A Bookworm's Book Reviews

Remarkably Bright Creatures – Shelby van Pelt

Title: Remarkably Bright Creatures

Author: Shelby van Pelt

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Plot: Tova Sullivan works as a night janitor at the Sowell Bay Aquarium. It keeps her busy since her husband passed and her son disappeared. Her favorite animal at the aquarium is Marcellus, the pacific giant octopus. Tova feels like she can talk to Marcellus and he actually listens. Now she’s getting ready to retire and move out of her house. When she’s injured, Cameron Cassmore, a new arrival to the small town of Sowell Bay starts learning the ropes at the aquarium. He’s in town to find is long lost father and took the job to earn some money while he searches. Soon he starts forming a bond with Tova and the other locals. Tova helps Cameron bond with Marcellus as well. But when things don’t go as planned, what will happen to everyone? Can they come together and work it out? Or will everyone go their own ways?

Rating: 4.0 – a sweet tale of finding family

Opinion: This was a sweet story. I enjoyed the sentimentality of the story and the theme of found family. I found the chapters from the octopus’s point of view entertaining. I got a kick out of his antics. Though I know that octopus are smart, I’m not sure they’re as smart as Marcellus. I wanted the best for all of the characters. They were well written and I could understand where they were all coming from. I liked how even the octopus got a fun personality. Though it was a slow and steady book, it still kept me interested and wanting to know what happened. The author wrapped up everything nicely and though not everything happened the way the characters wanted, they got what they needed. I highly recommend this book for any who needs a sweet book about found family.

Darkness Duology – Frank Peretti

Titles: Book 1 – This Present Darkness, Book 2 Piercing the Darkness

Author: Frank Peretti

Genre: Christian Fiction

Plot: 1 – Ashton is a small town with a small problem. There’s a group of people who are trying to take over the town. They’re starting with the small college in Ashton. But the real problem is that demons are helping take over. The Christians in town are losing ground. Hank Bushe is struggling to keep his church afloat with people accusing each other and him. Bernice Krueger and Marshall Hogan are reporters who are trying to find the truth underneath the lies and deception. Can they come together come together to find the truth? Or will the demons take over the town?

2 – The defeated demons from Ashton have found their next small town to terrorize, Bacon’s Corner. Sally Roe used to be part of the new age cult responsible for what happened in Ashton. She’s on the run because of what happened in her past. She got info the leaders want. With help, both spiritual and physical, she’s been able to avoid them. But Sally Roe’s also got information that can help Bacon’s Corners church and school defeat a lawsuit. But Sally must confront her past and find her courage before the lawsuit comes to a close. Can she find the strength and courage to find her faith and confront her past? Or will the demons find a way to defeat Bacon’s Corner?

Rating: 4.0 – a good story of good vs evil, and angels vs demons

Opinion: I read this books in high school and found them at a thrift store and thought I’d read them again. There were a few things I remember from the first time and other things that made me think ‘oh yeah.’ This was more descriptive than I remember. So it made for slower reading. But the descriptions were well done so I could easily picture what was going on. The demon descriptions were creepy. The one thing I didn’t love about the book was that there were a lot of characters introduced at the beginning. For me, that’s kind of a turn off. It makes it hard to keep track of everyone. Especially when there’s demons and angels to keep track of as well. But overall, this was a great duology. It was a very classic, and very good, tale of good versus evil. I highly recommend reading this classic duology.

First Lie Wins – Ashley Elston

Title: First Lie Wins

Author: Ashley Elston

Genre: Thriller

Plot: Evie Porter is her most recent identity. Her job now is to gather information about Ryan Sumner’s job for her boss, Mr. Smith. Evie has one last chance to prove herself after her last job went south. But complications arise. People from her last job come around. Someone else is using her same previous identity. Evie’s starting to develop feelings for Ryan. Now she needs to find a way to around all of these things. Can Evie find a way out? Or will her past catch up with her?

Rating: 3.5 – a good thriller with an Ocean’s 11 feel

Opinion: This was an interesting book. I enjoyed the premise. It took me a little bit to figure out that what I thought were other characters were actually Evie’s previous identities. While those were interesting to read about, I feel like it took away from the story. The one thing I did like about the other identities did do a good job of showing Evie’s personality and why she did what she did with her most recent identity. This was an easy read while being a slower book. The characters were well written and had good character development. Overall I enjoyed this book. Though it wasn’t one of my favorites.

The Winter Sea – Susanna Kearsley

Title: The Winter Sea

Author: Susanna Kearsley

Genre: Historical Fiction

Plot: Carrie McClelland is researching the 1708 attempt to put James Stewart back on the Scottish throne for her next book. She decides to visit the little town next to the Castle Slains ruins in Scotland. While there, Carrie bases her main character off one of her ancestors, Sophia. Carrie’s writing takes off. It’s effortless and seems to come from dreams. Then she learns these things she’s writing actually happened. How did Carrie learn more about her ancestors than the historical records? Where did this information come from?

