Two Truths and a Lie - April Henry

Title: Two Truths and a Lie 
Author: April Henry
Format: Hardcover 
Rating: 2.5 Stars 

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A group of teens are trapped in an old motel with a murderer in this chilling YA mystery by New York Times bestselling author April Henry.

Nell has always wanted to be an actor, but doubts her ability. As a member of her school’s theater program, she prefers working backstage. On the way to a contest, an unexpected blizzard strands her acting troupe in a creepy motel. Soon they meet a group of strangers from another high school—including the mysterious and handsome Knox, who insists they play the game Two Truths and a Lie. When it’s Nell’s turn, she draws a slip of paper inked in unfamiliar handwriting:

I like to watch people die.
I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve killed.

Suddenly a night of harmless fun turns into a matter of life and death. As guests go missing, it becomes clear that a murderer is hiding in their midst ready to strike again. In a room full of liars and performers, the truth is never quite what it seems. Nell is going to have to act like her life depends on it—because it does.

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Two Truths and a Lie had an interesting premise, and there were parts that were definitely thrilling and scary.  I don't know if I'd read it again, but it was a good one time read.  

I personally felt like it was pretty easy to figure out exactly who had committed the murders in the 80's.  BUT that's just me.  

Other than figuring out who exactly the bad guy was, I did enjoy trying to figure out what that person was going to try and when.  I thought there was some good tension and thrill in that aspect.  

Since I know what midwest winters can be like, I found the scene of them being trapped in a blizzard totally plausible.  (It happens - ask me about the night we spent in a school during my freshman year at a speech tournament.)  The weird creepy motel added even more to the story and made me never want to stay in some country motel ever!

When both groups of kids arrived at the motel, one group had an actual teacher with them, and the other group had a student teacher with them.  The actual teacher went to bed, stating she was going to take a sleeping pill and was not to be woken up until the following morning under any circumstances.  The student teacher stayed up all night with the kids and played games with them.  Don't be like either one of these adults.  That was very frustrating to me.  They both should have done a better job supervising the kids during that first night. 

I liked Travis's development throughout the book.  He had some things going on, but I think he was really a sweet guy who just wanted to make other people happy.  

The book was a quick read, and scary enough to keep me hooked.  If you want something that's thrilling yet quick, check it out.  

If you've read the book already, let me know what you thought! 

Eyes of the Forest - April Henry

 

Title: Eyes of the Forest
Author: April Henry 
Format: Hardcover 
Rating: 2 Stars 

SPOILERS AHEAD

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After a bestselling fantasy author disappears, only his biggest fan believes he’s in danger and has the courage to uncover the truth in this fast-paced mystery with a chilling psychological twist.

Bridget is RM Haldon's biggest fan. His epic fantasy series, Swords and Shadows, created a lifeline between Bridget and her mom as she lost her battle with cancer. When Bridget met Haldon at his only book signing, she impressed the author with her encyclopedic knowledge of the fantasy world he'd created. Bridget has been working for him ever since as he attempts to write his final book. Now, Haldon is missing, and Bridget is the only person who seems concerned. Can Bridget piece together Haldon’s clues and save him before it’s too late?

Master mystery-writer April Henry weaves another heart-stopping young adult thriller in this story that seamlessly blends suspense with fan culture. For readers of Courtney Summers and Karen McManus.

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I was told there'd be a thriller. There was, in fact, no thriller.  

This is the first April Henry book I've read, so I didn't know what to expect.  The only reason I rated this book two stars was because it was not, in my opinion, a thriller.  It was not this heart pounding, "That person's been kidnapped" story. Rather, it was a book we go into fully knowing that the author has been kidnapped, and who did it.

Bridget, the books MC, is a superfan of a local fantasy author whose books have been popular since before she was born.  She's continued holding them close to her heart because she read them with her mom, who died when Bridget was 12.  In the second chapter we learn that Bob, author of this beloved fantasy series, organized his kidnapping with a local teen - Derrick.  Bob knows Derrick because Derrick's mom is Bob's cleaner/secretary. 

