Reviews, Etc.

REVIEW: Hilo: The Great Space Iguana by Judd Winick

REVIEW: Hilo: The Great Space Iguana by Judd Winick

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

DJ, Gina, and Hilo are together again for an adventure involving space dinosaurs, space pirates, and a very important space iguana. And several alien armies who want that important space iguana!

It’s a good thing DJ has been getting in shape and Gina has been doing magic for “years.” (It’s a time travel thing.) And Hilo of course has all sorts of super gifts.

That space iguana seems to know things about DJ and about Hilo that none of them know. Sadly, they aren’t going to get to dig into those mysteries until they resolve the interstellar war.

Review

This is a WACKY story! All of my favorite characters from the series are back, and I loved the space adventure. But this also feels like a transitional story. Not much “progress” is made, and nothing much is revealed. Gina is told she has to pass a test so she can go home for good, but that’s not even resolved by the end. And the next book in the series is going to be a holiday special. While I am ecstatic about getting a fun holiday story, that means we have to wait even longer for the story arc here to move forward.

Series fans will enjoy spending time with their favorite charactes. But readers hoping to see the current arc advance could be a bit disappointed. On the plus side, this story might be random enough to work for newcomers who can enjoy the wacky story and then go back to book 1 and learn more about these characters.

Rating: ♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥½ = Good +

REVIEW: Fan Service by Rosie Danan

REVIEW: Fan Service by Rosie Danan

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

As a teen, Alex Lawson found solace in the show The Arcane Files about a werewolf detective. She even got to meet the show’s star, Devin Ashwood, at a con. Only to have it turn into a “never meet your heroes” cautionary tale. Seventeen years later, Devin is a pop culture punchline as security video catches him faking a public “werewolf transformation” like on his old show.

Only, it’s not fake.

Devin seems to have been affected – in real life – by the same sort of full moon that turned his TV character into a werewolf. And the only person he thinks could help him is the mod who put together the show’s extensive wiki – Alex.

Review

Let me start by saying I really liked this! The premise is creative and clever. And the author does a couple of brilliant things in the storytelling that took this somewhere different in the best sort of ways.

That said, I struggled to like the characters. I got there by the end for sure, but I normally would have given up on a book like this because I just didn’t click with the two leads early on. I hung with this longer than usual because the premise was captivating, and I’m glad I did because it came together so well in the end.

If you are a fan of paranormal romance but craving a little variation on the world building, I would recommend giving this a try. I really liked this take on the werewolf genre. If you like enemies to lovers, know going in that this is light on the enemies. Enough time has passed for Alex to come across as more disinterested than angry. And the disance that comes from “hating” a TV star adds to the “cooling” on any strong feelings she might have had as a teen. And if you like your romance books spicy, this one delivers romantic heat even if the emotional “heat” is subdued.

I really got a kick out of this and would recommend it on the creative storytelling alone. But if these other features appeal to you as well, you should give this a try. (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥ = Great. Might re-read.

 

BOOK NEWS: May 13, 2025

BOOK NEWS: May 13, 2025

Posted on by Jaymie

Here are some of the books releasing this week.

Books for Kids

The Rainbow Sheep – In a herd that prizes conformity above everything, a new sheep in the pen shakes things up.

Books for Older Kids/ Teens/Young Adults

Creature Clinic – A doctor in training at the Creature Clinic tries to hide the fact that she helped a human in need – something that is strictly forbidden.
The Shadow of the World-Famous Nine – Book 2 in the World-Famous Nine series about a 19-story skyscraper and a couple of kids who have to fight the forces of evil trying to destroy it.
Home Has No Borders – A collection of South-Asian stories.
The Romance Rivalry – A young book reviewer tries to use romance tropes to help her find love during her freshman year of college, but the trope that might take her down is fake dating a rival reviewer. Yes, please!
The Singular Life of Aria Patel – A practical young scientist finds herself tumbling from one parallel universe to another as she fights to find her way home.
When Love Gives You Lemons (LGBTQ+) – A year after their break up, a young man prepares to see his first love at a wedding where he hopes they can rekindle their relationship.

