Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

Disclaimer: I received this ebook for free from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. However, this fact does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

If you could read my mind, you wouldn’t be smiling.

Samantha McAllister looks just like the rest of the popular girls in her junior class. But hidden beneath the straightened hair and expertly applied makeup is a secret that her friends would never understand: Sam has Purely-Obsessional OCD and is consumed by a stream of dark thoughts and worries that she can’t turn off.

Second-guessing every move, thought, and word makes daily life a struggle, and it doesn’t help that her lifelong friends will turn toxic at the first sign of a wrong outfit, wrong lunch, or wrong crush. Yet Sam knows she’d be truly crazy to leave the protection of the most popular girls in school. So when Sam meets Caroline, she has to keep her new friend with a refreshing sense of humor and no style a secret, right up there with Sam’s weekly visits to her psychiatrist.

Caroline introduces Sam to Poet’s Corner, a hidden room and a tight-knit group of misfits who have been ignored by the school at large. Sam is drawn to them immediately, especially a guitar-playing guy with a talent for verse, and starts to discover a whole new side of herself. Slowly, she begins to feel more “normal” than she ever has as part of the popular crowd . . . until she finds a new reason to question her sanity and all she holds dear.

Expected publication date: June 16th 2015 by Disney-Hyperion

Source: Goodreads

My thoughts:

When I first heard about this book on Netgalley I just knew I wanted to read it because I loved the cover and because I’m very interested in this topic. Besides I had the feeling that I would like it. And I was right, I really liked Every Last Word because I was touched by the main protagonist’s story.

The book was intriguing from the start and I wanted to find out more about Sam’s disorder and what would happen to her since I really cared for her. Reading about her OCD was kind of hard for me because I have a mild case of OCD (I constantly wash my hands and repeatedly check things like doors, the oven etc.) so I could totally relate to Sam and I understood how hard her life was. Sam’s disorder is pretty severe though because it’s more on the obsessive than compulsive side and she also has these dark thoughts that are pretty scary.

Sam tries to be someone she is not – she thinks she belongs with the popular girls who have been her so-called best friends since kindergarten. She just wants to feel normal and that’s why no one knows about her disorder besides her family and her psychiatrist (who by the way is pretty awesome). But then one day she meets Caroline, who is very different from her friends and Sam just confides in her. Caroline introduces her to the Poet’s Corner and suddenly, Sam feels different and becomes more confident with each passing day. She speaks up for herself and others and she even seems to get better.

I must say that I loved the whole secret poetry club since the members were just awesome and their poems were very touching. I love poems and I’ve been writing poems for years now and thus, the whole poetry aspect of the book was very appealing to me.

The romance in this novel was very sweet and A.J. was a very nice boy who was perfect for Sam. That’s why I was so glad that Sam has finally found someone who made her feel normal and who treated her well.

There was a plot twist (I guess you could call it that way) but for me it wasn’t anything shocking because I already suspected such a thing. Still, it was really moving and I could definitely understand how Sam must have felt like when she realized what was really going on.

The ending was hopeful and appropriate and I liked it, just as much as I liked the whole book.

All in all I really enjoyed Every Last Word since I liked the writing style and the characters, and the story’s topic was really touching and made me think a lot because I’m affected by OCD myself.

Rating:

4 out of 5 stars

Note: I would like to thank Netgalley for sending me this great review copy!

Andreea

Isla and the Happily Ever After (Anna and the French Kiss, #3) by Stephanie Perkins

From the glittering streets of Manhattan to the moonlit rooftops of Paris, falling in love is easy for hopeless dreamer Isla and introspective artist Josh. But as they begin their senior year in France, Isla and Josh are quickly forced to confront the heartbreaking reality that happily-ever-afters aren’t always forever.

Their romantic journey is skillfully intertwined with those of beloved couples Anna and Étienne and Lola and Cricket, whose paths are destined to collide in a sweeping finale certain to please fans old and new.

