My first copy of Frankenstein was a graduation gift from my senior English teacher in high school. I read it on my own soon after (i.e., not as a class assignment), and I adored it. After reading The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter, I decided it was time to read it again. I still […]
The Grand Tour
September 29, 2018 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jocelyn Koehler The Grand Tour is a real-world-with-magic novel set in the Regency period during the Napoleonic Wars. There are two main protagonists, Cecily and Kate, who are fashionable young English ladies each about 18 years old who have just been married. Cecily is married to James, and Kate is married to […]
The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter
September 1, 2018 by Leave a Comment
A friend of mine got me a copy of The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter by Theodora Goss and the sequel European Travel for the Monstrous Gentlewoman because she thought that I would love them. I’ve finished the first one, and she was so right! I feel like this book was written for me. The […]
The Adventurers Guild
October 16, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Disclosure: Disney-Hyperion sent me a copy of the book in exchange for a fair and honest review. The Adventurers Guild is the first book in a new series about a group of teenagers who—not necessarily by choice—end up in the guild that protects their town from the Dangers that threaten to destroy it. Walled and […]
Inside Out & Back Again
October 2, 2017 by Leave a Comment
I have vague memories of going with my mom to visit the Vietnamese family her church sponsored after they fled in boats from their war-torn home. I remember a small apartment that smelled of unfamiliar food. I was very shy because I couldn’t understand what they said. They gave me and my brother striped polyester […]
Goodbye Stranger
September 17, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee My daughter Rowan, who was 10 when I started doing guest reviews and is now 15, tends to like books filled with melancholia. Those usually aren’t my thing, but because she reads them I’m trying to expand my reading habits. Goodbye Stranger is one of those books, and it’s such […]
Hour of the Bees
September 16, 2017 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee How do you measure time? Hour of the Bees measures time in teardrops that fall as you read the book. Carol, nee Carolina, has discovered that she is going to spend her summer at her grandfather’s ranch. He has late stage dementia and they are getting things ready so they […]
The Princess in Black
September 16, 2017 by Leave a Comment
The Princess in Black is a cute chapter book for new readers. It’s the first book in a series about Princess Magnolia whose secret identity is a monster fighting princess in black. But a princess doesn’t wear black, so this is the perfect disguise! It’s basically a superhero story with princesses and unicorns. This sweet […]
The Sleeper and the Spindle
March 19, 2017 by Leave a Comment
The Sleeper and the Spindle, written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Chris Riddell, is a picture book inspired by Sleeping Beauty and some other fairy tales. But don’t let the picture book format make you think this isn’t a wonderful book for older readers. In fact, I think it’s probably best for older readers, including […]
When You Reach Me
September 9, 2016 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee. “The trip is a difficult one, I will not be myself when I reach you.” In When You Reach Me, Miranda is the daughter of a single mom who got an invitation to be on the $20,000 Dollar Pyramid. She’s dealing with the strain of helping her mom train, as […]
