Tag Archives: romance

Book Title:
The Book Jumper
Book Author:
Mechthild Gläser
Publishing Date:
January 3rd, 2017
Publisher:
Feiwel & Friends
Date Read:
December 29th, 2016
Source:
ARC from publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

Amy Lennox doesn't know quite what to expect when she and her mother pick up and leave Germany for Scotland, heading to her mother's childhood home of Lennox House on the island of Stormsay.

Amy's grandmother, Lady Mairead, insists that Amy must read while she resides at Lennox House―but not in the usual way. It turns out that Amy is a book jumper, able to leap into a story and interact with the world inside. As thrilling as Amy's new power is, it also brings danger: someone is stealing from the books she visits, and that person may be after her life. Teaming up with fellow book jumper Will, Amy vows to get to the bottom of the thefts―at whatever cost.

My Review

As far as book covers go, this one is probably one of my absolute favorites.  I am so in love with everything about this cover – it’s so magical and swirly and beautiful! Cover aside, let me just say that … Continue reading

4 stars
12 Comments
Book Title:
Love and First Sight
Book Author:
Josh Sundquist
Publishing Date:
January 3rd, 2017
Publisher:
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
December 27th, 2016
Source:
ARC from publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

On his first day at a new school, blind sixteen-year-old Will Porter accidentally groped a girl on the stairs, sat on another student in the cafeteria, and somehow drove a classmate to tears. High school can only go up from here, right?

As Will starts to find his footing, he develops a crush on a charming, quiet girl named Cecily. Then an unprecedented opportunity arises: an experimental surgery that could give Will eyesight for the first time in his life. But learning to see is more difficult than Will ever imagined, and he soon discovers that the sighted world has been keeping secrets. It turns out Cecily doesn't meet traditional definitions of beauty--in fact, everything he'd heard about her appearance was a lie engineered by their so-called friends to get the two of them together. Does it matter what Cecily looks like? No, not really. But then why does Will feel so betrayed?

Told with humor and breathtaking poignancy, Love and First Sight is a story about how we related to each other and the world around us

My Review

As my first 2017 book, let me tell you that as I read more and more books that release this year, it’s going to take a lot for them to grab me the way that this one did.  Why?  It’s … Continue reading

5 stars
4 Comments
Book Title:
Ever the Hunted
Book Author:
Erin Summerill
Book Series:
Clash of Kingdoms, #1
Publishing Date:
December 27th, 2016
Publisher:
HMH Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
Dece,ber 26th, 2016
Source:
ARC from publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

Seventeen year-old Britta Flannery is at ease only in the woods with her dagger and bow. She spends her days tracking criminals alongside her father, the legendary bounty hunter for the King of Malam—that is, until her father is murdered. Now outcast and alone and having no rights to her father’s land or inheritance, she seeks refuge where she feels most safe: the Ever Woods. When Britta is caught poaching by the royal guard, instead of facing the noose she is offered a deal: her freedom in exchange for her father’s killer.

However, it’s not so simple.

The alleged killer is none other than Cohen McKay, her father’s former apprentice. The only friend she’s ever known. The boy she once loved who broke her heart. She must go on a dangerous quest in a world of warring kingdoms, mad kings, and dark magic to find the real killer. But Britta wields more power than she knows. And soon she will learn what has always made her different will make her a daunting and dangerous force.

My Review

Lately, it seems like every time I pick up a super hyped up fantasy novel, I find myself either being bored, not relating to the characters at all, or thinking that the plot is just a rehashing of another dozen … Continue reading

2 stars
4 Comments
Book Title:
The Sun Is Also A Star
Book Author:
Nicola Yoon
Publishing Date:
November 1st, 2016
Publisher:
Delacorte Press
Date Read:
December 21st, 2016
Source:
Blogging for Books program

Synopsis

Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.

Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.

The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures lie before us. Which one will come true?

My Review

I read Everything, Everything last year when it first came out, and it was one of those books that I managed to finish up in one sitting.  It was such a powerful and beautiful book that I simply had to … Continue reading

4.5 stars
5 Comments
Book Title:
All in Pieces
Book Author:
Suzanne Young
Publishing Date:
November 8th, 2015
Publisher:
Simon Pulse
Date Read:
November 7th, 2016
Source:
I received a copy from the publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

From New York Times bestselling author Suzanne Young comes a heartrending new novel about a girl struggling to deal with anger issues while taking care of her younger brother with special needs.

