River Readers

This was another fun book challenge. I have always wanted to visit Alcatraz and the idea of solving what happened to someone who successfully escaped was a good challenge. I just know I would have been great friends with Emily and James because they are living my childhood dream.

This story was not what I was expecting. I was much more confused than I like to be. It took me longer to figure out the twist than I liked. I understand how we got to the end, but I'm still not sure I liked it.

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

Lana returns to the island to help cleanup after a powerful storm. Here her strong auntie leads the town-folk in making a living on the island. Unfortunately, the islanders have been taking more than the sea around them can support. The coral reef around them has weakened due to their over harvest.

They killed my mother.
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.

Now we rise.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.

But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.

This was a fun and quick read. I have gotten quite attached to our pirate theme this year and this was a great way to finish. The idea of Hook having a daughter makes me laugh since that would mean some female had to find him attractive! Can't wait to read the second book.

Captain Hook's feisty daughter hits the high seas to avenge her father's death at the jaws of the Neverland crocodile in Heidi Schulz's spirited middle-grade debut.

Delilah Dirk has been accused of treason in this second adventure. Delilah is many things but a traitor is not one of them. The real traitor is none other than an English Major and he will stop at nothing to bring Delilah Dirk down and help France win the war. So Delilah and Mr. Selim are off to England to clear her name. Turns out that name isn't actually Delilah Dirk. We get to meet her real family and see her move around in English society. This is another fantastic adventure. I can't wait to read more. 

Salamandra is back in another story from Hopeless, Maine. She and her friend Owen become suspicious when people start dying. Sure people disappear all the time, but now they are becoming ill and dying. Could the doctor have something to do with it? We learn more about Hopeless's founding families and the islands history. We also meet Salamandra's grandfather and learn that at least one person has actually escaped the island. I would love to see more books set in this series. Not sure we will get them, but there would definitely be more stories to tell.

Hopeless, Maine lives up to its name. There is not a lot of hope, but there are a lot of orphans and missing persons. Where do they all go? Why are there never any bodies? What lurks in the fog? Salamandra is one such orphan. Her parents might have disappeared or they might have just gone away. Either way they are gone and her brother is missing so she ends up in the orphanage. She is not a witch like Miss Nightshade, but she does have some powers of her own. She can control fire and fight demons. Because of this, Salamandra doesn't fit in with the other orphans.

I enjoyed listening to this book. It's been a while since I read it with my son and saw the movie (which I don't recommend), so I had forgotten a lot of the details. It is a fun story with lots of action, new and old characters that continues to lead the listener towards a temporary conclusion. Knowing there are three more books in this series helped me to focus on who was who since the cast keeps growing.

This audio-book was absolutely hilarious! I found myself laughing so hard I was scared I might run off the road. Having actually done one pageant in my life, I have a special understanding for many of the inside lines and worries these girls have. The fact that they get the chance to find out who they are outside of the rigors of pageant life and the dreams that may or may not have been theirs. There were true brains and lots of talent too spare even meeting up with pirates, black shirts, giant snakes and drug-like berries.

This book was nothing like I expected. It was a different telling of the Sea Queen and sirens. Also the prince is a pirate and much happier that way. I found myself rooting for them to find the stone to destroy the evil queen and right many wrongs. I was pleased to find an ending that made sense and wasn't fairy-tale perfect either.

This was a very different take on the Peter Pan story. Tiger Lily was usually a minor character and here she gets her day in the sun. However, she also has a relationship with Tinkerbell that is very different from the one Peter and Tink are always shown having. This was sad, yet strangely satisfying too.

I liked this book a lot because it was a bit different. While the dysopian society is similar to others, I liked the idea of belonging to a passion. I'm not sure I would want that passion to decide my fate, but I guess in a way that is what choosing a career does - just not usually at seventeen. I had a little trouble keeping everyone straight, but the charts at the front were a good reference tool. I began to care for many of the characters and look forward to the next book to see how Brienna and the others fare.

As the hunt for the Star of Ice leads the six guardians to Ireland, Doyle, the immortal, must face his tragic past. Three centuries ago, he closed off his heart, yet his warrior spirit is still drawn to the wild. And there’s no one more familiar with the wild than Riley—and the wolf within her...

To celebrate the rise of their new queen, three goddesses of the moon created three stars, one of fire, one of ice, one of water. But then they fell from the sky, putting the fate of all worlds in danger. And now three women and three men join forces to pick up the pieces.

Mermaid Annika is from the sea, and it is there she must return after her quest to find the stars. New to this world, her purity and beauty are nothing less than breathtaking, along with her graceful athleticism, as her five new friends discovered when they retrieved the fire star.