This was a fun and twisty mystery/thriller set during the FMC’s senior year of college. Sloan is a pretty good student and has a close group of friends. Her relationship history is not so great and she frequently gets her heart broken. To cope, she writes a fake eulogy in her journal about the boy to put to rest the relationship.
Continue reading “Here Lie All the Boys Who Broke My Heart by Emma Simmerman”
This is an interesting YA Dystopian book that will remind you of a less complex version of The Handmaid’s Tale. Honeybees have died out and the patriarch has taken control of the world. There is no art, no books, no joy. Girls are ripped from their homes and put into concentration-like camps and forced to pollinate crops by hand until their get their period, when they are matched with a man and forced into marriage and mandatory breeding. Jess’s mother protects her from the camps longer than most girls, but eventually she is torn from home and locked away. She makes friends with Cass, Deva, and Ruth, but stays clear of almost everyone else. When an unexpected kindness puts a few tubes of paint into her hand, she risks it all just to be able to paint again. She didn’t expect it could possibly spark a revolution.
Continue reading “The Danger of Small Things by Caryl Lewis”
This is a pretty good YA mystery/thriller about an alleged yearbook prank gone terribly wrong. Best friends Rick and Martina are outcasts and they’re ok with that. Labeled by the Principal as troubled for previous pranks they’ve pulled, when yearbook pictures are labeled with gruesome titles like Homecoming’s Cutest Corpses, he immediately tries to pin it on them. But they didn’t do it (this time) and their pranks have never been gruesome or cruel. When a guidance counselor is found dead in the same manner as his new yearbook label, police name Rick and Martina as their prime suspects. When another body turns up, the duo realize they need to find the killer before they spend the rest of their lives behind bars.
Continue reading “Most Likely to Murder by Lish McBride”
It’s been awhile since I’ve read a YA Fantasy/Romance vampire book and it’s great to get back to the genre. This book is a new twist, combining the Civil War and supernatural beings. I listened to the audio of the book and the narrators did a fantastic job portraying the numerous characters and instilling the danger they went through and the anger, desperation, grief, and determination of then during the story. Jerusalem is a black woman that spent years on a plantation as a slave with her family under the rule of a cruel and vicious vampire. After gaining her freedom she joins the military fighting the Confederate Army. She discovers she’s a Saint, people with enormous strength and incredible reflexes, and is paired with an ancient vampire, Alexei, and other Saint allies. The Saints often have special weapons that help them harness their power and Jerusalem’s is an ancient spear.
Continue reading “The Dangerous Ones by Lauren Blackwood”
4.5 stars
Wow! This is a fantastic first book in a new YA Fantasy series. I can’t believe it’s the author’s debut novel. This book immediately grabbed my attention and I read late into the night because I just could not put it down. It’s full of cruel rulers, a unique magic system, a fierce FMC, and a world weary of war with their neighbor.
Continue reading “Songlight (The Torch Trilogy #1) by Moira Buffini”
This is a fast-paced YA thriller that kept my attention from page 1. Greta is our unreliable narrator looking for a fresh start after an unfortunate “incident” at her prior school makes her an outcast. The author drips hints about the “incident” throughout most of the book and we don’t get the full picture until close to the end. It definitely makes the reader speculate what could have happened and I confess, I thought of worse things the “incident” could have been other than what it ended up being. I mean, the precipitating thing is awful, don’t get me wrong, but her response wasn’t so bad….was it? Eh. Maybe I’m just getting a big jaded and vengeful in my “old” age and believing more in karma for a**holes. But I digress.
Continue reading “Difficult Girls by Veronica Bane”
I know I’m late to the party on this book, and I get why it is so popular. Is it perfect? No. But it’s a fun, crazy ride. Books that involve a deadly training academy are my jam. They always have plenty of insane challenges, found family bonding, and of course, the obligatory off-the-chain crazy villain(s). This book has it all – plus dragons!
Continue reading “Fourth Wing (The Empyrean #1) by Rebecca Yarros”
Last week I missed participating in TBR Beyond Tours book tour for this book because I was in Instagram “jail” (when they don’t let you like/comment/follow), but I’m so happy to finally share this engaging book that is out now. I’m just getting into it, so check back later for my full review. It’s an engaging, fast-paced book with great world building and interesting characters. I’m really enjoying it so far.
Continue reading “Nightweaver (Nightweaver #1) by R.M. Gray”
I thoroughly enjoyed this romantasy debut about a young queen, Gwen, and the commoner guard, Tyreal, who has sworn to protect her with his life. Gwen and Tyreal have known each other since they were children and though unspoken, have loved each other from the beginning. That love is forbidden, however, because tradition dictates that she must marry a fellow royal.
Continue reading “Embers of Fate (Hearts of Valine #1) by Dani Loughary”
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