Review: Meet Cute: Some People are Destined to Meet by Various authors

Meet Cute: Some People are Destined to Meet by Various authors
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: January 2nd 2018
My rating: 4.5 stars 

Whether or not you believe in fate, or luck, or love at first sight, every romance has to start somewhere. MEET CUTE is an anthology of original short stories featuring tales of "how they first met" from some of today’s most popular YA authors. Readers will experience Nina LaCour's beautifully written piece about two Bay Area girls meeting via a cranky customer service Tweet, Sara Shepard's glossy tale about a magazine intern and a young rock star, Nicola Yoon's imaginative take on break-ups and make-ups, Katie Cotugno's story of two teens hiding out from the police at a house party, and Huntley Fitzpatrick's charming love story that begins over iced teas at a diner. There’s futuristic flirting from Kass Morgan and Katharine McGee, a riveting transgender heroine from Meredith Russo, a subway missed connection moment from Jocelyn Davies, and a girl determined to get out of her small town from Ibi Zoboi. Jennifer Armentrout writes a sweet story about finding love from a missing library book, Emery Lord has a heartwarming and funny tale of two girls stuck in an airport, Dhonielle Clayton takes a thoughtful, speculate approach to pre-destined love, and Julie Murphy dreams up a fun twist on reality dating show contestants. This incredibly talented group of authors brings us a collection of stories that are at turns romantic and witty, epic and everyday, heartbreaking and real.

“All love ends”, she says. 
“Maybe” I say. “But it has to start somewhere”. 

This anthology was probably one of the best that I’ve come across, the stories were short yet sweet (sometimes too short in my opinion), but I ended up liking so many of them, and could imagine them being written as full novels and me just devouring them up. Here I thought I’d share some of my favourites. 

Siege Etiquette by Katie Cotugno 
This was such a cute story, but also made me feel quite mellow after finishing it; two classmates end up hiding out in the bathroom together when the police show up to break up a party. Despite barely knowing one another, I loved how with just the small amount of time Wolf and Hailey end up spending together hiding out, they end up forming some sort of meaningful connection. I liked how Cotugno gave us little snippets into their lives outside of the bathroom and party, how two people who’d formed wrong opinions about each other, but were exactly what they needed in that moment in time. I was really gutted when I came to the end of this story, as I was so left wanting more. 

Print Shop by Nina Lacour 
Again, this was another book that I loved the direction the author took the story in, Evie ends up taking a job in a print shop, the first day she starts work, she’s told to try and promote the shop through social media, they’ve never done it before, so want some sort of online presence. Evie’s never done something like this before either, but once she has the shop’s Twitter page going, she’s overwhelmed with negative tweets about the shop’s service. I loved this story from the get-go, I wanted Evie to do well at her job, but felt really sorry for her dealing with the wrath of these negative tweeters just because someone else had messed up with a customer’s banner. But like I said I loved the direction that Lacour took with this story, as she went onto show you really could find love in the most unexpected of places. And it was thrilling seeing Evie experience it first-hand. 

Hourglass by Ibi Zoboi 
This short story had so many things going for it, I adored the main character Cherish, her voice was strong and I admired her for sticking to what she believed in, (her best friend messes up, but Cherish still decides to go to prom on her own, and with a few days left still needs to get an outfit). It did take me a little longer to get into this story, but again I felt this story just ended so abruptly, what happened with Cherish? did she get her outfit? did she go to prom? and is she even talking to Stacy anymore? these are things I need to know! 

Click by Katharine Mcgee 
I think Click was probably my favourite story from this anthology collection, Mcgee gives us a great futuristic take on what dating could be like for us in the next few years and a wonderful chase over the city when our MC leaves her phone in the taxi and her date agrees to help her locate it. What I loved about this story was how our MC really thought her date wasn’t her typical guy, but as they spend time together in search of her phone, they get to know each other more. And that twist at the end was just pure brilliance! 

Meet Cute is one book I highly recommend reading, it was really the perfect book that reminded me of why I loved YA romance in the first place. The stories were ones that left a big goofy grin on your face and yearning for more, I know this is one anthology that I will go back to for re-reads especially when I need a quick pick me up.

Mini-reviews: More Than Words, When You Read This & Fame, Fate and the First Kiss

More Than Words by Jill Santopolo
Publisher: G.P Putnam's Sons 
Publication Date: 5th February 2019
My rating: 3 stars  

Nina Gregory has always been a good daughter, a good girlfriend. Raised by her father, owner of New York City's glamorous Gregory Hotels, after her mother's death, Nina was taught that family, reputation, and legacy are what matter most. And her boyfriend Tim, thoughtful, kind, and honest, not to mention her best friend since childhood, feels the same. But after Nina's father passes away, she learns he may not have practiced what he preached. As her world falls apart, Nina begins to question everything she thought she knew and to see the men in her life--her father, her boyfriend, and unexpectedly, her handsome and attentive boss, Rafael--in a new light. Soon Nina finds herself caught between the world she knows and loves, and a passion that could upend everything.

