Monday, August 31, 2020

Music Monday (129):Zella Day, Disclosure, Fatoumata Diawara, Jack Harlow


   Rules:
  • Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: There has been so much good music released in the past week, so it's hard to pick one song. That being said, I'm going to go with one of my favorite songs from Zella Day's new EP (Where Does The Devil Hide), My Game


Adri: This week I'm listening to Disclosure. I forgot they were having a new album, but I did get around to listening to it. I love all the songs and it felt very energetic. I mean it is called Energy after all. Anyway, I'm only choosing two songs. The first one is Douha (Mali Mali) featuring Fatoumata Diawara. I thought it sounded familiar to Ultimatum before I realized it was the same artist.


And my second pick is Thinking 'Bout You (Interlude), which reminds me so much of Lo-fi.


Andrea: I hadn't heard of Whats Poppin until I saw the teacher's remake of this song. I love the original and the remake. You can listen to the original song below. You can check out the teacher's remake HERE



Is there any new music you're listening to? If so, leave your recommendations in the comments. 


Saturday, August 29, 2020

Short Stories I Read in July

Today is the 29th of August, so it’s time for me to discuss the short stories, miscellaneous posts, and podcast episodes I read and listened to in July.

The Husker by Jessica P. Wick (Strange Horizons; Issue: 1 June 2020) 

The first short story I read in July was The Husker by Jessica P. Wick. It was very short, but it was still a great read. And I enjoyed it. The writing was straight to the point, and it was the kind of haunting story that read like it belonged as a story told over a campfire or as some local legend.

Once More Unto the Breach (But Don’t Worry, the Inflatable Swords are Latex-Free) by Tina Connolly (Uncanny Magazine; Issue Thirty Five, July 7, 2020)

By the title, I didn’t know what to expect from Once More Unto the Breach (But Don’t Worry, the Inflatable Swords are Latex-Free). I had some idea, but it wasn’t what I got. I’m happy about that too, because this was a fun read. The story was kind of dramatic and unpredictable—I mean it was set at a birthday party. There also happened to be monsters, inflatable swords, axes, and hammers. Overall, Connolly did an excellent job, and I’m looking forward to reading more work by this author.

The Parts That Make Us Monsters by Sheree Renee Thomas (Strange Horizons, Issue: Fund Drive 2020)

The Parts That Make Us Monsters was another story I read in July that was more on the short side. I had to think about what I read, and I also had to let the story digest before I could think of what I wanted to say about it. Some stories are just like that, and this was one of them. I enjoyed The Parts That Make us Monsters. It was written well, and it was a very immersive story. Parts of it could be vague, but the overall intent of the story was clear. I honestly enjoyed Thomas’s approach to the themes and characters.

From Around the Web…


Friday, August 28, 2020

The Friday 56 (184) & Book Beginnings: The Case Study of Vanitas volume 2 by Jun Mochizuki

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.


32856005. sy475 Synopsis from Goodreads...
Now installed at a hotel in Paris with the help of Count Orlok, NoƩ and Vanitas take their awkward partnership on the road...to a vampire masquerade ball! The order of the evening may be small talk and hobnobbing with fellow guests, but the mystery of the curse-bearers is never too far behind. The intrigue swirls as quickly as the dancers twirl, a blue moon ascends upon the guests...and all hell breaks loose!

Beginning: "After Noe left him behind in chapter 3......Murr went back to Orlok."

56: "Borders are believed to have been generated all over the world by the experimental accident known as "Babel." Only vampires, who were created by Babel, are able to cross them."


Comments: I read volume 2 of The Case Study of Vanitas a while ago, but I forgot to do a Friday 56 for it. Volume 2 is one of my favorites so far, because it covers the vampire masquerade ball. The art is totally gorgeous, it kept the story moving, and it revealed more of the vampires side of the story. What are you reading this week? 

Monday, August 24, 2020

Music Monday (128): The Spiritual Machines, Oceans of Slumber, Nao, Mariah Carey


   Rules:
  • Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 
Breana: Recently, I returned to one of my all-time favorite albums: Saturn by Nao. I've mentioned this one before, but I was listening to it again and marveling at how fantastic it is. Saturn is such an excellent album, and it's some of the best music Nao has released so far. It's hard to narrow it down to one song, so for my picks this week I'm going to choose two. The first one is Orbit. I can't describe how much I enjoy listening to this song.


My second pick is Drive and Disconnect. It's another one of my top-favorite songs from Saturn.


Adri: Rock incoming! My first pick is a little darker, it's A Return to the Earth Below by a band I stumbled onto called Oceans of Slumber.


My second pick is Spiritual Machines' newer song Flood it All. I've had both on repeat these past few weeks.



Andrea: This week, I'm sharing new music by Mariah Carey. She released a single called Save The Day, and her new album, The Rarities, will be released soon. 



Have an amazing week!


What are you listening to this week?


Friday, August 21, 2020

Blog Tour: ARC Review Midnight at the Barclay Hotel by Fleur Bradley


Title: Midnight at the Barclay Hotel
Series: n/a
Author: Fleur Bradley
Illustrator: Xavier Bonet
Source/Format: Author; E-ARC
More Details: Mystery, Middle Grade
Publisher/Publication Date: Viking; August 25 2020

Goodreads     Amazon     Barnes & Noble     Book Depository

Synopsis from Goodreads...
When JJ Jacobson convinced his mom to accept a surprise invitation to an all-expenses-paid weekend getaway at the illustrious Barclay Hotel, he never imagined that he'd find himself in the midst of a murder mystery. He thought he was in for a run-of-the-mill weekend ghost hunting at the most haunted spot in town, but when he arrives at the Barclay Hotel and his mother is blamed for the hotel owner's death, he realizes his weekend is going to be anything but ordinary.

Now, with the help of his new friends, Penny and Emma, JJ has to track down a killer, clear his mother's name, and maybe even meet a ghost or two along the way.

Midnight at the Barclay Hotel is Fleur Bradley’s most recent middle grade novel. It features beautifully crafted illustrations by Xavier Bonet. Five people are selected to enjoy a weekend stay at the Barclay Hotel. However, everyone ends up pulled into a murder mystery. When We saw the synopsis, we knew we would be into it.

Adri: The beginning got to the point, introducing the reader to all the important places and characters –like JJ, Penny, and Emma among others. Not too long after, I found myself sucked into the story and had a hard time putting it down. I wanted to get to the end to find out what was really going on at the Barclay Hotel. Even though I did predict a few things, it did not take away my enjoyment. I still found myself guessing with each reveal.

Andrea: I absolutely love Fleur Bradley’s writing style. She does an amazing job of writing middle grade books with just the right amount of suspense and adventure. I was first introduced to her work when I reviewed the Double Vision series, which was an exciting adventure that I highly recommend. As for Midnight at the Barclay Hotel, it didn’t disappoint. Each character’s profile added a layer of suspense. Although the story seemed predictable, it just wasn’t that simple.

Adri: The next thing I really like was the chemistry between the characters. JJ has a dislike of reading but loves ghost hunting; Penny loves reading but is skeptical of ghost; and Emma just wants kids her age to hang out with. This created a nice balance of personalities. And I can’t forget the relationship that that JJ has with his mother and Penny her grandfather. I have my reasons but I think they’re kind of spoiler-y, so…

Andrea: I have to agree with you the characters had amazing chemistry. JJ’s sense of adventure, Penny’s insecurities, and the fact that Emma was simply peculiar created an amazing team of Junior sleuths. I also liked the characters’ growth as the story progressed.

Andrea & Adri: Anyway, Midnight at the Barclay Hotel was a fun read. We recommend checking it out if it sounds interesting to you. We especially recommend it if a young reader is interested in murder mysteries and paranormal/ghost hunting.

Thanks for reading.

About the author...
Fleur Bradley is passionate about two things: mysteries and getting kids to read, and she regularly speaks at librarian and educator conferences on reaching reluctant readers. Originally from the Netherlands, Fleur now lives in Colorado Springs with her husband and two daughters, and entirely too many cats.

For more information on Fleur and her books, visit www.ftbradley.com, and on Twitter @FTBradleyAuthor.

Follow along with the Midnight at the Barclay Hotel blog tour: 

Aug. 3rd: Book review at Always in the Middle

Aug. 11th: An interview at MG Bookvillage

Aug 14th: Book review at Charlotte’s Library

Aug. 16th: Guest post: Fleur talks about reaching reluctant readers at Unleashing Readers

Aug. 17th: Review at Secret Files of Fairday Morrow blog

Aug. 18th: Review and giveaway at MG Mojo

Aug. 19th.: Interview and giveaway at From the Mixed-Up Files

Aug. 21st: Book review at Our Thoughts Precisely.

Aug. 23rd: Interview and giveaway at Spooky MG

Aug. 24th: Interview at YA Booknerd

Facebook Live Book Launch on Aug. 25th!

Aug. 25th: Writer's Digest Author Spotlight

Sept. 4th : Fleur talks about getting out of your comfort zone on Kirby Larson’s blog
Sept. 8th: Fleur outlines how to develop a compelling MG concept at Writer's Digest

Disclaimer: This E-copy of the book was provided by the Author for this review, thank you!
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