YA Book #Review: All I Need by Susane Colasanti

Book Title: All I Need
Author:  Susane Colasanti |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Viking Juvenile
Genre: Yound Adult Romance
Series/Standalone: Stand Alone
Format: Trade Paperback

Cost: $10.99

Pages: 240

How I got it: Purchased 

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound
Publication Date: May 2013
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Synopsis:

The last night of summer is only the beginning... Skye wants to meet the boy who will change her life forever. Seth feels their instant connection the second he sees her. When Seth starts talking to Skye at the last beach party of the summer, it’s obvious to both of them that this is something real. But when Seth leaves for college before they exchange contact info, Skye wonders if he felt the same way she did—and if she will ever see him again. Even if they find their way back to each other, can they make a long-distance relationship work despite trust issues, ex drama, and some serious background differences? Teen favorite Susane Colasanti returns to the alternating-voice style of her beloved debut When It Happens in this Serendipity-inspired story about summer, soul mates, and the moments that change our lives forever.

I picked this up on a whim and wanted to have a fun quick read. And that's exactly what I got. I luaghed in this book and I looked at the charcters sideways "Like Ok girl, whatever you say".

Going into this book blind without any indication other than the cover was pretty good. You quickly caught onto what was going on.  Now home girl starts off letting us know she's in love with love. She wants to feel what her parents have, however she's more than a little naive about how true love works. Skye and Seth have a great conversation and they hit it off right away, however Skye is a bury her head in the sand kind of girl and she doesn't think about how things will work out.

I loved that time flies by in the book rather quickly. I loved that she had strong happy healthy parents in her life who she had a good relationship with. Ah had two sets of best friends, he summer friend she's been friends with since she was nine and another group of her 'regular' friends; they all know each other and hang out at the end of every summer .  I really loved the girl friendships, I loved that she stressed her volunteer work, her interests in academic success.

Skye however was seriously naive, she had this immature and ill formed idea of hat love was and she kept chasing it. Which in of itself isn't wrong, it is however unfair to the people you date if you don't thing they are worth your time even as you date them.  I loved how she and her friends were different reflections of each other, they could see the flaws in the other but not so much in the mirror.  Seth had his hangups too, based on his parent's and their relationship and his hang ups about money and Skye's wealth.

I loved  his description of college and how it can change you.  Skye wants everything to stay the same yet doesn't really understand that nothing ever stays the same.  I loved how her parents handled them dating and how mature Skye seemed when given different choices.  I know personally I would never turn my life around like this for someone I had one conversation with. However I know people who have and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  I really enjoyed their conversations because they were so sarcastic together.  When conflict hits, I loved that Skye felt safe seeking her friends and her mother;s advice.  I loved that she wasn't the only one feeling like this about the relationship.

However, Skye's immaturity and Seth's trust issues do impact the relationship, without realizing it they really had only a summer romance which is just a surface level romance.  Several times throughout the books Susane showed us that and the characters would duck around the issues.  The story wrapped up quickly and it definetly keeps you engaged trying to see where they go from here and that ending???

A fun quick summer read. I really enjoyed the girlfriends and the parents being such good people.

 ★★★1/2☆☆

RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• Sarah Dessen This Summer
• 
  

Happy Reading my loves, let me know if you read this and enjoyed and share in the comments down below.  

YA Book #Review: So Much Closer by Susane Colasanti

Book Title: So Much Closer

Author:  Susane Colasanti |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Viking Juvenile
Genre: Young Adult/ Social Situations
Series/Standalone: Stand alone
Format: Hardcover

Cost: $17.99

Pages: 241

How I got it: Purchased

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble |
Publication Date: Jan 2011
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Synopsis:

Another contemporary thought-provoking romance from Susane Colasanti! When Brooke discovers that the love of her life, Scott Abrams, is moving from their New Jersey suburb to New York City for senior year, she decides to follow hime there. Living with her estranged father and adjusting to a whole new school are challenging--and things get even worse when she finds out that Scott already has a girlfriend. But as she learns to navigate the big city, she starts to discover a whole new side of herself, and realizes that sometimes love can find you even when you're not looking for it.

This is another Susanne book I went into blind, and I actually enjoyed it.  The cover sees it as a fun, flirty teen romance, and yet you get so much more.  I certainly rolled my eyes a whole lot in this book, but I found myself engaging with the character as she did or thoughts things like "ok girl" There are moments within the book where the character's caucacity shines through when she shares her plans and ideas of how those plans were going to work out. Like girl whatever.  Let me explain that as an immigrant chile I wouldn't have been this dumb or rebellious because my parents just wouldn't have stood for it. Free education and you're wasting it because you don't believe int he system??

