Monthly Archives: June 2015

Review: Carry the Ocean (The Roosevelt #1) by Heidi Cullinan

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Carry the Ocean by Heidi Cullinan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
Publication Date: April 7th 2015
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd
Point of View: 1st Person, Masculine & Alternative
Recommended Age: 14+
Genres & Themes: Adult, Contemporary, Psychological, Mystery

BLURB:

Normal is just a setting on the dryer.

High school graduate Jeremey Samson is looking forward to burying his head under the covers and sleeping until it’s time to leave for college. Then a tornado named Emmet Washington enters his life. The double major in math and computer science is handsome, forward, wicked smart, interested in dating Jeremey—and he’s autistic.

But Jeremey doesn’t judge him for that. He’s too busy judging himself, as are his parents, who don’t believe in things like clinical depression. When his untreated illness reaches a critical breaking point, Emmet is the white knight who rescues him and brings him along as a roommate to The Roosevelt, a quirky new assisted living facility nearby.

As Jeremey finds his feet at The Roosevelt, Emmet slowly begins to believe he can be loved for the man he is behind the autism. But before he can trust enough to fall head over heels, he must trust his own conviction that friendship is a healing force, and love can overcome any obstacle.

Warning: Contains characters obsessed with trains and counting, positive representations of autism and mental illness, a very dark moment, and Elwood Blues. Continue reading →

Review: Pretty Is by Maggie Mitchell

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Pretty Is by Maggie Mitchell

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: July 2nd 2015
Publisher: Orion
Point of View: 1st Person, Feminine & Alternative
Recommended Age: 14+
Genres & Themes: Adult, Contemporary, Psychological, Mystery

BLURB:

An enthralling portrait of two haunted young women, this remarkable debut novel explores the very nature of survival.

Everyone thought we were dead.

We were missing for nearly two months; we were twelve. What else could they think?

They were glad to have us back, of course. But nothing was the same. It was as if we had returned from the dead, as if we were tainted somehow. We were not the same.

And it was true, though not in the way they thought.

Lois and Carly-May are just twelve years old when they’re abducted and imprisoned for two months. That summer, under the watchful gaze of their kidnapper, they form a bond which will never be broken… Decades later, both Lois and Carly-May have built new lives and identities for themselves.

Lois and Carly-May are drawn together again to face the truth of their beautiful, terrible story. Continue reading →

BOOK TOUR FANCAST: Hello, I Love You

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BLURB:

A teen escapes to a boarding school abroad and falls for a Korean pop star in this fun and fresh romantic novel in the vein of Anna and the French Kiss.

Grace Wilde is running—from the multi-million dollar mansion her record producer father bought, the famous older brother who’s topped the country music charts five years in a row, and the mother who blames her for her brother’s breakdown. Grace escapes to the farthest place from home she can think of, a boarding school in Korea, hoping for a fresh start.

She wants nothing to do with music, but when her roommate Sophie’s twin brother Jason turns out to be the newest Korean pop music superstar, Grace is thrust back into the world of fame. She can’t stand Jason, whose celebrity status is only outmatched by his oversized ego, but they form a tenuous alliance for the sake of her friendship with Sophie. As the months go by and Grace adjusts to her new life in Korea, even she can’t deny the sparks flying between her and the KPOP idol.

Soon, Grace realizes that her feelings for Jason threaten her promise to herself that she’ll leave behind the music industry that destroyed her family. But can Grace ignore her attraction to Jason and her undeniable pull of the music she was born to write? Sweet, fun, and romantic, this young adult novel explores what it means to experience first love and discover who you really are in the process. Continue reading →

Review: The Holders (Holders #1) by Julianna Scott

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The Holders by Julianna Scott

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
Publication Date: March 5th 2013
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Paranormal, Superpowers, Boarding School, Family

BLURB:

17-year-old Becca spent her whole life protecting her brother from, well, everything. The abandonment of their father, the so called ‘experts’ who insist that voices in his head are unnatural and must be dealt with, and the constant threat of being taken away to some hospital and studied like an animal. When two representatives appear claiming to have the answers to Ryland’s perceived problem, Becca doesn’t buy it for one second. That is until they seem to know things about Ryland and about Becca and Ryland’s family, that forces Becca to concede that there may be more to these people than meets the eye. Though still highly skeptical, Becca agrees to do what’s best for Ryland.

What they find at St. Brigid’s is a world beyond their imagination. Little by little they piece together the information of their family’s heritage, their estranged Father, and the legend of the Holder race that decrees Ryland is the one they’ve been waiting for. However, they are all–especially Becca–in for a surprise that will change what they thought they knew about themselves and their kind.

She meets Alex, a Holder who is fiercely loyal to their race, and for some reason, Becca and Ryland. There’s an attraction between Becca and Alex that can’t be denied, but her true nature seems destined to keep them apart. However, certain destinies may not be as clear cut as everyone has always believed them to be.

Becca is lost, but found at the same time. Can she bring herself to leave Ryland now that he’s settled and can clearly see his future? Will she be able to put the the feelings she has for Alex aside and head back to the US? And can Becca and Ryland ever forgive their father for what he’s done? Continue reading →

Review: None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio

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None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Publication Date: April 7th 2015
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, LGBT, Psychological, High School, Bullying

BLURB:

A groundbreaking story about a teenage girl who discovers she was born intersex… and what happens when her secret is revealed to the entire school. Incredibly compelling and sensitively told, None of the Above is a thought-provoking novel that explores what it means to be a boy, a girl, or something in between.

