Sandra C. Lopez's Blog, page 313

Review: TAKING THE FALL by Laney Monday

Brenna Battle and her sister are moving to a small town to start their own dojo school for kids. As an Olympian judo athlete, she loves the sport, but can no longer stand the training, traveling, and the competing, so she figures this might be a good change. She knows judo! How cool is that?
On their first night, her sister is suddenly the prime suspect in a reporter’s murder. Death by a hair brush—a plastic hair brush? Oh, that’s rich!
Story captures the reader with its witty banter and sisterly bonding. Best thing about these girls is that they know how to kick butt. It was disappointing, however, that they didn’t even give a kick against the bad guys. What a rip!
Also, the story duplicated the exact same chapter, word-for-word, in the book. Chapter 1 & 7 were exactly the same. Why would they do that?
Regardless, this was still an engaging mystery. I still had to know who dunnit.

My rating: 4 stars

Review: THE CASE OF THE QUESTIONABLE QUADRUPLET by Jaqueline Diamond

Graphic Image designed by Sandra Lopez


A father's legacy. A disgruntled patient. And an unsolved murder.
Eric Darcy, an OB/GYN, never expected the outburst from one of his oldest patients. "My daughters weren't triplets...they were quadruplets." Oooh, interesting.
Although Dr. Darcy tried to pass this off as a mind trick or possible need for new glasses, he couldn't help but wonder if somethinghad happened. Eric is then urged to search through his father's old records amidst his home's recent break-in.
Unlike a regular mystery, readers must delve into the medical scientifics to learn the history and depths of the patient's case. I thought the case of this missing quadruplet was a fascinating premise. Story was well-written and contains a certain degree of complexity. In fact, perhaps it was a little too complex. The number of characters in the story made it harder to keep tabs on it. It just seemed that this mystery was too convoluted and somewhat lagging. Mystery readers might enjoy the puzzling complexity and the scientific approach, but, personally, I would've liked this to have been more simplified.
My rating: 2.5 stars

Review: THE VIRGIN ROMANCE NOVELIST CHRONICLES by Meghan Quinn

Rosie wants to pursue a career as a romance novelist, often referring a “Briar’s patch” to a lady’s peaceful pleasure garden. Oh brother.


Needless to say, she has never experienced the pleasures of the flesh and has always wanted to see a boner, wondering what would happen if she were to touch it.  So the plotting was set: a virgin writing her first romance book.


Her doting friends think she needs to get f*cked or she’ll never be able to write this stuff. The mission was set: get Rosie laid.


In her mission to lose her virginity, Rosie keeps a sex journal to record her thoughts and feelings, which would be useful in writing her book. She becomes an eager student in the art and study of sex. How sweet of her friend, Henry, offering to show her his penis.


I enjoyed seeing Rosin fumbling in these hilarious situations, like kneeing a guy in the groin (accidentally, of course) and throwing up on a man’s genitalia. She’ll face demonic cats and floundering first dates.


It was sweet how Henry becomes jealous and overprotective of Rosie—he loves her after all. But Henry wouldn’t want to ruin their friendship, right? Still, the moments between these two were often sweet. Why couldn’t they just admit that they liked each other?


Sometimes the friends shared a little too much in their sexual knowledge and exploits. It was too explicit for my taste. And, although the klutzy disaster dates were enjoyable, they were getting a little tiresome, too. Okay, I get it, Rosie was a flop on dates. How many did we have to go through already? So this was where it started to taper off. Geez, how long was this? Evidently, this book has a few parts and very LONG chapters.


I’d say this book started off pretty good with a captivating and witty premise, but it just waned on me.


My rating: 3.5 stars

Review: TIMEFLIES: PLAY IT AGAIN, SAM by M.C. Goldrick

The second installment in the TIMEFLIES series is from the perspective of the best friend, Sam. Since time-traveling as flies was triggered by a question, this story begins with seeking the answer to: How did our maternal ancestors come to live in a country called Canada?
So the kids―as flies― travel more than 150 years.
There were definitely more tid-bits related to bugs, such as bees and ants (i.e. loyalty to the queen and what they do,) which wasn't particularly interesting. I mean, seriously ,this was a lesson on bugs―any and all bugs. I guess this particular story felt more detached because it was mainly a historical overview of settlers on a new country. The previous TIMEFLIES book, at least, had an emotional inquiry to how the parents named their daughter. Couldn't we have come up with another question? Like, why is my brother afraid of water? Or maybe ask something about the future? What will I be when I grow up? You know, something along those lines that would connect readers to the characters more.
Again, the scientific trivia might spark an interest to young readers, however, I wasn't too keen on the fiction aspect of it. There was a lag to it and I wasn't too invested in the overall adventure.
My rating: 2 stars

Review: KAITLIN’S MOORING by Carey V. Azzara

The night of a college party, Kaitlin didn’t expect unprotected sex or a surprise pregnancy. What would she do? How was she going to tell her parents?  But a torrential rainstorm ended up being her parents’ demise, destroying Kaitlin, a boat they built and often sailed on.
When Kaitlin hears the terrible news, she rushes back home to her grandparents to mourn the loss and take on a new challenge. Readers would definitely admire Kaitlin’s quiet strength and be endeared by the family’s close bond.
Story was well-written and full of emotion, certainly following the literary prose, but it also remained long-winded, which was waning on my interest.
My rating: 2.5 stars

