PASSIONATE ABOUT SCHOOL LIBRARIES

Tag: Hospitals

Book Review: Sick Kids In Love

Sick Kids In Love – Hannah Moskowitz – Entangled:Teen – Published 5 November 2019

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Synopsis

Isabel has one rule: no dating.
It’s easier–
It’s safer–
It’s better–
–for the other person.
She’s got issues. She’s got secrets. She’s got rheumatoid arthritis.
But then she meets another sick kid.
He’s got a chronic illness Isabel’s never heard of, something she can’t even pronounce. He understands what it means to be sick. He understands her more than her healthy friends. He understands her more than her own father who’s a doctor.
He’s gorgeous, fun, and foul-mouthed. And totally into her.
Isabel has one rule: no dating.
It’s complicated–
It’s dangerous–
It’s never felt better–
–to consider breaking that rule for him.

My thoughts

I loved this book. Loved the representation of chronic illness in teenagers, something that usually goes unnoticed in fiction. I love the humour woven throughout the story. I loved the friendship, flawed as it was. I loved the character development, as the characters wrestle with things they should or maybe shouldn’t change about themselves. And I loved the romance. So sweet. So based in a strong friendship. So natural and unforced.

Isabel is ready for her junior year of high school. Her advice column is doing well and she has a great group of—mostly understanding—friends. She spends a lot of time at the hospital, mostly because her father is the lead physician and a workaholic, and also because she has rheumatoid arthritis. When she meets Sasha at the hospital, they connect straight away. He’s funny, awkward, handsome, he shares her Jewish faith and he understands exactly what it means to be sick. But Isabel has a no dating rule. A rule she’s not sure if she want to break.

Isabel and Sasha’s friendship and romance is one of the most genuine relationships I’ve read in ages. In fact, as characters they are genuinely flawed, complex, awkward, realistic characters. They both have a great sense of humour and they bounce off each other really well. I loved how they wanted to just be normal with each other.

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Book Review: Beneath The Surface

Beneath The Surface – Lynn H. Blackburn – Dive Team Investigations #1 – Revell – Published 6 March 2018

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Synopsis

After a harrowing experience with an obsessed patient, oncology nurse practitioner Leigh Weston needed a change. She thought she’d left her troubles behind when she moved home to Carrington, North Carolina, and took a job in the emergency department of the local hospital. But when someone tampers with her brakes, she fears the past has chased her into the present. She reaches out to her high school friend turned homicide investigator, Ryan Parker, for help.

Ryan finds satisfaction in his career, but his favorite way to use his skills is as a volunteer underwater investigator with the Carrington County Sheriff’s Office dive team. When the body of a wealthy businessman is discovered in Lake Porter, the investigation uncovers a possible serial killer–one with a terrifying connection to Leigh Weston and deadly implications for them all.

My thoughts

I am always on the lookout for new and exciting inspirational suspense novels, and Beneath The Surface did not disappoint. Lynn Blackburn delivers a novel that balances action with fantastic interpersonal interactions, careful criminal investigation with plenty of tension, and a light-hearted joy despite the depravity of the crimes. Beneath The Surface was a very enjoyable novel to read and with it Lynn H. Blackburn earns her way onto my list of favourite romantic suspense authors.

Leigh Weston has returned to her hometown, eager to escape the memories of a patient who turned stalker. But what was supposed to bring peace and security only brings more chaos when the local dive team investigation unit discovers a dead body in the water just off Leigh’s lakeside home. Homicide Investigator Ryan Parker didn’t enjoy discovering a body on one of his team’s routine training sessions, but he is glad for the excuse to spend more time with his childhood crush (and his best-friend’s sister), Leigh. But the case becomes personal when Leigh finds herself targeted by a dangerous killer.

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Book Review: Finding Hope

finding-hope

Finding Hope – Melanie D. Snitker – Love’s Compass #2 – Published 1 July 2015

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Synopsis

Cancer.

That one word has rocked Lexi Chandler’s life to the core. Her focus has always been to help others. She loves being a nurse and enjoys spending time with her family. Things had been going according to plan. Now she’s struggling to pick up the pieces and make sense of the changes in her life.

Lance Davenport has cared for Lexi since they were kids. Between their age difference and bad timing, he’s turned burying his feelings into an art. Now, watching Lexi battle with cancer has made him realize just how much he’s missed. He doesn’t know what their future holds, but he’s determined to not waste another minute.

The people closest to Lexi pull together as she tries to navigate her way down a path none of them ever dreamed she’d have to travel.

My thoughts

I was pleased to find this book had the same tone as many of my favourite Christian contemporary novels. Think Melissa Tagg, Irene Hannon, Kimberly Rae Jordan. Romance, strong family connections, trials, faith – great stories that leave you feeling uplifted. This is the first book I’ve read written by Melanie D. Snitker but it certainly won’t be the last.

Finding Hope is the second book in the Love’s Compass series. It gave away a few major plot points from the first book and set in place events for the third but otherwise was fine to read out of series order.

Lexi Chandler has just been diagnosed with cancer. It wasn’t what she was expecting, especially after recently losing her father suddenly to the same horrible disease. She doesn’t want to rely too much on her mother, so when her brother’s best friend and long-term family friend Lance Davenport offers to drive her to her appointments she gratefully accepts. She doesn’t expect to develop feelings for Lance, nor to discover that he has been hiding his own feelings for many years.

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