thecaffeinatedreader's reviews
667 reviews

Greenlight by Benjamin Stevenson

3.25

Jack Quick had a podcast and then he was given a chance to turn that into a true-crime tv documentary and he decided to reveal the injustices of the justice system. Police bias, shoddy investigating and circumstantial evidence led to Curtis Wade being convicted of murdering Eliza Dacey.

This equates to Curtis Wade being innocent…doesn’t it?

Jack Quick is certainly a different sort of MC, I really was impressed that Stevenson gave us a male MC with bulimia, something we so often forget can affect everyone. Another thing that was well written was the fact that there was no magic cure for it, that it stays with him and is something he constantly struggles with. Too easily do we write away difficult things with a wave of a ‘wand’ but Stevenson doesn’t do this and so I respect that.

Another thing about Jack Quick is that he makes decision after decision and he never knows how it will play out, this leads to many consequences (for better or worse you decide) and that’s something I always feel is important, especially in a thriller.

The book is divided into sections and to divide them, it’s set up like a TV episode script and that was actually a lot of fun to read, I found myself really happy to get to a new section just to read those bits alone.

There’s a lot going on in this book, just when you think you’ve figured it out, or rather Jack has it figured out, you’re left with more questions and more explanations. Now this was something that as we got toward the end that I wasn’t sure worked in its favour, but I tell you what, I did enjoy the ending tremendously.

I think that how it ended was extremely fitting and I applaud Stevenson for leaving it that way.

Obviously I’m not going to put spoilers so you’ll have to read to find out what I mean.

The crime takes place in a small town where everything is dependent on wine, wineries, and vineyards, one person’s in particular and because of this we get to see how that can be a bad thing but we also do see some redeemable characters as well and I think the absolute best part of all of this was the angle of the true-crime documentary.

This is a huge reminder that TV is still just that, TV. Interviews, evidence, towns, they can all be edited to appear how someone wants you to view it. Jack seems to forget that he has, whether he truly meant to or not, manipulated an audience into seeing things the way he wants them to and this is part of the consequences I was talking about, because what happens when he wants to try and attempt to dig for the real truth? Would anyone believe him, and how could he convince those who were convinced by him before that he may have been wrong?

A great thriller, perfect for this summer set in Australia in some ‘wine country’ and giving us twists and turns to no ends. Three and a half cups of coffee from this caffeinated reader!

**I want to thank Hodder & Stoughton for a chance to be on this blog tour and for a proof copy, which in exchange for, I have given my honest review.**

The Return of King Lillian by Suzie Plakson

5.0

This is probably one of my favorite retellings ever now. I do have a soft spot for retellings in general but Plakson just knocks it out of the park for creativity. Lillian is such a bright, enigmatic, and innocent character with a heart so full and pure that I cheered her on from page one. This has a bit of a ‘Princess Bride’ meets ‘Wizard of Oz’/’Alice in Wonderland’ feel. It’s whimsical in all the best ways and though beautiful and lush with some darker moments it can fit a wide range of ages as far as reader audience goes.

Honestly, this was an incredible read.

Lillian writes in her book, and to her book, so as you read it’s as if she’s writing to you. She writes as she speaks so that makes from some creative spelling and word choice and it’s a lot of fun in that way. Also, this has a feel of the old fantasies and tales, there’s a character going on a long quest with a bunch of adventures along the way and a great slew of companions and character interactions.I’ll expand on this more when I write up a review on my blog but needless to say I completely love this book.

^ This was my GoodReads review, and to expand on it, this book really stuck with me. I mean I think about it randomly when someone asks about retellings. Obviously, there are some great ones out there but I just felt this was one of the more creative ones and it left me yearning in a pretty nostalgic manner. This harkened me back to again The Princess Bride [in terms of style, not content] where I chuckled, but more than that fleeting style comparison, it reminded me of the older books such as The Wizard of Oz, or Alice in Wonderland as I stated in the GoodReads review. There’s this sense of exploration of new lands and adventures, and a hero travelling through a world but instead of focusing on the world, we see bits of it as we go, piecing it together and focus on the adventures.

Lillian is a great protagonist and I loved her, and it’s not completely without heartache but it was little enough to be almost refreshing in that sense. She overcame quite a few things, and there was sadness, but that wasn’t the main focus of Lillian’s thoughts, she was carrying forward most of the time, toward a goal.

