Lakewood, by Megan Giddings

Posted on March 19, 2020 by Paige

“You give yourself to make your country a better place. You give yourself to keep us safe.”

After her grandmother passes, Lena searches for financial comfort since her mother is medically unwell. She receives a letter offering more than enough to provide the comfort she needs if she moves to Lakewood and submits herself to the Lakewood Project. Accepting, Lena finds herself as part of a human experiment group.

“Why do you think they’re doing these experiments? What do you think they’re trying to learn?”

I enjoyed this debut young adult novel. It was a quick and easy read with a dark atmosphere. Lena’s race and socioeconomic status were rightfully featured as doormat for the government’s testing purposes. I kept wondering what was going to happen to Lena and the others that were part of the experiment group. There are a lot of unanswered questions for the greater half of the novel that build the readers suspense.

But at times it felt repetitive, and I just wanted the story to get on with it and progress. For example, the experiment group would do something they were told and the observers would watch what happened; this seemed to cycle around regularly for several chapters. The ending felt rushed for me. I didn’t feel complete closure for the full character of Lena. It skipped over a lot of the emotional and intellectual depth that was disclosed at the beginning.

Various though-provoking topics and questions surfaced throughout the story as a result of Lena’s background. What boundaries do humans have, and how do we set those boundaries? What are we willing to do to ensure the survival of our family and health insurance for ourselves and/or our loved ones? How do we justify the monetary value placed on someone else’s life?

Lakewood is Megan Giddings debut novel. Visit her website.

Read Boston Globe’s book review for Lakewood.

Read LA Times book review for Lakewood.

Follow Megan Giddings on Twitter.

Learn more about government experimentation by reading about the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, Operation Sea-Spray, Project Artichoke, or the San Quentin prison experiments.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Pride of Eden, by Taylor Brown

Posted on March 16, 2020 by Paige

“My opinion, the only good cage is an empty cage.”

Anse runs a nonprofit wildlife sanctuary in Sapelo Island, Georgia. He considers the sanctuary animals like family. But after his prized lioness Henrietta attacks him and is shot in order to save his life, Anse’s world is turned upside down and he is questioned by all those around him. Anse seeks to replace his lioness by rescuing other exotic wildlife that are in danger or being abused nearby. How far will Anse go to save the abused and caged? Is risking his friends lives worth saving the life of an animal?

Chapters alternate without pattern between characters and animals. The prose is rich in figurative language and the premise is original.

Overall, this was just an okay read for me. It has a strong premise. The foundation of the novel lays concretely in animal rights and measures the value of animals. But, to me there was nothing beyond that. Although I thought Anse was interesting, I didn’t feel connected to him or the rest of the characters. The storyline skipped around and I was confused about several scenes; I found myself re-reading quite often in order to grasp some sort of understanding of what exactly was happening. Had the storyline been stronger, I would have enjoyed it more because I did like the dialogue concerning the unfortunate realities that animals face. The ending left me feeling underwhelmed.

Triggers include animal abuse.

Visit author Taylor Brown’s website.

Read Publisher Weekly’s review of Pride of Eden.

Taylor Brown is the author of Gods of Howl Mountain and Fallen Land.

Read an interview with Taylor Brown for his book Gods of Howl Mountain.

Follow Taylor Brown on Twitter.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of Pride of Eden. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Darling Rose Gold, by Stephanie Wrobel

Posted on March 13, 2020 by Paige

“They don’t know the depths of this mother’s love.”

Does forgiveness come with limitations or should it be unconditional? Should mitigating factors be considered when speculating harmful behavior? The story starts out with Rose picking up her mom, Patty, from prison. Patty, imprisoned for aggravated child abuse of Rose, has caused a strain on their relationship and Rose’s future to be thwarted. But, is Patty the only one to blame? Where do they go from here now that she is out from prison? And, is Rose willing to look past the years of abuse her from mother…?

