Category: books and reading

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book

This book was a light, easy charming read about a failing bakery in France and the mystery behind its magic.

Edith moves to France on a whim after seeing an ad in a paper asking for help. However, the job isn’t as wonderful as she was hoping. The owner is grumpy, the town is small and isloated, but as Edie discovers, has its hidden charms.

Edie makes friends with more people, finds a good guy, and uncovers some of the bakery’s magical secrets. This book was good. Sweet, full of delicious pastry descriptions, and easy on the palate.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

This book is easily one of the best I’ve read this year. I managed to get a copy on audio, which was superb. Most audiobooks are just fine to listen to, but the outstanding narrator really brought this story to life.

The unnamed biracial protagonist recently lost his teenage son unexpectedly then realizes his estranged white grandfather left a plot of land to his son. The narrator, since his son passed, now inherits the land. As he travels to this land by the ocean, he fully intends to sell the property for a hefty sum. But as the land is inspected, he learns his plot was a former plantation.

The best part about this book was really the blur between what the narrator perceives as real vs what he’s imagining. He also has to reckon with his past relationship with his own Black father and his son. This beautiful book pushed the hard topics of the narrator’s life to the forefront of his mind. And as a reader, we are along for this journey of a man finding himself while dealing with not just his past, but the past of his ancestors.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

Suzie has schizophrenia and is attempting to live a normal life by attending college without being medicated. She has a great boyfriend and a supportive roommate, but as the voices in her head grow stronger, Suzie listens to them and ends up getting expelled due to her actions.

Suzie flees her safe home, goes on the run, and ends up in Las Vegas with the “mole people” who live in underground tunnels. Suzie, now addicted to drugs, must find out how to survive with these people, the voices in her head, and the itinerant lifestyle.

This book was the bare minimum of a plot. There wasn’t much depth, and it used convenient plot devices. Overall, fine, but not one I recommend.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

This quick read is about two brothers, Thad and Hazen, who live in a remote cabin near Yellowstone. They spend most of their time hunting, fishing, and doing various odd jobs to earn money. When a man offers them a lot of money for an easy but dangerous task. Thad is level-headed, constantly worried about bills, while Hazen is happy to take on any task, no matter how legal it may or may not be.

Once they embark upon the dangerous task, things, of course, do not go as planned, and they have to deal with the aftermath. This book was really simple with beautiful descriptions of the landscape, but it’s not one I will think much about now that I’ve finished it.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

When Heather’s son, Charlie, goes missing from his exclusive elementary school, Bronswood, most people don’t seem all that concerned. She’s on video picking him up early, but Heather knows she didn’t. Her friend, Zola, has also disappeared, and other families have left the school abruptly.

As Heather tries to find her son, she realizes the police think he just ran away. The boy’s father, whom Heather left years ago, has suddenly resurfaced. And the school’s upcoming massive fundraising gala is all anyone can talk about, even though Charlie has been missing for days.

Heather digs through the school’s past and finds that other boys have gone missing. I liked this book, but some plot threads weren’t tied together as well as they should have been. The book felt 98% finished. What Heather uncovers and a great plot twist make the book worth reading, though.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I’m not a big YA Romantasy person. I loved Shadow and Bone, but haven’t delved much farther into the genre. But wow, was this book fantastic. I cannot wait for the sequel.

In Blaze’s empire, certain people are born into power-wielding families. Her family can control fire. However, Blaze was born a Rainweaver and drowned thousands of people with a storm on the day she was born, thus leaving her an outcast.

When she and her twin, Flint, are summoned to the Golden Palace to vie for the crown, they must use their powers to defeat the others with the same ability. Flint must use fire to show he’s the stronger fire-wielder. But Blaze, who never uses her power, isn’t sure how she will fare in the competition.

There’s a small romantic aspect to it as Blaze meets the Crowned Prince and a mysterious boy with a deadly past. As more secrets about the empire are revealed, Blaze must decide who to trust. This book had such good world-building and excellent characters. Definitely recommend.

Thank you, NetGalley, for this book.

I really wanted to like this book, but it just didn’t work for me at all. The story is very bizarre, so stick with me here. Sidney Catchpenny is a sly, which means he’s a thief who uses mojo (magic) to travel between mirrors. He can enter a mirror and then exit another mirror in a separate location. This plot seems easy enough to follow, but when Sid is asked to help find a girl, the world-building becomes a lot messier.

Circe, the missing teenager, is involved in a video game that takes inspiration from a doomsday cult. Sid has to dig through Circe’s life to find her, but what he uncovers could be his own undoing because another sly owns his heart (literally). This book had so much potential, but it just tried to do way too much.