Novel Review: The Decoding of Lana Morris by Laura and Tom McNeal

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Genre: YA Contemporary (with a taste of paranormal, and a little romance)

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf (Random House)

Publish Date: May, 2007

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Lana Morris wishes her life were different, that she were somewhere else, someone else. Her foster mother wants her gone, she's stuck taking care of the other kids in the house, she longs to become closer to her foster father, and the only cool people around refuse to acknowledge her. Then Lana stumbles into Miss Hekkity's mysterious shop, and she begins to realize that she might actually have the power to change things—to make some of her wishes come true. But wishing isn't always as harmless as it seems. . . .

Award-winning authors Laura and Tom McNeal weave a warmhearted and suspenseful story about the power—and danger—of a wish.

Something Specific:

Quote:

• "'I don’t run and I don’t hide.” (Paperback, pg. 272)

The Cover:

I like the cover of this book. The one pictured above is pretty, I'm not a huge fan of the model, but the feel of it is fitting. I honestly think the other cover is better, the color is very pretty, and I really like how the dandelion fits the book.

Review:

This book has been on my shelf for a very long time (like, since before Borders closed), and I finally took it off and told myself to read it. I was starting to think it would be pretty meh, a slow read, but I’d had it so long I’d practically forgotten it was there. And it turned out quite a bit better than I thought it would be.

It is a kind of slow read, slow paced, but it’s a very good one. It’s a little eccentric, subtle, quirky, thoughtful. It’s very sweet, with really nice characters that you want to have a happy ending.

It has a paranormal premise, what with the wishes, but it’s very contemporary, actually. Lana is an orphan, and she lives with a bunch of odd orphaned kids, in a house with not-very-nice adults. She wants out, but her wants mature and expand and get better by the end of the book. Her relationships with the kids gets better, grows.

I’m really glad that I picked this book up, forever ago when I did, and that I finally got around to reading it. And I will probably be picking up another book by the McNeal’s in the future.

Manga Review: Awkward Silence, Volume 3, by Hinako Takanaga

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: SuBLime (VIZ Media)

Publish Date: February, 2013

Volumes: 4+

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf!

Volume 1. Previous Volume. Next Volume.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Satoru Tono is too shy to speak to classmate Keigo Tamiya. Instead he fills his sketchbook with drawings of the boy he likes. But perhaps Keigo has noticed him too...? Reads R to L (Japanese Style) for mature audiences.

Something Specific:

Quote:

• "'He’s a pervert. But I like that.’” This is Satoru thinking this. He's just so adorable.

Review:

This volume had a lot of the second, not as important to me, couple in this series, Yuji and Kagami. They are fun to watch, though. Yuji is very distant, putting up a rude front, and Kagami is very forceful and pushy and flirty. Satoru is trying to push them along, trying to be a nosy, but good friend. And Tamiya is helping him do that, being a good boyfriend.

Satoru and Tamiya are so cute together, I love them. Satoru’s inner monologue is so adorable and hilarious and so full of feeling. Tamiya is getting to know him so well, and he’s such a sweet boyfriend to him. The other two are growing on me, but Tamiya and Satoru are still my favorite.

Then there’s Satoru’s parents. I just love his mom, who is so like him, and so nosy, and gets along with Satoru so well. She showed up quite a bit in this volume, and I just want her to show up more, because she’s awesome. Also, I'm not sure how much she knows about Satoru, or Yuji, being gay.

I love this series, honestly. The releases are very slow, because we’re pretty much caught up with Japan and I don’t know how fast it’s released over there (apparently not very?). The next volume is coming out next month, and I am looking forward to its arrival.

Manga Review: A Devil and Her Love Song, Volume 11, by Miyoshi Tomori

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Publisher: Shojo Beat (VIZ Media)

Publish Date: October, 2013

Volumes: 13

Spoilers?: No.

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Powells. RightStuf!

Volume 1. Previous Volume. Next Volume.

