Yours Truly

 

Amazon writes, "Dr. Briana Ortiz’s life is seriously flatlining. Her divorce is just about finalized, her brother’s running out of time to find a kidney donor, and that promotion she wants? Oh, that’s probably going to the new man-doctor who’s already registering eighty-friggin’-seven on Briana’s “pain in my ass” scale. But just when all systems are set to hate, Dr. Jacob Maddox completely flips the game . . . by sending Briana a letter.

And it’s a really good letter. Like the kind that proves that Jacob isn’t actually Satan. Worse, he might be this fantastically funny and subversively likeable guy who’s terrible at first impressions. Because suddenly he and Bri are exchanging letters, sharing lunch dates in her “sob closet,” and discussing the merits of freakishly tiny horses. But when Jacob decides to give Briana the best gift imaginable—a kidney for her brother—she wonders just how she can resist this quietly sexy new doctor . . . especially when he calls in a favor she can’t refuse.". I love her books and I love her. I follow her o Tik Tok. All in all, I say: READ IT & follow her

AN Absolutely Remarkable Thing

 

Amazon writes, "The Carls just appeared. Coming home from work at three a.m., 23-year-old April May stumbles across a giant sculpture. Delighted by its appearance and craftsmanship - like a 10-foot-tall Transformer wearing a suit of samurai armor - April and her friend Andy make a video with it, which Andy uploads to YouTube. The next day April wakes up to a viral video and a new life. News quickly spreads that there are Carls in dozens of cities around the world - everywhere from Beijing to Buenos Aires - and April, as their first documentarian, finds herself at the center of an intense international media spotlight.

Now April has to deal with the pressure on her relationships, her identity, and her safety that this new position brings, all while being on the front lines of the quest to find out not just what the Carls are, but what they want from us.

Compulsively entertaining and powerfully relevant, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing grapples with big themes, including how the social Internet is changing fame, rhetoric, and radicalization; how our culture deals with fear and uncertainty; and how vilification and adoration spring from the same dehumanization that follows a life in the public eye.  ". I thought it was strange. All in all, I say: SKIP IT

Finish Strong

 

Amazon writes, ""Finish Strong", it's more than a statement, it's an attitude. The Finish Strong mindset is a powerful platform for achievement personally, professionally and spiritually. Finish Strong is packed with motivational and inspirational stories of individuals who overcame adversity to Finish Strong.

Dan Green has written 20 engaging chapters guaranteed to give you a quick shot of inspiration and motivation. A must hear for students, athletes, professionals and anyone looking for a new way to think about life. Some of the stories featured include: Bethany Hamilton, John Baker, Ray Kroc, Paul Hamm, Julie Moss, Ben Hogan and Helen Keller. Dan Green is the author of the Finish Strong trilogy. He is also the founder of Finish Strong, LLC and motivational speaker that delivers the finish strong message in an entertaining and impactful way.". Unless you need a motivational book for work... All in all, I say: SKIP T

Yes No Maybe So

 

Amazon writes, "YES 

Jamie Goldberg is cool with volunteering for his local state senate candidate - as long as he’s behind the scenes. When it comes to speaking to strangers (or, let’s face it, speaking at all to almost anyone) Jamie’s a choke artist. There’s no way he’d ever knock on doors to ask people for their votes...until he meets Maya. 

NO 

Maya Rehman’s having the worst Ramadan ever. Her best friend is too busy to hang out, her summer trip is canceled, and now her parents are separating. Why her mother thinks the solution to her problems is political canvassing - with some awkward dude she hardly knows - is beyond her. 

MAYBE SO 

Going door to door isn’t exactly glamorous, but maybe it’s not the worst thing in the world. After all, the polls are getting closer - and so are Maya and Jamie. Mastering local activism is one thing. Navigating the cross-cultural crush of the century is another thing entirely.". This teen novel was cute. All in all, I say: READ IT

A Court of Mist and Fury (ACOTAR book 2)

 

Amazon writes, "Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to the Spring Court - but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can't forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people. Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court.

As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms - and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future - and the future of a world cleaved in two.". And this book will change your mind on everything. All in all, I say: READ IT

Breathless

 

Amazon writes, "Journalist Cecily Wong is in over her head. She’s come to Manaslu, the eighth-highest peak in the world, to interview internationally famous mountaineer Charles McVeigh on the last leg of a record-breaking series of summits. She’s given up everything for this story—her boyfriend, her life savings, the peace she’s made with her climbing failures in the past—but it’s a career-making opportunity. It could finally put her life back on track.

