Book Review: The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

Title: The Reformatory

Author: Tananarive Due

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Historical Fiction, Thriller, Horror, Adult Fiction

Pages: 570

Publisher: S&S/Saga Press

Year Published: 2023

Format: Hardcover (Library Copy)

"Set in Jim Crow Florida, follows Robert Stephens Jr. as he's sent to a segregated reform school that is a chamber of terrors where he sees the horror of racism and injustice, for the living, and the dead.

Gracetown, Florida

June 1950

Twelve-year-old Robbie Stephens, Jr., is sentenced to six months at the Gracetown School for Boys, a reformatory, for kicking the son of the largest landowner in town in defense of his older sister, Gloria. So begins Robbie's journey further into the terrors of the Jim Crow South and the very real horror of the school they call The Reformatory.

Robbie has a talent for seeing ghosts, or haints. But what was once a comfort to him after the loss of his mother has become a window to the truth of what happens at the reformatory. Boys forced to work to remediate their so-called crimes have gone missing, but the haints Robbie sees hint at worse things. Through his friends, Redbone and Blue, Robbie is learning not just the rules but how to survive. Meanwhile, Gloria is rallying every family member and connection in Florida to find a way to get Robbie out before it's too late. 

The Reformatory is a haunting work of historical fiction written as only American Book Award-winning author Tananarive Due could, by piecing together the life of the relative her family never spoke of and bringing his tragedy and those of so many others at the infamous Dozier School for Boys to the light in this riveting novel."

My Rating: 3.75/5

This wasn't what I expected when I started reading this book. I thought for some reason that it was a horror with a smattering of Historical Fiction, and by smattering, I mean the setting (similar to This House Will Feed). I didn't realize that the author was basing this work on a family member, or how much this would read as a historical fiction, rather than supernatural horror. Obviously, there are horrific elements (basically the whole book), but not in the same writing I would expect from a horror-specific book. I plan on reading some of her reference texts to gain a better understanding of the subject matter, because I do beielve it is incredibly important to acknowledge our history as humans to help steer us to a better future.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

Title: The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper

Author: Hallie Rubenhold

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Nonfiction, History, True Crime

Pages: 352

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Year Published: 2019

Format: Audiobook

"Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine and Mary-Jane are famous for the same thing, though they never met. They came from Fleet Street, Knightsbridge, Wolverhampton, Sweden and Wales. They wrote ballads, ran coffee houses, lived on country estates, they breathed ink-dust from printing presses and escaped people-traffickers.

What they had in common was the year of their murders: 1888.

Their murderer was never identified, but the name created for him by the press has become far more famous than any of these five women.

In this devastating narrative of five lives, historian Hallie Rubenhold finally gives these women back their stories."

My Rating: 5/5

This was a different take on everything I'd heard about this story. Learning about the victims, their lives and how their lives were misconstrued due to the white male Victorian gaze. The fact that these women's lives were scandalized, and misrepresented. The idea that people who were down on their luck were all prostitutes has prevailed in the current narrative, and it's still believed. While it was depressing and sad, it was also informative and made me wonder what else has been plastered over with the historical view of the times.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

Title: Listen for the Lie

Author: Amy Tintera

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Adult Fiction

Pages: 336

Publisher: Celadon Books

Year Published: 2024

Format: Audiobook

"What if you thought you murdered your best friend? And if everyone else thought so too? And what if the truth doesn't matter?

Lucy and Savvy were the golden girls of their small Texas town: pretty, smart and enviable. Lucy married a dream guy with a big ring and an even bigger new home. Savvy was the social butterfly loved by all and, if you believe the rumors, especially popular with the men in town. But after Lucy is found wandering the streets, covered in her best friend Savvy's blood, everyone thinks she is a murderer.

It's been years since that horrible night, a night that lucy can't remember anything about, and she has since moved to LA and started a new life. But now the phenomenally huge hit true crime podcast Listen for the Lie and it's too-good-looking host, Ben Owens, have decided to investigate Savvy's murder for the show's second season. Lucy is forced to returns to the place she vowed never to set foot in again to solve her friend's murder, even if she is the one who did it.

The truth is out there, if we just listen."

