The Secret Gate by Mitchell Zuckoff

 

Homeira Qaderi is a mother, author, celebrated activist and champion of rights for all Afghani women, and outspoken critic of the Taliban. When the United States announced their withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the Taliban regained control of Homeira's beloved country, she knew her life was now in danger. But she was determined to stay in Kabul and keep speaking out against the Taliban. Until her family finally convinced her to try and escape. 

Sam Aronson, a junior diplomat with the State Department, was on vacation when Afghanistan devolved into chaos. He quickly volunteered to help with the refugee crisis and ended up being sent to the airport in Kabul to try and vet the thousands of Afghani citizens desperate to leave their country and escape the Taliban--especially those who had done so much to help the Americans over the last twenty years. But it's all the ones he's forced to turn away that begin to give him nightmares. That's when he decides to try and bring as many people as he can through the airport's secret gate before it closes for good. Homeira Qaderi and her son are two of the people he helped save. 

My thoughts:  This incredible true story is both riveting and heartbreaking. Thinking about what happened in Afghanistan in August of 2021 still makes me angry and sad. And this book captures all of  those emotions. The masterful way that Zuckoff interweaves Homeira's and Sam's eyewitness accounts lets you see the harrowing and tragic events taking place on both sides of the gate. Sam's determination to save lives was inspiring. And Homeira's love for her country deepened my understanding of Afghanistan and it's history. For me, this was a 5-star read! 

Happy Reading!

Similar, and equally good book:

Top Ten Tuesday...

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme is supposed to be BOOK COVERS IN THE COLORS OF MY COUNTRY'S FLAG. 

But I changed it up a little. Since today is the Fourth of July here in America, I put together a list of Ten Books that Celebrate America's History, Heroes, and Freedoms. Because I love my country. And I loved all of these books, too. 

Plain, Honest Men: The Making of the American Constitution

by Richard Beeman

1776 by David McCullough

Lion of Liberty by Harlow Giles Unger

The Operator by Robert O'Neill

Sam Adams:  Pioneer in Propaganda by John Miller

Valley Forge by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin

Ten Tea Parties by Joseph Cummins

The Taking of Jemima Boone by Matthew Pearl

Henry and the Cannons by Don Brown

Hooray for Liberty, Charlie Brown by Charles M. Schulz

Happy Fourth of July!

Randomness...

Latest Giveaway win from Goodreads:

(Which I found out about this week!)

And I'd just read Carole's 5-star review of this book which makes me want to read it even more. Here's hoping it comes in the mail soon.

List of library books I checked out of the library yesterday...

and my reading for the month of July:

 

Lone Women by Victor Lavalle

The Lonely Hearts Book Club by Lucy Gilmore

Dangerous Ground by Rachel Grant

Mickey 7 by Ashton Edward

The Island by Natasha Preston

The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi

Head Over Paws by Debbie Burns

A Novel Proposal by Denise Hunter

The Best is Yet to Come by Debbie Macomber

The Sorcerer of Pyongyang by Marcel Theroux

In other random news:

I've got a fun but busy week coming up next week with my family's annual Fourth of July Breakfast on Tuesday, play tickets to a local production of Beauty and the Beast (because my niece is playing the Wardrobe), my nephew's birthday, and a horseback trail ride scheduled for next Friday. It's summering at it's best.

Happy Reading!

Summer Reading by Jenn McKinlay

 

The Setting: Martha's Vineyard

The Characters:

• Samantha Gale -- 28, a talented chef and spunky extrovert with mad skills both in the kitchen and coping with her dyslexia who wants to write a cookbook someday.
• Tyler Gale -- 14, Samantha's smart half-brother who is into robotics, prefers plain food, and barely knows his sister.
• Bennett Reynolds -- the hot interim library director; he's quiet, in his 30s, loves books, and is trying to discover the identity of his father.

What I Loved:  Sam and Ben are such opposites, and that's what made their conversations and interactions so engaging. I loved how Sam let herself be vulnerable and honest with Ben, and how he encouraged her and read out loud to her on his lunch hours. Their romance was very sweet and swoony.

I also really liked watching Sam and Tyler build a brother/sister relationship over the summer. They had some fun banter and humorous interactions throughout the novel. It added another charming layer to his novel that I appreciated.

And the fact that so much of this summer romance deals with books and reading makes it a perfect one for Susan's Bookish Books Reading Challenge.

Happy Reading!

Top Ten Tuesday

 

Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme?

Most Anticipated Books Releasing During the Second Half of 2023.

1. An Evil Heart by Linda Castillo

(July 11th)

2. Trail of the Lost by Andrea Lankford

(Aug. 22nd)

3. Hemlock Island by Kelley Armstrong

(Sept. 12th)

4. Holly by Stephen King

(Sept. 5th)

5. An Inheritance of Magic by Benedict Jacka

(Oct. 10th)

6. The Rosewood Hunt by Mackenzie Reed

(Oct. 31st)

7. Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood

(Nov. 7th)

8. Never Wager With a Wallflower by Virginia Heath

(Nov. 7th)

9. That Others May Live by Sara Driscoll

(Nov. 28th)

10. Raiders of the Lost Heart by Jo Segura

(Dec. 5th)

Happy Reading!

Haiku Reviews...

 

A Thousand Miles by Bridget Morrissey

Can a road trip fix

ten years of silence and hurt?

Ben and Dee find out.

Romantic comedy .... 332 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Forced proximity, second chance at love, and a stray cat named Abe. I really liked this one!)

The Only Game in Town by Lacie Waldon

Ten million dollars.

Jess and Carter compete for the prize...

on opposing teams.

Romantic comedy .... 394 pages .... 4.5/5 stars.

(Loved the small town setting, the crazy contests, and Carter's and Jess's sweet romance.)

Falling For You by Barb Curtis

Yoga teacher inherits

house. Hires single dad to

fix it up. Finds love.

Contemporary romance .... 332 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(Rob and Faith may be opposites, but they're also perfect for one another. This is a very cute and clean romance.)

Happy Reading!

The Trailwalker by J.L. Bryan

 

The plot:  Paranormal investigator, Ellie Jordan, and her partner, Stacey, have been hired by Josh and Allison Conner to investigate the old summer camp they just purchased and hope to reopen soon. The camp has a lot of history, not all of it good. Allison is convinced the rustic lodge and cabins are haunted. Josh isn't so sure. But there's a cold mist in the attic, ghostly footsteps at night, something haunting the lake, and an old burial mound near the camp. Ellie and Stacey have their work cut out for them. First, they need to find out who or what is haunting the place, and then figure out how to lay it to rest.  

My thoughts: I love books with a summer camp setting. And a camp that's haunted, too? Even better! This is the thirteenth Ellie Jordan novel that I've read and it's another fun one in this ghost-hunting series. It reads fast. The mystery surrounding the summer camp is interesting. And there's lots of ghostly activity and good supernatural suspense. And the ending is awesome. (Just wait 'til you meet the Trailwalker!) That's what I love most about these books; they all have good endings. They've also got humor, and I really like the main characters. This one can be read as a standalone, although I do recommend checking out the first one, Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper, just because it's so good.

Happy Reading!