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THE MIDNIGHT POST AND THE POSTBOX CLOCK by Sarah Dean GREEN LIGHT AGES: 4TH - 8TH GRADES This is a book I picked up at the Homeschool Convention this year, and I'm so glad I did! Fredrick Fox has just received the shock of his life. His Uncle Fenwick left him his bookstore, The Lost Chapter., in his will. Taking an absolute leap of faith by leaving his consistent, but extremely demeaning job, he boards a train and heads to the rundown town of Burrowood to find the bookshop that held such great memories from his childhood in a ramshackle state. Beginning the clean up, Frederick discovers clues to a secret that runs deep in Burrowood. Once upon a time, Uncle Fenwick was a part of a group of friends that set out to discover if the tales of a magical post office were true. Situations divided the friends, and they were never able to solve the mystery. Now, strange letters have started appearing. It's time to try again and hopefully heal the past in the process. The Midnight Post and The Postbox Clock is a story that has a bit of a feel like Wind in the Willows with a mystery threaded through the middle of it. The book ends with a set up that could easy launch it into a series, so I will be watching to see if the this one continues! HEADS UP - There is a small amount of magic in this book. Not the type with witches and evil, but the kind that creates a special place.

HEROES OF 1776 by Neil Gorsuch and Janie Nitze. Illustrated by Chris Ellison. As we quickly approach the 250th birthday of the United States, it's a perfect time to do some reading with our families about the birth of our great nation. Authors Gorsuch and Nitze (yes, the Neil Gorsuch that is a current U.S. Supreme Court Justice) bring readers an unbelievable picture book to help us accomplish this. Ths book is one hundred percent worth getting your hands on!! The pages of Heroes of 1776 are filled with the amazing account of the commitment and determination our founding fathers had to see this monumentous task through to the end. Pledging their fortunes and their very lives, these men laid everything on the line for what they believed in (There's so much we can learn from that alone!), and this book gives readers a front row seat to all of the action. This book can be used in multiple ways: 1.) If your kids aren't familiar with the story, this is a great way to introduce them. 2.) This book is also a great brush up if you're a little rusty on your Declaration of Independence history. 3.) Included in this book are facts that most of us don't know - what ended up happening to some of the founding fathers. Some did end up paying a very hefty price. I have to add a a quick comment about the illustrations in this book. Chris Ellison has absolutely nailed it, Heroes of 1776 is the complete package of great text and artwork in complete harmony..The pictures capture the passion, the long hours, the courage, and more. It could not have been done any more perfectly. I highly recommend Heroes of 1776, and am adding it to my SARAH"S FAVORITES BOOKLIST.

OUR LAKE by Angie Kang As Father's Day approaches, sometimes it's easy to forget that not all dads are with us. Some have passed away leaving a hole where their presence used to be. In this absoutely gorgeous. moving picture book, two brothers head off to a favorite swimming spot at the lake where there father once took them. Spending time in the water and with each other helps them to connect with the father who is no longer with them. While this book obviously deals with a diffficult topic, it celebrates the joy of the brothers being together and embracing a favorite memory. This beautiful picture book absolutely overflows with the colors of summer. Yellows for the hot summer sun. Blues that are so cool I almost felt like I was slipping into the water for a swim. Delightfully refreshing.

THE MOUNTAINS WE CALL HOME by Kim Michele Richardson YELLOW LIGHT AGE: ADULT For those of you who loved The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek and The Bookwoman's Daughter Kim Michele Richardson has just released a third book in the extremely moving series. THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS FROM THE FIRST TWO BOOKS. Imprisoned because she married a white man, Cussy Mary, who suffers from a rare genetic condition that causes her skin to turn blue (methemoglobinemia) finds herself in some of the most horrific conditions possible in prison. Finally forced to place her in the general population, the women inmates and guards are afraid that her condition is catching, Cussy Mary has to find her place within the prison system and of course, that happens with the aid of her greatest love, books. Her quiet, steady demeanor helps to bring peace to some of the most troubled women in the prison system. This extremely moving story takes a look at the state of prisons and practices that were often used within them in the 1950s. Despite all the difficult subject matter, Cussy Mary's story is one of perseverance and inspiration in some of the most darkest of circumstances. HEADS UP - -There is a spattering of language in this book including the use of G** d*** by one of the guards approx. 3 times. -Since it is set in prison there are some rough and crass situations that happen. Stories are shared about how different inmates ended up in prison. -Cussy Mary ends up working in the men's prison library a few times and helps a young man write a letter to his love. His love turns out to be another man. He is abused in the prison, because he is gay. Cussy Mary feels badly for him and tries to help him out SPOILER ALERT He tries to harm himself in a gruesome way and ends up committing suicide.

