"The Curious Inheritance of Blakely House" by Joanna Davidson Politano

About this book:

  “A clever young woman, a contested will, and an estate that does not easily give up its secrets.
    It is 1901 when clockmaker and tinker Sydney Forrester receives a most unusual inheritance. Blakely House, the island estate of an estranged uncle she's never met, seems almost alive, revealing and hiding its secrets at will. It is filled with remarkable inventions, including an intriguing unfinished automaton Sydney is itching to get her skilled hands on.
    The estate is also home to a number of peculiar people--including two men intent on removing this interloper from the island. Convinced that Sydney has something to do with their uncle's death, the late master's nephews contest the will and work against their cousin at every turn.
    Sydney finds a sometimes-ally in the estate's butler, an ex-adventurer who ran aground on the island years ago. But when a mysterious man washes ashore with a stunning surprise that upsets everything, Sydney must prove she has inherited the late master's brilliance as well as his property--or someone else will.”


Series: As of now, no. A stand-alone novel.


Spiritual Content- Scriptures are mentioned, remembered, & quoted; Prayers; Talks about God, His creations; 'H's are not capital when referring to God; Sydney was raised in Christian households, but when God didn’t answer her prayer about her mother returning, she grew bitter towards God and thinks of praying as one-way conversations; Sydney bristles at Andrè saying that she has been blessed by God with her intelligence and complains about why “everything [has to] be attributed to some unseen divinity—or a man?” and says that her intellect came from her own head; Sydney comments that she can’t understand God and is too “practical to stand on a ledge [she] cannot see”; Sydney and her aunt have a conversation about Sydney believing in God when she was little and Sydney says that she pleaded with God for her mother and is still waiting ten years later for that prayer to be answered; Sydney thinks that she cannot accept a perfect, all-knowing, all-powerful being like God because a perfect God could not have made a broken clock like her; *Spoilers* Towards the end, Sydney starts to feel God’s presence and notices that everything is balanced in a way that could only be by a holy Creator; There is later a moment where she has to trust God and Andrè and focus on them and not the water she fears, which makes her able to walk on the water/raft on the water until she loses her focus and panics; She wishes for a glimpse of God on a mission, but has more than that and experienced Him which leaves her starving for more; She still questions why God didn’t answer her prayer, but realizes at the very end that God answered it by sending her to her aunt that loves and cares for her *End of Spoilers*; A man says that he is willing to break the sixth commandment by murdering someone if he has to because he has no choice and will not delight in it; Mentions of God, His creations, & trusting Him; Mentions of prayers & praying; Mentions of someone singing hymns & the Psalms (written out); Mentions of a painting of a shipwreck that shows a woman looking like an “avenging angel”; A few mentions of a ceiling having plastered angels; A few mentions of providence (which Sydney comments about and her aunt says she doesn’t believe in that); A few mentions of monks; A couple mentions of those from the Bible; A couple mentions of a theologian; A mention of a rectory; A mention of a man’s parish; 
             *Note: Religious phrases/exclamations are said: ‘heavens’, ‘heaven’s sake’, ‘by heavens’, and ‘who in God’s green earth are you’ are all said once, two ‘thank heavens’, three forms of ‘for all that was holy/for the love of all that’s holy’, and six forms of ‘what/why/how in heaven’s name’; Sydney wonders if she’s died after a trying event and thinks that where she must be in heaven (but is confused on why a pirate would be there); Inventions are described as “magic” but all have science-related reasons for their workings and are not actually magic; A side character has an alchemy shop and is known as a wizard (in his POV, he comments about having a tonic “like a potion” for everyone’s deepest need including remedies for abusive husbands and as a wizard wasn’t “subject to the laws of nature”, but his son found out he was “in some ways, a murderer” and hasn’t spoken to him since; Another person calls him a “killer for hire”); When some men try to scare her away from Blakely House, Sydney says doesn’t believe in ghosts; Sydney wonders if it’s possible to feel someone’s presence in his house after the man has passed away; Sydney thinks a couple women look like angels; Andrè thinks Sydney looks like a saint; Sydney thinks a man has the “look of the devil about him” (referring to Andrè); Mentions of ghosts & haunted places; A few mentions of a man having a “magical” effect on everything he touched and was viewed as a “magician” to others; A few mentions of evil & sin; A mention of wizards casting spells; A mention of Andromeda and Hercules (Greek mythology); A mention of a superstitious group of people.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blamed’, a ‘blazes’, a ‘confounded’, a ‘dash it all’, an ‘idiot’, a ‘stars’, and four ‘drat’s; Eye rolling & Sarcasm; Being chased, shot at, & Pain (up to semi-detailed); Helping injured shipwreck victims & Seeing injuries and blood/bleeding (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Thinking someone is dead & grief (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple hints of a side character drinking (including in his POV); Sydney is very afraid of water & tries to avoid it (at one point, she feels tremendous panic over going near water); Many mentions of deaths (including of parents), grief, possible deaths (including drownings), & a possible murder and murderers; Many mentions of criminals, crimes, thieves, stealing, & stolen items; Many mentions of shipwrecks, people dying or being injured, wreckers, and others planning to get rid of the survivors to take control of the goods; Mentions of pain, injuries, blood/bleeding; Mentions of prisons & arrests; Mentions of a snuff shop & smoking; Mentions of lies, lying, liars, & deceit; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of rumors (including one about a man beating other men senseless and shooting anyone who comes near his house); Mentions of a mother leaving her child and husband (Sydney’s mother, who she is not in contact with); A few mentions of a man being hired to kill others & committing murders (see Spiritual Content Note section for more information); A few mentions of threats; A few mentions of pubs, implied alcohol, & drinking; A couple mentions of poisons; A couple mentions of nightmares; A couple mentions of a woman who had six husbands (unsaid or it was due to deaths or divorce); A mention of a war; A mention of abusive husbands; A mention of blackmail; A mention of jealousy; A mention of throwing up; 
             *Note: *Spoiler, but mention of infant deaths/infertility* In the final chapter, Sydney recalls God still not answering all of her prayers, including a gentle no about "several wee babies" and later He said yes to her prayers and she now has a son *End of Spoiler*; Sydney feels like a broken clock compared to everyone else; Sydney faces some comments about her gender that she bristles at (such as a customer only wanting to talk to a man, a man saying a place isn’t safe for women, being warned that a town is “rather unaccepting of forward thinking women”, feeling like a man is looking at her in a patronizing way, thinking a household is against her because of her gender, and receiving a speech from her aunt about “a woman can pave her own path. She can do anything—especially what men tell her she cannot do”which doesn’t always empower Sydney and instead makes her feel the opposite); A mention of a book (Alice through the Looking Glass).
 
