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Good Me, Bad Me
Good Me, Bad Me
Ali Land | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
6
8.0 (21 Ratings)
Book Rating
Milly is 15 years old. She has just been placed with a foster family because she has just turned her mother in to the police. Why would a 15 year old need to turn their parent in to the police? Her mother is a serial killer who kills children. Milly is afraid that she may turn out just like her mother. Does she have it in her to be good, or is she bad like her mother? How much of our make up is nature and how much is nurture?

Thank you to Flatiron Books and Ali Land for an advanced reader's copy of this book.

I was so excited to read this book. I couldn't wait. The description alone is enough to get you intrigued. While reading the book, I kept waiting for something to happen. Something big, something major!!! It never happened. Milly did a few little things to "test" her limits on the side of good or bad, but nothing I don't think a typical teenager who was being bullied would have done in her same situation.

After turning in her mother to the police, Milly is sent to live with a foster family. The father is her psychiatrist, the mother is in need of one, and the daughter is jealous and a bully from the time Milly moves in. Milly tells the story as if she is talking to her mother. It covers a span of a few months, while Milly is waiting to give her testimony in her mother's trial. Overall it's a good story. I don't think I would put it in a category of psychological thriller, because it didn't leave me on the edge of my seat and there wasn't a major WOW moment.

This is a debut novel from author Ali Land, and I will see what her next book will be.

You can see all my reviews at http://whatchatreadin.blogspot.com
  
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Rachel King (13 KP) rated Bloodlines in Books

Feb 11, 2019  
Bloodlines
Bloodlines
Richelle Mead | 2011 | Fiction & Poetry
10
9.1 (16 Ratings)
Book Rating
As a huge fan of the Vampire Academy series, I anxiously awaited this book. What little I knew of the Alchemists fascinated me, and I felt like Adrian got the short stick in the final book of the series, Last Sacrifice. Richelle Mead does not disappoint in this book, and she keeps just enough mystery in the plot to keep me engrossed to the last page. Rose and Dimitri even make a few appearances, which was neat to see how other characters viewed them.
Sydney is the central character, and at first glance she seems to be the antithesis of Rose's personality. She wants to be obedient and cooperative with her bosses, and she had no interest in rebelling against the system. Unfortunately, her innate desire to do good and root out evil forces her into some rough situations. Her extreme phobia of magic also creates some interesting conflicts and a very promising revelation that I can't wait to see play out in further books.
Adrian's role is at first a secret, but with a few clues from the previous series allowed me to figure it out before Mead revealed it. Gone is the Adrian that Rose brought out -- instead he is back to as much smoking and drinking as at the beginning of the previous series, back when I did not like his character. BUT, this all seems to be a facade after awhile, when Adrian shows an avid interest in painting.
Jill is the one that Sydney is protecting, along with a collection of other new and old characters. As a fifteen-year-old girl also striving to have some semblance of normal life, Jill gets mixed up in problems of her own as she strives to define who she is. While her character could have had more development, as the first book in the series, there is plenty of room for growth.
I could not get through this book fast enough, and I can't wait for the second book, Golden Lily.
  
The High Tide Club
The High Tide Club
Mary Kay Andrews | 2019 | Romance
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Josephine Bettendorf Warrick is 99 years old. She has terminal cancer and any day could be her last. She asks for the help of Brooke Trappnell an attorney in town to help settle her affairs. Brooke is aware that Ms. Warrick has attorneys and lives on an island off the coast of Georgia. Why she needs Brooke's help is unclear. Brooke's grandmother was an old friend of Josephine's and they lost touch over the years. Josephine would like to make amends to her friends and leave them a part of the island so that the state will not get a hold of it, for that she needs Brooke's help. Josephine, Ruth, Millie, and Varina were The High Tide Club. Before she dies she wants to see in person her friends or their relatives. Will Josephine be able to accomplish everything she needs to before her death?

