Leona's Reviews: LibraryThing Win

Showing posts with label LibraryThing Win. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Book Review of Curious Minds by Janet Evanovich and Phoef Sutton

From goodreads.com:

by Janet Evanovich (Goodreads Author), Phoef Sutton (Goodreads Author)

Emerson Knight is introverted, eccentric, and has little to no sense of social etiquette. Good thing he’s also brilliant, rich, and (some people might say) handsome, or he’d probably be homeless. Riley Moon has just graduated from Harvard Business and Harvard Law. Her aggressive Texas spitfire attitude has helped her land her dream job as a junior analyst with mega-bank Blane-Grunwald. At least Riley Moon thought it was her dream job, until she is given her first assignment: babysitting Emerson Knight.

What starts off as an inquiry about missing bank funds in the Knight account leads to inquiries about a missing man, missing gold, and a life-and-death race across the country. Through the streets of Washington, D.C., and down into the underground vault of the Federal Reserve in New York City, an evil plan is exposed. A plan so sinister that only a megalomaniac could think it up, and only the unlikely duo of the irrepressibly charming Emerson Knight and the tenacious Riley Moon can stop it.

Leona's Review:

This is my first read by Janet Evanovich and a book I enjoyed. I have some of her books on my bookshelf I have purchased but not yet read.

We have two characters that are meant to be together. Emerson Knight is one the reader needs to roll their eyes and shake their head at him. Good thing there is Riley Moon who has some common sense but not as creative. I do not want to forget Emerson's Aunt Myra who I think should be in all the following series and more active.

The author sounds like she has been in the vault of the Federal Reserve with her descriptions. The book is a fast read and easy to follow. There is a place known as Area 51 and also Groom Lake in the book which are real places.

If you want some adventure with only a couple of "bad" words, this is a great read. I though of it as a James Bond, because some things were not real, Nancy Dew ( I am dating myself) because of the way the snuck into places and a Hallmark Mystery Movie. The secret door was also a Nancy Drew as far as I was concerned. I loved Riley being from Texas, which is my home state. Her father is a retired police office so it would also be great to see him in a future book.

Some of my favorite sentences in the book are: "You really are self-destructive, you know that?" Riley said to Emerson's back as he headed down a corridor. "Not at all," Emerson said. "I'm inquisitive and I'm being proactive. You should be pleased that I'm assuming a leadership role. I'm very suited for it. My analytic abilities and sensory instincts are superior." (Riley responds ) "You are so annoying."

I won a complimentary copy from LibraryThing. The opinions are my own. I give this a 4 star +.

Leona Olson

http://www.mnleona.blogspot.com

Janet Evanovich may be found at evanovich.com, Facebook.com/Janet Evanovich, Twitter @Janet Evanovich.

Phoef Sutton may be found at phoefsutton.com, Facebook.com/PhoefSuttonWriter, Twitter @phoefSutton

Friday, March 17, 2017

Life into Mist by Haidji

From the back of the book:

Life into Mist is a story about life, love, pain and wishes.

...that creates images in a reader's mind, as would each word

be a brushstroke inside the paintings of your imagination.

Leona's Review:

This was a poetic book that made me feel the ocean and her paint brushstrokes. Characters are added all the time and fit into the story.

My feelings is that I thought it was the end of one's life but another review thought it was the beginning.

I am sure when I re-read Life into Mist, I will see something different.

It was somewhat strange to me but easy flowing.

I will give it star rating because it was different.

I received a complimentary from the author, Haidji, and LibraryThing.

Haidji is a writer, artist, painter, designer, photographer, performer.

She calls herself "just Haidji".

www.haidji.blogspot.com

Leona Olson

http://www.mnleona.blogspot.com

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Review of The Riddle of Prague by Laura DeBruce

From amazon.com:

Book Description

Publication Date: December 7, 2013

When 18-year-old Hana Silna travels to Prague to reclaim her family's ancestral home, she finds herself on an unexpected adventure in a city brimming with ancient secrets. She discovers a riddle by the infamous alchemist Edward Kelley that claims to lead to a long-last flask. The contents of that flask could change the fate of the world.

When a ruthless enemy kidnaps her family, Hana has to find the flask to rescue them. On her quest she meets a mysterious man with a penchant for poetry, a Gypsy girl with a haunting past, and Alex, the motorcycle-riding son of a U.S. diplomat. Alex -- who's trying to save his sister from a crippling disease -- joins Hana on her race across Bohemia to find the hidden flask. It's hard to trust anyone when the stakes are this high -- especially when surrounded by experts at deception.

There's only one flask and Hana desperately needs to find it.

The Riddle of Prague is the first of the Quicksilver Legacy Trilogy.

Leona's Review:

This was a really good read about mystery and searching for the 400 year old flask that holds the elixir for immortality.

Hana Silna is flying to Prague from the United States to sign the papers for the home of her mother that has been returned to them by the government. This book takes place in 1991 before the luxury of cell phones and lap top computers. Hana's mother is having surgery and is unable to travel.

Hana meets Davis Borton on the plane; he becomes a major part of the book.

She is greeted by her mother's cousins and meets her mother's mother, Babi. She does not know who Hana is as she is somewhat senile. I wish Babi had been more of the book because I felt she knew a lot more and could do more that the story allowed.

Babi does warn Hana that Simona is not who she says she is.

Hana meets Alex Williams, the son of a U. S. Diplomat and his sister, Thalia, who suffers from Werner Syndrome. Alex owns a motorcycle and descriptions of the driving in the city of Prague are pretty real.

