Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe - Preston Norton

Title: Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe
Author: Preston Norton
Genre: YA, arc
Rating: 4/5
# pages: 400
Date read: October, 2017

Cliff Hubbard is a huge loser. Literally. His nickname at Happy Valley High School is Neanderthal because he's so enormous-6'6" and 250 pounds to be exact. He has no one at school and life in his trailer park home has gone from bad to worse ever since his older brother's suicide.

There's no one Cliff hates more than the nauseatingly cool quarterback, Aaron Zimmerman. Then Aaron returns to school after a near-death experience with a bizarre claim: while he was unconscious he saw God, who gave him a list of things to do to make Happy Valley High suck less. And God said there's only one person who can help: Neanderthal.

To his own surprise, Cliff says he's in. As he and Aaron make their way through the List, which involves a vindictive English teacher, a mysterious computer hacker, a decidedly unchristian cult of Jesus Teens, the local drug dealers, and the meanest bully at HVHS--Cliff feels like he's part of something for the first time since losing his brother. But fixing a broken school isn't as simple as it seems, and just when Cliff thinks they've completed the List, he realizes their mission hits closer to home than he ever imagined.


A bit slow to start, but once it took off (basically after Aaron and Cliff became friends) it did so with a vengeance, and I couldn't put it down. I found it relatable, moving and very poignant. I loved the idea of a popular kid and an outcast getting together to work for the school to be a better place. I also liked the fact that they made mistakes. It didn't always work - sometimes they even made it worse - but even their efforts made a difference, and got other kids on board. It was very satisfying to see Cliff grow from being "Neanderthal" to being "Cliff".

Every Heart a Doorway - Seanan McGuire

Title: Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children #1)
Author: Seanan McGuire
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.5/5
# pages: 176
Date read: October 2017, December 2019

Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children

Children have always disappeared under the right conditions; slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere... else.

But magical lands have little need for used-up miracle children.

Nancy tumbled once, but now she's back. The things she's experienced... they change a person. The children under Miss West's care understand all too well. And each of them is seeking a way back to their own fantasy world.

But Nancy's arrival marks a change at the Home. There's a darkness just around each corner, and when tragedy strikes, it's up to Nancy and her new-found schoolmates to get to the heart of the matter.

No matter the cost.


Sometimes I love starting a book without having any idea of what it's about. I hadn't read the back blurb, but just decided to read this because a friend of mine recommended it. And it didn't take long for me to be utterly charmed by it. It had just the right mix of whimsy and crazy for me and appealed to me so much. It had much the same atmosphere as "Miss Peregrine...", but I liked this one a lot more... in fact, I wish it had been longer, as I would have loved to hear about more of the worlds and how the whole Nonsense / Logic / Wicked / Virtuous classification worked (yes, I'm a nerd and I'll happily own it!)

The plot turned out somewhat darker than I had originally anticipated, but the ending was SO satisfying! There are two more books in the series, but as the world-building was one of my favourite things about this book, I can't help but wonder if the others can live up to it... doesn't mean I'm not going to give them a chance though!

The Crucifix Killer - Chris Carter

Title: The Crucifix Killer (Robert Hunter #1)
Author: Chris Carter
Genre: Thriller
Rating: 4/5
# pages: 365
Date read: October, 2017

When the body of a young woman is discovered in a derelict cottage in the middle of Los Angeles National Forest, Homicide Detective Robert Hunter finds himself entering a horrific and recurring nightmare. Naked, strung from two parallel wooden posts, the victim was sadistically tortured before meeting an excruciatingly painful death. All the skin has been ripped from her face - while she was still alive. On the nape of her neck has been carved a strange double-cross: the signature of a psychopath known as the Crucifix Killer. But that's impossible. Because two years ago, the Crucifix Killer was caught and executed. Could this therefore be a copycat killer? Or could the unthinkable be true? Is the real killer still out there, ready to embark once again on a vicious and violent killing spree, selecting his victims seemingly at random, taunting Robert Hunter with his inability to catch him? Hunter and his rookie partner are about to enter a nightmare beyond imagining.


I don't know why it's taken me so long to pick up this book. It was exactly as captivating as the back blurb had led me to believe. It had some issues with pacing in places, but considering it's a debut novel, I can look past that, and am keen to see how he improves in later books. The killer's motivation didn't come across as entirely realistic to me (or rather, the punishment didn't quite fit the crime), but still somehow fit the story.

While it's the first in a series, the book is nicely contained with all ends woven in.

The Distance From Me to You - Marina Gessner

Title: The Distance From Me to You
Author: Marina Gessner
Genre: YA
Rating: 4/5
# pages: 339
Date read: October, 2017

McKenna Berney is a lucky girl. She has a loving family and has been accepted to college for the fall. But McKenna has a different goal in mind: much to the chagrin of her parents, she defers her college acceptance to hike the Appalachian Trail from Maine to Georgia with her best friend. And when her friend backs out, McKenna is determined to go through with the dangerous trip on her own. While on the Trail, she meets Sam. Having skipped out on an abusive dad and quit school, Sam has found a brief respite on the Trail, where everyone’s a drifter, at least temporarily.

Despite lives headed in opposite directions, McKenna and Sam fall in love on an emotionally charged journey of dizzying highs and devastating lows. When their punch-drunk love leads them off the trail, McKenna has to persevere in a way she never thought possible to beat the odds or risk both their lives.


The first 200 pages I absolutely LOVED! It was exactly the mix of YA and travelogue I had hoped for when buying it, and while it was light on exact details about the Appalachian Trail it still had enough of the travelogue atmosphere to satisfy me.

Unfortunately at about the 70% mark the author reminded me that she was indeed writing fiction and not a travelogue, and therefore had to introduce a conflict of some kind. While I understand the reasoning, I really wish she hadn't. The book didn't need it, and it changed the vibe of the last part of the book. So in the end I'll give it 5 stars for the first two thirds and 3 stars for the last.

And now I really want to get my hands on a "real" travelogue of the Appalachian Trail (other than "A Walk in the Woods" which I've already read.)

Karen-Kurér - Estrid Ott

Title: Karen-Kurér (Karen Courier)
Author: Estrid Ott
Genre: Classic, WW2
Rating: 5/5
# pages: 128
Date read: October, 2017

A YA novel based on true events that occurred in Elsinore, Denmark during World War II. The main character, Vips - a.k.a. Karen Courier - helps her brothers in the resistance movement by passing on documents, photos and films, helping Jews and others to Sweden and generally doing all she can to annoy the Germans.

I was introduced to this book as a child and cannot count the number of times I've read it - so it actually came as a surprise to see that I hadn't added it to Goodreads yet, as that means I haven't read it since 2002 or before!!! About time I remedied that! Estrid Ott is one of my favourite authors, and this is one of my favourite books by her. She really makes the every-day life during the war come to life, and I read most of the book with a lump in my throat.