Review: WHEN IT WILL RAYNE, IT WILL POUR by S.C. McCormack

"Slater Services:" services ranging from bodyguard, bounty hunter, and private investigator. Mmm, I wondered how much this paid.
Rayne Slater had a new mission. What it was I couldn't clearly state.
The dialogue was full of gruff, witty banter, however, the pacing sort of lagged. Reading it, I almost felt lost, trying to figure out what was going on. Perhaps I was trying too hard to follow along with the plot (I had to go back and re-read certain parts.) There certainly a lot going on here, but I guess I just couldn't follow. I think the story line might have been too complicated for my liking.
My rating: 2 stars

Review: THE SIDE JOB by Don Lubov

Maggie was dating Ben. The night of their high school prom ends with an unplanned pregnancy.
The premise seemed easy and the writing was plain n' simple; however, the way the story was organized made it hard to keep tabs on it and figure out the characters. It was almost like the story wasn't fleshed out enough. To me, it felt like the parts were cut-and-paste―nothing really fine-tuned or complete. It was also surprisingly lagging, too. This was supposed to be a short novel, right? I just didn't feel a connection to the story or the characters.
My rating: 2 stars

Review: TIMEFLIES: THE MAIDEN VOYAGE by M.C. Goldrick

Grizelda Day was a 9-year old contemplating on why her parents chose such a bizarre name for her. Then something happened that sent her spiraling out of control. It all started with the flies-in-the-cube novelty. Could licking it really help you travel through time?
Well, one lick, and POOF! She and her friends were houseflies. The story of their adventure was just beginning―their adventure as TIMEFLIES.
When thinking about the past, you sometimes can't help but wonder what it would've been like if you had been a fly on the wall. Well, Grizelda and her friends now had that opportunity. You empathize with Grizelda's desire to be closer to her parents. It just seems that they spend more time on their phones than anything else. This time-travelling adventure to find the origin of her name actually allowed her to understand her parents more. In this case, she learns that her mother, as a child, had to take care of herself and her parents, often having to prepare the meals and clean the house. Grizelda ends up taking a new understanding, promising to make things better upon her return.
I liked this book! I enjoyed the little, black-and-white illustrations filtered throughout the book. Readers will enjoy seeing the trio overcoming obstacles like learning to use their fly wings and avoiding the horrible swatter. I also liked how the story teaches you the inner-workings of a fly, like how they regurgitate food before eating it.
A  great, fun-filled, time-traveling adventure. I can't wait to see where the TIMEFLIES go from here.
My rating: 4 stars

Review: AUDREY'S MAGIC NINE (Book 1 & 2) by Michelle Wright

AUDREY’S MAGIC NINE: THE PENCIL AND THE FUZZY by Michelle Wright (Book 1)


Audrey is a lonely foster kid. Living with adults that barely feed her and abuse her, Audrey has very little in her life. The only thing that gives her any solace is her sketchbook.

With wide-eye wonder and a vivid imagination, she creates stupendous worlds to escape the horrors of her reality. Eventually, law enforcements put a stop to it. But then somewhere else a childless woman named Tabitha longs for motherhood, then she meets Audrey. Tabitha had a good heart, but she was much too overzealous, which was intimidating for little Audrey. Why couldn’t they just let her be? I’ve always been a firm believer to let kids be who they are. And Audrey was just an artist—not a ballerina or violinist or a singer.

I liked how relatable Audrey was. Her situation was all too common, embedding fear and loss in the reader; however, it was the awesome illustrations—their brightness and color—that brings hope.

Things certainly take a surprising turn when a puppet comes to life asking Audrey to help save a world and defeat an evil queen.  The race is on to find the nine, a group of magical friends. Audrey must use all her drawing skills for this one.

I just love graphic novels for the story in art, and this book is especially spectacular for its likable characters, fun elements, and powerful message. Audiences will be endeared by Audrey’s quiet strength and her lively resiliency to not be beaten down.

An inspirational and adventurous story!


My rating: 4 stars




AUDREY’S MAGIC NINE: THE PENCIL AND THE DREAM by Michelle Wright (Book 2)


The story continued with the search for the nine magical puppets. It’s a Toy Story of Adventure.

Audrey is still as spunky as ever! She’s such a charismatic and clever kid that kicks butt. Girl Power!

She definitely learns the odds and ends of life, and that sometimes life isn’t fair. Still, nothing can bring her down, especially when she foils injustices with the help of her magical friends. Audrey lets audiences know that being different is not bad.

A terrific story of being who you are.  Such lovely illustrations! I can’t wait to see what happens to Audrey next.


My rating: 4 stars

Review: DIARY OF A WICKEDLY COOL WITCH 1: BULLIES AND BADDIES by Kate Cullen

I thought this was going to be like Sabrina, the teenage witch, but this wasn’t like that at all.

Lily is a 286-year old teen witch. Odd, isn’t it?
She’s a 7thgrader that blathers on and on about the kids at her school. It’s her diary, basically, which coincides with the title of this series. Normally, diaries would be interesting, but, in this one, however, we go back and forth between past and present. We go back to entries from the 1800’s for god sakes!
And, yes, she has powers and used them to play tricks, which was a little lame. There were also too many kids that I didn’t really care about.
All in all, story was cute but silly. It was definitely not what I anticipated and I surely will not continue the series.

My rating: 2 stars