Tag: read

I’m Back!

~ Danielle Olson ~ Leave a comment

Hello My Fellow Book Lovers!

It’s been a long time (longer than I want to admit). I took a few years off to do some other things that were really important to me.

I started a non-profit called the Lisa Michelle Memorial Fund. It’s a fund started in honor of my mother and provides scholarships to students who have lost a parent to substance abuse. It’s been a great rewarding experience to provide these scholarships every year.

I also had been promoted at work and took on a very demanding role. It was a lot of work, but I learned so much in the process. Now I’ve found a new job (same company) as an entertainment underwriter. I essentially get to insure commercials, music videos, documentaries, films, and so much more in film/video production. I love my new job and it has much better work life balance.

I also gained two beautiful nieces and became godmother to both of them. They are beautiful, smart, and fun little girls, so I was spending a lot of time with them. Now they have moved to Idaho and I find myself with a lot more time on my hands.

Now that I’ve gained back some free time, I realized how much I missed my book blog and the book lover community. I may not post as much as I did, but I do want to get back to sharing my thoughts on books, sharing new books I’ve found, and find some new ones in the great community of readers.

Looking forward to being back!

Book Review | The Last Girl by Joe Hart

~ Danielle Olson ~ Leave a comment

BOOK REVIEW | THE LAST GIRL

cover74018-mediumTITLE: The Last Girl (A Dominion Trilogy, Book 1)

AUTHOR: Joe Hart

PUBLISHER: Thomas & Mercer

RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2016

GENRE: Mystery & Thrillers, General Fiction (Adult)

BUY LINKS: AMAZON | B&N | INDIEBOUND

A mysterious worldwide epidemic reduces the birthrate of female infants from 50 percent to less than 1 percent. Medical science and governments around the world scramble in an effort to solve the problem, but twenty-five years later there is no cure, and an entire generation grows up with a population of fewer than a thousand women.

Zoey and some of the surviving young women are housed in a scientific research compound dedicated to determining the cause. For two decades, she’s been isolated from her family, treated as a test subject, and locked away—told only that the virus has wiped out the rest of the world’s population.

Captivity is the only life Zoey has ever known, and escaping her heavily armed captors is no easy task, but she’s determined to leave before she is subjected to the next round of tests…a program that no other woman has ever returned from. Even if she’s successful, Zoey has no idea what she’ll encounter in the strange new world beyond the facility’s walls. Winning her freedom will take brutality she never imagined she possessed, as well as all her strength and cunning—but Zoey is ready for war. (Description from NetGalley.com)

MY THOUGHTS

Are there times when you feel like you’re in a prison? When you feel like you have no control of what’s going to happen to you? Zoey (who has no clue what her last name is) has been a prisoner of a facility known as the ARC the majority of her life. She’s only allowed to eat certain foods, read certain books, and has to abide by the rules or be punished. All this because she’s one of the few young girls left in the world. They take these young girls from their families and take away their freedom.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Last Girl. The first part of the book brings you into the ARC and what Zoey’s daily life is like. She’s escorted everywhere and has to stick to a schedule that includes wearing certain outfits, communal eating, and doing laundry. Her life essentially is not her own.

The second part of the book details her escape from the ARC and her first few days of freedom in the world, but unfortunately doesn’t have time to enjoy it while they are searching for her and while she’s injured. Zoey encounters many many obstacles during her escape from hunger to running into men who want nothing more then to violate and sell her.

When I first started reading this book, I was siding more with the people running the ARC because these are the last few women on earth that might be able to produce a female birth. They are protected, fed, and have a space of their own, but as I continued to read I started to understand Zoey’s struggle. I can’t imagine not being able to decide what I get to do each day, what I get to eat, what I get to read, and who I can spend my time with. It’s not living which is part of what fueled Zoey to fight back.

When Zoey escapes from the ARC is when I really got into the book. The author made me feel Zoey’s pain when she was running away trying to stay alive.  I felt like my heart was beating with her’s with each man she killed for her freedom. It was like I was there experiencing it for myself. I thought about what would be going through my head seeing the wilderness for the first time while on the brink of death. Seeing the world for what it was rather then what was told to her. I’d be frightened just like she was. I’d be confused just like she was. I’d be angry.

