"If the Stars Awaken" by Kate Willis

About this book:

  “"Hush, little one, and you will see a starlit web of mystery.”
    Queen Marinne awaits a sign from the Maker about her unborn child, but the heavens are worryingly quiet about everything except the new star taking over the sky.
    Others look to the stars as well, but none more than the Starreader's loyal apprentice, Dynast, who finds himself cast aside and left to search the skies for answers on his own.
    Elite guard Arrow has no time to wonder about the star as he protects the royal family, a task that becomes harder when the Starreader interrupts the christening to prophesy the end of days.
    Fear and confusion unsettle the kingdom, and a bid for survival turns into a desperate search for truth and hope.”


Series: As of now, seems to be a stand-alone novel.


Spiritual Content- Prayers to the Maker; “The Maker” is representing God in this world and it said to be the “authoritative Being considered the creator, blesser, and redeemer of this world”; 'H's are capital when referring to the Maker; “Starreaders” are those who read the stars that the Maker talks through and are supposed to compare what they say to what the Maker has said before (comparing to make sure they are accurate in their translations); Stars are an important feature in this book as the Maker talks to His people through them (they are charted and said to be dancing; it’s up to Starreaders and their apprentices to understand what they are saying; Some study the stars to understand the Maker); “Wordbooks” are volumes that record any new word from the Maker; The “firstfathers” are mentioned and said to be the first people created by the Maker; Phrases like “may the Maker bless you” and “Maker’s blessing to you” are said; Marinne and her husband have their baby christened by presenting “the child before God to love and to follow Him”; Marinne comments that she has lost the Maker in a moment of grief and that perhaps the Maker still answers some prayers (Later, she tells someone that the Maker never leaves us); Many mentions of the Maker & His mercy; Mentions of prayers (including a prayer of farewell for the deceased and a prayer of protection), praying, blessings over food, & thanking the Maker; Mentions of churches/chapels, Wordbooks, a priest, & christenings; A couple mentions of those who have passed being with the Maker up in the stars; A mention of the Maker’s judgment on sin; A mention of someone wondering if dogs to the stars (Heaven); 
             *Note: One star that is named in this book is called the “prophetess star” and is said to be a fulfillment of prophecy (when it appears, many bad things happen that imply the end of the world as the star is actually a “celestial object” on the way to earth and warns that confusion will soon visit the land; Because of this, some people believe the land and it’s people are cursed by God; Some people believe that the Maker wouldn’t doom His people like so without a hope for mercy from Him); *Spoilers* Stars are able to come down to earth, we see a good one and a fallen one; The fallen one causes trouble by stealing peoples’ energies and confusing a message to read as one without hope and mercy from the Maker who has provided as escape from the world-ending (he believes the people in this world are too messy to come to his world); Another star comes down as a messenger to bring news of the Maker’s mercy in the trying time and tells Marinne and Arrow to go to the skydocks where there is a portal to a twin world where they can live; It’s said towards the end, that the Maker “fashioned the twin worlds, connected and separated by a bright light, but each green and fertile and full of life” *End of Spoilers*; Arrow shares with Marinne about gaining energy from leaves (they stick the leaves which have been in the sun on their wrists and are able to feel replenished by them; They also place leaves on those who have had their energies stolen from them; We see the point of view of a couple people who had their energy stolen and/or gave it to others (it’s said that the people are stuck in a “gray night sky of nothing” but they still have a pulse); Later, they and others are able to give part of their energies to others by touching the person’s wrist; *Spoilers* Marinne gives energy to her son because she doesn’t want to see him ill or hungry *End of Spoiler*); A mention of praying the prayer of farewell for an animal (who “had no need” for it, but Arrow prayed it anyway).
 

Negative Content- A small bit of sarcasm; A scary moment for a mother with her baby not breathing (barely-above-not-detailed); Earthquakes, Fighting, Being attacked (by humans and wolves), Being tied-up, Being carried away in a river, Being shot, Pain, Injuries, Blood/Bleeding, Throwing up, & Hunger pains (up to semi-detailed); Grieving a loved one & dreams of the person (*Spoiler* Marinne for her husband who she sees murdered *End of Spoiler*, up to semi-detailed with shock and pain); Mentions of deaths, accidents, a murder, bodies, & grieving (including Marinne for loved ones *Spoiler* such as an infant (prior to the book) and her husband (during the book) *End of Spoiler*, up to semi-detailed); Mentions of raids & bodies; Mentions of fights/fighting, riots, brawls, & explosions; Mentions of pain, injuries/wounds, blood/bleeding, & helping an injured person (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Mentions of thieves, robbers, & stealing; Mentions of prisons & prisoners (including children because of a parent’s crimes); Mentions of wolves, being attacked by them, & them getting a horse (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of nightmares; A few mentions of being tied-up & held at knife-point; A few mentions of lies & lying; A couple mentions of murderers; A couple mentions of drinks & drinking; A couple mentions of throwing up; A mention of a drowned horse; A mention of gambling; 
             *Note: Mentions of an infant that passed away early (Marianne and her husband’s first baby, who was “born too small to open her eyes”; Mentions of Marianne’s grief and longing for her including a dream of the baby being older; Marianne is concerned that her second baby may not live long in this world because the lack of a name being given to the baby by the Maker).
 
