Lemon Squeezy Book Reviews

  " It came to him, with the force of a revelation, that you have to have been imprisoned to fully understand what freedom was." Luke Ellis is a twelve year-old prodigy with a bright future, a best friend, two loving parents and a slight telekinetic power that occasionally freaks them out. He's all set to start his studies in two separate universities, when one night, three intruders kill his parents and abduct him, only to take him to the Institute.  The Institute is a place where "they" incarcerate children and teenagers with telekinetic or telepathic powers and exploit them in the most inhumane ways. The Institute is where innocence, and faith in humanity go to die. The Institute is where impossible hope and friendship blossomed.  No one has ever escaped before, but Luke isn't just an ordinary boy... I've only read a few of King's books but The Institute tops them all. King's writing is, as always,  suspenseful and evocative. The twists don...

"The world is insane, but he didn't do it. He has an alibi as strong as the S on Superman's chest." "Why did they arrest him, then?" "Because they believe they have proof as strong as the S on Superman's chest." When a boy is found mauled and molested (and dead, in case that wasn't very clear) in a small town in Oklahoma, the overwhelming evidence points with big flashing arrows to Terry Maitland, beloved husband and father of two, English Teacher and Little League coach. Detective Anderson then decides to arrest him very publicly,  before interrogating him,  in the middle of a baseball game, in front of thousands of people,  as an attempt to humiliate him. Anderson had a solid case but Terry had a strong alibi which will lead to an investigation on a path towards the supernatural and will impugn the detective's very beliefs about the universe (and the capacity of a person to be in two places at once). I can say with cer...

"When people ask me what I do - taxi drivers, dental hygienists - I tell them I work in an office. In almost nine years, no one's ever asked me what kind of office, or what sort of job I do there. I can't decide whether that's because I fit perfectly with their idea of what an office worker looks like, or whether people hear the phrase " work in an office" and automatically fill in the blanks themselves - lady doing photocopying, man tapping at a keyboard. I'm not complaining. I'm delighted that I don't have to get into the fascinating intricacies of accounts receivable with them." This is the story of Eleanor Oliphant, a 31 year-old woman who lives a lonely life. She goes through the same routine everyday, wears the same clothes, eats the same food, drowns her denial and despair in the same vodka every weekend and has convinced herself that she is "fine".  On one extremely rare outing at a pub gig she develops a li...

"There was a wolf at the gallery door." Bryce Quinlan, a half-human/half-fae citizen of Crescent City, works as an antiquities dealer assistant in a witch's gallery during the day and parties hard with her friends at night (clubs, booze, drugs, the works). One fateful night she comes home to discover her friends murdered in the most gruesome manner, and her life changes dramatically.  Even though the "culprit" has been "apprehended", two years later someone's body is found in the same way her friends' were and the Archangel and Governor of CC, Micah, asks Bryce to help solve the case together with his personal assassin, Hunt (*sigh*) Athalar. Every new revelation only brings on more questions and doubt about her deceased friends, and unravels a dangerous path that goes much deeper and steeper than they had imagined.  In this adult fantasy, Maas has amassed all kinds of supernatural creatures, such as Fae, Angels, Shifters, Witc...

"By the time Alex managed to get the blood out of her good wool coat, it was too warm to wear it."         Alex Stern elevates from a life of drug use, manipulating ex boyfriends and poverty, to a life of academic pursuit and ghost busting in Yale University. Her unique ability to see apparitions of the deceased (which, as you guessed correctly, is the reason for said drug use), is her winning ticket into Lethe House, one of the secret, supernatural Yale Societies, which is in charge of monitoring all the other secret, supernatural Yale Societies. She has the great fortune of being mentored by Darlington, who introduces her to the mystic world of the societies and their spooky-to-say-the-least rituals and prepare her to, well, basically, be the sole active member of House Lethe when he graduates. There's also a little romance blossoming between them but it's cut short because he disappears -and yet his presence lingers.    Most important howe...

"I have a theory. Hating someone feels disturbingly similar to being in love with them."    Lucy and Joshua work together in publishing as assistants to the two CEO s. They spend 50 hours a week alone together in their office and they absolutely hate each other (or DO  they? Seriously, I was confused at the beginning because the sexual tension was as potent as tear gas). Why do they "hate" each other you ask? Well I understand Lucy's detest, as Joshua is always being a condescending jerk towards her, but what is his problem? My diagnosis is that he suffers from Mr Darcy Syndrome.  Big promotion opportunity arrives and their competitive spirit and ambition surges forward, but is overshadowed when one fateful day Mr Darcy, em sorry, I meant Mr Joshua kisses Lucy in the elevator and from then on it's one big and absolutely hilarious build up leading to a very anticipated and steamy sex scene and of course to their emotional fulfillment.  This i...

"No night was perfect for treason, but this one came close." In the Kingdom of Yan, people who can predict the future and wield magic are considered monsters, brutally hunted down and executed - as are their sympathizers - in the name of peace and justice. After her father’s suspicious death, Queen Hesina, with the help of a mysterious convict and her step-siblings, will try to find the culprit, taking the case to the Investigation Bureau for trial and placing her trust in the justice system (Spoiler Alert: Big Mistake).  Welcome to a world where everyone is wearing big, elaborate masks and hiding behind their “good intentions”. The ‘Descendant of the Crane’ is full of political intrigue and self-righteous back-stabbers, with a twisty finish, which, considering how slowly the plot developed, escalated rather quickly and made for a riveting conclusion.   This isn’t a stand-alone novel; the ending lays the groundwork for a sequel. If I'm being honest though...