The Book Review Club (June 2018)

Welcome to the June 2018 edition of The Book Review Club. We'll be taking a two-month summer hiatus to read and play and generally enjoy life. We'll return in September. Today we bring you more reviews of books we've enjoyed in the hopes of adding to your To-Be-Read pile. Please scroll down after my review where you'll find everyone's links. We wish you a terrific summer!

THREE TIMES LUCKY
by Sheila Turnage 
(middle grade, mystery)

I'm a little late to the "Mo and Dale" (the BFF 6th grade detectives in THREE TIMES LUCKY) party. While I was reading my way through my TBR pile, this gem of a mystery was busy becoming a Newbery Honor and a NY Times Bestseller!

From the back cover: Meet Mo LoBeau: natural-born detective. Mo's summer is looking good. But that's before the murder, the kidnapping, the car crash, and the hurricane. If ever there was a time for Mo to put her detective skills to work, this is it. Good thing Mo's always been lucky.
There's lots to ❤️ about this quirky, upbeat, Southern-flavored mystery.  


The characters are odd and interesting and layered. Moses "Mo" LoBeau is outspoken and loyal. Her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson, III, is the best of best friends, a bit of a worrywart and more of a risk taker than Mo. Miss Lana, the only mother Mo has ever known, dons a variety of wigs and outfits and constantly changes the theme of the cafe she runs with the Colonel. The Colonel lost his memory years ago and has a secret past. Then, add in a host of off-the-wall Tupelo Landing residents.

Besides solving the mystery both Mo and Dale deal with personal issues. Eleven years ago, Mo floated into Tupelo Landing during a hurricane. She wants to find her mother and sends messages in bottles up the creek. Dale's dad is an abusive alcoholic.

And, and, and....there's an actual murder. Two, in fact!

If  I still haven't convinced you to pick up THREE TIMES LUCKY for your classroom, your library, your 10+ year-old kids who need to lose themselves in a book this summer...how about this quotation from Newsday:

"An irresistible narrator - a literary descendant of Scout Finch of To Kill a Mockingbird."

(Dear FCC: Bought. And I plan to buy the other books in the series, including THE LAW OF FINDER KEEPERS, which comes out in September. )

And now....onto the rest of our reviews. Please click through. You won't want to miss a single one!

MIDDLE GRADE REVIEWS

Phyllis Wheeler: THE JOLLY REGINA by Kara LaReau 
                            THE UNCANNY EXPRESS by Kara LaReau


ADULT FICTION BOOK REVIEWS

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: EXCESSIVE FORCE by Alok Mukherjee (adult, memoir)

Jenn Jilks of Cottage Country: MADE FOR WALKING by Andy Peake (history of the boot)

Linda McLaughlin: DESPERATE DUCHESSES by Eloisa James (romance)

Patti Abbott:  THAT KIND OF MOTHER by Rumaan Alam

Ray Potthoff: COLD MOUNTAIN by Charles Frazier (historical)

Stacy of the Cat's Meow: THE FEMALE PERSUASION by Meg Wolitzer (literary)

ADULT NONFICTION REVIEW

Lucy Sartain of Ranting and Raving: MY PRIDE AND JOY by Adamson (memoir)

Margy Lutz: THE GOLDEN SPRUCE by John Vaillant (biography)

Sarah Laurence: HUNGER: A MEMOIR OF (MY) BODY by Roxane Gay (memoir)




Note to Reviewers: Any errors (broken link, missed review, etc), just shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank you so much for your reviews!