Book review: Every Single Lie

Book review: Every Single Lie
by Rachel Vincent
Pub Date: 12 Jan 2021 

Read courtesy of http://www.netgalley.com

If you love twists and turns, you'll enjoy Every Single Lie. The author deftly wove a tale with believable evidence at every turn, and she convinced me to twist my decision each time. I didn't feel manipulated as I followed along with Beckett in trying to solve the mystery that entangled her family and friends.

The small town setting was effective as the backdrop for the gossip of the undeniably too-close-for-comfort coincidences that cause Beckett to become the center of a social media onslaught. Some of the story focuses on the consequences of uncontrolled and unsupervised use of social media, while another part of the story focuses on the havoc that opioid abuse can cause to a family. The mixing of the two was toxic and deadly to Beckett's family. 

4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐I am looking forward to getting this into my high school students' hands.

Book Review: To Sleep in a Sea of Stars

To Sleep in a Sea of Stars
by Christopher Paolini
Pub Date: 15 Sep 2020
Read courtesy of http://www.Netgalley.com

Although I usually don't enjoy fantasy, Paolini makes it accessible to me. He doesn't confuse me with featureless, flat characters with too many weird, similar names - that alone is a win for me. I really enjoyed To Sleep in a Sea of Stars since it falls in that nebulous alley between fantasy and scifi; it was able to pull off both genres in one story.

Every character has a personality; the characters are ones for whom I want to cheer and root, and I don't really have to spend too much time understanding or hating the 'bad guys.' Kira and the Soft Blade do that for me. Engaging, fun, (long), and quite epic.

Book Review: Untold Mayhem (audiobook)

Untold Mayhem (audiobook version)

by Mark Tullius 

Pub Date: 27 May 2020

I LoveLOVED this shory story collection by Mark Tullius. I listened to it as a recorded book, and the narrators were all appropriate for the stories they read. Very talented group! It's is difficult to end a short story, and the author didn't miss a beat; every story was solid. I'm not sure how appropriate it all is for my 9th and 10 graders, but the 11th and 12th graders will devour it. (And if the youngers want to read it, then let them; it's quality storytelling.)  

I think because it isn't my usual fare, I really enjoyed the twists, turns, surprises, and unnerving gore. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