 
Sexual Content- Marianne and her husband share kisses (a hand kiss, three forehead/head kisses, three not detailed kisses, and five barely-above-not-detailed kisses), embraces/cuddling, & wake up in bed together (no details; some are flashbacks/memories); A fellow guard teases Arrow about a tryst; A few mentions of a fallen woman & her children hiding when she would have a “guest” (*Spoiler* Arrow’s mother, who was arrested for it and he was also sent to prison because no one would take him *End of Spoiler*); A bit of love, being in love, & emotions; 
             *Note: Labor pain (barely-above-not-detailed); Marinne feeds her baby (no details besides buttoning her garment when done and having to eat to be able to provide milk for the baby).
 
-Marinne
-Arrow
-Dynast
                                P.O.V. switches between them 
                                                        289 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{Safe for younger age ranges, but may be difficult for some to understand the symbolism.}

This was very different from my normal type of book. I liked some elements and I was confused about other elements, hence my personal rating. (I have to note that the illustration at the beginning was so pretty!)

 

I don’t usually read books about married couples because I’ve learned that it typically adds in sexual content and suggestions, but this book had none of that! Super thankful for that because it was kept very clean and added in a sweetness in the beginning to read about—until a certain part (not sexual, just sad) tried to rip my heart out. 

 

We go back and forth between the main characters a lot. It took me a bit to get into the story and understanding what everything meant because of that, but by a third into the book, I was able to follow along well enough. I was confused on somethings but did okay figuring out some parts. It was slow paced and yet fast paced at times as well. I don’t know if I’ve ever had a book that had this kind of pacing. 

 

I was a bit uncomfortable with the mentions of gaining energy from leaves that had absorbed sunlight and our main characters using them to replenish their energy levels. It’s supposed to only be used in emergency situations, but because they’re on the run and face people who had their energy stolen from them, it’s used pretty often in the last half of the book. It goes to where they’re able to touch another’s wrist and give energy to that person that way as well. 

 

Even though this book was very different from my normal type of read, I ended up mostly enjoying it.

 

 

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.

"Acceptable Risk" by Lynette Eason

About this book:

  “Sarah Denning is a military journalist with the Army in the Middle East when her convoy is attacked and she's taken hostage. When former Army Ranger Gavin Black is asked by his old unit commander--Sarah's imposing father--to plan an extremely risky rescue, he reluctantly agrees and successfully executes it.
    Back in the US, Sarah is livid when she's discharged on a false psychiatric evaluation and vows to return to the Army. Until she learns of her brother's suicide. Unable to believe her brother would do such a thing, she puts her plans on hold and enlists Gavin to help her discover the truth. What they uncover may be the biggest story of Sarah's career--if she can survive long enough to write it.”


Series: Book #2 in the “Danger Never Sleeps” series. Review of Book #1 Here!


