Meet Your Baker

Meet Your Baker by Ellie Alexander - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Description from the Publisher

Welcome to Torte-a friendly, small-town family bake shop where the treats are so good that, sometimes, it's criminal...

After graduating from culinary school, Juliet Capshaw returns to her quaint hometown of Ashland, Oregon, to heal a broken heart and help her mom at the family bakery. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is bringing in lots of tourists looking for some crumpets to go with their heroic couplets. But when one of Torte's customers turns up dead, there's much ado about murder...

The victim is Nancy Hudson, the festival's newest board member. A modern-day Lady Macbeth, Nancy has given more than a few actors and artists enough reasons to kill her...but still. The silver lining? Jules's high school sweetheart, Thomas, is the investigator on the case. His flirtations are as delicious as ever, and Jules can't help but want to have her cake and eat it too. But will she have her just desserts? Murder might be bad for business, but love is the sweetest treat of all...

My Review
This book is set in Ashland, Oregon in the Pacific Northwest. This setting was one of the reasons that I was drawn to this book. Ellie Alexander also writes as Kate E. Dyer-Seeley, and the mysteries she writes under that pen name all take place in the Pacific Northwest. Ashland feels like a cozy little town, which is perfect for this cozy mystery. 

The action starts quickly, and, as with most cozies, readers can easily guess who is going to get murdered. We get a glimpse of Nancy Hudson's nastiness, which provides many people with a motive for murder. 

What I Enjoyed: 

• Juliet "Jules" Capshaw is a very likable protagonist. She is down to earth and has flaws. She is also not too nosy. 
• The setting. Torte sounds like a very cozy, family style bakery, and I enjoyed reading about Jules' baking. 
• The plot. The story was engaging, and I didn't get bored at any point in the story. 
• The characters were realistic, and I loved that Ellie Alexander was able to bring out their personalities so well. 

Overall, this is a quick, fun cozy mystery. Ellie Alexander is one of my favorite cozy authors. 

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Plum Spooky

Plum Spooky by Janet Evanovich - ⭐⭐⭐

Description from the Publisher.

Turn on all the lights and check under your bed. Things are about to get spooky in Trenton, New Jersey.

According to legend, the Jersey Devil prowls the Pine Barrens and soars above the treetops in the dark of night. As eerie as this might seem, there are things in the Barrens that are even more frightening and dangerous. And there are monkeys. Lots of monkeys.

Wulf Grimoire is a world wanderer and an opportunist who can kill without remorse and disappear like smoke. He's chosen Martin Munch, boy genius, as his new business partner, and he's chosen the Barrens as his new playground.

Munch received his doctorate degree in quantum physics when he was twenty-two. He's now twenty-four, and while his brain is large, his body hasn't made it out of the boys' department at Macy's. Anyone who says good things come in small packages hasn't met Munch. Wulf Grimoire is looking for world domination. Martin Munch would be happy if he could just get a woman naked and tied to a tree.

Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has Munch on her most-wanted list for failure to appear in court. Plum is the all-American girl stuck in an uncomfortable job, succeeding on luck and tenacity. Usually she gets her man. This time she gets a monkey. She also gets a big guy named Diesel.

Diesel pops in and out of Plum's life like birthday cake – delicious to look at and taste, not especially healthy as a steady diet, gone by the end of the week if not sooner. He's an über bounty hunter with special skills when it comes to tracking men and pleasing women. He's after Grimoire, and now he's also after Munch. And if truth were told, he wouldn't mind setting Stephanie Plum in his crosshairs.

Diesel and Plum hunt down Munch and Grimoire, following them into the Barrens, surviving cranberry bogs, the Jersey Devil, a hair-raising experience, sand in their underwear, and, of course . . . monkeys.

My Review

This book is laugh out loud hilarious! While the Between-the-Numbers books can be a bit cheesy, I really don't mind because they make me laugh so much. This is a quick, fun, easy read!

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April Wrap Up!

All the books I read in April!

1. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

2. AASL National School Library Standards - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

3. The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale - ⭐⭐⭐

4. Release by Patrick Ness - ⭐⭐⭐

5. The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

6. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

7. Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet Evanovich - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

8. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater - ⭐⭐⭐

9. To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

10. City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

11. City of Glass by Cassandra Clare - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

12. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

13. The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

14. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

15. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

16. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

17. Developing Library Collections for Today's Young Adults by Amy Pattee - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

18. Far From the Tree by Robin Benway - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

19. Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

20. School Libraries and Student Learning by Rebecca Morris - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

21. Guilty as Cinnamon by Leslie Budewitz - ⭐⭐⭐

22. To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han - ⭐⭐⭐

23. The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

24. Turtles All the Way Down by John Green - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

24. We Are Okay by Nina LaCour - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

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Dear Martin

Dear Martin by Nic Stone - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Description from the Publisher

Raw, captivating, and undeniably real, Nic Stone joins industry giants Jason Reynolds and Walter Dean Myers as she boldly tackles American race relations in this stunning New York Times bestselling debut, a William C. Morris Award Finalist.

