Gone

by

Michael Grant

Book Review:★★★★★ / ★★★★★

First impression before reading: I hope this story does not disappoint. It looks like my kind of story. 

Disclaimer: As a reviewer, I do want to maintain transparency and give all of my input for everyone who reads the reviews to know my thoughts. I must admit that there are both good and bad things that I attempt to highlight in my reviews, so those who read my reviews get a feel for the good and the bad that I noticed. Now, I must emphasize ahead of time that I never say anything with attempt to make any write/ author feel bad about their work or to tear down anyone’s work. I feel the need to include this small message before getting right into my reviews for I am finding it more and more necessary to ensure my reviews do not harm writers or other readers in any way. These are all my opinions and nothing more. If anything I say does offend you in any way, do note that it was not my intention, and I sincerely apologize. Now! With all of that said, let’s get to reviewing! 

I have had this series on my TBR list for a while and simply had not gotten the chance to get to it. As soon as I started listening to this story on Audible, I regretted not getting to it sooner. This definitely is my mind of story! This is the type of genre that I adore. While I was listening, the story reminded me of a series I had read several years back, Monument 14. I have mixed emotions about that series, more negative than positive. However, this story reminded me about the aspect of the Monument 14 series that I enjoyed.

The storyline is the aspect of the Monument 14 series that I thoroughly enjoyed. The plot was the main aspect of that series that drew me in as a reader, and I felt the same way for this novel. There is so much going in in the characters that I got lost when I began the story. I had similar issues with the Monument 14 series. With that in mind, I figured this would be more of a plot driven story, which I do not mind so long as the narrator is not annoying and just obnoxious. If the narrator can get me through it effectively, I am completely okay with this book being plot driven. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and was shocked that I had not read this story before. I will definitely be reading the next book in the series.  

Audible Review: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Kyle McCarley

The narration was done very well for this book. McCarley does an excellent job in narrating the story in a consistent and engaging tone. His voice really drew me into the story, and the way he narrated allowed me to work around the house and on other busy work I had to do and still be able to keep track of the story. I was able to listen to his narration up to a 3x speed. 

Story Synopsis:

“In the blink of an eye, everyone disappears. Gone. Except for the young. There are teens, but not one single adult. Just as suddenly, there are no phones, no internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to figure out what’s happened.

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day.

It’s a terrifying new world. Sides are being chosen, a fight is shaping up. Townies against rich kids. Bullies against the weak. Powerful against powerless. And time is running out: on your birthday, you disappear just like everyone else. . . .” – Amazon

Author Biography:

“Michael Grant has spent much of his life on the move. Raised in a military family, he attended ten schools in five states, as well as three schools in France. Even as an adult he kept moving, and in fact became a writer in part because it was one of the few jobs that wouldn’t tie him down. His fondest dream is to spend a year circumnavigating the globe and visiting every continent. Yes, even Antarctica. He lives in California with his wife, Katherine Applegate, and their two children.” -Katherine Tegan Books

Other works by this Author:

Eve and Adam Series

• Eve and Adam
• Love Sucks and Then You Die

The Magnificent 12 Series

• The Magnificent 12: The Call
• The Magnificent 12: The Trap
• The Magnificent 12: The Key
• The Magnificent 12: The Power

Gone Series

• Gone
• Hunger
• Lies
• Plague
• Fear
• Light
• Monster
• Villain
• Hero

Front Lines Series

• Front Lines
• Silver Stars
• Purple Hearts

Messenger of Fear Series

• The Snake
• Messenger of Fear
• The Tattooed Heart

BZRK Series

• BZRK
• BZRK Reloaded
• BZRK Apocalypse 

H.J. Rating Scale: Book

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Absolutely loved it! I need more!

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Still loved it but had some issues with a specific part of the book. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I didn’t hate it. I didn’t love it. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had more con’s than pro’s against this book, but I still finished. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Did not finish, no matter how hard I forced myself to try. 

H.J. Rating Scale: Audiobook

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Absolutely love the narrator(s). I would definitely listen again. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I loved the narrator(s), but I something about it annoyed me. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Then narration was okay. I’m neutral. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had more con’s than pro’s.

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had to stop listening. 

Evil Eye

by

Madhuri Shekar

Book Review:★★★★★ / ★★★★★

First impression before reading: This sounds interesting. 

