Review: The Sentinel

The Sentinel by Lee Child
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Jack Reacher is doing his usual thing.  He is traveling to another small town with nothing on his mind.  He is there by chance and is just minding his own business when he notices a man seemingly walking into an ambush.  He knows it has nothing to do with him, but when it is four against one, he feels the need to intervene.  The man turns out to be an IT manager, Rusty Rutherford, who was recently fired after a ransomware attack on the town’s computer system.  Jack knows he should leave town, but Rusty wants to stick around and clear his name.  Reacher loves a good mystery, especially when there will be heads to knock together.

 

The Sentinel is the twenty-fifth Jack Reacher novel and the action is just as prolific in this novel as the first.  It is hard to believe that Child can take a character we all love reading about and create a new story with new troubles to get out of.  I also enjoyed that the events described are relevant to our everyday safety, even if we don’t experience them ourselves.  Everyone who has made it this far in the series will enjoy this book and if you haven’t read a Jack Reader book yet, then go back to Killing Floor and get started!

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Review: The Key to Fear

The Key to Fear by Kristin Cast
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There is one important rule … “No touching today for a healthy tomorrow.”  This rule (with other safety measures) was instituted after a virus almost took out the human race.  After this pandemic, The Key was in power.  The Key decides everything.  It decides who you will be matched with and if you can procreate (in a lab of course).  Elodie has always been a rule follower and Aidan never wants to do what he is told.  When they un-expectantly get connected, Elodie begins questioning all the rules she has blindly followed.  After they discover some secrets about The Key, they have to start hiding some of their nefarious actions.  What dark truths will these two uncover?

 

The Key to Fear is the first book in The Key series.  Some parts of this science fiction story made me feel like I knew where it was going, yet there were some surprises along the way.  This is not a very long book and Cast has spent some time with world-building, but these added pages were necessary to fully enjoy the story.  As a reader who is currently in the Covid-19 Pandemic, it was interesting to think about how extreme the government could go to limit the spread of a deadly virus.  Readers who normally read Cast’s fantasy novels can still enjoy this book; they just need to know that it is Sci-Fi.  A fun read and I am going to be looking for the next installment … which currently doesn’t have a title or release date!

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Review: Descent

Descent by Roland Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Peak has survived an avalanche on the mountain of Hkakabo Razi and is trying to descend into Tibet.  This wouldn’t be easy for most people, but it is even harder since Peak’s father and climbing guide are both wanted by the Chinese government.  This team may be skilled mountain climbers, but they aren’t ready to face Mother Nature and man at the same time.  Will Peak ever make it back to the United States?

 

Descent is the fourth book in the Peak adventure series.  Events in this book pick up shortly after the events of Ascent and readers will have few issues remembering the dynamic personalities of these characters.  This is a quick read and even the most reluctant reader will be turning the pages to see what will happen next.  Descent is a great finale for a strong series and I am glad that Smith brought us along for the ride.  I strongly recommend this book to everyone.  You don’t need to have read the first three, but you also might want to get the full experience by backing up and starting at the beginning.

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Review: Swamp Thing: Twin Branches

Swamp Thing: Twin Branches by Maggie Stiefvater
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Alec and Walker are twins who couldn’t be more different but are also inseparable.  When they discover their father is cheating on their mother, it is decided that they will spend the summer with their rural cousins in the swamp.  Walker has no problem making friends with the locals, but Alec is consumed by the experiment that he brought with them.  After some tragic accidents, both brothers must face truths that they were suppressing all along.

 

Swamp Thing: Twin Branches is a graphic novel origin story about this iconic character.  Once again, I didn’t know much about his character before reading the book.  It is definitely an origin story with 95% of the book focusing on what happened before the final event.  There is a lot of science (which I enjoyed), but this may be a turn off for some readers.  The graphics were great and added so much depth to the overall storyline.  Swamp Thing: Twin Branches would not be my first choice to read, but a fun addition to superhero origin stories.

