Danita Reads

Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend

By MJ Wassmer

Coming August 6, 2024

(3 / 5)

Dan, an underachieving average guy, is on vacation with his girlfriend in the Bahamas at a new beach resort. But suddenly they are plunged into darkness, with the sun presumably having exploded. Welcome to the apocalypse.

Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend has a satirical approach to an apocalyptic event, so it’s not necessarily something that can be taken completely seriously. The book felt fittingly chaotic, especially as a societal hierarchy formed between the different buildings of guests. A lot of the characters weren’t necessarily very likable, especially in this situation where humanity is at its worst, so I never really connected completely with the main characters. Along the way the story has a bit of a twist to it, but honestly, I had already suspected it, so it probably didn’t have the impact on me that it would have otherwise. There was enough going on in the story to keep my interest, and it felt like a pretty quick read, but it wasn’t quite as much “the book for me” as I thought it would be.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the free review copy of Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

When the World Tips Over

By Jandy Nelson

Coming September 24, 2024

(4 / 5)

Dizzy, Miles, and Wynton are siblings whose father disappeared 12 years ago, and each are facing their own challenges. Then a mysterious rainbow-haired girl appears, affecting each of the siblings in their own ways.

When the World Tips Over is a book that dives deep into the dynamics of family, following a story that spans generations. Through the book, we follow the perspectives of 4 different characters along with notes from some other characters, plus the story of a family’s ancestors. It’s a lot to keep track of, but all of these pieces are interweaved in a way that slowly reveals a bigger picture while holding a feeling of mystery and destiny. There’s a sense of magical realism throughout, which gives the characters and story an almost fairy tale type feel. The book is quite long, and at times I felt like it was moving much slower than I prefer with not a lot of action… but I think that it’s just the type of book this is: very introspective and focused more on the characters than the plot. It was sometimes a bit depressing, yet thought-provoking enough to keep me wanting to read more, even when I wasn’t quite sure where the story was going. There are certainly some interesting surprises along the way that I didn’t see coming!

Thank you to Penguin Teen, Dial Books, and BookishFirst for the free review copy of When the World Tips Over! All opinions expressed in my review are completely my own.

July 14, 2024 by danimae1981 Fiction Paperback Young Adult 0

Hearts Overboard

By Becky Dean

Released today!

(4.5 / 5)

Summer break has just started for Savannah, but it came with her boyfriend, Caleb, breaking up with her, complaining she’s too boring. Now she’s leaving for an Alaskan cruise with her parents and their friends, stuck having to be around their son, Tanner, who also happens to be her nemesis. In an effort to seem less boring, she calls a truce with Tanner to help her try new things during the trip.

This was a really cute story with an amazing setting and a sense of adventure. At first Savannah struck me as a little self-centered and set in her ways, but as I got to know her, I started to understand her better. Plus, it gave a good opportunity for character growth, which we see a lot of over the course of the story. Despite Savannah’s negative feelings about him in the beginning, Tanner was a likable character who had a lot of depth too. It was interesting to watch the characters learn a lot about each other (maybe Savannah didn’t know as much about Tanner as she thought she did) while also learning a lot about themselves along the way. There was a lot of introspection about taking risks, trying new things, and facing fears. I enjoyed the romance aspect, even if I sometimes got a little frustrated with Savannah’s (admittedly understandable) denials along the way. The book was a quick read and kept me interested the whole time. I was a little sad to reach the ending of this one since I enjoyed it so much. I look forward to reading more books by this author!

Thank you to Random House Children’s | Delacorte Romance and NetGalley for the free review copy of Hearts Overboard! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

July 9, 2024 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Young Adult 0

The Blood Traitor

The Prison Healer #3

By Lynette Noni

(4.5 / 5)

The Blood Traitor is the third book of the trilogy, The Prison Healer, and it didn’t disappoint. I really liked the sense of adventure this book had, exploring so much more of this fictional world than we did in the previous books. The different kinds of relationships that developed between characters were interesting and sometimes surprising. There was a good amount of action and drama, keeping me engaged and wanting to read to the end. After the previous books, I’d come to expect some interesting twists along the way, so there were some things I suspected before they were actually revealed, but I still managed to get surprised too. This was a worthy ending to a series that I really enjoyed reading and hope to read again in the future.

June 26, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Hardcover Young Adult 0

The Gilded Cage

The Prison Healer #2

By Lynette Noni

(4 / 5)

After how The Prison Healer ended, I went into the 2nd book of the series with the thought “I have a feeling this won’t end well.” Once again, we are following Kiva, joined by some familiar characters from the last book and some new ones as well. I definitely had some strong feelings and intuitions about some of the characters that turned out to be validated along the way. Kiva faces some tough decisions in this book, and honestly, I sometimes was cringing at her choices, even though it’s also what I was expecting. Over the course of the book, I made a lot of theories about reveals that might happen later in the story – some of those turned out to be right, some not quite, and a couple complete surprises along the way. The Gilded Cage was a book that thoroughly kept my interest, and I can’t wait to see where the story goes next in the 3rd book!

June 23, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Hardcover Young Adult 0

The Prison Healer

By Lynette Noni

(4.5 / 5)

This one was a reread for me, and I think I may have liked it even more the second time around. Knowing how it ends, it was interesting to see all the clues that lead up to it from a new perspective. Here’s my original review from when I first read The Prison Healer a few years ago…

The Prison Healer is a young adult fantasy that follows the story of a teen, Kiva, who has been locked in a prison for 10 years. Written in the 3rd person, the book follows Kiva’s point of view, giving us a deep insight of her thoughts and memories while she serves as the prison’s healer. Through Kiva’s eyes, we meet an interesting cast of characters inside of the prison setting.

