Fracking comes to Pennsylvania where small towns of Amity and Prosperity are looked at as the gas boom enriches some but sickens others. Stacey Haney's family is followed as they fight Range Resources as they fall ill from living below one of Range's drill sites.

What a book! Eliza Griswold tells the story in a straightforward manner. She has documentation listed so you can check it out for more details. She did a through job in telling the story of how a town takes sides.

I felt so bad for Stacey and her family and her neighbors, the Voyles, as they fight for their rights for clean water and air. Looking back on everything it started with the death of their animals and Stacey's son, Harley, illnesses. Stacey is constantly taking Harley to the hospitals in Washington, PA, and Pittsburgh. Stacey starts keeping records of taking Harley and smells in the air and things that aren't right with their water and problems in the house. Beth Voyles does the same. They call the EPA and DEP but, while they pay lip service, nothing is done. Oh, Range, eventually does get fined, the fines are so small compared to how much they are making from fracking.

I was appalled by how Range Resources got away with destroying the environment and can walk away. I also was angry by how the taxpayers of Pennsylvania will end up footing the cost of Range doing business--repaving roads, cleaning up and reclaiming drilling sites (even though Range is supposed to put everything back as it was when they finish), medical costs for those sickened (if they don't have insurance.)

Eventually Stacey and Beth hire attorneys, the Smiths, to have Range admit negligence and give them clean water and stop fracking above their homes. Stacey has to move from her home it is so bad. Beth stays but develops severe health problems. Their children are impacted negatively with physical and emotional illnesses.

For years the lawsuits continue. I was disgusted by how DEP acted towards the Haneys and Voyles, how they sided with Range Resources. They were to protect the public, not big business.

I was shocked how Range tried to find out who was paying the Smiths. I could not believe the accusations Range made against charitable organizations and environmentalist organizations in the region. The Smiths basically were doing this pro bono with payment if a settlement was achieved. I liked how they were crusaders, going after the Commonwealth when Act 13 was passed to ensure that the public was put first and not gas and oil companies.

I was saddened about how Amity was split. It seemed that those who were paid large sums by Range did not believe Stacey, who had grown up with them. It seemed that once the money started rolling in, many forgot how a small town worked--they all helped one another and supported one another. That seemed to end the longer the lawsuits dragged on.

It was a shame that the lawsuits never went to trial. Settlement was made with gag orders in place about it. I think a jury would have found for Stacey and Beth but I can understand the stress of living with something this big hanging over their heads, how it wore them down and took over their lives.

I hope that Stacey and her family and Beth and her family are followed over the years. I want to know what happens to them--how their health and lives are affected from the chemicals they breathed and drank.

I agree with Harley. The money (all of it) was blood money. His life was ruined and he could not get back what he lost--his health, his ambitions, his dreams. They were all gone. He moved on but he has a different outlook. He has matured fast and knows the agencies put in place to aid the public don't. His innocence was lost. His is right. Greed won.

About The Rules of Rebellion:

1. Skinny dip (her idea)
2. Prank someone (his idea)
3. Stargaze (her idea)
4. Kiss someone (his idea)

Leo Zimmerman has had a crush on his curvy best friend Kylie Jenkins since forever, so When he discovers the girl with a flair for baking has a newfound plan to rebel against her overbearing parents, he’s determined to be the one to help her carry it out. Who better than a self-proclaimed rebel like himself to show her the ropes of letting loose?

Sure, taking her to her first high school party, helping her sneak out of the house, or watching a sunset together isn’t exactly a hardship, but much harder is masking his feelings the more time they spend together. And when he suggests adding “kiss a boy” to Kylie’s plan and she accepts…suddenly all his dreams seem to be coming true.

But Leo’s got a secret that could change everything between them, and it’s only a matter of time before it comes to the surface.

Buylinks: https://entangledpublishing.com/the-rules-of-rebellion.html

Her dimples popped into place, her smile so bright it about knocked me senseless. She bounced a bit on her tiptoes, and for one hopeful second I thought she’d maybe hug me. Unfortunately, she reined in her enthusiasm.

“That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me,” she said. “I’ve got to run. My sister is probably pacing in front of my car by now. See you later.”

She scurried off, and I was disappointed the conversation had ended so quickly. I didn’t mind watching her walk away, though. I loved how the girl filled out a pair of jeans. She had more bounce in her step than most of the cheerleaders. Kylie was just plain…perky. She always seemed to be happy and smiling. I’d suspected Kylie was one of those rare people who was always fun to be around. Spending time with her these past few months had proven I wasn’t wrong.

She finally rounded the corner, slipping from my view. As I twisted back around, something crinkled beneath my foot. On the floor, directly where we’d been talking, was a pink slip of paper. It looked suspiciously similar to the one that had been sticking out of Kylie’s notebook earlier today.

I swiped it off the floor as I cast another glance down the hallway. It was too late to call after her. I’d have to give it back to her later. I reflexively glanced at the page, assuming it was a recipe, but wanting to be sure it wasn’t something important. Something she might need immediately.

Senior Checklist.

I glanced down the hallway again, confirming that she was out of sight and that she hadn’t realized she dropped the paper and was coming back. The hallway was clearing out, most of us anxious to get out of here at the end of the day.

With no sign of Kylie, I leaned against my locker and glanced at the sheet in my hand again. I was expecting to see items like Choose date and time for graduation party. Or Tour college campus.

I did not expect to see the items that were actually listed.

