The Romantics by Leah Konen
Published November 1, 2016 by Amulet Books
Rating: ★★★★
Love is patient. Love is kind. Love totally dropped the ball with Gael Brennan's parents and feels the best recourse is to save Gael's own love life. And that means keeping him away from the rebound girl.
"... leave it to the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope to convince a guy that someone who straight-up irks him will also somehow save him."
I might cross-stitch that onto a pillow.
The problem with Gael is that he's a romantic. Not like he's into romantic comedies or anything like that, because he's not. He likes real movies, like Wes Anderson ones. But he falls in love too hard and too fast. So it's not surprising that his very first relationship ends in disaster when he blurts out the big ILY way too early. Hurt, Gael is desperate for a reminder that love is real. So when he runs into Cara in a meet-cute, he puts too much importance on the moment. But even as Gael is perusing Cara, Love knows his real destiny is with Sammy, his younger sister's babysitter.
This is a cute, fun read. That said, if you remove the quirky element of Love as the narrator, this becomes a very basic, expected romance. It's clear early on that a Sammy and Gael pairing is the endgame, and while I accepted the premise, I didn't think it grew organically. Sammy was supposed to be perfect for Gael, but I didn't really see it. In any case, this is a quick and mostly satisfying YA romance for those so inclined.
We Are Still Tornadoes by Michael Kun and Susan Mullen
On Sale November 1, 2016 by St. Martin's Griffin
Rating: ★★★★
Cath and Scott are best friends who grew up on the same block and never experienced life without each other. That bond is tested when Cath goes off to college several hundred miles away, and Scott stays behind in their hometown to sell menswear in his Dad's shop. Their lives are seemingly taking different directions. Together, they were Tornadoes, class of 1982. But what will they become?
The book is written entirely in the format of letters exchanged back and forth between Cath and Scott. I have to admit, I find the premise a bit hokey. I mean, outside of war and possibly prison, what 18-year-old guy writes this manyletters to a platonic girl friend? Overall, though, it was enjoyable to read, and I laughed pretty hard at some of Scott's letters. I did feel the expected ending came abruptly, like the authors only had x amount of paper and needed to fit it in before they ran out.
This is a cute, fluffy read that does not require a serious time investment. It's forgettable but fun and good when you're craving something lighthearted.
Crosstalk by Connie Willis
On Sale October 4, 2016 by Del Rey
Rating: ★★★★
Briddey Flannigan knows she's lucky to have a boyfriend like Trent Worth. He sends her flowers, takes her to the hottest restaurants, and texts her first thing every morning. Far from being allergic to commitment, Trent has already said the big ILY, and now he's proposing they have an EED to become even closer. It all has the rumor mill at their workplace churning with barely concealed envy. Who wouldn't want their boyfriend or girlfriend to suggest something so romantic? And after only six weeks of dating, no less.EED is a futuristic surgical procedure that allows couples to communicate emotions instead of just words and helps them connect on a deeper level. Or at least that's what's supposed to happen. Sometimes the procedure fails because a couple isn't emotionally bonded enough, although Briddey certainly doesn't think that'll be a problem for her and Trent.What Briddey doesn't anticipate is just how well the EED would help her connect... with someone else. Someone who is definitely not Trent.Maybe she should have listened to C. B., the oddball lab tech who rarely leaves the basement at Commspan, the telecoms company where they work. C. B. spends days warning her about the dangers of EEDs and surgery in general. He warns her the procedure might come with unintended consequences, but she never imagined connecting to the wrong person could be one of them. And try as she might, she can't get the wrong voice out of her head to let Trent's in. She and Trent have never been further apart. Maybe C. B. was right when he claimed more communication would be bad for her relationship.If only Briddey knew how much more communication was in store for her. Unintended consequences, indeed. And now it seems C. B. might be the only person who can save her from this mess.This book came close to being a five star read for me, but one thing held me back. This book is at least 100 pages too long. And all the other problems with it stem from that flaw.Briddey has the most over involved, nosy family and coworkers-- ever. To a certain point, it's ok. Amusing, even. But because the book is so long, this dynamic keeps getting shoehorned into the story, and it loses its luster. If the book had been shorter, reoccurring themes like her pushy, over-the-top Irish brood would have seemed fresher and less gimmicky. A lot of scenes were drawn out and repetitive. There's one part where Briddey and C.B. are trying to get from one part of a library to another part of the same library, and it takes them like 20 pages. It didn't turn me off enough to abandon the book, but I could see how it might with other readers. Then there's the name Briddey. Yes, maybe this is petty, but that's a horrible name, even explained as being "short" for Bridget, and I cringed every time I read it.The good parts of this book outweighed the negatives. It's a romantic comedy with a sci-fi twist, and I happen to really enjoy romantic comedies when done well. Which this one is. I like the whole "couple who spar together stay together" trope. Mark Darcy and Bridget Jones (who no one ever called Briddey, but I digress). George Knightly and Emma Woodhouse. I liked most of the characters in this book, but I did feel Trent was a bit transparent. When you discover the truth about him you won't be surprised. I loved Maeve, Briddey's niece who spends every waking minute trying to outmaneuver her crazy warden of a mother, but I do think the author made a mistake with her age-- she's supposed to be 9 but acts more like 12. And of course this book has a HEA ending that's expected but satisfying at the same time.Overall impressions: if you've ever thought sci-fi books should be more like romantic comedies, this is the one for you. This is my first Connie Willis book, but I'm excited to read more from her.
