Format: Hardcover

Review: We All Looked Up

Posted October 8, 2015 / Book Reviews / 9 Comments

I actually thought this may be a five star read for me… until I got together with my book club. Funny how things like that can happen! People definitely can open your mind up to different things you never thought about while reading. While I do have to say I loved this book overall – especially the message, writing style, and some memorable quotes – there were some areas that missed the mark for me. I loved: The writing, to me, was fantastic. (See quote on the left. PERFECTION). I wrote down a number of quotes and loved the way it FELT. I don’t know how else to explain it. The atmosphere of the book just felt cool. The whole end-of-the-world premise may be a popular semi-trope, but I’ll always be drawn to those books. I think the way this was formatted was cool – like the Breakfast Club at the end of the world. I enjoyed seeing a few different people’s perspectives and how the world essentially goes crazy in preparation of the asteroid. The whole plot was interesting. I really like books that leave an impression on you and make you think. I really started to consider what I would do in their shoes; I loved seeing the different reactions people had, as well as the different actions they took with their lives. Knowing you only have two months to live is crazy enough, but knowing everyone is in the same boat? Insane. OVERALL I have really positive memories of this […]

Book Buddies Review: The Remedy

Posted September 30, 2015 / Book Buddies Reviews, Book Reviews / 1 Comment

Book Buddies is a discussion-style review that takes place with one of my two buddies. (Learn more and see past reviews here) We both read the book and then have a private discussion about it. We post our discussion as a review on the last Wednesday of each month. You’ll be able to see our similar/different opinions on the overall book, characters, writing style, etc. – just like a regular review. The first half our discussion will take place right here, and the second half will be on Kaitlin’s blog! (Link below) View Kaitlin’s part of the discussion here. Some spoilers ahead! In the climax of the book, Quinn becomes too entangled in Catalina’s life and can’t remember who she is anymore. Did you feel for her in that moment, or did you feel like she was straight up deranged? Kaitlin: I obviously don’t understand much about this “being a closer” thing because I thought Quinn was overreacting a little. The thing is, it’s not like whenever you go into an assignment you’re brainwashed. It takes time to adjust to being a new person but over time it becomes easier to live the life of someone dead. Plus, she has been a closer for so long, you would think Quin knew how to pretend to be someone without actually thinking they were that person rather than themselves. I also had to consider the fact that she wasn’t “Quinlan McKee” for 2 weeks. That definitely could have messed with her head a bit. I don’t know! […]

Review: The Night We Said Yes (+ Bonus Novella)

Posted September 16, 2015 / Book Reviews / 5 Comments

I don’t really know where to start with this one! I enjoyed it overall but I don’t think it’s a book that will stick with me very long. The characters were pretty good, the style of storytelling was excellent, and the overall concept was cool. I think my biggest issue is that I took a break in the middle to read something else and when I came back, it just wasn’t the same. The story alternates between “then” and “now.” In the “then” chapters, it shows the night that Ella met Matt, and they went out with another couple on a night where they said yes to everything. The “now” chapters are a year later, when Ella runs into Matt again for the first time in about six months. The synopsis makes it seem like the two of them had a magical night together and then he took off for a year. In reality, though, they dated for six months and then he left without a word. I had to adjust my expectations a bit once I realized that. Anyways, in the “now” chapters, Matt is trying to win Ella and her friends – Meg and Jake – back, when he returns to their town for college. He tries to recreate the night with Ella from a year before. I loved the alternating chapters with the two different times. It was fun because they lined up nicely with each other. Each one ended on a mini cliffhanger, so I was […]

Review: I’ll Meet You There

Posted August 19, 2015 / Book Reviews / 14 Comments

Man, what a book. I was a bit hesitant in a general sense for this book – despite all of the hype and excitement everyone else felt for it – just because it didn’t sound like a ME book at all. It seemed like a grittier contemporary with PTSD, poverty – you name it. For some reason books involving the military don’t work for me. However, this book definitely exceeded my personal expectations and I ended up liking it a lot more than expected. I loved that the issues explored within this book really aren’t seen much in other stories. Sky and Josh are from a really poor town called Creek View, where Sky lives in a trailer park with her mom. She works at a little motel that rarely gets visitors and her mom just got let go from Taco Bell. Sky’s dad died in a drunk driving accident. Josh returned from Afghanistan and is down to only one leg. He has nightmares and flashbacks; he’s not the same person he was when he left. See? Lots of things I’m generally not used to seeing or reading about – from socioeconomic status to trailer parks to PTSD. I really liked the small town of Creek View. It reminded me of my hometown in a FEW ways. I can’t lie – my hometown was definitely more towards the upper middle class… but it was very small and everyone knew each other. The setting of the Paradise Motel was pretty amazing […]

