Five Book Reading Wrap-Up for January 2022

 

                      Join me for my five-book reading wrap-up!

                                                 January 2022

Here is my Youtube Video

(There is an Amazon link to each book.  If you are interested in more information, click on the link.  I am an Amazon Affiliate.  If you click on the link and buy anything at all, I get a percent of the sale at no cost to you...thanks:-)

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Book 1 
"The Perfect Child"

by Lucinda Berry

Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Crime

Good Reads Rating is 4.11

My Rating is 3/5 stars

                                              (click photo below to go to Amazon)

Overview I found on GoodReads.

Christopher and Hannah are a happily married surgeon and nurse with picture-perfect lives.  All that's missing is a child.  When Janie, an abandoned six-year-old, turns up at their hospital, Christopher forms an instant connection with her, and he convinces Hannah they should take her home as their own.

But Janie is no ordinary child, and her damaged psyche proves to be more than her new parents were expecting.  Janie is fiercely devoted to Christopher, but she acts out in increasingly disturbing ways, directing all her rage at Hannah.  Unable to bond with Janie, Hannah is drowning under the pressure, and Christopher refuses to see Janie's true nature.

Hannah knows that Janie is manipulating Christopher and isolating him from her, despite Hannah's attempts to bring them all together.  But as Janie's behavior threatens to tear Christopher and Hannah apart, the truth behind Janie's past may be enough to push them all over the edge.

 Quote

"Why did the universe allow people who hurt kids to have them? 

Why couldn't it give them to people like me, who wanted them?" 

My Thoughts After I Read the Book

I did enjoy this book.  I listened to this story on Audible, and it held my attention.  At times, it was slow, but I was still interested in the outcome.

The storyline is about a couple Christopher and Hannah.  Christoper is an orthopedic surgeon, and Hanna is a nurse.  They seem to be the perfect couple.  They want a child desperately and have not been able to conceive.  When an apparently abused child is admitted to their hospital, Christopher falls in love with her, and they decide to bring her into their home.  

An abused child may have miles of challenging issues to deal with, which proves to be the case here.  I don't want to say much more because I don't want to add any spoilers.

Favorite Character-Hannah's sister Allison

Least Favorite Character-Christopher

My Final Thought

What made the book a 3 for me and not a 4 was the ending.  It was too open-ended for me.  

I feel like there should be a sequel. 

Book Trailer/Movie

I could not find a book trailer or anything on an upcoming movie based on this book.

A 5-star and -star review I found on Goodreads.

A Five Star Review

"Wow, unsettling and hauntingly believable.  This is a fantastic thriller, sure to give parents everywhere nightmares.  Easily worthy of 5 stars".

A One-Star Review

"Seriously disappointed.  The story dragged so much and was unrealistic in the characters realizations of Jamie's behavior.  It was obvious the girl had issues that was severely ignored and Christopher being blinded by proof of her issues is just ridiculous.  Too hyped not worth your time".

I gave this book 3 stars, so I am a bit in the middle of the two reviews.  I agree it was unsettling and sadly believable.  I also agree that Christopher was clueless.

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Book 2

Audible Read

"The Lighthouse Witches"

by C. J. Cooke

Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Fiction

4.03 stars on Goodreads out of 5 stars

I give this book 3/5

The Amazon link is below.  Just click the photo.

 

 

Overview From Good Reads

When single mother Liv is commissioned to paint a mural in a 100-year-old lighthouse on a remote Scottish island, it's an opportunity to start over with her three daughters--Luna, Sapphire, and Clover.  When two of her daughters go missing, she's frantic.  She learns that the cave beneath the lighthouse was once a prison for women accused of witchcraft.  The locals warn her about wildlings, supernatural beings who mimic human children, created by witches for revenge.  Liv is told wildlings are dangerous and must be killed.

Twenty-two years later, Luna has been searching for her missing sisters and mother.  When she receives a call about her youngest sister, Clover, she's initially ecstatic.  Clover is the sister she remembers--except she's still seven years old, the age she was when she vanished.  Luna is worried Clover is a wildling.  Luna has few memories of her time on the island, but she'll have to return to find the truth of what happened to her family.  But she doesn't realize just how much the truth will change her.

Quote 

I don't have a favorite quote. 

 My Thoughts After Reading the Book

Olivia and her three daughters move to a Scottish island because Liv has been hired to paint a mural inside the Longing, an ancient lighthouse.  The history of this area includes witches and curses.  When two of her children go missing, the mystery begins.

This story is told in two timelines 1998 and 2021.  The ancient history of the isle is from 1662, when women were imprisoned, tortured, and burned at the stake for being witches; this comes into play in the storyline.

There are stories of witches and wildlings (a supernatural creature that manifests as a thoughtform id-manifestation. The personified dark side of an individual, Wildlings are violent, lecherous, territorial, lustful, and impulsive, taking whatever they want, whenever they want-Wikipedia)., people missing, and even a touch of what I would call time travel.  I liked but did not love the book.  I did get a bit confused at times, but overall it had a pretty good flow. 

