Review: How my summer went up in flames by Jennifer Salvato Doktorski

Title: How my summer went up in flames
Author: Jennifer Salvato Doktorski
Contemporary YA
Expected publication: May 7th 2013 by Simon Pulse
Goodreads // Amazon
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What I loved about How My Summer Went Up In Flames, is that it was more about growing up and learning how to be a good friend than a cute summery love story. Don’t get me wrong, though. I love romance, and this book has plenty of swoon, but it doesn’t focus on that.

The spotlight is on Rosie after she accidentally set her ex’s car on fire. That makes me both laugh, and worry about Rosie’s mental health; and the same thing happened to her parents, who decide to send her on a road trip with her neighbor Matty, who is the epitome of good behavior.

I must admit that at first I was a bit worried about Rosie, she seemed to be completely clueless to the gravity of her situation. Her mindset was all about her jerk of an exboyfriend and I wanted to slap some sense into her. But she was also witty and smart so I knew she would eventually come back to planet earth. She had an amazing crew behind her who gave her great support and managed to knock her down of her high cloud. From Matty, the awesome neighbor who is kind of geeky but has a great heart, to Rosie’s parents who were just the right amount of tough to handle a girl like her.

So, the road trip part of the book was very cool. Matty and Rosie join brothers, Spencer and Logan. It was a bit hard to watch the new romance ignite, because I was torn with whom I wanted Rosie to be, but to be honest that wasn’t a main part of the book, because most of all, Rosie needed some alone time, and I’m glad the author handled things the way she did.

And before I finish, I just would like to mention how funny this book is. I literally laughed out loud at a lot of things everyone said, expecially Rosie. The writing style and the wit reminded me of something Meg Cabot would write so that’s a huge win in my book. And that scene were Rosie gives their first kiss ever to one of the boys (won’t say who) was absolutely adorable.

 

I loved this scene. Their car runs out of gas and Logan and Matty have to walk miles in the heat to find a gas station while Rosie and Spencer stay in the car and Spencer teaches Rosie how to play the guitar.

 

 

Review: Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland

Title: Nantucket Blue 
Author: Leila Howland
Contemporary YA
Expected publication: May 7th 2013 by Disney Hyperion
Goodreads | Amazon
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Nantucket Blue was fresh, cute and reminded me about everything that is good about summertime. I actually started a bit apprehensive because Cricket, our heroine, was kind of annoying in a this-girl-doesnt-have-a-clue kind of way, she liked to do stuff and think about the consequences afterwards, so it got her in trouble sometimes. But despite my inability to like Cricket, I was still mesmerized by the beauty described.

I've never been to Nantucket but after this book I am enchanted by it, it definitely sounds magical. I also thought the story was sweet and it moved fast so I never got bored, but I got exasperated plenty of times. Maybe because Cricket was young and a student in an all girls school but she was just too self-centered, always thinking about why everyone and everything was unfair to her. I did like how she considered the Clayton's her family but I didn't like how she forgot about her own mother.

However, I couldn't hate Cricket towards the end, in fact, I even felt like hugging her and crying with her. I loved the sweet, sweet romance between her and Zack, and I was kind of surprised that Zack was younger than Cricket yet they still became a couple, that's kind of unusual in YA but here it worked. It made Cricket seemed a little bit cool to me.

I also think they way things ended between Cricket and her best friend Jules and between Cricket and her father; both were unfair but realistic. I loved that the author didn't try to give everyone a happy ending because that's not how things always end in real life, sometimes friendships are ruined and it sucks but it's real.

I would recommend to fans of My LifeNext Door and/or The Summer I Turned Pretty, since this has a similar tone. But honestly it's a good one for any contemporary fan :)

 

Waiting On Wednesday: Spirit and Dust by Rosemary Clement-Moore

WoW is weekly meme created by Jill at Breaking The Spine in which bloggers can share books they're excited to get soon :)

 

 

Spirit and Dust

by Rosemary Clement-Moore

 

 

Daisy Goodnight can speak to the dead. It’s not the result of a head injury or some near-death experience. She was just born that way. And she’s really good at it. Good enough to help the police solve the occasional homicide.

But helping the local authorities clear cold cases is one thing. Being whisked out of chemistry class by the FBI and flown to the scene of a murder/kidnapping in Minnesota? That’s the real deal.

 

Before the promotion can go to Daisy’s head, she’s up to her neck in trouble. The spirits are talking, and they’re terrified. There’s a real living girl in danger. And when Daisy is kidnapped by a crime boss with no scruples about using magic—and Daisy—to get what he wants, it looks like hers is the next soul on the line.