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Review: Surviving the Angel of Death: The True Story of a Mengele Twin in Auschwitz

Surviving the Angel of Death: The True Story of a Mengele Twin in Auschwitz by Eva Mozes Kor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Eva and her twin sister were 10 years old when they were taken to Auschwitz.  Her parents and two older sisters were never seen again, but Miriam and Eva were spared because Dr. Mengele had experiments he wanted to perform on twins.  This non-fiction book will expose the reader to the trials, these girls overcame during their time in the concentration camp and the years that followed these harrowing events.  This new edition has additional information about Eva and some facts about her life since the book was originally published.  I had read the original book a few years ago and still enjoyed reading again about her trials during the Holocaust.  Surviving the Angel of Death is a must-read for young adults and every age group.

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Review: Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel

Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel by Jason Reynolds
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Will’s brother, Shawn, was shot and killed while getting an item from the store for his mother.  Will thinks he knows who did it … Riggs.  He also knows the rules:

1.  No crying

2.      2.  No snitching

3.      3.. Revenge

Will is now on his way to Riggs’ place to take care of the third rule … revenge for his brother’s death.  As Will is going down the elevator, he is visited by others who have suffered the same fate has Shawn.

 

Long Way Down is the graphic novel adaptation of the novel in verse book.  This story reads even faster than the original and can be enjoyed by everyone whether they read the original or just this one.  The artwork gave some added depth to the story and I will say I loved this one as much as the original.  A great read, even if graphic novels are not your normal go-to book.

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Review: Slippers And Thieves Special Edition

Slippers And Thieves Special Edition by Christina Bauer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

It has been years since Elle’s parent’s died and she ran away from her stepmother to live her own life in New York City.  Elle tries her best to forget about what she went through and she even attends West Lake Prep, a high school where regular humans and Magicorum study side by side.  Elle knows she is a Cinderella template and that she is destined to not marry her true love.  When Elle falls for Alec, she quickly discovers that her stepfamily already has plans for one of the stepsisters to marry Alec and he is off-limits.  It is even thought that if Alec and Elle so much as kiss … a group of witches and wizards would go to war.  They try really hard to stay friends, but with curses and prophecies in the mix, who know where they will end up.

Slippers and Thieves is the fourth book in the Fairy Tales of the Magicorum series.  Although there are overlapping storylines and characters with the other books in the series, this tale can be read and enjoyed all by itself.  With that said, if readers go back to the other stories, they may have some spoilers.  Bauer has once again created a story that was fun and fast with some backstabbing and friendship building throughout.  I enjoyed this book and can’t wait for Bandits and Ball Gowns, slotted to be released in November 2020.

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Review: Quasi Redux

Quasi Redux by Christina Bauer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Myla feels like she has finally gotten her life back.  She is balancing being a mother, wife, queen, and Great Scala.  She is going through gifts trying to decide what to keep and what to sell to family and friends when her igni start acting crazy.  She is frustrated with what is going on and says, “Some days, I wish I weren’t the Great Scala.”  That doesn’t seem like much, but a demon-titan was hiding behind the fountain and he grants that wish.  Now Myla finds herself in an alternate world where she never met Lincoln and didn’t marry him.  Since Myla wasn’t the Great Scala, all the quasis are living under the rule of Armageddon and life sucks.  Of course, Myla has a plan.  She will sneak into Antrum, find Lincoln and together they will find and defeat the demon-titan.  Unfortunately, Lincoln doesn’t remember her and he has his own curse to deal with.

 Quasi Redux is the eighth book in the Angelbound Origins series. Although we have had many books written about these characters, there are still more secrets that are being revealed.  I love how Myla doesn’t take herself very seriously and is constantly bantering with the other characters.  There is a lot of action and since the book is relatively short, readers will feel like the book is finished in no time.  Bauer has once again outdone herself and has given us an adventure that will have us clamoring for more.

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