Legless by Eileen Mueller

When a new elf knocks on Santa's door, he doesn't even recognize him.  He has to show him his ears.  He's a woodland elf and much taller and lankier than the other elves.  He wants to help make toys.

The author shared this book with me for review (thank you). You can get a free copy HERE.

He's working away when the door opens and in comes a goblin.  The elf grabs his bow and shoots him.  Luckily the mask came off and the elf wearing it was safe.  

Then the elf goes out and starts riding a reindeer.  Santa goes after him but falls off the seat.  The elf come back and saves him.

The identity of the elf isn't revealed until the end of the story and it was a surprise!  Young ones will have fun with this story!

Champagne Charlie and the Amazing Gladys by B.G. Hilton

 Charlie is looking for who killed the steam cab driver.  Gladys is looking for her partner in a magic show. (Women are not allowed to do magic by themselves.  She and Charley team up; they'll help each other.

Library Thing and Odyssey Books let me read this book for review (thank you).  It has been published so you can grab a copy now.

I like steampunk novels.  They make wonderful inventions.  However this story is a cross between steampunk and science fiction.  That doesn't make it bad, it just makes your mind stretch further...

There are other creatures living in space.  The animals are human sized and they intend to take over the earth and wipe the humans out.  However the humans are aware they are there and one crazy professor intends to take the moon out by explosives.  And Gladys and Charlie end up in the middle of this.

Will they find the answers they are looking for?  How can they stop the destruction planned?

There is a lot going on and it keeps your attention.  I'm glad we don't have those monsters here...

Brownsville Bred: Dreaming Out Loud by Elaine Del Valle

This is based on a true story.  This woman lived a tough life.  She grew up in a bad part of town and her family ends up splitting up because her father was doing drugs...

The author sent me a copy of her book to read and review (thank you).  It is out now and you can buy your own copy.

Because she's from Puerto Rico, her parents ended up in not the nicest neighborhood.  Things are very expensive in Brooklyn. 

This is the story of her childhood.  There are a lot of predators out there.  She usually isn't allowed out oon her own but when she's sent out on an errand, a man grabs her and heads for the alley.  She knows what he wants and she doesn't intend to let him have it.  She fights back, he leaves.  But later she's tackled by more than one man.  They hit and kick her and then walk away.

When she gets home, her mother is upset and sends her to Puerto Rica to spend the summer with her dad and his mother.  Her grandmother doesn't like her so it's no easy visit.

Back home she gets a phone call from her father.  He's dying from AIDs.  Seems his needle wasn't as clean as it should be when he used it.  He hasn't done drugs since he left but it doesn't matter.  She refuses to go to his funeral.

Despite all these hardships, she goes on to first write a play about her life and then on to write this book.  She lived a hard life but she bloomed as she got older.

MAGICAL MEANDERINGS: A Collection of Short Fiction by Irene Radford

This was a fun read.  If you like fantasy and pixies and fairies and the like, you'll love this book!

Library Thing and the author shared this book with for a review (thank you).

This book is filled with short stories about everything magical.  All of the stories have a positive spin.  I liked them all.  

The only bad thing is that you'll have to put it down and do something else or you'll read it all in one sitting.

Why not take a trip away from the worries of the world and read about the magical adventures in this book?

Fire and Vengeance by Robert McCaw - Series: Koa Kane Hawaiian Mystery

Koa is a cop who is no angel.  He never told anyone but he had murdered a man when he was younger.  Now, when he finds someone dead, he feels bad and still has residual guilt that shows up.  When a school suddenly explodes and sets itself on fire, they find dead students and dead teachers.  Who built the school over a fault line from a volcano?

Oceanview Publishing and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It has already been published so you can get a copy now.

The school is forty years old but as they ask questions they find that those involved in the building are still on the islands.  The worst part is that someone is killing the people involved so long ago.

This turns into a complex case.  The governor, the mayor, the head of DOE are all suspects.  Someone hired the hitman.  No one will tell him anything.  As he digs, he finds out they were all involved in a death forty years ago.  The ones they thought might tell are the ones that are dead.  Then he gets taken off the case.  He doesn't quit though.  Murder doesn't have any statute of limitations.