Rating: 4.0 – an interesting historical fiction

Opinion: I really enjoyed this book. I think I read this book a long time ago but forgot until I started reading it again. A couple scenes felt very familiar, but I couldn’t remember if I’d actually read this book before. This was a really well done dual timeline book, one past and one present. Though it was a more slow and steady book, it kept me interested the whole time. It took me a little bit to catch on to one of the character’s accents. She writes in a true Scottish accent for the characters from the region. So I found myself rereading some of the dialog so I could understand all of what they were saying. But once I got the cadence down in my head it was easy to understand. I also liked learning more about of history I don’t usually read about. Though with all of the hype with Outlander, I’m surprised this isn’t a more popular book. As this book takes place in the same time as when the first books take place. So if you like Outlander, or books about the Scottish rebellions, I highly recommend this book.

Hope and Glory Trilogy – Elizabeth Camden

Titles: Book 1 – The Spice King, Book 2 – A Gilded Lady, Book 3 – The Prince of Spies

Author: Elizabeth Camden

Genre: Historical Fiction

Plot: Book 1 – Annabelle Larkin works a junior botanist at the Smithsonian. She’s just moved to DC from Kansas. Her boss wants her to find a way to gain access to Gray Delacroix’s unique, worldwide plant collection. But Gray is fiercely protective of his plants and his business. Annabelle’s boss promises her a permanent, and better paying, position if she can get information about Gray’s plant collection. As they get to know each other, they learn they have much in common. But will Annabelle’s boss ask too much of her? Can she betray the man who’s stealing her heart? Or will her duty to her country overrule her heart?

Book 2 – Caroline Delacroix is First Lady Ida McKinley’s personal secretary. Despite her outward confidence and glamorous outfits, she’s worried about her twin brother Luke. Luke’s in a Cuban prison for treason. Then Nathaniel Trask is assigned to the White House to overhaul security and the secret service. He and Caroline butt heads over how things are handled. When President McKinley’s reelected, he takes a train tour of the US. Nathaniel’s asked to be in charge of security on the train and cities they stop in. Caroline’s brought aboard to take care of the First Lady. Caroline and Nathaniel must find a way to work together to keep their respective charges safe. Then Caroline receives some letter from Luke. They warn of a possible danger. Can Caroline and Nathaniel find a way to figure out Luke’s clues? Or will the danger come to harm the people around them?

Book 3 – Luke Delacroix is a free man. He’s settling back into his normal life and picking up where he left off with his newspaper business. Then he meets Marian Magruder while trying to help save her family’s dog. But they don’t learn their family names at first. Their families have been feuding for years. When their families find out, they demand Luke and Marian to stop seeing each other. Luke’s passion put him at odds with Marian’s family. He’s helping pass stricter laws for food processing, which is what Marian’s family business. Marian’s sure her family follows the rules. Luke’s research says otherwise. Can the two families find some common ground? Or will their families tear each other apart?

Rating: 4.0 – a great historical fiction and sappy romance

Opinion: This was a great trilogy. It’s been interesting learning about early 1900’s political life. You don’t learn much about between life between the Civil War and the Roaring 20’s. So it was interesting to learn more. The author did her research when writing the book. I like the author’s writing style. It’s descriptive, but not too descriptive. It’s easy to relate to the characters. The endings were wrapped up nicely but felt a little rushed. I found it interesting that all of the couples ended up being part of the opposites attract trope. It was nice that all of the characters still found ways to work together and use their talents for the common good. Overall this was a great trilogy. I highly recommend it for anyone who loves historical fiction.

Holes – Louis Sachar

Title: Holes

Author: Louis Sachar

Genre: Kid’s Book

Plot: Stanley Yelnats IV is a kid whose family is cursed with bad luck. He blames the family curse on the fact that he was blamed for stealing shoes he didn’t actually steal. His punishment for this ‘crime,’ Stanley is sent to Camp Greenlake for troubled teens. At the camp, Stanley digs one hole every day during the summer. Stanley learns there’s something strange about the camp. The other boys tell him the warden’s looking for something. But what’s worth searching for in the desert?

Rating: 3.8 – an engaging book about overcoming obstacles

Opinion: This was a fun book. I’d read it for an education class a long time ago and forgot about it until I saw something about the movie. This was one of the most accurate book to movie adaptations I’ve seen. There was only one thing that changed but I was okay with it because the director took the main character’s health into consideration. I remember enjoying the characters. Everyone is well written and the plot was entertaining. This is a great book for any upper elementary school. I hope it’s still in a lot of classrooms.

The Lost Story – Meg Shaffer

Title: The Lost Story

Author: Meg Shaffer

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: Jeremy Cox has a knack for finding missing people. When Emilie Wendell asks him to find her missing sister, Jeremy hesitates. He needs to find a way to convince his old friend, Ralph Howell, to help. The other thing Jeremy’s hesitant about is going back to Red Crow Forest. That forest is where Jeremy and Ralph disappeared in 15 years earlier. They were lost for 6 months and can’t say where they were. Once Ralph is convinced to go back, Emilie is surprised that Ralph seems to know where he’s going. He leads Jeremy and Emilie into a new and magical world. One where they all must confront hurts from the past and find second chances. Will they accept forgiveness? Or will the past be too much to forgive?

