Firefly: Big Damn Hero

Firefly: Big Damn Hero

by Nancy Holder and James Lovegrove

Oh fun, I was excited to see there is a new book series coming out featuring Firefly.  I wasn't sure if I would like this one, but it's pretty good.  What I particularly liked is that the characters in the book sound like the characters did in the show, if that makes sense.  In the book they are talking and acting how their character did. 

The crew is back where the battle of Serenity Valley happened, which was a turning point in the war.  The browncoats ended up being defeated and the town is celebrating the Alliance.  This is a bit of a sore area as Mal and Zoe both fought on the side of the browncoats.

While there, Mal is kidnapped and disappears.  The crew works to find him and get him back.

It was a good story, it makes me miss the show, the book was almost like having another episode.  I want to read the other ones in the series as they become available.

The Temp

The Temp

by Michelle Frances

Emma gets a job to be a temp for Carrie.  Carrie is married, pregnant, and needs a temp for her maternity leave.  Carrie seems to be successful, has a good job, has gone far in her career already, has a good marriage, has money, and now has a baby on the way.  Emma is in her early twenties and seems to still be finding her way.

This one flipped narrators between Emma, Carrie, and Carrie's husband.  Sometimes this works, other times, like in this book, that can be confusing as you figure out who is narrating.

It was a decent story.  The beginning I was reading waiting to find out more, as there had to be something more that I just wasn't aware of.  Did Emma know Carrie or her husband from somewhere?  What was going on? And no, when you get to the end and find out why, I was surprised and didn't guess that one.

Was it the best?  No, but it was still a pretty decent read and I would read this author again.

Blended

Blended
by Sharon Draper

Eleven year old Isabella is struggling with who she is. Her mom is white, her dad is black.  She doesn't know if she is black or white.  People make comments such as "you look exotic, what are you?" without even thinking.  She hesitates to check white or black if asked what race she is.

Her parents are divorced so every other week she is rotating between the two houses.  Interesting look of a child going in between homes every week, it ends up making neither house feeling like her home since she is constantly back and forth.  That was sad.  Both her parents do love her, but they fight and do not get along.

It was interesting, it brought up several interesting points that could make it a good choice for a book club for a younger group.

The Waning Age

The Waning Age
by S.E. Grove

Natalia lives in a world different from out own.  Children start to "wane" around eleven years old where they lose their ability to feel emotion.  This happens to everyone at some time, it might vary a little when it happens person to person, but it is now something that has happened to everyone.  All adults now feel  no emotion.

Natalia has a little brother who is eleven, he has not started to "wane" yet.  He is brought in for testing at his school.  And then the following day he is taken for more testing, and is basically kidnapped.  They won't give Cal back. Natalia wants her brother back.  She has already waned, so she shouldn't be feeling the emotion she is, but she does.  She loves her brother.

This one was okay.  The idea of the book sounded promising.  I did start to lose interest in it, but I did at least finish it.  I wanted to see Natalia get her brother back.

Hope Never Dies

Hope Never Dies
by Andrew Shaffer

I picked this one up because of the cover, you have to admit that looks pretty cool.  It makes you stop and wonder what this book is about.

This is a mystery that features former Vice President Biden and President Obama.  A railroad conductor dies and Biden is suspicious as it seems shady since the railroad conductor was close to retiring.  He doesn't think his old friend would have committed suicide, leaving behind his wife and family.

This book was hilarious.  The antics between Biden and Obama, just fun.  It was one of those fun, light mysteries, but what makes this one stand out is the fun characters.  Biden was a good narrator, and Obama was pretty cool in the book.  I was happy to see that the author is writing another one, I will have to for sure read that one when it comes out.  

Birthday Girl

Birthday Girl
by Penelope Douglas

Jordan is a 19 year old, she works as a bartender trying to save money up.  She lives with her boyfriend, Cole, and they were recently evicted from their apartment.  They end up moving in with Cole's father, Pike.  They agree that Jordan and Cole are to just help around the house so they can save their money up to move out.