Not to mention, how many times can we recount a retelling or adaptation of The Emperor’s New Clothes and Plakson just completely blows me away. [I’m a HUGE Andersen fan so I can be picky]

I was also lucky enough to be gifted an audiobook copy from the Maestro herself, and I’ve delighted in listening to it with my daughter. In fact, this was an audiobook first and the fact that she has turned it into an equally beautiful novel on paper, that there’s no difference and they both flow flawlessly says a lot about her talent with words.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for a chance to read this in exchange for my honest review.

Josephine Baker by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara

informative lighthearted

4.75

This was a cute and sweet introduction of Josephine Baker for young children. It focused on all the positive aspects she's known for, including civil rights and the adoption of all her children, even her work as a spy. It also showed the fun things that Josephine Baker was known for, such as all her pets, the banana skirt, and of course, her dancing. My daughter and I enjoyed reading this book.

Thanks to the publisher for the eARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Poppy Wife: A Novel of the Great War by Caroline Scott

5.0

https://thecaffeinatedreader.com/2019/11/02/photographer-of-the-lost/

I remember the first time I read ‘The Book Thief’ it utterly consumed me on an emotional level, it was rare that a non-fantasy book could have such a huge impact on me. That was a while ago, but, last night as I was reading the last few pages [because of course, I procrastinate] I knew that this review was going to be raw to write.

This book is SO poetic in its prose, it’s very rare for me to enjoy books written in the present tense in general, but after just simply noting it was in fact in the present tense, I never gave that a second thought. It was engrossing, emotional, endearing, so many other awesome e words I’m sure, but really it was just simply amazing.

This book was a journey, a spiritual and, as I said already, emotional one.

The perspectives shift, Harry and Edie at various point during and after the war. There’s loss, grief at its rawest form, and love in perhaps its most vulnerable form.

You felt as if you were looking through War-Torn France with them through a majority of it, and their emotions slid from the page to your heart.

I don’t want to give away more of what happens, but, suffice to say if you have any interest in a book set post-WWI that will fill your heart, this one is for you.

Thank you to Anne and the Publisher for a copy of this in exchange for my honest review as part of the blog tour.

Second Skin (Bridge of Fire Book 1) by Sue Bentley

adventurous

3.0

I was really excited to read this. I mean, come on, dragons. Who doesn’t love dragons/fire breathing lizards/fire breathing anything [let’s be real]?

This is also the start of the Bridge of Fire books, so it’s great when you get to start off with a new series.

In this book, Bentley gives us a pretty awesome take on dragons. They’re shapeshifters, their flying fiery forms are called their ‘second skins’ and they have two hearts, essentially they are two souls, their two-legged human-looking forms and their dragon forms. These shapeshifters had to leave their homeland and make a new land home, crossing a land bridge that is now gone, they made it to the lands where human tribes have ruled. These tribes all have their own cultures and leaders and ways of life, but they’re quickly conquered with a peace treaty put in place.

No second-skins will be used not even in a ‘peaceful’ manner in this new land.

This all recalls the invasion of the Americas to me and I loved that she took something like that and gave it a huge fantasy spin, a new land, new world, new people, and all of it steeped in heavy world building.

You all know me, I love world building, this did cause the pacing for Aledra and her story to slump a bit in the middle but I would say that the ending more than made up for it.

That’s another thing, it took me a while to appreciate Aledra after sh leaves the comforts of her people, but, I really enjoyed her as she developed, especially in the last four chapters. I love the choices she makes and how Bentley steers her toward something that allows her room to grow.

Penda was absolutely one of my favorite characters and I can only hope that there’s more of her to come. I mean, I fangirl her, she’s amazing.

Aledra’s father is complex and so layered that it made me happy to get to the parts with him. I really think there’s so much more to him than Aledra sees and I love the complexity of their relationship.

There is love, there is war, there are dragons and tribes, and a girl who wants nothing more than to have the freedom to choose. So pretty much a guaranteed like in my books when I read it.

Jubal is Aledra’s companion during a good chunk of the novel and he was an interesting character but I would say he paled in comparison to Aledra, her Father, and Penda.

Overall a great solid start to an intriguing fantasy series, and you can bet I will be happy to read book two and see where Aledra goes next.

Three cups of coffee!!

Thanks to Anne Cater, Sue Bently, and Endeavour Venture for a chance to read and honestly review this as part of the Random Things Blog Tour!

The Wind Softly Murmurs: Poems of Family Love and Loss by Sharon Arthur

inspiring reflective

4.75

**I received a copy of this from the author in exchange for my honest review.**

One doesn't expect such prose in this day and age on the manner of grief in poetry but Sharon Arthur achieves a mythical and spiritual journey for the grieving in her poetry. The poems are divided into sections, and she shares with the reader words that have come to her from the loss of her own parents. One doesn't need to lose a parent though to identify with Arthur, simply know the feeling of grief.

