The Becoming by Nora Roberts

Book 2 of The Dragon Heart Legacy. I enjoy reading books that have tried & true relationships, despite any hardships they come across. Since the inhabitants of Talamh are loyal by nature, this book have a lot of those type relationships. The two relationships I love the most, however, are Breen & Marco and Breen & Keegan. Breen & Marco have known each other since early childhood and the support they provide for each other is remarkable. True loyalty. They are not impulsive or judgmental and they accept each other for who they are. What I like about Breen & Keegan's relationship is that they respect each other and they don't play games. (I hate when romantic partners in books play games with each other!) Breen & Keegan don't always agree, and Keegan can be really tough on Breen when she is training, but they are solid. They are both working toward the same goal: the death of Odran, which in turn saves Talamh and the rest of the world. They don't let their personal relationship interfere with the big picture. Yet, they have a personal relationship. I get tired of the "will they, will they not" type of scenario. (Side note: this is why my very favorite TV couple of all time is Scully & Mulder on the X-Files. We don't need to hear them say "I love you", or see them have passionate sex. The show was on for 11 seasons and we just know they love each other unconditionally.) Anyway, if there are going to be demons and an evil god and people whose sole purpose is to destroy, I want there to be soulmates in the story to counteract all of that! This story has all of it!

So, Keegan goes to Philadelphia to bring back Breen to Talamh. He doesn't really need to because she is absolutely going back. She could never leave the Talamh to fend for themselves, especially knowing she is the key to taking down Odran. This time Marco hitches a last second, and unexpected, ride with Breen & Keegan back to Talamh. This is a happy surprise because I really love Marco. So Marco settles in for the long haul with Breen at her cabin in Ireland. He also falls in love, which makes it even better. He deserves to be happy.

Breen, and now Marco, train nearly every day, preparing for the ultimate fight against Odran. Breen continues to write her blog and her books in the cabin, and Marco manages her blog, social media accounts, emails, and publicity related to her writing each morning in Ireland. (It's nice that they both have paying jobs, instead of relying on Breen's millions that her father left her.) Then they both go over to Talamh to train with Keegan, Nan and other family members. Breen continues to have "dreams", many of them happening in real time, which helps them prepare for - or stop - what is happening. Breen's knowledge and self-awareness of who she really is and the powers within her continue to develop and evolve.

The true nature of some of the characters start to come out. People can only disguise evil-intent for so long after all. I am enjoying this journey with Breen, Marco, Bollocks, Keegan & family and I look forward to reading the third and final installment.

Wendy's Rating: ****

The Awakening by Nora Roberts

Book 1 of The Dragon Heart Legacy. It's always difficult for me to start a new series, or in this case, trilogy. Book 1 has to introduce all the characters, set the scene, and finally get into the storyline. Then, once I'm in and invested, the pages fly by. That's what happened with this book. The main characters are Breen Kelly and her BFF, Marco Olsen, in the human world. Specifically, Philadelphia, PA. Breen is a school teacher, which she hates. Marco is a musician who works at a music store and a drag queen bar. Breen & Marco live together, but since Marco is gay, they are not a couple, just best friends. They grew up together from early childhood.

Breen has been undermined by her mother, Jennifer, since she was about 10 years old. That's when her father, Eian, left them and never returned. She's been made to think she is less than who she is. Breen puts a brown rinse on her red hair and dresses in baggy beige. She tries to blend into the background of her life. One day she discovers that her mother has been hiding something from her. Breen's dad has been sending her money since he left - and now that account is worth nearly $4 million. Breen has been living paycheck to paycheck, struggling to pay her bills for years and years. Needless to say, she gets very angry at her mother! This is her "life changing moment".

Breen decides to fly to Ireland to try to find her father, which is where he was from. She quits her job and finds a quaint cabin in the woods to stay in for three months. Marco decides to go with Breen for the first two weeks. Thanks to Marco, she "blossoms" into her natural appearance: beautiful red, curly hair. He also throws away her old wardrobe! Marco also encourages Breen to start writing. He sets up a blog for her, so she can blog her experiences in Ireland. This writing leads her to additional writing - meaning books. 

