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The Woman Who Breathed Two Worlds (The Malayan Series)The Woman Who Breathed Two Worlds by Selina Siak Chin Yoke

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed reading this book. At first, I got mad at the ancient order of things where females were worthless and could only hope to marry well. But keep reading. The main character grows on you. By the end, I was crying for her. I’d say more but–spoilers!

I hope I can read the rest of the series.

The book is about seeing the world through another woman’s eyes as she grows through her life. I love reading about other cultures. Though we have many differences, the female experience is what we have in common. Some of that we humans need to work on, but some of it is unique to being a woman.

This version was courtesy of NetGalley. Thank you for letting me read this!

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RoomRoom by Emma Donoghue

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow! I think this has been the best book I’ve read in a long time! And though I’m sure the writing was spectacular, I believe that Michal Friedman (Narrator), Ellen Archer (Narrator), Robert Petkoff (Narrator), and Suzanne Toren (Narrator) made this story come to life. It was nice to have an actor for each character. No male straining his voice to sound like a woman nor a woman attempting to beat out a bass voice. I do see that Michal Friedman, a woman, played the sweet child, Jack. But she sounded so natural that I think it was a good fit. Just an aside, and I hope it is in error I say this, but I read on the internets in this quick research that Michal Friedman has passed while giving birth to twins. Please let me know if you find out otherwise. I just wanted to finish my review tonight and not get caught up in yet another ‘shiny chicken’ (ADD distraction) moment.

Before you become afraid of sinking into a story about kidnapping and sexual abuse, realize that this book is from the viewpoint of the 5-year-old child who is quite happy in this room with his mother. So he doesn’t see the bad that is happening to his mother. He gives us light to what most children would love to have, their mother’s full-time attention and love. But don’t think this is a child’s book either. This boy is very grown up and super intelligent. Through this boy’s eyes, the author moves the story quickly. In fact, though I thought this was going to be a boring read so as to quickly go to sleep at night, I was still reading at 3 in the morning. And it took me a few days to finish. Lots of story here!

I can’t wait to watch the movie, but I have a feeling this version will be my favorite. Please give it a try, especially if you can get the audio to go with it.

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Life as We Knew It (Last Survivors, #1)Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Every now and then a person needs a good disaster movie or book. I’ve yet to figure out why. I think it is watching how predictable those in charge cause even more problems and how the human spirit can rise to the occasion in spite of everything. By the way, this one doesn’t have zombies. Imagine that!

I bought this Kindle book and its Audible companion quite a few years ago and just forgot about it. I don’t know what brought it to mind now, but I am glad I found it again.

Not only is the story engaging from the very beginning, Emily Bauer’s narration keeps it all alive. I love that this particular disaster stays rather calm in the crises as the mother tries to get her family prepared and she fiercely protects them.

The story starts with a family that is probably as familiar as our own, divorce included. It shows how love is still there even where the living together failed. And the children of this break up are not less well off, just different.

As the world becomes spread out because of the lack of working communication devices, the daughter keeps her diary going. It is through her communications with herself that we learn the story of life after the meteor hit the moon and causes tidal waves, earthquakes, volcanos and more. The global mess becomes personal as this teen tries to adjust from boys and kisses and proms to washing the laundry by hand and staving off hunger.

I highly recommend this book. There was a lot to learn here for all of us.

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Out of the PastOut of the Past by Glenda Poulter

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Do you like ghost stories? Well, here’s one with a little different take on the theme. Of course, it involves the south and the old homes found there, and the antiques. Made me wish I was actually there.

I don’t have a fear of ghosts. I feel I have seen, and even felt a couple in my days. No biggie. They are just folks with left-over things to do. So the angst and sorrow the main character shows is far too repetitive. I suppose that was to build some suspense. But I just wanted to see where the story went and get off of a poor woman in distress of apparitions and dreams.

The story kept me interested and I wanted to see how it all would work out. The thing about ghosts stories is that they are stories within stories. In this case, the antique dealers, who happen to be gay, and of the present, seek out the possessed things and places of the past. Once the stories start emerging I really grew to love all the characters and the place itself.

