Daisy Jones & The Six – Taylor Jenkins Reid

Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Penguin Random House Canada
Published: March 2019
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Recommended Age: 15+
Genres & Themes: Adult, Romance, Music, Realistic Fiction, Addiction, Family, Love/Hate Relationships

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REVIEW:

This was pretty darn fascinating. I have never read anything like it before and that alone deserves praise from me because I don’t frequently find myself reading something I have no clue what other book to compare it with. I also have no clue how the author came up with such an original idea, which makes me really want to develop superpowers in order to read her mind. Just a little.

You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone

You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone by Rachel Lynn Solomon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
First Published: January 2nd, 2018
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Recommended Age: 14+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Siblings, Contemporary Romance, High School, Disease, Music, First Love, Family Drama

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BLURB:

Eighteen-year-old twins Adina and Tovah have little in common besides their ambitious nature. Viola prodigy Adina yearns to become a soloist—and to convince her music teacher he wants her the way she wants him. Overachiever Tovah awaits her acceptance to Johns Hopkins, the first step on her path toward med school and a career as a surgeon. But one thing could wreck their carefully planned futures: a genetic test for Huntington’s, a rare degenerative disease that slowly steals control of the body and mind. It’s turned their Israeli mother into a near stranger and fractured the sisters’ own bond in ways they’ll never admit. While Tovah finds comfort in their Jewish religion, Adina rebels against its rules. When the results come in, one twin tests negative for Huntington’s. The other tests positive. These opposite outcomes push them farther apart as they wrestle with guilt, betrayal, and the unexpected thrill of first love. How can they repair their relationship, and is it even worth saving?

Someday, Somewhere – Lindsay Champion

Someday, Somewhere by Lindsay Champion

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
First Published: April 3rd, 2018
Publisher: KCP Loft
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Romance, Music, Professional Career, Mental Health

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BLURB:

When Dom’s class is taken to hear a concert at Carnegie Hall, she expects to be bored out of her mind. But then she sees the boy in the front row playing violin like his life depends on it — and she is transfixed. Posing as an NYU student, Dom sneaks back to New York City to track down Ben Tristan, a magnetic genius who whisks her into a fantasy world of jazz clubs and opera, infatuation and possibility. Each sees something in the other that promises to complete them. As Dom’s web of lies grows, though, so does Ben’s obsessive need to conquer Beethoven’s famous Kreutzer Sonata. But Ben’s genius, which captivates Dominique, conceals a secret, and the challenges of her life may make it difficult to help him.

Bluesman – Rob Vollmar

Bluesman by Rob Vollmar

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Distributor
First Published: August 1st, 2008
Publisher: NMB Publishing
Recommended Age: 14+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Graphic Novel, Music, Historical Fiction, Crime, Racism

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BLURB:

Now collected into one stunning hardcover! This story, structured like a traditional twelve bar blues song, with three sections each made of four chapters, follows blues musician Lem Taylor’s harrowing journey across Arkansas of the late twenties, hunted for a crime he didn’t commit.

The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: March 9th, 2010
Publisher: Dial Books
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Romance, Grief, Music

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BLURB:

Seventeen-year-old Lennie Walker, bookworm and band geek, plays second clarinet and spends her time tucked safely and happily in the shadow of her fiery older sister, Bailey. But when Bailey dies abruptly, Lennie is catapulted to center stage of her own life – and, despite her nonexistent history with boys, suddenly finds herself struggling to balance two. Toby was Bailey’s boyfriend; his grief mirrors Lennie’s own. Joe is the new boy in town, a transplant from Paris whose nearly magical grin is matched only by his musical talent. For Lennie, they’re the sun and the moon; one boy takes her out of her sorrow, the other comforts her in it. But just like their celestial counterparts, they can’t collide without the whole wide world exploding.

Review: Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones

Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones

My rating: 4of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: February 7th, 2017
Publisher: Thomas Dunne
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Music

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BLURB:

Beware the goblin men and the wares they sell.

All her life, nineteen-year-old Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, mysterious Goblin King. He is the Lord of Mischief, the Ruler Underground, and the muse around which her music is composed. Yet, as Liesl helps shoulder the burden of running her family’s inn, her dreams of composition and childish fancies about the Goblin King must be set aside in favor of more practical concerns.

