GIFTED / Today I bring you my review for a book that I have read twice already. Once before it was released, and second time recently (read: this summer). I enjoyed it both times which is not surprise since Kasie West is one of my all time favourite authors.
Sunkissed was published on May 4th 2021 by Delacorte Press and it has 304 pages. I want to say thank you to Penguin Random House Global for sending me an e-galley of this novel (in an exchange for an honest review).
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS /
Avery has always used music as an escape. But after her best friend betrays her, even her perfectly curated playlists can’t help her forget what happened. To make matters worse, her parents have dragged her and her social-media-obsessed sister to a remote family camp for two months of “fun.” Just when Avery is ready to give up on the summer altogether, she meets Brooks—mysterious, frustratingly charming Brooks—who just happens to be on staff—which means he’s off-limits.
What starts as a disaster turns into . . . something else. As the outside world falls away, Avery embarks on a journey of self-discovery. And when Brooks offers her the chance of a lifetime, she must figure out how far is she willing to go to find out what she wants and who she wants to be.
Review:
Kasie West is my go to author when it comes to ya contemporaries. For years she’s been my favourite and by now I know with her books I can’t go wrong.
Sunkissed was entertaining, fun, fluffy at times and perfect pick to spend a relaxing day with. I read it twice and enjoyed it both times.
The book was written in first person which made it so easy to flew through. Avery was a good narrator to follow and I have to say, she has good sense of humour. You know who has even better sense of humour? Her sister. I enjoyed conversations between them and liked their relationship even more than Avery’s and Brooks (who is the love interest).
If you like music and happen to like music making, this story could be the one for you because it features the band and all the things that go along with it: writing, rehearsals, member fights, live gigs…
I wish we got to see more of family camp Avery visited with her family, and if the author decided to include at least one or two camp visitors as well, but overall it was a good book that I would recommend to ya contemporary summer reads.
GIFTED / Today I want to talk about a book I finished a month ago, and that was hard for me to review bc while I was typing my words out I got sick. That was my lesson learned not to write while taking a bus ride. The Falling Girls was otherwise a good, entertaining book. It was published on October 5th last year (2021) by Razorbill and today is exactly 1 year since it first hit the shelves. It has 320 pages. I want to thank the team from Penguin Random House Global for sending me an e-galley of this novel (in an exchange for an honest review).
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS /
Shade and Jadis are everything to each other. They share clothes, toothbrushes, and even matching stick-and-poke tattoos. So when Shade unexpectedly joins the cheerleading team, Jadis can hardly recognize who her best friend is becoming.
Shade loves the idea of falling into a group of girls; she loves the discipline it takes to push her body to the limits alongside these athletes . Most of all, Shade finds herself drawn to The Three Chloes–the insufferable trio that rules the squad–including the enigmatic cheer captain whose dark side is as compelling as it is alarming.
Jadis won’t give Shade up so easily, though, and the pull between her old best friend and her new teammates takes a toll on Shade as she tries to forge her own path. So when one of the cheerleaders dies under mysterious circumstances, Shade is determined to get to the bottom of her death. Because she knows Jadis–and if her friend is responsible, doesn’t that mean she is, too?
Review:
I went into The Falling Girls without having real expectations. I knew it was a contemporary book with a dark tone, and that part was 100% right. I know this is also generated as a mystery and although it has a mystery inside, I would rather call it a teen drama. In fact, the whole story reminded me of a lifetime movie. Did I love it? Absolutely!
I am an adult who read this novel that is aimed towards teenagers. I am aware that some things I take differently then the appropriate age rang, and maybe my reasons for liking the story are completely different then they would be 15 years ago.
My favourite thing about this book is the exploration of female friendships that can be very unhealthy and how those friendships in teen years define future. I appreciate how the author pictured possessive one on one relationship between friends and how even if it is usually comfortable to bond on such a strong level, it can also be destructive.
The other thing I appreciate is how Hayley Krischer showed us/told us that neglected kids often look for a substitute for absent parents in their friends and how they can become possessive.
The book was written in a simple, entertaining way that was easy to read.
The story was little predictable and the motive behind the crime was a bit stupid, but the author acknowledged it through character conversations, which pleasantly surprised me.