Source: Goodreads

My review:

Isla and the Happily Ever After was one of my most anticipated books of 2014 so you can imagine how badly I wanted to read this book and how excited I was to finally start it. Unfortunately, I have heard that some readers were disappointed by this novel, and therefore, I was a little afraid of reading it, but I am so glad that it did not disappoint me at all.

I loved Isla because I could really identify with her. I was a little like her, when I was in high school because all the students around me seemed to have their whole futures planned out, they all figured out what they wanted to do with their lives, what they were going to study and where they wanted to move to. And I felt like I was the only one who didn’t know any of those things, just like Isla. And I felt insecure too, I was shy too and just like Isla, I was so afraid of taking risks. Therefore, I could totally relate to her and could understand why she behaved the way she did.

 

“…I don’t know. I don’t know what I want to do, or who I want to be, or where I want to live. It’s like everyone else has their entire future mapped out except for me.”

And I could of course see why she would fall for Josh. I mean, I would have fallen for him too. He was great because he was kind, he was observing and talented. But he also had to deal with some issues and I felt sorry for him because he didn’t have a great relationship with his parents.

I loved that Isla and Josh had to face some obstacles before they could get their happily ever after, because it made them seem more real and authentic. I also loved the fact that the book was set in New York, Paris and Barcelona. I have been to all of these beautiful cities (I’ve lived in New York for two years) and of course I enjoyed reading about these amazing places.

Another great thing about Isla and the Happily Ever After is that we get to ‘meet’ Anna, St. Clair, Lola and Cricket again. I only wished that their appearances would have lasted longer.

All in all, I was really satisfied with Isla and the Happily Ever After because it was a romantic, cute and exciting YA contemporary novel. Now that I have read this wonderful novel, I am a little sad that this trilogy is over because I will miss the main protagonists so much. I cannot even say which book is my favorite because all three were great. I definitely loved Isla because, as I mentioned above, she reminded me of my ‘high school me’, so maybe Isla is my favorite then.

My rating:

4.5 out of 5 stars

In case you haven’t read the Anna and the French Kiss trilogy, I strongly recommend these three books to you because they are so cute, sweet and romantic!

Andreea

Charming by Krystal Wade

Disclaimer: I received this ebook for free from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. However, this fact does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, and that’s great . . . as long as you don’t die.

Sixteen-year-old Haley Tremaine had it all: top-notch school, fantastic family, and a bright future, but all of that changed when an accident tore her family apart. Now, an alcoholic father, a bitter younger sister, and a cold headstone bearing her mother’s name are all she has left.

Chris Charming has it all: a powerful CEO for a father, a prestigious school, and a fortune at his fingertips, but none of that matters when he lands a reputation as a troublemaker. Struggling to follow in his father’s footsteps, he reaches out to the one person he believes truly sees him, the one person he wants: Haley.

Little do they know someone’s determined to bring the two together, even if it means murder.

Source: Goodreads

My thoughts:

I discovered this book on Instagram and then watched a book review of it on Youtube and since I liked the sound of it, I requested it via Netgalley.

I didn’t have any expectations though, but Charming definitely surprised me in a positive way. It was a really good book that dealt with some serious issues, but it was more than just a contemporary read because it had mystery/thriller elements in it. And of course I liked it even more because of that.

At the beginning of the book Haley is a weak character who doesn’t fight back, who just tolerates her abusive and alcoholic father in order to protect her younger sister. Haley keeps her sister in the dark regarding their monster of a father and I really respected her for that, but I just couldn’t stand her sister because she was always so mean to Haley. Granted, her sister didn’t seem to know the truth, but I just wished Haley would tell her everything and maybe they could have asked for help together.

But in a way, I did understand that Haley couldn’t tell anyone the truth except for her best friend and that she didn’t want to go to the police. Still, I was glad that due to some awful circumstances, Haley finally had to come clean and tell her friends and family the truth.