Spiritual Content- Prayers & Thanking God; Sarah tells Gavin about the time her mother encouraged her to let God be her Father and her role model; *Spoiler* At the end, Sarah realizes the anger and rebellious attitude she’s had for a long time has cost her the peace that God had promised her *End of Spoiler*; *Spoiler* When a drug exiting her system, Sarah has suicidal thoughts and thinks that she doesn’t deserve God’s love *End of Spoiler*;  Mentions of God; Mentions of praying & prayers; A few mentions of a cross tattoo of Gavin’s representing divine intervention; A couple mentions of being Blessed; A mention of seeing a loved one in Heaven (Sarah for her brother); 
             *Note: The phrase “Thank God” is said four times and are implied to be sincerely said by our main characters; A man calls Afghanistan a “godforsaken country”; A mention of playing devil’s advocate.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: A ‘bull’, ‘heck’, a ‘stinking’, a ‘tick off’, a ‘what the heck’, a ‘dumb’, two ‘crummy’s, three ‘blasted’s, five ‘idiot’s, twelve forms of ‘shut up’ (need shut its), and eighteen forms of ‘stupid’; Mentions of curses (said, not written); Eye rolling & Sarcasm; A car crash/chase, a Fire/smoke, Being held at gunpoint (multiple times), Being shot at, Being drugged, Being kidnapped and tied-up (a couple times), Jumping out of a plane, Fighting, Shooting/killing others (self-defense), Gunfire, Injures, Pain, Blood/Bleeding, & Passing out (up to semi-detailed); Recalling & Nightmares (over the prior events listed, up to semi-detailed); Grief over the suicide of a loved one (Sarah for her brother, up to semi-detailed); Seeing others killed, nearly dead, shot, kidnapped, injured, & bleeding (and helping those bleeding out, up to semi-detailed); The first chapter starts with someone committing suicide by jumping off of a building (semi-detailed); Two scenes of suicidal thoughts include the person feeling as if they are a burden to their family members and the world would be better off without them (one on-page and one recalled about someone else); Gavin asks Sarah if she’s having suicidal thoughts and Sarah says she’s not, but can see “why people who struggle with PTSD can be pushed over the edge to spiral into that pit”; Sarah thinks about stealing an item (and plans to give it back) but feels guilt over it and does not; Sarah almost feels guilty about lying to someone, but realizes she wasn’t lying about her PTSD (she does feel guilty about taking an appointment away from someone else that could have needed it and confesses to the psychiatrist); *Major Spoilers but Important Content Note about Suicidal Thoughts* A company is making a drug to help those with suicidal thoughts and it works until the person is off of it and then they crash so hard that they are determined to kill themselves in whatever way possible to stop those thoughts; Veterans are the guinea pigs for the drug and many have died after their withdrawal symptoms; Sarah is given a dose against her will and when having a withdrawal, she has very negative thoughts (thinking about all the negative things that’s happened to her & that she doesn’t deserve God’s love and is worthless) and tries to run out in front of cars to end the thoughts *End of Spoilers*; In her opening chapter, Sarah is being held hostage in an Afghani prison with other women and girls; Sarah eavesdrops on a conversation; Gavin has tattoos (all of them have meanings); All about suicides, loved ones committing suicide, grief, suicide ideation, the causes, how the people did or attempted it (gunshot, jumping, hangings, overdoses, & self-harm like cutting and running through a glass door), veterans being diagnosed as a danger to themselves, self-harm, grief from family members, & many, many mentions of and discussions of it all throughout the book (semi-detailed); Many mentions of attacks, raids, kidnappings, being tied-up, hostage situations, deaths, being shot/being shot at, gunfire, injuries, pain, blood/bleeding, & passing out (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of drugs, deadly side effects, drug rings, drug addicts, someone being high, & addictions (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of the Taliban driving a van with explosives into an orphanage & many of the children being killed or seriously injured (mentions of the adults who were there living with the strong memories of it happening and guilt for surviving, border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed on the injuries); Mentions of terrorists organizations & their violence and murdering others (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of a car crash & a death; Mentions of the possibility of being killed; Mentions of Sarah’s mother who died from stomach cancer and her pain (quickly and Sarah is very upset at her father for how things happened, up to semi-detailed); Mentions of kidnappings; Mentions of threats & being threatened; Mentions of prisons & arrests; Mentions of a patient at a hospital screaming, being afraid for her life, & being restrained and bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a car crash/chase, gunfire, & being shot at; Mentions of a helicopter crash; Mentions of a school locking down because of a nearby killer on the loose; Mentions of crimes, crime scenes, & a crime-infested area; Mentions of burglaries, break-ins, & stealing; Mentions of a fire, smoke, & someone planning the fire; Mentions of a missing child (*Spoiler* which was a ploy for someone to kidnap Sarah *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of nightmares (including of killing someone, barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of hatred (including hating someone and hating yourself); Mentions of an alcoholic, the person’s addiction, getting sober, & a bar; Mentions of tattoos; A few mentions of an attempted murder with a parachute being sabotaged; A few mentions of a shootout where the shooter being killed, & two officers wounded; A few mentions of potential torture; A few mentions of comas; A few mentions of an ill mother having good and bad days; A few mentions of a deer being hit by a car; A couple mentions of an organ trafficking ring (Book #1); A couple mentions of an attack on a terrorist that killed the man’s family (including young children); A couple mentions of a body burned to a crisp (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple mentions of bombs/explosions; A couple mentions of a gas station tank exploding; A couple mentions of carjacking & vandalism; A couple mentions of someone stopping horrible memories with alcohol or some drug; A couple mentions of cigarettes & smoking; A mention of a possible attempted murder-suicide; A mention of a suicide bomber; A mention of a drone strike; A mention of someone becoming paraplegic after a car wreck; A mention of terminally ill veterans; A mention of stalking; A mention of a rumor; A mention of eavesdropping; 
             *Note: Sarah has PTSD and bad nightmares (some of her nightmares were interpreted by medical staff as her wanting to die, but she says she does not; She does not want to take medication because she doesn’t want to get addicted to it on top of everything else); Gavin doesn’t suffer from PTSD like many of the people he’s served with; Sarah has a very strained relationship with her father & this is a major part of the book (she feels guilt over finding satisfaction in riling him up and thinks that forgiveness for what he’s done isn’t an option for now, but doesn’t think she actually hates him; He disinherited her for going into the Army; Caden also tries to swallow his resentment towards their father; Sarah, Gavin, and Caden all try to talk to Lewis about his actions and that he is being a dictator towards his adult children; Lewis says he never wanted kids, but had Sarah and her brothers because their mother wanted kids (he adds that the kids eventually grew on him; Sarah recalls asking her father why they had them and he said “I agreed to shut your mom up. Kids were her idea. I just went along with it because I was tired of hearing her whine about it.”; Gavin believes that the General loves his kids, but Sarah disagrees; Sarah comments that if someone killed her, he would probably have some “weird relief”; *Spoilers* The General’s own father wasn’t a great man and he realizes that he’s turned into him; Sarah’s father says that he respects her and wants her safe, which we see actions of that towards the end of the book; Sarah’s mother grew up without a father in the picture and wanted Sarah to see that she could grow up with her own father and encouraged her to let God be her Father; Gavin asks Sarah if she’s ever tried to get past what her father’s done and she honestly responds that no, she’s been too busy being angry with him; Towards the end, she regrets how she’s acted towards him and wants to make it right; They apologize to the other at the end of the book *End of Spoilers*); Mentions of people (particularly veterans) being mentally ill (PTSD, panic attacks, anxiety, bipolar, hallucinations, & paranoia); Mentions of therapy; Mentions of brand names & items (Tylenol, M&Ms, iPad, & FaceTime); Mentions of car brands; A couple mentions of kissing someone’s rear end; A mention of someone having a seizer; A mention of Uber.
 