 
Sexual Content- Two head/forehead kisses, two barely-above-not-detailed kisses, and two semi-detailed kisses; Remembering kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Dancing, Hand holding, Flutters, Tingles, Warmth, Nearness, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Wanting to be touched & kissed (barely-above-not-detailed); Blushes; Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); Sydney was born out of wedlock, but raised by her stepfather after her mother left them; Sydney used to think it was a punishment to not be able to woo men like other girls, but realizes it was to protect her from “being wooed, tried on for size, then discarded several times before finding that perfect fit”; Sydney thinks about waking up to a man’s affectionate smile every morning; A man teases another man about a woman writing to him about a “surprise” happening upon her that will look like him (pregnancy, implied they are not married); Mentions of kisses, kissing, & almost kisses; A couple mentions of a woman blackmailing her married lovers (affairs); A couple mentions of matchmaking; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: A mention of a mother dying in childbirth.
 
-Sydney Forrester, age 23
-Andrè Montagne
    P.O.V. switches between Sydney (1^st person), Andrè (3^rd person), and a few others (3^rd person)
                               Set in 1901 (Final chapter in 1910)
                                                        400 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

This was one of my highly anticipated releases for this year and I have to say that it definitely measured up to my hopes. At first, the steampunk elements were a little strange to me because it felt so different from this author’s normal historical fiction style, but it quickly fascinated me the more I read. It definitely had a whimsical, quirky feeling, but almost a gothic springy one as well. I can't think of another book like it, but “A Lady's Guide to Marvels and Misadventure” by Angela Bell came to mind with some of my favorite elements. Not a similar plot-line at all with these two books, but perhaps a similar font? Whichever it is, I've truly enjoyed both books tremendously. 

 

Unlike many of her other books, this new one from Joanna Davidson Politano doesn’t start with a chapter from the middle of the book. But as normal with this author’s books, at the beginning, I’m a bit lost and questioning my IQ, but as the book continues and more details are explained and revealed, things start to make more sense. 