The lead character, Zoey, is another aspect of the book that I loved. At first you think she’s just a small fragile girl that just continues to go through the motions, but she’s actually this very strong woman fighting for what she wants out of life and fighting for those she cares about. There are many times when a weak person might die, but she didn’t. She fought and fought hard.

Overall, I would highly recommend The Last Girl. It’s full of intense scenes that keep your heart pumping and it’s impossible to put down. It’s like you’re experiencing everything first hand. It’s a great thriller with a strong female lead that keeps you rooting for her until the end. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series.

OVERALL RATING

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS | TWITTER

Joe Hart was born and raised in northern Minnesota, where he still resides today. He’s been writing horror and thriller fiction since he was nine years old. He is the author of five novels and numerous short stories, including the books The River Is Dark, Lineage, and The Waiting. When he’s not writing, Joe enjoys reading, working out, watching movies with his family, and spending time outdoors. (Bio found on www.joehartbooks.com).

Thank you to Joe Hart and Thomas & Mercer for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review | When I’m Gone by Emily Bleeker

~ Danielle Olson ~ 1 Comment

BOOK REVIEW | WHEN I’M GONE

cover77538-mediumTITLE: When I’m Gone

AUTHOR: Emily Bleeker

PUBLISHER: Lake Union Publishing

RELEASE DATE: March 15, 2016

GENRE: Women’s Fiction, General Fiction (Adult)

PRE-ORDER LINKS: AMAZON

Dear Luke,
First let me say—I love you…I didn’t want to leave you…

Luke Richardson has returned home after burying Natalie, his beloved wife of sixteen years, ready to face the hard job of raising their three children alone. But there’s something he’s not prepared for—a blue envelope with his name scrawled across the front in Natalie’s handwriting, waiting for him on the floor of their suburban Michigan home.

The letter inside, written on the first day of Natalie’s cancer treatment a year ago, turns out to be the first of many. Luke is convinced they’re genuine, but who is delivering them? As his obsession with the letters grows, Luke uncovers long-buried secrets that make him question everything he knew about his wife and their family. But the revelations also point the way toward a future where love goes on—in written words, in memories, and in the promises it’s never too late to keep. (Description found on NetGalley.com)

MY THOUGHTS

Last night I couldn’t put this book down and ended up finishing it at 1am, but it was definitely worth losing a few hours of sleep. When I’m Gone is one of those books that made me “react” to things that would unfold and the twists and turns that were revealed. At one point my husband (who isn’t a reader) asked me why I have to react to everything in the book. When I say react (my fellow readers will know what I’m talking about), I mean gasps, sighs, and a little bit of commentary mixed in. I just looked at him and said “when it’s a really good book, you can’t help but react”. That’s what this book is.

When I first started reading this book, I thought it might be exactly like P.S. I Love You in reverse (wife dies and husband gets romantic love letters), but it’s so much more than that. The letters Luke Richardson receives aren’t even that romantic and has much more to focus on then just his wife passing away. He has three kids to take care of and he has to deal with knowing that his wife kept a very big secret from him that brings up unwanted memories from his past.

Here’s a quote that I think will tell you more about the plot without giving away anything:“The only positive thing about dying is knowing I won’t have to see your face when you find out all the reasons you should hate me. Maybe that’s my final gift – when you find out all my secrets, you’ll be glad I’m gone.”

There was a point in the book when I thought I knew what was going to happen, but I was pleasantly surprised that I couldn’t predict everything. I really enjoyed those twists and turns I mentioned. Emily Bleeker really knew how to keep you interested and I couldn’t wait to figure out who was sending the letters and what his wife’s secret was.

Overall, I would highly recommend When I’m Gone. It’s a riveting novel about love, loss, and explores the thought that you might not know the people close to you as well as you thought. It keeps you guessing and keeps you wanting more.

OVERALL RATING

5-gold-star-rating

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS | TWITTER

emily-10

Emily lives in suburban Chicago with her husband and four kids. Between writing and being a mom, she attempts to learn guitar, sings along to the radio (loudly), and embraces her newfound addiction to running.

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing for providing a copy of this book for an honest review.

