Rainy Day Ramblings

Review: The Lovely and the Lost by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

 

Kira Bennett’s earliest memories are of living alone and wild in the woods. She has no idea how long she was on her own or what she had to do to survive, but she remembers the moment that Cady Bennett and one of her search-and-rescue dogs found her perfectly. Adopted into the Bennett family, Kira still struggles with human interaction years later, but she excels at the family business: search-and-rescue. Along with Cady’s son, Jude, and their neighbor, Free, Kira works alongside Cady to train the world’s most elite search-and-rescue dogs. Someday, all three teenagers hope to put their skills to use, finding the lost and bringing them home. But when Cady’s estranged father, the enigmatic Bales Bennett, tracks his daughter down and asks for her help in locating a missing child—one of several visitors who has disappeared in the Sierra Glades National Park in the past twelve months—the teens find themselves on the frontlines sooner than they could have ever expected. As the search through 750,000 acres of unbridled wilderness intensifies, Kira becomes obsessed with finding the missing child. She knows all too well what it’s like to be lost in the wilderness, fighting for survival, alone. But this case isn’t simple. There is more afoot than a single, missing girl, and Kira’s memories threaten to overwhelm her at every turn. As the danger mounts and long-held family secrets come to light, Kira is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her adopted family, her true nature, and her past. 
Hardcover, 328 pages
Published May 7th 2019 by Freeform
Source: Publisher

 

 

Two and a half stars: A book with lots of promise but it falters with unfinished story lines and a chaotic plot. Needs more focus!

When a little girl goes missing in the Sierra Glades National Park, Kira Bennett is determined that she and her dog will be the ones to find her. Kira knows a thing or two about being lost in the wilderness. When Kira was a young girl, she spent weeks alone in the wood until she was rescued by Katie and her rescue dog. Years later, Kira is a teenager, adopted by Katie. Kira has learned to cope with her past by training rescue dogs. Kira struggles with human interaction, and snippets of memory, but her steadfast determination to lead her dog to rescued 

The Sunday Post 300th Edition

The Sunday Post is a weekly post hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It is a chance to share all the news and highlights on your blog for the past and upcoming weeks. Head over to Kimberly's for details and to link up!

Whew! We made it to another week. I am relieved it's over. It was a crazy week, the kids seemed more amped up than usual at school. I am thinking it must have been the full moon. Anyway, the week is done. Moving ahead. 

Our weather took a turn this week. It is much cooler and we have quite a bit of rain on and off. It definitely feels like fall in Oregon. The leaves are so vibrant right now. I love seeing the colors of fall. 

I am having a hard time believing we are getting close to Halloween already. It feels like the month is flying by. I still need to find a Halloween costume for my son. I better get on that!

I am still playing catch up on the blog. I got several reviews written but I am still about three behind. I am hoping to spend some time writing up reviews this weekend so I will be sort of caught up. I really need to get some more posts blogged ahead. Fingers crossed I will get it done. 

Anyway, hope you all had a fantastic week wherever you are. 

Here is what happened on the blog last week:

Monday: Review: The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

Tuesday: Tell Me Something Tuesday: Zombie Apocalypse: What would you do?

Wednesday: Review: The Institute by Stephen King

Thursday: Review: Life and Other Inconveniences by Kristan Higgins

Friday: Friday Forecast

Received for review:

Next week:

Monday: Review: The Lovely and the Lost by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Tuesday: Tell Me Something Tuesday 

Wednesday: Review: The Legend of Decimus Croome by Kevin Purdy

Thursday: Audiobook Review: Middlegame by Seanan McGuire

Friday: Friday Forecast

That's all from Oregon. Have a wonderful weekend. 

Friday Forecast October 20th-26th

October is sneaking away. Are you taking time to enjoy all that the fall weather has to offer? Have you found the right scary book for Halloween? If you are still waiting for inspiration to strike, let's see if I can tempt you with the upcoming forecast of all that is slated to hit shelves this coming week. See if anything speaks to you. (Click on covers for details).

Forecast October 20th-26th

 

Harry Potter Pop Up and the World of the Dark Crystal both look tantalizing. 

