Jenn

I really enjoyed this story. Lately, I have been watching a lot of “air disaster” YouTube videos, and this is very much in the same vein as those. I enjoyed the moral and operational dilemmas the characters had to work through, and was tense with anxiety over the outcome until the very end.

Some other reviewers have given it lower marks due to a bit of a slower pace of the action, but I appreciate the fact that the author took the time to really flesh out the characters and give them a backstory that explained (to a degree) their current-day actions.

I liked this book mainly because I'm really interested in the military thriller genre. However, this book lacked the complexity and character development of the earlier Tom Clancy novels.

There was a lot of action, but not all of it felt realistic. Jack got into a conflict in every scene he was in and got out of them too unscathed. A bullet wound was stitched up and then that person was running around almost like nothing happened just hours later.

SpoilerAnd the situation with his ex, Jessie? Something to do with his job broke them up 5 years before this story and she was like, “Oh well, he's here now, let's pick right back up with no discussion whatsoever!” That just doesn't ring true. Also, that she'd just leave her job, house, and all of her possessions without a single backward look? Not likely.

That said, I'm still likely to read the rest of the series. I have a feeling that I'll rank it below Clancy, and below the Mitch Rapp series, but I have hope that some of the initial flaws will be worked out as the series continues.

I read this book in one sitting, so clearly the writing was entertaining and kept my interest (well past my bedtime). It's a good look at some aspects of military spouse life, the bonds of the family you choose, and friends who will drop everything and come to your aid whenever you need them.

I would say that this story is less dramatic than I expected and the betrayal that is at the center of the conflict is ... fairly predictable and not really worthy of the angst it caused for as long as it did. But life on or around base can be like that at times, full of high expectations, a calm and unruffled front, and unseen suffering.

I really enjoyed how the story was presented, with multiple viewpoints, great character development of different personalities, different timelines interwoven.

It may not be the most scandalous, exciting, or shocking read of 2021, but it is a great book to curl up with and enjoy.

Oh. My. Heart.

I loved this story.

Lenni - I identified with her so much. Her fiery spunk, her picking on her priest friend, her getting the hospital staff to sneak her things and places...

Margot - I have felt some of the pains she went through in life. Others are not my experience, but still empathetic and beautiful in their own way.

I read it in less than 24 hours and cried at least 5 times. I love the story of a found/made family, the repeated theme of being strong enough to let someone go, and that a life's story is worthy of being told - no matter how long or short the tale.

I've been watching “air disaster” YouTube videos over the past few months and loving them - the complexity of the errors, how so many things have to go wrong in just the right way to cause disaster, how pilots never give up trying to save the plane and their passengers, the marvel of human engineering, how the industry learns from past mistakes and mishaps...

This story was no less thrilling and suspenseful. I've never rooted for an inanimate object so hard. I loved learning details and getting clues about what really happened to Flight 545 alongside the main character and trying to piece it together. Really well done.

This was a well-crafted and very interesting story. It was in equal parts, romance, mystery, and memoir of a specific regional culture.

After reading it and how it was based on real-life Smith island in the Chesapeake Bay, I want to take a vacation there to experience it first-hand. Interestingly, this book came on my radar due to Monica's book club - Let's Peanut Butter Taco ‘Bout Books - about the same time that Kara and Nate posted a video about their trip to Smith island.

I've been to my share of communities on the Atlantic coast, so in some ways the atmosphere of the book felt very familiar.

I was surprised by the nuanced layers to this book and really appreciate the discussion questions that encourage the reader to think more deeply about the themes presented.

Samantha takes a position as a nurse to Gabriel, who was blinded in battle. This story has “Beauty and the Beast” themes and a good twist that will have you re-reading the story to find all of the hidden clues.

This was a book that I've had since high school (all the pages are yellowing!). I don't read this genre too much any more, but I do have some favorite characters and families that I like to revisit. This was has a well-integrated “Jack the Ripper” plot that supercedes a lot of the romance elements of the story. Reading through as an adult, it was interesting to see how much of the storyline was taken from the actual events.

The romance is your classic enemies-to-lovers/boy-from-the-wrong-side-of-the-tracks story with a heavy theme of using your natural talents and being scrappy to overcome societal disadvantages and oppression to achieve your goals and get ahead in life.