Jordan tries to make herself useful by cleaning, mowing, and working on making meals since she feels weird being there.  Cole seems to constantly be out partying, most of the time without Jordan.  They were friends before they started dating and he's not a bad guy, he just isn't the right one for Jordan.

Who is the right one for Jordan? Pike.  He had Cole when he was young.  He's 38 now.  And he likes Jordan and feels so guilty about it because she is his son's girlfriend.  He tries to stay away from her because he loves his son.  And he feels he is too old for her as he is 20 years older than her.  But wow do the sparks fly between Jordan and Pike.  Very steamy.

Oh this one was a fun one.  The characters. You really want Pike and Jordan to be together as they would just be perfect together, but they can't betray Cole so they don't for a long time.  I'm going to have to read more books by this author, this was such a good book.  It really draws you into the story.  

Talk to Me

Talk to Me
by John Kenney

Ted Grayson has risen to the most coveted position in his job, the network TV anchor.  People like him.  That is until he is caught on camera angry and yelling and swearing at a woman on set.  It goes viral.  People are upset and want him to be fired.

Shortly before his meltdown, he recently found out that his wife wants a divorce.  She has met someone else, and they had been married for thirty years.  He has an adult daughter that he doesn't speak too. 

I felt bad for Ted.  Yes, he is an arrogant jerk, but he made a mistake, he yelled at somebody, which eventually he does apologize for and actually meant it.  It wasn't okay what he said, but at least you can see where he is coming from.  That's quite a shock to find out your spouse wants a divorce after 30 years and has met someone else.  The whole incident makes him talk to his daughter again, so at least one good thing came out of it.

I liked the almost behind the scenes at a news station.  People did seem really fickle in the book.  They were really quick to jump on the bandwagon to get him fired.  And he was a jerk.  I read a lot, so it was something a little different. 

Relative Strangers

Relative Strangers
by Paula Garner

Jules, a senior, is looking for a baby picture for her senior yearbook when she notices an odd gap in her pictures.  Soon after she discovers that for most of the first two years of her life she lived in foster care. 

She is shocked as she had no idea.  Her mom is an alcoholic, and while she is sober now and has been for years, she had problems when Jules was a baby. Jules goes on to meet her foster family, yet another surprise when she finds out that they had been planning on adopting her.  And a foster brother a few years older that has never forgot her either.

It was interesting.  The shock of Jules finding out she was in foster care. Her being nervous about meeting her foster family, how they had wanted to adopt her.  What would her life have been like if they had adopted her?  Her mom is an alcoholic, and does have her problems, but she does love her daughter.  I imagine she worked hard to get sober and get her daughter back.  

Thoughtful book about foster care, adoption, and a former alcoholic. 

Elevation

Elevation
by Stephen King

Scott looks the same, but he's not.  He has been steadily losing weight, the scale keeps saying he is lighter, but he looks the same.  It doesn't matter how much he eats, he consistently keeps dropping weight.  

Meanwhile, he is having problems with his neighbors.  Their dog is pooping in his yard and they are not picking it up.  He tries to discuss this with his neighbors, one is friendly, one is not.  His neighbors are having their own problems.  They recently opened a restaurant that is struggling; the tourists are happy to visit, but the locals don't go there, which leaves them in a bind as the tourists season is ending.  They are the talk of the town because they are married lesbians and people in town don't agree with that.

It was a short book, I would call it a novella, but it was pretty good.  Interesting.  At first how exciting to be losing weight, but then so odd that you look the same.  Then it's scary for Scott.  What is going to happen to him?  He also befriends his neighbors and helps them out,  he basically shows others around town that his neighbors are okay and they actually try the restaurant and discover it's actually pretty good.  

Reality Alternatives

Reality Alternatives
by Lesley Smith

Chloe discovers she can access a parallel world through her virtual reality experiment.  Soon she likes the parallel world more than her real world.  In the parallel world, she is married, has a family, has her career, and is really happy.  But what happens to her body while she is in the parallel world?  Nothing.  It just lays there, which isn't great when she wants to be in the other world for long periods of time, say days, or even more.