“Anger-management issues.”

That’s how they classified Savannah Sutton after she stuck a pencil in her ex-boyfriend’s hand because he mocked her little brother, Evan, for being disabled. That’s why they sent her to Brooks Academy—an alternative high school that’s used as a temporary detention center.

The days at Brooks are miserable, but at home, life is far more bleak. Savvy’s struggling to take care of her brother since her mom left years ago, and her alcoholic dad can’t be bothered. Life with Evan is a constant challenge, but he’s also the most important person in the world to Savvy.

Then there’s Cameron, a new student at Brooks with issues of his own; a guy from a perfect family that Savvy thought only existed on TV. Cameron seems determined to break through every one of the walls Savvy’s built around herself, except if she lets herself trust him, it could make everything she’s worked so hard for fall apart in an instant.

And with her aunt seeking custody of her brother and her ex-boyfriend seeking revenge, Savvy’s fighting to hold all the pieces together. But she’s not sure how much tighter she can be pulled before she breaks completely.

My Review

Suzanne Young is one of those authors that I will read pretty much any books she writes – she has a way to create amazing stories that not only pull you and make you forget everything else going on around … Continue reading

5 stars
8 Comments
Book Tour
Book Title:
What Light
Book Author:
Jay Asher
Publishing Date:
October 18th, 2016
Publisher:
Razorbill
Date Read:
October 10th, 2016
Source:
I received a copy from the publisher - thank you!

Synopsis

From Jay Asher, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Thirteen Reasons Why, comes a romance that will break your heart, but soon have you believing again. . . .

Sierra's family runs a Christmas tree farm in Oregon—it's a bucolic setting for a girl to grow up in, except that every year, they pack up and move to California to set up their Christmas tree lot for the season. So Sierra lives two lives: her life in Oregon and her life at Christmas. And leaving one always means missing the other.

Until this particular Christmas, when Sierra meets Caleb, and one life eclipses the other.

By reputation, Caleb is not your perfect guy: years ago, he made an enormous mistake and has been paying for it ever since. But Sierra sees beyond Caleb's past and becomes determined to help him find forgiveness and, maybe, redemption. As disapproval, misconceptions, and suspicions swirl around them, Caleb and Sierra discover the one thing that transcends all else: true love.

What Light is a love story that's moving and life-affirming and completely unforgettable.

My Review

A few years ago I read Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why and fell in love with the book, and since then I have read it multiple times.  It has such a strong message to it, and I always thought it … Continue reading

1 Comment
Book Title:
Our Chemical Hearts
Book Author:
Krystal Sutherland
Publishing Date:
October 4th, 2016
Publisher:
G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
October 6th, 2016
Source:
ARC from publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

John Green meets Rainbow Rowell in this irresistible story of first love, broken hearts, and the golden seams that put them back together again.

Henry Page has never been in love. He fancies himself a hopeless romantic, but the slo-mo, heart palpitating, can't-eat-can't-sleep kind of love that he's been hoping for just hasn't been in the cards for him—at least not yet. Instead, he's been happy to focus on his grades, on getting into a semi-decent college and finally becoming editor of his school newspaper. Then Grace Town walks into his first period class on the third Tuesday of senior year and he knows everything's about to change.

Grace isn't who Henry pictured as his dream girl—she walks with a cane, wears oversized boys' clothes, and rarely seems to shower. But when Grace and Henry are both chosen to edit the school paper, he quickly finds himself falling for her. It's obvious there's something broken about Grace, but it seems to make her even more beautiful to Henry, and he wants nothing more than to help her put the pieces back together again. And yet, this isn't your average story of boy meets girl. Krystal Sutherland's brilliant debut is equal parts wit and heartbreak, a potent reminder of the bittersweet bliss that is first love.