MARGARET'S UNICORN by Briony May Smith Oh my goodness! If you have a child that loves unicorns or looks around every corner and under every flower for mythical creatures, this picture book is for you! Set in the English countryside, Margaret's family has recently moved a long distance to be close to her grandmother. Feeling a bit out of sorts with all the changes, she goes outside to explore her new surroundings. Imagine her surprise when she notices what she thinks are clouds moving across the sky are actually a herd of white unicorns moving to new feeding grounds. Imagine her even greater surprise when she realizes that a baby one was accidentally left behind. Now, the adventures begin with this little one until the unicorns come back to this feeding ground. This type of picture book is just about as scrumptiously lovely as one can get. Beautiful pictures show memories made throughout the seasons together. Being a unicorn lover myself as a child, it's the sort of book that I would have absolutely loved which is why even today as an adult, it makes me want to search the skies for a herd of moving unicorns. This book is going straight to my SARAH"S FAVORITES BOOKLIST.

TALE OF TWO CITIES by Charles Dickens Woohoo! We crossed into Book 3 this week! That means we only have 3 more weeks of reading A Tale of Two Cities! CHAPTER 23 - FIRE RISES France I find that I love the simple mender of roads that appears so often in this book. I find him to be the face of the peasant man in this novel- what he thinks, how he acts. There is an everydayness about him as he goes about his routine and thinks about the happenings. Today, as he works and ponders, he notices the change that has come over the land since the death of the Monseigneur. The Monseigneur as a person and as a class (the aristocracy) caused this brokenness to happen everywhere he looks. Things were done and used up for his pleasure and the pleasure of the class, but that's not what the mender is paying attention to. He notices the change in the faces of the common person and the fact that they are now seen. As he thinks on these things, a figure comes walking down the road. They identify each other by "Jacques." They are both a part of the growing revolution. They sit and talk a few minutes, and we know something big is about to happen tonight. The man falls asleep and our mender of roads checks him out. Notice that after looking the newcomer over, the mender lifts his eyes to the horizon and in his mind's eye sees similar figures all around France about to do in other places what this man has come to do. That night, the village waits with bated breath. Four flames appear at the chateau held by four people named East, West, North, and South. Why are they named this way? Because they are spreading the revolution in all four directions of France. They light the chateau on fire and it burns to the ground. One last thing to note in this chapter. We met Monsieur Gabelle. Gabelle is not an aristocrat. He works for the government which puts him on the villagers hit list. Remember his name, because we're going to speak about him again in a moment. After lighting the chateau on fire, the people gather around his house demanding to speak to him. He heavily bars his door and goes to his roof deciding if they break the door down, he will jump off to his death hopefully killing one or two in the process. Eventually, the people give up and go back to their homes. CHAPTER 24 - DRAWN TO THE LOADSTONE ROAD England I find this chapter absolutely brilliant. We had to ask ourselves how Darnay was going to get drawn into the spider's web and here it is. Three years have gone by. Dickens gives us the Monseigneur and the Devil paragraph solidifying the fact that the Monseigneur has created this monster and is now paying for it. Many of the nobles have fled France to get away. I love, love, love how this chapter unfolds inside Tellson's Bank. Darnay has stopped by to visit Lorry who is preparing to head to France for bank business. Darnay admits that he wishes he were going. While they are chatting, Dickens tells us that a group of French nobles is talking together in a corner with Stryver. Here's where it gets fun. A soiled letter is handed to Lorry addressed to Marquis St. Evremonde (I just love saying that last name. It flows off the tongue so nicely. Ev-ruh-mond.) Lorry has been attempting to deliver it but with no success. No one knows who the new Marquis is. But Darnay does, doesn't he?! Lorry shows it to the French nobles. They don't know what the new marquis looks like. They know it's the old marquis' nephew. They have some choice things to say about the man. They look at him as a disgrace - one who "abandoned his post." Darnay speaks up saying he knows who the marquis is and will deliver the letter to him. Stryver jumps in and belittles the marquis as well to which Darnay responds that maybe they don't "understand the gentleman." He takes the letter and goes outside around the corner of the bank and opens it. The letter is from Gabelle (remember last chapter). Even though he is not a noble, he has been looking after Evremonde's estate. Because of this, he has been arrested. Darnay takes responsibility for the action. Even though he renounced the title he never set up how things should be done. He just left. The only answer to all of this is to go to France. Here's where the title of the chapter comes into play. The story alludes to Arabian Nights and the tale about a ship that is drawn to the loadstone, a magnetic rock, that pulls all the nails from the hull. The ship breaks apart and goes down. Our insides cry out as Darnay kids himself into the idea that he will be safe returning to France. Heck, he might be able to stop all this craziness. Dickens calls it a "mirage." Note that he decides not to tell Lucie and Little Lucie. After all, I'm sure they wouldn't have been as sure of his safety as he was. Darnay steps back into the bank and gives Lorry a message for Gabelle. Tell him "he has received the letter and will come." Stupid, stupid, stupid! BOOK 3 - CHAPTER 1 - IN SECRET France I'm not going to spend much time on this chapter. It doesn't take long and Darnay is caught and taken to La Force prison. -DeFarge takes him and talks with him as they go. He asks him if he married Dr. Manette's daughter. -Note that in this chapter the guillotine is mentioned. It is personified as a female. -Darnay asks DeFarge to deliver a message to Lorry at the bank. He will not help him. -The king is in prison at this point. -The part that caught my attention the most in this chapter was the juxtaposition when Darnay enters the prison. The prison is dark and dirty and placed side by side with this picture is the imprisoned aristocrats that stand to receive him with all of their refinement when he enters the cell. I was really struck by that mental image. CHAPTER 2 - The Grindstone France This chapter opens in the French branch of Tellson's Bank where Lorry is. As he looks out the window into the courtyard he notices a large crowd of people around a grindstone sharpening their blades. Gruesome work is happening around it. Everything is bloody. The peasants, the grindstone, the knives, everything is covered in blood. The peasants look hideous as they wear the fake eyebrows and moustaches, silks and lace that they've obviously taken from the nobles. Note some of the women are drinking wine in the midst of all the blood, and we can't help but feel as if we are taken back to the scene in front of DeFarge's wine shop with the broken wine barrel. Now ,instead of being covered with wine they are truly covered with blood. (Do you think the baptism in it is purging their country of its sins?) Ironically, Lorry takes a moment and thanks God that no one he loves is here in all of this. At that moment, Lucie and her father come in and Lorry learns that Darnay is imprisoned here. Lucie goes to look out the window, but Lorry stops her from seeing the horror. He puts her in a backroom and sends Dr. Manette to La Force. Dr. Manette is able to travel freely since it is known he was wrongly imprisoned. We don't know the story behind that yet, but don't worry! We soon will!