Everybody uses everybody.  He has to do a few shady things to get to the truth, but he does.  He finds they have been stealing money, too.  There's a lot of corruption to sort out, as well as solving a couple of murders.  Makes you wonder why we trust officials...

One of Our Own : A Gregor Demarkian Novel by Jane Haddam

This story is complicated and complex.  It deals with problems of today and doesn't have good outcomes for most.  It holds your attention. 

Minotaur and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published November 17th.

Gregor has retired.  He and his wife have just taken a foster boy on.  No one knows where he came from and they haven't found any relatives.  He's Spanish.  He also is trying to eat to make up for the times he was hungry.  He's a bottomless pit.  He also bought the priest's dog with him.  The priest says he can have that one, he'll adopt another.

Then Gregor has been asked to help on a case.  It seems a van fishtailed on a slick street and the back doors opened and a garbage bag fell out.  There is an old woman in the bag and they recognize her.  She was hit on the back of the head and is in a coma.  Various sections of the city are little settlements of refugees from other countries.  This happened in the Spanish part of town. 

Gregor starts asking questions.  He finds it easier to get answers now that he has no official standing.  When he visits her apartment, he finds a dead man in it.  It's the Superintendent who was trying to get her to take a smaller unit.  Just what happened here?

He finds that the man who owns all these apartment building uses coyotes to bring him illegal immigrants  and he gives them jobs and doesn't pay them much.  That cuts down on his overhead.  He goes to talk to the owner and finds out what he wants to know.  But he can't prove it...

Shelly Struggles to Shine (The Derby Daredevils #2) by Kit Rosewater

 Shelly is part of a group of schoolmates that play in the Derby.  All the others had special skills.  She doesn't think she has any...

Amulet Books sent a copy of this book to read for review (thank you).  It has been published and you can get a copy now.

The illustrations go with the story line well.  Sophie Escabasse is the illustrator.

What Shelly can do is draw.  She draws the team and wants to find them some costuming materials to make them stand out.  They have a tournament coming up and she wants to help them win.

Her first attempts don't turn out so well.  She even has to sit in the penalty box for one bout.  That gives her time to think of an alternate plan.

Her second plan works well.  Will she get picked as a shining star?

Hans Christian Anderson The Journey of His Life by Heinz Janisch

I think I've read almost all of Hans Christian Andersen's stories.  This is the story of life with a bit of fairy tale thrown in.

North and South sent me a copy of this book to read for review (thank you).  It has been published and you can get a copy now.

A little girl and her mother are going to another town on the stage and there's a man already there when they board.  The girl looks him over and after a while asks him if he's old.  Her mother tells her you don't ask questions like that but Hans tells her it's alright.  He tells the girl he's still a young boy inside but. yes, he's getting old.  When he tells her he writes fairy tales, she asks him to tell her one.  He tells her more than one...

Maja Kastelic did the illustrations and they add to the story.

This is a combination of facts and fairy tales and it's fun to read.

The Well of Ice: Series: An Inishowen Mystery by Andrea Carter

Benedicta “Ben” O'Keeffe is working hard over the holidays.  Several people are buying houses and hope to be settled by Christmas.  This means she has no time to lose...

Oceanview Publishing and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published November 10th.

Ben goes to Dublin to see her parents and runs into the man who murdered her sister.  He's finally out of jail and it appears he was looking for her.  He acts like he's been rehabilitated but he threatens her as she leaves.  

Her boyfriend is a cop so she has him check with his parole officer.  He was originally staying in London, but he's paid for his crime so there are no limitations.  She hates that he's around and worries he means her harm.

She and her boyfriend go out for a walk and find a missing woman - dead.  She was strangled.  The story gets pretty complicated from this point on.  It seems Carole (the dead woman) was married to the son of the owner of the nearby cabin.  She never got divorced, she married again and had two children.  The evidence points to the son but he's been dead for a couple of months, it couldn't be him.

They find that Carole and her husband, George are both fooling around with other people.  The pub where Carole worked burned down leaving the owner devastated.  Someone set it on fire...

As they ask questions, things are complicated and it's not clear who killed the victims.