What if everything you knew about yourself changed in an instant?

When Kristin Lattimer is voted homecoming queen, it seems like another piece of her ideal life has fallen into place. She’s a champion hurdler with a full scholarship to college and she’s madly in love with her boyfriend. In fact, she’s decided that she’s ready to take things to the next level with him.

But Kristin’s first time isn’t the perfect moment she’s planned—something is very wrong. A visit to the doctor reveals the truth: Kristin is intersex, which means that though she outwardly looks like a girl, she has male chromosomes, not to mention boy “parts.”

Dealing with her body is difficult enough, but when her diagnosis is leaked to the whole school, Kristin’s entire identity is thrown into question. As her world unravels, can she come to terms with her new self? Continue reading →

Review: We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach

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We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Publication Date: March 24th 2015
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
Point of View: 3rd Person & Alternative
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance

BLURB:

Before the asteroid we let ourselves be defined by labels:
The athlete, the outcast, the slacker, the overachiever.

But then we all looked up and everything changed.

They said it would be here in two months. That gave us two months to leave our labels behind. Two months to become something bigger than what we’d been, something that would last even after the end.

Two months to really live. Continue reading →

18th Birthday GIVEAWAY! ❤

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Hey, guys!

So it’s almost my 18th birthday (June 23rd), and I decided to celebrate it with you all by running a giveaway consisting of 20 books (ARCs, hardcovers, paperbacks, fairytales). There will be 4 or 5 winners (haven’t decided yet) who will each receive 4 to 5 books. Open to Canada residents only. Sorry, everyone… I promise to open my next giveaway (which will be in July – because 1st year blogoversary) to Canada and US at least.

& MANY MORE!

To participate, you have to:

1) Follow my blog (WordPress, Bloglovin’ or by email)

2) Post a comment answering this question: What is your favorite 2015 publication and why?

I can’t rightly use Rafflecopter on my blog, but, don’t worry, the winners will be chosen randomly, as always. The books are all in great condition and everything. Participate! I actually NEED to give books away because I don’t have any more space for new ones on my shelves. XD

Giveaway ends on June 23rd. Good luck!

Review: The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent

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The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
Publication Date: June 9th 2015
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Point of View: 1st Person & Female
Recommended Age: 14+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Urban Fantasy, Dystopia, Demons

BLURB:

Sixteen-year-old Nina Kane should be worrying about her immortal soul, but she’s too busy trying to actually survive. Her town’s population has been decimated by soul-consuming demons, and souls are in short supply. Watching over her younger sister, Mellie, and scraping together food and money are all that matters. The two of them are a family. They gave up on their deadbeat mom a long time ago.

When Nina discovers that Mellie is keeping a secret that threatens their very existence, she’ll do anything to protect her. Because in New Temperance, sins are prosecuted as crimes by the brutal Church and its army of black-robed exorcists. And Mellie’s sin has put her in serious trouble.

To keep them both alive, Nina will need to trust Finn, a fugitive with deep green eyes who has already saved her life once and who might just be an exorcist. But what kind of exorcist wears a hoodie?

Wanted by the Church and hunted by dark forces, Nina knows she can’t survive on her own. She needs Finn and his group of rogue friends just as much as they need her. Continue reading →

Review: Damage Done by Amanda Panitch

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Damage Done by Amanda Panitch

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: July 21st 2015
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Point of View: 1st Person & Female
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Thriller, Contemporary, Mystery, Love

BLURB:

22 minutes separate Julia Vann’s before and after.

Before: Julia had a twin brother, a boyfriend, and a best friend.

After: She has a new identity, a new hometown, and memories of those twenty-two minutes that refuse to come into focus. At least, that’s what she tells the police.

Now that she’s Lucy Black, she’s able to begin again. She’s even getting used to the empty bedroom where her brother should be. And her fresh start has attracted the attention of one of the hottest guys in school, a boy who will do anything to protect her. But when someone much more dangerous also takes notice, Lucy’s forced to confront the dark secrets she thought were safely left behind.

One thing is clear: The damage done can never be erased. It’s only just beginning. . . . Continue reading →

Review: Seriously Wicked by Tina Connolly

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Seriously Wicked by Tina Connolly

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: May 5th 2015
Publisher: Tor Teen
Point of View: 1st Person & Female
Recommended Age: 11+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Urban Fantasy, Witches

BLURB:

The only thing worse than being a witch is living with one.

Camellia’s adopted mother wants Cam to grow up to be just like her. Problem is, Mom’s a seriously wicked witch.

Cam’s used to stopping the witch’s crazy schemes for world domination. But when the witch summons a demon, he gets loose—and into Devon, the cute new boy at school.

Now Cam’s suddenly got bigger problems than passing Algebra. Her friends are getting zombiefied. Their dragon is tired of hiding in the RV garage. For being a shy boy-band boy, Devon is sure kissing a bunch of girls. And a phoenix hidden in the school is going to explode on the night of the Halloween Dance.

To stop the demon before he destroys Devon’s soul, Cam might have to try a spell of her own. But if she’s willing to work spells like the witch…will that mean she’s wicked too? Continue reading →