For me, this one started out promising, it seemed like it was going to be a pretty solid science fiction/fantasy story.  It was flipping between her real world and the parallel world.  I was more interested in what was happening to her in the real world.  And the parallel world just got really weird.  Eventually I lost interest and found myself skimming because I wanted to find out if she was going to be okay when she finally got back to the real world. 

Cure for the Common Breakup

Cure for the Common Breakup
by Beth Kendrick

Summer is a flight attendant on a flight to France, when there is a plane malfunction.  Everyone is okay, but her boyfriend who had been planning to propose to her in Paris, decides he loves her, but not enough to marry her and breaks up with her.  Summer wasn't sure she wanted to marry him, but she is still hurt.  She ends up going to Black Dog Bay for a while.

This is the first in the Black Dog Bay series, but the second one I have read. And just like the other one I read, this was such a fun read.  Summer is a fun character, she is outspoken, stands up to bullies, shocks people with what she says, and really just such a fun character.

I enjoyed this one, and I'm looking forward to the other books in this series.

The Long Walk

The Long Walk
by Stephen King

This is a book my husband read first, told me about, and then I wanted to read it.  

100 boys begin walking, they must maintain a speed of at least 4 mph.  If they slow down, they get a warning.  After three warnings, they get their ticket, aka they get shot and die.  

What an interesting idea.  They walk for days.  And just thinking how long I would last, not long.  That 4 mph pace would be hard, because it's a not a nice stroll, that's like a power walk, for me the awkward pace in between actually walking and a jogging pace at 5 mph.

I would have liked a bit more to the book of before and after the walk.  What happened after the race?  And maybe a bit more of when they started the race, more depth of why they were volunteering to do this.  Yes, the 100 boys volunteered to do this!  A race where they walk nonstop and 99 of them die.  It's crazy.  The odds are not in your favor to win.  

It was a good read, a really interesting idea.

Bird Box

Bird Box
by Josh Malerman

A few months ago, I watched the Netflix film, Bird Box.  There were memes all over Facebook making fun of the movie for a while.  It was actually a pretty good movie; Sandra Bullock did a good job.  Anyway, after that I wanted to read the book.

Marlorie lives with her sister when something starts going wrong in the world.  People are hurting themselves.  At first they hear stories once or twice a week, then once or twice a day as it spreads, and then it's nonstop on the news for a while.

There is something out there, when you see it you go crazy and hurt yourself until you die. It is very disturbing.  And scary since you can't see what it is.  

Malorie is pregnant and finds a house with other survivors.  They have to go out to get more water from the well blindfolded.  A few time some of them are going around town scavenging for stuff blindfolded.  They decide on a group if they should let a person in that knocks on the door.  It's not often, but it is a big decision.  

Then it jumps five years and it's Malorie and two small children trying to cross down the river to safety.  She heard a radio message years ago of survivors down the road. And how much do we rely on our sight.  Very much so.  It's scary trying to maneuver down a river blindfolded. 

There are details I never thought of.  When the babies are born, she must immediately cover their eyes.  As they are newborns she has to train them to wake with their eyes open.  She trains the children to listen to the sounds around them, since they must grow up learning to listen to their ears since they can't use their eyes. 

This was scary, I think I'm still scared since I finished last night.  It was well written, it flip flopped between present day and five years ago and sometimes that can be confusing of where you are, but I was never confused of which timeline a chapter was in.  I was happy to see this author has several other books so I can add those to my reading list. .

The Latehomecomer

The Latehomecomer:
A Hmong Family Memoir
by Kao Kalia Yang 

This caught my eye when I saw an advertisement for a book group that was reading it.  Kao tells her family's story of immigrating to the United States when she was 6 years old.  She starts telling her family's story with her parents from the jungles of Laos, to refugee camps in Thailand, and then finally on to America.

It was interesting, reading how much they came from, struggling to make a better life for their family.  Hardworking family that did their best.  It makes you think of the current situation with all these immigrants wanting to come into America from the South for a better life here.   

I can see why this would be picked for a book discussion.

This is Me: Loving the Person you are Today
by Chrissy Metz

I watch the show "This is Us," so when I saw Chrissy Metz had a book out, I wanted to read it.  