I loved that the character knew when she was being utterly ridiculous because she would say it, then talk around why she's ignoring that thought.  I really enjoyed reading her POV, I cackled at the plans, and the execution of said plans.  I sympathized with and understood her in several moments, and in others I needed the laugh.  Brooke at first was truly dumb, because who in their right mind does what she does for someone she's not even truly involved with??

I am going to preface this judgment of Brooke by stating I'm a professor's daughter, I grew up on a college campus, so for me education is extremely important.  I loved school, not the humans in the school sometimes but school and the experiences and the fun in my AP classes yes, I loved that.  For me things always came easy as well, I as a grade ahead of everyone because I was so good and I could have gone further ahead but my mother didn't want me to be socially stunted and I totally agree with her; so I totally get that from the character, but she gotta realize the only person she's punishing is herself.  Her actions don't change anything about the system, they don't hurt the teachers or the administrators in anyway,in fact if she had put her mind to it she would have done more if she found a way to demand change for herself and her classmates.

My favorite moments come when her friends and teachers, parents and the even new acquaintances call her out of her mediocre white girl aspirations, like who are you really hurting with your plans, nobody but yourself.  Not only that you insult all those women who wish they could be in your position but can't be hen you waste the opportunities you have been given.  I had to remember however that Brooke sis till very much a child and like all children she does childish things.

Brooke's POV and love for the city certainly shines through and I loved how as she matured her view of the city changed, once she stopped obsessing over one thing, she began seeing all that was around her, and began living in the reality of the city instead of just the love of the idea of the city.  NYC will do that to a  person, as a New Yorker I know. I enjoyed the characters e got to see, because this is told through Brooke's POV and she's a bit self absorbed we dont' really learn more about the others unless it helps her plans in some ways.

I loved the book because despite hat the cover is selling this is actually a love story to NY, no really it;s more than the book originally was selling.  It's an amazing story.  No there are a few threads I wish Brooke had followed up on and shared more about, especially when it comes to her parents, to her friends from NJ and even more about her school.  From what we glimpsed of Sadie, Scott and John she seemed to have created a pretty good group of friends, and I especially loved her and Sadie because they really inspired each other.

For me the  was not predicable because it seemed like the book was going another way at first, but I loved the journey and I'm glad we got the ending we did.  This story had self discovery, self love, learning what real love looks like, finding your path in life lessons, as well as forgiveness and being honest with yourself and those you are in relationships with.  There were so many great themas and I enjoyed each of them immensely.

 ★★★★☆

RECOMMENDATIONS

• Keep Holding On by Susane Colasanti
• Lock & Key by Sarah Dessen

Happy Reading my loves, 

Dewy's 24 Hour Read-a-thon Wrap Up : April 26th,2015 | Bewitching Bibliophle

My TBR for this challenge was pretty small. I did that on purpose, 1) so I can get these books read and 2) because big books wouldn't really work with this project if I'm working most of it. The hours especially were from 8am Saturday until 8 am Sunday; I was scheduled to work on Saturday morning, but my boss called me and told me to come in for the evening, which totally worked in my favor, because I could read from 8am until 230pm. And that's how I got five and half books read.

Instead I picked the following five books which are each under 200 pages, and I wanted to see how many I could get read. I know my normal speed would allow me to read 400 page book in about 4-6 hours (depending on how distracted I am).  With that in mind I read the following during the read-a-thon:

These are quick reads, but I was able to clear a few books from my list, and finally read two that I got at BEA 2014. Bye Bye guilt!! I'm loving it, these read a thons are pretty kick ass. I loved the cheerleading group that I had, they were sweet and checked in on my progress, apparently we were #teamfrodo (yassss Lord of the Rings reference, how awesome).

If you want to make sure to check out the #readathon hashtag on twitter and instagram, so many people participated that way and shared their reading progress, even if I wasn't on for long I could follow along and see how well everyone was doing.Reviews for the books read will be coming up soon so keep an eye out.

Did you participate?? What was on your list?? Make sure to swing by Dewey's blog to learn about the sign up times and the readathon that's coming up in the fall.

Good Luck with what you're reading and see you in the fall!!

