I just want to let you know that I won't be posting a review for a little while. I've been on a brief 'hiatus' lately because of my extra schoolwork and the fact I went to Germany last weekend. I've been totally exhausted, and I'm sorry to say my reading has been a casualty. However, I hope to post a review of Susan Vaught's Freaks Like Us in the near future. This week's Five are books I've had my eye on for a while, and I'm (as always) really excited to read them. What did you get this week? Happy reading!
Counting Backwards by Laura Lascarso
Length: 279 pages
Published: August 14th 2012
Publisher: Atheneum
Counting Backwards is a debut, and although I think the cover is totally creepy, I think this book is right up my alley. Also, there happens to be a nice romance brewing, from what I've read in reviews...
Ask the Passengers by AS King
Length: 296 pages
Published: October 23rd 2012
Publisher: Little, Brown
I wouldn't say this book is distinctly original in terms of basic plot (contrary to the blurb), but I think it's the magical realism aspect that made me want to read this. Lying down and looking at the sky is something I've always done, and I know that any book by AS King will be brilliant. Plus, that cover is lovely.
Just One Day by Gayle Forman
Length: 369 pages (UK paperback)
Published: January 10th 2013 (UK)
Publisher: Random House (UK), Dutton (US)
Just One Day has received loads of hype, and I'm kind of nervous about reading it. I haven't read Forman's previous novels so I don't know what I'm getting in to. That said, I've heard she's a very talented writer. I love a good travel book, though, so maybe this will be just what I'm looking for after reading the phenomenal Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard last year.
What Happens Here by Tara Altebrando
Length: 256 pages
Published: May 6th 2008
Publisher: MTV Books
I absolutely adored Tara Altebrando's novel The Pursuit of Happiness (in fact, it's one of my favourites, ever), so I've got high hopes for What Happens Here, her follow-up. It seems to be a mix of travel, mystery, and romance, so it definitely looks like a book for me.
Falling For You by Lisa Schroeder
Length: 355 pages
Published: January 1st 2013
Publisher: Simon Pulse
The cover is the kind you probably wouldn't want to be seen in public with, I know. However, Lisa Schroeder writes solid contempories with appropriate amounts of drama, realism, and romance. I got this on my Kindle a little while ago, and I'm looking forward to it. Plus, Rae seems like a highly relatable character.
Hi! These are the newest books I've bought recently, and some of the ones I'm most excited about reading! In addition to these, I've also bought a copy of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, which believe me, is a book you don't want to miss. As always, happy reading!
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E Lockhart
Length: 345 pages (Paperback)
Published: August 25th 2009 (Paperback)
Publisher: Hyperion
I've read really good reviews of this one, and I know it's strongly feminist, which I'm always for in YA! What puts me off slightly is that it's written in third person present tense, which I don't like, but I'm willing to read this one to see if it lives up to the hype.
Going Underground by Susan Vaught
Length: 352 pages (Paperback)
Published: September 13th 2011
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Going Underground is (I think) the opposite to the stories we usually hear about the consquences of minor crime and how situations can be twisted. It definitely sounds intriguing, and as I'm currently reading Vaught's Freaks Like Us, it seems sensible to read this one in the near future.
Anthem for Jackson Dawes by Celia Bryce
Length: 240 pages (US hardcover edition)
Published: 1st January 2013 (UK) 30th April 2013 (US)
Publisher: Bloomsbury
This is the US cover, which comes out in a few months time, but I have the UK version. I think this cover is lovely, though. Anthem for Jackson Dawes sounds like it's going to be a real tearjerker, but I'm always drawn to these stories anyway. Besides, last year I read The Fault in Our Stars and Jellicoe Road, so I think I can cope with anything!
Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan
Length: 352 pages (UK Paperback)
Published: April 6th 2010 (Original)
Publisher: Penguin (UK), Dutton (US)
So, I've read The Fault in Our Stars and Paper Towns. John Green is quickly becoming one of my favourite authors and I've heard so many good things about David Levithan (I'm still waiting to get my hands on The Realm of Possibility). My best friend has An Abundance of Katherines and Looking For Alaska, so expect reviews of them soon. Really excited about this!