Chrissy shares about growing up, struggling with her weight, being made fun of, having a strict stepfather that made her life miserable, working as an agent for years, and struggling to find parts as an actor.   In between sharing about her life, are chapters called "Bee Mindful,"  short, little positive messages.

I enjoyed the book, it has a good, positive message and I found Chrissy's memoir interesting.  I like her down to earthiness.  She even had a part where she was dating someone and just stunk their bathroom up and then left.  She doesn't come across as I'm better than you because now I'm a successful actress on a huge show.  She comes across as genuine, she worked hard to be where she is at today and is inspiring to others. 

The Psychology of Time Travel

The Psychology of Time Travel
by Kate Mascarenhas

This one caught my eye in a magazine. It's about women building a time machine, it just sounded like fun.  In 1967 four women build a time machine. Something happens and one of them has a breakdown and is kicked off of the team after that.

Fifty years later, Ruby is digging into her grandmother's past, the one who had the breakdown and hasn't been allowed to work on the project or to time travel since.

The book jumps around, mainly between 1967 and present day.  

I was a little disappointed.  Maybe because I went in thinking this was such a fun idea I was just going to just love this book.  I didn't.  I mean, it was still pretty good, it just wasn't great.  The idea was interesting. 

Come November

Come November
by Katrin van Dam

Rooney is a senior in high school, and wow, is her life difficult.  Her mom just lost her job, but she doesn't care and won't go out and get a new job.  Her mom doesn't worry about the bills getting paid, or the children getting fed.  All because she is into a cult called Next World Society, and they are convinced the world is ending on November 17th when they will be taken up by aliens.

Rooney wants to go off to college, but she is stuck. She has to drop her after school program working at the school newspaper, which she loves, so she can work more hours since she is the only one working.  She makes dinner and tucks her little brother in bed at night.   She is doing so much more than what someone her age should be doing; she is not the mother.  

I really liked this one.  I kept reading to find out what was going to happen on this big day, November 17th and then what would happen in the aftermath.  

In her way, Ronney's mother does love her children and she is looking out for them, she's planning for November 17th as she is convinced this is all true.  But she's terrible.  Rooney is more of a mother to her little brother than she is.  And then afterwards she just falls apart and Rooney has so much to worry about,  how to keep a house over their heads, how to keep buying food.  

Rooney has an absent father that comes back into her life.  All this time he has just sent money so they can pay the rent and that's pretty much it.  There was a fight and confusion and they both thought the other wanted nothing to do with the other.  Even that, you would think if he loved his children he would have fought a little more to get them.  He knew the mother was deep into this cult.  How did he know there wasn't some mass suicide going on November 17th.  By the end of the book he does seem to be trying to do a little better.

And then how confusing for the little boy. He loves his mother, and it's just sad how much he goes through.  

Everything we left behind

Everything we left behind

by Kerry Lonsdale

Here is the second one in a trilogy, so if you haven't read the first, Everything we Keep, you will want to go read that one first or you will be confused of what's going on.

In the first book, James disappears two months before his wedding.  On the day of what was supposed to be his wedding, his fiance is at his funeral as they assume he has died at sea.  Eventually they find him in Mexico living as Carlos.  He doesn't remember being James, that memory is gone, and he is living a new life.  He even fell in love with someone else, but she dies giving birth to their child.

In this book, Jame's memory comes back and he goes back to California.  His finance has since married someone else and has a daughter.  The chapters rotate between him being Carlos, right after his fiance had found him in Mexico and she went back to California and him waking back up as James 5 1/2 years later.

How scary for the children when Jame's memory comes back and he has no idea who they are.  They are young, have already lost their mother, and now the father that they love suddenly no longer remembers them.

And then Carlos, now realizing that at any moment his memory of being James might return and his whole life of Carlos will disappear.  He has made a good life in Mexico, loves his children, and genuinely loved his wife and misses her.  If his memory disappears, those memories will disappear.

Another interesting series, that has a nice depth of characters, even the on person who is two distinct characters.

Acid

Acid
by Emma Pass

It is the year 2113 and where Emma lives is controlled by an organization called ACID.  Everyone is being watched and must be careful of what they say or they will be punished.  The country is divided into the richer, inside of London class and the poorer, much larger population called the outside.