Rating: 3.8 – a good story about forgiveness

Opinion: This was an interesting story. The back said it had Narnia vibes, which I kind of agreed with. The magical world had a secret entrance but it was the same every time, but a limited time you could enter the world. I liked how the magical world came about in the book. I haven’t seen that done much recently. I found it interesting how the author had the characters protect the magic world. Everyone who left forgot a part of what happened but not the whole thing. I liked how the author wove the idea of second chances and forgiveness into the book. The characters were good at talking things through. The few things I wish that was done better was the world building and more character development. While there was a decent amount, I feel like the author could’ve done more. It could’ve made everything more relatable. I found it a little funny that the author mentioned her other book in a very subtle nod as this is her second book. I recommend this book for anyone who wants a hidden magical world fantasy.

Part of Your World – Abby Jimenez

Title: Part of Your World

Author: Abby Jimenez

Genre: Romance

Plot: Alexis Montgomery’s life has been planned out since she was born. Her family’s worked at the same hospital as doctors for over a hundred years. Now it’s her turn. Alexis is an ER doctor at the hospital. Even with her success at the hospital, it’s never been enough for her parents. Her relationship with Neil, the chief of surgery, has fallen apart because he cheated. On the way home from a funeral, Alexis gets stuck in a ditch and a local man, Daniel, helps her out. She runs into him again at a nearby restaurant. He’s a working man running a B&B and a carpenter. They start what they think will be a summer fling. But soon they start to form a relationship. But they are complete opposite from opposite worlds. Can they make their relationship work? Or will it fall apart over their differences?

Rating: 4.0 – a sappy romance about self love and relationship love

Opinion: This was such a sappy book. I needed a break from serious books and wanted a simple, predictable, sappy romance. It almost reminded me of a Hallmark movie in book form. I predicted a couple things but I was okay with it because of the style of book. I liked how the book also focused on self love and therapy. The put both in such a positive light. The author put a therapy skeptic in the book and made them change their mind. I enjoyed that people found a way to get the best of both worlds. Though I expected that I’m glad that’s what happened. I’m glad this book had a happy ending. This was a great book. I had a hard time putting it down. I enjoyed the writing style and characters. It made me smile that they quoted movies throughout. I highly recommend this book to anyone who needs a sappy romance that also promotes self love and doing what makes you happy instead of people pleasing.

The Secret Life of Sunflowers – Marta Molnar

Title: The Secret Life of Sunflowers

Author: Marta Molnar

Genre: Historical Fiction, Realistic Fiction

Plot: Emsley Wilson is an auctioneer for the rich and famous in Hollywood. When her grandma Violet has a stroke, Emsley flies out to New York City to take of things. Violet gives Emsley some family heirlooms, including a diary from a distant relative from the Netherlands. Emsley learns about Johanna Bonger, Vincent van Gogh’s sister-in-law. Through the diary, Emsley connects with Johanna. It helps her navigate through a death in the family, a failing business, and relationship troubles. Emsley slowly starts healing. Then she figures out plan for the business, but will it be enough?

Rating: 3.5 – a good story about finding yourself and overcoming obstacles

Opinion: This was a great book. I enjoyed learning more about Vincent Van Gogh. I didn’t know anything about his family. I did a little research about the book and it’s very accurate. It made me happy to see that the author did her research. I liked how the characters were strong and independent and knew what they wanted after a struggle. But they supported each other, at least the not slimy characters supported each other. They didn’t give up once they knew what they wanted. It’s a great story about overcoming obstacles and finding support and love. I liked that it took hard work and determination to achieve their dreams. Overall, this was a really good book. It’s a great book for anyone who loves history and duel timelines.

Ordinary Grace – William Kent Krueger

Title: Ordinary Grace

Author: William Kent Krueger

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Plot: Frank is the son of a pastor in the 60’s. He enjoys running around town with his brother. One summer everything changes. Their sister disappears and is found and is found dead. Frank learns how people deal with sudden changes and develops a deeper understanding of consequences. Franks wants to help those who search for his sister and whomever killed her, but can he? What will happen to his family after all of this tragedy? What really happened to Ariel?

Rating: 3.5 – a good coming of age story

Opinion: This was a good book. It was a good change of pace. It was a well written book. It was easy to see how quick people are to make assumptions based on the information presented. Then how quick those same people turn on others when the information changes. I felt bad for Frank because he was a kid who kept finding all of these things out about what happened to his sister. But a little bit not because he was a pretty typical nosy kid. This was a good coming of age book. It made you feel for the characters and understand where they’re coming from. This is a good book for anyone who needs a slow and steady coming of age book.