SSOJ Blogs

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd is a book that follows Juliet Moreau, a maid who was once a rich young lady. Her father was a renowned doctor until he was found conducting unethical experiments on animals and assumed dead when he went missing. When Juliet meets Montgomery, an old childhood friend who worked under her father, she realizes her father is alive and lives on a remote island. Montgomery reluctantly decides to take Juliet to the island where her father is with a native he befriended called Balthazar. While on the ship, Montgomery and Juliet’s relationship grows. Then, they find a man named Edward Prince, a shipwreck survivor. Juliet immediately takes an interest in him and his feelings for her become obvious very quickly. Montgomery isn’t too happy about his sudden arrival. When they reach the island, Juliet’s father welcomes her, surprised that she’s on the island. It’s only as the story goes on that she realizes that he does conduct unethical experiments, bu...

First published in 1925, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald takes place in West Egg and East Egg Long Island, New York. The story is narrated through the perspective of Nick Carraway, a midwesterner who decided to head out east and become a bond salesman. The novel is concerned with Jay Gatsby, Nick’s mysterious neighbor that lives in the lavish mansion next door, and primarily focuses on Gatsby's affair and obsession with Daisy, who is Nick’s vain, second cousin once removed. Daisy is married to Tom Buchanan, Daisy’s wealthy but also unfaithful husband, who has an affair himself. Throughout the novel, the reader learns more about Gatsby’s personal life and ambitions, which ultimately culminates to a tragic and shocking finale that leaves the reader with a sense of emptiness. The Great Gatsby is probably one of the most well written and intricate books I’ve ever read. A big reason why I thought it was so intricate is because I found value in reading it more than one time....

WARNING: AS THIS IS THE 4th BOOK IN THIS SERIES, THERE WILL BE SPOILERS FOR THE FIRST 3 BOOKS. The Penderwicks in Spring by Jane Birdsall is the fourth in a series of charming tales about a delightful family of 8. This number has grown since the first book of the series. The family originally introduced to us being made up of Mr. Penderwick, an amazing single father who loves his daughters with all his heart along with his love of Latin which he puts to use from time to time. His lovely wife died soon after the youngest Penderwick was born, due to Cancer. Rosalind is the oldest sister, and as such she took on a sort of motherly role for Batty, the youngest, always putting her to bed and walking her to school. Rosalind was always Batty's favorite sister very much and it still shows in this book. Rosalind is a freshman in College and Batty is literally counting down the days until Rosalind will return home. Skye is the next oldest, now a senior in high school, there is no less...

          The Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse is an extremely captivating book that mixes historical fiction with a hint of mystery. The book begins in January of 1943 in Amsterdam, after the Nazis invaded. The main character, Hanneke Bakker, is a tall eighteen year old girl with blonde hair and green, angry eyes. Hanneke hates the Nazis, especially because the boy she loved, Bas, died fighting against them two years before. Hanneke is a black market worker who illegally finds extra rations of food or rare things like cigarettes or real coffee for wealthy people who are willing to pay. Hanneke does this work on top of a secretary job because both her parents are unable to work. One day, a widow named Mrs. Janssen asks Hanneke to find something much more difficult than stroopwafels or bacon, she asks her to find a person. For a few days Mrs. Janssen had been helping hide a young Jewish girl named Mirjam who ran away after her family was shot and killed. ...

Heartless by Marissa Meyer is a book that follows Catherine Pinkerton, an aspiring baker, and the predicaments she finds herself in. Catherine, who goes by Cath, is the daughter of the Marquess and Marchioness of Rock Turtle Cove, a distinguished family. After attending a party, she meets the King of Hearts, a rather dim man looking for a wife. His new court jester, Jest, is a clever boy who impresses the crowd at the King of Heart’s party (especially Cath). The King of Hearts takes a liking to Cath immediately and decides he wants to propose on the spot at his party. However, the last thing Cath wants to do it get married, all she wants to do is open a bakery with her best friend. So, she pleads her talking cat, Cheshire, to somehow stop him from announcing it. At the last minute, Cheshire causes a distraction, stopping the King and allowing Cath to escape. Later that night, a beast called the Jabberwock attacks the party, causing Cath’s parents to return home early, relieved to see t...

First published in 1929, A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway is set on the Italian front of World War I. It follows Frederic Henry, an American ambulance driver serving with the Italian Army as a tenente, or lieutenant. The novel focuses on the romance between him and Catherine Barkley, who is an English nurse who lost her fiancé to the war. The book is divided into five different sections, the first of which depicts Frederic’s life on the battlefield and his first experiences with Catherine. Initially, he is uninterested in Catherine and only plans to use her as comfort during the hardships of the war. However, in the second section of the book he begins to fall in love with Catherine and genuinely care for her. I won’t spoil the specific details, but essentially Frederic gets wounded at one point in the novel and is hospitalized. He then ends up in the same hospital and is under Catherine’s care. In the following sections, their love for each other grows as the war develops. ...

Beautiful Liars by Isabel Ashdown is a thrilling story that contains many twists and secrets. Beautiful Liars takes place many years after a girl named Juliet goes missing in London. The main characters are Juliet’s two friends, Martha and Liv. When Juliet first went missing, the two girls kept Juliet’s secrets, that could have possibly been connected to where Juliet was. Martha and Liv soon went their separate ways and Juliet’s case was soon given up on. Many years later, when Martha is a TV celebrity, she decides to create a detective show involving real cases. The first case she decides to attempt to crack was Juliet’s. Martha wants to get in contact with Liv by sending her a letter, however Liv no longer lives in that residence. The second perspective we read from is Casey’s. Readers don’t quite know who Casey is at first or why she is so interested in Juliet’s case. Readers do find out within the first chapters that Casey lives in Liv’s old residence and receives Martha’s letter....