 

ADD ON GOODREADS

 

 

 

I adore Rosemary's book Texas Gothic. So I was ecstatic when I found out this one is kind of a sequel, only focused on Amy's cousin Diasy, who I adored too.

 

And I'm so excited because Rosemary has a way of engaging you to her creepy yet awesome descriptions of ghosts and the next minute you'll be peeing your pants 'cause of her sarcasm. And you can count on her steamy romances (although this one doesn't seemed to be very focused on romance but I can't doubt Rosemary)

 

Review: The Rules by Stacey Kade

Title: The Rules (Project Paper Doll #1)
Author: Stacey Kade
Sci-Fi/Paranormal YA
Expected publication: April 23rd 2013 by Disney-Hyperion
Goodreads | Amazon
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It was seriously a long wait I had to go through for this book. I'm a fan of Ms Stacey Kade's Ghost and the Goth series, so my expectations were high and I was super excited to dive into this new book world she created. I was not disappointed.

The Rules is about a girl, half alien half human, that has to follow this series of rules (the name had to come from somewhere) so she people don't realize her true identity and the bad guys who are after her don't find her.

It's really not hard to sympathize with Ariane, she's just a young girl who wants a normal life but the scientists who created her somehow convinced her she's a freak. My heart got all sad for her situation even though she has awesome abilities like levitating things and stopping hearts (not with her dazzling alien looks or anything).

And then there's Zane, tall, popular Zane who no one bothers to understand. He has a pretty messed father who is kind of a huge jerk and treats Zane like garbage. I didn't exactly loved how quickly Zane fell for Ariane but when you think about how bad of a hard time he was having maybe he only needed love.

I think the book did a great job of explaining everything we needed to know about Ariane and the company that created her. However at times it got way into the technical aspect and stuff I'm not sure I cared about so it borderlined boring. But aside from that, i liked the way the layout for the series was spread and I'm really excited to see what's next for our heroes in the next books, there's a lot of unanswered questions and a lot of room for more action.

 

 

Waiting on Wednesday: Starry Nights by Daisy Whitney

Starry Nights
By Daisy Whitney.

Seventeen-year-old Julien is a romantic—he loves spending his free time at the museum poring over the great works of the Impressionists. But one night, a peach falls out of a Cezanne, Degas ballerinas dance across the floor, and Julien is not hallucinating.

 

The art is reacting to a curse that trapped a beautiful girl, Clio, in a painting forever. Julien has a chance to free Clio and he can't help but fall in love with her. But love is a curse in its own right. And soon paintings begin to bleed and disappear. Together Julien and Clio must save the world's greatest art . . . at the expense of the greatest love they've ever known.

  .  . .     .    Add on goodreads


here's a secret: I have the biggest author crush on Daisy Whitney. She's an amazing person and I abso-freaking-lutely love her books.

That's why I can't help but squeal in glee about both her upcoming books, which are probably first and second place in my long list of most anticipated releases.

And now it's your turn to add this amazingness. Also, cutest cover <3<3.

Review: Stung by Bethany Wiggins

 

 

 

 

Title: Stung
Author: Bethany Wiggins
Dystopian YA
Expected publication: April 2nd 2013 by Walker Childrens
Goodreads | Amazon
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Absolutely amazing and unforgettable. This book brought back my love for the dystopian genre. I haven't enjoyed a story so much since the hunger games, and believe me it's been a LONG time.

Everything about this book is nonstop action, and nail biting suspense. From the first page we are catapulted to a setting above our wildest dreams yet completely believable. The state of Colorado is a deserted land, where all your nightmares will come true, from awful men with no fear of God that will do anything to whoever they find wandering the streets, to the beasts, kids that have turned to monsters after a vaccination that went wrong. It's horrible and hopeless and Fiona woke up in the middle of it all, with no memory of why she's there or even how old she is.

My heart warmed for Fiona instantly. Amnesiac book characters can be a pain in the butt, they go on life endlessly feeling sorry about themselves. Not in Fiona's case, she barely had time to think about it when she was already struggling to survive. She was amazing, she was brave and strong but not so that she appeared unbelievable. She is a seventeen year old after all, and a girl, living in a world where there's only one woman to seven men. It was terrifying, but she never gave up and I loved her.

Dreyden Bowen was absolutely amazing too. He is only seventeen and you can feel that, it's hard to explain because he acts older than his young years but you still can't doubt he is only seventeen. I loved him so much, his fears and his braveness mend and stretched so often, he was just a kid trying to survive, and yet he always tried to help too. I completely fell in love with this vulnerable and strong character.

