The Flip Side

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the arc of The Flip Side by Shawn Johnson! This clean read tells the story of Charlotte (Charlie). She’s an aspiring Olympic gold medal winning gymnast plus she attends public high school where she has to do her best to reform to the daily class schedule. Charlotte has to work around her school schedule instead of her schooling working around her gymnastics schedule. She has to deal with dating, schedule restraints and schedule juggling, an injury and good and bad publicity. The Flip Side is a cute, refreshing story!

Spectrum

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to Aidan J. Reid for the arc download of Spectrum! This interesting and tragic thriller is a short tale that takes place in a set of clinical trials. Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop until I was finished. This short story has made me interested enough to want to read Aidan J. Reid’s other books, Pathfinders and Sigil.

 

Watching Edie

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the arc of Watching Edie by Camilla Way! The first chapter shows Edie as a middle aged woman who suddenly has an unexpected visitor that she doesn’t want to see, Heather. Then the story moves between past and present, showing the relationship of Edie and Heather from the time they were teenagers, when they first met, until the present time. I do not want to give anything away, but this book has been compared to Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and that is a good comparison. Thrilling and suspenseful, as well as heartbreaking, Watching Edie is a read that will leave you with a sunken feeling in the pit of your stomach.

Wake the Hollow

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for the arc of Wake the Hollow by Gaby Triana! I absolutely love this book from beginning to end. Micaela goes back to Sleepy Hollow after her mother has passed away. She left her mother to live with her more stable father several years earlier. Her friend Bram picks her up from the train station and she stays with him in his apartment. She has night terrors often and hears voices and she is unsure who she can trust. The tone of the story is a bit ominous, which makes it difficult to put down. I enjoy the lines from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving at the beginning of the chapters. The mystery of Washington Irving’s descendants grows and so does the danger to Micaela. The suspense lasts throughout the book and the supernatural touch brings the right amount of thrill to the story. Wonderful spookiness!

26 Kisses

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the arc of 26 Kisses by Anna Michels! Vee, recently broken up from a two year relationship, is trying to enjoy the summer before senior year with her two best friends, Mel and Seth. Mel challenges Vee with the 26 kisses idea to help her recover from her breakup. Vee is supposed to kiss someone for each letter of the alphabet. It doesn’t always turn out to be a teenage boy or even a person, (puppy kisses). The challenge creates humorous, awkward and unusual experiences. This coming of age story is funny and lighthearted, but also serious enough to be true to life.

The Keepers of Life Series

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Pubishing for the opportunity to read arcs with the newly designed covers of The Keepers of Life Series by Shea Berkley!  I love this series!  The covers are gorgeous and perfect.  I have heard, more often than not, my library patrons saying how they dislike covers with faces because they prefer keeping the characters’ looks alive in their imaginations.  These remade covers will please everyone; they are beautiful yet simple and embrace the world that Dylan and Kera are living in. The Keepers of Life Series by Shea Berkley reminds me of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter Series and Brandon Mull’s Fablehaven Series with a bit of flirting added.

The Marked Son by Shea Berkley is about a young man, Dylan, who lives with his single mom. He has never known who his father is or any other family members. His mom breaks up with her latest boyfriend and they move into her parents’ home. Dylan finally gets to meet his grandparents! While this is going on, Kera passes through the shimmering wall from her land into the human world and sees Dylan. The two of them have shared dreams and visions for as long as they can both remember. Something is harming the sheep on Dylan’s grandparents’ sheep ranch and Dylan’s family and the ranch workers are trying to solve the mystery, but it just keeps getting more and more strange. The suspense, mystery and the character dynamics make this book hard to put down. The writing flows perfectly and the alternating points of view between Dylan and Kera bring insight into the other realm. At a point in the story, I was wondering how everything could possible work out, but the author’s amazing imagination and creativity persevered!

The Fallen Prince by Shea Berkley begins with Dylan struggling to control his newly found powers, while Kera tries to fit into the human world. The realm seems to be seeping into the human world and Kera is captured and taken back to Teag. Dylan and his friends go to Teag to rescue Kera. The dialogue surrounding Bodog and Wyatt made me chuckle, actually all interactions with Bodog made me chuckle – very fun! “Right now, the only normal one of us seems to be Bodog, and he’s lit himself up like Casper the friendly ghost.” Full of action and adventure and I love the snark in this book, “How’d you get out? ”
“I used magic.”
“I tried and it didn’t work.”
“Me, too.”
“I’m better at it.”
Shea Berkley is a creative author and the dark souls she conjured up are ominously creepy. I love this book!

The Rising King by Shea Berkley jumps into Dylan’s and Kera’s lives where the barrier separating Teag from the human world continues to grow weaker and the townspeople help guard against trespassing creatures. The enemies become more dangerous and difficult to overcome. Dylan’s father, Baun, wants to rule Teag by taking everyone’s powers for himself. Dylan, his friends, the townspeople and Teag’s allies work together to balance the powers and bring peace once again.

I have enjoyed this series and want to read it again and I plan on buying the paperback editions of all three books! Highly recommended for all fantasy readers!

 

The Sound of Us

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to Entangled Publishing for the copy of The Sound of Us by Julie Hammerle! I wasn’t sure how much I would enjoy this book about a classical musical competition and scholarships, but I am very pleasantly surprised! The Sound of Us is so much more than just music, but, at the same time, is engulfed in the musical students’ world. I like the musical and literary references throughout the book and I grew to care about the characters, who are very dynamic as they mature and learn through their struggles. I am very proud of Kiki and all that she accomplished. She learned valuable lessons about herself and others and moved forward with that knowledge. Kiki is a teenage girl that gets into the classical music summer camp that she has aspired to. The camp is cut-throat and each student is competing and fighting for one of seven scholarships (four-year, full-ride scholarships to the college). This story is engaging, fun to read, enjoyable, intelligent and has the perfect ending in which the future awaits!

 

The Broken Ones

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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The Broken Ones by Sarah A. Denzil is another great thriller full of suspense by the author of Saving April! A mystery dealing with a middle-aged woman living with her mother who has early onset Alzheimer’s. There is such a great twist in this book and I did not see it coming, especially to that extent. Sophie discovers a horrible secret, an act that her mother set forth. I can’t say more than that because I do not want to spoil anything for the potential reader. Sarah A. Denzil knows how to spin a tale of mystery, suspense and danger with creativity and intelligence. I look forward to reading more of her books!

Outrun the Moon

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Outrun the Moon by Stacey Lee introduces Mercy Wong and her family living in Chinatown in 1906. Mercy wants to give her family a better life, so she studies and works her way into the St. Clare’s Boarding School for girls. Mercy has impressive maturity and wisdom for her age, probably due to the racism that surrounds her and her undying pursuit of future goals. The San Francisco earthquake strikes and some petty differences dissolve while others grow. Mercy Wong upholds her strong values and beliefs while still being open to others. She is perfect:) This wonderful historical fiction story contains some clean romance and a happily ever after feel.

A Totally Awkward Love Story

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to First In Line for selecting me as a winner and giving me a free copy of A Totally Awkward Love Story by Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison! The title is perfect for this story as the awkwardness continues throughout the entire book and throughout the relationship between Hannah and Sam. Young adult British humor made me laugh a ton! I enjoyed the humorous honesty and complete openness about everything, and I mean everything! Fun and fast read by clever authors.