Must-Read Review: The Loose Ends List by Carrie Firestone

The Loose Ends List by Carrie Firestone

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Hachette Book Group Canada
Publication Date: June 7th, 2016
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Family, First Love, Adventure, Life and Death, Humour

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BLURB:

It’s a summer for first love, last wishes, and letting go.

Maddie has big plans to spend the last months before college tying up high school “loose ends” alongside her best friends. Then her beloved grandmother drops two bombshells: (1) Gram is dying. (2) She’s taking her entire family on a round-the-world cruise of dreams come true—but at the end, Gram won’t be returning home.

With a promise to live in the now without regrets, Maddie boards the Wishwell determined to make every moment count. She finds new friends in her fellow Wishwellians, takes advantage of the trip’s many luxuries, gets even closer to her quirky family, and falls for painfully gorgeous Enzo. But despite the copious laughter, headiness of first love, and wonder of the glamorous destinations, Maddie knows she is on the brink of losing Gram, and she struggles to find the strength to let go in a whirlwind summer shaped by love, grief, and laughter.

Review: The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout

The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
Publication Date: May 17th, 2016
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 14+
Pacing: Very slow
Genres &  Themes: Young Adult, High School, Romance, Contemporary, Family, Abuse, Child Neglect, Long-term Effect

BLURB:

For some people, silence is a weapon. For Mallory “Mouse” Dodge, it’s a shield. Growing up, she learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime.

Now, after years of homeschooling with loving adoptive parents, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at public high school. But of all the terrifying and exhilarating scenarios she’s imagined, there’s one she never dreamed of—that she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.

Review: Don’t Judge a Girl by Her Cover (Gallagher Girls, #3) by Ally Carter

Don’t Judge a Girl by Her Cover by Ally Carter

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
Publication Date: June 9th 2009
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Genres &  Themes: Young Adult, Espionage, Boarding School, Mystery, Contemporary, Romance, Family, Secrets,

BLURB:

When Cammie “The Chameleon” Morgan visits her roommate Macey in Boston, she thinks she’s in for an exciting end to her summer break. After all, she’s there to watch Macey’s father accept the nomination for vice president of the United States. But when you go to the world’s best school (for spies), “exciting” and “deadly” are never far apart. Cammie and Macey soon find themselves trapped in a kidnappers’ plot, with only their espionage skills to save them.

Review: Winning by Lara Deloza

Winning by Lara Deloza

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Edelweiss
Publicatio Date: June 28th 2016
Publisher: HarperTeen
Point of View: 1st Person Feminine & Alternative
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres &  Themes: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary, High School, Revenge, Anti-Hero, LGBT

BLURB:

House of Cards meets Election in this wickedly entertaining story about an uber-ambitious high school junior.

Whoever said being nice would get you to the top?

Certainly not Alexandra Miles. She isn’t nice, but she’s more than skilled at playing the part. She floats through the halls of Spencer High, effortlessly orchestrating the actions of everyone around her, making people bend to her whim without even noticing they’re doing it. She is the queen of Spencer High—and it’s time to make it official.

Alexandra has a goal, you see—Homecoming Queen. Her ambitions are far grander than her small town will allow, but homecoming is just the first step to achieving total domination. So when peppy, popular Erin Hewett moves to town and seems to have a real shot at the crown, Alexandra has to take action.

Review: The Stranger by Albert Camus

The Stranger by Albert Camus

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Publication Date: 1942
Publisher: Vintage International
Point of View: 1st Person & Masculine
Recommended Age: 16+
Genres &  Themes: Adulr, Classic, Life, Psychological

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Through the story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on an Algerian beach, Camus explored what he termed “the nakedness of man faced with the absurd.”

Book Tour: Crushed (Soul Eater #2) by Eliza Crewe

Crushed by Eliza Crewe

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: author
Publication Date: September 22, 2014
Publisher: Indie
POV: 1st & female
Pacing: very slow
Genres & Themes: YA, Demons, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Friendship, Family

Amazon, Google Play, Barnes & Noble, Kobo

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Meda Melange has officially hung up her monstrous mantle and planted her feet firmly on the holy and righteous path of a Crusader-in-training. Or, at least, she’s willing to give it a shot. It helps that the Crusaders are the only thing standing between her and the demon hordes who want her dead.

The problem is, the only people less convinced than Meda of her new-found role as Good Girl are the very Crusaders she’s trying to join. So when a devilishly handsome half-demon boy offers escape, how’s a girl supposed to say “no?”

After all, everyone knows a good girl’s greatest weakness is a bad boy.