 

I flew through this book much faster than I anticipated, but the story grabbed me and I consumed it within a few hours. I really adored Sydney and her curious mind; she was awkward but sincere and I loved her mission to find out more about this mysterious Emmett. Andrè was a mysterious man as well and the romance was sweet overall. I’m never sure how to feel about the opposites attract trope, but these two were good together. Sydney was a homebody and as a homebody, I loved how that wasn’t just told to us, but shown as well through her thoughts and actions. I think I highlighted many parts about her loving books with adventures and being just fine to read about them rather to go on them herself. 

 

I think there might have been one tiny plot hole towards the end, but perhaps I just didn’t pick up on the prior hints? (*Spoiler* Regarding to Sydney knowing Hedda’s name before the girl told her? *End of Spoiler*) Other than that, this book kept me in suspense to see what would happen next. If you’re one that enjoys listening to music while reading, I highly suggest some of the Nancy Drew game soundtracks available on YouTube.

 

The ending and everything that happened then was so good—but I’ll admit to wishing there was a bit more at the final chapter though! I needed more information on what had happened in the last ten years. It felt somewhat like a sudden jump and I was left out and wondering. It didn’t diminish my enjoyment of the book, but I would have liked more even if it was wrapped up well enough because I wanted to see more of our main couple together. Because of this it wasn't quite a five-star book for me, but I did really enjoy it and I think many readers (especially historical mystery fans!) will truly enjoy it! No major content concerns either which was very refreshing, I would suggest ages 15/16+.

 

 

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 (Revell) for this honest review.

"Protector" by Megan Schaulis

About this book:

  “As the orphaned daughter of a traitor, Novalise grew up in hiding with an outlawed religious group hated by the Crown. She dreams of aiding her people as a scientist and begs her overprotective brother for a chance to assist in his schemes against the government. All her hopes of making a difference implode when she's kidnapped and forced to compete against the Enhanced—a group of highly trained, biologically upgraded young women—for a position as the king's Protector.
    Plagued by insomnia, King Zadien is still reeling from his father's untimely death. When his council suggests a competition as the way to choose his new bodyguard, he lacks the confidence to oppose the plan. Given the role he played in his father's murder, choosing the right Protector could mean relieving his guilt or repeating his worst mistakes. Can he trust the intriguing and beautiful candidate who's nothing like the others?
     After discovering a long-hidden connection between the Enhanced and her father, Novalise realizes winning the competition would give her people the strategic advantage they desperately need. But is that leverage worth compromising herself, body and soul?”


Series: Book #2 in “The Susa Chronicles” series. 


