bradbury, duh, though I'm biased, to me, the man's prose is pure poetry, every word beautiful/Since writing is not my career, it was an interesting way to view Bradbury's life. Writing was his job and he was the only income. If he did not produce material, he would not get paid. It help put things into perspective.  Cons: The man can go on for a bit 😂/Bradbury's insane work ethic and endless endurance to just produce story after story seems insane and overwhelming but then again, this was his livelihood, so I'm sure it was insane and overwhelming. If he didn't write and get paid, they'd starve, so, it was a life or death situation. Full Review:  This was essentially a collection of essays written by Bra...

"A short-story set in The Kingkiller Chronicles, world, following Auri, the curiously broken but heart-wrenchingly gentle girl whom Kvothe befriends. Though the story was as vague and confusing as Auri, it was interesting to see the University from her eyes."  ⭐⭐⭐ Pros:  We know now that Auri was once a student at the University, or at least knew Mandrag, Headmaster of Alchemy. Cons:  We were given the briefest, barest, whisper of glimpses into Auri's past and I so wanted to know more but at the same time, Auri's brokenness is part of her draw.  Full Review:   ***Disclaimer***If you have not read The Name of the Wind or The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss, please do so and then come back and read this at your leisure. That way you'll know what I'm talking about 🙌.*** Auri awakens and knows that he'll come and visit in 7 days.  She knows she doesn't have much time. There are Searching Days and Finding Days and Waiting Days, so many days and so ...

"Day 2 of The Kingkiller Chronicles has us hearing of more trials and tricks at the University. Kvothe's surprising time as a Mercenary and of course, his eternal back and forth with Denna. It all kind of ends on an unfinished note, so I'm eager to see how the series progresses. Rothfuss has truly made a legend of Kvothe, not just for his escapades but for also being a genuinely good person. The Kingkiller Chronicles is a staple in Fantasy, for me."  ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Pros: Bast, he has a dark side but at the same time I'm terribly curious as to how he and Kvothe met/The interludes are a welcome break.  Cons: Kvothe's time with the Ademre mercenaries and learning their martial arts style of the Way of the Sword just dragged for me/Kvothe and Denna's constant back and forth can get tiring.  Full Review:  ***Disclaimer - If you have not read The Name of the Wind  by Patrick Rothfuss, please do so and then feel free to read this post at your leisure. That way, you'll ...

​“Kvothe Kingkiller, Kvothe the Arcane, Kvothe the Bloodless, all legends, myths and all true, to a certain degree. As told in Kvothe's own words, we learn the origins of such an epic figure and Rothfuss does not disappoint." ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Pros: I love the small bits of genuine kindness that Rothfuss sprinkles through Kvothes otherwise, rather troubling and traumatic life/Bast 🙌💯 Con: Kvothe really was a bit clueless at times, especially with Denna. Of course he was just a 14-year-old boy so that must be taken into account. Full Review:  Kote is the Innkeeper at The Waystone Inn. An unassuming, pleasant little watering hole that has its handful of regulars. There's the usual talk, of how the roads are bad and times aren't what they were. That is, until the night one of the men brings in the body of something that attacked him on the road. It's a crackling, exo-skeleton, creepy Spider Demon.  All the men are frightened and Kote is silent.  A day or so later, Devan, ...