On My Wishlist is a weekly event highlighting a book that I really want to read. The book may be 20 years old, or the pub date may not be until next year, but either way I'm excited about it, and hopefully you will be too!
On My Wishlist: November 30th 2013
On My Wishlist is a weekly event highlighting a book that I really want to read. The book may be 20 years old, or the pub date may not be until next year, but either way I'm excited about it, and hopefully you will be too!
On My Wishlist: November 23, 2013
On My Wishlist is a weekly event highlighting a book that I really want to read. The book may be 20 years old, or the pub date may not be until next year, but either way I'm excited about it, and hopefully you will be too!
ARC Review: Sometimes Never, Sometimes Always by Elissa Janine Hoole
Publisher: Flux
Paperback
360 pages
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Cassandra fears rocking the family boat. Instead, she sinks it. Assigned by her English teacher to write a poem that reveals her true self, Cassandra Randall is stuck. Her family's religion is so overbearing, she can NEVER write about who she truly is. So Cass does what any self-respecting high school girl would do: she secretly begins writing a tarot-inspired advice blog. When Drew Godfrey, an awkward outcast with unwashed hair, writes to her, the situation spirals into what the school calls "a cyberbullying crisis" and what the church calls "sorcery." Cass wants to be the kind of person who sticks up for the persecuted, who protects the victims the way she tries to protect her brother from the homophobes in her church. But what if she's just another bully? What will it take for her to step up and tell the truth?
_______________________________________________________
Within the first twenty pages of the novel, Cassandra says,
(and I’m going to paraphrase because I don’t know whether words or page numbers
changed during final edits) she’s ‘going to find herself, even if the cliché of
doing so kills her’. Unfortunately, while I didn’t find the action clichéd, I
did find the attempt clichéd. Sometimes
Never, Sometimes Always is really the story about a girl who doesn’t know
how to stand up for herself and her beliefs. She knows who she is. She knows
what she believes. She’s just afraid of vocalizing those things. I wish that I
could say I connected with Cassandra’s story, but while reading I found myself wishing
she would just own up to what she thinks and feels, and stop acting like jerk
to everyone, because I was sure ready to move the story along.
ARC Review: Inhuman by Kat Falls (Fetch #1)
Pub. Date: September 24th, 2013
Publisher: Scholastic
Hardcover
384 pages
Synopsis from Goodreads:
In a world ravaged by mutation, a
teenage girl must travel into the forbidden Savage Zone to recover lost
artifacts or her father’s life is forfeit.
America has been ravaged by a war
that has left the eastern half of the country riddled with mutation. Many of
the people there exhibit varying degrees of animal traits. Even the plantlife
has gone feral.
Crossing from west to east is
supposed to be forbidden, but sometimes it’s necessary. Some enter the Savage
Zone to provide humanitarian relief. Sixteen-year-old Lane’s father goes there
to retrieve lost artifacts—he is a Fetch. It’s a dangerous life, but
rewarding—until he’s caught.
Desperate to save her father, Lane
agrees to complete his latest job. That means leaving behind her life of
comfort and risking life and limb—and her very DNA—in the Savage Zone. But
she’s not alone. In order to complete her objective, Lane strikes a deal with
handsome, roguish Rafe. In exchange for his help as a guide, Lane is supposed
to sneak him back west. But though Rafe doesn’t exhibit any signs of “manimal”
mutation, he’s hardly civilized . . . and he may not be trustworthy.
____________________________________________
I’ve been dystopia/ post apocalyptic storied out recently because
nothing felt fresh. That was before Inhuman.
From the beginning the premise really intrigued me. The twist of human error
causing the apocalyptic event – and the apocalyptic event itself – is different.
Avarice and vanity have lead to death and destruction, which makes it all the
more horrifying. Because the apocalyptic element is so different, there’s a
level of unpredictability to the story. You never know if there will be a happy
ending, which characters will survive, or what’s going to happen. There’s a
huge shocking reveal, and so many little twists and turns, all of which keep
you on the edge of your seat while reading.
