Tag: Must Read

Book of the Week-The Last Forever

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The Last Forever by Deb Caletti

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GoodReads / Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Book Depository

Genre:

Young Adult, view Contemporary, dosage Romance

Part of a Series?:

No

You May Like if You Liked:

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen, Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson

Age Recommendation:

13+

Plot Summary:

From GoodReads:

Endings and beginnings sit so close to each other that it’s sometimes impossible to tell which is which.

Nothing lasts forever, and no one gets that more than Tessa. After her mother died, it’s all she can do to keep her friends, her boyfriend, her happiness from slipping away. And then there’s her dad. He’s stuck in his own daze, and it’s so hard to feel like a family when their house no longer seems like a home.

Her father’s solution? An impromptu road trip that lands them in a small coastal town at Tessa’s grandmother’s. Despite all the warmth and beauty there, Tessa can’t help but feel even more lost.

Enter Henry Lark. He understands the relationships that matter. And more importantly, he understands her. A secret stands between them, but Tessa’s willing to do anything to bring them together—because Henry may just be her one chance at forever.

My Review: 

Deb Caletti is an author that I’ve been reading for quite a few years now, and eagerly anticipate each and every release of hers. This book was no different. I was also determined to finish it quickly because she will be attending the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books this weekend and I am so excited to finally meet her! It’s going to be fantastic.

The thing that always impresses me about Deb Caletti’s books is that you would think after 9 YA books (and one adult books), things would start to get repetitive. Predictable. But that isn’t actually what happens. She surprises me every single time I read a book. I read the synopsis and wondered for a moment if I was going to be able to predict the ending or if I might get bored by it.

And I wasn’t at all. Deb Caletti has a way of telling such a familiar, deep story no matter what book it is. She’s such a beautiful writer. She has the ability to write an incredibly well written novel while also making it sound like we are in the mind of a typical teenager. We go through all the feelings that Tessa is going through, while Deb paints a beautiful picture of the story, and that’s what I love about this book. It somehow manages to keep those things that we come to know from capital-L literature and makes it a young adult story with that recognizable young adult voice.

What really got me about this book is that it seems like it would be a romance story, and while there is definitely a part of that, for me, it was a story about family, and the strange ways that you lose it and find it. The way a loss can change you and how to deal with that kind of loss. I seem to be reading a lot of books about loss and grief lately and it amazes me to see the similarities and differences in which a person deals with grief and I think that’s the beauty of it. Tessa is searching for her mother in something, and she holds her mother close in a little plant named Pix that her mother has left behind for her.

The story of Pix and the fight for the plant’s survival is a huge part of why I couldn’t stop reading. Tessa is obsessed with this plant, but its gaining her friends, its opening up a relationship with her grandmother, and its giving her purpose after the loss of her mother. She is able to find her mother in that plant and both hold onto the memories of her mother while also moving on into a new chapter of her life.

The relationship between Tessa and Henry in the book is unexpected and interesting to read about and I loved watching it from beginning to end, unsure of where it would end up. They both learn so much from each other, and its unlike most relationships that we see in a YA novel and I love that. I love seeing a unique take on romance, and friendship and family.

The Last Word

You can never go wrong with a Deb Caletti book. She has 9 of them out there, and I honestly don’t think any of them are a bad place to start. The Secret Life of Prince Charming and The Nature of Jade are my two favorites but this is another winning novel from Deb Caletti. She captures a beautiful story of handling grief and moving on, and find purpose. I can’t wait to meet her this Sunday and tell her how much I loved this book!

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Book of the Week-Landry Park

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I am so very excited to share this week’s Book of the Week. It was incredibly enjoyable book and I love sharing an author’s debut novel! Check it out!