The poems are beautiful and haunting and the call to the age of mythology in them makes for a powerful read and I haven't seen such talent in a 'new' poet in quite a long time.

J SS Bach by Martin Goodman

emotional reflective slow-paced

4.5

Where do I start? This holds all the horrors and beauty of mankind. The fact that even when someone isn’t good they can still do good. It’s a book that shows how the past echoes on in the future, how it really affects people rather than the imprint it just leaves in history books.

Goodman immediately drops you into the story, he doesn’t waste time on flowery prose and shows you the heart of the matter, the journey he wants to take you on. It’s one that’s not for the faint-hearted. He also is brilliant at describing history in such a modern and stark way. He shows how ugly things were, how brutal it was, and yet his words are elegant, poignant, guiding you through brutal honesty and lyricism of music.

Three generations of women from the same family have been entangled in Otto’s life, whether they know it or not. Katja is the origins of it all and her character is not an easy one to appreciate, but, Goodman does a good job showing you enough about her to at least have some understanding on certain parts of her workings. I can appreciate the struggles she went through though they are justified in many ways.

Her daughter Uwe broke my heart, if there was ever a character that I wanted to reach out and cherish, it’s her. The child of two Nazis, and yet just an innocent life herself. She bears the burden of the shame brought on to her by her parents, hated by others for simply being born to them. It’s a hard life to live, and really it was a heartbreaking read overall but especially for her, Otto, and Greta. In fact, the reason I rated this 4.5 instead of 5 is simply that I wish there would have been more to Uwe’s story, and the women in general but this story, in reality, is about Otto more than anyone else in my opinion.

Otto himself is a character full of turmoil, tragedy, and isolation. Goodman breathes him to life, there’s not one moment where his actions are believable, the way he lives his life, the choices he’s made. The only thing I struggled to believe was a certain moment that occurs in the book once it’s back to 1994, but I won’t say it and spoil it, it was quite a small issue, and one though I don’t agree with, it makes sense why Goodman put it in. In fact, the rest of the story is pretty flawless, I just wanted more because I think it needed more about the women but it’s hard to argue with the choices Goodman has made. Otto though, he is the true main character in my humble opinion, and your heart will be gripped by him.

Rosa is Katja’s Granddaughter and Uwe’s daughter, raised by Katja, she’s grown up in a world knowing the stark truth about her grandparents but never knowing her own past entirely, told that her father had died, and not at all knowing who he was. She is tugged by the past onto a path that will eventually lead her to Otto.

And at the heart of everything, the main reason I wanted to read this, is music.

Otto is a brilliant cellist and composer, Katja was a musician until she went deaf (not a spoiler as you find out within the first few pages she is indeed unable to hear), and Rosa is a musicologist. Fun fact, My postgrad is in Musicology, so I was a bit critical of the musical aspects of this, and Goodman certainly did his research, I was pretty impressed and he didn’t overreach, it was a perfect balance. Music connects Otto to his family and to Katja, to Rosa later on, and it draws people in and strips them down to the bare bones of their pain and joy, its something that can’t be quantified or explained but I loved the way Goodman wrote about it, the sensations it brings in emotions and to our bodies.

As I stated earlier, this book is not for the faint-hearted. This shows the brutality and violence of WWII, there are Nazis before and after the war, there are people who are cruel, but it’s never needless cruelty or violence in Goodman’s writing, it all adds purposefully to the story.

4.5/5 Cups of coffee and I tip my hat to Goodman. This was a brilliant novel that broke my heart in the best ways. Thanks to Anne for letting me be part of this tour and thanks to Goodman for the copy of his book. 

A Bad Breed by Kat Ross

5.0

Let’s see if I can articulate words for how much I loved this. I’ll be honest I thought I was looking at a 3, maybe 4, cups of coffee read, it sounded entertaining and I knew I would like it, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. I love Victorian era books, whether they’re written in modern times or in Victorian times, they’re some of my favorite books but this also means I can be picky about them as I want something that really feels Victorian if they’re modern books.

This nailed it. Or rather, Ross nailed it. This instantly transported you to a feel of Victorian that felt as if you had leapt back in time. Her writing style though isn’t dry as some people might find Victorian books, she keeps you completely engaged from page one. This doesn’t just stay in London either, we get to travel around, and there’s so much beauty and darkness. ‘Gaslamp Gothic’ stays true, think of Penny Dreadfuls and all the dark things we love about Victorian-era gothic and Ross obliges by giving us those things. There’s the occult, secret societies, necromancer, ancient magic, and the hint of supernatural in a small Romanian village. Not to mention she makes everything she writes her own, this is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast without making you feel that its sole purpose is just to retell a beloved tale.