 
Sexual Content- Four forehead/head kisses, a not-detailed kiss, a barely-above-not-detailed kiss, a semi-detailed kiss, and a border-line semi-detailed // detailed kiss; Remembering a kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Nearness, & Warmth (up to semi-detailed); Noticing (including his muscles, up to semi-detailed); *Spoiler* Past the half-way point in the book, Sarah shares with Gavin that she wanted to hurt her father’s reputation, so in high school she slept around with anyone who would ask (She says she had a lot of nicknames, some that began with the letter S and that the least offensive one was “Sleep Around Sarah”; Sarah wonders if Gavin is repulsed by learning this about her, but he doesn’t think any less of her because she’s not that person anymore; Caden refers to it as her making a “lot of lousy choices that resulted in consequences she can’t shake to this day”) *End of Spoiler*; Mentions of thinking a student being “involved” with her professor & sexual harassment (*Spoiler but Important Content Note* It turns out that the professor is soliciting s*x for As and that a different girl complied, so the student put herself as bait and recorded their “…interaction” but he did not touch her; The professor is caught and facing changes of sexual harassment *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of kisses & kissing; Mentions of dates, dating, boyfriends, being dumped, & broken hearts; A handful of mentions of cruel men in Afghanistan selling women and them using the women as s*x slaves and punching bags (when Sarah is kidnapped, she’s aware this is a possibility of happening and/or being trafficked); A couple mentions of lewd looks and comments from men towards women (in Afghanistan); A mention of hitting on a girl; Some Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: Sarah believes that Gavin deserves better than her; Sarah wears a burqa while in Afghanistan; A couple women are told to remove their head coverings by their captors’ orders (one man says he will take a teen girl with him, but the girl says she would rather die); A mention of a man coming out of the bathroom in just a towel; A mention of a pair of boxers.
 
-Sarah Denning
-Gavin Black
        P.O.V. switches between them, Caden, The General, & someone else in the first chapter
                                                        320 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{ Trigger Warnings: suicides, suicide ideation, & grief over deaths of family members (all are both on-page and many mentions of them throughtout the book). }

I didn’t realize Sarah had two brothers, so I was in a false sense of security with thinking the brother that was mentioned on the back cover of this book was actually the brother we meet in the first book and would later see just fine in the fourth book. But no. It’s her younger brother discussed and it really hurt to read. Suicide is highly discussed in this book with the grief of siblings left behind. I cried. Let’s just leave it at that. 

 

It was interesting dynamics in this book because not only do we see Sarah and Gavin’s points of view, we also see her older brother Caden and her father. Now, it’s the father that’s a problem and Sarah is completely game to push his buttons—hard. Now, I honestly can’t blame her at all. Her father was a jerk and I was very upset at his actions towards the end of the book, but he redeems himself and discussions happen, which was good to see. 

 

I did totally see the plotline (not really a twist? The aim of the book and the villain would be more accurate to say) coming and I figured I wouldn’t be completely satisfied by the ending because there would still be the deaths of loved ones. I was right. It’s a bittersweet ending, for sure. 

 

Like the first book in this series, I wouldn’t recommend this book either to those in BFCG’s target age range. This is definitely shaping up to be a harder series with rough topics heavily featured. I’m a bit scared to see what the next two books will have in them. The first book was hard because of the terrible and horrible topic of children being killed; this second book just hit hard to me personally because of the grief and suicide topics. Even with the content in the first book, I definitely liked it more than this second book because of the main chapter, humor, and while it tugged on my heartstrings, it didn’t make me cry like this book did. I’ll read the next two books in the series, but I’ll admit I’m a bit nervous going into them. 

 

(I’m also confused as to why Ava has suddenly been added in, though? The friend group in book one was four girls and everyone is getting their own story except Kat because book four is Ava instead…? I couldn’t find that Kat is featured in a novella by this author, so I’m not sure what happened there.)

 

 

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.

