What kind of paradise by Janelle Brown

Format: 384 pages, Paperback

Published: May 26, 2026 by Random House Trade Paperbacks

Fiction/own

 I do not actually remember hearing about this book before, it was just a book at the grocery store among livehockey books and I thought I deserved a treat.

Also, nominee for best historical? Whaaaat? no I refuse too, historical should at LEAST be 50 years ago, not the 90s.

Jane grows up with her dad in a cabin in Montana. Nearest town 1 hour away. They only go there as a treat. She is homeschooled. Learns to hunt. And writes her dad´s manifesto as he hates new technology. But she is 17 now and she starts to question things. Where did they come from? Why does her dad disappears for days at a time?

We all know what is coming, certainly not something good. Her dad has escape routes, talks about the feds, and just gets angrier...

I liked this one. I wanted to know what had happened before and if Jane would be ok. She is just trying to hang in there, and she is so curious about the outside world.

The first thing you have to understand is that my father was my entire world.

Growing up in an isolated cabin in Montana in the mid-1990s, Jane knows only the world that she and her father live the woodstove that heats their home, the vegetable garden where they try to eke out a subsistence existence, the books of nineteenth-century philosophy that her father gives her to read in lieu of going to school. Her father is elusive about their pasts, giving Jane little beyond the facts that they once lived in the Bay Area and that her mother died in a car accident, the crash propelling him to move Jane off the grid to raise her in a Thoreau-like utopia.

As Jane becomes a teenager she starts pushing against the boundaries of her restricted world. She begs to accompany her father on his occasional trips away from the cabin. But when Jane realizes that her devotion to her father has made her an accomplice to a horrific crime, she flees Montana to the only place she knows to look for answers about her mysterious past, and her mother's San Francisco. It is a city in the midst of a seismic change, where her quest to understand herself will force her to reckon with both the possibilities and the perils of the fledgling Internet, and where she will come to question everything she values.

Play of Shadows by Sebastien de Castell

Series: Court of Shadows (#1)

Format: 478 pages, Paperback

Published: February 18, 2025 by Arcadia Books

Fantasy/own

Most of this takes place in a Theatre, certainly a change from my usual fantasy.

It starts with Damelas running from a duel he knows he cant win, and then he takes refuge in a theatre. Luckily for him they say sure he is apart of their troop and then he is stuck there. Because he really does not want to fight that duel.

In the mean time there are these Iron Orchids trying to take over the town little by little. A foreign Duke who suddenly got power is loosing control, and the theatre crew is trying to put together a play.

Oh and there is a magic that makes the actor like become one with someone who has passed? And see what they see, to really play that part well. I wonder if that will happen wink wink.

I liked this concept. Theatre , dueling and a town in turmoil. Who to trust? And what happened 100 years ago?

But book 2 is not even about Damelas! It seems to be some other city, sadness

Damelas Shademantaigne picked a poor night to flee a judicial duel.

He has precious little hope of escaping the wrath of the Vixen, the most feared duellist in the entire city, until he stumbles through the stage doors of the magnificent Operato Belleza and tricks his way into the company of actors. An archaic law provides a temporary respite from his troubles - until one night a ghostly voice in his head causes Damelas to fumble his lines, inadvertently blurting out a dreadful truth: the city's most legendary hero may actually be a traitor and a brutal murderer.

With only the help of his boisterous and lusty friend Bereto, a beautiful assassin whose target may well be Damelas himself, and a company of misfit actors who'd just as soon see him dead, this failed son of two Greatcoats must somehow find within himself the courage to dig up long-buried truths before a ruthless band of bravos known as the Iron Orchids come for his head.

Oh, and there's still that matter of the Vixen waiting to duel him . . .

Carole´s Monday: Young Washington

Title: Young Washington

Length: 2h 1m

Released: 2026

Genre: Historical, Biography, War
Rating: PG-13
Where I Got It: Theater

SUMMARY:

A young George Washington faces war, betrayal and impossible choices that will forge a leader.

Trailer

REVIEW:

Oh, Georgie Wash. I was so excited to see this!!!! I had to go see it in theaters. My fellow history nerd friend and I went to see it. And yes, I dragged poor Hubby along. 

We all know the history of George Washington. But how many know his early days? It was not an easy road for him. 

The cast was lovely. I LOVED who they had to play young George. I hope, in a few years, he can play an older George. He really filled those shoes well.

One thing of note I kept whispering to myself was the camera angles, especially in the battle scenes. They felt different but good. There is so much going on, and you feel in the middle of it. I think the camera team did great. 

Some of the dialogue felt a little cliché, but it didn't ruin the story or characters. I loved the foreshadow drops. Made me chuckle.

There was a "special message" at the end...skip it. It didn't add anything extra to the story or whatever. 

I would for sure watch this again. The battle, the story. It was entertaining and a reminder that everyone starts somewhere. A leader is not born. A leader is made. 

4 stars from me. 

 

The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall

Format: 322 pages, Paperback

Published: September 19, 2023 by Alcove Press

Paranormal/borrowed

The person I borrowed it from dnfed it, people on my friend list had dnfed it, and it was meh, but I wanted to see if the romance would pay out. BOOM! I got hit in the face, wtf happened? The romance part suddenly imploded. Was this not a cozy paranormal romance? Eh..ok?

Nope, now we are all about the curse because this is a family of witches. And oh no, grandma is dying and we are all doomed!

Boom! Bloody hell, that effing romance is back. I hate this romance. It sucked! What the heck was that?!

I honestly do not know what this book was meant to be. Paranormal cozy? Nope changed. Romance? Nope, changed. It was messy and it made me mad at the end.

Yes yes I should have given up, but I wanted to know.

Sadie Revelare has always believed that the curse of four heartbreaks that accompanies her magic would be worth the price. But when her grandmother is diagnosed with cancer with only weeks to live, and her first heartbreak, Jake McNealy, returns to town after a decade, her carefully structured life begins to unravel.

With the news of their grandmother's impending death, Sadie's estranged twin brother Seth returns to town, bringing with him deeply buried family secrets that threaten to tear Sadie's world apart. Their grandmother has been the backbone of the family for generations, and with her death, Sadie isn't sure she'll have the strength to keep the family, and her magic, together.

As feelings for Jake begin to rekindle, and her grandmother growing sicker by the day, Sadie faces the last of her heartbreaks, and she has to decide: is love more important than magic?