Bibliophile Amber's Book Reviews

Title: I Am Not Who You Think I Am  Author: Eric Rickstad  Expected Publication: September 28, 2021  Publisher: Blackstone Publishing-Audiobooks  Genre: Mystery/Thriller  Pages: 260 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  Think of yourself if you were an eight-year-old boy, and you walked into your parent's room just to see your father shoot himself. Then on top of that traumatic event, you find a note that reads "I am not who you think I am".  But, you tell no one about this secret you just let it fester and weigh down on your shoulders until you can't handle it anymore. That is what happened to Wayland he was too afraid to share this note with anyone but then one day he starts digging into his father and this note to see what he can piece together to find the truth.   With the help of two friends, he starts making connections, and then he starts finding clues about his father and first beginning with comparing the writing on the note to th...

Title: Seven Dirty Secrets  Author: Natalie D. Richards  Expected Publication: November 2, 2021 Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire Genre: Mystery, Thriller,  Young Adult  Pages: 320 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  How creepy would it be for while you are in the shower, alone in the house someone leaves a clue for a scavenger hunt in the restroom and you never notice anyone else in the bathroom? Cleo receives this clue on her 18th birthday, and while she originally thought that it was her best friend Hope leaving the messages she soon comes to the realization that it's something way more sinister than she originally thought. This scavenger hunt has something to do with a deep secret that she tried to leave in the past, a secret where she was on a trip with her friends and her then-boyfriend attacked her and she pushed him off the bridge. His body was never recovered, and now almost a year later she is having a very sinister scavager hunt with clues that ha...

Title: The Book Binder's Daughter  Author: Jessica Thorne  Expected Publication: September 20, 2021 Publisher: Bookouture  Genre: Fantasy  Pages: 248 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  So this book is a real gem! There is a bit of mystery and a mix of fantasy, which is right up my alley! So Sophie is offered a job at the Ayredale Library, and TBH who wouldn't jump to an opportunity to work at the library? But, not only is this THE Library that is the collection of antique books and things like that this is also the last place her mother was seen at. Originally she thought that her mother had abandoned her and she wants to see if she can finally find out what exactly happened to her mother. So, when she arrives at the Library she feels at home, and then she finds out she has some magical powers along with her very talented skills of bookbinding. I loved the magic with this book, I really loved that a Library was the main place of this story. I also lov...

Title: You'd Be Home Now  Author: Kathleen Glasgow  Expected Publication: September 28,2021 Publisher: Delacorte Press Genre: Young Adult/ Contemporary  Pages: 400pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  Wow! I don't even know where to begin with this book. Let's just say this should become a Netflix show or movie, it is real and raw. The novel takes you through a 360-degree turn in all the emotions: happy, hope, despair, fear, sadness, embarrassment for the characters, and strength. This is definitely the book that will bring you to tears more than once. This story follows Emory. While Emory seems to have very big shoes to fill, she is also a normal teenager and things do not always go the way we want them. At the beginning of the book Emory and her brother along with her brother's friend, Luther and Candy are in a car accident after leaving a party. While Emory suffers from a knee injury, Luther loses an eye and is sent to Juvi, Joey because he had overdosed ...

Title: Once Ghosted Twice Shy Author: Jessica Arden  Expected Publication: September 14, 2021  Publisher: Wayfarer  Genre: Cozy-Mystery/Mystery  Pages: 330 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  I have a soft spot for cozy mysteries and add the paranormal factor and I am in love! Paige is the manager of a gift shop and ghost tours in New Orleans. While New Orleans is always filled with mysteries, legends, and spooky things this is the real deal for Paige. When this all started she noticed a new application on her phone and while she assumed it was a dating app, she would soon learn it is something soo different. This is an application where ghosts can get someone to take their case and figure out what really happened to them, and this is just what happened to Paige. Thinking about everything along with her talking hedgehog Auguste she decides to take the case. Later on, she is assigned a "Mentor" and this mentor just happens to be her EX who left her wit...

