Reviews

Teen Review

The Darkest Part of the Forest

By Holly Black
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Chris K.
Mar 16, 2015

Hazel lives in an out-of-the-way town where faeries are real. The locals know enough lore to stay safe and be respectful, so for the most part the magical creatures leave them alone. Not so much with the tourists, who come because of the stories and to see the horned boy who has been sleeping, unchanged, in a glass coffin in the forest for generations and who sometimes end up dead.

Staff Review

Dancing With Fire

By Susan Kearney
Star Rating
★★★

Rated by Lisa J.
Mar 16, 2015

Dancing With Fire literally starts with a bang; an explosion that leaves the Danner girls orphaned and in danger. Kaylin Danner put her dreams on hold when her mother died to help her scientist father raise her two younger sisters. After her father’s biodiesel plant blows up just as he has figured out the formula to efficiently produce this sought-after fuel, events lead her to believe that the explosion and her father’s death may not have been an accident.

Staff Review

Much Ado About Nothing (DVD)

By Shakespeare, William

Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 15, 2015

In what master’s work will you find Denzel Washington and Keanu Reeves as brothers? Shakespeare, of course. The 1993 movie adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing also stars Emma Thompson, Kenneth Branagh, and Micheal Keaton. It is a rollicking tale of mistaken identities with dashing princes, sharp tongued wenches, and evil plots.

Staff Review

The Unsuitable Bride

By Jane Feather

Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 14, 2015

Peregrine Sullivan must marry. His brothers are putting pressure on him to meet the terms of their wealthy uncle’s will which states that each of his nephews must find, redeem, and marry a “fallen woman” in order for any of them to inherit. Alexandra Douglas and her sister have been unjustly denied their inheritance.

Staff Review

Before I Go to Sleep

By Watson, S.J.
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Catherine G.
Mar 13, 2015

This thriller slowly unravels to reveal the fragile and desperate mind of a woman with amnesia. Christine's amnesia is so severe that she can't retain memories for more than a day. She wakes up each morning with no idea of who and where she is. She is surrounded by her husband Ben, a doctor, and a friend. She starts keeping a journal on what she learns about herself each day. As Christine begins to rereads previous entries, she finds inconsistencies in what Ben is telling her about her accident, their son, and how all of their family photos disappeared.

Staff Review

Love Me Back

By Merritt Tierce
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Melody K.
Mar 12, 2015

In this novel, Marie, a young mother, is a server at an upscale Dallas restaurant.  Some nights the tips border on phenomenal. Yet, she is slowly suffocating under a great, sorrowful blanket of depression. She exists, she suffers, she endures acts of degradation and abuse from men on the off chance that occasionally she will experience something other than sadness and pain. Her daughter is a buoy that she lets go of to sink back into the nasty muck.

Staff Review

Crazy Love (DVD)

By Dan Klores
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Heather B.
Mar 11, 2015

This is a rather mind-blowing documentary about the twisted "love" story of Burt and Linda Pugach. Maybe love is the wrong word. Obsession certainly fits. Darker descriptors may also apply. At the outset, their story seems like the kind of fairy tale love story cheesy romance movies and novels are made of. Burt was a successful young lawyer, and Linda a beautiful young woman. He sees her walking down the street and decides she's the one, and begins wining and dining her, and taking her for rides in his flashy cars and private planes.

Staff Review

Sea Swept

By Nora Roberts

Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 9, 2015

Sea Swept is vintage Nora Roberts. Told from the male perspective, this is the first in The Chesapeake Bay series. Three adult brothers are called home by a dying father’s wish, and they must band together to take care of Ray Quinn’s youngest “lost boy.” The Quinn brothers are not bound by blood but are indisputably family. Each boy had been saved by Ray and Stella Quinn in their teens.

Staff Review

Snowpiercer (DVD)

By Bong Joon Ho, Director
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Jed D.
Mar 7, 2015

Snowpiercer is South Korean director Joon-ho Bong’s over-the-top action movie that will leave few viewers without strong opinions.   Set in 2031, an environmental catastrophe has frozen Earth and the few surviving humans live on a train.  One percent of the train’s population lives in luxury near the engine, while the remaining humans are essentially slaves, working to ensure the survival of the entire train.