Skinny by Donna Cooner
Length: 260 pages (paperback)
Published: September 1st 2012 (US)
Publisher: Point (US), Electric Monkey [Egmont] (UK)
I can't find the UK cover on Goodreads, so here's the US version. I've had my eye on Skinny for a while, after reading a glowing review on Anna Reads, one of my favourite YA book blogs (and she shares my name!). I am personally affected by the issues in Skinny, so this is definitely going to be an intriguing and hopefully worthwhile read.
There are some amazing contemporaries coming out this year! I wanted to highlight three books that come out this year and the covers they've got... maybe I'll do this more often. Happy reading!
"OCD, The Dude, and Me" by Lauren Roedy Vaughn
With frizzy orange hair, a plus-sized body, sarcastic demeanor, and "unique learning profile," Danielle Levine doesn't fit in even at her alternative high school. While navigating her doomed social life, she writes scathing, self-aware, and sometimes downright raunchy essays for English class. As a result of her unfiltered writing style, she is forced to see the school psychologist and enroll in a "social skills" class. But when she meets Daniel, another social misfit who is obsessed with the cult classic film The Big Lebowski, Danielle's resolve to keep everyone at arm's length starts to crumble.
This one is released on March 21st by Dial!
"The Distance Between Us" by Kasie West
Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers studies the rich like her own personal science experiment, and after years of observation she’s pretty sure they’re only good for one thing—spending money on useless stuff, like the porcelain dolls in her mother’s shop. So when Xander Spence walks into the store to pick up a doll for his grandmother, it only takes one glance for Caymen to figure out he’s oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and that he’s one of the first people who actually gets her, she’s smart enough to know his interest won’t last. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned from her mother’s warnings, it’s that the rich have a short attention span. But Xander keeps coming around, despite her best efforts to scare him off. And much to her dismay, she's beginning to enjoy his company. She knows her mom can’t find out—she wouldn’t approve. She’d much rather Caymen hang out with the local rocker who hasn’t been raised by money. But just when Xander’s attention and loyalty are about to convince Caymen that being rich isn’t a character flaw, she finds out that money is a much bigger part of their relationship than she’d ever realized. And that Xander’s not the only one she should’ve been worried about.
This one is released on July 2nd by HarperTeen!
"Dirty Little Secret" by Jennifer Echols
Bailey wasn’t always a wild child and the black sheep of her family. She used to play fiddle and tour the music circuit with her sister, Julie, who sang and played guitar. That ended when country music execs swooped in and signed Julie to a solo deal. Never mind that Julie and Bailey were a duet, or that Bailey was their songwriter. The music scouts wanted only Julie, and their parents were content to sit by and let her fulfill her dreams while Bailey’s were hushed away.
Bailey has tried to numb the pain and disappointment over what could have been. And as Julie’s debut album is set to hit the charts, her parents get fed up with Bailey’s antics and ship her off to granddad’s house in Nashville. Playing fiddle in washed-up tribute groups at the mall, Bailey meets Sam, a handsome and oh-so-persuasive guitarist with his own band. He knows Bailey’s fiddle playing is just the thing his band needs to break into the industry. But this life has broken Bailey’s heart once before. She isn’t sure she’s ready to let Sam take her there again…
This one is released July 16th by MTV Books!
Big-hearted Chloe Camden is the queen of her universe until her best friend shreds her reputation and her school counselor axes her junior independent study project. Chloe is forced to take on a meaningful project in order to pass, and so she joins her school’s struggling radio station, where the other students don’t find her too queenly. Ostracized by her former BFs and struggling with her beloved Grams’s mental deterioration, lonely Chloe ends up hosting a call-in show that gets the station much-needed publicity and, in the end, trouble. She also befriends radio techie and loner Duncan Moore, a quiet soul with a romantic heart. On and off the air, Chloe faces her loneliness and helps others find the fun and joy in everyday life. Readers will fall in love with Chloe as she falls in love with the radio station and the misfits who call it home.