Books for Adults

Anji Kills a King (Trade Paperback) – First in the Rising Tide series. A woman is hounded by bounty hunters after she murders the king.
Crossing Paths (Trade Paperback) – Book 2 in the Beneath the Wild Sky series. The tech-minded sister in a family of bounty hunters looks for help building up her hand-to-hand combat skills because she’s tired of their targets always thinking she’s the weak link.
Don’t Swipe Right (Trade Paperback) A lonely woman looking for love on a dating app discovers that a series of recent deaths are tied to her – they’re all guys she has dated. And the police think SHE is the serial killer. Wow! (Looks like this might have previously been released as Swiped.)
Dream On, Ramona Riley (Trade Paperback, LGBTQ+) – First in a new Clover Lake series. A woman with dreams of being a Hollywood costume designer encounters an old flame when a big budget movie films in her small town – but the woman who was her first kiss doesn’t seem to remember her.
Maine Characters (Trade Paperback) – Half-sisters show up at their father’s cabin after his death and try to work through their surprise and other complicated feelings while living there, together, for the summer.
No One Was Supposed to Die at this Wedding (Hardcover) – Book 2 in the Vacation Mysteries series about a mystery author who keeps encountering murder in real life.
Riding the High (Trade Paperback) – Book 3 in the Silver Pines Ranch series. A drunken marriage becomes their biggest secret as both members of the “couple” try to wait out some major events before they can quietly divorce.

REVIEW: The Bigfoot Field Guide to Campers by Jami Gigot

REVIEW: The Bigfoot Field Guide to Campers by Jami Gigot

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Kids Can Press in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary and Review

The Bigfoot Field Guide to Campers (and Other Mysterious Creatures) is two stories in one. The story told by the text is the Field Guide – guidelines for Bigfoots to understand the dangers of encountering campers and how to deal with them. The story told by the illustrations (crayon-coloring style great for the Field Guide feel of this) is the first-hand experience of one Bigfoot with a camper. The layout of this is darling, and the two-story setup is so clever. I enjoyed this friendship story.

This could be a fun mentor text to use while having students make their own field guide. Teachers could pair this with the Alex’s Field Guide series, which I love.

This could also be a mentor text to use with students to see what it is like to tell one story with text and another with pictures. Teachers could pair this with books like Silly Doggy! or Naughty Kitty! (♥♥♥♥).

Rating: ♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥½ = Good +

REVIEW: Becoming the Pastor's Wife by Beth Allison Barr

REVIEW: Becoming the Pastor’s Wife by Beth Allison Barr

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Brazos Press in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary and Review

The full title of this book is Becoming the Pastor’s Wife: How Marriage Replaced Ordination as a Woman’s Path to Ministry. And I found it both fascinating and infurating. It was written by the author of The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth (a book I own but haven’t read yet.).  Beth Allison Barr is an historian and a professor of history at Baylor University.

The book explores the very real phenomenon of expectations at many churches that the pastor’s wife, simply by virtue of her marriage, is the “free labor” bonus to the hiring of her pastor husband. A default volunteer, or pianist, or Sunday School teacher – despite her gifts or call or vocation as an individual. Barr discusses this phenomenon – something she has experienced as a pastor’s wife and something spoken about frequently in certain Christian circles – while also examining 2000+ years of history of women’s roles to and in the Church.

This was a “preaching to the choir” sort of read for me as a woman in a denomination/”movement” that educates and ordains women for service to the Church. She didn’t need to sell me on the validity of women’s ordination, but she did show me mountains of evidence that the QUESTION of women’s ordination and leadership has not existed throughout the life of the Church.