Book #Review: Breaking The Rules (Pushing The Limits # 1.5) by Kate McGarry .@katiemcgarry .@HarlequinTeen

Book Title: Breaking the Rules (Pushing The Limits 1.5)
Author: Katie McGarry |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Genre: New Adult/ Mature Young Adult Romance
Series/Standalone: Series Novella
Format: ebook

Cost: $4.99

Pages: 304

How I got it: Purchased 

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: December 2014
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Synopsis:

A summer road trip changes everything in this unforgettable new tale from acclaimed author Katie McGarry For new high school graduate Echo Emerson, a summer road trip out west with her boyfriend means getting away and forgetting what makes her so... different. It means seeing cool sights while selling her art at galleries along the way. And most of all, it means almost three months alone with Noah Hutchins, the hot, smart, soul-battered guy who’s never judged her. Echo and Noah share everything — except the one thing Echo’s just not ready for. But when the source of Echo’s constant nightmares comes back into her life, she has to make some tough decisions about what she really wants — even as foster kid Noah’s search for his last remaining relatives forces them both to confront some serious truths about life, love, and themselves. Now, with one week left before college orientation, jobs and real life, Echo must decide if Noah's more than the bad-boy fling everyone warned her he'd be. And the last leg of an amazing road trip will turn... seriously epic.

I really enjoyed seeing the growth of my two favorite characters in this series (Next to Isaiah of course).  I loved Echo's growth in Pushing the Limits and I really loved seeing how that growth helped her move on and embrace her artistic side.

I loved the lesson Noah learned as well, I'm truly in love with these two and I would love for Katie to visit them again while they're in college and see how this summer has truly impacted them.

This follows Noah and Echo as they embrace their summer before college and work to become better as a couple while confronting Echo's fears about herself.  I loved the sharing of their deepest fears and the way they challenged each other as a couple.  I loved that they had to learn to face their pasts and their possible future, there were so many sweet moments in this story that endeared them to me even more.  Echo gets the chance of a lifetime and she decides to embrace it, this chance of course would leave Noah behind and at times I couldn't understand why Echo didn't see that, or see that the person giving her the opportunity was doing their best to separate her from Noah.


Noah in the meantime, gets caught up with an ex who tells him she knows the reason he and Echo are going to break up.  And of course all she says becomes a self fulfilling prophesy because Noah listens to her instead of talking with Echo.  And Echo stubbornly doesn't see what Noah is trying to say, this was great moment to read because happily ever after isn't easy to achieve and these two needed to see that, especially before college and I love that they learnt the lesson on the road and had a chance to face it.  It was funny to see even Beth gave Noah a cold shoulder for not listening to her and Isaiah when they warned him that talking to Echo was the best course of action.

I loved when Beth and Isaiah visit because it shows a little bit more about Beth's story, and how far Isaiah goes to protect her, and she's still an ungrateful biotch, yep, still don't like her as much as I love the others.  Noah also as his own lesson to learn not just about learning to trust that he's enough for Echo but about what makes family, and when he learns it, I'm so happy for him.  I loved that the man who shares so much of who his family is with him is never actually given a name,he's just the uncle, a part of the family not really.  Noah's lesson helps him learn to accept himself and the past that his mother hid (with good reason, her family isn't shyt at all)

I loved the scenes at the park, where Noah and Echo become closer and of course the most vulnerable to each other. I loved Echo's decisions and how well they worked together.  This is a wonderful addition to the series, and I'm going to keep advocating to see them in college, either as a novella or as another story.

 ★★★★★

Happy Reading, I might do another soundtrack for this series, because there were definitely a few moments that had some songs perfect for them. 

Book #Review: Take Me On (Pushing The Limits 4) by .@KatieMcGarry

Book Title: Take Me On ( Pushing The Limits 4)
Author: Katie McGarry |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: HarlequinTeen
Genre: Young Adult/New Adult
Series/Standalone: Series Book 4
Format: ebook, Hardcover, paperback

Cost: $17.99 Hd

Pages: 455

How I got it: Purchased on Amazon

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: May 27th 2014
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Synopsis:

Bonus novella included: Crossing the Line. Acclaimed author Katie McGarry returns with the knockout new story of two high school seniors who are about to learn what winning really means. Champion kickboxer Haley swore she'd never set foot in the ring again after one tragic night. But then the guy she can't stop thinking about accepts a mixed martial arts fight in her honor. Suddenly, Haley has to train West Young. All attitude, West is everything Haley promised herself she'd stay away from. Yet he won't last five seconds in the ring without her help. West is keeping a big secret from Haley. About who he really is. But helping her-fighting for her-is a shot at redemption. Especially since it's his fault his family is falling apart. He can't change the past, but maybe he can change Haley's future. Hayley and West have agreed to keep their relationship strictly in the ring. But as an unexpected bond forms between them and attraction mocks their best intentions, they'll face their darkest fears and discover love is worth fighting for.

