The meme that dares to ask what book has been in your bed this morning? Come share what book you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed, or which book you wish you had time to read today! This meme is hosted by Midnight Book Girl.
This Sunday I’m reading The Woman Before Wallis by Bryn Turnbull.
Goodreads Synopsis:
This novel is the fictionalised story of the American divorcée who captured Prince Edward’s heart before he abdicated his throne for Wallis Simpson.
In the summer of 1926, when Thelma Morgan marries Viscount Duke Furness after a whirlwind romance, she’s immersed in a gilded world of extraordinary wealth and privilege. For Thelma, the daughter of an American diplomat, her new life as a member of the British aristocracy is like a fairy tale—even more so when her husband introduces her to Edward, Prince of Wales.
In a twist of fate, her marriage to Duke leads her to fall headlong into a love affair with Edward. But happiness is fleeting, and their love is threatened when Thelma’s sister, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, becomes embroiled in a scandal with far-reaching implications. As Thelma sails to New York to support Gloria, she leaves Edward in the hands of her trusted friend Wallis, never imagining the consequences that will follow.
Title: King Mouse Author: Cary Fagan, Dena Seiferling (illustrator) Genre: Children’s, Picture Books Publisher: Tundra Books Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: September 24, 2019 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
King Mouse finds his authority in question when his subjects find crowns of their own. A gentle and humorous modern fable about imaginative play and kindness in the tradition of classics like Little Bear and Frog and Toad.
A sweet, thoughtful tale of friendship, sharing and play, King Mouse begins when a mouse comes upon a tiny crown in the grass. The mouse puts the crown on his head, and when a bear subsequently comes upon him and asks if he’s king, the mouse responds “Yes.”
This diminutive monarch settles into his new role very comfortably . . . until a snake comes upon a crown and claims she is queen. The mouse is not amused, especially when one by one the other animals find crowns and claim they are kings too. But when the bear can’t find a crown, King Mouse make a most surprising decision.
This inspired collaboration between an award-winning author and debut picture book illustrator Dena Seiferling is quietly profound in its simplicity and has the feeling of a modern classic.
Review:
One day, Mouse finds a crown on the ground. He puts it on and becomes King Mouse. The other animals, like a crow and a bear, bow down to him and do things for him, such as bring him food and entertain him. Then, a snake finds a crown and puts it on, becoming Queen Snake. Now, all of the animals are finding crowns, except for the bear, who is left out of being a King or Queen. King Mouse is left to decide what to do to help the bear.
This is such a great teaching story for kids. It shows how it feels to be left out, since the bear was very sad that he didn’t have a crown when everyone else did. It also shows that just because someone has something that makes them popular, doesn’t mean they deserve it. Mouse became a king just because he found the crown. The crown was important when there was only one but it became meaningless when everyone else had a crown.
The illustrations in this story were beautiful. They looked like sketches in monochromatic colours. The illustrations told the story along with the words. It would be easy for children learning to read to follow the story by the pictures without reading the words.
I loved this children’s picture book!
Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Mouseton Abbey: The Missing Diamond by Nick Page, Tim Hutchinson (illustrator)
Ho’onani: Hula Warrior by Heather Gale, Mika Song (illustrator)
Have you read King Mouse? What did you think of it?
Title: Burn Our Bodies Down Author: Rory Power Genre: Young Adult, Horror Publisher: Delacorte Press Source: Publisher Format: Paperback Release Date: July 7, 2020 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
From the author of the New York Times bestseller Wilder Girlscomes a new twisty thriller about a girl whose past has always been a mystery—until she decides to return to her mother’s hometown . . . where history has a tendency to repeat itself.
Ever since Margot was born, it’s been just her and her mother. No answers to Margot’s questions about what came before. No history to hold on to. No relative to speak of. Just the two of them, stuck in their run-down apartment, struggling to get along.
