Tag: young adult

Leigh Bardugo’s Ruin and Rising Launch Party at The Last Bookstore!

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I’m just going to start off by saying this: Leigh Bardugo and her friends really know how to throw a party. A launch party that is.

The first “real” launch party that I ever attended was Leigh’s last year for the middle book of the Grisha trilogy series, treat Siege and Storm. It was a total blast so when Leigh told me about her party back at the Festival of Books, ambulance I knew that this was something that I could not miss.

I met up with my friends Sylvia and Alex, and we ate some delicious pizza and Slurpees that were literally perfect for the moment. We then drove to pick up my friend Cassandra and made our way to The Last Bookstore.

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If you’ve never been to The Last Bookstore in LA before, its an incredible place to go. There are books everywhere, and rooms that are like mazes, and tunnels and really cool doors and its just beautiful. Its one of the most beautiful bookstores I’ve ever seen. Leigh could not have picked a better place to launch her final novel in the Grisha trilogy.

There was lots of food to eat, and drinks too called “The Ruin” and “The Rising.” They were delicious, both the non-alcoholic ones and the ones with a kick ;)

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The decorations were SUPER awesome. The entire bookstore was transformed to celebrate the series, and I just wanted to take pictures of everything.

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The first pages of Shadow and Bone, Siege and Storm and Ruin and Rising

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Leigh was introduced, in such a lovely way, and talked to us for a bit. She never fails to both make me laugh and inspire me. She read a bit from a diary that she had when she was about ten years old, and it was SO funny. Then she went through the basic plot line of Labyrinth. Yes, the David Bowie Labyrinth. It was, and has remained, a favorite movie of hers and she talks about why that is. We reach this pivotal moment of the film, where it goes from being a children’s movie to something a bit more, and she believes that it is YA. She talks passionately about YA, about reading it and writing it, and it was just plain beautiful. Leigh is incredibly inspiring.

She also read a very small bit of the beginning of Ruin and Rising, and then we all were dismissed for food, drinks and fun…oh and signing too.

My friends and I immediately departed for the photobooth. I had a TON of fun with it last year, and I was eager to get back into it again, with some of my most awesome friends :)

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I also had the guts to get into the booth by myself this time. I SO would not have done that a year ago!

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They also had a manicure station as well, but I’m a compulsive nail biter and I tend to stay away from that haha.

We finally decided to get in line to meet Leigh and it was a great time, as always. We talked a bit, and I told her I would see her in Vegas next week for the Fierce Reads stop and she signed my copy of Ruin and Rising. We also got lots of swag, which is always good. I love getting my hands on more bags, and bookmarks and pins.

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And I got my special launch party edition sticker too, which my Siege and Storm has, and was MUCH needed for my Ruin and Rising.

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As we were saying goodbye to everyone, and leaving the venue, there were two guys manning the front security desk. We had asked them early if there was a way to get our hands on the giant posters, the ones that I posted earlier, that had the first pages of each novel of Grisha trilogy. We were told that we couldn’t have them, because they were needed the next day at Leigh’s event down in San Diego. I know I was disappointed but it was okay. As we were leaving though, the two guys flagged us down and handed the posters over, making us SO incredibly happy. We ran back into the bookstore and made sure to get these posters signed by Leigh!

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All in all, it was a great night, full of a TON of fun, especially the book kind, which is my favorite :) It is always a blast hanging out with my friends and meet new ones, and to see Leigh Bardugo again. She’s brilliant, hilarious and inspiring.

I definitely can’t wait for more launch parties for Leigh in the future!

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Oh! I also got to talk to Leigh’s mom again, who remembered me from the last launch party, and a picture was totally necessary. I even put them back to back so you could see. What a sweetheart and so proud of her daughter. I love it!

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I have finished Ruin and Rising already so watch out for a review coming VERY VERY soon!

Happy Reading everyone!

Favorite and Least Favorite City of Heavenly Fire Moments! (Spoilers!)

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I don’t really think I need to warn you but I’m going to do it anyway because I know people just don’t pay attention.

This entire post is literally spoilers for City of Heavenly Fire. If you havent’ finished the book, buy more about or don’t want to be spoiled, sildenafil please turn back now!