Anyway, during this "kidnapping" Derrick brings Bob things, and forces Bob to write, then sells the writing to people in the dark web.  It's not until halfway through the book that Bridget, who was apparently drafted into helping Bob keep track of his books because she has an encyclopedic knowledge base of said book, realizes that something is wrong and emails Bob. This leads him to email her, and it takes her just as long to realize the email is a code and MY GOD IT WAS SO SLOW AND SO INSIPID. 

So, before I go and spoil anything else (sorry, kind of) let me tell you about the following:

The Characters. They were not well developed at all.  They were all pretty one dimensional with no depth and nothing to make me care about them, not even a little bit.  There was literally not a single character in this book that I genuinely liked and wanted to root for.  

The Writing.  Mediocre at best.  There was just enough there to make me want to finish just so I could see HOW Bob got out, but otherwise, the phrasing of things just fell flat. 

The Story.  BORING.  The last time I was this bored reading a book that was supposed to be thrilling was when I read Lucy Foley's The Guest List.  When you know what's happening from the very beginning, it sort of takes all the fun out of it.

Friends, if you've read this book, I'm sorry.  And if you haven't read this book, DON'T.  

Drop some recs for awesome YA and adult thrillers and horror in the comments if you've got them!

Chef's Kiss - TJ Alexander

 

Title: Chef's Kiss 
Author: TJ Alexander 
Format: Paperback
Rating: 5 Stars 

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A high-strung pastry chef’s professional goals are interrupted by an unexpected career transition and the introduction of her wildly attractive nonbinary kitchen manager in this deliciously fresh and witty queer rom-com.

Simone Larkspur is a perfectionist pastry expert with a dream job at The Discerning Chef, a venerable cookbook publisher in New York City. All she wants to do is create the perfect loaf of sourdough and develop recipes, but when The Discerning Chef decides to bring their brand into the 21st century by pivoting to video, Simone is thrust into the spotlight and finds herself failing at something for the first time in her life.

To make matters worse, Simone has to deal with Ray Lyton, the new test kitchen manager, whose obnoxious cheer and outgoing personality are like oil to Simone’s water. When Ray accidentally becomes a viral YouTube sensation with a series of homebrewing videos, their eccentric editor in chief forces Simone to work alongside the chipper upstart or else risk her beloved job. But the more they work together, the more Simone realizes her heart may be softening like butter for Ray.

Things get even more complicated when Ray comes out at work as nonbinary to mixed reactions—and Simone must choose between the career she fought so hard for and the person who just might take the cake (and her heart).

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I absolutely adored this book.  The author did a great job of melding together two of my favorite things: Food and Romance. 

Simone and Ray were wonderfully written characters and I fell in love with both of them.  They were both well written and well developed.  It was fantastic to watch them both go through the changes they did and the self discovery they both experienced throughout the novel.  Simone really opened up and learned that it was okay to be more open not only with other people, but also with herself.  Ray had a lot to do with that because they were so open and so honest with Simone about who they were and what they wanted, and I think that showed Simone that she could be herself, even in the face of complete jackasses like Chase.

Speaking of Chase, he was one character in this book that I absolutely LOATHED.  He was a toady, ignorant jerk.  Ray came out to Simone as non-binary.  They then made the decision to come out to the rest of the employees of The Discerning Chef.  Most of the people who worked there were like "Okay, cool.  You are who you are." But Chase and some of the TDC execs were so awful to Ray.  These people would intentionally misgender Ray, using feminine pronouns for them, instead of they/them pronouns.  Chase would also repeatedly use Ray's dead name even after Ray told him they are called Ray.  It was absolutely infuriating.  Simone and several other employees really had Ray's back, and really worked hard to make sure they were all open to and accepting of Ray. 