Landry Park by Bethany Hagen

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GoodReads / Barnes and Noble / Amazon / Book Depository

Genre:

Young Adult, about it Dystopian, Romance

Part of a Series?:

I believe its the first book of a series :)

You May Like if You Liked:

The Selection by Kiera Cass, Legend by Marie Lu

Age Recommendation:

13+

Plot Summary:

From GoodReads:

In a fragmented future United States ruled by the lavish gentry, seventeen-year-old Madeline Landry dreams of going to the university. Unfortunately, gentry decorum and her domineering father won’t allow that. Madeline must marry, like a good Landry woman, and run the family estate. But her world is turned upside down when she discovers the devastating consequences her lifestyle is having on those less fortunate. As Madeline begins to question everything she has ever learned, she finds herself increasingly drawn to handsome, beguiling David Dana. Soon, rumors of war and rebellion start to spread, and Madeline finds herself and David at the center of it all. Ultimately, she must make a choice between duty – her family and the estate she loves dearly – and desire.

My Review: 

This book immediately caught my eye when I saw it in the bookstore. One, I had no idea who the author was, nor was her name even the slightest bit familiar. Two, her cover is so noticeable! Its absolutely gorgeous and so dark and mysterious looking. I kept seeing it all over the place and so finally, I decided to buy it.

And I am so glad that I did.

The thing about dystopian novels is that they start to kind of run together. They have the same sort of basis and so it can be difficult to make yours stand out amongst the rest. The thing about Bethany’s novel that really caught me that instead of being told from the point of view from someone at the bottom of the food chain, knowing something needs to change, she told the story from someone at the top, and someone at the very top.

Madeline is the heiress to Landry Park, the center of this new United States. Her ancestor invented a sort of power source that kept them afloat before the Eastern enemies could completely take them over. This has left the Landry family with incredible power, incredible wealth and incredible estate, and Madeline is set to inherit it all. She is comfortable. She has servants, and food and pretty clothes at every corner. Her primary objective in life would be to find a husband and produce an heir. Like a princess. But her actual objective is to go to university and be educated.

And I think this is what really makes Bethany’s novel so strong, in my opinion. She has a very wealthy character, one who really has no reason to want things to change and yet she puts her on the path to believing that the world she lives in is wrong and that it does need to be change. And while I love the physical strength of a female character (Katniss, Tris, June, etc), I love that Madeline is strong in her own right, using her intelligence. Instead of heading down to a punching bag every day or shooting arrows with her bow, she wants to learn and learn and use that intelligence for better. I think that’s a very powerful thing. Sometimes I think people forget that a character doesn’t have to be an actual fighter to be an incredibly strong character, and Madeline is a prime example of that.

But I also just love the world that Bethany has created. I really admire the authors that include the rest of the world. I know sometimes its hard to do that, because the society is so controlled, they really have no access to outside information, like in THG or Divergent, but I love when its addressed. It’s one thing to make one country of many fall apart but to address that the same sort of things happened all over the world is awesome, and I love that. I love that she gave the U.S. that vulnerability and that they lost part of their states (though my beloved state is part of that…). I think if something were to truly happen that would send us into a sort of dystopian state, I think the world would be chomping at the bit to get a part of this huge country so I appreciated that she sort of…wrote the history the way I think it would happen.

And it was just beautiful. The houses, the dresses, the parties, the scandal. All of that sort of thing. This is supposed to be future us, but as you read it, you feel sort of regressed. The idea of the debut, and choosing a husband that could secure your future, or the future of your family and their finances. Women being used a financial tool. It seemed familiar and it was almost sort of scary, like we could regress in the future. But as much as it was so hard to watch, it was also like a car accident, you couldn’t look away. While people are starving, getting sick from the radiation, not even citizens in this new world, you are watching Landry at this incredibly lavish parties with these carefree, selfish people and it makes you turn the page to see what she’s going to do about it.

Also, I truly love the secondary characters that Bethany creates. I won’t say too much because their natures are revealed throughout the story, even to Madeline, so I don’t want to ruin that. But I enjoy mostly getting to know David and Cara and their roles in all of this. You think you know both of them when you meet them, and they keep you guessing the whole novel and I still feel like there is so much more to know about them.

The Last Word

This is one of the longest reviews I’ve written and there’s a reason for that. This book makes me want to talk. It makes me want to get into discussion and talk about it and I love that. I love a book that can make me laugh or cry or curse the world but I do truly love a book that can make me think, and set the wheels in my brain in motion, and I think this book can do all of those things. It has the mystery, it has the hints of rebellion, it has aching romance (seriously, my heart literally ACHES for Madeline at times), it has the intrigue, it has it all, and it really makes me want to burst into discussion right after. It would make a seriously amazing book club pick.