Okay, buy information pills jumping in. With both of my spoiler filled vlog and my spoiler free review here on the blog, I tried to be as vague as possible, to talk about as much as I could in a short amount of time and space. So I wasn’t really able to get into all my favorite and least favorite parts. That’s the purpose of this post, to share exactly what I loved and what I didn’t.

I hope you’ll share yours as well!

FAVORITE:

Isabelle’s Vision

When Jace, Clary, Alec, Isabelle and Simon enter into the demon realm to rescue Luke, Jocelyn, Magnus and Raphael, and find Sebastian, they are immediately stopped by a demon that force them to see sort of visions. Clary sees the family that she could have had: Jocelyn married to Luke, a real brother in Jonathan, a little sister. Alec sees himself as loved by everyone that he’s wanted to love him, to be appreciated and praised, and to be the person that is the center of attention. Isabelle’s is the most heartbreaking because its the one that you honestly wish was real. Its her birthday and Simon has thrown her a party, and at her party is Max. Max, frozen at 9 years old, when he died. And I lost it. I couldn’t stop crying. I was so heartbroken. Max’s death has been the most hard hitting in all six books for me, and it hurts when you know how much he is missed and how responsible Isabelle feels for his death. It was beautiful.

Simon’s Band Name

Simon’s memories have been taken from Magnus’ father, as payment for them returning to their world. Its heartbreaking (until you read the epilogue), but when you see the flyer for Simon’s band’s show…I just had this half laugh, half sob thing going on, because I thought it was SO funny and so awesome. His band name? The Mortal Instruments. It was too perfect. It’s been a fan theory for so long and its one of those things that I was actually kind of glad made it into the book.

Jace and Clary-Cave Scene

Um, can we say about time? I mean, I know, they’re like 17 years old, and that’s not exactly old or anything but we’ve all been hoping for some steamy Clace sex for six books now and I’m glad it finally happened and IN A CAVE. The first thing I thought of when they had sex in the cave was…did they really just have sex in a cave like the way Will and Tessa did in Clockwork Princess. Plus it was just beautiful. It was the right moment for it to happen. The world was falling apart around them, and they could die at any moment, and they truly love each other, and it was perfect. I could never write a scene like that, and that’s okay. My sex scenes are going to be a bit rougher, realistic, but Cassie’s are beautiful and I loved every detail of it.

Sebastian’s Redemption

I didn’t expect that, and while it was cheesy, I actually liked it. When Clary stabs Sebastian with the sword that contains the heavenly fire, and Sebastian momentarily becomes Jonathan Morgenstern, complete with green eyes. He expresses his grief, his wish that he hadn’t been born with the demon blood and his hope that there would be another dimension where he was the good son and brother. It was SO cheesy but I actually kind of liked it. It was sweet, and sad, and it was another blow of loss to Jocelyn and to Clary, of what could have been. It was both expected and unexpected and I enjoyed it.

Jem and Jace Talking For the First Time

I LOVED THIS. I had to stop and breathe in and out about this. I loved hearing Jem talk about his past, the people in his life, and all of that. If I had thought for even a moment that I was okay with the feels that Clockwork Princess had brought me, I was so very wrong. All the feelings from just the CP2 epilogue alone came rushing back, and it was beautiful to see him again. I loved his reuniting with Tessa and their appearance and Luke and Jocelyn’s wedding. Just all those feels from Clockwork Princess. I couldn’t handle it.

Maia’s Transformation

I was talking to a few people and they weren’t happy with the Maia thing in the book. I do admit, her relationship with Jordan was weird, especially since he died, and she appeared to be making something happening with Bat, but I was just proud of her as a character. Having the guts to take over the NY wolf pack, and to lead it, and to inform the Shadowhunters of the plans going down. I was really proud of her, and the way she stepped up and became a force to be reckoned with. I think Maia has always been sort of a background character but she really proved herself in this book and I honestly really loved it.

Jem Stealing Church

You don’t really need to go further than that. I honestly just couldn’t stop laughing. It was such perfection.

Clary and Jace Fighting Side by Side

I LOVE THIS. Before this, Clary and Jace had an inequality about them. Jace was an amazing Shadowhunter, Clary had her rune powers but there was always something kind of separating them in the Shadowhunter world. But watching them fight side by side, was just truly beautiful. I really felt like…its not about Jace protecting Clary physically or Clary using her powers to save Jace…they’re equals and fighting together and taking on the world together. They can protect each other. They recognize the strengths in each other and I think its awesome. There no angst, none of that struggle. They had finally reached a balance in their relationship and it was all about keeping themselves safe while taking Sebastian down.

