If I Live By Terri Blackstock

 

If I Live   By Terri Blackstock  331 pages

Casey Cox is still on the run after being indicted for murder. The hunt that began with her bloody footprints escalates, and she's running out of places to hide. Her face is all over the news, and her disguises are no longer enough. It's only a matter of time before someone recognizes her. Dylan Roberts, the investigator who once hunted her, is now her only hope. Terrifying attempts on Dylan's life could force Casey out of hiding. The clock is ticking on both their lives, but exposing the real killers is more complicated than they knew. Amassing the evidence to convict their enemies draws Dylan and Casey together, but their relationship has consequences. Will one life have to be sacrificed to protect the other?

Third book in this series and I read it in one day, because I wanted to see what happened.  Very suspenseful and I loved the ending.  Many murders and kidnappings and kept me on the edge of my seat!! Recommend 10/10 

If I'm Found by Terri Blackstock

 

If I'm Found by Terri Blackstock  359 pages

Is Dylan hunting Casey to prosecute her or protect her? Casey Cox is still on the run, fleeing prosecution for a murder she didn't commit. Dylan Roberts--her most relentless pursuer--is still on her trail, but his secret emails insist that he knows the truth and wants to help her. He's let her escape before when he had her in his grasp, but trust doesn't come easily. As Casey works to collect evidence about the real murderers, she stumbles on another unbearable injustice: an abused child and a suicidal man who's also been falsely accused. Casey risks her own safety to right this wrong and protect the little girl from her tormenters. But doing so is risky and just may result in her capture--and if she's captured, she has no doubt she'll be murdered before she ever steps foot in a jail.

Second book in the series and now I HAVE to read the third book.  Such a page turner.  Christian based story but very much a suspense book.  Will she be found and be alive in the third book?  

After the Shadows by Amanda Cabot

 After the Shadows  by Amanda Cabot  342 pages

A brighter future awaits -- if she can escape the shadows of the past. Emily Leland sheds no tears when her abusive husband is killed in a bar fight, but what awaits her back home in Sweetwater Crossing is far from the welcome and comfort she expected. First she discovers her father has died under mysterious circumstances. Then the house where the new schoolteacher and his son are supposed to board burns, leaving them homeless. When Emily proposes turning the family home into a boardinghouse, her sister is so incensed that she leaves town. Alone and broke, her family name sullied by controversy, Emily is determined to solve the mystery of her father's death -- and to aid Craig Ferguson, despite her fears of men. The widowed schoolmaster proves to be a devoted father, an innovative teacher, and an unexpected ally. Together they must work to unmask a killer and escape the shadows of their own pasts in order to forge a brighter future.

This is the first book by this author that I have read.  I thought is was an historical fiction love story.  Much to my surprise it was also a mystery!  I figured out who it was before the end of the book but it was still compelling how they solved the mystery.  It was historical fiction but the way it was solved was very much up to date and a good ending.  Can't wait to read the other 2 books in the trilogy.

Half Wild by Sally Green / Half Lost by Sally Green

Half Wild by Sally Green - 414 pages
Half Lost by Sally Green - 342 pages

Nathan continues his quest to be free of the White Witches.  He rescues Annalise, joins the rebellion, and fights.

These are the last two books in the Half Trilogy by Sally Green.  Overall, I found these books to be depressing.  Although the "war" is won in the end, there is no happy ending for Nathan. 

Key of Light by Nora Roberts

Key of Light by Nora Roberts - 352 pages
Key of Knowledge by Nora Roberts - 352 pages
Key of Valor by Nora Roberts - 344 pages

Three women have been chosen for a quest.  Mallory, Dana, and Zoe are meant to search for the three hidden keys that will unlock the trapped souls of sleeping demigoddesses.  Along the way, they will forge a new future for themselves professionally and personally.

This is one of Nora Roberts paranormal trilogies.  It was a pretty entertaining read.  I enjoyed the different characters.  About the only issue I had with the book is that there were several remodeling projects that were integral to the story that went way too quickly for real life.  However, that's a minor quibble.