So pick up a copy of Bethany’s debut novel and watch out for an interview with her VERY soon!

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Fictional Crush of the Week: Daemon Black from the Lux Series

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Character Name:

Daemon Black

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The guy who models as Daemon Black on all the covers…hubba hubba. 

Book or Series They Appear In:

The Lux Series

Obsidian, thumb Onyx, story Opal, viagra approved Origin, Opposition (Not Yet Released)

Author/Creator:

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Played By: 

No One Yet

Who They Are:

I’m going to remind you guys again because I”m still getting complaints. My FCotW’s WILL be spoiler filled. Sorry. I’ve warned you so much time haha. 

Daemon Black is the main character, alongside Katy Swartz, in the Lux series. He is Katy’s next door neighbor: mysterious, extremely sexy and a completely asshole. Katy hates him, until he saves her life, and it comes with consequences. Daemon is part of an alien race called the Luxen, and he used his powers to save her, marking her, making her a target for their enemy, the Arum. What starts out as a grudging need to protect Katy turns into way more. The series follows their love story, and the people they are constantly on the run. In one of the books, Daemon heals Katy from basically near death and this changes Katy and gives her unique powers. Because of this, she is a hot commodity and together, they have to fight to keep themselves safe.

Daemon has dark hair, impossible green eyes, and is ridiculously good looking, because, you know, if I was an alien, that’s exactly what I would look like. He’s unbelievably cocky and teasing and he knows exactly what to say. It takes him a while to admit that he’s falling for Katy, but when he does, he’s fiercely in love with her, and protective and loyal to her. He’s an incredible fighter, and is very very loyal to his family members.

Why I Am Crushing On Them: 

Seriously, the first time that I read the Lux series, I was dying. I could not believe that this existed. I remember seeing the cover and being like…no. Just no. I didn’t like it at all. But my friend Megan convinced me to read it and I’m glad I did. They are so guilty pleasure books but I love them, and a huge part of that is down to one Mr Daemon Black. When I first started reading the book, he reminded me so much of Jace Wayland, that I could barely handle it. I think it was the cockiness.

Plus, Jennifer just writes him as this sexy, sexy man and you watch as Katy goes from being absolutely disgusted with him to trying to control her hormones at every turn. I mean, in Obsidian, the first novel, Katy asks Daemon whether he’s equipped like a normal male, and instead of just saying, “Why, yes, Katy, I do have a penis”, he rolls on top of her and rolls his hips to show her that yes, he is anatomically correct. I’m like, what the hell? And he continues to do stuff like that which drives Katy crazy, which drives me crazy. He’s unbelievably and undeniably sexy as a character.

But I also like Daemon as a character, and his development. I like that it takes a long time for him to get openly emotional with Katy, and that it takes a while for him to say “I love you” and that sort of thing because its true to him. There’s no rushed feelings wit him. You see him slowly fall in love with her, and you see his fierce protectiveness of her and the desire he has for, and its just kind of fun to watch it happen.

Notable Quotes:

“Did you think you could stop me? I’ll burn the world down to save her.”

“I will always be in love with you. That’s not going to change today or two weeks from now. I will be just as in love with you in twenty years as I am today.”

 “I held her tight, and I knew right then I would burn down the whole universe for her if I had to. I would do anything to keep her safe. Kill. Heal. Die. Anything. Because she was my everything.”

 “Another fanboy. I have them everywhere.”

“No Olive Garden? Man, we’ve got to get that boy some endless breadsticks and salad. Travesty.”

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Can I just say…after doing this, I really want to read these books again…

Tuesday Top Ten-Books I Was Reluctant to Read But Am Glad I Did!

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Well, troche that was a seriously fun title. I kept trying to make it shorter but nothing I did made it sound…right. This was the closest. It got the point across and that’s all that matters.

