The Vanishing Trick by Jenni Spangler

I am setting myself a near-impossible task to shake the lethargy that I have sunk into when it comes to actually doing something other than routine tasks (i.e. reading, cooking and even some cleaning). I need to get more than six reviews written and have been postponing it, waiting for inspiration to strike and it…

The Last Paper Crane by Kerry Drewery

There are always so many sides to any story. Since the victors write history, we end up having a lot of information about some events and hardly anything about another. This is probably why, despite reading a considerable chunk of historical fiction, I have never had an opportunity to read about Hiroshima. This is a…

Confessions About Colton by Olivia Harvard

This book had a very promising start. The narration was well done, and it was really fast-paced. It built up to a crescendo and then just fizzled into a bizarre ending. I will step back and explain from the beginning. Our narrator Elliot is an intriguing person. He is very realistically portrayed, and it is…

Willa and the Whale by Chad Morris; Shelly Brown

I may not read a lot of books targeting a younger audience, but I do try and pick up the ones I feel interested in. I recently really enjoyed one but did not gel entirely with it. We have a precocious main character who is well versed in Marine Biology because of her mother. The…

The Newspaper Club by Beth Vrabel

I read and reviewed the author's previous book : I really liked the narrative style, and when I saw a new book by the author, I had to pick it up. It was a great decision as I immediately realised. It was a rapid read, I read it in one sitting thins morning between breakfast…

Nutmeg Street: Egyptian Secrets (A Botanic Hill Detectives Mystery, #1) by Sherrill Joseph

This is the first of a series with an already established group of friends who solve mysteries. They are official, with a name and credentials and past cases that we are only given glimpses of. The past will probably be referenced in future books in more detail to provide a better picture. The pair of…

Rating Your Bunkmates and Other Camp Crimes by Jennifer Orr

This was a cute middle-grade story of friendships. Although I found it hard to believe Abby could think the way she did, I do not know many geniuses or prodigies so I cannot precisely comment on that exact aspect. Abby has skipped a grade (or two) and has had minimal social interactions with the people…

Smailholm by C.L. Williams

This is probably the first historical fiction aimed at young teens that I have read. I would not say children because of the concentration of the storyline on the romantic prospects and emotions of the lead cast of characters. If targetting children, I would assume it would focus more on the task at hand and…