Once Marco returns to the US, things really start changing for Breen. Thanks to a stray puppy, she passes through the Welcoming Tree, which brings her into Talamh. Talamh is a world of the Fey, the Wise, faeries, trolls and gods. She meets her grandmother, Marg (Mairghread O'Ceallaigh); keeps the dog, Bollocks, which wasn't really a "stray"; finds out who her father really was (and unfortunately that he is long dead, which is why he never returned to Philadelphia); meets a wonderful family, including Keegan, the current taoiseach who took the sword from the Lake of Truth and accepts the Staff of Justice. He is the leader of the Talamh. Most importantly, Breen discovers who she really is - and why she was lead to Talamh.

Wendy's Rating: ****

Here to Stay by Sara Farizan

This book is considered teen fiction. The main character, Bijan Majidi, is in High School. He is a typical teen. He has a best friend, Sean; likes a girl, Elle, who he is afraid to talk to; is on the JV basketball team. One event changes his life drastically. During a Varsity basketball game, he is brought up from JV to play in the last minutes of the Varsity game. He makes the game-winning basket. Things snowball from there.

Some of the other "star" players are apparently threatened by Bijan because they start making his life difficult. Someone sends out an email of a picture of Bijan dressed as a terrorist because his heritage is Middle Eastern. At the same time, he joins the petition to change the school mascot, simply because Elle is involved in this community project. He figures it's a good way to get to know her. The school mascot is "Gunner", who is displayed with a rifle. This is a pretty violent representation for a mascot for any organization, much less a school. So Bijan is quickly associated with the "No Tradition of Violence" side of this issue. Many on the basketball team are opponents to this idea and wear shirts that say, "Here to Stay", not wanting to change "tradition" and the current mascot.

In addition to being cyber-bullied, Bijan is physically bullied as well, on and off the basketball court. His mother, who is a doctor, steps into the mix as well, trying to force the school principal to do something. (Bijan's dad died years previously.)

Bijan, his friends and teammates try to work through some pretty tough issues between the bullying, racism, socioeconomic differences between students, heartbreak, homosexuality, violence, drinking and other teenage feelings and experiences. Bijan learns to stand up to his bullies and even steps out of his comfort zone to publicly address how being called a terrorist, simply because of his heritage, made him feel.

Wendy's Rating: ****

The Reading List by Sara Misha Adams

I really loved the premise of this book. The same list of books is found by different people at different times in different places. The list of books, in order, include To Kill a Mockingbird, Rebecca, The Kite Runner, Life of Pi, Pride and Prejudice, Little Women, Beloved, and A Suitable Boy. The list is headed by the sentence, "Just in case you need it." Since I have read all of these books except one (A Suitable Boy), I found the story even more relatable. I do believe that books - and the messages within them - can be very influential on a person's life. Looking at the list initially, I wasn't sure what the common "theme" was, since these are all very different stories. Each reader gets different things out of each story though, and it also depends on the age of the reader and their life experiences.

One of the two main characters is Aleisha, a 17-year old living at home with her older brother, Aidan, and their mother. Their father left years ago and now has a new family. Aleisha & Aidan are their mother's caregivers. Leilah (mom) experiences pretty severe mental health symptoms that are left untreated. Aleisha & Aidan take turns working and taking care of her. It's a pretty depressing life for both of them, not to mention their mother. Aleisha starts a summer job at the local library, which is where she discovers the Reading List. As a non-reader up to that point, deciding to start reading the books on the list opens up her world.