I really loved this one! I found both narrators so hard to trust, and as lies began to unfold the thrill of what was to come had me rapidly turning the pages. Nearly every chapter revealed a new lie or added a new element to one of the characters that seemed to put a twist on things.

The relationship between Rose and Patty is emotionally draining at times. Both characters are messy, and their story is not one that I would describe as a happy one. Rose’s life in particular unveils the superficial mask that society often has, and we see her frequently hurt by others around her. Patty’s background comes in bits and pieces, but also demonstrates a past reflecting a lifetime of pain.

I am not an expert on Munchausens syndrome, so I can’t attest to the validity of this illness as it is presented in one of the characters. If you work in the medical field, you might find fault within this presentation and might take this into consideration.

Darling Rose Gold is author Stephanie Wrobel’s debut novel. Visit Stephanie Wrobel’s website to learn more.

Publisher’s Weekly review of Darling Rose Gold calls Patty the “Mother From Hell”.

Go to this Popsugar page to read this first chapter of Darling Rose Gold for free!

Read BookTrib’s review of Darling Rose Gold.

Darling Rose Gold is also published under the title The Recovery of Rose Gold depending on your location.

Stephanie Wrobel, photo from Penguin Random House website.

Follow Stephanie Wrobel on Twitter.

Darling Rose Gold was selected as a March 2020 Library Reads book. To learn more, click here.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

We Are All His Creatures: Tales of P.T. Barnum, by Deborah Noyes

Posted on March 9, 2020 by Paige

Many know P.T. Barnum, but the voices that surrounded him have been lost and his exploitation of others is largely overlooked. Those closest to him, including his two daughters, are given the center stage in We Are All His Creatures. Living in the shadow of P.T. Barnum, this novel centers on his family and his performers who worker closely with him through a collection of stories.

I would describe this book as a boring take on what is often considered an exciting time with a group of interesting characters. The interlinked short stories were directionless. Some I would describe as pointless since I’m not sure what the end goal was.

Sadly, this book might cause teens and young readers to become disinterested in the subject because the stories are not captivating and the characters feel lifeless.

I was excited to read this, but after reading the first few stories I quickly lost that excitement and considered not finishing this many times.

I liked the photographs and quotes that were included before each story. And, though I really did not care for the book overall, I thought the portrayal of P.T. Barnum was refreshing. To see him through others eyes.

Visit Deborah Noyes website.

Read Publishers Weekly Review for We Are All His Creatures.

Deborah Noyes is also the author of Plague in the Mirror and Red Butterfly.

Visit her author page on Scholastic to see more books.

Follow Deborah Noyes on Twitter.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon | Goodreads Review|

Please See Us, by Caitlin Mullen

Posted on March 5, 2020 by Paige

“In death, the women are still dressed to walk the streets. To attract clients with a slice of leg, cleavage. To mime desire with a cant of the hips, a toss of their hair. Dressed to be undressed.”

Missing posters are hung around Atlantic city for a missing girl. Clara, a psychic, sees the missing girls face and feels as if she can help find her. Clara meets Lily while she working and begs her to help. But Lily has her own dark past. Will they find the missing girl or become victims themselves?

“It seems both cheap and dear, the price of freedom- twenty minutes with a man.”

Chapters alternate between two main characters, Clara and Lily. Occasionally, a chapter will be from one of the bodies of the murdered victims (Jane Doe’s).
The writing style is opulent and the setting is well-developed because of the overgrown writing.

The story is heartbreaking. The victims voices are strong and reflect an image of their whole person as they lay dead in swamp blanketed in their afflictions.

If you like slower paced mysteries, then I recommend this book for you because the progression is slow. I would read a bit and then put it down. It took a while to get from point A to point B; the goal being to find the missing women. For example, the evolution of Lily and Clara’s relationship took center stage at one point for an extended period of time. If you like your mysteries fast paced, then this probably isn’t for you. If you like thought-provoking dialogue and contemplative situations, then you will probably enjoy this.