But when one climber dies in what everyone else assumes is a freak accident, she fears their expedition is in danger. And by the time a second climber dies, it’s too late to turn back. Stranded on a mountain in one of the most remote regions of the world, she’ll have to battle more than the elements in a harrowing fight for survival against a killer who is picking them off one by one.". The entire book was familiar - I knew everything that was going to happen, but I couldn't find where I had read it before, so...All in all, I say: SKIP IT - predictable and the main character is annoying.

Murder Most Puzzling

 

Amazon writes, "Murder Most Puzzling is a gorgeous and witty book that invites readers to solve 20 puzzling murder mysteries. Cast as the faithful sidekick to amateur sleuth Medea Thorne, you will meet a cast of colorful characters, from ghost hunter extraordinaire Augustin Artaud to Leonard Fanshawe, a competitor in the Annual Perfect Pickled Foods Festival. Using deductive tactics and eye-spy searching skills, you will sleuth your way to unveiling whodunit in this witty riff on the classic murder mystery book.

A delight for fans of Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Edward Gorey.
MURDER MYSTERY PUZZLE BOOK: Great fun for the armchair sleuth, this clever twist on standard mystery novels brings out everyone's inner detective. The combination of visual and story-based clues making this collection an excellent brain game exercise for adults.

DELIGHTFULLY GOTHIC STYLE: This collection of darkly humorous puzzles features a clever die-cut cover and illustrations in a gorgeous gothic style by artist Stephanie von Reiswitz whose lettering and design work can be found on a range of book jackets, murals, editorial illustrations, and posters.". Some were fun to figure and some were ....not. The answers are in the back as well as explanations. All in all, I say: SKIP IT unless you like solving things.

Ledge: Glacian Trilogy bk 1

 

An Australian Tik Tokker decided to write a story that had all the romance/fantasy tropes. Amazon writes, "In a place known as the Ledge, a civilization is trapped by a vast chasm and sheer mountain face. There is no way for anyone to escape the frozen wasteland without befalling a deathly drop. They know nothing of the outside world except that it is where the Glacians reside—mystical and vicious winged creatures who bring meager rations in exchange for a periodic human sacrifice.

Dawsyn, ax wielder and only remaining member of her family, has so far avoided the annual culling, but her luck has run out. She is chosen and ripped from her icy home, the only world she knows. No one knows what will happen to her on the other side, least of all Dawsyn. Murdered? Enslaved? Worse?

Fortunately, a half-Glacian called Ryon offers to help them both escape, but how can she trust one of the very creatures that plagued her life? Dawsyn is a survivor, and she is not afraid to cut anyone down to live.

With a slow-burning romance, high stakes, and even higher rewards, this richly created new fantasy series by popular TikToker Stacey McEwan will keep you gripped to the very end.".  You will not like how this ends. You can watch the author as she was writing the ending and watch her cry. All in all, I say: READ IT & Follow her. 

How to Marry Keanu Reeves in 90 Days

 

Amazon writes, "Bethany Lu Carlisle is devastated when the tabloids report actor Keanu Reeves is about to tie the knot. What?! How could the world's perfect boyfriend and forever bachelor, Keanu, not realize that making a move like this could potentially be devastating to the equilibrium of...well...everything! Not to mention, he's never come face to face with the person who could potentially be his true soulmate - her.

Desperate to convince Keanu to call off the wedding, Lu and her ride-or-die BFF Truman Erikson take a wild road trip to search for the elusive Keanu so that Lu can fulfill her dream of meeting her forever crush and confess her undying love. From New York to Los Angeles, Lu and True get into all sorts of sticky situations. Will Lu be able to find Keanu and convince him she's the one for him? Or maybe she'll discover true love has been by her side all along....". It had potential, but I got annoyed with the main character. All in all, I say: SKIP IT

Love at First Psych

 

Amazon writes,"This Psych 312 assignment just might send me off the deep end. Determining whether love at first sight really exists with Robbie Moravian as my project partner, of all people?

He’s the sappiest man alive, so upbeat I could scream, and clearly rooting for happy endings at every turn. How does he not learn from experience considering our own meet-cute last semester almost got us expelled?