***********SPOILERS AHEAD for Crash Into You, which takes place right before this book.******

I have bit of beef with the cover, I like it, however I feel like Haley should be wearing the boxing gloves or some tape something to indicate that she's a fighter as well. Other than that I absolutely love this story.  It's the story of Rachel's brother and I love it especially because we got to see Rachel's other side and see Isaiah as well. OMG I loved this story. It's important to note that Rachel & Isaiah's story and  West & Haley's take place at the same time, just after Rachel's accident but before the end of the book, instead of like the others where each story happening after the other.

Once again it's told in alternating viewpoint which totally enriches the story.  We meet Haley who is a former martial arts fighter and she's on the run from some really bad kids because they know she won't fight back. I totally fell in love with Haley who was struggling to keep her head above water after her life went downhill because her parents lives were shattered by job loss and depression.  I totally felt for her and her need to try to hide how bad it had gotten, her need to protect her family and her desperate attempt to just survive in a world gone mad.  At first I was a bit annoyed with Haley even though we were only a few pages in,but as the story progressed and we got more from her I totally understood why and who she was.   I was also hella annoyed with West because look here bro, you not going be talking about my baby Isaiah like that, you and I will fight & you ain't going to win this one I promise you that.

Then we meet West, he's the bad boy in his school who has been fighting to keep his family together despite the failure of the people who should be adults in his life.  He goes through a massive change once his sister has her accident and he's desperate to make it up to her since he blames himself for her being there in the first place.  West really believes that his sister's problems started with Isaiah and was completely unaware of all that went down to lead her to meeting Isaiah.  As the story progresses what he thought he knew and the truth come out.  In the meantime, West and Haley come together because they need each other, she is like him and he's newly introduced to her world and the two of them stand together because they desperately need someone.

I loved Haley's family and the other characters we were introduced to and I can't wait until we get Abby's story because I just know it has to be interesting.  We got to see so much more of Isaiah and quite a bit of Rachel as well. We got the parents a bit more fleshed out and we got to learn some deep secrets.  This story was so emotive and I found myself finding time and reasons to get back to it.  It was way bigger than the other books in the series and I felt it was a better story for it, Katie wouldn't have been able to give us such a complex story if it didn't have the time to unfold.  I loved reading the different ways in which they came together and how they each healed the other.

I really enjoyed seeing the counselor again because really she's one of the best adults in the books.  She's a really good counselor because she helps them all even when it's no longer her problem. Unlike a few of the adults in this book she's a positive influence and a good listener.  As for the other 'parents'  Rachel's & West's dad is a serious piece of work; his misconceptions and a**hole tendencies almost killed his daughter and yet he acts as if it's everyone else's fault.  He stalled out her car after not getting her the one she really wanted because he didn't respect her as a human being and almost killed them because he couldn't accept that she knew more about cars and even understood cars better than him. When he went in on West?? Yeah I snapped back at the book like he was really in the room with me, like no sir ain't nobody else to blame here but you. Then the uncle?? Yeah there aren't any words, I almost freaked out until she addressed my fear, because listen here...girl I almost cried.

As I said they each grow and change as the story progresses each coming to their own moment of crisis and facing it with a bit more courage than before because they grown with each other.  West really grew because at the start of the story he blamed Isaiah for Rachel being in the accident, mostly because he simply judged Isaiah for being different and from being from the other side of town instead of how he was with Rachel and how much she loved him.

It's sad to think of kids having to survive their parents instead of thriving under their tutelage but so many kids do have to survive them and I love this series for highlighting the different struggles.  Now if only other authors would realize just like you write these complex and wholly flawed HUMAN beings you can write characters of color just the same. 0_o noshade

 ★★★★☆

I love this addition to the series and truly can't wait for the next, I hope her cousin and brothers get their own stories as well.
Happy Reading

Book #Review: Perfect Chemistry (Perfect Chemistry 1) by Simone Elkeles .@simoneelkeles

Book Title: Perfect Chemistry (A Perfect Chemistry Novel)
Author:  Simone Elkeles |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Walker Publishing Company
Genre: Young Adult Romance
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: Trade paperback

Cost: $9.99

Pages: 385

How I got it: Library Purchased It cost (0.50)

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks
Publication Date: January 2009
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Synopsis:

At Fairfield High School, on the outskirts of Chicago, everyone knows that south siders and north siders aren't exactly compatible elements. So when head cheerleader Brittany Ellis and gang member Alex Fuentes are forced to be lab partners in chemistry class, the results are bound to be explosive. But neither teen is prepared for the most surprising chemical reaction of all-love. Can they break through the stereotypes and misconceptions that threaten to keep them apart? "Miss Ellis" Mrs. Peterson says. "It's your turn. Introduce Alex to the class." "This is Alejandro Fuentes. When he wasn't hanging out on street corners and harassing innocent people this summer, he toured the inside of jails around the city, if you know what I mean. His secret desire is to go to college and become a chemistry teacher, like you, Mrs. Peterson." Brittney flashes me a triumphant smile, thinking she's won this round. Guess, again, gringa. "This is Brittney Ellis," I say, all eyes now focused on me. "This summer she went to the mall, bought new clothes so she could expand her wardrobe, and spent her daddy's money on plastic surgery to enhance her, ahem assets. Her secret desire is to date a Mexicano before she graduates." Game on...

I loved reading this, I'd only read one other book by Simone and I had enjoyed the characters she created, so when I saw how many people loved this series I thought why not go ahead and get it. When I saw it at the library book sale for $0.50, I just knew I had to get it.  It took a while to be in the mood, but when I was, I found that I read quickly.  This story was actually both good and bad and I'll tell you why.

As a woman of color who grew up in NYC, specifically the Bronx during the 90s (which is when the gangs were starting to really act up, not that I lived anywhere close to it, but you took the trains in the city, you saw their tags on all the walls, some of them went to my schools and some even lived on our streets. They weren't confined to one neighborhood and that was a source of their major issues in the  city.)  Anyway not to make this a  sociology lesson, but Simone never gave a reason for the mother being ok with her son being in the gang, she worked, and she could have let her son work as well. Plenty of kids grow up in the neighborhoods with gangs without falling to them.  I do understand that his father being in the gang was his real reason for joining, but I'm sot seeing why she couldn't have moved before the gang became a real problem before.  Why wait until you get so deep that there is nowhere to go??  I needed more of a reason other than it's where they lived, especially because she was so strict about everything else in their lives, why not this??  Most kids join gangs for several different reasons mostly for a sense of family, but in this one he had a good family group, most of them not in the gang, so why was there no one to help keep him from the life??

I guessed way before he did what happened to his father and I kinda expected the outcome but I still enjoyed the story, the buildup was good and the story flowed in a way that you got invested in their lives.  He had good friends around and teachers who cared and even he was beginning to think this wasn't the life for him.  I liked that he questioned things and began to ask himself why, Why was he there?? Why did his mother not keep him from the gang?? What happened to his father??  What would life be like beyond these streets.

I loved their friendship, it challenged them to see beyond the stereotypes that they had of each other.  I loved that Mrs. Peterson was the major catalyst for their friendship, but they really began to see themselves as different before they started working together and only grew more due to their friendships.  I liked that they had detractors as friends and those who wanted them to see beyond what they thought they knew.  I loved that they still grew challenged and embraced themselves and who they wanted to be.

I loved Mrs.Peterson and Dr.Aguilera they fought on when most would have given up. It's funny the delineation wasn't so strong when I was in high school but I can see this happening now in high school.  As I said I went to an inner city high school and the student there intermingled quite a bit, you did have your kids that stuck to their own groups, but plenty of people dated and it wasn't that big of a deal.

I did enjoy the female friendships in this book, I loved that Brit had good friends who were trying to look out for her (some of the things they said however were just this side of racist). I loved the secondary characters, they were well written and well rounded.

I wanted more from Alex's mother, we got plenty from Brittani's mother and her reasoning for being a total idiot, but we got almost nothing in way of reasoning from Alex's mother.  I also felt some stereotypes were relied on heavily throughout the book.  I found it hilarious that Simone called the gang Latin Bloods considering the arm of the bloods are called the latin kings.  When she said the crown as the symbol it solidified it for me.

I did find this entertaining and interesting, and i really enjoyed how ell the characters were written.  I felt intrigued and wanted to know all about their world and the things they were experiencing. Simone had a way of pulling you in and making you love what she was sharing so  the story was very good.

I wish we got more from Isa, because she seemed like the most put together member of the group.  , but I'm going to enjoy the rest of the series.