Simon’s Sacrifice

I really liked this part, until the epilogue, which you’ll see later. By the time we had gotten to this part, I was kind of disappointed that no one had died. Again, see later. But when Simon steps up to sacrifice not only his immortality as a vampire, and his memories of everything of the shadow world, I was heartbroken. This, to me, was even worse than death. Simon had found his confidence in being part of that world. He would never remember his absolute best friend, Clary. He wouldn’t remember the girl he loved, Isabelle. That would be all gone. What a fate to fall upon one of the best characters in this series.

Anytime Emma is On the Page

OHMYGOD. I am absolutely adoring of Emma. I have been excited for so long for The Dark Artifices. This is the Shadowhunter world in Los Angeles, the place that I love. This is my home. Of course, I am so excited about it. But now after reading CoHF, I’m even more excited about it. We got to see so much of Emma, Julian and the Blackthorn children and so many hints at what to expect in TDA. I adore Emma. She’s a little spitfire and she’s going to be a great Shadowhunter and I want to see her climb rooftops again…haha. I can’t wait to see her grown up in TDA. I eagerly await it.

LEAST FAVORITE:

Lack of Deaths

Seriously? Who dies? WHO DIES? No one really. Jordan. Maureen. Amatis. Raphael. Andrew Blackthorn. Sebastian. All sad deaths, to be honest. Well, not Maureen. She was just insane. But none that hit me. None that made me feel heartbroken. I felt…like Cassie went way too safe with this ending. They were in the demons realms, there was Endarkened EVERYWHERE, and no one hugely important died? That bothered me. A really good author knows when to make a good sacrifice. Look at JK Rowling. Its war, and the deaths that she did: Sirius, Dumbledore, Mad-Eye, Fred, Tonks, Lupin, Colin Creevy, Hedwig. All important deaths that make cringe just typing them.

But Cassie went super safe and that made me sad. I wanted to feel the heartbreak, I wanted to feel the true loss of war. People lose friends, family members, lovers when there is war, and no one really had that. I honestly felt that Jocelyn, Luke, Jace, Clary, Alec, Magnus, Simon, Isabelle…one or two of those people should have died. It would have made the story that much better.

Simon’s Memories Coming Back

Which brings me back to Simon. I was feeling the disappointment in the lack of sacrifice in this book, when Simon decides to give up his memories and I almost felt like that was worse than death. Simon is one of the VERY first characters you meet, right after Clary. He’s important, and to have him lost to them, and have him lose all memories…it was heartbreaking. It was perfect. Then I read the epilogue, and I was disappointed again. I could see Simon having some memories buried deep, look what happened with Clary and her memories. But the idea of Simon ascending and suddenly remembering a good amount of Clary, Jace and Isabelle just kind of bothered me. It was TOO happy. It was a great sacrifice that was wasted by being wrapped up too quickly.

Magnus’ Dad

Did anyone expect way more than what he was? I expected this big scary guy that was mean, someone that Magnus didn’t want to claim himself to, someone that he was afraid of but it didn’t really turn out that way. He was just kind of silly, and Magnus seemed more annoyed with him than frightened. So that was a slight letdown.

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So what do you guys think? Share your favorite and least favorite moments in the comments! I love to hear from you but BE NICE. No hating on anyone for anything. Remember rule #1! 

Book Review: Broken Hearts, Fences and Other Things to Mend

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This review is based an advanced reader’s copy given to me by Macteen Books as part of the Fierce Reads Street Team in exchange for an honest review and promotion. This in no way had any influence on my review.  

You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Author Website

GoodReads Summary:

Summer, here boys, price and friendships gone sour. This new series has everything that perfect beach reads are made of!


Gemma just got dumped and is devastated. She finds herself back in the Hamptons for the summer—which puts her at risk of bumping into Hallie, site her former best friend that she wronged five years earlier. Do people hold grudges that long? 

When a small case of mistaken identity causes everyone, including Hallie and her dreamy brother Josh, to think she’s someone else, Gemma decides to go along with it.