MAKE BELIEVE by Mac Barnett GREEN LIGHT AGE: ADULT Make Believe is the newest release by Mac Barnett. Originally praised for it's thought provoking content, a single line pulled out and posted caused a serious backlash against the current U.S. National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. What was the line that caused so much chatter? It was Barnett's expansion of a 1958 quote from science fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon. Sturgeon was retaliating against the claim that "ninety percent of science fiction is crud" to which Sturgeon responded, "Ninety percent of everything is crud." Barnett took that statement and expanded it a bit, "Maybe more like 94.7 percent of kids' books are crud." Dramatic pause moment!!! As soon as I heard about this, I wanted to read the book immediately! I'm not going to go into my thoughts about this, because I am thinking this book should be our next BOOK CLUB read for a whole host of reasons. I definitely didn't agree with everything that Barnett wrote in this book, but I did find myself examining my current beliefs on the purpose of books. I really do enjoy a wide range of them, but I often find that a book should have a purpose to it. It's true that I typically use books for experiences or teaching moments. Not always, but often. (You know, Charlotte Mason's "twaddle" argument.) This book has caused me to delve back into my own childhood and think about the books that I loved and how that lines up with the way I choose books today. Like I said, it just may show up as our next Book Club read.

CRANKY PAWS by Darrel and Sally Odgers GREEN LIGHT AGES: K - 3RD GRAD (Read To Me: K - 1 (Grade)/Read to Myself: 2nd - 3rd Grade) If you have animal lovers in your house, the Pet Vet series is a super fun one to read! The first book I read was actually Book 2 about a horse, and I enjoyed it so much that I went back and picked up Book 1, Cranky Paws. One of the things that makes this series so fun is that it is told from the viewpoint of a little dog named Trump (This is no disrespect to the current president at all. Trump was a famous Jack Russell Terrier in real life.) who is an Animal Liaison Officer for Pet Vet Clinic. Trump's job is to help visiting animals feel at ease in the new surroundings. The book also incorporates some great "vet" words in the story that are defined in boxes alongside the text. Cranky Paws is the story of a cat whose name is not really Cranky Paws but is nicknamed so because of her attitude. Abandoned by her original owners, Cranky Paws is living on the streets. When she is run over by a bicycle, a boy stops to help her and brings her to the clinic. Cranky Paws struggles with trusting humans and wants to be left alone., but Trump works to help her see that there are humans out there that are worth trusting.

THE INDIGO GIRL by Natasha Boyd GREEN LIGHT AGES: 9TH GRADE - ADULT Wow, wow, wow is this a fantastic read which is why I'm adding it to my SARAH'S FAVORITES BOOKLIST! This book ended up in my TBR pile because of more than one recommendation from my Facebook group, What We're Reading, members. Thank you to all who suggested this great book! Based on a true story, The Indigo Girl is the novelized life of Eliza Lucas, a 16-year-old girl who is left in charge of her father's three plantations in South Carolina while he pursues a governor position in Antigua. This pursuit is bleeding the plantations dry, and Eliza takes it upon herself to research a new, profitable crop to grow. This leads her to indigo, the plant that produces blue dye used in highly sought after clothing. The process of making the dye is a guarded secret that puts Eliza in some very precarious and difficult positions. Finding herself continually between a rock and a hard place, not only due to trying to learn the process, but also because she is a young lady overseeing all the business of the plantations including working alongside the slaves (many that she counts as friends and tries to aid), Eliza is a girl of unbelievable courage and tenacity. Her story is very inspiring, and if after reading The Indigo Girl readers want to learn more about her life, they can do so by reading her letters in The Letterbook of Eliza Lucas Pinckney. HEADS UP - -The story does deal with the misuse and abuse of slaves which Eliza works to eliminate. Included in this is the fact that masters would sire children with their slaves. Intimate details are not given.

THE FREE STATE OF JAX by Jennifer A. Nielsen GREEN LIGHT with CAUTION AGES: 5TH - 8TH GRADE The Free State of Jax is a step outside of Jennifer A. Nielsen's usual style of storytelling. Jaxon Averett is in a tough situation, and he's about to do something about it. Orphaned after his parents were killed in a boating accident, he went to live with his grandmother. Now, his grandmother has dementia, and there's no where else to go except to live with his horrible Uncle Clive, Aunt Helga and their six kids. Mentally and emotionally abusive, it's not a question of does the family want Jax. They do. The question is why? He doesn't come with an inheritance that he's aware of, and his uncle and aunt can't even remember his name most of the time, but there's got to be some reason they want him so desperately. Finally Jax can't take anymore, so he sets out to do something drastic. The night before his twelfth birthday, he decides to create his own micronation where he is president. He knows he can't do this on his uncle and aunt's property, so he chooses the abandoned property next door. Specifically, the pond is claimed. He builds a small raft, floats out of reach, and hunkers down. Only the property isn't abandoned. The owner hides away because of something that happened years ago that affected the whole town. Finding himself in the middle of multiple mysteries while trying to establish his new nation, Jax has a lot more going on than he originally bargained for. It's all hanging by a thread as to whether this summer will turn out to be the best summer ever or the worst. Initially, when I started this book, I was a little concerned where it was going to go. Living in the world we do today, we sometimes hear about cases of children usurping authority, suing parents, etc. That's not where Nielsen takes us or leaves us. Instead, it's clear that an underage child does need an authority figure. While it is possible to try and establish a micronation in the U.S., they are typically not recognized and are challenged by local, state, and federal government. Overall, I found this unique cry for help to be very refreshing and the plot twists kept me coming back for more. HEADS UP - -One secondary character has two dads that are mentioned in 1 sentence passes each time. -**SPOILER ALERT** It is thought that possibly a murder occurred in the past. It did not.

