Book Review: Trouble by Non Pratt

My 13-year-old daughter inadvertently checked out this book from the teen section of our public library (it has a different cover at our library, without sperm everywhere) thinking it would be a nice novel about friendship.  After the first few pages, she was horrified and quit reading it because she was bothered by all the sex and alcohol mentioned (though she should’ve expected some of it, since it did say in the blurb that it was about a pregnant 15-year-old).  So, I decided to read it.  And… wow.  I am thankful that my daughter wants nothing to do with people like the ones in this book.  These are horrible children, neglectful parents, and just… bad bad bad.  It’s full of British slang, which J didn’t understand, which is actually good, because I don’t necessarily want her knowing some of those terms.  So overall… bad.  Just bad.  Not teen appropriate.  Do teenagers really act like this?  If so… I am sad for our world.

Book Review: The Butterfly Garden

As an Amazon Prime member I get a free book each month from their Kindle First program.  This month, I chose “The Butterfly Garden” by Dot Hutchinson.  This book has a publication date of June 1, 2016, which is interesting, since I finished reading it on May 3.

I read this in one (long) sitting. It is SO disturbing, yet draws out sympathy for everyone involved. I saw some other reviews that Maya isn’t a believable character… but I don’t read this type of book for the sake of reality, and I like that she’s not like every other girl her age. This is a well-written, heartbreaking story – but it is NOT for the faint of heart.  You may find other reviewers nitpicking it, but that’s to be expected – I quite enjoyed it and I’m glad to have read it.

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Book Review: Crash & Burn by Michael Hassan

Crash and Burn by Michael Hassan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is another of those books that has kept me thinking, even after finishing it. The main thing I am thinking, though, is that I never knew this sort of high school life. I wouldn’t have known where to get weed if I had wanted it, and I honestly don’t know who used and who didn’t. I never got invited to any parties like the ones Crash talks about. So I didn’t really relate to the characters, other than that I knew a few people like Roxanne. Despite that, I did enjoy the book. I wish there had been more insight into Burn’s mind. There just wasn’t enough. Granted, in the framework of Crash writing the book, there wasn’t any way to work that in. Still, all in all, I enjoyed this book and found it well-written.

One major drawback for me is that this is considered YA/Teen. The sex talk is a little explicit, there is copious use of the F-word, and the drug use is never-ending. Given that my 11-year-old reads from the YA section, that’s a little bothersome (yes, I do monitor what she’s checking out from the library).

Book Review: Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas

I’ve got an image and link above but Ad-Block thinks it’s an ad, so if you can’t see it, I apologize. This is an absolutely terrible cover for this book. I’ve read that the UK version has a much better cover, but I can’t be bothered to track it down right now.

I’m still thinking about this story 24 hours later, and that’s always a sign to me that it was a good book. I must admit, I don’t even like the characters – they live in a world I have no familiarity with whatsoever and don’t really WANT to know. Rich kids, private schools, partying – not my thing. At all. Even a little bit.

But, I’m going to re-read it. Because the ending made me yell. Out loud. In a good way. I may be really dense, but I really, really did NOT see that coming. I LOVE it when a book surprises me. So few do anymore. This one shouldn’t have, I suppose, but it did, and I like it. Now, I need to re-read for the nuances and foreshadowing that I missed. It’ll be worth it.

Book review: Burn by Suzanne Phillips

Burn by Suzanne Marie Phillips
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really struggled with how to rate this novel. Part of me didn’t like Cameron. Part of me understood him too well. Part of my hurt for the mother, because I have a tween daughter and I am terrified I’ll make mistakes in my parenting. We don’t have the abuse situation but it still terrifies me as a parent. So the basic overall viewpoint: It made me hurt, it made me think, and those are hallmarks of a good read for me.

