Audio: The Season - Sarah MacLean

Audio CD, 9 pages

Narrator: Gabrielle Baker

Published August 24th 2018 by Tantor Audio (first published March 1st 2009)

YA Historical romance 

For review

My thoughts:

I remember seeing this one long ago, and wanting to read it. Mostly cos it was a YA his rom.

Alex is a smart young woman filled with opinions. Not a good thing when you are about to have your first season. She is headstrong. Has 3 annoying brothers and 2 besties. What more can a girl want.

The two best friends Ella and Vivi sadly do not get enough room in the book. It did feel like this was a novel that should have had follow ups. You know, when Ella and Vivi finds love too. But I say they found it with Alex's brothers...what? I want HEAs since there are no more books ;)

There is also Gavin, the next door neighbor who suddenly is a man, and no longer that 4th pretend brother.

Balls, dresses and drama. Someone is after Gavin (and not to marry him). Of course I still say they should have told their fathers and let it be, but hey, I did say she was headstrong.

I get that it was YA, but she did roll her eyes a bit too much. It felt too teen, too modern, too disrespectful.

Conclusion:
But it was a fun tale and it would have worked just as well as a adult his rom. Just then insert more passion and less eye rolling ;)

Narrator

I do like Baker's voice. She is cheerful! And perfect for YA

Blurb:

Seventeen year old Lady Alexandra is strong-willed and sharp-tongued; in a house full of older brothers and their friends, she had to learn to hold her own. Not the best makings for an aristocratic lady in Regency London. Yet her mother still dreams of marrying Alex off to someone safe, respectable, and wealthy. But between ball gown fittings, dances, and dinner parties, Alex, along with her two best friends, Ella and Vivi, manages to get herself into what may be her biggest scrape yet.

When the Earl of Blackmoor is mysteriously killed, Alex decides to help his son, the brooding and devilishly handsome Gavin, uncover the truth. But will Alex's heart be stolen in the process? In an adventure brimming with espionage, murder, and other clandestine affairs, who could possibly have time to worry about finding a husband? Romance abounds as this year's season begins!

Audio: Bad Reputation - Stefanie London

Audio CD, 11 h

Published August 7th 2018 by Tantor Audio

Bad Bachelors #2

Contemporary romance

For review

My thoughts:

Omg, this Bad Bachelor app is so evil. If you read book 1 then you know. It ruined someone's life. Here the reviews are positive, but if you are trying to put on a show that might fail, then maybe you do not want the press to discuss the size of your private parts instead of your show.

In book 1 we learned who made the app. In this one I got even madder at that person. I can not forgive that person. Enough is enough.

But yes to the book. Wes has a big *beeeep*. Or so the reviews say. He is a good guy. And all he wants is to have his show be a success, on its own merits.

Remy is a dancer who has given up trying to be the dancer she wants to be. She is scared of letting anyone in, and there will be drama. Though, stop and listen woman. Stop and listen!

There is dancing, trying to get ready in time for opening night. And falling in love with someone you maybe should not fall for at this moment. But like they could stop it.

Though listening to it felt long at times cos they talked a lot and sometimes about nothing. That works better in print.

I want to say more about the app creator , but can not. But I guess that person might be a main character in the next book....

Conclusion:

Romance, dancing and a bit of drama.

Narrator: Larissa Gallagher

I felt she was good at times with her voices and range. But I also felt she did not put enough emotion in her narrating.

Blurb:

It's true, Wes is well-endowed. But everything else is a huge misunderstanding . . . Wes Evans, son of Broadway royalty, just wants to achieve something without riding his family's coattails. Too bad the whole world is talking about his sex life after the notorious Bad Bachelors app dubs him "The Anaconda." But when he sees a talented ballet dancer, he knows she is exactly what he needs to make his show a success. Remi Drysdale only had one thought when she fled Australia for New York-never mix business with pleasure again. Ever. Working with Wes is the perfect chance to reclaim her career. Remi promises herself not to tangle with the guy who holds her career in his hands . . . no matter how enticing his reviews are on the Bad Bachelors app. 

TMST: Book Covers

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post on Rainy Day Ramblings where Rainy discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

August 28th: Does it bother you when a book cover doesn't fit the characters in the book?

Yes and No.

We will start with no first. No, because sometimes I do not even realise it until someone points it out *headdesk* yes my head is in the clouds. Then someone points it out and I was all what?  That is how much thought I put into how people look in books.

Yes, because it should represent the person in the book. Let me show one example that did bug me.

The beginning. Then her boobs grew, and they still did not get her right. But then, yes, they got it right. Kate finally emerged.

So yes it should matter. Even if I will not always realise it it might not be right.

Edit. Oh I also came to think about small things, cos they bother me too. Like when someone are wearing the wrong clothes for the era, or something the main would never wear and things like that

Joint Discussion: Homegoing - Yaa Gyasi

Hello all! Carole and I will be discussing "Homegoing" by Yaa Gyasi. I am in blue and Carole in purple. 