While I was reading this I was also listening to the mini podcast series called All the Buried Women, hosted by the author, Beth Allison Barr, and Savannah Locke. The podcast focuses specifically on the Southern Baptist Convention (a significant player in the discussions in the book), and what the two women found while doing research at the SBC’s archive.  Again, a fascinating and infuriating look at history and harm to women done by the Church, specifically the SBC. The podcast is an excellent companion piece to this book (although the podcast does come with trigger warnings).

This book is thoroughly researched and historically anchored and shows centuries of evidence of women in leadership roles in the church based on their own gifts and calling, not only on marriage to a called or ordained man. I am not sure it would convince someone who is already entrenched in the idea that women should not be ordained, but it will provide evidence for those who are looking to back up the practice of ordaining women. This also could be a great resource for instructors who want to explore the issue with those studying for ministry.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥ = Great! Might re-read.

 

BOOK NEWS: May 6, 2025

BOOK NEWS: May 6, 2025

Posted on by Jaymie

Happy May! Here are some of the books releasing this week.

Books for Kids

Bear Feels Sad – Bear feels lonely and sad when his friends are busy doing other things without him.
The Bigfoot Field Guide to Campers – A guide for Bigfoots to know what to do to avoid troublesome campers.
Bye Bye, Butterfly – A new picture book from the fantastic Ashley Spires – first in the Agent Binky: Pets of the Universe series – starring Binky the Space Cat from the delightful graphic novel series (Binky the Space Cat – ♥♥♥♥♥).
The Most Magnificent Team – Another Ashley Spires title out this week! Book 4 in the Most Magnificent series. Two girls try to build something together, discovering that they have very different approaches to their project.
We Are the Beatles – The latest in the Ordinary People Change the World series.

Books for Older Kids/ Teens/Young Adults

Entirely Emmie (Graphic Novel) – Book 9 in the Emmie & Friends series. Emmie’s class goes on a year-end camping trip where she’s paired with the last person she would have chosen.
A Field Guide to Broken Promises – Evie’s trying to redeem herself in her father’s eyes after ruining his big moment in cryptozoology, but that’s hard to do as the new kid at school who is failing math and dodging a bully. The cover to this is GORGEOUS, and I am intrigued to find out more about Evie’s story!
J vs. K – Kwame Alexander and Jerry Craft (New Kid – ♥♥♥♥) team up to bring readers a story about two rival storytellers and a big contest.
The Unlikely Intrusion of Adams Klein (Older Middle Grade) – Book 1 in the TimeFall Trilogy. Adams has been stashed in 2015 to protect him in the past from a killer in the future. And his one guiding rule is to not change history. But when he discovers something he can’t ignore, he and his friends will have to figure out how to protect the timeline.
Beyond They/Them: Twenty Influential Nonbinary and Gender-Diverse People You Should Know – A biography collection of nonbinary and gender-nonconforming folks.
Catching Cryptids – A STEM-based cryptozoology book.
Audre & Bash Are Just Friends – A high schooler stuck at home for the summer asks the new kid for help completing her “experience” bucket list so she can use the stories in the book she’s writing to help her get into Stanford.
The Rebel’s Guide to Pride  (LGBTQ+) – When the mayor cancels their Pride celebration, a newly out teen and his friends plan underground “Pride Speakeasies.”
The Thrashers – A school’s “elite” friend group gets some unwanted attention when a wannabe “Thrasher” is found dead.

