Tag: Netgalley Review

Netgalley Review: Missing Clarissa by Ripley Jones

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Title: Missing Clarissa

Author: Ripley Jones

Release Date: March 7th, 2023

Page Count: 249

Format: Audiobook/Netgalley Ebook

Start Date: March 7th, 2023

Finish Date: March 8th, 2023

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:

Two girls who are looking for an amazing project for their journalism class decide to do a podcast investigating the disappearance of a girl in their town. She disappeared twenty years before and the case was never solved. This is more of a case where one girl had the brilliant idea and the other girl went with it. Either way, it was amazing!

I think there were parts of the book that I would have liked to have seen get expanded upon a little more. There are also references that I wish were more than just references. This isn’t a criticism of the book. It’s my own personal opinion. I also wouldn’t hate it if there were many other books set involving Blair and Cameron. I don’t know if there will be. If it were to ever become a series, I’d instabuy all of the rest of the books in a heartbeat. I wouldn’t even need to think twice about it.

I started to read it via Netgalley, but I preordered the audiobook once I was sure that I was going to enjoy it very much. The moment it hit my library, I listened to it. The narrator did a fantastic job. I did have to slow down my normal speed to listen to it. Not that I’m complaining. I’d definitely try out other books narrated by her.

Similar To:

A Good Girls Guide to Murder

ARC Review: And Finally by Henry Marsh

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Title: And Finally

Author: Henry Marsh

Release Date: January 17th, 2023

Page Count: 242

Start Date: December 29th, 2022

Finish Date: January 17th, 2023

Review:

I’m not going to lie, I don’t really know what I was expecting when I picked up this book. I actually can’t even tell you why I picked it up. Once I found out what it was about, I was fully expecting a book full of depressing chat. I was expecting for this book to make me feel awful and overwhelmed. Especially when I found out that a doctor wrote it. However, I am happy to say that I was completely wrong. In fact, I am very impressed with how transparent the doctor was as he wrote this book. He even Made it easy for anybody to follow along with. If it was a little too complex, he took the time to explain it. I’m very impressed and very thankful that I read the book.

ARC Review: The Devil You Know by P.J. Tracy

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Title: The Devil You Know

Author: P.J. Tracy

Release Date: January 17th, 2023

Page Count: 294

Start Date: January 2nd, 2023

Finish Date: January 16th, 2023

Review:

Story: This is the third book in the Detective Margaret Nolan series. I really enjoyed it very much. I’m going to have to get it in audio when it releases to go with my other two audiobooks in the series. I’m bound to reread it eventually. These books are pretty dark, but not too dark. I don’t know how to really explain it better than that. I had trouble trying to predict anything that happened. Something I enjoy doing with mysteries. I sincerely hope that there are more books in this series.

Characters: I really enjoyed the multiple perspectives. The other two did the same thing. I guess it’s kind of obvious that Nolan is my favorite of all of them. She’s just so level headed. She’s constantly surrounded by very negative colleagues who would rather shut the case down quickly than accurately. Not her though. She’s tough, but she’s fair. She’s willing to hear people out.

Critiques: None

Final Thoughts: I can’t believe I’ve completely read all three books in this series. I really enjoyed them much more than I could ever explain. I want to see more books in this series. I’m a little sad that I don’t have any more books in this world to read if I’m being honest. I also love that this is written by a mother daughter team. That makes it even more wonderful in my opinion. These books can all be read as standalones, but I fully recommend reading them all. I know the authors also have other books out. I’ll be checking them out as soon as I can.

ARC Review: Swift the Storm, Fierce the Flame by Meg Long

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Title: Swift the Storm, Fierce the Flame

Author: Meg Long

Release Date: January 17th, 2023

Page Count: 413

Start Date: January 2nd, 2023

Finish Date: January 16th, 2023

Review:

Story: I really enjoyed this book very much. I found the main character really relatable. The story was fast-paced and action-packed. It was full of intrigue and allure. It was easy to get sucked into this world and crave for more. There were parts I didn’t like as much as the rest, but that’s with all books. It’s also a personal thing for me. I also wish that I could have gotten some more for the end of the book. It makes me think that there will be more books to come in the future! I really hope so.

Characters: I really related to Remy so much. She’s got so much guilt over things she felt she did wrong. Especially feeling like she betrayed the only friend she really had. There were traits about her that I didn’t really care for, but I completely understood why. I liked her companion and the companion’s wolf as well. I wish there were more of her and that I remembered her name.

Critiques: None. Especially not if the book has a sequel eventually.

Final Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. The author has another book that I thought I had read. I just found out I didn’t. I will definitely be reading it. It might actually be a book before this. I’m not really sure. I kind of hope so. There are things that were referenced in this book that I really would like to see played out.