Jenna is in jail for murdering her parents and she is broken out by a mysterious rebel group.  Why is the rebel group breaking her out of jail?  What is important about her?  And what actually happened the night her parents died?

It was a good, imaginative story.  However, it wasn't quite as good as I was expecting.  I think that is because I recently read another book by this author, Fearless, and that one was better.  This one wasn't bad, I would still recommend it to others, it just wasn't quite as good as her other book.

Apt Pupil

Apt Pupil
by Stephen King

This was a dark one. I picked it up because it was by Stephen King.  

It's in the 70s and Todd is a good student in high school.  He recognizes one of his neighbors, that his neighbor is not who he says he is.  Todd threatens to turn Mr Dussander in to the authorities unless he tells him stories, in horrifying detail, of when he was a Nazi and worked at a death camp.  Soon, both are having nightmares, and it's almost as if they feed off of each other and it just gets darker and darker.

Todd seems to spend most of his time over at Mr. Dussander's and I wonder why his parents never think anything of it.  Todd also easily fakes his grades to his parents, but this was before a teacher probably would have just called or e-mailed the parents directly instead of sending a note home in the backpack that may or many not actually get to the parent.

So many times during the novel could things have ended different, instead it just keeps getting darker until there is no going back.

Never Tell

Never Tell
by Lisa Gardner

I was so excited to see that Lisa Gardner had a new book out, as it's always a good story that will pull you in.  This one was another page turner.

The novel rotates chapters between Evie, D.D. Warren and Flora.  Sometimes rotating between so many characters might confuse me of which chapter I'm reading, but Lisa Gardner is such a good writer, that was never a problem.

Evie is found holding a gun in her hand and her husband shot dead, the computer near him also being shot 12 times.  She looks guilty, but of course there is more to the story than what you see at first glance.

D.D. Warren recognizes Evie from a case years ago when she was first starting as a detective.  She was accused of shooting and killing her father and it was ruled an accident.  How many accidents can one person have?

Flora has the television on in the background when she turns and recognizes Evie's husband.  She saw him when she was held against her will and tortured by Jacob.  How did Evie's husband and Jacob know each other?

I have liked the addition of Flora in the past couple novels, and I hope she is in the next one too.  We still need answers from her story, and after that I think she might be able to move on and start living her life.  

I liked how something looked one way, but there was always more to the story.  When the police walk in, Evie sure looks guilty as she is holding a gun and her husband is dead.  Evie knew her husband was keeping a secret, but she didn't know what it was.  They really have to dig to find out.

The Twelve

The Twelve
by Justin Cronin

Here is the second in "The Passage" trilogy.  It jumps from shortly after the breakout to 100 years in the future where Amy currently is. It does take you back to the imaginative world where this terrible breakout is happening.

Mixed feelings about this one.  Like I said, it is a good story taking you back to that imaginative world.  However, there are so many characters and it jumps back in forth I was confused at times of what time period I was in, and who was who.  

The character that stood out most to me in this book was Lila and what happens to her.  That whole situation was just weird, I don't want to give away what happens to her so I'm not saying very much.

I have already borrowed the third book in the series from the library so I can see where this story is going to go.

Put a Ring on it

Put a Ring on it
by Beth Kendrick

Brighton is engaged, has a fight with her fiance and is quite shocked when a short time later her fiance calls and says that he has married someone else.  Married someone that he just met a few hours ago because he said that they clicked.

She is understandable upset, ends up drinking, and somehow runs off with Jake and getting married in Vegas.  This is very unlike her.  She is an insurance actuary, she's knows all kinds of stats off the top of her head, is a workaholic, never taking time off and just doesn't do snap decisions like this.  

While in the small town she starts helping out at a jewelry store.  As a child she dreamed of designing jewelry, but dropped that in favor a boring, stable job as she wanted to be able to pay her bills. She is good at designing jewelry and working in the store and this was another fun aspect to the book. 

This one was so much fun.  Brighton was a smart, independent character and even though she had happened to marry a really rich guy, she would be fine on her own.  She worked hard for her money, but she didn't need his.  

