Book Review: The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

-
Image
The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray is a historical fiction novel that spans many years and tells of the friendship between former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt and civil rights activist Mary McLeod Bethune. I don't know if I would have picked up this book if it hadn't been the August selection for one of the book clubs I belong to in my area because I don't read a lot of historical fiction. However, I am so glad that I read it and was able to learn many things I hadn't learned about in any of my history classes.  I don't recall learning anything about Mary McLeod Bethune, and she is an important part of American history. The things she helped spearhead to provide African American people equal rights is quite impressive. One of the things I was horrified to learn about is Franklin D. Roosevelt's resistance to stop lynchings because he was afraid of losing the Southern Democrats backing for his New Deal Bill. Another thing that I fo...
Post a Comment

Book Review: Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret (Ernest Cunningham, #3) by Benjamin Stevenson

-
NetGalley Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret (Ernest Cunningham, #3) by Benjamin Stevenson
Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret (Ernest Cunningham, #3) by Benjamin Stevenson opens with the main character traveling to a magic show prove his ex-wife's innocence in a murder. It involves ruling out the different people in the show. Will Ernest prove that his ex-wife is innocent without ruining things with his fiancé?

First and foremost, a big thank you to NetGalley for approving me to read this book. I received a copy for free in exchange for my honest review. The approval for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) came after the book was already published and being busy with the holidays both contributed to the delay of me reading and reviewing the book.

The synopsis intrigued me, and I wasn't sure what to expect from this author as I haven't read anything by him before. However, it feels like Benjamin Stevenson is following a step by step guide provided to him in a writing class because the main character keeps mentioning how things should go according to "the norm". I find it quite annoying and invasive to the actual story. The actual motive to the murder was plausible, but the execution of how it was done was a bit far fetched to me. Additionally, I didn't particularly care for any of the characters.

The story had the ability to be fantastic but was lackluster. I am going to give the author another chance, but Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret (Ernest Cunningham, #3) by Benjamin Stevenson wasn't really for me. With that being said, it might be right up your alley. Three out of five stars.

Follow Us On Social Media

https://www.facebook.com/runningbibliophile/https://www.instagram.com/therunningbibliophile/https://www.pinterest.com/therunningbibliophile/youtube the running bibliophile

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Book Review: The Dare by Natasha Preston

-
Image
The Dare by Natasha Preston is a young adult horror novel about Marley and her friends Atlas, Lucia, and Jesse are seniors in high school.  The senior pranks are fun and lighthearted until Rhett starts doling out dares that are more serious.  Will Marley and her friends survive? A huge thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy of The Dare  by Natasha Preston.  The last book I read by this author was so well written, I knew I wanted to give her latest story a try. The first thing I noticed about the story is it's reminiscent of R.L. Stine's Fear Street series, which brought back all the feels from my childhood.  Pretty quickly, the storyline shifts and is eerily similar to the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer .  It's at this point that I became disappointed with the book and almost stopped reading it.   Additionally, there were other parts t hat reminded me of The Secret Diaries by Janice Harrell.  So, overall, The Dare wasn't ...
Read more

Book Review: Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich

-
Image
Book Review: Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich  is the latest installment in the Stephanie Plum book series and opens with Joe Morelli asking Stephanie to dog sit his dog Bob while he is out of town testifying at a trial.  The typical chaos ensues when Stephanie has to bring Bob along to apprehend all of her FTAs and has her asking herself if she wants to be married. Each book in this series typically follows the same formula and is wrapped up in a neat, tidy bow at the end.  It's because of this that I enjoy the series . . . I always know that Stephanie is going to get herself into some sort of trouble and need Ranger or Morelli to help her, and the bad guy is always caught.  Sometimes, I just need something familiar and predictable to read.  And, I don't mean that in a bad way either because it allows me to escape reality and gives me a few chuckles along the way.  It's like the ...
Read more

Book Review: The Business Trip by Jessie Garcia

-
Image
The Business Trip by Jessie Garcia is about two women from Madison who are completely different from one another and are on an airplane bound for Denver, Colorado. Jasmine is a waitress and is escaping an abusive relationship. Stephanie is a news director for a local news station headed to a news conference. Friends and family of both women receive texts that they've met a man named Trent. Then, both women disappear. Panic starts to set in with loved ones. Who is Trent, and what has he done to them? I'd like to thank NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) that they sent to me for free in exchange for my honest review. The synopsis of The Business Trip intrigued me, and I was excited to dive into the book. The story hooked me from the very beginning. I was rooting for Jasmine to escape her boyfriend and live happily ever after. I was also rooting for Stephanie to find the happiness she was looking for. Then, the book took a very disturbing turn, and I ended up loathing J...
Read more