So if you want to go seek out the past and see what the south has to offer, check this book out.

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Cast in Balefire (Mage Craft, #4)Cast in Balefire by S.M. Reine

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am so sorry that it took me so long first to read the book and then to review it. Life. That’s all I can account for.

Marion is still an amnesiac. I have to admit that this has gotten boring to me. Now that the world has changed so it makes it even harder to understand who is who and what position are they at now. Ms. Reine’s universe has gotten quite complicated and there really needs to be a glossary in the back or front of the book to look up the characters and where they are now.

The strange affliction has Marion married while in love with someone/something else. I just find myself confused and somewhat bored. I’m giving this 3.5 stars rounding up to 4 as I do enjoy seeing the old gang of wolves, etc. But this new world is just not as fun for me. Thanks for letting me read this book. I look forward to a satisfying end to this part of the story (…fire books).

Still, I think everyone could love SM Reine’s stories starting with the Six Moon Summer. This author is so prolific that one could read forever and not catch up. A clinker or two is just fine as it moves the reader to the next book in the series(s). (How does one pluralize more than one series?) Still, Enjoy!

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Victoria: From the creator of the ITV television seriesVictoria: From the creator of the ITV television series by Daisy Goodwin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this edition from NetGalley to read and review. It is an Uncorrected Digital Galley copy. Yet, these eyes didn’t see any mistakes.

This was very interesting. I thought at first that I wouldn’t like it. I neither like history books nor Romance novels. There is both ‘herstory’ and romance in this book. But not a lot. This is more a queen’s coming of age story. In that, I thought it well done and an interesting read.

I loved watching this young person, in her teens, deal with the angst we all have gone through with our parents and breaking out into our own lives. Except, most of us don’t have to assume the responsibilities of the throne and a whole nation while going through these growing pains.

In the acknowledgments at the end of the book, the author mentions she wrote this while making the television (I think it was) show. I will be looking it up to see it. I think it could be done well.

Though not the best book I’ve read, I think you will find this an interesting read.

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The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers, #1)The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Because of this review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show… by my friend, Cheryl, I couldn’t wait to read this book! And it was everything she said it was and more!

I picked up the Kindle copy from Amazon and the Audible version to go with it. It made a perfect go to sleep book at night. I was able to have my girl dreams of space travel and meeting new creatures. Oops! If there’s one thing I learned from this book is that we don’t consider the aliens creatures. They are just beings that are different than us. Often in many ways, they are superior to us that we should expect that. But as the author points out just because beings that look like, maybe, um, a giraffe from earth, doesn’t mean it has the intelligence of a giraffe from earth. It may actually have the abilities to move back and forth in time or travel in a different dimension. This was a good lesson for me as I like to write science fiction about other beings on other planets.

The narrator, Rachel Dulude, brought this book to life in ways I don’t think could have been possible to just read or even with the text-to-speech. She was able to separate the characters and beautiful ways, so you knew exactly who is talking without even reading it.

I do want to read this book again. Maybe when I’m more awake, to see how it is she actually built these characters and her plot and her worlds. It was very well written! And I can hardly wait to be able to afford and read her next book in the series!

If you like science fiction that isn’t all men and war. If you like science fiction that uses imagination with science possibilities, this book is for you! Well done, Becky Chambers!

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Loom Knitting A Tiny DollLoom Knitting A Tiny Doll by Denise M Canela

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

These cute little guys and the comfort dolls also by Denise M Canela are the reason I haven’t gotten very little of anything else done in my life. (Sorry this is a bit of a repeat from the review for the comfort dolls)

This is November! That means NaNoWriMo or National Novel Writing Month. By now I should be almost finished with my novel for this year. But I’m only a third of the way into it.

