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serinde4books's reviews
837 reviews
Halestorm by Becky Akers
3.0
This is a book I picked up from for free from Amazon, and I have decided instead of randomly reading these free books that I have no idea what they are about other than free to start at the A’s and work my way to the Z’s.
This book was better than I expected, it is about the American revolution and the only American Revolutionist hung for spying Nathan Hale, he is famous for his final words "I regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." This is novel that is full of love and conflict, murder and betrayal. From the beginning the reader knows Nathan dies, yet his character is still endeared to us and we find ourselves hoping fervently for a different ending. That speaks volumes to me of Akers writing skills, she was able to draw me in and keep me hooked through the whole book, in fact there were times that I couldn’t put it down. Now I’m sure Akers did her research, but I have no idea if the fats actually line up the way she said they did, but that is the fun of historical fiction right…take a story we know some about and flesh it out. This wasn’t so amazing that I am scouring for her other works, which I have no idea if she has any, but it was a good solid 3 star. The price at the kindle store has gone up from $0 to $2.99 and I would say, hey if you have $3 this is a pretty good read.
For full review see my blog: http://adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com/
This book was better than I expected, it is about the American revolution and the only American Revolutionist hung for spying Nathan Hale, he is famous for his final words "I regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." This is novel that is full of love and conflict, murder and betrayal. From the beginning the reader knows Nathan dies, yet his character is still endeared to us and we find ourselves hoping fervently for a different ending. That speaks volumes to me of Akers writing skills, she was able to draw me in and keep me hooked through the whole book, in fact there were times that I couldn’t put it down. Now I’m sure Akers did her research, but I have no idea if the fats actually line up the way she said they did, but that is the fun of historical fiction right…take a story we know some about and flesh it out. This wasn’t so amazing that I am scouring for her other works, which I have no idea if she has any, but it was a good solid 3 star. The price at the kindle store has gone up from $0 to $2.99 and I would say, hey if you have $3 this is a pretty good read.
For full review see my blog: http://adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com/
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
3.0
This is a book I never would have chosen to read on my own. As most of my books these days are book club selections rather than my own, this book got read. But then again that is why I joined a book club, to read books I normally wouldn’t pick up and read on my own. I went in to this reading tentatively, I hadn’t voted for this book and I really didn’t think that I would like it, but I did. It wasn’t a can’t put’er down book, but when I choose to sit down and read it, it kept me interested and I didn’t give up.
To see my full review, see my blog http://adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-immortal-life-of-henrietta-lacks-by.html
To see my full review, see my blog http://adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-immortal-life-of-henrietta-lacks-by.html
The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett
I read this for my live book club, then sadly I missed the discussion meeting. This is the story of Sabine (a magician's assistant) after her Magician and husband, Parsifal dies. She is not handling his death well, and then secrets about his past and his family come out to throw he life even further into turmoil. I loved Patchettt's writing, and her ability to create a complete character. Did I understand each character and the characters reasons for who they were. No not completely, but I still felt that they were a whole character, and like people in real life, not always fully understandable. I loved the book. I sped through it in a two nights after work. It was so easy to slip into Pratchett's world.
Getting Waisted: A Survival Guide to Being Fat in a Society That Loves Thin by Monica Parker
This was a book that my book club won through book movement. It is the memoir of Monica Parker, apparently a famous writer and actress in Hollywood that I have never heard of and I did't recognize her picture not the back cover either. This is her story of her struggle with her weight and her need to be accepted and loved. She is born in Scotland and moves to Canada during childhood, somehow she becomes involved in a Canadian Fitness show, although she is overweight, or as she puts it fat. She meets the love of her life in Canada, then after her parents death she decides to move to Hollywood. Why, she is already struggling with her self esteem and body issues, and she move to the most superficial place on earth and seems surprised that it causes more complexes. At some point she comes to accept that she is a fat woman in a thin society, after a meal in complete darkness of all things.
I didn't get this book. It was supposed to be super funny, and it wasn't. I mean I got a few chuckles, but nothing to write home about. Monica didn't really seem to learn to love herself, at the end of the book she is still struggling and still trying to loose weight, just not on a fad diet anymore. I think I missed the point entirely. I struggle with body issues, I have gained weight after my children were born that hasn't gone away. I am lazy though, and I haven't really tried to loose the weight. I suspect if I actually attempted and ran into a wall I would be more sympathetic to her. She never joined a gym, and the one time she used a personal trainer she decided it was too hard and fired her. I understand struggling to love your body, but it never seemed that Monica did learn to love herself.
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
I didn't get this book. It was supposed to be super funny, and it wasn't. I mean I got a few chuckles, but nothing to write home about. Monica didn't really seem to learn to love herself, at the end of the book she is still struggling and still trying to loose weight, just not on a fad diet anymore. I think I missed the point entirely. I struggle with body issues, I have gained weight after my children were born that hasn't gone away. I am lazy though, and I haven't really tried to loose the weight. I suspect if I actually attempted and ran into a wall I would be more sympathetic to her. She never joined a gym, and the one time she used a personal trainer she decided it was too hard and fired her. I understand struggling to love your body, but it never seemed that Monica did learn to love herself.
