Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Title: Lola and the Boy Next Door
Author: Stephanie Perkins
Release Date: September 29, 2011
Publisher: Dutton Books
Format: Paperback
Source: Own

Goodreads | Book Depository

Synopsis: Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion...she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit--more sparkly, more fun, more wild--the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.

When Cricket--a gifted inventor--steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

My Review

When it comes to reading books, I am a procrastinator. I will buy a book, and then place it on my shelf for years before I pick it up. Or, I will just forget the book came out and I won't read the book for a few years. Lola was one of those books. And I wish I had read it sooner. 

This review will probably be more of a rave, but I will try my hardest to keep the gushing to a minimum. 

Stephanie Perkins, you write the most adorable and beautiful books. When I read Anna and the French Kiss, I felt like I was in Paris. The imagery was beautiful! And reading Lola was no different. I felt like I was with Lola where ever she went. I could imagine her costumes and all the other little details. This book, also like Anna, was cuteness overload. I actually squealed a couple times during this book, because the cuteness overwhelmed me! 

All the characters were perfect. I honestly didn't think any of them had any flaws, at least in my mind. Lola was fabulous. She was spunky, creative, and she reminded me of cinnamon. She also had tons of character development throughout this book. And then there is Cricket. Ah, Cricket. He is adorable, simply adorable. I loved his character from the first time we saw him. He is perfect. And we got to see Anna and St. Clair in this book! That just made me love the book even more. 

While Anna and the French Kiss was mostly fluff, I felt like Lola had a lot more substance. Throughout this book, we see so many real life issues; these things would actually happen. I felt that Lola and the Boy Next Door was more real than Anna and the French Kiss, but I still love Anna. This book also had one of the few love triangles that I actually liked. It wasn't cheesy, it was real! Thank you Stephanie Perkins for making a realistic love triangle. 

Rating: 5/5 worms

If you haven't read Lola and the Boy Next Door yet, don't be like me! Read it now, you won't regret it. 

Waiting on Wednesday (24)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. It showcases upcoming titles that we are currently awaiting. 

This weeks selection is....

In the Afterlight (The Darkest Minds #3)

by Alexandra Bracken

Release Date: October 28th, 2014

Synopsis: Ruby can't look back. Fractured by an unbearable loss, she and the kids who survived the

 government's attack on Los Angeles travel north to regroup. With them is a prisoner: Clancy Gray, son of the president, and one of the few people Ruby has encountered with abilities like hers. Only Ruby has any power over him, and just one slip could lead to Clancy wreaking havoc on their minds. 

They are armed only with a volatile secret: proof of a government conspiracy to cover up the real cause of IANN, the disease that has killed most of America's children and left Ruby and others like her with powers the government will kill to keep contained. But internal strife may destroy their only chance to free the "rehabilitation camps" housing thousands of other Psi kids.

Meanwhile, reunited with Liam, the boy she would-and did-sacrifice everything for to keep alive, Ruby must face the painful repercussions of having tampered with his memories of her. She turns to Cole, his older brother, to provide the intense training she knows she will need to take down Gray and the government. But Cole has demons of his own, and one fatal mistake may be the spark that sets the world on fire.

Torn Away by Jennifer Brown

Title: Torn Away

Author: Jennifer Brown

Release Date: May 6, 2014

Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Page Number: 288

Source: Netgalley

Synopsis (Goodreads): Born and raised in the Midwest, Jersey Cameron knows all about tornadoes. Or so she thinks. When her town is devastated by a twister, Jersey survives -- but loses her mother, her young sister, and her home. As she struggles to overcome her grief, she's sent to live with her only surviving relatives: first her biological father, then her estranged grandparents.

In an unfamiliar place, Jersey faces a reality she's never considered before -- one in which her mother wasn't perfect, and neither were her grandparents, but they all loved her just the same. Together, they create a new definition of family. And that's something no tornado can touch.

My Review

I was really blown away by Torn Away. When I picked it up, I wasn't expecting much, but I really enjoyed this book. This book tugs at your heart and makes you feel all the feels, but it is also a really touching story. 

This story is a very sad story about a girl named Jersey who loses all she has because of a tornado. It's raw, it's sad, but it's also very real. People lose everything  to tornadoes sometimes, and it just made the story that much more real. 

This book was very character driven. The main character, Jersey, goes through a lot in this book as she deals with the deaths of her mom and sister. She was a very realistic character, and she was broken throughout this book. Throughout this book, you could see Jersey's coping mechanisms for what happened to her, and it was very interesting to read about. At the end of the book, Jersey finally starts to heal, and that made me feel good. 