Title: Sleepless  Author: Romy Hausmann  Expected Publication: October 5, 2021  Publisher: Flat Iron Books & Macmillian Audio  Genre: Suspense/Thriller/Mystery  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐  Review:  This is a difficult book for me to review. While I enjoyed the twist and the turns along the way if I had just listened to the audio I would not have been able to keep up. But this book definitely deserves a read or listen! Let's start with one of the main characters Nadja.  When Nadja was 15 she was accused of killing her mother, while she doesn't believe it was her that it was one of her mother's "friends". However, this follows her all along with her life and haunts her even in her letters to her brother that she has not seen in over 20 years. Now we have Laura, who is Nadja's friend and she's in trouble BIG trouble. She was having an affair with her husband's friend, but the main trouble is that she murdered her lover and she didn't know what to d...

Title: Declutter Like A Mother  Author: Allie Casazza  Expected Publication: September 7,2021 Publisher: Nealson Books Genre: Nonfiction/ Self-Help  Pages: 240 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  So, I had never heard of Allie Casazza until I requested this book to review. Let's just say she was what I was looking for! As a mom with several children, I often wonder how some moms keep their house spotless without any effort, and this book was exactly what I needed! Where have you been all my life Allie?  She gives step-by-step instructions on how to incorporate her decluttering lifestyle into a busy mom's schedule and it works amazingly! It feels like a guidebook that she is holding your hand all the way and it's not major changes in one swift motion, this is a baby step kind of book and it's amazing! Allie's message is clear to the reader: Read, Learn, work on it and change. I will definitely be purchasing the book to be able to look back on it and si...

Title: The Dead Boyfriend  Author: R. L. Stine  Published: September 26, 2016 Publisher: Macmillan Audio and Thomas  Dunne Book  Genre: Horror,  Young Adult  Pages: 276 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  R. L. Stine has once again given me the chills via his books! He is the Stephen King equivalent for Young Adults! The Dead Boyfriend is about an infatuation gone totally wrong! You know how first love is fast and hard that is how hard Caitlin fell for Blade. But, when Blade decides to cancel his plans with Caitlin for another girl she does what any teenager would do, she confronts him! But when Blade basically blows her off Caitlin is hurt and she thought what they had was special! So like most teenage girls, she can't let it go, so she decides to wait for him to return and when he does he blows her off even more! Then she sees red, she has Blade's blood all over her hands, and it's all her fault! Will she ever get out of this mess? What hap...

Title: The Lost Girl  Author: R. L. Stine  Expected Publication: September 29, 2015 Publisher: Macmillan Audio & St. Martin's Griffin  Genre: horror/Young Adult  Pages: 261 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  I love reading anything R. L. Stine, I used to love Goosebumps when I was a kid and this book did not fail! The audiobook was AMAZING!  I felt all of the reminiscing and the chills! In this story, a new student is at Shadyside High. She is everything you would think that would get the students taking she is beautiful, talented and she seems to have her sights set on the most popular guy in town. While Michael is trying to be nice to the odd girl, his girlfriend Pepper has a whole different perspective on the situation, and to be quite frank she is not a fan at all. Then during an outing, there was an accident and the kids make a poor decision that has come back to haunt them over and over when bodies start dropping like flies! I loved the...

Title: The Chalk Man  Author: C.J. Tudor  Published: January 9, 2018 Published by: Broadway Books  Genre: Mystery/ Thriller  Pages: 283 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  The Chalk Man is a creepy, mystery thriller. I enjoyed the twist as they just kept coming. While the writing kind of reminded me of Stephen King's type of book this one was definitely not a horror book. The book's storyline jumped between two different timelines between 1986 and 2016 and both had a murder mystery. The protagonist is Eddie an overworked teacher who is living in his childhood home. The story follows him through adult life and when he was a kid. When he was a kid he and his teacher helped him in some pretty desperate times without letting his parents know. Then in his adult life, he is put back into his childhood times when a friend from childhood wants to meet up and has a proposition for him and after their meeting, he is found dead so this sets Eddie on the hunt for ...

Title: The Seven Visitations of Sydney Burgess  Author: Andy Marino  Expected Publication: September 28, 2021  Publisher: Redbook Books Genre: Horror/Thriller  Pages: 304 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  How would you feel or how would your mental state be if someone breaks into your home after working really hard to create a good life for you and your son? You had the job, the house, good furniture, and on top of that a really great boyfriend. But, when that home invasion happened you are told that you killed the intruder however you can't remember killing him and no one seems to believe you? Sydney wakes up in the hospital, and while she is telling the officers how she escaped via a broken window and ran over to the neighbors. But, the officers inform her that the evidence says otherwise and that the intruder was killed in her spare room and in a manner that seemed personal not just a stranger killing. Then when she returns home creepy things star...