Red Rising Trilogy - Pierce Brown

Red Rising Trilogy - Pierce Brown - 1390 pages

The tl:dr version of my review is this: don't waste time putting your pants on, run out RIGHT NOW and grab this whole trilogy. Don't bother with socks either, because they're about to be BLOWN OFF into the inky blackness of emotionally unforgiving space.

I am a commitment-phobe when it comes to series reads, because I've been burned before (I'm looking at you, Laurel K.). But I passed by this one on the shelf several times and finally picked up Red Rising despite what I thought was my better judgement.  This series proceeded to surprise, engage, and utterly emotionally destroy me, and isn't that what we're all looking for in a great book, after all?

The upshot of the story is that Darrow, a young dude who lives and works in the dangerous mines of Mars, witnesses his equally young wife commit a relatively innocuous act of treason by speaking out in her way about the injustice of the caste system their society has imposed. She's hung for it, and in their Red tradition, Darrow is forced to participate by pulling her feet to snap her neck.  It's an eloquent metaphor for everything Darrow does over the course of the trilogy, from subjecting himself to extensive surgeries that make him one of the pinnacle elite Golds, to molding himself into an instrument of violence and war.  He is forced over and over again to make the choice between preserving his personal humanity and offering it up as a sacrifice for what he believes is the greater good.

But this guy is not a messiah of Red or Gold. (Okay, well...there was this one time...two times? Whoops. Maybe there is room to draw a parallel there.) He's desperately, basely human in so many ways, from the love he shares with his new bloodthirsty family to the strategic mistakes he makes in both over- and underestimating the people around him. And that's really what's at the heart of these stories: humanizing the big picture, and a mix of grand scale loss with the intimate losses that win or lose the war.  It could not be more personal than witnessing and participating in a revolution with Darrow the Reaper as he builds family and loses family for his cause. That cobbled-together family crosses all the castes, and each member of it humanizes another strata in this dystopian society where your Color defines who you are.

Real talk: I can't say I wasn't kind of frustrated by the message here; Darrow struggles internally with the difference of change through peaceful measures and through violent ones, and I really wanted him to find a peaceful out even if that meant a dreadfully boring third book. That does not happen, and these books are a bloodbath. By the third book, I was seriously concerned that none of the characters were going to make it to the last pages...and not very many did. But Brown is a master of twisting the knife by orchestrating emotional and symbolic deaths for almost every character. He also has a great handle on the negative space of novel crafting; you are literally in Darrow's head for every twist, every strategic happening, and Brown still manages to surprise and mislead in a way that makes this story an adventure on every page. It's a trilogy that demands that you appreciate the orchestrated violence and also appreciate the depth of the philosophical questions the premise raises about our own society. Borrowing a gaming term, it's a tank of a thinker.

In terms of relatively contemporary works, this trilogy combines elements of several mythologies, Star Wars, Game of Thrones, Tolkien's works, and the first book in particular could generally be described as The Hunger Games on some kind of hypothetical literary steroid that makes book muscles and brains explode by interplanetary proportions. It's thoughtful, extraordinarily and creatively violent, and it's unsettlingly timely to the social struggles we're facing right now. It is a trilogy well worth the emotional scarring you will suffer reading it. Get some kleenex, prepare to cringe through the next 1300+ pages, and resign yourself to staying up until 4am to finish "just one more chapter." It is an amazing ride.

Aftermath-Star Wars: Aftermath #1 by Chuck Wendig

Aftermath-Star Wars: Aftermath #1 by Chuck Wendig-366 pages

I recently learned about the new Star Wars novels set in the years after Episode VI and before Episode VII and decided I want to read them. This is the first of those new novels and part of a trilogy. The story follows a group of New Republic "rebels," first individually, then working together as a group, albeit reluctantly and sort of accidentally. The "rebels" are on Akiva for various reasons and soon learn that the Empire is holding an important meeting on the planet and, in the end, decide to work together to take down the Imperials holding the meeting. Twists and turns occur throughout the story which makes for an intriguing, interesting read. I have mixed opinions about the Interludes littered throughout the story. On one hand, they show the "aftermath" of the Empire's defeat at Endor, while on the other they are merely a distraction. Overall, it was an easy, fun read, though the writing at times was choppy and improper grammar could be found throughout. Having read this, I am interested in reading the rest of the trilogy (which has yet to be published) and in reading Bloodline, which is another of the new Star Wars novels set between the events of Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.