"Hope at the Ocean's Edge" by Chantal J. MacDonald

About this book:

  “Is a Fresh Start Finally Possible After a Life-altering Tragedy?
    Sadie Jones experienced extreme devastation at only nine years old. Now on the cusp of her high school graduation, Sadie is more than ready for a future that will take her away from the small town of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia…
    As the year is wrapping up, she catches the attention of a cute lobster fisherman who works down at the local docks. Tom Carter is everything Sadie would want—he’s charming, honest, and hardworking, but will he ever be able to accept her distrust of God?
    When a stranger from her mother’s past reaches out, Sadie finds herself poised to experience the culture and adventure she’s always dreamed of, but she also is on the brink of emotional breakdown.
    Will she open her heart to God’s plan for her life and will she find hope and love at the ocean’s edge?”


Series: Book #1 in the “Sadie Jones” series. 


Spiritual Content- Scriptures are quoted, talked about, & thought about; Being witnessed to & Hearing two testimonies; Prayers & Thanking God; Church going (Sadie views it as a ritual and usually daydreams, but does think on part of the sermon one pastor shares); Many talks about God, peace, & following Him even in a messy world; Some 'H's are capital when referring to God; Sadie is angry at God for taking away her parents and this is a big theme of the book with her believing that God abandoned her, could have made the accident not happen, and yet longs for the peace that others talk about; *Major Spoilers* After an accident with her niece at the very end, Sadie prays for God to help her and after an emotional outburst in the hospital chapel, she tells God that she’s tired of being angry and feels peace *End of Spoilers*; Sadie does go to church with her aunt and uncle, but it’s more out of respect than a personal conviction and she usually daydreams during the service; Sadie will “politely and respectfully participated in [her family members’] faith practices, so long as they did not require any commitment on her part”; Sadie hopes that Tom’s religion won’t be a big issue because she’s already going to church; *Spoilers* Sadie and Tom discuss God and when she doesn’t want to have any part it, he tells her that he can’t let his heart get romantically involved with someone who is shut off to Jesus; Sadie feels burned because he’s the one who pursued her and feels like he was self-righteous; He apologizes that it came out wrong, but she is incredibly hurt; Later, she calls herself a heathen because of his words and feels like he implied she isn’t good enough for him; She wants him to see that she doesn’t need his approval or “his God” to be happy; At the very end, they both apologize to each other *End of Spoilers*; A young man shares his testimony with Sadie and a group of middle schooler kids (that he was into partying and an online addiction of p*rnography, but found Jesus and everything changed; He thought that church was for “uptight losers” at the time, but ended up going to a church concert and touched by the messaged shared); Many mentions of God, Jesus, Him never abandoning us, peace, bitterness/anger, & the world being messy; Mentions of Bibles & Bible reading; Mentions of those & events in the Bible; Mentions of prayers, praying, praising God, & blessings over food; Mentions of churches, church going, denominations (particularly Methodist), sermons, pastors, Sunday school classes, youth groups, & a concert; Mentions of blessings & being Blessed; A mention of Heaven; A mention of Sadie’s parents watching and celebrating her graduation; 
             *Note: Sadie thinks once that she feels like an insignificant dust particle “at the mercy of whatever windstream wanted to move her”; A few mentions of those at Sadie’s school who boldly and angrily protested faith and worse their atheistic worldview like a badge of honor, but Sadie found their hatred to be off-putting and doesn’t want to be like them; A mention of a superstition (children turning their pajamas inside out for it to snow the next day).
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘darn’, a ‘fudged up’, a ‘shoot’, a ‘suck’, a ‘sucked it up’, a ‘turd’, and two ‘stupid’s; Some eye rolling & sarcasm; Seeing an accident, an injured child being unconscious, & blood (*Spoiler* The child will be okay *End of Spoiler*, up to semi-detailed); The Prologue has a car accident where Sadie was with her parents and she was the only survivor (pain, injuries, bleeding/blood, & passing out are shared as well; overall border-line semi-detailed // detailed); Sadie grieves her parents and what life could have been (including raw and angry emotions and feeling the burden of being the sole survivor of the crash, up to semi-detailed); Mentions of car accidents, accidents, deaths (including one from cancer), grief, injuries, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of parents being hard on their oldest daughter which caused her to rebel by partying, drinking, breaking curfew, & sneaking out (this lead to what is noted in a Sexual Content Spoiler); Mentions of parties, alcohol, drinking in high school, & a teen using drinking as a coping mechanism for the trainwreck his life had become; Mentions of pubs (more so a dinner than a bar); A few mentions of gossip & rumors; A couple mentions of a possibly serial killer; A couple mentions of a teenage alcoholic who later died from a drug overdose; A couple mentions of possible brain trauma after an accident; A couple mentions of a Sadie’s best friend’s father leaving his family; A couple mentions of lying (including a teen lying to his parents); A mention of broken families, abuse, & strained relationships; A mention of cigarettes; A mention of verbal diarrhea; 
             *Note: Sadie longs to get out of her small “hick” town where everyone treats her with pity and like a victim or damaged goods (she wants to prove to others and herself that she is destined for more than what small-town people write for her); Along with Sadie having anxiety at times and a near panic attack, there are also a few mentions of anxiety & panic (panic attacks are not named nor a big part of the story, but it’s mentioned about Sadie having a time where she feels suffocated); Mentions of counselling (including the years Sadie and her family went after the deaths of her parents, another family going through counselling after a teen pregnancy, & some of the things they learned in it); Mentions of books, authors, & movies (The Color Purple, Anne of Green Gables, Chronicles of Narnia, Pride and Prejudice, Harry Potter, The Velveteen Rabbit, C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Rudyard Kipling, Star Wars, & Charlie and the Chocolate Factory); Mentions of brand names & items (Jenga, Swedish berries, Cheetos, Twizzlers, Sprite, & Cadbury); Mentions of car brands; A few mentions of FaceTime; A few mentions of Disney World, Mickey Mouse, & Disney princesses; A couple mentions of places (Tim Horton’s & McDonald’s); A couple mentions of Prince William; A mention of Halloween; A mention of a baseball team; A mention of someone’s depression after the death of her sister.
 
