Book: The Last Emperox

 Book: The Last Emperox

Author: John Scalzi

Pages: 308

This is my 120th read for the year

What Amazon says:

The collapse of The Flow, the interstellar pathway between the planets of the Interdependency, has accelerated.  Entire star systems - and billions of people - are becoming cut off from the rest of human civilization.  This collapse was foretold through scientific prediction - and yet, even as the evidence is obvious and insurmountable, many still try to rationalize, delay and profti from, these final days of one of the greatest empires humanity has even known.  Emperox Grayland II has finally wrested control of her empire from those who oppose her and who deny the reality of this collapse.  But "control" is a slippery thing, and even as Grayland strives to save as many of her people from impoverished isolation, the forces opposing her rule will make a final, desperate push to topple her from herthrone and power, by any means necessary.  Grayland and her thinning list of allies must use every tool at their disposal to save themselves, and all of humanity.  And yet it may not be enough.  Will Grayland become the savior of her civilization - or the last emperox to wear the crown?

This was a good ending to the trilogy.  There were some suprises, and of course a little bit of humor mixed into the tension.  I like most of the characters, and was sad when one of the main characters is killed.  It ended pretty well, but I would have liked a bit more.  However, overall a very good trlogy that I am glad I read.

Stars: 4

Book: The Third Gilmore Girl

 Book: The Third Gilmore Girl

Author: Kelly Bishop

Pages: 256

This is my 119th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

Kelly Birshop's long, storied career has been defined by landmark achievements, from winning a Tony Award for her turn in the original Broadway cast of A Chorus Line to her memorable performance as Jennifer Grey's mother in Dirty Dancing.  But it is probably her iconic role as matriarch Emily in the modern classic Gilmore Girls that cemented her legacy.  Now, Birshop reflects on her remarkable life and looks towards the future with The Third Gilmore Girl.  She shares some of her greatest stories and the life lessons she's learned on her journey.  From her early transition from dance to drama, to marrying young to a compulsive gambler, to the losses and achievements she experienced - among them marching for women's rights and losing her second husband to cancer - Bishop offers a rich, genuine celebration of her life.

This was a great book.  I have watched and enjoyed all the shows that Bishop has been a part of, and think she is a fantastic actress.  I enjoyed learning more about her career and what she is up to now.  She was humble and caring about those who she worked with.  She shared her own tragic loss of her husband and how she has moved on without him.  Overall a strong, quick read.

Stars: 4.5

Book: The Staircase in The Woods

 Book: The Staircase in the Woods

Author: Chuck Wendig

Pages: 400

This is my 118th read for the year

What Amazon says:

Five high school friends are bonded by an oath to protect one another no matter what.  Then, on a camping trip in the middle of the forest, they find something extraordinary: a mysterious staircase to nowhere.  One friend walks up- and never comes back down.  Then the staircase disappears.  20 years later, the stiarcase has reappeared.  Now the group returns to find the lost boy - and what lies beyond the staircase in the woods.

I really wanted to like this book.  I have read a few Wendig books in the past and liked them, so when a new one came out, I jumped on it.  It started ou okay, but the book just dragged.  There were some very creepy parts, which kept me reading, but overall, it was a bit mundane.  The characters were doing the same thing over and over again.  Had a hard time connecting to any of the characters.  Ending was just fine.

Stars: 3

Book: Quiet in her Bones

 Book: Quiet In Her Bones

Author: Nalini Singh

Pages: 496

This is my 117th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

My mother vanished 10 years ago.  So did a quarter of a million dollars in cash.  Thief.  Criminal.  Now she's back.  Her bones clothes in scarlet silk.  When socialite Nina Rai disappeared without a trace, everyone wrote it off as another trophy wife tired of her wealthy husband.  But now her bones have turned up in the shadowed green of the forest that surrounds her elite neighborhood, a haven of privilege and secrets that's housed in the same influential families for decades.  The rich live here, along with those whose job it is to make their lives easier.  And somebody knows what happened to Nina one rainy night 10 years ago.  Her son Aarav heard a chiling scream that night, and he's determined to uncover the ugly truth that lives beneath the moneyed elegance - but no one is ready for the murderous secrets about to crawl out of the dark.  Even the dead aren't allowed to break the rules in this cul-de-sac.

