Long Black Veil by Jennifer Finney Boylan

Cover Art Courtesy of  Goodreads

Well, it was bound to happen. I've had a pretty good reading month so far so I knew it was about time for a dud. Unfortunately it was this book. Long Black Veil by Jennifer Finney Boylan had promise, but it just didn't deliver. Long Black Veil follows a group of friends who experienced a tragic event years ago and are now living with the consequences. After a night accidentally ends with the group trapped in Eastern State Penitentiary and one of them missing, the group drifts apart, only brought back together when the body is found years later.

Instead of being a mystery/thriller, this really was a story of a trans woman with the crime as almost an afterthought. Now don't get me wrong, I have no problem at all with trans characters and diverse representation, and I really love seeing more of them as main characters literature today. What I do have a problem with is a book masquerading as something that it's not, ultimately tricking the reader into picking it up only to be let down the further in they get. I was really looking forward to a good thriller, and because I was mislead, it left me with a bad taste in my mouth as I progressed through this book. If you go into it knowing that the main idea isn't surrounding the murder, but rather focuses on self-discovery and how to reconcile who you once were against who you are now, you might enjoy this story a lot more. Knowing what I do now, I can say that this was a great own voices novel, just not at all a good thriller.

The scenes that took place in Eastern State were excellent, and for the first almost half of the book I couldn't get enough. But that's where my enjoyment ended and boredom began. The ending was chaotic and hard to wrap my head around, but honestly by that point I didn't even care what happened. I did enjoy some of the character development, especially that of Rachel and Quentin/Judith, but I also thought some of the side stories were unnecessary. Another thing that really rubbed me the wrong way were the scenes regarding animal euthanasia. Maybe that's just me and my huge bleeding heart, but when I read things like that I'm immediately turned off.

I had high hopes for this book, but disappointingly it wasn't at all what I thought it was going to be.

Overall Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars (as a mystery/thriller, which is what it was advertised as)

Thanks to Blogging for Books for sending me a copy of Long Black Veil in exchange for an honest review!

The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel

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The thriller kick I've been on lately is going strong! This book sounded right up my alley so I knew I had to give it a try. Unfortunately it left something to be desired. The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel follows Lane, who moves back to Kansas to live with her grandparents after her mother's suicide. What she doesn't know about is all the family secrets lurking within the walls of Roanoke, her family's home for generations. While at first she truly feels at home, as she gets older she soon realizes she needs to run, only coming back years later after her cousin Allegra's disappearance.

A huge trigger warning for incest is necessary here, although that's not why I didn't really like this book. The first half was great, really building to what I thought would be an epic finish, but the ending left something to be desired and kind of just fell off the thrill wagon. While I liked Lane, I didn't particularly like Allegra, and I thought there was too much Tommy and not enough Cooper in the story. And I won't even get started on how twisted the grandparents are, because that's half the plot right there.

This was a quick read with easy to follow writing, told in present day and flashbacks with occasional snippets from other Roanoke Girls from years past mixed in. It wasn't great, but it definitely wasn't bad, and I'm still glad I read it even if it was a bit of a disappointment at the end.

Overall Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

This book was sent to me by Blogging for Books for an honest review.

Author Spotlight: Adriana Mather

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I hadn't heard much about this author until I was offered the chance to review her newest book. Upon researching, I discovered that her subject matter seemed right up my alley. If you've heard of Adriana Mather, you know that she wrote the fantastic YA novel How to Hang a Witch. Her new book, Haunting the Deep, was also just released. Since I obviously couldn't read the second without reading the first, I had to pick up a copy of How to Hang a Witch so I could jump right into the world of Samantha Mather, her main character (and yes, their last names are the same!).

How to Hang a Witch follows Samantha Mather, a high school girl who moves to Salem with her stepmother when her father falls into a coma. Sam is immediately an outcast, due to being related to Cotton Mather, one of the main players in the Salem Witch Trials. When strange things start happening and people start dying, Samantha seems to be the one at fault, and the Decendants (relatives of the original accused and hanged witches) are quick to pin the blame on her. But everyone soon realizes that Sam might not be the cause, and in fact may be the only one able to help put a stop to the disastrous events occurring in Salem. Throw in a cute next door neighbor, a handsome ghost that only Sam can see, and some mean high school girls and you have the making of the perfect paranormal YA novel.

Cover Art Courtesy of Goodreads

Haunting the Deep picks up with Samantha about six months after the dramatic ending of the first novel. Her father has woken up, and she has found some unlikely friendships. Everyone has moved on from the scary events, or so it seems, until one day at breakfast Samantha spots another ghost. As the Spring Fling theme of the Titanic is announced, more strange things begin occurring, as items begin being left for Sam and her father, and she becomes transported to the Titanic in her dreams. Is it a coincidence, or the makings of something more sinister? Using her newfound allies, Sam and her friends must work to save the spirits lost on the Titanic, and Sam herself, from meeting the same repeated fate of the cursed ocean liner.

Both of these books were fantastic. I loved Samantha's character, and the Descendants as well. I thought the plot was definitely realistic, and wasn't too paranormal to be believable. They were both quick reads that kept me engaged the entire time. My only issue with both books was that I was able to predict the villain a little earlier than I would have liked. I was satisfied with both endings, however less than satisfied with Sam's choice of love interest. I think these are both great paranormal YA reads and would 100% recommend them!

