Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer

Posted on December 31, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

30038855 Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Publication Date: April 4th, 2017
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Point of View: 1st Person & Alternative
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Death

BLURB:

Juliet Young always writes letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother’s death, she leaves letters at her grave. It’s the only way Juliet can cope.

Declan Murphy isn’t the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he’s trying to escape the demons of his past.

When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can’t resist writing back. Soon, he’s opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither Declan nor Juliet knows that they’re not actually strangers. When life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, sparks will fly as Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart. Continue reading →

Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham

Posted on December 29, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

30253864 Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything in Between by Lauren Graham

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Publication Date: November 29th, 2016
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Non-Fiction, Memoir, Celebrity, Acting

BLURB:

In this collection of personal essays, the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and Parenthood reveals stories about life, love, and working as a woman in Hollywood—along with behind-the-scenes dispatches from the set of the new Gilmore Girls, where she plays the fast-talking Lorelai Gilmore once again. Continue reading →

A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi

Posted on December 27, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

29939047 A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Publication Date: March 28th, 2017
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Point of View: Alternative
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Adventure, Mythology

BLURB:

Gauri, the princess of Bharata, has been taken as a prisoner of war by her kingdom’s enemies. Faced with a future of exile and scorn, Gauri has nothing left to lose. Hope unexpectedly comes in the form of Vikram, the cunning prince of a neighboring land and her sworn enemy kingdom. Unsatisfied with becoming a mere puppet king, Vikram offers Gauri a chance to win back her kingdom in exchange for her battle prowess. Together, they’ll have to set aside their differences and team up to win the Tournament of Wishes—a competition held in a mythical city where the Lord of Wealth promises a wish to the victor.

Reaching the tournament is just the beginning. Once they arrive, danger takes on new shapes: poisonous courtesans and mischievous story birds, a feast of fears and twisted fairy revels.

Every which way they turn new trials will test their wit and strength. But what Gauri and Vikram will soon discover is that there’s nothing more dangerous than what they most desire. Continue reading →

How to Make a Wish by Ashley Herring Blake

Posted on December 24, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

26626118 How to Make a Wish by Ashley Herring Blake

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Publication Date: May 2nd, 2017
Publisher: HMH BFYR
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, LGBT, Contemporary Romance, Mother-Daughter

BLURB:

All seventeen year-old Grace Glasser wants is her own life. A normal life in which she sleeps in the same bed for longer than three months and doesn’t have to scrounge for spare change to make sure the electric bill is paid. Emotionally trapped by her unreliable mother, Maggie, and the tiny cape on which she lives, she focuses on her best friend, her upcoming audition for a top music school in New York, and surviving Maggie’s latest boyfriend—who happens to be Grace’s own ex-boyfriend’s father.

Her attempts to lay low until she graduates are disrupted when she meets Eva, a girl with her own share of ghosts she’s trying to outrun. Grief-stricken and lonely, Eva pulls Grace into midnight adventures and feelings Grace never planned on. When Eva tells Grace she likes girls, both of their worlds open up. But, united by loss, Eva also shares a connection with Maggie. As Grace’s mother spirals downward, both girls must figure out how to love and how to move on. Continue reading →

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

Posted on December 23, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

28116719 Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Publication Date: February 28th, 2017
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Fantasy, Pirates, Romance, Action

BLURB:

When the ruthless pirate king learns of a legendary treasure map hidden on an enemy ship, his daughter, Alosa, knows there’s only one pirate for the job—herself. Leaving behind her beloved ship and crew, Alosa deliberately facilitates her own kidnapping to ensure her passage on the ship, confident in her ability to overcome any obstacle. After all, who’s going to suspect a seventeen-year-old girl locked in a cell? Then she meets the (surprisingly perceptive and unfairly attractive) first mate, Riden, who is charged with finding out all her secrets. Now it’s down to a battle of wits and will . . . . Can Alosa find the map and escape before Riden figures out her plan?
Continue reading →

Poison’s Kiss by Breeana Shields

Posted on December 23, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

25081261 Poison’s Kiss by Breeana Shields

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: January 10th, 2017
Publisher: Random House BFYR
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Fantasy, Mythology, Romance, Siblings

BLURB:

Marinda has kissed dozens of boys. They all die afterward. It s a miserable life, but being a visha kanya a poison maiden is what she was created to do. Marinda serves the Raja by dispatching his enemies with only her lips as a weapon.

Until now, the men she was ordered to kiss have been strangers, enemies of the kingdom. Then she receives orders to kiss Deven, a boy she knows too well to be convinced he needs to die. She begins to question who she s really working for. And that is a thread that, once pulled, will unravel more than she can afford to lose.

Continue reading →

The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Posted on December 22, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: November 1st, 2016
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Point of View: 1st Person & Alternative
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Science, Contemporary Romance, Destiny

BLURB:

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

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

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

Shimmer (The Rephaim #3) by Paula Weston

Posted on December 21, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

23210022 Shimmer by Paula Weston

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: March 8th, 2016
Publisher: Tundra Books
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Urban Fantasy, Angels & Demons

BLURB:

Gaby thought her life couldn’t get more complicated.

She’s almost used to the idea that she’s not the teenage backpacker she thought she was. She can just about cope with being one of the Rephaim–a 139-year-old half-angel–whose memories have been stolen. She’s even coming to grips with the fact that Jude, the brother she’s mourned for a year, didn’t die at all.

But now Rafa–sexy, infuriating Rafa–is being held, and hurt, by Gatekeeper demons. And Gaby has to get the bitterly divided Rephaim to work together, or Rafa has no chance at all. Continue reading →

The Inexplicable Logic of My Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Posted on December 20, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

23447923 The Inexplicable Logic of My Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: March 7th, 2017
Publisher: Clarion Books
Point of View: 1st Person & Masculine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Family, Contemporary, Death, LGBT

BLURB:

Sal used to know his place with his adoptive gay father, their loving Mexican-American family, and his best friend, Samantha. But it’s senior year, and suddenly Sal is throwing punches, questioning everything, and realizing he no longer knows himself. If Sal’s not who he thought he was, who is he? Continue reading →

American Street by Ibi Zoboi

Posted on December 19, 2016 by Monica @ Hit or Miss Books

30256109 American Street by Ibi Zoboi

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Edelweiss
Publication Date: Feburary 14th, 2017
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Family, Contemporary, Immigration, Romance

BLURB:

On the corner of American Street and Joy Road, Fabiola Toussaint thought she would finally find une belle vie—a good life.

But after they leave Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Fabiola’s mother is detained by U.S. immigration, leaving Fabiola to navigate her loud American cousins, Chantal, Donna, and Princess; the grittiness of Detroit’s west side; a new school; and a surprising romance, all on her own.

Just as she finds her footing in this strange new world, a dangerous proposition presents itself, and Fabiola soon realizes that freedom comes at a cost. Trapped at the crossroads of an impossible choice, will she pay the price for the American dream? Continue reading →