Book Review: Lovely War by Julie Berry

 Title: Lovely War

Author: Julie Berry

Serie/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, Young Adult

Pages: 480

Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers

Year Published: 2019

Format: Audiobook

"It's 1917, and World War I is at its zenith when Hazel and James first catch sight of each other at a London party. She's a shy and talented pianist; he's a newly minted soldier with dreams of becoming an architect. When they fall in love, it's immediate and deep-- and cut short when James is shipped off to the killing fields.

Aubrey Edwards is also headed towards the trenches. A gifted musician who's played Carnegie Hall, he's a member of the 15th New York infantry, an all-African-American regiment being sent to Europe to help end the Great War. Love is the last thing on his mind. But that's before he meets Colette Fournier, a Belgian chanteuse who's already survived unspeakable tragedy at the hands of the Germans.

Thirty years after these four lovers' fates collide, the Greek goddess Aphrodite tells their stories to her husband, Hephaestus, and her lover, Ares, in a luxe Manhattan hotel room at the height of World War II. She seeks to answer the age-old question: Why are Love and War eternally drawn to one another? But her quest for a conclusion that will satisfy her jealous husband uncovers a multi-threaded tale of prejudice, trauma, and music and reveals that War is no match for the power of Love."

My Rating: 4.5/5

This book lived up to all the hype I had heard about it from the book community. This isn't a typical war book, the author really went to the next level by bringing in the views of the gods into the violence, and heartbreak of World War I. I was drawn to the romance between the characters throughout the novel, and the tragedy that at some points kept them separate. The characters are astounding and easy to love, but again the real characters that captured my attention during the audiobook were the Greek gods, the different writing from their P.O.V really brought the story to life. I found that the end of the book was a bit anti-climactic, but was still able to enjoy my time reading it all the same. The author's writing is well throughout and based on the author's note at the end of the book well researched. I would recommend for fans of historical fiction and romance. 

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

Title: Small Great Things

Author: Jodi Picoult

Series/Standalone: Ruth Jefferson (Book #1)

Genre: Adult Fiction, Contemporary

Pages: 480

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Year Published: 2016

Format: Audiobook

"Ruth Jefferson is a labor and delivery nurse at a Connecticut hospital with more than twenty years' experience. During her shift, Ruth begins a routine checkup on a newborn, only to be told a few minutes later that she's been reassigned to another patient. The parents are white supremacists and don't want Ruth, who is African American, to touch their child. The hospital complies with their request, but the next day, the baby goes into cardiac distress while Ruth is alone in the nursery. Does she obey orders or does she intervene?

Ruth hesitates before performing CPR and, as a result, is charged with a serious crime. Kennedy McQuarrie, a white public defender, takes her case but gives unexpected advice: Kennedy insists that mentioning race in the courtroom is not a winning strategy. Conflicted by Kennedy's counsel, Ruth tries to keep life as normal as possible for her family- especially her teenage son- as the case becomes a media sensation. As the trial moves forward, Ruth and Kennedy must gain each other's trust, and come to see that they've been taught their whole lives about others- and themselves- might be wrong.

With incredible empathy, intelligence, and candor, Jodi Picoult tackles race, privilege, prejudice, justice and compassion- and doesn't offer easy answers. Small Great Things is a remarkable achievement from a writer at the top of her game."

My Rating: 4.5/5

I'm going to start this review by saying that this is not written by a black author. I think that is an important note to make and that is why it was docked one point. Not because I don't think that people can't write from other perspectives rather than their own, but I think that it could be offensive to those in the black community.  I do think that this book was very interestingly written from the perspectives of Ruth (a black labour and delivery nurse), Turk (a white supremacist) and Kennedy (a white public defender) and how their lives combine and their views on the world morph. It brings up the subject of not being able to see the white supremacy culture that is present in our day to day lives when you have the privilege of not having to take notice of it. I do think that the ending statements were vital to the enjoyment of this book. The author took time to do research, speak to those who have had the experience where she had not and had input from the black community to be sure that she was capturing the story to the best of her ability.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: Misery by Stephen King

 Title: Misery

Author: Stephen King

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Horror, Adult Fiction, Thriller

Pages: 370

Publisher: New English Library

Year Published: 1987

Format: Ebook (Library Copy)

First Line: 

"Paul Sheldon. He's a bestselling novelist who has finally met his biggest fan. Her name is Annie Wilkes and she is more than a rabid reader- she is Paul's nurse, tending his shattered body after an automobile accident. But she is also his captor, keeping him prisoner in her isolated house."