Gemma’s plan is working (she’s finding it hard to resist Josh), but she’s finding herself in embarrassing situations (how could a bathing suit fall apart like that!?). Is it coincidence or is someone trying to expose her true identity? And how will Josh react if he finds out who she is? 

Katie Finn hits all the right notes in this perfect beginning to a new summer series: A Broken Hearts & Revenge novel.

My Review:

I had no idea Katie Finn was Morgan Matson when I first got this book. I was SO excited, and am still VERY excited to be a part of the Fierce Reads Tour. Fierce Reads has a ton of amazing authors like Jessica Brody and Leigh Bardugo and Ava Dellaira and all kinds of authors. Being a part of their team has been awesome so far, and I was glad to be a part of it. When I became part of Katie Finn’s team, I was like, okay, I don’t know her, but that’s okay because I’m always up for learning about new authors.

I felt sort of silly when I went to go download my review copy and realized that she was Morgan Matson, one of my favorite authors ever. I urged my computer to download faster, and then cuddled up with my Nook to read this book.

I read it in about 2 hours. I sped through it so fast, because it was so much fun! It was really awesome to see a different writing side to Morgan. As Morgan, she writes sort of serious, dramatic YA, and as Katie Finn, it was a lot of fun, laughs, sort of unbelievable hijinks and I really truly enjoyed it. Whenever summer hits, I’m always looking for some good contemporary books to read, something involving road trips or trips to the beach and Broken Hearts is absolutely perfect in that.

Gemma is a real relatable character. She makes a mistake when she is younger, and she’s constantly feeling guilty about it. When she arrives to spend the summer with her father, and runs into the best friend she had so many years ago, the one she wronged, she genuinely wants to make things better. Of course, she goes about the wrong way, but she really is a genuine person and I think she’s hurt by her ex-boyfriend and just kind of making the mistakes that people make sometimes when they don’t quite know what to do with themselves. Plus, she makes some silly mistakes along the way too, and it makes me laugh. She gets herself into some of the craziest situations and I found myself laughing out loud at many of the parts.

I also love Josh. Josh is the brother of the girl Hallie that Gemma had wronged so many years before, and she has a vague memory of him, but when she returns, of course he’s totally cute and totally sweet, and crush-worthy. I totally developed a crush on him. Despite the train wreck of silliness that Gemma can sometimes be, he obviously cares a lot about her, and they are very cute together. Its a fun, summer romance and I love being along for that ride.

Getting down to it, without spoiling the book…its just fun. Its a really fun book. This is a perfect summer time read because its got the pool parties and the ice cream and the summer dates and all of that, the summer fun and, of course, the summer drama. I wanted to be a part of that world, and it reminded me of the summers I used to have before having jobs and responsibilities. It was juicy and racy and just straight up fun. I found myself laughing over and over and over again.

I will say this too, I wasn’t aware that it was a trilogy at first, because normally with contemporary, there is very little times, a sequel. So when the book ended, I was like “WHAT!” I never knew a contemporary book could leave me with such a delicious and infuriating cliffhanger. I wanted to throw the book across the room because I HAD to know what happened next. I turned the page and saw that there would be more books and felt a slight sense of relief that I would eventually find out what happened next, but I’m not a patient girl and I’m already ready for it!

All in all, fun book, full of everything you’d want in a perfect summer book…or even a book that you’re reading in winter, while dreaming of summer. It has the friendship and romance and pool parties and delicious treats and the rule breaking and all of that. Its a feel good, fun book and its one that I so HIGHLY recommend.

Rating:

5 out of 5 Stars

Book Review: City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare (Spoiler Free!)

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8755785Genre: 

Young Adult, buy Urban Fantasy

Pages: 

725

Part of a Series?:

The final book of The Mortal Instruments series

Release Date: 

May 27th, stuff 2014

You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Book Depository

Author Website

GoodReads Summary:

I am coming.

Darkness returns to the Shadowhunter world. As their society falls apart around them, Clary, Jace, Simon and their friends must band together to fight the greatest evil the Nephilim have ever faced: Clary’s own brother. Nothing in the world can defeat him — must they journey to another world to find the chance? Lives will be lost, love sacrificed, and the whole world changed in the sixth and last installment of the Mortal Instruments series!