These dolls are so much fun! And I keep thinking about the recipients, be they tiny little kids or adults who just need comfort, and I hope these little guys will do the trick. In case you’re curious as to my little guys: http://www.ravelry.com/projects/Darra… these are just a few I’ll be adding more as I finish up. I seem to have several projects going at the same time: a hat and two or three dolls. I try to make a little kid hat with each of the dolls I don’t know if they’re going to end up that way but it seems to me a nice thing to give the kid who might get the doll a little hat or maybe big sibling gets the doll or hat, or maybe they go to both to a newborn baby or something. By having the dolls and the hats in different stages, my hands don’t get tired doing the same thing over and over. And I’m not fond of sewing. But so happy with the results when I’m finished!

About the book, I read this and the comfort doll book and I couldn’t seem to get it right just by following the book. Luckily, Denise has videos attached in YouTube that you can watch. I watch them over and over and finally took the book, made notes from the book so that I’d have one piece of paper to look at and wouldn’t have to turn on something electronic just to recall the steps and how many stitches. And now I think I’m at the point where I don’t need to look at anything to remember how to make them. I don’t think I can blame the book. I blame me. I just have a hard time with written instructions and I do so much better when somebody shows me how to do it. So may I suggest that you get the books, read through, watch the YouTubes, and enjoy making the dolls!

Thank you, Denise M Canela, for all your books and instructions to making fun things for charity.

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Loom Knitting Comfort DollsLoom Knitting Comfort Dolls by Denise M Canela

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

These cute little guys and the tiny dolls also by Denise M Canela are the reason I haven’t gotten very little of anything else done in my life.

This is November! That means NaNoWriMo or National Novel Writing Month. By now I should be almost finished with my novel for this year. But I’m only a third of the way into it.

These dolls are so much fun! And I keep thinking about the recipients, be they tiny little kids or adults who just need comfort, and I hope these little guys will do the trick. In case you’re curious as to my little guys: http://www.ravelry.com/projects/Darra… these are just a few I’ll be adding more as I finish up. I seem to have several projects going at the same time: a hat and two or three dolls. I try to make a little kid hat with each of the dolls I don’t know if they’re going to end up that way but it seems to me a nice thing to give the kid who might get the doll a little hat or maybe big sibling gets the doll or hat, or maybe they go to both to a newborn baby or something. By having the dolls and the hats in different stages, my hands don’t get tired doing the same thing over and over. And I’m not fond of sewing. But so happy with the results when I’m finished!

About the book, I read this and the tiny doll book and I couldn’t seem to get it right just by following the book. Luckily, Denise has videos attached in YouTube that you can watch. I watch them over and over and finally took the book, made notes from the book so that I’d have one piece of paper to look at and wouldn’t have to turn on something electronic just to recall the steps and how many stitches. And now I think I’m at the point where I don’t need to look at anything to remember how to make them. I don’t think I can blame the book. I blame me. I just have a hard time with written instructions and I do so much better when somebody shows me how to do it. So may I suggest that you get the books, read through, watch the YouTubes, and enjoy making the dolls!

Thank you, Denise M Canela, for all your books and instructions to making fun things for charity.

View all my reviews


The Girl BeforeThe Girl Before by J.P. Delaney

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thank you, NetGalley for letting me read this in exchange for a review.

This book takes the concept of perfection into the realm of scary and bloody. Take that as my word of warning. Do you read a lot of books about clutter and minimalism? Well, the home in this story is dedicated to that kind of lifestyle. But in the end, it does get messy. No, I will say no more. Spoilers!

I shouldn’t have pushed myself to read the last part of the book before trying to go to sleep. I don’t like mysteries, or suspense or thrillers. Still, the concepts presented in the book blurb had me curious.

The main characters are the renters of this special house broken into chapters that are titled: Then: Emma and Now: Jane. Then wasn’t that long ago as they had cell phones. That gives a clue to the reader. We are given the opportunity to live through each point of view. The characters are well-developed and I found myself SEEING everything that was happening. The author was great at describing everything. I nearly found myself huffing and puffing as the characters climbed the stairs or clean the home to perfection as per agreement.

I am giving this four stars. Not because I liked it so much, but because I don’t think I will ever forget it. I think that means the author did her job well. If you like thrillers, this one is for you!

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