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amandasbookreview's Reviews (966)
I have finally read, The Girl on the Train, a psychological thriller, written by Paula Hawkins. This was my book club’s most recent selection. Next week, we will be getting together to discuss and watch the movie. I was really excited to read this book. It has been all over Bookstagram for the last 2 years.
It starts with the introduction of Rachel. Rachel takes the train everyday. Right away, I noticed that Rachel is depressed. She rides the train daily and always looks at this one house. She can see the couple who lives there. She doesn’t know them, but believes they live this perfect life. She has even made up names for them: Jess and Jason. The reason why she develops this fantasy is because her own husband left her for another woman, named Anne. Rachel never recovered. However, one day as she passes the home, she notices Jess is kissing a man who isn’t Jason. Not to long after that, Jess, whose real name is actually Megan, disappears. Rachel then finds herself helping in the investigation, but depression and alcoholism affect her decision making.
check out the rest of my review at www.amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com
It starts with the introduction of Rachel. Rachel takes the train everyday. Right away, I noticed that Rachel is depressed. She rides the train daily and always looks at this one house. She can see the couple who lives there. She doesn’t know them, but believes they live this perfect life. She has even made up names for them: Jess and Jason. The reason why she develops this fantasy is because her own husband left her for another woman, named Anne. Rachel never recovered. However, one day as she passes the home, she notices Jess is kissing a man who isn’t Jason. Not to long after that, Jess, whose real name is actually Megan, disappears. Rachel then finds herself helping in the investigation, but depression and alcoholism affect her decision making.
check out the rest of my review at www.amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com
I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
Immortal Rebel by Erin McDermott is the second book in the Allegiance series. Her first book, Captive Maiden, introduced a fascinating world that takes place in the future. But it is in no way futuristic. The world as we know it, has perished. The Greek gods are taking sides. The Allegiant are supported by Zeus and Poseidon. The Rebels are supported by Hades.
Michael O’Conner put his trust in a friend, who turned out to be the enemy. As a result, hundreds of rebels died. Because of his questionable decision to trust his friend, The Furies cursed Michael with immortality. As a result, Michael secluded himself and stayed away from family. His sister, Marylyn, was the heroine of the first novel.
Phoibe has no recollection of her childhood and was raised by a bounty hunter until his death. She takes an assignment that requires her to take a specific woman alive and deliver her to the men. The woman happens to be, Marylyn O’Conner. Phoibe sets out to find Marylyn’s brother, Michael, who she intends to betray, after they find Marylyn. When she meets Michael, she discovers that he is immortal and finds out all about his heartbreaking past. Even though she swore she would never love, she finds herself falling for Michael. Michael thought he could never trust anyone again, until he met Phoibe. Phoibe then faces the issue of betraying Michael and heartbreak or losing her home and comfort.
Once again, Erin McDermott created an amazing story. The characters were fantastic. I loved Phoibe’s wit. She showed strength of mind, rather than physical strength. Michael is hardening by his heartbreaking past, but I loved the way he begins to trust again.
I do have to admit, I liked the first book a little more. The first book also ended on a slight cliffhanger and I expected to find out more about what happened to those characters. The story does progress really fast in this book. Phoibe admits that she never plans on loving anyone and wants to spend her life alone. However, about 30 pages later, she is falling in love with Michael. She seemed to change her mind quickly. Spelling and grammar looked great. The only thing I noticed was that the spacing in between sentences was inconsistent at times. Occasionally, some sentences had 1 space, sometimes 2 spaces. However, that did not detract from my enjoyment of the book! This story also left on a slight cliffhanger. The main story line was solved but some other minor story lines were left open.
My hope is that the third book will bring all the characters together. I would like to see the full picture and all the threads to be tied. I did love that we were also given more of a glimpse of what became of the world and how other Greek gods have played a part in its destruction! I love that Erin McDermott is going into more depth about this fascinating world! Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I can’t wait for her next installment!
Immortal Rebel by Erin McDermott is the second book in the Allegiance series. Her first book, Captive Maiden, introduced a fascinating world that takes place in the future. But it is in no way futuristic. The world as we know it, has perished. The Greek gods are taking sides. The Allegiant are supported by Zeus and Poseidon. The Rebels are supported by Hades.
Michael O’Conner put his trust in a friend, who turned out to be the enemy. As a result, hundreds of rebels died. Because of his questionable decision to trust his friend, The Furies cursed Michael with immortality. As a result, Michael secluded himself and stayed away from family. His sister, Marylyn, was the heroine of the first novel.