My Rating: 3/5

This is the first Stephen King book that I have ever read and after hearing so much in the bookish community about his writing, I have to be honest, I was a little letdown. This book was just ok for me. Up until the last quarter of the book, I found myself putting it down or getting distracted without focusing on what was going on with the story. I found that the main character was not my favourite and what truly held me in the story to the end was the idea of Annie and her unpredictability. I think that the end was well wrapped up and I would be willing to read more from this author if anyone has suggestions of other books that I might like by him (excluding IT). 

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: Three to Get Deadly by Janet Evanovich

 Title: Three to Get Deadly

Author: Janet Evanovich

Series/Standalone: Stephanie Plum Series (Book #3)

Genre: Mystery, Fiction, Humor

Pages: 321

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Year Published: 1997

Format: Audiobook

"Stephanie Plum, the brassy babe in the powder blue Buick is back and she's having a bad hair day-- for the whole month of January. She's been given the unpopular task of finding Mo Bedemier, Trenton's most beloved citizen, arrested for carrying concealed, gone no-show for his court appearance.

And to make matters worse, she's got Lula, a former hooker turned file clerk-- now a wannabe bounty hunter- at her side, sticking like glue. Lula's big and blonde and black and itching to get the chance to lock up a crook in the trunk of her car.

Morelli, the New Jersey vice cop with the slow-burning smile that undermines a girl's strongest resolve is being polite. So what does that mean? Has he found a new love? Or is he manipulating Steph, using her in his police investigation, counting on her unmanageable curiosity and competitive Jersey attitude?

Once again, the entire One for the Money crew is in action, including Ranger and Grandma Mazur, searching for Mo, tripping down a trail littered with dead drug dealers, leading Stephanie to suspect Mo has traded his ice-cream scoop for a vigilante gun."

My Rating: 1.5/5

I think this is where I leave the series. After listening to this audiobook the only way I can describe my emotion is disappointed. The first book in this series had a small amount of romance and a decent amount of mystery. This book has done a total 180, we're more worried about the romance then the mystery and details are constantly skated over. The whole romance starting when they were 8 is brought up consistently and makes me extremely uncomfortable. The characters have no real sense of urgency even in the middle of a ton of murders.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny

Book Review: A List of Cages by Robin Roe

 Title: A List of Cages

Author: Robin Roe

Series/Standalone: Standalone

Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, Fiction

Pages: 310

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Year Published: 2017

Format: Audiobook

"When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he's got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn't easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can't complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track down the troubled freshman who keeps dodging her, and Adam discovers that the boy is Julian- the foster brother he hasn't seen in five years.

Adam is ecstatic to be reunited. At first, Julian seems like the boy he once knew. He's still kindhearted. He still writes stories and loves picture books meant for little kids. But as they spend more time together, Adam realizes that Julian is keeping secrets, like where he hides during the middle of the day, and what's really going on inside his house. Adam is determined to help him, but his involvement could cost both boys their lives..."

My Rating:  4.5/5

This book was heartwrenching. After typing out the synopsis of this story I do feel that this book might have been marketed as mystery more then it should be. This novel deals with the loss of a parent, violence, and abuse. This truly broke me, but in a way that felt necessary. This story deals with the two characters, one who is living with his uncle after his parents have passed, and another who used to be his foster brother. It focuses on their differences, but in a way that feels natural and enlightening. The author truly portrayed the emotions one can experience post abuse and that can continue throughout life. I don't want to go into more detail then this at this time, but know that if you are comfortable reading something with something of this subject matter I would strongly recommend.

Thanks for reading,

Sidny