Justyce McAllister is a good kid, an honor student, and always there to help a friend—but none of that matters to the police officer who just put him in handcuffs. Despite leaving his rough neighborhood behind, he can’t escape the scorn of his former peers or the ridicule of his new classmates.

Justyce looks to the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for answers. But do they hold up anymore? He starts a journal to Dr. King to find out.

Then comes the day Justyce goes driving with his best friend, Manny, windows rolled down, music turned up—way up, sparking the fury of a white off-duty cop beside them. Words fly. Shots are fired. Justyce and Manny are caught in the crosshairs. In the media fallout, it’s Justyce who is under attack.

My Review
Format: Audiobook
Length: 273 Minutes | 4.5 hours
Genre: YA Literature, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction
Series: N/A
Content Warning: profanity, language, fighting, racial slurs, racism, police brutality

This book is so powerful. I absolutely love that the protagonist, Justyce McCallister, starts his journey to be like Martin Luther King Jr. by writing letters to him. Overall, this was a short, but beautiful, powerful read, and I highly recommend it!

The Good: 

• The format. This book is written in prose as well as letters that Justyce writes to MLK. The letters really complemented the storytelling and supported the character development. 
• Justyce. Justyce is a very likable character. He has flaws, but he tries to do the right thing, even if it is hard...just like Martin. His growth in this novel is phenomenal.
• The narrator is excellent. He did a great job of making the story come to live and giving each character their own voice.   
• The story does not shy away from hot topic issues such as police brutality and racism. 
• The characters were well developed. Nic Stone did a great job of bringing forth their personalities, humor, flaws, and all. They were depicted as normal people. There were a few extreme characters (you will know when you come across them in your reading), but overall these are characters that I might encounter in a normal day, which was refreshing and made the book more authentic and realistic. 

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Throne of Glass

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Description from the Author's Website

Meet Celaena Sardothien.

Beautiful. Deadly. Destined for greatness.

In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, Celaena, an assassin, is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king’s champion. 

The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass—and it’s there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena’s fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.

My Review
Page Count: 404
Genre: YA Fiction, Fantasy 
Series: Throne of Glass #1

I enjoyed this book a lot more than I thought I would! I have seen rave reviews and "so-so" reviews, so I tried to keep my expectations low going into this book. 

The Good: 

• Celaena Sardothien: She is a kick-butt, strong, intelligent female protagonist, and it was so exciting to see her portrayed this way!
• The plot was very good. I enjoyed the twists that Sarah Maas threw in. 
• The friendship between Celaena and Nehemia. 

The Not So Good: 

• There is a hint of a love triangle, and I would have liked to see it explored a bit more. This may happen in the rest of the series. 
• The world building could have been a bit better. This book mainly focused on the competition for the King's Champion title. 
• At times Dorian's character felt a little like the cliche misunderstood, brooding prince. 

Content Warning: mild profanity, references to seduction, fight scenes

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A Court of Thorns and Roses

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Description from the Publisher

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Perfect for fans of Kristin Cashore and George R.R. Martin, this first book in a sexy and action-packed new series is impossible to put down!

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin--one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world. 

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow over the faerie lands is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin--and his world--forever.

My Review
First, I would just like to say: THAT ENDING! Wow.

Going into this book, I did not realize that this is a Beauty and the Beast retelling. It took me a little bit to warm to the story once I realized that because in this book Sarah J. Maas converges the world of High Fae and the story of Beauty and the Beast. However, once I was invested, I could not put this book down. This is an excellent start to the series, and I plan on jumping right into the next one.

The Good:

• I really cared about the characters and their fate. Maas did an excellent job with character development. 
• Tamlin's and Feyre's relationship is beautiful. I enjoyed the fact that it isn't "insta-lovey," but starts slow. 
• Rhysand's character really surprised me in a good way, and I look forward to seeing him in future novels. 
• The writing and description in this book is beautiful. 

The Not So Good: 

• I had a really hard time envisioning the Fae characters as Fae until a certain point toward the last part of the book. I think this is because the Beauty and the Beast aspect threw me at first. 

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Blue Lily, Lily Blue

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Description from the Author

The third installment in the Raven Cycle. For the first time in Blue Sargent’s life, she has a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. The trick with found things, though, is how easily they can be lost. When Blue’s mother goes missing and old enemies turn up in her place, people start to get hurt.

My Review

The Raven Cycle story continues to improve with each book. The first two books, The Raven Boys and The Dream Thieves, served to set up the world and get to know the characters. 

The Good: 

• The plot moved forward at a quicker pace in this installment of the series. The story of Blue's missing mother added suspense. 
• We get to know the characters even more in this book. 
• Blue and Gansey's budding relationship. It is so slow and subtle that it is beautiful. 
• The cover is gorgeous. 
• The cliffhanger at the end! 

The Not So Good:

• I don't fully understand Piper's role in the story. When she was introduced, I was a bit confused, and the confusion did not clear up by the end of the book. 
• The plot can get a bit confusing at times. 

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