April 26, 2021

Review: Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel by Jason Reynolds


Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel by Jason Reynolds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Published: October 2020

Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel
When Will's older brother Shawn is shot and killed, Will knows he has the follow "The Rules" in order to prove he is the man of the house. As he goes to find revenge for his brother's death, he meets a few people in the elevator on his ride down from his apartment to seek this revenge. The people he meets have been in his position before. What they tell Will on this elevator ride could change his mind about what he is about to do.

The Rules: No Crying, No Snitching, and Get Revenge.

I read this book with my daughters. I've never read a graphic novel before and this one I read in about 10 minutes while sitting at the breakfast table. Immediately, the book brought on strong emotions. It grabbed me right from the start and kept a hold of me until the very end.

Such a good book, I highly recommend it. I think I'm going to go back and read the full novel now.

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April 23, 2021

Review: Just My Luck by Adele Parks


Just My Luck by Adele Parks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Published: April 2021
Just My Luck



For 15 years three families have gone in together on the lottery. One week, two of the families decide it's not for them anymore, it's stupid and they never win anyway. The third family continues to buy the ticket the next week and they win 17.8 million pounds. Should they share the winnings with their friends or keep it all for themselves? Jake the husband in the winning family is ready to keep the money and is spending it before it hits their bank account. The kids are all on board. Lexi, the wife is a little more hesitant. They go from living day by day to not having to worry about a thing, but it's all too much. They decide to throw a party to celebrate the win and from that moment life will never be the same.

Thanks to Harlequin/Mira and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.


At the start of the book, I wasn't sure how the story was going to go. But knowing Adele Parks like I do, I knew I had to hold on because there was going to be something to look forward to. As you go through the book, little twists are thrown at you. Adultery, teenage pregnancy, robbery, fighting, theft, secrets, and more. Sometimes winning the lottery isn't all it's cracked up to be.

What would you do if you won the lottery? Would you go public if you didn't have to? Would you spend all of the money right away?

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April 21, 2021

Review: Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon



Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Published: October 2018

Heavy: An American Memoir
I read this after I read Hunger by Roxane Gay. This book really hit me in a different place. Sometimes we can forget that men can go through a lot of the same issues when it comes to their bodies as women. Kiese Laymon takes us into his life through this memoir. From living with his mother and grandmother who did their best to raise him. His mother, a professor, would frequently spend their money gambling. The author himself also becomes a professor in his adult life and finds himself following in his mother's footsteps in more ways than one.

From sexual abuse to getting kicked out of college, this book has some of everything. This is a hard book to review. I listened to this book and was totally engrossed in the story. When I read a book, I feel like a fly on the wall and I can see what is going on in the story and this story was heartbreaking. I finished this book a couple of weeks ago, but it is still sitting heavy on my heart.

If you haven't read this book, I highly recommend that you do right away.  You can read the mother's response to the book, by clicking here.

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April 19, 2021

Review: The Bookstore on the Beach by Brenda Novak


The Bookstore on the Beach by Brenda Novak
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Published: April 2021

The Bookstore on the Beach
Three generations of women joined together for a life-changing summer.
Mary, the grandmother, who has deep secrets from her past she would like to remain there.
Autumn, the mother, is unsure whether to move on with life even though her husband has been missing for over a year.
Taylor, the daughter, has a secret of her own, and a new friend she isn't sure she wants to be just friends with.

Thanks to Harlequin Trade Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I was swept up in all the drama this book had to offer. A missing husband, teenage pregnancy, and 35-year-old secrets. I fell in love with the characters and was rooting for their success. I knew how it was going to end, but I was hoping that would not be the case. I was disappointed with the ending which is why it got 3.5 stars instead of 4.

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April 13, 2021

Review: Knit, Purl, a Baby and a Girl by Hettie Bell


Knit, Purl, a Baby and a Girl by Hettie Bell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Published: March 2020
Knit, Purl, a Baby and a Girl

Poppy's life is not really going in any direction. When she finds out she's pregnant with her ex's baby, she's truly unsure of what to do. After a couple of trips to Planned Parenthood, she makes her decision to keep the baby and take up knitting and finally finish something. When the kitting group she joins includes her super nice Planned Parenthood escort, Rhiannon, Poppy again is unsure if she should join the group and about her feelings for Rhiannon.

Thank you to Carina Adores and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title.
Overall this was a cute story. For me, the relationship went from zero to 100 real quick. Especially for a woman who is pregnant by having sex with a man and then she is into women. In my opinion, I can't see it happening that fast. But I liked Poppy as a character. She doesn't have a strong relationship with the women in her family and when she finds out that her sister is pregnant at the same time she is, it brings even more strain to those relationships. Finding the relationship with Rhiannon, she finds someone who accepts her completely as she is, without trying to make her "better".

This is the first book I've read by Hettie Bell. I think she writes under a couple of different names. I would be interested to read some of her other books.



