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Ali A (78 KP) rated I Must Betray You in Books
Feb 7, 2022
Trigger Warnings: blackmailing, manipulation, revolution, shooting, police brutality, government oppression
Set in late 1989 communist Romania, 17-year-old Cristian is forced to become an informer by the secret police in exchange to help his family. While he deals with the guilt and paranoia of being an informer, Cristian also risks everything to let the world know what is happening in Romania. But what is the cost of the revolution?
As usual, another section of history I didn’t really know anything about until Ruta Sepetys wrote a book about it and now I’ll be doing a ton of research about it this weekend. I was in middle school and high school in the 2000s, so I kind of understand why I probably never really learned much about this if they didn’t unseal files for 15 years… though I do remember learning about Nadia Comăneci leaving the country? But I don’t remember Nicolae Ceaușescu or the horrors of his regime.
Rita Sepetys is one of my favorite authors - if she writes it, I know I’m going to read it, get immersed in a new part of history I probably wasn’t aware of, and learn something new. I know Sepetys does a ton of research on each of her books, and this one is no different. She lets you know it is a work of fiction, but that a ton of research went into the novel and then she lists resources at the end of the book. Knowing how much research was done for this and matching it with a narrator who captivates the readers - I couldn’t put this book down.
The chapters were mostly short and a quick read, but that matched with the franticness of Cristian’s life. You slowly see his eyes opening to the fact that what his country is doing to him and his countrymen is not right and how much they had been lied to to keep them in line. You felt the same suspension he felt as he tried to figure out who he could really trust.
Please read this book (and other titles by Sepetys as well) and learn about an aspect of history that most likely wasn’t taught much in school in a way that’s well written and well researched.
Set in late 1989 communist Romania, 17-year-old Cristian is forced to become an informer by the secret police in exchange to help his family. While he deals with the guilt and paranoia of being an informer, Cristian also risks everything to let the world know what is happening in Romania. But what is the cost of the revolution?
As usual, another section of history I didn’t really know anything about until Ruta Sepetys wrote a book about it and now I’ll be doing a ton of research about it this weekend. I was in middle school and high school in the 2000s, so I kind of understand why I probably never really learned much about this if they didn’t unseal files for 15 years… though I do remember learning about Nadia Comăneci leaving the country? But I don’t remember Nicolae Ceaușescu or the horrors of his regime.
Rita Sepetys is one of my favorite authors - if she writes it, I know I’m going to read it, get immersed in a new part of history I probably wasn’t aware of, and learn something new. I know Sepetys does a ton of research on each of her books, and this one is no different. She lets you know it is a work of fiction, but that a ton of research went into the novel and then she lists resources at the end of the book. Knowing how much research was done for this and matching it with a narrator who captivates the readers - I couldn’t put this book down.
The chapters were mostly short and a quick read, but that matched with the franticness of Cristian’s life. You slowly see his eyes opening to the fact that what his country is doing to him and his countrymen is not right and how much they had been lied to to keep them in line. You felt the same suspension he felt as he tried to figure out who he could really trust.
Please read this book (and other titles by Sepetys as well) and learn about an aspect of history that most likely wasn’t taught much in school in a way that’s well written and well researched.
Ali A (78 KP) rated Promise Boys in Books
Feb 14, 2023
Trigger Warnings: Murder, blood
After their school principal is shot and killed at Promise Prep School for Boys, J.B, Ramón, and Trey are labeled as the prime suspects. All three of them had had some kind of disagreement with their principal before he was killed and they all may have had the opportunity to have access to the murder weapon. With all three maintaining their innocence, they must band together to track down who really did it before one of them is falsely accused.
This book is told through multiple POVs, with each chapter giving you who the main focus is. A few of them are people you only hear from once, but they do give you important pieces of information. Because of the changing of the POVs, it does make the story go by quickly.
I usually have a hard time with teen male voices and them coming across as whiny to me. But this one, had not one, not two, but three separate teen male voices and I was intrigued by everyone. They were all authentic to me and each one captured my attention and got me turning pages. Which tells you something, because I did end up reading this book in one day.
There were a lot of twists and turns and I was still questioning whether or not each boy was truly innocent until we got towards the end and all was revealed. Nick Brooks did an amazing job at showing just how differently black and brown boys are treated when it comes down to being guilty or not. One of the boys gets in trouble a lot because his cousin is the leader of a gang around the neighborhood and a lot of people just assume he’s a part of them. Another boy jokes around a lot, and in a school where they’re not allowed to even smile in the hallways, he’s constantly getting in trouble.
Overall, this book is perfect for those who like thriller mysteries and who are fans of Jason Reynolds, Angie Thomas, and Holly Jackson. I can see this book getting more and more popular with the more people who read it. I can also see this making it to the big screen as well. Brooks wrote a wonderful, enhancing novel.
*Thank you Bookish First and Henry Holt and Co. for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
After their school principal is shot and killed at Promise Prep School for Boys, J.B, Ramón, and Trey are labeled as the prime suspects. All three of them had had some kind of disagreement with their principal before he was killed and they all may have had the opportunity to have access to the murder weapon. With all three maintaining their innocence, they must band together to track down who really did it before one of them is falsely accused.
This book is told through multiple POVs, with each chapter giving you who the main focus is. A few of them are people you only hear from once, but they do give you important pieces of information. Because of the changing of the POVs, it does make the story go by quickly.
I usually have a hard time with teen male voices and them coming across as whiny to me. But this one, had not one, not two, but three separate teen male voices and I was intrigued by everyone. They were all authentic to me and each one captured my attention and got me turning pages. Which tells you something, because I did end up reading this book in one day.
There were a lot of twists and turns and I was still questioning whether or not each boy was truly innocent until we got towards the end and all was revealed. Nick Brooks did an amazing job at showing just how differently black and brown boys are treated when it comes down to being guilty or not. One of the boys gets in trouble a lot because his cousin is the leader of a gang around the neighborhood and a lot of people just assume he’s a part of them. Another boy jokes around a lot, and in a school where they’re not allowed to even smile in the hallways, he’s constantly getting in trouble.
Overall, this book is perfect for those who like thriller mysteries and who are fans of Jason Reynolds, Angie Thomas, and Holly Jackson. I can see this book getting more and more popular with the more people who read it. I can also see this making it to the big screen as well. Brooks wrote a wonderful, enhancing novel.
*Thank you Bookish First and Henry Holt and Co. for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
Alison Pink (7 KP) rated Mista in Books
Jan 15, 2018
I won a copy of this book on Goodreads. I entered the giveaway because, as a teacher, any book about teaching by a fellow teacher is worth checking out. When I read the description I had only 1 thought go through my head, "This sounds like where some of the kids I have now are going to end up." I myself teach in an "innercity" elementary school. Some of the things John experienced are things I've seen too...thankfully not the pervasive sex & drugs culture, I mean my students are 8 after all. But the blatant disrespect, cursing, lack of motivation, & uncaring attitude toward education are all definitely things I contend with on a daily basis as well. To me, reading this was both encouraging and heartbreaking. Encouraging because it is nice to know that there are teachers out there that truly care about what happens to these "tough kids" & are wiling to put up with a great deal of abuse to see that they get what they need. Heartbreaking because this story is all too common. There are not enough people that care & not enough dedicated teachers that sacrifice so much for the kids.
The book was well written & as far as I'm concerned, spot on. I've never taught high school, let along in the city, but based on my experiences this is where some of my students are headed. I can only hope that they have the benefit of a caring, persistent teacher like John that won't give up on them or let the students give up on themselves.
The book was well written & as far as I'm concerned, spot on. I've never taught high school, let along in the city, but based on my experiences this is where some of my students are headed. I can only hope that they have the benefit of a caring, persistent teacher like John that won't give up on them or let the students give up on themselves.
Sassy Brit (97 KP) rated The Dark Net in Books
Jun 5, 2019
The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy is a complex story in which the horror is the realisation that it could happen to all of us, and we’d be unable to stop it!
There’s a large cast of characters at the beginning, which I have to admit you could easily lose track of, and it’s not everyone’s preferred writing style, but you just know there’s a reason these people are mentioned straight up and that they are all going to meet somewhere along the storyline to make sense of it all. As I read this it was like I had a movie playing out in my mind. We see shots of a dodgy run server group in one scene. Next we meet Hannah with a high-tech prosthetic that restores her sight, but can’t understand why she can now see shadows surrounding certain people. Then there’s Lala a technophobic journalist, (Hannah’s auntie ), Mike the gun hoarder who sees things that can’t possibly be there, Derek a genius hacker and, to top it all, a virus spreading through the net that had a very old-school, Shaun Hutson, evil, demonic force feel to it. Who can stop this evil presence from getting out of control and fight back?
Dark, creepy, urban-techno horror with an old-school, supernatural feel that I particularly enjoyed. What would we all do if the devil got inside our homes, schools, offices through our computers? Who’d save us? Not our anti-virus protection, that’s for sure!
There’s a large cast of characters at the beginning, which I have to admit you could easily lose track of, and it’s not everyone’s preferred writing style, but you just know there’s a reason these people are mentioned straight up and that they are all going to meet somewhere along the storyline to make sense of it all. As I read this it was like I had a movie playing out in my mind. We see shots of a dodgy run server group in one scene. Next we meet Hannah with a high-tech prosthetic that restores her sight, but can’t understand why she can now see shadows surrounding certain people. Then there’s Lala a technophobic journalist, (Hannah’s auntie ), Mike the gun hoarder who sees things that can’t possibly be there, Derek a genius hacker and, to top it all, a virus spreading through the net that had a very old-school, Shaun Hutson, evil, demonic force feel to it. Who can stop this evil presence from getting out of control and fight back?
Dark, creepy, urban-techno horror with an old-school, supernatural feel that I particularly enjoyed. What would we all do if the devil got inside our homes, schools, offices through our computers? Who’d save us? Not our anti-virus protection, that’s for sure!
An intriguing retelling.
A modern reimagining of Shakespeare's Othello, this sees a Ghanaian diplomats son, Osei, on his first day at a new school in an American suburb of Washington DC in the 1970's. Dee quickly befriends him, and Ian decides that he doesn't like this. He decides to undermine this friendship and dispose of O. Yes, racism comes in to play here. Both the learnt racism of the children (from their parents), and that of the teachers.
This is all squeezed in to a very Shakespearian time frame of a day: we all know that in a Shakespearian play, people fall in and out of love, get marries and murder one another within 24 hours. For this reason, I can forgive the more mature behaviour and plotting of the 11 year old children. It seems unlikely to me as a mother of an 11 year old, that real 11 year olds would necessarily behave in this way; but this is literature and an author can bend their story and their characters to however they want them to behave. The changeability of the children's affections ARE more realistic, however.
I think this would probably be a great book for students to read at school before they access the original Othello. It would have made a great 'compare and contrast' exercise for me when I studied Othello (many years ago!).
Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and the ending is a real 'heart in mouth' moment!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Hogarth for my copy of this book.
This is all squeezed in to a very Shakespearian time frame of a day: we all know that in a Shakespearian play, people fall in and out of love, get marries and murder one another within 24 hours. For this reason, I can forgive the more mature behaviour and plotting of the 11 year old children. It seems unlikely to me as a mother of an 11 year old, that real 11 year olds would necessarily behave in this way; but this is literature and an author can bend their story and their characters to however they want them to behave. The changeability of the children's affections ARE more realistic, however.
I think this would probably be a great book for students to read at school before they access the original Othello. It would have made a great 'compare and contrast' exercise for me when I studied Othello (many years ago!).
Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and the ending is a real 'heart in mouth' moment!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Hogarth for my copy of this book.
ClareR (5674 KP) rated Death of an Old Girl in Books
Sep 19, 2018
Old (very!) style police procedural!
I was sent this book by Sapere books to read and review, and I have to admit to some trepidation initially. A book originally published in the 1960's set in an all girls public school? Well, I needn't have worried. I thoroughly enjoyed it, to be quite honest.
The body of an 'old girl' is found in the art room after the annual reunion ('Festival') of the Old Girls. Beatrice Baynes had remained near her old school, living within walking distance, and had a reputation of being a busy body - and quite unpleasant with it. When her body is found, Scotland Yard send Inspector Pollard and Sergeant Toye to solve the murder.
I've read quite a few police procedurals recently, and the modern version can be gritty, violent and very graphic. This isn't any of those things. I do assume that it portrays the way in which murders were investigated back then quite well (I'd have to ask my Dad. He was in the Met Police in London in the 1960s, 70s and 80s!). Although I'm pretty sure that the investigating officers weren't all as pleasant as Pollard and Toye.
I loved all the old language ("frocks" for one!) and attitudes, even if they were very old fashioned. It's just so different to what's on offer now.
Well worth a read - and it's interesting to note that the Pollard and Toye series consisted of something like 19 books! Lots to be getting on with!
The body of an 'old girl' is found in the art room after the annual reunion ('Festival') of the Old Girls. Beatrice Baynes had remained near her old school, living within walking distance, and had a reputation of being a busy body - and quite unpleasant with it. When her body is found, Scotland Yard send Inspector Pollard and Sergeant Toye to solve the murder.
I've read quite a few police procedurals recently, and the modern version can be gritty, violent and very graphic. This isn't any of those things. I do assume that it portrays the way in which murders were investigated back then quite well (I'd have to ask my Dad. He was in the Met Police in London in the 1960s, 70s and 80s!). Although I'm pretty sure that the investigating officers weren't all as pleasant as Pollard and Toye.
I loved all the old language ("frocks" for one!) and attitudes, even if they were very old fashioned. It's just so different to what's on offer now.
Well worth a read - and it's interesting to note that the Pollard and Toye series consisted of something like 19 books! Lots to be getting on with!
Merissa (11950 KP) rated See No Evil (Brotherhood, #1) in Books
Dec 17, 2018
I will admit, when I started reading See No Evil I rolled my eyes a couple of times. A young girl, innocent of all knowledge of what her family is actually like. Oh please! However, within the first chapter, that swiftly became unimportant as I was entwined in Chris' life, and her struggles to fit in at a boy's school. Enter Trey, Riley, and Kade - the Wolf Pack, or Brotherhood, that proves that family is what you make it, not what you are born with. Chris' struggles are real, and it broke my heart. Showing an inner core of strength, yet bowing under the pressure of what she is doing, Chris manages to find a way to cope at the school. Things take a turn for the better though, when Trey takes her under his wing and she becomes enfolded into their lives.
This is incredibly well written, with plenty of layers to every character and situation. Heart stopping romance, with 'normal' boy reactions, as well as situations pertinent to this story alone. I don't think there were any editing or grammatical errors, none disrupted me anyway. Although I will say that I was that engrossed in the story, I may not have realised anyway!
The start of another exceptional series from Jordan Ford, and highly recommended by me. Absolutely loved this story, and can't wait for Kade's.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
This is incredibly well written, with plenty of layers to every character and situation. Heart stopping romance, with 'normal' boy reactions, as well as situations pertinent to this story alone. I don't think there were any editing or grammatical errors, none disrupted me anyway. Although I will say that I was that engrossed in the story, I may not have realised anyway!
The start of another exceptional series from Jordan Ford, and highly recommended by me. Absolutely loved this story, and can't wait for Kade's.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and my comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Eleanor (1463 KP) rated Three Hours in Books
Jan 1, 2020
This was an intense book dealing with some deep issues.
