Book Review: Home

You know that book where you’re so excited to read it, but once you start you don’t want it to be over? That pretty much sums up my feelings when it comes to Harlan Coben’s newest novel, Home. This is a continuation of his Myron Bolitar series, which hasn’t had a new installment in years. Harlan Coben is one of my absolute favorite writers, and the Myron Bolitar series is one of my absolute favorite book series. Needless to say, I’ve been dying for a new Myron book and Home did not disappoint.

Here’s the synopsis:

“A decade ago, kidnappers grabbed two boys from wealthy families and demanded ransom, then went silent. No trace of the boys ever surfaced. For ten years their families have been left with nothing but painful memories and a quiet desperation for the day that has finally, miraculously arrived: Myron Bolitar and his friend Win believe they have located one of the boys, now a teenager. Where has he been for ten years, and what does he know about the day, more than half a life ago, when he was taken? And most critically: What can he tell Myron and Win about the fate of his missing friend?”

My rating: *****

I loved this book. Absolutely loved it. It was amazing, spectacular, spellbinding, pretty much any word that describes an incredibly terrific book! _{Okay, I’ll admit that I might be overselling it a little.}

First things first, this book is told in 3^rd person POV focusing on Myron and occasionally 1^st person POV focusing on Win. We read Win’s thoughts and it is amazing. If you’ve never read any of the Myron Bolitar books before there are a lot of important characters, but the main four are: Myron, Windsor “Win” Horne Lockwood III, Esperanza Diaz, and Big Cyndi. The four of them are a very eclectic group and are very entertaining. I’m making a point to mention that we’re reading chapters told through Win’s perspective, because he’s a psychopathic anti-hero. He’s pretty much the type of character I normally wouldn’t be a fan of, and yet for some reason I love this character. Win. An enigma of a character, and it is wonderful to get to read through his perspective.

Oh and Myron’s nephew Mickey Bolitar, and his friends Ema and Spoon from the YA books staring Mickey, also make appearances in Home.

The story itself was one full of twists and turns, because just when you think they’ve figured it out, it turns into something else instead. Which is great, because it kept me at the edge of my seat, trying to figure out exactly what went down with this kidnapping. The answer and ending to this mystery was a bittersweet one though. But I really didn’t dwell on the bittersweetness, because the ending to the novel, the very last page, dropped a bombshell.

To avoid spoilers, I will sum up my thoughts on said bombshell: “WHAT!? WHAT!? WHAT!? AHHH! NO WAY!”

I’m really, really hoping that there’s going to be either another Myron book or another Mickey book, because I really, really, really want to learn more about this.

And I say hoping, because there were moments in Home where I was wondering if this is going to be the last Myron Bolitar novel. I haven’t seen anything that states that it is, so I’m going to remain optimistic that Harlan Coben has more stories for these characters in the future.

Just hopefully it won’t take five more years. 

Book Review: Curious Minds: A Knight and Moon Novel

Author collaborations are always interesting. Each writer has their own unique style, so when you combine two of them you can wind up with two results: a disaster or an enjoyable story. Fortunately, all the ones I’ve read so far, have been very enjoyable. That’s why today, I’ll be reviewing Janet Evanovich’s recent collaboration with Phoef Sutton: Curious Minds: A Knight and Moon Novel.

Here’s the synopsis:

“Emerson Knight is introverted, eccentric, and has little to no sense of social etiquette. Good thing he’s also brilliant, rich, and (some people might say) handsome, or he’d probably be homeless. Riley Moon has just graduated from Harvard Business and Harvard Law. Her aggressive Texas spitfire attitude has helped her land her dream job as a junior analyst with mega-bank Blane-Grunwald. At least Riley Moon thought it was her dream job, until she is given her first assignment: babysitting Emerson Knight.

What starts off as an inquiry about missing bank funds in the Knight account leads to inquiries about a missing man, missing gold, and a life-and-death race across the country. Through the streets of Washington, D.C., and down into the underground vault of the Federal Reserve in New York City, an evil plan is exposed. A plan so sinister that only a megalomaniac could think it up, and only the unlikely duo of the irrepressibly charming Emerson Knight and the tenacious Riley Moon can stop it.”

My rating: *****

I really enjoyed this story. Riley and Emerson are both enjoyable characters, Emerson especially so. He’s a pretty big departure from Janet Evanovich’s usual male leads. Oh, he’s still attractive, just like Ranger, Joe, and Nick are, but his personality is pretty different. Emerson is pretty much a mash up between Sheldon Cooper and Sherlock Holmes. And that makes for a very entertaining character.

The story itself is a pretty average one, nothing spectacular, but it wasn’t bad either. The mystery was interesting, and I was curious to see where the story was going to go. Much like most of Janet Evanovich’s books, it’s the characters that leave a lasting impact, not the story itself. But I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. I do have to say, that I love the various pop culture references that this book makes. If you manage to make superhero references in a story, I’m pretty much guaranteed to increase my liking of it.

All in all, this is a series I would like to see continued. 

Book Review: Ella: An Everland Ever After Tale

I love fairy tales. Growing up, my favorite movies were Disney’s animated reimaginings of these stories. So it’s only natural that I would enjoy checking out novels that do the same thing. One of the more recent ones that I’ve read has been Ella: An Everland Ever After Tale. This book is the second in the Everland Ever After Tales, and it is a reimagining of Cinderella.

Here’s the synopsis:

"Forget glass slippers... this time she's wearing cowboy boots!

Ella has grown used to the casual cruelty of her stepsisters, the complete control her wicked stepfather exerts, and the exasperating way the birds and the mice keep bothering her while she's trying to do her (extensive) daily chores. But with the big July Fourth celebration coming up in Everland, she's determined to make her sisters the prettiest dresses possible so that they'll finally get married and move out of her life. But she doesn't count on a chance meeting with a handsome shopkeeper...

Having lost a leg at Gettysburg, Ian Crowne knows that he's no princely catch. He's got his store and his dogs, so he's satisfied...until the day when an enigmatic stranger captures his imagination and his heart. Now they're both dreaming of each other and wishing on stars, and the celebration is only days away...”

My rating: ***** (Probably closer to a 3 ½) 

I’m sort of torn on my thoughts when it comes to this story. I enjoyed it, but it’s not a story that I’d necessarily want to read again. This is a really creative story. I’ve never read a western version of a fairy tale before, so that was pretty neat. I liked the small twist of Ella having a wicked stepfather instead of the usual stepmother. Ella and Ian were both nice characters and they seem like a good pair, also props to the author for having them meet a few times before the Fourth of July celebration. And on a more minor note, I did like that Ella didn't have blonde hair for a change.

My main problem with the novel is that it feels like things move very fast as soon as the celebration happens.  It just seems like there was so much building up to it, that as soon as things were getting good the story was over. I’m of the mindset that the story would have been better with a few more chapters about Ella and Ian after the celebration was over. I think that would have kept the ending from feeling rushed.

That being said, the story was still an interesting one. I have two of the other novels in this series on my Kindle, and I’m curious to see how this universe will be expanded.

So what fairy tale retellings do you all enjoy? Are there any you would recommend?