Spiritual Content- Romans 8:37 at the dedication; God is called ‘Alpha’ in this world and His followers are called ‘Alphanites’; Alphanites are considered to be “religious extremists/radicals” by this government and it has been deemed treason to teach about Alpha (thus they live in hiding like Novalise’s group); Prayers to Alpha & Thanking Alpha; A few talks about Alpha; 'H's are not capital when referring to Alpha; A ‘for Alpha’s sake’ is said once and eight ‘Thank Alpha’s are said (the majority seem sincere); Mentions of the Alpha (God) & Alphanites (Christians); 
             *Note: Novalise hears a voice in her head that she thinks is Alpha (God) (They talk about boys, science, and Novalise trusts the voice; The voice gives her directions on how to move during fights; At the beginning, she notes that “All the years I’ve heard this voice, I’ve known it was a he. The timbre has aged with me, sounding more like a childhood playmate when he first showed up almost twelve years ago, Even then, a deep peace accompanied his words, spoken somewhere in the depths of my heart”; The others in her group comment on her ‘imaginary friend’ but some also think she is directly talking to Alpha; Novalise recalls being taught about Alpha by a friend’s parents and “they said we could hear his guidance if we listened hard enough. Everyone else took that as a metaphor. Not me. I hear Alpha, and we talk, same as I do with my friends now.”; As the book continues, she wonders if it’s just an imaginary voice or a friend in her head and doesn’t hear his voice as clearly as she usually does, but the voice is insistent that that isn’t true; At one point, she thinks about hearing about people who hear voices are sick people with broken minds; Novalise avoids asking the voice about some of her thoughts or ideas; She feels peace at times when talking to this voice and other times, she feels his pride in her and him winking at her; The voice is insulted when Novalise calls him her conscience; *Spoiler* Towards the end, she feels like it is foolishness to have the light-hearted conversations with the voice as she thinks it’s an imaginary voice in her head, but eventually calls on the voice again when she needs help and feels a rumble with the voice says “I AM [the real Alpha]”; She realizes that the voice is an advantage for her over the other girls and that she shouldn’t have left him out of her plans *End of Spoiler*); Someone makes a few negative and snide comments about the Alphanites’ god not allowing “progress or some nonsense” when it comes to the “health upgrades” being offered; A mention of a bone protruding at an “unholy angle”.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: two ‘shut up’s, four forms of ‘dumb’, seven forms of ‘idiot’, and twenty-seven forms of ‘stupid’; Fictional curses include: a ‘how in the name of the sun’ (which the voice in Novalise’s head says the sun can’t help her), a ‘sun help me’, a ‘swear on the sun’, a ‘sun rest them’ (when talking about a deceased person), two ‘sun-forsaken’s, three  ‘thank the sun’s, six forms of ‘for sun’s sake’, six ‘sun knows’, eight forms of ‘what/why the sun’, six ‘blazing’, and nine ‘blazes/what the blazes’; Eye rolling & Sarcasm (including between siblings); Novalise and her brother clash and argue at times (*Spoilers* When she is kidnapped and hears that her brother was behind it, she feels hurt and betrayed by it, thinking that she would promise to be better to him if he wouldn’t get rid of her like this; *Major Spoiler* It was his plan for her to get kidnapped to be able to become a Protector and have a mole on the inside, but he didn’t tell or warn her about his plan and she understands his intention once it’s explained *End of Spoiler*); Seeing deaths, a picture of a dead body (including a broken neck and those executed by pulse guns, which all greatly affect Novalise and she feels sick) and someone’s leg being caught and badly injured/broken in a heavy moving door (up to semi-detailed); Lots of Fighting (including in training and for her life), Being attacked/beaten, Being kidnapped, Being tied-up, Pain, Injuries, Blood/Bleeding, & Being knocked unconscious (up to semi-detailed); Throwing up (due to guilt); Zadien feels guilt for his father’s murder (*Major Spoilers* because he and a Protector conspired together to have his father in a dangerous situation to be able to have a wish granted by the king; The Protector betrayed the plans she made with Zadien and asked to become the Chief Protector; On a later mission, she glitched and was unable to protect the king from assassins and Zadien feels guilt over this because it may not have happened if he didn’t help the Protector originally get the wish *End of Spoilers*; The Enhanced are considered not to be humans, but war machines by some (including the creator of the technology and *Spoilers, but kidnapping notes* it is revealed that he has been kidnapping and taking young girls from their families to make them into the Enhanced; He mentions towards the end about using younger girls to see if they would do better with the technology enhancements *End of Spoilers*; There are also glitches that happen when the technology moves faster than the rest of them and usually results in death; The creator wants to fix these glitches by developing a new serum that can be injected into the brain stem to make their brains faster); Many mentions of executions (particularly of the Enhanced who failed their mission of protecting the king, the Enhanced who fail their tests, and traitors to the government), deaths, how it happens (including snapped necks and backs & by pulse guns to the head), & deaths (boarder-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Many mentions of a murder/assassination & trying to find the killers; Many mentions of fights/fighting, injuries, broken bones, pain, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of tattoos (as those in the city all receive tattoos starting when they are twelve to cover their nano-tech incisions; Novalise also creates and maintains fake ones for her brother and friends; The Enhanced guards are covered in tattoos because of all of their tech upgrades); Mentions of deaths/murders & grief (including of parents); Mentions of kidnappings and children being taken from their families because of the parents having “fanatical (religious) beliefs”, drug use, criminal activity, mental instability, or orphaned after their parents deaths/murders; Mentions of terrorists (including Novalise’s father who was branded as one); Mentions of fires & burns (including a child’s home being set on fire by those that were afraid of their religious beliefs); Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of manipulation; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of gossip & rumors; Mentions of throwing up; A few mentions of some “taking matters into their own hands” (implied suicide in the context); A few mentions of arrests, prisoners, & interrogation (implying beatings); A few mentions of nightmares; A few mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of threats; A mention of someone viewing a family member like a grandmother who is a “burden who will hopefully die soon” (what Novalise thinks her brother thinks of her); A mention of a potential drowning; A mention of the possibility of someone wetting their pants; A mention of something being like a dead animal; A mention of being shot like rabid dogs; 
             *Note: At one point, Novalise thinks about hearing about people who hear voices are sick people with broken minds (and she wonders if that is the case with her, though the voice in her head says it’s not); In the city, when a child turns twelve, they are required to do a nano treatment that will scar, so tattoos are done to cover it (to not do this is to be considered “markless” and that person will be banned from public areas and denied medical services); The Enhanced are guards for the king and are covered in tattoos to cover the scars from all of their tech upgrades; Novalise has some prejudice towards those with enhancement technology and call them “nano-boosted freaks” (but realizes later that they aren’t all evil).
 