Overall Rating (for both books): 4 out of 5 Stars

Thanks to Blogging for Books for the copy of Haunting the Deep to review! All opinions are 100% my own.

David Bowie: A Life by Dylan Jones

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Ever since I was a little girl I was fascinated with David Bowie, and I was beyond distraught when he passed away. From the movie Labyrinth, to Ziggy Stardust, I was enthralled with this man who could morph and mold himself into almost anything, and be insanely attractive while doing so. David Bowie: A Life by Dylan Jones, is the story of Bowie and how he came to be this magical man.

I love biographies, but they are often a lot to slog through, this being no exception to that rule. A thick and detailed biography, this gathered bits and pieces of information in the form of hundreds of quotes from those who worked with Bowie. These included puppeteers from Labyrinth, fashion designers, fellow recording artists, directors, journalists, and more. And of course, there were some choice stories and quotes from Bowie himself. Unlike many biographies that seem so much like reference books, this was written in a way that felt more like a story, even though it was broken up into so many quotes.

While I already knew a lot about Bowie, I learned even more through this biography. Bowie was a much more reserved man that I realized, often getting embarrassed about things and occasionally drawing into himself. But above all that, he was kind, creative, intelligent, and thoughtful. He went on daily walks through Chinatown and spent hours in art museums. More than anything, I was shocked to learn that he was not a fan of his Jareth costume, which has become so iconic over the years (for more reasons than one, if you know what I mean!). I loved getting into the artist's head to see what made him tick and learn more about his rationale behind his crazy stage persona.

The best, albeit saddest, part of this book was the last chapter, with interviews from loved ones after Bowie's passing. Here you see the true impact of this man on the lives of others, and how much they were shaken by the loss of this icon and friend. Overall this was a fantastic, although long, read. I highly recommend it for anyone fascinated with David Bowie and the wonderful aura that surrounded him.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review, but all opinions are honest and are my own.

The Lauras by Sara Taylor

The Lauras by Sara Taylor is a combination coming of age/travel tale of young Alex and Alex's mother. Having abandoned Alex's father, the mother takes the two all over the country tying up loose ends, doing things like paying back debts, kidnapping a girl controlled by a religious cult family, and scattering ashes. Throughout the story, Alex struggles with identity, sexuality, and a desire for home.

While the premise of this novel was interesting, there were a few things I just didn't like. First, you never knew whether Alex was a girl or a boy. While I understand that this was trying to help better explain gender fluidity, it made it hard to understand certain parts of the story, without at least knowing the sex that Alex was born as. The part where Alex's classmates tried to ambush Alex to determine a gender was heartbreaking, and it really helped me understand some of the things that those who don't identify with a gender have to deal with on a daily basis.

The other, and way more major, thing I just couldn't get behind is that this book really didn't have a plot. They just went from place to place doing different things, but it never really ended. Now again, I can see that this might have been intentional, but I just don't like books that don't give me closure when they're finished. Where did Alex end up?? Did Alex's mom tie up all the loose ends she needed to?

And lastly, the title wasn't very related in my opinion. Yes, Alex's mom tells the story of a few friends she knew named Laura, and one of them is where she ends up at the end of the book, but they didn't seem to have a big enough impact on things to warrant naming the book after them.

Sadly, I had to struggle to finish this. There just wasn't anything exciting or grabbing about the story or the characters. 

Overall Rating: 2.5 out of 5 Stars

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review, but all opinions are honest and are my own.

Still Here: A Novel by Lara Vapnyar

Cover Art Courtesy of
Penguin Random House

Still Here: A Novel by Lara Vapnyar is a book about four friends, Russian immigrants Sergey, Vica, Vadik, and Regina, who are learning to live and love in New York City. This story follows them as their relationships fall apart and back together, their jobs shape who they are, and they evaluate whether or not it was worth it to immigrate to America in the first place.

Each of the characters has characteristics that make them distinct from one another. For example, Sergey can't hold a job but is the most ambitious of the group. Regina married for security not love, but is slowly learning what love really is. Vadik can't make up his mind when it comes to anything, like his apartments or his women. And Vica is just trying to maintain security while raising her son Eric. 

The story centers around Sergey's idea of an app (one of many app ideas he has, I might add) called Virtual Grave, something that will preserve us long after we're gone. It makes each of the characters really evaluate their lives and what, if anything, they would be able to leave behind and be remembered by.

Overall, while the concept was unique and I had high hopes for this book, I really didn't like it. I honestly found all of the characters annoying, especially Sergey, and they were all weirdly romantically tied together in one way or another. Sergey and Vica are married, but Vica used to date Vadik and Sergey used to date Regina, yet somehow they don't think this is weird at all and still hang out together. When Vica kicks Sergey out, he goes to crash with Vadik, and here you really get a taste of Sergey's slothiness, which made me dislike him even more. The writing was great, however, and that's what got me through the story. While I didn't like the characters, the character development itself was spot on, and although I didn't like this plot in particular I would definitely give Lara Vapnyar another try since her writing was great.

Overall Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review, but all opinions are honest and are my own.