River Readers

Muse is trying to live a normal life, but as half-demon half-human, she is Not normal. Her ex-lover, Prince of Hell, may be attempting to assassinate her.
Allthough other reviews are quite positive, I had a difficult time staying with this story - maybe too many betrayals. Because I really like Pippa DaCosta I finished it, but just not as interesting as her other work.

Jane Eyre was not one of my favorite stories, but I liked this updated graphic version of the story. When a small town girl dreams of New York and art school, she finds the big city and herself out of place. A job as a nanny leads to a romance with a man who is a member of the elite. She finds secrets and deceptions and has to decide who to trust.

This was a sweet book about a young girl and her life-long best friend. It goes through the changes that life and school brings to young lives and relationships. Figuring out how to be yourself while belonging to a group and how to stand up for yourself with people who claim to be your friend are just a couple of the issues faced in this delightful graphic.

WB (Waldo) Baron wakes up one morning to find his house floating through the sky. As his inventor parents explain, they have joined a race across the country. So they set off from Arizona to Chicago where the race will begin. It is in Chicago that they are kidnapped by Rose Blackwood, sister of the famous bandit Benedict Blackwood. She wants to win the race so she can use the $500 prize to hire criminals to free her brother. The only thing is she is not much of a criminal herself. Together Rose and WB complete the race despite WB being the clumsiest kid in the world.

For LAPD homicide cop Harry Bosch -- hero, maverick, nighthawk -- the body in the drainpipe at Mulholland Dam is more than another anonymous statistic. This one is personal.

The dead man, Billy Meadows, was a fellow Vietnam "tunnel rat" who fought side by side with him in a nightmare underground war that brought them to the depths of hell. Now, Bosch is about to relive the horror of Nam. From a dangerous maze of blind alleys to a daring criminal heist beneath the city to the tortuous link that must be uncovered, his survival instincts will once again be tested to their limit.

Narcotics officer Cal Moore's orders were to look into the city's latest drug killing. Instead, he ends up in a motel room with a fatal bullet wound to the head and a suicide note stuffed in his back pocket. Working the case, LAPD detective Harry Bosch is reminded of the primal police rule he learned long ago: Don't look for the facts, but the glue that holds them together. Soon Harry's making some very dangerous connections, starting with a dead cop and leading to a bloody string of murders that wind from Hollywood Boulevard to the back alleys south of the border.

Summoned from her promising surgical career first to her estranged father's bedside, and then his post as medical examiner when his small town needs urgent help with a suspicious death, Emily Hartford discovers home is where the bodies are in this pitch perfect mystery debut.

Katie LeClair has finally settled down as the new doctor in Baxter, MI. After years of moving, schooling, and training, she wants nothing more than to find a place she can call home, and a small town outside of Ann Arbor seemed perfect.

This memoir tells the poignant story of Tillie, an aspiring skater. It chronicles her years in the sport, how it changes her and her search for who she wants to be. It is a good coming-of-age graphic that explores the trials and tribulations of being a teen.

Essie Hicks is the youngest child from the reality television show Six for Hicks. The Hick's father is an evangelical preacher of a mega church so when Essie found out she was pregnant her mother went into "damage control" mode. Decisions were being made without any discussion with Essie as if she were just a commodity for the show. That's when Essie decided to take matters into her own hands.

This book was fascinating and I really enjoyed the character arcs of Essie and Roark. I thought the unwinding of Essie's story was riveting and made you want to keep turning the pages.

In this second of the Truly Devious series, Stevie finds herself back at Ellingham Academy after striking a deal with Edward King, the loathsome senator that stands for everything Stevie hates. Their deal involves King's son, David, who he thinks Stevie can influence to make better decisions.

The academy is still reeling from the events that happened prior to Stevie's exit and return. Stevie is determined to get to the bottom of the events from the past and the ones in the present.

Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Min is a fox with the ability to shapeshift and wield "charm" magic. When she finds out her brother has deserted the space force in search of the magical dragon pearl she goes looking for answers. She makes her way to his old ship and takes the shape of a recently deceased cadet. She discovers the location of the dragon pearl and takes off to find it. 

I found this much more helpful than Becker's previous book The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own. It is filled with practical tips on becoming a minimalist with step by step instructions for each room of your home. There isn't anything really new here, but if you are new to minimalism this could be a very helpful book to start your journey.

This is a collection of three short stories from the life of Anna Fang from the Mortal Engines books. They were fun and interesting. I was entertained by her adventures and it does actually make me curious about the rest of this series. The illustrations were also fantastic.