 
Sexual Content- A cheek kiss, an almost kiss (barely-above-not-detailed), a barely-above-not-detailed kiss, a semi-detailed kissing session (with many little kisses not on the lips) and a border-line semi-detailed // detailed kiss; Staring at lips; Remembering kisses (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Touches, Hand holding, Shivers, Flutters, Nearness, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Remembering touches (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to touch (up to semi-detailed); Blushes; Noticing & Staring (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Zadien loved the previous Chief Protector, Vastri (*Spoiler* later, she betrayed their plans to be together and he now hates how she manipulated him and used him as a stepping stone to get what she wanted *End of Spoiler*); After meeting Novalise, Zadien wonders if he is drawn to the forbidden (as Protectors can’t get married; he later wonders if it was him rebelling) or if he is trying to back Vastri back from the dead by “snuggling up to one of her peers” which puts a sour taste in his mouth; *Spoilers, but sexual suggestions/assumptions* Zadien plans a way to show if the potential Protectors are interested in him for their own benefits or are there to protect him; He says he has “expectations” of all of them and others believe his double-meaning that he will take advantage of those in his service; Novalise and other guards think poorly of the young king (including one commenting that the girls did not “perform well enough” and Novalise comments on it not making sense for them to defend a guy “when you’re on your back in his bed”); Novalise and others hear a girl brag about her night with the king and that the “evaluation covers a lot more than our ability to stand guard”, which takes a minute for Novalise to understand; Novalise says that the king can’t expect them to give himself themselves, but another says that he can because he is the king and at least he isn’t some creepy old guy); Novalise wonders if the others are wrong, but if they’re not, would she pay that price; When it is Novalise’s turn, she guards the king by not going past the dividers and Zadien is shirtless while saying things about his soft sheets and her “helping” their king (the girls who come with eager reactions are sent packing (which leads to their execution, but he didn’t know this) and those who come with stoic expressions, he plans to have a talk with those in charge about appropriate expectations for the young women); Zadien feels dirty and ashamed by saying all of this; Novalise is firm and nothing happens, but offers to send for one of the many other woman that would be “delighted to entertain [him] for the evening”; Zadien comes around the room divider to find it’s her and they exchange harsh words as she tells him that he has been using the power of his crown to force himself on innocent women who have been brainwashed into protecting him (and she also tells him to put on a shirt); Zadien explains the goal and that he did not sleep with any of the Protector candidates, but Novalise scoffs at this after hearing his attempts of seducing; Zadien later thinks that he needs to clear up the mess with the night duty plan before he damages his reputation (though he isn’t sure which is worse—those they look at him differently because of what they think he did or the ones that don’t seem to care); Mentions of the king’s “night duty propositions” *End of Spoilers*; A radio program calls Zadien “scrumptious” and asks the question if he or another king would look better with their shirts off; Mentions of kisses & kissing; Mentions of attraction, crushes, & handsome guys; Mentions of flirting; Mentions of jealousy; A mention of a rumor about an Enhanced having plenty of other relationships (but not marriage); A mention of Novalise never sneaking out to meet a boy; Some love/attraction, crushes/falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: The Enhanced are unable to have children due to being sterilized; In the author’s note, she shares that the story of Esther and how the king’s advisors rounded up beautiful young virgins, them each spending a night with the king, and while the Bible doesn’t say exactly what happened on that night, the women were moved to be with the king’s concubines “so we can make assumptions”. 
 
-Novalise, age 18
-Zadien, age 20
                                1^st person P.O.V. switches between them 
                                                        294 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

For some reason, I wasn’t expecting this book to be so intense. Silly me, this is a dystopian plot after all. I have mixed thoughts…positives and negatives to share, so we’ll go back and forth. 

