Marité's Book Review: The Astonishing Color of After

Description:

Leigh Chen Sanders is absolutely certain about one thing: When her mother died by suicide, she turned into a bird.

Leigh, who is half Asian and half white, travels to Taiwan to meet her maternal grandparents for the first time. There, she is determined to find her mother, the bird. In her search, she winds up chasing after ghosts, uncovering family secrets, and forging a new relationship with her grandparents. And as she grieves, she must try to reconcile the fact that on the same day she kissed her best friend and longtime secret crush, Axel, her mother was taking her own life.

Alternating between real and magic, past and present, friendship and romance, hope and despair, The Astonishing Color of After is a stunning and heartbreaking novel about finding oneself through family history, art, grief, and love.

Marité's  Book Review:

The Astonishing Color of After paints a imaginatively beautiful story about life, death, and re-birth by entwining all the colors of emotions experienced through grief and the hope that Taiwanese lore offers in their interpretation of rebirth and the after life. Emily X.R. Pan's ability to capture the pain in suffering a loss of a parent was extremely relatable and the emotional turbulence and the chaos that follows as the world one once knew crumbles seemed to be written by someone who has actually experienced that kind of a loss. Something that I very much appreciated as I have never came across a book where a character appeared to know what I had gone through in the aftermath of my Dad's passing. Admittedly, I at first thought Leigh was a brat because she always seemed to be in a bad mood, but upon reflection and further reading I came to the realization that her anger and her frustration were well founded as depression — even if it is not your own — can cause major isolation.

The only thing that I did not quite care about, from someone who knows very little about colors, was how Leigh assigned random colors to express how she is feeling. But, by doing that I found it a little off putting as I could not feel completely immersed in the text as I was always trying to figure out what color she was mentioning and how that may have applied to her mood. Although I may not have been able to appreciate her artistic expression, I believe those who appreciate the arts will really love this book.

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon

Available on BarnesandNoble

About the Author:

Emily X.R. Pan currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, but was originally born in the Midwestern United States to immigrant parents from Taiwan. She received her MFA in fiction from NYU, where she was a Goldwater Fellow. She was the founding editor-in-chief of Bodega Magazine, a 2017 Artist-in-Residence at Djerassi, and is co-creator of FORESHADOW: A Serial YA Anthology. Visit Emily online at exrpan.com, and find her on Twitter and Instagram: @exrpan.

Taís's Book Review: The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

Description:

A New York Times bestseller

Welcome to the cursed town of Sparrow…

Where, two centuries ago, three sisters were sentenced to death for witchery. Stones were tied to their ankles and they were drowned in the deep waters surrounding the town.


Now, for a brief time each summer, the sisters return, stealing the bodies of three weak-hearted girls so that they may seek their revenge, luring boys into the harbor and pulling them under.


Like many locals, seventeen-year-old Penny Talbot has accepted the fate of the town. But this year, on the eve of the sisters’ return, a boy named Bo Carter arrives; unaware of the danger he has just stumbled into.


Mistrust and lies spread quickly through the salty, rain-soaked streets. The townspeople turn against one another. Penny and Bo suspect each other of hiding secrets. And death comes swiftly to those who cannot resist the call of the sisters.


But only Penny sees what others cannot. And she will be forced to choose: save Bo, or save herself.




Taís's Review:

The Wicked Deep is a good read with an unique and interesting story line. There is a lot of depth that goes into the characters personalities, which will later cause you a fair amount of emotional turmoil as you start to discover that Penny is not who you think she is. The twists and turns will have you saying, as I did, "Whoa, I did not see that coming." The only issue I had with the book is that I was just not captivated by it. I am very easily distracted, so it is hard for me to read if I am not completely absorbed into a book's pages. When reading this, I found my mind drifting off and I constantly had to reread a lot. I went along with the ride hoping that it would get better, which it did a little, but not until the very last couple of chapters. Other than that, The Wicked Deep is vividly written and I would definitely suggest this book to those of you that have more patience than me.

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon

Available on Barnes&Noble



About the Author: 

Shea Ernshaw is the author of The Wicked Deep. She lives and writes in a small mountain town in Oregon. She works as a producer for a film production company and shares a home with her husband, a dog named Diesel, and two cats.

