Haiku Reviews...

The Edge of Life by Lena Gibson

In a world that may be

ending, Kat and Ryan face

danger...and find love.

End-of-the-world Romance .... 285 pages .... 4.5/5 stars.

(Gotta love an apocalyptic road trip that includes action, suspense, humor and a sizzling romance.)

The Magnolia Sisters by Michelle Major

When her birth father

dies, Avery gains half a town,

and two new sisters.

(The hot fireman next door is a bonus.)

Romance .... 330 pages .... 4/5 stars.

(I really enjoyed Avery's neighbor, Grayson and his 5-year-old daughter, Violet, and the banter between him, Avery, and Avery's two sisters.)

Love Songs Suck by Becky Monson

Finn's hit song thrusts Lou

into the spotlight--the one place

she NEVER wanted to be.

Romantic comedy .... 344 pages .... 5/5 stars.

(So cute! I loved their late-night texts, Lou's attempts to hide from the paparazzi, and their fake dating scheme to keep Finn's fans from hating her.)

Happy Reading!

Mickey 7 by Edward Ashton

"This is gonna be my stupidest death ever."

Mickey Barnes is an Expendable, the person who's given any and every hazardous assignment on Niflheim--a new colony on a nearly uninhabitable ice world--so that the other, more mission critical colonists don't have to risk their lives. When he falls into an ice crevasse, his friend decides it's easier to declare him dead than try and rescue him, because he knows the colony will just bring him back as Mickey 8. Only Mickey 7 doesn't die. And now there are two of him. Which is a very big problem. 

"I've died six times in the past eight years. You'd think I'd be used to it by now, wouldn't you? ... If I die now, though, there won't be another me coming out of the tank. The other me is already here, and despite all appearances, Eight is most definitely not a continuation of me. Honestly, he doesn't even seem to like me very much."

It's easy to like Mickey 7. He's a flawed, funny, and wryly self-deprecating narrator. He enjoys reading the histories of other failed colonies and is in a relationship with Nasha, a fierce combat pilot. And despite his job as an Expendable, he really doesn't want to die again. I was definitely rooting for him to figure out a solution to his problem. I also really like that colonizing-another-world trope in science fiction, and this new planet they're trying to colonize has some pretty unique aliens they call creepers on it, which added some nice tension. There's also a bit of a mystery in this one involving the death of Mickey 6. Because of all of Mickey's introspection and past memories of his other deaths, this isn't quite as action-packed or as fast-paced as I thought it would be going in, but it's still very interesting and entertaining. And the ending is great! I'd give it 4 stars.

Happy Reading! 

Similar read:

One Way by S.J. Morden

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 BOOKS WITH ONE-WORD TITLES. But when I looked for one-word titles on my TBR list, I only found five. So I switched it to Books with One in the Title instead, because I found twelve of those. Here's my list:

The One by John Marrs

The Plus One by Mazey Eddings

The Only One Left by Riley Sager

One Last Kill by Robert Dugoni

One Kick by Chelsea Cain

One Last Chance by Kat Martin

The Last One by Will Dean

One Monsoon in Mumbai by Anitha Perinchery

One Year Home by Marie Force

One Day by Gene Weingarten

Believe No One by A.D. Garrett

One by One by Sarah Cain

Happy Reading!

July's Bookish Art...

 

Otto Vautier -- Young Woman Reading in the Garden

"Reading is escape, and the opposite of escape; it's a way to make contact with reality after a day of making things up, and it's a way of making contact with someone else's imagination after a day that's all too real. ... Reading is bliss."

--Nora Ephron 

The Lonely Hearts Book Club by Lucy Gilmore

 

From the blurb:

"Sloane Parker lives a small, contained life as a librarian in her small, contained town. She never thinks of herself as lonely...but still she looks forward to that time every day when old curmudgeon Arthur McLachlan comes to browse the shelves and cheerfully insult her. Their sparring is such a highlight of Sloane's day that when Arthur doesn't show up one morning, she's instantly concerned. And then another day passes, and another.

"Anxious, Sloane tracks the old man down only to discover him all but bedridden...and desperately struggling to hide how happy he is to see her. Wanting to bring more cheer into Arthur's gloomy life, Sloane creates an impromptu book club. Slowly, the lonely misfits of their sleepy town begin to find each other, and in their book club, find the joy of unlikely friendship. Because as it turns out, everyone has a special book in their heart—and a reason to get lost (and eventually found) within the pages."

My thoughts:

This book is aptly named. The five members of Sloane's and Arthur's book club are all experiencing loneliness in their lives, although most would never admit it out loud. As they share books and food together they find more than friendship, they find family. And that's what I loved so much about this one. All their awkward interactions, humorous banter, personal struggles, and honest caring about Arthur and each other, tugged at my heart. The books they read together, and the importance each of the novels plays in each character's life, made me love this book even more. It's a poignant, captivating and heart-warming novel. And another one for Susan's Bookish Books Reading Challenge.   ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Amigurumi animals...

So, I checked Funny Amigurumi by Emilie Penou out of the library last month because I wanted to try crocheting some of these cute animals. I managed to make two of them before I had to return the book to the library. They're not perfect by any means, but I think they turned out pretty well, especially considering it was my first attempt at crocheting either a bunny or an owl. (Although I never did figure out how to make the owl's feet.) 

These two amigurumi guys turned out to be a fun summer project. 

Next up? Either watercoloring or pottery. Stay tuned. 

 

Cyclops Road by Jeff Strand

 

The plot in brief:  

Evan Portin's life is not going very well. His wife died two weeks ago and his boss just fired him. Then, walking through a park at night, he sees a young woman being mugged. But when he tries to help, he ends up getting mugged himself while she fights off her attackers. Her name is Harriet and she's not an ordinary young woman. She's following a prophecy: headed to Arizona in order to slay a Cyclops. Evan doesn't quite know what to think about that, but he's got some time on his hands, so he offers to drive her. And soon her quest becomes his. 

My thoughts:

Cyclops Road is unexpected, quirky and entertaining. I loved Evan's dry sense of humor and all his sarcastic comments and thoughts. The way he gets drawn into Harriet's quest despite his skepticism was pretty amusing. Along the way they team up with Seth, a D&D gamer, and Maurad the Berserker, a volatile cage fighter. Seth was an immediate favorite. There's a light-hearted sense of fun about this book that makes it a great summer read. It's very typical Jeff Strand. And it made me smile. 

Happy Reading!

Similar reads:

The Haunted Forest Tour by James A. Moore and Jeff Strand

Helen & Troy's Epic Road Quest by A. Lee Martinez