BOOK REVIEW: Dreamland

 

This book was an interesting up-close glimpse of the wealthy, and the working class in early 1900 New York. 

The main character Peggy Battenberg is 20-year old heiress to a fortune, but that money comes with tight family ties. When she is forced to summer near the "depraved" Coney Island, she becomes embroiled in a multiple-murder mystery and a forbidden love affair.

Peggy was equally brazen and strong, but at the same time naive and foolish. Some of her decisions had me absolutely cringing! But I appreciated her willingness to forgo the status quo, even if her illicit adventures did seem far-fetched.

I really liked the author's descriptive style of story-telling, it made the settings come to life in a way that I could really envision them and feel I was there.  Yes, it slowed the pace somewhat, but it remained steady, and I felt compelled to keep turning the pages, reading way past midnight.

The murder/mystery piece felt not fully-developed, and the cumulation of the entire book's build up felt very rushed and implausible. Also, the insta-love, while charming, also did not end in a satisfying way.

All in all, this was an enjoyable read, which I devoured in 2 sittings!

Thanks to NetGalley and Endeavour Quill for a free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

BOOK REVIEW: The City of the Plague God

13-year old Sikander is a rare Muslim hero in this urban fantasy that brings Mesopotamian mythology to modern-day New York.

From the very beginning, Sik is pulled into danger by demons serving the plague god Nergal, who believes Sik has a treasure that he desperately wants.  The action is non-stop from there, and Sik finds himself moving from one amazing circumstance to another, encountering gods, goddesses, heroes and fantastic creatures from Mesopotamian myths.  

The over-arching theme of this story is death and loss, which I wasn't expecting for a book geared toward middle-grade. Sik is struggling with the loss of his brother and he encounters death in various forms throughout his trials.  

The author's writing style is engaging, and the pages flew. The side characters had distinct personalities, although I would have liked a little more insight to their motives a bit more.

I really enjoyed this action-packed adventure, and especially appreciated the representation of a non-traditional hero.  Also, this was the first story I've read featuring Mesopotamian mythology, and this book has gotten me intrigued enough to seek out more.

Thanks to NetGalley and Disney Publishing for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

BOOK REVIEW: Lore

 

Starting 2021 off with a banger!🎉

People, this is what a contemporary urban YA fantasy is all about! A strong, no-nonsense, bad-ass female protagonist descended from an ancient Greek hero's bloodline who has real friends and makes believable, well-thought out decisions (and mistakes) is what I'm talking about! Throw in a cast of developed supporting characters and I was hooked.

So, this is a wholly unique take on Greek mythology and the various gods and heroes, and where they are in the present. So unique, that although I had a pretty strong grasp of the myths prior to reading, I really had to slow down in the beginning to fully understand the characters and their houses. Pro tip: there is a cast of characters list at the end which is SUPER helpful.

This book is almost 600 pages long, but the pacing was great (once I got a handle on who was who), the action was plentiful and gorey, and the twists were surprising enough that the pages just flew...I stayed up till past 2am reading this one! This book pulls no punches. Actually, with the serious topics brought up, such as child torture and killing, multiple murder, and attempted rape, I think this may be better categorized as new adult vs YA.

There is very little romance, but what there is sweet, very briefly mentioned and inconsequential to the plot, which was actually perfect for the flavor of this story. 

Lore publishes on January 5, so make sure it's on your TBR! 

Thanks to Hyperion Books and Net Galley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

BOOK REVIEW: "His and Hers"

This was definitely a thrilling ride. Just when you thought you knew what was coming, you realized you didn't!

The book is told from 3 POVs: an Insoector's, a reporter's, and the killer's. And I had no idea who was the killer till the very end!

I listened to the audiobook, and I loved that there were different narrators for each of the 3 POVs - the killer's distorted voice was distorted and creepy, which added to the mystery.

I wasn't emotionally invested in the 2 POV characters, especially because I was wondering if either was the killer, so I didn't really care about them. Evenso, the twisty story kept my attention till the very end.

Thanks to NetGalley for the free ALC in exchange for my honest review.

BOOK REVIEW: "White Out"

I would describe this book was part police procedural, part thriller, light on the investigative techniques and heavy on the dramatic fiction and suspense.

The reader is definitely kept in the dark until the very end. As I navigated through the mystery via the amnesiac and investigative characters, there is no way to figure out the big reveal, so it was engaging, constantly dangling the "who-done-it" to keep me turning the pages.

However, I'm not a huge fan of creating tension by keeping info hidden, as in had a character not kept a secret in the beginning, the story would have been over pretty quickly.  Like, if Lily had disclosed her amnesia early on, or when Iver & Mike discovered the birthmark in the pic, why didn't they immediately call Milliard to explain? It would have totally exonerated him. And 2 characters with selective amnesia specific to the night in question, thus preventing them from disclosing relevant info, was just a little much.

The pace of the action was fast, but almost too fast.  I would just finish processing one big event and then another would happen almost simultaneously. And there were just a few too many characters to keep straight; I kept losing track of which member of the law enforcement "small town good ol boy network" or "old nemesis from highschool" I was reading about.

There were definitely some areas where reality slipped a bit: our poor Lily was always getting physically battered and/or attacked by multiple people, being beaten up almost every other chapter and learning that she's being targeted by an unknown killer and she is like unfazed, mentally & physically, even though she was a survivor of previous abduction and abuse. She was apparently a heavy drug abuser, but experienced no withdrawals from quitting cold turkey. Her job wasn't mentioned beyond coworkers recognizing she'd been in some kind of accident, and even though she was injured she was expected to jump in on a medical emergency, but then she never worked again. Also, I felt like there was not enough tidying of loose ends (What happened with that jerk Kevin? And what actually happened with Iver's ex in the parking lot?). 

But overall, this was an entertaining read and the mystery was definitely twisty, as long as you're willing to overlook some things, not take it too seriously, and just go along for the bumpy ride.

3.5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley for the free eARC in exchange for my honest review.

BOOK REVIEW: "Little Secrets"

I stayed up until almost 2 a.m. to finish this book!

That being said, I don't know how to feel after everything! This was not so much a thriller as it was a suspense novel, but boy did it get me emotionally vested in the characters...as in I hated them! 

Marin, a successful business woman in her early 40's suffers a mother's worst nightmare when her son is kidnapped right out from under her nose. And then her POS garbage husband cheats on her with an absolute piece of trash home-wrecking whore in her 20's.

At first, I was very sympathetic towards Marin, I mean, how much suffering could the poor woman take? But as she started making super-stupid decisions, I found myself liking her less and less.

And no spoilers, but I am so pissed about the bag and shoes at the very end of the story. I mean, what a dumb-ass decision on Marin's part. On that note, I think I'm most upset that I don't feel like justice is served. At all. And that bugs me.

But for a book to sink its claws in me so deeply that it gets my heart racing with fury and compels me to forsake sleep, I have to admit the author has done an amazing job.

It's a gripping and entertaining read, so pick it up for a twisty ride. 

BOOK REVIEW: " The Hollow Ones"

This was an interesting blend of horror and police procedural, and as these are a couple of my favorite genres, I enjoyed it.

The action was pretty well-paced and constant, with revelations happening as we go along through the different characters' perspectives, and in different time periods until it's all resolved in the end.

I actually wasn't a fan of the jumping POVs and story lines, as they were jarring, (from 2020 to the 1500's) and forced me to "re-set" often throughout the book and I couldn't stay immersed.

Also, I still don't have a good sense of what the Silence/Blackwood character is all about, although that may have been left to explore in future installments.

Overall, it was an entertaining read, and I am definitely interested in reading the next book in the series.

Thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.