The Shadowhand Covenant by Brian Farrey

The Shadowhand Covenant by Brian Farrey - 375 pages
The Vengekeep Prophecies - Book 2

Jaxter Grimmjinx is celebrating his grandmother's retirement when he and his parents are called by the Shadowhand Covenant to help save its members before they all disappear.  While his parents set out immediately to try to contact the last members, Jaxter and an old friend turned enemy are kidnapped by the Sarosans in an attempt to free their imprisoned people.  Now Jaxter and that old friend must put aside their differences to save themselves, their families, and the Sarosans.

This the second book in the trilogy.  I really enjoyed the story.  While there wasn't a lot of connections between the first two stories, I have a feeling that the final book is going to explain what few confusing connections there are.  I'm looking forward to the third book.

Maddaddam, by Margaret Atwood

 Maddaddam, by Margaret Atwood, 416 pages

This is the third in the Maddaddam series, and most of the "loose ends" are tied up .  The future is still uncertain, but then again, it always was.  I was pretty sad about the ending, but all good books leave you sad at their endings.   I would recommend this to adults who like post-apocalyptic/dystopian sci-fi.  

The Year of the Flood, by Margaret Atwood, 431 pages

The Year of the Flood, by Margaret Atwood, 431 pages

This is book 2 of the Maddaddam trilogy.  I listened to it a couple of years ago without knowing it was a book 2- now that I've read the first one (Oryx & Crake), I read this again and I'll just say that it makes more sense.  In this post-apocalyptic future, a "waterless flood" has killed off most of the population, and the survivors include former peaceful protesters as well as dangerously violent former criminals.  I'm looking forward to the final book in the trilogy!

Oryx and Crake, by Margaret Atwood, 374 pages

Oryx and Crake, by Margaret Atwood, 374 pages

It is a post-apocalyptic future, where the world has been killed by a virus and Jimmy, or Snowman, is left alone with a group of manufactured humans called Crakers.  It is a long, tragic tale of how Jimmy came to be Snowman and the reader hears his story, along with those of Oryx and Crake, his lover and best friend.

Margaret Atwood is a brilliant writer, and this book will make you want to hear the rest of the story by finishing the trilogy.

Allegiant, by Veronica Roth, 526 pages

Allegiant, by Veronica Roth, 526 pages

In this third book of the Divergent trilogy, Tris and Tobias and some others make their way out of their now factionless society; but what they find just brings more questions and shows that nowhere is perfect.  I absolutely loathed the ending to this- no spoilers, but I thought it felt rushed and was pointless.  Very disappointed, but I think I might be in the minority.

Linger, by Maggie Stiefvater

Linger, by Maggie Stiefvater, 360 pages

Spoiler alert if you haven't read Shiver: Sam becomes a real, full-time boy.  That's great, right?  Well, it should be- except in this sequel, Grace is getting weird headaches, there's a dead wolf in the woods, and Sam may not have been right about why werewolves shift and how much time they have to live.  Still a sweet read, but this trilogy needs to wrap it up.

Reached, by Ally Condie

Reached, by Ally Condie, 512 pages

This is the final book in the Matched trilogy, and it could not end soon enough for me.  Cassia and Xander are working for the Rising within the Society, while Ky is flying aircraft and preparing for the invasion of the Society.  The Rising plans their overthrow of the Society by starting an outbreak to which they have the cure.  Things soon spiral out of control when the virus they are curing begins to mutate and kill indiscriminately.  There are alot of twists and turns in this conclusion, most of which take way too long to occur, but the ending is satisfactory for those who have been waiting for it.