Disclaimer: As a reviewer, I do want to maintain transparency and give all of my input for everyone who reads the reviews to know my thoughts. I must admit that there are both good and bad things that I attempt to highlight in my reviews, so those who read my reviews get a feel for the good and the bad that I noticed. Now, I must emphasize ahead of time that I never say anything with attempt to make any write/ author feel bad about their work or to tear down anyone’s work. I feel the need to include this small message before getting right into my reviews for I am finding it more and more necessary to ensure my reviews do not harm writers or other readers in any way. These are all my opinions and nothing more. If anything I say does offend you in any way, do note that it was not my intention, and I sincerely apologize. Now! With all of that said, let’s get to reviewing! 

I was very open to listening to this. This was the first Audible Original that I read. I had downloaded other Audible Originals, but I never paid much attention to them. Given that I had a long car ride ahead of me, I decided to give this audio a shot. The first thing I noticed was the interesting technique that was used to narrate this story. This narration is given through a series of phone conversation between narrators. I found that interesting at first, but did get somewhat distracted by the additional sounds that were included every now and then in the conversation. However, that aspect did make it more realistic as well. Having background noises in the phone calls was a nice additive to this narration, making the conversations more realistic. 

The story itself was very interesting. I did not really know what to expect and had no idea where the story was headed. At first, I thought I was going to get bored with the story. I thought it would be a sort of romance, and given that I am not into romances, I was getting disinterested with the plot. The characters themselves were not holding my attention, and I really needed something to hold onto that would help me get through the entire story. I did eventually get drawn into the story and the main idea behind it. I do admit that the story took an interesting path that I was not expecting but found captivating, nonetheless. Overall, I found this to be a decent listen. It was not my favorite listen, but I can also say this is likely not the worst. 

Audible Review: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Nick Choksi, Harsh Nayyar, Annapurna Sriram, Bernard White, and Rita Wolf

I really enjoyed the many narrators. This was one of the first narrations that I have heard that had that many narrators. I found that aspect of this audio very interesting. I really enjoyed the additional sound effects that play throughout this audiobook as well, though some I did find a bit too distracting. However, other than the small distractions every now and then, I did not have that problem with this narration. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire narration and could listen to it as fast at a 2.0 speed. 

Story Synopsis:

“Usha is convinced that the Evil Eye, a curse that brings continuous misfortune, was cast upon her daughter, Pallavi, in the womb. What else could have possibly left her driven, career-oriented daughter edging closer and closer to 30 without a prospective husband? Determined to set Pallavi on the right path, Usha arranges date after date with potential suitors—but after yet another setup fails, it seems her efforts are proving fruitless. But in an unexpected turn of events, Pallavi becomes her own matchmaker when she meets—and quickly falls for—Sandeep, a young Indian-American entrepreneur. And though she expects her mother will be elated with her finally finding a man, Pallavi is distraught and confused to find her mother growing increasingly suspicious of Sandeep’s motives…and his true identity.

Told through a series of phone calls and voicemails, this Audible Original penned by award-winning rising star playwright Madhuri Shekar transitions seamlessly from a light-hearted family dramedy to an unexpectedly supernatural thriller. With an endearing cast of well-rounded characters, sharp, natural dialogue, and a shocking edge-of-your-seat climax, Evil Eye is a can’t-miss tale about cultural miscommunications, family secrets, and the lingering echoes of trauma.

Playwright Madhuri Shekar was awarded a commission through the Audible Emerging Playwrights Fund, an initiative dedicated to developing innovative original plays driven by language and voice. As an Audible commissioned playwright, he received funding and creative support to develop Evil Eye.” – Audible

Author Biography:

“Madhuri Shekar was born in California and grew up in India. Her plays have been produced across the US and internationally. They include In Love and Warcraft (winner of the Alliance Theatre’s Kendeda Graduate Playwriting contest), A Nice Indian Boy, Queen, and Bucket of Blessings. Her upcoming world premieres include House of Joy (Cal Shakes, August 2019) and Dhaba on Devon Avenue (Victory Gardens, April 2020). Her first audio play, Evil Eye, was commissioned by Audible as part of the inaugural class of their Emerging Playwrights Fund. She is a recent graduate of the Juilliard playwriting program, and writes for the upcoming HBO show The Nevers, created by Joss Whedon.” –Audible

Other works by this Author:

Audible Originals

• Evil Eye

Plays

• In Love and Warcraft 
• A Nice Indian Boy
• Queen
• Bucket of Blessings
• House of Joy
• Dhaba on Devon Avenue 

H.J. Rating Scale: Book

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Absolutely loved it! I need more!

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Still loved it but had some issues with a specific part of the book. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I didn’t hate it. I didn’t love it. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had more con’s than pro’s against this book, but I still finished. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Did not finish, no matter how hard I forced myself to try. 