Phoibe has no recollection of her childhood and was raised by a bounty hunter until his death. She takes an assignment that requires her to take a specific woman alive and deliver her to the men. The woman happens to be, Marylyn O’Conner. Phoibe sets out to find Marylyn’s brother, Michael, who she intends to betray, after they find Marylyn. When she meets Michael, she discovers that he is immortal and finds out all about his heartbreaking past. Even though she swore she would never love, she finds herself falling for Michael. Michael thought he could never trust anyone again, until he met Phoibe. Phoibe then faces the issue of betraying Michael and heartbreak or losing her home and comfort.
Once again, Erin McDermott created an amazing story. The characters were fantastic. I loved Phoibe’s wit. She showed strength of mind, rather than physical strength. Michael is hardening by his heartbreaking past, but I loved the way he begins to trust again.
I do have to admit, I liked the first book a little more. The first book also ended on a slight cliffhanger and I expected to find out more about what happened to those characters. The story does progress really fast in this book. Phoibe admits that she never plans on loving anyone and wants to spend her life alone. However, about 30 pages later, she is falling in love with Michael. She seemed to change her mind quickly. Spelling and grammar looked great. The only thing I noticed was that the spacing in between sentences was inconsistent at times. Occasionally, some sentences had 1 space, sometimes 2 spaces. However, that did not detract from my enjoyment of the book! This story also left on a slight cliffhanger. The main story line was solved but some other minor story lines were left open.
My hope is that the third book will bring all the characters together. I would like to see the full picture and all the threads to be tied. I did love that we were also given more of a glimpse of what became of the world and how other Greek gods have played a part in its destruction! I love that Erin McDermott is going into more depth about this fascinating world! Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I can’t wait for her next installment!
I am a huge fan of psychological thrillers and The Mistake by K.L. Slater did not disappoint! This story goes back and forth between the present and 16 years into the past. When Rose was 18, her brother, Billy, was kidnapped and murdered. In the beginning, the circumstances behind his death remain unknown. However, throughout each flashback, more information comes to light. It turns out that Rose was approached by a man named Gareth. He seemed nice and actually interested in her. They began a secret relationship. What started out as a romantic relationship, turned cold and controlling. Gareth was very possessive. Even Cassie, Rose’s best friend, warns Rose about how dangerous this relationship is becoming.
Flash forward to the present, Rose takes great care with her routine. She is a librarian now and has a strict schedule. She is always watching her back and worried about what is around the corner. One day, she is helping out her elderly neighbor and she finds her brother’s blanket in the spare room. How did he get Billy’s blanket? Billy had this blanket with him when he was kidnapped and it was deemed a crucial piece of evidence, if it was ever found. This topples Rose’s very fragile world. Her neighbor was a good friend and always there for her with the death of Billy and later with the death of her parents. But what if the wrong man was in prison for Billy’s death? She owes it to Billy and her family to find out who really murdered her brother.
The suspense in this book was nerve-wrecking. There were several points where I got chills! Usually I find it tedious when books go back and forth between different time periods. But that was not so with this book. The book had a wonderful flow to it. The author was careful not to give too much information at one time to really create suspense.
Another wonderful aspect of this book was the characters. They were real and so relatable. Rose goes through multiple traumatic experiences and she comes out scarred. She shows signs of severe anxiety and bulimia. Her experiences with Gareth left her shaken to the core. She lives in a constant state of fear. She also shows signs of depression with the death of her brother and parents. She hides from the world in her job at the library. Rose was a character that had real reactions to traumatic experiences and that made her a wonderful main character. I also loved that up until the end of the book, there was always a state of uncertainty with the other characters. Gareth was evil, controlling and untrustworthy but that does that automatically make him guilty. Then there is the sweet elderly neighbor named, Ronnie. He has been there for Rose through all the hard times, but is he lying or harboring some terrible secret? The fact that Rose can’t trust anyone makes this book so intriguing!
I only wish that there was more information at the ending. There was a couple unanswered questions about some of the characters. I won’t say which ones because I don’t want to spoil anything. But there was one detail I need to know. What happened to the library? Rose loves her job at the library but the government wants to shut it down. This was not a crucial part of the plot, just a little side story but I NEED TO KNOW! Did the library get shut down or was it saved? This poor little town needs the library!!! Like I said, this really wasn’t important to the main plot but I wish it was solved.
Overall, I found myself flying through this book and not wanting to put it down. I can’t wait to check out other books written by K.L. Slater!
