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Athena Protocol

Description: Jessie Archer is a member of the Athena Protocol, an elite organization of female spies who enact vigilante justice around the world. Athena operatives are never supposed to shoot to kill—so when Jessie can’t stop herself from pulling the trigger, she gets kicked out of the organization, right before a huge mission to take down a human trafficker in Belgrade.   Jessie needs to right her wrong and prove herself, so she starts her own investigation into the trafficking. But going rogue means she has no one to watch her back as she delves into the horrors she uncovers. Meanwhile, her former teammates have been ordered to bring her down. Jessie must face danger from all sides if she’s to complete her mission—and survive. Review: I have always been frustrated with the James Bond and Mission Impossible movie franchises especially with their reductive treatment of women who are either the femme fatale caricuture or an "agent" who is suppose to be capable an...

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Favorite Books of 2018



 Here are my favorite books of 2018. As a quick disclaimer, these books may not all be 2018 releases but I did read them in 2018. Currently, I am wrapping up my reading challenge and may go beyond my goal of 250 books. Without further ado, here are my favorite books of 2018 ranked according to the interest level. 

Favorite Adult Books


I read a quite a few adult titles that I enjoyed in 2018 and I am happy to report that I enjoyed quite a few titles.

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah: In eighteen poignant, humorous, and incisive essays, Noah takes the reader along a personal journey of life inside South Africa.

The City of Brass (The Daevabad Trilogy #1) by S.A. Chakraborty: The City of Brass is a complex, multilayered story that centers on the kingdom's deeply divisive religious, political, and racial tensions. The world building is excellent as clues are sprinkled evenly throughout the story will leaving mysteries that need to be solved. I loved the inclusion and infusion of Middle Eastern culture throughout the novel. I loved this debut novel and I can't wait to read the next installment next month.

The Girl in the Tower (The Winternight Trilogy #2) by Katherine Arden: A fantastic sequel that skillfully avoids the dreaded middle book syndrome. Arden expands her world with new characters and a new setting in Moscow. Some readers have complained that the pacing was slow in this book, but I did not find it slow at all. I was completely captivated with the story and its multiple moving parts. I am sad to see this series end.

Magic Triumphs by Ilona Andrews: The last book in the Kate Daniel series, one of my favorite urban fantasy series. 


Favorite Children Book


 I always try to fit in some children and middle grade reads into my yearly reading challenge. While I read quite a few children and middle grade books this year, I may have been extra picky this year as I only had one that I truly loved. 

Dreamers by Yuyi Morales: In this gorgeously illustrated memoir picture book, Morales recalls the time from her son's birth to their move to the United States from Mexico in the mid-1990s.

Favorite YA Books

Young Adult books dominate my reading pile because I work for teens as a high school librarian and I thoroughly enjoy reading and recommending them. I did not get to a lot of the big releases of 2018 and there were a few titles that didn't meet the hype. 
Autoboyography by Christina Lauren: A story of family, friendship, acceptance, and being true to yourself with a sweet romance.

Mary's Monster: Love, Madness, and How Mary Shelley created Frankenstein by Lita Judge: An exquistie novel in verse biography on Mary Shelley. 

Sadie by Courtney Summers: A powerful, timely, gut wrenching, thriller that will elicit strong emotions from you as you read it. Definitely check out the audiobook if you get a chance, it is fantastic.

Favorite Graphic Novels/Manga

I read several fantastic graphic novels in 2018. I still have to review a few of them.

Hey, Kiddo by Jarrett J. Krosoczka: An intimate and heart wrenching memoir of growing up with family addiction and drug abuse. 
Speak: The Graphic Novel by Laurie Halse Anderson and Emily Carroll: A fabulous adaptation of a groundbreaking YA novel. Carroll's nightmarish illustrations highlight the horrors of rape culture.

The Divided Earth (The Nameless City #3) by Faith Erin Hicks: A fantastic ending to a solid fantasy series inspired by 13th century China. 

Honorable Mentions

The following books are the ones that left a lasting impression on me that I would also highly recommend reading:

The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton
Dread Nation by Justina Ireland
Circe by Madeline Miller
Us Against You by Fredrick Backman
Anger is a Gift by Mark Oshiro
Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust 
A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi

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Look Both Ways

Description: This story was going to begin like all the best stories. With a school bus falling from the sky. But no one saw it happen. They were all too busy— Talking about boogers. Stealing pocket change. Skateboarding. Wiping out. Braving up. Executing complicated handshakes. Planning an escape. Making jokes. Lotioning up. Finding comfort. But mostly, too busy walking home. Jason Reynolds conjures ten tales (one per block) about what happens after the dismissal bell rings, and brilliantly weaves them into one wickedly funny, piercingly poignant look at the detours we face on the walk home, and in life. Review:   Writing short stories is hard, but writing ten different stories that feature ten blocks in one neighborhood that takes place all at the same time is unimaginable yet Jason Reynolds make it very easy. On these ten blocks, Jasmine and TJ wonder what they are made of-dust and water. Four friends hustle for change all day and maneuver their capital into buying an ur...

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Description:  In 1940, eighteen-year old Juliet Armstrong is reluctantly recruited into the world of espionage. Sent to an obscure department of MI5 tasked with monitoring the comings and goings of British Fascist sympathizers, she discovers the work to be by turns both tedious and terrifying. But after the war has ended, she presumes the events of those years have been relegated to the past forever. Ten years later, now a radio producer at the BBC, Juliet is unexpectedly confronted by figures from her past. A different war is being fought now, on a different battleground, but Juliet finds herself once more under threat. A bill of reckoning is due, and she finally begins to realize that there is no action without consequence. Review:  There are a plethora of fiction titles that are written about World War II and after a while all the books seem formulaic. I wanted to learn more of the inner workings of those who worked for spy agencies during the war so when I read the descrip...

Blog Tour: Review and Excerpt 'Biggest Flirts' by Jennifer Echols

  Hello everyone. Like always I am absolutely thrilled to be spot-lighting another book by one of my favorite authors, Jennifer Echols. Check out my review,  mini-excerpt and then enter the giveaway for copies of her books (!)   Title: Biggest Flirts  Author: Jennifer Echols Expected publication: May 20th 2014 by Simon Pulse Genre: YA contemporary Goodreads | Amazon | ________________________________________ Biggest Flirts is everything it promises to be. Light and quick and yes, a bit naughty. I was incredibly excited to start this Superlatives series by Jennifer because I have had such a great time reading her comedy novels before. This time it was not the exception. You read the title and you have to expect that this book is going to be fun. And it certainly is a wild ride. Our main characters are Tia and Will. They are voted the school's biggest flirts, and this title is perfect for Tia, who is fun and playful and the kind of girl that c...

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