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Book Review: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd

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The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
Hercule Poirot #4
 by Agatha Christie
read by Hugh Fraser

My rating: 3 / 5
Genre: Classic mystery

All my life, I’ve heard of Agatha Christie and her most famous character, Hercule Poirot. As a reader of mystery novels all the way back to my school days, I always thought I was missing out on something by not reading any Christie, yet for whatever reason, I couldn’t bring myself to do so. Now that I have read 3 of her novels, and now one of the most loved of the Poirot stories, I find they’re a bit of a letdown. It seems to be a common theme for me when I read highly acclaimed classics, but it often seems like I’m missing what others are seeing. With each of these books, I realize more and more that there’s just way more story than I feel is necessary. I tend to zone out while I’m listening and then realize I don’t really know what’s going on. That’s my own fault, I know, but I think it’s mostly due to me not connecting well with the prose.

I do understand why this book is one of the most acclaimed Poirot story, and I’m not going to pretend I figured out the ending before we got there, but it was just a little too late to make the rest of the story more interesting. I’m also not sure how I feel about the blatant trickery Christie used throughout this book (blatant after the fact, not during). I do still think that Hugh Fraser does a great job narrating. I’m not giving up on the series yet, but I have a feeling it won’t be long.

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Book Review: The Minor Miracle

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The Minor Miracle: The Amazing Adventures of Noah Minor
by Meredith Davis

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Middle grade fantasy

When he was a baby, Noah Miracle survived a sixteen-story fall with no explanation. Fast forward to twelve-year-old Noah, who is an average kid wishing he was as extraordinary as his miraculous fall made him seem. Then he is contacted by a secret government group called Gravitas and told that he does have abilities, if he can only learn how to use them. But they also tell him that the man who dropped him from a balcony as a baby, his uncle Saul, is a villain with powers of his own, and that they need Noah’s help to stop him.

This was a fairly quick read with characters that may start out a bit stereotypical, but I think the author took some interesting turns with them. The powers possessed by Noah and other gravitars were a bit deeper than your average super hero or magical powers, especially at this age group, but I liked the way the author explained the gravity-controlling powers. It’s really more sci-fi than fantasy in that way. I also appreciated that Noah, though possessing stronger-than-average powers, still struggles a lot to learn to use and control them. And that his stronger powers aren’t just a coincidence because he’s the MC or a “chosen one,” but rather were caused by something specific.

Though I understood Noah’s difficulty in basically having to choose between Gravitas and Uncle Saul, certain aspects of the plot were fairly predictable (though would probably be less so to the younger audience this book is meant for). It was no surprise to me that Noah couldn’t keep a secret and used his powers in public, though I’ll admit I was a little surprised that there seemed to barely be any consequences. I also think there was a lot that could have been expanded upon and some things that could definitely continue on into another book. I see no signs that there will be more to follow this book, but if there is, I’ll definitely be reading it. I would recommend this book for pre-teens or young teens, especially those interested in fantasy, sci-fi, or super heroes.

Thank you to Netgalley and WaterBrook & Multnomah for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: Dragon and Liberator

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Dragon and Liberator
Dragonback #6
by Timothy Zahn

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: YA sci-fi adventure

Spoiler notice: The following review will contain some spoilers for previous books in the series, which starts with Dragon and Thief.

Jack and Draycos race to stop those who are intent on wiping out Draycos’s people, and are now being aided in their quest by Alison Kayna and Taneem. When their plans go awry, both pairs of human and K’da must improvise and decide what it’s worth to them to stop the genocide of two races.

I’ve been anticipating an exciting end to this series, and it didn’t disappoint. It seems clear to me that Zahn had at least the skeleton of this entire story planned out from the beginning, as different pieces fall into place in this final book in ways that thrilled me. I even cheered at one point, which caused my husband to give me a funny look. The friendship between Jack and Draycos has been one of my favorite things about this series, and though the action squeezes the characterization out a bit in this book, I still appreciate the way it all comes together in the end.

I’m not generally interested in heavy sci-fi, but the fact that it’s written for teens probably helps make it more accessible for someone like me. I really enjoyed this series overall and recommend it for any fans of this kind of sci-fi, young or old.

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Book Review: The Regency Brides Collection

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The Regency Brides Collection
by multiple authors (see details below)

My rating: 3.5 / 5
Genre: Christian historical romance, short stories

This book contains short stories from 7 different authors, taking place in England during the Regency period. My overall rating for the book is an average of my ratings for each story, shown below. Below the ratings is a brief review for each story.

“First Comes Marriage” by Amanda Barratt – 3 / 5
“Masquerade Melody” by Angela Bell – 4 / 5
“Three Little Matchmakers” by Susanne Dietze – 4 / 5
“The Gentleman Smuggler’s Lady” by Michelle Griep – 3 / 5
“When I Saw His Face” by Nancy Moser – 2 / 5
“The Highwayman’s Bargain” by MaryLu Tyndall  – 3.5 / 5
“Jamie Ever After” by Erica Vetsch – 4.5 / 5

“First Comes Marriage” (3 / 5) is a marriage of convenience story with a nice forgiveness angle, plus a focus on the change in a person that comes from following God. Overall, though, it didn’t stand out, and there was a major coincident near the end of the story that bugged me a bit.