The romance in Charming was sweet but wasn’t too prominent because the book dealt with much more important things. Still, Haley and Chris do fall in love with each other and I am glad that Haley finally found someone to treat her the way she deserved. Chris was perfect for Haley – he was kind, helpful and patient. And he stood by her side when things got ugly.

The mystery aspect of the novel was great because I kept suspecting everyone until I finally figured things out. There’s someone who starts to threaten and harm Haley’s friends and family and Haley needs to find out who it is because otherwise, her own life and the lives of her loved ones will be at stake.

Thus, Haley grows so much as a character and she finally begins to fight back because she understands that she can’t let others treat her the way they did anymore. In order to save herself and the ones she loves, she needs to be strong and to confide in Chris.

Charming was a great mystery/thriller that kept me turning the pages late into the night because I finally wanted to find out if everything would turn out alright for Haley and her friends. The novel was very suspenseful, serious and full of interesting characters and since it dealt with such important issues, I really liked it and recommend it to everyone who loves thrillers and great character development.

Rating:

4 out of 5 stars

Note: I would like to thank Curiosity Quills Press for sending me this great review copy!

Books That I Still Want To Read This Year

Hello, everyone!

I can’t believe that this year is almost over. There are still so many books that I plan to read until we say goodbye to 2014 and hopefully I will manage to do so. I did manage to complete my Goodreads 2014 Reading Challenge. I wanted to read at least 120 books this year and I even read over 130 books so far.

Thus, I hope I will be able to find the time to read the following books too before the year is over (one book has been sitting on my bookshelves for more than a year…):

 

Gone Girl (German edition) by Gillian Flynn

Through the Zombie Glass & Queen of Zombie Hearts by Gena Showalter

Bad Girls Don’t Die by Katie Alender

The Giver (German edition) by Lois Lowry

Landline by Rainbow Rowell

To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

The Fall by Bethany Griffin

Have you read any of these books?

Let me know if they were any good!

Andreea

How to Meet Boys by Catherine Clark

Disclaimer: I received this ARC for free from the publisher Harper Collins in exchange for an honest review. However, this fact does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Find out what happens when you fall for your best friend’s worst enemy in this timeless and hilarious story of a forbidden first love and forever friendship.

Lucy can’t wait to spend the summer at the lake with her best friend, Mikayla. But when Jackson, the boy she’s been avoiding ever since he rejected her, reappears in her life, Lucy wonders if this summer to remember is one she’d rather forget.

Mikayla’s never had much luck talking to boys, but when she (literally) runs into the cutest guy she’s ever seen, and sparks fly, she thinks things might be looking up…until she realizes the adorable stranger is the same boy who broke her best friend’s heart.

As things begin to heat up between Mikayla and the one guy she should avoid, will Lucy be able to keep her cool or will the girls’ perfect summer turn into one hot mess?

Catherine Clark, the author of beach-read favorites Maine Squeeze and Love and Other Things I’m Bad At, has once again crafted a hilarious and spot-on portrayal of what it’s really like to be a teenager. Readers will love this irreverent coming-of-age story…and will be breathlessly turning the pages to find out what happens next.

Source: Goodreads

My review:

Well, I didn’t know anything about this book so I didn’t really know what to expect other than a summery romance novel.

And that’s exactly what I got, and nothing more. How To Meet Boys was just a contemporary that felt a little dull, with its one – dimensional characters and its rather predictable plot.

I didn’t really care about the protagonists, nor about what would happen to them because I just couldn’t connect with Mikayla and Lucy. I don’t know, I just found that they lacked depth and they didn’t really seem real to me.

Also, I couldn’t really connect with their problems since my best friend and I never had to deal with such a matter.

That’s why, sadly, I didn’t like this book at all and I don’t really have much to say about it.

How to Meet Boys wasn’t my cup of tea because I didn’t like the subject matter and because the characters were dull, and there wasn’t anything special about the plot.

Rating:

1.5 – 2 out of 5 stars

Note: I would like to thank Harper Collins for sending me this review copy!

