Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher Adventure Fantasy Romance * * * * Stars (Great!) When Princess Marra learns that her older sister is trapped in an abusive relationship, she vows to find a way to release her from her torment. This involves a lengthy quest to acquire the tools and companions she needs to do so – a bone dog, a gravewitch, her own fairy godmother (who is actually much better at curses than … Read more
The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi Science Fiction Suspense * * * * Stars (Great!) Jamie Gray finds himself out of work when the food delivery startup he works for downsizes him during the pandemic. Fortuitously, an acquaintance offers him a job with an animal rights organization he works for – conveniently leaving out the fact that the “animals” are in fact not of this world and that he’ll need to travel to another … Read more
Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega Graphic Novel Realistic Fiction * * * * Stars (Great!) Marlene comes from a long line of women with beautiful kinky hair and, alas, a tradition of straightening it to keep it under control. When her mom starts taking her to the salon, Marlene is initially excited about the attention and time they get to spend together, but that’s quickly overshadowed by the pain she experiences during the procedure, the … Read more
Real by Carol Cujec & Peyton Goddard Realistic Fiction * * * * Stars (Great!) Charity is an intelligent thirteen-year-old, but no one knows that because she is autistic and has difficulty communicating and controlling her body. Her parents love and support her, but have no more idea than anyone else how smart she really is. Forced to attend a special “school” that’s basically just a holding cell for kids with disabilities, Charity is regularly … Read more
The Chosen Twelve by James Breakwell Science Fiction * * * * Stars (Great!) 22 children are all that’s left of the human race. They’re being trained by robots (Edubot is their main instructor) and other AIs using simulations to colonize a planet that’s basically antithetical to human life. Previous colonists managed to create a species of intelligent, but extremely hostile kangaroos that kill anyone they encounter, and the world wasn’t exactly welcoming to begin … Read more
The Final Gambit The Inheritance Games #3 by Jennifer Lynne Barnes Mystery Romance Suspense Thriller * * * Stars (Pretty good) Pretty satisfying conclusion to the Inheritance Games trilogy. Avery Grambs manages to unravel the mystery surrounding her unexpected inheritance as well as survive the terms of its settlement. Family drama! Romance! Secrets! Puzzles! The game/puzzle-solving elements are fun. What will she do with the money? What would you do? It’s interesting to speculate. For … Read more
The Innocence Treatment by Ari Goelman Dystopian Mystery Science Fiction Suspense Thriller * * * Stars (Pretty good) Lauren Fielding has always been extremely trusting, generous, good natured, and friendly – so much so that her condition is viewed as a disability, because she can’t tell when people are trying to take advantage of her. She has to be supervised outside of her home and at school and has aides assigned to her to keep … Read more
Diper Overlode Diary of a Wimpy Kid #17 by Jeff Kinney Funny Illustrated Fiction Realistic Fiction Grades 5+ Review #1 * * * Stars (Pretty good) This book is about Rodrick, the older brother, and his band. Rodrick and his band want to be very famous so they decide to enter a competition. They practice a lot, but at one poin tthey stop because they think it has gotten too extreme for them. Rodrick now … Read more
Upgrade by Blake Crouch Dystopian Science Fiction Suspense Thriller * * * * Stars (Great!) After a near apocalyptic event, the world really cracks down on any sort of genetics research and technology. Logan Ramsay, whose mother (renowned scientist) was ultimately responsible for the Great Starvation, has become an agent committed to stomping out the illegal genetics black market. During a sting, he’s caught in a blast and infected with a gene-altering virus that essentially … Read more
I Am Not a Serial Killer John Cleaver #1 by Dan Wells Horror Mystery Supernatural Suspense Thriller * * * Stars (Pretty good) 15 year old John Wayne Cleaver is a sociopath and he is obsessed with serial killers. While he finds them fascinating, he’s also concerned that he might become one, so he comes up with rules he has to follow in order to keep that part of himself locked away. When a series … Read more