★★★★1/2☆

I have two more books in the series and I'm interested in seeing how this works out for the other brothers.  Happy Reading

#Review: Shattered (Academy Series Book 2)

Book Title: Shattered (The Academy Series Bk 2)
Author: Aubrey Coletti |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Escape Artist Press
Genre: Young Adult
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: paperback, ebook

Cost: $10.00

Pages: 333

How I got it: Author

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date:
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:

V=School’s in session at J. Alter Academy, and for Toni, Joseph, Ann, Charlie, and their boarder friends, that means they are still at the mercy of its draconian ways. While suffering the harsh consequences of their attempted escape, the seven teens must also contend with the formidable Headmistress and her taste for human experimentation — with the boarders as her favorite subjects. The seven friends play a delicate, dangerous game as they seek to discover the secrets behind their school and their own unique abilities. Yet as they move closer to uncovering the truth, will one of them be forced to pay the ultimate price?

Wel shyt..Aubrey goddamnit.  Who is the villian in this one?? Neither of them are doing good here. We can see the clear victims and we know who caused the issues, but the original victims have gone full on rogue and it's not clear who is being worse than the other.  

I spent all day yesterday with this book. It flew by because I ad gotted used to Aubrey's writing style I was engulfed es[ecially from the prologue. Can I drop kick her?? Why is this even remotely ok??  I wonder if the illustrious headmistress realizes she would fit right in with some of histories favorite as*holes??

I love that this book brings up the quandries about ex;perimenting and let's just point out that it;s not wealthy and affluent  kids that are being experimented on, no it's the "dreggs" the poor kids, troubled kids.  This has some historical connotations and it me hella uncomfortable ( Tuskegee Experiment, the "schools" for Native Americans, the jails in LA, California that just got in trouble for sterilizing inmates?) I'm looking forward to the next one. 

Oh good poor Tina, and oh gosh Ann's back stories are just goddamnit, I hate everybody!! I'm not sure hhow I world survive in this place, I just know somebody gotta die and it ain't going to be me (say that in a Kevin Hart voice)

That ending though?? When is the next one?? 'Cause I need to know what happens next??  So yeah go get it it's good!!

 ★★★★☆

Happy Reading

#Review: Altered ( The Academy Series Bk 1)

Book Title: Altered (The Academy Series Bk 1)
Author: Aubrey Coletti |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Escape Artist Press
Genre: Young Adult
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: paperback, ebook

Cost: $10.00

Pages: 265

How I got it: Author

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date:
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:

When Toni, Joseph and Charlie arrive at their new boarding school, they are glad to leave their families - and respective problems - behind. Isolated as boarders, they meet a handsome senior with a personality like iced snake's blood, teachers with a penchant for physical punishment, and four other outcasts who reveal that their being brought to the Academy wasn't random at all. When the arrivals discover that their new school is engaged in "behavior modification" through electric shocks, isolation, restraints, and an ever-evolving set of methods to "fix" them, they declare war on their Academy. During their campaign of sabotage, they fight, hate, scorn, love, and begin to uncover the reasons why they were brought to the school. But as their war against the school escalates beyond their control, will they become the very things the Academy believes they are: dangerous, delinquent - and mad?(

Ok WTH did I just read?? No NO I mean that in a good way. This book?!!! Yeah it's both scary and just down right unsettling.  I've read the other reviews where people say it's nurture vs nature. Nope it's simple "every action has a equal and opposite reaction" yeah I went there.

This book was complex, confusing in the beginning because of the amount of characters being introduced and amusing. I laughed because so many of the characters were witty as heck and under appreciated for it.  As the story progressed the development of characters helped to push the story along.  There is a lot of dialogue but this only makes the story better.

I'm still trying to collect my thoughts, for such a small book, it sucked me in, had me yelling at the characters, cussing people out, laughing, whispering "I wish a person would try me.." and sympathizing with both sides because you see each had their valid points.  This book however was excedingly uncomfortable for me as a black woman, because of the things some of the scenarios talked about, the rooms in the school and the concept that people thought it was ok, because well these kids are delinquents and social outcasts anyway.  It's was great read for the social experiment aspect, how far would you go when pushed??

The school and the teachers made me uncomfortable as heck, reading the kids reactions to the rules, was real, raw and totally believeable. Heck I'm a grown woman and I was chaffing at some of the rules and their circular explanations as to why the rules really worked. Like No, that's not how it's going to work today. LOL

I have the second book and I'm already flying through it because I want to know how the students are handling their revenge backfiring, how the teachers are reacting to their loss of control, and finding out what really goes on here at this school. And who really thought all of this could work??  Where are the students who graduated?? Why is no one really aware of what happens here??  God there are so many questions!!! I'm going to go find out.