I was the biggest fan of Santopolo’s The Light We Lost, it was a story which had me thinking about it for days after and Santopolo’s world building was majestically done. So, when I first heard about More than Words, I dived right in, going into books with the least amount of impressions works wonders for me, as I like being surprised by the different elements a book may bring. And whilst I loved Santopolo’s writing once again with this story; it really was beautifully done, I felt that More than Words wasn’t able to leave a big of an impact as The Light we Lost did. Don’t get me wrong I did enjoy this book, I liked following Nina on her journey of who she was, with the way her life had been going, things were already expected of her; to take over her father’s firm and she was in a secure relationship with her boyfriend Tim. But then with her father passing away and revelations coming from all over the place, things really weren’t as they seemed, what did Nina really want to do with her life? I liked how Santopolo allowed Nina to really explore her options, yes at times there were difficult decisions to make, but if Nina really wasn’t happy with something then she really shouldn’t have to settle. Despite there being several bumps along the way, I was happy with the character that emerged in Nina at the end of this story.

More than Words, gave us in my eyes a truly different story from Santopolo; but one I really appreciated, she once again gave us a gorgeously written story, and although it was tinged with loss and sorrow, it was still a story I devoured in such a short period of time.

When You Read This by Mary Adkins 
Publisher: Harper 
Publication Date: 5th February 2019
My rating: 3 stars   

Iris Massey is gone. But she’s left something behind. For four years, Iris Massey worked side by side with PR maven Smith Simonyi, helping clients perfect their brands. But Iris has died, taken by terminal illness at only thirty-three. Adrift without his friend and colleague, Smith is surprised to discover that in her last six months, Iris created a blog filled with sharp and often funny musings on the end of a life not quite fulfilled. She also made one final request: for Smith to get her posts published as a book. With the help of his charmingly eager, if overbearingly forthright, new intern Carl, Smith tackles the task of fulfilling Iris’s last wish. Before he can do so, though, he must get the approval of Iris’ big sister Jade, an haute cuisine chef who’s been knocked sideways by her loss. Each carrying their own baggage, Smith and Jade end up on a collision course with their own unresolved pasts and with each other. Told in a series of e-mails, blog posts, online therapy submissions, text messages, legal correspondence, home-rental bookings, and other snippets of our virtual lives, When You Read This is a deft, captivating romantic comedy—funny, tragic, surprising, and bittersweet—that candidly reveals how we find new beginnings after loss.

I went into When You Read This not really sure what I was expecting, and to be honest this book did end up surprising me in a lot of ways. Although the story was given to us from the main character Iris’ blog, I liked how despite Iris not being here anymore, the blog had an effect on all those left behind. Those individuals who were an integral part of her of life were bought together in the most unexpected of ways. I really liked the way the story was given to us in the form of emails and text messages, I’ve read a handful of books where this format has worked before, and I’m pleased to say that Adkins was also able to make it work with this book too. It is typically an unusual format, but once you got to know the characters, the story really begins to flow easily amongst them. Despite the story focusing on loss, I liked how Adkins was able to sprinkle some humour in the story too and gave us some lighter scenes to turn too when things became a little grim. I wish I had more of a connection with certain characters, that definitely would have made this story for me, but overall I did enjoy this book and how Adkins showed people dealing with a loss in their own different way. 

Fame, Fate and the First Kiss
Publisher: Harper Teen 
Publication Date: 5th February 2019
My rating: 3 stars    

Lacey Barnes has dreamed of being an actress for as long as she can remember. So when she gets the opportunity to star in a movie alongside one of Hollywood’s hottest actors, she doesn’t hesitate to accept the part. But Lacey quickly learns that life in the spotlight isn’t as picture perfect as she imagined. She’s having trouble bonding with her costars, her father has hired the definition of a choir boy, Donavan Lake, to tutor her, and somewhere along the way she’s lost her acting mojo. And just when it seems like things couldn’t get any worse, it looks like someone on set is deliberately trying to sabotage her. As Lacey’s world spins out of control, it feels like the only person she can count on—whether it’s helping her try to unravel the mystery of who is out to get her or snap her out of her acting funk—is Donavan. But what she doesn’t count on is this straight-laced boy becoming another distraction. With her entire future riding on this movie, Lacey knows she can’t afford to get sidetracked by a crush. But for the first time in her life Lacey wonders if it’s true that the best stories really do happen when you go off script.