My Review:

I will warn you now: there will be NO NO NO NO NO spoilers for City of Heavenly Fire in this review, but there will be spoilers for City of Bones, Ashes, Glass, Fallen Angels and Lost Souls. If you’re reading this and you haven’t read the first five, I can’t imagine why you’re here, but I would suggest not reading this review.

Now I’m going to jump in. I was very excited for this book but also incredibly apprehensive. I loved the way the first trilogy of this series ended, City of Glass is beautiful and it remains my favorite. Fallen Angels was disappointing to me, and Lost Souls was better but I just didn’t feel like the second half of the series was good for me. I was happy with how City of Glass ended.

That being said, now after reading City of Heavenly Fire, I can say…that City of Glass is still probably my favorite of the entire series but City of Heavenly Fire was incredible and I’m highly impressed and I thought that the ending was really great.

It wasn’t perfect though, but I’ll get to that later. I’m going to be as spoiler free as I can possibly be, but if you literally want to know nothing before you read this book, I suggest you go. I promise to be spoiler free, and vague but it still may not be enough for you.

First off, the story. When we leave Sebastian at the end of Lost Souls, with the Infernal Cup, and the ability to transform the Nephilim into darker versions of himself, I thought, where on earth is this going? We know Sebastian is insane, and that the demon blood in his body has made him into a sick person but I couldn’t see exactly where the story was going in this book. It opens up with Sebastian attacking Institutes in order to build up his Dark Shadowhunter army. The fear of him is real, and the building tension and fear throughout the story is very real. I was clutching the pages, anxious to get through because I had to know what happened next. It wasn’t just the whole “it’s the end of the series” anxiety but also the “Ohmygod, what is happening, what is Sebastian doing, what is going to happen to my favorite characters” anxiety.

The romance in the story is absolutely beautiful too. There are so many great romances in the Mortal Instruments series and seeing them interact and struggle and work together, it was beautiful, and I loved all of it. I do love that we get to see Jace and Clary fight together, side by side for the first time in the series. Its the first time we really truly see them as equals and I absolutely loved it. There are a few couples that don’t make it, all heartbreaking but done in ways that killed your heart but also made sense too, if that made sense. Its hard to explain without feeling like I’m revealing stuff but the couples that didn’t make it together, it hurt but it was done in a way that it made sense and it was heartbreaking in all the right ways. Plus there are a lot of FANTASTIC sexy scenes, enough to get all of us Shadowhunters all hot and bothered.

We’ve known for awhile now that we would meet the main characters of The Dark Artifices-Emma Carstairs and Julian Blackthorn-would be introduced in this and I was surprised with the…frequency that they appeared in the story. I won’t say more than that but what little we get to know of them as young Shadowhunters-in-training in CoHF makes me absolutely love them and I can’t wait to dive into their stories later. I also like that we get what seems like hints for Lady Midnight in this book.

Again, from the hints, and from Clockwork Princess (if you haven’t read that, please skip to the next paragraph), that Brother Zachariah would be…no longer a Silent Brother anymore. Again, no spoilers, but this scene caused me to burst into uncontrollable tears and the interaction between him and Jace was beautiful. I marked it in my book because it was truly one of my favorite scenes in the book.

I did have some issues with the end. I think that Cassandra Clare could have been…harsher than she was, and that she could have taken more risks than she ended up taking. I was disappointed that the sort of sacrifices she made didn’t make as much of an impact as she could have. Its so hard to talk about it without spoilers but I just thought Cassie could have taken more risks. I thought that the direction she took with Simon’s story was the sort of risk I was looking for but it changed in the end to something I didn’t expect and was also kind of disappointing too. I think she went safe in the ending of the book, though heartbreaking and heart wrenching, could have been…more realistic, I guess is the word I’m looking for.

The conclusion of Sebastian’s story, I’ll just do words: unexpected. but kind of expected. perfectly written. perfect in general.

I had two favorite parts: when Zachariah, no longer a Silent Brother, meets Jace. Then there is a part when…a group of our favorite characters come into contact with a demon that makes them…see things. The things they see…its very emotional and I had to pause after I read that part in order to wipe the tears literally streaming down my face.

