Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel REVIEW

 Summary:

The last time Maeve saw her cousin was the night she escaped the cult they were raised in. For the past two decades, Maeve has worked hard to build a normal life in New York City, where she keeps everything—and everyone—at a safe distance.

When Andrea suddenly reappears, Maeve regains the only true friend she’s ever had. Soon she’s spending more time at Andrea’s remote Catskills estate than in her own cramped apartment. Maeve doesn’t even mind that her cousin’s wealthy work friends clearly disapprove of her single lifestyle. After all, Andrea has made her fortune in the fertility industry—baby fever comes with the territory.

The more Maeve immerses herself in Andrea’s world, the more disconnected she feels from her life back in the city; and the cousins’ increasing attachment triggers memories Maeve has fought hard to bury. But confronting the terrors of her childhood may be the only way for Maeve to transcend the nightmare still to come…

My Thoughts:

I fell in love with this book. Maeve was raised in a cult that revolved around motherhood with her cousin but was able to leave at a young age because of a police raid. She was raised by a couple who adopted her. But being raised in a cult has made her like a hermit, and she doesn't really have friends, until her cousin finds a way into her life again.

Despite being in her 30s now, Maeve is still very cautious and doesn't want to get close to anyone. I think that this makes her character very realistic. Trauma never really leaves.

Andrea, her cousin, has become a successful business woman, centering around children. She seems to have completely moved on from the trauma, but she recently suffered a loss of her own: her baby. Andrea invites Maeve to live with her for a while, and that's when things get weird. Andrea's co-workers act disgusted by the fact that Maeve does not want children, and a couple of Maeve's friends die suddenly.

It turns out that Andrea has brought back the cult and is now the leader. Since Andrea can no longer have children, and she forces Maeve to get pregnant for the sole purpose of stealing the baby. She is able to escape, but kept in protective custody. Maeve helps the police arrest Andrea, and gives her babies up for adoption. But at the end, the adoptive mother turned out to be part of the cult as well . . .

The writing is so perfect and very engaging. It's one of those books where you have to physically pry yourself away from it in order to stop reading it. I absolutely love the easter eggs throughout the novel, and the characters are extremely well developed and easy to care about, even some of the background characters. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who likes psychological horror.

My Rating: 5 stars

The Path of One by D. P. Behling REVIEW

Summary:

Joshua Elias Tanner is trying to fix his life and reconnect with his four-year-old daughter Sophie. In a bizarre twist, he gets pulled into the multidimensional world of the Immortals simply by being the last person on the elevator after lunch!

If Josh wants to find his way back to Sophie, he will be forced to rise through the levels of mortal cultivation to reach Transcendence with his fate-bonded brother, Senyak Marztanak.

Senyak needs the unique mortal qualities of Josh if Sen is to reclaim his Immortality and sit on his family's ruling seat.

My Thoughts:

This was really interesting to read. I especially love the development of the characters throughout the novel, and the room made to develop them more in the sequel.

Josh is like a reader-insert of sorts. He, like us, are thrown into a reality of which we know nothing about. While I do like his character, Josh acts a lot more like a teenager than a father, which is really most of the novel. We get little glimpses into his life, but I found it kind of hard to believe that he is an adult.

Senyak is so interesting as a character. He originally was not the heir to his family, but his brouther failed his test and was unable to claim the right to be his family's heir. His character is astonishingly more believable than Josh's. Senyak is hundreds of years old, but time is different when you're an Immortal, and he comes off as a teenager who tries to be seen as an adult (except it doesn't work).

Sophie was mentioned a few times, but never in much detail for being such an important factor in the story.

In terms of reading, the novel was difficult at first due to the vocabulary being very scientific, but it catches on soon after. The book also jumped around from feeling like an adult novel and being a YA novel, which was kind of confusing.

A lot of these criticisms really come down to characterization in terms of plot, which could be solved in the sequel.

I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't really my cup of tea. However, I would pick up the sequel whenever it comes out.

My Rating: 3 stars