Category: YA

Book Review: All the Forever Things, by Jolene Perry

Jolene Perry lives in Alaska and writes young adult fiction. Her newest books is All the Forever Things.

Gabe’s family runs a funeral home, so she knows about death and the truth about life: everything ends. Gabe has embraced her reputation and her Wednesday Addams-vibe, complete with vintage clothes and an I-don’t-care attitude. Her best friend, Bree, is all she needs, someone who understands the weirdness of her life and loves her anyway.

But when Bree starts dating a boy who is the epitome of everything Gabe—and Bree—has hated for years, she wonders if the really knows the truth, or if she knows Bree at all. The only one she can turn to is new boy Hartman, who doesn’t know quite what to make of Gabe, but who gets Gabe out of her shell anyway. Driving a hearse to prom will change Gabe’s life more than she ever imagined.

All the Forever Things is an enjoyable read. Gabe is a character I both loved and sympathized with, and her faux pas and missteps made me laugh and cringe at the same time. Her friendship with Bree broke my heart, and made me hope everything would work out for the two of them, and Hartman is a wonderful contrast for Gabe. If you love young adult books, definitely pick this one up.

(Galley provided by Albert Whitman & Company.)

The Sky Between You and Me, by Catherine Alene

9781492638537_p0_v2_s192x300 — Image belongs to Sourcebooks Fire.

Catherine Alene is a teacher who has battled an eating disorder. Her new novel is The Sky Between You and Me.

Raesha wants to win Nationals. It’s not just about competing and how great her horse is, it’s also about honoring the memory of her mother and they dream they used to share. This year, it’s also about beating the new girl on the team, who keeps flirting with Raesha’s boyfriend and hanging out with her best friend.

Lighter. Leaner. Faster.

This is all Raesha thinks about. She knows minus five on the scale will give her an edge in competition, will make her horse faster. It will also make her more like her mother. So Raesha focuses on minus five to the exclusion of all else, until she is no longer sure of who she is without it.

The Sky Between You and Me is a free verse novel, which I didn’t realize before I started reading it. I almost put it down, but I’m so glad I didn’t. The free verse puts the reader firmly in Raesha’s head, allowing them to see everything from her perspective, where Lighter. Leaner. Faster makes sense. But the reader can also see the destructive path Raesha is on, and wants desperately for her to fight her way free of the eating disorder that has consumed her whole life. A great read!

(Galley courtesy of Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley.)

Local Writers’ Event and Reader’s Indecision

This week was fairly productive, considering it was the first week of grad school (Eep!). I did a tiny bit of writing—1,000 words or so—in The Fall, plus outlining 10 scenes in it as well. Having an outline made the writing flow pretty well. Something I know, yet I still started writing this story with no outline. Smart move, there.

I did a little outlining in the Witches revision, also. I’m sort of feeling my way with that, since I’ve revised the story several times, and this is more of a re-write than a revision, but I’m using the current draft as a guideline. We’ll see how that works out. My voice and style have changed significantly since I originally plotted the story.

Yesterday I attended a local authors’ event with a friend. It’s part of the library’s Year of the Book promotion. Each author had a table, and they each spoke for 10 minutes.

My friend and I went because we both love Rachel Caine’s work. (I’ve read The Morganville Vampires series, the Weather Warden series, the Outcast Season spin-offs, and her re-telling of Romeo and Juliet. I’ve been wanting to read her The Great Library series as well.)

Somehow, by sheer luck, we arrived about 15 minutes before Rachel’s talk, just in time to hear Sarah MacTavish. (I feel like I’ve heard of her, but can’t swear to it. I read SO MUCH that authors sometimes get a little bit mixed up in my mind sometimes.) I enjoyed her talk, and the short chat I had with her afterwards, and bought her book, Firebrand. Young adult fiction about the Civil War from an author who carries her supply of books in an R2D2 suitcase? I’m sold! I’m looking forward to the read, just as soon as I wrangle enough time from my schedule for it.