I cannot recommend you this book enough. So much to love here, the action, the characters, the plot! Simple yet complicated enough to make me lose myself in it. It didn't go for the insanely technologic and complicated world building that all the other dystopians go for, nor the stupid crazy names for every character, and definitely not the fancy love triangle. Oh how I loved the slow building romance and the surprises it brought to my life.

Speaking of surprises, I was shocked at how fast the story moved and the many twists in it. I was transfixed! Reading for what felt like seconds yet I've gone through 20% of the book without looking up.  I didn't expect it, like a ball to the face in elementary school kickball. I was shocked at how much I loved, and enjoyed it. Kudos, Ms. Wiggins, I am a fan.

I am completely in love with this book. I just wish it would get more attention, like the many mainstream dystopians coming out this year that aren't half as good (ouch! prejudicing much?) but really, I have a hard time imagining something better than this. 5 stars!

 

Stung Blog Tour: Character Interview with Bowen!

 

 

About the Book

Releases April 2nd, 2013 by Walker Childrens

304 Pages

 

There is no cure for being stung.

 

Fiona doesn’t remember going to sleep. But when she opens her eyes, she discovers her entire world has been altered—her house is abandoned and broken, and the entire neighborhood is barren and dead. Even stranger is the tattoo on her right hand—a black oval with five marks on either side—that she doesn’t remember getting but somehow knows she must cover at any cost. She’s right.

 

Those bearing the tattoo have turned into mindless, violent beasts that roam the streets and sewers, preying upon the unbranded while a select few live protected inside a fortress-like wall, their lives devoted to rebuilding society and killing all who bear the mark.

 

Now Fiona has awakened branded, alone—and on the wrong side of the wall.

Doesn't it sound completely amazing?!
I know for a fact that it is actually amazing, you can read all about my love for this book in my review here.

And now, my friends, I have an exclusive interview with one of the lead characters in the book, who also happens to be one of the most amazing young men in the history of the world: Dreyden Bowen.

Hi, Bowen, I know it’s probably meaningless to you, but it’s nice to talk to such an
  amazing, brave young hero like you. So if you don’t mind wasting your time with
  my questions, I would like to ask you a few.
 
  *Bowen clears his throat and avoids eye-contact for a minute* I'm not a
  hero and I'm not amazing, but all right. Shoot. Question away.
 

So, Bowen, how did you feel when you learned that you didn’t qualify for the bee flu vaccine?
I wasn't at all surprised. I never qualified for anything good in my
  life--not even dinner (my mom forgot to feed me half the time). I was mad.
  I punched a hole in my wall. But I wasn't surprised. Now, I realize it
  might have been the best rejection that ever happened to me.
 

  What’s the thing that you miss most about your past life?
Living without fear. I am so tired of not being able to walk down the
  street without looking over my shoulder. So sick of not being able to sleep
  well because I'm afraid of what will wake me up. I miss being able to eat
  without wondering if what I'm eating is going to be my last meal.

 
  In this new world, you had to join the militia for a better chance to
  survive. What was a normal day in the militia like for you?
 
  It depends. At first I was put on mapping patrols. I was up with the sun
  and then helped map the city, marking the areas where hives of beasts
  gathered. After that, I was put on night patrol. I'd sleep all day and
  stand guard at the edge of the camp. Right before I was made guardian, I
  was on wall patrol, where I would spend twelve hour shifts standing at the
  base of the wall with Tommy, about a mile from the gate, making sure no
  raiders were trying to breach it. And then, I got elected to be the
  guardian--the deadliest position there is.  

  How did you feel when you learned you were chosen to be the guardian of the
  wall? (And to the people who don’t know what that means, can you explain a
  little)
Being a guardian means you get the worst job in the military--the job where
  you are in charge of restraining beasts, protecting the military from them,
  and then getting them to the lab. You don't live long in that job because
  beasts are deadly. When I got volunteered for guardian, I wasn't surprised,
  but I wanted to punch something. I almost walked away from the militia,
  knowing my chances of surviving were equally good living in the lawless,
  old city--which means I was going to die no matter what I did.

 
  How did you feel when you found out the Fec you were guarding the camp from
  was actually a girl?

