Being Seen by Elsa Sjunneson is definitely a one of a kind book. I fell in love with the author’s voice straight after the first few pages! She’s so cool to listen to (well, read is what I mean, I guess), and despite the differences between our circumstances, I found it super easy to vibe with all she was saying.…
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Ever Wonder How The Egyptian Hieroglyphs Were Decoded? The Writing of the Gods: The Race to Decode the Rosetta Stone by Edward Dolnick
The Writing of the Gods is incredibly easily readable and instantly draws you in. It’s very easy to jump into even if you have never read anything of the like before – it’s very friendly to any reader (barring maybe children, but I know I would have enjoyed it as a teenager myself.) This is a great thing for nonfiction,…
Continue Reading→Incredible Fiction About Being Chronically Ill As A Woman Life Sciences by Joy Sorman
I haven’t encountered many great books about experiencing and learning to live with chronic illness, but Life Sciences is definitely one of them. And it’s not a technical book either – I was surprised how something as unromantic and uncomfortable as being chronically ill could be expressed as poetically as it was in this book. Check out on Goodreads ★★★★✬…
Continue Reading→The Predestined Tragedy Of Being A Woman – Unforgettable Literary Story Empty Wardrobes by Maria Judite de Carvalho
I was on page 15 of this book, when I took a long deep breath and covered my eyes, so I could deal with the emotion better. I grew up as a single mother’s daughter. The novel is just getting started, and no, my dad didn’t die and my mom wasn’t a traditionalist housewife, and yet… Everything is the same.…
Continue Reading→A Fairytale-like Middle Grade Fantasy Set In Ancient China The Dreamweavers by G.Z. Schmidt
I absolutely loved The Dreamweavers. A quick and satisfying middle-grade fantasy read that is based on Chinese folk tales, great for the child and adult alike. What I particularly enjoyed was that the author entwined her own fantasy with tales told her by her grandparents, as the author was born in China herself. Any fantasy tale that’s steeped in the author’s…
Continue Reading→One More Astronaut Memoir? Yes, Please!!! Diary of an Apprentice Astronaut by Samantha Cristoforetti
Will I ever turn down as astronaut’s memoir? Never! I was so excited to read Samantha Cristoforetti’s Diary of an Apprentice Astronaut, especially because a year or so ago I read Terry Virts’ book about his experiences, and he was Samantha’s crewmate on their mission. I’ve also read Scott Kelly’s book, and he also happened to be on at least…
Continue Reading→Books Like The Startup Wife Are Why I Read, And Here’s Why You Should Pick It Up Too The Startup Wife by Tahmima Anam, ★★★★★ 5 stars
The Startup Wife was an amazing book, and I find myself still thinking about it long after I’ve finished it. It was just one of those books where you start reading it, and you know it’s going to be an instant hit with you. I can only compare The Startup Wife with books like Daisy Jones and The Six, Oona Out…
Continue Reading→A Magical Story Of Love And Letting Go That I Gobbled Up In One Sitting Ghostlove by Dennis Mahoney, ★★★★★ 5 stars
Last night I read a truly unforgettable book. It’s one of those books I’m sure I’ll remember forever, and it’s one of those that feel like they were secretly written for you. The experience was just uncanny, and it left me with so many thoughts and feelings, and now I’m struggling to put them in words. Ghostlove by Dennis Mahoney…
Continue Reading→Mini-review for Maud & Addie by Maureen Buchanan Jones One of my recent 5-star slump beaters - definitely worth a read!
