Friday, March 7, 2025

"A Noble Comfort" by Katja H. Labonté

About this book:

  “As lady-in-waiting to the crown princess, Thalassa d’Acton is used to hectic palace life. The bustle is a good excuse to avoid thinking of the insecurities that plague her. But when a usurper takes over the throne, Thalassa finds herself and her princess imprisoned in a lonely tower—and with all the time in the world to worry.
     Outlawed Azaziah has roamed the land for years with his band of Inseparables. Playing knight errant was a God-given task, and helps him bear the knowledge that evil is spreading over his land unopposed. But now he alone knows the secret plans of the usurpers… and he isn’t enough to overturn the peril himself.
     As personal and political turmoil heightens, despair floods over the hearts of Thalassa and Azaziah. What can comfort them even in the face of defeat? And can their inadequacy and loneliness possibly be the very opening the Eternal needs to change the course of their country’s destiny?”


Series: Book #16 in the multi-author series, “Cornerstone”. It does not seem to be connected to any other books, however. A stand-alone novel. Click on the books to be taken to that review: Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, Book #6, Book #7, Book #8, Book #9, Book #10, Book #11, and Book #12! The rest will be reviewed in the upcoming weeks. 


Spiritual Content- Every chapter starts with a Scripture (or more); Many Scriptures are quoted, read, remembered, & thought over; Many Prayers & Thanking God; God is often called ‘the Eternal’ throughout this book; Talks about God, His will, & trusting Him; 'H's are not capital when referring to God; *Spoilers* Around halfway, Azaziah realizes that the Eternal cannot be defeated and is always in control; He takes comfort and confidence in this; Later, he thinks that the Eternal has equipped him to fight a battle against evil, but towards the end, realizes that it is God who will decide the outcome, not Azaziah *End of Spoilers*; *Spoilers about Thalassa’s depression and anxiety* When imprisoned, Thalassa wonders what her faith really means if she could abandon it so quickly in hard times; When Constanza asks if she’s prayed about it, Thalassa thinks that it never occurred to her to seek help for her struggles with inferiority and depression as she thought it was a flaw she shouldn’t have and shouldn’t have to bother God with; She realizes how senseless that is and starts to pray and read the Bible more, trying to hold onto the truths she reads even when the darkness tries to come back; This is a major part of the book with her recognizing the fact of the Eternal creating her and receiving His love *End of Spoilers*; Many mentions of God/the Eternal, Jesus Christ, His will, & trusting Him; Many mentions of prayers, praying, & thanking God; Mentions of Bibles, Bible reading, & those and events in the Bible; Mentions of miracles; A few mentions of blessings & being Blessed; A mention of someone being persecuted for their religious beliefs; A mention of meditating (implied on Scripture); 
             *Note: Someone says that the deity ‘Ekklesia’ herself is behind his plans (Alexios thinks that this deity may have“sincere, God-seeking souls in her ranks”, but for the most part is assembled by “religious yet unconverted beings, and her upper layers were little more than a political organization”; No other information about this deity is given after this comment); Thalassa realizes that if she was perfect, she would be a god (realizing that perfection is unrealistic and unattainable); Mentions of defeating evil; A mention of the unholy hours of an early morning; A mention of Cupid; A mention of something not being a talisman.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: 2 ‘balderdash!’s are exclaimed; Being imprisoned & potentially facing a death penalty; A bit of jealousy (from Thalassa to Constanza); Azaziah believes that everyone he has loved is lost to him (either by death or the person walking away); Mentions of potential wars; Mentions of possible assassins & assassination attempts (including being mauled by a tiger); Mentions of possible executions, beheadings, & deaths for treason; Mentions of grief & a man being cruel to his daughter for being the cause of his wife’s death following childbirth; Mentions of prisons, prisoners, & being imprisoned; Mentions of injuries & pain (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of gossip & rumors; Mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of nightmares; A couple mentions of hunting; A mention of a death (due to a duel); A mention of a rumor of a woman doing cruel acts in fits of anger; A mention of possible murderers or robbers; 
             *Note: Thalassa struggles with feeling inferior & due to circumstances, she also battles depression and anxiety (*Spoiler, but notes about the depression and anxiety parts* Once held in a prison with Constanza, Thalassa struggles with having nothing to live for and difficultly waking up in the morning; Her depression is also said to be her “falling into the darkness” and halfway, she reads the Bible and prays about it, which helps though she still feels that the darkness is not easily vanquished *End of Spoilers*); A man catches a moth to burn it in a candle’s flame; A mention of others slandering a princess, saying she is a “bundle of defects”.
 