My Rating: 4.75/5

I love a mystery that has a podcast element, especially an audiobook. The idea that we're partially solving the mystery beside the podcast host is already a draw for me, add figuring it out with the main character and I was hooked. I was incredibly surprised by the humor in this book too. For something pretty intense and dark, I laughed more than I thought I would (alot actually). The red herrings were well done, and the ending was surprising while still being logical. If anyone has further podcast mystery books they'd recommend I'd be open to suggestions.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: Woman, Life, Freedom

Title: Woman, Life, Freedom

Authors: Marjane Satrapi, Abbas Milani, Jean-Pierre Perrin, Farid Vahid, Shervin Hajipour

Illustrators: Shabnam Adiban, Baharek Akrami, Bee, Patricia Bolanos, Catel, Coco, Deloupy, Hippolyte, Mana Neyestani, Touka Neyestani, Pascal Rabate, Paco Roca, Joann Sfar, Lewis Trondheim, Nicolas Wild, Winshluss, 

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Graphic Novel, Nonfiction

Pages: 272

Publisher: Seven Stories Press

Year Published: 2023

Format: Paperback (Library Copy)

"An urgent, groundbreaking and visually stunning new collection of graphic story-telling about the present Iranian revolution, using comics to show what would be censored in photos and film in Iran.

Marjane Satrapi, author of Persepolis, returns to graphic art with this collaboration of over 20 activists, artists, journalists, and academics working together to depict the historic uprising, in solidarity with the Iranian people and in defense of feminism. 

On September 13th, 2022, a young Iranian student, Mahsa Amini, was arrested by the religious police in Tehran. Her only crime was that she wasn't properly wearing the headscarf required for women by the Islamic Republic. At the police station, she was beaten so badly she had to be taken to the hospital, where she fell into a deep coma. She died three days later. 

A wave of protests soon spread through the whole country, and crowds adopted the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom"- words that have been chanted around the world during solidarity rallies.

In order to tell the story of this major revolution happening in her homeland, Marjane Satrapi has gathered together an array of journalists, activists, academics, artists, and writers from around the world to create this powerful collection of full-colour, graphic-novel-style essays and perspectives that bear witness.

Woman, Life, Freedom demonstrates that this is not an unexpected movement, but a major uprising in a long history of women who have wanted to affirm their rights. It will continue."

My Rating: 5/5

This graphic novel is full of, as the description states, essay-style segments that help the reader understand the uprising, the reasoning, as well as parts of the history of Iran. As someone who doesn't know much about the country and who grew up without watching a lot of the news, I was unaware of many of the subjects that were covered during this novel. It was enlightening and surprising to see how much this drew to another book I had read recently in another dictatorship (Romania in I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys) and over 30 years later. It's disappointing to know that this movement didn't necessarily continue, but rather had to be shifted in order to keep resistors safe (that being said, I could be wrong due to my limited knowledge and research). Woman, Life, Freedom. 

Sidny

Book Review: A Newfoundlander in Canada: Always Going Somewhere, Always Coming Home by Alan Doyle

Title: A Newfoundlander in Canada

Author: Alan Doyle

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Nonfiction, Biography, Canada

Pages: 244

Publisher: Doubleday Canada

Year Published: 2017

Format: Audiobook

"Armed with the same personable, candid style found in his first book, Alan Doyle turns his perspective outward from Petty Harbour toward mainland Canada, reflecting on what it was like to venture away from the comforts of home and the familiarity of the island.

Often in a van, sometimes in a bus, occasionally in a car with broken wipers, "using Bob's belt and a rope found by Paddy's Pond" to pull them back and forth, Alan and his bandmates charted new territory, and he constantly measured what he saw of the vast country against what his forefathers once called the Daemon Canada. In a period punctuated by triumphant leaps forward for the band, deflating steps backwards and everything in between- opening for Barney the Dinosaur at an outdoor music festival, being propositioned at a gas station mail-order bride service in Alberta, drinking moonshine with an elderly church-goer on a Sudny morning in PEI- Alan's few established notions about Canada were often debunked and his own identity as a Newfoundlander was constantly challenged. Touring the country, he also discovered how others view Newfoundlanders and how skewed these images can sometimes be. Asked to play in front of the Queen at a massive Canada Day festival on Parliament Hill, the concert organizers assured Alan and his bandmates that the best way to showcase Newfoundland culture was for them to be towed onto stage in a dory and introduced not as Newfoundlanders but as 'Newfiers'. The boys were not amused.

Heartfelt, funny and always insightful, these stories tap into the complexities of community and Canadianness, forming the portrait of a young man from a tiny fishing village trying to define and hold on to his sense of home while navigating a vast and diverse and wonder-filled country."

My Rating: 5/5

As a Canadian, I've listened to a decent amount of Great Big Sea, but I didn't realize that Alan Doyle has so many books. The audiobook of this was amazing as it was narrated by the author, so you get the full accent, the full amazing storytelling ability of Alan Doyle. I loved the content, the writing, and mostly the humour. I look forward to reading more from the author. 

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys

Title: I Must Betray You

Author: Ruta Sepetys

Series/Standalone: Standalone
Genre: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Fiction

Pages: 321

Publisher: Penguin

Year Published: 2022

Format: Hardcover (Own it)

"Romania, 1989. Communist regimes are crumbling across Europe. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu dreams of becoming a writer, but Romanians aren't free to dream; they are bound by rules and force.

