Friday Reads - June 5, 2015

In the Air Tonight by Lori Handeland
Pub. Date - June 2, 2015
4 stars


First of all, this cover is just absolutely gorgeous. I might have read this for that reason alone but the plot behind the cover held me from the very beginning.  Raye has always felt different from the other residents of New Bergin.  In a town of the fair-haired and hearty with Scandinavian bloodlines, Raye's dark hair and unknown parentage has left her feeling like an outcast.  The ability to communicate with ghosts doesn't help much either.  When the first murder in years happens in the small Wisconsin town, Raye's ability may help New Orleans detective Bobby Doucet solve the case.  Bobby's New Orleans upbringing has brought him into close contact with magic and the occult, enough so that he has a hearty dislike of it, but what else can explain the mysterious Raye.  As the two try to uncover a killer, they are drawn into a mysterious world of witches, ghosts and magic, and into a very steamy romance.  I really enjoyed Raye's backstory and the historical aspect of witch hunters and King James of Scotland.  These were both complex characters and their romance worked really well.  I look forward to reading about the other two sisters in the following two book.  I received an EGalley of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 


Off the Page by Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer
Pub. Date - May19, 2015
3.5 stars



This young adult novel explores what happens when your favorite book comes to life.  It is the follow up to Between the Lines which first introduced Delilah and her obsession with one particular fairytale and it's hero, Oliver.  This book explores what happens when Oliver starts high school and nonchalantly becomes popular and how Delilah deals with having a boyfriend.  These book are really for a younger audience... maybe late elementary and middle school.  The book itself is GORGEOUS with different colored font for each character and full color illustrations. The current slate of super realistic young adult novels is a good thing but it is okay to read fairytale too where all of your dreams become reality.  This may have wrapped up a little too unrealistically but I liked this follow-up more than the original and I think it would be a charming book for a young girl.  I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.