This book was fine.  I didn't really care for the main character.  And I did find the book a big slow paced.  Too many suspected.  Felt like main theme got bogged down with unnecessary dialogue.  I finished it, but not sure I will read another of her books.

Stars: 3

Book: Kaiju Preservation Society

 Book: The Kaiju Preservation Society

Author: John Scalzi

Pages: 268

This is my 116th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

When COVID-19 sweeps through NYC, Jamie Gray is stuck as a dead-end driver for food delivery apps.  That is, until Jamie makes a delivery to an old acquaintance, Tom, who works at what he calls "an animal rights organization."  Tom's team needs a last-minute grunt to handle things on their next field visit.  Jamie, eager to do anything, immediately signs on.  What Tom doesn't tell Jamie is that the animals his team cares for are not here on Earth.  Not our Earth, at least.  In an alternate dimension, massive dinosaur-like creatures named Kaiju roam a warm, human-free world.  They're the universe's largest and most dangerous panda and they're in trouble.  It's not just the Kaiju Preservation Society who have found their way to the alternate world.  Others have, too.  And their carelssness could cause millions back on our Earth to die.  

This was a pretty interesting book.  I do enjoy a good Scalzi novel.  His writing is fun and entertaining with good plot movement.  I liked most of the characters.  It is a fast and easy read.  Loved the idea of another world with giant animals that remind you of Godzilla.  Solid read.

Stars: 4

Book: Unsheltered

 Book: Unsheltered

Author: Barbara Kingsolver

Pages: 508

This is my 115th read for the year

What Amazon says:

How could two hardworking people do everything right in life, a woman asks, and end up destitute?  Willa Knox and her husband followed all the rules as responsibleparents and professionals, and have nothing to show for it but debts and an inherited brick house that is falling apart.  The magazine where Willa worked has folded; the college where her husband had tenure has closed.  Te dubious shleter is also the only option for a disabled father-in-law and an exasperating, free-spirited daughter.  When the family's one success story, an Ivy-educated son, is uprooted by tragedy he seems likely to join them, with dark complications of his own.  In another time, a troubled husband and public servant asks,How can a man tell the truth, and be reviled for it?  A science teacher with a passion for honest investigation, Thatcher Greenwood finds himself under siege: his employer forbigs him to speak of the exciting work just published by Charles Darwin.  His young bride and social=climbing mother-in-law bristle at the risk of scandal, and dismiss his worries that their elegant house is unsound.  In a village ostensibly founded as a benevolent Utopia, Thatcher wants only to honor his duties, but his friendships with a woman scientist and a renegade newspaper editor threaten to draw him into a vendetta with the town's powerful men.

This was an okay book.  Not one of my favorite Kingsolver novels.  I found it very slow moving.  I liked the Willa part of the book, but the Thatcher part of the book dragged for me.  The story went basically no where. Just felt underdeveloped.

Stars: 3

Book: The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop

 Book: The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop

Author: Fannie Flagg

Pages: 304

This is my 114th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

Bud Threadgoode grew up in the bustling little railroad town of Whistle Stop with his mother, Ruth, church-going and proper, and his Aunt Idgie, the fun-loving hell riaser.  Together they ran the town's popular Whistle Stop Cafe, known far and wide for its fun and famous friend green tomatoes.  And as Bud often said of his childhood to his daughter Ruthie, "How lucky can you get?"  But sadly, as the railroad yards shut down and Whistle Stop became a ghost town, nothing was left but boarded-up buildings and memories of a happier time.  Then one day, Bud decides to take one last trip, just to see what has become of his beloved Whistle Stop.  In so doing, he discovers new friends, as well as surprises about Idgie's life, about Ninny Threadgoode and other beloved Fannie Flagg characters, and about the town itself.  He also sets off a series of events, both touching and inspiring, which change his life and the lives of his daughter and many others.  Could these events all be just coincidences?  Or something else?  And can you really go home again?

This was not a good book.  I was disappointed because I loved Fried Green Tomatoes (the book and the movie) and this is the follow up story.  I have no idea how this got so many good reviews because the writing is very juvenile.  There is not good flow - it is all over the place as far as timeline.  It is convoluted and just felt tossed together to write another story about beloved characters.  Fell flat.

Stars: 2