Review: Tyler Johnson Was Here by Jay Coles

Jay Coles. Hachette: New York, 2018. E-book.
Rating: Decent

Trigger Warning: Police Brutality, Profanity: F-bombs 

Goodreads Summary: When Marvin Johnson's twin, Tyler, goes to a party, Marvin decides to tag along to keep an eye on his brother. But what starts as harmless fun turns into a shooting, followed by a police raid.

The next day, Tyler has gone missing, and it's up to Marvin to find him. But when Tyler is found dead, a video leaked online tells an even more chilling story: Tyler has been shot and killed by a police officer. Terrified as his mother unravels and mourning a brother who is now a hashtag, Marvin must learn what justice and freedom really mean.

If I were to judge this book by its cover alone, I would give it a raving five stars. Sadly, that is not the case. There were a few things I liked about the book and plenty I did not, actually, down-right hated. So, for this review, I'm deviating from my normal review style and using a bullet format.

Review: Peas and Carrots by Tanita S. Davis

Tanita S. Davis. Alfred A. Knopf: New York, 2016.  279 pp.

Rating: Decent

I debated whether to write a review for this book mainly because the writing is unremarkable and it was just an okay read to me; however, in subject matter this is a narrative that needed to be written. Oftentimes when we think of foster children, our minds are automatically wired to visualize children of color despite the stark reality that children of all races and ethnicities flow in and out of foster care trapped within an imperfect system. This story had to be written if only to demonstrate that black families foster more than just black children. It's important that I reiterate this because a few months back, a friend asked a question that I took exception to. For a brief moment, she shedded her friend cloak for that of a stranger. "How are you going to respond when someone asks you why you chose a white child when there are so many black children in the system?" is the question she posed to me.

To understand this question, you must know that I'm a single Black woman with no biological kids who is now fostering a white teenage girl. There is so much I could say in response to her question, but the bottom line is that ALL children need love, a loving home, and a safe living environment. Period. End of discussion.

Months later my friend confessed that finally she understood that it wasn't about race, but about a child who yearned for a stable, loving home and a woman who has always wanted to be a mother and has an abundance of love to give.

With that said...on to the book review.

Review: Compulsion (Heirs of Watson Island #1) by Martina Boone

Martina Boone. New York: Simon Pulse, 2014. Ebook.
Rating: Decent

Goodreads Summary: Three plantations. Two wishes. One ancient curse.

All her life, Barrie Watson had been a virtual prisoner in the house where she lived with her shut-in mother. When her mother dies, Barrie promises to put some mileage on her stiletto heels. But she finds a new kind of prison at her aunt’s South Carolina plantation instead--a prison guarded by an ancient spirit who long ago cursed one of the three founding families of Watson Island and gave the others magical gifts that became compulsions.

Stuck with the ghosts of a generations-old feud and hunted by forces she cannot see, Barrie must find a way to break free of the family legacy. With the help of sun-kissed Eight Beaufort, who knows what Barrie wants before she knows herself, the last Watson heir starts to unravel her family's twisted secrets. What she finds is dangerous: a love she never expected, a river that turns to fire at midnight, a gorgeous cousin who isn’t what she seems, and very real enemies who want both Eight and Barrie dead.

Review: The Education of Margot Sanchez by Lilliam Rivera

Lilliam Rivera. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2017.
Rating: Decent

Goodreads Summary: Pretty in Pink comes to the South Bronx in this bold and romantic coming-of-age novel about dysfunctional families, good and bad choices, and finding the courage to question everything you ever thought you wanted—from debut author Lilliam Rivera.

THINGS/PEOPLE MARGOT HATES:

Mami, for destroying my social life

Papi, for allowing Junior to become a Neanderthal

Junior, for becoming a Neanderthal

This supermarket

Everyone else

After “borrowing” her father's credit card to finance a more stylish wardrobe, Margot Sanchez suddenly finds herself grounded. And by grounded, she means working as an indentured servant in her family’s struggling grocery store to pay off her debts.

Mini Review: Etiquette & Espionage (Finishing School #1) by Gail Carriger

Gail Carriger. New York: Little Brown and Company, 2013. Ebook. 
Rating: Decent

Goodreads Summary: Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is the bane of her mother's existence. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper etiquette at tea--and god forbid anyone see her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminnick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. She enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

But little do Sophronia or her mother know that this is a school where ingenious young girls learn to finish, all right--but it's a different kind of finishing. Mademoiselle Geraldine's certainly trains young ladies in the finer arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but also in the other kinds of finishing: the fine arts of death, diversion, deceit, espionage, and the modern weaponries. Sophronia and her friends are going to have a rousing first year at school.

Review: Stolen Nights (Vampire Queen #2) by Rebecca Maizel

Rebecca Maizel. New York: St, Martin's Griffin, 2013. 304 pp.

Rating: Decent 

**Spoiler Alert: This review contains mild spoilers.**

After surviving the ritual she performed to restore Vicken's humanity, Lenah returns to Wickham's campus. Upon her return, Lenah witnesses a horrendous, yet familiar act. However, before processing the latest scene, Lenah encounters the legendary Aeris. Their visit is most unexpected, but it doesn't compare to the live, very mortal figure of Rhode Lewin. Lost in the moment, Lenah forgets Justin's presence at her side, though she quickly discovers Rhode's reappearance comes at a price. Amid the turmoil, a formidable opponent reveals itself. A foe more powerful than her coven, the aspiring vampire queen Odette.

Review: When the Stars Go Blue by Caridad Ferrer

Caridad Ferrer. New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2010. 324 pp.
Rating: Decent

Book Blurb: Dance is Soledad Reyes’s life. About to graduate from Miami’s Biscayne High School for the Performing Arts, she plans on spending her last summer at home teaching in a dance studio, saving money, and eventually auditioning for dance companies. That is, until fate intervenes in the form of fellow student Jonathan Crandall who has what sounds like an outrageous proposition: Forget teaching. Why not spend the summer performing in the intense environment of the competitive drum and bugle corps? The corps is going to be performing Carmen, and the opportunity to portray the character of the sultry gypsy proves too tempting for Soledad to pass up, as well as the opportunity to spend more time with Jonathan, who intrigues her in a way no boy ever has before.

Review: The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway. New York: Collier Books/MacMillan Publishing, 1987  (first published 1952). 127 pp.
Rating: Decent

**Note: The following below are my initial thoughts upon completing the Old Man and the Sea and is not intended to be a "review" per se. 

Goodreads Summary: An epic battle between an old, experienced fisherman (Santiago) and a giant marlin said to be the largest catch of his life.

"But the old man always thought of her as feminine and as something that gave or withheld great favours, and if she did wild or wicked things it was because she could not help them. The moon affects her as it does a woman, he thought" (30).

In my attempt to close my classics book gap, I picked up my copy of The Old Man and the Sea. To be such a short book, it seemed so long and boredom quickly came upon me. Throughout many of the old man's conversations with himself, I began to imagine the life of a fisherman. He who knows the ins and outs of the sea. He who develops a relationship with its creatures. He who appreciates the beauty of all its life forms and the sea itself, but will never be able to tame its unpredictable nature. He who understands the danger of the vocation, yet is drawn to "her" (as Santiago would say) alluring call.

Although I hoped for a better resolution, I found within the pages of this novella an old fisherman whose tenacious nature pulled him out to sea each day despite unsuccessful outings months at a time. However, I must admit, Santiago is a shark-killing, badass old man.

Review: The Merchant's Daughter (Hagenheim #2) by Melanie Dickerson

Melanie Dickerson. Michigan: Zondervan, 2011. 272 pp.
Rating: Decent

Annabel Chapman is the youngest of three children and the only daughter to a once wealthy merchant. Each year the villagers of Glynval must assist in the harvest. To forego this duty, Annabel’s father paid an annual censum. Losing his ships in a storm, then soon after, Mr. Chapman succumbs to the pestilence outbreak leaving his family penniless. Unwilling to partake of the harvest toil, Roberta Chapman bribes the village’s corrupt steward allowing her family to neglect their share of labor for three years. Lord le Wyse, the new lord of Glynval, demands repayment of the Chapman’s shirked duties. In exchange for paying the family’s fines and to avoid working in the fields, Annabel’s oldest brother Edward, promises her in marriage to Bailiff Tom, a friend of her father’s. Unbeknownst to Edward, Tom intends to cover only Annabel’s fees. “Her brother has arranged for her to marry me in exchange for paying her censum” (34).