H.J. Rating Scale: Audiobook

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Absolutely love the narrator(s). I would definitely listen again. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I loved the narrator(s), but I something about it annoyed me. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Then narration was okay. I’m neutral. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had more con’s than pro’s.

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had to stop listening. 

Interview with the Robot

by

Lee Bacon

Book Review:★★★★★ / ★★★★★

First impression before reading: I don’t know if I am going to like this whole robot idea.

Disclaimer: As a reviewer, I do want to maintain transparency and give all of my input for everyone who reads the reviews to know my thoughts. I must admit that there are both good and bad things that I attempt to highlight in my reviews, so those who read my reviews get a feel for the good and the bad that I noticed. Now, I must emphasize ahead of time that I never say anything with attempt to make any write/ author feel bad about their work or to tear down anyone’s work. I feel the need to include this small message before getting right into my reviews for I am finding it more and more necessary to ensure my reviews do not harm writers or other readers in any way. These are all my opinions and nothing more. If anything I say does offend you in any way, do note that it was not my intention, and I sincerely apologize. Now! With all of that said, let’s get to reviewing! 

I am one that loves science fiction and fantasy, so I am not unfamiliar with this type of story; however, I did have my doubts about this particular story. When it gets to robots, I am not much of a fan. Robot and alien are not my type of science fiction stories. But I still gave this story a chance. The story was surprisingly entertaining with some funny and enjoyable parts.

I will admit that the story was more than I was expecting. I did not expect much for the length of the narration, but it surprisingly held my attention throughout. There were some parts that really drew my attention and had me wanting to know more and more. After a while, I felt like I was reading a sci-fi mystery. I’m really into mysteries, so I was down!

Audible Review: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Kevin T. Collins, Ellen Archer, Josh Hurley, Eileen Stevens, Erin Mallon, Jonathan Davis, and Stephen Bel Davies

I did not have any narrations with any of the narrators, and I really enjoyed the additional sound effects that play throughout this audiobook. I have listened to other Audible Originals where the background noise is too distracting from what is going on and for someone who gets easily distracted like me, that is not a good thing. However, I did not have that problem with this narration. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire narration and could listen to it as fast as a 3x speed. 

Story Synopsis:

“Fugitive. Criminal. Robot.

A sci-fi adventure for young listeners, Interview with the Robot introduces a unique heroine who seeks the truth about herself.

Eve looks like an ordinary 12-year-old girl, but there’s nothing ordinary about her. She has no last name. No parents or guardian. She’s on the run from a dangerous and secretive organization that will stop at nothing to track her down.

And most astonishing of all: she’s a robot, a product of Eden Laboratories. When Eve discovers the truth, she realizes everything she thought she knew about herself is a lie. Eve manages to escape, fleeing the lab, the only home she’s ever known.

After being arrested for shoplifting, Eve is interviewed by Petra Amis from Child Welfare Services. Her incredible story unfolds during the interrogation, with flashbacks to her life inside Eden Laboratories, which has a dark secret. Listeners follow Eve from her first consciousness to her evolution as a nearly-human companion to Emory, the son of the founder of Eden Laboratories.

Exploring a range of topics that drive our society and our lives—topics such as artificial intelligence and human nature—Interview with the Robot is a story told by a startlingly original protagonist, a story that explores the vast potential of technology and the deep complexities of humanity.

Interview with the Robot comes to life with a multicast performance including Eileen Stevens as Eve, Ellen Archer as Petra Amis, Jonathan Davis as David Sharp, Kevin T. Collins as Emory Sharp, Josh Hurley as a Boswell employee, Erin Mallon as a device/robot and female barista, and Steven Bel Davies as a store clerk, hotel employee, and office clerk.” – Audible

Author Biography:

“Lee Bacon is the author of several books for young people, including the Joshua Dread and Legendtopia series. His upcoming novel The Last Human is being developed as a major motion picture from Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The Lego Movie, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) and Sony Pictures. His books have been translated into 20 languages. After growing up in Texas, he lived in Munich and Brooklyn before moving to his current home in Maplewood, New Jersey. He shares a house with his wife, daughter, and two cats.” –Audible

Other works by this Author:

Audible Originals

• Interview with the Robot
• The Mystery of Alice 

Novels

• Joshua Dread
• The Nameless Hero
• The Dominion Key
• The Last Human

H.J. Rating Scale: Book

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Absolutely loved it! I need more!

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Still loved it but had some issues with a specific part of the book. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I didn’t hate it. I didn’t love it. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had more con’s than pro’s against this book, but I still finished. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Did not finish, no matter how hard I forced myself to try. 

