Sarai Henderson's Blog, page 230

#BookReview | Monster Nanny by Tuutikki Tolonen

Title: Monster NannyBy: Tuutikki TolonenGenre: ParanormalPages: 304Release Date: November 14th, 2017Publisher: Houghton Mifflin HarcourtAudience: Middle Grade
Summary from Goodreads: HMH has bought world English rights to Tuutikki Tolonen's middle grade novel, Monster Nanny, the story of a contemporary family whose daily routines are turned upside-down when a hairy, swamp-smelling creature said to be specializing in childcare shows up at their doorstep. Publication is set for fall 2017
Add on Goodreads







Review: When mom wins a trip for a relaxing weekend away from the kids, a monster comes to stay, but it doesn't come without instructions. There is a book that tells the kids all about the care of the monster. Strange things begin to happen when more monsters show up, but not all is as it seems.
I was really intrigued by the whole monster nanny concept. At one point I started to think, "is this monster really a grandma transformed, and its trying to tell the kids?" But no, it was not as I thought. Things started to get strange when the bathrobe began to talk. I'm all for strange, but around the last quarter of the book, I felt like the whole story flip flopped and turned into something else. It didn't feel like it stuck with the whole paranormal feel of the first three quarters of the story and it turned into something more scifi. The ending was pleasant, but not the reveal I hoped it would be. 
All in all, it wasn't bad. If I hadn't lost interest toward the end I would have rated it higher. Three stars for Monster Nanny.  

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

#BookReview | Elizabeth and Zenobia by Jessica Miller

Title: Elizabeth and ZenobiaBy: Jessica MillerGenre: ParanormalPages: 232Release Date: August 29, 2016Publisher: Text PublishingAudience: Middle Grade
Summary from Goodreads: When Elizabeth and her unusual and fearless friend Zenobia arrive at Witheringe House, peculiar things begin to happen.
Especially in the forbidden East Wing.

The flowers and vines of the wallpaper sometimes seem to be alive.

A mirror has a surface like the water of a pond.

And an old book tells a different story after midnight.

Zenobia is thrilled by the strangeness, but Elizabeth is not so bold...

Until she makes a mysterious and terrifying discovery.

Add on Goodreads


Review: That Zenobia, she is a snarky little thing. The story follows Elizabeth and her make believe friend Zenobia (Or is she) as they uncover a secret that Elizabeth's father has been keeping for a long time. Strange things happen when they move to Witheringe House. Can Elizabeth overcome her fears and be the savior that is needed?

I loved how Zenobia was always making trouble and Elizabeth would get blamed for it. You begin to wonder how many people believe that Z is there? Its an interesting concept. The story would be one that I could read with my 9 year old. I think he would love the mystery and excellent happy ending. One thing I would have liked to see more of would be the creepy factor, but because this is more of a middle grade book it was perfect the way it was. I'm just partial to bone chilling stories.

This was a great read, good for middle grade through adults. Four stars for Elizabeth and Zenobia. 
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

#BookReview | All the Dirty Parts by Daniel Handler

Title: All the Dirty PartsBy: Daniel HandlerGenre: FictionPages: 144Release Date: August 29th, 2017Publisher: Bloomsbury USAAudience: Rated X
Summary from Goodreads: From bestselling, award-winning author Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket), an eagerly anticipated, gutsy, exciting novel that looks honestly at the erotic lives and impulses of an all-too-typical young man. 
Cole is a boy in high school. He runs cross country, he sketches in a sketchbook, he jokes around with friends. But none of this quite matters, next to the allure of sex. "Let me put it this way," he says, "Draw a number line, with zero is, you never think about sex, and ten is, it's all you think about, and while you are drawing the line, I am thinking about sex." Cole fantasizes about whomever he's looking at. He consumes and shares pornography. And he sleeps with a lot of girls--girls who seem to enjoy it at the time and seem to feel bad about it afterwards. Cole is getting a reputation around school--a not quite savory one--which leaves him adrift and hanging out with his best friend. Which is when something startling begins to happen between them--another kind of adventure, unexpected and hot, that might be what he's been after all this time. And then he meets Grisaille. 

