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True by Erin McCarthy

2013-05-23T06:46:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
True by Erin McCarthy

When Rory Macintosh’s roommates find out that their studious and shy friend has never been with a guy, they decide that, as an act of kindness they’ll help her lose her virginity by hiring confident, tattooed bad boy Tyler Mann to do the job…unbeknownst to Rory.

Tyler knows he’s not good enough for Rory. She’s smart, doctor smart, while he’s barely scraping by at his EMT program, hoping to pull his younger brothers out of the hell their druggy mother has left them in. But he can’t resist taking up her roommates on an opportunity to get to know her better. There’s something about her honesty that keeps him coming back when he knows he shouldn’t…

Torn between common sense and desire, the two find themselves caught up in a passionate relationship. But when Tyler’s broken family threatens to destroy his future, and hers, Rory will need to decide whether to cut her ties to his risky world or follow her heart, no matter what the cost…

My Thoughts
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I've been waffling between a 2.5 and a 3... but it's obvious that I’m still not tired of all the romances I’ve been reading of late. I’ve been enjoying the ease at which I sink into these stories flipping from cover to cover in a blink. And yes, a lot of these stories can painfully obvious, but other times, I catch a glimmer of something more than some guy trying to get into some girl’s pants. That’s the case with TRUE.

The female lead especially offered a tad more than pretty girl/ hot girl/ inexperienced girl. She’s a mix of all those but aware of herself and of others. It’s her awareness of stuff that sets her apart, but it’s the very same thing that had me doubting her sometimes too. I enjoyed her in your face, what the hell is wrong with everyone else around me moments. I also enjoyed her piecing things apart and not being afraid to put herself out there. She was all take me as I am. I like that. But then there’s the whole I lack experience and bla bla bla thing she had going for her as well that almost had me setting this aside. Would she be another inexperienced too dumb sounding to be real reads? Another girl who gets into it with a guy who knew all the moves? And would they be another pair who couldn’t live with the other… just because? Here’s the thing: she is neither of the first, and they are not that last thing at all.

A lot of these books have so called smart girl leads who lack experience… and a lot of the time, these smart girls aren’t so smart after all, doing the dumb thing going all dependent/ insecure/ crazy in love. Rory doesn’t. She thinks, she acts and doesn’t do the dumb thing, but above all else, she’s not easily swayed by her liking this or disliking that or by her lusting after so and so. I really really liked that aspect this.

Except there’s the way the book began that I disliked. It’s a shocking start (criminal even) but it’s the reactions thereto had me doubting the book a little more. What happens (almost happens) is basically set aside. This scary thing simply becomes a means for the boy and girl to meet. Not good. As there’s no consequence... they’re all like, “Really?!” while I’m waiting for some ass kicking to take place. But nope and then suddenly out of nowhere we have hot boy in her line of vision and hot smart girl in his. Why it had to start the way it did… I have no idea because this serious thing’s made to feel less serious than it really should have been.

There were good things in this one too though. Think PUSHING THE LIMITS. The only thing I actually liked in that one is how the tough guy’s actually a softy with regard to his siblings. But me, liking this for that, is cancelled out though by later developments of someone pushing someone away for their own good. It all felt so romance book to me. Except since this is basically a romance, maybe I shouldn’t be so disappointed? But it is, and I am… because the way the female lead is almost set apart with her asking questions and seeing the truth in the way things were… Well, it could have been more.

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Game. Set. Match. (Outer Banks Tennis Academy, #1) by Jennifer Iacopelli

2013-05-22T06:45:00.000-07:00

Good Reads
Game. Set. Match. by Jennifer Iacopelli

Nestled along the North Carolina coast, the Outer Banks Tennis Academy is the world's most elite training facility. In this pressure-cooker environment, futures are forged in blood and sweat, and dreams are shattered in an instant.

Penny Harrison, a rising female star, is determined to win the French Open and beat her archrival, Zina Lutrova. But when her coach imports British bad boy Alex Russell as her new training partner, will Penny be able to keep her laser-like focus?

Tennis is all Jasmine Randazzo has ever known. The daughter of two Grand Slam champions, she's hell-bent on extending her family’s legacy and writing her own happily-ever-after...until her chosen Prince Charming gives her the just-friends speech right before the biggest junior tournament of the year, the Outer Banks Classic.

With a powerful serve and killer forehand, newcomer Indiana Gaffney is turning heads. She’s thrilled by all of the attention, especially from Jack Harrison, Penny’s agent and hot older brother, except he keeps backing off every time things start heating up.

With so much at stake, dreams—and hearts—are bound to break. Welcome to OBX: Where LOVE is a four-letter word, on and off the court.(less)

My Thoughts
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

2.5/5

I don’t see it. Why all the fuss over this one? Is it because we’ve got three couples in one book this time around? If that’s the case the fact that there are three competing story lines to pay attention had me feeling slightly ‘that’s it?’ for all of them. Is it because of the tennis? Because tennis-speak is so not my thing. Game-speak of any sort for that matter. I confess to skimming each face off, zeroing in on who actually won/ lost. (Lazy, that’s me lately.)

So three girls, three ~~boys~~ men and then tennis, does all this make for a good romance? Mmmaybe? One could get a kick out of the fact things felt very Nora Roberts’ family saga with each couple having party one of the Harrisons. I certainly did. Here it is Penny Harrison that’s in focus, with brief glances into the drama of the other girls of course. Any who, for Penny, we see tennis stars and love matches (see what I did there?) For Jasmine, there’s family drama of expectations and disappointments and an unrequited something that amped things up. For Indy, it’s being new girl, YOUNG new girl specifically that set things up.

What I liked: they’re each their own person, each with their own drama. I also like that it’s not as simply the romantic drama that spurred their stories on (though the same is a big part of everything). When it lost me: this really isn’t that new. Because bottom line? This is a romance and got cute then hot when it was supposed to be.

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Down London Road (On Dublin Street, #2) by Samantha Young

2013-05-21T06:43:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Down London Road by Samantha Young

Johanna Walker is used to taking charge. But she’s about to meet someone who will make her lose control....

It has always been up to Johanna to care for her family, particularly her younger brother, Cole. With an absent father and a useless mother, she’s been making decisions based on what’s best for Cole for as long as she can remember. She even determines what men to date by how much they can provide for her brother and her, not on whatever sparks may—or may not—fly.

But with Cameron MacCabe, the attraction is undeniable. The sexy new bartender at work gives her butterflies every time she looks at him. And for once, Jo is tempted to put her needs first. Cam is just as obsessed with getting to know Jo, but her walls are too solid to let him get close enough to even try.

Then Cam moves into the flat below Jo’s, and their blistering connection becomes impossible to ignore. Especially since Cam is determined to uncover all of Jo’s secrets even if it means taking apart her defenses piece by piece.

My Thoughts
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

So the skinny:

I found the leads in this one just as annoying as the pair in the first book. Except maybe they were more somehow. ODS’s lady lead, was standoffish and get out of my face, lady lead here is insecure but doesn’t show it, doing one thing then another that had others pegging her as so-and-so. The male lead in this one’s no different from the rest, as it’s his initial assessment of her that sets things up. So the sexy times in this was scorching. And mindless fun ensued. Except there’s a bit more drama in this one, drama that’s based on initial impressions, terrible first encounters and then sexy times. Dude, the sexy times!

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On Dublin Street (On Dublin Street, #1) by Samantha Young

2013-05-20T06:42:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
On Dublin Street by Samantha Young

Jocelyn Butler has been hiding from her past for years. But all her secrets are about to be laid bare…

Four years ago, Jocelyn left her tragic past behind in the States and started over in Scotland, burying her grief, ignoring her demons, and forging ahead without attachments. Her solitary life is working well—until she moves into a new apartment on Dublin Street where she meets a man who shakes her carefully guarded world to its core.