There are so many names in this book I will list some of them that become so much of the story. Hana Silna, Alex Williams, David Bolton, Simona, Michal, Elizabeth Weston, Valentina, Stefan, Denisa, Nadja, Don Julius, Julian, Luminitsa, Edward Kelley, Marketa, Ben Williams, Niku, L'ubo, Franta and many more. Some are not characters in the book but the names are part of the past and the story.

Places are described in the book: The Charles Bridge http://www.pragueexperience.com/places.asp?PlaceID=598,

The Faust House http://www.prague.net/faust-house and St. Vitus Cathedral http://www.pragueexperience.com/places.asp?PlaceID=602.

See http://www.pragueexperience.com/index.asp for more sites. I like the historical features in The Riddle of Prague.

There is intrigue, murder, escapes and fear in this gripping book. At one point Hana feels "So many radically unexpected things have happened that I'm feeling like Alice after she fell down the rabbit hole" (page 96). It is rated for Young Adults but as an older adult I enjoyed it. I give it a 5 star even though I was disappointed in the end. I finally decided to think of as Sherlock Holmes always running into Professor Moriarty and continuing the story.

I won a copy of The Riddle of Prague from LibraryThing.com. The opinions are my own. I will re-read this book even though I know the ending.

You may find Laura DeBruce at http://theriddleofprague.com/.

Leona Olson

www.mnleona.blogspot.com

Thursday, January 2, 2014

The Silver Madonna and Other Tales of America's Greatest Lost Treasures By W. C. Jameson

From goodreads.com

The twenty-four tales in this book are of the most famous lost treasures in America, from a two-foot statue reportedly made entirely of silver (the Madonna ) and a cache of gold, silver, and jewelry that was rumored to also contain the first Bible in America to seventeen tons of gold its value equal to the treasury of a mid-sized nation buried somewhere in northwestern New Mexico. What makes these tales even more compelling is that none of these known-to-be-lost treasures have been discovered, although modern detecting technology has made them eminently discoverable.

Paperback, 208 pages

Published September 6th 2013 by "Taylor Trade Publishing" (first published January 1st 2013)

ISBN

1589798392 (ISBN13:9781589798397)

Leona's Review:

The Silver Madonna and Other Tales of America's Greatest Lost Treasures

by W. C. Jameson.

This is the first book I have read by W. C Jameson and one I really enjoyed.

The first of the book has a map, always appreciated, which identifies the locations of the Treasures in this book. I must say I was excited to find my hometown of Monahans, Texas and the Monahans Sandhills State Park. I have been going to the Sandhills since I was a child.

This is a fast reading book and certainly for the readers who like the treasure magazines and tales. The stories are short and interesting.

Other books by W. C. Jameson are Buried Treasure of The America Series ( 28 books) which include treasures in Texas, California, Missouri, New England and more. Beyond the Grave Series which are about Billy the Kid, John Wilkes Booth and Butch Cassidy. More series on food, poetry, fiction, books on writing, mysteries, ghosts and monsters.

Contents of The Silver Madonna stories are:

Map (before introduction)

Introduction (page 1)

1. The Silver Madonna (page 3)

2. The Lost Treasure Ship of the California Desert (page 11)

3. The Goat Herder's Lost Treasure (page 23)

4. The Lost Treasure of Shafter Lake (page 31)

5. The Lost Dutchman Mine of the Superstition Mountain (page 37)

6. The Huachuca Canyon Treasure (page 45)

7. Seventeen Tons of Gold at Lost Mesa (page 53)

8. The Lost Treasure of Cancino Arroyo (page 59)

9. The Lost Grierson Fortune (page 67)

10. The Red Bone Cave Treasure (page 73)

11. The Silver Bullets (page 79)

12. The Lost Gold Mine of the Cossatot (page 85)

13. The Lost Treasure Skeleton Canyon (page 91)

14. The Lost Yoachum Dollars: An Ozark Mystery (page 101)

15. The Beale Treasure (page 113)

16. Incan Treasure in Texas and America's First Bible (page 121)

17. Lost Treasure in the Monahans Sandhills (page

18. Chief Victorio's Gold (page 129)

19. The Lost Billy Bowlegs Treasure (page 137)

20. Gasparilla's Lost Treasure (page 147)

21. Colonel Dunham's Lost Payroll (page 153)

22. Cumberland Mountain Silver Mines (page 163)

23. Devil's Canyon Gold (page 171)

24. The Incredible Journey of the Confederate Treasury (page 179)

A Word About Sources (page 187)

About the Author (page 189)

This book is dedicated: For Laurie

The author lives in Llano, Texas. (If you get there, there are great Bar B Q places).

W. C. Jameson may be found at http://wcjameson.com/.

I won this book from LibraryThing.com. The opinions are my own. I give it a 5 star because of the interest and research.

Leona Olson

www.mnleona.blogspot.com

Monday, March 11, 2013

Book Review of Death on Dartmoor by Dara England

Death on Dartmoor by Dara England

Millicent Wright and her mother have arrived from America to visit Sir Oliver Longbourne whom they met in Chicago. Sir Oliver invited them to visit and the main reason they come is Mrs. Wright is looking for a husband for her daughter.

Sir Oliver is murdered in one of the first chapters and thus begins the search for the person who killed him.

This is a quick read and it leads the reader into following clues to the murders(s).

This is the first book I have read by Dara England and I will give it a 4 star.

I loved the descriptions of Buckfast hall as well as the other places in the book.

No sex and no bad language which was appreciated.

Characters:

Millicent Wright- from America (Chicago), her father died 6 years ago and was a wealthy financier.

Mrs. Wright- mother of Millicent

Sir Oliver Longbourne

Phillip-son of Sir Oliver (about 10 years old)

Joanna Longbourne- Wife of Sir Oliver

Miss Caroline Longbourne- sister of Oliver