The second main character is Mukesh, who lives alone since his beloved wife died. He has three daughters (who each call him daily) and three grandchildren. The grandchild he spends the most time with is Priya, who is a voracious reader. Mukesh is lonely and boring. He decides to try to connect with young Priya by going to the library to check out a book to read. The first person Mukesh encounters at the library is Aleisha, who is the new employee. She doesn't want to be there; she doesn't read; and she is incredibly rude. Fortunately, Aleisha feels bad about how she treated Mukesh and she tries to make it up to him by recommending the first book on the Reading List, To Kill a Mockingbird. She reads it at the same time - and then tries to stay ahead of Mukesh as they both read the books on the list.

As much as I liked the book, it was confusing at times because different characters (who find the Reading List) have small chapters throughout the book that don't seem to connect with the main characters. These chapters would throw me off. Do I know who they are? Did the author mention them previously? It's a small London town they all live in, with a very small library, so I guess in that respect they are all connected through someone, but still.... Also, the main "theme" that ties all the books together is "loss". So, although the book ends with the characters feeling hope for their futures, there is a lot of sadness. I am still incredibly sad about a significant loss that happens in the book. :( I can't stop thinking about it.

Wendy's Rating: ****

A Darkness More Than Night by Michael Connelly

Harry Bosch #7 - and my introduction to Terry McCaleb. Since I am specifically reading the Harry Bosch series, I was not familiar with McCaleb. Maybe I will read his series later! Anyway, McCaleb used to work for the FBI, until he had a medical crisis and retired. Now he is living on Catalina Island with his wife, adopted son, and baby daughter. He owns a boat called The Following Sea and runs a charter business with his partner, Buddy. McCaleb is approached by Sheriff's detective Jaye Winston one day unexpectedly. Winston asks McCaleb to look at the murder book of a case she has been working on because the case has stalled. McCaleb's wife is adamantly opposed to McCaleb going back to work. The job is too dangerous, even if he didn't have his medical (heart) issues. So, of course, he can't resist and soon he is heavily embroiled in the case. The case involves a man found murdered, bound & gagged with a bucket covering his head. There is a plastic owl looking down at him, which seems really out of place in the room he is found in. McCaleb picks up on this right away.

Meanwhile, Harry is in court, sitting at a prosecutor's table, trying to take down Hollywood movie director David Storey. Bosch is the major witness for the case against Storey, and the case goes well. Probably too well, which the prosecuting team figures out soon enough. David Storey is accused of murdering a young woman after they go out together and then have sex at his home. She is never seen alive again. Her death is initially ruled accidental due to autoerotic asphyxia, but Harry believes she was murdered by Storey. Bosch also believes Storey murdered Gunn (from a previous murder case.)

As luck (bad luck for Harry) would have it, McCaleb's case leads him to Bosch. Bosch begins to emerge as a key suspect in McCaleb & Winston's murder case. Once Bosch figures this out, the race is on to try to convince the jury of Storey's guilt before Bosch himself is discredited in court by being charged with the murder of McCaleb's victim.

This is a very engaging read. The two cases merge - and Harry & Terry eventually end up working together to find the truth. They don't exactly part on friendly terms at the end of the book though. I think this is a short-term issue however. Terry is very judgmental when it comes to how Harry handled the Gunn situation (and eventual murder). He tells Harry that they are "no longer friends". Harry responds that he does what he has to do - and questions Terry about doing the same. Terry does some "soul searching" and realizes that Harry is right. I suspect the two of them will be friends again soon enough.

Wendy's Rating: ****

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

Donna Tartt is an intelligent and engaging writer. Although I didn't like The Goldfinch as much as I thought I would based on it's reviews, I DID love this story. Her characters are always unique individuals. Some I like better than others. Some leave me wondering what the true intent of their action is. This author always does a fantastic job with character development in her books, including someone's decline in character.

This is the story of a small, eclectic group of college students who study Greek under one professor. There are only six students: Henry, Francis, Charles & Camilla (twins), Bunny and Richard. The original five were good friends. They eventually accepted Richard into their group after their professor Julian (truly an enigma himself) was convinced to allow Richard to join his class. Richard was basically "out of his league" with this group. He was poor with no family support. The rest of them were insanely wealthy - or at minimum, their family presented as being wealthy. Richard made up his history in California, which is where he grew up. He made his life more interesting than it really was. The rest of them had genuinely led privileged lives. The college they all attended was called Hampden and it was located in Vermont.