Braden Carmichael is used to getting what he wants, and he’s determined to get Jocelyn into his bed. Knowing how skittish she is about entering a relationship, Braden proposes an arrangement that will satisfy their intense attraction without any strings attached.

But after an intrigued Jocelyn accepts, she realizes that Braden won’t be satisfied with just mind-blowing passion. The stubborn Scotsman is intent on truly knowing her… down to the very soul.

My Thoughts
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Holy sexy wow.

The one thing I hated was how some characters kept dropping random stuff immaterial to the romance I mean Ph D this and Ph D that blablabla. And while I did enjoy this, didn’t love it mind you. Because while there were one or two WIN moments, over all this is just your typical romance of woman damaged, dead set on not getting hurt again and a guy equally determined to wear her down.

I enjoyed the two of them together especially her and her no nonsense and not too prissy ways and then him and his being…. hot? (heh.) But see, the girl could be too held back sometimes, and the guy could be too alpha as well… then again, I set on this because I needed some fluff. It has fulfilled that and then some because yes, Holy. Sexy. Wow.

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All Our Pretty Songs by Sarah McCarry

2013-05-19T06:40:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
All Our Pretty Songs by Sarah McCarry

The first book in an exciting YA trilogy, this is the story of two best friends on the verge of a terrifying divide when they begin to encounter a cast of strange and mythical characters.

Set against the lush, magical backdrop of the Pacific Northwest, two inseparable best friends who have grown up like sisters—the charismatic, mercurial, and beautiful Aurora and the devoted, soulful, watchful narrator—find their bond challenged for the first time ever when a mysterious and gifted musician named Jack comes between them. Suddenly, each girl must decide what matters most: friendship, or love. What both girls don’t know is that the stakes are even higher than either of them could have imagined. They’re not the only ones who have noticed Jack’s gift; his music has awakened an ancient evil—and a world both above and below which may not be mythical at all. The real and the mystical; the romantic and the heartbreaking all begin to swirl together, carrying the two on journey that is both enthralling and terrifying.

And it’s up to the narrator to protect the people she loves—if she can.

My Thoughts
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Confuzzled. On the one hand the gritty feel in this drew me in. How they’ve only got each other (or at least, how she thought they only had each other). Then there’s how oddly lyrical things went… because of said darkness, it’s moody and descriptive, but at times too much. Points of this, had me questioning the images conjured, was it them tripping in a bad way? (Good) Or was this trying too hard to be atmospheric and whimsical/ fantastical? (Not good.)

That split set aside, this was filled with things I love about YA, (the gritty kind): music, first loves, deep connections between leads; connections that at once set them apart from all else, making them strong and weak simultaneously. It’s that last that’s remarkable. Their pairing is not an unexpected one, there’s a history there. And perhaps it is that they’re such opposites that made them make even more sense together. Them, perfectly matched up in how different they were: one, life of the party one, the other all doom and gloom and real thinking; one, easy living and damn tomorrow, the other watching on the side lines. Maybe it’s because of those difference that they made sense.

And then things got darker. Except I was never quite sure if I was reading what I was (even having to refer to the blurb just to make sure it was going where I thought it was). It’s when I wished Pretty Songs had stuck to the path it started on: of sisters and connections that damage those party to it. Maybe it sort of did, Jack’s entry certainly magnified their differences. How easy things fit in Aurora’s world view versus how impossible things looked from the other girl’s so that all sorts of emotions came out: hard ones especially like indifference of one, jealousy of another and even insecurities of both. There’s a neediness between them that had me surprised… both so strong separately, but they’re weakness was each other and all that’s made clear with the boy (OK, not boy) in the picture.

It’s when the mystical magical underworld thing that came out of nowhere for me… and I’m still wishing that it was just somebody somewhere in the book tripping in a bad way, but darn it! I’m still not sure about what I feel for this one. Half of it was good 'till it went elsewhere. And I know! I know the blurb made it plain as day, but with the way things began here, people! What a waste.
(I think.)
(Urgh… I. Am. Undecided.)

2? 3? 3.5?????
Thank you Net Galley!

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How My Summer Went Up in Flames by Jennifer Salvato Doktorski

2013-05-18T12:27:00.000-07:00

Good reads Summary
How My Summer Went Up in Flames by Jennifer Salvato Doktorski

First she lost her heart. Then she lost her mind. And now she’s on a road trip to win back her ex. This debut novel’s packed with drama and romance!

Rosie’s always been impulsive. She didn’t intend to set her cheating ex-boyfriend’s car on fire. And she never thought her attempts to make amends could be considered stalking. So when she’s served with a temporary restraining order on the first day of summer vacation, she’s heartbroken—and furious.

To put distance between Rosie and her ex, Rosie’s parents send her on a cross-country road trip with responsible, reliable neighbor Matty and his two friends. Forget freedom of the road, Rosie wants to hitchhike home and win back her ex. But her determination starts to dwindle with each passing mile. Because Rosie’s spark of anger? It may have just ignited a romance with someone new…

My Thoughts
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

There are so many romantic entanglements in the making in this one, and in the mean time, I wanted to shake some sense into her! But her being on the trip to begin with was that, wasn’t it? It’s her family shaking her up. Distance, they said... but it’s more like them wanting her to open her eyes to what’s what. I liked the possibilities that that opened up.

It’s not the absent father or mother types in this one because they’re a hundred percent involved… and yet still: here we have a girl who acts, or more apt, reacts all the time. Rose is passionate and impulsive; it all these things that made her tense situation a crazier one. Thus, the road trip. And I love road trip books, too. Except I was left wanting a bit more of her learning about herself and less about her learning about these boys she’d found herself on the road with… which is precisely what happens!

Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed each moment of her ‘my boying’ them all. Because in the process of learning more about them, she saw that there’s more to her world than her ex. And things could get fun and sweet and then frustrating, but gosh! I wish it was less about her and the guy she was with.. (or not with) and more about something bigger. My complaints on romantic possibilities notwithstanding, Matty is a sweety, Spencer more so… but Logan? He’s the tough mysterious type… who’s sort of-kind of mean, but pulled the girl in because of the same.

Over all this was just an OK read. I just wanted some more out of it.

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Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland

2013-05-17T12:24:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland

For Cricket Thompson, a summer like this one will change everything. A summer spent on Nantucket with her best friend, Jules Clayton, and the indomitable Clayton family. A summer when she’ll make the almost unattainable Jay Logan hers. A summer to surpass all dreams.

Some of this turns out to be true. Some of it doesn’t.

When Jules and her family suffer a devastating tragedy that forces the girls apart, Jules becomes a stranger whom Cricket wonders whether she ever really knew. And instead of lying on the beach working on her caramel-colored tan, Cricket is making beds and cleaning bathrooms to support herself in paradise for the summer.

But it’s the things Cricket hadn’t counted on--most of all, falling hard for someone who should be completely off-limits--that turn her dreams into an exhilarating, bittersweet reality.

A beautiful future is within her grasp, and Cricket must find the grace to embrace it. If she does, her life could be the perfect shade of Nantucket blue.

My Thoughts
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

This was sweet, sad then real.

Early parts have her feeling like safe in her little nook. Happy, is what she was. While it’s not necessarily ripped out form under her, it sort of disappears. More importantly she’s at first oblivious then in denial then later clueless as to why. All they while, she’s trying to be understanding over their loss but having the most difficult time at it as she’s unable to separate their loss from hers… because that’s the way things have always been: no her, no them, but an us. ‘Till it isn’t anymore.