Ben is finally confronted by the man who killed her sister and he intends to kill her also.  Will she live or die?

Fox and Rabbit Make Believe by Beth Ferry

Does your child have a good imagination?  This book will fascinate any child as he/she watches the characters imagine impossible situations and they always get out safe.  The illustrations are by Gergely Dudas abd are bright and clean.  This is a graphic novel.

Abram's Books sent me a copy to read for review (thank you).  It's beeen published so you can get a copy now.

This is a chapter book with several stories to enjoy.  There is an owl, a hungry bird, a turtle and more to help our main characters out.  I enjoyed reading these stories.  I bet your young ones would, too!

Thanks a Ton by Sabrina Moyle

This is a fun picture book to read.  The little elephant goes through a list he's thankful for and comes up with presents that rhyme...

Abram's Books sent me a copy of this to read for review (thank you).  It has been published and you can get a copy now.

The illustrations are done by Eunice Moyle and are bright and colorful.

The presents are not little things.  Young readers will get a charge out the presents chosen.  

This would be a fun book to read together!

The Witch Hunter by Max Seeck

This is a creepy read.  There's an author who writes about witch hunting long ago and whether they were guilty or not, most of them died.  It turns into a current investigation when they find his wife dead,  All of a sudden the awful deaths in the book start surfacing in current day Finland.  There are no clues to tell them who's doing it.

Berkley and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published October 27th.

They start searching everything and as they do, they come up with more victims.  All of them killed in the in the same way as the book.  They initially think the author was killed too, but that was a false lead.  The man killed was not him.

They find themselves being manipulated by the killers.  Everything they learn is being fed to them.  This group is like a cult.  Everyone listens to the old woman in charge and they feel no guilt for the murders.  More people die, the lady cop is getting closer and closer to the truth, and she finds she's been betrayed.

This one will stick with you for a while after you put down.  It's a story of evil and there are a lot of participants.  If you like scaring yourself, this is a good read for that!

Reading Champions Developing Readers 30 Book Collection Level 6 to 10 (Series 2) - Ages 5-7 - Paperback

This a very special set that will help your little learn to read.   There are thirty books in the set and this set starts at the age of five.

Books 2 Door sent me this sample to read and review (thank you).  You can buy a copy from them HERE.

The first books are quite simple with easy words and not a ;lot of text.  The illustrations are joyful!  The next set of books moves on to more text and a few bigger words.  And it continues getting a bit harder and teaching to read.  They can read them on their own once you see if they have the ability to read at that level.  The levels are identified by the colors on the spine.

I read one from each group and they do a very good job moving them forward.  I also loved the stories.  This really a good way to help your child learn to read.  There are some activities at the back of the book that will also help them show how they comprehended the story.

While we are fighting this virus, this would be a good way to learn.  They've done a very nice job with this series.

The Last Tea Bowl Thief by Jonelle Patrick

Robin works in a firm that identifies antiques.  She know by how it was made and what era that would be.  She would rather share Japanese poetry but she has to find something that others have not to finish her degree.

Seventh Street Books and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published October 20th.  

This is a mix of modern day Japan with the Japan of years ago where we follow the poet and the pot maker in their trials.  

Robin meets another young Japanese woman who has found an old pot hidden in her grandmother's shop.  Little do they know what that pot will lead them, too.

Japan has different ways of doing things and that's explained as they go along. The potter makes the pots for his sins and breaks them to make a change in his life.  The pot that is still around was stolen.

Robin steals it out of the safe and out of the building to share it with a priest who is going to settle the potter's soul.  She gives it to him for the ceremony and as he chants, he destroys the pot.  Robin can't believe it!  Now she's really going to be in trouble...

Lily Rose by Deborah Robinson

Lily Rose was an accident.  It was the first time her mother had sex and she didn't think about contraceptives...

Skyhorse sent me a copy of the book to read for review (thank you).  It is being published today.

She makes a deal with the boy's parents.  She'll put the baby up for adoption and not tell who the father is for a sum of money.  She moves on, using the money to completely change her lifestyle.

Lily is adopted by a loving couple and lives happily with them until they are killed in an accident.  Then she goes to live with her adopted mother's older sister and her husband.  