A companion piece to Handler's Why We Broke Up, the bestselling Michael J. Printz Honor novel, All The Dirty Parts is an unblinking take on the varied and ribald world of teenage desire in a culture of unrelenting explicitness and shunted communication, where sex feels like love, but no one knows what love feels like. Structured in short chapters recalling Jenny Offill's Dept. of Speculation or Mary Robison's Why Did I Ever, the novel gives us a tender, brutal, funny, and always intoxicating portrait of an age in which the whole world is tilted through the lens of sex. "There are love stories galore," Cole tells us, "and we all know them. This isn't that. The story I'm typing is all the dirty parts."
Add on Goodreads


Review: I am not a dude, but I imagine this book reflects the inner monologue of most teen aged boys. The book follows Cole on his journey through the ups and downs of sex. It covers girls, exploring sexuality and the ever fateful crash into love. 
I kept thinking to myself, "Why am I reading this?" But the story was so enthralling that I read it in just a few hours. The narrative was a little graphic at times, but what do you expect from a book about sex? This book is not for the faint of heart, but if you enjoy a quick dirty read, try All the Dirty Parts.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

#BookReview | Gravel Heart by Abdulrazak Gurnah

Title: Gravel HeartBy: Abdulrazak GurnahGenre: Non-FictionPages: 272Release Date: August 1st, 2017Publisher: Bloomsbury USAAudience: PG-13
Summary from Goodreads: A powerful story of exile, migration, and betrayal, from the Booker Prize shortlisted author of Paradise.
Salim has always known that his father does not want him. Living with his parents and his adored Uncle Amir in a house full of secrets, he is a bookish child, a dreamer haunted by night terrors. It is the 1970s and Zanzibar is changing. Tourists arrive, the island's white sands obscuring the memory of recent conflict--the longed-for independence from British colonialism swiftly followed by bloody revolution. When his father moves out, retreating into disheveled introspection, Salim is confused and ashamed. His mother does not discuss the change, nor does she explain her absences with a strange man; silence is layered on silence.

When glamorous Uncle Amir, now a senior diplomat, offers Salim an escape, the lonely teenager travels to London for college. But nothing has prepared him for the biting cold and seething crowds of this hostile city. Struggling to find a foothold, and to understand the darkness at the heart of his family, he must face devastating truths about those closest to him--and about love, sex, and power. Evoking the immigrant experience with unsentimental precision and profound understanding, Gravel Heart is a powerfully affecting story of isolation, identity, belonging, and betrayal, and Abdulrazak Gurnah's most astonishing achievement.

Add on Goodreads
Review: This has to be the first book that I've read based in Zanzibar. It was awesome to read about different cultures and see how other people lived in the 70's. The book was well written, taking me through Salim's life as he struggles with his father's distance, to his mother's suspected infidelity and the move the London with his uncle. The emotions are raw and the story doesn't hold back. Gurnah has shared a story that will touch many lives and open the eyes of the world to the struggles of different cultures.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

TS901: Anomaly by Stacey Rourke & Tish Thawer #BlogTour

TS901
Stacey Rourke & Tish Thawer
Publication date: August 1st 2017
Genres: Dystopian, New Adult

Tainted water for the good of the people. Fluoride and vitamins to sustain the health of the human race. Added ingredients to extend and elevate the quality of life. All good things, right?
Wrong.
Thia Kelly has been changed by the TS901 chemical in the world’s water supply. Now, forced into hiding with the other inflicted outcasts, she struggles to survive as her powers emerge.
Evan Daniels hunted for others like himself, and finding Thia suddenly brought meaning back into his life. Love blossomed between the strange couple while they searched for a way to reverse the effects. Unfortunately, the Government had something else in mind.
Super-soldier creation on a mass scale was their end goal, and thanks to an unfortunate family tie, Evan became Patient #1.
Good-guy? Bad-guy? The world isn’t sure, but Thia is left with only one choice––save the ass of the world’s first Anomaly who just happens to be her boyfriend.

