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Review: The Getaway List by Emma Lord

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The Getaway List by Emma Lord

The Getaway List
Emma Lord
Wednesday Books
Published January 23, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Getaway List

The day of her high school graduation, Riley realizes two things: One, that she has spent the last four years trying so hard to be a Good Kid for her mom that she has no idea who she really is anymore, and two, she has no idea what she wants because of it. The solution? Pack her bags and move to New York for the summer, where her childhood best friend Tom and co-creator of The Getaway List ― a list of all the adventures they’ve wanted to do together since he moved away ― will hopefully help her get in touch with her old adventurous self, and pave the road to a new future.

Riley isn’t sure what to expect from Tom, who has been distant since his famous mom’s scriptwriting career pulled him away. But when Riley arrives in the city, their reconnection is as effortless as it was when they were young―except with one, unexpected complication that will pull Riley’s feelings in a direction she didn’t know they could take. As she, Tom, and their newfound friends work their way through the delightfully chaotic items on The Getaway List, Riley learns that sometimes the biggest adventure is not one you take, but one you feel in your heart.

Inescapably romantic and brimming with Emma Lord’s signature cheer, The Getaway List is an uplifting and romantic read that will settle into your heart and never leave.

My Review

I started reading this book while I was standing in line at the pharmacy, and I found myself a little bit disappointed when it was finally my turn at the pickup window– I wanted to keep reading.

Emma Lord’s books have historically been a win for me. I enjoy her quirky characters and the development of the romance, so I also went into this book expecting to enjoy it, and I did.

I liked the opening chapters, but once Riley got to New York and connected with a friend group, that’s when the story really took off for me. At first, I wasn’t sure about bringing in all those extra people. I found myself really invested in Riley and Tom and wanting to know what would happen between the two of them, and I worried that additional characters would distract from the two of them. And they do, a bit.

But they’re such fun characters, and those relationships help Riley reconnect with herself, learn to trust her instincts, and imagine what kind of life she wants for herself for the first time in years. Riley has a complex relationship with her mom, and I loved the way that was handled. It felt real, and Riley’s mom’s behavior made sense, considering her own background and backstory, but it still wasn’t what Riley hoped to or needed to hear at times.

The romance is a bit of a slow burn. I loved that. I also loved the way that Riley’s understanding of her relationship with Tom evolved as the story progressed. That felt pretty real, too.

All in all, I’m calling THE GETAWAY LIST another win. It’s a really fun, New York-centered slow-burn romance. Definitely worth checking out.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Two boys (minor characters) are/have been dating.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used pretty frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between two boys. Kissing between a boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of THE GETAWAY LIST in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.

Review: Tales of Ancient Egypt by Hugo D. Cook and Sona Avedikian

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Tales of Ancient Egypt
Hugo D. Cook
Illustrated by Sona Avedikian
Neon Squid
Published October 1, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Tales of Ancient Egypt

Discover amazing true stories and breathtaking myths from ancient Egypt in this book by TikTok Egyptologist Hugo Cook, featuring stunning illustrations from Sona Avedikian.

Everyone knows the story of Tutankhamun, but the ancient Egyptian civilization lasted for more than 3,000 years – which means there are loads more amazing tales to be told! Egyptologist and TikTok star Hugo Cook (aka Hugo the Egyptologist) has scoured ancient texts and translated hieroglyphs to bring readers stories of love, betrayal, and royal scandal featuring pharaohs, priests, gods, and goddesses.

The book combines historical stories, including the time Cleopatra hid in a sack to be smuggled into a palace to meet Julius Caesar, with rip-roaring myths, like the Cinderella story of a peasant girl who married the pharaoh when he found her slipper.

Told with great fun and impeccably researched, readers will slip into a tomb at night with a band of mischievous tomb robbers and witness epic battles featuring elephants and ostriches. Interspersed through the stories are pages explaining the history of ancient Egypt on the banks of the Nile, from how pyramids were built to a step-by-step guide to wrapping a mummy.