Henry was pretty much the ringleader of the group. He seemed to be the most intelligent and the wealthiest. Francis was also wealthy, but a closeted gay man (at least as far as his parents were concerned). Charles & Camilla lived together and seemed to have a co-dependent relationship. We find out later that their relationship is even closer than they presented to the world. Bunny is the screwball. He's a party animal, fun, wicked, engaging. Richard is definitely "the outsider" for a long time. Which isn't a bad thing, all things said and done!

The original five decide they want to experience an "otherworldly" event of a spiritual nature. Everything they did involved A LOT of alcohol and other assorted drugs, and this "event" was no different. Something awful happened during the event, which ended up only involving Henry, Francis, Charles and Camilla. When Bunny finds out about it, he starts to blackmail Henry, and relentlessly taunts the rest of them, threatening exposure. Even I came to dislike Bunny intensely. At this point, Richard is still a peripheral part of this group. He honestly doesn't know what's going on between the other five. Soon though, Henry informs him of their situation. They decide that they need to "do something" about Bunny before he destroys them all.

This is a story of one thing leading to another; one bad decision leading to another bad decision. The reader experiences the negative results in an impactful way.  I would say that it's difficult to read about their lives falling apart, but the writing is absolutely compelling and convincing. I read the last 250 pages in one sitting. Very well written!

Wendy's Rating: *****

Fences by August Wilson

I saw this play as a movie starring Denzel Washington years ago. Denzel portrays Troy Maxson, who is not a very nice man. But, after reading this in play format, I developed a deeper understanding of who Troy is and why he does what he does. His own father was a troubled and abusive man. Troy's mother left him when he was 8 years old. One thing Troy's father taught him was the value of hard work. Troy does the best he can, only knowing his own childhood trauma, and finding a way to survive it.

Troy has two sons, Lyons (34) and his teenage son, Cory, who he shares with his current wife, Rose. Lyons perceives himself as a musician, but he doesn't seem to work overly hard at it. He is always asking his father for money. When Troy tells him to get a job, Lyons explains that he just wants to live a life that he enjoys. This infuriates Troy, who wants Lyons to make something of himself. Troy also pushes Cory to get a job, even though Cory wants to play football and even has a recruiter interested in him. Troy refuses to even meet with the recruiter, since he believes that the world of athletics caters to white athletes and that even if Cory got recruited to play football in college, he would just sit on the bench because he's black. Troy himself was a talented ball player, but couldn't get anywhere playing baseball because he was black.

Troy loves Rose, but that doesn't stop him from seeing another woman (Alberta) on the side. Even when Troy's best friend, Bono, tells Troy that Rose loves him and doesn't deserve what he is doing to her, Troy explains that he loves both women. Troy and Rose have been married for 18 years when Troy tells Rose that he is going to be a father again. Rose is deeply hurt, as she should be. Rose had allowed Troy to consume her during their marriage, giving him her whole self, to the point that she doesn't even know who she is anymore. When Alberta dies in childbirth, Troy brings the baby girl (Raynell) to Rose and asks Rose to raise her. Since Raynell is an innocent child, Rose agrees to become Raynell's mother, but declares she is no longer Troy's wife.

The other significant person in Troy's life is his brother, Gabriel. Gabriel suffered a traumatic brain injury in the war and received $3,000 for his pain and suffering. Troy takes that money and buys the home he lives in with Rose and Cory. Gabriel lived there too, until he decided he wanted to live more "independently". Troy feels guilt over using Gabriel's money, but also feels he is responsible for Gabriel. Which basically, he is.

Troy is a complex man. An angry man. A hard working man. He would be very difficult to love. With that being said, he manages his life and his family the only way he knows. And at the foundation, he loves his family and feels an undeniable need to take care of them all, in his own way.

Wendy's Rating: ****