So do you ever go to a bookstore, pharmacy or read a blog or talk to some friends, buy and there is a book that they just won’t let go, and you just have no desire to read it. You’re reluctant and there’s several reasons you could be. You don’t like the cover. You don’t like the name. You don’t do “zombie books”. Its too popular.

Whatever the reason is, you’re just reluctant to pick up a copy and read it. But for another reason, you finally decide to. Maybe you found a super cheap copy somewhere or your friend just WON’T STOP BUGGING YOU ABOUT IT. And you know what, the book surprises you. And it becomes something that you like, or even a favorite of yours.

That happens to me a lot actually. I’m kind of a book snob. I make fun of my boyfriend all the time for being a movie snob but I’m totally a book snob, and I might even be worse than him. I judge books b y their covers and their names. I tend to stay clear of vampires and romances, fallen angels and ghosts.

So I have trouble a lot when people recommend books. I have to really hear good things about it, or be bugged enough about it to sit down and read it. And sometimes, I’m like, “Okay, well that was a waste of my time.” But more often than not, I’m actually pleasantly surprised.

Here is my top ten of those books.

10. The Lightning Thief 

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I know, right? I know! This is one of my absolute favorite series, along with its spin-off, The Heroes of Olympus. I mean, how could I ever be reluctant to read it. I don’t know if I thought it was going to be childish, or I don’t know. I just remember that it took forever for me to sit down and read them, and when I finally did, I remember speeding through all five books, plus the first two of HoO in like, a week and a half because I was just blown away. I know that it got a lot of Harry Potter comparisons in the beginning and that also could have been something that turned me off since there really can only be ONE Harry Potter but its more like, if you like HP, you’ll like PJ. And I definitely agree with that. I absolutely loved these books.

9. 52 Reasons to Hate My Father

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I LOVE Jessica Brody and I seriously love everything she writes but I must admit I felt a little skeptical to read this book. The cover (both this and the hardback cover) turned me off a bit and I just wasn’t sure how to feel about it, and it sounded weird, and cliche-ish. But I decided to read it because I got it signed and its Jessica and I absolutely adore her. And I LOVE this book. Its exactly what I thought it was going to be and yet so much more. It surprised me with its realness and its humor and I loved the main character so much that even while she was driving me absolutely insane, I still totally wanted to be her best friend. And the whole 52 jobs in 52 weeks thing actually sounds like it would be fun, inspiring and life-changing.

8. Anna and the French Kiss

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I hated this title so much. I hate everything about it because it sounded like a fluffy, no substance YA romance novel and it proved me massively wrong. I definitely enjoyed this book immensely but I think the reason I am so glad that I got over my aversion to this book was that it led me to the “sequel”, Lola and the Boy Next Door, which I LOVE so much. I am so in love with Cricket and Lola is just an awesome character. I was pleasantly surprised with how much depth these books had, and that they were so much more than just a fluffy novel. Stephanie Perkins is an absolutely fantastic author and I was surprised and happy that I had read these books.

7. Between the Lines

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I purchased this for about 2 or 3 dollars on Kindle about four years ago. It kept popping up as a recommendation and I remember thinking: it looks super fluffy romance AND its self-published so what if it totally sucks. I eventually gave in because I think I had nothing else to read and it was super cheap and I’m so glad I did because she has become one of my absolute favorite authors and a dear friend of mine. This is a four book series and while it has the fun and sexiness of Hollywood (and I totally wish Reid Alexander was real so I could drool all over his washboard abs), there’s all this substance in there. There’s alcohol and drug use and charity work and neglect and abuse and teenage pregnancy and so much coming-of-age-ness. I absolutely love this series, and this author and I’m SO glad I took a chance with this.

6. Unbreakable

Kami Garcia/Unbreakable

The reason I was super reluctant to read this was because I was not a fan of Beautiful Creatures at all. While the premise of this book sounded really awesome, I just didn’t want to be disappointed after BC. I just wasn’t a fan of that book at all. Not my thing, I suppose. But I decided to give this one a chance, based on the recommendation of some fellow bloggers and, again, I’m so very glad that I did. I love this book. Its exactly what I wanted from it based on the description and I think Kami super rocked it. I loved all the myths and legends woven into the story and I love that its kind of like Supernatural, with two hot brothers but its told in the point of view of a girl, who I just know is going to be totally kickass as this series builds. I am counting down the days until book two.

