Posted on by Maureen

The Neverland Wars by Audrey Greathouse

51qrvdfllvl-_sx322_bo1204203200_I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Neverland Wars is a YA fantasy written by Audrey Greathouse. The title gives away a rather big clue about what the story is really about, but the plot starts out like so many other YA novels. Gwen is an average girl in an average town. She goes to high school, interacts with her friends, and she even has a crush on a boy.

But all that changes when Gwen’s little sister Rosemary is kidnapped. Her parents are forced to admit that magic is a very real and very dangerous force. As they worry about when Rose will come home, Gwen comes face-to-face with the kidnapper- the infamous Peter Pan. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

The Thank You Book by Mo Willems

510oaysl4alMy girls have been fans of the Elephant & Piggie series for about five years. We have almost all of the books in the series; they have helped all three of them learn to read. We were very sad when we heard that The Thank You Book would be the last Elephant & Piggie book, and we were looking forward to one last funny story with Piggie and Gerald.

As The Thank You Book begins, Piggie declares that she is going to thank everyone who has helped her. Gerald worries that she is going to forget someone, but Piggie insists that she will not.

And then Piggie proceeded to thank every secondary character in the entire series, and I tried not to cry. They are all there, and fans of the series (like my girls) will enjoy seeing familiar friends. Gerald continues to worry that Piggie will forget someone- who could she possibly be forgetting that thank? Read more

Posted on by Maureen

For the Love of Mike by Rhys Bowen

91arjrhqfplI have been enjoying Rhys Bowen’s Molly Murphy mystery series for a couple of years. These books follow young Irish immigrant Molly Murphy who works as a detective in turn of the century New York City. I started reading this series after discovering the Royal Spyness books, which are one of Bowen’s other series. I’ve been reading the books out of order; I’ve read all of the recent ones, and now I’m going back to the beginning of the series.

For The Love of Mike is the third book in the Molly Murphy series. Molly is quickly realizing that it is a lot more difficult for a woman to be a private investigator, but feels fortunate when she receives requests for help with two very different cases. The first case comes at the request of a garment factory owner. He suspects that a rival has been stealing his designs, and he needs Molly’s help to figure out how this is happening. Molly must infiltrate the factory and work as a garment worker. This is difficult work, and does not leave Molly much time to work on her second case: an English gentleman has written to her requesting help locating his daughter. The young woman ran away from the family’s Irish estate with a charismatic household servant. How can Molly find one missing girl in such a huge city? Read more

Posted on by Maureen

A Front Page Affair by Radha Vatsal

51rvpl02bwnlI received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I love historical fiction, and I love mysteries. I was very excited about the opportunity to read A Front Page Affair, which is the first book in a new series by Radha Vatsal. Capability “Kitty” Weeks works for a newspaper, but she has been relegated to covering “women’s” news. She is sent to cover a Society party, and one of the guests turns up dead in the stables. As Kitty retraces her steps and the events of that evening, she realizes that the details are not adding up. The situation is much more complicated, and might compromise national security. Read more

Posted on by Maureen · 1 Comment

The Untamed Earl by Valerie Bowman

51l0ttfucmlI received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I have enjoyed reading historical romance novels for about fifteen years, especially those set in the Regency era of English history. I hadn’t read any of Valerie Bowman’s other novels before receiving the opportunity to read The Untamed Earl, but I am always looking for new authors/series.

The Untamed Earl is the 5th book in Bowman’s “Playful Brides” series. The story concerns Alexandra Hobbs, who fell in love with the Owen Monroe when she was fifteen years old. Several years later, she learns that her father has arranged for Owen to marry- Lavinia- Alexander’s awful older sister. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

You Are My Best Friend by Tatsuya Miyanishi

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I received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I was very excited about the opportunity to read You Are My Best Friend because my daughters and I had already read Tatsuya Miyanishi’s other book featuring the Tyrannosaurus, You Look Yummy. These Tyrannosaurus books are part of a popular series in Japan, and they are now being published in the United States.

The story opens with the Tyrannosaurus chasing a group of smaller dinosaurs when he falls off of a cliff. He is rescued by Elasmosaurus, who cleans Tyrannosaurus up and brings him some food. Elasmosaurus tells Tyrannosaurus about a mean bully dinosaur who lives in the water, and Tyrannosaurus lies and says that he hates bullies too. The two dinosaurs become friends, and Tyrannosaurus finds that he finds more pleasure in having a friend than from being a bully. But can he tell his new friend the truth about who he really is?

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Love, Lies and Spies by Cindy Anstey

61-uqwzzxtlI received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

I love stories set during the Regency period, so I was very excited about the opportunity to read Love, Lies and Spies. This young adult novel was written by Cindy Anstey.

Juliana Telford is a young woman of Quality about to embark on her first Season in London. She is very excited about this; she is not interested in finding a husband- no, our Miss Telford has some ulterior motives. She hopes to get her research about lady beetles published, so London is the perfect place to be to achieve this goal. Juliana encounters Mr. Spencer Northam at the beginning of the book, and continues to encounter him once the Season begins in London. Spencer is secretly working with the War Department; he knows that communiqués have been exchanged, and he needs to figure out who is behind these treasonous activities. Mr. Northam has also declared that matrimony is not for him, but it is difficult to concentrate when in close proximity to such a beautiful young woman. Read more

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My Mad Fat Diary: A Memoir by Rae Earl

51g4kphei4lI received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I love books set in England, so I was very excited about the opportunity to read My Mad Fat Diary by Rae Earl. I usually prefer material set in the 19th century, and I am choosing to ignore the fact that a book set in 1989 is almost thirty years in the past, and might be conceivably classified as “historical”.

This book was originally published a few years ago in England, and Rae has kindly included a glossary at the beginning for the American publication. The original English slang remains unchanged, so a glossary is very handy for readers who might not be as familiar with the slang words from England. Read more

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Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood by Liesl Shurtliff

51wa5tvta3lI received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

My oldest daughter is almost nine years old, so I have recruited her to help me with the middle grade ARCs that I receive from Netgalley. She is a voracious reader, but she tends to gravitate towards comics and graphic novels rather than novels. Reading together gives her the opportunity to expand her repertoire, and I get some great feedback from the target demographic.

We just finished reading Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood. This is Liesl Shurtliff’s third novel featuring fairytale characters. Red’s grandmother is feeling ill, and a basket of goodies is not enough to restore her to good health. Red’s grandmother happens to be a witch, but she is too sick to prepare a potion for herself.   Red sets out to gather the ingredients for a restorative draught, but it proves to be a more difficult job than she anticipated. As if that wasn’t bad enough, a pesky girl named Goldie insists on tagging along, and Red can’t shake the feeling that they are being followed! Read more

Posted on by Maureen

Waylon! One Awesome Thing by Sara Pennypacker

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I received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

My oldest daughter is almost nine years old, and she is an avid reader. She and I have read all of Sara Pennypacker’s Clementine books, so we were very excited about the opportunity to read Pennypacker’s latest book: Waylon! One Awesome Thing.

Waylon is not a sequel to the Clementine books, but they are definitely a spinoff. Waylon lives in Clementine’s world; the two children attend the same school, and they are both in the fourth grade. They are not close friends, but Waylon has a couple of interactions with her over the course of the book.

If you are not familiar with the Clementine books, that’s okay; you don’t have to have read them before reading Waylon. Waylon is a fourth grade boy who lives in Boston with his parents and sister. Waylon is a very intelligent boy, and he loves science.

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