“Masquerade Melody” (4 / 5) is well-written and sweet, with a romance that isn’t as overly obvious as they often are, especially in short stories. Though I think I may not be musical enough to enjoy this much as I could have, it was one of my favorites in the book.

“Three Little Matchmakers” (4 / 5) has Sound of Music vibes to it, with a grumpy father-figure and kids that end up endearing themselves to him. The kids’ constant eavesdropping bothered me a little (like, does no one watch or discipline them?), but it ended up being kinda cute. I also really liked Henry’s arc in dealing with his temper.

“The Gentleman Smuggler’s Lady” (3 / 5) was overall fairly simple and didn’t stand out to me. The female main character had this way of trying to convince herself to pretend things weren’t as bad as they were or pretend something she wanted was really going to happen—it’s difficult to explain, but it made her seem very immature to me.

“When I Saw His Face” (2 / 5) is the story of a widow who accepts a marriage proposal mostly out of obligation, and then starts to fall in love with someone else. I did not care for her at all or the terrible way she treated both of these men, especially the fiancé, with barely any consequences. The story in the end is too easy and too predictable, and was my least favorite in the book.

“The Highwayman’s Bargain” (3.5 / 5) was maybe a bit predictable, but it ended up sweet. I was a little frustrated with how long the female main character held out before letting her better judgment prevail. And I don’t particularly care for so much deception without consequences in a Christian setting, but overall, the story wasn’t bad.

“Jamie Ever After” (4.5 / 5) was my favorite story in the series, and no surprise, since the author has recently become my favorite author of this genre of novels. Her inclusion in the collection is the main reason I read it. I liked both of the main characters as individuals and the relationship that built between them. It’s a marriage of convenience story, and though there is a contrivance in it that caused the half-star detraction in my rating, it’s overall a very sweet story that left me very happy.

In the end, though my overall rating for this collection isn’t wonderful, I liked more than I didn’t, and I think that others who like Christian romance from this time period will enjoy the book even more than I did.

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Book Review: The Boy Who Loved Anne Frank

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The Boy Who Loved Anne Frank
by Ellen Feldman

My rating: 3 / 5
Genre: Historical fiction

What if Otto Frank wasn’t the only survivor of those who hid for years in the Secret Annex? What if Peter also survived the war and went to America afterward, reinventing himself like he’d told Anne he would do if he made it out? This is the story of what could have been, as Peter van Pels keeps his identity a secret, even Anne’s diary becomes public and subsequent adaptations are released.

I’ve had this book on my shelf for a while, but finally read it because my daughter recently read The Diary of a Young Girl (and I re-read it to be able to remember it enough to talk to her about it) and was curious about this book. I think the author handled a very difficult subject well—severe PTSD of a kind that most of us will never be able to understand. The fact that Peter reminded me a bit of the Art Spiegelman’s father in the Maus books makes me think that Feldman did a decent job portraying someone who survived the horrors of the Holocaust. However, I think the title is a bit deceptive, in that it gives the impression that the story will delve at least a little into Peter’s time in the annex, his time with Anne. Instead, a large part of what Peter does in the book to protect himself is to completely disown his past, even in his own mind, so he considers the day he landed in America as when his life began and doesn’t think about the time before that at all. Understandable, but not quite what I expected from this story.

In fact, I think that’s a lot of what I felt about this book: understandable, even decently written, but not really what I was expecting or my normal reading preference. So I will just say that if you are intrigued by the concept and stories that delve into psychology, PTSD, dark subjects, etc., definitely give this book a try. I wasn’t the right audience, but maybe you will be.

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Book Review: The Hidden Staircase

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The Hidden Staircase
Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #2
by Carolyn Keene
read by Laura Linney

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Children’s classic mystery

Continuing on with listening to these old books that I somehow didn’t pay attention to when I was younger, one of the things I enjoyed about this book was the setting and the feeling of being transported back in time. Communication was slow, houses were thought of as haunted, and teenage girls were tasked with solving mysteries. Okay, that last one might not have been true-to-life even in the 30s, but somehow it just feels plausible in these books. And though there are some fairly obvious coincidences in this book, I’m sure that the kids in the age group it was meant for wouldn’t pick up on them as easily and would enjoy the excitement of the mystery. Laura Linney again does well bringing Nancy to life, making the audiobook a great option for this series.

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Book Review: The Captain’s Daughter

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The Captain’s Daughter
by Jennifer Delamere

My rating: 3 / 5
Genre: Historical Christian romance

Chased to London by a false accusation of theft, Rosalyn Bernay soon finds herself without any possessions or a place to stay. A chance encounter lands her both a job and a friend who offers to let her stay at her small flat. The job is at a theater that is currently running the most popular show in London and also happens to be where Nate Moran is working as a stagehand. Nate is recovering from an injury, after which he intends to return to his army unit in India. Meeting Rosalyn has made him question the plan to return, but he is determined not to let her shake his resolve.

