Sara Reads Things

Title: Wicked Saints By: Emily A. Duncan Genre: Fantasy Pages: 400 Release Date: April 2nd, 2019 Publisher:  Wednesday Books Summary from Goodreads:  A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself. A prince in danger must decide who to trust. A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings.  Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war. In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and light.  Wicked Saints  is the thrilling start to Emily A. Duncan’s devastatingly Gothic Something Dark and Holy trilogy.. Add on Goodreads Review: How could you not want to read this book after reading the synopsis above? The story has all the elements of a good story. Intrigue, adventure, magic, but the story wasn't quite what I expecte...

Title: The Shadow Queen By: C.J. Redwine Genre: Fairy Tale Retelling  Pages: 387 Release Date: February 16th, 2016 Publisher:  Balzer + Bray Summary from Goodreads:  Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen. In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman…and bring her Lorelai’s heart. But Lorelai is nothing like Kol ex...

Title: A breath of Snow and Ashes By: Diana Gabaldon Genre: Historical Fantasy Pages: 1439 Release Date: August 29th, 2006 Publisher:  Delta Summary from Goodreads:  A Breath of Snow and Ashes  continues the extraordinary story of 18th-century Scotsman Jamie Fraser and his 20th-century wife, Claire. The year is 1772, and on the eve of the American Revolution, the long fuse of rebellion has already been lit. Men lie dead in the streets of Boston, and in the backwoods of North Carolina, isolated cabins burn in the forest. With chaos brewing, the governor calls upon Jamie Fraser to unite the backcountry and safeguard the colony for King and Crown. But from his wife Jamie knows that three years hence the shot heard round the world will be fired, and the result will be independence — with those loyal to the King either dead or in exile. And there is also the matter of a tiny clipping from The Wilmington Gazette, dated 1776, which reports Jamie’s death, alon...

Its Spring Break! and its Monday. We've almost made it. The kids are doing well in school. My youngest is excelling, but he's in kindergarten and that is super easy with the help of his autistic brother coaching him. Middle guy is struggling, but mostly with his attitude. His grades are right where they should be for is grade level. My oldest is also doing well. He has been able to adapt to middle school like a champ even though his autism is giving him some troubles. I can't believe how well he is doing. This weeks book is going to be The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang. This read was voted one of the best books of 2018 on Goodreads, so I'm excited to read it. I've also been working with a friend of mine to start up our own book club Burgers & Books. I know I'm already in one book club, but who says you can only have one. Its going to be awesome and exciting. Lets get on to this weeks menu, again from homechef.com. It looks delicious and I can't wai...

Title:  Bohemian Rhapsody Genre: Historical Fictional Biography Release Date: November 2nd, 2018 Rating: 8.1 out of 10 IMDB Cast:  Rami Malek ,  Lucy Boynton ,  Gwilym Lee Summary from IMDB:  The story of the legendary rock band  Queen  and lead singer  Freddie Mercury , leading up to their famous performance at  Live Aid  (1985). IMDB Trailer Review: I grew up listening to Queen. I remember listening to Bohemian Rhapsody over and over again on long car rides with the parents, everyone belting out the lyrics. This bad has been infused into my system like my own blood. So, naturally, when I heard there was a movie coming out I was over the top excited.  Now, I've heard that there isn't much historical accuracy to the story, but damn its a good story none the less.  The music is epic. We blasted it through the surround sound with the front door open so the neighbors could share in our joy. All...

Title: Theater of Spies By: S.M. Stirling Genre: Historical Thriller Pages: 400 Release Date: May 7th, 2019 Publisher:  Ace Summary from Goodreads:  The second novel in an alternate history series where Teddy Roosevelt is president once more right before WWI breaks out, and on his side is the Black Chamber, a secret spy network watching America's back.   After foiling a German plot to devastate America's coastal cities from Boston to Galveston, crack Black Chamber agent Luz O'Malley and budding technical genius Ciara Whelan go to California to recuperate. But their well-deserved rest is cut short by the discovery of a diabolical new weapon that could give the German Imperial Navy command of the North Sea.  Luz and Ciara must go deep undercover and travel across a world at war, and live under false identities in Berlin itself to ferret out the project's secrets. Close on their trail is the dangerous German agent codenamed Imperial Sword, who is det...