When she goes off to college, she meets a young man and falls in love.  Life is good for a while, then he wants a divorce so he can marry another woman and she's all alone again.  She decides to look up her mother, who tells her to get lost.  Then she goes looking for her father.  Will he be any nicer?  She just wants to belong to a family...

A Golden Fury by Samantha Cohoe

Thea is helping her mother by assisting with her various alchemy experiments.  Her mother doesn't appreciate her but she has steadier hands so she gets to help.

Wednesday Books and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published October 13th.

Her mother is attempting to create the Philosopher’s Stone.  It can heal, can change base metals into gold, and more.  But there is a curse on it.  As they get closer to completion, her mother locks the work room and won't let her in.  She intends to keep the prize to herself.  Not a good decision.

She tells her daughter she has to go, she can't live there anymore.  While Theo tried to figure out where she could go, her mother attacks her and tries to kill her.  The stone has driven her mother crazy...

She goes to find her boyfriend and finds out he hasn't been true to her.  Her dad lets her live with him temporarily.  She meets his assistant and likes him.

There's a lot more trauma in the story as she tries to create her own stone.  Even when she does, it's not like she thought it would be.  Poor Theo, I wonder if she will ever find someone to love?

Lola Koala's Travel Adventures by Dr. Tinita Ortega Kearney, CCC-SLP/L

Fun Lift-the-Flap that Teaches Early Language Skills pretty well describes this book.  It teaches Who, What, Where & Yes/No.  Not only is a fun Board Book to read, it has charming illustrations by Jasmine T Mills.

The author and PR by the Book invited me to be on this blog tour (thank you).It is being published this month.Here's a link to where you can purchase it HERE.

There are questions where the child lifts the flap and finds the answer.  This isn't as hard as it sounds because the illustrations show you what the item is and where it's located.  You'll just have to help them learn to solve puzzles.

I wish I had a little one to share this with!

The Silver Arrow by Lev Grossman

This is quite an adventure.  Kate's birthday is coming soon, so she writes to her rich uncle and asks him for a present.  She sure never expected what she got...

Little Brown sent me an ARC of this book for review (thank you).  It has been published so you can get a copy now.

He takes her out in the backyard and shows her his gift.  It's a full sized steam train.  She and her brother thinks it's cool, but Mom and Dad don't.  Kate and her brother are going to have the biggest adventure of their life!

They sneak out and play on the train and it comes alive.  They find themselves stopping in stations and picking up a variety of animals, all of which have tickets for the train.  They had added cars to the train and they need them.  The animals can talk to them and as they go on they begin to realize they are taking them home.

They run out of coal and have to use wood.  The train goes everywhere, even through the sea.   It even plays in the clouds for a bit.  The engine types them messages.  They have many challenges to meet but they do it.

When they go back home they find that not much time has passed and their parents didn't miss them.  Phew!

Still Life : A Karen Pirie Novel by Val McDermid

Karen works on cold cases.  She didn't expect that a person missing, assumed to be a suicide, ten years ago would be related to a body recently found in the water but it may be.

Atlantic Monthly Press and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published October 6th.

 Val always writes complicated mysteries that keep you wondering until the end.  I enjoy reading them.

Karen travels all over trying to put pieces of her investigation in place.   This has art fraud, a wife left behind, homosexual relationships, and a crabby superior officer.  Karen has two young detectives working with her.  Karen sees a lot but every now and then one of them points out something she's missed.

There's lots of history in the story and lives that never should have touched do.  It's a challenge for the detective but as she pieces it together, it starts to make sense.  Besides fraud, there's murder involved.

It's an interesting read. It's amazing that such a small circle of friends could get involved in so much...

Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Anya and her friends managed to save one of the last dragons in the land.  He's a river dragon, so as long as he stays out of sight, he's safe.  The children like to play with him.

Versify and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published on November 10th.

Now the soldiers have taken her father away because the neighbors lied about him.  Anya is going to get him back.  She takes her best friend, Ivan, with her.  And the dragon comes, too.

They meet a woman who can help them get there sooner.  The problem with that is she sent them to a different town.  While they are traveling they run into a boy that looks like an elf and has magic powers.  He's dangerous but Anya thinks he could be a friend.  Also after using magic to travel, it turns out the dragon now looks like a boy.  The elf tells them they are holding his brother in the dungeons.

