Fiction

Sparring Partners by John Grisham

This is a collection of three short stories by Grisham that don’t have anything in common other than the law. I enjoyed the first story, “Homecoming”, the best because we once again visit Ford County and Jake Brigance. It’s not the courtroom thriller we are typically treated to in this setting, but it was great to read about the familiar characters that I’ve come to love. This time Jake is helping an attorney from Clanton, Mack Stafford, that notoriously, and allegedly, stole client money, left his unhappy marriage and children, and fled to parts unknown, never to be heard from again. Hearing that his ex-wife is dying, Mack returns to apologize and try to form a relationship with his daughters. The story is heartbreaking and uplifting and will make you yearn for more stories from Ford County.

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June 3, 2022 0

Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner

This is a charming historical fiction set in 1950s London and is a follow up to the Jane Austen Society book, but can be read as a stand-alone. The story is set in Bloomsbury Books, a new and rare book store that has been running for a hundred years. It is run by men that are set in their ways. The general manager created 51 unbreakable rules that all employees must abide by, and they especially chafe the women working at the store.

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May 28, 2022 0

Hide by Kiersten White

This is a fun and creepy story with mixes of horror, mystery, thriller, suspense, fantasy and paranormal elements in it. The tension in the book builds deliciously slow until you get to the point where you want to make sure the lights are on in the house while you read it.

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May 26, 2022 0

Vengewar (Wake the Dragon #2) by Kevin J. Anderson

This is a fantastic second book in the Wake the Dragon series. (You can read my review of book one here: https://nerdgirllovesbooks.com/2022/04/01/spine-of-the-dragon-wake-the-dragon-1-by-kevin-j-anderson/ ) All hell has broken loose, and the Three Kingdoms and Ishara are in chaos. Meanwhile, more and more wreths awaken and they continue plotting to wake the dragon Ossus and re-make the world.

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May 18, 2022 0

Starry-Eyed Love (Spark House #2) by Helena Hunting

This is a cute and fun contemporary romantic comedy involving London, a woman running a family bed and breakfast in Colorado with her sisters, and Jackson, a NYC millionaire media mogul. At the beginning of the book, London has just broken up with her boyfriend, so when Jackson approaches her in a bar and asks her out, she politely turns him down. She’s just not ready to date yet.

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May 15, 2022 0

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

This is a cute contemporary romance set in the science world of Stanford University. Third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith, is focused on her career and doesn’t believe in long-lasting relationships. But, her best friend Anh does and so in order to convince her that she isn’t interested in her ex-boyfriend anymore, Olive kisses the first person she runs into in the hallway. The problem is, that person just happens to be young hot-shot professor Adam Carlson. He’s smart and gorgeous – but also a total jerk that has ruined many Ph.D. candidate’s lives, including friends of hers.

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May 15, 2022 0

Bravely by Maggie Stiefvater

This is a good YA Fantasy continuing the story of the Disney movie Brave. The book is set several years after the movie and we find Merida traveling the countryside learning new skills and the triplets languishing at home, unchanged and unmotivated. In fact, most of her family seems to be stuck, with little purpose or motivation to change things. Which is the problem.

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May 12, 2022 1

My Mother’s Eyes: A short story by Jeremy Ray

4.5 stars

This is an outstanding short story about a young boy’s journey through regret and grief as he sits vigil over his comatose mother in the hospital. Fourteen year old Jodie tries to memorialize his mother by drawing her, which his older brother doesn’t like and finds creepy. Each of Jodie’s sketches are almost complete – except for his mother’s eyes. He just can’t seem to get them right.

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May 6, 2022 0

Watch Out For Her by Samantha M. Bailey

This is an ok mystery/thriller centered around a family and their babysitter. The mother, Sarah, is wound tight and doesn’t trust easily. Her husband hires 22 year old Holly, the daughter of one of his club friends, to babysit their 6 year old son. Initially things go well, but Sarah’s suspicions start to build until she eventually learns something about Holly she can’t overlook. The family moves across the country to start over, but Sarah finds hidden cameras in their rented house and then starts to receive ominous texts from someone, possibly Holly. As the mysteries mount up, Sarah is determined to get to the bottom of it all.

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May 6, 2022 1