Roger's Reads

Author & Book Reviewer

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Review of I See The Light by Arden O’Keefe

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I See the Light is a delightful and endearing Christmas novella that takes place on Christmas Eve. It follows a a man named Heath who, after feeling like an outsider his entire life, discovers a new and exciting world that he never knew existed.

The author then leads us on an unforgettable journey into the world of the Elves, where Heath meets an exceptionally handsome Elf named Shea, and it doesn’t take long before sparks fly between the two of them.

I loved how this story combines the bitterness of loneliness and exclusion with the sweet excitement of a newly found family, creating a heartfelt and memorable book. Though our main character Heath is considered an oddball by most of the townspeople who know him — especially given that he has the ability to communicate with animals — he also has an enormous heart.

When his newfound Elf-friend Shea takes him to witness a heart-wrenching scene, my heart broke right along with Heath’s because of his extreme desire to help — but it being “against the rules” to do so.

But I will say though that the grim situation that we witness is somewhat lightened by realistic dialogue and genuineness of feeling from the characters. I loved how Heath has such a sad, sweet whimsy about him, which balances perfectly with Shea’s almost stubborn determination to win the boy over.

I enjoyed how unique this story’s setting is, and I found the tale to be lush and ethereal, making me feel like I’d been enraptured by some old fairy tale that, strangely, felt completely modern at the same time. The evocative prose took me on a thrilling holiday adventure for the mind and the heart, and I really felt the magic inside of this story.

The writing evokes the feeling of a myth or fairytale and does so without creating too much distance from the characters, which is an incredibly hard line to walk.

So when the night comes to an end, Heath is asked to make a decision: either entirely embrace the magic of the elves and move forward with Shea or remain as a human and return to a world without Shea in it. A couple of other elements ensure that this decision is not an easy one.

At the end however, I felt happy, hopeful, when I finished—everything you want to feel at the conclusion of a great story.

Readers seeking feel-good fantasy tales with an endearing holiday message will love journeying along with Heath from when he was a five-year-old boy to the twenty-three-year-old young man who makes a startling discovery in the woods.

This big-hearted book is a love letter to anyone who has felt uncomfortable in their own skin and wondered where exactly they belonged.

Note that this is a “sweet” Christmas story, so as such, there is no sex on-page or off.

Order I See The Light from Amazon

Review of Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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This was such a fun, witchy, and ghosty read! It follows our main character Yadriel, a sixteen-year-old Latinx boy born into a family of witches or “Brujos and Brujas.” He’s hoping to partake in a ceremony in which he’ll become an office Brujo, a ritual overseen by Lady Death herself. However, the problem is that his traditional family is having a difficult time accepting his gender, and they deny him the ceremony.

So Yadriel, determined to prove to himself and to his family that he’s a real Brujo, performs the ritual himself. But to be a true Brujo, he needs to find a ghost and set it free. He decides to summon the spirit of his murdered cousin Miguel; however, the summoning didn’t quite go as he planned, and he ends up summoning Julian Diaz, the school’s snarky resident bad boy. Julian refuses to break set free until he can find out what happened to him, how he died. Yadriel has no choice but to help the rebellious boy because the sooner he finds out what happened to Julian, the sooner he can release him and become an official Brujo. But the more time he spends with Julian, the more he wants him to stay.

Oh, and there’s also an evil villain who may or may not bring about the end of the world.

This was such a clever and unique plot with a compelling mystery to solve as well. I also loved the developing relationship between Yadriel and Julian, and there was plenty of witty banter and bickering between them that had me laughing out loud several times. I truly enjoyed the dynamic between these two characters — they just felt so genuine to me as well as purposeful.

But I will say that my heart broke for Yadriel, who desperately craved to be accepted by his family and his community. Though his family wasn’t unlikable by any means, they were extremely traditional, so Yadriel had quite a task in tearing down those patriarchal walls built up over generations and show them that you can combine the traditional with the modern. Though, to be fair, they did use his chosen name and his correct pronouns, but some traditions were so firmly entrenched that they were unwilling to budge.

Though the book’s overall tone was light, the author touched on some serious and heartbreaking themes, such as homophobia, transphobia, deadnaming, misgendering, gang violence, teen homelessness, child abuse, deportation, and racism. So that being said, there were definitely some difficult and heartbreaking moments in the story.

Now, I love books about Latinx culture, identity, and mythology, so I enjoyed learning about this family of witches who lives in a cemetery and who commune with the local spirits, setting them free when necessary. I especially enjoyed reading about Yadriel’s family and their history and journeying along with them as they prepared for the Día de Muertos celebration.

That being said, I loved the book’s heavy focus on family and friendship. Additionally, though Yadriel being trans is the basis of the plot, the book is not solely about his difficulties in that regard, but at its core, Cemetery Boys is a lovely romance between a boy and a ghost, a romance which was extremely well-done in my opinion.

All in all, I thought this book was a wonderfully diverse, affirming, atmospheric, and well-written paranormal urban fantasy with delightful characters and a heart-warming slow-burn romance. I sure hope this author continues to write and look forward to seeing what they’ll come out with in the future.