Kasie West’s last couple of books hadn’t really worked out for me, I’d struggled getting through them, or the MC’s just appeared too young for my liking. So, I went into Fame, Fate and the First Kiss with mixed assumptions. But I’m glad that I decided to give this book a go, because it started off great, Lacey, had finally got her big chance starring in a zombie movie alongside big time actor Grant. But Lacey had been struggling with her role, her dad was being over-protective and there was always seemed to be a negative press around her. I really was rooting for Lacey, I wanted her to do well in this role, and she was trying her utmost hardest. Then later it seemed like someone was sabotaging her all along, I must admit my interest was piqued here, and of course I had a couple of suspicions of who it could be. This aspect really did have me excited about the book, but then once the person behind it all was finally revealed, it felt like a big build up for no reason. Overall, I did enjoy this book, I was a fan of the cute love interest and the direction the romance went in, but again I felt like some of these characters were just too young for me, I don’t know if it’s because I’ve just moved away from YA books a lot in the last year, or that West’s books are just no longer working for me anymore. 

Review: Friends Like These by Sarah Alderson

Friends Like These by Sarah Alderson
Publisher: Mulholland Books 
Publication date: December 13th 2018.
My rating: 4 stars

We all know someone like Becca. She has the job everyone wants, a designer wardrobe, a hot-shot lawyer boyfriend, holidays to exotic locations. And she flaunts her perfect life all over social media. It drove her colleague Lizzie mad, but she couldn't stop looking. They were never really friends - and yet Lizzie knew everything about her. Or did she? When chance, and a terrible mistake, pulls Lizzie back into Becca's orbit years after they lost touch, she'll realise that you can't always believe what you see online... and that finding out the truth might be the worst thing you can do. There's no such thing as a perfect life. Only a perfect lie.

I’m not normally one to pick up psychological thrillers, but when it comes to Alderson’s books, I have no hesitation in picking them up, and I’m glad that I ended up giving this book a go, because it seriously messes with your head (in the best way!). Alderson works the unreliable narrator role work so well here, the book starts off with a chapter from an unknown perspective, we don’t really know what’s going on, but as the book progresses you’re led to believe the narrator’s voice. She’s been through a rough time and you really have no reason not to trust her, so when we’re given a chapter from an alternative perspective, I was like no that can’t be true and to be honest I didn’t want to believe this side of the story at all. To the point that I got to right the end of the story and still couldn’t believe what had taken place.  

I don’t want to say too much without giving a lot away, but I’ve always assumed that I’m a pretty good judge of character, but with Friends Like These I couldn’t have been more wrong. I was so swept away by this character’s story and later ordeal that she had to go through because of this other person, that I was totally left dumbfounded by the end of the book. Once again, I have to praise Alderson here with messing with my head, as I could never have imagined that things would have gone down, the way that they had. On top of this my feelings were left all over the place with me wanting to take back all the anger and hate that I had directed at one character throughout the story towards the person that had deserved it all along.  

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book by Alderson, but thank you once again for luring me in with this masterpiece. The only reason I wasn’t able to give this book the five stars it deserves it because of the sick, yet gut wrenching ending, which I’m not sure I’ll ever get over. 

Blog Tour: Save the Date by Morgan Matson

Hi everyone today I'm pleased to be taking in part in the Save the Date by Morgan Matson blog tour hosted by Fantastic Flying Book Club. Before I share my review with you here's a bit about the book. 

Save the Date by Morgan Matson
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. 
Publication Date: June 5th 2018. 
My rating: 4 stars. 

Charlie Grant’s older sister is getting married this weekend at their family home, and Charlie can’t wait—for the first time in years, all four of her older siblings will be under one roof. Charlie is desperate for one last perfect weekend before the house issold and everything changes. The house will be filled with jokes and games and laughs again. Making decisions about things like what college to attend and reuniting with longstanding crush Jesse Foster—all that can wait. She wants to focus on making the weekend perfect. The only problem? The weekend is shaping uptobean absolute disaster. There’s the unexpected dog with a penchant for howling, house alarm that won’t stop going off, and a papergirl with a grudge. There are the relatives who aren’t speaking, the (awful) girl her favorite brother brought home unannounced, and a missing tuxedo. Not to mention the neighbor who seems to be bent on sabotage and a storm that is bent on drenching everything. The justice of the peace is missing. The band will only play covers. The guests are all crazy. And the wedding planner’s nephewis unexpectedly, distractingly...cute. Over the course of three ridiculously chaotic days, Charlie will learn more than she ever expected about the family she thought she knew by heart. And she’ll realize that sometimes, trying to keep everything like it was in the past means missing out on the future.

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I really do love books which put a family and its dynamics at the forefront, I have to admit I didn’t realise that this would be the case with going into Save the Date, I knew it was a Morgan Matson book and that I had to read it. But it was a lovely surprise, as Matson really made this family for me, yes, the Grant’s like any other family, didn’t come without the ups and downs, but I loved how despite the size of the family (8 if you include the son in law to be Rodney), I came to adore each member in their own way. With the Grant’s it could be hard to get your voice in edgeways, with everyone being such big individual’s, but Matson was able to give each family member their own personality and voice that made them stand out from the rest, but also took the time out for you to get to know each character too which I greatly appreciated. 

