Sourcery

Sourcery by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Rincewind is a wonderful character in literature. He is the accidental hero. The one who should have been dead long before this book, but because of amazing dumb luck, manages to always be just what is needed.

Terry Pratchett created some memorable characters, though I did get some of the minor characters in the book mixed up every now and then. Part of that could have been because the story lines are so jam packed. You're not just following Rincewind, but also a host of other characters that have their own stories going at the same time. All the stories are part of a whole, the reader just needs to be able to keep up with what is going on the really appreciate the story.

Possibly the best characters in this book are the four horsemen who, well, have issues.

Author: Terry Pratchett
Publisher: Harper
Publication Date: 1988

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Unblemished

Unblemished by Sara Ella
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

If I could give partial star ratings, I would. This book, for me, is somewhere between two and three stars. It was hard for me to get into at first, which makes it difficult for me to continue reading, but I stuck with it. As the story progressed, and knowledge about Reflections came to light, I became more invested in the story line. The author seemed to pick up speed once everyone was out of New York.

By the time I finished the book, I was ready to read the other two books in the series as soon as possible, which is a good sign. If the first book in a series doesn't grab the reader, it doesn't matter how great the other books are.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Sara Ella
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publication Date: 11 Oct 2016

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School of the Dead

School of the Dead by Avi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Holy guacamole, I don't care how old you are, School of the Dead will have you hooked. I was not prepared for how intense this book was. I thought I knew what to expect from Avi, but I was wrong, I did not expect this.

To me, the best part of the book is that like the main character, Tony, you don't really know who is telling the truth. In this case, trusting the wrong people could prove deadly. I appreciated the books POV. It wouldn't have had the same feel if the narrator had been all knowing. The reader needs to learn everything with Tony to keep the suspense and mystery going. Knowing who Tony should trust from the beginning would have made the book flat and difficult to finish.

Author: Avi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: 2016

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Sheets

Sheets by Brenna Thummler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I decided to read this book on a whim, and I'm so glad I did. Sheets is an adorable children's book that talks to people of all ages. There are parts of this book that are completely fantasy, and other parts so anchored in reality you can see yourself in Marjorie's shoes. It's the juxtaposition between fantasy and reality that pulls the reader in. We all want to see good defeat evil and friendship prevail no matter what type of situation a character may be in.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Brenna Thummler
Publisher: Diamond Book Distributors / Lion Forge
Publication Date: 28 Aug 2018

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City of Lost Souls

City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Cassandra Clare is good at being unpredictable in her writing. Her books pull you in and keep you guessing. They fit well into the YA category of books, but don't transfer into adult reading well. I think that this would be different if you had read this series as a teenager.

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Momo Freaks Out

Momo Freaks Out by Samone Bos
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Momo Freaks Out was a blog that made into a book. For those of us in America, think something along the lines of
There is plenty of humor and real life, which makes the book something everyone can relate to at some point in their life.

This is a good book to read when you feel like your world is going crazy, it can help put things into perspective. Having not read the blog before reading this book, I feel like I had a harder time getting into it than I would have otherwise. On the flip side, I now want to take a vacation with the author and her family.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Samone Bos
Publisher: Bonnier Publishing Australia
Publication Date: 2017

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It's Only Stanley

It's Only Stanley by Jon Agee
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It's only Stanley is a cute children's book that asks the important question, What is Stanley doing? While the family tries to sleep, Stanley is up to something, but they don't know what until it is too late to stop him.

I found this book enjoyable. At the same time, I'm wondering why the people didn't question what was going on a little more. I know it's a children's book, so it doesn't matter, but still, inquiring minds want to know.

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To Look a Nazi in the Eye

To Look a Nazi in the Eye: A Teen's Account of a War Criminal Trial by Kathy Kacer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

To Look a Nazi in the Eye was a pretty intense book. I have always devoured books on the Holocaust, but there is a different tone to books like this one. While this book is about the Holocaust, it is more about the question of how culpable were all of the SS. Is the soldier who handled luggage off the cattle cars just as responsible for what happened as the guards forcing people into the gas chambers? This book goes through the war trial of one of the SS soldiers, asking how culpable was he, and how do you handle a trial where the events happened decades earlier.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Kathy Kacer
Publisher: Second Story Press
Publication Date: 2017

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Shame Nation

Shame Nation: The Global Epidemic of Online Hate by Sue Scheff
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Shame Nation reads like a modern horror story. It shows how quickly a persons life can be change forever with one misstep on the internet. There is a lot of good advice throughout the book to help readers avoid the pitfalls that others have found themselves in, which makes it a great reference book. That being said, I don't think I would read this book again cover-to-cover. As a reference, it provides the reader with plenty of resources they can go to if they find themselves needing help.

