Hanna Jameson's "The Last"

Jon thought he had all the time in the world to respond to his wife’s text message: I miss you so much. I feel bad about how we left it. Love you. But as he’s waiting in the lobby of the L’Hotel Sixieme in Switzerland after an academic conference, still mulling over how to respond to his wife, he receives a string of horrifying push notifications. Washington, DC has been hit with a nuclear bomb, then New York, then London, and finally Berlin. That’s all he knows before news outlets and social media goes black—and before the clouds on the horizon turn orange.

Now, two months later, there are twenty survivors holed up at the hotel, a place already tainted by its strange history of suicides and murders. Those who can’t bear to stay commit suicide or wander off into the woods. Jon and the others try to maintain some semblance of civilization. But when the water pressure disappears, and Jon and a crew of survivors investigate the hotel’s water tanks, they are shocked to discover the body of a young girl.

As supplies dwindle and tensions rise, Jon becomes obsessed with investigating the death of the little girl as a way to cling to his own humanity. Yet the real question remains: can he afford to lose his mind in this hotel, or should he take his chances in the outside world? ~ taken from Goodreads

I fell in love with the cover of this book. After clicking, I read the blurb of what it was about and was intrigued. This is a post apocalyptic setting I had never even imagined. A huge, isolated hotel with guests. A murdered girl. Every guest has their own secret. Every guest wants to survive. No one knows what is even going on in the world outside the hotel property...

This was a really fun read. I was immediately sucked into the story.  I enjoyed reading about the day to day life after a nuclear explosion. It's told from the perspective of John, a historian, who decides to document everything that happens in case the world survives and their story can be one day told. 

Once the body of a young girl is found in one of the water tanks, John seems to become obsessed with learning about every single person in the hotel, as clearly someone there is a murderer. The cast of characters are diverse and interesting. The fact that the setting is a massive hotel in a very isolated area brought an eerie element to the story. 

The book did drag a bit in the middle. Day after day of diary entries seemed to get repetitive and boring. I needed a bit more action to keep me reading so I found myself skimming through pages to get to some excitement. 

It does pick up near the end, and some new plot twists and characters make their way into the guests lives. The ending was very unexpected, yet fulfilling. 

I give this a solid 4 stars. 

The Last by Hannah Jameson is being released April 9, 2019 here in the United States so pre-order it now! It was a very unique but realistic apocalyptic thriller than I highly enjoyed! 

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria Books for allowing me an eARC to read and give my honest opinion! 

Happy Reading!  

"The Rule of One" by Ashley and Leslie Saunders

In their world, telling the truth has become the most dangerous crime of all.

In the near-future United States, a one-child policy is ruthlessly enforced. Everyone follows the Rule of One. But Ava Goodwin, daughter of the head of the Texas Family Planning Division, has a secret—one her mother died to keep and her father has helped to hide for her entire life.

She has an identical twin sister, Mira.

For eighteen years Ava and Mira have lived as one, trading places day after day, maintaining an interchangeable existence down to the most telling detail. But when their charade is exposed, their worst nightmare begins. Now they must leave behind the father they love and fight for their lives.

Branded as traitors, hunted as fugitives, and pushed to discover just how far they’ll go in order to stay alive, Ava and Mira rush headlong into a terrifying unknown. ~taken from Amazon

It was October 2018. I had finished all my ARCs and was browsing Amazon to find my next read. It had been awhile since I read any type of YA-futuristic-dystopian novel and my mind seemed to be craving that type of genre. Somehow I stumbled onto this book and I am so glad I did!

First of all, the premise of future America having a one child rule sucked me right in. It was a story line I hadn't come across in other YA books I had read. It is unique and scary. Something I had never thought would be in America's future. 

The book begins by learning how these twin sisters review their day together. The fact that they trade places with each other daily was fascinating to me. From practicing their mannerisms, to having to recite every single detail about the day so that the other sister is not left out of any important interactions with others, left me in awe. 