 

Review: Life and Other Inconveniences by Kristan Higgins

 

 

Emma London never thought she had anything in common with her grandmother Genevieve London. The regal old woman came from wealthy and bluest-blood New England stock, but that didn’t protect her from life’s cruelest blows: the disappearance of Genevieve’s young son, followed by the premature death of her husband. But Genevieve rose from those ashes of grief and built a fashion empire that was respected the world over, even when it meant neglecting her other son.When Emma’s own mother died, her father abandoned her on his mother’s doorstep. Genevieve took Emma in and reluctantly raised her–until Emma got pregnant her senior year of high school. Genevieve kicked her out with nothing but the clothes on her back…but Emma took with her the most important London possession: the strength not just to survive but to thrive. And indeed, Emma has built a wonderful life for herself and her teenage daughter, Riley. So what is Emma to do when Genevieve does the one thing Emma never expected of her and, after not speaking to her for nearly two decades, calls and asks for help?
Paperback, 448 pages
Published August 6th 2019 by Berkley Books
Source: Publisher

 

Three stars: A book about change and growth, but I struggled with some of the characters.

 

Emma London hasn’t spoken to her grandmother in eighteen years, so she is surprised when her grandmother finally phones. Emma’s grandmother, Genevieve, claims she is dying, and she insists that Emma come and spend the summer along with her teenage daughter Riley. Emma resists at first. Why would she want to go back after her grandmother threw her out when she got pregnant her senior year of high school? Finally, Emma relents, not realizing that the summer will change all of their lives. Can they get over the past?

What I Liked:

• Life and Other Inconveniences is a book that was up and down for me. I struggled early on with many of the characters. Genevieve comes across as snobby, and I didn’t like her one bit. I also struggled a bit  with Emma,Miller and Clark. The only character that I loved was Riley. Thankfully, after time and patience the majority of the characters transformed, and I liked seeing the growth. For me, this was a book that paid off with patience. 
• The book is told with multiple view points. There is Emma, Genevieve, Riley, Miller and Clark. Each character is flawed, and they all face problems. Some of them encounter gut wrenching tragedy, while others take on their own set of troubles. Sometimes, they don’t handle things well, and other characters remain unlikable throughout. I appreciated the different voices, the unique problems, and I especially liked how each character dealt with their own circumstances. I found myself changing my opinion for most of the characters. I always enjoy a novel that features tremendous character growth. 
• This book takes on many different topics from a missing child, death, tragedy and lots of heartache. I won’t lie, there is a lot of drama, but through it all there are beautiful moments as well. I loved experiencing the moments of forgiveness, kindness, love and understanding as well as a touch of romance and new beginnings. Basically there were lots of gray clouds and rainstorms, but every once in awhile a rainbow came through and it made it all worth while. 
• The ending was bittersweet. There is a sad part, but there is also closure, forgiveness and new paths for many of the characters. It was nice to see after the struggles, a bright spot of happiness.

And The Not So Much:

• Maybe it was just me, but I struggled with this one. I found the first part with all the tension and unlikable characters to be downright depressing. I almost quit the book a few times because I wasn’t connecting with anyone. Thankfully, after time and lots of patience things turn around for the most part. 
• Clark was downright icky. I could have done without his view point. There was nothing redeeming about him at all. He dragged the book down for me. Yuck! I especially hated his final chapter, learning what he did. 

Life and Other Inconveniences is a book I wanted to love, but unfortunately I found parts of it to be too dramatic, and I struggled with unlikable characters. This is a book that explores the complexities of relationships, and it is also a story of growth and change. Patience paid off, and I enjoyed the book overall, but I found myself wanting less drama.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review. 

Review: The Institute by Stephen King

 

 

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Stephen King, the most riveting and unforgettable story of kids confronting evil since It—publishing just as the second part of It, the movie, lands in theaters.

In the middle of the night, in a house on a quiet street in suburban Minneapolis, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. The operation takes less than two minutes. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents—telekinesis and telepathy—who got to this place the same way Luke did: Kalisha, Nick, George, Iris, and ten-year-old Avery Dixon. They are all in Front Half. Others, Luke learns, graduated to Back Half, “like the roach motel,” Kalisha says. “You check in, but you don’t check out.”

In this most sinister of institutions, the director, Mrs. Sigsby, and her staff are ruthlessly dedicated to extracting from these children the force of their extranormal gifts. There are no scruples here. If you go along, you get tokens for the vending machines. If you don’t, punishment is brutal. As each new victim disappears to Back Half, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute.

