"The Inheritance Games" by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

 Jennifer Lynn Barnes has done it again!

There's a reason that Jennifer Lynn Barnes is one of my top 3 favorite young adult authors. 

It's because her books are AMAZING!!!

I fell in love with Barnes's storytelling with her "Naturals" series.

I highly enjoyed "The Fixer" duology and I was captivated by "The Lovely and the Lost".

But it is possible I may have a new favorite. 

"The Inheritance Games".... aahhhh, how do I even describe it? I feel like my brain is still spinning from all the puzzles, riddles, and revelations that are woven through the fabric of the story. The story is a mystery in the truest sense of the word. It will leave you guessing until the very end, and if you think you've figured it out... think again. 

"The Inheritance Games" centers around 17 year old Avery Graham, who is doing everything she can to save money for college while still making the grades she needs to get accepted.  Avery lives with her half sister after her mother passed away, and their deadbeat dad isn't in the picture. Despite Avery's brilliant mind, her future is anything but certain due to her current financial situation. 

But then everything changes.

Grayson Hawthorne has tracked Avery down and informed her that she has been named a beneficiary in his late grandfather's will. Tobias Hawthorn was one of the richest men in the world when he passed away.

And Avery has no idea who he is.

Avery and her sister fly to Texas, courtesy of the Hawthorne family, to hear the will read. The rest of the Hawthorne family is waiting for them: the two daughters of the late Tobias Hawthorne, his four handsome, brilliant grandsons, as well as several members of the staff. 

And no one is more surprised than Avery when Tobias Hawthorne's lawyer announces that other than a mere pittance left to his family and his staff, the Hawthorne fortune, the businesses and the sprawling mansion now belong to Avery Kylie Graham. 

Avery is now one of the richest women in the world.

The disinherited family isn't sure what to make of this revelation. Who is Avery? Why did Tobias Hawthorne leave his immense fortune to this stranger? 

Grayson Hawthorne, the heir apparent, thinks Avery is little better than a con woman, who has some how tricked, conned, or manipulated her way into a fortune. Jameson Hawthorne, the third grandson,  sees Avery as a puzzle, as one more riddle left behind by the old man for his grandsons to figure out and solve. 

What happens next is a series of puzzles, secret passages, hidden messages, and daunting riddles that begin to reveal family secrets and haunting tragedies. Avery starts down this path, working with Grayson and Jamie to solve the mystery behind Tobias Hawthorne's bizarre decision regarding his will, and discovering that the rabbit hole that is the Hawthrone family goes much deeper than she ever could have imagined.

Despite being an amazing book, there was one downside to this book.

I did not like the insta-attraction between Avery and two of the Hawthorne grandsons. It felt a little bit rushed and I never like it when a character is attracted to multiple people in the same family. There is no way that ends well for anyone. 

This book kept me turning pages late into the night. Tension and suspense is interwoven masterfully throughout the plot and the engaging and sometime quirky characters has me reaching for book two even as I am finishing this review. 

"Long Live the Pumpkin Queen" by Shea Ernshaw

 October is fast approaching and the cooler temperatures and changing leaves always put me in the mood for some Halloween themed reads. The creepier, the better. 

I am kicking off my Halloween reading season with a blast from my past. "Long Live the Pumpkin Queen" by Shea Ernshaw is the long awaited sequel to Tim Burton's Gothic Halloween classic, "The Nightmare Before Christmas". 

I LOVED "The Nightmare Before Christmas" when I was kid. I loved the spooky, creepy vibes of Halloween Town, the disgustingly delightful residents, the skeleton who longed for something more than just screams and scares, and the unrequited love a rag doll had for the King of Halloween. 

"Long Live the Pumpkin Queen" picks up where "The Nightmare Before Christmas" left off. Sally and Jack are newly married and are settling into their new roles, Jack as a husband and Sally as the Queen of Halloween. Sally, who has always watched everything from the shadows, suddenly finds herself thrust into the light, and she struggles with the expectations the residents of Halloween Town have for her as their new Queen. New dresses, crowns, parties to plan. It is overwhelming for someone like Sally who has spent most of her life being overlooked or ignored. 

Despite Sally's desperate love for Jack, and his love for her in return, Sally finds herself wishing she can once again fade into the shadows, just for a bit, just to have some quite and be alone without all the expectations being thrust upon her. 

And Sally gets her wish.

After a night away from the noise and chaos of Halloween Town, Sally returns to find all the residents of Halloween Town, including Jack, trapped within a deep sleep from which they cannot awaken. Halloween Town is finally quiet, but Sally realizes that she in not alone. 

There is a monster in Halloween town. A monster that doesn't belong there.

This monster is responsible for the forced slumber of the residents of Halloween Town and it won't let them wake.  And it wants Sally next.

Sally must put aside her fear and set off to new worlds to find someone who can help her save her beloved Jack and the residents of Halloween Town before it's too late. 

New revelations come to light about the holiday worlds and about Sally herself as Sally desperately tries to find a way to defeat the monster that has taken over Halloween Town and free its inhabitants from their never ending nightmares.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. While it is targeted towards a middle grade/young adult audience, I believe it is going to be a favorite for readers of any age who enjoyed "The Nightmare Before Christmas". I loved Sally's character growth in this story. Although she played her part in saving Christmas in the original film, she definitely deserved her own story. This novel helped Sally grow from the shy, awkward rag doll who thought the Pumpkin King would never notice her, to a strong confident Queen who would go to great lengths to protect those she loves.

The romance between Sally and Jack was innocent and sweet, adding a heartwarming feeling to this otherwise dark and twisty tale. 

If you are in the mood for a light, spooky, Halloween read, then look no farther that "Long Live the Pumpkin Queen".

"Be Not Far From Me" by Mindy McGinnis

 Warning: 

YOU ARE GOING TO NEED A STRONG STOMACH FOR THIS ONE!

This survival story is not for squeamish readers.

One stupid mistake leads to a fight for survival for 17 year old Ashley. At the suggestion of one of her friends, Ashley and her boyfriend, Duke, and several other classmates decide to have a party off one of the trails in the national forest to celebrate the end of their junior year of high school. 

Plenty of privacy

No adult supervision.

Surrounded by nature.

The perfect plan, right?

But when Ashley stumbles across her boyfriend getting a little too cozy with another girl, her rage and pain send her crashing into the forest with no light, no shoes, and no phone. In the pitch black of the forest, Ashley doesn't see the fall coming her way which results in a debilitating injury. 

Ashley has always loved the woods and has always had an interest in wilderness survival ever since she started going to summer camp as a kid. So she knows exactly how bad her situation is, and she also knows that no one is going to come looking for her for days because they will all assume she hiked back home by herself. 

If Ashley wants to get out of the forest alive, she is going to have to confront all the dangers and obstacles the forest has to offer and find her own way back to civilization. But confronting what is inside of her and finding the strength to go on may be her greatest challenge. 

Be Not Far From Me is a raw survival story that reminds readers that while nature is beautiful, it is not tame. McGinnis also wasn't tame in her descriptions of the pain Ashley endured or the experiences she had to go through in order to survive.

Mild spoilers:

Injuries that expose bone to the elements

Removing infected flesh in order to survive. 

Eating anything she could find to prevent starvation.

(And these aren't event the worst things, but I don't want to spoil it.😀)

I deeply regretted reading parts of this book during my lunch shift, but the story was compelling. Ashley's strength and determination in the face of overwhelming odds made me root for her, despite her being a flawed human being who had made many mistakes in her young life. Ashley was a relatable character for this reason. She wasn't perfect, but she never quit. 

Despite some of gruesome elements that came along with this kind of survival story, I truly enjoyed Be Not Far From Me by Mindy McGinnis. 

"Girl on the Run" by Abigail Johnson

Perfect for fans of April Henry!!!

Girl on the Run is a YA thriller that is perfect for readers who are looking for a quick, fast paced mystery full of family secrets, shocking discoveries, and nearly nonstop action.  

Seventeen year old Katelyn Reed thinks she is doing something nice when creates an online dating profile for her overly cautious, slightly neurotic mother in an attempt to help her find love again. Her mother can be a bit over protective.

No social media. 

Only sleepovers with approved friends.

No boys.

The list goes on.

However, when Katelyn reveals to her mother what she has done, Katelyn's whole world changes. Instantly, Katelyn's mother becomes someone that Katelyn almost doesn't recognize. She tells Katelyn they have to leave, right now,  and her fear is written all over her face. Katelyn has no idea why her mother is reacting this way. She knew her mom would be resistant to an online dating profile, but she never expected this reaction. 

The next thing Katelyn knows, her mother has stolen her neighbor's car and they are abandoning their home for the past year in the middle of the night. Katelyn doesn't understand what's going on, and her mother isn't giving her any clues either. She is just frantic to get Katelyn away. 

When another car smashes into the side of their car, trying to force Katelyn and her mom off the road, Katelyn realizes that her mother's fears are very real.

Someone is coming after them, and her mother has been keeping secrets.

This YA thriller is perfect for anyone who is looking for suspense with a lighter feel to it than most thrillers. There is definitely some violence in the book as Katelyn and her mom are pursued by the mysterious people chasing them, but the violence is usually referenced in past tense, injuries are sustained merely trying to get away, or threats are made about future violence with most never being carried out. The final showdown at the end of the book is a little bloody, but overall a solid conclusion to the story. 