 
Sexual Content- A bit of jealousy (from Thalassa to Constanza and being on the end of a smitten smile from someone); Azaziah says another man is blessed because he doesn’t know what it is to love someone and be rejected; Thalassa craves affection and longs to be the most important person to someone, such as being chosen as a man’s lifelong partner; Mentions of jealousy/envy; A mention of flirtation; 
             *Note: Thalassa thinks negatively about her appearance and figure a couple of times (*Spoiler* but realizes that the Eternal had “fashioned [made] her [H]imself”; Towards the end, she makes a comment of self-depreciation *End of Spoiler*).
 
-Thalassa, 
-Azaziah
                                P.O.V. switches between them & Alexios (x1)
                                                        197 pages


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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

Whenever I have the opportunity to read a book that was written by a dear book friend, I’m always excited but also a bit nervous! Yay, I get to read their book! But what if I don’t enjoy the plot or the characters? It can put a reader in an awkward position, but I’m a firm believer that kind honesty in the best policy in many ways.

 

I’m happy to say that I did enjoy many elements of this story! I’ll admit that there was a lot of characters and they all had very unique names, so I did have a bit of a challenge with that at times and used the search feature on my Kindle then. Because of this and all the unfamiliar names of the fictional places and characters, the book definitely felt longer than it’s 190 pages so I did struggle throughout reading the book and it keeping my interest because of this and trying to keep everyone straight. 

 

I was curious about Azaziah and we get hints about his past throughout the book, but once it all came to light, I got a little excited to see what would happen next. The last 30% of this book is where it really picked up for me and I got invested into the plot. I really liked the writing style and was able to visualize a lot of different parts while reading because of the descriptive writing style, which was neat. 

 

Out of the 13 (of 16 total) books I’ve read from this series, I would say this one has the most faith content by far! I really liked how personal it became to Thalassa and how we see her try to trust God while struggling with depression over the circumstances she’s in. It was beautifully done and obviously a topic neat to the author’s heart, which she shared in the author’s note at the end of the book. 

 

Personally, I would have loved pictures of everyone’s outfits and the items described, but I snooped on the author’s Instagram and Pinterest, which helped quite a bit with that. ;) 

 

There’s really not a romance in this book, but the message of trusting God no matter what (including through anxiety and depression) took center stage, which I thought was carefully done with sincere encouragement. I would put this book in my top five for the series so far!

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 




*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.

Wednesday, March 5, 2025

"A Little Bird Told Me" by Laura Bradford

About this book:

  “Harriet Bailey’s job as a veterinarian often means reassuring pet owners about their adored animals. So, when a local resident is distraught over her missing cat, Harriet does her best to calm the woman’s frayed nerves, advising her to wait a bit to see if the cat returns on her own. However, the arrival of a mysterious envelope containing a ransom note immediately proves Harriet wrong. Someone has taken Nessie!
    As Harriet investigates, she discovers that Nessie is the subject of her late grandad’s most valuable painting, due to the highly publicized story of how Old Doc Bailey rescued and rehomed her as a kitten. When more pets are nabbed, Harriet redoubles her efforts to find the thief. In her search for answers, she discovers old tape recordings of her grandad sharing the stories behind his artwork. Could Old Doc Bailey’s own words about Nessie be the key to reuniting the famous feline and the other animals with their families?”


Series: Book #6 in the “Mysteries of Cobble Hill Farm” series. Review of Book #1 Here!, Book #2 Here!, Book #3 Here!, Book #4 Here!, and Book #5 Here!


Spiritual Content- Ephesians 4:32 at the beginning; A Scripture is mentioned & quoted; Church going; A couple Talks about God; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Harriet feels comforted by being in church and not alone while in His presence; Mentions of God; Mentions of prayers, praying, thanking God, & blessings over food; Mentions of church, church going, services, sermons, & a pastor; Mentions of blessings; A mention of Bible study;
             *Note: The phrase “thanking his lucky stars” is said once; A mention of jinxing one’s self; A mention of tempting fate.
 