Title: The Death of Jane Lawrence  Author: Caitlin Starling  Expected Publication: October 5, 2021 Publisher: St. Martin's Press  Genre: Gothic Horror, Horror, Fiction  Pages 368 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  This book is set post-war in England, and it is literally a mind twister! Jane after thinking about it a while she compiled a list of suitors, she decided that she wanted to get married so that she would not feel like a burden on her guardians. They have taken her in after her parents perished when she was a child, so while her guardians are moving and wanting to start anew she wants to get married and stay in the area. Jane decides to talk to Augustine and arrange a business type of marriage. She would do the books for his practice and he would marry her, they wouldn't stay together as he would stay at his family home and she would stay at the surgery in town. After careful consideration, Augustine agreed hesitantly. As they were married an...

Title: Give Me a K-I-L-L  Author: R. L. Stine  Published: June 29, 2021  Published by: Macmillan Audio  Genre: Horror/Young Adult  Pages: 281 Pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  It's getting to that time of year where the spooky books are the appealing way to go! The trees are starting to change colors, the pumpkins are starting to get ready and school is starting for the younger generation. It's starting to feel like fall!  Growing up I was really fond of the Goosebumps series and when I got a chance to listen to the Fear Street books I took it! Due to her parent's messy divorce, she is forced to leave her best friend and cheer squad behind, Gretchen Page is doing something we ALL hated as kids. She is starting a new school and she's in high school. She was the best cheerleader in her smaller town so she took the opportunity when presented to her to try out for the cheerleading team in her new school. While she wows the cheer captain and th...

Title: Enola Holmes and The Black Barouche Author: Nancy Springer  Expected Publication: August 31,2021 Publisher: Wednesday Books/ St. Martin's Press  Genre: YA/Mystery/Thriller Pages: 272 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  Review:  I'm a huge Enola Holmes Fan! I love the series and I am looking forward to more about Enola Holmes and her brothers! I loved how this book showed more of Enola and Sherlock's relationship between them and it's sweet! So, starting at the beginning Watson comes to Enola and lets her know that Sherlock is in a depression kind of state because he finished his last case. So when Enola arrives she sees that indeed Sherlock is in a pretty bad way and despite her efforts, she is unable to get him moving until he is able to find another case. Now, this case is pretty interesting, this client receives a letter from her sister's husband stating that she has unexpectedly perished from fever and that they had her cremated soon after. However, the...

Title: Pearl  Author: Josh Malerman  Expected Publication: October 12, 2021  Publisher: Del Rey Books  Genre: Horror Pages: 304 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  This guy is a legend, he takes the stories that we've grown up with like charlotte's web or babe, and puts a twisted version of it, and wow!  This is a one-of-a-kind novel, I think it's going to be either an absolute love it or hate it. I loved it! So Pearl is a pig, but not just a regular pig this is a pig who has the power to do controlling things with his mind. Pearl has a way to make people sing for him so, that he can get the other pigs to kill them. While Pearl does not seem to have regard for the other pigs, it seems that he is just out for one thing. I will say that this pig was basically out for revenge, while he was spared when he was younger the farmer taught him and it seems like that inspired his thought process. When I first started reading this book I was so excited to r...

Title: Passport to the Paranormal  Author: Rich Newman  Expected Publication: September 8, 2021  Publisher: Llewellyn Publications  Genre: Non-fiction Pages: 416 pages  Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review:  I've always had a healthy curiosity for the paranormal, and this book was amazing! I loved that the paranormal history was mixed between historical information and paranormal information. There was also information there that helped you plan a trip if you wanted to visit these locations, which was kind of nice. While there were a few well-known spots that even ghost shows have covered, I did notice that he managed to include some spots that I previously did not know about and that was really neat! I think my favorite spot that it talked about was The Magnolia Hotel. Living in Texas is one of the locations that has been talked about and I've known of several people that have had experiences and I think it's just fascinating!