With so many quirky personalities, it was hard for me to choose a favourite character, as I said before I adored them all, but Charlie was a great MC, she was the only Grant sibling still living at home, and so was still figuring things out. I liked how through Charlie, we were able to experience this big anticipation of her family all being reunited together, it had been a long time coming. I liked how we were told there were some unresolved family issues but weren’t give insights into what exactly had gone down to bring this about, the way Matson decided to reveal this over the course of the story I appreciated, as it had me constantly guessing about what could have gone down to cause this rift in the first place. 

Save the Date in my opinion had everything going for it, amongst the family antics, there were the unresolved mysteries, heated gardening competitions and of course so much upheaval at Charlie’s sister’s wedding, that I had my doubts that she would even get married. But the Grant’s came through once again and went to show they could withstand almost anything. The Grant family thoroughly reminded me of the Baker family in Cheaper by the Dozen, they always had something going on, nonetheless, the Grant’s made this book a truly epic one!

About the author: ฀Morgan Matson was born in New York City and grew up there and in Greenwich, Connecticut. She attended Occidental College in Los Angeles, but halfway through a theater degree, she started working in the children’s department of Vroman’s Bookstore and fell in love with YA literature. Following college graduation (and the proud bearer of an incredibly useful theater/English degree) she received her M.F.A. in Writing for Children from The New school and worked as an editor for YA novels. She received a second M.F.A. (for reasons that made sense at the time) in Screenwriting from the University of Southern California. Her novels have been translated into dozens of languages, and published all over the world. Morgan’s first novel, Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour, was inspired by her love of road trips, snacks, and the quest for the perfect playlist. It was named an ALA Top Ten Best Book, a Publisher’s Weekly Flying Start book, and was shortlisted for the Waterstone’s Book Prize. Her second novel, Second Chance Summer, was inspired by her experiences spending summers in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania. It was the winner of the California Book Award (YA category) and was named to the ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults List, selected for the Oklahoma Sequoya List, and selected as a School Library Journal Best Book. Her third novel, Since You’ve Been Gone, was published in 2014, and was a Publisher’s Weekly and international bestseller. It was named to the YALSA Teens Top Ten list, and the Eliot Rosewater Indiana High School Book Award List. Morgan’s fourth novel, The Unexpected Everything, was published May 3rd, 2016. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her dog, Murphy.

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Review: In Search of Us by Ava Dellaira

In Search of Us by Ava Dellaira
Publisher: Hot Key Books 
Publication Date: March 6th 2018
My rating: 4.5 Stars 

The author of the beloved Love Letters to the Dead returns with a parallel story of a mother and daughter each at age seventeen. Marilyn's tale recounts the summer she fell in love and set out on her own path. Angie's story is about her search for her unknown father. This sweeping multi-generational love story introduces readers to mother-and-daughter pair Marilyn and Angie. To seventeen-year-old Angie, who is mixed-race, Marilyn is her hardworking, devoted white single mother. But Marilyn was once young, too. When Marilyn was seventeen, she fell in love with Angie's father, James, who was African-American. But Angie's never met him, and Marilyn has always told her he died before she was born. When Angie discovers evidence of an uncle she's never met she starts to wonder: What if her dad is still alive, too? So she sets off on a journey to find him, hitching a ride to LA from her home in New Mexico with her ex-boyfriend, Sam. Along the way, she uncovers some hard truths about herself, her mother, and what truly happened to her father.

I went into In Search of Us not really knowing much about the book, I’d seen Sam give the book a five star rating and that’s all I needed to give this book a go. To be honest I really did struggle with the beginning of the book, the chapters alternate with perspectives from Angie in the present and her mum Marilyn in the past. And I found myself more interested in following Angie’s perspective, I wanted to follow her story and longing in discovering the truth in what happened with her father. But as the story progressed, I began to understand the importance of getting Marilyn’s story from the past, it played such an integral part to how far Marilyn had come and the person Angie had become today. 

Dellaira gave us such a beautiful story with In Search of Us, I enjoyed going on this incredible journey with Angie to discover the truth about her father, the risks she took to get there and the fear that she had to deal with when she found out the truth. Angie was a character who I immensely liked, yes, she made mistakes along the way when she just had one focus in mind, but what 17-year-old would travel to LA to try and find her uncle, with only titbits of information? Yes, she was going behind her mum’s wishes, but I could understand her sense of longing and answers that she needed after she had first discovered the photo of her parents. I kind of had a feeling about how things would end up for Angie when she got to LA, but nothing could have prepared me for her story. It was heartfelt and raw, and left such a lasting impression with me. 