Shame Nation is a great reminder that the internet is forever. Our future may be decided by something we wrote as a teenager.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Sue Scheff
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Publication Date: 2017

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City of Heavenly Fire

City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is the last book in The Mortal Instruments series. Now that I've read the whole series, I can kind of see why people are drawn to it, but at the same time, I don't see what the big deal is. Of course, I'm not the target audience. I can see how teenage girls would find this series more exciting than I did. It kept me entertained while I was reading, but I can't see myself reading it a second time.

Author: Cassandra Clare
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: 2014

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Rubbing Stones

Rubbing Stones by Nancy Burkey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Rubbing Stones is one of those books that seems to start off slow, but them picks up speed as you go along. By the time you get to the end, you really have no clue how everything is going to turn out.

There are some dark moments that I was not expecting. Not that I thought the book was going to be sunshine and rainbows, but I wasn't expecting it to be what it is. It added to the suspense, so those moments were well placed.

Katura is a great example of a strong female character in literature. Even though she is young, she is knows something is not right, and does everything in her power to try and find a way to fix it, even if her life is endangered along the way. She is a good example of doing what you feel is right, even if those around you, including your family are doing something different.

While the ending was satisfying, I still have some questions that were not answered. I really wish I knew what the big plan had been. There seemed to be something brewing, but it was never revealed what that was. The plan may have failed, but I still want to know what it was.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Nancy Burkey
Publication Date: 2016

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Osiris

OSIRIS: a novel by Eric C. Anderson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'm torn about this book. On the one hand, it was completely enthralling. It held my attention and made me hope that every thing would work out in the end. On the other hand, I was so confused. There is no main character. The chapters keep swapping the view point, making it hard for me to keep track of what side the events were playing out from. It was a little disorienting.

I think this book would be a good read for someone that has been in a war torn area, they would probably relate to things a lot more than I did. There are a lot of technical terms that I did not understand. I realize that there is a glossary at the back of the book, but by the time I realized that, I had already finished it, and wasn't going to go back and try to figure out what everything was in hindsight.

For me, this was a one time read. It was with out a doubt, a specialty book, you have to be a certain kind of reader to really appreciate it.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Eric C Anderson
Publisher: Dunn Books
Publication Date: 12 Sept 2017


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The Mystery of Ura Senke

The Mystery of Ura Senke by Shannon Gilligan
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I think this is the first Choose Your Own Adventure book that really left me frustrated. It was like I was only making partial decisions for my person. Because of the partial decisions, my character was caught before they had even had the chance to do anything.

I would recommend many other Choose Your Own Adventure books before this one.

Author: Shannon Gilligan
Publisher: Chooseco
Publication Date: 1985

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The Martian

The Martian by Andy Weir
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This book was okay, but it's not one that I would read again. I found it to be close to the movie Gravity, which had great reviews, but I struggled to get through. I think I really just need a lot more interaction between characters than was present. There are some funny moments, and I highly enjoyed those, but there was too much time with once character hanging out by himself for me.

This is one of those novels that will be a huge hit or miss depending on what you like. It's kind of like pineapple on pizza, either you will like it, or you won't.

Author: Andy Weir
Publisher: Crown
Publication Date: 2012

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Zom-B Goddess

Zom-B Goddess by Darren Shan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Can I just say that Holy Moly is the best character created possibly in the history of ever? Can we have a series that is just the adventures of Holy Moly? I would read that in one sitting. Who needs sleep?

The thing with this series, there is not a clear cut distinction between good and evil. As more information is given, knowledge about each of the characters changes the way the reader views them, which may move them over to being good, when before they were the devil in the flesh, or evil, when they were an angel without wings.

Like real life, these characters do not fit into a clear cut mold, they are complicated, which makes the series unpredictable, and a joy to read.

Author: Darren Shan
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: 2015

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