Andreea

Exile (Exile, #1) by Kevin Emerson

Disclaimer: I received this ARC for free from the publisher Harper Collins in exchange for an honest review. However, this fact does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Catherine Summer Carlson knows how to manage bands like a professional—she’s a student at the PopArts Academy at Mount Hope High, where rock legends Allegiance to North got their start. Summer knows that falling for the lead singer of her latest band is the least professional thing a manager can do. But Caleb Daniels isn’t an ordinary band boy—he’s a hot, dreamy, sweet-singing, exiled-from-his-old-band, possibly-with-a-deep-dark-side band boy. And he can do that thing. That thing when someone sings a song and it inhabits you, possesses you, and moves you like a marionette to its will.

Summer also finds herself at the center of a mystery she never saw coming. When Caleb reveals a secret about his long-lost father, one band’s past becomes another’s present, and Summer finds it harder and harder to be both band manager and girlfriend. She knows what the well-mannered Catherine side of her would do, but she also knows what her heart is telling her. Maybe it’s time to accept who she really is, even if it means becoming an exile herself. . . .

On sale in April 2014, Kevin Emerson’s EXILE is a witty and passionate ode to love, rock and roll, and the freedom that comes in the moment when somebody believes in you, even if you’re not quite ready to believe in yourself.

Source: Goodreads

My review:

I didn’t know much about this book before starting it, so I didn’t have any expectations and didn’t know if I would like it or not.

Now after having read Exile I can say that it was okay, but nothing special. The reason why I didn’t love it was because Summer just fell too easily for Caleb and in my opinion it was just ‘instalove’. Also, I found that Summer was more into Caleb than the other way around, and I didn’t think that these two were a great match because they were just too different despite their love for music. More over, I didn’t really know if they were together or not most of the time, because Caleb behaved really weird for the entire book.

Also, I found that Summer was a little insecure and she behaved that way in many situations. She wasn’t a strong heroine and she should have spoken her mind more often.  She should have told Caleb how she really felt and she also should have told her parents that she doesn’t really want to study law because she obviously has a different passion.

I also didn’t really love Caleb. I don’t know, I just couldn’t grow fond of him. I understood his problems, but to be honest, I just didn’t feel for him.

When you cannot connect with the characters, it’s obviously very hard to care about them or about what happens to them.

Exile was an okay read, but I just didn’t love the protagonists, and the ‘instalove’ was a turn off. Also, there wasn’t anything special about the plot and after I’ve finished reading this book I couldn’t really say that it was worth reading it.

Rating:

2.5 out of 5 stars

Note: I would like to thank Harper Collins for sending me this review copy!

Andreea

The Manifesto on How to be Interesting by Holly Bourne

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the publisher Usborne in exchange for an honest review. However, this fact does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Apparently I’m boring. A nobody. But that’s all about to change. Because I am starting a project. Here. Now. For myself. And if you want to come along for the ride then you’re very welcome.

Bree is a loser, a wannabe author who hides behind words. Most of the time she hates her life, her school, her never-there parents. So she writes.

But when she’s told she needs to start living a life worth writing about, The Manifesto on How to Be Interesting is born. Six steps on how to be interesting. Six steps that will see her infiltrate the popular set, fall in love with someone forbidden and make the biggest mistake of her life.

From the bestselling author of Soulmates comes a fearlessly frank take on school, cliques and crushes.

Source: Goodreads

 

My review:

You might remember that I read Holly Bourne’s debut novel, Soulmates, last year and that I loved it. So when I heard about her new book, The Manifesto on How to Be Interesting, I was of course interested in reading it, especially since the summary sounded great.

And while I didn’t love this book as much as I loved Soulmates, I still liked it as it was very entertaining and serious at the same time.

The Manifesto on How to Be Interesting reminded me of the movie Mean Girls because it also dealt with high school popularity and dramas, and since I love the movie, I definitely liked this aspect of the book. And while I had to laugh out loud many times because the narrator Bree is hilarious, sarcastic and witty, the novel also dealt with serious issues such as bullying, forbidden relationships and self-harm.

