Tag Archives: young adult

Book Title:
The Chosen One
Book Author:
Carol Lynch Williams
Page Count:
224
Publishing Date:
May 12th, 2009
Publisher:
St. Martin's Griffin
Date Read:
September 1st, 2023
Format:
Hardcover
Source:
Purchased

Synopsis

Thirteen-year-old Kyra has grown up in an isolated community without questioning the fact that her father has three wives and she has twenty brothers and sisters, with two more on the way. That is, without questioning them much---if you don’t count her secret visits to the Mobile Library on Wheels to read forbidden books, or her meetings with Joshua, the boy she hopes to choose for herself instead of having a man chosen for her. But when the Prophet decrees that she must marry her sixty-year-old uncle---who already has six wives---Kyra must make a desperate choice in the face of violence and her own fears of losing her family forever.

My Review

Anyone who knows me (or who has read through some of the reviews on my blog!) knows that I am absolutely obsessed with young adult fiction that involves cults. I am fascinated with the idea of cults, and how they … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
Girl on the Run
Book Author:
Abigail Johnson
Book Series:
Underlined Paperbacks
Page Count:
272
Publishing Date:
October 6th, 2020
Publisher:
Underlined
Date Read:
July 8th, 2022
Format:
Paperback
Source:
Purchased

Synopsis

A fast-paced original paperback thriller about a girl who discovers that her mother might not be who she says she is . . . and now someone is hunting them both.

Katelyn wants the best for her widowed mom. Surprising her with an online dating profile seems like a good idea.

It isn't. Katelyn's mom hasn't just been acting overprotective all these years--she's been hiding something. And now that anyone can find them online, Katelyn is in a desperate race against time to uncover the secrets of the past--not only her mom's, but also her own.

As Katelyn's world unravels, she begins to trust the guy who brought this nightmare to her door and to doubt the one person she never thought she would. Because her mom has been hiding for a reason: she's been waiting.

My Review

When it comes to fast paced thrillers, especially those about the main character trying to escape or cover up a dark past, there are a lot of them out there for you to choose from. The list narrows a bit … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
What Big Teeth
Book Author:
Rose Szabo
Page Count:
394
Publishing Date:
February 2nd, 2021
Publisher:
Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Date Read:
December 20th, 2021
Format:
Hardcover
Source:
Purchased

Synopsis

Rose Szabo's thrilling debut is a dark and thrilling novel about a teen girl who returns home to her strange, wild family after years of estrangement.

Eleanor Zarrin has been estranged from her wild family for years. When she flees boarding school after a horrifying incident, she goes to the only place she thinks is safe: the home she left behind. But when she gets there, she struggles to fit in with her monstrous relatives, who prowl the woods around the family estate and read fortunes in the guts of birds.

Eleanor finds herself desperately trying to hold the family together — in order to save them all, Eleanor must learn to embrace her family of monsters and tame the darkness inside her.

My Review

I started reading this book when I was in a reading slump, and because of that it took me a good amount of time to finish it. We’re talking like a month. Which is completely unlike me, but it wasn’t … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
The Cerulean
Book Author:
Amy Ewing
Book Series:
The Cerulean Duology, #1
Page Count:
484
Publishing Date:
January 29th, 2019
Publisher:
HarperTeen
Date Read:
March 10th, 2020
Format:
Kindle Edition
Source:
Purchased

Synopsis

From New York Times bestselling author Amy Ewing (The Jewel) comes the exciting first book in a new fantasy duology. Rich, vivid world-building and ethereal magic combine in an epic tale that’s perfect for fans of Snow Like Ashes, These Broken Stars, or Magonia.

Sera Lighthaven has always felt as if she didn’t quite belong among her people, the Cerulean, who live in the City Above the Sky. She is curious about everything—especially the planet that her City is magically tethered to—and can’t stop questioning things. Sera has always longed for the day when the tether will finally break and the Cerulean can move to a new planet.

But when Sera is chosen as the sacrifice to break the tether, she feels betrayed by everything in which she’d been taught to trust. In order to save her City, Sera must end her own life.

