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 Loveboat, Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen. The expected publication date is January 7, 2020.
Goodreads Synopsis:
For fans of Crazy Rich Asians or Jane Austen Comedy of Manners, with a hint of La La Land
When eighteen-year-old Ever Wong’s parents send her from Ohio to Taiwan to study Mandarin for the summer, she finds herself thrust among the very over-achieving kids her parents have always wanted her to be, including Rick Woo, the Yale-bound prodigy profiled in the Chinese newspapers since they were nine—and her parents’ yardstick for her never-measuring-up life.
Unbeknownst to her parents, however, the program is actually an infamous teen meet-market nicknamed Loveboat, where the kids are more into clubbing than calligraphy and drinking snake-blood sake than touring sacred shrines.
Free for the first time, Ever sets out to break all her parents’ uber-strict rules—but how far can she go before she breaks her own heart?
Title: Stumptown, Vol. 1 Author: Greg Rucka, Matthew Southworth Genre: Graphic Novel, Crime Publisher: Oni Press Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: October 24, 2017 Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Dex is the proprietor of Stumptown Investigations, and a fairly talented P.I. Unfortunately, she’s less adept at throwing dice than solving cases. Her recent streak has left her beyond broke – she’s into the Confederated Tribes of the Wind Coast for 18 large. But maybe Dex’s luck is about to change. Sue-Lynne, head of the Wind Coast’s casino operation, will clear Dex’ debt if she can locate Sue-Lynne’s missing granddaughter. But is this job Dex’s way out of the hole or a shove down one much much deeper?
Review:
This was a great story!
I liked the main character, Dex. She was kind of a mess in her personal life, with racking up debt and being disorganized, but she put her younger brother first. She also worked hard to solve the mystery of where Charlotte had disappeared.
The story moved quickly. It was a detailed plot, with many characters. I didn’t guess what had happened to Charlotte. This was a great crime story.
I really enjoyed this introduction to the series.
Thank you Oni Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Stumptown, Vol. 2 by Greg Rucka, Matthew Southworth
Bury the Lede by Gaby Dunn, Claire Roe
Have you read Stumptown, Vol. 1? What did you think of it?
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and it is now hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s theme is Thankful, but I decided to do another topic, which is Books I Hope to Find Under My Tree. Here’s my list:
1. Queen of Ruin (Grace and Fury #2) by Tracy Banghart
2. Harley Quinn: Mad Love by Paul Dini, Pat Cadigan
3. Doctor Who: The Women Who Lived by Christel Dee, Simon Gurrier
4. Calling All Witches! The Girls Who Left Their Mark on the Wizarding World by Laurie Calkhoven, Violet Tobacco
5. Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand
6. Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle #1) by Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff
7. This Splintered Silence by Kayla Olson
8. Legend (Legend #1) by Marie Lu
9. Broken Things by Lauren Oliver
10. The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy (Montague Siblings #2) by Mackenzi Lee
(All photos taken from Goodreads)
What’s your list of books on your Top Ten Tuesday?
Title: The Almost Sisters Author: Joshilyn Jackson Genre: Women’s Fiction, Contemporary Publisher: William Morrow Source: Library Format: Ebook Release Date: July 11, 2017 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
With empathy, grace, humor, and piercing insight, the author of Gods in Alabama pens a powerful, emotionally resonant novel of the South that confronts the truth about privilege, family, and the distinctions between perception and reality – the stories we tell ourselves about our origins and who we really are.
Superheroes have always been Leia Birch Briggs’ weakness. One tequila-soaked night at a comics convention, the usually level-headed graphic novelist is swept off her barstool by a handsome and anonymous Batman.
It turns out the caped crusader has left her with more than just a nice, fuzzy memory. She’s having a baby boy – an unexpected but not unhappy development in the thirty-eight year-old’s life. But before Leia can break the news of her impending single-motherhood (including the fact that her baby is biracial) to her conventional, Southern family, her step-sister Rachel’s marriage implodes. Worse, she learns her beloved ninety-year-old grandmother, Birchie, is losing her mind, and she’s been hiding her dementia with the help of Wattie, her best friend since girlhood.
Leia returns to Alabama to put her grandmother’s affairs in order, clean out the big Victorian that has been in the Birch family for generations, and tell her family that she’s pregnant. Yet just when Leia thinks she’s got it all under control, she learns that illness is not the only thing Birchie’s been hiding. Tucked in the attic is a dangerous secret with roots that reach all the way back to the Civil War. Its exposure threatens the family’s freedom and future, and it will change everything about how Leia sees herself and her sister, her son and his missing father, and the world she thinks she knows.