Something you might or might not be into: One of the main characters, Clara, sees visions throughout the novel. Her visions are a common occurrence and help piece together what happened to the women who were murdered.

There are several triggers in this novel including sexual torture, rape, and drug use.

Please See Us is Caitlin Mullen’s debut novel. Visit Caitlin Muller’s website.

Read Publisher Weekly’s Review of Please See Us.

Visit Simon and Schuster’s page for Please See Us to learn more.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

The Velvet Rope Economy, by Nelson D. Schwartz

Posted on March 3, 2020 by Paige

“The rise of the Velvet Rope Economy marks an end to the great democratization of American life in the post-World War II era.”

What is the Velvet Rope? The Velvet Rope is a system that uses class segregation to help businesses profit. Think of the fast pass systems at theme parks that only certain family groups can afford. Or the better seats at a sporting event. Or education. Why are businesses profiting from class segregation? How did we get here?

There are tons of examples for everything this book states. You will be familiar with most of them if you have lived in the U.S. for most of your life. If you have not, this might be a big eye opener. Different treatment, benefits, and price discrimination due to socioeconomic status is proven in airline services, theme parks, sporting events, health care, and education to name a few that are used as examples in this book. “It favors the people who have the money…”

The first part of the book is about the super elite that are “inside” of the Velvet Rope (5%-54% on a Kindle), and the second half is about those “outside” of the Velvet Rope (54%-83% on a Kindle). Exclusivity, social brain hypothesis, soft benefits vs. hard benefits, situational inequality, Pareto optimality, and class segregation are used to support the ideology behind the Velvet Rope Economy.

“…people will be left out of the economic system as more and more information accumulates.”

It only focuses on the present and what that looks like right now. It does state that we are headed to a caste system but goes into no further details.
This is a well researched book that is accessible to the average reader.

Visit author Jason Schwartz website to learn more about his book.

Read Publisher’s Weekly review for The Velvet Rope Economy.

Read the New York Times article written by Jason Schwartz covering The Velvet Rope Economy.

Visit his page at Penguin Random House.

Follow Nelson Schwartz on Twitter.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

The Missing Sister, by Elle Marr

Posted on March 1, 2020 by Paige

Shayna goes to Paris after her sister is found dead. While visiting her sisters apartment to pack up her belongings, she reads a message in their secret twin language that she is really alive so she decides to retrace the steps of her sisters last days to try and find her. She trusts no one and tells no one that her sister is really alive. Why is her sister hiding? Who tried to kill her?

Overall, this story was hard for me to get through. It was underdeveloped and the mystery was short lived. The ending was predictable and it was slow to get there. There is little to no build up for the suspense; I was continuously bored and just wanted to just flip to the last few pages because everything in between was so pointless. The whole thing was just a poor quality mystery/suspense novel. Meanwhile, the entire prose was absolutely ridiculous.

The main character, Shayna, is a pre-med student who is described as very intelligent in the beginning. Her character doesn’t seem to maintain this intellectual trait throughout the mystery though.

I kept reading hoping there might be a major surprise and revelation towards or in the end but there wasn’t. It was under 300 pages though, so I suffered through.

The Missing Sister is Elle Marr’s debut novel. Visit her website here.

Read Publisher Weekly’s review for The Missing Sister.

The Missing Sister was selected as one of PopSugar’s 31 new thriller and mystery books to look out for in 2020.

Follow Elle Marr on Facebook or Twitter.

|Purchase on Amazon|Goodreads Review|

Woman on the Edge, by Samantha Bailey

Posted on February 29, 2020 by Paige

In the first chapter, a scared woman that Morgan has never seen calls her by name and tells her to take care of her baby before jumping in front of a train. What was the woman running from and why did she entrust her baby to Morgan? How did she know her name?