ARC Review: The Tudors In Love by Sarah Gristwood

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Title: The Tudors in Love

Author: Sarah Gristwood

Release Date: December 13th, 2022

Page Count: 571

Start Date: December 11th, 2022

Finish Date: December 12th, 2022

Review:

I’ve read many books about King Henry VIII. Mostly fiction if I’m being honest. It’s always had me curious to learn more about that time frame. Most of the books that I’ve read have mostly focused on him and sometimes his wives. This covers the family in general. This was very informative. I actually wound up buying a copy so I can read it a second time and make highlights and notes. I’d also like to explore the book references made in the book for further reading on the family. I really recommend this for all the history buffs who love to read about the time period and about the Tudors.\

ARC Review: The Third Instinct by Kent Lester

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Title: The Third Instinct

Author: Kent Lester

Release Date: December 6th, 2022

Page Count: 361

Start Date: November 25th, 2022

Finish Date: December 7th, 2022

Review:

Story: This book was both hilarious and intense. A very unique combo to have in a story and I loved every minute of it. I found out before starting this book that it was the second book in the series. I was nervous to read it without reading the first book first. I decided to give it a chance anyway. I really didn’t have any problems following along. It doesn’t mean that it can be read out of order. I may regret my decision when I read the first book. We will see.

Characters: I really liked Dan. He seemed to be in over his head half of the time. Yet he still managed to pull everything off. My favorite character in the whole book was Rudy. Even if he wasn’t in the book as much as I would have liked. I really empathized with Rachel. However, she made some decisions that I didn’t really agree with. She actually reminded me of 13 from House.

Critiques: None

Final Thoughts: This book was so fun! Just when it seemed like things were calming down, it all blows up again. I am looking forward to other books by this author. I also really look forward to reading the first book as well. I’m hoping there are many other books in this series!

Nonfiction Review: Empire of Ice and Stone by Buddy Levy

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Rating: 4 out of 5.

Title: Empire of Ice and Stone

Author: Buddy Levy

Release Date: December 6th, 2022

Page Count: 426

Start Date: November 24th, 2022

Finish Date: December 5th, 2022

Review:

I was actually surprised to find that this book was nonfiction. I was expecting a fantasy novel of some kind. Or something similar at the least. I really enjoyed the book anyway. I feel like I learned a lot about an expedition that I had never heard about until now. There was only one part of the book that I didn’t really care for. I won’t get into the details, but it was a very gory thing that happens in a pack of dogs. I really wish I could unread it and get it out of my brain. Because of this and other things that happen through the book, I do caution being aware of triggers before getting into it. There are references of violent incidents that happen through the entire expedition. This includes animal violence.

ARC Review: Never Ever Getting Back Together

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Title: Never Ever Getting Back Together

Author: Sophie Gonzales

Release Date: November 29th, 2022

Page Count: 374

Start Date: November 14th, 2022

Finish Date: December 2nd, 2022

Review:

Story: I was very hesitant to start this book. I was worried it might be full of too much cringe. I was completely wrong. I am so glad for that. I started to read another book by this author. I had to set it down. Not because it was a bad book. I was just really burned out on reading at the time. Because of this book, I have now gotten her entire collection in audiobook. I really want to see this as a movie. I want to see many of these things actually happen. Including a part of the ending. This book was full of drama and comedy.

Characters: One of our main characters is Maya. She’s cheated on with the other main character, Skye. When it comes to light, he lies to everybody and tells them that she just couldn’t accept being broken up with. He makes it seem like Maya is unstable and irrational. I really felt for her. Most of us have been there at one point. I wanted to dislike Skye, but it seems like he was just as dishonest with her as he was with everybody else. 

Critiques: I wouldn’t call this a critique as much as a personal preference. I would have loved to see certain things played out a little more. Something happens towards the end that I really would have liked to see how that fully played out. It’s kind of why I’d love to see this in a movie!

Final Thoughts: Maya is so quirky. Skye is too. There are times that they really grated on my nerves, but they really are so cute together! I loved this story. I loved that while they were on this show for their ex, they fell for each other. I’ll probably reread this again quite a few times. I wish there were a sequel to it! I need to see how things go from there!

ARC Review: The Bezos Blueprint by Carmine Gallo

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Rating: 4 out of 5.

Title: The Bezos Blueprint

Author: Carmine Gallo

Release Date: November 15th, 2022

Page Count: 261

Start Date: November 5th, 2022

Finish Date: November 13th, 2022

Review:

I came into this book thinking it would be this big to do about how amazing Bezos is. I was fully expecting it to talk about his accomplishments and what have you. It wasn’t though. It talks about great business strategies and gives great examples. I really felt like I learned a lot I actually bought a copy to highlight and take notes the next time I read it. I got my mother a copy too. It makes me feel like I could plan things and achieve great things.

ARC Review: Everything is Perfect by Kate Nason

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

Title: Everything is Perfect

Author: Kate Nason

Release Date: October 25th, 2022

Page Count: 262

Start Date: October 21st, 2022

Finish Date: October 24th, 2022

Review:

I am still blown away by this book. I’m most likely going to read it again one day. I’m also going to read anything else about this that I can. There are so many things that I didn’t know. I mean, to be fair, I was basically a kid when most of this went down. This book covers a scandalous affair. It also covers some of the heavier side effects of affairs. There are references to gaslighting and mental abuse as well. I went into the book blindly and I’m really not sure what I was getting into. Once I figured it out though, I was blown away. I definitely recommend this book.