Negative Content- A bit of eye rolling; Some grief (Harriet for her grandfather & starting to feel homesickness); All about & many mentions of missing/stolen/abducted pets, the culprit and motives, the worried owners, & ransom notes (including a threatening note); Many mentions of break-in, a stolen painting, & the thief; Mentions of deaths & grief (including for a grandfather, a wife, & a mother);  A few mentions of jail; A few mentions of a pub; A few mentions of lying & a liar; A few mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of rumors; A mention of a car accident; A mention of a cat being rescued from a burning bin;
             *Note: Mentions of a car brand; A mention of an author (Ernest Hemingway).
 
 
Sexual Content- A tiny bit of noticing & blushes; A handful of mentions of dates & dating; A couple mentions of blushes; A mention of an implied handsome man (Polly when she tries to watch the new handyman). 
 
-Harriet Bailey, age 31 (?)
                                P.O.V. of Harriet 
                                                        257 pages


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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

It drove me a bit batty that Harriet doesn’t have cameras around the clinic or the galley, but I suppose having cameras doesn’t always solve the problem of who is trespassing and up to no good. 

 

I actually wasn’t quite sure who the culprit was until the end when everything was revealed, so this mystery kept me on my toes as well. That doesn’t happen too often, so I would say I was invested in and impressed by this mystery! 

 

Like many of the other books in this series, this sixth book was very clean and I would say it’s safe for avid reader preteens as well, especially those who like animals. 

 

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 




*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

 

Friday, February 28, 2025

"A Noble Intent" by Kendall Hoxsey

About this book:

  “A dethroned prince wants his kingdom back. His enemy’s granddaughter stands in his way.
    Prince Max and his elite warriors, the Wolves, have lived in hiding since Lady Vermilion and her Huntsmen conquered the kingdom of Cadmium over ten years ago. He has spent his time training, planning, and strategizing for the day he can take back his kingdom and avenge his family. But to do this, he must find the legendary red diamond that is said to bear the power to appoint the true ruler and remove those in power who wish to use the throne for their own purposes.
    Gisela’s grandmama, Lady Vermilion, has made no secret of her disappointment in Gisela’s scholarly pursuits. But now, Gisela has a chance to redeem herself in her grandmama’s eyes as she’s sent on a journey to find the ancient sage--The Owl--and use her gifts of language translation to decipher ancient texts that will lead her to the powerful red diamond. If she can help her grandmama solidify her place on the throne, Gisela will become what she always has dreamed of being. Wanted.
    When Max masquerades undercover as a guide to lead Gisela on a journey to find the red diamond, they must face trouble neither of them anticipated. And learning to trust their darkest enemy, might become their brightest hope.”


Series: Book #12 in the multi-author series, “Cornerstone”. It does not seem to be connected to any other books, however. A stand-alone novel. Click on the books to be taken to that review: Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, Book #6, Book #7, Book #8, Book #9, Book #10, and Book #11!