 

I definitely could see the Esther inspiration, but it’s definitely not a retelling. Because of knowing the events of Esther, it gave me a slight comfort in knowing that it should all end okay…right? Right? Well, I guess I’ll have to find out because this book ends in a pretty big cliffhanger. (Which is why I waited to read this one until closer to the sequel’s release date!) 

 

I had a harder time picturing all the scenery and action/fighting/competition parts. Perhaps that’s for the better because the Enhanced fighting is rough (to say the least), but I wasn’t able to follow along as easily as I would have liked.  

 

I did really like all the technology and thought a lot of it was unique compared to other dystopian books I’ve read. Fascinating enough, there is a no-screen order because of the addiction that happened in past generations—which both amused me and also felt a little odd with all the technology around the characters. It would have been good to learn a bit more about that ruling, but all the other tech was interesting—and okay, yes, some of it was horrifying. Such is a dystopian plot.

 

It was a little…grittier or maybe edgier than I usually prefer, but that can come with the dystopian plotline and it was definitely the cause for this book. I didn’t know what to think about Nova and the situation she’s in, but as the book continued and things were revealed, I started to get more interested in the plot and everything happening. 

 

I’m not sure how I feel about “the Alpha” talking to Nova in her head…it’s obviously supposed to represent God. If it was all Scriptural based I think I would have been fine with it, but because the voice is kind of like an imaginary friend to her (to the point that she even thinks it’s that) and they discuss science and boys, he compliments her, and she feels him wink at her, it felt a little strange and ended up affecting my personal rating. I’m not sure how other readers will feel about this element and it’s was the hardest part of this book to note for this content review. I liked the message of Novalise relying on the Alpha and the importance of having a relationship with him, but how it was done was outside of my comfort zone…and in not a good way. 

 

There was some sexual suggestions that I didn’t care for, but it made sense for the plot—to a degree. Unfortunately, there were some comments connected to the “one night with the king” element that brought down my rating and make me only suggest this book for older teens who have read a lot of dystopian books. If we were going to compare to other dystopian books, I’ve never read “The Hunger Games”, so I can’t compare to that series’ content, but it wasn’t as much sexual content/suggestions as “The Remnants” series by Lisa T Bergren, but wasn’t as clean as the “Anomaly” trilogy by Krista McGee. This book reminded me of the Bergren series at times because of this and also the brutal fighting. “Protector” might not have been as detailed and border-line gory as I remember that series being, but the training and injuries—and seeing deaths—that Novalise/Astra goes through is brutal. 

 

I have to admit to not really liking Zadien at times. He was an unstable jerk towards the end and is very aware of manipulation in general but yet not realizing fully that someone else is manipulating him. I hope he’ll realize the irony in the second book. Honestly, I’m pretty sure I made a face each time he appeared after he did a massive stupid and jerkish thing. He flipped a switch to become a blockhead and then later flipped back the way he was for the beginning part of the book. It was almost whiplash to me, but Novalise is too busy trying not to swoon over him when he is kind.  

 

God’s name is replaced in a lot of fictional curses that Zadien says, which while I appreciate God’s name not being taken in vain, I still winced almost every time because it was so easy to replace it with God’s name. It made sense that because he has grown up in a society that has banned the Alpha (God) that they would use something else, but one character who is supposed to know the Alpha uses “For Alpha’s sake” when frustrated, which was disappointing. 

 

This was interesting. I definitely liked some parts, but also didn’t like some as well. I do plan to read the sequel soon to find out what happens.

 

 

See y’all on Wednesday 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.

BFCG's 12th Birthday & Celebration! (Open Internationally!)

Twelve years.

BFCG is twelve years old.
 
How is that even possible? We’re officially past the point of some of our readers being younger than BFCG, which is honestly very amusing for me to think about for some reason! 😁 Whether you’re eight, eighty, or somewhere in-between, we’re so glad that you are here! 
 
I think I comment on it every birthday, but it’s truly amazing to see how the Lord has blessed this mission and how many support the values of this website—even just within the growth of this last year. ‘Books for Christian Girls’ continues to grow and expand in ways I never imagined it would back when it started in 2013. It’s crazy to think this site now has over 1300 reviews and over 1.4 million pageviews and so many loyal readers who trust our site. Please know that honor is never lost on me nor taken for granted. Thank you to each and every single one of you for supporting BFCG and sharing it with like-minded friends! Thank you for showing that you care about the content in books and wanting to be informed! And thank you, again, for being here!
 