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Book Review | What Was Mine by Helen Klein Ross

~ Danielle Olson ~ Leave a comment

BOOK REVIEW | WHAT WAS MINE

9781476732350_p0_v3_s192x300TITLE: What Was Mine

AUTHOR: Helen Klein Ross

PUBLISHER: Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books

RELEASE DATE: January 5, 2016

GENRE: Women’s Fiction

BUY LINKS: AMAZON | B&N | GOOGLEPLAY | INDIEBOUND | BAM!

Simply told but deeply affecting, in the bestselling tradition of Alice McDermott and Tom Perrotta, this urgent novel unravels the heartrending yet unsentimental tale of a woman who kidnaps a baby in a superstore—and gets away with it for twenty-one years.

Lucy Wakefield is a seemingly ordinary woman who does something extraordinary in a desperate moment: she takes a baby girl from a shopping cart and raises her as her own. It’s a secret she manages to keep for over two decades—from her daughter, the babysitter who helped raise her, family, coworkers, and friends.

When Lucy’s now-grown daughter Mia discovers the devastating truth of her origins, she is overwhelmed by confusion and anger and determines not to speak again to the mother who raised her. She reaches out to her birth mother for a tearful reunion, and Lucy is forced to flee to China to avoid prosecution. What follows is a ripple effect that alters the lives of many and challenges our understanding of the very meaning of motherhood.

Author Helen Klein Ross, whose work has appeared in The New Yorker, weaves a powerful story of upheaval and resilience told from the alternating perspectives of Lucy, Mia, Mia’s birth mother, and others intimately involved in the kidnapping. What Was Mine is a compelling tale of motherhood and loss, of grief and hope, and the life-shattering effects of a single, irrevocable moment. (Description from NetGalley.com)

MY THOUGHTS

As soon as I started reading What Was Mine, I became engrossed by it and could’t put it down. I don’t have children yet, but I feel that What Was Mine still had the same affect on me as it would to a mother. It would be truly devastating for my child to be kidnapped. This book also made me think about how I’d feel towards the person who kidnapped by child. I’d be thankful that he/she wasn’t harmed, but I’d definitely be angry about the amount of time that was stolen from me. I hope I’d follow Marilyn’s example and think about my son or daughter and how they feel about the situation. It’d be difficult, but sometimes you have to look at the big picture and what is best for your child.

What Was Mine is told in several different perspectives, mostly by the main characters Lucy Wakefield (the kidnapper), Mia Wakefield (the kidnapped child), and Merilyn Featherstone (the biological mother). There are a few supporting character perspectives sprinkled in that were an interesting addition, but if removed, they wouldn’t change much of the plot.

The most interesting aspect of reading What Was Mine is that I felt sorry for Lucy Wakefield, who was essentially a child abductor. In everyday life, if I see a kidnapping story on the news, I tell myself “that person needs to go to prison”, but I didn’t feel that way with Lucy. She was a woman who couldn’t have children in any way and her desire for a child got the best of her causing her to kidnap Mia. I felt sorry for her during several points in the book.

Overall, I would highly recommend this book. Even though it’s a women’s fiction book, sometimes it felt like a suspense novel because I was always wondering if she’d be caught.

OVERALL RATING

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS | TWITTER

Helen is a former creative director at top ad agencies in New York who spent over 20 years in the ad business before turning to other kinds of fiction. Her stories, poems and essays have been published by the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and The New Yorker. (Found on Helen’s website).

Thank you to the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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Book of the Week | No Baggage by Clara Bensen

~ Danielle Olson ~ 4 Comments

cover63990-mediumTITLE: No Baggage

AUTHOR: Clara Bensen

PUBLISHER: Perseus Books Group, Running Press

RELEASE DATE: January 5, 2016

GENRE: Biographies & Memoirs

BUY LINKS: AMAZON | B&N | INDIEBOUND | BAM! | POWELL’S

No Baggage is a memoir that will resonate with adventurers and homebodies alike—it’s at once a romance, a travelogue, and a bright modern take on the age-old questions: how do you find the courage to explore beyond your comfort zone? And can you love someone without the need for commitment, or any expectations for the future?

When Clara Bensen arranged to meet Jeff Wilson on the steps of the Texas State Capitol, after just a few email exchanges on OKCupid, it felt like something big was going to happen. Clara, a sensitive and reclusive personality, is immediately drawn to Jeff’s freewheeling, push-the-envelope nature. Within a few days of knowing one another, they embark on a 21-day travel adventure—from Istanbul to London, with zero luggage, zero reservations, and zero plans. They want to test a simple question: what happens when you welcome the unknown instead of attempting to control it?

Donning a single green dress and a small purse with her toothbrush and credit card, Clara travels through eight countries in three weeks. Along the way, Clara ruminates on the challenges of traveling unencumbered, while realizing when it comes to falling in love, you can never really leave your baggage behind. (Description found on NetGalley.com)

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Book Review & Giveaway | With Every Breath by Lia Riley

~ Danielle Olson ~ 2 Comments

BOOK REVIEW | WITH EVERY BREATH

cover73778-mediumTITLE: With Every Breath

AUTHOR: Lia Riley

PUBLISHER: Forever (Grand Central Publishing)

RELEASE DATE: December 29, 2015

GENRE: New Adult

PRE-ORDER LINKS: AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS | KOBO

BREATHE DEEP . . . AND JUMP IN

At the ends of the earth, Patagonia is a land where ambition trumps reason and the savage summit of La Aguja lures the most determined climbers. It’s also the last spot a “play-it-safe girl” like Auden Woods expects to find herself. But she’ll lace up her brand-new hiking boots and do whatever it takes to secure a dream job at an adventure magazine . . . even if it kills her. And it just might. When disaster strikes, her only chance at survival comes in the form of the surliest, sexiest mountaineer ever to come out of Scotland.

After a climbing accident cost him his brother, professional mountaineer Rhys MacAskill is at the end of his rope. Redemption is not in his future. That is, until a terrifying storm blows a budding journalist into his tent and it’s up to him to make sure they both survive until morning. Despite the demons weighing on him, Rhys can’t resist the temptation of the charming American and one wild night just isn’t enough.

Auden and Rhys soon learn there are no shortcuts as they navigate their way between life, death, and atonement, and discover something they never expected-love. (Description found from NetGalley.com)

MY THOUGHTS

Do you like rugged men? Do you like outdoorsy men? Do you feel like you might need more adventure in your life? Well, With Every Breath by Lia Riley is packed full of adventure, regret, redemption, love, and of course…a sexy mountaineer. Every new book I read of Lia’s makes me more of a fan and she’s getting another thumbs up from me on this one.

The story is told in the perspective of Auden Woods and Rhys MacAskill. Auden is a girl that isn’t known to take risks, but when there’s a chance for her to land a job with a popular magazine she steps out of her shell in a big way. She decides to write a story about climbers braving the La Aguja in Patagonia by going there herself. That’s how she ends up meeting Rhys in a way that forces her to take her clothes off…but it’s not what you’re thinking.

Rhys is quite a mysterious character and the exact opposite of Auden. He lives on the edge and gets his kicks climbing dangerous mountains. You can tell that he keeps a lot to himself and has a hard time opening up to other’s, but his past haunts him and is one of the reasons he pushes people away.

The book didn’t end the way I thought it would, but the ending gave it more emotion and added more to Rhys character.

Overall, I loved With Every Breath. It had the right amount of romance, adventure, and drama to keep my attention and left me wanting more. If you get a chance to read the book please let me know what you think.

OVERALL RATING

5-gold-star-rating

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS | TWITTER

Lia Riley_Photo Credit Kitti Homme2After studying at the University of Montana-Missoula, Lia Riley scoured the world armed only with a backpack, overconfidence and a terrible sense of direction. When not torturing heroes (because c’mon, who doesn’t love a good tortured hero?), Lia herds unruly chickens, camps, beach combs, daydreams about as-of-yet unwritten books, wades through a mile-high TBR pile and schemes yet another trip. She and her family live mostly in Northern California.

Thank you to Lia Riley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Book of the Week | Amelia Earhart, Beyond the Grave by W.C. Jameson

~ Danielle Olson ~ Leave a comment

cover74898-mediumTITLE: Amelia Earhart, Beyond the Grave

AUTHOR: W.C. Jameson

PUBLISHER: Globe Pequot/Taylor Trade Publishing

RELEASE DATE: January 5, 2016

GENRE: Biographies & Memoirs, Nonfiction (Adult)

PRE-ORDER LINKS: AMAZON | B&N | !NDIGO | HALF.COM | ALIBRIS | GOOGLEPLAY | INDIEBOUND

This well-researched book is a biography of the life—and disappearance—of Amelia Earhart, the pioneering aviator who was the first woman to fly solo over the Atlantic in 1928. But did Amelia’s plane really crash and sink in 1937, or was her fate entirely different?