5. Obsidian

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I hated the cover, I hated the stupid synopsis on the back. I hate when books don’t even have a real synopsis on the back. Its like “One Girl. One Guy. One Destiny. He’s an alien. She’s a book blogger. Kisses. What will happen next?” Okay, that was so made up right now but you know what I mean. It’s like, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS BOOK ABOUT? And the cover was just, ugh. It only caught my eye because the spine was all pretty and green. Then I met Megan and she convinced me to read it so I went back, bought it and decided to give it a try, and I read the next two super quickly. It’s not super substantial or life changing but its fun and sexy and I love it. Plus it also just introduced me to JLA and I adore her, and I’m massively in love with her Covenant series.

4. The Selection

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Again, the cover. I’m such a snob. I judge books by their cover and I was like, this one doesn’t look good in the slightest. But someone, I can’t remember who, told me to read it so I did and it really surprised me with the depth that it had. It had sort of a Bachelor meets Hunger Games meets Divergent sort of vibe. It was very dystopian but it also feels kind of like the Bachelor. I thought America was a well thought out character and that her struggle as a girl in the Selection was so real and raw and familiar. Even though I’ve never sat and competed for the hand of a prince with 20 other girls, I could understand her confusion and her constantly waging emotions. Its such a real book, and I can’t wait til the next one comes out, I’m just dying. Kiera Cass really impressed me and I want to meet her and tell her that.

3. The Hunger Games

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I KNOW. I know right? I can’t even…whatever. (If you missed that as a Mean Girls quote, you don’t deserve to read my blog…haha). I read the first two books in the series about two weeks before Mockingjay came out. Again, I’m kind of a snob and everyone was reading it and it was around the same time as the Twilight outbreak and I was just kind of over reading “trend” books, if you know what I mean. I was just so much “too cool” for that. HA! My sister kept bugging me to try it though so I picked up a copy at Barnes and Noble one night and the begged my sister to let me borrow her Catching Fire because the stores were closed and I needed it RIGHT NOW. I remember buying Mockingjay on my Kindle app so I could download it at midnight and start reading. I can’t believe I ever was like, I’m too cool for this because I don’t know what my life would be without this series.

2. Unspoken

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I adore Sarah! However, I had read her Demon’s Lexicon and just wasn’t that impressed. But I really liked her, I liked meeting her so I saw this book and was like, meh, I’ll add it to my TBR. I was interviewing some authors and I interviewed her and she was so sweet and so quick about it and I was so happy, and I was like, I have to read this book. I read this one and its sequel, Untold, in about two days because I LOVE this book. I love the main character, Kami, and all her sassiness and I’m madly in love with Jared Lynburn and his dark sexiness, and I just loved the story. I thought everything about it was so fresh and new, and the characters felt new and yet familiar and I was just so in love with this book. It just sort of reminded me that I shouldn’t give up on an author simply  because I may have disliked one book. Another book may completely surprise me.

1. Vampire Academy

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I don’t do vampire books. I don’t like this cover. I don’t like the title. The girl reminds me of Angelina Jolie and I’m not a fan of hers. There was so much about this that just turned me off. Every time I saw it in the bookstore, I just made a face and turned around. I seriously have to thank Jade and Stephanie for this, for beating me down and making me read it because now I have a VA tattoo. I mean, that’s how much I am so glad I gave these books a chance. I mean, they basically were like “Sara, shut up and read this book” and I did and I am just…I am so glad I did. The title and cover is still not my favorite at all, but I love these books. They don’t even feel like vampire books. They have so much darkness and romance and action and coming-of-age-ness (I keep saying that, I think I made that up) and I just love it all. I love Rose and Lissa and Christian and Dimitri and Adrian (ADRIAN!!!) and I just love it. I’m so massively glad I read these because now I have a molnija mark on my shoulder and its beautiful.

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What are some books that you were reluctant to read but you did and you ended up liking? Share in the comments!