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Published August 9, 2016 by William Morrow
Rating: ★★★
"I type my password: IHATEJOSHUA4EV@. My previous passwords have all been variations on how much I hate Joshua. For ever."
Lucy Hutton hates Joshua Templeton with every fiber of her being. In fact, these days, hating him is about all she's doing with her life. Ever since the personable publishing house she works for merged with a heartless, number crunching competitor, Lucy spends countless hours at work. She lost her best friend in the merger, and her super supportive parents live hours away. Now, she and her nemesis are up for the same promotion, and the loser has to resign. Will she lose her job, too?
I liked this book well enough, but I was really expecting it to be more fun (and funny) than it was. The bit about the passwords is the only genuine laugh I had the entire book. It starts off with a misstep, going into the business merger instead of the meat of Lucy's war with Joshua. The two don't seem to antagonize each other all that much. If you're expecting Jim/Dwight levels of office shenanigans, you'll be disappointed.
The characters didn't seem consistent to me. As the story progresses, Lucy starts having "freak outs" that didn't plague her earlier in the book. Joshua gets more socially awkward and closed off. The romance just didn't work for me. I didn't buy the characters together.
I'm seeing it more and more in chick-lit type books, but the dialogue tagging was at times incorrectly done and confusing. How does this keep getting past editors?
Overall impressions: Devoted chick-lit fans will find a lot to like in this book, but other audiences might want to think twice.
Vivian is a book blogger.
She's obsessed with romance novels and spends her free time surrounded by them, from running a lonely hearts book club to working part-time at her mom's bookshop to raving about hunky heroes anonymously on the internet. Up until now, seventeen-year-old Viv's knowledge of love has come entirely from in between the covers... book covers, that is. But that changes when her long time crush, Jake, takes notice of her over the summer. They start sneaking off for clandestine make out sessions on the beach at night.
So it's all coming up roses for our fair heroine Vivian. Until the first day of school comes and Jake makes it clear he and she are not a thing. Were never a thing. He was just bored. Yep, he's that guy.
Heartbroken, Vivian decides to make a list of guys who are safe to crush on. It becomes an all-consuming mission (helped by a healthy dose of channeling Spock), and her number one requirement is lack of chemistry. Too bad she meets Dallas, the new guy. He's nerd-hot and a perfect match for her, but she won't let herself get close, worried about getting hurt again. Still, it's hard to deny the attraction between them, and Dallas isn't giving up on becoming her replacement crush. But Viv is playing a dangerous game and just might push him so far away that he's gone for good.
This is a cute, sweet book that's easy enough to devour in a single sitting. Dallas is the perfect book boyfriend. Not the least bit realistic, but he's fun to read about and has great chemistry with Viv. Vivian's friends were fun, and it was nice to read a book with drama-free, supportive girl friendships. Viv herself came across as younger than seventeen, and her mission became a bit tiresome and the concept a bit convoluted, which are my only real criticisms of this book. If you want to get lost in a fun, innocent romance with plenty of book nerd and straight-up-nerd references, consider this one.
This book will be published on September 6 2016 by Entangled Teen
Rating: ★★★★
Author: Scott Stambach
Release Date: August 9th 2016
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Version Reviewed: digital ARC courtesy of publisher and NetGalley
Rating: ★★★★★
Wow. I don't tend to use the word in book reviews, because I think it's kind of cliche. But, sometimes, a book is just... wow... and there's no better way to describe it.
Ivan has lived his entire seventeen years inside the Mazyr Hospital for Gravely Ill Children in Belarus. He was born with a number of physical deformities, including missing 3 of his limbs, probably due to radiation exposure after the Chernobyl meltdown. Abandoned by his parents and with little hope for a normal life, Ivan gets through the day by making everything a game. One of his favorites is to pretend to be in a coma to eavesdrop on the nurses. He dislikes most of these nurses, except Nurse Natalya, who is his biggest ally, his book supplier, and, ultimately, his savior.
Much of every day is the same for Ivan, until terminal cancer patient Polina comes to the hospital. Their relationship starts as a friendship, but becomes more. In some ways it's as bleak as the hospital, in other ways it's hopeful and typically teenaged. One thing is for sure: Ivan will never be the same.
There are parts of this book that are uncomfortable to read and even a little gross. But, in it's own way, it's also wonderful and moving. This is a unique book and a strong debut from the author. I recommend it.
This book straddles the line between young adult and new adult. I have given the title over to the latter. I don't read a lot of new adult, mostly because I haven't had any luck with the genre. This book is better than others of its kind. It was hard to write this review, because I can't talk about "the twist" without spoilers. All I can say is that it's in line with a trope I cringe when I encounter. However, these authors handle it well.