Last weekend, I mentioned that I recently read two books that got me out of the massive reading slump I’ve had for weeks.. Maybe months? Well, Maud & Addie was one of these books, and it’s unforgettable. It’s just one of those stories that when you delve into it, you’re quite likely to just spend the whole night reading, nevermind…
Continue Reading→A Truly Otherworldly Story Of Secrets, Growing Up And The Magic Of Woods Otherwood by Pete Hautman
Otherwood was a brilliant story, and I loved it – but I also sort of don’t know what to make of it? It’s one of those stories that you understand more subconsciously rather than in a straight-forward manner. When I got the review copy, I expected it to be a fantasy woodsy tale, but it’s nothing like that – it…
Continue Reading→Imagine Stepping From The 19th Century Straight Into The 21st The Lost Shtetl by Max Gross
When I saw the blurb of The Lost Shtetl, I was immediately drawn in. It sounded like an absurdly ridiculous, yet mesmerizing concept – a Jewish town in the Polish woods so remote it gets overlooked for more than a hundred years, so much so that it is even missed by the Holocaust. The people living there go around their…
Continue Reading→Practical Magic Concludes, Or Rather Begins, With An Amazing Prequel Magic Lessons (Practical Magic #0) by Alice Hoffman
Being kind of a fan of Alice Hoffman’s, I loved Magic Lessons from the very start! I didn’t even doubt I would. I have loved the entire Practical Magic series, as spaced out over the decades as it was, but I think I loved Magic Lessons by far the most. I got immediately attached to the main character, Maria, and…
Continue Reading→A Quick Scifi Noir That Packs A Punch And Makes You Laugh Red Dust by Yoss
For the past week or two, I have been hearing about this new novel by a scifi author Yoss that’s gaining traction, and I mean I’ve been hearing about it EVERYWHERE. It’s been appearing on all sorts of articles and what not, and at that point, my conscience about having downloaded one from Edelweiss for free several months ago broke…
Continue Reading→A Cozy Wind In The Willows Type Of Read! Skunk and Badger by Amy Timberlake and Jon Klassen
Skunk and Badger was such a delightful read – right from the very first pages. If you were at all a fan of the The Wind in the Willows, you will love Skunk and Badger. It is definitely different, but there is something in the vibe, something I can’t pinpoint – that they have in common (apart from the obvious…
Continue Reading→Are You Ready For Good Halloween Stories Yet? The Dead World of Lanthorne Ghules by Gerald Killingworth, ★★★★☆ 4 stars
If you’re looking for a rather quick, but very engrossing read, The Dead World of Lanthorne Ghules is definitely the book for you. It’s a middle grade adventure that will appeal to kids, teens and adults alike – it was a read of two evenings for me, and it really did leave an impression! The book has a very specific…
Continue Reading→A Tour Of A Forgotten Age Through This Amazing Historical Novel Villa of Delirium by Adrien Goetz, ★★★★✬ 4.5 stars
When I started reading Villa of Delirium, I didn’t know for sure what it was about – I often start novels without looking into it much – I’d rather the book tell me the story than the blurb. And the blurb told me it was set in a beautiful Greek villa, built based on ancient styles. That’s something I’ll always…
Continue Reading→Sibling Rivalry And Family Reconciliation – And Lots Of Food! The Chicken Sisters by K.J. Dell'Antonia, ★★★★✬ 4.5 stars
The Chicken Sisters had such an interesting premise that I couldn’t resist it. Two competing restaurants – two sisters in management, the restaurants themselves also founded by two sisters, over 100 years ago. And a reality show in which they battle it out. Was this going to be a story of rivalry? Or a story of reconciliation? Was it going…
Continue Reading→Upbeat, Witty, Multi-cultural And Light-hearted – Just The Book I Needed Last Tang Standing by Lauren Ho
I knew I’d love Last Tang Standing from the moment I picked it up. Scratch that, I knew it from the minute I downloaded it when I got approved for the review copy – reading the blurb is enough to fall in love with it. This book is about choosing your life – to live it the way you want…
Continue Reading→A Dark Semi-Slow-Burn Thriller About Some Forgotten WWII Nightmares A Room Full of Night by T.R. Kenneth
When I got this book off Edelweiss as a free download, I didn’t know if I’d like it. I don’t read a lot of thrillers either, but something in the blurb just hooked me. And it made for some good reading! For lovers of thrillers and conspiracy theories, it’s definitely worth a go. Check out on Goodreads ★★★✬☆ 3.5 stars…
Continue Reading→Continuing With The Teen Books About Theatre The Blue Door Series by Pamela Brown
Do you remember how I recently reviewed a book about kids and teens in a theatre, called The Swish of the Curtain? I loved that book, and of course, I started reading the sequels as fast as I could get my hands on them. This is mostly the review for the second sequel, Maddy Alone, but I read the third…
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