Mama Price's Review: The Memory Trees by Kali Wallace

Description:


For the first eight years of her life, an unusual apple orchard in Vermont is Sorrow Lovegood's whole world. The land has been passed down through generations of brave, resilient women, and while their offbeat habits may be ridiculed by other townspeople—especially their neighbors, the Abrams family—Sorrow and her family take pride in its odd history.

Then one winter night, an unthinkable tragedy changes everything. In the aftermath, Sorrow is sent to Miami to live with her father, away from the only home she’s ever known.

Now sixteen, Sorrow's memories of her life in Vermont are maddeningly hazy. She returns to the orchard for the summer, determined to learn more about her troubled childhood and the family she left eight years ago. But it soon becomes clear that some of her questions have difficult—even dangerous—answers. And there may be a price to pay for asking.

Mama Price's Review: 

I truly was enchanted by this book and I struggled to put it down when everyday life got in the way of reading. I was in love with the character of Sarrow and I emphathized with her struggle to try to connect with a mother who seems almost emotionless when it comes to the "taboo" subject of her daughter's tragic death, and with a father that was no more than a stranger to her in her first eight years of life who suddenly becomes interested in not only creating a bond with her, but protecting her from the trauma of memories that may be better left to rest.

The stories of the Lovegood's women are incredibly emotional and captivating and the best part is that readers not only get to read about Sarrow, her sister Patience, her mother, and her grandmother but also all the women that preceded them all the way back to the seventeen hundreds. Whose struggles were even more endearing and hard to believe. Specifically, the story of a mother who went to horrific lengths to end her children's sufferings.

This is a great read for not only teenagers but for middle-aged women such as myself as I believe anyone can relate to at least one women from the Lovegood lineage.

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

About Us:

Kali Wallace is the author of two novels for teens and many short stories. She studied geology for years but now devotes her time to writing. She lives in Southern California. You can find her at www.kaliwallace.com.

Taís's Book Review: Survive the Night by Danielle Vega

Description:

Just back from rehab, Casey regrets letting her friends Shana, Julie, and Aya talk her into coming to Survive the Night, an all-night, underground rave in a New York City subway tunnel. Surrounded by frightening drugs and menacing strangers, Casey doesn’t think Survive the Night could get any worse...

...until she comes across Julie’s mutilated body in a dank, black subway tunnel, red-eyed rats nibbling at her fingers. Casey thought she was just off with some guy—no one could hear her getting torn apart over the sound of pulsing music. And by the time they get back to the party, everyone is gone.  Desperate for help, Casey and her friends find themselves running through the putrid subway tunnels, searching for a way out. But every manhole is sealed shut, and every noise echoes eerily in the dark, reminding them they’re not alone.  They’re being hunted. Trapped underground with someone—or something—out to get them, Casey can’t help but listen to Aya’s terrified refrain: “We’re all gonna die down here.”



Taís's Review:

Survive the Night is definitely a thrilling read seeing as it kept me not only on the edge of my seat, but deeply enthralled. Wondering, waiting, anticipating who was next to be killed (or in this case mutilated) in their long night ahead. One device the author quite fiendishly used too well and too often — so that your never quite settled — was suspense. Rather than being tossed neck deep into the blood and guts of the story I was taken on a slow burning acid trip where I never knew what I was going to read next and left me wondering, did that really just happen?    

The only minor issue that I had with this story was that I found some of the descriptions to have been recycled and repetitive. Even so, when compared to the overall story this book still makes for a killer read.

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon

Available on Barnes&Noble

About the Author: 

Danielle Vega is the author of THE MERCILESS series, SURVIVE THE NIGHT, and BURNING (under pseudonym Danielle Rollins.) She lives in Brooklyn. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @vegarollins

Sheníe's Book Review: People Like Us by Dana Mele

Description:

Kay Donovan may have skeletons in her closet, but the past is past, and she's reinvented herself entirely. Now she's a star soccer player whose group of gorgeous friends run their private school with effortless popularity and acerbic wit. But when a girl's body is found in the lake, Kay's carefully constructed life begins to topple. The dead girl has left Kay a computer-coded scavenger hunt, which, as it unravels, begins to implicate suspect after suspect, until Kay herself is in the crosshairs of a murder investigation. But if Kay's finally backed into a corner, she'll do what it takes to survive. Because at Bates Academy, the truth is something you make...not something that happened.