I feel like this story was really well developed, and it drew me in from the beginning.  It also made me wish that Ray and Simone were real people doing real videos about beer and food because the videos they made together in the book sounded epic!  The author did a great job of developing the romance and chemistry between Simone and Ray, and also did a wonderful job of showing how hard it was for Ray to come out and be vulnerable in a place where a lot of people didn't accept them for who they are. 

Watching the characters get to know each other and develop these awesome bonds of friendship throughout the book was great.  (And, of course, the more between Ray and Simone.) It was great the way this helped them really stand together when Ray was being discriminated against because of who they were.  

I loved the slow burn aspect of the book as well.  You could tell that Ray and Simone were attracted to each other, but it was great that this book really took the time to develop that relationship and have those characters really get to know each other.  I'm not a big fan of insta-love, so having this slow development of the relationship was amazing.

Overall, this was a great read that I'd recommend to anyone who loves romance.  

If you've already read this book let me know what you thought of it in the comments! 

Pride Month Reading Recs

Hey reader friends!  Happy Pride Month.  If you're here because you just HAVE TO KNOW what books I'd rec for pride month - you're in luck. Here are just some of the amazing LGBTQ+ books that exist in this world.

YA Recs

Simon Vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli 
Camp - Lee Rosen 
The Heartstopper Series - Alice Oseman 
The Diviner Series - Libba Bray 
Jay's Gay Agenda - Jason June 
They Both Die At the End - Adam Silvera 
Cemetery Boys - Aiden Thomas 
The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali - Sabina Kahn 

Adult Recs 

Written in the Stars - Alexandria Bellefleur 
Hang the Moon - Alexandria Bellefleur 
The Boyfriend Project - Alexis Hall 
Red, White, and Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston
One Last Stop - Casey McQuiston 
The Guncle - Steve Rowley 

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There are so many fantastic books that should be read not only in this pride month but year round. Do you have more suggestions and recs?  Drop them in the comments below!

My Dearest Darkest - Kayla Cunningham

Title: My Dearest Darkest 
Author: Kayla Cottingham
Format: Paperback 
Rating: 5 Stars 

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WILDER GIRLS meets THE CRAFT in this Sapphic horror debut that asks: What price would you be willing to pay to achieve your deepest desires?

Finch Chamberlin is the newest transfer student to the ultra-competitive Ulalume Academy... but she's also not what she seems. Months before school started, Finch and her parents got into an accident that should have left her dead at the bottom of a river. But something monstrous, and ancient, and terrifying, wouldn't let her drown. Finch doesn't know why she woke up after her heart stopped, but since dying she's felt a constant pull from the school and the surrounding town of Rainwater, like something on the island is calling to her.

Selena St. Clair sees right through Finch, and she knows something is seriously wrong with her. But despite Selena's suspicion, she feels drawn to Finch and has a sinking feeling that from now on the two will be inexplicably linked to one another.

One night Finch, Selena, and her friends accidentally summon a carnivorous creature of immense power in the depths of the school. It promises to grant every desire the girls have kept locked away in their insecure hearts―beauty, power, adoration―in exchange for a price: human body parts. But as the cost of their wanting becomes more deadly, Finch and Selena must learn to work together to stop the horror they unleashed, before it consumes the entire island.

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I have been searching all year for a book that hits the nail on the five star head.  The Mary Shelley Club was one, and this was the other!  This book was creepy and weird and gave me all the 5 star shivers. 

Was the book without faults? No.  After all, Finch could have been just a smidge *deeper* and more developed. But overall, the feels this book gave me were enough to overlook the fact that the MC needed more development. 

The rest of the characters were wonderful. There was the angst that is typical in YA novels, but come on - being a teenager is hard. Being a teenager at a school with a weird creature living under the tunnels is even harder. I mean, Damn. 

There were some really gross moments in this book, and a lot of body horror. (Seriously, if you can't handle body horror, don't read this book.) But for me, that added to the tension and mystery in the book.  I loved the mystery behind Nerosi.  There was this spirit behind her and a change to her as each sacrifice happened that really opened her character.  Each appearance if the stag and the past people who were lost to Nerosi's weird life were also great looks into her character and what she was really like. 