Add to Goodreads

Author Bio:
Tish:
2017 – #1 Bestseller in Historical Fiction (Witches of BlackBrook)
2015 – Best Cover – Penned Con (The Witches of BlackBrook)
2015 – Readers Choice Award – Blogger Choice Awards (The Witches of BlackBrook)
Bestselling and Award Winning Author, Tish Thawer, writes paranormal romances for all ages. From her first paranormal cartoon, Isis, to the Twilight phenomenon, myth, magic, and superpowers have always held a special place in her heart.
Tish is known for her detailed world-building and magic-laced stories. Her work has been compared to Nora Roberts, Sam Cheever, and Charlaine Harris. She has received a RONE Award nomination (Reward of Novel Excellence), as well as nominations for Best Cover, Reader’s Choice, and Author of the Year (Fantasy, Dystopian, Mystery).
Tish has worked as a computer consultant, photographer, and graphic designer, and is a columnist for Gliterary Girl media and has bylines in RT Magazine and Literary Lunes Magazine. She resides in Colorado with her husband and three wonderful children and is represented by Gandolfo, Helin, and Fountain Literary Management.
You can find Tish on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/AuthorTishThawer
—
Stacey:
RONE Award Winner for Best YA Paranormal Work of 2012 for Embrace, a Gryphon Series Novel
Young Adult and Teen Reader voted Author of the Year 2012
Turning Pages Magazine Winner for Best YA book of 2013 & Best Teen Book of 2013
Readers’ Favorite Silver Medal Winner for Crane 2015
Stacey Rourke is the author of the award winning YA Gryphon Series, the chillingly suspenseful Legends Saga, and the romantic comedy Reel Romance Series. She lives in Michigan with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant dogs. She loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction, and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to the imaginary people that live in her head.
Visit her at www.staceyrourke.com
Facebook at www.facebook.com/staceyrourkeauthor
or on Twitter or instagram at Rourkewrites.

Fate of the Stars by Arwen Paris #BlogTour @arwenparis

Fate of the Stars
Arwen Paris
Publication date: September 1st 2017
Genres: Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult

When the fate of the world rests upon you…
Allison Delaney wants to spend her senior year healing from the loss of her father, to leave the shadows of his death and her junior year break-down behind. A Labor Day beach party seems like a good place to start…but there’s more danger lurking than anyone could imagine. Death is coming to Earth if the pods of infectious creatures aren’t stopped. But only one human can help…
To live or die is no longer a choice.
Eenoki is a protector of life but must have a sentient host to fight the invasion. A teenage girl would not be the best choice, but out of desperation Eenoki invades Allison’s mind and body, granting her unnatural abilities and strengths – and helping her escape certain death when the first wave of pods land.
As destruction rains down on Earth’s population, Allison realizes to save everyone, she must make the ultimate choice: Reject her human side and bond with Eenoki to become the Earth’s Priestess – or be killed along with the rest of humanity.

