Tag: bookit 2016

Posted in book reviews, bookit, history

Bookit Review: While You Were Mine

Posted on by sokorra

Title:  While You Were Mine
Author: Anne Howard Creel
Publication date: April 1,2016

My Grade: B-

My Review:

This book is a sweet historical romance.  It takes place during the day following World War II in New York City.   The main character is Gwen, the nurse in the infamous Life magazine image.  She is raising the daughter of her former roommate who has abandoned her daughter. As the book begins she returns home to find the child’s father waiting to be reunited with his daughter and wife.

The book deals with post traumatic stress disorder ( though it is called shell shock), different types of relations including three mothers who take different paths with how they deal with it.

It’s a good book for a lazy afternoon, although I think sometimes the author spends too much time describing Mary’s baby clothes when it could be moving the plot line forward.  Also it has a weird pov situation, with most chapters in Gwen’s first person PvP with three or so chapters in third person focused chapters for John. 

My final grade is a B-.   Good for a lazy read but could be better.

Posted in book reviews, bookit

Bookit Review: Nerves of Steel

Posted on by sokorra

Title: Nerves of Steel
Author: CJ Lyons
Publication date: 2009

My Grade: B

My Review:

CJ Lyons is an author I like to pick up from time to time.  I’ve read her Angels of Mercy series, and enjoyed it, so I decided to start reading another series by her.  Nerves of Steel is the first book in a four book series starring Cassandra Hart (An ER doctor) and Mickey Drake (a Detective).  The series is called Hart & Drake for obvious reasons.  My main draw to CJ Lyon’s books is that they take place in Pittsburgh.

In this book, the main characters are trying to solve a run of OD cases using Fentanyl.  They end up falling in love along the way, but I think that was a bit of a given.  However, it is an interesting case.  They have to find out who’s stealing the medication from the hospital and selling it to drug addicts who are dying from it.

There are three more books in the series, although I don’t have the middle two, just this one and the last one which I plan on reading soon.  However I do recommend it to people who like romance novels, mysteries and seeing Pittsburgh show up.

I also like the high amount of female characters involved in the actual case solving roles.  Besides the main character, there are several nurses, a social worker, a pharmacy tech, a detective and a Police commander all involved in trying to solve this case.

 

Posted in American History, book reviews, bookit, history

Bookit Review: John Adams

Posted on by sokorra

Title: John Adams: The Man From Massachusetts
Author: Sam Goodyear
Publication date: 2014

My Grade: …

My Review:

To be honest, I am not sure how to review this novel.  However, I told myself I’d review each book I read this year, even the previously reads, so here is a review.  I got this book as part of my goal to read a biography on each of the presidents so I can retain some knowledge of what they did other than be President.  I’ve been getting them through Kindle Unlimited which so far has given me odd results.

The George Washington biography I last year was an odd biography, clearly meant for textbook format or discussion.  But it was informative. This one however was a short story, done in Adam’s point of view.  It was short, and at the end of the time spent reading I sat there wondering what I had just read.  It’s not a bio, its a short story so I will just say don’t pick this up if you are expecting to learn something.  It might be a good book to start younger kids on however.

I didn’t give it a grade mostly because it was so far from my expectations that I felt I couldn’t adequately judge this book.  I am also going to search out another biography to satisfy my Adams bio.