A quick-paced, unputdownable thriller and love story of the last human in a world overrun by robots.

Rebel has every reason to believe she is the last human left on Earth. Years before, everyone who could evacuated into space, and those left behind were hunted down and killed by the robots who took their directive to stabilize the Earth and it's climate a little too seriously. Lucky for Rebel, she has the recorded teachings and writings of her father, an expert on these robots, so she painstakingly works to understand how they work. But most importantly, she works to understand how to pass as one of them.

Her plan to fly under the radar comes to a dramatic impasse when a robot in her care, Thomas, begins developing human-like emotions and personality.

As any good robot novel should, it ponders questions about the nature of life and being human.

Full of tension, action, and sentimentalism, my only complaint is that it ended on a massive cliffhanger and there is no immediate news on a book 2.

This is a 3 book series. Or, more specifically, a series of one short story, one novella, and a full length novel.

I am posting this review early to give you time to read the short story and novella before the full length novel releases in May. It's worth your time and money, I assure you!

Fatma is an agent of the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities in an alternate-history steampunk Cairo where djinn live and work among humans. Having already saved the world once in A Dead Djinn in Cairo, Fatma has a reputation for handling weird, sensitive, and dangerous cases. Her current case, involving a mass spontaneous human combustion event of a secretive brotherhood of wealthy Englishmen, is all of the above.

Perhaps readers could enjoy this book, which is the third that takes place in this world, without having read the previous two -- but I wouldn't recommend it. So much of the plot here depends upon understanding the world that has been built as well as the conclusion of the events in book 1. Book one, A Dead Djinn in Cairo, and book 2, The Haunting of Tram Car 015, are quick reads and more than worth the time.

The plot here is elaborate without straying into confusion, with entertaining literary devices I haven't often encountered. One important theme in the book (without going into spoilers) includes attempting to recover a magical artifact that has been spelled to cause you to forget about its existence. Fatma and her partner, Hadia, must constantly hide notes through their pockets and things to remind them what they are looking for. This also helps the reader stay on top of a complicated case -- we are often reminded alongside Fatma and Hadia what is going on.

There is some romance, but not enough to characterize the work as a romance itself -- just enough to expand the plot, as Fatma's love interest, Siti, has secrets of her own that propel the events forward -- and readers who dislike romance in their plots should not be deterred.

Overall, a smart and creative mystery taking place in an innovative and fresh setting, and highly recommended for fans of detective stories with a healthy dose of fantasy or mythology.

I would happily read another novel or short story from this author that takes place in this world, whether it follows Fatma (books 1 and 3) or Hamed and Onsi (book 2) or delves deeper into any of the intriguing other characters we encounter.

arc received for review

arc received from the publisher for review

I really anticipated this book and was so excited to get an advance copy.

Readers will appreciate learning more about this alternate-history California, meeting Eli's family, and seeing a more emotional side to Lizbeth.

However, this is all overshadowed by the fact that the plot is neatly tied up via a plot hole the size of Texas itself. While the central conflict is Lizbeth's quest to free Eli from prison, that plot takes backseat to political intrigue involving the tsar and a bunch of other characters I'm not interested or invested in.

Overall, it was a fun ride with a disappointing ending, but Ill probably pick up book 4 from the library, if there is one.

Your mileage may vary.

arc received from the publisher for review

Sixteen-year-old twins Portia and Alexandria live a normal life in Chicago. That is, until a chance encounter with an ancient Egyptian artifact at the Field Museum transports them and an unwitting freshman back to ancient Egypt.

There, the three discover that maybe they're not so normal after all and that they have a role to play in fighting an evil force that is trying to destroy Egypt. 

An un-put-down-able YA fantasy adventure that will appeal to children and adults alike. Very highly recommended. 

An excellent and necessary remembrance of the community center libraries that sprang up to serve Black residents in a few locations during and around the Freedom Summer of 1964. Volunteers both local and out of state faced everything from crumbling infrastructure to assassination attempts to introduce libraries into communities that were systematically denied them.

This is important for two reasons -- one, to remember. This struggle happened here involving some people who are still alive today, not in a far-away time and place. Second, even now, this book is a lesson in what could happen when we completely reimagine the library and it's role in the community. What would it look like if we built it from the bottom up, basing it entirely on the needs and wants of the community it serves?

Overall, an excellent and quick read, and recommended for library lovers and history buffs everywhere.

It is unthinkable that a fan of the Kate Daniel series by the same author would even consider passing this one up.

Eight years have passed since the events of Magic Triumphs, when Julie left Atlanta and headed out west with Erra -- both of whom, presumably, wanted some distance from the rest of the family. 

Julie has been practicing and absorbing powerful magic under Erra's tutelage, magic so powerful that it has remade her face, body, and voice, rendering her unrecognizable. Upon receiving a disturbing prophecy that Kate is in danger, she must return to Atlanta to protect her. However, the prophecy also states that if Kate sees Julie, she is in even more danger.

Armed with her newfound powers and a new, beautiful, and anonymous face, Julie returns to Atlanta under the name of Aurelia Ryder. There is an interesting dynamic here where Julie encounters people she knows, but without being recognized. (She is basically secret-shopping Atlanta.) While it would be a lot easier to just announce "HEY IT'S ME JULIE HELP ME OUT!." she has to re-earn the trust and respect of people who actually already trust and respect her, all on a time crunch, while her adoptive mother is in danger. 

Plus, DEREK IS IN TOWN, TOO! 

Fans of the series will be happy to return to post-shift Atlanta and revisit these well-known characters in a new series. (I say series with a heart full of hope that this sells well and we get like nine more of them.)

A spritely hop through deep and heavy history of ancient Rome, touching on several different topics with a lightness that will irritate the hardcore history crowd and delight casual readers. As someone with a light-to-moderate interest in ancient Rome (as in, I'll watch a documentary, but it's unlikely I'll read a book larger than this) it was just enough to keep me entertained and give me a handful of fun facts to spout off when there's a lull in conversation.

(Like, did you know ancient Romans washed their clothes in pee? Fun.)

Also, I laughed out loud many times.

Recommended for people who like to breeze through some miscellaneous nonfiction now and then.