A Sea Unto Itself by Jay Worrall

Tags

Goodreads, Historical Fiction, NetGalley

 

I love reading historical fiction, so I jumped all over this one, when I was offered the chance to review.

And I’m very happy for the opportunity to read it.
There’s lots of action and sub-plots at the beginning and the writing is great.
There are parts with lots of action, like the battle scenes, but there are also long stretches at sea, which could be tedious to read, but surprisingly aren’t. I thought it was very interesting to catch this glimpse of what life on board a ship at that time would have been like. The characters are all well developed with very distinctive personalities.

overall a book that could have been bad, but isn’t. A story that could have been boring but it riveting.

Almost Royalty: A Romantic Comedy…of Sorts (Paperback) by Courtney Hamilton

Tags

fiction, Goodreads, NetGalley

A very clever and funny read. Like an updated and Los Angelized Jilly Cooper’s Class for the current decade.

It’s a lengthy book, and at times a bit repetitive, but I think intended by the author to highlight Courtney’s “doomed” life as a single mid-thirties woman.
It’s definitely well written and very amusing to read. This satirical take is well done.

Blue Gold [Kindle Edition] Elizabeth Stewart (Author)

Tags

Goodreads, Must Read, NetGalley, New Fave, YA

I just finished reading Blue Gold, and it’s the first time since becoming a book reviewer that a book has left me speechless and made a deep and lasting impression on me.

The book is very well written, and explores the different lives of 3 girls: Fiona in Canada, living some high school drama and cyber bullying, Laiping in China, working (being exploited) in an electronics manufacturing factory, and Sylvie, living in the middle of the war torn DRC, directly affected by rape, murder and corruption.

The writing is so vivid that you can picture what each of these girls faces on a daily basis. It’s shocking, eye-opening and deeply disturbing. Even though this book is fictional, everything could, and does, happen every day.

I found the afterword very important, and am glad the author added it.

The first thing I did after reading the last page was to download the buycott.com app, and then write this review.

The Secret World of Oil by Ken Silverstein

Tags

Goodreads, NetGalley, nonfiction, Not my cup of tea

I was intrigued by this book and excited to read it.

I know there are a lot of secret deals, dirty politics and corruption, same as in some other industries.
I was interested in reading about the behind the scenes players and dealings, but I found the book to be quite biased. from the writing style, and some of the chosen wording, you can tell the author’s low regard for either oil companies or specific players in the industry.
This was disappointing for me. I was looking for more of an investigative report without the author trying to tell me what my opinion should be.

John Dreamer (John Dreamer #1) by Elise Celine

Tags

Goodreads, NetGalley

Such a disappointment.
The cover is beautiful, and together with the synopsis it sounded like a super great book.
Unfortunately I didn’t like it at all. It was pretty boring…The characters were either annoying, dumb or whiny (or a combination there-off). I found that they were all very stereotypical and without much depth.

There is some growth, insight and self-reflection, but I just didn’t connect to the book or the writing to care that much at the end.

Daughter of Camelot (Empire of Shadows 1) by Glynis Cooney

Tags

fiction, Goodreads, NetGalley, YA

highly enjoyable read, kept me engaged to the very end and feverishly awaiting part 2.

I thought this book was truly fun to read. A different spin on other Arthurian books, with the main character being a girl, who wants nothing more than to be a knight and save the world.
Her adventures develop in a way she never anticipated and at the end she realizes that her desire has been fulfilled but in a way completely different than what she imagined.

 

The Setting Sun: A Memoir of Empire and Family Secrets by Bart Moore-Gilbert

Tags

Goodreads, NetGalley, nonfiction

The author’s writing brings the sights, smells and sounds of the different places alive, from England to Africa and India.

This book is more than a memoir. I enjoyed reading the childhood memories given as flashbacks throughout the book. They are so vividly written.
In addition, there’s the author’s investigation into his father’s past and solving that mystery.
A very well-written book, at the same time introspective, raw, vivid, sweet and honest

Sleep Soundly Every Night, Feel Fantastic Every Day: A Doctor’s Guide to Solving Your Sleep Problems by Robert Rosenberg

Tags

Goodreads, NetGalley, nonfiction

A very interesting book and a must read for anyone suffering from sleep disorders, either chronic or occasional.

It was eye-opening to me to discover how many sleep disorders there are, but I was specifically interested in any that apply to me.
The beginning of the book has a very helpful self-assessment, which then points you to the chapters of the book that may apply to you. I focused on those chapters and skimmed the rest

Each chapter is packed with great information and, even better, with really helpful tips to get a better sleep. I tried these for the past few nights and have already been sleeping better.

I highly recommend this book.

It Doesn’t Suck: Showgirls by Adam Nayman

i liked this book, but I also liked the movie.
And it didn’t really matter to me that it won a ton of razzies. I thought it was an entertaining movie that showed the difficult and often seedy life of showgirls.
So the book didn’t change my mind about the movie, but it gave me an interesting new perspective and included many thoughtful and thought-provoking insights

What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding: A Memoir by Kristin Newman

Tags

Memoir or Biography

i loved this one. I usually love reading memoirs, and can find the good in all of them, even if some tend to drag on in parts a bit.

This one wasn’t like that at all. I enjoyed every page and every mile we traveled.
The writing is quick, witty, amusing, entertaining and engaging.

I could identify with Kristin all the way through. I haven’t done near that amount of single vacationing, but I still get her. I hope she writes another memoir in a few years….I want to know how her story continues.
And maybe if Rob has a single brother, send him my way LOL.