Basically, I am highly impressed with this book, and the fact that it brought together so much that has happened in the Shadowhunter world. We got flashes to the time of Tessa, Jem and Will, we got hints at the time of their children. We have everything of the Mortal Instruments time come together and wrap up and we have hints at what is to come in the future, and I think it all comes through nearly flawlessly and I applaud Cassie Clare a million times. I am proud to wear the fearless rune permanently on my shoulder :)

One last thing that’s SLIGHTLY (very slightly) spoilery: Simon’s band finally picks a name. And its WONDERFUL.

Ave Atque Vale, Shadowhunters. Until Lady Midnight!

Rating:

4 out of 5 Stars

Ontario Teen Book Fest 2014!

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I know. I know. I know.

I’m awful! This was almost two weeks ago and I’ve just been SO incredibly busy and I kept meaning to vlog about it, sildenafil but that never happened so I’m just going to write about it quickly because all I have to say about this awesome event is that it was awesome.

Last year’s Ontario Teen Book Fest introduced to me to a multitude of amazing authors, a lot of whom I’ve since then become friends with. Which is incredible to me, both as a book blogger and as a writer. It means the world to me.

So I was most definitely looking forward to this year’s fest. I organized the blog tour, held a giveaway and did all kinds of promotion for it, because I love this event SO much.

I was asked back again as an official blogger, with my best fangirl friend, Sylvia from Fangirl Feeels, and we attended the official Author Breakfast, and started meeting the authors, getting to know them, and interviewing them for our vlog, which you can check out now!

[YouTube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MpjOfZXNfw]

It was a blast, like always, and I really enjoyed meeting all the authors and talking about fictional crushes and great teen books they wish they’d had as teens. I feel like I made a lot of connections and a lot of friends that day.

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There was the opening keynote speeches from Jessica Brody (LOVE her), Lauren Kate (seriously, she was so pregnant and IN HEELS, much props!) and John Corey Whaley (who seriously should be my best friend). They all had wonderful things to say about life and writing. They made me laugh, and they made me think, and they all made me feel a lot better about being a struggling writer. Lauren talk a lot about the struggles of getting through a book, and it felt good to hear that even a published, seasoned author can feel that sort of despair where you want to throw your computer across the room. Jessica and Corey both talked about finding the right path to writing, and emphasizing that it can take time, and it can take making the wrong choices and making mistakes to get to where you need to be.

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We then split up to go to our first panel, and I made sure to attend the debut author panel with Katherine Ewell, Livia Blackburne, Ava Dellaira and Catherine Linka. They had so much to say about writing and reading and getting into the world of publishing and writing. What struck me as super awesome is that they all had very different backgrounds (high school student turned Stanford student, neuroscientist, screenwriter, bookseller), and were obviously different ages, but they had all accomplished the same goal and that was great. They all had wonderful things to say.

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We broke for lunch after that, which was cool, because we were back in the room with the authors again! Yay! We sat near Katherine Ewell, Ava Dellaira and Livia Blackburne and talked about writing and books and Disneyland and all sorts of fun stuff, and that was just an awesome experience to have.

After lunch, we headed to the newest addition to the Teen Book Fest schedule: author speed dating. Basically there were tables for all the readers to sit at, and every 8 minutes or so, the authors would switch to another table. You basically got some personal time with about…six or seven authors and it was SO great. Sylvia and I, along with my sister Jessica, sat a table together and had some great conversations with Lauren Miller, Catherine Linka, Jessi Kirby, Jessica Brody, Ava Dellaira and Katherine Ewell and it was awesome. A GREAT addition to the Fest, for sure!

Photo Credit to: Sylvia from Fangirl Feeels

Photo Credit to: Sylvia from Fangirl Feeels

After that, we had the final panel for the day, and we headed to a panel with Jessi Kirby, Elana K Arnold, Ava Dellaira and John Corey Whaley, all about relationships and I’ve read most of their books so that was cool. Talking about the dynamic of relationships, whether family or friends or love interests, is important and the title of the panel was “It’s Complicated” so the authors tried to insert “complicated” into as many answers as possible!

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After the last panel of the day, all the authors gathered at their tables to sign their books, and we finished gathering interviews for the vlog above, and got all our books signed. It was awesome meeting ALL of the authors, and getting to know them. I am glad I’ve read some of their books and can’t wait to get my hands on the others!


