Book: Here Be Dragons

 Book: Here Be Dragons

Author: Ralph Whitlock

Pages: 222

This is my 177th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

Dragons are deeply embedded in the folklore of the British countryside, their presence echoing through the history of countless hamlets and villages.  These mythical creatures snarl from church carvings, linger in the traditions of mumming plays and pageants, and live on in the stories passed down through generations.  Tracing their remnats - whether in art, legend, ro ritual - offers more than just a fascinating pursuit; it provides a window into their lives, beliefs, and practices of our rural ancestors.  To them, dragons symbolized evil and destruction, embodying the fears and challenges of their time.  

Stars: 4 

Book: The London Seance Society

 Book: The London Seance Society

Author: Sarah Penner

Pages: 352

This is my 177th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

1873.  At an abandoned chateau on the outskirts of Paris, a dark seance is about to take place, led by acclaimed spiritualist Vaudeline D'Allaire.  Known worldwide for her talentin conjuring the spirits of murder victimes to ascertain the identities of the people who killed them, she is highly sought after by windows and investigators alike.  Lenna Wickes has come to Paris to find answers about her sister's death, but to do so, she must embrace the unknown and overcome her own logic-driven bias against the occult. When Vaudeline is beckoned to England to solve a high-profile murder, Lenna accompanies her as an understudy.  With shared determination, the women find companionship that perhaps borders on something more.  And as they team up with the powerful men of London's exclusive Seance Society to solve the mystery, they begin to suspect that they are not merely out to solve a crime, but perhaps entangled in one themselves.

Stars: 3 

Book: Games Untold

 Book: Games Untold

Author: Jennifer Barnes

Pages: 448

This is my 176th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

An amnesiac playboy and the woman with every reason to hate him.  A daredevil, his favroite heiress, and 3 nights in Prague.  An unlikely pairing between a cowboy and a goth.  4 brothers with an inescapable bond, strengthened by the family they chose, in a house of wonders that promises to always deliver one more secret.  

This was an okay book.  I read the 4 books in the Inheritence games and thought this was a next book, and it kind of is.  Mostly it is a recap of the stories over the last 4 books - untold stories of when the characters were younger, side character stories, etc.  It was fine.

Stars: 3 

Book: Beatrice and Virgil

 Book: Beatric and Virgil

Author: Yann Martel

Pages: 224

This is my 175th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

Fate takes many forms.  When Henry receives a letter from an elderly taxidermist, it poses a puzzle that he cannot resist.  As he is pulled further into the world of this strage and calculting man, Henry becomes increasingly involved with the lives of a donkey and a howler monkey - named Beatrice and Virgil - and the epic journey they undertake together

Stars: 3

Book: The Memory Collectors

 Book: The Memory Collectors

Author: Dete Meserve

Pages: 336

This is my 174th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

What would you do if you could spend an hour in your past?  4 stragers in the beach town of Ventura, California are about to find out.  Elizabeth aches for one more precious hour with her son who died in a senseless accident.  Any is desperate to find his first love who vanished after a whirlwind romance.  Logan craves the rush of surfing and mountain climbing, yearning to reclaim the freedom he lost after a misstep landed him in a wheelchair.  Brooke is looking for an hour of relief from the guilt of an unforgivable mistake.  Enter Aeon Expeditions, the groundbreakingime travel invention of Mark Saunders - which allows some lucky clients the chance to spend an hour in their past.  Even though Aeon's technology ensures time travel can't alter the furture, all 4 clients, including MArk's ex-wife Elizabeth, yearn to revisit the hour that changed their lives forever.  But when their hour extends beyond 60 minutes, they find themselves stranded in the past.  As their paths intertwine unexpectedly, they unreath shocking secrets hidden in the shadows of their shared history: All their lives were shattered the same night on a secluded highway by the beach.  As they delve into the hidden truths of thatpivotal hour, a startling revelation emerges.  They were not alone.  Someone else was present, harboring dealy intentions.

This book was infurating.  I liked the idea of it, but the characters made we crazy.  Once they decided they were going to change their fate, and then couldn't because fate is inevitable, the book lost me.  Did not make any sense.  The people all knew what they were trying to change what happened, and yet they all did the exact same thing they did in the future.  Just no.  

Stars: 2 

Book: Sorry I Missed You

 Book: Sorry I Missed You

Author: Suzy Krause

Pages: 335

This is my 173rd read for the year

What Amazon Says:

When Mackenzie, Sunna, and Maude move into a converted rental house, they are strangers with only one thing in common - important people in their lives have "ghosted" them.  Mackenzie's sister, Sunna's best friend, and Maude's fiance - all gone with no explanation.  So when a mangled, near-indecipherable letter arrives in their shaed mailbox - hinting at long-awaited answers - each tenant assumes it's for her.  The mistmatched trio decides to stake out the coffee shop named in the letter - the only clue they have - and in the process, a bizarre kinship forms.  But the more they learn about each other, the more questions(and suspeicions) they begin to have.  All the while, creepy sounds and strange happenings around the property suggest that they ghosts from their pasts might not be all that's haunting them.  Will any of the housemates find the closure they are looking for?  Or are some doors meant to remain closed?

Stars: 3 

Book: The Burning Side

 Book: The Burning Side

Author: Sarah Damhoff

Pages: 336

This is my 172nd read for the year

What Amazon Says:

When April and Leo's house burns in the middle of the night, they escape with their 2 young children and the quiet knowledge that the fire is not the only thing threatening their family.  They retreat to April's childhood home in Dallas, where her spirited parents and siblings provide both comfort and complication.  As the family reckons with the aftermath - grief, guilt, logistics, and memories scorched and intact - the fire exposes the cracks already forming in April and Leo's marriage.  Te Novel unfolds in alternating perspectives: from April, who feels the crushing weight of motherhood, marriage, and sel-blame; from Leo, a high school history teacher shaped by a lonely, fractured childhood; from Deb, April's generous and no-nonsense mother who has to contend with her husband's recent Alzheimer's diagnosis; and from flashbacks that trace April and Leo's relationship from its earliest days of connection to the devastating decisions that led them here.  A family sage suffused with humor, longing, and heartbreak, this book is about what we inherit and what we choose, about forgiveness and the ache of being known.  It is about the meaning of home and the costs of long love.

stars: 3