As far as least favorite characters and favorite characters, I am having trouble remembering the characters, so I have no idea.

Is there a Movie or Book Trailer?

I could not find a book trailer or anything related to a movie on this book.

 A 5-star and 1-star review I found on Amazon.

5-Star  Review-"WOW!  I love it so much and didn't want it to end. I'll be adding this to my favorite shelf.💜 A perfect read for the spooky season, The Lighthouse Witchesis chilling, and captivating. It's an outstanding suspenseful witchy story that weaves Scottish folklore, local history, legends, and family drama together beautifully."

1-Star Review-"This was not the book for me.  The main character Olivia is just too annoying. She's so caught up in her career as an artist that she fails in her career as a mother.  I was done when she slaps her daughter across the face."

I agree more with the 5-star review, but I understand the 1-star review.  That is why I am a bit in the middle with my review.  

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Book 3

"The Traveling Cat Chronicles"

by Hiro Arikawa

Genre-Fiction, Contemporary, Japan, Animals

4.31 stars on Goodreads out of 5 stars
I  gave this book a 4/5

Click the photo below for the Amazon Link...

Book overview as found on GoodReads

Nana, the cat is on a road trip.  He is not sure where he's going or why, but it means that he gets to sit in the front seat of a silver van with his beloved owner, Satoru.  Side by side, they cruise around Japan through the changing seasons, visiting Satoru's old friends.  He meets Yoshimine, the brusque and unsentimental farmer for whom cats are just ratters; Sugi and Chikako, the warm-hearted couple who run a pet-friendly B&B; and Kosuke, the mournful husband whose cat-loving wife has just left him. There's even a very special dog who forces Nana to reassess his disdain for the canine species. 

But what is the purpose of this road trip?  And why is everyone so interested in Nana?  Nana does not know and Satoru won't say.  But when Nana finally works it out, his small heart will break..

Book Quote

"My story will be over soon.  But it's not something to be sad about.  Remembering those who went ahead.  Remembering those who will follow after.  And someday, we will meet all those people again,

 out beyond the horizon" 

My Thoughts After Reading the Book

This is a delightful yet emotional story.  You begin with a cat who will soon be named Nana.  Nana was a stray, and one day she gets hit by a car and is cared for and adopted by Satoru.  

Satoru and Nana have a powerful love for and commitment to each other.   You follow their current story and also look back on their history.  Satoru must re-home his precious Nana due to circumstances in his life.  They take a journey together to attempt to find his new home, but it has to be perfect.  It is fun to read of their adventures as they take their journey.

This story is told from the perspective of Satoru and his family and friends.  The perspective that stood out to me was that of Nana himself.  A very sweet story of caring, self-sacrifice, and kindness.

Book Trailer or Movie

There is a movie.  I searched everywhere I could think to search for it but no luck.  The internet said it was on Netflix, but it no longer is.  I also looked on Amazon, Hulu, and YouTube, but I could not find it.  I would love to watch it.

A Five and One Star Review as Found on Amazon

Five Star Review-"If you are an animal lover, read this book.  Especially if you are a cat lover, don't miss it!  If you enjoy a sentimental, loving, perfectly told story, I implore you to read The Travelling Cat Chronicles!"

One Star Review- "As a fellow cat lover, I actually feel a pang of guilt, for giving this book a low rating.  This was just not what I expected and it was just such a tiresome read.  In a nutshell, this is a rather twee story about a man and his cat.  We get taken on a road trip, travel around a bit, but overall, it all got a bit predictable for my liking.  I mean, I had already guessed what was going to happen in the first few chapters." 

Me-I can understand both perspectives.  Yes, I agree it is a bit slow, and nothing exhilarating happens.  I liked it because it was a peek into the daily life of someone and the joys and pains that are faced along the way.  I struggled between 3 and 4 stars, but I had to go with the 4 stars because it, in many ways, touched my heart.

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Book 4

"A History of Wild Places"

by Shey Ernshaw

Genre- Mystery, Fiction, Fantasy, Thriller

4.07 stars on GoodReads out of 5 stars.
I gave this one 4/5 stars

Amazon Link Below, just click on the photo...

Description as Found on GoodReads,

Travis Wren has an unusual talent for locating missing people.  Hired by families as a last resort, he requires only a single object to find the person who has vanished.  When he takes on the case of Maggie St. James—a well-known author of dark, macabre children's books—he's led to a place many believed to be only a legend.

Called "Pastoral," this reclusive community was founded in the 1970s by like-minded people searching for a simpler way of life.  By all accounts, the commune shouldn't exist anymore and soon after Travis stumbles upon it… he disappears.  Just like Maggie St. James.