This birthday celebration includes five winners to each win a $20 Amazon Gift Card – While I would love to giveaway certain books like in years in the past, life is a little too busy for that, so we’re going to keep it low-key this year. 😉 If the winners need some recommendations on which book to buy, though, I would be more than happy to help with that! 😁

a Rafflecopter giveaway  
 
This giveaway is open internationally (as long as Amazon delivers gift cards to your country!) and starts April 9^th and ends on the 22^nd at midnight CST. Please come back each day to gain a bonus daily entry as well! 
 
 

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"Road Trip Redemption" by Becca Wierwille

About this book:

  “A hopeful adventure for kids ages 8-12 about sisterhood, friendship, and the power of starting over.
    Three years ago, Jada Robinson betrayed her best friend.
    Now, her family has moved, and thirteen-year-old Jada struggles to make friends. Realizing how it feels to be bullied, she’d give anything to undo the past.
    When Jada finds a stray dog, she is sure he’s the same beloved pet her ex-best friend, Kimmy, once lost. This feels like Jada’s chance to make things right.
    Jada talks her two older sisters into a trip to Pennsylvania to reunite Kimmy with her furry friend. But as new questions about their canine companion unravel Jada’s plans, she wonders how she’ll face Kimmy after all these years.
    The road ahead may be more complicated than Jada imagined.”


Series: Book #3 in the “Road Trip Rescue” trilogy. Reviews of Book #1 Here and Book #2 Here!


Spiritual Content- Isaiah 44:22 at the beginning; Prayers, a Blessing over food, & Thanking God; A few talks about God & forgiveness; ‘H’s are not capital when referring to God; Jada wants to show Kimmy, herself, and God that she isn’t a bad person; After doing a random act of kindness, Jada prays to God that she is sharing His love and isn’t a bad person, but the prayer feels hollow like she was missing something; Jada’s sister, Olivia, asks if Jada has prayed about this and says that God can forgive her if she talks to Him, but while Jada knows that God forgives people, she feels like she’s pretty sure she needs to prove herself to Him first; Jada thinks that “unkindness” pours out of her and no one will want to forgive her—whether it be herself, God, or Kimmy; In a negative moment, Jada thinks that if her grandmother knew the truth about what kind of friend Jada is, her grandmother would never pray for her again and can’t look her grandmother in the eye because she feels like she can’t live up to her prayers for Jada; *Spoilers* Towards the end, Jada’s sister tells her that we all make mistakes and do bad things which is why we need God to forgive us; Jada wants God to forgive her but isn’t sure where to begin and realizes she’s been trying to show she deserves forgiveness in order to ask for it and that she can never earn forgiveness; She asks God to forgive her and help her start over; *Major Spoilers* At the very end, Jada and Kimmy talk and Kimmy shares with Jada about already forgiving her; Jada realizes at the very end that she is not a loser or a nobody, but that she is a child of God and has been forgiven because God loves her, not because she earned it *End of Spoilers*; Jada feels like she can feel her grandmother praying for her; Mentions of God; Mentions of prayers, praying, & a prayer closet; A few mentions of a Bible; A couple mentions of miracles; A mention of church going; A mention of Christian pop music;
             *Note: A couple mentions of a Veggie Tales character; A mention of someone looking like she saw a ghost.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: A ‘good grief’, two ‘stupid’s, and three forms of ‘dumb’; A mention of someone muttering “unkind words”; Some eye rolling; Sisters tease and stick out their tongues at each other; Jada lashes out and yells at her sisters in a moment of anger, but quickly realizes that she is in the wrong by doing that; A bit of pain, injuries, & blood/bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Almost throwing up; Hitting a dog when driving (the dog is fine, border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Jada recalls and tells her sisters about when she called her best friend (Kimmy) a “one-handed freak” to be able to hang out with the popular girls, not realizing that Kimmy overheard it; Jada faces a popular girl bullying her at her new school so this, Jada’s reactions, and her feel guilt for what she did to Kimmy are all the major theme of this story; The book starts with Jada finding that someone has written she’s a loser in permanent ink on a whiteboard in her locker; Jada is hurt by the name-calling and realizes the horrible thing she did to Kimmy makes her no better than the girl who is bullying her; Jada’s sister tells her to tell their parents about the bullying, but Jada doesn’t because she thinks it’s what she deserves after how she treated Kimmy (she continues to think that she deserves to be bullied a couple more times); Jada thinks that if she reunites Kimmy with her dog that maybe she won’t be a “bad person anymore”, but then pushes that thought to the side; Jada struggles with thinking that she is a nobody; *Spoilers* When someone claims the dog she thinks belongs to Kimmy, Jada is upset as now she’ll have nothing to offer to Kimmy for forgiveness and thinks she is a terrible person; Towards the end, Jada sobs and thinks that she will be reopening old wounds if she sees Kimmy, so she plans to let Kimmy forget about her even if that means Jada spends the rest of her life regretting how she hurt Kimmy; *Major Spoilers* Jada and Kimmy talk and Kimmy shares that she forgave Jada; Jada sends a message to her bully that she forgives her; The final chapter is set three months later and Jada and Kimmy are friends again *End of Spoilers*; Mentions of deaths & grief (including a wife for her husband); Mentions of bullies & bullying (mean texts, backhanded compliments, being made into an outcast, and whispering about her); Mentions of a dog being hit by a car, injuries, & the dog being fine; Mentions of missing dogs, grief and panic, & the possibility that the dog died or was injured; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of peeing & poop/manure; Mentions of throwing up; A few mentions of nightmares; A couple mentions of threats; A mention of someone acting like a dog committed murder (when he was misbehaving); A mention of stealing; A mention of jealousy;
             *Note: Jada sends a call from her mother to voicemail because she doesn’t want to talk to her about a disappointment (which she feels guilt for doing this); *Spoilers* When trying to do good things for others, two of her actions backfire and Jada is faced with animosity; She wonders why it happened and if everyone could already see she wasn’t a good person so there was no point in trying to pretend that she is *End of Spoilers*; During the road trip, Jada helps an old woman to her car to load her groceries & goes to a gas station bathroom by herself (noting this as a safety concern as her older sisters were not with her nor is it mentioned they were watching out for her in these moments); Due to not knowing her well, Jada feels awkward around and intimidated by her grandmother; Mentions of car brands; A couple mentions of a movie (Beethoven); A couple mentions of Bluetooth; A mention of a fiction character (Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh); A mention of the fluoride treatment at a dentist; A mention of Kimmy “finally getting” a cell phone on her thirteenth birthday.
 