I want to say that I come from a country where cheerleading isn’t a part of the culture and all I know about it is what I learned from the movies. This book made me think how hard and competitive that sport can be and how it’ it’s not appreciated enough.
I enjoyed my time with The Falleng Girls and would recommend it.
GIFTED / Today I am bringing you my review for a book I read several weeks ago. I was happy to see it was READ NOW on Netgalley.
You’ve reached Sam comes out tomorrow, on November 2nd and it has 304 pages. Thank you Wednesday Books for giving me an opportunity to read and review it.
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS /
Seventeen-year-old Julie has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city, spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes.
Heartbroken, Julie skips his funeral, throws out his things, and tries everything to forget him and the tragic way he died. But a message Sam left behind in her yearbook forces back memories. Desperate to hear his voice one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cellphone just to listen to his voicemail.
And Sam picks up the phone.
In a miraculous turn of events, Julie’s been given a second chance at goodbye. The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam’s voice makes her fall for him all over again, and with each call it becomes harder to let him go. However, keeping her otherworldly calls with Sam a secret isn’t easy, especially when Julie witnesses the suffering Sam’s family is going through. Unable to stand by the sidelines and watch their shared loved ones in pain, Julie is torn between spilling the truth about her calls with Sam and risking their connection and losing him forever.
Review:
When I picked You’ve Reached Sam I was ready to be emotionally wracked. Just reading the premise I expected to be at least touched with the story, if not literally crying (because I don’t do that often). Instead, most of the time, this book made me feel… confused.
It had original part: the phone calls between late boyfriend and alive girlfriend, and I do appreciate it’s uniqueness, but if I am being completely honest, after a while I just didn’t see the point. I blame the execution for that part. The idea was good.
I also blame the main character who seriously lacked manners and empathy.
I also didn’t understand how she, and people around her, acted as if everyone should move on so quickly. She getting rid of all of her stuff, her mother advising her and people in school in general. One would say it’s been 6 months since Sam’s accident, not a week.
The book was written in first person, following Julie’s POV. The author’s voice was good and I believe with time it will improve with time.
In my opinion this was a solid ya book with magical elements that made it unique, and it was good for entertainment purpose.
Hi Everyone, It has been a while, probably over a month since the last time I wrote something for this blog. There were some scheduled reviews poping up, but I personally wasn’t active anywhere except on Goodreads, and I was pretty unactive there too. The reason for that: I feel like I never have time to just sit and in piece and silence write and read in front of my computer, except in the very late evening when I am too tired to be productive, so I choose to read instead.
Today is Halloween, and I want to bring you my three reviews for the books I read this October. Non of them was given to me in an exchange for review, but all three of them I chose along with my friends because we wanted to give them a try.
Mexican Gothic was an October pick in the book club I am a member of along with other awesome book reviewers, when Cackle and House of Hollows I read along with Amanda from Chocolate Pages, who is also the member of previously mentioned book club.
So in conclusion, Amanda and I read together all of the three books I talk about today, so make sure to visit her BLOG too, to see what she thought about them.
Mexican Gothic
Mexican Gothic took the bookish community by the storm last year when it came out, and if there wasn’t the hype around it I probably wouldn’t pick it up. It’s magnificent cover, although beautiful to look at, didn’t “speak” to me so this time I am thankful for the hype because now I am glad this novel joined my read shelf.
I, just like most of the readers I believe, have certain aspects of the story that are important for me to like the book, character development being in the first place. What I’ve noticed lately is that the atmosphere in the story is slowly getting closer and closer to take that CD aspect from the throne.
And if there is something this book has fully developed, is the atmosphere. Gothic, dark, gray, wet… I could almost smell the damp when I was imagining being in High Place.
One more thing that makes this book special to me is that my favourite character was High Place. Yes, you read it right. The big, cold house has such a strong presence it felt like it was a person itself.
As for other characters, I think our MC Noemi was fully developed and it was clear what was her motive, her reasons to act the way she did, and she was also likeable and the one to look up to.
On the other hand, I think some side characters could have been more developed or at least more presented.
The writing was good and easy to read, but if I am being honest, the story was boringat times and I caught myself yearning for some action, or at least for something to happen.
As we got closer to end and secrets started yo reveal I was little disappointed with the way the story turned, but at the same time I appreciate it because it does make it different from other stories in this genre (here I am mostly comparing it to movies as I am still new to horror genre in written form). My personal opinion is that the movie would be great and I would like to absorb it for the first time in that format, but that ship has sailed, obviously.
In the end, I just want to warn you about some scenes that can be triggering like ones that can remind of sexual abuse, but there is long list on TW for this novel so make sure to check it out. I don’t always recognize them, as they are personal to each reader, but I would say TW: sexual abuse, racism, substance addiction, and also some graphic and gory scenes.
I decided to give Mexican Gothic 3,75 stars because although it was good and I can’t find it many flows except maybe being too slow at times, it just didn’t wow me to give it a higher rating.
Cackle
Let’s make one thing clear: 👏This is not a thriller! This is not a horror! 👏 To be a thriller, it has to play with your (or at least the MC’s) mind, to be a horror, it has to have at least one character dead/murdered (or in danger of the same) and at least one gory scene.
(Not) Sorry to spoil you, but this has non of that.
This is cozy women’s fiction with paranormal (witchy, perfect for Halloween) elements that can also be categorized as feminist novel and that is it!!
It was weird, I’ll give it that, but it is definitely not disturbing (unless you hate spiders, who are here pets because why not throw something childish and unnecessary to make it unique)!
So yeah, if you consider Twilight a horror because it has vampires as characters, then this is the horror/thriller for you. If you are looking for thrilling book that will keep you at the edge of your sit, this is not a book for you.
This is cozy, slow paced book, perfect for readers who are looking something to read for Halloween, but instead of being scared, they want to be relaxed.
It was entertaining, with characters interesting enough, and easy to read writing style. It is written in first person.
I could spend my time overanalyzing the novel, telling you how Annie reminded me of my own friend which made me care for her on a higher level, how in my mind Sophie looks like Megan Fox, how I loved Sam and am sorry the writer ruined his character even though I understand why she did it, how I think cat would work way better then the spider and how absurd it was for MC to take everything like it was even though no sane person would do it. I could also tell you how I really enjoyed the atmosphere and my friend Amanda who I buddy read this with, and me, we had great time and how this book was exactly what we both needed after finishing Mexican Gothic, but I won’t bore you more then necessary.
I will just recommend this novel to everyone who are looking for cozy autumn book with witchy/Halloween elements.
House of Hollow
As soon as I saw the cover for House of Hollows I knew I had to read it. The design reminds me of Horrid and Wilder Girls, books I both enjoyed so much, and I have a theory that covers like this keep weird and brilliant stories between the pages. This book proves my theory right!
The story is narrated by Iris, the youngest of the three sisters who disappeared one night and came back one month later not knowing where they’ve been, and clueless about the truth about what happened to them.
The story is written in first person, easy to follow and fast paced from the very beginning. In fact, it was so fast paced at times that I was lost for moments (that often happens to me in fighting scenes).
Once again, my favourite part of the story was the atmosphere. I noticed that that aspect in storytelling became of huge importance for me, so I loved this book for it.
I can’t say much about the world or things that happened, because I don’t know where is the line between reviewing and spoiling in this particular case, but I will say that my bets are the author found some inspiration in the movie Insidious.
The characters were all presented very well, and I love how the author played the game of good guy/bad guy masquerade. I would tell you who’s side I was on, but then I would spoil you, so I’ll keep my mouth shout (or my fingers reserved, I should say).
The epilogue was the only part I didn’t like, as I find it unnecessary.
I should also mention I shared this reading experience with my friend Amanda, who I’m buddy reading so often lately, we should call ourselves bookish sisters. She is not the one to pick fantasy, paranormal or ya on her own, but she really enjoyed this book too, so that says something, right?
In conclusion, I am sooooooo glad I’ve read this novel. It was perfect Halloween/October choice and I recommend it to everyone who is searching something spooky.
GIFTED / Hi guys, today I want to talk about a book I was excited about, but then I was left disappointed. It is unfortunately and I am not thrilled to post my negative review, but it is what it is: I didn’t like the book, and me being honest in my reviews, means I won’t always write the praising ones.
The Project came out on February 2nd 2021 and it has 352 pages. I want to thank St. Martin Press, Wednesday Books for giving me a chance to read and review this book via Netgalley.
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS /
Lo Denham is used to being on her own. After her parents died in a tragic car accident, her sister Bea joined the elusive community called The Unity Project, leaving Lo to fend for herself. Desperate not to lose the only family she has left, Lo has spent the last six years trying to reconnect with Bea, only to be met with radio silence.
When Lo’s given the perfect opportunity to gain access to Bea’s reclusive life, she thinks they’re finally going to be reunited. But it’s difficult to find someone who doesn’t want to be found, and as Lo delves deeper into The Project and its charismatic leader, she begins to realize that there’s more at risk than just her relationship with Bea: her very life might be in danger.
As she uncovers more questions than answers at each turn, everything Lo thought she knew about herself, her sister, and the world is upended. One thing doesn’t change, though, and that’s what keeps her going: Bea needs her, and Lo will do anything to save her.
From Courtney Summers, the New York Times bestselling author of the 2019 Edgar Award Winner and breakout hit Sadie, comes her electrifying follow-up—a suspenseful, pulls-no-punches story about an aspiring young journalist determined to save her sister no matter the cost.
Review:
When I found out The Project was READ NOW on Netgalley, I was so happy and excited, as I’ve heard only good things about Courtney Summers’ work. Her book Some Girls are is on my radar for some time now, and with Sadie being a huge hit last year, you can guess why I expected to be thrilled with her newest novel.
As time passed and life got in the way, unfortunately I picked up The Project after it’s release, with my expectations lower then before, as many negative reviews pop up on my feed and in the book community in general.
My first problem with the novel was that, although with the theme it followed it sounded promising, the execution was just boring. In matter of fact, this is one of the most boring, if not THE most boring book that I have ever read. I feel like in the whole story nothing actually happened, and often I felt like I was behind the doors of a cult, listening to their preaching.
I expected some action at least close to the end, but when “big thing” was revealed I don’t think anyone was shocked, as everyone and their mothers could have guessed it. And if I am being honest, I didn’t even care at that point.
I don’t appreciate how this was marketed as horror, thriller, suspense, when in reality it is a drama about cult.
Publishers, please don’t wrap a dull drama story in shiny paper called horror, it is so misleading and not okay.
I also don’t understand why the author and publishers decided for The Project to be a ya book? Was it because Sadie was that genre? Or maybe they thought it could potentially sell more copies? Whatever the reason, I have strong opinion that if the book was aimed for adult audience, without restrictions it could have been better. Maybe not way better, but at least little better.
I feel like the story was inspired with Church of Wells. I could be wrong. However, I just want to mention that I watched several videos about that cult, years ago, and I was more entertained and thrilled then I ever was while reading this novel.
The book is written in dual timelines, following two sisters, Bea and Lo. Lo’s POV was written in first person, and Bea’s in third. I also want to stress out that the prologue of the story has nothing to do with the story itself and it is misleading.
As for the characters… oh, Lo was so… unlikable, full of herself thinking her boss needs to promote her after she was there for a year, without right education in the first place, and she came off as the world owes her something. It is still not clear to me who took care of her while she was left alone, while her selfish sister Bea ran off to cult while Lo was still in the hospital. And where was the child service in this whole story??
Not to end this review on a negative note, I want to say I did enjoy some of the dialogues between characters.
After finishing The Project, I don’t think I will read Sadie. I lost the will.
GIFTED / Hi guys, today I wanted to introduce you to a series I started this year, and plan to continue. Maybe you’ve already heard about it, as it was hyped around it’s release, and if you ask me, it was hyped for a reason. Unfortunately, I feel like the talk is not so loud anymore, so I wanted to give it a shout.
The Gilded Ones was published this year on February 9th and it has 432 pages. I want to thank Penguin Global and Delacorte Press for inviting me to read and review this title.
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS/
Sixteen-year-old Deka lives in fear and anticipation of the blood ceremony that will determine whether she will become a member of her village. Already different from everyone else because of her unnatural intuition, Deka prays for red blood so she can finally feel like she belongs.