So, she’s caught adrift, and you’re sad for her, but wanting her to open her eyes because boundaries? This girl saw none. And it’s in failing to see these that the lead read young for a girl turning eighteen, young, a bit desperate, and unaware of boundaries. And it’s failing to see these walls that much of her heartache springs.

Discoveries of all sorts

Friend gone, mother not there, father not really there either and all the while she’s caught in this in between time of kid but not kid. Feeling disappointment but being old enough to know that time’s up and the boat’s sailed… that it’s not her turn anymore because while she’s not ‘old’ old, then he’s older now. And you kind of hear her heart break, you know?

All made even more complicated with discoveries of a version of a mother so different from the one she’d become familiar with (and even dislike). There’s this disappointment between them, from her for her mother especially. So that her being caught in the middle of kid and not kid anymore? It’s most strongly felt between them because it felt like the kid was doing the mothering and if not, it felt like it was the kid wanting to not get stuck and wanting (needing to) move on, what she thought was the grown up thing to do. It felt simply felt sad, especially when considering the predicament she’d find herself in later.

Then there were other sorts of discoveries of just how strong she could be in finding her own way, seeing things for what they were… finally owning up to wrongs done, but before the last: feeling all these things that others were capable of letting her feel:

A lot of these were sad ones, but some a sweet respite, particularly between her and a certain other. The connection made between them was familiar but not; because it’s builds on. And if at first, there was that odd and doesn’t feel right feeling going on in me, it’s a feeling that didn’t persist. Mainly because I found it truthful her learning more of that side her. There was truthfulness to how young they both read. The reluctant attraction, heart beating then suddenly racing and then throw in just a bit of that conflicted “I can’t/ we can’t” and well, see, I finished this in three hours. If that’s not sign enough of a good read, well, I have no idea what is.

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The Summer I Became a Nerd by Leah Rae Miller

2013-05-16T12:23:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The Summer I Became a Nerd by Leah Rae Miller

On the outside, seventeen-year-old Madelyne Summers looks like your typical blond cheerleader—perky, popular, and dating the star quarterback. But inside, Maddie spends more time agonizing over what will happen in the next issue of her favorite comic book than planning pep rallies with her squad. That she’s a nerd hiding in a popular girl's body isn’t just unknown, it's anti-known. And she needs to keep it that way.

Summer is the only time Maddie lets her real self out to play, but when she slips up and the adorkable guy behind the local comic shop’s counter uncovers her secret, she’s busted. Before she can shake a pom-pom, Maddie’s whisked into Logan’s world of comic conventions, live-action role-playing, and first-person-shooter video games. And she loves it. But the more she denies who she really is, the deeper her lies become…and the more she risks losing Logan forever.

My Thoughts
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Objectively speaking, this girl is not one to love. She’s selfish, and way too into what others think of her. The double life and what not she’s living had me thinking she didn’t think too much of everyone else around her. I think she thought every one as shallow as she was.

But that aside, The Summer I felt young and fluffy and funny. I enjoyed her eventually, her enthusiasm especially, hidden as it was had me hoping there’s more to the girl than worrying about what so and so had to say. Plus the best friend type, Dan the Man, you are indeed the man! I like how he’s aware and unafraid to get in her face about everything she was doing wrong. I like the friction his presence added because it pushed her and Logan as well to step out a little more. And Logan, cute kid him.

Overall, this was a cute read. And though I still don’t ‘love’ love Maddie, she entertained me. Plus there’s a face off between a magical dark faerie and a princes elf. What’s not to love, eh? This was cute, but better: this was quick, too.

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Icons (Icons, #1) by Margaret Stohl

2013-05-15T12:21:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Icons by Margaret Stohl

Your heart beats only with their permission.

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.

She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.

Bestselling author Margaret Stohl delivers the first book in a heart-pounding series set in a haunting new world where four teens must piece together the mysteries of their pasts -- in order to save the future.

My thoughts
My rating: 2.5-3 of 5 stars

It’s the last quarter of ICONS that is its saving grace. But dear lord! Getting to that bit was difficult. Now, let me lay things out as simply as I can: There’s Dol and there’s Ro. We don’t quite know who they are or what they are to each other, but neither is it clear to them (to Dol especially), but it’s implied that somehow, somewhere they’re something different, something special. In between, we’ve got these super secret texts between so-and-so, revealing what kind of world they live in. And it’s not a pretty one. It’s post Day, and they live in a world controlled by the Lords through an Embassy and a people of Sympas. But it all begged the question: who were these kids to them?

We find this out slowly because in the mean time, we slog through passage after passage of her being him and him being her and ‘all of them being so-and-so’… and me slowly but surely losing ~~my mind! My patience?!~~ my interest. But it’s with the sudden entry of a boy who’s different but not really, that things shake up. My main issue there after is difficult it became to buy into anything that was happening, as each character felt so little developed to me. Bad guy was bad guy, mysterious guy was mysterious and scary/crazy girl was scary/crazy. There’s simply this convenience to how everyone kept popping out of nowhere and falling into place. A lot like Scooby Doo and his gang, you know? Scooby and tall hairy dude must solve some mystery? Don’t fret there’s always this other dude who comes out of nowhere to explain how things are and what needs doing!

Yet another inexplicable thing: the ease by which connections were made,( and I’m not just talking instant love here). Convenient. It all felt convenient how he’s there and she could do this, and she just knew, so why the hell not? Then due to some disaster, they’re caught but due to some other convenience there’s another ‘presto’ moment.

In between the I am sorrow and he is rage and I am him and he is me things going on, I will say that Stohl’s built a pretty interesting world of Icon Children and Icons, Sympas and the Grass, Sympas and Remnants, and embassies in Silent Cities… except instead of ICONS feeling like a new different YA with an alien vibe? All it felt like was same old same old, just another post apoc/ dystopian. I’ve read way too much of the same of people under control, wanting out from under it, just needing someone to light a fire under them to get things going. And it did get going… eventually, like maybe three quarters in. But it is because of said quarter that I’m still picking up the next one.

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Fire with Fire (Burn for Burn, #2) by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

2013-05-14T12:13:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Fire with Fire by Jenny Han

When sweet revenge turns sour… Book two of a trilogy from New York Times, bestselling author Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian.

Lillia, Kat, and Mary had the perfect plan. Work together in secret to take down the people who wronged them. But things didn’t exactly go the way they’d hoped at the Homecoming Dance.

Not even close.

For now, it looks like they got away with it. All they have to do is move on and pick up the pieces, forget there ever was a pact. But it’s not easy, not when Reeve is still a total jerk and Rennie’s meaner than she ever was before.

And then there’s sweet little Mary…she knows there’s something seriously wrong with her. If she can’t control her anger, she’s sure that someone will get hurt even worse than Reeve was. Mary understands now that it’s not just that Reeve bullied her—it’s that he made her love him.

Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, burn for a burn. A broken heart for a broken heart. The girls are up to the task. They’ll make Reeve fall in love with Lillia and then they will crush him. It’s the only way he’ll learn.

It seems once a fire is lit, the only thing you can do is let it burn...

My Thoughts
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Fire with Fire was… Wow (the last three or so chapters especially). The girls are back, scheming and cunning as always but lacking in something… perhaps not as feisty, maybe? Tough girl isn’t as tough; Ms. Popularity isn’t as desperate to be what she thought she had to be; and Mary well she’s still Mary after all.

There’s a lot of guilt going around coupled with unsaid feelings. Then there the more tender sort of feelings that crop up out of nowhere. Protective for one, unexpectedly drawn to another.. you know, those sort of stuff. Bonus is that paranormal feel the last book ended with, that ending that had me on the edge? This sequel’s not lost it, but neither is this solely focused on it. Thank God. In this are girls being girls: sometimes scary, sometimes sweet… a lot of the times confusing. And just when I though I had a handle on things and the new dynamics amongst all of them… I’d realized that nothing was actually clear! Plus the last moments in this had me almost dropping my kindle. And I’m still wondering WTF happened.

