Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR: Jojo Moyes SERIES: Me Before You, #2 GENRE: Contemporary Romance PUBLICATION DATE: September 23, 2015 RATING: 3.5 stars. #ContainsSpoilers for Book One "Me Before You" ended with an unusual combination of tragedy and hope. The main female protagonist, Louisa Clark, has lost the "love of her life" and consequently, her raison d'être. Even though she has gained quite a bit of money and assets courtesy Will Traynor, she finds life not worth living for. All this changes one day when a stranger knocks on her door. Without any spoilers, all I can tell you is that the stranger is linked to the past and ends up changing Louisa's future. Jojo Moyes writes in the Acknowledgements that she wrote this continuation for Louisa on demand from fans of book one. And I can certainly understand why they would want closure for such a character. Her vivacity brightened up the gloominess of the first book and softened the harshness of the grim realities of Will's life...

Author: Fredrik Backman Series: Beartown (#1) Genre: Literary Fiction, Contemporary Drama. Rating: 4.5 stars. I am so stumped about how to review this book but not because I didn't enjoy it. There are so many things I want to say but words fail me. This is the story of a town that wants to adhere to its set ways. The story of the townspeople, who have to accept the roles they are supposed to play, whether it correlates with the way they are or not is immaterial. The story of a game that is seeped into the town culture to such an extent that it is seen as an escape as well as a scourge. This book provides the best example of how review spoilers can damage a story experience. I went into this book assuming that it was a typical sports novel. And I was stunned to see the turn it took. Had I known beforehand about this part of the story, I would have lost out on that thrill of anticipation, the shock of discovery, the pain of uncovering the true faces underneath the external facades. C...

AUTHOR: Rosie Hewlett GENRE: Greek Mythology Retelling PUBLICATION DATE: April 30, 2021 RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: This book shows you why you must give a chance to indie writers too. There are some real gems in the indie world. There must be hardly anyone who hasn't heard of Medusa. One of the most feared of the Greek monsters, this gorgon sister is known for her gaze that could turn any man into stone. But here we have a book that reveals the other side of the picture. Why and how did Medusa become Medusa? Is she really a monster or a victim of her circumstances? In terms of its writing, this book is outstanding. The way the narrative progresses fluidly from one scene to the next leaves you hooked. At a mere 200+ pages, this book can easily be completed within a couple of hours. You don't need to know the classics in order to grasp the story. The author gives enough of a background into all the key characters to make sure that your reading flow isn't affected. Ther...

AUTHOR: K.J. Field GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: May 23, 2023 RATING: 3 stars. This is a cute and informative little book for young readers. As the tagline suggests, it focuses on the smells of Jupiter the gas giant. Pros: - The book is really informative on its subject of choice. It explains about the various gases that creates Jupiter's smell in an interesting manner. - There is an lot of humour in tackling the topic of smells. I'm sure kids will enjoy the funny remarks. - The illustrations are absolutely adorable. Cons: - It only focuses on smells. There is hardly any other information about Jupiter. So while it stays true to its purpose, kids looking for more information on Jupiter will have to look elsewhere. - Io and Ganymede are a part of the book but they aren't introduced at all. Kids might assume that Jupiter has only two moons as none of the other moons, not even Europa and Callisto, make an appearance. - I'm not sure of the target age...

AUTHOR: Jojo Moyes SERIES: Me Before You, #1 GENRE: Contemporary Romance PUBLICATION DATE: December 31, 2012 RATING: 4.25 stars. How do you review a book that is based on a dicey moral issue? It's tough to separate your thoughts from the book's stance on the topic. But a well-written book is one that makes you think and rethink your views on a complicated matter without shoving its author's opinions on you. And that's how this became a good, thought-provoking book for me. Louisa Clark, a 26 year old, has always lived a simple life in a small town. But after losing her long-term waitressing job and with no qualifications to do much else, she finds herself taking up the role of a caretaker to Will Traynor, a once-dynamic rich guy who became a paraplegic after an accident. Will has almost given up on life and makes it clear to Louisa that she isn't wanted. But she is determined to show him that life is worth living under any circumstances. Most of the chapters come to ...