Sheníe's Review:

PEOPLE LIKE US is a deliciously scandalous tale of denial, betrayal, and malicious teenagers. When I first started reading this book I thought it was going to be like the movie MEAN GIRLS where the bullies are all superficial clones due to privilege. When Kay and her friends found themselves in the middle of a murder investigation I thought, karma. It was not until further into the book that I was able to see that Kay was not all that she seemed to be on the surface, a royal beyotch, but a girl struggling with the reality of who she is and what she has done. I love how this book demonstrates the true meaning of the saying what goes around comes around through a very hilarious, twisted display of irony.

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon

Available on Barnes&Noble

About the Author:

Dana Mele is a Pushcart-nominated writer and a work at home mother. A graduate of Wellesley College, she is a former actor, lawyer, musician, and briefly, associtate producer. She prefers tea to coffee, snow to sand, and stars to sunshine, and she lives in the Catskills with her husband and toddler. This is her first novel.

Taís's Book Review: A Madness so Discreet by Mindy McGinnis

Description:

Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery

Grace Mae is already familiar with madness when family secrets and the bulge in her belly send her to an insane asylum—but it is in the darkness that she finds a new lease on life. When a visiting doctor interested in criminal psychology recognizes Grace's brilliant mind beneath her rage, he recruits her as his assistant. Continuing to operate under the cloak of madness at crime scenes allows her to gather clues from bystanders who believe her less than human. Now comfortable in an ethical asylum, Grace finds friends—and hope. But gruesome nights bring Grace and the doctor into the circle of a killer who will bring her shaky sanity and the demons in her past dangerously close to the surface. 

Taís's Review:

I absolutely love this book! It flows very well and it captured my attention from the very beginning. If there was a female version of Sherlock Holmes, Grace would be her. Once you pick this up, you will not be able to put it down, and you will find yourself trying to solve who the murderer is all day long. This story revolves around two serial rapists, but it is not graphic and is kept clean for the most part, so I say this book is for the 14 + group. It has a little bit of profanity, but again it is not vulgar. I seriously recommend this book. 

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon

Available on Barnes&Noble

About the Author: Mindy McGinnis is the author of The Female of the Species, Not a Drop to Drink and its companion, In a Handful of Dust, Given to the Sea; and the Edgar Award-winning novel A Madness so Discreet. A magna cum laude graduate of Otterbein University with a BA in English literature and religion, Mindy lives in Ohio. You can visit her online at www.mindymcginnis.com.

Past Event: April 7th — Indie Author Day

I just wanted to give a shout out to the Washington Book Fairies and The Oregon Book Fairies for taking the time out of there day to hide copies of our book 'The Merging of Shadows' in Portland and Seattle. And for letting us join them in hiding some of our own signed copies in Olympia, WA, our place of residency.


'The Merging of Shadows' hidden around Seattle, WA. (Photos taken by the Washington Book Fairies.)

Shadow Land Restaurant

Seattle's iconic Space Needle.

Outside Seattle's most iconic joke shop Archie Mcphee. 

Chihuley Garden and Glass.

Seattle's Iconic Fremont Troll.

'The Merging of Shadows' hidden around Olympia, WA. (Photos taken by Sheníe.)

Little Free Library.

Inside Ocatpas Cafe.

'The Merging of Shadows' hidden around Portland, OR. (Photos taken by the Oregon Book Fairies.)

Outside Starbucks in SW Portland. 

Bus Stop in SW Portland. 

Scattered around Portland. 

Mama Price's Book Review: REWIND by Carolyn O' Doherty

So, it seems today Price Girls will be adding a fourth member, Mama Price, who has kindly decided to join us (no double dog daring was involved) in taking the 2018 Reading challenge. So a big thank you to Mama Price and happy reading. ☕

Description:

In this fast-paced time-travel thriller starring a compelling female character, Alex’s power as a spinner—a teen who can rewind time to help solve crimes—is suddenly in question.

At sixteen, the dreaded time sickness that causes all spinners to die early strikes Alex. If she can’t be restabilized, she’ll live out the rest of her short life at the Center, where spinners are confined from birth, doing menial chores rather than completing missions with her partner, Agent Ross. When she’s offered an experimental treatment, Alex sees a future for herself for the first time. But the medication offers more than a promise—it also brings dire consequences. What if she lives longer but loses her mind? A strong heroine, Alex propels this high-stakes suspense novel to a thrilling conclusion that begs for a sequel. Readers will eagerly await book two in the planned trilogy.