But that’s not enough for Margot. She wants family. She wants a past. And she just found the key she needs to get it: A photograph, pointing her to a town called Phalene. Pointing her home. Only, when Margot gets there, it’s not what she bargained for.
Margot’s mother left for a reason. But was it to hide her past? Or was it to protect Margot from what’s still there?
The only thing Margot knows for sure is there’s poison in their family tree, and their roots are dug so deeply into Phalene that now that she’s there, she might never escape.
Review:
Margot has always lived with her mother, and she has never had any other relatives. They live a secluded life, and Margot longs for some family history. She finds a photo of her mother as a child with her grandmother’s phone number on the back. Margot decides to go and find the rest of her family, but she ends up discovering their secrets that should have stayed hidden.
This was an intense story. The tension grew slowly as different parts of Margot’s family’s past were revealed. There were some hints as to what was coming, though I only noticed that looking back on the story.
It’s difficult to talk about the story without giving away the ending. I can say that I really liked the way the story progressed. I was actually cringing at the descriptions by the end, but it was well worth the wait to find out what happened.
I enjoyed this suspenseful novel!
Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Wilder Girls by Rory Power
Other Words for Smoke by Sarah Maria Griffin
Have you read Burn Our Bodies Down? What did you think of it?
Find any sentence, (or few, just don’t spoil it) that grabs you.
Post it. And share your link.
It’s that simple.
I chose My Plain Jane (The Lady Janies #2) by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows.
Here is my line from page 56 in my copy:
“Charlotte believed in love at first sight, of course – she dreamed that one day, at some unexpected moment, such a thing might even happen to her – but she firmly disapproved of marriage at first sight.”
Title: Evil Thing (Villains #7) Author: Serena Valentino Genre: Young Adult, Retelling Publisher: Disney Book Group Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: July 7, 2020 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Cruella De Vil is the perfect villain: stylish, witty, relentless…and possibly cursed.
From her lonely childhood, to her iconic fashion choices, to that fateful car crash (you know the one), Cruella tells all in this marvelous memoir of a woman doomed. Even the cruelest villains have best friends, true loves, and daring dreams. Now it’s Cruella’s turn to share hers.
This latest novel by the author of the wildly popular and darkly fascinating Villains series brings readers a tale told by the Evil Thing herself-a tale of the complicated bonds of female friendship, of mothers and daughters, and of burning, destructive desire.
After all, nothing is as simple as black and white.
Review:
Cruella De Vil was a spoiled little girl. Her father loved her and spent time with her, but her mother only bought her gifts to show her love. When Cruella’s father died, she was abandoned by her mother, who decided to travel the word after sending Cruella away to school. The only way that Cruella knows how to give and receive love is through money and gifts. The ultimate gift to her is fur, and it would be an even more special gift if it was a unique fur coat made from black and white puppies.
This is the first book I’ve read in this Disney villains series and I loved it! Cruella De Vil is one of the meanest Disney villains. She wanted to make a fur coat out of Dalmatian fur. This story didn’t try to justify what Cruella wanted to do, which is so horrible it can’t be explained. What the story does though is show how Cruella became a woman who wanted a coat made out of puppies.
Cruella narrates this story herself. She tells the story of her upbringing and her confusing relationships with other people. Cruella was from a high class family, who lived in a large house with servants. She would describe the people who she was close to, but weren’t quite at her high level in society, as in-betweens. This included her best friend Anita, who lived with an upper class family but was not given the same privileges as them. Anita later becomes the owner of the Dalmatians which Cruella wants to have for their fur. The relationship between Cruella and Anita was much more complex than in the movie 101 Dalmatians. This story explained why Cruella behaved the way she did.
I really enjoyed this story!
Thank you Disney Book Group for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Fairest of All by Serena Valentino
Poor Unfortunate Soul by Serena Valentino
Other books in the series:
Fairest of All
The Beast Within
Poor Unfortunate Soul
Mistress of Evil
Mother Knows Best
The Odd Sisters
Have you read Evil Thing? What did you think of it?