The excitement picks up fairly quickly and we find the twins on the run trying to get to the safety of crossing Canadian border. Ironically, Canada has erected a giant wall that spans the entire border. The use of facial recognition makes the journey dangerous and really got my heart pounding. Drones are also used to let authorities see every move from above.  Along the way the twins meet new people that help them reach their destination. It was so interesting to see American civilians and the lives they live in this futuristic setting. 

The authors did a wonderful job with the fluidity of the story, as each chapter is from an alternating sister's perspective and I assume each author wrote the chapters for each twin. 

The characters met along the way and the different landscapes visited during their travels were very well written. I had no problem imagining each scene as I read further and further into the story. This was a book I wanted to hurry up and get the the end, yet didn't want it to end. 

I was blown away by the ending, which is truly the beginning of a whole new book. This is the first in a series and I am SO EXCITED for the next book! This was a solid 5 star read for me! 

The Rule of One is available so I suggest you start reading it NOW because the next in the series, The Rule of Many is due to be released in the U.S. in May 2019. Pre-order it now! 

Happy Reading! 

Josh Malerman's "Inspection"

Inspection

By Josh Malerman

J is a student at a school deep in a forest far away from the rest of the world.

J is one of only twenty-six students, all of whom think of the school’s enigmatic founder as their father. J’s peers are the only family he has ever had. The students are being trained to be prodigies of art, science, and athletics, and their life at the school is all they know—and all they are allowed to know.

But J suspects that there is something out there, beyond the pines, that the founder does not want him to see, and he’s beginning to ask questions. What is the real purpose of this place? Why can the students never leave? And what secrets is their father hiding from them?

Meanwhile, on the other side of the forest, in a school very much like J’s, a girl named K is asking the same questions. J has never seen a girl, and K has never seen a boy. As K and J work to investigate the secrets of their two strange schools, they come to discover something even more mysterious: each other. ~taken from Amazon

I absolutely loved the premise of this book. It was interesting, to say the least. This will be a very brief review, as there is not a lot I can say about this without spoiling it.

I will start by saying I haven't watched or read Bird Box, another book by the author. I have heard of it, but horror is not my genre in any way shape or form. I was weary starting off, not sure what to expect. But the story sucked me in immediately and  I couldn't read fast enough!

I loved the way the children were named by simple alphabet letters, showing how the adults/scientists truly stayed detached from their experimental subjects. This was a truly one of a kind type of story. 

The ending was terrific! Bravo! 

Inspection is due to be released here in the United States on March 19, 2019 so order it now for delivery in 4 days! 

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine for allowing me an e-ARC to read and give my honest review. 

This was a 4 star read for me! 

Happy Reading! 

"The Last Year of the War" by Susan Meissner

Susan Meissner's 

"The Last Year of the War" 

Elise Sontag is a typical Iowa fourteen-year-old in 1943--aware of the war but distanced from its reach. Then her father, a legal U.S. resident for nearly two decades, is suddenly arrested on suspicion of being a Nazi sympathizer. The family is sent to an internment camp in Texas, where, behind the armed guards and barbed wire, Elise feels stripped of everything beloved and familiar, including her own identity.

The only thing that makes the camp bearable is meeting fellow internee Mariko Inoue, a Japanese-American teen from Los Angeles, whose friendship empowers Elise to believe the life she knew before the war will again be hers. Together in the desert wilderness, Elise and Mariko hold tight the dream of being young American women with a future beyond the fences. ~ taken from Goodreads

Okay, so this is one of my favorite historical fiction books to date! I loved this book! I was raving about it to my fellow book lovers long before I even know how it would end. Then after finishing, I loved it even more and reiterated to them that they HAVE to read it the day it is released! 

This story is told from the perspective of Elise in alternating timelines. We start out by meeting Elise near the end years of her life and Alzheimer's is slowly taking her memories from her. Knowing that her past will soon be erased from her mind she sets out to find a childhood friend she hasn't seen since she was a teenager.