Amidst the tyrannical dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu in a country governed by isolation and fear,  Cristian is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer. He's left with only two choices: betray everyone and everything he loves- or use his position to creatively undermine the most notoriously evil dictator in Eastern Europe. 

Cristian risks everything to unmask the truth behind the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. He eagerly joins the revolution to fight for change when the time arrives. But what is the cost of freedom?

A gut-wrenching, startling window into communist Romania and the citizen spy network that devastated a nation, from the number one New York Times best-selling, award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray."

My Rating: 4/5

It's been a while since I've read a Ruta Sepetys book. This story follows our main character, Cristian, a teen who dreams of a world he's not even sure exists. In communist Romania, human rights are unheard of, and so is trust. Trust in your neighbours, friends and family. Isolation is king, well, that and their leader, Nicolae. But what happens when this teen is recruited to inform and begins to get a deeper look at what his country may lack? 

This was a book my husband and I read together. He chose this one because it wasn't something that either of us knew a lot about. One thing about this author is that she doesn't shy away from reality; she paints it in all its unforgivable light. Which was eye-opening. That being said, I had some issues with the pacing of the book. I felt a lot of the book was a lead-up, and then the main "action" was quick and not even fully over before the epilogue. I was hoping for a little more information in the revolution section of the book. I look forward to reading more from this author and seeing what else I've yet to explore from her. 

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: You Never Know by Tom Selleck

Title: You Never Know

Author: Tom Selleck

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Nonfiction, Biography

Pages: 352

Publisher: Dey Street Books

Year Published: 2024

Format: Audiobook

"There are many miles from the business school and basketball court at the University of Southern California to 50 million viewers for the final episode of a TV show called Magnum P.I. Tom Selleck has lived every one of those miles in his own iconoclastic and joyful way. Frank, funny, and open-hearted, You Never Know is an intimate memoir from one of the most beloved actors of our time, the highly personal story of a remarkable life and thoroughly accidental career. In his own voice and uniquely unpretentious style, the famed actor brings readers on his uncharted but serendipitous journey to the top in Hollywood, his temptations and distactions, his misfires and mistakes and, over time, his well-earned success. Along the way, he clears up an armload of misconceptions and shares dozens of never-told stories from all corners of his personal and professional life. His rambunctious California childhood. HIs clueless arrival as a good-looking college jock in Hollywood (from the Dating Game to the Fox New Talent Program to co-starring with Mae West and escorting her to black-tie social functions). What it was like to emerge as a mega-star in his mid-thirties and remain so for decades to come, an actor whose authenticity and ease in front of the camera connected with audiences worldwide while embodying and also redefining the cliches of onscreen manhood. In You Never Know, Selleck recounts his personal friendships with a vivid army of A-listers, everyone from Frank Sinatra to Carol Burnett to Sam Elliot, paying special tribute to his mentor James Garner of The Rockford Files, who believed, like Selleck, that TV protagonists are far more interesting when they have rough edges. He also more than tips his hat to the American western and the scuffy band of actors, directors and other ruffians who helped define that classic genre, where Selleck has repeatedly found a happy home. Magnum fans will be fascinated to learn how Selleck put his career on the line to make Thomas Magnum a more imperfect hero and explains why he walked away from a show that could easily have gone on for years longer. Hollywood is never easy, even for stars who make it look that way. In You Never Know, Selleck explains how he's struggled to balance his personal and professional lives, frequently adjusting his career to protect his family's privacy and normalcy. His journey offers a truly fresh perspective on a changing industry and a changing world. Beneath all the charm and talent and self-deprecating humor, Selleck's memoir reveals an American icon who has reached remarkable heights by always insisting on being himself."

My Rating: 3.5/5

Growing up, my mom would often put on reruns from her childhood, or my grandma would be excited to show us what shows they had enjoyed. Magnum was a frequently played show in our house, but it wasn't ever in order, so it was interesting to hear about the ideas behind the show. Also, Tom Selleck is, with all due respect to him and his intelligence, a heartthrob. Even though he is a handsome man. Reading this book really showed the underside of acting, the times, etc. I think it would be great for anyone in the industry. As someone who is just a fan, I was surprised that this was so much about the work and little about the personal life. That being said, I can't imagine the constant scrutiny that the famous are under. It makes me think about how much entitlement fans seem to feel over artists, musicians, actors, etc., as though they are not people themselves.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: This House Will Feed by Maria Tureaud

Title: This House Will Feed

Author: Maria Tureaud

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction, Adult

Pages: 368

Publisher: Indie Published

Year Published: 2026

Format: Ebook (Kindle Unlimited)

"Amidst the devastation of Ireland's Great Famine, a young woman is salvaged from certain death when offered a mysterious position at a remote manor house haunted by a strang epower and the horror of her own memories in this chillingly evocative historical novel braided with gothic horror and supernatural suspense for readers of Katherine Arden's The Warm Hands of Ghosts and The Silence Factory by Bridget Collins.