Covering a three-hour time span where a siege of a school in England occurs I fell short of getting as emotionally invested as I think I should have been.
The book jumps between multiple POVs with students, staff, police, and parents all focused on the unimaginably terrifying scenario of a school on lockdown and under attack. For a book that jumps straight into the action and only covers a short time period I really struggled to get into this one, it’s never good when I keep finding myself updating the shopping list mid-chapter…... Although the jumps in POVs were clear and well written I just failed to become invested (or particularly interested in the characters.) I liked the mother of one of the students and her internal dialogue with her teenage son, it felt very genuine; but most others fell flat for me.
I’m glad I persevered though as the second half picked up for me with more on the police and their investigation. The set up of such an attack in England that just happens to be when a snowstorm hits never quite jelled as a setting for me despite attempts to explain it all.
I feel this book tried to deal with too many hard-hitting topics, without managing to pull me in with the story leaving a feeling of having a slightly preachy tone.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGallry for the ARC.
Covering a three-hour time span where a siege of a school in England occurs I fell short of getting as emotionally invested as I think I should have been.
The book jumps between multiple POVs with students, staff, police, and parents all focused on the unimaginably terrifying scenario of a school on lockdown and under attack. For a book that jumps straight into the action and only covers a short time period I really struggled to get into this one, it’s never good when I keep finding myself updating the shopping list mid-chapter…... Although the jumps in POVs were clear and well written I just failed to become invested (or particularly interested in the characters.) I liked the mother of one of the students and her internal dialogue with her teenage son, it felt very genuine; but most others fell flat for me.
I’m glad I persevered though as the second half picked up for me with more on the police and their investigation. The set up of such an attack in England that just happens to be when a snowstorm hits never quite jelled as a setting for me despite attempts to explain it all.
I feel this book tried to deal with too many hard-hitting topics, without managing to pull me in with the story leaving a feeling of having a slightly preachy tone.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGallry for the ARC.
Veronica Pena (690 KP) rated A Stolen Life: A Memoir in Books
Feb 5, 2020
I don't remember the first time I read this book. I think it was some point after Jaycee Lee Dugard had been found, but I was probably in late middle school, early high school - though I could be entirely wrong. I remember reading it the first time and having to stop every once in a while because it was so much. What she went through was so grueling and heartbreaking and to read her words, unfiltered, with all of her raw emotions, it's hard. That doesn't even feel like a good enough word for it.
More than anything, this memoir gives you hope. It gives you strength. It pulls your heart out to be reminded that there are these people in this world - the kind that could do this to people, let alone an 11-year-old girl. But despite all that, Jaycee remains somewhat positive. She knows that she has work to do on herself, on her relationships with her family, with the world, with life, but she also knows that she's going to be okay. I love that she never thinks that the recovery process is done and while this book was written several years ago, I can't imagine that mindset has changed much.
I think this book is phenomenal. Her story is insane, but her triumph is what wins you over in the end. I'm eager to read her other book and see where she is now and how she's doing. I would 1000% recommend this book.
More than anything, this memoir gives you hope. It gives you strength. It pulls your heart out to be reminded that there are these people in this world - the kind that could do this to people, let alone an 11-year-old girl. But despite all that, Jaycee remains somewhat positive. She knows that she has work to do on herself, on her relationships with her family, with the world, with life, but she also knows that she's going to be okay. I love that she never thinks that the recovery process is done and while this book was written several years ago, I can't imagine that mindset has changed much.
I think this book is phenomenal. Her story is insane, but her triumph is what wins you over in the end. I'm eager to read her other book and see where she is now and how she's doing. I would 1000% recommend this book.
Violated: A Shocking and Harrowing Survival Story from the Notorious Rotherham Abuse Scandal
Book
The shocking first true account from one of the young girls who lived through and survived the...