As the story unfolds we are taken back to Elise's childhood before the United States entered WWII. We learn about her family and friends and what lead to her and her family being in a WWII US Internment camp in Texas. 

I expected the bulk of this book to be about the friendship between a German- American girl and a Japanese-American girl during war time. This story was about so much more than that. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the girls are then ripped apart and their friendship during that short time is what shapes the rest of Elise's life. It is an amazing story, and I found myself thinking about this book long after I closed the last page. 

I have never read a historical fiction book told from the perspective of an American teenager (both girls were born in the US) living life in an internment camp. It was a part of the war I was aware of, but until now had never put myself inside to "experience" such a journey. I really appreciated the experience that is rarely talked about or even taught in public schools. 

There are so many more parts of this book I am dying to discuss with anyone who will listen, but I hate giving away spoilers, so I will simply say READ IT! You will not be disappointed! A 5 star read! 

The Last Year of the War is due to be released on March 19, 2019 here in the US so preorder it now! 

Huge thanks to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for allowing me an egalley to read and give my honest review. 

Happy Reading! 

Emily Carpenter's "Until The Day I Die"

If there’s a healthy way to grieve, Erin Gaines hasn’t found it. After her husband’s sudden death, the runaway success of the tech company they built with their best friends has become overwhelming. Her nerves are frayed, she’s disengaged, and her frustrated daughter, Shorie, is pulling away from her. Maybe Erin’s friends and family are right. Maybe a few weeks at a spa resort in the Caribbean islands is just what she needs to hit the reset button…

If there’s a healthy way to grieve, Erin Gaines hasn’t found it. After her husband’s sudden death, the runaw

Shorie is not only worried about her mother’s mental state but also for the future of her parents’ company. Especially when she begins to suspect that not all of Erin’s colleagues can be trusted. It seems someone is spinning an intricate web of deception—the foundation for a conspiracy that is putting everything, and everyone she loves, at risk. And she may be the only one who can stop it.

Now, thousands of miles away in a remote, and oftentimes menacing, tropical jungle, Erin is beginning to have similar fears. Things at the resort aren’t exactly how the brochure described, and unless she’s losing her mind, Erin’s pretty sure she wasn’t sent there to recover—she was sent to disappear. ~taken from Goodreads

I just love Emily Carpenter books! They are always a fun, imaginative, and exciting read! This wasn't one of my favorites, but I did enjoy it! 

This was a very slow moving book. The beginning got me engaged, but then my interest was lost as the plot dramatically slowed down. I wouldn't say that I lost interest, I was still interest in the plot, I just found myself skipping paragraphs and skimming to get to the next part. 

The characters... they were a bit un-relatable. I didn't connect to a single character and towards the last 1/4 of the book I really didn't care what happened to them.  I know we are dealing with a grieving mother and daughter, but their behavior was just so unbelievable I actually laughed out loud at things they said or did. The supporting characters were no different. I can't imagine having life long friends act that way towards me after my husband/father died tragically. 

All that being said, once the story picks up again it is quite a wild ride! I liked the change of scenery to the tropical jungle setting and this is were there story gets even more imaginative and completely unrealistic. I can absolutely appreciate a fantasy novel that is not rooted in reality, however I feel that's not how the author was trying to sell this book. 

The ending came quick and tied up in a too perfect bow. I felt like I worked and worked for a so-so ending. 

Although my review sounds negative, it was a quick and overall enjoyable read. I give it a solid 3 stars and look forward to reading more from the author. 

"Until The Day I Die"  is due to be released in the U.S. on March 12, 2019. Add it to your TBR list now! 

Thanks to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for allowing me an egalley to read and give my honest opinion. 

Happy Reading! 

"The Night Olivia Fell" by Christina McDonald

A search for the truth. A lifetime of lies.