This was a great story! It has all of the same survival-through-ingenuity feels as “The Martian” with some added layers of compassion and morality.

Very interesting dystopian novel. There's an epidemic going around that is causing teens to become suicidal. The only cure is The Program, which erases all memory of who they were before.

I loved Sloane and James. This story was absorbing, because you never knew exactly what was going on and always had the feeling that all of the side characters knew much more than either the MC or yourself as the reader. A world of machinations within machinations.

I didn't put it down until the last page, and am picking up the next book in the series right now.

I read this book in two sittings. The characters really drew me in; both MCs were unique and flawed. This read was more of an emotional, atmospheric read than an action-packed one, so at times it was a little slow for my particular tastes, but not a detraction from the story overall.

There was massive foreshadowing, so you know going into it what you are going to get, but it still made me cry, just not in the places I anticipated. The ending, while feeling appropriate, left me wanting just a bit more. In the pages after the story, the author notes that Trixie will make an appearance in her next novel, so there is that to look forward to.

I like the idea of the God-Shaped Hole, and while it is discussed in a few places in the story, I wanted it to be a bit more of a prominent theme. Perhaps it's best left as a discussion question for reading groups after the fact.

This was an interesting story and very clever in ways; however, I didn't bond to the characters enough to make it a favorite novel.

Ceony was okay as a heroine, and Ethan was a bit of a mystery. It was a good story, but it left me wanted it to have the voltage turned up a notch.

Spoiler
I just didn't quite believe the romance as I heard the story. I'm not sure if it was the presentation or what, but it just rang a little... off. I can see how this story might be portrayed well as a movie. Maybe with a musical score and some special effects, I would be able to be caught up in it the way I want to be. Alas.

This book was part of an unsolicited propaganda mass mailing.

Right from the outset, it frames itself as a recounting of the way he finally stopped hiding the “dark secret” that his wife had been raped years prior, and how he came to deal with his devastation over this. Not to minimize the feelings of him as a spouse (anyone would have strong feelings about violence against a loved one), but to call it a “dark secret” just sets the tone of victim shaming, which I 1000% condemn. But let's see how this story progresses.

It continues to talk about how he felt “defiled” because he was sexually promiscuous in his youth. He sought out a “pure” wholesome girl to redeem himself. Forgiveness and satisfaction for sin just don't work like that, but okay. More disturbing was the way he kept describing his life as a very privileged, white, Jewish man and how he had to point out that his pure wife was blond with blue eyes. Just... no.

The racism, equating his promiscuity with his wife's rape. Blaming her and the rape for his not being able to “redeem is defilement,” and calling his wife, “damaged goods” - so much NO.

He recounts how he then found Jesus and this redeemed him and set his life on a new path. That's great. However, the book itself is really cringy and comes across as very arrogant and prideful.

Perhaps this was meant to be a story like St. Augustine. I think, if it wants to be an effective evangelization tool, it needs significant revision and further prayer over what things are said and how they are said. Some coaching about white privilege and sensitivity training regarding rape violence and non perpetuating harmful ideas about sexual trauma.

I wouldn't recommend this book as-is to anyone.

I enjoyed this quite a bit. There were a plethora of 80s/90s pop culture references. I ended up making a playlist of all of the songs mentioned in the book! The plot was interesting and it was great to see the characters wrestle with some moral questions and struggle with redefining themselves after the events of the first book.

I enjoyed this one nearly as much as The Duke and I. I found the mystery of the identity of the girl to be a fun twist.

I'll have to say that after watching the first season of “Bridgerton” on Netflix, this Benedict is quite different from the on-screen Benedict. I wonder how they will reconcile all of this when it is turn for his story?

This was a re-read for me; inspired by the new Netflix series “Bridgerton,” which is based on these books.

In general, I enjoy the series and reading about the Bridgerton siblings. I wasn't as invested in Anthony and Kate's love story as some of the others. I prefer more intense, passionate (in feelings, not explicit scenes) stories, whereas this one was more of a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers tale.

I did appreciate the Author's Note at the end that explained the medical factuality of one of the plot points.

This was a long poem, originally published as a small book. I first attempted to read it via audio, but soon found that it was going too quickly. This poem is about a family in post-Civil War Massachusetts reminiscing around a fireplace after a significant snowstorm. It has a nice, cozy feel about it and tells a little of what life was like at that time.