My Review

I don’t give too many 5 star reviews, but if any a book deserves it, Our Chemical Hearts is the one. Our Chemical Hearts is a heart wrenching story of first love and the happiness and grief it often brings, … Continue reading

5 stars
9 Comments
Book Title:
When the Moon Was Ours
Book Author:
Anna-Marie McLemore
Publishing Date:
October 4th, 2016
Publisher:
Thomas Dunne
Date Read:
September 28th, 2016
Source:
I received a copy from the publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

Longlisted for the 2016 National Book Award for Young People's Literature Anna-Marie McLemore’s debut novel The Weight of Feathers was greeted with rave reviews, a YALSA Morris Award nomination, and spots on multiple “Best YA Novels” lists. Now, McLemore delivers a second stunning and utterly romantic novel, again tinged with magic.

To everyone who knows them, best friends Miel and Sam are as strange as they are inseparable. Roses grow out of Miel’s wrist, and rumors say that she spilled out of a water tower when she was five. Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs in the trees and for how little anyone knows about his life before he and his mother moved to town. But as odd as everyone considers Miel and Sam, even they stay away from the Bonner girls, four beautiful sisters rumored to be witches. Now they want the roses that grow from Miel’s skin, convinced that their scent can make anyone fall in love. And they’re willing to use every secret Miel has fought to protect to make sure she gives them up.

Atmospheric, dynamic, and packed with gorgeous prose, When the Moon was Ours is another winner from this talented author.

My Review

When I first read The Weight of Feathers, I was captivated by the magic and beauty that was contained within its pages.  At that point, I hadn’t really read many novels with magical realism and such descriptive passages, and characters … Continue reading

5 stars
9 Comments
Book Title:
Kids of Appetite
Book Author:
David Arnold
Publishing Date:
September 20th, 2016
Publisher:
Viking Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
September 24th, 2016
Source:
ARC from publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

The bestselling author of Mosquitoland brings us another batch of unforgettable characters in this tragicomedy about first love and devastating loss.

Victor Benucci and Madeline Falco have a story to tell.

It begins with the death of Vic’s father.

It ends with the murder of Mad’s uncle.

The Hackensack Police Department would very much like to hear it.

But in order to tell their story, Vic and Mad must focus on all the chapters in between.

This is a story about:

1. A coded mission to scatter ashes across New Jersey.

2. The momentous nature of the Palisades in winter.

3. One dormant submarine.

4. Two songs about flowers.

5. Being cool in the traditional sense.

6. Sunsets & ice cream & orchards & graveyards.

7. Simultaneous extreme opposites.

8. A narrow escape from a war-torn country.

9. A story collector.

10. How to listen to someone who does not talk.

11. Falling in love with a painting.

12. Falling in love with a song.

13. Falling in love.

My Review

I have had Mosquitoland sitting on my shelf for a while, but for some reason, I tend to keep forgetting it’s there, so I haven’t read it yet.  I’ve heard amazing things about the book and David Arnold’s writing, so … Continue reading

5 stars
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Book Title:
Ivory and Bone
Book Author:
Julie Eshbaugh
Book Series:
Ivory and Bone, #1
Publishing Date:
June 7th, 2016
Publisher:
HarperTeen
Date Read:
June 8th, 2016
Source:
eARC from publisher via Edelweiss

Synopsis

The only life seventeen-year-old Kol knows is hunting at the foot of the Great Ice with his brothers. But food is becoming scarce, and without another clan to align with, Kol, his family, and their entire group are facing an uncertain future.

Traveling from the south, Mya and her family arrive at Kol’s camp with a trail of hurt and loss behind them, and hope for a new beginning. When Kol meets Mya, her strength, independence, and beauty instantly captivate him, igniting a desire for much more than survival.

Then on a hunt, Kol makes a grave mistake that jeopardizes the relationship that he and Mya have only just started to build. Mya was guarded to begin with—and for good reason—but no apology or gesture is enough for her to forgive him. Soon after, another clan arrives on their shores. And when Mya spots Lo, a daughter of this new clan, her anger intensifies, adding to the already simmering tension between families. After befriending Lo, Kol learns of a dark history between Lo and Mya that is rooted in a tangle of their pasts.

When violence erupts, Kol is forced to choose between fighting alongside Mya or trusting Lo’s claims. And when things quickly turn deadly, it becomes clear that this was a war that one of them had been planning all along.

My Review

Ivory and Bone opens with our main character, Kol, telling Mya a beautiful story about when they first met, and the events that had led them to where they are now (in a cave, outside in cold, trying to stay … Continue reading

2.5 stars
8 Comments