• Senior Checklist
  Skinny dip (sort of)
  Sneak out (but don’t get caught)
  Prank someone (nothing destructive)
  Go to a party (no drinking)
  Kiss a boy (finally!)
  Watch a sunset (so romantic)

If I’d had any idea her list was going to be so private, I wouldn’t have read it. But once I’d seen it, I couldn’t exactly un-see it.

So I read it again.

The Rules of Rebellion by Amity Hope
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Leo has been in love with Kylie since they were younger. He is afraid to bring it up but knows he must do it soon. She has her eye on someone else and he could miss his chance.

Kylie is really put on the spot when her sister infers to her friend that they should go out. She is not sure what to do now. All she thinks about is Leo. Where to go from here?

This was an amazing story that I could not put down. I loved it all. The humor, the banter, the friendships.... it was just so good. I am new to this author, but you can bet I will be catching up.


***This early copy was given in exchange for an honest review.

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About Amity Hope:

Amity lives in beautiful northern Minnesota with her two sons, two cats and their Rottweiler.

She has a degree in elementary education and worked in that field for ten years before deciding to self-publish.

Her first self-published novel, Twisted, was listed by Amazon as a Top 100 Kids & Teens Kindle Book of 2012. It hit Amazon's Teen & Young Adult Contemporary Romance Best Sellers List in several countries. Truths and Dares held the #1 position on Amazon's Best Sellers in Teen & Young Adult Contemporary Romance eBooks in the UK.

If she's not writing or spending time with her boys, she's most likely reading.

Author Links:

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Leo has been in love with Kylie since they were younger.  He is afraid to bring it up but knows he must do it soon.  She has her eye on someone else and he could miss his chance.

Kylie is really put on the spot when her sister infers to her friend that they should go out.  She is not sure what to do now.  All she thinks about is Leo.  Where to go from here?

This was an amazing story that I could not put down.  I loved it all.  The humor, the banter, the friendships.... it was just so good.  I am new to this author, but you can bet I will be catching up.  I give this book a 4/5 Kitty's Paws UP!

***This early copy was given in exchange for an honest review.

Few presidents have fallen as far in terms of their reputation as has Calvin Coolidge. A popular president during his time in the White House, his standing plummeted with the onset of the Depression and the retroactive discrediting of his administration’s policies that were associated with it. Yet in recent years a number of conservative writers have challenged this view, offering a contrasting interpretation of Coolidge as a presidential paragon. In this respect Amity Shlaes is merely the latest in a long line of writers stretching from Thomas Silver to Robert Sobel who seek to rehabilitate Coolidge’s historical reputation so as to make him a model of presidential leadership for our own times.

Yet it seems that the only way that Shlaes can achieve this goal is by ignoring the many criticisms directed against Coolidge’s presidency. Rather than acknowledging any role that his low-tax, minimalist-regulation agenda might have played in fueling the speculative mania that led to stock market crash of 1929 or the depression that followed, she prefers to depict his administration as having achieved a perfect economic environment that was humming along smoothly when the keys were handed over to his successor. Throwing Herbert Hoover under the bus by blaming him for the collapse that followed is not only grossly unfair, it defies the evidence of an economy in the 1920s that was nowhere near as healthy as Shlaes would like to admit. Moreover, it undermines her goal, as rather than give Coolidge’s achievements a full reexamination that would address the criticisms she does little more than offer a selective portrait that only serves to reaffirm the beliefs of the like‑minded.

This is unfortunate considering the effort she put into her work. For despite Shlaes’s considerable research in the papers of Coolidge and his contemporaries, her overall result adds little to the case made in previous efforts to redeem Coolidge and his presidency. Because of this, readers seeking to learn more about Coolidge would be better served by turning to Sobel’s far superior Coolidge: An American Enigma for an understanding of our 30^th president’s life and career rather than Shlaes’s hefty tome – which, for all its size, proves in the end to be disappointingly hollow.

In 1922 and in 1988 a deadly, possessive entity imprints on members of the same family, ancient as Genesis and determined to remain free. Savannah Caleman is the latest object of obsession in this chilling, historical tale of haunted legacy and terror. 

Savannah Caleman’s family has been coming apart since the early 1920’s. After a horrific suicide by their great aunt, the Calemans sell off the family ranch, hoping to leave the stigma of insanity behind and gain a fresh start at a property known by locals as “The Witcher Place.” Days after the move, Savannah’s father isn’t himself and her mother grows increasingly distant. Her little brother, Chaz, is forced out of a second story window by a being that makes Savannah question her sanity for the first time. Her mother takes Chaz and flees the state. Savannah and her younger sister, Molly, are chased home by a mountain lion but when Savannah turns to look back, the cat has transformed into a man. Their father’s behavior takes a more serious twist as horror abounds and Savannah turns to distant relatives for answers, fearing the insanity is real and has spread. Her father is no longer in control. Armed with a shotgun, Savannah is forced to protect herself and her sister. 

The evil plaguing her family dons a suit and tie and introduces himself, giving Savannah an ultimatum. She must decide between her sister’s safety and aiding a monster that can’t be identified as either an angel or a demon. Either way, Savannah is torn, and takes to single-handedly running the family affairs with precision as she takes care of her sister. The Witcher Place is transformed to her liking using family money. Distractions are only that. Releasing a monster to roam at will isn’t a stellar option, no matter the promises it makes. The stain of murder and torment cannot be erased. He has fallen, been shackled, and now has plans to rise once more using Savannah as the key to regain grace.

@AmityGreenBooks, @debbiereadsbook, #Adult, #Supernatural, #Horror, #Thriller, 3 out of 5 (good)