Answer the Irresistible Call of Lake Arcadia
5 out of 5 stars Great literature is a study of the human condition, and in that vein, Blake R. Wolfe’s debut novel Lake Arcadia could be considered an example of great literature. If none of the characters’ story arcs explored in these eleven chapters pull your heartstrings, you might be a robot. It’s not...
“Everything We Might Have Been” sultry, sweet story of young love
5 out of 5 stars If you love instant attraction and tales of opposites attract, this is the story for you. While the characters are teenagers, there is a lot of drugs, sex, and adult behavior, so I’m not sure if this is a YA novel, per se. “Everything We Might Have Been,” by Megan...
Cozy up to the Devil in a Tank Top
A Saxee Contemporary Mystery Romance Rating 4 out of 5 stars ***Slight Spoilers Ahead**** The Devil Drinks Coffee and Wears Tank Tops. The Devil in Branson Falls is most definitely Kate Saxee, even if someone else is running around killing people and she’s the one trying to figure out whodunit. It’s summer in Branson Falls,...
Can’t Take Just One Sip of “The Devil Drinks Coffee”
A Thrilling, Quirky Mystery with a Strong Female Lead 5 starts out of 5 If you’re looking for a cute, sweet romantic mystery with a strong, sassy heroine this is it. My Kindle kept showing me ads for this one, and the title was enough to draw me in. Catchy titles for the win! This...
“Bernice Takes a Plunge” Right Into My Heart
My rating: 5 of 5 stars This book is one part “The Boy Who Cried Wolf,” and one part “Nancy Drew” meets “Harriet the Spy.” I’m a little (cough cough) older than the intended audience for this book, and while I’ll dip my toes into some Young Adult reading reasonably often, it’s been a while...
Fall Tidings of Mental Health
How Jessica Darling Helped Me Feel Sane For most of my life, the first hints of cold weather have been a balm to my heat weary soul. Living in the deep South means a lot of things, but the weather being hotter than Hades most of the time is not one of my favorites. I...
Help Fight Censorship: Pick Up a Banned Book
Banned Books Week 2020 Banned Books Week (September 27 – October 3) is something I anticipate every year. I’ll never forget my middle school self being assigned a persuasive speech. I’d recently been whipped up into a frenzy by the scenes of book burning in Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451” and the knowledge that local pastors and churchgoers...
Koraalen: An Ecological Mystery with a Sweet Romance
My rating: 4 of 5 stars Some books are fast-paced whirlwinds of action you can’t put down. This is like an ocean current that carries you along at a gentle pace; the surprising climax a storm brewing in the background waiting to pour down on you out of nowhere. Author Heather Murata bills “Koraalen: Planetary...