But something goes wrong, and Sera survives, ending up on the planet below in a country called Kaolin. Sera has heard tales about the dangerous humans who live here, and she quickly learns that these dangers were not just stories.

Meanwhile, back in the City, all is not what it seems, and the life of every Cerulean may be in danger if Sera is not able to find a way home.

My Review

I first came across this book when it was released, and it sounded really interesting, but I wasn’t really in the mood for a fantasy at the time so I didn’t buy it until I discovered it again when the … Continue reading

5 stars
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Book Title:
The Beautiful
Book Author:
Renée Ahdieh
Book Series:
The Beautiful, #1
Page Count:
448
Publishing Date:
October 8th, 2019
Publisher:
G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
February 25th, 2020
Format:
Hardcover
Source:
Purchased

Synopsis

In 1872, New Orleans is a city ruled by the dead. But to seventeen-year-old Celine Rousseau, New Orleans provides her a refuge after she's forced to flee her life as a dressmaker in Paris. Taken in by the sisters of the Ursuline convent along with six other girls, Celine quickly becomes enamored with the vibrant city from the music to the food to the soirées and—especially—to the danger. She soon becomes embroiled in the city's glitzy underworld, known as La Cour des Lions, after catching the eye of the group's leader, the enigmatic Sébastien Saint Germain. When the body of one of the girls from the convent is found in the lair of La Cour des Lions, Celine battles her attraction to him and suspicions about Sébastien's guilt along with the shame of her own horrible secret.

When more bodies are discovered, each crime more gruesome than the last, Celine and New Orleans become gripped by the terror of a serial killer on the loose—one Celine is sure has set her in his sights . . . and who may even be the young man who has stolen her heart. As the murders continue to go unsolved, Celine takes matters into her own hands and soon uncovers something even more shocking: an age-old feud from the darkest creatures of the underworld reveals a truth about Celine she always suspected simmered just beneath the surface.

At once a sultry romance and a thrilling murder mystery, master storyteller Renée Ahdieh embarks on her most potent fantasy series yet: The Beautiful.

My Review

This is the first book by Renée Ahdieh that I have read. I have her other books, but I haven’t had the chance to read them yet. I was drawn to this one because of that absolutely stunning cover, and … Continue reading

3 stars
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Book Title:
Keeping You a Secret
Book Author:
Julie Anne Peters
Page Count:
268
Publishing Date:
July 31st, 2007
Publisher:
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
February 4th, 2020
Format:
Kindle Edition
Source:
Purchased

Synopsis

With a steady boyfriend, the position of Student Council President, and a chance to go to an Ivy League college, high school life is just fine for Holland Jaeger.

At least, it seems to be.

But when Cece Goddard comes to school, everything changes. Cece and Holland have undeniable feelings for each other, but how will others react to their developing relationship?

My Review

I bought this book for my Kindle ages ago. Ages and ages. I finally got around to reading it. I don’t really go through my Kindle that often, except when I swear I can’t find anything to read among my … Continue reading

3 stars
2 Comments
Book Title:
Full Disclosure
Book Author:
Camryn Garrett
Page Count:
290
Publishing Date:
October 29th, 2019
Publisher:
Knopf Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
February 6th, 2020
Format:
Hardcover
Source:
Purchased

Synopsis

In a community that isn't always understanding, an HIV-positive teen must navigate fear, disclosure, and radical self-acceptance when she falls in love--and lust--for the first time. Powerful and uplifting, Full Disclosure will speak to fans of Angie Thomas and Nicola Yoon.

Simone Garcia-Hampton is starting over at a new school, and this time things will be different. She's making real friends, making a name for herself as student director of Rent, and making a play for Miles, the guy who makes her melt every time he walks into a room. The last thing she wants is for word to get out that she's HIV-positive, because last time . . . well, last time things got ugly.