Years later, Theo, a lifelong member of Pastoral, discovers Travis's abandoned truck beyond the border of the community.  No one is allowed in or out, not when there's a risk of bringing a disease—rot—into Pastoral.  Unraveling the mystery of what happened reveals secrets that Theo, his wife, Calla, and her sister, Bee, keep from one another.  Secrets that prove their perfect, isolated world isn't as safe as they believed—and that darkness takes many forms.

Hauntingly beautiful, hypnotic, and bewitching, A History of Wild Places is a story about fairy tales, our fear of the dark, and losing yourself within the wilderness of your mind. 

A Quote I Like

"There is no history in a place until we make it until you live a life worth remembering.  We have made a history here - some of it was more folklore than truth, more fear than anything else.  But some of it was good.  Some of it lives inside each of us, the history of this wild, wild, land... 

My Thoughts After Reading the Book

I have heard so many differing opinions on this book.  After listening to a negative review on YouTube and with low expectations, I started this book.  Turns out I really liked it.

It begins with Travis.  Travis is a man with unusual abilities; he finds people.  He can touch an object a missing person has touched, and for him, the object tells a part of their story.  Travis is hired by a writer's parents to find their missing daughter.  

Travis sets out to find this missing woman only to find a "secret" place called Pastoral, hidden deep in the mountains.  As the book progresses, it seems that Travis, too, goes missing.  Suddenly we find ourselves with a group of people in what appears to be a commune.

As the years' progress, you become familiar with the people in Pastoral along with their fears of the outside world.  You also learn of the secrets hidden in this isolated village.

It almost seemed this was two completely different stories, but it all comes together as the story unfolds.  Yes, some would say it is unbelievable, but I thought it was good regardless.  As I read, I felt that there was more to this story, and I kept reading to find out the hidden secrets.

Book Trailer

I could not find one.

Is there a movie?

I could not find anything.

A Five and One Star Review as Found on GoodReads

A Five-Star Review- "Clever and brilliant!  Is Pastoral a commune, a cult or something supernatural?  I would of never guessed it, and am still at a loss for words after finishing. It's creepy, dark, atmospheric and bizarre in all the best ways.  I haven't read another book quite like it, or as surprised to find out what lay behind the mystery.  It kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time."

A One-Star Review-"Ugh. Cringy, creepy, boring, nasty, senseless, stupid.  There are not enough unpleasant words to throw at this painful mess.  Lame, disappointing… seriously, what a waste of good reading time.  Way too many beautiful words wasted on a lame and childish "plot." 

Me-I lean more toward the five-star review, although it was cringy and creepy:-) Yes, the twist was a bit unbelievable, but I still really enjoyed the book.

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Book 5 

"Pictures of Hollis Woods"

by Patricia Reilly Giff

Genre-Middle-Grade, Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Family

4.02 out of 5 stars on Good Reads
I give this book 5/5

Click on the photo below to go to amazon.

Book Description from GoodReads

In this Newbery Honor Book, a troublesome 12-year-old orphan, staying with an elderly artist who needs her, remembers the only other time she was happy in a foster home, with a family that truly seemed to care about her.

Quote

"Drawing is what you see of the world, truly see...And sometimes what you see is so deep in your head you're not even sure of what you're seeing. But when it's down there on paper, and you look at it, really look, you'll see the way things are... that's the world, isn't it? You have to keep looking to find the truth."

My thoughts after reading the book

When a book touches my heart, I have to give it 5 stars, and Hollis touched my heart. It is a simple story about a child named Hollis. Her story began when she was abandoned as an infant. Her name came from the woods where she was found, Hollis Woods.  

She goes on to live in several foster homes, and you hear her tell the story of several of the families she has stayed with. All she really wants and dreams of is being part of a family. Does her dream come true? I'm not telling:-). By the way, she is an artist.

Book Trailer

There are several book trailers, but I could not find an official book trailer.

Movie

Yes, there is a movie, and now I have to find it and watch it.

Sadly, I could not find an official trailer, although there are many unofficial ones out there.

You can watch it on Amazon Prime, but sadly you would have to join Hallmark movies which I am not going to do.  I also found it on YouTube, it is a bit blurry, but I will watch it there.

A Five and One Star Review as Found on Amazon

A Five-Star Review-"What a way to start my reading year. I loved this middle grade about a young orphan girl who is wishing for a family of her own. She runs away from most of her foster families and gains a reputation for being a troublemaker. Finally she meets a few people who see through her rough exterior and choose to love her. I love how the story was told interspersed with descriptions of her drawings as memories and important moments. Hollis has a big heart and hearing her story warmed my heart and brought a few tears to my eyes. Loved it!" 

One-Star Review-"I hated this book because it was too hard to follow. It was also very boring. Nothing interesting happened during this story".

I think you already know how I feel about this book.  Yes, I lean heavily toward the 5-star review.  I did not find it hard to follow or boring.  Really good book.

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My Favorite Quote of this Months Reads

I would love to know what you are reading.  If you have read any of the above books, did you enjoy them?  Please drop me a note in the comment box.

Take care and happy reading!

KathieyV:-)