Add to Goodreads / Pre-order—EXCERPT:Why would they come out here?I stagger back, shaking as I remember my narrow escape from town, and the aliens’ hissing reaction to sound. I hobble to the pilothouse. “Pete!” I shout, twisting the handle. It refuses to turn. “Shut off the engines.” I beat on the door.
“What the hell this yellin’ about?” he shouts, throwing the door open at me. The other passengers scream. Pete turns toward the shore. “Oh my God.” He runs inside. Revving the motor, he swings us back out into the bay. A loud screech jabs my eardrums as metal grinds on metal, and the engines come to an abrupt stop.
“No. No!” Pete shouts, turning the key. There’s no reaction at all.
Over the wind and waves, an odd clicking sound makes my flesh crawl. We all stand motionless trying to identify it. The clicks grow louder, overlapping until they become shrill. Something strikes the hull with a heavy thud, and everyone jumps. Then another pound on the boat, and another. I can’t decide whether to search for the source of the noise or hide below. But I have to know, so I follow the sound to the rear of the ship. Bobbing on the waves is a human, his face streaked with a black oily residue that’s oozing from his nose and mouth. It resembles the oily residue I saw on the back of Bob’s neck. His eyes are opaque and dead. Nausea rises in my gut.
They didn’t die. I’m not sure what they are now, but they’re no longer human.
I’ve put everyone here in danger with my selfish request to go to shore, attracting their attention. I grow limp and drop my head back, staring up at the sky.
So close, a thin voice says, seemingly right in my ear. It’s the voice that warned me to run. Clenching my jaw, I lash out through my mind at the voice. So close to what, dying?
Discordant memories churn in my head. I close my eyes to still the illusions. A glow illuminates the back of my eyelids and warmth spreads through me.
You must see, Allison. The only way left to explain in time.

Author Bio:
Arwen Paris is the author of young adult fiction. Her debut YA Sci-fi Urban Fantasy novel FATE OF THE STARS releases September 1, 2017. The actions packed pages of her novels are filled with characters that are forced to face fears they never expected. When she's not writing, you can see posts of her (too many) vacations that keep her sane. Arwen lives in Washington, has a big crazy family & after the day job, she writes Fiction For the Fearless - #F3Fanatic
Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

GIVEAWAY!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

#WeeklyMenu Week 200

Happy Monday! So much has happened this week I don't know if I'll be able to fit it all in this post.
I attended my first book fair last Saturday. Sat next to two amazing authors who have been doing this for a while. They gave me some really great insight into the world of book fairs. I learned so much. Sold three books (according to the author next to me, that's really good for a fair like that). Threw some candy across the room to another author and made some new fans. It was a great experience and I can't wait to attend another one.
In other writing news. I received my first edits from my publisher this weekend for SEEKER, the sequel to HUNTER. I can't wait to dive into them. Along with the edits, I also received the Editors Choice badge. I'm super excited about that. I feel like I learned a lot from my first book, but the second book I was really able to spread my wings and create something that people will want to read more. I took into consideration all the reviews Hunter received and all the critiques my about my writing style and moved forward. I can't wait to share Seeker with all of you.
Enjoy this weeks menu! 
Monday- Pesto Chicken
Tuesday- French Dip Sliders 
Wednesday- Pesto Ravioli 
Thursday- Pesto Pork Chops
Friday- Roasted Balsamic Chicken and Broccoli 
Saturday- Ramen with an Egg
Sunday
- Tuna Sandwiches

#BookReview | Ash and Quill by Rachel Caine

Title: Ash and QuillBy: Rachel CaineGenre: Dystopian Pages: 368Release Date: July 11th, 2017Publisher: BerkleyAudience: Young Adult
Summary from Goodreads: The unforgettable characters from Ink and Bone and Paper and Fire unite to save the Great Library of Alexandria from itself in this electrifying adventure in the New York Times bestselling series.
Hoarding all the knowledge of the world, the Great Library jealously guards its secrets. But now a group of rebels poses a dangerous threat to its tyranny....

Jess Brightwell and his band of exiles have fled London, only to find themselves imprisoned in Philadelphia, a city led by those who would rather burn books than submit. But Jess and his friends have a bargaining chip: the knowledge to build a machine that will break the Library’s rule.