I recommend you check it out for yourself as well my loves, I'll have my review for the second book tomorrow and the author is guest posting after that so be on the look out!!

 ★★★★☆

Happy Reading

YA Blog Tour #Review: The A Word @joypreble

Book Title: The A Word (Sweet Dead Life #2)
Author: Joy Preble |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: SOHO Teen
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
Series/Standalone: Series
Format: paperback

Cost: $17.99

Pages: 272

How I got it: Publisher

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Publisher
Publication Date: May 2014
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:

Jenna Samuels is about to turn fifteen. It's been almost a year since her stoner brother, Casey, bit the dust. Almost a year since he returned as her guardian angel, along with his "angel boss," Amber Velasco, the hot twenty-something former EMT. Almost a year since Casey and Amber used up their one-time-only angel power of flight to save Jenna from the evil Dr. Renfroe, swooping down to catch her as she tumbled off the balcony at the Houston Galleria. In short, a lot of A-word shenanigans and a mostly happy ending. Except now Casey's begun to wonder why he's still hanging around—not that he minds protecting Jenna. She's a handful, but there's got to be a bigger picture, right? Something to distract him from his on again/off again, doomed relationship with cheerleader Lanie Phelps, who has no idea her boyfriend is, well, dead. After all, he can't use his angel wings anymore. Neither can Amber. Enter Bo Shivers, Amber's "angel boss"—a mysterious A-word guy Jenna and Casey didn't even know existed. Whiskey-guzzling. Handsome in a grizzled way. Unpredictable. Okay, make that crazy. Bo lost his angel wings in an earthly flight a long, long, long time back—and he's been a thorn in Angel Management's side ever since. But Bo knows something is coming. Something big. Something that was worth forfeiting wings for Jenna... something that might just change everything for everyone.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

 ★★★☆☆

Happy Reading

Blog Tour #Review: The Witch's Salvation (Book 1 in The Witch's Trilogy) @FrancaPelaccia

Book Title: The Witch's Salvation (Book 1)
Author:  Francesca Pelaccia |Website| Twitter| Facebook|

Publisher: Author
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
Series/Standalone: Series Book 1
Format: ebook, paperback

Cost: $0.99, $12.99

Pages: 388

How I got it: Blog Tour

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble |
Publication Date: April 27th, 2013
Add To Goodreads
Synopsis:

A witch who demands humanity. The immortal families who denied her of it. Two mortals commanded to right the wrong. That is the fate of the urban princess Anasztasia and the renegade prince Matthias, born shockingly mortal to two immortal families. If they go back in time and restore the witch’s humanity, she will grant them immortality. She will also break a 550 year-old curse that imprisons Matthias’s family in their ancestral homeland and exiles Anasztasia’s family from it. But to make their lives their own, the heirs must return to the most dangerous day in their families’ past, Easter Sunday, 1457, the day Vlad III, aka Dracula, massacred nobles. How can they change the day when their families will not speak of their wrongs? How can they refuse when the witch owns their lives

Freaking amazeballs. When I was sent this galley I was afraid that it wouldn't be ok, because sometimes debut authors mean well but don't quite execute what they planned. I needed had worried, I was glued to this book from the very beginning.  The author writes about history, time travel, family honor, Knights and adventure. Who doesn't want that???  I was addicted and even gushed about the book to my sister and i was only like 150 pages in. I was loving it!!

The build up to the adventure our young princess and prince was facing was very well done.  I found myself desperately reading as fast as possible to see what was on the next page  Would they do what they were supposed to?? Would they fight for themselves?? How was this going to pan out??  I can't go into detail without spoiling it for you because it moves so quickly into the tale that anything could give more than I mean to.

The rich history used as the back drop, the myths, the love of the violin & music; oh my gosh there are even Knights, Saxon merchants, nobles, and Gypsies (Otherwise known as the Roma).  I found myself completely drawn in especially because she was talking about the Carpathian Mountains.  I found myself stopping a few moments to google some of the things she talked about so I could picture the men of the Teutonic Knights better, looking at maps so I could view the landscape better in my mind I was deeply entranced by this story and cannot wait until the second one comes out.

I have so many questions about friend the Knight, who is he, what does his symbols mean. Is he who I think he is???  OMGosh, this story just flew by and I can't quite explain how much I found myself enjoying it.  The sense of adventure, the lore, the fast paced sword fights, the love of family, of duty, of honor. The horror of Vlad the Third, the killing fields, the feast. I was just so lost in the story ( In a good way).  And of course the mysteries, why did her Grandfather not tell the whole story, who was the Witch?? What happened back then, I just wanted the mystery to unfold and of course pieces were given that made the story richer, and feed us just enough to keep you glued.  I loved the unfolding and how we got answers yet were left with so many more questions.