Monday... Again... Spring break is coming up and the whole family has vacation this week. I'm excited. We might go to the beach and we might go to the mountain. Choices, choices. I love living here in the Pacific North West. We are an hour or two from whatever we want to do. Its a beautiful part of the country. This weeks book is going to be The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine. I've had this book on my list to read for a while and it was my random pick of the week. I'm excited to dive into it. Who's with me? I've made a few adjustments to the menu this week. Normally I've been really into HelloFresh. Its an easy place for me to find some amazingly delicious recipes, but I feel like they are getting a little repetitive, so I'm switching sites to see if I like something else. Lets try Home Chef and see if they compare. Lets get cooking. Monday -  Southwestern Chicken Cutlets   Tuesday -  Salmon with Hazelnut Sauce   Wednesday -  Kor...

  Title: The Lost Hero By: Rick Riordan Genre: Urban Fantasy Pages: 557 Release Date: October 12th, 2010 Publisher:  Disney-Hyperion Books Summary from Goodreads:  Jason has a problem . He doesn’t remember anything before waking up in a bus full of kids on a field trip. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper, and a best friend named Leo. They’re all students at a boarding school for “bad kids.” What did Jason do to end up here? And where is here, exactly? Piper has a secret . Her father has been missing for three days, ever since she had that terrifying nightmare about his being in trouble. Piper doesn’t understand her dream, or why her boyfriend suddenly doesn’t recognize her. When a freak storm hits during the school trip, unleashing strange creatures and whisking her, Jason, and Leo away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood, she has a feeling she’s going to find out. Leo has a way with tools . When he sees his cabin at Camp Half-Blood, filled w...

I had the opportunity to join a book club that a friend was hosting and it was a blast. February was the first meeting, so we spent the time discussing what we wanted to read. It was book after book and they all sounded amazing. It took a while to pick what we would spend the next few weeks reading, but we did it. It was hard, but we did it. Of course, I already finished it, but I couldn't help myself. This would not be my normal read, but I was sucked in. Keep reading for my review... Title: Big Little Lies By: Liane Moriarty Genre: Contemporaneity Mystery  Pages: 460 Release Date: July 29th, 2014 Publisher:  Berkley Summary from Goodreads:  Big Little Lies  follows three women, each at a crossroads: Madeline is a force to be reckoned with. She’s funny and biting, passionate, she remembers everything and forgives no one. Her ex-husband and his yogi new wife have moved into her beloved beachside community, and their daughter is in the...

Monday, Monday! Here we are again and what a week it has been. We are dealing with sickness again and the weather has decided to be cold with a hint of snow. Not enough to get anyone out of work and school, but just a dusting to give you the sense of winter, but not the satisfaction of it. Its driving me nuts.  Anyway, my husband and I were able to see Captain Marvel. We've been planning this little outing for months now. Bought our tickets in advance and booked the ever elusive baby sitter. It was nice to get out for a few hours without having to worry about the boys. The stress of all the normal everyday routines builds up after a while and makes me crazy. That's the life with autism children.  I finished Big Little Lies in like three days, it was that good of a book. I'm not trying to finish The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan and A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabalden this week, but that might be a little more than I can chew. We shall see.  Monday -...

Title: The Stiehl Assassin By: Terry Brooks Genre: Fantasy Pages: 368 Release Date: May 28th, 2019 Publisher:  Random House Publishing Group Summary from Goodreads:  After  The Black Elfstone  and  The Skaar Invasion  comes the next chapter in the Fall of Shannara, a saga more than four decades in the making. The Skaar have arrived in the Four Lands, determined to stop at nothing less than all-out conquest. They badly need a new home, but peaceful coexistence is not a concept they have ever understood. An advance force under the command of the lovely princess Ajin has already established a foothold, but now the full Skaar army is on the march--and woe betide any who stands in its way. But perhaps the Skaar victory is not quite as much of a foregone conclusion as they all assume. The Druid Drisker Arc has freed both himself and Paranor from their involuntary exile. Drisker's student, Tarsha Kaynin, has been reunited with Dar, chief defend...