Title: Monstress Volumes 1 and 2 Author: Marjorie Liu Year Published: 2016 and 2017 Format: Paperback,  192 pp and 152 pp Summary: Volume 1 (issues 1-6): Set in an alternate matriarchal 1900's Asia, in a richly imagined world of art deco-inflected steam punk, MONSTRESS tells the story of a teenage girl who is struggling to… Continue reading Review – Monstress Volumes 1 and 2 by Marjorie Liu

Title: Daughter of the Pirate King and Daughter of the Siren Queen Author: Tricia Levenseller Years Published: 2017 and 2018 Format: eBooks, 320 pp and 352 pp Summary: Daughter of the Pirate King - Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map—the key to a legendary treasure trove—seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows… Continue reading Review – Daughter of the Pirate King and Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller

Title: Love, Life, and the List Author: Kasie West Year Published: 2017 Format: Hardcover, 384 pp Summary: Seventeen-year-old Abby Turner’s summer isn’t going the way she’d planned. She has a not-so-secret but definitely unrequited crush on her best friend, Cooper. She hasn’t been able to manage her mother’s growing issues with anxiety. And now she’s… Continue reading Review – Love, Life, and the List by Kasie West

Title: Mango & Bambang: The Not-a-Pig Author: Polly Faber Year Published: 2015 Format: Hardcover, 144 pp Summary: A charming collection of four beautifully illustrated stories about the unlikely friendship between Mango, a little girl, and Bambang, a Malaysian tapir. Mango Allsorts is good at all sorts of things, not just karate and chess. Bambang is most… Continue reading Review – Mango and Bambang by Polly Faber

I'm not sure I can give a proper review, but I've finally made it halfway through.  This has been a difficult and disappointing read for me.  And let me tell you why! I have a really hard time buying into Atwood's dystopia.  It's just not realistic for me in so many different ways, every time… Continue reading Might Include Spoilers – Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Title: Pachinko Author: Min Jin Lee Year Published: 2017 Format: Kindle eBook, 490 pp Summary: Profoundly moving and gracefully told, PACHINKO follows one Korean family through the generations, beginning in early 1900s Korea with Sunja, the prized daughter of a poor yet proud family, whose unplanned pregnancy threatens to shame them. Betrayed by her wealthy… Continue reading Review – Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

Title: Salt Houses Author: Hala Alyan Year Published: 2017 Format: Hardcover, 320 pp Summary: On the eve of her daughter Alia’s wedding, Salma reads the girl’s future in a cup of coffee dregs. She sees an unsettled life for Alia and her children; she also sees travel, and luck. While she chooses to keep her predictions to herself… Continue reading Review – Salt Houses by Hala Alyan

Title: The Masterpiece Author: Francine Rivers Year Published: 2018 Format: Kindle eBook, 512 pp Summary: New York Times bestselling author Francine Rivers returns to her romance roots with this unexpected and redemptive love story, a probing tale that reminds us that mercy can shape even the most broken among us into an imperfect yet stunning masterpiece. A… Continue reading Review – The Masterpiece by Francine Rivers

Title: An American Marriage Author: Tayari Jones Year Published: 2018 Format: Hardcover, 320 pp Summary: Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. But as they settle into the routine of… Continue reading Review – An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

I read several graphic novels/comic books this month.  They tend to be a good way for me to break up my longer reads.  So, here are some thoughts about those.  🙂 Title: Adulthood is a Myth Author: Sarah Andersen Year Published: 2016 Format: Library Paperback, 112 pp Summary: These casually drawn, perfectly on-point comics by the… Continue reading Graphic Novel/Comic Reviews