But on the day of the ceremony, her blood runs gold, the color of impurity–and Deka knows she will face a consequence worse than death.
Then a mysterious woman comes to her with a choice: stay in the village and submit to her fate, or leave to fight for the emperor in an army of girls just like her. They are called alaki–near-immortals with rare gifts. And they are the only ones who can stop the empire’s greatest threat.
Knowing the dangers that lie ahead yet yearning for acceptance, Deka decides to leave the only life she’s ever known. But as she journeys to the capital to train for the biggest battle of her life, she will discover that the great walled city holds many surprises. Nothing and no one are quite what they seem to be–not even Deka herself.
Review:
I feel like the cover for The Gilded Ones is everywhere lately. Every day I see it on my Goodreads feed, booktubers and bookstagrammers promote it, twitter, blogs, you name it…so… I also wanted to be part of that train gang.
I can proudly say that the hype surrounding this novel is well deserved. This was really good story, with good representation and message, that was also very enjoyable and entertaining.
If you know me, you know that the most important things to me, when it comes to books and stories, are characters. The Gilded Ones has variety of interesting characters that I got to know through a story and by the end of the novel, I found myself truly caring about them, so I am really looking forward to read about them in future installments.
The world building was done great. It was so easy for me to imagine all the palces, jungles and deserts in the story. I like to read fantasy from time to time, but I don’t consider myself an expert in this genre, however, I do feel like I can say that the author did a good job introducing this world, with all the history and present events.
The story was easy to read, thanks to a good, simple but rich writing style.
The end was good, and even better introduction to next book in the series.
I was really fascinated with one event that was mentioned closer to the end of the book, when one character described what happened in the past. I won’t say more about it bc it would be a spoiler, but I will stress out that it impacted me the most, because I never came across to something similar in my reading life.
I also want to quickly mention how the main event or purpose in the story passed so quickly and after so much preparation surrounding it, it was resolved so easily and I expected more obstacles.
The Gilded Ones is good book about feminism, impacted by author’s own experience and authenticity. It also represented diversity, the are POC characters, lqbtq+ characters (I should stress out that for now only sapphic relationship was mentioned, but I feel there’s space for more representations in sequels).
There are also some references and mentions of sexual abuse, so be aware of that.
I also want to emphasize how The Gilded Ones can provoke great discussion, so I encourage you to reading in book clubs. Of course, reading it in your own company has it’s benefits too.
GIFTED / It has been months since my last post, but while I have been gone I have written some reviews, and today I bring you one of them.
Curses by Lish McBride reminded me how much I love Beauty and the Beast and how I enjoy it’s retellings. It’s like I can’t get enough of them.
This book was published on 20th July 2021 and it has 480 pages. I want to thank the team from Penguin Random House Global for sending me an e-galley of this novel (in an exchange for an honest review).
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS /
Merit Cravan refused to fulfill her obligation to marry a prince, leading to a fairy godling’s curse. She will be forced to live as a beast forever, unless she agrees to marry a man of her mother’s choosing before her eighteenth birthday.
Tevin Dumont has always been a pawn in his family’s cons. The prettiest boy in a big family, his job is to tempt naïve rich girls to abandon their engagements, unless their parents agree to pay him off. But after his mother runs afoul of the beast, she decides to trade Tevin for her own freedom.
Now, Tevin and Merit have agreed that he can pay off his mother’s debt by using his con-artist skills to help Merit find the best match . . . but what if the best match is Tevin himself?
Review:
I don’t know if my brain is in post-covid or what, but when I first started reading Curses I was sure it had 280 pages. In fact, that is the reason why I picked it up in the first place. I wanted a short book that I would finish quickly. However, as I was reading, the story went on and on and on… (I read it on kindle) and after I finally finished it it said it has 480 pages, which makes much more sense, as it dragged.
The story is gender swapped retelling of Beauty and the Beast, with cast of characters that have potential to capture your heart.
I can’t honestly remember when was the ast time I read about characters I can see myself wanting to revisit, because I find them so likeable and like I know them in a way. It was probably years ago, back when I was reading Vampire Academy, Iron Fay and Clockwork Angel for the first time.
My favourites were Tavin and his cousin (Val I think, but don’t quote me on that, I am terrible when it comes to remembering the names).
The story started off good and I was very excited, very invested into all that was happening, especially in all the characters making connections with each other. There was a scene involving Tavin and one other female character that was NOT Merit, and their chemistry was so strong you could cut it with a knife. I wished for them two to be with each other, but I guess the author had another plan…
Closer to the middle the story started to drag and I lost the motivation to continue with reading (with pace I read with at the very start), and then as we got closer to the end, the story became little… ridiculous I would say. At times it felt rushed, and the motive and the way the villain wanted to reach their goal were illogical to me.
GIFTED / Today I want to talk about a book I should have read long time ago. I finally gave it a try and I really liked it, so now I feel bad for not picking it sooner.
Wintersong is young adult fantasy that was published by St. Martin’s Press on February 7th 2017. It has 436 pages.
I received an eARC via Netgalley in an exchange for an honest review.
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS / The last night of the year. Now the days of winter begin and the Goblin King rides abroad, searching for his bride….
All her life, Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, dangerous Goblin King. They’ve enraptured her mind and spirit and inspired her musical compositions. Now eighteen and helping to run her family’s inn, Liesel can’t help but feel that her musical dreams and childhood fantasies are slipping away.
But when her own sister is taken by the Goblin King, Liesl has no choice but to journey to the Underground to save her. Drawn to the strange, captivating world she finds–and the mysterious man who rules it–she soon faces an impossible decision. With time and the old laws working against her, Liesl must discover who she truly is before her fate is sealed.
Dark, romantic, and powerful, Wintersong will sweep you away into a world you won’t soon forget.
Review:
Wintersong was on my tbr for the longest time, and I honestly don’t even have any good excuse why I didn’t read it sooner.
Now when I finally picked it up, I know how much I was missing out.
This is fantasy novel that can be categorized as young adult as well as new adult, since the main character is 18 years old, and there are some steamy scenes between pages.
I kind of knew this novel would be of my interest, because it features goblins, and one of my favorite series, The Malediction Trilogy, is set in goblin’s underground. So I thought to myself, if this was half as good as Stolen Songbird it would be amazing.
I was right! Wintersong was magical and beautiful, just as I wanted it to be.
The book is written in first person, following Liesl’s POV.
I loved the writing style. The story reads as a fairy tale, which really brings the atmosphere.
However, I have to admit that because of it’s peculiar voice, it took me some time to get into the story.
Also, it took 25% for the plot to finally start to go somewhere.
One would assume that the first quarter of the story had the purpose to build the world, but in reality, this magical world is presented to us through the whole story, and I would even dare to say we get to know the world more the closer to the end.
I would call this an urban fantasy, even though the story is set in past time.
I think that the book was wrapped up really good and we got the closure, but also enough material for the next book in the series, Shadowsong, which I plan to read in December.
I really enjoyed reading Wintersong and I think readers who like to read about faeries and magical creatures would find themselves flying through it. I recommend it to fantasy lovers who like love and steamy scenes in their stories.
GIFTED / Today I want to talk about the only book I read during spookathon. It has been a while since I finished it, but my thoughts about it are still pretty fresh.
The Babysitters Coven was published on Septebmer 17th 2019 by Delacorte Press. It has 368 pages.
I want to thank the team from Penguin Random House Global for sending me an e-galley of this novel (in an exchange for an honest review).
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS / Seventeen-year-old Esme Pearl has a babysitters club. She knows it’s kinda lame, but what else is she supposed to do? Get a job? Gross. Besides, Esme likes babysitting, and she’s good at it.
And lately Esme needs all the cash she can get, because it seems like destruction follows her wherever she goes. Let’s just say she owes some people a new tree.
Enter Cassandra Heaven. She’s Instagram-model hot, dresses like she found her clothes in a dumpster, and has a rebellious streak as gnarly as the cafeteria food. So why is Cassandra willing to do anything, even take on a potty-training two-year-old, to join Esme’s babysitters club?
The answer lies in a mysterious note Cassandra’s mother left her: “Find the babysitters. Love, Mom.”