In the small hours of the morning, Abi Knight is startled awake by the phone call no mother ever wants to get: her teenage daughter Olivia has fallen off a bridge. Not only is Olivia brain dead, she’s pregnant and must remain on life support to keep her baby alive. And then Abi sees the angry bruises circling Olivia’s wrists.

When the police unexpectedly rule Olivia’s fall an accident, Abi decides to find out what really happened that night. Heartbroken and grieving, she unravels the threads of her daughter’s life. Was Olivia’s fall an accident? Or something far more sinister?

Christina McDonald weaves a suspenseful and heartwrenching tale of hidden relationships, devastating lies, and the power of a mother’s love. With flashbacks of Olivia’s own resolve to uncover family secrets, this taut and emotional novel asks: how well do you know your children? And how well do they know you? ~taken from Amazon

I added this to my TBR list mainly because I was first drawn to the cover. It's gorgeous! I also loved the description- it seemed like a thriller/mystery mixed with parental love and hidden secrets, and I cannot resist that kind of emotional and mysterious read! 

This book is told in alternating perspectives between Olivia and her mother, Abi. It is also told in alternating timelines, obviously, because Olivia is currently in a coma. As the story of the past unfolds we learn about Olivia's world and what happened in her life leading up to the fall. How her old friends and new friends all become suspects in her "accident" and how the secrets her mother kept from her may be the reason she is now laying in a hospital room brain dead and pregnant. 

As Abi investigates her daughter's life she realizes, despite being a helicopter and overbearing parent, she really didn't know her daughter at all. She begins to realize her obsession with keeping her daughter safe and her refusal to tell Olivia about her own past, may be the cause of Olivia's sneaking around, getting pregnant, and ultimately her future inevitable death. 

This was a great read. Every character was well developed and it was easy to follow the well written plot by author Christina McDonald. By the last page, I found myself satisfied with how it ended- plausible, believable, and not over the top. 

This was my first read from the author, but I look forward to reading more from her! The Night Olivia Fell will be available on February 5, 2019 in the U.S. so pre-order now! A solid 4 star read! 

Thanks to Netgalley, Gallery, Threshold, Pocket books and author Christina McDonald for allowing me an egalley to read and give my honest review. 

Happy Reading! 

"She Lies In Wait" by Gytha Lodge

On a scorching July night in 1983, a group of teenagers goes camping in the forest. Bright and brilliant, they are destined for great things, and the youngest of the group—Aurora Jackson—is delighted to be allowed to tag along. The evening starts like any other—they drink, they dance, they fight, they kiss. Some of them slip off into the woods in pairs, others are left jealous and heartbroken. But by morning, Aurora has disappeared. Her friends claim that she was safe the last time they saw her, right before she went to sleep. An exhaustive investigation is launched, but no trace of the teenager is ever found.

Thirty years later, Aurora’s body is unearthed in a hideaway that only the six friends knew about, and Jonah Sheens is put in charge of solving the long-cold case. Back in 1983, as a young cop in their small town, he had known the teenagers—including Aurora—personally, even before taking part in the search. Now he’s determined to finally get to the truth of what happened that night. Sheens’s investigation brings the members of the camping party back to the forest, where they will be confronted once again with the events that left one of them dead, and all of them profoundly changed forever. ~ Taken from Amazon

This was quite a fun read. I needed a book that was interesting, but that I could stop and start here and there and not get lost or confused. It was perfect.

The mix of characters were eclectic and delightful. It was easy to get to know the characters, yet I felt like I got a good perspective about who they were and what they offered to the story. 

This novel switches back and forth between present day and the past, slowly unraveling what exactly happened in the woods all those years ago. I kept expecting to correctly guess what exactly happened to Aurora. I thought I had figured out how she died and who did. I was wrong and even up until the end I had no idea how the story would unfold. 

This is the first in a series and I look forward to what author, Gytha Lodge has to offer in future novels. 

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for allowing me an eARC to read and give my honest review! 

She Lies In Wait is set to be released on January , 2019 so pre-order now! A 4 star read for me!