Flash forward to the present, Rose takes great care with her routine. She is a librarian now and has a strict schedule. She is always watching her back and worried about what is around the corner. One day, she is helping out her elderly neighbor and she finds her brother’s blanket in the spare room. How did he get Billy’s blanket? Billy had this blanket with him when he was kidnapped and it was deemed a crucial piece of evidence, if it was ever found. This topples Rose’s very fragile world. Her neighbor was a good friend and always there for her with the death of Billy and later with the death of her parents. But what if the wrong man was in prison for Billy’s death? She owes it to Billy and her family to find out who really murdered her brother.
The suspense in this book was nerve-wrecking. There were several points where I got chills! Usually I find it tedious when books go back and forth between different time periods. But that was not so with this book. The book had a wonderful flow to it. The author was careful not to give too much information at one time to really create suspense.
Another wonderful aspect of this book was the characters. They were real and so relatable. Rose goes through multiple traumatic experiences and she comes out scarred. She shows signs of severe anxiety and bulimia. Her experiences with Gareth left her shaken to the core. She lives in a constant state of fear. She also shows signs of depression with the death of her brother and parents. She hides from the world in her job at the library. Rose was a character that had real reactions to traumatic experiences and that made her a wonderful main character. I also loved that up until the end of the book, there was always a state of uncertainty with the other characters. Gareth was evil, controlling and untrustworthy but that does that automatically make him guilty. Then there is the sweet elderly neighbor named, Ronnie. He has been there for Rose through all the hard times, but is he lying or harboring some terrible secret? The fact that Rose can’t trust anyone makes this book so intriguing!
I only wish that there was more information at the ending. There was a couple unanswered questions about some of the characters. I won’t say which ones because I don’t want to spoil anything. But there was one detail I need to know. What happened to the library? Rose loves her job at the library but the government wants to shut it down. This was not a crucial part of the plot, just a little side story but I NEED TO KNOW! Did the library get shut down or was it saved? This poor little town needs the library!!! Like I said, this really wasn’t important to the main plot but I wish it was solved.
Overall, I found myself flying through this book and not wanting to put it down. I can’t wait to check out other books written by K.L. Slater!
I have always been a huge fan of Charles Dickens. Even though I enjoy all his works, my two favorite Dickens works are Tale of Two Cities and A Christmas Carol. I feel like everyone is familiar with A Christmas Carol. As a child, my family would watch the Mickey Mouse version every Christmas. As I got older, my love for the story only grew. It became a story that I would read every December, no matter what.
I discovered the book The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits after watching the trailer for the movie, starring Dan Stevens. Once I found the book, I knew I had to read it. So for the month of November, that became my book club’s selection. For December, we will read A Christmas Carol. I am so glad that we decided to read this book. Even though I was already a fan of Dickens, reading this book gave me a deeper appreciation for him.
Check out the rest of my review at: https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/blog/
I discovered the book The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits after watching the trailer for the movie, starring Dan Stevens. Once I found the book, I knew I had to read it. So for the month of November, that became my book club’s selection. For December, we will read A Christmas Carol. I am so glad that we decided to read this book. Even though I was already a fan of Dickens, reading this book gave me a deeper appreciation for him.
Check out the rest of my review at: https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/blog/
Everyone knows the ghostly tale called A Christmas Carol. You have either heard the story, watched one of the many adaptations or read the story. If you haven’t read the story, I really encourage you to do so. I usually read it at the beginning of December every year and it never ceases to lift my holiday spirits.
Check out the rest of my review at:
https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/
Check out the rest of my review at:
https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/
I received a copy of The Chronicles of Captain Shelly Manhar from the author, Nabila Fairuz, in exchange for an honest review! When I first received the book, I was intrigued, to say the least. I love pirate lore, pirate tales and pirate history! It is a subject that I find truly fascinating. I could not wait to read this book.
This story is about a young, fierce pirate, named Captain Shelley Manhar. Her family is separated by tragedy. Her and her sister, Anna, come up with a way to find their family. Their idea is to steal a ship and sail all across the Caribbean. However, during this adventure, her sister is killed. Captain Shelley slowly becomes more introverted and heartless. No one will stand in her way and she is greatly feared. After gathering a crew, she is captured and arrested by her brother. It is then up to her to help free her crew and bring her family together.
First of all, this story has so much potential! I really enjoyed where the author wanted to take this story. However, it does need a bit of work.
Check out the rest of my review at: https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/blog/
This story is about a young, fierce pirate, named Captain Shelley Manhar. Her family is separated by tragedy. Her and her sister, Anna, come up with a way to find their family. Their idea is to steal a ship and sail all across the Caribbean. However, during this adventure, her sister is killed. Captain Shelley slowly becomes more introverted and heartless. No one will stand in her way and she is greatly feared. After gathering a crew, she is captured and arrested by her brother. It is then up to her to help free her crew and bring her family together.