I loved the aspect of this horrific creature and all these events happening at an old boarding school (old as in the building has been has been around for a while.)  Having all the hidden tunnels under the school added a mysterious element because you never new what was going to happen to the students or what they were going to really fund when they went to the tunnels. 

The thing that did seem strange to me was that students at a boarding school would be able to live basically off campus like Selena, Kyra, and their other friend did.  Teenagers are certainly much more independent than younger kids, but these kids are still in school, and I'm assuming that when teens go to a boarding school, the parents are trusting the staff to take care of the kids and keep an eye on them.  These kids living off campus in that light house definitely opened the door to the kids being able to cause a lot of fuss (hello Nerosi!) 

Overall, though, I really love this book.  It has the perfect amount of weird and creepy with some great self exploration and self discovery thrown in.  

 

Bout of Books 34!

 

Hey reader friends.  Welcome!  It's the end of April - and in my world that means it's time for the May round of Bout of Books.  If you've ever visited my blog before, you know that I've been doing Bout of Books for at least 4 years.  I love Bout of Books so much.  It's, by far, my favorite readathon.  If you're not at all familiar with Bout of Books, here's a good description from one of the organizers:

The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly Rubidoux Apple. It’s a weeklong readathon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in YOUR time zone. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are reading sprints, Twitter chats, and exclusive Instagram challenges, but they’re all completely optional. For all Bout of Books 34 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I have an outrageous amount of books on my couch right now from the library, and I won't be able to make it through all of them during Bout of Books, because some of them are absolute chonkers.  But my goal is to read as much of them as I can during that week!  

If you want to do Bout of Books as well, you should definitely go to their blog right now and sign up!  I would love to spend the week reading with any one of you.

Heartstopper - the series

 

I just finished watching Heartstopper on Netflix, and it was just as sweet and adorable as the graphic novels.  If you're a teen who loves romance and all sorts of sweet cute stuff, or if you're an adult who loves rooting for kids being kids and being themselves, this is the series for you.  It is fluffy and awesome and I loved it! 

The series does a lot of things well, including the casting.  I absolutely loved each person cast in the series and I thought they fit into the characters they were playing so well.  I especially loved that they cast a trans actress to play Elle.  Hollywood has this bad bad habit of casting cis people to play trans roles, and that's just not cool - so it was really refreshing to see that they had cast Yasmin Finney in that role. 

True to the graphic novels, Ben and several of Nick's friends were real jerks.  Ben especially was just horrible!  He was so nasty to Charlie and it was absolutely fantastic when Charlie was finally able to build up the confidence to really tell Ben to basically fuck off and leave him alone.  Go Charlie!  

I loved that the art teacher was so cool and understanding with Charlie.  He'd been there when Charlie was bullied, when Charlie went through it with Ben, and just created this safe space within his classroom that made Charlie feel good.  It's great when the important adults in a young persons life show those kids that they are safe with that adult and that they can be whoever they are without question. 

The books and the Netflix series both show that acceptance is a good thing, It is amazing to see a series that wholeheartedly embraces all the characters and shows them living unapologetically.  I know someone is going to get their panties in a twist and get mad at seeing a show and a graphic novel series that shows queer love and joy, but my suggestion for them is: get over it.  Everyone deserves to be happy, to feel joy, to experience all the good things in life, and that includes LGBT people.  Alice Oseman did such a wonderful job creating this whole world and showing the love these people felt for their friends, and the joy and happiness they want with the people they liked. 

It was fantastic to see Charlie grow and to see Nick grow - to watch them both learn so much about themselves and who they are.  They were both just phenomenal and wonderful, and the actors cast to play them in the Netflix series were so so good.  

The whole season is beautiful and wonderful, and if you haven't watched it, you need to now.  Also, if you haven't read the books yet - DO IT NOW!