Mama Price's Review: 

REWIND takes place in the urban city of Portland, Oregon. As most of those who live in the Pacific Northwest know, Portland has a reputation for being weird, but things get even weirder when we are introduced to sixteen-year-old spinner Alex. A girl who uses her ability to rewind the past to assist her partner Agent Ross in crime investigations. 

Now what I love most about this book is how, unlike most stories told in the first person that shows a limited view of the world around them and the characters within it, Alex is able to break away from those limitations and stretch the boundaries of time by rewinding past events. Thus, Alex is able to capture the intentions and perspectives of those surrounding her. Revealing the true colors of not only the criminals she is investigating, but those she calls friends. And who better to tell this tale then strong yet sweet Alex who, despite being held in captivity with others of her kind and being forced to hold up justice in a system that is morally corrupt, still looks to those who govern her for help when she most needs it. 

I also love how the world building was set in a urban landscape where, if I were to cross the water and visit Portland, I would find myself inadvertently looking for traces of the spinners.

I believe this book to be incredibly well written, very descriptive, and deeply satisfying for those who love a good supernatural crime mystery, but minus the dead and un-dead. 

Keep an eye out for the sequel!

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon


About the Author:

Carolyn O'Doherty lives and works in Portland, OR, where, most disappointingly, time moves only at a very predictable pace. When not writing, she uses her free time to develop affordable housing. Carolyn earned degrees in both psychology and urban planning so she figures the best possible use of an expertise in both people and places is to make up entirely new ones. Rewind is her debut novel. Visit her website at www.carolynodoherty.com

Sheníe's Book Review: And The Trees Crept In by Dawn Kurtagich

Description: 

A stunning, terrifying novel about a house the color of blood and the two sisters who are trapped there, by The Dead House author Dawn Kurtagich

When Silla and Nori arrive at their aunt's home, it's immediately clear that the "blood manor" is cursed. The creaking of the house and the stillness of the woods surrounding them would be enough of a sign, but there are secrets too--the questions that Silla can't ignore: Who is the beautiful boy that's appeared from the woods? Who is the man that her little sister sees, but no one else? And why does it seem that, ever since they arrived, the trees have been creeping closer?

Filled with just as many twists and turns as The Dead House, and with achingly beautiful, chilling language that delivers haunting scenes, AND THE TREES CREPT IN is the perfect follow-up novel for master horror writer Dawn Kurtagich.

Sheníe's Review:

AND THE TREES CREPT IN is a shocking tale told in a unique style of writing. When I first started reading the book I admit I was deeply confused and thought that the poetry and flashbacks of Silla's memory were completely random. It was not until halfway through the book that I began to realize it was a pattern containing hidden clues hinting about the end. At the very end of the book everything became crystal clear and I was amazed at how intricately placed and spaced out everything was to create a wonderful mystery. This is one book that I believe that anyone who reads this will definitely want to read it again.

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon

Available on Barnes&Noble

About the Author: 

Dawn Kurtagich is a writer of creepy, spooky and psychologically sinister YA fiction, where girls may descend into madness, boys may see monsters in men, and grown-ups may have something to hide. 

By the time she was eighteen, she had been to fifteen schools across two continents. The daughter of a British globe-trotter and single mother, she grew up all over the place, but her formative years were spent in Africa—on a mission, in the bush, in the city and in the desert.

She has been lucky enough to see an elephant stampede at close range, a giraffe tongue at very close range, and she once witnessed the stealing of her (and her friends’) underwear by very large, angry baboons. (This will most definitely end up in a book . . . ) While she has quite a few tales to tell about the jumping African baboon spider, she tends to save these for Halloween! 

When she was sixteen, she thought she'd be an astronomer and writer at the same time, and did a month-long internship at Cambridge's prestigious Cavendish Laboratories. 

She writes over at the YA Scream Queens, a young adult blog for all things horror and thriller, and she is a member of the YA League.

Her life reads like a YA novel.

Taís's Book Review: The Women in the Walls by Amy Lukavics

Description:

Lucy Acosta’s mother died when she was three. Growing up in a Victorian mansion in the middle of the woods with her cold, distant father, she explored the dark hallways of the estate with her cousin, Margaret. They’re inseparable—a family. 

