Tuesday, November 4, 2014

September-October 2014 Reading List

A writing conference and the return of teaching have cut into my reading time over the past couple of months. But I am a writer, and writers read. So here’s what I’ve been consuming in September and October:

Title: The Prophet, the Shepherd, and the Star
Series: Epic Order of the Seven #1
Author: Jenny L. Cote
Genre: Midgrade Animal Tale/Biblical Adventure

Synopsis: A group of immortal animals aid the people of God as they await the promised Messiah.
Review: A delightful read, with plenty of humor to tickle the funny bone and great content to make you think. Not a book to rush through, but worth every minute it takes to read!

Title: Anomaly
Series: Anomaly #1
Author: Krista McGee
Genre: Teen Science Fiction/Dystopia

Synopsis: In a society where emotions are eradicated, a teenage musician attracts the attention of the ruling scientists with an emotional outburst.
Review: An okay read. Nothing problematic in content, but I found it hard to connect with the characters or get into the plot. Read it if you want, but I personally found it to be a forgettable read.



Series: The Selection
Titles: The Selection, The Elite, The One
Author: Kiera Cass
Genre: YA Dystopia

Synopsis: A fiery-tempered artist enters a competition for the hand & heart of the prince.
Review: Not my favorite of secular series that I’ve read. The plot is strong and the character cast quite likeable, but the character arcs felt incomplete at the story’s end—that they really didn’t change all that much. Also, there’re some very strong sexual elements (no outright sex, but only a couple of steps removed from it), and several uses of swearing and profanity that not only added nothing, but felt stilted and forced on top of it. Maybe worth a once through, but nothing lost either if never read.

Title: Eyes of Elisha
Series: Chelsea Adams Series #1
Author: Brandilyn Collins
Genre: Adult Suspense (with a twist of the supernatural)

Synopsis: The wife of a successful businessman witnesses a brutal murder through a vision.
Review: A good solid read. Not the most suspenseful book I’ve read, especially since I had most of the plot figured out by page 100, but the good storytelling keeps the pages turning.


So what have you been reading of late? Any great, not-to-be-missed tales?

2 comments:

Natalie said...

I want to thank you for your book reviews. I'm always looking for books for my son who reads a lot, but I don't have time to preview everything.

Chawna Schroeder said...

I'm so glad you find my reviews of help! I know how hard it can be to keep kids in books. You don't want to discourage them from reading, but neither do you want them getting into the wrong stuff. So thank you for trusting me.

By the way, if your son likes the science-fiction and fantasy genre in general, I have collected a list of 500+ Christian spec titles. You can find Worlds Beyond for sale at www.chawnaschroeder.com/nonfiction.html.