My purchases for the day:

books

It’s been quite a while since I purchased physical copies of fiction. The bottom two books I bought at the event, the top three at B & N beforehand. I was so excited when I got home, but I had serious reader’s indecision: What to read first?

Answer: Firstlife, by Gena Showalter, because I’m hoping to get approved to review the second book in the series, and because I’ve been interested in this one for a while. Isn’t the cover gorgeous?

Confession: I read the entire thing last night. Loved it! The concept is so unique, and the characters compelled me from the first page. You should definitely read this!

You Don’t Know My Name, by Kristin Orlando

Kristin Orlando has a degree in English literature and loves, words, bacon, and PJs. You Don’t Know My Name is her new novel.

Seventeen-year-old Reagan Hillis isn’t used to having friends and a normal life. She’s used to secrets, combat, and weaponry, having spent her life training to follow her parents’ footsteps in the top-secret Black Angels. Now she has a life, a group of friends, and feelings for the boy next door, Luke. Reagan isn’t even sure if she wants to be a Black Angel. Wouldn’t a normal life be so, well, nice?

When a rescue mission goes bad in South America, Reagan’s parents are right in the middle of it, and trouble follows them home, threatening to capsize Reagan’s normalcy and sink it without a trace. Reagan is tired of leaving her life in the middle of the night, and desperate for her parents to understand. But sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to, to save others, and Reagan finds herself on a mission with high stakes, a mission her normal life pales in comparison to.

I was expecting a fun type of story, like the Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter. (I don’t know why I was expecting this, I just was.) That is not what I got. Instead, I got adventure, action, anxiety…and romance. Reagan has had a challenging life, and until recently, she’s been happy to follow her parents’ footsteps. But now she sees just how thrilling normal can be, and wants it more than anything. She’s so normal, so real, that I just loved her. Her relationship with Luke felt natural and charmed me. This is a fantastic read, but the ending was not what I expected. Looking forward to the next book in the series!

(Galley provided by Swoon Reads via NetGalley.)

Unnatural Deeds, by Cyn Balog

Cyn Balog is a young adult author. Her newest novel is Unnatural Deeds.

Victoria Zell has never fit in. Not that she cares. She and her homeschooled boyfriend, Andrew, are inseparable, so Victoria doesn’t care about anyone else. Until Zachary Zimmerman shows up in her homeroom: he’s gorgeous and popular, everything Victoria is not. Within the first hour, he convinces her to cut class, and now Victoria can’t get enough of that rush.

Even though Vic is loyal to Andrew, she is drawn to Z. But Z has secrets, and soon Vic is lying to everyone as she tries to unravel those secrets. Except Z isn’t the only one with secrets, and Vic’s past will come back to haunt her in its destructive rampage.

This book…I thought I knew where it was going. Seriously. All the signs pointed one way, and then we ended up completely off the map. I never saw the ending coming. Like, at all. Z and Vic are both great characters, and you’ll find yourself drawn into their mystery as they struggle to untangle it. You should definitely read this book!

(Galley provided by Sourcebooks Fire.)

Did I Mention I Miss You? by Estelle Maskame

Estelle Maskame is the author of the Wattpad sensation Did I Mention I Love You? trilogy. Did I Mention I Miss You? is the final book.

Eden hasn’t spoken with Tyler in over a year. After he left her, she started a new life at a school in Chicago, and tried to forget about Tyler. Now she’s just angry at him, and she never wants to speak to him again. But back in Santa Monica for the summer, it’s hard to forget Tyler when she’s surrounded by things that remind her of him.

And she’s not the only one who returns to Santa Monica. Tyler has made a new life for himself, and he wants Eden in it. Eden is confused by this new Tyler, and she’s not sure if she can ever forgive him. But when family conflict draws them together, Eden must decide if Tyler is worth everything he’s put her through.

Okay, I’ll admit it: cheesy high school movies are a guilty pleasure of mine. Think Ten Things I Hate About You and Save the Last Dance. I also love reading books like that, and the DIMILY trilogy fits nicely in there. It’s been fun seeing Eden and Tyler change and grow throughout the books, and this is an enjoyable ending to a series I liked.