H.J. Rating Scale: Audiobook

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Absolutely love the narrator(s). I would definitely listen again. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I loved the narrator(s), but I something about it annoyed me. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ Then narration was okay. I’m neutral. 

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had more con’s than pro’s.

★★★★★ / ★★★★★ I had to stop listening. 

Spin

by Lamar Giles

Amazon Prices:

Hardcover: $17.99

Paperback: $10.99

Kindle: $10.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $13.71 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Spin by Lamar Giles was published in 2019 by Scholastic Press.

Page Count: 416 pages (paperback) 400 (hardcover) 400 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 10 hrs 50 mins

Chapters: N/A (Not separated by chapter numbers)

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“When rising star Paris Secord (aka DJ ParSec) is found dead on her turntables, it sends the local music scene reeling. No one is feeling that grief more than her shunned pre-fame best friend, Kya, and ParSec’s chief groupie, Fuse–two sworn enemies who happened to be the ones who discovered her body.

The police have few leads, and when the trail quickly turns cold, the authorities don’t seem to be pushing too hard to investigate further. But nobody counted on Paris’s deeply loyal fans, ParSec Nation, or the outrage that would drive Fuse and Kya to work together. As ParSec Nation takes to social media and the streets in their crusade for justice, Fuse and Kya start digging into Paris’s past, stumbling across a deadly secret. With new information comes new motives. New suspects. And a fandom that will stop at nothing in their obsessive quest for answers, not even murder . . .” – Scholastic Press

Author Biography:

“Lamar Giles is the critically acclaimed author of Overturned, a YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers and a Kirkus Best Book of the Year; Fake ID, an Edgar Award finalist and a YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers; and Endangered, also an Edgar Award finalist, as well as the editor of the anthology Fresh Ink. Lamar is a founding member of We Need Diverse Books. He resides in Virginia with his wife.” -Scholastic Press

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

My initial reaction: A new, more hip mystery. 

I was nervous in reading this novel because I am not usually one for mystery or murder novels. It is not my preferred type of story, so I did hold off on reading this book for some time. I had it for a couple of months before deciding to pick it up and give it a chance. I simply had more books on my TBR list that caught my attention more. So from the very beginning, I had a distrust in the story and wether it would actually hold my attention until the end or if it would end up on my DNF list. I admit that I enjoy mystery and murder novels every now and then, but the shape this book took had me questioning it from the beginning. I feared that because the story would revolve around a DJ that I would not be too interested. It is not a character I didn’t think I would enjoy reading about. However, I will admit that the book held my attention throughout the entire story. 

From the very beginning, the story throws you into the main conflict, as most mystery or crime books do. It is with the progression of the story that more and more details are revealed. As the main narrators learn more of the developing case, so does the reader, creating the ill-using that the reader is walking alongside the narrator and understanding the story alongside the narrators. I appreciated that aspect of the story and was happy that the story was not told from the perspective of a detective or investigator. For some reason, those type of crime and mystery novels do not hold my attention at all. I generally do not like the detective characters and find them too boring to really care about. 

This story follows two protagonists, Fuse and Kya, as the work to get to the bottom of what happened to Paris Secord (DJ ParSec). The story follows the accounts of the two narrators and their dynamic throughout the story was very interesting. The story is setup in a way that held my attention throughout. I was invested in the lives of the characters and found myself wanting to know more about the characters. I was very satisfied with this read and was glad I gave it a chance. 

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Bahni Turpin, Shawana Carter and Sisi Aisha Johnson

The Audible narrations for Spin were enjoyable. Their narration at 1.0 speed was too slow for me and seems like its in slow motion. Their narration 1.25 speed was at what I would consider normal, conversation speed. The favorite listening speed for me was at 1.5 speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 speed to be the best speeds. 2.5 speed was good too, but I liked 2.0 speed better and easier to follow. 3.0 was manageable but too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. However, it is manageable to those who are used to listening to audiobooks at a really fast pace. 3.5 speed was definitely too fast for me.

Other works by this Author:

Novels

• Spin
• Fake ID
• Endangered 
• Overturned
• The Last Last-Day-of-Summer

Anthology

• Fresh Ink: An Anthology

Barely Missing Everything

by Matt Mendez

Amazon Prices:

Hardcover: $17.99

Paperback: $9.99

Kindle: $10.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $11.90 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Barely Missing Everything by Matt Mendez was published in 2019 by Atheneum.

Page Count: 320 pages (paperback) 320 (hardcover) 320 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 07 hrs 42 mins

Chapters: 23

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“Juan has big plans. He’s going to be the El Paso boy made good, land that basketball scholarship, and make something of himself — something better than his mom’s, Fabi, string of cruddy boyfriends. He just needs to make it happen.

Juan’s best friend, JD, has plans too. He’s going to be a filmmaker one day, like Tarantino or Del Toro (not Spielberg). He’s got a camera and he’s got passion. What more could he need?

Fabi doesn’t have a plan anymore. When you get pregnant at sixteen, you relaize plans don’t always pan out and that there are some things you just can’t plan for . . . .

Like a run-in with the police. Like the implosion of your family. Like your past coming back to haunt you. Like the fear that you, your son, and everyone you love are missing something . . . missing everything.” – Atheneum

Author Biography:

” Like his characters, Matt Mendez grew up in central El Paso. He received an MFA from the University of Arizona and is also the author of the short story collection Twitching Heart. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Tucson, Arizona. Barely Missing Everything is his debut young-adult novel. You can visit him at mattmendez.com.” -Atheneum

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

My initial reaction: Not entirely sure how I feel. I think I would have to re-read it again and see if I can really take it in. 

When I picked up this book, I was not quite sure what I was going to expect. I thought it was going to be similar to The Hate U Give, hitting on racial tensions, racism, and discrimination. The plot of the novel was really up in the the air, so I was prepare for whatever was to come. I will say that the novel was not what i was expecting. To me, it seemed as though there was not one major topic that was the focus. There were a lot of complications in the life of the characters, but I actually quite enjoyed that. 

I found it quite interesting that the novel did not narrow in on one major issues as The Hate U Give did for me. Barely Missing Everything rather focuses on the struggles of the characters, all of those struggles, and how those problems affect their lives. It was more realistic in the sense that the major plot and conflicts did not seem overdone or overdone as is the case in many books. I very much enjoyed the idea of portraying the problems the characters have in a realistic way and having the reader walk with the characters through those issues. 

I will add that I do wish the ending could have been different. I was not a huge fan of the ending. In my mind, I was imagining the story going in a completely different direction then the novel actually took. However, the ending was not a deal breaker for me. I still quite enjoyed the story altogether.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Ramon de Ocampo, Cynthia Farrell, and Timothy Andres Pabon

The Audible narration for Barely Missing Everything was very enjoyable. The only really issue I had with the reading is the pronunciation of Tomasito in the story. It drove me nuts, but that was the only real issue I had with the narration. After a while, the pronunciation of this character got on my nerves. Their narration at 1.0 speed was too slow for me and seems like its in slow motion. Their narration 1.25 speed was at what I would consider normal, conversation speed. The favorite listening speed for me was at 1.75 speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 speed to be the best speeds. 2.5 speed was good too, but I liked 2.0 speed better and easier to follow. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. However, it is manageable. If you’re used to speed listening, 3.0 speed should be manageable. 3.5 speed was definitely too fast for me.

Other works by this Author:

Novels

• Barely Missing Everything

Short Story Collection

• Twitching Heart

One of Us Is Lying

by Karen M. McManus

Amazon Prices:

Hardcover: $17.99

Kindle: $10.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $26.95 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus was published in 2017 by Delacorte Press.

Page Count: 384 pages (hardcover) 359 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 10 hrs 43 mins

Chapters: 30

Languages: English (also available in the following translations: German, Spanish, and Portuguese)

Summary of Book:

“Pay close attention and you might solve this. 

On Monday afternoon, five students at Bayview High walk into detention.

Bronwyn, The Brain, is Yale-bound and never breaks a rule.

Addy, The Beauty, is the picture-perfect homecoming princess.

Nate, The Criminal, is already on probation for dealing.

Cooper, The Athlete, is the all-star baseball pitcher.

And Simon, The Outcast, is the creator of Bayview High’s notorious app.

Only, Simon never makes it out of that classroom. Before the end of detention, Simon’s dead. And according to investigators, his death wasn’t an accident. On Monday, he died. But on Tuesday, he’d planned to post juicy reveals about all four of his high-profile classmates, which makes all four of them suspects in his murder. Or are they just the perfect patsies for a killer who’s still on the loose?

Everyone has secrets, right? What really matters is how far you would go to protect them.” – Delacorte Press

Author Biography:

“Karen M. McManus earned her BA in English from the College of the Holy Cross and her MA in journalism from Northeastern University. When she isn’t working or writing in Cambridge, Massachusetts, McManus loves to travel with her son. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller One of Us Is Lying and Two Can Keep a Secret.” -Delacorte Press

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

My initial reaction: This reminds me of Thirteen Reasons Why.

I read this novel for a book club and was reading it at a point when I was watching Season 2 of Thirteen Reasons Why on Netflix. I got similar vibes and made connections in the two story lines. Though there are significant differences in the two stories, I enjoyed the connection of the two as I continued reading this novel. 

This story drew my attention from the beginning and sustained it until the very end. I will admit that I was somewhat doubtful when this book was selected for the book club. I did not think it was going to be a story that would hold my attention. The beginning of story did somewhat confuse me as it introduced the different characters. I had a similar experience with the beginning of this novel as I did with Lisa Jewell’s Watching You. Both opening had me question whether or not I would be able to keep track of the different characters and remember who was who. It was more difficult for me to remember who was who, but the synopsis of the book helped me track who was who, and I used it as a reference if I ever forgot. 

The story moves at a fairly rapid pace and the transitions in narrative changes are clear. I really enjoyed the entire story and did not have any real problems with it. I enjoyed it throughout and, though the book is intended for a younger audience, I found it well written and enjoyable. I found no major issues with the writing, the story, or the characters. 

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Kim Mai Guest, MacLeod Andrews, Shannon McManus, and Robbie Daymond

The Audible narration for One of Us Is Lying was very enjoyable, and I did not have an issue with any of the narrators. Their narration at 1.0 speed was too slow for me and seems like its in slow motion. Their narration 1.25 speed was at what I would consider normal, conversation speed. The favorite listening speed for me was at 1.75 speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 speed to be the best speeds. 2.5 speed was good too, but I liked 2.0 speed better and easier to follow. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. However, it is manageable. If you’re used to speed listening, 3.0 speed should be manageable. 3.5 speed was definitely too fast for me.

Other works by this Author:

Novels

• One of Us Is Lying
• Two Can Keep a Secret

The Sun Is Also a Star

by Nicola Yoon

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $12.99

Hardcover: $18.99

Kindle: $10.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $19.60 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon was published in 2016 by Ember.

Page Count: 384 pages (paperback)  384 (hardcover) 352 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 08 hrs 04 mins

Chapters: N/A (Not separated by chapter number)

Languages: English (also available in the following translations: German, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese)

Summary of Book:

“Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.

Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store–for both of us.” – Ember

Author Biography:

“Nicola Yoon is the author of the #1 New York Times bestsellers The Sun Is Also a Star and Everything, Everything, both of which were turned into major motion pictures. She lives in Los Angeles with her family.” -Ember

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

My initial reaction: Eh. It’s okay. Just not for me. 

I had a similar reaction to this book as I did to the one I read before it, My Favorite Half Night Stand. In a way, I can see how someone could fall in love with these characters, their stories, their struggles, and the romance of the whole novel. However, I was not one of those people. I am not one for romances or any love stories. I read this, per a friend’s request. It was not originally my intention to pick this novel up, and after reading it, it confirmed my thoughts that this book would be a good read for its audience but not for me.

For me, the struggles that I cared about (the struggles within the families) got glossed over. There were some really good moments of tension that gave me the understanding that there were issues within both characters’ lives; however, I would have loved more of it. The main struggles that guided the characters throughout the novel kind of took over the story for me, and I times I felt the need to know more about both Natasha and Daniel to really understand them and empathize with them. Again, their families, their backgrounds, and their current struggles were mentioned, but I don’t know why they weren’t enough for me. I had conflicting emotions about how to feel toward both characters.

Another aspect of the novel that did not work for me was the structure. The way the chapters were set up made sense so the reader knows the point of view of the narrator, but for me, the setup annoyed me more than other multiple narration novels. After a while, the “Observable Fact,” that kept popping up in the novel just got on my nerves. If it would have persisted throughout the entire novel, I would have just put it down and gave up, because it did get to the point that it just completely annoyed me. However it did stop after a while, which I was grateful for. Also, the small chapter interjections of other characters that the main narrators (Natasha and Daniel) run into simply confused me. I didn’t know if I was supposed to care about those characters, if their parts were supposed to be important later on in the story, or if it was added simply to give a summary of those characters.

I do believe that, for the appropriate audience, the novel hit the mark. The novel was a very quick read for me, and I was able to get through it without much difficulty (reading-wise). I do think that for someone like me who is not accustomed to reading this genre, the book may go as far as seeming bland or lacking action or other elements. I am accustomed to reading books full of action and tension scenes. I got the tension from this novel but not enough action. I got one of the elements I enjoy when reading and therefore was able to get through it; however, I also see how someone reading outside their genre may not enjoy this book.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Bahni Turpin, Raymond Lee, and Dominic Hoffman

Turpin, Lee, and Hoffman’s narration was done well, and I did not have an issue with either narrator. Their narration at 1.0 speed was too slow for me. For a lot of audiobooks that I listen to, 1.0 speed is way to slow for me and seems like its in slow motion. This is one of those audiobooks that I have to speed it up to at least 1.25 speed, which I would consider normal, conversation speed. The favorite listening speed for me was at 1.75 speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 speed to be the best speeds. 2.5 speed was good too. 3.0 was too fast for me; however, it is manageable. If you’re used to speed listening, 3.0 speed should be manageable. 3.5 speed was definitely too fast for me.

Other works by this Author:

Novels

• Everything, Everything 

My Favorite Half-Night Stand

by Christina Lauren

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $16.00

Kindle: $8.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $11.90 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren was published in 2018 by Gallery Books.

Page Count: 384 pages (paperback) 385 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 07 hrs 08 mins

Chapters: 17

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“Millie Morris has always been one of the guys. A UC Santa Barbara professor, she’s terrible at getting personal. And she, just like her four best guy friends and fellow professors, is perma-single.

So when a university function turns into a black-tie gala, Millie and her circle make a pact that they’ll join an online dating service to find plus-ones. But there’s a hitch: after making the pact, Millie and one of her guys, Reid Campbell, secretly spend the sexiest night of their lives together, but decided they would be better off platonic.

Online dating isn’t for the faint of heart. While the guys are inundated with quality matches, Millie’s first profile garners nothing but dick pics. Enter “Catherine” -Millie’s fictional persona, in whose shoes she can be more vulnerable than she’s ever been in person. “Catherine” and Reid strike up a digital pen-pal-ship . . . but Millie can’t resist temptation in real life, either. Soon, Millie will have to face her worst fear–intimacy–or risk losing her best friend.

Perfect for fans of Roxanne and She’s the Man, you’ll want to swipe right on My Favorite Half-Night Stand.” – Gallery Books

Author Biography:

“Christina Lauren is the combined pen names of longtime writing partners/besties/soulmates and brain-twins Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings, the New York Times, USA Today, and #1 international bestselling authors of the Beautiful and Wild Seasons series, Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating, Love and Other Words, Roomies, Dating You / Hating You, Sublime, The House, and Autoboyography.” -Gallery Books

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

My initial reaction: Eh. It’s okay. Just not for me. 

This was not my type of book. I read it for a book club, otherwise I would have never even have thought of to pick it up. The plot line in interesting and kept my attention, so it was not bad. It was good enough to keep me invested in the story to see what would happen next. I found the idea of the group of friends searching for dates interesting and wanted to see where that would take them; however, I was fairly disappointed when the book took a turn down a plot that I was not really invested. Given that the main point of them searching for dates was the black-tie gala, I was expecting the story to lead the story and characters in that direction. However, the book did take a path that I was not expecting or cared much about. 

The characters themselves were not fascinating or interesting to me. I really didn’t care about any of them. The only one I ever truly sympathized with was Ed. He was the only character that I was somewhat interested in. I would have really enjoyed knowing more about each of their lives, and honestly, as soon as I found out their professions, I somewhat disconnected from the story. I don’t quite know why I didn’t want to connect with them. Maybe it’s because I am currently a college student . . . I don’t know, but as soon as I found out their profession, I didn’t really care much about any of them.

I finished reading this book for the sake of the book club, but it was not one that I would pick up and read a second time or recommend to anyone. Again, this book was simply not for me. It doesn’t mean it is a horrible book. It is simply not the type of book that I like reading; that made the reading experience difficult for me. By the time I finished the book, I found myself saying, “really that’s how this ends.” I was let down by the ending and was expecting more.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Shayna Thibodeaux and Deacon Lee

Thibodeaux and Lee’s narration was done very well, and I did not have an issue with either narrator. I really enjoyed the sarcastic nature Thibodeaux adds to her narration; it gives the story an added layer that brought the story and characters to life for me. I enjoyed Thibodeaux’s narration more than I enjoyed Lee, but Lee also does an excellent job in his part of the narrating. Their narration at 1.0 speed was also well done. For a lot of audiobooks that I listen to, 1.0 speed is way to slow for me and seems like its in slow motion. However, both of their narrations at that speed is really good. Their narration 1.25 speed was at what I would consider normal, conversation speed. The favorite listening speed for me was at 1.50 speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 speed to be the best speeds. 2.5 speed was good too, but I liked 2.0 speed better and easier to follow. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. However, it is manageable. If you’re used to speed listening, 3.0 speed should be manageable. 3.5 speed was definitely too fast for me.

Other works by this Author:

Novels

• Dating You / Hating You
• Roomies
• Love and Other Words
• Josh and Haze’ls Guide to Not Dating

The Beautiful Series

• Beautiful Bastard
• Beautiful Stranger
• Beautiful Bitch
• Beautiful Bombshell
• Beautiful Player
• Beautiful Beginning
• Beautiful Beloved
• Beautiful Secret
• Beautiful Boss
• Beautiful

The Wild Seasons Series

• Dirty Rowdy Thing
• Dark Wild Night
• Wicked Sexy Liar 

Young Adult

• The House
• Sublime
• Autoboyagraphy

The Fates Divide

by Veronica Roth

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $12.99

Hardcover: $21.99

Kindle: $12.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $31.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

The Fates Divide by Veronica Roth was published in 2018 by Katherine Tegen Books.

Page Count: 480 pages (paperback) 464 (hardcover) 469 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 13 hrs 49 mins

Chapters: 56

Languages: English (also available in the following translations: Catalan, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish)

Summary of Book:

“The lives of Cyra Noavek and Akos Kereseth are ruled by their fates, spoken by the oracles at their births. The fates, once determined, are inescapable. 

Akos is in love with Cyra, in spite of his fate: He will die in service to Cyra’s family. And when Cyra’s father, Lazmet Noavek–a soulless tyrant, thought to be dead–reclaims the Shotet throne, Akos believes his end is closer than ever.

As Lazmet ignites a barbaric war, Cyra and Akos are desperate to stop him at any cost. For Cyra, that could mean taking the life of the man who may–or may not–be her father. For Akos, it could mean giving his own. In a stunning twist, the two will discover how fate defines their lives in ways most unexpected.

With the addiction of two powerful new voices, Veronica Roth’s sequel to Carve the Mark is a chorus of hope, humor, faith, and resilience.” – Katherine Tegen Books

Author Biography:

“Veronica Roth is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, Four: A Divergent Collection, and Carve the Mark. Ms. Roth and her husband live in Chicago.

You can visit her online at www.veronicarothbooks.com.” -Katherine Tegen Books

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

My initial reaction: I don’t know what is happening. 

If I am being honest, I read this book at the wrong time. I began reading this book during a busy time and found myself putting it down for days before picking it back up again. I really wanted to enjoy it, but given that I did not pay much attention to the first book, I had a hard time figuring out what all was going on in this second part of the series. I do blame myself for my lack of attention while reading this book and admit that some of my confusion and lack of interest in it is partially on me. 

However, with that being said, the story progressed in a way that didn’t really draw me in. Again, due to putting the book down for days and not remembering what went down when I next picked it up, I found myself wanting to abandon the book altogether. I may simply have to re-read the series at a later point in time in order to really enjoy it. Though, I would like to comment that I did not find myself connecting to any of the characters in the story. When reading, I always like to find one character I want to follow and know more about, and I, honestly, did not find that character in this novel. I actually found myself confused with all the characters. I found myself forgetting who was who and which characters I was supposed to care about.

I would like to give this book another go in the future and have a much better and worthy review of it. But for now, I must simply state my thoughts when I read this book. My reading experience of it was not the same as with other books I have read. There are those stories that I read that go by so fast (the Shatter Me series) and end too soon (Girl in the Blue Coat and the Warcross duology) or those that I find myself completely invested in the lives of the characters (A Reaper at the Gate series); however this was not one of those books for me. I found myself asking when the chapter would end so I could take a break. The reading of it seemed to go by so slowly for me, that by the time I finished it, I was like, “about time.” It was definitely not an experience I wanted to have, given that I really enjoy Roth’s other series: Divergent. I will revisit this series and give it a second chance. I would like to think that the lower-than-usual review I am giving this book is partially my own fault. If that is the fact, I will be doing a more worthy review of the story when I revisit it. 

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Austin Butler, Emily Rankin, Erin Spencer, and MacLeod Andrews

Their narration was well done, and I did not have an issue with any of the narrators. Like with Carve the Mark, their narration at 1.0 speed was done really well and not so slow that I had to speed it up to be able to tolerate it as I have done with other audiobooks.  Their narration 1.25 speed was at what I would consider normal, conversation speed. The favorite listening speed for me was at 1.75 speed. The speed was just right for me. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 speed to be the best speeds. 2.5 speed was good too, but I liked 2.0 speed better and easier to follow. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. However, it is manageable. If you’re used to speed listening, 3.0 speed should be manageable. 3.5 speed was definitely too fast for me.

Other works by this Author:

Carve the Mark Series

• Carve the Mark
• The Fates Divide

Divergent Series

• Divergent 
• Insurgent
• Allegiant 
• Four: A Divergent Collection