In a lot of ways, this book checked boxes that normally make a book in this genre perfect for me. However, I think the plot may have had too much going on for my taste. The focus on the theater and Rosalyn beginning to find a passion to perform herself was interesting, and it probably would have provided enough plot on its own. But add to that Nate’s stubborn insistence that he must return to India to make up for a mistake he made there before he left and the brothel owner that Rosalyn runs afoul of when she first comes to London, and there are side plots that aren’t resolved well enough for my taste. The false claims that chase Rosalyn to London in the first place to have a satisfactory conclusion, at least.

I do like that the romance is overall pretty subtle, and I appreciated Nate’s family—full of kind, wise, fun people. I don’t know that I really understand the choice of title, in that Rosalyn’s father being a captain is a pretty small part of the book. But I do wonder if I might have gotten more out of the story in general if I actually knew anything about the opera that’s being staged in the theater throughout the book (H.M.S. Pinafore). Though the next book in the series has a considerably higher rating on Goodreads, I don’t plan to continue this series. However, if it sounds interesting to you, please do check it out.

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Book Review: Bury the Lead

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Bury the Lead
Andy Carpenter #3
by David Rosenfelt
read by Grover Gardner

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: Mystery

Defense attorney Andy Carpenter takes on a client who has been receiving communication from a serial killer, tasked with protecting the journalist by his boss. But then the man is accused of the most recent murder, and Andy’s job has changed drastically. The only problem is that he’s not 100% certain that his client isn’t actually guilty.

This book takes some definite turns from the series so far, with Andy being brought in even more unwillingly as defense attorney for an accused murderer. The story takes a lot of turns near the end, and I’m not really sure that Andy himself does a lot to solve the various mysteries tied up in the case. Certain things are kind of handed to him or done for him, though not in a way that made me feel like he was a weak MC. The cast of side characters he’s started to draw around him add to my enjoyment of this book.

There were a couple of things that I didn’t care for in this book, like the over-the-top dog love that actually lacked logic at one point for me (it’s not okay to make a dog sleep outside, but it is okay to expect a dog to live on a boat?), but overall, I enjoyed the mystery and the characters. Fans of mystery, crime fiction, and courtroom dramas should consider reading this book. Grover Gardner is the definitive voice of Andy Carpenter, bringing Andy’s wit and sarcasm to life, so if you’re an audiobook listener, I’d suggest trying that out for this series. 

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April in Review

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I read 8 books last month, which definitely reflects me backing off on reading a bit after pushing so hard to finish the reading challenge at my local library in February and March. I’ve also been working a lot on VBS prep as director at my church, which takes up a decent amount of my free time as well, and will continue to do so until mid-June.

Here are the books I read in April:

juliet
bee
embers
Illusion
dragonback-5
marvels
Anne 1
39 black book
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The Juliet Code by Pepper Basham (3 / 5)
Bee’s Gift by Dana Romanin (4 / 5)
Embers in the London Sky by Sarah Sundin (4 / 5)
Illusion by Frank E. Peretti (5 / 5)
Dragon and Judge by Timothy Zahn (4.5 / 5)
A Lady’s Guide to Marvels and Misadventure by Angela Bell (5 / 5)
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (5 / 5)
The Black Book of Buried Secrets by Mallory Kass (4 / 5)

This list includes 3 ARCs and 2 re-reads. My favorite book from April was A Lady’s Guide to Marvels and Misadventures. I started 1 series, continued 2 series, and finished 1 series*. My ever-changing short list of to-be-reads, as well as a flag for the book I’m currently reading and an ongoing list of those I’ve read and posted about can be found here.

*This includes 1 series I didn’t reach the end of, but decided not to continue reading, after being at least 2 books into the series.

I’m also keeping my Goodreads page updated with a more extensive list of to-be-reads. Despite my almost too-long TBR list, I’m always looking for more to add. Feel free to offer suggestions of your favorites or just recent reads you enjoyed.

Book Review: The Black Book of Buried Secrets

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Storm Warning
The 39 Clues
by Mallory Kass

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Children’s mystery, adventure

Spoiler notice: The following review will contain some spoilers for the previous books in the series, starting with The Maze of Bones.

After the 39 Clues finale, a new threat has arisen, leading the separate branches of the Cahill family to come together and share their secrets. Broken down into a section for each of the 5 branches, this book covers founders and agents (though I’m not 100% sure what the difference is, since some of the founders are current…how can they be founders 500 years after the branch was founded?), strongholds, and tools and tricks used by each branch. It’s a good follow-up to the series, with some reminders of locations, names, or events that were brought up during the series, as well as new information. The brief vignettes that show some of the major characters from the series after the end of the clue hunt were great to have, and there are even a couple of short stories about historical characters looking for clues or being recruited by Cahills. There are a few things explained in this book that I at first thought must be spoilers of what is technically the final book in the series, though also a launching point for the first spin-off series. That book was published after this one, so I hope that’s not the case, but I won’t know until I read it (Vespers Rising).

The introduction by Rick Riordan, which depicts the different authors from the series as members of the Cahill branch, meeting to discuss sharing their secrets for this book, is clever and enjoyable. Fans of the 39 Clues series will probably find the brief stories and extra information in this book worth reading.

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