In Search of Us was just a beautifully written story, I couldn’t praise Dellaira enough in giving us such a wonderful story. The overlap in stories from Marilyn and Angie was done majestically, with Dellaira constantly keeping us on our toes with us not knowing what could be around the corner. In Search of Us was really a gem of a read, one that I will be constantly thinking and talking about in the upcoming weeks.  

 

Blog Tour: Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett

 

Hi everyone today I'm pleased to be taking in part in the Starry Eyes blog tour by Jenn Bennett hosted by Fantastic Flying Book Club. Before I share my review with you here's a bit about the book. 

Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett 
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: April 3rd 2018. 
My rating: 4 stars. 

Ever since last year’s homecoming dance, best friends-turned-best enemies Zorie and Lennon have made an art of avoiding each other. It doesn’t hurt that their families are the modern day, Californian version of the Montagues and Capulets. But when a group camping trip goes south, Zorie and Lennon find themselves stranded in the wilderness. Alone. Together. What could go wrong? With no one but each other for company, Zorie and Lennon have no choice but to hash out their issues via witty jabs and insults as they try to make their way to safety. But fighting each other while also fighting off the forces of nature makes getting out of the woods in one piece less and less likely. And as the two travel deeper into Northern California’s rugged backcountry, secrets and hidden feelings surface. But can Zorie and Lennon’s rekindled connection survive out in the real world? Or was it just a result of the fresh forest air and the magic of the twinkling stars?

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I've been devouring Bennett's books lately, they've just been satisfying the need for great Contemporary YA books, they're refreshingly fun, bring such swoony relationships and I just don't want to put them down. So, when I first heard about Starry Eyes, I knew it would be a book that I couldn't wait to have in my hands and let me just say this book is so worth it. I love books that feature best friends to enemies trope, especially more so here, as Bennett really gave us this story between Zorie and Lennon well. I liked how we didn't really know what had caused this rift between them, but I was dying to know, as they had been the best of friends for a long time, and then things just came to an end one night. And Zorie's dad didn't really like Zorie spending time with Lennon either and what was up with that? 

I liked the whole set up that we got from this book, with Zorie and her friends going on a glamping (glamourous camping) trip with her friends and Lennon turns up unexpectedly. But in a way it was probably good that he did, as everyone else seems clueless with what to do. And when they got kicked out and had to go on their own, Lennon's the one that takes the lead and tries to keep everyone on track. This glamping trip didn't really turn out the way that Zorie was expecting, she thought she'd be able to spend time with friends, but she ends up being ditched and stuck with Lennon instead. But to be honest for me, this was really the better alternative for Zorie, there were still so many unresolved issues between her and Lennon and I really wanted to get to the bottom of them, also what she had with Lennon before everything hit the fan, was amazing, and I was hoping that there would be the chance for Zorie and Lennon to salvage some of it at least. When the truth was actually revealed about what really went down, I was quite surprised, as I wasn't expecting it, but it really explained and justified the reasoning behind one of the characters behaviour. It really was an emotional upheaval for our characters having to deal with this, but I think Bennett did an excellent job giving us this aspect of the story. 

I'm glad to say that I was actually right in my assessment of characters for once, I had an inkling of which characters were about to kick off and which weren't worth the time either. It was kind of awful these characters living up to some of the things that I expected to happen, especially when they hurt a lot of other people along the way, but you know those self-absorbed characters that only really think about themselves? seriously they weren't worth it, but they riled me up either way, like how can you be completely clueless? This minor annoyance aside, Starry Eyes really was a beautiful read, I loved the whole stargazing aspect that Zorie was interested in, but also how emotional and raw this story could be too. Bennett's storytelling was again done eloquently and I loved getting lost on this trip with Zorie and Lennon.

About the author: Jenn Bennett is an award-winning author of young adult books, including: Alex, Approximately; The Anatomical Shape of a Heart (aka Night Owls in the U.K.); and Starry Eyes. She also writes romance and urban fantasy for adults. Her books have earned multiple starred reviews, won the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA® Award, and been included on Publishers Weekly Best Books annual list. She lives near Atlanta with one husband and two dogs. Visit her at www.jennbennett.net.

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Review: Hurts To Love You (Forbidden Hearts #3) by Alisha Rai

Hurts To Love You (Forbidden Hearts #3) by Alisha Rai
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: March 27th 2018
My rating: 3 Stars. 

Well-behaved women don’t lust after men who love to misbehave. Heiress Evangeline Chandler knows how to keep a secret . . . like her life-long crush on the tattooed hottie who just happens to be her big brother’s friend. She’s a Chandler, after all, and Chandlers don’t hook up with the help. Then again, they also don’t disobey their fathers and quit their respectable jobs, so good-girl rules may no longer apply. Gabriel Hunter hides the pain of his past behind a smile, but he can’t hide his sudden attraction to his friend’s sheltered little sister. Eve is far too sweet to accept anything less than forever and there’s no chance of a future between the son of a housekeeper and the town’s resident princess. When a wedding party forces Eve and Gabe into tight quarters, keeping their hands off each other will be as hard as keeping their clothes on. The need that draws them together is stronger than the forces that should shove them apart . . . but their sparks may not survive the explosion when long-buried secrets are finally unearthed.

