Review Secret Letters

Secret Letters by Leah Scheier
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Welcome to the Victorian age of England, the time of Sherlock Holmes, long dresses, and the hope of answers. Unfortunately, our lead character's dream of finding her father, solving her cousin's love letter problems and becoming a detective are slowly moving out of her hands. Luckily, she meets a young detective and they join forces to find some answers even if they cannot connect with her father.

I prefer historical fiction to modern time novels, so this book was a treasure to find. It read similar to Y. S. Lee's historical fiction pieces that I greatly enjoyed. If you enjoyed The Agency series by Y.S. Lee, this novel will also hold you in its grip as well. If you haven't read The Agency, this is an excellent start to historical mystery with a strong female lead. I am greatly looking forward to future stories about Dora by Leah Scheier.

Reviewed from a NetGalley copy. Thank you, Disney Book Group!

Review: What I Didn't Say

What I Didn't Say by Keary Taylor


One stupid night can change your life.

Everyone was partying and Jake wanted to tell his crush that he loves her. His friends record his drunken words then pile into a car to go to Samantha Shay's house. Under the influence, they never made it. Jake awakens in the hospital with no voice and big regrets.

Jake's vocal chords are gone. He will never speak again. His mother gives him notebooks to communicate. Jake uses them and tries to learn American Sign Language. A surprise is the new class schedule that will give Jake more time with his crush Samantha Shay.

I was impressed by the overall clean read. (Clean is relative to each reader, of course.) Some of the situations could be a bit over the top but it was amazingly believable. The teens were regular teens who play football, follow rules, break rules, plan for prom, go to class, etc.

Jake's growth was very interesting to follow. His life took a 180 turn and he records his time by the big events in his life. First it's all about the future, then it's about recovering from the accident, then it shifts to Samantha as they become closer and closer.

Reviewed from a NetGalley copy. Thank you, Keary Taylor!