I received this advanced uncorrected proof from a Goodreads.com giveaway. I really loved both the premise of the book and the topics that it explores.  The Wonder of All Things takes off quickly when a horrific accident occurs and the main character Ava miraculously heals her friend Wash.  Like Mr. Mott's previous novel The Returned, The Wonder of All Things makes you think about how society would react to certain scenarios.  This novel describes the chaos that ensues in the small town once word of Ava's miracle healing gets out.  The reader is able to see how both Ava and her family struggle with her gift.  Does Ava have a responsibility to heal others?  Can their family capitalize on all of the offers being made to them so that they can finally escape poverty? At the end of the book, I was left wanting more closure for the characters and I felt that some of the storylines were left unresolved.  That said, I did enjoy the book and felt it was definitely worth reading.  I think Mr. Mott's voice is important in literature today and I think his work brings something different to the publishing world. 
 

Grand Central is a very unique book and unlike anything else I have read recently.  The ten stories all start on the same day at Grand Central Station after World War II.  I was so intrigued that the ten different authors were able to each tell a different story, but managed to weave small appearances from the other characters into each tale.  I really appreciated the concept of this book and would hope that other authors/publishers would explore this type of novel.  My favorite stories were:  The Branch of Hazel by Sarah McCoy, The Reunion by Kristina McMorris and The Harvest Season by Karen White.  I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.  While I have read many books set either during World War II or shortly thereafter, Grand Central provided me with some interesting viewpoints that I hadn't previously explored and I really found the concept of how all these strangers' stories intersected.  

The Eighth Guardian By Meredith McCardle is a science fiction/ futuristic/ mystery novel. This book is about a girl named Amanda  who is a junior at Peel Academy . At Peel Testing Day comes without warning. Testing Day is when all the juniors and seniors go through intense testing for people to see if they are ready to graduate and become government operatives. Amanda already plans that she will head to CIA with her boyfriend Abe. The CIA is  where most graduates go. But she plans to go there next year because no juniors have graduated in decades. When they graduates are announced there is a big surprise and Amanda finds herself having to make decisions dealing with her family, Abe, and more. I recommend this book to kids ages 12+ with parents consent  for the use of language. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. I hope you enjoy The Eighth Guardian By Meredith McCardle.

The Eye of Minds by James Dashner is a futuristic action/adventure/mystery with a hint of science fiction. The Eye of Minds is about a boy named Michael who is a gamer like everyone else. He spends all his time playing on the virtnet which offers full simulation of the game that you are playing. In the virtnet there are some rules but if you have some hacking skills you can bend these rules to have more fun. Hacking these rules can be dangerous because some of the technology is to dangerous. Suddenly reports claim that one gamer is hacking the impossible and keeping gamers hostage inside the virtnet. Since the government runs the virtnet they know to catch this gamer they are going to need another gamer. So Michael finds himself chasing this gamer and trying to figure out his motive and how he is doing this. I could not put this book down! This book is very suspenseful and is full of plot twists. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. I would highly recommend this book to anybody who likes mystery,action, adventure, and/or science fiction. 

Steelheart By Brandon Sanderson is a Science Fiction/Fantasy/Mystery Young Adult Novel. I couldn't put this book down. Mr. Sanderson is a great writer I thought I had the mystery all figured out but everything changed right at the end. Steelheart is about a boy named David who's dad dies due to a "epic". Epics are regular humans who somehow gained superhuman powers right after a explosion in the sky. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. I would recommend this book to anybody who likes mystery and/or : fantasy, & science fiction. I'm really looking forward to the sequel to this book that comes out in January.I hope you enjoy Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson.

I'm so glad that I ran across this book.  Vintage is the debut novel by Susan Gloss and I am very much looking forward to reading more by this author.  Vintage is set in Hourglass Vintage, a vintage shop in Madison, Wisconsin.  We meet Violet Turner, the store's owner, April Morgan, a pregnant intern at the store and Amithi, a customer of Hourglass Vintage.  The author does an excellent job giving each character her own distinctive voice in the book, but interweaving the three main characters stories seamlessly.  The information regarding vintage items is very interesting and I just enjoyed the entire concept for the book.  I would recommend this book for fans of Isabel Wolff.  

Having read Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman, I was very much looking forward to reading her newest book Looking for Me.  While both books are vastly different, they both have excellent character development and draw you into the storyline.  Looking for Me focuses on the life of Teddi Overman.  We meet Teddi in present day, however we learn more about her life through flashbacks into her childhood.  Teddi owns and operates an antique store and I particularly enjoyed that portion of the narrative.  The heart of the story deals with loss, acceptance and family relationships.  Beth Hoffman is a wonderful author and I look forward to reading more of her books in the future. 

I had the opportunity to hear Richard Paul Evans speak several years ago at the Missouri Literary Festival.  Having loved his Christmas stories in the past, I was eager to read his new series The Walk.  There are five books in the series and I very much enjoyed taking this journey with the main character Alan Christoffersen.  At the beginning of the series, Alan has lost all that he holds dear, his wife, his career and his home.  Feeling that he has nothing left, he embarks upon a cross-country walk with Key West as his final destination.  The series follows him on this interesting journey as you meet a diverse cast of characters across a changing landscape and watch as Alan's life changes and evolves.  The author, as always, develops very truthful and relatable characters that you want to continue reading about and see where their story will take them.