First of all, this story has so much potential! I really enjoyed where the author wanted to take this story. However, it does need a bit of work.
Check out the rest of my review at: https://amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com/blog/
A Dangerous Legacy written by Elizabeth Camden is a gripping adventure! The story introduces Lucy Drake. She is a telegraph operator and quite the expert with Morse code. She is rather passionate about her job, but the news agency she works for has developed a rival, managed by Sir Colin Beckwith. Even though they are rivals, they turn to each other for help. Colin has some private matters that he would like to remain hidden and Lucy is tangled in a lawsuit against her Uncle that has been dragging on her whole life. Her grandfather invented a valve that can get water up to all the floors of buildings. However, when he went off to fight in the Civil War, his brother made a profit of it. Generations later and her Uncle is trying to keep her from her inheritance. No matter the danger, Lucy keeps fighting. She soon realizes that it is not just her life in the balance.
First of all, wow! Such in intricate story! It has it all, suspense, adventure, history and romance. Elizabeth Camden did a wonderful job at painting a vivid historical background. The novel was well-researched and the history was captivating.
The characters were all phenomenal and dynamic! Even the secondary characters were well rounded. All the characters seemed to contribute to the story and never dull or one-dimensional. My favorite has to be the relationship between Colin and Lucy. They did not have a typical whirlwind romance. They both had a sense of humor and were able to joke around with each other. This made them so much more personable. I also loved Lucy’s growth throughout the novel. She goes through her day to day life hoping for more and thinks it will come once the lawsuit is over. However, she realizes she had the ability to let go and live her life despite whatever happens.
My only critique would be that there was a lot going on at times and that really did slow down the pace of the novel. Some points moved quickly with the suspense, but others tended to drag on. Don’t get me wrong, I loved historical background that was given, but there were times when the novel needed to pick up the pace.
Overall, I was quite taken with this book! I thoroughly enjoyed the history, the characters and the suspense. Another wonderful read by Elizabeth Camden! Thank you Bethany House for the opportunity to read this book!
First of all, wow! Such in intricate story! It has it all, suspense, adventure, history and romance. Elizabeth Camden did a wonderful job at painting a vivid historical background. The novel was well-researched and the history was captivating.
The characters were all phenomenal and dynamic! Even the secondary characters were well rounded. All the characters seemed to contribute to the story and never dull or one-dimensional. My favorite has to be the relationship between Colin and Lucy. They did not have a typical whirlwind romance. They both had a sense of humor and were able to joke around with each other. This made them so much more personable. I also loved Lucy’s growth throughout the novel. She goes through her day to day life hoping for more and thinks it will come once the lawsuit is over. However, she realizes she had the ability to let go and live her life despite whatever happens.
My only critique would be that there was a lot going on at times and that really did slow down the pace of the novel. Some points moved quickly with the suspense, but others tended to drag on. Don’t get me wrong, I loved historical background that was given, but there were times when the novel needed to pick up the pace.
Overall, I was quite taken with this book! I thoroughly enjoyed the history, the characters and the suspense. Another wonderful read by Elizabeth Camden! Thank you Bethany House for the opportunity to read this book!
I received Hunter: The Fallen One in exchange for an honest review.
When I first received the book, I was definitely intrigued by the title. I had no idea what to expect. This is the first book in the Lian Hunter Adventure Series. The story is about a kid named Lian Hunter. He is a student at Tri-Asterisk Academy, which is a school that wealthy families attend in the heart of Los Angeles. As Lian attends classes and plays soccer, strange occurrences happen to him that he can’t explain. Soon, students start to go missing. With these occurrences and disappearances, Lian can’t help to feel like there is a missing link. His friend, Gabe, helps him in researching the mysteries surrounding the school and its history. What they discover is terrifying. Lian and Gabe have no idea who they can turn to with their information, but it seems like the world is slowly being infiltrated by an alien race.
Check out the rest of my review at: amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com
When I first received the book, I was definitely intrigued by the title. I had no idea what to expect. This is the first book in the Lian Hunter Adventure Series. The story is about a kid named Lian Hunter. He is a student at Tri-Asterisk Academy, which is a school that wealthy families attend in the heart of Los Angeles. As Lian attends classes and plays soccer, strange occurrences happen to him that he can’t explain. Soon, students start to go missing. With these occurrences and disappearances, Lian can’t help to feel like there is a missing link. His friend, Gabe, helps him in researching the mysteries surrounding the school and its history. What they discover is terrifying. Lian and Gabe have no idea who they can turn to with their information, but it seems like the world is slowly being infiltrated by an alien race.
Check out the rest of my review at: amandasbookreviewsite.wordpress.com