  I was shocked. I hadn't *touched *a girl in years, and here I was, straddling one, trying to get her cuffs off. I didn't know what to do or think. And then, when I looked at her face, I realized not only was I straddling a girl, but it was the girl I'd had a crush on for most of my
  childhood. In that instant I knew all my priorities had changed. I was no
  longer protecting the militia from her--I was protecting her from them and everything else out there.
 

  What’s next for you? What are your hopes for when (if) the world gets back
  to normal?
 
  I want to settle down, I want to marry Fo, and I want to live life without
  fear. I don't care what I will be doing, so long as I can live with her,
  without fear.

Now, see what I mean? isn't he the most swoon-worthy guy out there? *sigh*
Don't forget to enter the giveaway for amazing prizes! (a chance to read Stung it's worth the 3 seconds it takes to click the link :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

So thank you Bethany and Bowen, and the girls at The Book Papparazzi  for letting me participate in this blog tour, it's been a blast!

About the Author

Bethany Wiggins has always been an avid reader, but not an avid writer. She failed ninth grade English because she read novels instead of doing her homework. In high school, she sat alone at lunch and read massive hardback fantasy novels (Tad Williams and Robert Jordan anyone?). It wasn't until the end of her senior year that the other students realized she was reading fiction--not the Bible.

Once upon a time, Bethany's sister dared her to start writing an hour a day until she completed a novel. Bethany wrote a seven-hundred page fantasy novel that she wisely let no one read--but it taught her how to write. She is the author of SHIFTING, STUNG (April 2013), and CURED (2014).

 

Find Bethany

Website: http://bethanywiggins.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/WiggB

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4582548.Bethany_Wiggins

Waiting On Wednesday: The Secret Of Micha and Ella by Jessica Sorensen

WoW is weekly meme created by Jill at Breaking The Spine in which bloggers can share books they're excited to get soon :)

 

 

 

The Secret Of Micha and Ella by Jessica Sorensen 

 

A rule-breaker with a fiery attitude, Ella always wore her heart on her sleeve. Then she left everything behind to go to college, where she transformed into someone who follows the rules, keeps everything together, and hides all her problems. Now it's summer break and she has nowhere else to go but home. But once there, Ella fears that everything she's worked so hard to bury might resurface-especially with Micha living right next door.

Smart, sexy, and confident, Micha can get under Ella's skin like no one else. He knows everything about her, including her darkest secrets. If he tries to tempt the old Ella to return, he will be impossible to resist. But what Ella doesn't realize is that when she left, she took a piece of Micha's heart with her. Now he's determined to win back the girl he lost, no matter what it takes.

 

Add on Goodreads

 

 

 

One of my Goodreads friends said it was perfect for fans of Jennifer Echols and since I bow at Ms Echols feet I was immediately adding this one :)

 

But then I found out it was classified as New Adult...

*bangs head on desk*

well, I guess here goes nothing, and while I'm preparing my heart for letdown I certainly hope it won't be the case

*fingers crossed*

Review: Wait For You by J. Lynn

Title: Wait for you
Author: J Lynn
Contemporary New Adult
Published February 26th 2013 by J. Lynn
Goodreads // Amazon
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So I keep giving this New Adult books a chance but there's something about them that just doesn't click with me. I mean, for what I've picked up the label is just a way of telling you that this story contains lots of explicit sex, because otherwise they're simply YA books to me. But whatever, Wait for You, despite its praise tricking me into believing this wasn't another cookie cutter book on rape, in my opinion, did nothing to stand out.

 

The characters were cliched and fairly boring, and the story streched out way more than it needed it too. In fact, I put down the book so much it took me 10 days to read it, that's the longest this year; and all because it just never got to the point, even though you could guess what had happened to Avery from page 20 or something.

 

I also didn't like Cameron Hamilton that much. He was just really unrealistic to me, like, what 21-year-old guy wakes up at 8 in the morning ON SUNDAYS to make breakfast for a girl who is not even his girlfriend? And then all his sexual innuendo had me cringing and clenching my teeth in exasperation.

 

What I did like about this book was that even though the Avery had done some pretty stupid things, like dropping the charges after what happened to her, she learned to let the guilt go and realized it wasn't her fault that the jerk got away with it and did it again. Because it's never the victim's fault and it should be acknowledged in every book about rape, I'm glad this wasn't the exception.

 

Other things I liked: the pet tortoise. I loved the pet tortoise, I used to have one too, she was the cutest but she died like a week after I got her and I didn't have the guts to replace her.

 

Sadly, overall the book didn't do much for me, and while I don't exactly regret reading it, I'm sure it won't be able to pass the time-test in my brain and I will probably end up forgeting about it.