Thank you to NetGalley, and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

It has been a while since I have read one of Ms. Andrew's books. This book was good. It held my attention and kept me intrigued throughout.

Can you imagine living on an island in a palatial estate? Cut off from most of the world by the ocean. Sounds like a dream come true to me.

The story switches time from present day to 1941 when The High Tide Club was formed. There are many secrets that these friends shared and kept from one another. The four friends lost touch after the war except for Josephine and Varina, although their relationship has strained over the past few years.

Brooke herself is the granddaughter of Millie which is why Josephine chose her for the job in the first place. Brooke finds out things about her family she didn't know about and is successful at bringing together the ancestors of her friends. But the state wants the land and Josephine's distant relatives want to give it up to them. Discoveries are made and secrets are uncovered in this book.
  
The Flower Girls
The Flower Girls
Alice Clark-Platts | 2019 | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A chilling psychological thriller
A child goes missing on New Years Eve from a hotel, and when the police are called in, it is discovered that one of the guests is one of the notorious Flower Girls. The Flower Girls were involved in the murder and mutilation of a toddler in 1997, when they themselves were only 10 and 6 years old. The 10 year old, Laurel, remains in prison nearly 20 years later. Rosie was found not to have participated in the murder and couldn't remember anything that happened at that time, such was her trauma. She and her remaining family were given new identities and relocated. Her rediscovery provokes a media frenzy. The missing child (Georgie) is found alive and hypothermic, but Rosie's new identity as Hazel is now known to everyone.
We see what happened 20 years ago in short flashbacks, which can have some disturbing moments (not gory, not of the original murder - at least not at the start), and we meet the aunt of Kirstie Swann (the toddler who was murdered), who has campaigned tirelessly to keep Laurel behind bars. We are also kept in the loop of the police investigation of Georgie's disappearance. There are a lot of characters to contend with in this book, but I think it was done well, and I didn't have any problem remembering who they were. I really enjoyed this, despite the rather macabre subject matter. The pace was just right, there was a good amount of skin-crawling moments, and an unresolved ending which really suited the rest of the story - and an unresolved ending? Well, that has to be one of my favourite things!
Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for the chance to read this book, and to Alice Clark-Platts for reading along and commenting on the story with the readers! If you haven't tried The Pigeonhole, it's well worth a go. I've found some really good books on this platform.
  
    Bible Pathway Adventures

    Bible Pathway Adventures

    Book and Education

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    Have fun teaching your children about the Bible with the FREE Bible Pathway Adventures' storybook...

The Gathering (Wilde Grove #1)
The Gathering (Wilde Grove #1)
Katherine Genet | 2020 | Contemporary
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
WHAT. A. BOOK! The Gathering tells the story of Erin, an adopted daughter who has been diagnosed with "Dissociative Fugue" and has never felt like she quite fitted in. When she finds out she has inherited a cottage (with conditions) from her birth grandmother, she is intrigued and goes to find out more. This leads her on a journey she never expected and yet is more than capable of fulfilling.

There are so many parts to this book and I am struggling to mention them all! The characters are amazing, both the main one and also the supporting cast. Erin is stronger than she realises, but she has to learn that the hard way. I am sure there will be more stumbles along the way, as she has to figure out who she is by doing, not by reading in a book. I adored the descriptions of Macha, and the old leader of the Grove. One of my favourite parts was that Elen of the Ways was mentioned and honoured. The invocations and prayers sent a shiver down my spine in the most delightful way.

This is a long book, designed to pull you into the story and not let you go until the last word. Even then, you will be left wanting more. And can I just mention the cover? Absolutely stunning. This is a series of books that I will not only be re-reading but that I will be buying the paperbacks of, so I can sit them and stare at the gorgeous covers.

If you are a Witch, Druid, Wicca, or just like the Old Religions, then I absolutely recommend this book. If you like contemporary fantasy, then I absolutely recommend this book. In fact, why don't I just say I absolutely recommend this book? Because I do! Go and grab your copy now. You won't be disappointed.