Books for Adults

Big Bad Wool (Hardcover) – Book 2 in the Sheep Detective series. The sheep of Glenkill are on another case when a series of unnatural animal deaths escalates to a human death.
Drop Dead (Trade Paperback) – Rival journalists have three weeks at a sprawling estate to find out the recently-deceased owner’s big secret.
Dying to Read (Trade Paperback) – Book 5 in the Survivors’ Book Club mystery series. Rarity tries to help another book club member when her husband is accused of murder.
Friends with Benefits (Trade Paperback) – Best friends enter into a marriage of convenience when she needs insurance to purse a dream fellowship and he needs a second income to stay in his apartment.
Hounding a Killer (Trade Paperback) – Book 2 in the Bailey the Bloodhound mystery series. A children’s book author and her bloodhound get drawn into another mystery when a newcomer to their community first makes himself a nuisance and then disappears. This sounds like a great series!
Jilted (Trade Paperback) – A heartbroken, jilted bride who works at a bridal magazine thinks things can’t get more complicated but they do when she has an encounter with a man at a wedding who turns out to be her boss’s son.
Romantic Friction (Trade Paperback) – A bestselling romantasy author’s life and work is upended by an upstart author who confesses she writes her stories with AI and instead of being ostracized, she’s lauded for her “ingenuity.”
A Senior Citizen’s Guide to Life on the Run (Hardcover) – When her neighbor is found dead after an altercation – over pigeon poop of all things – Alice becomes a murder suspect.
Time Loops & Meet Cutes (Trade Paperback) – A workaholic is caught in a time loop where she meets a guy who could be the key to breaking the loop.
Turbulent Magic (ebook) – A former mage stuck as a dragon flight attendant uses his last magical gift – talking with dragons – and discovers the dragons are planning a rebellion against the airline. Quirky!

REVIEW: The Notorious Virtues by Alwyn Hamilton

REVIEW: The Notorious Virtues by Alwyn Hamilton

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Viking Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Honora Holtzfall is considered the “Holtzfall Heiress,” but that’s not really true. It was her mother who was the true Heiress. But now she’s dead, and it’s time to choose a new heiress – and Nora is just one of the contenders in the Veritaz. The imortal Huldrekall will determine which candidate is most worthy of the fortune – and magic – at stake.

Lotte is the surprise contender – the Holtzfall cousin no one knew existed. The one with the highly prized magical gift of mindreading. Raised as a “cursed” orphan by cruel caretakers. And perhaps hunted by her biological family to keep her from the Veritaz.

While this generation of Holtzfalls – five cousins in all – take their turn at the Veritaz, Nora can’t help digging into her mother’s death and a missing knight, her mother’s protector. But Nora’s quest for answers begins to unravel everything.

Review

This description barely scratches the surface of what is going on in this book. There’s  a fairy tale element to the world building – the huntsman ancester of the Holtzfalls who created the world they now live in, the monsters in the woods, villains who wear masks like woodland creatures and beasts. There’s a fascinating family – magical, rich, ruthless, full of secrets. And there’s a land on the brink of rebellion.

And I loved every bit of it.

This was incredible! I couldn’t get enough of it. For the entire last quarter I watched the percent read creep up, wondering if there was any way this story would wrap up by the end of the book. And while we got to a stopping point, this story is not finished by far! According to Goodreads this is the first in a trilogy.

The author did not disappoint with the twists and reveals and new questions all the way to the last page.  And I am not at all ready to be done with these characters and this world. I can’t wait to read more! This is my top book of 2025 so far. This will be the book I will shout about for months to come – the book I will pat fondly every time I see it in the bookstore. I bought my own copy immediately after finishing the ARC, and I will absolutely be reading it again soon. I can’t recommend this one highly enough. (Some language)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥+++

♥♥♥♥♥+++ = Best of the best

REVIEW: Story of My Life by Lucy Score

REVIEW: Story of My Life by Lucy Score

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Once upon a time, Hazel Hart was a best-selling romance author. But these days she’s not writing – and sometimes not even showering. It’s been a tough season. At a recent author event with 600 rabid readers, she had less than 20 come by her table. And she’s five days away from losing her home thanks to her recent divorce. The hits just keep coming.

When she comes across a news article from Story Lake, PA in her idea file, everything changes. A story starts flowing in her brain like they used to. And the thought of a fresh start in a small town like the ones she used to write sets her heart pounding. So on impulse she buys a house – the house from the article –  sight unseen, in an online auction.

