Books, Books, Books, and a Cat

  A new Katherine Center novel is one of things I look forward to most in the year.  "The Shippers" did not disappoint and was a great way to start this year off.   In this novel JoJo has relationship issues.  In order to solve these issues, JoJo hatches a plan with her sister to win back the guy who was her first kiss and longtime crush, Finn Turner  He also happens to be on a cruise ship with her entire family and old neighborhood for her sister's wedding.  Also on that cruise ship is JoJo's best friend, Cooper.  They have been estranged for four years. At one time they were inseparable and have only now just started speaking again.  JoJo ends up roping in Cooper to try and help her win Finn, but as you can probably guess, things do not always go to plan.  I absolutely loved this book.  It was a great escape and a heart warming story.   I really enjoyed reading about all of the characters and seeing their growth especial...

  A great edition to this time traveling, action-packed series! In this novel Rabbit travels back in time to Jerusalem to help Helen.  She is being accused of being part of an illegal time traveling ring.  Only when he travels back he meets a younger Helen who has never met him before.  Helen is chasing after a man named Eshek who has stolen money and if Helen can get the money back she can help her sister.  The only problem is that there is also a killer on the loose who seems out to get Rabbit.   In this novel we learn a lot more about Helen and her back story.  We also get to see more of Rabbit and Helen's relationship.  This book has lots of action and adventure but the best part of the story for me is the time travel.  I love all of the historical detail and knowledge of the time periods they travel to.  I am excited to read more as I am really enjoying what is happening between Rabbit and Helen.  Thank you to Minotaur Boo...

 Beach Thriller is an excellent thriller to bring on the beach or really anywhere.  This is the second book I have read by Jamie Day and I am hooked.   Holly is a writer who is struggling financially.  After the loss of her mother she heads to where her family had a beach home in Beauport, Massachusetts.  She plans on fixing it up as she tries to get back on her feet.  While there she ends up meeting Jade, a runaway, who is trying to find out answers about herself.  There is also a third character called the watcher who gives some insight into the story.  Jade finds Holly's half-finished manuscript titled "Beach Thriller" that is really about the mystery surrounding Holly's sister, Anna's death.  Jade and Holly team up to try and find out what really happened to Anna.  What they don't expect is that there is so much more to this story and their own lives may be in danger.  This was a thrilling thriller and I especially loved th...

  This was a very dark and foreboding thriller.  Minnow leaves her life as a news anchor in an abusive relationship in the city, to go back to her hometown on the coast to move in with her brother.  I instantly felt compassion for Minnow as I learned that she had a rough life growing up.  She lost her mother when she was young and then shortly after her father.  On the night Minnow gets back she goes to see her brother at his job, running shark fishing tours.  She goes out with him and they happen upon a shark attack.  As the story continues we learn that there have been an unusually high number of shark attacks happen.  Minnow's investigative skills haven't left her and she starts to delve into these mysteries along with another journalist who is visiting her hometown.  Things get much darker as we learn more about Minnow's past and things she has seen and even done.  There is a hidden and darker side to this town.  There was an in...

 4.5 Stars- This novel is for all the women out there who have ever been scared or intimidated by a man.  In this fantastic twist on Psycho, the female is no longer the victim.   Marion is on the run with stolen money.  She didn't mean to steal the money, she is just trying to help her sister.  She ends up stuck in New Paltz, NY instead of getting to Saratoga Springs when the bus she was taking breaks down.  Marion ends up in a run down resort where she ends up renting a cabin from Norman Bates.  He is a handsome man who not only provides her with a room but also dinner.  He is nothing but charming and helpful as he also takes care of his sick mother.   Everything is going well until she finds him trying to kill her in her shower.  Marion is not about to let that happen as her survival instinct that has been drilled into her by her mom kicks in.  Now Marion must find a way to not only help her sister but get herself out of...

4.5 Stars-  This was such a good start to a new series.  It was an interesting blend of romance, fantasy, science, and a strong female protagonist. It also had vibes from a long ago TV show that I loved called Samantha Who, starring Christina Applegate.  I know this is a strange reference to put in a book review but I absolutely loved that show and I love that this book had a similar theme except with the added alchemy and dark academia world.   Amber Fallbrook has amnesia and has no memory of the last several years that she spent studying alchemy at The Alchemary.  Despite her memory loss she refuses to leave The Alchemary as it has been her dream since she was little to study alchemy.  The only problem is she is a mastery level student and has upcoming trials to take.  These trials are deadly and Amber has no memory of what she has learned the past couple of years.  She decides that she is going to study as hard as she can in the hopes that...

  This one got me!  I love a good thriller where you are not sure who the guilty party is.   This novel was told from two different point of views, Freya and Charlie.  Charlie and Freya seem to have the perfect marriage.  Charlie is a chef who is moving up in the world and Freya does charity work.  Everything is going well in their life until one night at a dinner for Charlie's boss, both of them drink too much and bad decisions are made.  Their lives spiral downwards as they try to pick up their pieces only to find that more bad things are in store for them.  The reader is left trying to figure out who is causing all of this chaos and what is their motivation.  This book had me hooked as I wanted to find out who was behind everything.  I found myself drawn into Freya and Charlie's story as I really wanted them to make it as a couple.  I also couldn't decide if one of them could be behind all of their bad luck.  This was a...

  This was a good start to a new romantasy series. It is a fantasy world but there are hints of Chinese culture that really drew me in.  This story is filled with lots of action, romance, and mystery. Rubi is a ribbon dancer who has no memory of her past and very little magic.  However all of that changes when she bonds with a royal tyger. She is an Azure and not trusted by the Silvers so when she bonds with one of their tygers it is a scandal.  The tyger makes it known that Rubi is not an ordinary person.  There is something special about her.  Hints are continually dropped throughout the story that there is a reason for Rubi's memory loss and she is not an inconsequential person. In this world there are constant threats of demons and since Rubi  bonded with the tyger she must train to be a warrior.  While training, she is placed with Blake, a man who is the reason she is in this mess. Rubi must learn how to fight fast and unlock not only her mag...

 I wish that everyone who had an opinion about women's bodies and what they can do with them would take the time to read a book like this.  Reading is so powerful because you can truly have empathy and understanding of a situation that you might never be in yourself.  I don't know how anyone could read this story and not feel for Baker and all that she went through.  Baker has everything going for her.  She is the valedictorian of her 1968 class and has big dreams of becoming a writer and living in Paris after she attends Stanford University.  Everything is going her way until she goes out to a concert with her cousin and falls in love.  Like so many girls during this time, Baker has very little understanding of her own body and received no education about how to prevent pregnancies.  Baker becomes pregnant and has very few options of what she can do.  Being an unwed mother during this time is pure scandal and will completely destroy her futu...