Author: Yaa Gyasi

Title: Homegoing

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: ebook

Published: June 7th 2016

Where I Got It: Borrowed from library

Two half-sisters, Effia and Esi, are born into different villages in eighteenth-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and lives in comfort in the palatial rooms of Cape Coast Castle. Unbeknownst to Effia, her sister, Esi, is imprisoned beneath her in the castle's dungeons, sold with thousands of others into the Gold Coast's booming slave trade, and shipped off to America, where her children and grandchildren will be raised in slavery. One thread of Homegoing follows Effia's descendants through centuries of warfare in Ghana, as the Fante and Asante nations wrestle with the slave trade and British colonization. The other thread follows Esi and her children into America. From the plantations of the South to the Civil War and the Great Migration, from the coal mines of Pratt City, Alabama, to the jazz clubs and dope houses of twentieth-century Harlem, right up through the present day, Homegoing makes history visceral, and captures, with singular and stunning immediacy, how the memory of captivity came to be inscribed in the soul of a nation. 

This book is a good one for discussions, and even if at least to me it was not amazing. Does not mean it wasn’t good though! It was good, but I also felt it could have been more. But so much better than our other books ;) Finally a good one.

It was pretty good. Not amazing. Just good. There is a lot to discuss for sure. I felt the beginning was the best and I enjoyed it more. The further down the family line we went the less I cared. I think I would’ve flipped the way the story was written. Start with the modern family and go back and save the good stuff for the ending.

Same. I really liked the beginning. I have never read anything set in Africa at that time. I would have loved more there. I also liked the African bits more than the American ones. Mostly again cos I have never read anything set at that time. I felt what was lacking from the American ones were, warmth? Good characters? Some were interesting, while others, not so much. Some got better at the end, but yes, some of those guys were meh.

I have to agree. I didn’t like the American line after the Civil War. It seemed to lose my interest. I enjoyed the other side more. It was more interesting story-wise and character-wise. I’ve read a couple books set over in Africa, but not much. Plus, I did find it more interesting to see how everyone over in Africa dealt with the colonization and dealing with what they did. Loads of shame and guilt! I can’t imagine selling my neighbors off to be slaves. Yes, the British and other white people are asshats, but the ones left behind allowing and even selling their own people is horrible.

It’s good money in selling your enemies, and it is something we do not read about much, as I have never read a book about it. Those are some horrible enemies to have! I liked how some wises up and thought how evil it was. But the darkness of the British, ugh, that one scene were some soldiers go down into the dungeons. What the f was wrong with them!?

That scene made me so angry! Like these women already have enough Hell to deal with. Monsters the load of them. All of them.

I could not get into my head how they could be that effed up, and then go and marry other women from there…

I don’t get it either. But they were considered lessers since they are just now slaves. Being drunk probably was a huge factor too. SMH. Humans are cruel.

I had actually thought we would see more of actual slavery and I was surprised that we did not. Ok so that might be weird to say, but it’s such a big part and there was just one woman and then nothing more cos they got away.

It was strange. I did expect more from there. I’m glad they got away, but I didn’t expect them to. I totally thought they were going to get caught and beat for trying to run away.

Good that someone got away. And I guess she wanted to write about how slaves and free people had to move again cos of that stupid law. Not to mention it did not matter if you were free or not cos someone could just kidnap and sell you.

Very true. Even if you get away it doesn’t make you truly free.

Horrible. No wonder some fled as fast as they could.

What did you think of the ending?

A bit of anti-climactic. I wanted them to know!

Yeaaa...like it was okay, but I felt like there should’ve been more. There was something missing so it didn’t feel complete.

Same. I liked how it came together, but yes I wanted more.

More was needed for the ending and for the later generations. The best part was the beginning. I said that before but the last few chapters left me feeling meh.

Same. She lost some of what made it good there.

I really think she should’ve just done the first couple of generations and left the rest in an epilogue of sorts.I wanted to know more of the earlier generations. How they lived and etc. I didn’t connect with any of the characters except for the first couple of characters.

Yes, I did not connect with...ack what was his name. 6th generation guy in Africa and his daughter. The previous ones were better. And in the US I lost interest with that H guy.

The half-sisters and their kids were my favorites. The rest? Eh.

Still, an interesting book and it could have been fleshed out. I saw that some did not like the whole 14 POVS things, but I did like that, but yes it could have been more like 10 ;)

I could get behind that for sure. Maybe there were just too many so I didn’t get to connect with them as much.

Anything more to add?

Mhmmm...an interesting book and one that would be good to read. It really gives you a new way to look at certain parts of history. I think a series would’ve been fun so we can stretch everything out, but I did enjoy it overall.

Hmm, maybe on the series, but for me the flashes worked well, but the characters not always. I liked the shortness of it all cos the pages flew by.

Valid. I did like how simple and felt quick. It was a quick read and I blew through it without really realizing it was coming to an end. A series might’ve ruined that.

Short and on the point. I like books I can breeze through. I totally needed that. I mean it took only 2 days and I have no time to read these days so…

It took me 3 days which is pretty quick since it was like 300 pages. Darn work always getting in the way ;) Yes. Quick, simple, but packed with a lot of stories that make you think.

The make you think things were good. And yes again, I want to read more books set in Africa in the 1700s

Shall we wrap things up, there is poop that has to be taken care of…

Yessss I need to find our water shoes for the up north trip. Ugh. Goodness knows where those are at X_X A good discussion! The end?

The end ;)

About the Authors

Carole and Blodeuedd have been blogging a long while now. The last couple of years the epic duo have been discussing books, watching movies, and even wetting the pen and sharing their stories with the worldwide web. They both love cats, chocolate, and a good story.