A TALE OF TWO CITIES by Charles Dickens CHAPTER 19 - AN OPINION ENGLAND I find Chapter 19 very moving. Have you ever walked through a hard time with a friend or had a friend walk through a hard time with you? hat's exactly what we see happen in this chapter. On day 10 after the wedding, Manette snaps out of his stupor, and Lorry, the best kind of friend, decides it's time to get to the bottom of what is going on. Interestingly to Manette, it's as if the wedding happened yesterday. He has zero recollection of the past 9 days and the disconnect to life he has experienced. I love Lorry's tiptoe approach to the situation, because we've all used it. "Uhhh, I have this friend..." Right? But, neither of them are fooled about who the "friend" is. Manette knew the relapse was coming. He could feel the storm building inside. Maybe it's similar to the way a person feels the onset of a panic attack or a seizure. He tried to prepare, but he just couldn't escape it. What brought the episode on? Manette tells us two things 1.) "revival of train of thought and remembrance.." and 2.) "intense associations of a most disturbing nature were vividly recalled." What is he talking about? What just happened? Darnay and Lucie were married, but right before that, Darnay tells Dr. Manette who he is. There's definitely a connection there, so tuck it in the back of your mind. Lorry tells Manette its time to get rid of the bench and tools. Manette can hardly fathom the thought. They've been his constant companions through the hurricanes of his life. They allow his fingers to move, to work in place of his brain pounding out in overdrive. However, the bench casts a shadow on a new attempt at life. It is a direct tie to the old, and it's time to let it go and close that door. Manette finally agrees to this, but only if it is done when he is not around. So one night, he is out, and Lorry and Miss Pross set to work destroying the remaining link. The book takes on a atmosphere of crime and death in this last paragraph of the chapter. Miss Pross holds the light while Lorry hacks the bench to pieces. As soon as the deed is done, the wood is gathered up and burned in the kitchen fire. The leather, shoes, and tools are buried in the garden. The specter of the past is put to death. CHAPTER 20 - A PLEA We're just going to cover a couple of main points in this chapter. It's time for Sydney to mend fences. He takes Darnay aside and asks if they can be friends. Why? Because of Lucie, of course. Before we get our knickers in a knot about Carton and his desire to be close to Lucie understand that he knows that she loves Darnay. He's not trying to disrupt that or come between them. She brings out in him an emotion that he never thought he would ever feel that's deeper than love, the ability to care for someone/something in life. His desire at this point is just to be part of the family. He literally wants to be a piece of comfortable furniture to them. Darnay agrees to this, and he reinforces what Lucie said to him. He is capable of being more than he currently is to which Sydney denies. The chapter ends with Lucie asking Darnay to be kind towards Sydney. Tuck away in your mind that Lucie believes that Sydney is capable of "magnanimous things." CHAPTER 21 - ECHOING FOOTSTEPS Time passes. Good things happen, sad things happen, but still there are steps that are working their way toward the sweet little family that set Lucie's heart racing with anxiety. Mommas, I think we can sympathize with Lucie here in this opening section of the chapter. It's so easy sometimes to look around at all the beauty and blessings in life and know that things do not always stay this way. Lucie feels this. Several things happen in this passing time. Two children are born to Darnay and Lucie: a little boy and a little girl, Lucie. Little Lucie lives, but the little boy dies. Sydney is a part of the family like he hoped. He is always sober and has found his special place in the hearts of the children. In the approaching footsteps are rumbling sounds from France. The Scarecrows are rising up. "A forest of naked arms struggled in the air like shriveled branches of trees in a