Purchase Cemetery Boys on Amazon

Review of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

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I love books about memory/forgetting, so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this one, especially since it’s by one of my favorite authors. The story opens in France in the year 1714 and follows a 23-year-old woman named Addie Larue.

She’s arranged to be married to a recent widower that she doesn’t really know, destined to a life of babies, subservience, and backbreaking chores — a life which she desperately wants no part of.

So on her wedding day, she runs off into the woods and prays to the old gods — pleads with whatever deity may be listening to save her, ignoring the advice of her friend and neighbor to “Never pray to those who only answer when it’s dark.”

Well, a dark god of some sort answers her, and she asks him for a chance to live, be free, and have more time. The god agrees, and they make a Faustian bargain in exchange for her soul. She will be able to escape her current life and will never age or die.

Of course, the dark ones don’t play fair and what she wasn’t aware of was that there’s a stipulation to the deal: Nobody will ever remember her for more than a few moments. Once she leaves a room, she is immediately forgotten, and each time she returns to it, it’s like it’s the first time. Out of sight, out of mind.

So the book then chronicles her fascinating struggles over 300 years — all of the pain, solitude, challenges, and loneliness she had to go through. Given that nobody can remember her, she couldn’t hold a job or sign a lease, so she pretty much had to turn to a life of crime and prostitution to survive. She’s not even able to write or sign her name. She’s unable to leave any kind of mark behind. There is never any evidence of her having existed, though she does come up with some creative ways to bend the rules and, in so doing, inadvertently leave her mark on the world.

She also cunningly alleviates her loneliness by spending months with a person, meeting them anew every day, as far as they are concerned. We also follow her odd and messy relationship dynamic with Luc, the demon/god who randomly appears in her life over the centuries, sometimes just to meddle in her life and mess with her. He desperately wants her to tire of life — to tire of being forgotten — so that he can collect her soul.

But one day, things change for Addie when she walks into a bookstore she visited the previous day, and the young man says to her, for the first time in centuries, “I remember you!” So the question is: why does he remember her, and what does that mean for Addie’s life from this point forward? Did she finally pull one over on Luc?

I can’t express how much I loved this complicated, moving book and sometimes raw story. I adored the premise of this breath-taking book. There’s real depth to the story, which delves into themes of grief, loneliness, suffering, that which makes us human, art, our need for connection, our need to live a fulfilling life, family, self-acceptance, leaving our mark on the world, being remembered, being loved and grief.

It’s a fascinating life journey – a character-driven tale that sucked me in and stole my heart. It caused me to laugh, gasp, sob, smile, frown, and experience countless other emotions throughout its pages. I think this will end up being my favorite book of 2020.

Purchase The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue from Amazon

2021 Netgalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge

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Given that I tend to read a lot of Netgalley ARCs, I decided to take on the 2021 Netgalley and Edelweiss Reading Challenge hosted by Socrates’ Book Reviews. I decided to give the Silver level a go which is 25 books. I think I may have read even more than that this year.

Most of my books will be from Netgalley though; for some reason, I rarely get approved for books from Edelweiss and I have not been able to figure out why, given that I post my reviews on this blog, on Goodreads, on Amazon as well as on my BookTube channel. Quite curious.

So I’ll be updating this page as I read books from my list.

Challenge Guidelines:

  • The challenge runs from January 1, 2021 – December 31, 2021. There is no deadline to sign up.
  • Everyone is welcome to participate – you do not need to have a blog.
  • Any genre, release date, length, etc. counts – it just needs to be a book from NetGalley or Edelweiss.
  • Books can count for more than one challenge that you are participating in.

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Review of The Last Flight by Julie Clark

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This book surprised me and in the best possible way. In addition to being a compelling domestic suspense story, it turned out to be a super gripping heart-in-your-throat race-against-the-clock thriller that hooked me right from the start, leading me to devour it in only two sittings.

The story follows Claire Cook, who, after months of meticulous planning, is plotting an escape from her physically and emotionally abusive husband Rory Cook, who is part of the powerful and ruthless Cook dynasty and who is ready to announce his bid for the Senate.

Clare plans to disappear and create a new identity and a new life for herself. She knows that if she makes one mistake with her plans…one false step, one wrong decision, one neglected detail…. it’s all going to unravel. In a state of last-minute desperation and out of options, Clare has a chance encounter with a woman named Eva, who is also on the run from someone or something.

The two women make a last-minute decision to switch plane tickets, with Clare taking Eva’s flight to Oakland and Eva taking Clare’s flight to Puerto Rico. When Clare lands in California, she learns that Eva’s flight — the one she was supposed to be on — crashed, leaving no survivors.

Now that everyone believes that Clare is dead, she’s free to step into her new life and assume Eva’s identity. But of course, the huge question is: what was Eva running from? Well, we learn that soon enough, and let’s just say it’s not pretty, and it doesn’t take long for Eva’s dark past to smash head-on into Clare’s new life.