Chapters alternate between Morgan, in the present, and the baby’s mother, Nicole, in the past.
Nicole’s situation as a new mother spotlights the reality of postpartum depression for women while Morgan’s circumstance demonstrates life as a widow whose spouse fell victim to suicide.

“Was this what motherhood felt like for everyone? A constant state of fear and panic?”

The overall situation and how things end up transpiring definitely seems implausible if you really think about it, but the suspense was so absorbing that I got caught up in all of it. Things were happening to Nicole that didn’t add up, and I wanted to know the truth.
The ending was a little over the top, but I was still turning those pages as fast as I could.

This was a short and fast-paced read that mystery and suspense readers will enjoy.

Woman on the Edge is Samantha Bailey’s debut novel. Visit her website.

Read Publisher Weekly’s Review for Woman on the Edge.

S. Bailey talks about her inspiration for writing Woman on the Edge.

Follow Samantha Bailey on Facebook or Twitter.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance read copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon|Goodreads Review|

These Ghosts are Family, by Maisy Card

Posted on February 27, 2020 by Paige

The connection of ancestors and how the dead still effect the living is explored in the tangled web of Irene Paisley and Stanford Solomon’s family. Generations of family members are navigating their life decades and centuries later based on their past ancestors. A domino effect is seen when their Jamaican family members continue to comb through secrets, history, and lineage.

Each chapter goes through a story about a different family member. The multi-generational saga is weaves through different time periods and different family connections.
Jamaican history, plantation life for slaves, and the exploitation of women in 19th century Jamaica is explored throughout the novel as the characters try to atone with the ghosts of their past.

The first chapter starts off a bit confusing. It front-loads all of the characters and many events making it hard to separate who from who and what from what. But after that short introduction, everything fell into place. The Jamaican dialogue was hard to understand sometimes, but I could figure out what was happening overall.

I enjoyed this debut novel and recommend it historical fiction readers.

Visit author Maisy Card’s website.

Refinery29 article recommends These Ghosts are Family.

Bustle recognizes These Ghosts are Family as an immigrant experience novel.

Follow Maisy Card on Twitter.

I received an advance readers copy through Netgalley and Edelweiss. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Apeirogon, by Colum McCann

Posted on February 24, 2020 by Paige

“They seemed the most unlikely of friends, even beyond the obvious, one being Israeli, the other Palestinian.”

Rami and Bassam’s story is humbling. Centered around the Israeli-Palestine conflict, Rami and Bassam relive the day that each of their daughters died at the hands of a oppressive barrier that has effected more than just a perimeter. After each lose a daughter to violence, they learn to find solace in their grief and overcome the boundaries defined by their government.

“…everyone knew at least one child who was killed, and most of us knew several. You get used to it, sometimes you think it’s normal.”

It is a somber read with graphic gory scenes from beginning to end. Rami and Bassam’s recollections and revelations were heartbreaking. Just when I thought my heart couldn’t break anymore, it did. But the power and value behind the words is undeniable.
(The speeches they gave on pages 217-240 were unequivocal and would provide great dialogue for panel discussions and Socratic Seminars.)

There are only sections; most sections are about a paragraph in length, some sections are one sentence, some might be a small photo, though other sections are the length of a regular chapter. With a total of 1,001 sections, there are no chapters or parts.

It is a blend of fiction and nonfiction. For example: the story will be describing the anniversary of the time of deaths for the girls, so the very next section then discusses how the Greeks measured time in antiquity. Or, another example: there is a flashback when Salwa and her daughter are watching Arabian horses, so the next section goes into facts about Arabian horses. The fiction and nonfiction weave back and forth relying on each other. It jigsaws, using the previous section to build on the next section. The sequence is ornamental but blends cohesively.

I loved the book. It changed the way I think. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. It had a profound impact on me.

“Truth is, you can’t have a humane occupation. It just doesn’t exist. It can’t. It’s about control.”