Book Reviews Spring 2019

Ready for some new book reviews? I’ve always got a book (or two or three) that I’m reading. I usually keep one on the car, one in the house and sometimes one upstairs in my office. Since I love reading so many different types of books, I rarely get them confused.

Suffice it to say I read WAY more than I share in these book reviews. In the quarterly reviews, I just like to give you a highlight of some of my favorites. These last few months of reading included quite a bit of Young Adult fiction. There are currently 25 books on the list for the 2019 – 2020 Eliot Rosewater “Rosie” High School Book Award. Since we love a challenge in my family, my daughter and I are reading through them. They are all YA, but they are all very different genres. I’m about halfway through the list, so I suspect my summer reading reviews will also contain quite a few.

NON-FICTION

Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother’s Will to Survive was an eye-opening view into the life of a young single mom without any family support. It was interesting (and often heart-breaking) how drastically her life changed when she became pregnant with her daughter. I felt myself cheering her on as she worked so hard to improve her life, give her daughter a good childhood and struggle through the government systems. My rating 4 out of 5.

The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives was based upon the true story of an agender teen who was set on fire by another teenager while riding the bus home from school. The book alternated between both teens and by the time the crime occurred, I felt like I understood where each teen was coming from. This book is also an excellent bit of education on what it means to be agender. It will definitely lead to interesting conversations. This was one of the books on the list of potential “Rosie” award winners. My rating 4 out of 5.

FICTION

The Women in the Castle: A Novel is the next book you need to pick up if you love WWII and Historical Fiction. The story follows three widows of men who had attempted assassination of Hitler towards the beginning of the war. Marianne makes it her goal to find the other widows and assist them in surviving. As a very matter-of-fact, practical woman, she struggles with the actions and beliefs of others while realizing that life isn’t only black or white. The writing is so beautiful that by the end of the book, I felt like I really KNEW these ladies. My rating 4 out of 5.

Die Again, Mr. Holmes: A Sherlock Holmes and Lucy James Mystery (The Sherlock Holmes and Lucy James Mysteries Book 8) is the first book I read in a series of books highlighting Sherlock Holmes and his daughter Lucy James. It’s an interesting take on the traditional Sherlock Holmes mysteries. The narrative goes back and forth between Watson and Lucy and tells the story from both points of view. As it’s a Sherlock Holmes mystery there are murders, nefarious events, etc. Introducing Lucy to the story makes it feel much more relatable to a younger audience – my teen enjoys Agatha Cristie novels and this has the same flair, so she got a kick out of it. If you like that formal story-telling style and an interesting mystery to solve, you’ll enjoy this book.  Thanks to Smith Publicity for sending me a copy to review. My rating 4 out of 5.

One of Us Is Lying was quite the thriller. Although it hit a little close to home for me (one of the main characters dies early on due to a peanut allergy and I have a tree nut allergy), I found it fascinating to try to figure out who was responsible for his death. Everyone in the room had a hidden secret and therefore a reason for being responsible for his death, but who really did it? Don’t read ahead and spoil this one! This book was another one on our list of Young Author potential awards. My rating 4 out of 5.

I have a stack of books waiting to be read and am currently about finished with this thriller: One Was Lost – it’s a good one, so expect to see it in my next book reviews post!

*This post contains affiliate links, but all opinions are 100% my own*

What have you been reading lately? Any great new books I need to check out? Pin this post if you want to come back to check these out again later: