Amber & Clay - Laura Amy Schlitz

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Hermes here. The Greek god - 

No. Don't put down the book - 

I'm talking to you.

I bring you a story that tells

of the quick and the dead:

the tale of a girl as precious as amber,

the tale of a boy as common as clay.

Rhaskos works in the stables. Worth less than a donkey, much less than a horse. But Rhaskos is clever and talented, and beloved of his mother - who has been forced away from her son but is willing to do anything for him.

Melisto is a girl. Wealthy, privileged, intended for a stifling marriage and dangerous childbirth. But first she is to spend a season serving Artemis, goddess of the hunt, as one of her little bears - a season from which she may or may not return.

From the exquisite pen of Laura Amy Schlitz comes a masterpiece of storytelling: the tale of a boy and a girl, told not just in their voices but also in the voices of gods and mothers and the philosopher Sokrates. It brings to vivid life a world two millennia gone and wraps its readers up in an improbable, indelible friendship that crosses the boundaries of class, of gender, and even of life and death.

There they are:

the girl as electric as amber,

and the boy, indestructible as clay."

📚📚📚 

This might be the hardest book review I've ever written, because even after I've finished the book, I just...it's hard to pin down. I don't know what to say about it. I don't know how to describe it. I guess we can start with the decision to market it as middle grade. I find that to be a curious decision, because aside from the main characters being kids at the start of the book and growing into teens, I see nothing middle grade about this. A lot of the language and content seemed pretty beyond the average middle grade reader, and even with parts of the book written in verse, it is LONG, and it's fairly dense. 

Obviously I know nothing about book marketing, but it feels to me like they went hmm this is a pretty niche book, how do we sell it? Ummmmm kids always liked those Percy Jackson books, right? This is also about Greek gods and stuff, so let's just call it middle grade and get in on the Rick Riordan crowd? That'll sell some copies. It's definitely why I bought it - I have a handful of older students who are really into mythology, and they've read everything we have in the library multiple times, so I saw this and was like oooh something new for them! Yeah...no. It's not a bad book, I actually quite enjoyed it, but I don't think any of my students would slog through it.

"Heather, you just said you quite enjoyed it, but you sure do seem to be complaining about it a lot for a book you liked!" Yeah, it just really bugs me when things get marketed for an age group that they aren't! I think this was a very unique type of storytelling and a beautiful work of historical fiction, but why not market it to adults? YA is already being targeted to adults instead of teenagers, are we going to start doing that with middle grade too? Yeesh.

Anyway, check this book out if you're a fan of ancient Greece, mythology, etc. It was an interesting read, and the further I got into it the more I liked it. If you do read it, let me know your thoughts about it being marketed as middle grade. I'm curious how other people feel about that.

Most Ardently - Gabe Cole Novoa

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"London, 1812. Oliver Bennet feels trapped. Not just by the endless corsets, petticoats and skirts he's forced to wear on a daily basis, but also by society's expectations. The world - and the vast majority of his family and friends - think Oliver is a girl named Elizabeth. He is therefore expected to mingle at balls wearing a pretty dress, entertain suitors regardless of his interest in them, and ultimately become someone's wife.

But Oliver can't bear the thought of such a fate. He finds solace in the few times he can sneak out of his family's home and explore the city rightfully dressed as a young gentleman. It's during one such excursion when Oliver becomes acquainted with Darcy, a sulky young man who had been rude to "Elizabeth" at a recent social function. But in the comfort of being out of the public eye, Oliver comes to find that Darcy is actually a sweet, intelligent boy with a warm heart. And not to mention incredibly attractive. 

As Oliver is able to spend more time as his true self, often with Darcy, part of him dares begin to hope that his dream of love and life as a man to be possible. But suitors are growing bolder - and even threatening - and his mother is growing more desperate to see him settled into an engagement. Oliver will have to choose: Settle for safety, security, and a  life of pretending to be something he's not, or risk it all for a slim chance at freedom, love, and a life that can be truly, honestly his own."

 📚📚📚

I.........am still really on the fence about how I feel about this book. Which is disappointing, because it's well-documented how much I love a good Pride and Prejudice remix, and the premise for this one was sooooo up my alley. But alas, as good as some moments were, I feel like you don't get much more from the book than what is in the synopsis, and there were some choices that were just straight up weird or not at all fleshed out. Gah, where to begin.

I stepped away to gather my thoughts (a.k.a. I started writing this too close to bedtime and decided to just go to bed and finish it later, and now it is later), and I think what my issues with this book boil down to are this: it did too much while simultaneously doing too little. There were multiple threads going on, some better executed than others, but even with the ones that came through a little better, I don't think anything was developed well enough to truly come together. If less time had been spent on the wilder plotlines (looking at you, Wickham and his friend, for some reason, Collins), more time could have been devoted to the more central plotlines, thus making them...better.

Beyond that, I did think it was a very unique take on a story that has been reimagined countless times, and I thought the support system Oliver had built around himself was lovely. I also really enjoyed the insight into how life might have worked for queer, and specifically trans, people in that time period. Obviously queer people have always been around, but I'm not super well versed in history and social norms of different time periods, so getting some insight into customs of that time period was cool. I can't add half stars to my little rating system, but this was a 3.5 for me.

What the River Knows - Isabel Ibanez

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Bolivian-Argentinian Inez Olivera belongs to the glittering upper society of nineteenth century Buenos Aires, and like the rest of the world, the town is steeped in old world magic that’s been largely left behind or forgotten. Inez has everything a girl might want, except for the one thing she yearns the most: her globetrotting parents—who frequently leave her behind.

When she receives word of their tragic deaths, Inez inherits their massive fortune and a mysterious guardian, an archeologist in partnership with his Egyptian brother-in-law. Yearning for answers, Inez sails to Cairo, bringing her sketch pads and a golden ring her father sent to her for safekeeping before he died. But upon her arrival, the old world magic tethered to the ring pulls her down a path where she soon discovers there’s more to her parent’s disappearance than what her guardian led her to believe.

With her guardian’s infuriatingly handsome assistant thwarting her at every turn, Inez must rely on ancient magic to uncover the truth about her parent’s disappearance—or risk becoming a pawn in a larger game that will kill her."

 Before we get into the book, I'm just going to say it. This is classified as young adult, but it is fucking not young adult. Publishers, just because a book is fantasy, written by a woman, and has a female main character DOESN'T MEAN IT'S YA! Stop with that shit.

Anyway, now that that's out of the way, I am glad this book was included in my FUCKING YA subscription box even though IT IS NOT YA, because it probably wouldn't have been on my radar otherwise, and HOLY SHIT was it good. For starters, the cover is gorgeous. The dust jacket is beautiful and has a hidden illustration on the inside, there are incredible sprayed edges, the inside covers are illustrated...I mean, any one of those things and I would have been swooning. All of them together? How was I to resist?

Add to that Inez's determination and grit, her curiosity and unwillingness to settle for what others told her she should be doing with her life, and I'm sold on this main character. Then there's the incredible descriptions of Egypt, the inscrutable and mysterious Whit, the fact that you don't know who you can trust, or if you can even trust anyone, and I'M SORRY, WHAT IS HAPPENING?! This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time, and I'm sorry that this review is rambly and unspecific and all over the place, but I literally just finished reading and am still reeling. I need the next book to be out, like, NOW, because I have so many questions, and I need all of them answered. WOW, what a journey I've just been on. I'm still on. If anyone needs me, I'll be thinking about this book.

Root Magic - Eden Royce

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"It's 1963, and things are changing for Jezebel Turner. Her beloved grandmother has just passed away. The local police deputy won't stop harassing her family. With school integration arriving in South Carolina, Jez and her twin brother, Jay, are about to begin the school year with a bunch of new kids. But the biggest change comes when Jez and Jay turn eleven - and their uncle, Doc, tells them he's going to train them in rootwork.

Jez and Jay have always been fascinated by the African American folk magic that has been the legacy of their family for generations - especially the curious potions and powders Doc and Gran would make for the people on their island. But Jez soon finds out that her family's true power goes far beyond small charms and elixirs...and not a moment too soon. Because when evil both natural and supernatural comes to show itself in town, it's going to take every bit of the magic she has inside her to see her through."

I knew when I picked it up that this book would be good, but I did not know HOW good. Wow, wow, wow. It's pretty clear from the synopsis, but in case you skipped that, know that this is not a light read. It tackles a lot - the impacts of the transatlantic slave trade and the ways it robbed some people of their traditions, racism, violence and lynching...and Eden Royce does not hold back. 

It doesn't focus solely on the bad, though. There's also joy, celebration, love. That's what makes it such an incredible story and something I think everyone should be reading. It showcases the full experience of Black families living in the 1960s, and the reader gets to share in their joy, their excitement, their challenges, and their fear. Following Jez as she skips a grade at school, tries to make a new friend, starts learning rootwork, and learns how to embrace her whole, authentic self even in the face of adversity brings the story to life and really helps the reader connect with the history being shared. 

Connecting to Jez's story and her family's experiences also made me reflect on how recently those experiences took place. People tend to talk about the Civil Rights era like it's long-past, ancient history, but my parents were alive in 1963. I'm one generation removed from the fight for civil rights. That is not long, and confronting that as you read about it helps highlight where we've made progress and where we still need to improve. This is a bit of a tangent, but it's something I thought about as I read.

Anyway, I don't really know what more to say about this book...the characters were beautifully crafted, the writing was excellent, the story is SO important. It's a beautiful book.

The Storyteller - Kathryn Williams

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"It's not every day you discover you might be related to Anastasia Romanov...or that the tragic princess actually survived her assassination attempt and has been living as the woman you know as Aunt Anna. 

For Jess Morgan, who is growing tired of living her life to please everyone else, discovering her late aunt's diaries shows her she's not the only one struggling to hide who she really is. But was her aunt truly a Russian princess? Or is this some elaborate hoax? 

With the help of a supremely dorky but undeniably cute local college student named Evan, Jess digs into the century-old mystery. But soon Jess realizes there's another, bigger truth waiting to be revealed: Jess Morgan. Because if she's learned anything from Aunt Anna, it's that only you can write your own story."

I tell you what, I've really been diving into books about things I hyperfixated on when I was younger lately. Did I forget I had this one because it ended up at the bottom of a stack of middle grade books I'm planning to read soon instead of somewhere safe with the rest of my library books? Yes. Is that relevant? No. Give me all the Titanic books, all the Romanov books...Bookie Monster needs them! 

This book had a very interesting premise for me. Instead of a historical fiction following Anastasia or theorizing what happened, it's almost present day and one of her grand (great grand?) nieces discovers Anastasia's hidden journals while cleaning out her attic years after she has died. They're written in Russian, so Jess has to hire a translator, and the pair of them end up spending most of their free time trying to unravel the mystery of the journals. Was Jess's Aunt Anna really the long-lost princess Anastasia? And if so, how did she escape the firing squad that killed the rest of her family and end up living in a small town in New Hampshire?

I wish that Jess had been a little closer with Aunt Anna before she died and her secret was subsequently uncovered, instead of barely having a relationship with her prior to discovering her journals, but that's a nitpicky gripe. Other than that, I really enjoyed the way Anna's story unraveled. Such a rollercoaster of discoveries, and my nerdy librarian heart loved all the stones Evan and Jess thought to turn in their quest for the truth. Research...I love it.

As far as the non-Anastasia parts of the story...it was fine. Everything felt a little underdeveloped, which I guess is understandable given that the main focus was on figuring out what was up with Anna's history, but I wish there had been a little more polish applied. Example: Jess has two best friends, and one is periodically brought up and once texts her, but outside of that we never see him. Why include him, then? That was an odd choice to me, and it kind of read like periodically the author went "oops, forgot I had established that she has this other friend, better throw his name in somewhere!"

My biggest gripe is that a big part of the non-Anastasia plot is drama surrounding Jess's boyfriend and best friend (the one who actually IS in the book!) not liking each other, which, fine...but frankly, her boyfriend sucks and is completely unlikable, so the whole time I was just like Jess, girl...dump his ass? It reminded me of movies like How Do You Know, where there's a love triangle and the main character is like oh no, who do I choose, help, this is an impossible decision! Buuuuut one of the love interests is an irredeemable sack of garbage and the other is a shining beacon of how humans should treat each other. Wow, who could ever decide between the two?! I'm begging for just one reason why Jess would actually want to date him.

Complaints aside, it was a solid read. I really liked Katie, Jess's best friend ,and thought Evan was the most adorable goofy polyglot nerd. We only see them once, if I recall correctly, but I also adored Evan's friend group. And honestly, I found the Anastasia storyline strong enough that I think I would have enjoyed this regardless of what happened outside of that. I could not put it down last night - I was playing Among Us with my family and was literally sneaking in paragraphs in the 15-20 seconds between games. Compelling! 

Luck of the Titanic - Stacey Lee

 Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆☆
Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆
Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Valora Luck has two things: a ticket for the biggest and most luxurious ocean liner in the world, and a dream of leaving England behind and making a life for herself as a circus performer in New York. Much to her surprise, though, she's turned away at the gangway; apparently, Chinese people aren't allowed into America.

But Val has to get on that ship. Her twin brother, Jamie, who has spent two long years at sea, is on board, as is an influential circus owner. Thankfully, there's not much a trained acrobat like Val can't overcome when she puts her mind to it.

As a stowaway, Val should keep her head down and stay out of sight, But the clock is ticking and she has just seven days as the ship makes its way across the Atlantic to find Jamie, audition for the circus owner, and convince him to help get them both into America.

Then one night, the unthinkable happens, and suddenly Val's dreams of a new life are crushed under the weight of the only thing that matters: survival."

 

 I love how coy they are with "the unthinkable happens," like someone picking up this book might not know what it is. Don't want to spoil the big twist! 🤣 Anyway, I definitely chose this book because I've been obsessed with the Titanic since I was a kid and I loved the perspective it was written from. There's a note at the beginning of the book, "of the eight Chinese passengers aboard the Titanic, six survived." This is obviously a fictional version of what happened, but it is amazing to think about so many of this admittedly small number surviving when not only were they in third class, but due to racism and anti-Chinese sentiment specifically, they were viewed even by others in that class as "the lowest." Incredible that with help being focused on women and children in first class specifically, so many of the Chinese passengers managed to make it off the ship to safety. 

Even knowing what happens to the Titanic and knowing that six of the eight Chinese passengers survived, the ending of this book still managed to get me. It was a very emotional conclusion, and I finished reading right before I went to sleep, so of course then I dreamed about being on the Titanic all night. So restful. I couldn't stop reading, though...nightmares seem like a fair trade for an unputdownable book. Val board the Titanic with lofty goals - reunite with her twin brother, find a way to gain an audience with the owner of the Ringling Brothers circus, and convince Jamie to audition and stay in America with her. A significant portion of the book centers around those goals, and there's something so very strange about reading a book and rooting for someone to pull off the impossible and forge a new life for themselves when...you know the boat is going to sink. You know it's not going to happen. 

Even with that knowledge, though, I couldn't help but root for Val. I could see that new life taking shape for her. Hope can be so insidious sometimes, but her determination, grit, and creativity made it impossible not to root for her. Stacey Lee developed the characters so well, it made my heart ache knowing what was coming for them. I didn't want two of the eight Johnnies to die. I wanted them all to make it, I wanted the ship to make it to New York and for everyone to have a happily ever after (except the racist, classist assholes on board, they could fall into the ocean and at the very least ruin their fancy clothes). That's the tough thing about reading a well-written historical fiction set in a tragedy, I suppose...you want a different ending. You want a time machine, to fix all the little things that went wrong and led to the tragedy in the first place. But you have to live with what you get.

The Kingdom of Back - Marie Lu

Initial draw: ✰✰✰✰

Character development: ✰✰✰✰✰

Plot/Writing style: ✰✰✰✰

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Born with a gift for music, Nannerl Mozart has just one wish: to be remembered forever. But even as she delights audiences with her masterful playing, she has little hope she'll ever become the acclaimed composer she longs to be. She is a young woman in eighteenth-century Europe, and that means composing is forbidden to her. She will perform only until she reaches a marriageable age - her tyrannical father has made that much clear.

As Nannerl's hope grows dimmer with each passing year, the talents of her beloved younger brother, Wolfgang, only seem to shine brighter. His brilliance begins to eclipse her own, until one day a mysterious stranger from a magical land appears with an irresistible offer. He has the power to make her wish come true - but his help may cost her everything."

This was an emotional read for me for reasons unrelated to the book itself. I received a copy through a book subscription box a little less than a year ago, shortly after learning that someone close to me (I don't want to use her real name, so I'll call her Amy) had passed away. When I opened the box and saw it my first thought was, "I need to text Amy, she would love this!" I knew I wouldn't be able to read this without thinking of her the whole time, so it took a while before I was ready to pick it up. Now that I have, though, I am happy to report that I remain confident Amy would indeed have loved this book.

The premise of this story is one that will always be appealing to me -  a young woman in a situation where women are supposed to live quiet, undistinguished, obedient lives pushes back, determined to set herself apart and be remembered. Nannerl is talented, passionate, and committed to leaving her mark on the world, whatever it takes. She's also conflicted - both proud of her brother, with whom she is very close, and envious of his talent and how readily people praise and encourage his skill. She wants him to succeed, and she is glad for him when she does, but she is also a bit jealous that it's so easy for him to be accepted as a great compose and musician when it's so far out of her reach simply because she is a woman. For Wolferl's part, he doesn't seem to understand these arbitrary standards either. As a matter of fact, enamored with his sister's talent for composing, Wolferl is her greatest supporter and even finds ways to help her compose in secret.

Marie Lu's character building was excellent, and I loved watching Nannerl's relationship with Wolferl develop as they spent more time in the mysterious Kingdom of Back. Just as lovely was the imagery of the fantasy world weaved within their real world. I think even if I hadn't enjoyed the story of Nannerl's struggles with her father, her experiences performing, and all the rest of the real-world narrative, I would have loved this book solely for the incredible imagery of the Kingdom. This book is just so beautiful, inside and out. The cover is gorgeous, it's got silver sprayed edges...it's an entire visual experience.

Finally, if I had to pick my single most favorite thing about The Kingdom of Back, it would be that it inspires curiosity. I love a book that makes you want to keep learning, and the further I got into Nannerl's story, the more I wanted to research the real Nannerl. In her author's note, Marie Lu even recommends Mozart: A Life by Maynard Solomon as a starting point, so shout out to her for knowing that readers would need more after reading her beautiful story! I can't wait to learn more about this amazing, talented woman.

Five Little Indians - Michelle Good

Initial draw: ✰✰✰✰✰

Character development: ✰✰✰✰✰

Plot/Writing style: ✰✰✰✰
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Taken from their families when they are very small and sent to a remote, church-run residential school, Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie and Maisie are barely out of childhood when they are finally released after years of detention.

Alone and without any skills, support or families, the teens find their way to the seedy and foreign world of Downtown Eastside Vancouver, where they cling together, striving to find a place of safety and belonging in a world that doesn't want them. The paths of the five friends cross and crisscross over the decades as they struggle to overcome, or at least forget, the trauma they endured during their years at the Mission.

Fueled by rage and furious with God, Clara finds her way into the dangerous, highly charged world of the American Indian Movement. Maisie internalizes her pain and continually places herself in dangerous situations. Famous for his daring escapes from the school, Kenny can't stop running and moves restlessly from job to job - through fishing grounds, orchards, and logging camps - trying to outrun his memories and his addiction. Lucy finds peace in motherhood and nurtures a secret compulsive disorder as she waits for Kenny to return to the life they once hoped to share together. After almost beating one of his tormentors to death, Howie serves time in prison, then tries once again to re-enter society and begin life anew.

With compassion and insight, Five Little Indians chronicles the desperate quest of these residential school survivors to come to terms with their past and, ultimately, find a way forward."

Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie, and Maisie, although different ages, all overlapped in their time at the residential school each of them was stolen from their families and forced to attend. After helping Howie escape, Kenny manages to get away himself. Howie goes to the United States with his mom to avoid being caught and sent back, and Kenny goes back to his mom's house for a bit before heading out on his own to try to make a living. Clara and Maisie are released before Lucy, so when she finally gets out after turning sixteen, she joins them in Vancouver, where the three work off the books at a seedy hotel for less than minimum wage. Despite the differences in the paths each of them has taken, they are all united in their attempts to process the trauma they experienced while imprisoned at the Mission.

This book pulls you in from the first page. There is no easing the reader into the story - immediately, we find ourselves in the world of these kids, who are being abused in the false name of education (a.k.a. assimilating to colonizer culture) at the hands of religious figures. And while the characters are referred to as men and women after they are released back into the world, don't forget that they are kids. The youngest woman at the start of the story is only sixteen, the other four are not much older, and after being forced to attend residential school and missing out on a real education, they are on their own, trying to process a decade of trauma, and learning how to survive in an unfamiliar world. 

As I'm sure you can piece together, this is not a light or an easy read, but it is an important one. It bravely shines a light on something that white history has tried to pretend never happened and spotlights the resiliency and courage of the families and children who were torn apart by their government - resiliency and courage they should never have had to develop. I strongly recommend that you read this book, particularly if you are unfamiliar with the history of residential schools in the United States and Canada.

Midnight at the Electric - Jodi Lynn Anderson

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Divided by time. Ignited by a spark.