With a beautiful cloth-textured cover featuring shiny foil, Tales of Ancient Egypt is the perfect gift for kids interested in ancient Egypt.

My Review

My older daughter would have absolutely loved this book when she was in later elementary school. She had a couple of books on mythology and folklore, but we didn’t have anything on ancient Egypt.

Almost all the stories or fact collections are limited to a single spread, which makes this book easy to read even for readers intimidated by its size (the hardcover edition is 9.25″ x 11.25″ and 151 pages). Each spread shows brightly colored illustrations featuring characters with expressive faces. The backmatter includes a glossary and a list of deities. One of the things I wish it also included are some recommendations for further reading.

The book includes both historical accounts and facts as well as mythological tales. Myths are labeled as such to avoid any confusion. I liked the mix of the two as they often added context to one another. For example, the story of Khaemweset includes some factual information as context and then transitions to the myths about him.

This is a book that kids interested in mythology or history will enjoy. The format makes the information easily accessible and entertaining while offering many cool historical tidbits. I can see this being a book that I give for Christmas this year.

Content Notes for Tales of Ancient Egypt

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Stories feature characters from Egyptian mythology, famous ancient Egyptians, and facts about ancient Egyptian life.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to love and romantic partnership.

Spiritual Content
Contains stories of Egyptian mythology and ancient Egypt’s pantheon of gods. Some mythological stories contain characters who perform magic or sorcery.

Violent Content
Stories contain situations of peril and brief references to murder or attempted murder, especially via poison or stabbing. One illustration shows a wincing Cleopatra allowing a snake to bite her hand. No gory descriptions. Brief description of the process of mummification. Someone tells a man to throw murder his children, and he tosses them out a high window. Later, he realizes this was a nightmare. Crocodiles devour an army trying to cross the Nile.

Drug Content
References to drinking beer. Several instances of death by poisoning.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft

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A Fragile Enchantment
Allison Saft
Wednesday Books
Published January 30, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About A Fragile Enchantment

In this romantic fantasy of manners from New York Times bestselling author Allison Saft, a magical dressmaker commissioned for a royal wedding finds herself embroiled in scandal when a gossip columnist draws attention to her undeniable chemistry with the groom.

Niamh Ó Conchobhair has never let herself long for more. The magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions and memories into fabric is the same magic that will eventually kill her. Determined to spend the little time she has left guaranteeing a better life for her family, Niamh jumps at the chance to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in the neighboring kingdom of Avaland.

But Avaland is far from the fairytale that she imagined. While young nobles attend candlelit balls and elegant garden parties, unrest brews amid the working class. The groom himself, Kit Carmine, is prickly, abrasive, and begrudgingly being dragged to the altar as a political pawn. But when Niamh and Kit grow closer, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more—until an anonymous columnist starts buzzing about their chemistry, promising to leave them alone only if Niamh helps to uncover the royal family’s secrets. The rot at the heart of Avaland runs deep, but exposing it could risk a future she never let herself dream of, and a love she never thought possible.

Transporting readers to a Regency England-inspired fantasy world, A Fragile Enchantment is a sweeping romance threaded with intrigue, unforgettable characters, and a love story for the ages.

My Review

I’ve been a fan of Allison Saft’s books since her debut, DOWN COMES THE NIGHT. She is so good at delivering intricate story worlds and complicated characters navigating some kind of mysterious circumstances. In A FRAGILE ENCHANTMENT, a tailor who can imbue the clothes she makes with magic and a younger prince fight their growing attraction to one another as an entire kingdom seems ready to crumble around them.

It’s got a bit of a grumpy vs. sunshine vibe, which I really enjoyed. The story also explores chronic illness and addiction pretty openly. Neither of those is often explored in fantasy novels, so that was nice to see.

The romantic arc absolutely hooked me. I read this book in two sessions because I really could not stop thinking about it and needed to know how it would end. I loved the directions the story took, especially the ones I hadn’t anticipated. There were a couple of times that things took me by surprise. That was fun.