So, there are mean girl moments and scarier BFF’s but not quite moments, too. I wanted to strangle some of them. Lilia is trying to do the right thing for the three of them. Kat, the Tough girl is tough but proves she’s more than that: there’s heart in her too. We see it with each memory she has of her mother, with each moment she shares with her family as well as with each moment she’s thinking about the two other girls. It’s Mary who had me most frustrated though, swinging from one end of the spectrum to the other of I hate him to I love him. I simply never knew what she as going to say.

Back to Lillia, dear me, but she’s the Island’s little Princess, isn’t she? except she’s incapable of seeing herself that way. Yet, with two boys panting after her because she’s perfect: beautiful, popular rich, yet I still don’t get it. Because I couldn’t stand her. Then again, I am not meant to love any of them am I? They’re all three of them wrapped up in the wrongs they’ve been dealt with. So that maybe I’m to pity one or two or all three of them? Perhaps I’m even to be fearful of what they’ve got planned. And I did feel all of that... but they also frustrated me. There’s no forward moment for any of them, as their all three, stuck in the past. Sure, there’s talk of what we do after this and college and what not but in the mean time… their world was feeling smaller and smaller, Mary’s especially. One would think that the plotting and scheming over with given the out come of the last book, but noooo, not at all. By that point, I wanted to shake some sense into all of them… get over it, get over yourselves and move on already. Needlessly said, that is not what happens.

I’m confused though. Is Mary what I think she is? Then WTH folks! There’s a Reeve and her moment, right? Right? And then there’s that Halloween boy, too. I am so utterly confused. I feel like I should reread this just to get the facts straight, but right now? Right now I’m savoring this ‘What? What? WTH did I just read?’ shocked feeling I’ve got. I do love me some unexpected twists and this sequel has it… in spades.

THANK YOU, EDELWEISS!
3.5/5

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The Lucy Variations by Sara Zarr

2013-05-13T12:10:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The Lucy Variations by Sara Zarr

Lucy Beck-Moreau once had a promising future as a concert pianist. The right people knew her name, her performances were booked months in advance, and her future seemed certain.

That was all before she turned fourteen.

Now, at sixteen, it's over. A death, and a betrayal, led her to walk away. That leaves her talented ten-year-old brother, Gus, to shoulder the full weight of the Beck-Moreau family expectations. Then Gus gets a new piano teacher who is young, kind, and interested in helping Lucy rekindle her love of piano -- on her own terms. But when you're used to performing for sold-out audiences and world-famous critics, can you ever learn to play just for yourself?

National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr takes readers inside the exclusive world of privileged San Francisco families, top junior music competitions, and intense mentorships. The Lucy Variations is a story of one girl's struggle to reclaim her love of music and herself. It's about finding joy again, even when things don't go according to plan. Because life isn't a performance, and everyone deserves the chance to make a few mistakes along the way.(less)

My Thoughts
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

We don’t see ourselves as others do… it’s certainly true for Lucy and her family. And that’s the point, yes? That perspective is what they all needed some more of. First there’s her not wanting what they want and then there’s them wanting more for her. And then there’s her focusing on what she’d lost out on and them seeing things passing her by. In the mean time, there’s me not loving any of them. At. All. It’s a difficult read at points because they each made valid points:

How she could be spoiled and bratty as well as how they’re overbearing and one track about everything. But here’s the thing: I felt they all could have been more, the father positioned as he was especially: on the inside but not completely, knowing all of them as he did and failing in so many respects to set things right. The mother and the grandfather and how she’d put stock in everything they said, till she didn’t anymore. And the inevitable outcome of that: growing friction, more dissatisfaction. All heavy stuff, I know except for me feeling a lack of something to have me want more for her, for them… whatever.

The only time she’s truly enjoyable to read of is her with her little brother, who’s not as perfect as she made him out to be. Why though? When he’s the good kid towing the line and doing what she used to do? And where she’s trying (struggling) to be her own person? And where her father’s there and knows and understands but falls short? Maybe that’s it... it’s that they all fall short of ‘real’ for me. I mean Gus couldn’t just have been little brother perfect, she couldn’t just be daughter rebelling, and their father couldn’t just have been perfectly clueless, right? They weren’t, we see all that in the end, but for much of the book that’s sure what they seemed like to me. They’re each all aiming for perfect when it’s so obviously impossible. It’s in trying to be that that friction between her and her mother, resentment for her grandfather, then a sadder wanting to get back what she didn’t quite have the first time around that comes out.

Then there’s the added complication of her as Girl and her feelings as such for so and so that had me worried… but also wondering what her damage was. She had me, shouting: NOOOO! Don’t do it! (Side note: it seems to me almost every lead I’ve read of Zarr’s has had me screaming thus at one point or another.) She’s young and figuring things out and while some things are clear to her, it’s clear to me that MOST other things, important things aren’t. What that thing about things being too good to be true? The very same thing applies here; it’s her learning that truth that had her feeling more than spoiled bratty girl not quite brave enough to go after what she wanted for me.

This had interesting moments this one… but I still love her other books more.

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Confessions of an Almost-Girlfriend (Confessions, #2) by Louise Rozett

2013-05-12T12:08:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Confessions of an Almost-Girlfriend by Louise Rozett

Rose Zarelli has big plans for sophomore year—everything is going to be different. This year, she’s going to be the talented singer with the killer voice, the fabulous girl with the fashionista best friend, the brainiac who refuses to let Jamie Forta jerk her around...

...but if she’s not careful, she’s also going to be the sister who misses the signals, the daughter who can only think about her own pain, the “good girl” who finds herself in mid-scandal again (because no good deed goes unpunished) and possibly worst of all...the almost-girlfriend.

When all else fails, stop looking for love and go find yourself.

My Thoughts
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I wanted to strangle one or two someones in this book, off and on, for varying reasons: sometimes it was Rose and how she could be, more often it was Jamie and his hot cold, now you see then now you don’t. Other times it was her mother and her dealing with things but not really. Then there’ s her brother and her friends.

Though to be truthful, I actually loved them (OK, not Jaimie) because the way she was with them and the way they were with her, there’s this true thing with them. And it’s surprising, these true moments because those true moments were few and far between when it came to who she was and what she knew about herself. The great thing: there’s an opening up of possibilities for her, there’s growth with her in stepping out of what she thinks, trying and seeing what works for her.

It’s quick this one but it’s pack full of emotions that felt authentic, swinging from her being insecure about who she was and what she had to offer, then to the other moments of her not just being Peter’s little sister, or so and so’s daughter or so and so’s best friend. She’s her own person and slowly discovering exactly what that means. I enjoyed this one.

Thank you, Netgalley!

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Twisted Perfection (Perfection, #1) by Abbi Glines

2013-05-11T20:43:00.000-07:00

Good reads Summary
Twisted Perfection by Abbi Glines

Life outside of her house was a new experience for Della Sloane. The dark secrets of her past weren’t something she ever intended to share with anyone. They would never understand. No one would ever get close enough to find out. There was always a chance she’d go crazy sooner than they expected…

Woods Kerrington had never been one to be attracted to fragile females. They seemed like too much work. He wasn’t in it for the work just the pleasure. A night full of naughty fun had been exactly what was on his mind when he’d laid eyes on the hot little number that didn’t know how to pump gas and needed some help.