Book Review: The Gathering by Randy Lindsay

The Gathering: End’s Beginning by Randy Lindsay
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Full disclosure: I am not the target demographic for this book! I am not LDS, in fact I am more agnostic than anything else. But I have a fascination with the Mormons. I think their beliefs border on insane (the Garden of Eden was in western Missouri? really? I grew up in western Missouri, and it is NOT Eden), but I LOVE the family-focused lifestyle, how they take care of each other, and present themselves as overall good people. One of my high-school best friends is a Mormon, and I have nothing but respect for her. Also, I have spoken with the author in passing online a few times, which is what brought the title to my attention in the first place.

I am also addicted to “end of the world as we know it” books. I don’t see them from the second coming view that this book is written to, but I do love all the various perspectives on how the world will end. This is one of the well-done versions. Food shortages, impending war, and it comes about slowly – this is how I think it will really happen, so this book spoke to me on that level.

The story is well written, it makes sense, and the editing is nearly perfect. I understand that it is written with LDS members in mind. Unfortunately, as a non-member, about halfway through the book I started feeling a bit alienated. I didn’t quite understand the persecution the characters seemed to be encountering. Is the anti-Mormon sentiment in that area of the country really that strong? Despite that, I did like the Williams family. They’re good people just trying to do what they think is best.

I am not a big fan of political intrigue, but in this book it was well-written and I was able to follow what was happening without skimming. Mr. Lindsay seems to share the same level of cynicism toward the government that I feel.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this novel. Though I don’t share the beliefs of the target audience, I was engaged enough that if there is a sequel, I will buy it.

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Book Review: The Broken by Ker Dukey

The Broken by Ker Dukey
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I grabbed this as a Kindle freebie, because I’m addicted to Kindle freebies. I should’ve passed.

The premise was good. I understand this woman was abused. I have known women who were abused. Yes, many of them act out sexually for a variety of reasons. But they do not act like this. This is the most disgusting, atrocious depiction of an abused woman I have ever read – and I’ve read some whoppers. I didn’t expect a Happily Ever After, but the ending was horrendous. I can’t even think of enough adjectives to describe how slimy I felt after reading this. I am deleting it from my Kindle library. Not just off my device – completely gone, so I never have to acknowledge its existence again.

The editing was a little bit problematic. Sometimes I couldn’t tell who was talking, because the dialogue wasn’t properly formatted. Some words were just incorrectly used. Just… yuck.

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Review: The Sway of Disaster by Michael Aizen (Short Story)

The Sway of Disaster by Mikael Aizen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a very short story that I downloaded as a Kindle freebie back in 2011, and just got around to reading. I’m glad I did, though it really disturbed me (what happens at the end is one of my greatest fears). The premise is excellent – what if you wished for a disaster, and it happened? I enjoyed the story, but I disliked the ending, though it was actually a bit predictable. Honestly, I feel like this worked as a short story, but I would like to have seen it fleshed out and turned into at least a novella with a bit more psychological analysis.

Book Review: Design on a Crime by Ginny Aiken

Design on a Crime by Ginny Aiken
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I have read many Christian fiction novels and mysteries, and most of them feel as if a little religion is thrown in so they can call it Christian. This one, on the other hand, was nearly painful in its preaching. In fact, this is one of the few books I haven’t been able to finish. I found the main character just plain annoying, and the mystery started out OK, but turned into a side note after all the religion came into play.

As I said, I am definitely not opposed to Christian fiction. This was just too much. I am thankful I picked it up as a Kindle freebie a while back. It took a while for me to get to it… I wish I had just kept passing it by.

Book Review: After Dead by Charlaine Harris

After Dead: What Came Next in the World of Sookie Stackhouse by Charlaine Harris

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I am extremely thankful I did not pay for this – borrowed it from the library, and read it in 20 minutes. I didn’t even remember who half these characters even were, and I didn’t care in the least what happened to them. The ones I did care about… I was displeased at the resolution in several of the cases. I wish I had only read the Sookie and Sam portions!