Turns out, Esme and Cassandra have more in common than they think, and they’re about to discover what being a babysitter really means: a heroic lineage of superpowers, magic rituals, and saving the innocent from seriously terrifying evil. And all before the parents get home.
Review:
The Babysitters Coven was my first pick to read during spookathon. I received this book during September, but wanted to save it for that readathon.
In the end, I suffered from major reading slump and this novel ended up being the only book I finished that week.
However, when I look objectively, this book was pretty fun and enjoyable, I just wish I read it when I was in a better place.
This paranormal young adult was pitched as Buffy meets The Babysitters Club. Therefore, I assumed there would be vampires in the book.
Oh, how wrong was I!
Vampires were not part of this story, but the similarity with Buffy is undeniable, and if you decide to give it a try, you will know exactly why.
It had the similar polity with chosen girls to protect the world and their teacher to guide them. It really reminded me of the season where Buffy was not the only Vampire slayer in the show.
The writing style is really good, with lots of humour. It is really easy to read and I believe that, if I wasn’t in a reading slump, I would finish it in a day or two.
The story is written in first person, from Esme’s POV.
I liked Esme, she was great narrator to follow, and since I enjoyed all the characters, I hope to get even more attached to them in the second installment.
Since I can’t consider this book a master piece, I think good character development and thrive would take this series on another level.
Still, I very much enjoyed The Babysitters Coven and will gladly continue with the series.
GIFTED / I recently read one ya thriller that really impressed me, and I want to tell you all about it (without spoiling you).
I Know You Remember was published today (October 8th 2019) by Razorbill and it has 336 pages.
I want to thank the team from Penguin Random House Global for sending me an e-galley of this novel (in an exchange for an honest review).
About the book:
FROM GOODREADS / Zahra Gaines is missing.
After three long years away, Ruthie Hayden arrives in her hometown of Anchorage, Alaska to this devastating news. Zahra was Ruthie’s best friend–the only person who ever really understood her–and she vows to do whatever it takes to find her.
Zahra vanished from a party just days before Ruthie’s return, but the more people she talks to, the more she realizes that the Zahra she knew disappeared long before that fateful night. Gone is the whimsical, artistic girl who loved books and knew Ruthie’s every secret. In her place is an athlete, a partier, a girl with secrets of her own. Darker still are the rumors that something happened to Zahra while Ruthie was gone, something that changed her forever…
As Ruthie desperately tries to piece together the truth, she falls deeper and deeper into her friend’s new world, circling closer to a dangerous revelation about what Zahra experienced in the days before her disappearance–one that might be better off buried.
In her stunning follow-up to Lies You Never Told Me, Jennifer Donaldson once again delivers a propulsive thriller with a masterful twist, skillfully creating a world where nothing is quite as it seems.
Review:
When it comes to ya books, I usually go for contemporary or fantasy, but rarely do I chose mystery/thriller.
I Know You Remember was sent to me as pre-approved Netgalley widget, and as soon as I read it’s premise, I knew I had to give it a try.
I am so thankful it appeared in my email because otherwise I wouldn’t give it too much attention. If I’m being honest, when I first saw it, I thought it was a part of the series, when in reality, it is a standalone.
Since I Know You Remember is a mystery/thriller, I think it would be the best to know as little about it as possible, so I will try to keep my review short, because I don’t want to ruin your reading experience.
The story takes place in Alaska, and I really enjoyed that aspect. I could really imagine myself there along with Ruthie, but I have to stress out that I know little about that country and can’t say if the representation of the place/people in it were accurate.
This book also talks about race and how POC are treated differently, but without that in-your-face approach.
I really liked that because it covers serious topic, gives you a message but is not aggressive.
Ruthie was an interesting character, I enjoyed being in her head, and that is everything I’ll tell you about her.
The story is written in first person, mostly from Ruth’s perspective.
The writing style is easy going and I flew through this novel. I finished in a day, which is very rare for me.
As for the mystery, I’ll just say that I have guessed one, minor mart of it, but all the other revelations surprised the life out of me!
As I already stated, I don’t usually read ya thrillers, but this book showed me what I’m missing out.
Maybe avid ya thriller readers will not share the same opinion, but to me this book was top.
I highly recommend it! It’s a perfect pick for the fall.
Book Dust Magic 