But when her sister Käthe is taken by the goblins, Liesl journeys to their realm to rescue her sister and return her to the world above. The Goblin King agrees to let Käthe go—for a price. The life of a maiden must be given to the land, in accordance with the old laws. A life for a life, he says. Without sacrifice, nothing good can grow. Without death, there can be no rebirth. In exchange for her sister’s freedom, Liesl offers her hand in marriage to the Goblin King. He accepts.

Down in the Underground, Liesl discovers that the Goblin King still inspires her—musically, physically, emotionally. Yet even as her talent blossoms, Liesl’s life is slowly fading away, the price she paid for becoming the Goblin King’s bride. As the two of them grow closer, they must learn just what it is they are each willing to sacrifice: her life, her music, or the end of the world.

Review: The One Thing by Marci Lyn Curtis

The One Thing by Marci Lyn Curtis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Hachette Book Group Canada
Publication Date: September 8th 2015
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Music, Contemporary, Family, Romance, Friendship, Disability, Magical Realism

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BLURB:

Maggie Sanders might be blind, but she won’t invite anyone to her pity party. Ever since losing her sight six months ago, Maggie’s rebellious streak has taken on a life of its own, culminating with an elaborate school prank. Maggie called it genius. The judge called it illegal.

Now Maggie has a probation officer. But she isn’t interested in rehabilitation, not when she’s still mourning the loss of her professional-soccer dreams, and furious at her so-called friends, who lost interest in her as soon as she could no longer lead the team to victory.

Then Maggie’s whole world is turned upside down. Somehow, incredibly, she can see again. But only one person: Ben, a precocious ten-year-old unlike anyone she’s ever met.Ben’s life isn’t easy, but he doesn’t see limits, only possibilities. After awhile, Maggie starts to realize that losing her sight doesn’t have to mean losing everything she dreamed of. Even if what she’s currently dreaming of is Mason Milton, the infuriatingly attractive lead singer of Maggie’s new favorite band, who just happens to be Ben’s brother.

Review: Lost Stars by Lisa Selin Davis

Lost Stars by Lisa Selin Davis

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: October 4th, 2016
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Family, Troubled Teens, Romance, Music

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BLURB:

Before her older sister, Ginny, died, Carrie was a science nerd, obsessively tracking her beloved Vira comet. But now that Ginny is gone, sixteen-year-old Carrie finds herself within the orbit of Ginny’s friends, a close-knit group of seniors who skip school, obsess over bands (not science), and party hard.

Fed up with Carrie’s behavior, her father enrolls her in a summer work camp at a local state park. Carrie actually likes the days spent in nature. And when she meets Dean, a guy who likes the real Carrie—astrophysics obsessions and all—she starts to get to the heart of who she is and who she wants to be.

Review: Tell Me Something Real by Calla Devlin

Tell Me Something Real by Calla Devlin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
Publication Date: August 30th 2016
Publisher: S&S/Atheneum
Point of View: 1st Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Contemporary, Illness, Family, Sisterhood, Music, Romance

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BLURB:

Three sisters struggle with the bonds that hold their family together as they face a darkness settling over their lives in this masterfully written debut novel.

There are three beautiful blond Babcock sisters: gorgeous and foul-mouthed Adrienne, observant and shy Vanessa, and the youngest and best-loved, Marie. Their mother is ill with leukemia and the girls spend a lot of time with her at a Mexican clinic across the border from their San Diego home so she can receive alternative treatments.

Vanessa is the middle child, a talented pianist who is trying to hold her family together despite the painful loss that they all know is inevitable. As she and her sisters navigate first loves and college dreams, they are completely unaware that an illness far more insidious than cancer poisons their home. Their world is about to shatter under the weight of an incomprehensible betrayal…

Best Young Adult Books with Mild LGBT Themes

Dear readers, I was reading an M/M romance erotica that was really disappointing me (off with Insta-Lust’s head!) when I decided to make a list of the best Young Adult books with mild LGBT themes I’ve read in my life. (Click on the covers to buy.)

Here it goes.