 
Sexual Content- Wondering if she’s about to be kissed (barely-above-not-detailed, doesn’t happen); Touches, Embraces, Hand holding, Warmth, & Butterflies (barely-above-not-detailed); Trying not to think about running her hands through a guy’s hair (barely-above-not-detailed); Blushes & Winks; Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); Going on a date; A guy flirts with Sadie and when his friends come over, she is uncomfortable and when someone else chases the guys away, she feels like she’s been violated even though nothing happened; *Spoiler* Sadie finds out about half-way through that her mother got pregnant as a teenager and gave the baby up for adoption; The biological father was a teenage alcoholic and later died of a drug overdose; Sadie is hurt that this was kept from her, but her aunt tells her that her parents were waiting until she got older to tell her; Sadie is contacted by her half-brother and goes to spend time with him and his family for a couple of weeks in England *End of Spoiler*; Tom (Sadie’s love interest) shares his testimony with her and a group of middle schoolers that he fell into some destructive habits with some online addictions (“pretty bad stuff, if you catch my drift”) and later calls it a p*rnography addiction (to keep the temptations away, he shut down all of his social media accounts; No information on what that is is given to the reader besides implying it was bad; Sadie notes that while he says this with remorse, there’s no weight of shame in his words); Shortly after meeting Tom, Sadie doodles her name with his last name & can’t stop thinking about him; *Spoilers* Tom says he won’t let his heart get romantically involved with someone who is closed off to Jesus and Sadie feels rejected; He apologizes that it came out wrong, but she is incredibly hurt; At the very end, they apologize to each other because they were both to blame *End of Spoilers*; Sadie’s aunt and uncle approach to curfews, dating, and dress codes for her have been more suggestions than rules and she thinks she has a strong moral compass which has worked out thankfully for them; Sadie’s best friend is “perhaps more than a little” boy crazy and has “burned through countless boyfriends” (plus mentions of her boy crazy ways and wanting to set her sights on college boys); Mentions of dates, dating, prom, boyfriends, & break-ups; Mentions of romance novels (including when meeting a handsome young man accidentally, Sadie thinks that she’s “spent too many nights with her head buried in a romance novel for her to believe that this was anything more than a friendly invite [to a baseball game].”); A mention of a man kissing his wife with “extra gusto”; A mention of some people being lustful; A mention of middle-school girls flirting with one of the youth leaders as “innocently as only a middle school girl can”; A crush/interest in a guy, attraction, & emotions about it and him; 
             *Note: Sadie’s best friend’s mom says that her and Sadie are sisters “from another mister”; A few mentions of couples unsuccessfully having children of their own; A mention of Sadie’s best friend having a curvy figure that makes her self-conscious so she dresses in modest clothing like flowy tops or skirts and lots of layers; A mention of the public speaking advice of imagining everyone in their underwear.
 
-Sadie Jones, age 18
                                P.O.V. switches between them 
                                                        246 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{Please note the mention of a p*rn addiction and adjust the ratings for the age-appropriateness for each girl and what she’s been exposed to in her life.}

In complete honesty, I’ve been avoiding this book for a while. (Sincerely sorry to the author about that!) Car accidents are hard for me to read about, so with the prologue being of one with the deaths of young Sadie’s parents, it was difficult. While I may not have loved this book, I did liked different elements of it. 

 

Sadie actually reminded me of Christy from the “Christy Miller” series at times and I think it was the coming of age trope with big decisions and emotions. I can’t blame Sadie for her anger towards God and thought it was pretty realistic for what she’s gone through. I would be curious to see what happens next for her in the next books of the series! This was very Canadian which was fun as I haven’t read too many contemporary books set in Canada. 

 

I will note that there was a lot of info-dumping as we’re introduced to Sadie’s life and those in it. There also were some typos and odd comments/examples that took me out of the story with a couple plot holes, but it was overall engaging and I would recommend it for girls who are high school age and older.