Their time is running out. To survive, they’ll have to choose to live or die as one, to take the fight to their enemies—and to save the very soul of the Great Library....
Add on Goodreads
Review: I've been really intrigued by this series and it hasn't let me down. Another wonderful book by the amazing Rachel Caine that will leave you immersed inside a world that is trying to kill you from all sides.
The first part of the book, our group of exiles find themselves imprisoned in Philadelphia. They must escape before the Great Library wipes out the city. The second half of the book takes us through a more in depth issue within the Great Library its self. Boom! Mind blown.
I loved this read and all the twists and turns I was taken through. It was worth the wait. 
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

#BookReview | No Room for Baby! by Emile Jadoul

Title: No Room for Baby!By: Emile JadoulGenre: Picture BookPages: 28Release Date: October 3rd, 2017Publisher: Kids Can PressAudience: Children
Summary from Goodreads: Leon is worried. There's a new baby penguin in his home. And though Marcel is sleeping in his crib now, he can't stay there forever. But where can they put him? Mama's arms are way too big to cuddle a tiny baby penguin. It's definitely too scary high up on Daddy's shoulders for him. And as anyone can see, when Daddy is on one side and Mama on the other, with Leon in the middle, there's no room for anyone else. ?We can't put a baby penguin anywhere ...? Leon says. Is there a place that's just right for a little brother penguin to go?
In this endearing and cozy picture book, author and illustrator Émile Jadoul poignantly captures the worries and evolving feelings that arise when a new baby enters the family of a young child. The sweet story is told with sensitivity and gentle humor from the child's perspective, allowing young readers' understanding to grow along with Leon's, as he eventually figures out where and how a new sibling will fit into his family. The uncomplicated artwork is charming and expressive and a perfect complement to the limited text, conveying simply and realistically the emotions of the story. This book would make a wonderful starting point for a conversation about becoming a new big brother or sister, a common experience for preschoolers and kindergartners. A cozy read-aloud, it also lends itself to exploring growing up or family life, or a character education lesson on adaptability. 
Add on Goodreads

Review: To tell you the truth, I found this book a little lack luster. My three year old didn't have his usual enthusiasm when listening to this story that he usually has. I have to say though, the concept was great for small kids becoming an older sibling. The art was interesting and cute, but I wish the writing was a little more interesting.
Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

#BookReview | Middle Bear by Susanna Isern

Title: Middle BearBy: Susanna IsernGenre: Picture BookPages: 34Release Date: October 3rd, 2017Publisher:  Kids Can PressAudience: Children
Summary from Goodreads: He was the second of three brothers. ?He was not big, but he was not small, either. Neither strong nor weak, neither tall nor short, neither a lot nor a little ... He was the middle one.? Everything about life with his brothers was middle-sized. And when you're always in the middle, sometimes it's hard to feel special. But then, one day the cubs' parents fell ill, and their mother asked them to fetch some medicinal bark from a willow tree on the top of a mountain. When it turned out that this very important task could only be done by a cub of his middle size, he finally realized how special it was to be the middle one. 
Author Susanna Isern's lovely, melodic picture book tale --- with a delightful use of repetition throughout --- offers an upbeat and positive message to middle children everywhere. It's a subject that is not often addressed in this format. With its hero's quest theme, the story has the feel of a modern-day fairy tale. Manon Gauthier's spare artwork and understated palette perfectly capture the poignancy of the bear cub's emotional journey. Though the book focuses on the role of middle children, it really celebrates every child's efforts toward self-discovery, as they seek out their own special place in the world. It also offers a wonderful opportunity to highlight the character education subject of perseverance or a lesson on empathy.
Add on Goodreads

Review: I have three boys and I know the reality that the middle child faces everyday. They often get overlooked or feel like they don't get treated like the others because they are stuck in the middle, neither big nor small. This book brings to light that struggle and finds a wonderful way of showing how special a middle child can be.
I enjoyed reading this book to my three year old, but he didn't seem very interested in the artwork. TO tell you the truth, I wasn't to intrigued by it myself. It looked like something my Seven year old would do as a school art project. I think the artist was going for something that I didn't find interesting. It wasn't my style.

If you have a middle child give this book a go. Its a fun read.

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.