Bree was a great narrator and I definitely felt for her because she didn’t fit in at her high school and didn’t have any girl friends. But as soon as she becomes more interesting and changes the way she looks, the popular kids start noticing her. But Bree soon learns that even the popular girls aren’t as perfect as they seem and that each of them has her own secrets and issues.

What I didn’t like about the book was the romance because the love interests weren’t really great in my opinion. We have Bree’s best friend who is a nice guy, but Bree isn’t really in love with him. Then we have the typical popular guy who just uses girls, and then we have Bree’s teacher who seems like the only person who can really understand Bree. But none of them really suited her and thus, I didn’t like Bree’s involvement with any of these three male characters.

So the romance let me down a little, but the setting made up for it. I just loved that this book was set in England since I like to read books that are set in the United Kingdom.

All in all, The Manifesto on How to Be Interesting was an entertaining YA novel told by a very clever narrator. The book deals with difficult themes and manages to deliver an important message at the end of the book, and that’s why I really liked it!

Rating:

3.5 out of 4 stars

Note: I would like to thank Usborne for sending me this great review copy!

Andreea

 

 

 

Of Scars and Stardust by Andrea Hannah

Disclaimer: I received this ebook for free from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. However, this fact does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

After her little sister mysteriously vanishes, seventeen-year-old Claire Graham has a choice to make: stay snug in her little corner of Manhattan with her dropout boyfriend, or go back to Ohio to face the hometown tragedy she’s been dying to leave behind.

But the memories of that night still haunt her in the city, and as hard as she tries to forget what her psychiatrist calls her “delusions,” Claire can’t seem to escape the wolf’s eyes or the blood-speckled snow. Delusion or reality, Claire knows she has to hold true to the most important promise she’s ever made: to keep Ella safe. She must return to her sleepy hometown in order to find Ella and keep her hallucinations at bay before they strike again. But time is quickly running out, and as Ella’s trail grows fainter, the wolves are becoming startlingly real.

Now Claire must deal with her attraction to Grant, the soft-spoken boy from her past that may hold the secret to solving her sister’s disappearance, while following the clues that Ella left for only her to find. Through a series of cryptic diary entries, Claire must unlock the keys to Ella’s past—and her own—in order to stop another tragedy in the making, while realizing that not all things that are lost are meant to be found.

Source: Goodreads

My review: 

I’ve discovered this book on Netgalley and since I loved the sound of it, I requested it. Due to the high rating on Goodreads I hoped it would be a great book. And I am so glad that I read Of Scars and Stardust because it was everything I had hoped for and it totally met my high expectations.

I was hooked from the very beginning and couldn’t put this novel down. I read Of Scars and Stardust in one day and after I have finished reading it, I thought about it for a very long time and I couldn’t go to sleep because I kept thinking about everything that happened in this book. I couldn’t get that ending out of my head, I analyzed things over and over again, trying to understand what really happened. I wish I could say more about the ending, but I don’t want to spoil the story for you.

I loved the beautiful writing style and the haunting descriptions because they gave the book such a creepy and oppressive atmosphere. Everything that happened was so suspenseful and I tried to figure things out, and even though I had an idea of what might be going on, I didn’t see certain things coming.

I don’t want to tell you too much about the plot because again, I don’t want to ruin this thrilling story for you, but I think that just like it was the case with We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (one of my favorite books), it’s best to know as little as possible before you start reading this novel. All you need to know is that Claire is an unreliable narrator (you know how much I love unreliable narrators) and that’s why you need to question her words and actions. While I was reading Of Scars and Stardust I constantly asked myself what was real and what wasn’t, since I couldn’t trust Claire and I loved this fact, because that way, I paid so much attention to everything since I wanted to finally know the truth.

I loved Claire’s relationship with her sister Ella, loved reading about Ohio and I liked the sweet romance between Claire and Grant because it wasn’t dominant at all, since the story concentrated on more important things.