Anne has vanished and Vivienne goes after her ward and friend, she needs to know what has happened. This is its own part of the book and it is the first we encounter when picking up A Bad Breed. I found myself so engrossed in Vivienne’s part in the book I forgot that we had yet to skim the surface of Anne and her own going-ons in the book. This is the third book in the series but it can absolutely be read as a stand-alone. [Though, I’m ready to read the other two this month in preparation of book four coming out this summer.]

We switch from Vivienne to Anne and occasionally to Anne’s brother, who is also Vivienne’s bonded partner. This has to do with what and who they are which is fabulous and magical and if you want to know then go read it yourself.

Mostly though once we hit its stride, we’re reading this tale of Anne and her monster…or is she the beast in comparison? There’s such a complex twist to how these two feed off each other, that while you know who the beast is, it’s not always clear that, that should mean that the other is completely human/civil in tandem to the beast. [I mean this is one suave beast if I do say so myself, and I ship them and love their chemistry]

This, however, does not have the same ending as your typical Beauty and the Beast tale and I LOVE that. I actually thought the ending was brilliant, I’d say more, but I don’t want to give it away.

Beautiful landscapes, beasts with more to them than meets the eye, women who fight the darkness, and men seeking redemption. This book was amazing, and I’m gushing, I know, but I really hope to share just how much I loved this with you all. Please check it out if you are intrigued and get the chance.

A 5 cups of coffee read for me and a definite favorite. Thank you to Xpresso Tours for a digital copy of this in exchange for my honest opinion. 

 

Remeon's Quest by J.W. Garrett

2.25

Thank you so much the publisher for letting me read this for free via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Garrett has some really interesting ideas, and I love that the time period for our hero was in the time of the building of the Hoover Dam. I felt her writing was strongest during the historical side, and though I loved the ideas she had, I think there may be too many. A lot of times it felt like a whole jumble of ideas on spin cycle and you weren’t sure which one was supposed to be the main one or which was important at all. I think though that there’s a lot of promise in Garrett’s writing style and the story had some very tender moments which I appreciated. The style of the sci-fi writing was pretty ‘classic’ and it reminded me a little of ‘Dune’ in style and ideas but there wasn’t the same strength behind it. The ending was done well and it left it open-ended enough that you hope she writes another but if she doesn’t, you’re still left hoping haha.

Unfortunately, the love didn’t feel tangible to me between the two characters romantically and that was a struggle to read through. It was insta-love and it was badly done insta-love, I could not find it in me to believe they had a relationship at all and it went amazingly fast in terms of pacing. Maybe it’s because I’m a slow mover but I was slightly panicked for them! Also, they were like 16-year-olds deciding to have a child together while practising magic and one is human and one is not. It’s just a lot to take in.

Slightly disappointed the alien’s only difference physically was that she had silver hair.

The friendship between Harry and Jack also feels very fabricated though the friendship between Jack and Sam is very genuine and the best part of the story, hands down.

The things I did like were Garrett’s time period choice, the basic premise, I mean it’s classic, alien abduction, I loved it, and the fact that she went with old school sci-fi. The problems with old school sci-fi though are pretty deep, and Garrett’s seemed to be slightly tinged with one its problems, sexism.

Kennig & Gold by Christopher M. Struck

2.5

**Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC copy, my honest review has been given in exchange below.**

This book was a sweet concept but it fell a little flat for me. I think it was actually Kennig who just didn’t seem fleshed out enough for my personal preference but Gold was very intriguing and I did love that Kennig was a male singer and model at one point, something a little different! The book is done in sweet flashbacks and moments in the present. The writing style is easy to read and I really enjoyed reading about their travels and the tour. A nice heartfelt read for those it can appeal to.

To me it just felt on the verge of going deeper but never daring to, and I think that’s what slightly disappointed me. Not to mention the part that seemed ‘flattest’ to me was Gold himself, and I was unsure how to take the advice he gave our Journalist friend who acts as the go between, between present time and the past through the letters he reads.

That is one thing I did enjoy, that it was the Journalist reading letters to reveal the past and Gold himself filling in the necessary blanks when needed.

This does have a bit of a religious undertone just as a warning for those who may not enjoy that, it wasn’t the theme of the book nor was it overriding the plot, just part of the story.