W.C. Jameson is the award-winning author of more than eighty books. He is the bestselling treasure author in America, and his prominence as a professional fortune hunter has led to stints as a consultant for the Unsolved Mysteries television show, the Travel Channel, and the History Channel. He lives near Austin, Texas.

Gregory A. Feith is a former Senior Air Safety Investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board. He is a recurring guest and analyst on several network shows & news channels, including NBC News. (Description found on NetGalley.com)

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Book of the Week | The Things We Keep by Sally Hepworth

~ Danielle Olson ~ Leave a comment

cover73201-mediumTITLE: The Things We Keep

AUTHOR: Sally Hepworth

PUBLISHER: St. Martin’s Press

RELEASE DATE: January 19, 2016

GENRE: Women’s Fiction

BUY LINKS: AMAZON | B&N | !NDIGO | INDIEBOUND | IBOOKS

Anna Forster, in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease at only thirty-eight years old, knows that her family is doing what they believe to be best when they take her to Rosalind House, an assisted living facility. She also knows there’s just one another resident her age, Luke. What she does not expect is the love that blossoms between her and Luke even as she resists her new life at Rosalind House. As her disease steals more and more of her memory, Anna fights to hold on to what she knows, including her relationship with Luke.

When Eve Bennett is suddenly thrust into the role of single mother she finds herself putting her culinary training to use at Rosalind house. When she meets Anna and Luke she is moved by the bond the pair has forged. But when a tragic incident leads Anna’s and Luke’s families to separate them, Eve finds herself questioning what she is willing to risk to help them. (Description found on NetGalley.com)

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Book of the Week | The Last Dreamer by Barbara Josselsohn

~ Danielle Olson ~ Leave a comment

cover71263-mediumTITLE: The Last Dreamer

AUTHOR: Barbara Solomon Josselsohn

PUBLISHER: Lake Union Publishing

RELEASE DATE: December 15, 2015

GENRE: Women’s Fiction, General Fiction

PRE-ORDER LINKS: AMAZON

Iliana Passing—wife, mother, and former acclaimed journalist—gave up her career to start a family. Almost fifteen years later, despite how much she loves her husband and kids, she can’t help wondering how she ended up with a life spent carpooling and running errands.

Ready to get back into the journalism game, Iliana searches for an exciting lead. When she discovers that Jeff Downs, the heartthrob star of an old TV show and her girlhood crush, now owns a nearby textile company, she thinks she’s found her story: teen celebrity and its aftermath. But as Iliana gets to know Jeff, the two grow closer than she ever could’ve imagined. Now that her teenage dream has walked into her present-day reality, how far will she go to entertain an old fantasy? (Description found on NetGalley.com)

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Book of the Week | Loving Eleanor by Susan Witting Albert

~ Danielle Olson ~ Leave a comment

cover77294-mediumTITLE: Loving Eleanor

AUTHOR: Susan Wittig Albert

PUBLISHER: Independent Book Publisher’s Association (IBPA), Member’s Titles

RELEASE DATE: February 1, 2016

GENRE: Women’s Fiction, General Fiction

PRE-ORDER LINKS: AMAZON

When AP political reporter Lorena Hickok—Hick—is assigned to cover Eleanor Roosevelt in the 1932 presidential campaign, the two women become deeply involved. Their relationship begins with mutual romantic passion, matures through stormy periods of enforced separation and competing interests, and warms into an enduring, encompassing friendship documented by 3300 letters.

Set during the chaotic years of the Great Depression, the New Deal, and the Second World War, Loving Eleanor reveals Eleanor Roosevelt as a complex, contradictory, and entirely human woman who is pulled in many directions by her obligations to her husband and family and her role as the nation’s First Lady. Hick is an accomplished journalist, who, at the pinnacle of her career, gives it all up for the woman she loves. Then, as Eleanor is transformed into Eleanor Everywhere, First Lady of the World, Hick must create her own independent, productive life. Loving Eleanor is a profoundly moving novel that illuminates a relationship we are seldom privileged to see, celebrating the depth and durability of women’s love. (Description found on NetGalley.com)

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