County Clare, 1848: In the scant few years since the potato blight first cast its foul shadow over Ireland, Maggie O'Shaughnessy has lost everything- her entire family and the man she trusted with her heart. Tolling in the Ennis Workhouse for paltry rations, she can see no future either within or outside its walls- until the mysterious Lady Catherine arrives to whisk her away to an old mansion in the stark limestone landscape of the Burren.

Lady Catherine wants Maggie to impersonate her late daughter, Wilhelmina and hoodwink solicitors into releasing Wilhelmina's widow's pension so that Lady Catherine can continue to provide for the villagers in her care. In exchange, Maggie will receive freedom from the workhouse, land of her own, and the one thing she wants more than a chance to fulfill the promise she made to her brother on his deathbed- to live to spite them all.

Launching herself into the daunting task, Maggie plays the role of Wilhelmina as best she can while ignoring the villagers' tales of ghostly figures and curses. But more worrying are the whispers that come from within. Something in Lady Catherine's house is reawakening long-buried memories in Maggie- of a foe more terrifying than hunger or greed, of power that calls for blood and vengeance, and of her own role in a nightmare that demands the darkest sacrifice..."

My Rating: 4/5

In an already horrific time, imagine a horror movie takes place that includes cannibalism, spirits, folklore and more. While this story took a bit of time to warm up after about the 30% mark, I was in and couldn't wait to pick it up each time I had the opportunity. I look forward to reading more from the author, who does a wonderful job at setting the atmosphere and expanding on an already dark time in history. Characters were flawed, but understandable, and the twists were interesting and kept me hooked.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: Everyone Here is Lying by Shari Lapena

Title: Everyone Here is Lying

Author: Shari Lapena

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Adult Fiction

Pages: 336

Publisher: Random House

Year Published: 2023

Format: Audiobook

"Welcome to Stanhope. A safe neighborhood. A place for families.

William Wooler is a family man, on the surface. But he's been having an affair, an affair that ended horribly this afternoon at a motel up the road. So when he returns to his house, devastated and angry, to find his difficult nine-year-old daughter, Avery, unexpectedly home from school, William loses her temper.

Hours later, Avery's family declares her missing.

Suddenly Stanhope doesn't feel so safe. And William isn't the only one on his street who's hiding a lie.  As witnesses come forward with information that may or may not be true, Avery's neighbors become increasingly unhinged.

Who took Avery Wooler?

Nothing will prepare you for the truth."

My Rating: 5/5

I binged the audiobook of this, and it was addicting. I could not stop listening to it. The good news is that means I got a lot done today. I don't believe that I have read anything else by this author, but you can bet that there was a lot that was added to my TBR. The characters are interesting, the writing is fast-paced, and the mystery is fascinating. Would recommend. 

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner

Title: The Amalfi Curse

Author: Sarah Penner

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Adult, Magical Realism

Pages: 336

Publisher: Park Row

Year Published: 2025

Format: Audiobook

"Powerful witchcraft. A hunt for sunken treasure. Forbidden love on the high seas. Beware the Amalfi Curse...

Haven Ambrose, a trailblazing nautical archaeologist, has come to the sun-soaked village of Positano to investigate the mysterious shipwrecks along the Amalfi Coast. But Haven is hoping to find more than old artefacts beneath the azure waters; she is secretly on a quest to locate a trove of priceless gemstones her late father spotted on his final dive. Upon Haven's arrival, strange malestroms and misfortunes start plaguing the town. Is it nature or something more sinister at work?

As Haven searches for her father's sunken treasure, she begins to unearth a centuries-old tale of ancient sorcery and one woman's quest to save her lover and her village by using the legendary art of stregheria, a magical ability to harness the ocean. Could this magic be behind Positano's latest calamities? Haven must unravel the Amalfi Curse before the region is destroyed forever...

Against the dazzling backdrop of the Amalfi Coast, this bewitching novel shimmers with mystery, romance and the untamed magic of the sea."

My Rating: 3/5

I listened to this book on audio, and I would strongly recommend this version just due to the narration style. I loved the changing perspectives and the time shifts. This one rang closer to The Lost Apothecary, which is my favourite book I've read by the author so far. All of this being said, it still lacked the original magic and the feeling of the first book I read by the author. This one, the ending felt a little disjointed and abrupt. While fun, I don't think that this one will stay with me.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny