Recent Reads: Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
Narrated by: Adeel Akhtar, Rupert Everett, Gerran Howell, Eleanor Worthington-Cox

Length: 3 hrs and 17 mins
Original Recording Audiobook
Publisher: Audible
Publication Date:  December 5, 2019

 

Format: Audible Audiobook
Source: Audible Subscriber Freebie 

Rating:

Goodreads Synopsis:

This Audible Original Drama of Peter Pan takes listeners on a magical adventure with Peter, Wendy, Michael and John as they arrive in Neverland and take on Captain Hook with the help of Tiger Lilly and Tinker Bell.
The story begins at home in London during The Blitz, and Mary Darling is planning to evacuate her children to the countryside. However, her plans take an unexpected turn when a familiar face from her childhood returns...the one and only Peter Pan, the mysterious boy from Kensington Gardens. Intrigued by their mother’s friend, Wendy, Michael and John seek Peter Pan out, resulting in them being whisked off to Neverland and setting up home with Peter, Tinker Bell and the Lost Boys.
As Peter and his gang come up against the wickedly evil Captain Hook, their friendships and relationships are put to the test - can Wendy be honest with Peter about how she really feels, and will Michael and John return home without their sister?
Rupert Everett (The Happy Prince, My Best Friend’s Wedding) stars as Captain Hook alongside Adeel Akhtar (Four Lions, Killing Eve) as Smee, Gerran Howell (Catch-22, Emerald City) as Peter Pan and Eleanor Worthington Cox (Maleficent, Britannia) as Wendy alongside a full cast.
To mark the launch of this drama, Audible will be donating to Great Ormond Street Hospital, to whom J.M. Barrie unexpectedly and generously gifted his copyright of Peter Pan.

Review: 
I have never read or listened to the J.M. Barrie version of Peter Pan. I have seen Hook and watched the Disney animated versions but that is it. This story was very different from the one I know and it was darker and more interesting than the adapted tales (granted Hook is still one of my favorite movies). 

In the book, Mary Darling (the mother) is trying to move her children away from the war, but before she can do so, she tells them the story of meeting Peter Pan. Wendy writes a letter to Pan to get his attention and before you know it the children are off to Neverland.

Like I mentioned the book is darker, there is the war and the children's  knowledge of what that means for them, there are Lost Girls (!) who often battle the Lost Boys, there is violence that leads to characters almost dying, and there is the story about Pan and the changeling. 

I am not sure how the Audible Original full-cast version of this audiobook compares with the original, but it was very good, a very quick listen, and I was pleasantly surprised by not knowing most of the original story.

Recent Reads: The Secret of the Stones by Earnest Dempsey

The Secret of the Stones by Earnest Dempsey 
Series: Sean Wyatt#1
Publisher: Enclave Publishing
Publication Date:  June 26, 2018

 

Format: Ebook
Source: Borrowed from Amazon Prime Reading Library.

Rating:







Goodreads Synopsis: 

They tried to kill him to cover up an ancient secret. Now Sean Wyatt is plunged head first into a race against time to save his best friend and the lives of billions.

A four thousand year old mystery lurks in the hills of Georgia. While investigating a strange series of ancient symbols, an archaeologist vanishes, and a professor he entrusted with the secret is murdered. 

Former government agent, Sean Wyatt, learns of his friend's disappearance and the murder. Now he must unravel the clues to the ancient mystery that holds incredible power. 

To save his friend, Sean will have to fight off highly trained mercenaries in hand to hand combat, violent shootouts, and high speed car chases through the Blue Ridge Mountains. And in the end, what he learns will change the history books as we know them. 

The Secret of the Stones is packed with suspense and mystery, conspiracies and fascinating secret societies, and leaves you turning the pages late into the night in USA Today Bestseller Ernest Dempsey's breakthrough international adventure series. 

Don't miss this story that takes you through the southern United States on a wild adventure that could change the shape of civilization.

Review: 

I picked this book up for a virtual book club with some family and friends and found it surprisingly engaging and fun. We had great conversations about it and so the review below is kind of a 'group' review so to speak based on all those talks.

A good description of The Secret of the Stones is Dan Brown books,  National Treasure, Native American lore and Indiana Jones all meet up and have a grand old time. There is a lot there, I know, but it was very entertaining. 

The plot is about a group of people all looking for an ancient secret place said to be a hoard of gold and treasure called the Golden Chambers. When the book begins there is a death, a lot of mysterious conversations, and a person gets taken. 

Overall, the plot was action packed and really kept us all interested. The story is told from multiple points of view, which all come together nicely at the end.

Sean Wyatt is the main character of this book and series and he is trying to find the person that has been taken, which is his long-time friend. Sean is a former secret agent and now works with the International Archaeological Agency finding lost items and returning them where they should be. Other characters include a Journalist - Allyson, some detectives, and various baddies. 

Like I said, I read this for a book club, so book club a member took it upon himself to do a lot of background research while we were reading. He looked up the locations of the sites and just about all of them were real, making the overall story a bit cooler. He looked up the uniforms mentioned in the prologue and found some discrepancies, but he also called a few of the twists that were to come. 

Some criticisms: 

There were some things that we weren't cool with, the female presence  in this book is LACKING, severely. There are maybe 5 women in the book, many are glossed over, and the one that is there looks like she might become a love interest. 

There wasn't a lot of character development either, but mostly case, which is fine, but I wanted to see more character progression to really have me invested in what was happening to them. 

The author also spent a lot of time on weird details that inevitably did not have anything to do with the plot, maybe they come into play in the series but they seemed more like a show-off move.

If you are looking for something fast-paces and enjoyed National Treasure, Indiana Jones, OR the Dan Brown books -  you very well may enjoy this one. And at the time of writing this review, this book is part of the Amazon Prime Library were you can borrow the book for free if you are a Prime member.

Early Reader Review: Superman Smashes the Klan by Gene Luen Yang

Source: From DC Comics in exchange for an honest review. This in no way alters my opinion or review.

Superman Smashes the Klan by Gene Luen Yang

Series: superman Smashes the Klan #1-3
Publisher: DC Comics
Publication Date:  May 12, 2020

 

Format: Paperback

Rating:







Goodreads Synopsis: 

The year is 1946, and the Lee family has moved from Chinatown to Downtown Metropolis. While Dr. Lee is eager to begin his new position at the Metropolis Health Department, his two kids, Roberta and Tommy, are more excited about being closer to the famous superhero Superman!

Tommy adjusts quickly to the fast pace of their new neighborhood, befriending Jimmy Olsen and joining the club baseball team, while his younger sister Roberta feels out of place when she fails to fit in with the neighborhood kids. She's awkward, quiet, and self-conscious of how she looks different from the kids around her, so she sticks to watching people instead of talking to them.

While the Lees try to adjust to their new lives, an evil is stirring in Metropolis: the Ku Klux Klan. The Klan targets the Lee family, beginning a string of terrorist attacks. They kidnap Tommy, attack the Daily Planet, and even threaten the local YMCA. But with the help of Roberta's keen skills of observation, Superman is able to fight the Klan's terror, while exposing those in power who support them--and Roberta and Superman learn to embrace their own unique features that set them apart.

From multi-award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Gene Luen Yang comes an exciting middle grade tale featuring Superman.

Review: 
If you have been reading the blog for a while you might know that I don't really read any Superman comics or graphic novels, but this one seemed very interesting so I jumped at the chance to take a look. DC Comics is doing a series of books called Graphic Novels for Young Adults. They are exactly what you would think, graphic novels geared toward a teen/ young adult audience.

This graphic novel has a number of themes but there is the overarching theme of racism and being different and fitting in. There is also an appearance of Nazis.

I have to admit that when I started reading this graphic novel I was a bit taken aback at the bluntness of the racism and the Clan of the Fiery Cross (being a stand-in for the KKK). After getting further in to the book it became clear that the more important theme was understanding of differences and it being ok to be yourself both for the kids in the book but also for Superman himself.

There are a lot of extreme visuals in this book showing racism and there are different types of racism in the book as well, but it was a very good story. The main characters are Roberta and Tommy Lee, their family is Chinese and just moved to Metropolis from Chinatown and not all their neighbors are happy about them being there. Tommy is good at making friends sometimes at his family's expense but Roberta isn't sure about this new place or these new people and feels like she is just too different.

Superman in this book does not fly, he is not the Superman we now know and love but only a portion of him. In this graphic novel, he too is learning it is ok to be different, it is ok to show his full self, and to remember what that even is.

Overall this was a great read, it even concludes with an Author's note of sorts called "Superman and Me" by the author that talks about how this book came to be and the time period. That is what sold the whole thing for me, the somewhat personalized story from the author. Superman had meaning to him, especially in this particular context and that is a wonderful thing. 

Recent Reads: The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
Narrated by: Bahni Turpin

Length: 13 hrs and 49 mins
Publisher: Quirk Books & Blackstone Publishing (Audio)
Publication Date: April 7, 2020  

 

Format: Audible Audiobook
Source: Bought with credits.

Rating:







Goodreads Synopsis: 

Fried Green Tomatoes and "Steel Magnolias" meet Dracula in this Southern-flavored supernatural thriller set in the '90s about a women's book club that must protect its suburban community from a mysterious and handsome stranger who turns out to be a blood-sucking fiend.

Patricia Campbell had always planned for a big life, but after giving up her career as a nurse to marry an ambitious doctor and become a mother, Patricia's life has never felt smaller. The days are long, her kids are ungrateful, her husband is distant, and her to-do list is never really done. The one thing she has to look forward to is her book club, a group of Charleston mothers united only by their love for true-crime and suspenseful fiction. In these meetings, they're more likely to discuss the FBI's recent siege of Waco as much as the ups and downs of marriage and motherhood.

But when an artistic and sensitive stranger moves into the neighborhood, the book club's meetings turn into speculation about the newcomer. Patricia is initially attracted to him, but when some local children go missing, she starts to suspect the newcomer is involved. She begins her own investigation, assuming that he's a Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy. What she uncovers is far more terrifying, and soon she--and her book club--are the only people standing between the monster they've invited into their homes and their unsuspecting community.

Review: 

WOW! What a roller coaster this book was. I picked up this book because it has been on my radar for a bit and the synopsis is very intriguing...and then a YouTuber that I follow was reading it for her online book club so I picked up the audiobook and I am SO glad that I did. 

I should note that this book needs a few warnings - it is grotesque, gore-filled, and there should be a trigger warning for sexual abuse, physical abuse, self-harm, and suicide. There is also A LOT of violence. 

On to the review:

First off, the narrator is amazing, really brought all the characters to life and the normal 1x pace was very good.  I should also lead with I did not realize that this author was male.

The whole story was very good as well. It kept me on my toes and even though it would seem straightforward, it had me guessing in some parts and second-guessing what I knew, I love when books can do that.

The book is set in the early '90s and for a while there I really thought that it was set MUCH earlier than that. I have lived in Georgia previously but was much younger and it never occurred to me to look out how women acted and were treated at that time, but I felt like the women in this town/story/book were so controlled by their husbands and it was sad and I felt icky about it.

I hated ALL the men in the story, but I also really hated a lot of the women too because they depended so fully on their men and I understand that was the way of the world for a long time but it was off-putting. The win for this book was the relationships between the women, this book club was amazing. Together they were strong and strong-willed, they could take on the world. I loved the relationship between these women and how they helped each other, but also how they were real with one another. They were struggling with life and that felt so true and so meaningful to have them come together in this way. I am not saying they were the realest they could have been but it was pretty good.

The end of this book became very sexualized and it seemed like the author just wanted the easy why out in the end, so why not just make it all sexual right? BUT that said it kind of was the ending that the story needed, there seemed to be a bunch of pent up sexual energy in the book so this was the outlet for it I guess.

There was SO much that I didn't like, that I felt ick about, but the overall story and the way it all came together and how those feelings added to the plot was really well done and I LOVED this book. So my love/hate relationship made this a win for me. It was weird, it was emotion producing, it was me screaming at the characters for wins and loses, it was A LOT!

... I think that is it for now... I don't want to go into full plot details because it is good to go into this not knowing a lot of what you are getting...

Building the Book Pile #325

Welcome to Building the Book Pile!  A Weekly meme inspired by Stacking the Shelves

Hello Readers, Bloggers, and Awesome people! 

I hope that everyone is still doing well and is safe and healthy. I miss being able to just go out to a store and grabbing dumb things and not essentials but we are really limiting our out of the house time as much as we can. Grocery store is really our only outing every week aside from walks during lunch. 

How is everyone coping?

We started a virtual book club with some friends and family and have been having Zoom calls with family too. It has been nice. We are staying busy with homework (me), reading, video games, and house projects as well. 

In other news, I marathoned about 6 graphic novels the other night and it was amazing and just what I wanted and needed. I also have finished a few books and have reviews on their way for all of the above. 

(Sorry) I realize that last week I had planned to review The Southern Book Clubs Guide to Slaying Vampires but after I finished it I had A LOT of thoughts I needed to get straight before sitting down and reviewing it, so that review will be coming THIS week.

If you enjoy the blog and want to share some love and caffeine, you can buy me a coffee via Ko-fi

Share about your week with me in the comments below!

 

Current Giveaways




Coming up on the Blog

Recent Reads: The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix (Adult)

Early Reader Review: Superman Smashes the Klan by Gene Luen Yang (YA, GN)

Recent Reads: The Secret of the Stones by Ernest Dempsey (Adult)

Recent Reads: Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie (Audio)


Books Received Recently...

            

Cat's Cafe: A Comics Collection by Matt Tarpley  from Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing  for review.

Superman Smashes The Klan (Superman Smashes the Klan #1-3) by Gene Luen Yang from DC Comics for review.

Happily Ever After & Everything In Between by Debbie Tung from Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing  for review.

I Left The House Today!: Comics by Cassandra Calin from Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing  for review.

Virtual Unicorn Experience (Phoebe and Her Unicorn #12) by Dana Simpson from Netgalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing  for review.

You Brought Me The Ocean by Alex Sanchez, Julie Maroh from Netgalley and DC Comics for review.

Other Books that I picked up...
      

The Cleric's Vault by Ernest Dempsey (Sean Wyatt #2)  borrowed from Amazon Prime Reads Library

The Falconer by Elizabeth May (The Falconer #1)  borrowed from Amazon Prime Reads Library

Harley Merlin and the Secret Coven (Harley Merlin #1) by Bella Forrest - Audible, Buy one Get one deal

Take Control of Your Life by Mel Robbins - Audible, Buy one Get one deal

Have you missed anything lately?

Blog Blast w/ Giveaway! The Shadow Wand by Laurie Forest (YA)

Early Reader Review: The Lost Carnival by Michael Moreci (YA, GN) -4 stars

Early Reader Review: 5-Minute Stress Relief by Elena Welsh (Adult) - 3 stars

Comment and leave me a link to your Round-up/ STS/ Weekly...anything, post and I will stop by and say hello!

Happy Reading!

Recent Reads: 5-Minute Stress Relief: 75 Exercises to Quiet Your Mind and Calm Your Body by Elena Welsh

Source: From Callisto Publisher's Club and Rockridge Press in exchange for an honest review. This in no way alters my opinion or review.

5-Minute Stress Relief: 75 Exercises to Quiet Your Mind and Calm Your Body by Elena Welsh
Publisher: Rockridge Press
Publication Date:  March 3, 2020

 

Format: Paperback

Rating:









 Goodreads Synopsis:

Stop stressing―fast! Five-minute stress relief solutions 

Relieve stress in a matter of minutes with these handy exercises. 5-Minute Stress Relief delivers simple and effective solutions that will help you feel calm in a snap.

Whether you’re at home, in the office, or traveling, 5-Minute Stress Relief has an exercise to help ease your stressful situation. Discover how you can recenter and recompose yourself by watering your plants, practicing yoga, or making a gratitude list. Breathe deeply and get ready to relax.

In 5-Minute Stress Relief you’ll find:

• 75 Fast solutions―Find stress relief when you need it most with visualization, breathing exercises, acupressure, coloring, a walking meditation, and more.
• Easy-to-use advice―Each strategy is simple to learn so you can start putting it to use right away.
• Exercises for all kinds of stress―Whether it’s personal, professional, or otherwise, these exercises can help you make it through whatever kind of stress you face, wherever it shows up in your life.

It only takes a few minutes to find a sense of peace inside the pages of 5-Minute Stress Relief

Review: 

It seems like this is the perfect time for this book to be available. Everyone is experiencing different types of new stress as we come to terms with Stay Home orders and the uncertainty of it all.  

5-Minute Stress Relief: 75 Exercises to Quiet Your Mind and Calm Your Body by Elena Welsh is only about 200 pages and most of them are exercises to help with stress relief. The book begins with a short chapter about stress, the causes, the health effects it has and why it is important to try to relieve it. Then it jumps right into the different ways in which to relieve it. 

The exercises are divided up in chapters like "Quiet the Mind" and "Calm the Body" there is also a chapter for "Write it Out" with writing prompts and coloring. This little book packs a punch right at stress with deep breathing and ways to redirect your stress and anxiety. It is set up so that you can turn to a chapter to find an exercise that works for you whether it focuses on your mind or your body. Then before concluding there is a section designated to common stress scenarios and then which exercises that could be most helpful to you.

I found most of the exercises to be pretty straightforward and easy to do. This is a good book to have at your desk at work, it is small and can help you take 5 minutes from your day to calm down during the stressors of your work environment, at least that is where I see it being most substantial in my life. 

Early Reader Review: The Lost Carnival: A Dick Grayson Graphic Novel by Michael Moreci

Source: From Netgalley and DC Comics in exchange for an honest review. This in no way alters my opinion or review.

The Lost Carnival: A Dick Grayson Graphic Novel by Michael Moreci, illustrations by Sas Milledge 
Publisher: DC Comics
Publication Date:  May 5, 2020 (TODAY!)

 

Format: Ebook

Rating:









Synopsis: 

Haly's traveling circus no longer has the appeal of its glamorous past, but it still has one main attraction: the Flying Graysons, a family of trapeze artists, starring teenage Dick Grayson. The only problem is that Dick loathes spending his summers performing tired routines for a dwindling crowd. When the Lost Carnival, a wild and bewitching new attraction, opens nearby and threatens to lure away Haly's remaining customers, Dick is among those drawn to its magical nighttime glow. But there are forces ancient and treacherous at work at the Lost Carnival, and when Dick meets the enigmatic Luciana, he may be too mesmerized to recognize the danger ahead. Beneath the carnival's dazzling fireworks, Dick must decide who he is and who he wants to be — and must choose between either his loyalty to his family and friends, or a glittering, romantic future.

Review: 

This was a really fun read. I have not spent much time reading about Dick Grayson aka Robin, but this is a prequel that had a lot of good build, a great plot, and even a bit of forewarning for Dick's life to come. There was a lot to take in throughout this graphic novel, themes of trauma and loss, identity, friendship, as well as of wanting - a new life, a different life. 

The story follows Dick Grayson as part of the Flying Grayson family acrobat act at Haly's circus, but the crowds are shrinking and there is another carnival that is set up right next door. Dick is a teen looking for something more than what he has, he is tired of the repetition and the boring old circus and act, he leaves the circus to find a local party and instead of finding friends gets into it with some locals and a mysterious girl who is somehow involved in the circus. He makes it his mission to learn more about her and has to also learn more about the carnival as well in order to appease his troupe.

There was a lot of predictability to this story but there was also a lot that was interesting and new and there was a lot of magic for a prequel of a tale I didn't realize there was a lot of the magic/occult in. Overall the story had a great build and climax and I was sucked in. Dick is your typical angsty teen looking for an out and always getting into trouble when he is specifically told not to get into any. He is intense, impulsive, temperamental and a little awkward as most teens are as they are coming of age and learning more about their self-identity.

This was, like I said, a fun read. it was full of uncertainty and also adventure and it was a great prequel for me since I do not have much background on this character already. In most stories he is much darker and more broody, this story was slightly more lighthearted all things considered. 

About the Author & Illustrator

About Michael Moreci

Michael Moreci is a comics author and novelist. His original comics series include Wasted Space, Curse, Hoax Hunters, The Plot, and Roche Limit, which Paste Magazine dubbed one of the 50 best sci-fi comics of all time. Moreci has also written canonical comics for Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Archie, and Planet of the Apes. His debut novel, Black Star Renegades—a space adventure in the spirit of Star Wars—was released in 2018 and nominated for an Audie Award; it was followed by a sequel, We Are Mayhem.

About Sas Milledge

Sas Milledge is an artist based in Melbourne, Australia. She graduated with a B.Des in animation from RMIT University in 2016 and has since worked in comics, animation design, and illustration in both Australia and abroad. Alongside her own comics and illustration projects, she has completed work for BOOM! Studios, BlinkInk, Sparknotes, 12Field Animation, and the Jim Henson Company.

About DC’s YA Graphic Novels

DC’s young adult graphic novels introduce DC’s most iconic Super Heroes to a new generation of fans with stories told by some of the most successful authors from the young adult publishing space. The YA titles are standalone stories, not part of DC’s ongoing continuity, and completely accessible to new readers who have no previous knowledge of DC characters.