Welcome, Caller, This is Chloe tells the story of Chloe Camden, the self-styled "Queen of the Universe" who gets ditched by her friends through a mistake she made, and has to learn how to listen. Her JISP (Junior Independent Study Project) is axed by her new guidance counselor, and she has to join her school's failing radio station, which it turns out she really enjoys. She makes new friends, and of course, finds romance with quiet technician Duncan.
I did really like the characters. Chloe was loud, funny, and a little self-centered, but she was generally a very nice girl. She definitely had great taste in shoes! Duncan wasn't my type, but his romance with Chloe was lovely and realistic. The radio staff were awesome, especially Clementine and Haley, who had an obsession with movies from 1939. Even Chloe's ex-best friends, Brie and Mercedes, were well-rounded and three dimensional.
I had an issue with the writing style. It wasn't that it wasn't bad, because I think Shelley Coriell definitely has talent, it's just that after reading the completely wonderful Sweethearts, everything else just paled in comparison. Additionally, I had an problem when Chloe kept referring to Brie and Mercedes as her "BFs", which I felt was lazy and pretty annoying. Plus, I thought the ending was totally rushed and didn't tie up loose ends, which it should have done, being a stand-alone. The ending left me feeling rather unsatisfied.
That being said, this was a promising debut, and I think I'll be reading Shelley Coriell's future novels.
As children, Jennifer Harris and Cameron Quick were both social outcasts. They were also one another's only friend. So when Cameron disappears without warning, Jennifer thinks she's lost the only person who will ever understand her. Now in high school, Jennifer has been transformed. Known as Jenna, she's popular, happy, and dating, everything "Jennifer" couldn't be---but she still can't shake the memory of her long-lost friend.
When Cameron suddenly reappears, they are both confronted with memories of their shared past and the drastically different paths their lives have taken.
Sweethearts is a beautiful book. It explores the themes of childhood friends, and people coming in and out of your life. It focuses on Jenna Vaughn, a high school senior plagued by the memories of her childhood best friend (or sweetheart) Cameron Quick. He reappears in her life on her birthday, and stays in Salt Lake City for just over a week. Over this small time period, Jenna has to reevaluate her life, and tell her mother what happened to her and Cameron on her ninth birthday.
Cameron Quick was Jenna's (then Jennifer Harris) only childhood friend, and he disappeared when she was nine. She was told by some very cruel bullies that he had died, and her mother did nothing to deny this, leading Jenna to believe that this was true. Then, he reappears, emancipated from his parents (who live in California) and ready to find Jenna. But she has changed. She's now Jenna Vaughn, popular and nothing like she was before. She has a boyfriend, Ethan - I particularly enjoyed the dynamic of their relationship and how it ended - and lots of friends.
Cameron returning is the catalyst for Jenna to change her life. However, Jenna definitely goes through the motions. The only thing that was constant was her love for Cameron, which was understated and delicate, not even a romance, but definitely a love story. Their feelings were left unresolved but Jenna acknowledged that "nothing would be enough" when it came to her and Cameron together.
The only thing that I have a problem with was that the book was so short, which led to some of the characters seeming rather two-dimensional, for example Ethan, or Katy, Jenna's other 'best friend' who turns out not to be very supportive, or indeed, pleasant. Ethan was in some ways a realistic guy, but I think the author used him to be an opposite to Cameron, which only half-worked. Katy just fell flat and didn't really have anything useful to say, in my opinion.
However, I greatly enjoyed Sweethearts, even though it was extremely painful to read sometimes and a definite tearjerker.
Overall rating: A
Rogerson Biscoe, with his green eyes and dark curly hair, is absolutely seductive. Before long, sixteen-year-old Caitlin finds herself under his spell. And when he starts to abuse her, she finds she's in too deep to get herself out...