All in all, I had a fabulous time reading this book, and I’m as big an Allison Saft fan as ever. I’m already excited about whatever story she has coming up next. I think fans of Kiera Cass would like this book a lot.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Representation
Regency-England inspired. Some people groups seem to be inspired by Spanish or Irish people. The main character had a past relationship with a girl. Some characters are interested in same-sex relationships, but it’s stigmatized in their society. One character is an alcoholic in recovery. Another is chronically ill.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. Kissing between two girls. One scene contains explicit sexual content.

Spiritual Content
Some characters have the ability to perform magic. This is passed down in families from the old days when the Fair Ones walked among people.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. One character can control plants and threatens violence through them. Another can control lightning and tries to kill someone.

Drug Content
One character is a recovering alcoholic who has been sober for a year. In several scenes, people around him drink alcohol. Sometimes, people make disparaging remarks about his drinking or assume he is drunk again.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of A FRAGILE ENCHANTMENT in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.

MMGM Review: Squire & Knight: Wayward Travelers by Scott Chantler

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Squire & Knight: Wayward Travelers (Squire & Knight #2)
Scott Chantler
First Second
Published October 15, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Squire & Knight: Wayward Travelers

In the second volume of this middle-grade graphic novel series, our heroes search for the mysterious school of wizardry, but are thwarted at every turn by thick mist, winding woods and fearsome creatures!

Our heroes are lost.

Squire and Sir Kelton have promised to get Cade to the school of wizardry. Strangely though, the path they’ve taken has brought them into a bewildering, misty forest, rife with fearsome gnolls and a boisterous rival knight. To get them out, Squire tries every trick in the book, but books don’t hold all the answers. Can he muster up his confidence, remember his duties, and find a way to escape the forest?

My Review

This fun continuation of the Squire & Knight series delivers more of the humor and thoughtfulness from the first book. One of the things I liked a lot is that this is a different story from the first one. In the first book, the squire uses intelligence to figure out whether a dragon is the true source of a village’s problems. In this book, the squire still depends on intelligence and things he learned from books to aid him when he’s in trouble, but the story points up the fact that not every problem can be solved that way. And, intelligent people are as vulnerable to overlooking things out of pride as strong people are.

This story has a small cast of characters, with a few notable new ones. Cade, the boy that Sir Kelton has promised to accompany to Wizard School, is a cute character who adds a lot to the story. He seems in awe of Sir Kelton at first, but as the journey continues, he adds many of his own observations to the story. I liked him and especially enjoyed the surprising comments he made later in the book.

I’m still a fan of the series, and I’m excited to see what adventures Squire and Sir Kelton get up to next.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Human characters are white. There are some monster characters each based on a different breed of dog.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
The story contains fantasy characters and monsters. Some monsters believe they need to sacrifice captives to appease their god.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. A group of dog-like monsters threaten to kill and eat their captives.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday

I’m sharing this post as a part of a weekly round-up of middle-grade posts called Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday. Check out other blogs with posts about middle-grade books today on Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays at Always in the Middle with Greg Pattridge.

Review: We Are Hunted by Tomi Oyemakinde

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We Are Hunted
Tomi Oyemakinde
MacMillan Children’s
Published August 29, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About We Are Hunted

The White Lotus meets Jurassic Park in We Are Hunted by Tomi Oyemakinde, a compulsive speculative thriller about the lengths we go to for power – and to survive.

When seventeen-year-old Femi and his brother accompany their father on a top-secret business trip to a remote and mysterious island, they are looking forward to a summer they’ll never forget.

Filled with spectacular species of animal and out-of-this-world technology, the island resort welcomes them with open arms, as does its impressive curator Richard Jenkins. But beneath the sparkle and the wonder, the island is hiding a terrible secret – and it’s biding its time. When the unthinkable happens and the island is put on lockdown, Femi realizes he is somehow at the centre of an operation that seeks to expose Jenkins’ resort for what it really is.

But the truth comes with a price. And when the bodies start to fall, Femi must decide who on the island he can trust with his life – and how far he will go to survive.

