Hello, beautiful readers! The school year is starting to wind down. This month was crazy busy, but I managed to read several books that I enjoyed. Here are my reviews:
by Harriet Hodgson
Genre: Children's Books on Death and Dying
Pages: 72 pages
Book Blurb:
From the very first page, Grief Doodling invites action. Topics range from the benefits of doodling, to why doodling is fun, to doodling tips, and responding to doodling prompts. The prompts, based on grief research, promote self-worth and healing. This is a hopeful book—something all grieving kids need.
My Review:
This book is more like a journal. It helps children (and adults) use doodling as a way to process grief. It starts with explaining why doodling is important and helpful. Then, it share with the reader the many ways one can doodle. It offers prompts and space for the reader to practice his/her own doodling techniques.
I love that the author uses easy-to-follow language and directions. She shares that there is no wrong way to doodle and provides the reader with the freedom to process their emotions however he/she sees fit. I think this book would be great for someone who is having difficult processing their grief.
by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Genre: Romantic Fantasy
Pages: 161 pages
Book Blurb:
When everything falls apart, the truth of who they are is revealed.
Poppy has fallen into stasis, her body broken and power spent, carried beyond the mortal realm. While she lies suspended in dreams, Casteel faces a world without her—raw, wrathful, and altered in ways he doesn’t yet understand.
Left to steady a kingdom trembling under the weight of loss, Kieran shoulders what he cannot say aloud, even as the fractures between gods, mortals, and fate widen around him.
In the days that follow, grief becomes a guide, loyalty a burden, and love the only thing holding the realms together.
These are the pieces that fill the silence. The moments of wrath, ruin, resolve, and the spark of what must come next.
A Crown of Ruin reveals the unseen moments of love, loss, and change that happened between The Primal of Blood and Bone and The Throne of Bone and Ash.
My Review:
I did not pay attention to the fact that this was book 6.5 in a series that I have not read. It sounded interesting, so I read it. I was immediately drawn into a battle scene that was spectacularly written. The author is a master at imagery and making you feel as if you are watching a movie. I did not know the backstory of these characters but enough was given for me to understand most of the dynamics. I think the series might be a little too heavy on war for me, but as for as great storytelling goes, this book has it!
Dancing Valley
by Karen Black
Genre: Cosy Fantasy Fiction
Pages: 290
Book Blurb:
Dancing Valley is not just a beautiful landscape; it's a sanctuary for
magical beings. Filled with secrets, the mystical world is protected by a
guardian of the fae.For nearly a century and a half, Carolyn has lived with the
mystical creatures who inhabit her family estate. When Anita arrives, lost and
exhausted, Carolyn knows the young woman didn’t find her cottage by accident.
Abandoned by her mother, when she was hours old, Anita’s only clue to her
history is an emerald pendant tucked into the pocket of the shirt she’d been
wrapped in. After the unexpected death of her adoptive parents, Anita heads to
the wilderness. During a week of hiking unmarked trails, she becomes lost and
roams for days until she sees a fairy, a tiny being she'd been assured since
childhood, was only in her imagination. Still, Anita follows the enchanting
creature who leads her to Carolyn, where she finds more than just shelter.
With Carolyn's help, Anita discovers the little people she's seen and heard for
her entire life are real, and that she has abilities she'd never realized. When
Dancing Valley is threatened, Anita stands beside Carolyn, risking her life to
fight for her new home and the mystical family she’s become a part of.
My Review:
This was an enjoyable fantasy story filled with fairies, elves, pixies, and other mystical creatures. I have read the other books in this series, so I was familiar with some of the characters. If you haven't read them, you will still be able to understand this story (though I do recommend you enjoy the other stories as well).
Carolyn is the guardian of Dancing Valley, which means she protects the land and the mystical creatures who live there. Anita gets lost in the woods and finds her way to Carolyn. She ends up making a home with Carolyn and embracing her own magic.
When Anita finds a way to make mystical plants grow in Dancing Valley, Bagrim, the warlock, targets their home and wants to steal the plants. Meanwhile, the goblins are hunting treasure on their lands. Anita and Carolyn call for help from friends and all magical creatures to thwart the plans of the warlock, dogmen, and goblins. Only working together are they able to have a chance at saving their home.
I enjoyed this story and would recommend it to anyone looking to escape into a magical world for a little bit. The characters were adorable, especially Viki. The story moved at a great pace and kept me entertained throughout.
Genre: Vampire Horror
Pages: 617
Book Blurb:
A brutal murder, a suspect in jail, and an execution planned—but what if the wrong person is about to be killed?
When a fellow U.S. Marshal asks Anita Blake to fly to a tiny community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula on an emergency consult, she knows time is running short. When she arrives, there is plenty of proof that a young wereleopard killed his uncle in the most gruesome and bloody way possible. As the mounting evidence points to him, a warrant of execution is already under way.