I wanted Brighton and Jake to end up together since obviously they are perfect together.  Never mind that it's doubtful that such a rash decision like this would ever end well, it's book, a fluffy, feel good story.

There are a few more in this series and I am definitely adding them to my reading list.

Dumplin'

Dumplin'
by Julie Murphy

I ended up picking this up after I watched the movie on Netflix.  The movie was cute and after I saw it was based off a book, I wanted to read it.  

Will is in high school and she's on the heavy side and she knows it.  Her mom is a former beauty queen in charge of the local beauty pageant.  And over the years Will has been on every diet imaginable, but nothing worked and she has accepted that this is just the way her body is.

Her aunt recently died and they were very close.  Her aunt loved Dolly Parton, and I think this was one of the things that made the movie so much fun was all the music.  Will and her mom both really miss the aunt.  This is another reason that her mom worries about her so much, the aunt was only in her thirties when she died, but it was due to being very obese.  She might come off as sharp sometimes to her daughter, but it's because she worries about her.  She wants the best for her, and she worries she will keep gaining weight and eventually end up like her sister.

Eventually Will and a few other girls decide to enter the beauty pageant, which her mom is in charge of.  It's cute, I liked seeing other people in the pageant and not just the cookie cutter girls.

What I wasn't as crazy about in this book was the love triangle.  Will likes two boys and they both like her.  Bo, the boy she works with.  And another classmate, that I am completely blanking out what his name was.  They are both nice boys that seem to treat her well, she just needs to pick without leading the other one on.  I understand she's a confused teenager, but I didn't care for this part of the book.  (I'm kinda glad that in the movie they just dropped one of the characters.)

I see there is a companion book two that follows some other characters from this book, which I will be adding to my reading list.

The Weight of Small Things

The Weight of Small Things
by Sherri Wood Emmons

Corrie has a good life and is happily married.  However, she desperately wants a baby.  She is haunted by something that happened in her past and fears that God is punishing her now and that's why she isn't getting pregnant.  This is also starting to take a tole on her marriage.

Then in walks Daniel, Corrie's ex-boyfriend, from ten years ago.  She thought she would marry him at one time.

I don't want to say too much to give away what happens, but wrong decisions are made.  What I liked about this book, even as I was shaking my head telling the character that was a bad idea, that they are flawed.  Humans are not perfect, we make mistakes, and this book is filled with those flawed, realistic characters.  People make mistake, and they are okay, the characters turned it around and made the best out of it.

This is the second book I have read by this author, and I think the library had a couple more by her that I will be reading sometime in the future.

You Can Trust Me

You Can Trust Me
by Sophie McKenzie

One day Livy finds her friend dead.  The evidence supports a suicide, there is even a note, but that doesn't match up with what she knew about her friend.  

How well did she know Julia?  Soon she meets Damien, the man that Julia was dating.  To her Julia told her she never wanted to get married and never wanted kids.  Damien says otherwise and they were about to get engaged, looking at picking out rings later to make it official, and that she did want kids in the next year or two.  

And Damien tells Livy that Julia has secretly been trying to find her sister's killer after all these years, that she has never given up and has kept looking.  Livy had no idea that Julia was even investigating. Her sister was murdered eighteen years ago and now it looks like the two murders might be connected.

In between chapters of Livy, there are almost diary entries from the killer.  Disturbing.  

I kept reading as I wanted to know who the killer was.  I had a few guesses but I thought they would just be too obvious.  It was a good book and I would read this author again.

What the Nanny Saw

What the Nanny Saw

by Fiona Neill

Ali becomes a nanny for a rich couple, Nick and Byrony.  She is to mainly watch five-year old twins, who have frustrated their mother by keep talking in a secret language that nobody understands.  There is also a 14 year old girl who seems to have anorexia and a 19 year old boy that has gone off to college.

The first couple of chapters were a bit confusing as I tried to figure out what was going on, it was after and there was some kind of financial disaster with Nick's company and he was possibly going to prison. Then the book jumps to the past and you read about Ali starting to become a nanny.