Review: Three Day Summer

Posted August 8, 2015 / Book Reviews / 10 Comments

I LOVE WOODSTOCK. I love music from the 60’s and 70’s more than any other time period so I knew I was going to at least love that element of this book. I even wrote a research paper on Woodstock back in high school, because obviously it’s the best time period in history. Can we get more books set in this time? Thanks. I thought the atmosphere felt really well-done and representative of the time. I’ve seen countless Woodstock movies and read articles, so I feel like it was definitely historically accurate. I actually believed that these two characters could have been real concertgoers at Woodstock. The MUSIC was perfect. If I had a time machine……. Every time they referenced Janis Joplin or Roger Daltry or the “new guy” Santana, I squealed a little bit. And of course the biggest event of all: Jimi Hendrix. Goosebumps, dude. Cora, a nurse volunteering at the event, and Michael, a hippie concert attendee, hit it off right away. They were interesting characters that came from different backgrounds but were struggling with similar things – primarily their future. Could Cora become a doctor? And what the hell was Michael going to be when he grew up? The two of them were perfect characters to meet and explore the concert together, and again – very representative of the time. I feel like it would have been nice to get to know Michael a bit more. I think Cora was more fleshed out, including her family […]

Review: Where the Stars Still Shine

Posted July 17, 2015 / Book Reviews / 8 Comments

This was definitely the kind of story that grabs you and doesn’t let go while you’re reading. I finished it within a few hours. I really loved so many elements of the book, but I didn’t get to the same level of “oh my god I love this book” like MANY other readers. I’m not sure why, to be honest, because it’s hard to even think of flaws. Callie was kidnapped by her mother when her parents got divorced, and they were on the run ever since. When her mom gets pulled over because of a broken taillight and finds out who they are, Callie is immediately brought to live with the father she doesn’t remember. She’s suddenly a part of a huge Greek family that has been missing her for years. She meets a cute boy and makes friends right away, which I thought was a little crazy… but I still loved it. Kat, Alex, and Greg (her father) were such great characters. I wanted them to be my friends. The romance was a bit quick, in my opinion, but that doesn’t mean I don’t ship the shit out of it. Callie’s struggles between her loyalty to her mom and the love she feels from her new family were so heartbreaking. I feel like most characters would have acted out much more or made much worse decisions, but Callie felt REAL and believable. I’m so glad for that. She was willing to try new things, make friends, join her family, etc. […]

Mini Reviews: Magonia and The Good Girls

Posted July 3, 2015 / Book Reviews / 3 Comments

I don’t really even know what to say about it, except that it was incredibly unique and unlike anything I’ve ever read before. I actually HATE birds and am very afraid of them, so I’m surprised this book worked for me at all. We chose this one for my book club and pretty much all agreed with that. Overall, I enjoyed this book, but I did have a few major struggles: It was hard to picture Magonia and the bird people. I feel like most fantasy books have the issue of too much description, but this one could have used a bit more. When writing about a land that’s technically an ocean with ships and different bird-creatures, people are going to have a tough time picturing it. I needed more detail overall. I know that Aza was trying to learn what the issues were in Magonia, as well as her reasons for being there, but it was hard to grasp. They didn’t really tell her anything, and thus the reader didn’t know anything. It would have been better to have a bit more information and explanation. Aza’s reaction to Magonia was not believable. Obviously most of the book is pretty unbelievable, but what struck me the most was that Aza just accepted it. She literally learned that she was basically a bird person in this crazy place above the clouds… and she just went with it! I would have been screaming “what the fuck” repeatedly. Same with Jason. How did […]