The Goose Girl - Shannon Hale

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Princess Ani knows that as Crown Princess she's destined to be queen...until that all changes.
I really enjoyed this book. Can't wait to do a read aloud with my kiddos. Princess, action and adventure, strong characters. It's a good one. And apparently the first in a series. I'll be reading the next one.

View all my reviews

The Dry & Force of Nature - Jane Harper

The Dry by Jane Harper
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I always enjoy a mystery that I can't figure out quickly. And this book delivered that.
I enjoyed the characters of Falk and Roco. The pacing was good. The author left some loose ends, but I'm okay with that.
Going to read the second.

View all my reviews Force of Nature by Jane Harper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Enjoyed this one even more than the first. The story line developed a bit slower, and I think that was good for the mystery. I liked the additional character development of Falk. I hope she writes a third.

View all my reviews

Lilac Girls - Martha Hall Kelly

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So, so good. I've read a lot of wwii/Holocaust historical fiction. I always enjoy (? not sure that's the right word?) one that teaches or shows me something new. This book did that. And had all the feels throughout.

View all my reviews

The Wife Between Us - Greer Hendricks

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I didn't like this book. But I don't know if I disliked it enough to say I hated it. Twists on top of twists just for the sake of a twist. I had told a friend that it had absolutely zero likable or sympathetic characters. That's when she reminded me of Aunt Charlotte. Okay, Aunt Charlotte was likable...but clearly not memorable. The redeeming quality is the fact it was a quick read.

View all my reviews

Outlander (Outlander #1) - Diana Gabaldon

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I keep waffling between 3 and 4 stars. So I'm glad I finally read it. I'm definitely going to read the second book as I have some lingering questions for sure.
Others were right to warn me about All.The.Sex. And not just normal, passionate sex. There is some messed up stuff and a lot of triggers if you're sensitive to violence, abuse, etc. My "women are equals" dander was put up a number of times; I had to keep reminding myself we're in 1700's Scotland.
But the writing was captivating. The character development amazing. Some of the concepts and ideas had me thinking between reading sessions. And I hear the racy isn't so much in the following books.
It took me almost 2 weeks to read, which is quite a bit of time for me to devote to one book. I'd say it was worth it, though, and I was moving homes during those weeks. So reading time was in shorter supply.
If you've been on the fence like me, go ahead and give it a try.

View all my reviews D

The Class: A Life-Changing Teacher, His World-Changing Kids, and the Most Inventive Classroom in America - Heather Won Tesoriero

The Class: A Life-Changing Teacher, His World-Changing Kids, and the Most Inventive Classroom in America by Heather Won Tesoriero
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I am usually a sucker for inspiring teacher stories. And I usually try to push through books for review (Thanks, NetGalley and Random House) even if I don’t enjoy it. However, this book (sort of) focusing on Andy Bramante and his super smart, motivated Greenwich students just was not my cup of tea. I abandoned it 30% of the way in.
Some of my issue was with the writing itself. There was weird time and pacing throughout and no clear organizational method. It seems like it would be organized by Andy or individual students as that was used for the chapter names. However, in those chapters they’d take lengthy tangents to other students, random information, or jumps in time. It was just poorly organized, making it hard to follow and get into a reading groove. Pieces of information are redundant. I got it the first 5 times that one competition is only for seniors. Add in the contradictions, and I just couldn’t do it any longer.
Then there’s my question regarding the point of the book. Is this about an inspiring teacher or an ad for Greenwich, CT? A lot of times it seemed like the latter.
Maybe it got into this after I quit, but what makes Andy a successful, effective teacher? The reasons brought forth in the first part of the book are that he’s working with gifted kids who are motivated and have parental support. Plus, he has a background in the sciences outside of teaching, leading to additional resources and connections for his students. But what is it about *him* that makes him such an exceptional teacher? What sets him apart that other teachers can emulate?
Some of the research the students were conducting was really interesting. However, overall, this book was a miss for me.
If you would like to read more of my reviews, please visit mommyreadsbooks.blogspot.com

View all my reviews

It Ends with Us - Colleen Hoover

It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover


Holy Smokes! I loved, loved, LOVED the lessons and main character (and most of the side characters) in this book. However, I HATED all the graphic sex. And the profanity. If you’re like me, prepare to skip a lot of pages. I would love to recommend this book to everyone but don’t feel like I can recommend it to anyone. I'm not even sure how to rate it with stars. The writing and message and characters are a 5. But not being able to recommend it...
Lily didn’t have a great childhood. But she’s opening a whole new chapter in Boston, starting her own floral shop. A chance encounter with Ryle changes the course in both their lives. She’s head over heels. Then her first love reappears in her new life and things devolve from there.
Lily is one tough cookie. She opened up my mind and heart to things I thought I knew but didn’t fully understand until witnessed through her experiences. I was rooting for her throughout. There was one piece at the ending of her story that left me a bit disappointed. I didn’t need my loose ends tied up that neatly.
Ryle’s sister and Lily’s mom are both great women and characters in their own right.
It is hard to write a detailed review on this book as there are so many things that would be spoilers. I have a lot I would like to say though. The lack of review length doesn’t reflect a lack of thoughts on the book. I’m still thinking about it several weeks later.
This was a book club pick this month. Definitely a lot of fodder for discussion.

If you want to read more of my reviews, visit mommyreadsbooks.blogspot.com.

Trigger Warnings: several.


View all my reviews