I'm going to stop gushing now and let you take a gander yourselves.  IF you had a chance to read it, share what you think down below, I'm off to stalk the author's goodreads page to see when the second book in the trilogy comes out.

Excerpt:

 In a cave shaped by five centuries of the earth’s temper, the wind’s hand, and the sky’s will, a witch stirs from beneath the dry leaves and twigs that make up her resting place. She pushes herself through, then brushes the blanket of brittle leaves from her furrowed face and shriveled limbs. But after five centuries of sleeping and waking in a bed of earth, she does not recognize foliage from skin. She plants her emaciated feet on rough stones and drags herself across the cave to the aged branches of her door, her steps shaky like those of an infant learning to walk. The door grinds as it opens with one silent command. The world outside her hovel is as it is inside—dark, dank, musty, the bottom layers of centuries of overgrowth and the absence of human vanity. Yet she hears everything, worms burrowing, insects feeding, foliage breathing. They have been her companions and teachers through the ages as much as they have been her nourishment. Her bones slipping against the shell of her body, she stumbles toward the ragged stump of an ancient beech. Over five centuries ago, she snapped the sapling from its roots, nurturing its swell to remind herself of the passage of the years, the turn of the centuries, and the approach of salvation. It is as old and as dead in life as she is, but it has kept her will strong and focus sharp. Instead of resting her frail body on it, or sipping from the water trickling over one of its gnarled roots and collecting in a hollow at its base, she climbs onto it. She crawls to the middle, appearing no bigger than a rodent on a master’s grand table. Her pupils are dull and worn away, but she finds the first ring with her fingertips and begins to count. One, two, three, four, five…It is slow and meticulous work for one taught only the basics of language and numbers by those she once served. But her voice is strong, her need to count a hunger, her focus unrelenting. Once she had magnificent eyes. Dark, almost black, alert and alive, eager to see the world, to touch it and to know it. Her hair matched the black of her eyes. Long and thick, it shone brighter than those nobles with marigold hair. Once, she was a young woman, until the nobles of the two warring families tore her from her family, wrenched her life from her body and her soul from her flesh, turning her into what she is now. Once, she had a name, a lovely, rhythmic name. But that was robbed from her, too, and she inherited another name. Strigoaic. Witch. A witch who was once a girl. A girl who once had a life. A life now trapped in death.

PrologueThe Strigoaic counts the rings without stopping, her voice moaning through the clearing and the dense trees around it. She stops when her fingers grasp a ring larger and more pronounced than the others. Her heart begins to thump as it did when she first discovered it, as it did in her human life. Slipping over the edge of the stump, her fingers never leaving that ring of hope, she begins to count again, but from one, to two, to three, all the way to eighteen. She lowers her head, a drop of blood falling from her eyes. Crawling back onto the stump, she lies on it, the pulse of the ancient tree pounding against her palms and heating her chilled skin. The time has come. After centuries of waiting, the time has come to summon those two nobles who robbed her of her humanity. But it is not them she wants. She has already punished them. She imprisoned one noble and his family in the boundaries of the earth once known as their homeland of Wallachia, while the other noble and his family she exiled from it. Unwise about her sorcery, however, she imprisoned and exiled them for eternity to an immortal life. That will right itself in time, too. Now she wants—no, needs—the last born of each family. She decreed them, and she will have them. Clawing her fingers through the flesh of the stump, she lets a shrill break from her lips that shakes birds and trees and mountains. The time has come to get her name back.

Wednesday, May 14

Book Featured at Sweeping Me

Thursday, May 15

Book Featured at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews

Friday, May 16

Interview at As the Page Turns

Monday, May 19

Interview at The Book Connection

Tuesday, May 20

Book Featured at Literarily Speaking

Wednesday, May 21

Book Featured at Literary Winner

Thursday, May 22

Book Featured at Bibliotica

Guest Blogging at Lori’s Reading Corner

Friday, May 23

Book Featured at The Literary Nook

Monday, May 26

Guest Blogging at I Heart Reading

Tuesday, May 27

Book Review & Guest Blogging at The True Book Addict

Wednesday, May 28

Interview at Angie’s Diary

Thursday, May 29

Book Featured at Booklover Sue

Friday, May 30

Interview at Virginia Beach Publishing Examiner

 ★★★★★

Happy Reading