My Review

This novel begins fast and keeps a brisk pace throughout. I definitely see the comparison to Jurassic Park, though I like the characters in We Are Hunted better than those in Crichton’s novel. The unresolved conflict between Femi and his family and Femi and Deja add layers of interest to the story. The crisis brings them closer together but simultaneously highlights the rifts in the relationships. That kept me even more engaged.

The story has the high sense of creepiness and tension you’d expect in a thriller, too. Several scenes had me on the edge of my seat. Because of the nature of the story, there’s quite a bit of gore as Femi witnesses several people’s injuries and deaths and stumbles over the remains of others.

There are a couple of chapters that show scenes from another character’s perspective. While that added some interest or context to those characters, I think that information could have been inserted into the narrative in other ways. I appreciated that they were set apart as “interlude” scenes.

Femi is a musician, and there are lots of references to sound and sensitivity to sound throughout the book, which adds some interesting details. I liked the references to his music and the way that sound impacts different components of the story.

On the whole, I think readers looking for an international thriller will not want to miss this one. I flew through this book. It’s really easy to read. I probably would have read it in one session if I’d had the time to do it.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 15 up.

Representation
Femi has tinnitus. Several characters are Black and British.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
One f-bomb. Infrequent use of other profanity.

Romance/Sexual Content
Femi goes on a date with a girl.

Spiritual Content
References to prayer and Bible verses.

Violent Content
Graphic descriptions of injuries and death.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: What is This Feeling? by Robby Webber

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What is This Feeling?
Robby Webber
Inkyard Press
Published September 17, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About What is This Feeling?

This joyful romp from Robby Weber, perfect for fans of Jason June and Morgan Matson, follows a boy who will do anything to win his drama club’s scavenger hunt in New York City, even if it means teaming up with a tech crew loner…and discovering unexpected sparks between them.

Theater star Teddy McGuire is ready for all his dreams to come true. He and his best friend, Annie, have been counting down the days to the end-of-the-year drama club trip to New York City. To make it even more magical, if they can win the annual scavenger hunt, they’ll get a chance to meet their popstar idol, Benji Keaton.

But the universe has other plans: when Annie can’t go on the trip, Teddy is forced to room with tech crew loner Sebastian, who has no interest in the scavenger hunt—or Teddy—and seems to have a secret agenda of his own.

On a larger-than-life adventure across the city, the boys will discover a lot more than what’s on their checklist, including masquerade mishaps, obstacles of Jurassic proportions, Hollywood starlets, and, most surprisingly of all, sparks beginning to fly between them. In a story about chasing your destiny, Teddy and Sebastian are about to learn the secret to making their own luck.

My Review

This is the most fun book I’ve read in a while. It’s not the first field trip to New York City that I’ve read this year. There’s a Wednesday books title about a band trip that had some similarities to this one.

Teddy is a really fun narrator. He’s so in his head, which I appreciate as a person with a lot of mind spirals myself. I also liked that his identity wasn’t really a focus of the story. Don’t get me wrong– the books about coming out or grappling with identity are important, and I love them, too. But it was nice to read something that sidestepped those themes and simply told a story about unexpected romance without stopping to explain or justify itself.

The only thing that was hard was how often Teddy’s best friend and brother minimized his feelings. They tended to assume he was being dramatic and kind of roll their eyes at him in a loving way, but still. It makes sense within the context of the story, and it’s realistic. I guess it hit on some old wounds for me, so I really felt for him in those moments.

What is This Feeling? is the first book by Robby Webber that I’ve read, but I can tell you that it will NOT be the last! I can’t believe I’m just now discovering his books. I love the balance of sweetness and realism in this one. The relationships aren’t perfect. The characters are flawed but not so deeply that it interferes with my ability to connect with them. It’s a great fall romance.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Two characters are queer.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
A couple F-bombs. Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between two boys.

Spiritual Content
Teddy believes the friendship bracelets he and Annie made together years ago bring them luck, but only when they’re wearing them or have them on their person.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
Teddy (a high school senior) drinks champagne at a gala and sips a cocktail at an event with college students.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.