winter wind." Oh we understand that picture don't we? The bare, skeleton-like people who have been exposed to the barrenness of winter have had enough. And the epicenter? DeFarge's Wine Shop. Madame has finished her knitting. Now, she carries an axe, a gun, and a knife. The ignition of the French Revolution is lit with the storming of the Bastille. The prisoners are released and the guards are taken prisoner. DeFarge grabs a guard and makes him take him to 105 North Tower. Did you recognize that address? It's the cell Dr. Manette lived in for 18 years. Bursting into the cell, the initials A.M. and "a poor physician" are scratched into the wall. He's in the right place. Frantically, he searches. All the bits of things in the cell are piled up in the middle and burned. The governor is captured. Marched to the hotel for judgement, he never makes it. He is stabbed repeatedly from behind until he falls down dead. But, it's Madame Defarge's gruesome act that solidifies in our minds just how bloody and vicious this revolution is going to be. The man is dead, yet, she chops off his head and walks over his body. Remember the metaphor of the lamplighter earlier in the book. The fact that something other than the lights would soon be swinging from the poles? One of the guards is swung up to be left "on duty." The fury of the storm is unleashed. This chapter ends with a somewhat confusing paragraph about two sets of seven faces. Seven of the faces are prisoners that have now been released. Carried overhead, their faces once contorted in fear now bloom with wonder and amazement. Seven other faces are carried up as well. Seven guards who once worked at The Bastille find their lives forfeit. Beheaded, their heads are put on pikes for all to see. Dickens cries out at the end that Lucie's life be kept far from the footsteps of the mad crowd that now seeks blood. For even though they have shed it, they are not purified. They are not satisfied. So what of this chapter is historically true? The French Revolution did begin with the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789. The governor was killed, seven prisoners freed, and seven guards killed and beheaded. CHAPTER 22 - THE SEA STILL RISES FRANCE So now that blood has been shed, life can go on, right? Not a chance. The brutality is just beginning. DeFarge comes running to the wine shop with news. Old Foulon, the aristocrat that told the peasants to eat grass and to feed it to their children, the one who everyone believed was dead, has been found hiding out in the country. I'm going to throw something else in here for a minute. Have you wondered why the women in particular are so brutal in all of this? I believe it has to go back to the mother bear idea. These women have watched their families, their children, starve and be abused for so long. There's something that happens inside a mother when she sees her child mistreated. They go crazy. That is what we are seeing played out here. Okay, back to Old Foulon. Can you picture the scene? Bound and drug through the crowd, arms shoot out pushing handful after handful of grass into his face. He begs for mercy, but it falls on the deafest of ears. The metaphorical picture that Dickens gives is amazing - " a log of dead wood through a forest of legs." Can you see it? He is dragged through the crowd until he comes to the lamppost at the corner where Madame DeFarge waits for him. Again, we have this beautiful use of language. Madame DeFarge with Foulon is compared to a cat playing with a mouse. Oh mu goodness. We get the terror of this moment. The horror of it. The crowd screams for him to be killed by stuffing him full of grass, but no. A rope is swung around his neck and he is hoisted up the lamppost. The rope breaks. Again, he is pulled up. The rope breaks again. A third time he is hoisted up, and this time "the rope is merciful." He dies. His head is chopped off and put onto a pike. The chapter ends with the people going back to every day life. They go back to their insufficient suppers. Parents play gently with their children, lovers love and hope. They fall asleep. The day ends, but the bloodshed is just beginning.