Kansas, 2065. Adri has secured a slot as a Colonist—one of the lucky few handpicked to live on Mars. But weeks before launch, she discovers the journal of a girl who lived in her house over a hundred years ago, and is immediately drawn into the mystery surrounding her fate. While Adri knows she must focus on the mission ahead, she becomes captivated by a life that’s been lost in time…and how it might be inextricably tied to her own. 

Oklahoma, 1934. Amidst the fear and uncertainty of the Dust Bowl, Catherine fantasizes about her family’s farmhand, and longs for the immortality promised by a professor at a traveling show called the Electric. But as her family’s situation becomes more dire—and the suffocating dust threatens her sister’s life—Catherine must find the courage to sacrifice everything she loves in order to save the one person she loves most. 

England, 1919. In the recovery following the First World War, Lenore struggles with her grief for her brother, a fallen British soldier, and plans to sail to America in pursuit of a childhood friend. But even if she makes it that far, will her friend be the person she remembers, and the one who can bring her back to herself? 

While their stories spans thousands of miles and multiple generations, Lenore, Catherine, and Adri’s fates are entwined."

Like the description says, this book follows three different timelines. Adri is staying with a distant cousin on her farm while she waits to leave for Mars, and while there she finds a postcard written by a woman named Lenore. Curious, she starts searching for more information about this mysterious Lenore, and she eventually discovers letters written by Lenore and Catherine in time past. The three timelines weave together, each woman facing different challenges but also tied together by common threads. 

Adri, always unable to connect with other people, finds herself unable to let go of Lenore and Catherine's stories. Who were these mysterious women? How were they connected to her family? And most importantly...what happened to them? As the date of her launch to Mars draws closer, she finds herself more and more desperate for answers. Will she learn what happened to the women in those letters? Or go to Mars always wondering what tied the three of them together?

Alex and Eliza - Melissa de la Cruz

My rating: ⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Their romance shaped a nation. The rest was history.

1777. Albany, New York. 

As battle cries of the American Revolution echo in the distance, servants flutter about preparing for one of New York society’s biggest events: the Schuylers’ grand ball. Descended from two of the oldest and most distinguished bloodlines in New York, the Schuylers are proud to be one of their fledgling country’s founding families, and even prouder still of their three daughters—Angelica, with her razor-sharp wit; Peggy, with her dazzling looks; and Eliza, whose beauty and charm rival that of both her sisters, though she’d rather be aiding the colonists’ cause than dressing up for some silly ball. 

Still, she can barely contain her excitement when she hears of the arrival of one Alexander Hamilton, a mysterious, rakish young colonel and General George Washington’s right-hand man. Though Alex has arrived as the bearer of bad news for the Schuylers, he can’t believe his luck—as an orphan, and a bastard one at that—to be in such esteemed company. And when Alex and Eliza meet that fateful night, so begins an epic love story that would forever change the course of American history."

Could have been worse, but could have been waaaaaaaaaay better. The development of the story was crazy choppy, and the progression of Alex and Eliza's relationship was super weird. It almost seemed like what used to happen to me when I would start working on something. I'd have all these great ideas for key scenes, so I'd skip around and write those scenes, and then....bleh, I don't want to have to do the hard part of coming up with the in-between stuff! This book? Key scenes with no in-between. Its one big redeeming quality is that it's a relatively quick read. If a book has to be choppy and weird, at least it only took me a few hours to read.

Nightingale - Kristin Hannah

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"In love we find out who we want to be.
In war we find out who we are.

FRANCE, 1939

In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn’t believe that the Nazis will invade France...but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When France is overrun, Vianne is forced to take an enemy into her house, and suddenly her every move is watched; her life and her child’s life is at constant risk. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates around her, she must make one terrible choice after another. 

Vianne’s sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old girl, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets the compelling and mysterious Gäetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can...completely. When he betrays her, Isabelle races headlong into danger and joins the Resistance, never looking back or giving a thought to the real--and deadly--consequences.

With courage, grace and powerful insight, bestselling author Kristin Hannah takes her talented pen to the epic panorama of WWII and illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: the women’s war. The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France--a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime."

Oh, Kristin Hannah, you know how to paint a word picture. I'm not going to go into great detail on the plot of this book...it's about World War II, I think we can all extrapolate the gist of the plot. All I'm going to say is that every second of the book was full of emotion and that if you're a fan of historical fiction or books that make you feel sometimes horrible and sometimes wonderful feelings, you should read it. Seriously. Read this book!