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I have to throw out MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR props to Courtney Saldana, the Youth Services librarian, for putting on another fantastic event and for letting me be a part of it. Much thanks to her partner in crime, Aly, and all her volunteers as well, and the Mrs. Nelson’s Book Fair Company. You guys ROCK.

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I canNOT wait until next year, to meet all kinds of awesome authors and to be a part of it once again. Plus I heard from an inside source that my darling Andrew Smith will be there, so I’m ready for it!

Remember, you can check out all the pictures from the Ontario Teen Book Fest (at least the ones I took), on the official What A Nerd Girl Says facebook page here.

Lastly, congrats to Peyton, Jasmine and Stephanie for winning the prizes in the official Ontario Teen Book Fest blog tour giveaway!

OH! And it felt SO awesome being in the program. I felt important, and helpful!

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Happy Reading!

Book Review: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

4 Comments

Genre: 

Young Adult,  Romance

Pages: 

368

Part of a Series?:

Yes, the second one is titled P.S. I Still Love You, and will most likely be released in 2015

Release Date: 

April 15th, 2014

You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Book Depository

Author Website

GoodReads Summary:

Lara Jean’s love life goes from imaginary to out of control in this heartfelt novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Summer I Turned Pretty series.

What if all the crushes you ever had found out how you felt about them… all at once?

Lara Jean Song keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They aren’t love letters that anyone else wrote for her; these are ones she’s written. One for every boy she’s ever loved—five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed, and suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life goes from imaginary to out of control.

My Review:

Sometimes giving an author a second chance can be the best decision that you make. You can’t always judge an author by one book. Just because I particularly didn’t enjoy her novel, Burn for Burn, didn’t necessarily mean that I wouldn’t enjoy other novels from her and when this novel was released, I had a high desire to read it. After meeting her with Morgan Matson just a couple weeks ago, I knew I had to read the book. I  bought it at the signing and read it just a few days later and I am so so so so glad I did.

First off, the idea of writing letters to the boys that break your heart…that’s brilliant. I absolutely love it. Even if you have no desire to ever send them out, the way Jenny Han or Lara Jean did, I think that’s incredible. It sounds…liberating and it was great to read the ones that Lara Jean sent out. You learn so much about her, and her family and her relationships and the way she feels about love from these letters and I loved the incorporation of them into the story and how important they are to the relationships and friendships that Lara Jean creates through out the novel.

Secondly, I really love the boys that are introduced in the novel, all of them. Without getting into too many spoilers, because I try to be as spoiler free as possible in my reviews, I really did not know who to root for in this book. You begin the novel rooting for one boy and then halfway through, you’re questioning it and rooting for someone else, and then crazy enough, you go back to boy number one. Then there are the boys that are in the letters that Lara Jean simply becomes friends with and you can’t help but love those as well. Jenny Han creates such different boy characters but they’re all so great.

I also just loved the character of Lara Jean. She’s so real and fun, and she wears Harry Potter costumes on Halloween and she just cracks me up. She’s so fun, and I love that about her. I love that when her letters get sent out to the boys, she just goes full force into recovering them and saving face. She’s weird and quirky and I love everything about her. And oh god, every time she gets behind the wheel of a car, I just found myself laughing out loud so hard because I’ve just never read a character so afraid of driving before.

Lastly, I love the dynamic between the three sisters: Margot, Lara Jean and Kitty. I’m a sister, the oldest of three. (I have brothers as well, we’re kind of a big family). That was a huge part of the appeal of the story to me because that family relationship felt so real. The responsibility that Margot feels for her sisters, the way she takes care of them, and feels like she’s abandoning them by going to college…that all felt so familiar. The way she probably needed that freedom and yet felt unneeded without them, again, felt so familiar. The Song sisters love each other so much and they fight with each other and have adventures with each other and it reminded me so much of my own sisters, and that made me super happy.

Basically, Jenny Han is awesome, and I’m super glad that I decided to read her again, after being less than impressed with Burn for Burn. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before had quirkiness and a memorable main character, a fun family dynamic and a ton of cute boys and kissing and it made for SUCH a great book. I was incredibly happy to hear that there was a sequel because what a cliffhanger. I eagerly await to find out what happens to all the characters in the book and to get more of the fun and quirky and cute boys and kissing ;)

Rating:

4 out of 5 Stars