IF LOOKS COULD KILL by Julie Berry YELLOW LIGHT with HEAVY CAUTION Today's post is written by my daughter, Lauren! I am a huge fan of Lovely War by Julie Berry (seriously if you haven’t read it go check it out! Read the review first, for a quick Heads Up on one part!), so I was very excited to start in on her newest book. If Looks Could Kill follows four different characters. Tabitha and Pearl are roommates at the Salvation Army in New York City. The book also follows Jack the Ripper and Medusa who is hunting him. This story has some major plots twists that I did not see coming! However, there’s some stuff to be aware of in this book. HEADS UP Tabitha and Pearl are trying to spread Christ in the rough parts of New York City. Here, brothels, pimps, prostitutes, and bars abound. When a girl they know gets trapped in a brothel working under the harsh Madam Rosie, they are desperate to set her free. The story doesn’t get into too much detail, but as they work to free girls, you are aware of what is obviously going on and learn the backstories of several girls (including one being raped as a young girl and another being sold into the sex trade as a child). Again, not too many details are shared, but there are some flashbacks. Pearl and Tabitha. are both believers in Christ, so the book addresses their true Christian faith. Then, we meet Medusa, who is going around killing men. You’re put in a world where Christianity and Greek mythology are both real. Medusa has a whole conversation with herself about whether her actions are Biblically moral. She quotes several Bible verses to herself and comes to the conclusion that she’s going to Hell anyways, so she might as well take as many dangerous men off the streets with her. Additionally, one of the girls prays to God about Medusa, and God responds to her that He loves all his creations, including Medusa. This bothered me.( According to Greek mythology, Medusa was created by Athena.) I didn’t appreciate the combination of Pearl and Tabitha's faith colliding with the acceptance of Greek Mythology. Finally, in the middle of all of this, Jack the Ripper is killing women throughout the story and cutting up certain parts of their body. This is historically accurate. However, in this story, Jack is cutting up body parts (for example the liver of one of the girls) and eating it in a special brew, because he believes eating human flesh will heal him of a disease he struggles with. Basically, this book didn’t live up to the expectation I had after reading Lovely War mainly because of the combination of Christianity and Greek Mythology. While the concept of Medusa hunting Jack the Ripper was genius, a book with both truth and myth just leaves a lot of confusion in my opinion.