Books, Books, Books, and a Cat

 I cannot express how excited I was to read the latest novel by Katherine Center.  Her books have the ability to touch my soul and make me feel better about life and myself.  This book was no exception.  The best way I can think to describe this "The Love Haters' is healing fiction!   "The Love Haters" is a romance story about a woman named Katie trying to save her job by going to Key West to interview her co-worker's brother, a coast guard rescue swimmer.  The only problem is Katie can't swim and hates the idea of being in a bathing suit.  Determined to save her job she decides she will learn to swim.  Once there she meets Rue, the owner of the motel and aunt to Hutch.  Hutch is the rescue swimmer she is there to interview.  What she doesn't count on is the immediate attraction and his dog, George Bailey.  Katie finds herself falling in love but many different obstacles are determined to get in her way including a cheating ex-...

"I Would Die for You," takes fan obsession to a whole new level.  In 1986, Cassie becomes obsessed with a band called "Secret Oktober."  She falls head over heels for one of the singers.  Her sister Nicole is an aspiring singer and also forms a tie to the same band.  Both of them are also dealing with the fact that their mother is dying.  Fast forward to 2010, Nicole has completely changed her identity, moved to another country, and is lying about her past to her husband and daughter.  Something tragic happened in 1986 and as the book alternates between the two time periods, the reader learns just how far sisters will go to right wrongs.  This was definitely a thriller that kept me guessing until the very end of the book.  It was dark, twisty, and one of the characters can only be described as evil.  The writing was good and each chapter left me on a cliff hanger.  I'm rating it down a half star simply because I wanted more out of Nicole...

  I really wanted to like this one.  It had some fantastic fantasy elements.  I loved the world building and the dragons were a great touch. It was centered on a kingdom that was about female power.  The kingdom however, had been ruled by a long line of male rulers. A new religious group called the  Covenant, had come to the kingdom and were trying to stop all magic and women having power.  They thought men should have everything and women are there just to be subservient and have babies. Aemyra has been waiting to become the next queen. She has been in hiding with her family and plans to take over the kingdom as soon as the old king dies.  She just has to bond with his dragon.  Things go horribly wrong and now Aemyra has to fight not just to become queen but to save those she loves.   I loved the idea about reading about a kingdom where women actually had power, alas that was not the case in this novel. The more I read, the more frustra...

Wow, this had a huge emotional impact on me.  I have read lots of historical fiction fiction set during World War II but I don't think I have ever read one that had several huge twists like this one.  There is so much to unpack and I will be thinking about this book for days.   This novel is a dual timeline book with one story about Kate in 2010 and the other about Audrey in the late 1930s. Kate needs to leave London as she tries to escape her failed marriage and tries to deal with her past.  She has lost both her parents and she is trying to retrace their steps.  This brings her to Oakwood Inn where she meets Audrey.  After a rough start, Audrey begins to confide in Kate about her past. Audrey was in Berlin, living with a Jewish family right before WWII began.  Her story is heartbreaking but also incredible with what she went through to protect those that she loved and to try and make a difference for those in need.   This is an amazing...

  Fundamentally was a look at a topic that I knew virtually nothing about.  Nadia leaves London, after losing her best friend and sometimes lover, to rehabilitate ISIS brides through an agency at the UN.  She travels to Iraq and learns that there is a lot of political red tape to be able to make a difference.  She connects with one of the women, Sara, who reminds her of her younger self.  After trying everything in her power, Nadia puts it all on the line to make a difference for Sara.   I'll be honest that this is not a book that I would typically read.  Nadia is not a character that I would normally identify with but I liked the voice that she had.  I enjoyed reading about her back story and what brought her to Iraq.  I did not like reading about all of the political drama that surrounded the women held in the camps.  I completely understand how awful it is and it is important to write about this so people understand what is reall...

  This book was part mystery, part thriller, with a dash of romance. Nura is a matchmaker in Atlanta Georgia but someone is extremely upset with her and is determined to ruin her business and her life. On top of that, she herself has no love life as she is in love with her best friend but he is not interested in her that way. Things go from bad to worse when angry podcasts start airing, weddings disintegrate, her friends, and family are threatened, and then Nura's own life is in danger. This book was a little slow for me. I enjoyed reading about the Indian culture and some of the wedding ceremonies but at times I felt a little lost. I also had trouble understanding the amount of hatred that someone had for Nura. It felt extreme considering she was just a matchmaking service. I enjoyed the ending of the book and the action however the romance felt off for me. I don't want to spoil it but it just seemed a little implausible. Overall, this was only an ok read for me.

  This was an excellent mystery set in the Yukon.  Detective Casey Duncan and her husband  Sheriff Eric Dalton created a secret town so they could provide sanctuary for people who need it.  In this third installment Casey is eight months pregnant but that does not slow her down when a local resident is abducted.  The resident gets away but the abductor strikes again and this time the victim is not as lucky. With the weather against them and premature labor a possibility, the reader is left guessing as to what will happen next.  I love all of Kelley Armstrong's books no matter what genre she is writing in and this one did not disappoint.  What I loved most about this mystery is that I thought I had it figured out but I was completely wrong. An action packed mystery set against really bad weather that will have you on the edge of your seat.  I look forward to reading more in this series! 

  This was excellent!  I really enjoyed the entire premise behind this book.  Elinor comes from a wealthy family with self made money. She thinks she finds her dream man in Frederick Storton the future lord of Winterton Hall.  However things are not what they seem and her life quickly turns into a nightmare.  When a chance to go on the Titanic comes, she thinks it will be a nice diversion and a way to spend time with her son and father.  What she did not expect was that the ship would sink and she would have a terrible choice to make, go back to Winterton Hall and lose her son or try to start a new life in New York City.  What follows is an incredible tale of a strong woman who will do whatever it takes to take control of her life.   This novel was filled with incredible detail.  Set in England and New York City in the early 1900s, I really felt like I was there with Elinor.  I enjoyed reading about everything she went through and h...

The Language of the Birds is like the teenage version of National Treasure.  There were ciphers, riddles, codes, and puzzles based on history that had to be solved in order for 17 year old Arizona to rescue her mom from kidnappers.  Arizona is autistic and does not do well with people.  She is homeschooled and really only relates to her dog.  Her father has recently passed away from a tragic accident and she is trying to deal with her grief by finishing their family trip.  Arizona is supposed to meet her mom but she never shows.  After finding their camper ransacked, Arizona discovers that she has to solve puzzles and other clues in order to get her mother back because the kidnappers believe her father knew a secret that they want to find.  The novel delves into a lot of history and puzzle solving but it is also a story of Arizona growing and learning how to deal with the outside world.   There were parts of this story that I enjoyed such as ...