I overall enjoyed the book and the story it had to offer, with its immersive setting and characters that felt real. While it did feel a little slow at times, there was also plenty of excitement along the way. Kiva’s thoughts could be a little redundant at times, but overall, she is a likable and relatable character. And while some things don’t seem to quite make sense along the way, it comes together by the end (sometimes in an unexpected way). I’m glad I had the chance to read this book and am looking forward to the sequel to see what happens next!

I received a free review copy of the book. All opinions are completely my own.

June 21, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Paperback Young Adult 0

Freeing Mallory

By S. Ashley

(4 / 5)

Freeing Mallory is a romance that delivers a decent amount of spice while also providing an interesting story. Both of the main characters, Mallory and Baxley, have been through some traumatic things in the past, so there’s an undertone of grief, but it is interesting to see how they each face it and learn to move on. I found both of the main characters to be likable and more complex than I was expecting, and I enjoyed the relationship between them. There’s a twist along the way that didn’t really come as a surprise for me, though there were still aspects of it that I didn’t expect. The story was a bit of an emotional roller coaster, but I was happy with the way things ended.

June 10, 2024 by danimae1981 Fiction Paperback Romance 0

Love, Off the Record

by Samantha Markum

Narrated by Ellen Quay

Coming June 11, 2024!

(5 / 5)

Wyn is a college freshman who wants to be a journalist and works on the school’s newspaper. When a reporter position becomes available, it opens up a rivalry between her and Three, the other freshman working on the paper.

I had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook version of Love, Off the Record. I thought the narrator did a good job, with enjoyable pacing and expression. In some spots the mic seemed to pick up the narrator breathing, but it didn’t really take away from the story.

This was one of those books where I loved it so much, I was sad to see it end. I absolutely loved the characters and thought they felt realistic. The rivalry and banter between Wyn and Three were great, creating a tension that kept things interesting and provided for some fun moments along the way. While on the surface the story is a coming-of-age romance, it dives into a lot of deeper topics that characters have to overcome, such as finding their individual selves amidst family expectations and how low self-esteem and trust issues can affect relationships between people. There’s also a theme of Wyn struggling with being fat, which mostly portrayed a sense of body positivity while also highlighting the insecurities that come with it. The anonymous dating app storyline was pretty predictable, but I still liked how it helped see characters from a different angle. This was a story that I felt completely invested in, and it was really hard to put down! I’ll definitely be seeking out more books by Samantha Markum.

Thank you to Spotify Audiobooks and NetGalley for the free audiobook copy of Love, Off the Record! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

June 5, 2024 by danimae1981 Audiobook Fiction Young Adult 0

Fated

By Sarah Ready

Coming July 16, 2024

(3.5 / 5)

Fated is the 3rd book in the Ghosted series, though it takes place before the other books, so I think it could easily be read as a standalone. In this story, we follow Fiona, co-owner of her family’s famous watch company in Geneva. She has some abandonment issues and is afraid to fall in love. When she is gifted a family heirloom that will let her dream her desires, she is introduced to a different life on an island, with a husband that might be a chance for her to love.

I wanted to love this book… the premise was interesting, with beautiful settings and great descriptions. The pacing felt a bit slow for my taste, and I think I would have liked to see more of Fiona in the real world. The dream world definitely had more drama and complications than I was expecting. I think I felt a little uncomfortable with the premise of Fiona basically living the life of another person (Becca) in the dream world, who seemed to have different intentions when Fiona wasn’t there. Meanwhile Fiona is dating her friend, Max, in the real world while she falls for Aaron in the dream world. All that said, the end of the book really takes a turn that tugs at the heartstrings and kept me more invested in the story. I was happy about how it ended and like the hints toward the next book in the series.

Thank you to Swift & Lewis Publishing LLC | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members’ Titles, Sarah Ready and NetGalley for the free review copy of Fated! All opinions expressed in my review are completely my own.

May 31, 2024 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Romance Women's Fiction 0

The Last Murder at the End of the World

By Stuart Turton

Narrated by James Cameron Stewart

Released today!

(4 / 5)

90 years ago, the Earth was covered in a deadly fog. The last of civilization, 122 villagers and 3 scientists, exists on a Greek island that’s surrounded by a protective barrier from the fog. On the surface, it seems like an ideal society. But then one of the scientists is murdered, triggering the lowering of the only thing separating them from the fog.

I had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook version of The Last Murder at the End of the World. The narrator is British and was understandable. He used different voices to represent different characters, and while I didn’t necessarily love all of voices, it did help differentiate who was speaking in the story.

This book was an interesting take on a post-apocalyptic dystopian world. At first, I was a little overwhelmed by the number of characters who were introduced, but I quickly was able to get familiar with the key players. The narrator of the story is ABI, an artificial intelligence that is connected to everyone’s thoughts and can communicate with them, almost as a second conscience. The first quarter of the book concentrates mostly on world building and getting to know the characters, so it takes a while to really dive into the more exciting parts of the story, but I did like how descriptive it was. We end up in a murder mystery, but it all turns out to be far more complicated than expected. The book really took some turns that I was not expecting at all, and it kept me guessing about what really happened and who was involved. At times it could be a little confusing, trying to keep everything straight amidst the constant turns the story took, but eventually everything is fully explained. The story kept me interested and was hard to put down until I reached the end.

Thank you to Tantor Audio, Sourcebooks Landmark, and NetGalley for the audiobook free review copy of The Last Murder at the End of the World! All opinions expressed in my review are completely my own.