 

 

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.

 

"Evan Miller Is Waking Down" by Jerel Law

About this book:

  “What if dreams were dangerous? What if your strongest abilities made you a fugitive? Tweens and middle grade readers who enjoy dystopian and fantasy fiction will be pulled into a world of secrets, control, and power in this novel from Jerel Law, the author of the Jonah Stone: Son of Angels series.
    In City 47, uniformity is celebrated, individuality is stamped out, and the Elders who run the government demand strict obedience to an ancient writing called the Primary Code. It's been like this ever since the Incident. Fifteen-year-old Evan Miller has an increasingly disruptive secret--a powerful ability that has attracted the attention of the Elders. When disguising himself as ordinary is no longer an option, he's forced to flee to the place he fears the most. What will he discover about the true past of City 47, the Elders, and himself in the forbidden Old City?”


Series: Possibly Book #1 in a series. 


Spiritual Content- “The Second Code” is quoted from in the book and at the beginning (very similar to Joel 2:28); Evan has an ability to go into dreams, bend/manipulate them, & see what is happening elsewhere; Evan’s ability is said to be a gift by the Source along with visions and prophets (They are called “Gifteds”); Visionaries are able to see cloudy glimpses of the future & Prophets are able to receive a prophecy (one uses tattoos to keep tract of the visions he has been given); Evan asks a prophet who gives her the prophecies and someone responds that it’s in her brain “but from something or someone, on the outside. But we don’t know. It’s mysterious.” (Evan then thinks that the Elders would talk about people who saw things that weren’t there and how they believed that those people should be stamped out because they have “imperfections”); Evan goes to a meeting where people are “connecting with the Source” & also sees the Room of Prophecy (where prophets write down prophecies); Both the Source and the Voice are said to be a higher power, but someone says that the Primary Code (Voice) is made by men while the Second Code is “something different altogether”; Evan witnesses a visionary going “into a trance” and it being like she wasn’t “connected to this world anymore” (she’s receiving a vision); *Spoilers* When focusing on his abilities and getting away from evil intentions, Evan feels a peace come over him (also described as a rush of power) and it causes him to do unnatural things (like bend the laws of physics, make someone ignore him, and pause time); This makes others believe Evan is the one the prophecy talks about *End of Spoilers*; *Major Spoiler* At the end, Evan gives a speech to others saying that “There’s another code, one that’s older, ancient. It existed before [the war]. It says there are people with gifts, abilities that should be celebrated. Not destroyed. And that there’s Someone who created us that way.” And ends the speech with a shrug *End of Spoiler*; Mentions of the Source & the scared words that were given to his followers (the Second Code); A couple mentions of praying (but not mention to whom those prayers are towards); 
             *Note: God’s name is taken in vain twice with the phrase ‘god-knows-who’; Evan is told that if he is killed in a dream, he’ll go to the in-between & mentions of those who are there and have never returned from the “deepest level of [their] mind” (*Spoiler* He does get shot and sent there, but quickly realizes that he can will himself out of that state and does *End of Spoiler*); Evan’s school-like government building is called the ‘temple’ and some of the head people are called ‘Elders’ who follow the “Primary Code” which was given to the Elders by a Voice (we also see a couple quotes from this Code and it is revered; Someone else says it was created by men while the Second Code is different); Evan goes to Morning Services which is taught by the Elders at an altar and a “hymn” is sung with devotion by others to their flag (most students raise their arms when singing the song); Evan and other students are expected to read the Code each morning and prepare their hearts and minds for the morning service; Evan recalls questioning his parents about the Voice and is told that it was “special” (but never given an answer about besides that the First Elder is the only one who heard it); The phrase “May the Source guide all of your steps” is said (somewhat sarcastically); A woman says her and her group are making it through “this hell we’d been born into”; A few mentions of believers of the Primary Code and having faith; A few mentions of the First Elder, him being revered, & that every home has to display his face somewhere; A couple mentions of luck; A mention of a man in a dream’s wicked smile; A mention of evil people; A mention of an Elder looking as if he is in a “trance of meditation”; A mention of a confessional group; A mention of Evan thinking something was magic until he learned the science behind it; A mention of Evan wondering if a woman can see visions in the tea in her cup.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blast *someone*’, a ‘half-wit’, an ‘idiot’, a ‘stupid’, a ‘suck it up’, an unfinished ‘what the—‘, two ‘blah, blah, blah’s, two ‘god-knows-who’s, and two ‘shut up’; A couple mentions of curses (said, not written); Eye rolling & Sarcasm; Setting up bombs, Explosions, Fires, Fighting, Being chased, Being attacked/hit/beat-up, Being tied-up, Being drugged, Being shot at and shot, Pain, Injuries, Blood/bleeding, & Passing out (up to semi-detailed); Seeing others shot, possibly killed by gun-like weapons, & sent to the in-between (up to semi-detailed); *Spoiler but Important Content Note* Evan’s abilities are found out and the Elders plan to terminate him; Evan is held down and nearly killed before being rescued by someone who is later killed in the chase (he feels guilt about this but others tell him the person knew what he had to do, up to semi-detailed); His parents are sister are there to watch the execution *End of Spoiler*; Evan is tested in an exam-like setting about choosing to rescue his mother or his sister when both are in danger of falling off of a cliff (he feels guilt over having to choose one over the other); To wake himself up from dreams, Evan has to have a falling sensation like jumping off a building or out a window (barely-above-not-detailed); *Spoilers* Even gets involved with a man who is bent on revenge on the Elders and even though Evan is unsure at times about the man’s plans, he continues to go with them, even planting a bombs at the temple; The man calls Evan the weapon he’s been looking for; Evan thinks that the Elders deserved it, that the plan would be worth it, and wants them to feel the same fear he felt; The man is willing to kill the Elders if they don’t confess to what they’ve done; *Major Spoilers* At the very end, though, Evan stops the bombs from going off when he realizes it was a bad plan and that the man lied about no one being in the building *End of Spoilers*; Evan lies to others about his dreams/abilities (including his parents and other authority figures & also to save his pride); Evan keeps his dreams a secret from his family & avoids telling them the truth; Evan snaps at his sister (*Spoiler* But after he is gone for a time and returns, he notices that she missed her and he her *End of Spoiler*); Evan is told by someone in a test that the Elders have been deceiving everyone and want to build a dictatorship (*Spoiler* Towards the end, Evan believes that those in the city have been “controlled, oppressed, and enslaved by people who don’t care about them.” *End of Spoiler*); In a dream, Evan relishes pulling a prank on a fellow student he doesn’t like (pouring water on him to wake him up); Evan is taken to a tattoo parlor & sees many tattoos, including ones that represent (Evan is intrigued and impressed by the tattoos that both do not have meaning and those that do; Looked at positively); Mentions of disobedient students being ordered to be exiled and/or terminated; Mentions of wars, bombings/explosions, fires, a group of people being exterminated, & deaths; Mentions of weapons (a type of gun), others being threatened with harm/death, seeing others being shot and injured (and possibly killed), & being shot yourself (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of a man’s desire for revenge; Mentions of students being publicly disciplined in front of their peers; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of nightmares; Mentions of cigarettes & smoking; Mentions of squirrels and other rodents being used for food (Evan’s stomach turns at this); A few mentions of crimes, stealing, & thieves; A few mentions of drugs & others being drugged; A few mentions of lies, lying, & liars; A few mentions of rumors; A mention of the possibility of someone being burned alive; A mention of possible torture; 
             *Note: Evan recalls the Elders wanting to stamp out those who see things that aren’t there (Gifteds) because they have “imperfections”; Evan recalls a punishment given to him by the Elders where no one was allowed to use his name or look him in the eye until it was over (including his family; this caused him to feel like “some other life form. Below human, slightly above wallpaper.”).
 