That might be where her father is held, too, so they go deep into the underground caves.  One thing they find is a monster that wants to kill them so it gets exciting for a while.  They almost drown fleeing from the monster.  And their troubles are not over yet.

There's plenty of action, and young readers will like all the forms of magic and how hard things are for the adventurers.  It's not boring...

Murder by Milk Bottle by Lynne Truss

Constable Twitten is expecting things to slow down but when they find three dead bodies that were killed with a milk bottle, that ends that fantasy.  There are no clues, just broken milk bottles.

 Bloomsbury Publishing and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published November 10th.

None of the police involved in the investigation are particularly smart.   The Constable has good instincts and tries to share them with his boss, but he doesn't want to hear it.

There is a lot going on, some of it even in the police station.  This is almost a parody.  Things are happening right under their noses and they don't see them.

As they are hunting for the killer, there is a group of bad guys who came to town.  They end up killing each other.

Nobody is faultless, more people get killed, but eventually they do run the original killer down.  It's entertaining even if it isn't the best police procedural.  There are spots that almost make you laugh...

No Reading Allowed : The WORST Read-Aloud Book Ever by Raj Haldar, Chris Carpenter, Bryce Gladfelter

This is a fun read.  It shows you how you can change a sentence with different words that sound the same but have different meanings.

Sourcebooks Explore and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published November 10th.

The English language is like that.  Put a comma in and you've changed the meaning.  Some words are spelled the same but have different meanings.

There are examples all through the book.  Some will make you laugh.  Once you get used to the idea, it might be fun to see what sentences you can create that show this off.

I had fun reading this.  I think any young adult will enjoy it too.

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux by Samantha Vérant

Sophie is really close to making her dream come true.  They only need one more star to be ranked high on the Michelin scale.  She's cooking part of the meal and another cook comes over to taste her soup.  He tells her it needs more spices so she adds them.  Then they find out not only did they not earn another star, they lost one they had!  Then the cook who had her add spices tells the boss it's her fault.  The boss tastes her soup, spits it out, and fires her.  It was a set up to get rid of her...

Berkley and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you).  It is being published today.

Sophie decides to go home and see her grandmother again.  It's been years between visits.  She finds out her mother told her grandmother she didn't want anything to do with her.  Not true...

Her grandmother is in the hospital so she visits as she can and takes over her grandmother's cooking duties.  At first it's like she lost the ability to cook but it comes back.  This is where she learned to cook.

One of the sisters working there hates her.  The other one loves her.  The boy she grew up with won't speak to her.  She has a lot to get straight before things settle down.  Her mother did a lot of damage before she committed suicide.

She gets her grandmother home, finds out she's inheriting the house and the restaurants, and then she gets invited back to her old job.  What will she do?  Stay in France or go back to New York?

This starts off slow and sad but as she pieces her life back together the sadness leaves.  Despite the odds, she manages to live happily ever after.

Murder in Old Bombay by Nev March

Captain Jim used to be in the military but the last time they fought, he got disabled out.  He's asked by one of his friends to find out why his wife and her friend were killed.  It didn't look like suicide but no  one saw them be thrown off the balcony either.  He agreed to look into it.

Minotaur Books and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published on November 10th.

It's a bit of a challenge to keep the various tribes segregated and figure out how to ask the questions in a form that will get an answer,

Jim talks to everyone in the vicinity but knows he's not getting what he needs.  He ends up travelling to find some of the witnesses.  When he gets beat up, he figures he must be getting close.

While all this is going on, he finds himself falling in love with one of the sisters.  He's not suitable as a husband for her, though.  But she's no shrinking violet either and also loves him.

He does ferret out who the killer was but he almost loses his life in the process.

This is a long drawn out investigation but it's interesting.  And it even has a happy ending.

A Christmas Resolution by Anne Perry

Detective Hooper and his girlfriend, Celia, are worried about a friend they have.  She's made her mind up to marry a man who is very rigid and opinionated.  He also appears to be abusive.  When he finds out Celia has talked to her, he comes and threatens Celia.  She tells Hooper.  He decides to try to find out what happened to his first wife...