What he didn’t know was she was as fragile as they came.
The carefree girl who spoke her mind and didn’t care what the world thought of her was more breakable than he could ever imagine…

My Thoughts
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

They say a picture is worth a thousand words….
so what’s this .gif worth?

Having read almost all of GLINES’ contemporary stuff, I knew what was in store for in picking this: sad girl, rich boy. No, let’s be specific here: There’s a girl of the sad and scarred variety lacking experience because of said sad/scarred life. There’s also a rich boy /man prone to being the alpha complete with ‘He roared this then he growled that.’ (I’m serious here, folks.)

There’s also the multiple layers of drama that I just could not buy. For one, she’s running away from her past to “discover” herself (it’s something I could have liked too, but need she have ended up in someone’s bed time and again?) For him, it’s a father who’s overbearing and bent on him following a certain path… I didn’t get this because for such a tough guy you’d think he think he is… well, he just wasn’t. (Tough, I mean… or smart, for that matter.) Then finally for them, it’s that pull that they can’t help (again)… how she’s made for him and he for her, but there are things in the way and blablabla, like how she’s a past she’s yet to reveal, and how he has a certain future to get to, then how he thinks she’s a certain way and she thinks he’s a certain way…. only for both of them to find that they’re way off base.

Plus there’s the whole thing on a girl with little experience managing to rock his world on every single encounter (and him for her too!) I mean, really now.. . shouldn’t it suffice that’s she’s pretty and he’s hot? Must they be gods and goddesses between the sheets, too? Apparently so… this is about the only aspect I bought. If titillation was the goal, then the same has been met. It’s on this note that Glines has upped the ante... in much more steamy detail. Unfortunately, it was the type of detail that wasn’t working for me. Because without fail, each sad moment here is concluded with them bumping uglies and me hot/bothered (what? I’m being honest here!) but still wondering what the hell they saw in each other to begin with. She’s a mess and he’s a douche; she wants what’s best for him and he wants to fix her... there’s a moment here when he declares with a passion to find a cure for her that had me rolling my eyes and getting a head ache in exchange.

So sad girl, rich boy with the either one or the other saving the other from themselves or each other.. who knows? More on him either growling/declaring/roaring that she’s mine mine mine and then them managing to get each other off multiple times in a single occasion. So take all that together, well… this wasn’t ~~bad…~~ Oh! who am I kidding? I hated this.

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The Brokenhearted by Amelia Kahaney

2013-05-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The Brokenhearted by Amelia Kahaney

A teenage girl is transformed into a reluctant superhero and must balance her old life with the dark secret of who she has become.

Prima ballerina Anthem Fleet is closely guarded by her parents in their penthouse apartment. But when she meets the handsome Gavin at a party on the wrong side of town, she is immediately drawn into his dangerous world. Then, in a tragic accident, Anthem falls to her death. She awakes in an underground lab, with a bionic heart ticking in her chest. As she navigates her new life, she uncovers the sinister truth behind those she trusted the most, and the chilling secret of her family lineage…and her duty to uphold it.

The Dark Knight meets Cinder in this gripping and cinematic story of heartbreak and revenge. From Alloy Entertainment, this inventive new superhero story is sure to captivate any reader.(less)

My Thoughts
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

One would think Batman meets ballet something different. One would be wrong. Try Googling Batman, ballet, dance or any combination thereof; you’d be surprised how not-quite original the concept of this book was. I mean, consider:

As is usual for me, I didn’t bother with the blurb and dove straight in, so by the first chapter, it was apparent that someone had been heavily influenced by a very particular thing. I thought it cool at first BROKENHEARTED giving off the same vibes as Gotham City and an MC leading a privileged life but heading toward some darker goings on.

But you see with each page, it became more and more apparent that this book was trying to be something it wasn’t… trying too hard but not pulling it off. There are all these parallels, when in fact something else that’s being developed. Look, I’m mini Bruce, and look I live in a Gotham feeling city with it’s crime a crooked cops and whatever. But wait, I’ve also a beau, a bestie and a mysterious dude fellow I kind sort like. There’s all that effort to make it feel like Dark Knight, but you really have to put aside the (obvious) parallels, because this felt like a poor imitation of that. Here’s what I disliked (in an off the top of my head fashion, random fashion because I’m not quite sure where to begin):

First, is she a hero in the making? Not quite. Her type’s more of the kid falling in love time and time again them doing some pretty dumb stuff because of the same. More like kid in the wrong place/time variety; things happen to her or around her and not necessarily because of her. The introduction had me thinking dark moments of revenge in a not so good place. You know, Gotham City, Bruce Wayne? Only here it’s Bedlam and this is Anthem. So, yeah… you could say bits of those are present, but not mainly those. The lot of this was her being in love, then crying, then by some convenient external source getting information and then there being something that would happen with her around.

Second, there’s a randomness to the goings on that’s not quite pulled together by the end. Nothing gelled is what I mean. A couple of things are introduced but never full explored. A humming bird heart. A mad scientist in hiding. And a fighter (?) turned puppy dog in love (the same fact so obvious to everyone, save the heroine of course.) Then allusions to THE HOPE. A city in tatters. Plus, the MC’s own personal history as replacement kid. Throw in the golden boy and a bestie, both of who are not quite what you think. Put all that together (if you can) and you get this.

Most everything felt random. The main thing made clear is that she’s in love and does everything because of the same. Then everything that happened because of that made it painfully obvious how little thought she gave to whatever she was doing. I just wish the kid could see what was what early on. With the numerous hints dropped about who/what/why, the ending(s) was no big surprise. Now, what was surprising was why the lead was surprised at all.

1.5/5
Thank you, E!

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Unbreakable (Unraveling, #2) by Elizabeth Norris

2013-05-08T20:29:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Unbreakable by Elizabeth Norris

Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?(less)

My Thoughts
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This read like a summer blockbuster. And I liked it. It’s fast, action filled, with twists you don’t quite expect all made even more enjoyable with a lead that made sense. She’s a softer version of what I recall from book one, though. She’s still thinking and still doing but everything she’s gone through has added a layer of vulnerability to her. Yet there she was leading the way and doing what needed doing, so that while she’s pining for what’s gone and what could have been and what she wants, she’s still present. I love how the necessities aren’t drowned out by maybe love conquering all or even by love lost.

I enjoyed this even more with each reveal into other people’s character: how one maybe not so perfect after all, and another might not be so bad either, yet all the while there’s Janelle being who she was… thinking, being, doing not consumed over what’s not there, or who’s not there.

But it’s certain others proving themselves more, that allowed more of the excitement happen. Her world’s been destroyed and people were going missing, then a blast from the past in the form of Barclay, and you just know that there’s a connection somewhere somehow. Despite the an unlikely pairing here, it’s one that I was glued to because the same made it clear that this girl would do what she had to. So while there are some proving themselves capable of more, there’s some others screwing up in the major sense... A surprise moment of me choked up is what happened after. I seriously wasn’t expecting moments like this. I mean this has men in black types, and here I was getting misty eyed? You caught me unawares Norris… good on you.

Anyway. Portal jumping. The sci-fi feel of these books just got stronger, with more things happening beyond her world, but it’s not just the portal jumping, multiple universes that made this a different read, there’s that mystery of what’s happening now, and why/how does Ben/ Janelle figure into the scheme of things. And the scheme in this one, ‘twas a grand one indeed, at times a bit convoluted with not all aspects explained, but darned it, it entertained me!

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The 5th Wave (The Fifth Wave, #1) by Rick Yancey

2013-05-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

The Passage meets Ender’s Game in an epic new series from award-winning author Rick Yancey.

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.(less)

My Thoughts
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5/5

Run= Die. Stay= Die.

Though the ending left me wanting more, there’s a whole lot of awesome in this one.