Wolves play a huge role in Of Scars and Stardust and their vivid descriptions were eerie and scary. Andrea Hannah’s beautiful, almost poetic writing style underlined these images and I could definitely picture these dangerous creatures, following Claire’s every move.

Of Scars and Stardust was a wonderful YA thriller full of suspense, secrets and surprises. The twists and turns kept me entertained, the atmosphere gave me the creeps and the ending made me question the whole book. I totally recommend this book to everyone who loves thrillers and stories like We Were Liars. I will be definitely rereading this novel in the future!

Rating:

4.5 out of 5 stars (I couldn’t give the book 5 stars because the ending didn’t answer all of my questions)

Note: I would like to thank Netgalley and Flux for sending me this amazing e-Book for review!

Of Scars and Stardust comes out on the 8th of October 2014.

Andreea

 

 

The Only Boy by Jordan Locke

Disclaimer: I received this ebook for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. However, this fact does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Mary is stuck in Section One, living with three hundred women in a crumbling hospital. She wonders what life was like two centuries ago, before the Cleansing wiped out all the men. But the rules—the Matriarch’s senseless rules—prevent her from exploring the vacant city to find out.

Taylor’s got a dangerous secret: he’s a boy. His compound’s been destroyed, and he’s been relocated to Section One. Living under the Matriarch means giving up possessions, eating canned food and avoiding all physical contact. Baggy clothes hide his flat chest and skinny legs, but if anyone discovers what lies beneath, he’ll be exiled. Maybe even executed.

Mary’s never seen a boy—the Matriarch cut the pictures of men from the textbooks—and she doesn’t suspect Taylor’s secret. If she knew, she might understand the need to stop the girls from teasing him. If she knew, she might realize why she breaks the rules, just to be near him. Then again, she might be frightened to death of him.

Taylor should go. The Matriarch is watching his every move. But running means leaving Mary—and braving the land beyond the compound’s boundaries.

Source: Goodreads

My review:

After hearing about The Only Boy on Instagram, I checked it out on Goodreads and the summary intrigued me so much that I requested the e-Book from the author, Jordan Locke.

Mary’s and Taylor’s story was really captivating and it was told from their viewpoints, thus allowing us to get a glimpse inside their minds, which I found very fascinating, since Mary and Taylor were such interesting protagonists.

Mary and the other girls on the compound have never seen a boy before. They have been taught that men are dangerous and violent, and that they were responsible for most of the bad things that ever happened to our society. So when Mary learns that Taylor, the new ‘girl’, is in fact a boy, she is shocked and scared at first. But then she gets to know him better and she begins questioning the Matriarch’s rules and the strict life on the compound. She also falls in love with Taylor, but so many obstacles stand in their way and they are torn apart so many times, that I wondered if they would ever get their happy ending.

Taylor was likable too and I wanted to learn more about his past and to understand what it must have been like for him to pretend to be a girl. But when Mary and Taylor were separated, I didn’t always like Taylor’s actions, especially while he was living with the Earthers. I cannot get more into this, since I don’t want to spoil the book.

What I loved about The Only Boy was the fact that the author showed us how cruel women could be and that even though girls were taught that men were violent and dangerous, women could in fact be just as vicious and cruel.

Also, the rule about touching was very interesting and I loved reading about it. Touching is forbidden on the compound because of the plague so women don’t comfort their children when they are hurt or cry. The Matriarch’s daughter is a bully and very cruel, and the conclusion that could be drawn from this fact is that the Matriarch never touched her daughter, never held her whenever she needed comfort, thus her daughter became this violent and bad person because her mother never showed her any love and affection.

All in all, I really loved The Only Boy because it was different from other dystopian novels and because it dealt with interesting issues. It also made me think about our society, about parenting, violence and ultimately, about love.

Rating:

4 out of 5 stars

Note: I would like to thank Jordan Locke for sending me her book!

Andreea