What Hazel finds in Story Lake – the house, the townspeople, the gorgeous yet grumpy contractor – isn’t at all what she expected. But it could be just what she needs.

Review

Not only is Lucy Score the undisputed queen of rom-coms in my opinion, but she is also the queen of brother trios. I thought the Knockemout guys were amazing, but they have nothing on the Bishop brothers (the whole family, really). I am in love.

This was a home run from the begining. I loved everything – the main characters, the quirky town, the Bishop family, the bantering brothers, the raccoon. All of it. This is the perfect sort of book for me. I’d read things like this every day. My only complaint is discovering this perfection on book 1. I discovered Riley Thorn when there were three books in the series. And I found Knockemout when the whole trio was done. I could blitz through multiple treats in a row with those. With this, I’ll have to settle for re-reads for a year. But the wait will be worth it!

Lucy Score fans and rom-com fans should not miss this! (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥♥ – Outstanding!

BOOK NEWS: April 29, 2025

BOOK NEWS: April 29, 2025

Posted on by Jaymie

Here are some of the books releasing this week.

Books for Kids

Are You a Friend of Dorothy? (LGBTQ+) – A picture book telling young readers about “Dorothy” and the way folks in the LGBTQ+ community found eachother when they had to keep their sexual orientation or queer identity secret.
Shuri Takes Control – Part of the Marvel After-School Heroes chapter book line. Shuri’s friends have been hypnotized by The Ringmaster, and she has to find a way to save them.

Books for Older Kids/ Teens/Young Adults

The Lemonade War (Graphic Novel) – This beloved story about a sibling rivalry gets the graphic novel treatment. My students LOVED this whole series.
The Trouble with Heroes (Older Middle Grade) – Something new from Kate Messner. A grieving kid caught defacing a headstone is challenged to climb all 46 Adirondak High Peaks to get the charges dropped.
Love at Second Sight (LGBTQ+) – In a paranormal world, a teen who always thought he was “normal” has an alarming vision of the future – a girl is going to be murdered.
What Comes After – A recently-deceased teen finds herself in an experimental afterlife, Paradise Gate, where she’s supposed to work out her issues with her also-recently- deceased mother. But in the middle of working through her stuff, she also finds out Paradise Gate is not what it appears to be.

Books for Adults

Bearer of Bad News (Hardcover) – A woman thinks a new gig as a “Bearer of Bad News” is a chance for a fresh start after calling off her engagement, but finds herself wrapped up in a mystery.
Fatal Brouhaha (Trade Paperback) – Book 5 in the Ground Rules Mystery series.  When a rival business owner is found dead, Sage’s business partner becomes a suspect.
Murder Runs in the Family (Trade Paperback) – First in a new series from Tamara Berry. A young woman flees her life, running to the eccentric grandmother she’s never met, but when she finds her, the woman is murder suspect. I will pick this up based on the author alone!
Serial Killer Games (Trade Paperback) – A woman feels confident the new temp in her office is a serial killer – and she needs help dealing with a body.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: Toward the Night (Hardcover) – A new space adventure starring the cast of Strange New Worlds. This story sounds amazing!

REVIEW: Unicorn Time Machine by Dana Simpson

REVIEW: Unicorn Time Machine by Dana Simpson

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary and Review

Another fun collection of comics starring Phoebe and her unicorn, Marigold, including strips about a landscaping business, knock-knock jokes, toast, faeries, cats, mute buttons for the world (if only!), unicorn award ceremonies, unicorn tic-tac-toe, and … time travel.

Phoebe gets to meet her dad as a kid thanks to magical time travel, complete with a great Star Trek reference I thoroughly enjoyed. Between that and watching Marigold falling to the cozy charms of cats, I was a happy reader. Super funny. I think there’s lots here for readers to enjoy!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥ = Great! Might re-read.