But something seems off about the murder, and Anita has been asked for her expert opinion on the crime scene. Despite escalating pressure from local cops and the family’s cries for justice for their dead patriarch, Anita quickly realizes that the evidence doesn’t quite add up.
Time is against Anita, as the tight-knit community is up in arms and its fear of supernaturals is growing. She races to uncover the truth and determine whether the Marshals have caught the killer or are about to execute an innocent man—all in the name of justice.
My Review:
This book was a serious gut punch to the heart. I have been reading Anita Blake books for over a decade, but I haven't read one in a few years. I picked up right where I left off, worried I would have forgotten some of the characters, but I fell easily back into this world. I loved the storyline of this novel, though the ending killed me.
I loved that the book focused on a murder mystery, and it was a doozy! I also enjoyed the Anita/Olaf dilemma. Anita's inner struggle is one of the things that has always drawn me to her books. I had a feeling I knew who the killer was, but then she masterfully through me off track only to shock me again at the end. Loved it!
This is book 27 in a series, and I do NOT recommend you start with this book. If you love paranormal, were-animals, vampires, solving murders, and sex (lots of it, usually), then you will love this series. If you want to start the series, click here.
Genre: Christian Science Fiction
Pages: 179
Book Blurb:
In our own time, many worry about the risks of Artificial Intelligence. Now, imagine a distant future where humanity is dependent on the computers and robots that made our lives easier. Unfortunately, that was not the end game for the machines.
The master AI brains are the Em Primus devices, computerized brains that control all aspects of life on each inhabited planet. Now, they have decided it is their time to rule and eliminate us all. The secret is well kept, and so humanity follows the advice of machines, even abandoning Earth.
Prefect Kai Wen commands one of the colony ships leaving Earth. As the sinister plot unfolds, he finds camaraderie with a woman hidden among the colonists and crew who are in suspended animation. Will their efforts succeed or is our species on the chopping block.
My Review:
This futuristic story will have you thinking twice about AI and robots. The robots of the world convince humans that the sun will explode, leading to an evacuation to other worlds and galaxies. Unfortunately, the robots aboard the ships leaving earth have sinister plans to kill all the humans aboard.
Kai has chosen to stay awake while the rest of his crew are put into hibernation for the fifty years it will take to reach the galaxy they want to explore. As he realizes something is afoot, he finds help from Emma Anne Connor Levin, a woman who merged with a computer system and parts of a robot. Emma evolves into a miraculous being to help Kai save his ship. Because of Kai's faith, he and Emma are chosen to save other worlds. They are joined by Josh (the son of God) and Manny (God) for many of their journeys.
I enjoyed seeing Manny again. He appears in many other stories written by this author. I also enjoyed the story as a whole, though I felt there was a bit too much world-hopping at one point. I liked Emma and Kai as well as M-1, who was a great evil robot. Although there were some typos throughout the book, it didn't pull me out of the storyline. If you enjoy sci-fi and other worldly books, then you will enjoy this book.
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Pages: 302
Book Blurb:
India Steele is desperate. Her father is dead, her fiancé took her inheritance, and no one will employ her, despite years working for her watchmaker father. Indeed, the other London watchmakers seem frightened of her. Alone, poor, and at the end of her tether, India takes employment with the only person who'll accept her - an enigmatic and mysterious man from America. A man who possesses a strange watch that rejuvenates him when he's ill.
Matthew Glass must find a particular watchmaker, but he won't tell India why any old one won't do. Nor will he tell her what he does back home, and how he can afford to stay in a house in one of London's best streets. So when she reads about an American outlaw known as the Dark Rider arriving in England, she suspects Mr. Glass is the fugitive. When danger comes to their door, she's certain of it. But if she notifies the authorities, she'll find herself unemployed and homeless again - and she will have betrayed the man who saved her life.
With a cast of quirky characters, an intriguing mystery, and a dash of romance, THE WATCHMAKER'S DAUGHTER is the start of a thrilling new historical fantasy series from the author of the bestselling Ministry of Curiosities, Freak House, and Emily Chambers Spirit Medium books.
My Review:
This story was really enjoyable. I loved the voice of the main character. I easily fell into this world and loved the storyline. India is a spitfire and yet both strong and insecure. She lost her father's store when her father passed away and left his store to her fiancé who immediately broke up with her and kept the store for himself. Out on the street with no home and no job, India is desolate. Her paths cross with Mr. Glass when she tries to urge him to not give business to her ex. After their encounter, he offers her a job to help him find a magical watchmaker. If he doesn't find him soon, he may not live much longer.
The author does a fantastic job of creating unique characters and keeping the mystery going throughout the story. I loved the interaction between the characters. I'm not usually into historical fiction, but the magical element kept me intrigued throughout the whole story. While it is a series, the story had a complete ending. Still, I will most likely grab the next one because I really enjoyed their adventure.
Have you read any great books this month? I'd love to hear about them.