Dreamland is one of the most intense novels I've ever read. It follows the story of high school junior Caitlin, and what happens after her sister Cass runs away from home. She gets into an abusive relationship with Rogerson Biscoe, a drug-dealer who makes Caitlin feel things she's never felt before. Along the way, she develops a talent for and love of photography, gets kicked off the cheerleading squad, and makes a new friend in Corinna, who I thought was a very interesting character. Dreamland is not an easy novel to read; it's painful and raw. At times I thought Caitlin's experience was too private, and that perhaps I shouldn't be reading it. It was like reading someone's diary, and it made me feel at times uncomfortable and enthralled, both at the same time. It clearly shows what can happen to teenage girls who can quickly find themselves in dangerous, all-consuming relationships, and is a stark contrast to the perfect romances of YA novels. This is an unforgettable read that I think a lot of teenagers need to experience.
'New Adult' fiction is a relatively new phenomena in the publishing world which is intended to bridge the gap between YA and Adult. On the surface, this seems like a relatively good idea, right? If you're in college or an older teenager and you want to read something more mature with characters your own age, then this is perfect. But there are definite problems with this.
1) Swearing
I am not against swearing in books. Not at all. Teenagers use such language all the time and it makes fiction and characters very realistic. However, New Adult go completely over the top, and it's supposed to be seen as attractive. Expletives are just randomly put into titles for some reason unknown to me, and it really puts me off continuing reading.
2) Sex
I have no issue with this either, as long as it's written with maturity and is healthy. Yet, in NA titles it goes completely out of control. I'm not kidding, either. People write whole books filled with the stuff and it's just dire, if I'm honest. Either the main character (usually female) is a virgin and dates the boy who sleeps around/has loads of experience, or the main character is male and has done this and is falling for someone "they never thought they'd fall for". Excuse me while I vomit. In my opinion, most NA books are written as an excuse to write loads of sex into books for teenagers, and it's certainly not healthy.
3) Bad boys
This is probably one of the most irritating things about the NA genre. If a male lead is to be seen as desirable, he has to be a "bad boy", apparently. The nice guy gets kicked to the curb because the Mary Sue has fallen for the "dangerous" guy she "just can't stay away from". I'm not a gullible, pathetic teenage girl, ok? I don't lust after guys like this. They're not realistic at all, or attractive. They're often extremely violent with possessive tendencies, and they're supposed to be seen as the perfect example of a boyfriend you'd want. Classic examples include Travis from Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire, and Chase from Taking Chances by Molly McAdams, two books I'm sure I'll never read.
4) Main characters
The main character, if female, is always a Mary Sue, in some shape or form. Innocent, naive, incredibly beautiful but unaware of her charms. Fantastically intelligent, but not smart enough to realise the guy she's fallen for is a total psychopath. Guys fall at her feet, and she has a great body, and her closest female friend is always a "flirt" or "promiscuous". The alternative is a "damaged" girl with a "past she wants to forget", but still has 95% of the above qualities. Maybe not as innocent, but definitely irritating enough to make you scream.
5) Romance
99% of NA books contain a sappy, unrealistic romance which includes the male character spouting professions of love straight from the author's imagination. No guy would ever say these things. Also, the stuff the MCs do is usually utter drivel, too. Surely the author's own experiences of relationships are not like these turgid fantasies? Most NA books are one step away from turning into Fifty Shades of Grey, for God's sake (inner goddess anyone?).
6) Self-publishing
I have no problem with self-publishing, and I think it's a great idea, as long as your work is properly edited and is written by someone with actual literary talent. Most books, alas, are not. They include constant grammatical errors, obvious spelling mistakes and a load of general errors you wouldn't find in a published novel. People who write these things, get some self-respect! It makes you look so unbelievably stupid if your main character's name never has a capital letter throughout the whole book!
However, there are some self-published books which I have really enjoyed. The writing was actually pretty good and the characters were believable as people that would exist in real-life. My top three that I'd recommend are:
Easy by Tammara Webber
Measuring Up by Nyrae Dawn
Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park
Have you read any self-published novels? What did you think? Happy reading!