Spiritual Content- Prayers; Talks about God; Most ‘H’s are not capital when referring to God; In the beginning chapter from the point of view of Max, he says he’s killed Lady Vermillion’s huntsmen, but God will forgive him and he will “restore order to this kingdom and then dedicate [his] life to His penitence [after he has avenged his family]”; *Spoiler* Later, someone tells Max that he has let hate rule his heart and Max says that God does not answer selfish prayers so he hasn’t prayed about it; Towards the end, Max is willing to make any bargain with God for something and thinks that God is testing him; Max has a hard time trusting God because God allowed bad things to happen, but realizes he wasn’t allowing God to guide him and at the very end understands what the person meant *End of Spoilers*; Gisela doesn’t understand how her grandmother can tell her to kill someone when that is a sin & that only God has the right to “strike someone down”; Gisela hasn’t prayed since her parents died because her grandmother didn’t insist on prayer; Someone tells Gisela that God will be with her and will always listen and help her (“though, it just may not be the help you are specifically asking for”); The red diamond was a gift from God that whoever possesses it is the king or queen of the country as God bestowed it as a gift to the ruler; Mentions of God & praying; Mentions of prayers & praying, & thanking God; A mention of someone feeling as if God ignored his plea; A couple mentions of the devil being on someone’s heels; A mention of a Bible; 
             *Note: Max thinks about someone competing with the demons from his past; There are talking birds and a talking fox; Mentions of a talking dragon; A mention of a superstition.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: ‘curse that woman!’ is exclaimed once & a ‘drat’ is also said; Eye rolling & Sarcasm; A mention of a curse (said, not written); Being attacked, being shot with an arrow, being held at sword-point, holding someone at knife-point, knocking someone unconscious, pain, injuries, blood/bleeding, & passing out (up to semi-detailed); Having the opportunity to kill someone and holding a knife to the person’s throat (*Spoiler* Max with Lady Vermillion *End of Spoiler*); Planning to poison/kill someone *Spoiler* Gisela’s grandmother towards her *End of Spoiler*; Max hates Lady Vermillion and her family for killing his family and wants revenge (major plot point as it’s consumed his life); Gisela’s grandmother has ordered her to kill Max, but Gisela doesn’t think she can do that and questions her grandmother about it (which makes her grandmother grab her; Later, Gisela thinks about if Max is really her enemy just because of family ties and history and knows that nothing will bring her mother back; Gisela knows she can’t do it); It’s implied that Gisela has been physically abused (slapped) by her grandmother as well as the verbal abuse she’s been subjected to for years; Despite this, Gisela has tried to win her grandmother’s approval; A story is shared about a young girl almost being eaten by a dragon after her family was attacked by the dragon (but ultimately, the dragon adopts the young girl has her daughter); Many mentions of killing, murders, deaths (including of parents), and an order to assassinate someone; Many mentions of revenge & hatred; Mentions of attacks; Mentions of kidnappings & ransoms; Mentions of prisons & prisoners; Mentions of lies, lying, liars, & deceit; A few mentions of a dragon killing someone & someone killing the dragon; A few mentions of grief; A few mentions of alcohol & drinking (Lady Vermillion has a glass of brandy in her POV); A few mentions of gossip; A few mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of hunters; A couple mentions of hangings; A couple mentions of someone being tortured; A couple mentions of stealing; A mention of someone falling to their death; A mention of a young boy seeing his family murdered; A mention of the huntsmen leaving a child to die in an abandoned well; A mention of a blood oath; A mention of slave labor (by dwarves who kidnap humans for this);
             *Note: A couple mentions of the death of a mother and young sibling in childbirth.
 
 
Sexual Content- A jawline kiss and a not-detailed kiss; Touches, Embraces, Dancing, Nearness, & Smelling (including muscles, border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Wanting to embrace; Noticing (including muscles, barely-above-not-detailed; Gisela’s grandmother has wanted all the male attention on herself, so Gisela has never spent time with a man; A few mentions of feelings & attraction; A few mentions of flirting & blushes; A mention of wooing someone; A mention of a man being frantic about producing a child with his new wife; Some attraction, love, falling in love, & the emotions.
 
-Gisela
-Max
                                P.O.V. switches between them, Lady Vermillion (x2), & Hugo (x1)
                                                        114 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

I have to say that some things didn’t make sense to me at times, which may have been due to missing punctuation and typos, unfortunately. I will also add, however, that this is probably one of the ones in the series so far that I didn’t feel like the ending was rushed. 

 

I thought it was interesting how Gisela wasn’t sure if the missing prince was her enemy like her grandmother views him, but then Max automatically views Gisela as his enemy because of her connection to the woman who killed his family. I could understand Max (as much as I could) with his desire for revenge, but that was definitely his main personality trait. I honestly didn’t care for Max even besides his plan for and focus on getting revenge. At one point he purposely pushes Gisela’s buttons and thinks about how fun it is to tease her, but it didn’t feel like teasing to me and definitely not to her. I struggled with his character for the majority of the book. I didn’t love the faith content with Max as it didn’t feel like a satisfying ending in that regard where it was a clear change from what he was the rest of the book. 

 

I’ve noticed some similarities between Little Red Riding Hood and Snow White before, but especially with this retelling. I had to keep reminding myself it wasn’t a Snow White retelling because it felt like one often. The author will be sharing a novella that is collected to this story that is a Snow White retelling (well, after the main events of story), however, so it made sense that I was seeing nods to that classic tale as well. 

 

Despite the small page amount, the events in this book were well paced throughout the story. I liked the different elements of the classic Little Red Riding Hood story that came to play. I didn’t personally greatly enjoy this short story, but I liked different parts and think it would be enjoyable for some other readers as well. 