> In a girl whose tough she’s amazing that way. Especially, when you factor in her moments despair over the lack of options, then a little after that the more surprising moments of just picking up and doing what needs doing. Then the darker instances of her questioning.
>In a boy who’s been following orders and taught certain truths, that in the end aren’t quite that either. How he’s not all there and then how he and others follow along and do.
>And in a grand scheme that’s equal parts diabolical and sensible. It’s in the step one, two three.. that you wonder ‘why’… and only beat later, wonder ‘why not?’ It’s a throw back to the Matrix this one with humans as virus to be purged that’s not that new, it’s in the how to that’s shocking.

There are bits in this that were spectacular. No, scratch that there were whole stretches in this that gripped me. I dog-eared a couple of pages because I couldn’t be bothered to get up and fish out a marker … that’s how good things got. Being in their heads to be specific is what did it. Their heads are dark places, and had me feeling a little of THIS IS NOT A TEST all over again. Terrified for them but curious about what they’d do next then curious about what was in store for each of them.

Another aspect is how small their world got and how everything, themselves especially had changed. How one links to another then another and how some in that chain are unaware of said link and what they all do in the meantime.

Then there were other bits I couldn’t grasp. One bit specifically was beyond me despite her simplifying matters in terms of bad guy falling for so and so. I wasn’t buying it and couldn’t see if she was or wasn’t buying it either. It’s a twist that proves they’re all not just what I’d pegged them to be at first. She isn’t older sister desperate to keep a promise, he isn’t just the guy who’s drilled a certain way to see things and do things a certain way either… even Sammy, he isn’t just little Sammy. Then the Others… I could have done with a bit more detail. Because what’s clear is things aren’t simple on their side either; there’s more to them that must needs revealing.

Good stuff!

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Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt

2013-05-06T20:28:00.000-07:00

Good reads Summary
Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt

When Mallory’s boyfriend, Jeremy, cheats on her with an online girlfriend, Mallory decides the best way to de-Jeremy her life is to de-modernize things too. Inspired by a list of goals her grandmother made in1962, Mallory swears off technology and returns to a simpler time (when boyfriends couldn’t cheat with computer avatars). The List:
1. Run for pep club secretary
2. Host a fancy dinner party/soiree
3. Sew a dress for Homecoming
4. Find a steady
5. Do something dangerous
But simple proves to be crazy-complicated, and the details of the past begin to change Mallory’s present. Add in a too-busy grandmother, a sassy sister, and the cute pep-club president–who just happens to be her ex’s cousin–and soon Mallory begins to wonder if going vintage is going too far.

My Thoughts
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I had no idea this writer also wrote SEAN GRISWOLD’S HEAD, which I loved. But thinking back I see what links the two… what had me late up night till god knows what hour to finish them: funny kid doing funnier things for a reason that didn’t completely make sense. The whole going vintage was OK, but the heart of this is her and her connections to these people. Feeling the pressure of expectation and reputation and feeling the impossibility of other people knowing who she was when she didn’t know that much about herself to begin with.

There’s a lot of her doing odd stuff then funny stuff. There’s boys in this one and sisters and family, so overall it’s good story, a funny one. Sure, it’s not all deep all the time, because the funnies and quirk moments some times became the focus, but when not in focus, there’s some pretty awesome characters and connections here.

The best one is how she and her sister are. They’re not copies of each other, and they’re not a simple sibling set either. Sure there’s Marsha-marsha-marsh moments, but there’s more to them than that: how they know each other, how her sister had it all together and how she’s not that way, but not too bent out of shape about it. There’s a pride for each other that I simply loved.

Then there’s the other connection that we see develop… her and Oliver. Oliver I smile as I type this… was a cute bonus. It’s not an automatic hot buy= in love. No, we see them talk about things, discover things, choose things and be. So that we see precisely that there is something there to consider. More than the boy making a statement, and more than the girl not quite sure about who she is, there’s a getting to know between them and then a realization that there’s a could be between them. That was a lovely addition.

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The Burning Sky (The Elemental Trilogy, #1) by Sherry Thomas

2013-04-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas

It all began with a ruined elixir and an accidental bolt of lightning…

Iolanthe Seabourne is the greatest elemental mage of her generation—or so she's being told. The one prophesied for years to be the savior of The Realm. It is her duty and destiny to face and defeat the Bane, the greatest mage tyrant the world has ever known. A suicide task for anyone let alone a sixteen-year-old girl with no training, facing a prophecy that foretells a fiery clash to the death.

Prince Titus of Elberon has sworn to protect Iolanthe at all costs but he's also a powerful mage committed to obliterating the Bane to revenge the death of his family—even if he must sacrifice both Iolanthe and himself to achieve his goal.

But Titus makes the terrifying mistake of falling in love with the girl who should have been only a means to an end. Now, with the servants of the Bane closing in, he must choose between his mission and her life

My Thoughts
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

And thank you, Edelweis!!

I really, really, really enjoyed THE BURNING SKY from actual moments of consideration on whether knowing a guy for a split is worth setting aside self preservation to authentically funny moments on wands, wand sizes and what one did with the same? It's a fun read made even better by a couple of things like the 'new' feeling world of both their magic: hers the elemental and his the subtle; all the while the both hidden in the midst of the ordinary. Two things are hidden here actually: her from whomever, then their magical world from the non magical one. How it's all bridged is what I loved...because all those details to consider? Absolutely delightful!

As an introduction, I'd say this works pretty well. As we've got the lay of the land on who's on one side and who's on the other. And sure we do see a lot of things being done to mold her, and to have him fulfill certain destinies, but we've also less on actual confrontations... which surprisingly wasn't such a bad thing. Why? As mentioned it's allowed so many details of the magical sort to seep through, making each moment with the pair of them even more interesting.

The magical aside, the two of them are darling characters! Him with his I don't want this but I must heaviness... and her with I want this but don't know how. Then mix those with other moments of honesty about dishonesty! Confused? Never you mind, as this is what allows for friction between them... and so, this is me, entertained. The love bit was not wholly unexpected, but for what it's worth, them together was entertaining. They're a throw back to all those Japanese romantic comedies I used to watch with girls hiding in plain sight and what not.

It was funny, they were fun and the magic world/ system in this one new, different especially when considering the crucible and what it could do.

3.5/5

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How to Lead a Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller

2013-04-26T09:05:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
How to Lead a Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller

A meth dealer. A prostitute. A serial killer.

Anywhere else, they’d be vermin. At the Mandel Academy, they’re called prodigies. The most exclusive school in New York City has been training young criminals for over a century. Only the most ruthless students are allowed to graduate. The rest disappear.

Flick, a teenage pickpocket, has risen to the top of his class. But then Mandel recruits a fierce new competitor who also happens to be Flick’s old flame. They’ve been told only one of them will make it out of the Mandel Academy. Will they find a way to save each other—or will the school destroy them both?

My Thoughts
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The lead in this one is pretty awesome in a cocky and bad ass and wise to the ways of the world kind of way. And his world? It's a violent one. I feel that that's the most remarkable thing about HTLaLoC how there's always something worse that could happen, and then how it all feels like it's happened to Flick or happened because of him. How so?

In the first half we have a Eugenedis feeling lead in Flick. He's no apologies about how he's living and there's almost has a cocky thing going for him in the level of skill he's attained. You know, expert thief and all? Is that where my Gen comparison ends? Not quite because this one like Thief got darker then darker then darker still. Because the whole learning to be worse for him while she's carving out a place for kids like them? The contrast between them was.. interesting, I suppose. Because with him, things got really gritty and while she's not exactly living a charmed life, with him she felt almost too good.