ARC Review: The F-It List by Julie Halpern
Pub. Date: November 12th, 2013Publisher: Felwel & Friends
Hardcover
256 pages
Synopsis from Goodreads:
With her signature heart and humor, Julie Halpern explores a strained friendship strengthened by one girl’s battle with cancer.
Alex’s father recently died in a
car accident. And on the night of his funeral, her best friend Becca slept with
Alex’s boyfriend. So things aren’t great. Alex steps away from her friendship
with Becca and focuses on her family.
But when Alex finally decides to
forgive Becca, she finds out something that will change her world again--Becca
has cancer.
So what do you do when your best
friend has cancer? You help her shave her head. And then you take her bucket
list and try to fulfill it on her behalf. Because if that’s all you can do to
help your ailing friend--you do it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I trudged my way through The F-It List. I strongly disliked both Alex and Becca from the beginning, and my dislike for the characters quickly turned into a dislike for the story. The opening was very off-putting. We’re given a lot of background and asked to care about two girls, and their friendship, when I can’t imagine ever staying friends with someone who treats you near as badly as Alex and Becca treat each other. Becca’s actions may be more outright brutal, but Alex’s decisions and lack of a filter or common sense, are just as immature.
I trudged my way through The F-It List. I strongly disliked both Alex and Becca from the beginning, and my dislike for the characters quickly turned into a dislike for the story. The opening was very off-putting. We’re given a lot of background and asked to care about two girls, and their friendship, when I can’t imagine ever staying friends with someone who treats you near as badly as Alex and Becca treat each other. Becca’s actions may be more outright brutal, but Alex’s decisions and lack of a filter or common sense, are just as immature.
On My Wishlist: November 16, 2013
On My Wishlist is a weekly event highlighting a book that I really want to read. The book may be 20 years old, or the pub date may not be until next year, but either way I'm excited about it, and hopefully you will be too!
On My Wishlist: November 9, 2013
On My Wishlist is a weekly event highlighting a book that I really want to read. The book may be 20 years old, or the pub date may not be until next year, but either way I'm excited about it, and hopefully you will be too!
ARC: Foreplay (The Ivy Chronicles #1) by Sophie Jordan
Pub. Date: November 5th, 2013Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Paperback
320 pages
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Before she goes after the life she’s always wanted, she’s about to find the one she needs.
Pepper has been hopelessly in love
with her best friend’s brother, Hunter, for like ever. He’s the key to
everything she’s always craved: security, stability, family. But she needs
Hunter to notice her as more than just a friend. Even though she’s kissed
exactly one guy, she has just the plan to go from novice to rock star in the
bedroom—take a few pointers from someone who knows what he’s doing.
Her college roommates have the
perfect teacher in mind. But bartender Reece is nothing like the player Pepper
expects. Yes, he’s beyond gorgeous, but he’s also dangerous, deep—with a
troubled past. Soon what started as lessons in attraction are turning both
their worlds around, and showing just what can happen when you go past foreplay
and get to what’s real…
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I heard only praise about Foreplay from some of my favorite
YA and New Adult authors. Even still, I was slightly apprehensive. The title alone
makes the book seem decidedly more adult than NA, which kind of scared
me off. I was also not that excited by the whole stereotypical bad boy/ good
girl vibe that the synopsis alluded to. Here comes the huge but – but my pre-judgment was ridiculously
wrong. Foreplay represents why I love
contemporary novels. This novel has loveable and relatable leads, a swoon
worthy romance, and a cast of thoroughly entertaining and developed secondary
characters, all in addition to a perfectly paced storyline.
One of the things I loved the most about this novel was how
subtly the baggage that Reece and Pepper
On My Wishlist: November 2, 2013
On My Wishlist is a weekly event highlighting a book that I really want to read. The book may be 20 years old, or the pub date may not be until next year, but either way I'm excited about it, and hopefully you will be too!
This Week On My Wishlist:
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