TBR Thursday is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly Faye Reads, where you post a title from your shelf or e-reader and find out what others think about it.
My pick this week is A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J. Maas.
Goodreads Synopsis:
Feyre’s survival rests upon her ability to hunt and kill – the forest where she lives is a cold, bleak place in the long winter months. So when she spots a deer in the forest being pursued by a wolf, she cannot resist fighting it for the flesh. But to do so, she must kill the predator and killing something so precious comes at a price …
Dragged to a magical kingdom for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding far more than his piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre’s presence at the court is closely guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion and the faerie lands become an even more dangerous place. Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever.
Have you read this book? What did you think of it?
Title: The Last Wife Author: Karen Hamilton Genre: Fiction, Thriller Publisher: Graydon Thriller Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: July 7, 2020 Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
From the internationally bestselling author of The Perfect Girlfriend.
Two women. A dying wish. And a web of lies that will bring their world crashing down.
Two women. A dying wish. And a web of lies that will bring their world crashing down.
Nina and Marie were best friends—until Nina was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Before she died, Nina asked Marie to fulfill her final wishes.
But her mistake was in thinking Marie was someone she could trust.
What Nina didn’t know was that Marie always wanted her beautiful life, and that Marie has an agenda of her own. She’ll do anything to get what she wants.
Marie thinks she can keep her promise to her friend’s family on her own terms. But what she doesn’t know is that Nina was hiding explosive secrets of her own…
Review:
Marie has always been jealous of her best friend Nina. After Nina dies of cancer, Marie finally has a chance to take over Nina’s life. Marie moves in with Nina’s husband, Stuart, and helps him look after their children. While living with Stuart, Marie discovers secrets about Nina’s past.
Marie was the narrator of this story and she was unreliable. She constantly lied to other people and herself, which got confusing at times. She would jump around in the narrative between memories and the present, without much distinction between the two time periods. I found Marie and all of the other characters unlikeable, because they each were hiding horrible secrets.
The story was slow at first, because there was a lot of groundwork that had to be laid before the real tension began. I had a hard time relating to any of the characters because they were so unlikeable. The book took a turn at the end that I wasn’t expecting, so I was pleasantly surprised at that.
This was a twisty thriller.
Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
The Wives by Tarryn Fisher
The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton
About the author:
Karen Hamilton spent her childhood in Angola, Zimbabwe, Belgium and Italy and worked as a flight attendant for many years. Karen is a recent graduate of the Faber Academy and, having now put down roots in Hampshire to raise her young family with her husband, she satisfies her wanderlust by exploring the world through her writing. She is also the author of the international bestseller The Perfect Girlfriend.
Have you read The Last Wife? What did you think of it?
This is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. In this post we highlight a book that’s highly anticipated.
The book that I’m waiting on this Wednesday is The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed. The expected publication date is September 1, 2020.
Goodreads Synopsis:
Perfect for fans of The Hate U Give, this unforgettable coming-of-age debut novel explores issues of race, class, and violence through the eyes of a wealthy black teenager whose family gets caught in the vortex of the 1992 Rodney King Riots.
Los Angeles, 1992
Ashley Bennett and her friends are living the charmed life. It’s the end of senior year and they’re spending more time at the beach than in the classroom. They can already feel the sunny days and endless possibilities of summer.
Everything changes one afternoon in April, when four LAPD officers are acquitted after beating a black man named Rodney King half to death. Suddenly, Ashley’s not just one of the girls. She’s one of the black kids.
As violent protests engulf LA and the city burns, Ashley tries to continue on as if life were normal. Even as her self-destructive sister gets dangerously involved in the riots. Even as the model black family façade her wealthy and prominent parents have built starts to crumble. Even as her best friends help spread a rumor that could completely derail the future of her classmate and fellow black kid, LaShawn Johnson.
With her world splintering around her, Ashley, along with the rest of LA, is left to question who is the us? And who is the them?
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