But we both need to pass this course to graduate. So we’re interviewing five random couples about their meet-cutes and relationships and spending all this time together. Which is certainly...educational.

Because it turns out Robbie isn’t just the charming golden boy I thought I knew. There’s some actual depth beneath all those lame dad jokes and the ‘70s-inspired thrift wardrobe (even if he does look ridiculously great in a flared collar). Next thing I know he’s walking me back to my office on the regular and finishing all my sentences and protecting me from freak storms, and...

Wait. Could Robbie be right? Can happy endings really come from unhappy beginnings? Is he about to change my entire world view?

Group projects are the worst.". I love Bastone's work on Audible. The dialogue/writing is always so good. All in all, I say: LISTEN TO IT

A Court of Thorns and Roses (bk 1)

 

Amazon writes, "When 19-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin - one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world. As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow over the faerie lands is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it... or doom Tamlin - and his world - forever.". This is an alternative Beauty & the Beast. It will get you feeling a certain way & then the next book will pull the rug out from under you. All in all, I say: READ IT

The Sun Down Motel

 

Amazon writes, "Something hasn’t been right at the roadside Sun Down Motel for a very long time, and Carly Kirk is about to find out why in this chilling new novel from the best-selling and award-winning author of The Broken Girls.

Upstate New York, 1982. Viv Delaney wants to move to New York City, and to help pay for it she takes a job as the night clerk at the Sun Down Motel in Fell, New York. But something isnʼt right at the motel, something haunting and scary.

Upstate New York, 2017. Carly Kirk has never been able to let go of the story of her aunt Viv, who mysteriously disappeared from the Sun Down before she was born. She decides to move to Fell and visit the motel, where she quickly learns that nothing has changed since 1982. And she soon finds herself ensnared in the same mysteries that claimed her aunt.". Again, a thriller/mystery with a helpful supernatural element. All in all, I say: READ IT

A Rover's Story

 

Amazon writes, "Meet Resilience, a Mars rover determined to live up to his name.

Res was built to explore Mars. He was not built to have human emotions. But as he learns new things from the NASA scientists who assemble him, he begins to develop human-like feelings. Maybe there’s a problem with his programming….

Human emotions or not, launch day comes, and Res blasts off to Mars, accompanied by a friendly drone helicopter named Fly. But Res quickly discovers that Mars is a dangerous place filled with dust storms and giant cliffs. As he navigates Mars’s difficult landscape, Res is tested in ways that go beyond space exploration.

As millions of people back on Earth follow his progress, will Res have the determination, courage—and resilience—to succeed… and survive?". This is such a cute book - I like that they anthropomorphize the rover. All in all, I say: READ IT

The Broken Girls

 

Amazon writes, "Vermont, 1950. There's a place for the girls whom no one wants—the troublemakers, the illegitimate, the ones too smart for their own good. It's called Idlewild Hall, and local legend says the boarding school is haunted. Four roommates bond over their whispered fears, their friendship blossoming—until one of them mysteriously disappears....

Vermont, 2014. Twenty years ago, journalist Fiona Sheridan's elder sister’s body was found in the overgrown fields near the ruins of Idlewild Hall. And although her sister’s boyfriend was tried and convicted of the murder, Fiona can’t stop revisiting the events, unable to shake the feeling that something was never right about the case.

When Fiona discovers that Idlewild Hall is being restored by an anonymous benefactor, she decides to write a story about it. But a shocking discovery during renovations links the loss of her sister to secrets that were meant to stay hidden in the past—and a voice that won’t be silenced...." It's a thriller/mystery with a helpful supernatural element. All in all, I say: READ IT

Mind Games

 

Amazon writes, "Arden sells memories. Whether it’s becoming homecoming queen or studying for that all important test, Arden can hack into a classmate’s memories and upload the experience for you just as if you’d lived it yourself. Business is great, right up until the day Arden whites out, losing 15 minutes of her life and all her memories of the boy across the school yard. The boy her friends assure her she’s had a crush on for years.

Arden realizes that her own memories have been hacked, but they haven’t just been stolen and shared...they’ve been removed. And she’s not the only one: Her mysterious crush, Sebastian, has lost ALL of his memories. But how can they find someone who has the power to make them forget everything they’ve learned?"

It goes off the rails a little toward the end. You are built up and then it's not as powerful as I hoped. All in all, I say: SKIP IT unless you are a teen that likes that kind of conspiracy stuff.