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 




*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

Wednesday, February 26, 2025

"The Girl on the Tube" by Rachel Allord

About this book:

  “Twelve-year-old Addie Brown wants to fit in. But ever since she and her dad moved from small town America to bustling London, life is as bumpy as the Tube she rides to school. Addie’s cranky neighbour tells her off but then invites her to tea! It seems as if Addie’s best friend in America has already forgotten all about her. Worst of all, Addie’s dad doesn’t seem any happier than before, even though moving across the pond was his crazy idea.
    But the biggest mystery Addie encounters is the lady in the green hat. Who is she? And why does she appear on the train when Addie is missing home – and her mom – the most?” 


Series: Book #1 in a series.


Spiritual Content- A prayer; 'H's are not capital when referring to God; A couple mentions of God & Thanksgiving being a reminder to thank Him; A couple mentions of prayers & a blessing over food; A couple mentions of the pilgrims leaving England to worship God in “greater freedom without restriction”;
             *Note: *Spoiler, but about a potential angel/ghost* At the very end of the book, Addie sees the lady on the Tube again, but then the “edges of her glimmer and glint, her body blips and blurs like a fuzzy picture on an old television screen” and the woman disappears “just like that, she is gone, transported back to whatever secret world she’s come from”; It’s noted that Addie feels “spellbound” by seeing this *End of Spoiler*; Addie’s dad calls himself her guardian angel on the Tube; A few mentions of a family leaving Iran because of their religion; A mention of a statue of Ghandi.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: an ‘idiot’, three ‘dumb’s, three ‘rats’s, and five ‘stupid’s; A bit of eye rolling (Addie rolls her eyes disrespectfully to her dad’s comment once); A mention of a man cursing (said, not written); Addie and her father have recently moved to a new country and she cries about missing their old home and wishing to go home; Addie has first day at a new school jitters & is a bit jealous at others already having friends; Addie has moments of angry words and runs off (in their apartment area) or slams her bedroom door when her father asks her questions about her day or won’t let her travel to school by herself (she is particularly upset about him not letting her go to school by herself and this comes up a couple times before he offers to shadow her instead and make sure she can get there by herself; *Spoiler* When they try this, Addie wonders why she feels lonelier when it was what she wanted; He allows her to go to school by herself only after they’ve done this a few times; *Major Spoilers* Towards the end, when Addie is upset and her dad has to leave for a bit, she leaves the apartment and goes to explore, adding that she feels a bit of guilt, but her anger takes over and she’s going to smash his rule “into to smithereens”; Addie thinks that this “big, bad thing I’m doing feels wild and satisfying, like bashing a pinata”; She quickly feels uncomfortable, realizes she forgot her mobile, and starts to panic; She imagines her dad panicking about not finding her at home and hurries to get back, knowing that she messed-up by breaking his one big rule; She gets back home to her father looking for her and they have a good discussion about her mom; As a punishment he makes her help their neighbor & return her travel card after school each day *End of Spoiler*; A neighbor says that Addie is fortunate to have a father who cares about her and her whereabouts); Once of the girls at school corrects Addie about different British words unkindly & Addie gets embarrassed when the girl comments about her dad taking her to school; Addie goes to insult the know-it-all girl, but someone cuts her off; A boy says that Addie left half her brain in America & Addie wonders if he’s right and part of her is stuck back in America, which makes her cry at remembering everything she’s missing (later, he makes another comment along the same lines); *Spoilers* A group of boys stick gum in Addie’s hair and because she’s allergic to peanuts and can’t use peanut butter like someone told her about, she takes matters into her own hands by cutting her hair (she is very upset afterwards and cries); Addie gets detention for forgetting part of her uniform and a teacher believing she’s being disrespectful when asked about it *End of Spoiler*; Addie gets nervous when trapped on the Tube, thinking of it like a buried coffin underground; Addie eavesdrops on her father’s conversation with her aunt; Addie attempts to eavesdrop on someone to be able to catch her name; Addie lies about wanting to try a new food, but ends up liking it; When Addie mimics her aunt calling her dad a “stick in the mud”, he gives her a sharp look which makes her quiet; Mentions of deaths & grief (including from a car accident; a woman’s husband & also a mother/wife); A few mentions of the events of the Boston Tea Party; A few mentions of homeless people begging on a corner with their dog; A couple mentions of deaths in history (the Mayflower); A couple mentions of prison/jail; A couple mentions of injuries & blood/bleeding; A couple mentions of passing clubs and tattoo parlors; A mention of a drunk man; A mention of a food looking “like sick” (meaning vomit); A mention of a classmate assuming Addie’s parents are divorced; 
             *Note: *Spoilers about Addie’s mom* Addie’s mom passed away when she was nine; She recalls a memory that makes her feel achy inside; There’s a couple moments where Addie notes her dad is sad and thinking about her mom; Addie doesn’t want to make her dad sadder by talking about her mom and sometimes feels like “she’s here, an invisible barrier between us. Especially when having a mom around would help a lot.”; Addie cries after something happens that her mom could have fixed and that if her mom was still alive then they wouldn’t have moved to London; Addie has another positive memory about her mom, but then remembers the night the two officers showed up at her house with news about her mother’s car accident; Towards the end, Addie has a breaking point of missing her mom and wishing she could bring back the dead and go back in time to stop the car accident; Later, Addie and her dad talk about her mom together and he shares good memories about her with Addie; When Addie’s aunt comes to visit, she encourages Addie that it’s okay to miss her mom and feel sad when she’s sad, happy when she’s happy *End of Spoilers*; Addie’s new friend is Iranian and her family had to move, which Addie doesn’t understand (a neighbor explains to Addie that not all countries are free and there are rules where opinions can’t be expressed by reporters or artists, people are forbidden to change or share their religion, and that women have the most difficulty with doing things that Addie takes for granted like “showing their hair and skin. Riding a bike. Singing, dancing, and talking too loudly in public”; Addie says she would just have to break the rules then, but the neighbor says that’s “an easy boast for someone who isn’t in danger” and that her friend must miss the only home she’s known; Addie’s friend later tells her about swimming for the first time when she was nine because “girls aren’t allowed to swim at most beaches. Unless they have a women’s section.” and Addie thinks that’s another unfair rule); Addie is concerned that her best friend back home has a new best friend, but tries to squelch the doubt; *Spoiler* Towards the end, Addie feels like her best friend is choosing someone else over her, giving up on their friendship, & Addie feels betrayed; They don’t talk for a couple weeks, but send a text to each other at the end which Addie feels is a good step *End of Spoiler*; Addie cuddles with a stuffed animal she’s had for a long time even if it’s a “babyish, stupid habit” because it brings her comfort; Mentions of a play/musical (42nd Street, which Addie goes and sees); Mentions of brand names and items (Marmite, Tootsie Rolls, Jolly Ranchers, Jello, Sharpie, & iPad); Mentions of a movie & fictional character (Mary Poppins, Peter Pan and Wendy); Mentions of FaceTime; A few mentions of celebrities/well-known figures (Ginger Rogers & Winston Churchill); A couple mentions of places (Walmart & Tesco); A couple mentions of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade; A mention of BBC.
 