Rai's Forbidden Heart series has quickly become a favourite of mine, I've enjoyed getting to know the Kane and Chandler families and about their history between them. Their lives have been complex and tough, I liked how with each book I seem to be falling more for each character. I love how Rai gets beneath their tough exterior and shows that despite everything they are still vulnerable individuals, but also there's still so much that remains unknown between the families. I thought what was going on between the Chandler's and Kane's was a difficult one to get over, but then with Hurts to Love You Gabe gets thrown into the mix and things add a whole another level of complication. With everything that Eve had been through, I so wanted her to get her happy ending, she had been belittled and ignored by her dad so much, that I wanted to see her grow up and finally stand up for herself and I'm glad that spending time with Gabe helped her to do so. For me Eve and Gabe's relationship was sort of unexpected, but I liked the way in which Rai made it work, despite the age gap, the depth of their emotions was clearly apparent. Of course, I liked how prominently other characters from previous books featured in this book, it was great seeing them trying to get on as one happy family! Once again things weren't always smooth sailing, revelations from the past were once again bought to light and the long standing strain between the Chandler and Kane family was always apparent. But this aspect was the thing that made this book for me, I liked how characters had to fight hard for what they wanted. I'm actually quite sad at having to say goodbye to such a great set of characters, Rai was able to make them such a big part of my life, so thank you for that! 

Review: Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter

Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter
Publisher: Orchard  Books 
Publication Date: March 27th 2018.
My rating: 3 Stars. 

Dear Logan, Someday I'm going to write a book: How Not to Die in Alaska - A Girl's Guide to Fashionable Survival. I bet you don't know that a hair pin can make an excellent fishing hook. You may think you can use just any kind of mud for mud masks, but trust me, you CAN'T! In a pinch, nothing starts a fire like nail polish remover. Alaska is tough. You might know this, if you ever replied to my letters. After Maddie's Secret Service dad takes a bullet for the president, he takes Maddie somewhere he thinks they'll be safe - far away from the White House and the president's son, Logan. But when Logan comes to Alaska, so does the danger. If there's one thing Alaska has taught Maddie, it's how to survive. And now her best friend's life depends on it ...

I had such high hopes going into Not If I Save You First, I'd adored Carter's books in the past and the absolutely amazing premise of course drew me in, so I'm kind of disappointed that I didn't end up enjoying this book more. Not If I Save You First started off wonderfully, I was drawn into Maddie's world and her friendship with Logan the president's son. I could tell that despite being just ten years old their friendship meant the world to them, so having this abruptly taken away from them, of course would be shocking to say the least. But with how important they were to each other, you would have thought that they would have stayed in touch any means possible, so what was going on with Logan? I could tell he was struggling through life without Maddie, but couldn't he even reply to a single letter? Or was he not even receiving them? All I knew that when they finally reunited, I wanted to get to the bottom of what was going on. Being reunited in Alaska, was one of the most unusual places, but it sort of felt like a backdrop to a James Bond film with the way that things down. The entire set up, the chase and the fast pace given to us by Carter was brilliant. I had no real idea why these people were after Logan, but I was eager for both of them to make it out safely. My only complaint was that when things came to ahead, the reasoning behind everything felt sort of underwhelming to me, like there was this whole build up, but for no reason. And I can't explain it, it felt as if this book was a bit too young for me, I don't know if this is because I'm sort of falling out with Young Adult books at the minute, but like I said unfortunately this book wasn't able to leave the greatest impression with me.

Review: Here So Far Away by Hadley Dyer

Here So Far Away by Hadley Dyer
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: March 20th 2018
My rating: 2 stars. 

Award-winning author Hadley Dyer’s YA debut is smart, snarky, and emotionally gripping, about a rebellious cop’s daughter who falls in love with an older man, loses her best friend, and battles depression, all while trying to survive her last year of high school. Feisty and fearless George Warren (given name: Frances, but no one calls her that) has never let life get too serious. Now that she’s about to be a senior, her plans include partying with her tight-knit group of friends and then getting the heck out of town after graduation. But instead of owning her last year of high school, a fight with her best friend puts her on the outs of their social circle. If that weren’t bad enough, George’s family has been facing hard times since her father, a police sergeant, got injured and might not be able to return to work, which puts George’s college plans in jeopardy. So when George meets Francis, an older guy who shares her name and her affinity for sarcastic banter, she’s thrown. If she lets herself, she’ll fall recklessly, hopelessly in love. But because of Francis’s age, she tells no one—and ends up losing almost everything, including herself. This is a gorgeous, atmospheric, and gut-wrenching novel that readers won’t soon forget.