There is also a small romantic side story that plays a part throughout the book, and I wished this had been a little more fleshed out at the end of the book. But overall, it added a sweet element to help balance the nonstop action and fast pace of the book.

Once again, this is a great story is you are looking for a light fast paced thriller that you can get through quickly and enjoy.  

Girl on the Run is a 2022-2023 Gateway Award Nominee.

"The Final Girl Support Group" by Grady Hendrix

 Holy Easter Eggs!!!

If you are a horror movie fan, then this book is a MUST-READ!!! And I'm talking about being a fan of the classic horror movies like the original Halloween franchise, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, etc. References to these horror movie giants are expertly interwoven throughout this suspenseful tale with just enough subtly to make the reader scour each page for more connections between the characters in this book and their story lines and the screenplays their stories were inspired by. 

I had a general idea of what to expect when I first opened The Final Girl Support Group, but I guess I wasn't anticipating the level of depth that we get as readers by diving into the minds of women who survived their own personal horror movie. That is what a Final Girl is, the last girl standing at the end of the movie who faced down the monster and won. 

The Final Girl Support Group follows Lynette Tarkington, who survived a brutal attack by a deranged serial killer and then a year later survived his younger brother's attack, both on Christmas Eve. Her parents, her boyfriend, her little sister, and later her foster parents were all casualties from these Christmas Eve slayings. 

Ever since, Lynette has been obsessed with making herself "safe", from learning self defense to turning her apartment into a fortified panic room. She cannot leave her house without feeling like people are watching her, that the monsters are still out there waiting for her. The only time she leaves her apartment is for her monthly group therapy session with a group of women who are survivors like Lynette, and their therapist Dr. Carol. Dani, Marilyn, Heather, Julia, Adrienne are all Final Girls, and they are the only people who can truly understand what Lynette is going through. 

But Lynette doesn't feel like she is a true Final Girl. Whereas all the other women in her support group fought back and eventually helped take down their attackers, Lynette merely survived the attacks and someone else took down the bad guy. So does that make her a Final Girl? Just not dying? And Lynette is keeping secrets, and those secrets could change everything if anyone ever learned about them. 

Lynette's ordered and carefully structured life comes crashing down when one of the Final Girls is murdered in her home, and it quickly becomes apparent that someone is trying to put an end to all the Final Girls once and for all. 

This horror novel is a dark, gritty story that shines some light on the depravity of mankind and the strength of the human spirit. And although Lynette frustrated me at times with her paranoia and the decisions she would make, I think she was the perfect character to focus on in this story. She truly develops as character as the story progresses, and I was content with the way Hendrix chose to end the story. 

My favorite line in the whole book was,

"Dying isn't the important thing. It's nothing more than the punctuation mark on the end of your life. It's everything that came before that matters. Punctuation marks, most people skip right over them. They don't even have a sound."

You ever read a sentence or passage and then just have to sit back and admire it? This passage did that for me. 

My favorite part of this book was trying to figure out which book character was inspired by which classic horror movie.

I am a huge classic horror movie fan, so all the Easter eggs in this book wanted to make me jump out of my seat each time I found one. I know many of the actors in these movies, and have watched documentaries on the making of these horror movies just for fun. (I'm weird, I know!) So whenever Hendrix slipped in a connection, like using part of the name of the actress that starred in the original horror movie as part of the book character's name,  I just wanted to run around and show everyone the book while screaming, "Did you see what he did there? Did you see?"

Mild Spoilers:

Julia Campbell = Neve Campbell!!!!

Heather DeLuca = Heather Langenkamp!!!!

Dani's little brother was named Nick = Nick Castle!!!!

(I'm such a nerd.) 

I had so much fun trying to pair the Final Girls to each classic horror movie. It wasn't obvious right off the bat which girls survived which movie, and that made it all the more enjoyable to me. 

Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a horror movie fan and a fan Final Girls everywhere!

"The Prison Healer" by Lynette Noni

 Holy plot twist! I did not see that coming!

I'll admit, I read several reviews before starting "The Prison Healer" and I had seen multiple reviews mentioning a plot twist at the end, but man, I did NOT see that coming.



Kiva has been locked away in a high security prison for the past 10 years of her life, ever since she was seven years old. For the past few years, she has held the title of prison healer, caring for sick and injured inmates and processing new arrivals. She is known as many different things to many different people. Most of them are not flattering.

For the past ten years, Kiva's sole purpose has been to stay alive. She keeps her head down, she listens to the guards, she spies on the other prisoners for the warden, she burns the letter "Z" into the flesh of all the new prisoners, and she does it for one reason.