Keeping her viral load under control is easy, but keeping her diagnosis under wraps is not so simple. As Simone and Miles start going out for real--shy kisses escalating into much more--she feels an uneasiness that goes beyond butterflies. She knows she has to tell him that she's positive, especially if sex is a possibility, but she's terrified of how he'll react! And then she finds an anonymous note in her locker: I know you have HIV. You have until Thanksgiving to stop hanging out with Miles. Or everyone else will know too.

Simone's first instinct is to protect her secret at all costs, but as she gains a deeper understanding of the prejudice and fear in her community, she begins to wonder if the only way to rise above is to face the haters head-on...

My Review

Full Disclosure was a book that I didn’t even know anything about until I saw it on the Book of the Month club website, and I decided to give it a go after reading about it on Goodreads. It was … Continue reading

4.5 stars
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Book Title:
The Lost
Book Author:
Natasha Preston
Page Count:
304
Publishing Date:
April 2nd, 2019
Publisher:
Sourcebooks Fire
Date Read:
November 15th, 2019
Format:
Kindle Edition
Source:
Library

Synopsis

The queen of YA thrillers is back with another page-turner, and this time, it's a fight to survive.

In Piper's hometown, teenagers keep disappearing, and everyone assumes they're just a bunch of runaways. But when yet another person disappears, Piper and her best friend Hazel suspect something more sinister is going on.

So they decide to investigate, determined to learn the truth. Their search for answers leads them to the source of the missing people...and their captors. Piper and Hazel suddenly find themselves locked away in a secluded building in the middle of a privately owned forest.

But the building isn't only meant to keep them imprisoned; every room is a test to see if they can make it out alive.

And failure means being lost...forever.

My Review

The first book I ever read by Natasha Preston was The Cellar. After I read The Cellar, I read The Cabin, and I really liked that one, too. While I didn’t love it as much as I loved The Cellar, … Continue reading

5 stars
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Book Title:
All the Things We Do in the Dark
Book Author:
Saundra Mitchell
Page Count:
304
Publishing Date:
October 29th, 2019
Publisher:
HarperTeen
Date Read:
November 18th, 2019
Format:
Kindle Edition
Source:
Library

Synopsis

There’s no such thing as a secret.

SOMETHING happened to Ava. The curving scar on her face is proof. But Ava would rather keep that something hidden—buried deep in her heart and her soul.

She has her best friend Syd, and she has her tattoos—a colorful quilt, like a security blanket, over her whole body—and now, suddenly, she has Hailey. Beautiful, sweet Hailey, who seems to like Ava as much as she likes her. And Ava isn’t letting anything get in the way of finally, finally seeking peace. But in the woods on the outskirts of town, the traces of someone else’s secrets lie frozen, awaiting Ava’s discovery—and what Ava finds threatens to topple the carefully-constructed wall of normalcy that she’s spent years building. Secrets leave scars. But when the secret in question is not your own—do you ignore the truth and walk away? Or do you uncover it from its shallow grave, and let it reopen old wounds—wounds that have finally begun to heal?

My Review

I was really drawn to All the Things We Do in the Dark from the moment I read the synopsis for the book. Granted, I kind of just heard about this book like two weeks ago, and wasn’t entirely sure … Continue reading

4.5 stars
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Book Title:
The Last to Die
Book Author:
Kelly Garrett
Page Count:
205
Publishing Date:
November 5th, 2019
Publisher:
Sourcebooks Fire
Date Read:
November 13th, 2019
Format:
eARC
Source:
I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis

It all started out as a game.

Just a way to have fun. We figured as long as we had rules, it wouldn't be a problem.

RULE #1: Only break into one another's houses.

RULE #2: Only take stuff that can be replaced.

It worked for a while. Whoever's turn it was to break in got a rush, and the rest of us laughed over the trophies they brought back. But then someone went too far. Lives got ruined. Someone is dead.

And I might be next.

My Review

The Last to Die really made me excited to read it based on the premise and the blurb on the front cover, which claimed that it is “a twisty puzzle of a mystery.” I really love mysteries and thrillers, and … Continue reading

3 stars
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