Nick and Byrony are rich, but their life is fair from perfect.  The twins are attached to each other, speak in their own language, and don't like to play with other kids.  Their 14 year old seems to have an eating disorder, yet nobody seems to care much enough to actually help her.  Byrony is constantly flip flopping on what she tells Ali to do in between constantly claiming she is so busy because she works full time.  Plenty of mothers work full time yet still have time for their children.  

And Ali.  I want to like my main character and be rooting for her, but I didn't like her.  She just came across as self-centered, not caring, and she kept sleeping with men that weren't appropriate (either married or just too young without giving away too much of the plot.)

I felt bad for the five-year old twins, as they seemed to be the only decent characters in the whole book. 

Mixed feelings about this one.  It was okay, I have read another book by this author, so I was expecting it to be a little better than it was.  But at the same time it was a decent story too.

Mr. Commitment

Mr. Commitment
by Mike Gayle

Ben is in his late twenties, and after four years of dating, his girlfriend proposes to him.  This sends Ben into a tailspin, he likes the way things are.  Ben and Mel haven't moved in together and he isn't sure he is ready to get married and now he feels pressured to.

The character of Ben was amusing, more at first, he got a bit annoying after a while.  He was in his late twenties and needed to grow up.  I didn't care for Mel, I honestly kept reading hoping that during one of their breakups Ben would meet someone else, and then that would be why Ben didn't immediately say yes when Mel asked him to marry her, because she just wasn't the right one.

Normally men propose, so the idea was different.  Basically after four years, Mel wants to know if this relationship is going to go somewhere or if she is wasting her time.  She wants to get married and settle down. Instead of waiting a few more years, she just asks him.  

It was an amusing read, it wasn't the best book, but it definitely wasn't the worse either and I would read one of his other books if I happened to see them on the library shelf. 

The Fearless

The Fearless
by Emma Pass

The government has made a drug that was meant to help with PTSD, it helps the soldiers not feel fear, which makes them better in combat.  After a short success, they start giving it to more people.  Soon after they discover the drug has side effects.  Yes, they no longer feel fear, but they also no longer feel empathy or love.  Soon the infected, called the fearless, are zombie-like, violent, rabid, and want to infect more.  

Soon after the invasion, Cass is taken to a compound for safety with her mother, who gives birth to a boy, on the way there.  Seven years later, Cass's mother is gone.  She's in the compound with her younger brother.  When he is kidnapped by the Fearless, she goes after him.

This reminded me of other distopian novels, and even some television shows.  I liked it, it was a good story.  I liked the character of Cass, she is going out trying to save her younger brother. It's scary out there.

After reading this one, I was hoping there were more and it was a series.  I didn't see anymore and this came out a few years ago which makes me think it is a standalone novel.  The author does have one other book out, which I will be adding to my reading list.

Everything We Keep

Everything We Keep
by Kerry Lonsdale

On what is meant to be the day of her wedding, Aimee is instead attending the funeral of her fiance.  James was in a boating accident and vanished.  Aimee tries to move on and works on opening a new restaurant. 

A psychic tells Aimee that James is still alive.  She doesn't believe her, but soon she finds pictures that look as if James has painted them.  Why are there paintings in the middle of Mexico that look exactly like James work?

I liked this one.  I was curious as to if James was alive or not.  And if he was, why had he disappeared on his fiance.  Looks like this is the first in a trilogy, I put the next one in the series on my to-read list.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

Our Year of Maybe

Our Year of Maybe
by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Sophie and Peter are best friends.  Peter has long been on the kidney transplant list, so when Sophie is found to be a match, they are excited.  

However, Sophie is secretly wishing that once Peter has her kidney, he will magically love her back.  As a child, Peter had feelings for Sophie, that she didn't return at the time.  Now the roles have been reversed, and Sophie is in love with him.  

The reviews on this one seemed fairly high, but I thought it was just mediocre.  I wasn't really caring for either main character.  A friend giving up a kidney for a friend, well, I thought that could be interesting.  You are giving up a part of yourself, willingly going into surgery so that they can have a better life and live.  It's a wonderful thing.

This one just wasn't much for me.