Lately I've been going into books without re-reading the summary of the book, I've been finding that I've been able to get into a book much more this way, and I like the process of figuring things out as they come along. So, you could say I was intrigued with the unravelling of George's life in Here So Far Away, from her dad having his leg amputated and not sure if he could go back to his job as a police sergeant, to George and her friends drifting away from what used to be a tight knit friendship and to her falling for someone she never expected. It was a lot for George to deal with especially as she didn't really feel that she had anyone she could confide in with her feelings for this guy, and to top it off, when things came into light later on, it was clear that George really couldn't tell anyone with both of them potentially getting into trouble. The time spent with this romantic interest, I really enjoyed, I know people may question how George could fall so hard and fast for him, but for me both of their feelings appeared truly genuine. Also with the obstacles in the way, it would seem the right thing to do would be to break things off, but despite attempting to, it wasn't always possible. One of the reasons for my low rating for this book, is that I felt as if I didn't really get the emotional depth and impact from the story that I would have expected. Several major things happened in George's life, one which even though I didn't see coming, I felt as if I wasn't left as reeling as I would have expected, which is a real shame as I felt this book had the potential to be a great read for me. This aside, I'm sure other readers will go on and enjoy this book a lot more than I did.

Mini- reviews: The Boyfriend list and The Boy Book by E. Lockhart

The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Publication Date: 14th July 2016
My rating: 4 stars 

5 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver From E. Lockhart, author of the best-seller We Were Liars, and the highly-acclaimed The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, comes this hilarious and heart-warming series. Ruby Oliver is fifteen and has a shrink. But before you make up your mind about her, you should know that she has had a pretty awful (and eventful) past ten days. She has: * lost her boyfriend * lost her best friend (Kim) * lost all her other friends (Nora, Cricket) * did something suspicious with a boy * did something advanced with a boy * had an argument with a boy * drank her first beer (someone handed it to her) * got caught by her mom (ag!) * had a panic attack (scary) * lost a lacrosse game (she's the goalie) * failed a math test (she'll make it up) * hurt Meghan's feelings (even though they aren't really friends) * became a social outcast (no one to sit with at lunch) * and had graffiti written about her in the girls' bathroom (who knows what was in the boys'!?!). But don't worry, Ruby lives to tell the tale. Through a special assignment to list all the boys she's ever had the slightest, little, any-kind-of-anything with, comes an unfortunate series of events that would be enough to send any girl in a panic.

This book was such a refreshing read, I’d gone into it thinking that it’d be a sort of young read for me, but I’m glad that this wasn’t the case for me at all. It did take me some time getting used to Ruby and what was going on in her life, but once I got into The Boyfriend List I absolutely adored Ruby. She was such refreshing character, her voice and everything that she was going through just spoke volumes for me. What she had to go through was truly awful, the turn of events and how people turned on her, (I also had an inkling about this one particular character and just wished Ruby had been able to realise what a douche they were earlier on) just made me super mad. But despite the lacklustre events and panic attacks that Ruby still attempted to hold her head up high, it couldn’t have been easy for anyone for things to change so dramatically in a week. I liked how through seeing a therapist Ruby was able to take a step back and truly see what was going on with her life, the self-reflections and realisations could be daunting at first, but I appreciated the person Ruby became by the end of this book. Lockhart bought so much depth to this book with Ruby’s story and gave us such a realistic portrayal of what a teenage life can be like. What I also enjoyed about this book was that despite things hitting the fan with Ruby, Lockhart still managed to bring so much laughter and fun to the story, Ruby was also such a funny character, that you couldn’t but laugh at some of the situations she found herself in. The addition of footnotes I did find confusing at first, but this may have been because I was reading the e-book version, and I had to keep flipping back and forth to find the right footnote reference, but after this initial confusion, I couldn’t get enough of them! The Boyfriend List was a great start to a new series for me, I can’t wait to continue with Ruby’s Journey in the next book!

The Boy Book by E. Lockhart
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Publication Date: 14th July 2016
My rating: 3 stars 

Here is how things stand at the beginning of newly-licensed driver Ruby Oliver's junior year at Tate Prep: Kim: Not speaking. But far away in Tokyo. Cricket: Not speaking. Nora: Speaking--sort of. Chatted a couple times this summer when they bumped into each other outside of school--once shopping in the U District, and once in the Elliot Bay Bookstore. But she hadn't called Ruby, or anything. Noel: Didn't care what anyone thinks. Meghan: Didn't have any other friends. Dr. Z: Speaking. And Jackson. The big one. Not speaking. But with a new job, an unlikely but satisfying friend combo, additional entries to "The Boy Book" and many difficult decisions help Ruby to see that there is, indeed, life outside the Tate Universe.