This was such a fascinating character study, and I enjoyed getting to know these two strong yet broken women and their motivations. The story is told in alternating perspectives, from Clare’s viewpoint before and after the crash/her escape and from Eva’s perspective leading up to the crash.

Both of their stories are heartbreaking and riveting, as both characters suffer from deep emotional scars, and we see just how dire each of their situations were and what lead them to make the decision to disappear. I felt that the transitions between the past and present were flawless, and the author did a phenomenal job of blending in the timelines.

This sucker-punch of a book was most certainly an experience as we, the reader, witness firsthand how Clare and Eva, two women who couldn’t be more different, each fight for survival. What also amazed me about this story was how fast-paced it was. There was not one dull moment in the story, and it placed me firmly on the edge of my seat, rooting for both of our characters as they both try to escape their tormentors and free themselves — to begin a new life with a fresh start. And as well learn, making a clean break is no easy task.

The author here succeeds in crafting suspenseful, tension-filled scenes, and flood you with his characters’ depth and their flawed, beautiful hearts.

So in this way, the Last Flight was not only thrilling and heart-pounding but also profoundly moving — a powerful, tightly-plotted character-driven story that caused me to feel a strong empathy for these two incredibly courageous women who find themselves in an impossible situation and decide to set themselves free.

Clark explores so many riveting themes in this richly imaginative story: ambition, failure, physical abuse, emotional abuse, privilege, social inequity, cover-ups, politics (and shady politicians), escaping an abusive situation, grief, drug dealing, loneliness, self-reliance, and second chances.

In some ways, the Last Flight is an honest and somewhat raw commentary on humanity. It certainly doesn’t shy away from hard truths and it kind of destroyed me for a couple of days.

The writing is sharp and edgy; the story raw and tragic; and the characters relentless and determined. The numerous ingenious plot twists kept me turning the pages resulting in a thoroughly addictive and hard-hitting story with a final twist that’s a real stunner.

And that epilogue…..truly heartbreaking. 💔 I did not see that coming at all.

Purchase The Last Flight on Amazon

Review of Early Departures by Justin A. Reynolds

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This is the latest offering by Justin A. Reynolds, an author whose work I always enjoy. It’s difficult to classify this book…I was thinking maybe magical realism? But on second thought, I think I’d go with contemporary with a touch of sci-fi.

So the story follows a young man named Jamal. He once had a best friend named Q (which was short for Quinn), but we learn right away that somehow Jamal blames Q for his parents’ death two years earlier and hasn’t spoken to Q since the funeral. Now Q resents Jamal and feels abandoned by him, so we have a very messy relationship dynamic.

So one night, Jamal is walking by the water, and he hears a cry for help. He dives in to rescue the person, and of course, it’s Q. He begins dragging Q to shore but ends up losing strength on the way. He makes it, but Q is unconscious but alive. Jamal heads to the hospital, where he learns that Q has died.

But that’s not the end of our story because, you see, there is a new technology that would allow Q to be reanimated — that is to say, to be brought back to life with no memory of his death or of what happened to him. But there’s a catch: he’ll only be alive for a short time: a couple of weeks max, maybe only days, and once that time has passed, he’s gone for good.

Jamal discusses this possibility with Q’s mom, and she agrees to have the people in charge of this technology — it’s not the doctors at the hospital — bring Q back to life. But there is a stipulation: nobody is to tell Q that he died nor that his days are numbered.

I love redemption stories, and that’s kind of what we have here as Jamal has one more chance to make things right with Q. What’s interesting is that in so doing, Jamal ends up creating a new type of family that supports him and surrounds him with love. I thought this aspect of the story was incredibly moving. So we have a significant focus on friendship and family in the novel as well as forgiveness.

My huge takeaway from this story was how we are all on limited time with the people we love, and now is the time to focus on making these relationships and the moments of our life count. So imagine how you would do if you only have a few days left? We definitely see the importance here of “seizing the day.”

But I will say that this story is incredibly sad, so be sure to have tissues handy. This is kind of like “They Both Die at The End” by Adam Silvera in that we know how it’s all going to turn out, and I knew there’d no way I wouldn’t tear up at the end. The book is beautiful, happy, and heartfelt but also, of course, heartbreaking as well. I loved this story. I loved the entire premise of this story where a grieving young man gets a second chance to say goodbye to someone he lost and maybe even make up for some of his mistakes.

This story certainly provides a lot to think about and contemplate, such as how forgiveness can not be expected or assumed but only hoped for and, of course, the importance of living life to the fullest now because…you never know. With that in mind, it’s a reminder not to waste our time being angry and resentful with others. I remember a speaker once said that being angry about something that happened in the past is like investing in a mausoleum – it will never pay off.

This may be one of those books that I’ll need to reread at some point. It totally surprised me how it wasn’t really about death, but instead was a celebration of life, friendship, and family,

Another new favorite book by Justin a Reynolds. I love this author!

Purchase Early Departures from Amazon