"Stay alive. We are coming."

Her family is coming for her. Over the past ten years, Kiva's family has been able to smuggle in messages telling her to stay alive and they are coming for her soon. It is the only thing that has kept Kiva going.

However, things start to change with the arrival of two new prisoners. Jaren, the new handsome and strong tunneler, seems to have taken an interest in Kiva. One that she fights against knowing that Jaren likely will not survive his first month in the prison. And Tilda, the very ill rebel queen responsible for the uprising against the ruling family, who arrives shortly after and her presence changes everything.

"Don't let her die. We are coming."

When the rebel queen is sentenced to Trial by Ordeal, her death becomes almost certain. However, Kiva must do everything in her power to keep the rebel queen alive until help can arrive, even if it means taking the queen's place in the trials. Kiva must survive the four elemental ordeals: Ordeal by Air, Ordeal by Fire, Ordeal by Water, Ordeal by Earth. However, if Kiva fails, she dies and the rebel queen will be executed with her.



With their fates now entwined, Kiva is going to need the help of her friends, both new and old, if she ever hopes to get out of the prison alive.

***

This amazing immersive story is a page turner filled with intrigue, prison riots, betrayals, secrets, budding romance and magic. I thoroughly enjoyed the budding romance between Jaren and Kiva, and Tipp is definitely one of my favorite characters.

The description of the Ordeal by Fire and the Ordeal by Water literally had my stomach twisting with anxiety. These scenes were packed with tension and I literally flew threw them.

I hated that we didn't see what happened to the warden towards the end.

That plot twist at the end though... I almost feel like I need to reread the book now and see if there were clues that I missed that pointed towards this revelation, or if it hit all readers the way it did me.

I am excited to see the story continue, but I feel like Kiva has a dark road to travel ahead of her. I think I will wait to read "The Gilded Cage" until "The Blood Traitor" comes out this summer.

Deep Water by Watt key

I found myself in a bit of a reading slump lately. A weird reading slump. The kind of slump where there are dozens of books I want to read, but when I pick them up to begin, I can't get past the first few pages. 

So frustrating...

I think the problem was I was picking up the same type of book over and over again. I needed something different. 

So I picked up...

Now, I am a sucker for almost any type of ocean survival story. I love movies like Jaws, The Meg, Underwater, Open Water, The Shallows... You get the idea. So when I came across Watt Key's Deep Water, I thought I would give it a shot. 

The story begins when 12 year old Julie Sims goes out with her somewhat irresponsible father to charter a spearfishing dive in the Gulf with a wealthy businessman and his son, Shane. When her father becomes ill, Julie faces the decision of having to guide the dive herself, or risk her father losing the much needed money from this charter. 

Seeing no other option, Julie descends the 105 feet to the ocean floor with two reckless divers in unsavory dive conditions. Things quickly go from bad to worse, and the trio finds themselves in a life or death survival situation as they battle sharks, withstand lightning storms, and fight off dehydration. Julie has to use every bit of her knowledge about the ocean and survival techniques to get them out of Deep Water alive. 

I felt something rough brush against my leg. I yelped and jerked it away instinctively.

                    "What?" Shane asked.

                    Before I even lowered my head, I knew. Underneath me I saw the sleek 

                    gray body gliding below. 

While the main character, Julie Sims, is 12 years of age, a little younger than the MCs of most of the books I read, her characterization and maturity in the face of a life-threatening situations made her seem much older. Thus, it was easy for me to connect with her as a character. 

I really enjoyed the pacing of the story. I think it would be easy for a survival story set in the middle of the ocean to become boring because so much of surviving in the ocean is just not dying. There is not a lot Julie, Shane, or his father can do except stay alive and hope that help arrives. To break up the monotony of their ocean survival situation, Julie's survival story is interspersed with flashbacks of her life that help explain how she got into this situation in the first place. 

Fun Fact: This story is also somewhat based on a real-life experience the author had when he and a friend went scuba-diving. He didn't have near as many obstacles to face as Julie, though. 

I flew through the story in just two days and I found it to be a highly enjoyable survival story that kept me guessing about the outcome. My only regret is that I felt like the friendship between Shane and Julie could have been a little more developed. If you think you are going to die, you don't really need to keep all your fears, hopes and dreams to yourself. While Key did work this into the story to some extent, I feel like he could have taken it a little farther.

Overall, if you are looking for an engaging survival story with interesting characters and plenty of suspense to keep you turning the pages, then be sure to pick up a copy of Deep Water by Watt Key.

"When do we give up, Julie?" he said.

"I don't know," I said. "Maybe you can't even if you want to." 

  

HAPPY READING!