Archive for February, 2022

The Last Beautiful Girl by Nina Laurin

Published February 25, 2022 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Genre: Fantasy/Suspense

When Isabella Brixton is forced to move away from her home, friends, and starring role in her school play she is sure her life is ruined. Her parents have been offered jobs they simply cannot turn down, but the university they work for is going to allow them to stay in a gorgeous mansion that used to be owned by a famous artistic muse who died many years ago. When Isa starts at her new school she meets Alexa, a talented photographer who wants to photograph Isa inside the famous mansion wearing the clothes the former occupant left behind. At first, they have a lot of fun with this because the pictures turn out absolutely stunning every single time. They create an Instagram account to share with the world and they soon go viral. Eventually, Isa and everyone who comes in contact with this house begins to change, however, and not for the better. Isa begins acting strangely and even sleepwalks where she finds hidden things in the mansion she shouldn’t know about. She’s also pretty sure there’s an unnatural spirit in the house that has startled her on occasion. Her mother starts to become obsessed with cleaning and often acts out of character, such as forgetting to pick up Isa from school and then claiming she did. Things that used to matter to Isa no longer do as her hunger for power and fame grows. Can Isa get out of this house before it’s too late? Will others get hurt along the way? What is causing the bizarre phenomena in this house?

This story definitely has some suspenseful and frightening scenes as people try to help Isa escape this house, so it is not for those looking for a light-hearted read. The transition that occurs as more people enter the house and interact within it is gradual and very believable as the overall atmosphere begins to change. The characters themselves are affected in believable ways, but it is unclear why some are changed more than others. Overall, a very unique story that will hook readers from early on as it becomes clear that there is something amiss with this house. It also offers an interesting commentary on the dangers of social media and fame. Recommended for those who enjoy suspense mixed with fantasy.

All This Time by Mikki Daughtry and Rachael Lippincott

Published February 18, 2022 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , , ,
Genre: Romance

From the same authors as Five Feet Apart, this romance story begins with Kyle learning that his longtime girlfriend is actually not going to go to the same college as he is on their graduation night. There is a terrible storm and as they fight about their future together they get into a terrible accident where Kyle is seriously injured and Kimberly dies. He struggles for months to heal and get up every morning knowing that Kimberly is gone. He shuts out friends, puts college on hold, and generally fails to progress in any way. Then, he meets Marley and everything starts to change. Marley has also lost someone close to her and the two of them begin to work through their grief together, but as they begin to find happiness they feel overwhelming guilt that they are here and those they lost are not. Both of them harbor guilt about how their loved one died as well. Kyle can’t help shake the feeling that something will come along to disrupt his happiness because he doesn’t think he deserves it, and something definitely does but it’s something you won’t see coming. Can he fight for what he had with Marley or is it just not the right time?

This story definitely keeps the reader guessing as the plot takes some serious twists. Kyle’s relationship with Kimberly has kept him from truly living his best life and he’s starting to realize that, but also feels terrible about the fact that Kimberly is not there anymore. Marley, meanwhile, has faced some terrible things as well and because of that struggles to truly open up and believe in happy endings and forgiveness. Recommended for fans who enjoy unique romance stories such as The Fault in Our Stars and Eleanor and Park.

The Buried by Melissa Grey

Published February 11, 2022 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , ,
Adventure/Survival/Realistic Fiction

Sash and her family have lived in an underground bunker for 10 years, along with a few other families, after tragedy struck and the sunlight on the surface became toxic to them. They have been forced to abide by the very strict rules of Dr. Moran, who claims to know a lot about this above ground phenomena that has struck their town. She has requested they never touch, including family, and must always do as she says or else they could be placed in isolation as punishment. They are starting to run out of food and the bunker is starting to fall apart, which has Sash and her two friends, Gabe and Yuna, very worried. They end up finding a secret entrance to the bunker and want to go up to see for themselves what the world above is really like after ten long years, but if they are caught or if they stumble into an aboveground apocalypse they are not sure they can handle the repercussions. On the other hand, can they afford not to try?

Fans of survival stories will enjoy this title as the three teens struggle to find their place in this very small world that has been created for them in this underground bunker. It does not have the hope that some survival stories have, but at the same time does truly help the reader to feel what it would really be like to be in this position. There are some surprising plot twists as the three debate on what to do about their current situation and readers should be impressed with the attention to detail as they start to put the pieces together near the end.

Open Mic Night At Westminster Cemetary by Mary Amato

Published February 4, 2022 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: , , ,
Genre: Fantasy

Sixteen-year-old Lacy Brink is shocked and disheartened to find herself buried in Westminster Cemetary with no memory of how she died. Things quickly get worse when she meets Mrs. Steele, who is set on enforcing all the archaic graveside rules from many years ago. These rules include no cursing, no staying out past sunrise, and performing the job assigned to you without complaint. After a rocky start, Lacy learns that if you break the rules you get a strike and once you have three strikes you are no longer allowed to get out of your graves at night, which sounds terrible. Everyone is very eager to meet Lacy because there haven’t been any new residents in many years. Sam, for example, was buried a hundred years earlier and immediately feels a connection with Lacy, but he doesn’t know if she feels the same. Edgar Allan Poe is buried in this cemetary as well, but apparently he earned his strikes pretty quickly and is no longer allowed out of his grave. Lacy’s job is the entertainment director and she announces she would like to have an open mic night. This is a new concept to the ghosts, but many are eager for something new to happen. In order for it to be successful, Lacy feels she needs to get Mrs. Steele out of the picture so everyone will feel comfortable performing. Also, it would give her a chance to open up the event to all people, even those who have earned 3 strikes. To add to her stress, Lacy’s sister has begun coming to the cemetary to try and deal with her guilt over Lacy’s death. How did Lacy die and will she be able to survive in this bizarre cemetary with its very strict rules? Will the other ghosts perform at the open mic night? Even after all this time, what have the ghosts not shared with each other about how they lived?

This unique story is set in the cemetary where Edgar Allan Poe is buried and so there are some fun interactions with him, his wife, and his mother. It becomes obvious that many of the people in this cemetary have no concept of what modern times are like and are very intrigued by this new resident. It is written using stage directions, which definitely sets the scene for this story, but may be difficult for some reluctant readers. Once the rules of the cemetary are established, the story really takes off as Lacy struggles to find her way in a place that hasn’t changed much in decades. Fans of light fantasy will enjoy this clever tale.

Archives