Written by Beth Winters

​I really wanted to like "The Winner’s Curse" by Marie Rutkoski, but, alas, I could not seem to enjoy the plot, as I typically enjoy books with a certain type of romance between the two main characters. Here is why I was not impressed.

The story starts with Kestrel, the main female character, gambling. Initially, this start seems solid, but I was just not impressed with Kestrel. She is cocky and arrogant. Right off the bat, I was not a fan.

After winning all the available money from the gambling group, Kestrel and a friend go to a shop. There, the shopkeeper tries to sell her wares before being called out by Kestrel, as the shopkeeper tries to pass clear stone earrings off as precious topaz. I did not want to root for Kestrel because of how she refutes the shopkeeper so quickly and crudely. Though Kestrel does ultimately buy the earrings, she only does so to “save” the shopkeeper from lying to a Valorian (one of Kestrel’s people). If such a lie was told, the shopkeeper may suffer a very bad fate.

Did I mention that there is a conquered people who are treated like slaves? After buying the earrings from the shopkeeper, Kestrel and her friend wander the streets and happen upon a slave auction. They watch the auction, though Kestrel is uncomfortable… but she ends up buying a slave!

These events all happen within the first chapter. Needless to say, I was not enjoying the book much at this point—simply not my taste. I just could not root for Kestrel, a wealthy general’s daughter living in comfort who for some reason seems unhappy with her life.

Written by Lauryn Smith

In her historical fiction novel "The Museum of Extraordinary Things," Alice Hoffman invites readers to dive into dueling worlds, one mystical and breathtaking, the other dark and seedy. 

Set in 1911 New York, Hoffman illustrates the time by interweaving the stories of Coralie, a young woman who assists her father’s museum of “natural” wonders, and Eddie, a young man who struggles with his unfortunate past but finds solace in his work as a photographer and life in the Manhattan wilderness. Their paths cross when Eddie accepts a job reminiscent of those he used to accept from shady characters in his youth. This time the job is seeking the missing daughter of an acquaintance of his estranged father. In addition to providing readers a true page-turner of a book, Hoffman expertly introduces readers to actual historical events, in this case the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in Greenwich Village and the fire at Coney Island’s amusement park, Dreamland.

Hoffman, the author of more than 30 novels, seems to want to exemplify the psychological impacts of social and economic inequalities. Coralie feels trapped by the wishes of her father, who disallows her from showing her true self, going so far as to require her to glove her deformed hands, while simultaneously forcing her to train as a water-loving creature to be displayed at the museum. Eddie carries with him the watch of the young son of a wealthy factory owner, which he stole when he was a child working alongside his garment-worker father, a token that seems to represent his distaste with societal disparities. His unease is perpetuated by his craft, in which he uses his camera to capture both beautiful and sordid images. Likewise, Coralie learns that the museum of wonders that once seemed magical is actually a house of hidden horrors. How is it that the world can supply such extremes, and in such proximity?