Author: lynndellwatson

Thanks to NetGalley and HMH for Young Readers for the arc of Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor! This is a marvelous book about Hope and time-travel. Hope loses her mother during an earthquake and then many years later, Hope travels to Scotland to visit relatives and to hopefully learn more about her mother. Once Hope is in Scotland, the adventures begin. The mystery surrounding Hope and the smoothly flowing writing make Into the Dim a treat to read. Once I began reading this book, I had a very difficult time pulling myself away from this magical time-traveling story with its dynamic characters and wonderful writing. Several times, the descriptions felt so real that I actually caught myself holding my breath – especially through the claustrophobic parts. The book held surprises and suspense; I love it and want to read the sequel now!

I have debated my rating of Truthwitch by Susan Dennard for a few days now. I give it 3.5 stars. Reading Truthwitch is like learning a new language for the first few chapters. There are several different types of “witches”, each with a unique power, but I feel that more explanation is needed for these powers and the world of the book. I am also saddened by the errors. For example, shears and sheers are used on the same page to describe the same pair of scissors and on page 222, putting is spelled “puting”. Too many similar words occur throughout the story with not much explanation of their meanings. The one that bothered me the most is on page 401, when Cahr Awen is mentioned (I think this is a cool concept of power) and Carawen (which is some vow). Now that I am done complaining, I will talk about what I did like. I thought the chapter when Merik and Safi danced was just plain fun and the suspense kept me interested in reading to the end. The intense ending brought cliffhangers to all of the characters and I am interested to learn more about Iseult and Aeduan! Hopefully the sequel will bring these characters and their world more to life!

The Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly by Stephanie Oakes intrigued me in so many ways. I was immediately drawn into the story from the very first sentence! A girl who has no hands – extremely sad. A girl whose hands were cut off purposely by someone else – horribly tragic and frustrating. Minnow’s hands were taken from her just because she didn’t want to marry someone who already had eight wives. When Minnow was five, her family joined a religious cult lead by a prophet named Kevin. Therefore, they were known as Kevinians.

This compelling story has so many different facets, so once I started reading it, I had a hard time putting it down. The cult life, Minnow’s anger and confusion, the sadistic prophet, Jude and his struggles, Minnow’s escape and first confrontation with a city dweller, and the forensic psychologist Dr. Wilson and his affect on Minnow. This book is inspiring with the message that it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks or believes, it only matters what you think!:)

Thanks to NetGalley and SparkPress for the arc of Blonde Eskimo by Kristen Hunt! A light colored Eskimo in modern times finds out about her ancestry and the power she holds. She also discovers the uniqueness of her power. The story would flow better if told through Neiva’s point of view instead of third person and sometimes alternating points of view. I enjoyed the journal entries which all are in first person and Neiva’s point of view.

Neiva moves to Alaska and lives with her grandmother. Her parents have left on a trip and want Neiva to finish high school in Alaska. She is not used to her surroundings and is also struggling with everything that happens on her seventeenth birthday and after! Strong characters, I especially like Nate and his personality, and the mythology make this an interesting read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Storey Publishing for the arc of Pure Soapmaking by Anne-Marie Faiola. This book is full of detailed directions, precautions and illustrations making it a must have for anyone interested in soap making! I have thought about soap making in the past and was interested in reading this book to see how difficult making soap would be. It isn’t as easy as I thought it would be and there are real precautions that need to be taken to make soap safely, but after reading this book I really want to dive in and try to make my own natural soaps. All ingredients and supplies needed are listed and notes on how to adjust recipes are also included, as well as how to make a safe work space. Great hobby book!

Thanks to Algonquin for the free book of Jackaby by William Ritter! This Sherlock Holmes style story has a supernatural twist, which just adds to the fun! On page 55, Jackaby gets “socked” in the face by a woman because he made a harmless statement. I laughed out loud at this! The humor continues throughout the entire book and is placed appropriately so it doesn’t interfere with the suspense of the mystery.

I love that Abigail Rook is the narrator of the story. Abigail is impressively independent, especially in the 1890’s setting. I enjoyed the letter at the end of the story immensely. In this letter, Jackaby dictates to Abigail his request for the police to return his tuning fork. A long winded explanation later, Abigail includes a small note, unbeknownst to Jackaby. The note simply states, “Please return Jackaby’s tuning fork. He’s getting more obnoxious than usual.” The fork is returned that very evening with a note attached, “I completely understand.” Jackaby mistakes the note for understanding of the importance of the fork, but Abigail knows the truth. I am not doing the humor in this book the justice it deserves. Read it and enjoy it for yourself:)

The Jack of Souls by Stephen C. Merlino is the beginning of a new fantasy series that should please the fans of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy! The story begins with Harric trying to survive his mother’s curse and it just becomes more interesting from there. I enjoyed the varied lifestyles and history of each of the characters. Caris gets along with horses better than with people, Harric struggles against the memory and “haunting” of his mother, the immortal beings deal with eccentricity and gluttony and several other characters add to this mix. Delightful fantasy that is well paced! I am looking forward to the rest of this series!

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Check out this wonderful Reading Challenge for 2016!  I just had a friend share this great list with me.  Concise and still challenging!  Here is the link: http://modernmrsdarcy.com/2016-reading-challenge/.

The website offers a printable sheet to track your reading progress and even a printable journal for those who love to write the old fashioned way!  Great website Modern Mrs. Darcy!

The Grimm Legacy Series by Polly Shulman is lighthearted fun!  Each book is based off of a different genre of classics.  The Grimm Legacy uses Grimm’s Fairy Tales to build upon, The Wells Bequest uses science fiction stories and The Poe Estate uses supernatural reads.  Each book is fun on its own merits and contains author’s notes, which lists titles used for inspiration.

This series is for young adults, but can easily be interesting for middle schoolers and younger, as well as any adults who like to read fantasy!  I am hoping that Polly Shulman continues with this series because I enjoy stories that use classics for a base to build upon.  Highly recommended, fun reads!