Title: You Before Anyone Else
Authors: Julie Cross and Mark Perini
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Release Date: 8/1/16
Version Reviewed: digital ARC via NetGalley
Rating: ★★★
Finley is a model who is tired of getting the cold shoulder at casting calls because of her "good girl" reputation. After all, she's close with her family, helps out with her younger twin brothers and knits (of all things!). Looking to shed her goody goody image, she decides to let lose and have a one night stand with bad boy Eddie Wells.
No, really.
But if you can get past the silliness that a model can somehow get booked for jobs by hooking up with a stranger, there's a lot to like about this book. Both Finley and Eddie wind up being likable, if sometimes a bit bland, characters. Eddie lacks some serious edge for being the "bad boy." I was worried when "the twist" materialized, because we live in a culture that increasingly romanticizes this sort of situation. The ending of this book could have gone very wrong, but it wound up surprising me by striking the exact right note. I was worried I wouldn't be able to relate to a romance about models, but that wasn't a problem.
This book exceeded my expectations in many ways, but there were places where it still struggled. The dialogue tagging is a bit dodgy, the writing very average, and the plot movement a bit turbulent. Finley's story lacked the conflict and depth that Eddie's did, and everything worked out for her a little too well to be interesting.
Author: Karole Cozzo
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Release Date: 8/2/16
Version Reviewed: digital ARC courtesy of NetGalley
Rating: ★★★★
Nikki Baylor wants a second chance. But will anyone grant her one? A couple months ago, she took part in a cyber bullying incident for which she took 100% of the fall. Now she's the girl everyone is whispering about. Her friends, and co-bullies, have ditched her and she's been expelled from school. She never leaves the house without a baseball cap pulled down to obscure her face, hoping she can get through the day without being recognized and vilified. Her once loving and supportive parents have gone cold. She's given up the things she used to love like singing and preforming. She's not sure what future, if any, waits for her after graduation.
Nikki meets Pax at the rehabilitation center where she does community service. Pax is the first person since the bullying fall out who sees her as a person instead of just her sin. Pax believes everyone deserves a second chance. He feels his own reckless actions resulted in him being paralyzed from the waist down and having to adjust to a new reality in a wheelchair. Pax is confident, good looking, charming, and Nikki starts to fall for him. But Pax has insecurities that get in the way and that Nikki can't fully understand. Neither Nikki nor Pax is where they thought they'd be in life. Can a pair of teenagers make a relationship work when they're still carrying so much baggage?
This is a sweet and fun book. Pax is one of those perfect YA boy characters we all know don't really exist but like to read about anyway. The relationship between he and Nikki is genuine and uplifting. I did not like Nikki's parents. They adore their queen bee daughter until she gets publicly outed as a mean girl, at which point they drop her like it's hot and act like she's contagious. Way to straddle both extremes, mom and dad.
The ending was nice, but for me it was a bit abrupt. Pax had a lot of issues he needed to work on, and I didn't see much resolution on them. I also felt like Nikki's story was incomplete. Yes, she gets the guy, but that's not everything.
It has occurred to me in the five months since I wrote this review (and there's a reason I no longer review ARCs that far in advance) that I might have been a bit "hetero-normative" with my first paragraph. In my defense, I didn't even know that was a thing. What I do know, is that this is a delightful YA book. It hits the exact right note of being undramatic without being cutesy. And there are amazing passages in it like this:
"... I have known you since the mountains were made and the rivers were formed. I know we're in a weird place right now, but I want you to step out of it and be there for me. Taylor is a boy, and you are my best friend. Taylor is a date, and you are my calendar. Understood?"
Did you swoon? Because I did. The writing in this book is just so darn good. And a YA book about friendship and the value of said friendship over teen romantic attachments? Sign me up.
Title: You Know Me Well
Authors: Nina LaCour and David Levithan
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release Date: 6/7/16
Version Reviewed: digital ARC courtesy of NetGalley
Rating: ★★★★★
Mark and Kate sat next to each other in Calculus class and never said a word to each other. But during the last week of the school year, they randomly find each other in a bar and everything changes. This, of course, is when Mark and Kate start to fall in love, each amazed that their soulmate has been sitting beside them the whole time undetected... or maybe not.
Mark and Kate are both gay, and both in love with seemingly unobtainable people. Both are in the midst of growing apart from their lifelong best friends, something that is especially painful for Mark because he happens to be in love with his. The two develop an instant connection and a fast friendship that they come to rely on. They help each other through insecurities and confront their fears. Kate is a promising art student who is afraid of success and believes she isn't good enough, not for the UCLA art program that accepted her and certainly not for her crush, Violet. Mark lives in terror of being rejected by his best friend, and sometimes secret boyfriend, Ryan. But even though both Kate and Mark are consumed with being in love, the driving engine of this story is their friendship.
There were so many places where this book could have dissolved into cliche, but it didn't. The ending was just that much more beautiful because it wasn't presented with a neat little bow. The writing and the characters are both fantastic. If I had to make one complaint, I do think Mark and Kate both seemed overly mature for their age.