This book was incredibly descriptive. I could imagine everything that was happening during the tornado, the wreckage after, and everything else. Jennifer Brown's writing really drew me into the story and it was a really quick read. 

Rating: 4/5 worms

We Are the Goldens by Dana Reinhardt

Title: We Are the Goldens

Author: Dana Reinhardt

Release Date: May 27, 2014

Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books

Format: eBook

Page Number: 208

Source: Netgalley

Synopsis(Goodreads): Nell worships her older sister, Layla. They're one unit, intertwined: Nellayla. As Nell and her best friend, Felix, start their freshman year in high school, on Layla's turf, there's so much Nell looks forward to: Joining Layla on the varsity soccer team. Parties. Boys. Adventures.

   But the year takes a very different turn.

   Layla is changing, withdrawing. She's hiding something, and when Nell discovers what it is, and the consequences it might have, she struggles. She wants to support Layla, to be her confidante, to be the good sister she's always been. But with so much at stake, what secrets should she keep? What lies should she tell?

   Award-winning young adult author Dana Reinhardt explores questions of loyalty, love, and betrayal in this provocative and intimate novel. 

My Review

I was really looking forward to starting We Are the Goldens. It sounded like it could be really interesting. However, when I finished, I was really let down. This book wasn’t quite what I hoped it would be. 

This book is about two sisters who are really close, and Nell (the younger sister) knows a secret about Layla (the older sister). I was really intrigued by this concept, however, it just fell flat. To me, it felt like this book was mostly about the Nell and not about the secret the sisters shared. It didn’t have any of the spark that I was hoping for, and overall it was just okay. 

This book is told in second person point of view, and that was interesting because I had never read something in second person before. I thought it worked for the most part in this story, because Nell was telling this story to Layla. However, sometimes I got confused with the point of view and I didn’t always know who Nell was talking to. Overall, I think the point of view hurt the story. 

The characters in this book were really lifeless. They didn’t show any emotion, and since this book was Nell telling a story to Layla, we didn’t get to see much of the other characters. I didn’t really like any of the characters, because they just seemed boring and lifeless to me. I wished we could have gotten to know the characters better and that they had seemed more alive. 

Rating: 2/5 worms

Overall, this book was kind of a let down. Everything was rather bland and I thought it could be much better. 

The Sting of Summer by Katherine Over

Title: The Sting of Summer

Author: Katherine Over

Release Date: May 11, 2014

Page Number: 246

Source: Author

Synopsis(Goodreads): Summer has arrived. For seventeen-year-old Becca, it marks the start of the wedding season. Her family operates an event venue in the form of a renovated barn, and nearly every weekend a wedding takes place in their backyard. Becca lends a helping hand for the accelerated schedule, but work is not the only task on her mind. Seth, her longtime crush, has nabbed a photography internship that requires wedding coverage, putting the two of them in close proximity. Becca intends to make Seth something more than a far-reaching fantasy, but it's hard to build a dream when a growing tension in her family life cannot be avoided. Will Becca succeed in her quest for love? Or will summer collide with her plans and leave nothing but a sting in her heart?

My Review

The Sting of Summer is an interesting book about family, change, and life. One of the main things I loved about this book were the themes it had. It talked a lot about family, change, and how sometimes things aren't always what they seem. The main character, Becca, realizes that her life is changing and that sometimes what she wants isn't what she thought it was. These themes are really relevant today and I think that people can really gain from this.

Becca was a really funny character. You got to see her try to find summer romance while she was dealing with change, and it was really interesting. She had a really quirky personality and is probably one of the funniest characters that I've read about in a while. All of the other characters were really interesting to read about, and they felt really well rounded. Andie was really funny and Nolan was really cute. 

As for writing style, I had a few problems with it. I felt that the overall plot of the book was really predictable, and you could figure out what was going to happen. I also didn't like how Katherine Over never used contractions; it made some of the dialogue really awkward and choppy. There were also some spelling and grammar errors. However, when Katherine was writing about the weddings, she used such detail that I found myself imagining the weddings in perfect detail. The characters were really well described and so were the situations that they were in. 

Rating: 4/5 worms

Overall, I think this is a book that many people would like. The characters are funny, there are great themes, and the writing is vivid.  

Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel

Title: Second Star

Author: Alyssa B. Sheinmel

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

Release Date: May 13

Source: Netgalley

Format: ebook

Page Number: 256

Purchase: Book Depository

 

Synopsis (Goodreads): A twisty story about love, loss, and lies, this contemporary oceanside adventure is tinged with a touch of dark magic as it follows seventeen-year-old Wendy Darling on a search for her missing surfer brothers. Wendy’s journey leads her to a mysterious hidden cove inhabited by a tribe of young renegade surfers, most of them runaways like her brothers. Wendy is instantly drawn to the cove’s charismatic leader, Pete, but her search also points her toward his nemesis, the drug-dealing Jas. Enigmatic, dangerous, and handsome, Jas pulls Wendy in even as she's falling hard for Pete. A radical reinvention of J. M. Barrie's classic tale, Second Star is an irresistible summer romance about two young men who have yet to grow up—and the troubled beauty trapped between them.

My Review

This book was beautiful. Absolutely wonderfully awesome. I have been obsessed with Peter Pan retellings ever since I read Tiger Lilly and I was so happy to get my hands on a copy of Second Star for review.

 

The retelling aspect of this book was perfect. I thought it was done brilliantly and I couldn't have thought of a better way to do it. I really enjoyed the surfing aspect of the book, because it was really unique and different. I liked how most of the story was original with some aspects of Peter Pan woven in. It took me a little while to get into the story, but when I did, I was completely involved and I loved it.

 

The characters in this book were really, really good. Wendy was very focused on finding her brothers, and while she was sometimes naive, I really liked her. As for Pete and Jas, well, I couldn't pick a side in that love triangle. Both love interests really cared for Wendy and it was interesting to see the differences in each of their relationships. All the side characters, such as Belle, were also really interesting to read about, and they added a lot of flavor to the story.

 

The whole last half of this book completely got to me. I wasn't expecting that sort of an ending at all, and I was blown away. The last half of the book went by so fast and I loved every second of it. This book deals with Wendy's struggle to try to find her brothers, and it was so fantastic. The writing in this book was also wonderful, and it made me want to drive to a beach and read.

 

Rating: 5/5 worms

This book was absolutely wonderful, and I think anyone would really enjoy it.

 

 

The Legend of the Blue Eyes by B. Kristin McMichael

Title: The Legend of the Blue Eyes

Author: B. Kristin McMichael

Release Date: March 15, 2013

Publisher: Lexia Press

Source: Publisher 

Format: Paperback

Page Number: 256 

Synopsis (Goodreads): Arianna Grace liked her boring, Midwestern, teenage life where she ignored the many unanswered questions of her childhood. Why were her parents dead? Why did she not have family? Where was she raised until she was five? When someone offers to explain it all, Arianna thinks she’s just getting answers. Instead, she is thrown into a world of night humans who drink blood.

On Arianna's sixteenth birthday, her world is thrown upside down when she changes into a vampire. Night humans, or demons, as some call them, live in normal society. Learning all of the new rules of a world she didn’t know existed might be hard enough, but it's further complicated by two former-friends that now want to help her take her role as the successor to her grandfather. 

There is a war going on between the night humans. Sides have been taken and lines are not crossed. Four main clans of night humans are struggling for control of the night. Divided into two sides, clans Baku and Tengu have been at war for centuries with the clans Dearg-dul and Lycan. That is, until Arianna Grace finds out the truth; she’s the bridge of peace between the two sides. But not everyone wants peace. With the night humans divided, Arianna is now a pawn in the war between them. She must choose a side—her mother’s family or her father’s—and for once in her life, decide her own fate.

My Review

The Legend of the Blue Eyes was not just another vampire book. This was a vampire book with some bite (pun intended). I thought this book was an interesting take on the typical vampire novel. 

I really liked the plot in this book. I thought it was interesting to hear about two vampire clans at war. However, you don't really see any war in this book, which was disappointing. It was interesting to see all the different character relationships, and it was interesting to see how the main character acted. Some times in this book I felt the pacing was too fast, and I didn't really understand, and I sometimes I lost interest. However, the end of the book really picked up speed. 

I thought Arianna had some issues. I thought she was a little too trusting and a little too naive, especially for being thrown into a new scary situation. I thought she handled her new situation a little too well, because I know if it were me, I would be freaked out. I liked reading about all the breeds of creatures in this book. It was really interesting to get to read about all the characters, but I also thought the romance between them and Arianna was a little odd. 

I thought the writing style in this book was good. The way B. Kristin McMichael wrote was really engaging, and I could imagine the world that Arianna was living in. The book was very fast paced, and I thought that was good. 

Rating: 3/5 worms

Overall, I liked this book. I had issues with Arianna and sometimes I didn't understand what was going on, but I really liked the concept behind this book.