But then there's the second half that' got complicated/ convoluted in how one thing linked to another aspect of the story and how insanely insane the in's and out's of the place could get. Think mutant academy less the mutants but more the psychopaths, sociopaths and a mad so and so thrown into the mix. It's not just the politics insides though, as the academy apparently had a reach that's so far and wide that it got a bit difficult to swallow, ala secret societies in elite schools only here the school is the secret society from whence an overly complicated web originates.

It's different, it's violent.. heck, he's a violent lead, but big shocker here: that's what I liked about it. It's only in pitting him against so and so that things got a bit too unreal for me... oh wait! not exacty as it's actually all the mad scientists and their mad claims that did. Everything prior? Interesting, in a crazy violent kind of way.

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Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts

2013-04-25T09:03:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts

For more than three hundred years, Bluff House has sat above Whiskey Beach, guarding its shore—and its secrets. But to Eli Landon, it’s home…

A Boston lawyer, Eli has weathered an intense year of public scrutiny and police investigations after being accused of—but never arrested for—the murder of his soon-to-be-ex wife.

He finds sanctuary at Bluff House, even though his beloved grandmother is in Boston recuperating from a nasty fall. Abra Walsh is always there, though. Whiskey Beach’s resident housekeeper, yoga instructor, jewelry maker, and massage therapist, Abra is a woman of many talents—including helping Eli take control of his life and clear his name. But as they become entangled in each other, they find themselves caught in a net that stretches back for centuries—one that has ensnared a man intent on reaping the rewards of destroying Eli Landon once and for all…

My Thoughts
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

There’s always that one thing, isn’t there? That one thing that sticks out and that I just don’t buy. In one of her books, it was the pigs mysteriously dying in the midst of a family wealth being settled, in this one it’s pirate booty and a family legacy that somehow is the answer to everything. It’s a good thing this wasn’t just that rather we have a man and a woman both moving one, her doing more successfully than he is. How he’s putting behind him a years worth of crap and she’s building her life despite some horrific thing.

I like that it’s reversed… their positions, I mean. How she’s more together than he is, and how she seemed to be doing the saving this time around. I like how there’s family in this yet again, and home base for him to get better in. I love how there’s a history there even if the way said history ties into the story’s a bit out there. But mostly, I love love love how things are one step then the next for the two of them, instead of flashes of heat then boom (though there’s that too)

It’s an easy read. The mystery of how his past connects farther back than you’d think and how she’s there past her own doing what needs doing. Bottom line, it’s a lovely story.

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Game (Jasper Dent, #2) by Barry Lyga

2013-04-24T09:01:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
Game by Barry Lyga

I Hunt Killers introduced the world to Jasper (Jazz) Dent, the son of the world's most infamous serial killer.

When a desperate New York City detective comes knocking on Jazz's door asking for help with a new case, Jazz can't say no. The Hat-Dog Killer has the Big Apple--and its police force running scared with no leads. So Jazz and his girlfriend Connie hop on a plane to the big city and get swept up in a killer's murderous game.

Meanwhile, Jazz's dad Billy is watching...and waiting.

My Thoughts
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5/5

That ending… that ending… that ending has me screech- asking ‘WHAT’ all prolonged, the middle vowel raised louder than the rest; this sequel has cliffy that will kill you. He’d better come up with a follow up sooner than he did with this one. And that’s quite a leap for one who’s always been about ‘Martin not being my bitch.’ I mean there’s waiting then there’s waiting after this. What am I supposed to do now?

So am I a fan? No doubt. I’m loving this recent trend of crazy people figuring out crazier people (Hannibal.) I love how Game’s got a similar vibe to it. Namely the gory, the scary, the a bit out there with the macabre even the gross out way things are laid out for us. Then there’s the little details of how things are different for Jazz, how the utterly insane connect for them and then him given how Jazz is able to tap into that and see what they see and then understand.

It’s the understanding a bit weightier here. Much the same issue is weighing in on him in this was one as in the first book: questions on him being his father’s son. Issue of triggers and what’s within and what he knows but not completely. Plus, the secrets unearthed and people around him trying to convince him that there’s more to him than just serial killer's kid.

Now there’s just the matter of getting over this being another kid doing a grown up’s job. Another one? A kid smarter than the rest. Yes, this one has it except given who he is, what he is, and how he’s been raised: it all sort of makes sense (or maybe not) but if you can get passed that, this get’s pretty awesome in the a whodunit kind of way. Oh wait! there’s also the little issue of smart characters doing dumb then dumber things. How it’s not just Jazz doing the connecting. Don’t get me wrong I adore every single one of them from the hemophiliac bestfriend with a gift for the double entendre to the girl friend who sees most everything the guy’s got to offer whether it be the good or just this side of scary… but lawdy! Some dumb things were happening on their end of the story... till not anymore because when the bigger picture started getting clearer then clearer some more, things got equal parts exciting and terrifying… but still that ending!

So, I love how Jasper is able to get into their heads… and never you mind the implausibility of a kid being tapped to do an adults job because I was buying this particular convoluted linking up of one thing to another. Then there’s the rest of them doing more than you think they ought to with some of them doing stupid things, then others doing stupider thing s(if there’s such a thing).

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The Paradox of Vertical Flight by Emil Ostrovski

2013-04-23T09:00:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The Paradox of Vertical Flight by Emil Ostrovski

What happens when you put a suicidal eighteen-year-old, his ex-girlfriend, his best friend, and his kidnapped newborn baby in a truck and send them to Grandma's house? Read to find out! This debut teen novel by Emil Ostrovski will appeal to fans of John Green, Chris Crutcher, and Andrew Smith.

My Thoughts
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

My saying anything about this feels almost useless because I am not even sure about where to begin or how to. It’s the blurb that got me: suicidal kid, best friend, ex-girl friend and a baby... the makings of a joke? Not quite as it’s surprisingly deep, with the lead asking these questions, considering certain possibilities, and some other impossibilities. Yet, it’s in listening to him ask questions then struggle to lay out the answer for his kid that I was frustrated and fascinated… as I certainly wasn’t like him as a kid. My world at his age was smaller… the next A, the next dead line and avoiding any danger of looking like an idiot in school. His is so much bigger with his infinities, some smaller ones, and others bigger ones.

I was expecting something funny and road trip-light…. and while we do get a lot of that, you’d be surprised at how contemplative the mood got. How he’s always thinking and trying to fit the pieces together for himself and for the kid. All the while, there’s me, my mind about to explode grasping but not really grasping what he was saying. It’s brilliant the things he was putting out there (sometimes brilliantly stupid even) so I enjoyed it particularly as it’s clear he wasn’t the only one that way. He had people like him, see him, and know him… and ‘get’ him despite knowing how convoluted/ confusing one matter related to another matter in his head.

Yet for all his deep thoughts, all those eventually felt somehow inconsequential. As there is a Bigger Question wanting to be asked and answered: as in the so what now? It’s at this point you see Jack’s just like anybody else, coming to terms with the need to let go, grow up, and see that growing up and people going their own way aren’t necessarily a parting of ways, but oddly but holding on too.

But… geez! To get to that point? There were so many other things (seemingly mind blowing but in reality quite inconsequential matters pointed out like how we’re each one part of it all or those matters of choice versus matters beyond one’s control – all big things but immaterial to what Jack’s not dealing with). So things got mind blowing, but at the same time frustrating too because why was he thinking about all these things anyway? It all felt so useless some of these thought (even with them being brilliant in being asked at all.)

As to the people in it, I know loved this story a smidge more because of them. How there’s this authentic connection between him and Tommy, then him and Jess. How both of them saw something in him and he and them, and there’s this banter that’s almost always sarcastic. Sarcasm is the body’s natural self defenses against stupid, right? Well, these two had the remedy for his stupid time and time again, but there wasn’t anything mean to it, just an understanding that since this guy thought differently then he too needed to be told off in a different way. It’s that knowing among them that I loved.