I think that it's best read under similar circumstances, slowly, in the winter, when you are cozy by a fire or under a warm blanket.

This was a good YA novel for a younger teen audience. No profanity or sexuality beyond modest kissing and hand-holding. Perhaps due to the younger audience, the plotline wasn't as complicated as some more adult-leaning YA novels.

The story took you on a good adventure with plenty of role-reversals, surprises, and character development. I enjoyed it enough to feel just a little sad that it wasn't written more intricately and that we got to spend more time with the characters. I think it's a great book to get younger readers interested in the genre of military thriller.

I also really love a good Secret Service/First Family story. :)

This was a lovely, complex book. It has so much to say about sisterhood, war, moral agency, and personal freedom. It's a lot to unpack.

I read it through pretty quickly for the plot, but I will re-read it again to ponder the themes more closely.

There was so much sadness in this book. But - given that it is based on real-world war between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra - it makes sense in a tragic way.

I am really glad there is a sequel; that ending!

I like the premise of this book. However, the plot and actions were hazy and disjointed and it never felt like there was any real danger. Side characters' motivations and explanations for their actions were never clear, and the ending was unsatisfying.

I'm think the main character may have been better off before the events of the book, but it doesn't feel like she was deeply affected by them either - such an odd experience as a reader.

I did like how the author portrayed Lora's experiences after her memory key failed - how she perceived certain events and memories was pretty clever.

The excerpt on the back of the book about her coming to hate her best friend is fairly misleading. That was a small plot-point and again, there were no real consequences.

This was a very well-constructed book, showing the pendulum swing between Christian and post-Christian worldviews, and the inherent benefits and pitfalls of each.

It was particularly interesting to read this book at this time with the amount of social unrest with the status quo of systemic racism. There were many points being made about human nature and faith which translate all too well into the other conversation.

This is a short book (only 90 pages), but it was a slow read for me, because I kept stopping to ponder this point or that, and spent a lot of time highlighting and annotating passages.

While I think it may be a little above the general reading preference of most lay Catholics, I think it is a great option for those who are more scholarly-minded, as well as anyone in ministry - both laity and ordained.

This was an amazing read! It's been a while where I've read a book that was as engaging, interesting, and truly thoughtful. The characters were complex and genuine, and they really pondered the social issues presented in the book, instead of jumping to a superficial and ultimately unsatisfying conclusion.

There were many twists along the way, which kept you on your toes and never knowing what to expect next.

Perhaps what I love the most about this story was how quotable it is. There were so many lines throughout that just resonated with me and spoke so much wisdom and truth. It was a fun fantasy story, but it went beyond entertainment to make me stop and think about what it means to be a good citizen and a compassionate person. You can't ask more from a book than that.

NetGalley allowed me to read this book, but the review and opinions are entirely my own.

This was a very entertaining read - I stayed up too late and read it all in one sitting! I have enjoyed watching Laura on Facebook Video and YouTube and her voice comes through strongly in her book. I could hear her (and Stephen) narrating in my head.

Laura has had quite a rough way of it and I'm proud of her for all of her accomplishments and success, not least of all her sobriety.

This story wasn't perfect, but it kept my attention.

It focuses on Gavin, a successful Major Leagues baseball player going through a rough time in his marriage. The story is told in the third-person, so we do get to see the relationship from both Gavin and his wife, Thea's, point of view.

What I like about this story was that it shows pro athletes and very successful men all invested in keeping each other accountable and working to fix (and maintain) their marriages and relationships. Few fiction books these days admit that relationships take work, and that true intimacy means more than just physical interaction.

Where it fell flat was that it wavered between being a light, fluffy rom-com, and a domestic drama that dealt with raw emotions and real-world relationship issues. It would have been better served committing fully to either direction. What ended up happening was that the humorous parts fell a little flat, while the dramatic story lines often felt a little contrived and overly simplified.

While not an overly explicit book, there were definitely some scenes that you would feel uncomfortable about reading aloud in public.

This was a sweet and snarky treat that was just ridiculous enough to be entertaining without taking itself too seriously. I read it in one sitting, just as I suspect people eat a full Monster Cake.