Ballantine Books and Edelweiss allowed me to read this book for review (thank you),  It wull be published on November 3rd.

I like Anne Perry's books so I had to read this one.  It's not a cheery book.

Hooper finds the woman drowned herself.  To find out why he'll need to track down the missing daughter.  It takes some doing but he eventually locates her.  He takes her home with him.

They find out the wife deliberately drowned herself rather than live with him.  The worst part was that he watched but didn't try to stop her.

When he shows up at their house, he almost attacks his daughter.  There's a big confrontation and you are unsure who is going to win.  Will his daughter remain free?  Will he still marry?

Read it and see...

Wonderful You by Lisa Graff, Ramona Kaulitzki (Illustrator)

This is a precious picture book.  It takes you through the process of having a baby.  It would make a special baby shower gift.

Philomel Books shared a copy of this book with me for review (thank you).  It has been published, so you can get a copy now.

The story starts when they find out they are pregnant.  They walk you through the stages of the baby growing.  Everyone is so excited.  You get to see people of all colors awaiting the birth.

The last page is great.  They tell the baby she will always be loved...

Sion's Misfortune by Chen Jiafei, Wang Ran

Sion was a fortune teller and a very good one.  But when things started going wrong for him and he said it might be a good thing the villagers worried about his mind.

Karadi Tales Picturebooks and Edelweiss let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published  September 1st.  The illustrations are lovely.

First, his horse takes off and he can't go after it.  When it returns, it brings him more horses.  His son loves the horses but fell off and broke his leg.  Everyone is sorry for him but the father still says it could be a good thing.

Then, while his son is recuperating. another kingdom declares war.  All the young men have to fight but his son can't.  

Before long, the villagers change their perspectives and start looking for the good, not just the bad.

Pirate Nell's Tale to Tell A Storybook Adventure by Helen Docherty

Nell has finally become a pirate.  Her Captain doesn't let her do anything, though.  She can wash the dishes and keep the floors clean but he'll pilot the boat and claim all the treasure.  He doesn't even want her pirate book on board...

Sourcebooks Jabberwocky and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published September 15th.

When she finds a map, the Captain snitches it and heads off to find the treasure.  They get caught in the storm and he falls off the boat.  She rescues him and then heads out of the weather.  She finds the island!

The best part is when they dig the treasure up.  It's a total surprise...

The End by Mats Strandberg

This is an interesting book.  There's a meteorite that will collide with the world and take earth out of existence.  They have a few months to prepare for it but how do prepare for the end of life when you feel fine?

Arctis Books and Net Galley let me read this boook fir review (thank you).  It will be published on October 6th.

This written from the perspective of teenager responses.  There are families that commit suicide.  Some of the teens turn to drugs  Relationships bud, some of them die.  People lose their tempers.  It's a great feeling of unrest.

Simon is in love with Tilda.  She dumps him when the news on this broke.  Then she's found dead and people think he's killed her.  He didn't but he begins searching for the killer.  It's better than waiting around to die. He finally finds out what happened to her with just a couple of days left. 

This author does a good job showing all the various emotions, how quickly they can change from joy to sorrow and back again.  Their basic character really shows in crisis moments.

Give Me Chills: A Devil's Beach Novella by Tara Lush

Hadley left home and moved away after she found out her boyfriend was untrue.  She's running an ice cream van and makes her own ice cream.  He sneered at that, too, so she's starting over.

Tara shared a copy of this book with me for review (thank you).  It has been published and you can get a copy now.

She's not doing bad at all when a very good looking young man comes up for ice cream.  He likes it so well, he takes more home to share with his aunt.  She loved it, too.

Unfortunately, his aunt dies.   He asks Hadley to make an ice cream cake for the wake.  She does, he lets her in the house to store it.  It's while she's in the basement she overhears a conversation and realizes the death was not natural.

She doesn't want to tell him, but does.  He invites her to the wake so she can listen to voices.  She hears the man but not the woman.

She hears her another time and then it's up to the cops.  Will they arrest them successfully?  Is Zander going to be her new boyfriend?  Read it and see...