Which leads me to Jess and her fire breathing vagina and how he finally realizes what a jackass he’d been… it’s moments like those when I felt he was getting his head out of his ass and not just thinking of things of no consequence. I mean sure, a lot of the things he thought/said are brilliant (brilliantly stupid or just plain brilliant) but it’s him seeing things for what they are beyond him contemplating these ‘big things’ that I liked the guy more. So throw in details being bridged toward bigger truths with moments of Friendship as well as question of loving and being loved, and this was equal parts fascinating, frustrating, then hilarious.

MUCH THANKS, EDELWEISS!

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Thin Space by Jody Casella

2013-04-22T18:54:00.000-07:00

Good reads Summary
Thin Space by Jody Casella

Ever since the car accident that killed his twin brother, Marshall Windsor has been consumed with guilt and crippled by secrets of that fateful night. He has only one chance to make amends, to right his wrongs and set things right. He must find a Thin Space—a mythical point where the barrier between this world and the next is thin enough for a person to step through to the other side.

But, when a new girl moves into the house next door, the same house Marsh is sure holds a thin space, she may be the key—or the unraveling of all his secrets.

As they get closer to finding a thin space—and closer to each other—Marsh must decide once and for all how far he’s willing to go to right the wrongs of the living…and the dead.

My Thoughts
My rating: 2.5of 5 stars

Unreliable narrators… I wasn’t quite sure where things were going but it’s that aspect of THIN SPACE that kept me reading. This boy who’s lost his half but keeping a bigger secret with regard to it? This boy who’s searching for the impossible and seeming crazier with each moment that passed. This boy who seems to have given up but in fact has not… there’s a desperation to him that had me needing to find out: had he lost it or was there truth to his search?

The odd thing is how he’s allowed to do what he’s doing. Let slide… that’s what was happening, and only upon entry of new people did things shake up, did people do more than make a side comment/ raise a brow. It’s with new girt that things pick up, and you wonder… what’s in it for her? The oddness in their pairing had them sticking out to others, but the oddness in what was going on had me seeing them in a sadder light: they’re both so desperate for something but not actually saying what (when it’s obvious that there is a bigger ‘what’ for the both of them).

I could have gone on reading THIN SPACE for that alone: two sad people, not quite fitting in. him because he can’t (grieving, lost and angry all that) then her because she’s (a) new and (b) has an equally sad history that’s not quite clear… but then things of the ‘different sort’ factor in, and there I was wondering was that necessary at all? The possibility of the supernatural is what brings them together, but it’s their sadness and the consequence of that which kept me interested.

Because when bigger the biggest reveal of incomprehensible sort was made, of twins being twins and their proper places, I was a bit let down. Truth be told because: Really? Nobody caught on? Nobody? I’m having hard time swallowing that… except if I’m being perfectly honest again: you kind of can predict that it’s going to go down that way early on. The problem with me is how I was waiting for and hoping for something ‘deeper’ than (view spoiler) that ends very tragically.

THANK YOU,NETGALLEY!

*2.5/5

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The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White

2013-04-21T18:50:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White

Isadora’s family is seriously screwed up.

Of course, as the human daughter of Egyptian gods, that pretty much comes with the territory. She’s also stuck with parents who barely notice her, and a house full of relatives who can’t be bothered to remember her name. After all, they are going to be around forever—and she’s a mere mortal.

Isadora’s sick of living a life where she’s only worthy of a passing glance, and when she has the chance to move to San Diego with her brother, she jumps on it. But Isadora’s quickly finding that a “normal” life comes with plenty of its own epic complications—and that there’s no such thing as a clean break when it comes to family. Much as she wants to leave her past behind, she can’t shake the ominous dreams that foretell destruction for her entire family. When it turns out there may be truth in her nightmares, Isadora has to decide whether she can abandon her divine heritage after all.

My Thoughts
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

I liked the bouncy fun feel you get care of the protagonist that's like White's other leads. Those leads are capable of (sometimes) smart observations framed in way that had me laughing despite the drama of the moment.

Plus the surprising adorbs moments between her as new girl in new world with guy who's to hot to be real. But really I liked them and how he's over confident even without meaning to and how she's mean in the intentional way, knocking him down a peg or two (or ten.)

Oh and... awesome covers are awesome, yes?

But there's the whole Egyptian gods thing... I've no big issue on this end as I started this knowing absolutely nothing about that aspect of the story... (unless Brendan Fraser movies count?) But were we to take the whole god thing away from this, there's actually not that much that's new in this. Instead, we have (a.) new girl thing and (b.) the feeling unloved thing.

Sure, I liked Isadora, even more I enjoyed what she had to say and how she had to say it. But I do think the darker aspects could have been darker. Perhaps more of the mythology could have been worked into everything, instead of feeling like a backdrop to what was going on but... but yes, I had fun... precisely what I was looking for when I picked this up.

Conceptually, it's pretty original. What with gods and their children and the outcome of that all thrown in, right? Except you don't get as much as you think you're going to... but at least it was fun/funny when it counted.

Much thanks, Edelweiss!
3.5/5

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The Bitter Kingdom (Fire and Thorns, #3) by Rae Carson

2013-04-20T18:49:00.000-07:00

Good Reads Summary
The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson

The epic and deeply satisfying conclusion to Rae Carson's Fire and Thorns trilogy. The seventeen-year-old sorcerer-queen will travel into the unknown realm of the enemy to win back her true love, save her country, and uncover the final secrets of her destiny.

"Carson joins the ranks of writers like Kristin Cashore, Megan Whalen Turner, and Tamora Pierce as one of YA's best writers of high fantasy."-Locus magazine

Elisa is a fugitive in her own country. Her enemies have stolen the man she loves in order to lure her to the gate of darkness. As she and her daring companions take one last quest into unknown enemy territory to save Hector, Elisa will face hardships she's never imagined. And she will discover secrets about herself and her world that could change the course of history. She must rise up as champion-a champion to those who have hated her most. Riveting, surprising, and achingly romantic, Rae Carson has spun a bold and powerful conclusion to her extraordinary trilogy.

My Thoughts
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So many things to love.. First: HECTOR!! The last time I’d read a surprise POV from a favorite character was in MERCY’S newest book except Adam left me slightly uninspired a bit desperate for more of him. HECTOR in this one, though? I am tempted to go all fangirl on all you guys.

But the best thing in this though is how it’s not just about Elisa… but her and everyone else, how they all step up and prove just how important they are. All they did for her and she for them? It revealed loyalty… and the obvious conclusion that she is not the only hero in this one. There’s a camaraderie here that I enjoyed… I liked her bowing down to this person’s expertise and relying on that persons know how then taking the lead and forging on because that what she could contribute.

There’s the first half of the book that I loved too especially as the rescuing going on was done not by the one you’d think. With one twists after another, the lot of them were proving to be so much more than a royal entourage. Her in particular showing how she’s grown so much from the sort of lazy pampered princess (though she never was quite that) to the desert warrior and now this queen who knew what she wanted and went after it. It’s on this last leg that the consequences of everything that’s happened and everyone she’s met come out revealing that she’s so much stronger than you’d think… than she thinks. That she isn’t the living bearer of the godstone… she’s more than that.

This was a good ending… I almost felt a little like I was reading something with Gen (of Thief fame). How there’s this sudden toughness that’s bound to impress you at the same time confuse because… yes, who knew she could be like that? No, who knew they could all be like that? Lovely reveals of strength in character even with it being heavier on the romance than others YA epic fantasies.

Thank you, E!
4/5

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