Goodreads Synopsis:

A moving coming-of-age story that showcases a fierce, dynamic heroine who speaks her mind.

Meet Maria Kawai—she’s gorgeous and whip-smart, a girl who seems to have it all. But when she unleashes her sharp tongue, it’s no wonder some consider her to be the very devil! Maria’s difficult ways even get her kicked out of an elite school, but this particular fall may actually turn out to be her saving grace...

Maria finally gets to be with her beloved Shin, but her mysterious inabiilty to speak continues to haunt her. Because the cause may be related to her past, she decides to go to Yokosuka, the town she grew up in. What life-changing surprises await her there?

Reads R to L (Japanese Style) for teen audiences.

Review:

You guys, there’s only two more volumes in this series. It’s going to be over in February. How is it so close to the end already?! I don’t understand.

I love seeing Maria grow and find out more about herself and her past. It’s so exciting, and horrible, and good for her.

I’m not going to go into detail, because a lot happened in this book. There was a big internal fight for her to go through because of a few things that she found out, and it’s so hard to see her upset and angry, but she’s coming out of it better, and that’s good. We found out a lot about Maria and her parents and grandparents in this volume, as well as a surprise with Kurosu that I was really not expecting.

There was also some development with Shin and Maria. At this point, I’m not really sure how I feel about them, especially since it seems like Shin isn’t really listening to her, or is trying to shelter her, when it’s not his say what she knows or doesn’t know. Maybe I just want more Yusuke? I don’t know.

I love Maria. I just want her to mature and be happy. 

Anyway. I want the next volume, and can't wait for it to get here.

Wishlist Thursday[33]: Awkward Silence, Volume 4, by Hinako Takanaga

First of all: Happy Thanksgiving! Hope you're having fun! (To whom that does not apply, I still hope you had a good day!)

Now, the book:

Awkward Silence Volume 4 by Hinako Takanaga

Publisher: SuBLime (VIZ Media)

Publish Date: December 10^th, 2013

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells. RightStuf!

Goodreads Synopsis:

Too shy for love.

Satoru Tono is too shy to speak to classmate Keigo Tamiya. Instead he fills his sketchbook with drawings of the boy he likes. But perhaps Keigo has noticed him too...?

Yuji Sagara and Takahito Kagami have been on one date together, but Yuji isn't prepared to start a relationship with a guy who lives in a completely different world than he does. Takahito is being groomed to take his father's elite place in politics, and now it's rumored he'll even go to university abroad!

Reads R to L (Japanese Style) for mature audiences.

Why?:

I don’t usually do manga for this unless it’s the first volume in a series, but I thought why not with this one, both because I seem to be having a hard time finding a new release for December (unless it’s for the 31^st), and because I’m so very excited for this volume.

The review for the previous volume should be up soon, but it seems like it has been a really long time since volume 3 came out. And I’m really excited to read this volume, because this is such a good series, but I’m also sure that it’s going to be a long while till the next volume comes out. Last I checked, only 4 volumes were out in Japan as well, and it’s ongoing, so sadly it will be a while. Still, I’m excited for it to get here.


So, what book(s) are you looking forward to?

Teaser Tuesday[74]: Unravel Me (Shatter Me, #2) by Tahereh Mafi

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

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Unravel Me (Shatter Me, #2) by Tahereh Mafi

Genre: YA Paranormal Dystopian Romance

Publisher: HarperTeen (HarperCollins)

Publish Date: February 5th, 2013

Buy it here: Amazon. Barnes and Noble. Book Depository. Powells.

Wishlist Thursday.

Goodreads Synopsis:

 tick
tick
tick
tick
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it's almost
time for war.

Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance.

She's finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.

Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.

In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, Juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart—and Adam's life.

Excerpt:

“‘There was nothing in the note about arriving unarmed,’ Castle says as Alia passes him two automatic handguns in a shape and size I’ve come to recognize. I practiced shooting with these just yesterday.

I was terrible at it.” (Hardback, pg. 205)

Tell me below what you’re reading right now!