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
Kill Smartie Breedlove by Joni Rodgers
This was a quick filler book for in between book club books. It was a free book on my Kindle that I had downloaded ages ago and not gotten around to reading before now.
Recently widowed private detective Shep Hartigate is hired by a pulp fiction writer Smartie Breedlove to find out who’s killing the exes of Texas, including Smartie’s best friend, Charma Bovet.
This was really good, I love the idea of an author trying to solve a mystery, while writing her next book, and elements of her real life leaking into her fantasy life, until the two are parallel.
This was an easy light read, with fun characters, and it poked fun at writers not letting them take themselves too seriously. I would read more in this series, in fact I think I should check now to see if there are more.
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
Recently widowed private detective Shep Hartigate is hired by a pulp fiction writer Smartie Breedlove to find out who’s killing the exes of Texas, including Smartie’s best friend, Charma Bovet.
This was really good, I love the idea of an author trying to solve a mystery, while writing her next book, and elements of her real life leaking into her fantasy life, until the two are parallel.
This was an easy light read, with fun characters, and it poked fun at writers not letting them take themselves too seriously. I would read more in this series, in fact I think I should check now to see if there are more.
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
Change Me Into Zeus's Daughter: A Memoir by Barbara Robinette Moss
2.0
Book Club read, was nervous going in sounded like another depressing read.
This is a memoir about growing up poor and undaunted in the South. Barbara Robinette Moss chronicles her family's chaotic, impoverished survival in the red-clay hills of Alabama. A wild-eyed, alcoholic father and a humble, heroic mother along with a shanty full of rambunctious brothers and sisters fill her life to the brim with stories that are gripping, tender, and funny.
Moss's early fascination with art coincides with her desire to transform her "twisted mummy face," which grew askew due to malnutrition and lack of medical care. Gazing at the stars on a clear Alabama night, she wishes to be the "goddess of beauty, much-loved daughter of Zeus."
I had a hard time with this time flow in this book, it seemed really slow at first, then we suddenly had skipped high school and she was a single mom. WTF? Then the fixing of her face was in the epilogue, not in the story itself? It happened during the fast forward part, it was confusing. I'm not sure what the point was, I mean there was no conclusion, she just stopped writing. I had a ton of unanswered questions when I was done reading. Did she confront her Mom about why did she stay with her Dad? Did she ever find or confront her parents about Mary Louise? Why was Janet so sheltered?
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
This is a memoir about growing up poor and undaunted in the South. Barbara Robinette Moss chronicles her family's chaotic, impoverished survival in the red-clay hills of Alabama. A wild-eyed, alcoholic father and a humble, heroic mother along with a shanty full of rambunctious brothers and sisters fill her life to the brim with stories that are gripping, tender, and funny.
Moss's early fascination with art coincides with her desire to transform her "twisted mummy face," which grew askew due to malnutrition and lack of medical care. Gazing at the stars on a clear Alabama night, she wishes to be the "goddess of beauty, much-loved daughter of Zeus."
I had a hard time with this time flow in this book, it seemed really slow at first, then we suddenly had skipped high school and she was a single mom. WTF? Then the fixing of her face was in the epilogue, not in the story itself? It happened during the fast forward part, it was confusing. I'm not sure what the point was, I mean there was no conclusion, she just stopped writing. I had a ton of unanswered questions when I was done reading. Did she confront her Mom about why did she stay with her Dad? Did she ever find or confront her parents about Mary Louise? Why was Janet so sheltered?
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
Dark Places by Gillian Flynn
4.0
When Libby Day was 7 years old she lost her entire family, her sisters and mother were brutally murdered, and her 15 year old brother was convicted of the crime. For the next 24 years she has been living off charity and generally has not moved past her 7 year old self. Then she comes in contact with a group that is convinced her brother is innocent and makes Libby start to question everything she thought she knew about that night. Everybody involved had a secret that 7 year olds were not included in. If her brother did not kill his family, who did?
This is the second Gillian Flynn book I have read. I read Gone Girl in June of 2014. I have become a fan. She takes us down such an unexpected rabbit hole with her stories. The twists of this book wasn't as shocking as in Gone Girl, but it still wasn't easily predictable. I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I felt that it all tied up a little to neatly, I wanted more left undone. It seemed pretty neat compared to Gone Girl. I still flew through the book, 3 days to read. It was really hard to put down, and I kept staying up past my bedtime to read "one more chapter." Flynn's writing is so smooth and conversational that it felt more like I was listening to a friend talk than reading a book. I need to get her book Sharp Objects because I have a feeling history will repeat itself and I will love it!
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
This is the second Gillian Flynn book I have read. I read Gone Girl in June of 2014. I have become a fan. She takes us down such an unexpected rabbit hole with her stories. The twists of this book wasn't as shocking as in Gone Girl, but it still wasn't easily predictable. I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I felt that it all tied up a little to neatly, I wanted more left undone. It seemed pretty neat compared to Gone Girl. I still flew through the book, 3 days to read. It was really hard to put down, and I kept staying up past my bedtime to read "one more chapter." Flynn's writing is so smooth and conversational that it felt more like I was listening to a friend talk than reading a book. I need to get her book Sharp Objects because I have a feeling history will repeat itself and I will love it!
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com