 
Sexual Content- A few mentions of teen girls fighting over a boy (*Spoilers* Jada’s older sister, Olivia, tells her about when she and her two best friends all liked the same boy and because she didn’t stand a chance of dating him, she didn’t want her friends to either and tried to turn her friends on each other so the boy wouldn’t like them; Her friends figured out what she was doing and stopped talking to her; Olivia wants to make things right with them on their road trip like Jada wants to do with Kimmy; This is a shock to Jada as she has always wanted to be like Olivia and has thought that if she was more like her sister, she would have never hurt Kimmy *End of Spoilers*;
             *Note: A couple mentions of dog butts.
 
-Jada Robinson, age 13
                               1^st person P.O.V. of Jada 
                                                        183 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{ Add up to a full star for those who have been bullied and/or been unkind to others }

In the first book of this trilogy, we hear about Jada and how she hurt Kimmy, her best friend. It felt fitting to have the final book be Jada’s story and see redemption not only for Jada, but possibly their friendship too. 

 

As a general rule, I don’t usually like books that have to do with bullies or being bullied, but I think the author handled this topic very well. Jada has the idea throughout this book that she has to earn forgiveness and plans to do random acts of kindness to show that she can be a good person—however, some of this backfires on her and doesn’t go as she hopes. An important lesson has to be learned and it was paced well for the length of the book. 

 

I think personally I would have liked to have Jada’s parents more involved and the fact that they let their teen daughters drive from Florida to Pennsylvania made me worry about possible danger (particularly how Jada goes and helps someone load groceries into her car and go to a gas station bathroom by herself)—but this is probably because I’m safety paranoid and live in a big city. Thankfully, it all goes well for Jada and her sisters, but it might be something some parents might want to discuss with their readers. 

 

Overall, I think this was a solid middle-grade trilogy and this final book wrapped it up in a great way. The faith content was natural and the lessons learned were ones that many readers (including some adults!) need to learn. I look forward to seeing what the author writes next!

 

 

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.