As psychically terrifying as Firestarter, and with the spectacular kid power of It, The Institute is Stephen King’s gut-wrenchingly dramatic story of good vs. evil in a world where the good guys don’t always win. 
Kindle Edition, 576 pages
Published September 10th 2019 by Schribner
Source: Library

 

 

Four and a half stars: King doing what he does best: telling an intricate story while providing the scare.

Luke Ellis is a twelve year old child prodigy. His intelligence is off the charts, and at twelve he is looking to attend college. His parents are thrilled and anxious, but they don’t want to let Luke down. They know how brilliant their boy is, and they also know that sometimes when Luke is upset, he can make objects move. Then everything falls apart for young Luke when his parents are murdered in the middle of the night and he is kidnapped. Luke awakens in a terrifying place called The Institute. Luke and several other psychically gifted children are being held hostage by ruthless people. These doctors and staff members are charged with performing brutal experiments on the kids in the hopes of turning them into psychic weapons. What the staff doesn’t anticipate is Luke’s genius. Meanwhile across the country, Tim Jamieson, a former cop is traveling through the country looking to find a place. Tim ultimately decides to pass a spell in Dupray, South Carolina, not knowing that this fateful decision will eventually cause him to cross paths with Luke. Can Tim help save Luke and the others from unimaginable torment?

What I Liked:

• King delivers another chilling and thrilling story with his latest novel The Institute. Prepare for a suspenseful story that builds upon the upheaval in America’s political system. Think crazed scientists trying to torture and manipulate kids into becoming psychic weapons able to kill political enemies across the globe. Terrifying right?
• As always, King sucks you in by laying the foundation for his creepy tale. He starts with the mundane details of a seemingly normal man, Tim Jamieson, who is wandering through the country, looking for a place to settle down. King lures you in with the descriptions and the depth, making sure you are comfortable. Then you are transported across country to meet Luke Ellison, boy genius. Again, you are treated to a lengthy and elaborate description of Luke and his life. King takes his sweet time developing the characters, making you care for them while sucking you in. Then he pulls the rug out from under you by throwing you into the macabre place called The Institute. I am always in awe of King’s story telling. I love that he can go on and on with the characters and the details, and I am never bored. He makes you care about the characters, or completely despise them. If you have never experienced King’s mastery of storytelling, you should. No one can tell a tale like King.
• The Institute is downright terrible. In this horrid place, kids with telekinesis or telepathy are used like rats in a lab. Terrible experiments are exacted on the kids in order to turn them into weapons. The doctors at the lab, build upon research done by Hitler during the war. Their disturbing aims are to harness the collected psychic power of the children to unleash a deadly weapon on political enemies. The entire premise is absolutely unnerving, especially in today’s political environment. King makes you question what if??? I like that this book made me ponder the possibilities.  
• The kids in The Institute tug at your heart strings. I especially adored Luke and Avery. Again and again, the kids are thrust into horrific circumstances, but they always manage to maintain their empathy and humanity. Luke is amazing. I loved how he sought to help not only the other children in the place but one of the cleaning ladies. Then when revenge is exacted, I was cheering the whole time for the kids. 
• The book culminates with a thrilling climax that had me whipping through the pages. King pulls no punches with this terrifying build up to the finale. The secret government compound with the doctors who have lost all resemblance to humane people, becomes the center of a mass revolt. I want to tell you more, but I won’t. The final third is riveting. I couldn’t read it fast enough!
• The ending was satisfying and alarming. Once the dust settles, a final finger of paranormal possibility is thrust at the reader, leaving you chilled at the thought. What if.......

And The Not So Much:

• There are plenty of parts in this one that are tough to read. Not because King gets too gruesome, but more so because it is hard to read about this unethical tests. 
• It takes a long time for this one to get going, so you must be patient. I am familiar with King’s brand of story telling, and I personally enjoy that he takes his sweet time. For those who want action from the get go, you will be disappointed. 

The Institute is another astonishing book from the master. I was immediately sucked into this chilling and thrilling tale. Prepare for gifted kids thrown into horrific circumstances. Think secret government lab, inhumane doctors, mind control, and mind bending experiments all meant to create another type of political weapon. This book will scare you and make you ponder on the possibilities long after you finish that final page. Another book not to be missed by King!

 I borrowed a copy of this book from the library. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.