 
Sexual Content- A cheek kiss, a barely-above-not-detailed kiss, and a border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed kiss; Some touches, embraces, hand holding, & blushes; Evan thinks that he’ll go wherever a girl wants when she’s holding his hand; A bit of love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: A man pulls off his t-shirt to show the tattoos on his chest.
 
-Evan Miller, age 15
                                        1st person P.O.V. of Evan
                                                        320 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

This was….interesting. It had a lot of elements that reminded me of many other fantasy/dystopian books. Particularly the “Swipe” series by the author Evan Angler (that name was actually a pen name and hasn’t been around in the book world for ten years). 

 

I imagine that this has to have a book two coming because while that ending felt rushed, not everything was wrapped up. 

 

The faith content wasn’t as clear as I’d like it to be. Especially with the strict government (which comes across like a cult at times) using terms like Elder, temple, and hymn with worshiping their Primary Code (a scared book) that the Voice gave to them. Those words typically imply Christianity, but because that strict government and those involved were obviously shady, it left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth that those words were used. Particularly because on the other side with the Old City, there’s mentions of the “Source” and those who have received gifts like visions, prophecies and dreambending like Evan from this higher power. Not much it known or said about this Source, but readers are under the impression that it’s supposed to be God because most of those who mention this figure are seemed to be on the good side. But again, it’s not clear despite those in the Old City having parts of the Second Code (which is older than the Primary Code) and there being hope for a prophecy that Evan might just be involved in. 

 

I’ll admit that this book started off a little rocky with the phrase “god-knows-who” being used twice and Evan lying to his dad. We quickly learn that not everything is as it seems with basically every adult in this book being suspicious, but I wasn’t a fan of that phrase being used.

 

I didn’t really care for this book, unfortunately, and would add that this book fell flat to me. I do think some young teen boy readers may really enjoy it, so it’s partially because it just wasn’t my cup of tea (despite being a big dystopian fan) and partially because I wasn’t impressed with how everything was explained or went throughout the book. That said, I would possibly read the next book (if there is one) to find out more about the Source that’s hinted to in this book.

 

 

 

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 Publisher (Tommy Nelson) for this honest review.