Review:
This story had romance, comic books, and a murder mystery. It was so good!
I loved the comic and geeky references in this book. Leia (who is named after Princess Leia in Star Wars) was a graphic novel artist for DC, Marvel, and Dark Horse. She made lots of references to different comics. Her one night stand at a fan convention is what sparks the events in the story. These kinds of references aren’t usually in books categorized as Women’s Fiction, so this was a nice surprise.
Race relations were a big part of the story. Leia is pregnant with a baby who will be half black. Her grandmother lives with her best friend, who is a black woman. The town that her grandmother lives in is divided in many ways between black and white people, including the churches they attend and where they live. It was problematic in many ways. This is an important part of the story.
I really enjoyed this story!
What to read next:
Never Have I Ever by Joshilyn Jackson
Have you read The Almost Sisters? What did you think of it?
This blog meme is hosted by Book Date. It is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment, and er… add to that ever growing TBR pile!
What I just finished:
This weekend I finished The Almost Sistersby Joshilyn Jackson.
What I’m currently reading:
I’m currently reading Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella.
What I’m reading next:
Next I will be reading Mansfield Park by Jane Austen.
What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?
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 Almost Sisters by Joshilyn Jackson.
Goodreads Synopsis:
With empathy, grace, humor, and piercing insight, the author of Gods in Alabama pens a powerful, emotionally resonant novel of the South that confronts the truth about privilege, family, and the distinctions between perception and reality – the stories we tell ourselves about our origins and who we really are.
Superheroes have always been Leia Birch Briggs’ weakness. One tequila-soaked night at a comics convention, the usually level-headed graphic novelist is swept off her barstool by a handsome and anonymous Batman.
It turns out the caped crusader has left her with more than just a nice, fuzzy memory. She’s having a baby boy – an unexpected but not unhappy development in the thirty-eight year-old’s life. But before Leia can break the news of her impending single-motherhood (including the fact that her baby is biracial) to her conventional, Southern family, her step-sister Rachel’s marriage implodes. Worse, she learns her beloved ninety-year-old grandmother, Birchie, is losing her mind, and she’s been hiding her dementia with the help of Wattie, her best friend since girlhood.
Leia returns to Alabama to put her grandmother’s affairs in order, clean out the big Victorian that has been in the Birch family for generations, and tell her family that she’s pregnant. Yet just when Leia thinks she’s got it all under control, she learns that illness is not the only thing Birchie’s been hiding. Tucked in the attic is a dangerous secret with roots that reach all the way back to the Civil War. Its exposure threatens the family’s freedom and future, and it will change everything about how Leia sees herself and her sister, her son and his missing father, and the world she thinks she knows.
Title: The Tea Dragon Festival Author: Katie O’Neill Genre: Graphic Novel, Children’s, Fantasy Publisher: Oni Press Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: September 17, 2019 Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Rinn has grown up with the Tea Dragons that inhabit their village, but stumbling across a real dragon turns out to be a different matter entirely! Aedhan is a young dragon who was appointed to protect the village but fell asleep in the forest eighty years ago. With the aid of Rinn’s adventuring uncle Erik and his partner Hesekiel, they investigate the mystery of his enchanted sleep, but Rinn’s real challenge is to help Aedhan come to terms with feeling that he cannot get back the time he has lost.
Review:
This is another adorable story featuring the tea dragons.
This story has some of the same characters as The Tea Dragon Society, but it could be read as a stand-alone book. It has a different story. In this book, a dragon is woken up after sleeping for 80 years. This dragon is from a special clan, who was meant to look after the village. The characters try to reintroduce the dragon into their village.
One of the villagers was deaf, so the other people learned sign language. They would speak in sign language. This was demonstrated with the text in a different kind of text box, to show that it was being signed. I really liked this representation of sign language.
I love the illustrations in this series. The settings are beautiful, and remind me of fairy tales because of the flowers and plants. The dragons and tea dragons aren’t like typical dragons. These ones are cute and cuddly. They almost look like stuffed toys!
I really enjoyed this book!
Thank you Oni Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews and Reading Reality. Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!
I had a wish granted on NetGalley from Sourcebooks Kids:
Jinxed (Jinxed #1) by Amy McCulloch
I received a book on NetGalley from Harlequin:
The Girls with No Names by Serena Burdick
I received a book from Simon and Schuster Canada:
The Secret Hours (Deverill Chronicles #4) by Santa Montefiore
Thank you Sourcebooks Kids, Harlequin, and Simon and Schuster Canada for this book!
