Melissa
This was my first Lynn Painter book, but wow, it won't be my last! Not only is the main plot fun and interesting, the fake dating premise was done in a fresh way, and made this story unputdownable. Although at the very beginning of the story both main characters were not likable to me right away, they both grew on me, and it didn't take long for me to root for them, not only for their romance, but for their own personal growth as well.
I really loved watching them both navigate life in a divorced parent family, only because Lynn Painter did all of those conflicting feelings realistic justice through both Bailey and Charlie's narrative. And the chemistry between Charlie and Bailey?!? Chef's kiss
If you need a good binge read, you just found it!
I just love the other Gordon Korman books I've read, so I couldn't wait to dive into this one when I was granted access to the advance reader's copy (thanks NetGalley!). However, when I started reading and realized the main character “Yash” was a football star athlete, I sighed, as I'm not big on sports stories.
But let me tell you, as I kept reading, and meeting the amazing cast of characters that fill Yash's world, I couldn't help but be absorbed in the story! I loved the multiple points of view, each character was interesting and worth spending time with.
The last few events of the book had me flipping pages as fast as I could, I just HAD to know how the end game was going to turn out, and what exactly was the deal with the kids' PE teacher, Mrs. Finnerty! Such a great use of small details actually making the plot twist in the story.
This book was so great, I just wanted to hug my Kindle after reading it. I can't wait to hand-sell it to my customers here at the bookshop!
I absolutely loved this story about an 11 year old girl and her 88 year old best friend and neighbor, both named Sophie. Older Sophie is starting to show signs of dementia, and the story follows younger Sophie trying to deal with what this decline means to their friendship.
I really love that our quirkly little protagonist is a clever, well-developed character that I cared about right away. Lowry did a wonderful job of giving this story characters with their own personality and depth, and making them all so likable. It was an absolute joy to read. But don't let the words “quirky” and “joy” fool you. There were also tender and touching moments that authentically broke my heart.
I'll have no problem recommending this book to our customers, young and old. If you have a child who is also dealing with the very difficult life change of watching an elder loved one in cognitive decline, this book could offer some comfort, empathy, and understanding, along with giving an opening for discussing these topics.
Thank you NetGalley for sharing the ARC with me!
Gundog was the perfect summer sci-fi read! This book contains some of my favorite storytelling tropes: post-apocalyptic USA setting, escapes, and finding out everything you were told about your world is a lie. I'd recommend this book to anyone fairly new to sci-fi or dystopian genres, someone looking for a page-turner, and of course, the audio version of this book is incredible, so I'll definitely be recommending it for a good road-trip read!