EXCERPT

It doesn’t take long for everybody in the group to set aside their own projects to focus on me and mine.
Grace has my ball of yarn in her hands, twisting the strand between her fingers critically. “If you’re knitting for a baby, you should really consider a nice bamboo…”
Louise is scrutinizing my choice of project. “You know, I started with dishcloths, then graduated to scarves. It’s not as glamorous, but it does let you get the fundamentals down.”
“Oh, my, no.” Mary flips the free pattern card I picked up in the craft store and scans the back with critical eyes. “You don’t want to do this, this is for a completely different weight of yarn than what you’ve got here. Where did you pick this up? They should be putting these patterns next to the suggested yarn. This one calls for fingering. What 
you need to do is get an account on Ravelry and find a pattern that’s been user-rated so you know it’s accurate and suitable for your skill level, and do that. You can search by yarn weight on there, too. This yarn is a DK…” She pulls out her phone, trailing off as she opens her web browser.
Damian, who has been sitting silently so far, takes this chance to finally speak up. “Do you have needles?” he asks plainly, no judgment in his tone. Nobody else has bothered with that crucial detail to this point.
Now those, at least, I do have. I reach into my purse and pull out the needles I scavenged from my last failed scarf project. I hold them up for the group’s inspection proudly.
“Poppy, no!” they say in unison, and even Damian joins in their exclamation of dismay. “These will never work!”
My shoulders slump. “What? Why?”
Louise clucks at me. “Much too big! Too long for a tiny baby pattern and too thick for this yarn. You’re going to end up with stretched out knitting full of gaps and holes.”
The familiar urge to just give up and quit hits me hard and fast, like a gut punch. I gust out a breath, slumping in my seat.
A hand closes around my shoulder. Rhiannon. “Hey, don’t feel bad. First time I tried to knit, I got my needles secondhand from the thrift store and accidentally bought two different sizes.” She laughs and shakes her head. “Here. If you don’t mind that they’re not high-tech Addi Turbos, you can borrow some needles from me.”
“She needs a pattern first,” Mary puts in. “And personally I think she should start by knitting mittens before she graduates to booties.”
“I guess that sounds all right.” I know they’re just trying to help, but I feel overwhelmed and outnumbered. But what would the alternative be? For them to sit there focused on their own projects, socializing with each other and ignoring me as I struggle?
It’s Rhiannon, once again, who calms the chaos, both the stuff going on around us and the stuff in my head. “Okay, okay, give the girl some space, now. Mary, can you search Ravelry for a pattern for a set of mittens and booties? And Grace and Louise, can you wind Poppy’s skein real quick so she doesn’t get stuck untangling yarn barf on her very first project?” My fellow stitch n’ bitch members nod, immediately turning to their tasks. She turns to me. “I left my straight needles with the rest of my stuff back at my place. It’s just a short walk from here. You wanna come and keep me company?”
“You’ll need a size five needle by the looks,” Mary calls, eyes glued to her phone.
Rhiannon looks at me expectantly, awaiting my answer. I get the sense that if I said no to her invitation, she’d be totally cool about it. But I don’t want to say no.
“Sure, yeah. Can I leave my stuff here?”
“We’re not leaving any time soon,” Damian flaps a hand. “Go, go. Sooner you go the sooner you get back, sooner you get back the sooner you can get started, and the sooner you get started the more time you have knitting with people who can pick up your dropped stitches.”
“Gotcha.” I nod. “Thanks.”
“Ready?” Rhiannon asks. She grabs a cookie for the road, stuffing it halfway into her mouth and holding it there comically.
I fight down the sudden image of myself biting that half a cookie right out from under her nose.
Wow, do I need some air. And some semblance of hormonal balance.
Instead, I’m getting alone time with Rhiannon.
Crash and burn time, here I come.

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April 6, 2021

Review: Getting Schooled by Christina C. Jones



Getting Schooled by Christina C. Jones
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Published: May 2019

Getting Schooled (The Wright Brothers, #1)
Reese works as a grad assistant for her mother at BSU. Most of her job consists of reading over papers. On the latest assignment, there is one paper that really stands out from the rest and catches her attention. Written by the mysterious J. Wright. She doesn't know which student this is, but she is definitely attracted to his writing. Jason Wright is not happy with the grade he got on his paper. When he goes to talk to the professor about it, he is met by her sassy outspoken Grad assistant instead. While she is sexy and has a perfect ass, she is probably way too young for him and he won't deal with her attitude. Chance encounters between these two, keep happening ... what will happen next?

Christina C. Jones is a new author for me. I have read one other book by her, but I love her writing style and the cute romantic stories she writes. I fall in love with the characters each and every time. Reese and Jason are nontraditional college students, both older than they should be for their place in school. Each encounter they have with each other whether it be in or out of the school environment, there is a lot of sexual tension between them.

If you love a good romance with strong female characters, you will love this one.

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April 2, 2021

Review: The Jigsaw Man by Nadine Matheson



The Jigsaw Man by Nadine Matheson  
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Published:  March 2021

The Jigsaw Man
DI Henley is just returning back to a full work load when she gets a call about body parts scattered all around the river. When more parts show up belonging to someone else, it all seems like the last case she worked. Peter Olivier is behind bars and there is no way this could be him, but who could he be working with? Then Olivier escapes from prison and now there are two killers on the loose. Will Henley and her team be able to catch both killers, or be part of the prey?

Thank you to Hanover Square Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I was really looking forward to reading this book. I love stories about female detectives serving justice, especially when it's a woman of color. But this story started a little slow for me. It was hard for me to want to pick up this book. I read about ten pages a day until I got a little over half way through and the story began to pick up.

I think that this is the beginning of a series, so if that is the case, I will continue to read the books. This book took me over a week to read, which is unusual for me. I'm not sure what made me not like this book as much as I wanted to. One thing that I was really disappointed about was that there was the storyline of an affair in the book. This woman of color survived almost being killed, she is a mother, a wife, and a high ranking officer. Throwing that in took away from her integrity which I don't think was necessary for this story.
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