 
Sexual Content- Addie is upset to hear that her father has a date (he explains that it’s a work-dinner and not a date, but she is still upset *Spoiler* and runs away to go explore; More information in a spoiler in a Negative Content section above, but he later tells her that he can go on dates and she shouldn’t disobey him *End of Spoiler*); A mention of a musical’s second act making Addie sleepy, adding it had “too many romance parts” (42nd Street); 
             *Note: A couple mentions of underwear; A mention of passing women in tiny skirts.
 
-Adeline “Addie” Brown, age 12
                               1st person P.O.V. of Addie 
                                                        192 pages


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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

I was hopeful about this book and enjoyed many elements of it! It had a charming feel of a book just in-between the Middle-Grade and Young Adult age groups and I think many readers would like as well. The faith content was much lighter than I was expecting, just as a note, as there’s barely any. 

 

Some Americans might be confused with it being said that Addie is starting high school (also called year seven) when she’s only twelve, but it’s just the way the UK school systems are and there were many parts of Addie having to learn about her new country.

 

Addie was honestly a delight. I thought she handled everything well and was very realistic for her age. I liked the Thanksgiving scene especially, but I’ll admit to not loving the rest of the ending with how *Spoiler* we don’t have an answer for the lady on the Tube by the end. There’s an implication that she’s a guardian angel for Addie, but no real details on what exactly is going on *End of Spoiler*, which I was disappointed about. 

 


Edit to add: The author sent me a message letting me know that this is now the first book of a series and more will be discovered about the mysterious green hat lady! I'm excited to hear this and see more of Addie. :) 


 


See y’all on Friday with a new review! 




*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.