Day at the Zoo

Had an awesome day at the zoo with my sister for her birthday.

Comics to Check Out ASAP - The Unbelievable Gwenpool

Anything with Gwen Poole aka GwenPool,

So far this series is a lot of fun yet has intense parts too. Now this series would make for a heck of an interesting movie.

Weekend Read - Map to the Stars

This story is a lot of fun so far, I really like the main character.

My Favorite Quotes/Lines - Sidekicked

Sidekicked by John David Anderson

“The longer you have to be somebody else, the harder it is to convince everyone you are you.”

“Our shalts and shalt nots. Like the Girl Scout motto or the Pledge of Allegiance or the four or five commandments from the Bible that people still pay attention to.”

“I really wish my grandfather had given me a shotgun for Christmas instead of a hockey stick.”

“And because even being a nameless hero is still better than being no hero at all.”

Review - Sidekicked

Sidekicked by John David Anderson

3 gnomes and a gnome hat out of 5 gnomes

This book was a lot of fun. Seeing things from the sidekick's point of view was great.

The characters are in middle school so you get plenty of angst as well as super powers. I liked the wide range of superpowers too.

The bad guys were unexpected and I really liked the twist that the finale took. I loved how the whole conspiracy came together and how Drew's unusual powers helped them all.

This is a great quick read and I know I'm looking forward to seeing what the author writes next.

Sentence Sneak Peek - Sidekicked

Sidekicked by John David Anderson

The first sentence from each chapter of Sidekicked, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

“It’s Tuesday.”

“I am home less than an hour later.”

“Jenna was right.”

“I walk down the familiar stairs into the basement of my school— a place that very few non-Supers even know about.”

“I suppose you’ll want to hear about where I come from, and where I got my powers, and what radioactive bug I was bitten by, and all of that junk.”

“No one ever thinks anything strange about a superhero without a sidekick.”

“Deep down, all superheroes have problems.”

“It’s Thursday.”

“By the end of the week, everything seems to be mostly back to normal.”

“What’s the big deal?”

“I met Jenna Jaden a little over a year ago.”

“It’s Saturday.”

“It’s Monday.”

“Being a Super isn’t easy.”

“It’s Tuesday, the third Tuesday of the month.”

“It’s Wednesday, and I’m back in school where I belong.”

“The world stops spinning, only for a moment, and then speeds up again.”

“I stare at Mr. Masters the way you stare at anyone who’s just said something incredibly stupid.”

“When Mr. Masters drops me off two hours later, there is still a police car in my driveway.”

“They have their own trading cards, you know. Supers, I mean.”

“It’s Saturday, and everybody’s mowing their lawn.”

“At least now I know what evil smells like.”

“It’s Monday.”

“I can’t concentrate. In history, Mr. Broadside is lecturing about the burning of Rome and promising to bring his fiddle to the next class and play for us, just like Nero.”

“By the time the bell rings I’m already standing by Jenna’s locker.”

“She wasn’t much older than you, two, I guess. Taller, maybe, a little skinnier.”

“When Red finishes, I stand up from the table, pushing my chair back.”

“She’s right, of course.”

“It’s Tuesday.”

“Driving is easy.”

“Mike is having a panic attack.”

“It is said that a bloodhound’s sense of smell is fifty million times better than a human’s.”

“So it’s Tuesday.”

“The Superhero Sidekick Code of Conduct has four rules.”

“When I can finally open my eyes again, I see the heroes through the smoke.”

“It’s Tuesday, but you probably could have guessed that.”

My Favorite Quotes/Lines - Sticks & Stones (Upside-Down Magic #2)

“Time to listen to Mozart and express ourselves with glitter.”

“I am committed to my head cone,” Sebastian said. “What don’t you understand about that?”

“And I don’t think I’m being weak. I think I’m being smart.”

“Sometimes they’d succeed and sometimes they’d mess up. Sometimes, unfortunately, they’d do interpretive dance.”

Review - Sticks & Stones (Upside-Down Magic #2)

Sticks & Stones (Upside-Down Magic #2) by Emily Jenkins, Sarah Mlynowski, and Lauren Myracle

4 out of 5 gnomes

I love these books, they're just so sweet. The covers really stand out too.

This diverse set of characters are a blast to read about. All the different types of magic are entertaining and the Upside Down magic even more so. Plus I really want kittenball to be a real thing.

The two points of view work even better this time. I still adore Nory but it was awesome to see things from Baz's view. I've wanted to learn more about the kid that can flux into a rock since the first book. His magic and potential makes you make wonder what he will do in the future.

I like how they go about solving problems and how they stick together. The relationships are all really well done. The kids and their actions, even with all the magic feel realistic and kid-like.

I can't wait to see what happens next to these characters and the intriguing world they live in.

Sentence Sneak Peek - Sticks & Stones (Upside-Down Magic #2)

Sticks & Stones (Upside-Down Magic #2) by Emily Jenkins, Sarah Mlynowski, and Lauren Myracle

The first sentence from each chapter of Sticks & Stones, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

“When Nory Horace turned into a koat, she had the body of a black kitten and the head of a tiny goat.”

“Bax’s head hurt.”

“Elliott and Willa showed up during math.”

“Elliott showed up to walk with Nory to school the next morning, Friday, just like normal.”

“Nory watched as Principal Gonzalez reappeared with a team of teachers and janitors.”

“In the UDM classroom, everyone took a while to settle down.”

“At school that day, Nory, Pepper, and Marigold were behind Lacey Clench on the salad bar line.”

“Bax hated Dunwiddle School’s tuna noodle casserole.”

“Bax’s mom drove him to Andres’s house on Saturday afternoon.”

“Get them!”

“Your consciousness is a flame,” Coach told Bax at Tuesday’s tutoring session.”

“At three o’clock, Nory waited for her kittenball teammates at the front of the school.”

“The next day, Nory ate lunch with Bax and Pepper. It was tacos.”

“The UDM kids met up after school at the pizzeria by the corner store.”

“Nory took off after Bax.”

“First thing Monday morning, Bax, his dad, his mom, Nurse Riley, Coach, and Ms. Starr all met in Principal Gonzalez’s office.”

“Principal Gonzalez called an assembly first thing on Tuesday morning.”

Mini Review - Mr. and Mr. Smith

Mr. and Mr. Smith by HelenKay Dimon

3 out of 5 gnomes

I liked the chemistry between Fisher and Zach and the whole spy vs spy vibe of it all. They don’t exactly have the best foundation but I think they might actually last.

I really liked the characters, I think I just wanted to know a lot more about all of them though. I felt like I'd been dropped into a season finale of a TV show and just kind of had to roll with it.

The whole squad is entertaining and I think the story has plenty of interesting places left to explore. This book has a world and characters that I'd be very interested in reading more about.

My Favorite Quotes/Lines - All Fixed Up

All Fixed Up by Linda Grimes

* Received from the publisher for review

“Who wanted to be a remorseful puddle?”

“Yeah? the buttinski said. Ever hear of sequels?”

“Good things come in small packages.”

“This day was already in the toilet. Might as well flush it.”

“Yes. What reasonable woman would put up with you?” I might have sounded grumpy.”

“Smart, huh? Idiot savant, maybe.”

“Great. A fine time for my bitch of a subconscious to channel Shakespeare.”

“My heart leapt so high I thought it might fly out the top of my head.”

Review - All Fixed Up

All Fixed Up by Linda Grimes

* Received from the publisher for review

4 gnomes out of 5 gnomes

Love the suspense in this story. Plus the mystery of what the heck is going on. I was really worried for Ciel more than a couple of times here. I do adore how adept she is at getting out of trouble too.

The major issue of this book was intriguing and just like Ciel, I think I was a bit disappointed too when things turned out differently. This new tangle/problem really lets you see the true colors of Billy and Mark.

Mark and Billy continue to be an interesting potential triangle. I was just about more pro Mark this time because of some of Billy's actions. In the long run though all of these characters are fascinating to read about and I really could see her with either guy.

The families are one of the most entertaining parts of the story. I like how unique each character is and the history they all have.

The ending of this book was great and I can’t wait to see what’s next in the intriguing world of adaptors.

Sentence Sneak Peek - All Fixed Up

All Fixed Up by Linda Grimes

The first sentence from each chapter of All Fixed Up, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.

* Received from the publisher for review

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

“Weightlessness, I decided, was overrated.”

“The Johnson Space Center was a hive of buzzing reporters by the time we arrived from Ellington Field, where the Vomit Comet had mercifully touched down without incident.”

“Loughlin pulled me toward the nearest exit.”

“My phone vibrated in my pocket right after I boarded the Metro train.”

“Aunt Helen’s funeral was a suitably somber affair, unless you counted the flashes of joy in Mom’s and Auntie Mo’s eyes every time they glanced at Laura.”

“I stood in line at Macy’s Santaland, wearing the clothes and aura of Molly’s good friend Olivia Hawkins, a cherub-faced child with a halo of golden-brown curls and eyes the color of old pennies.”

“My phone buzzed in my hand, quickly followed by the James Bond theme song.”

“Okay, I thought later, while I was beating the shit out of a heavy bag.”

“Back at James’s apartment, seated on his comfortable overstuffed sofa between him and Devon, I reiterated for the umpteenth time that I was fine, maybe a little overtired was all, and possibly affected by the combination of Thomas and Laura’s baby news and the murders of Aunt Helen and Mason.”

“Billy!”

“Here you go, Dr. Carson.”

“I dropped my double cheeseburger and fries on the kitchen counter, along with another bag, and went to the fridge for a bottle of designer water.”

“Four sticks were lined up on the bathroom vanity, like soldiers in a firing squad, each aiming straight for my gut.”

“The roses on the hall stand weren’t dead, but they were seriously drooping.”

“Do you want to stop by Billy’s and pick up your gun before I take you to your parents’ place?”

“I bummed a ride to my parents’ house with one of the security guys (young, dark, hunky-homely, and, I was sure, very well armed).”

“The milky sun was low in the sky by the time we got to the Wollman Rink in Central Park.”

“Mark’s off-the-grid apartment was in a sketchy part of town, a tiny jewel hidden behind a façade that would embarrass a slumlord.”

“Mark stood.”

“Mark dropped me at my parents’, leaving me in what one of my favorite high school science teachers would have referred to as a state of disequilibrium.”

“I’m sure Ciel doesn’t appreciate your planning her life for her,” Billy said good-naturedly, his questioning eyes meeting mine briefly before he was surrounded by Doyles large and small.”

“Comprehension hit Billy’s face like a hammer.”

“I turned to Billy.”

“I looked out over the small auditorium at fifty or so alert and interested faces.”

“Rudy was looking dazed but better.”

“Mark was sitting up in the hospital bed, champing at the bit to get dressed and get out, waiting to be released by the company doctor who’d been sent to see him.”

“Grumpy climbed to the top of the tree in the living room again!”

“Mom was passing through the center hall on the way to the kitchen when I came in.”

“The address Loughlin had given me turned out to be a small storefront coffee shop.”

“Initial inspections showed the explosion hadn’t caused structural damage to any of the homes in the vicinity.”