When her aunt Penelope, the only mother she’s ever known, tragically disappears while walking in the woods surrounding their estate, Lucy finds herself devastated and alone. Margaret has been spending a lot of time in the attic. She claims she can hear her dead mother’s voice whispering from the walls. Emotionally shut out by her father, Lucy watches helplessly as her cousin’s sanity slowly unravels. But when she begins hearing voices herself, Lucy finds herself confronting an ancient and deadly legacy that has marked the women in her family for generations.

Taís's Review:

This book had some Stephen King vibes to it and was really well written. It was very descriptive, but not overdone, making it very easy to visualize as Lucy made her way along the book. There were some great twists that had me second guessing how it was going to end, and when it did it was an ending that I for one did not see coming. The only reason I took away one star was because of the ending, but that is just my opinion. Other than that, I still highly recommend this book. Although keep in mind, this is not for someone with a weak stomach as it can get pretty gory. So, with the profanity which includes the dropping of the F-bomb (used sparingly) and the excessive amount of gore, I would suggest this book be read by more of a mature audience in the age 14+ group.

Verdict: ☕ ☕ ☕ ☕

Available on Amazon

Available on Barnes&Noble

About the Author: 

Reasons #WeNeedDiverseBooks

     

Note: This Post Was Written A While Ago, Back Before We Apparently Knew The Meaning Of Revising, So Please Ignore The Grammatical Issues As It Was Written In A Moment Of Passion.

In our society, there is a growing number of mixed-race families (like ours) and yet I have not read one book that depicts this.  I believe it’s about time that the main characters start to reflect the percentage of those that are biracial.  We are beginning to see commercials and film start to depict this reality, so why not books?

Books influence the way people think.  We as writers have an obligation to make a difference in enabling people to think the way they might not have done otherwise, for the pen is mightier than the sword.  People should be able to read a book and have a main character that they can relate to.  Regardless to what race and color, men and women think universally the same, but most don’t realize it.  Having a character that is multicultural will help change that.

Nowadays I see almost all the main characters of books written as Caucasian.  I have not read or heard of a book that contained a Hispanic or African American heroine/hero that did not come from the barrio or that isn’t talking about racism.  There are a rare few books that I have read that the main character had some color to them.  For example, Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games (our favorite book character) was written to have olive skin.  But what did Hollywood do?  They made her white for the movie.  Not that I don’t love Jennifer Lawrence.  I think she’s an amazing actress and I now think of her as a perfect Katniss.  Nor do I have a problem with Caucasians (My father is white) but Katniss was someone I could identify with because of the color of her skin.

More often than not children are taught, whether by the media, their community or by their peers to be ashamed of who they are and their heritage.  They’re told to choose one ethnicity and adopt to those standards and leave the other behind.  Thus, stripping away their full identity which made them who they are.  Those who do not convert or conform to the standards of those around them face ridicule, isolation, and bullying.

 My sisters and I are biracial.  We have a mixture of Hispanic and Caucasian features which causes us to face prejudice.  We don’t speak Spanish so we aren’t considered Latina’s and for the Caucasians, we aren’t white enough.  So when we were younger we were excluded from kids parties, sleepovers and parents didn’t want us hanging out with their kids.  Things were worse when we, Marite and I, entered  Junior High where the Latina’s would talk bad about us, right in front of us in Spanish, not knowing that we could understand them.  Kids we thought were our friends, white and Hispanic, would tell us when we asked if we could exchange phone numbers that they didn’t have one and that their parents wouldn’t allow them to have friends calling the house.  A few weeks later they would give their phone number’s out to some other kids in front of us, of the same race, forgetting that they already told us they didn’t have a phone.  This happened a number of times.  The isolation became so bad we begged our parents to home school us.  They finally agreed and we, my twin sister and I, have been homeschooled since seventh grade and our little sister since second.

People are afraid of those they don’t understand and by consequence, those that are deemed as different suffer from their ignorance because they fail to realize that all are made equal, regardless of class, race, heritage, religion, sexuality, life choices, and the colors of people skin.  This is why we should have diversity in literature. To make sure that the next generation of children will be more accepting of others.  To achieve this we must stop talking about this issue but do something about it.  This isn’t solely the writer's job.  Agents, editors, and publishers choose books to publish mainly for what they think readers will want.  Therefore, if we want more diversity in books we the readers, who come across such literature, need to go out there and spread the word because the fate of a book rests with us.  Only then will we see a change.

Please share if you agree.

Love,

Price Girls