Review: The Break-Up Artist

The Break-Up Artist by Philip Siegel

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Becca Williamson has a very unusual high school job. She breaks up couples, upon request. All it takes is $100 to her PayPal account and she will use her skills to make sure the relationship doesn’t last. She knows that relationships are doomed to fail after her sister is dumped just 6 hours before her wedding ceremony. At her school, the girls in relationships act like zombies and those who are single are treated like the scum of the earth. Then Becca receives a very unusual request. She is hired to break up the top couple, Steve and Huxley. She has her doubts and reservations about breaking them up, but when the guy offers her $300, she cannot refuse.

The Break-Up Artist takes high school dating dynamics to an entirely new level. Anyone who has experienced or is currently experiencing dating in high school knows that it is high drama and many times a revolving door of uncertainty. Siegel captures the doubt and anguish that teens feel in this confusing dating world and spins in a saboteur for hire that will seize the reader and carry them along for the ride. Of course there needs to be additional drama such as the break-up artist falling for a boy and her best friend being in a relationship that could use a good break-up. I highly recommend this book to any reader who enjoys realistic fiction, romance or comedies. I truly feel all of these genres are covered.




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Review: Rapture Practice

Rapture Practice by Aaron Hartzler

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Aaron Hartzler grew up in a very strict home. Church was attended twice on Sunday, on Wednesday and any other religious holidays. The family did not own a television and they did not go to the movies. While he was growing up, Aaron couldn’t wait for The Rapture, the time when Jesus would return and take the believers to Heaven. As he grew older, he began to question the beliefs taught him and push the limits of what would be considered acceptable behavior. Everything he did he did in secret and the consequences when caught became more severe.

Rapture Practice is a coming-of-age memoir that has many biblical truths, yet can lead readers on the wrong path. Readers who are coming from a similar background will find strength in the stories, those who are from a religious home (yet not so strict) will see the flaws within, but my biggest fear is that an unbeliever will read this book and think that all Christian households are similar. If an unbeliever were to read this memoir I believe they may be pushed further off the path since the author never discovers truth faith on his own. That is not a spoiler since the subtitle gives away the ending. Although the book is well written and the biblical questioning is common among those growing up in the church, I cannot recommend this book to a wide audience.




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Review: The Drowning

The Drowning by Rachel Ward

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Carl is alive and his brother is dead. Unfortunately, Carl’s memory of what happened is spotty and what he does remember leads him to believe that he killed his brother. This feeling becomes more intense when he sees his brother every time he is wet. He learns that his brother’s girlfriend was also there, but she doesn’t want to talk about what happened. Carl must convince her to trust him before his brother’s spirit takes revenge.

The Drowning is a book that is hard to place in a neat little box. Ninety-five percent of the story is realistic with the issues that everyone experiences with the loss of a loved one, but the other five percent is horror/fantasy due to the haunting spirit. Readers will have to decide for themselves if what Carl is seeing is real or a coping mechanism of his brain. Either way, Ward has created a gripping tale that will captivate the reader and keep their attention till the end.




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Review: She Is Not Invisible

She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



Laureth Peak is blind, yet her father has taught her to look for patterns and coincidence in things around her. After she receives an email from a person in New York City stating he has found her father’s journal, she decides to take her 7-year old brother on a mission to find their father. All Laureth has to go on is her father’s black book and the patterns she sees around her. The issues a 16-year old girl is able to overcome to travel from London to NYC are amazing even if she didn’t have the issue with her sight.

She is Not Invisible is an extraordinary work in many ways. Laureth has not only adapted to being without sight, many people who interact with her are not aware of her disability. Readers will begin to wonder about patterns and the recurring events around them. Is it just chance, or is there a bigger plan? If you don’t see a pattern, is it that there is not one or is it not being recognized? Sedgwick spins a tale with enough twists and turns to keep the reader wanting more, yet doesn’t drag it out to add unnecessary components. This book is a very fast, yet satisfying read that I will be recommending again and again.




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Review: Expiration Day

Expiration Day by William Campbell Powell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Tania Deeley was raised to know she was special. She was a human child in a world where infertility was the norm and society has embraced androids as child replacements. Although Tania has always known that teknoids were around, she begins to wonder who is human and who is not. Also, is it true that when a teknoid turns eighteen they must be returned to the Oxted Corporation that manufactured them? As she learns truths about herself, her friends and her parents, she begins to look for answers to her questions, even the forbidden ones.

Expiration Day is a science fiction novel that defies the norm. Powell takes our current science and stretches it just enough to still be believable and adds a population crisis to boot. Readers will quickly catch on to the issues being presented, but the truth about Tania is not discovered quickly. Readers will have to reach nearly the end of the book to find out all of the answers and they may still wonder about our world being pushed to this limit. The switching between Tania’s diary and an unknown future being is disconcerting, but the adjustment is quick and I found the story enhanced because of it.




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Review: A Creature of Moonlight

A Creature of Moonlight by Rebecca Hahn

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



The flower girl, Marni, has lived a simple life. Although she is aware that the Gramps who has raised her was the former king, she stays in her small home away from the castle in order to keep alive. The current king, her uncle, killed her mother years before. He had his reasons. Marni’s mother had run away into the woods and had returned pregnant. It is believed that Marni is half dragon and therefore must be kept close and watched. Marni is the only heir to the throne and must now choose between the kingdom that needs a ruler and the dragon that seems to be sending the magical woods after her.

A Creature of Moonlight is a debut novel that will capture the reader at the start and introduce a variety of twists and turns throughout. Hahn has created a strong heroine and a breathtaking storyline that will entertain the reader the whole way through. This stand-alone novel is refreshing in this time of trilogies and longer series. Readers who have enjoyed the adventures in Bitterblue will want to delve into this book and those who love dragon lore will be delighted with the “old tales” introduced within.




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Review: Lovecraft's Monsters

Lovecraft's Monsters by Ellen Datlow

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Lovecraft’s Monsters is not for the faint of heart. This short story anthology includes stories that are directly related to the monsters created by H. P. Lovecraft and some that skirt around them. Readers will enjoy the new tales of the horrific creatures and must take the time to look at each illustration. Datlow selected many intriguing tales to include in this anthology, but like any short story collection, not all will be enjoyed by every reader. This is not an anthology of well-known authors, but many authors will be known by some readers and others will have the reader looking for their other works. This is definitely one of those works that is better read in small chunks and not read quickly in a couple of days.



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