The Boy Book was another surprising read for me, like I mentioned before, I've struggled with YA lately, but with the Ruby Oliver series, I'm just able to connect on so many levels with Ruby and what she's going through, that it's making this series such a fun read for me. In The Boy Book, Ruby is trying to make it through junior year, with everything that went on last year, I was hoping that things would have settled down a bit more for her. It was fun following Ruby on this journey through high school, of finding her place and making sense of herself. There were some characters once again who proper annoyed me, it was like they hadn't learnt from things since last time and I couldn't stand how others could just brush things aside and act like things were okay. This aside, I liked how Ruby was able to make friends in the most unexpected of places such as with Meghan and Noel, Meghan just because the way she acted, everyone had made assumptions of her, but once Ruby got to know her, you realised she wasn't the airhead everyone thought her to be. Despite me only giving this book three stars, that's not to say I didn't enjoy it, a three star rating for me is a decent read and of course Lockhart was once again able to bring so much laugh out loud moments to this story, Ruby herself is such a funny person, I never had so much fun reading someone's internal monologue. It's just that I feel as if I didn't enjoy this book as much as I did the first book, but that hasn't put me off reading the rest of the series and being back with Ruby's life once more!

 

Review: Still Me (Me Before You #3) by Jojo Moyes

Still Me (Me Before You #3) by Jojo Moyes
Publisher: Pamela Dorman Books
Publication Date: 30th January 2018
My rating: 4.5 stars 

Louisa Clark arrives in New York ready to start a new life, confident that she can embrace this new adventure and keep her relationship with Ambulance Sam alive across several thousand miles. She is thrown into the world of the superrich Gopniks: Leonard and his much younger second wife, Agnes, and a never-ending array of household staff and hangers-on. Lou is determined to get the most out of the experience and throws herself into her job and New York life within this privileged world. Before she knows what's happening, Lou is mixing in New York high society, where she meets Joshua Ryan, a man who brings with him a whisper of her past. In Still Me, as Lou tries to keep the two sides of her world together, she finds herself carrying secrets--not all her own--that cause a catastrophic change in her circumstances. And when matters come to a head, she has to ask herself Who is Louisa Clark? And how do you reconcile a heart that lives in two places?

Oh man this book was just absolutely brilliant! I know a lot of readers felt as if it was the end for them, with Me Before You and honestly, I felt like that too, I felt as if I was betraying Will and his memory, by continuing this journey with Lou. But just like Will, Lou was such a big character, that I wanted to go on following her, to experience her journey with her. Once again it wasn't smooth sailing for Louisa, she had got an incredible opportunity to stay and work in New York, the city that never sleeps, she had the chance to explore new things and become her own person, it was what Will would have wanted right? It took me a while to warm up to the Gopnik's, the family that Louisa would be staying with, they were completely loaded and so I really wanted Lou to take note of what Nathan was saying, just because you were working for them and had become Mrs. Gopnik's friend, it didn't mean that they couldn't get rid of you when they felt like it. Also, I wasn't the biggest fan of Mrs. Gopnik, I really couldn't understand her at times, I know that she did find herself in a tough situation, with no real support system, but I just couldn't stand her. And then when the big turn of events did come around, I knew my gut feeling of not being able to trust her had been right all along. 

But as they say one friendship lost is another gained right, so I was thrilled that Lou was able to find a confidant in the least expected of places. Once again with Still Me, Lou had a lot to learn and discover, who did she want to be and want with life were daily struggles for her, and with things being all over the place with Sam, I could see how it could be a confusing time with Lou, I at times didn't know what would be the right path for Lou to take. But again, I loved how despite her struggles, Lou didn't quit and go home, she pushed through having her life being turned upside down overnight and walked around with a smile on her face. And this is what I love the most about Lou's character, things may have hit the fan, but Lou's resilience and attitude always bolsters her. I know if I was in Lou's shoes I'd just want to stay in bed all day and never get up. But things weren't always doom and gloom, there was of course Lou's family, who were a delight to be back with again, with their witty personalities and charm, they bought so much fun and laughter to the story. And of course, there was Lou herself, who probably without realising it, bought so many laugh out loud moments. 

Still Me wasn't without a great set of new characters, they were vivacious, bubbly and absolutely charming, every time Moyes brings in characters that you can't just help but love and want to be around. Lou really has come a long way in Still Me, from the girl that we first met in Me Before You, thank you Ms. Moyes for giving us the chance to experience such an incredible journey with such a wonderful person as Lou!

  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jojo Moyes is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of After You, Me Before You, Paris for One and Other Stories, The Horse Dancer, One Plus One, The Girl You Left Behind, The Last Letter from Your Lover, Silver Bay, and The Ship of Brides. She lives with her husband and three children in Essex, England.  

I was a massive fan of this series, so I'm very pleased to share a giveaway with one lucky winner of Still Me, sorry guys this is for US entrants only. Good luck everyone!