(Galley provided by Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley.)

One Was Lost, by Natalie Richards

Natalie Richards used to work in a boring office cubicle before she discovered the art of making things up and became a young adult author. Her newest novel is One Was Lost.

Sera did not want to go on her senior camping trip, but she didn’t have a choice. She especially didn’t want to go with Lucas, with whom she has a history. But there she was, hiking through the woods with a group of teenagers, and the only thing she has in common with them is this stupid trip.

Until the group is split in two, and her group wakes up groggy and disoriented, with words scrawled on their wrists. Their supplies are gone. Their chaperone is unconscious. And they find four dolls acting out a murder…four dolls dressed exactly like them. Someone stalks them in the woods, and since Sera has the only positive word on her wrist, soon everyone is suspicious of her. They have to get out of the woods before someone else winds up hurt or dead, but their stalker is always one step ahead.

So, this book….I’m a bit of a chicken sometimes, and this book creeped me out several times. Things kept getting worse for Sera and her friends, and the setting was spooky enough to make me swear off camping in the woods. Like, forever. I never did figure out what was going on, right up until the action-packed ending. One Was Lost kept me flipping pages until I finally found out what was going on.

(Galley provided by Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley).

The Cabin, by Natasha Preston

Natasha Preston is a New York Times bestselling author from England. Her newest novel is The Cabin.

It’ been a rough year for Mackenzie and her friends. They lost two of their group in a car accident months ago, and things have not been the same since. Now, with graduation looming, they decide to celebrate at Josh’s parents’ cabin in the woods. Sounds fun, right?

Right up until the moment when they find two of their group brutally murdered. And with no signs of forced entry, that means one of the five survivors is the killer. With all eyes upon them, Mackenzie’s life—and those of her friends—will never be the same. She can’t stand not knowing what happened, but when her efforts to figure it out result in another death, Mackenzie starts to wonder just how well she really knows her friends.

The Cabin is creepy in a spine-tingling, looking-over-your-shoulder way. The characters are great, vibrant with life and their relationships are complex. Like Mackenzie, I didn’t want to believe one of them was the killer. Unlike Mackenzie, I’m positive I wouldn’t have gone back out into the woods looking for clues. If you’re looking for a read that will suck you in and keep you flipping the pages, grab this one!

(Galley provided by Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley.)

The Homecoming, by Stacie Ramey

Stacie Ramey has a degree in speech pathology and works with autistic children. Her newest book, The Homecoming, is a young adult novel.

John has nowhere to go but home. Since his mother kicked him out, he’s gotten into trouble with the law, developed a talent for trouble, and bounced from relative to relative. Now “home” is the one place he doesn’t want to be, but it’s the only place he can be.

Starting over again at his old school is more than John can handle. The ruins of his family are tangled up in this town, and being back brings the tragedies of John’s past to damaged life every day. He tries to focus on lacrosse, but between his broken family and his anger issues, even sports aren’t enough to tame his dragon. Then he meets Emily, the girl next door, and starts to wonder if anyone can love the broken mess he’s become.

I’m not usually a fan of male-narrated young adult stories, but The Homecoming is an exception. I didn’t realize this was a companion novel to The Sister Pact (which I haven’t read). John is a compelling narrator, very troubled and broken, but only slowly aware of his brokenness. He grows so much during this novel, and the reader gets to see all of those changes and experience them with John. I really enjoyed this book.

(Galley provided by Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley.)

NaNo: Week 2 Update

writer — I do not own this image. But it’s so true, right?

I kind of forgot to post an update yesterday, so this is a day late (and a dollar short).

Current word count: 24,257. Almost halfway done.I feel this word count is more impressive if you also know that I’ve written 4,000 words each of the last 3 days.

Current mental status:

writing-cat — I don’t own this image, either, but can we talk about the slightly manic look on this cat’s face? SO. ACCURATE.

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