Novel Review: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Rating (Out of 5): ~4

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Ember (Random House)

Release Date: 2015

Spoilers?: Yes, with warning.

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

The Cover:

I think this cover is very simple and pretty. While I do like how it relates to the drawings and whatnot inside now, it didn't really catch my eye before I read it. It's definitely a nice cover, though, and I like how it's not at all embarrassing to carry around.

Review:

Maddy is sick and has been on house arrest her entire life, pretty much. After losing her brother and father, it's only been her and her mother, and her nurse Carla. She takes classes online, and she loves architecture. And then a new family moves in next door, and Maddy meets Olly through the window.

Maddy and Olly get to know each other through looks and gestures first, and then through text, before they get to meet. They get along straight-away. Despite being stuck inside always, Maddy is pretty optimistic and easy-going. She doesn't let it bother her. And Olly makes her laugh. He's energetic and loves black, but he also has a fun sense of humor and isn't afraid to act a little weird. He also worries about Maddy, and he just wants her to be okay.

I like Maddy's struggle, it felt realistic. She wants to get to know Olly from the beginning, but at one point she decides that it would be too risky, to let herself want something she can't really have. When she decides that love and life, and experiencing things, is worth the risk, I respect that. I admit her decision is rather impulsive, but I still respected it.

(Spoiler!) The twist at the end I didn't expect. The signs were all there, but I still fully expected this to be a sad, diseased-girl leaves her safe environment and gets sick kind of story. I didn't think it was going to be one where she's actually been lied to. That plot twist made me like the story even more, though—I'm a sucker for those kinds of plots. I also really appreciated how Maddy handled it. I think she acted how she should have—sure, her mother had something mentally wrong, but she also wronged Maddy. And Maddy deserved to be angry about that.

My only thing is that I wish there had more past the ending. I wanted to know what happened with her mother next, where she goes from here. (End Spoiler.)

This was a really fun book. I liked the writing style, and how it included all these drawings and short book reviews, and a lot of quirky little things strewn out. It was very fast, and fun, and then that twist definitely made it for me.

Novel Review: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5-4

Genre: YA Realistic

Publisher: Delacorte Press (Random House)

Release Date: 2014

Spoilers?: No.

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.
Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

The Cover:

I actually really like this cover. It's simple and not at all embarrassing. The scene is fitting for the characters and the island they live on, and I think the blurring effect works really well with how the story goes.

 

Review:

I must admit, I didn't see that coming.

I knew that a big twist was going to come, but I didn't think that would be it. Literally not until it pretty much spelled it out. And even then, I didn't want to believe it. For one, because I didn't realize this was going to be that kind of book. But for another, because it's just so awful, and unfair, and sad.

It leads up to it really well. You get to know each of the characters, and there's some mixed feelings and some really close friendships. Slowly, the tension on the island grows, and slowly you discover why. Part of Cadence's brain was filling in the pieces of what she was missing, in odd ways and odd memories and stories. Looking back, I quite enjoyed the little fantasies she created and how it evolved into the truth. And how it all adds up makes perfect sense, and the events leading up to it were realistic. I was even behind the groups decision, up until we realize how wrong it went.

Even though this is “that kind” of book, I think it handled it really well. How it wraps up in the end, how the goodbyes are handled, I thought was really sweet. It, maybe, softened the blow a little bit.

I was surprised by this book, and I did rather enjoy it. Or, more accurately, I definitely think it was worth reading.

Teaser Tuesday[248]: Vaclav & Lena by Haley Tanner

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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Vaclav & Lena by Haley Tanner

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Publisher: The Dial Press (Random House)

Release Date: 2011

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

Set in New York's Russian émigré community, Vaclav & Lena is a timeless love story from a stunningly gifted young novelist.

Vaclav and Lena, both the children of Russian émigrés, are at the same time from radically different worlds. While Vaclav's burgeoning love of performing magic is indulged by hard-working parents pursuing the American dream, troubled orphan Lena is caught in a domestic situation no child should suffer through. Taken in as one of her own by Vaclav's big-hearted mother, Lena might finally be able to blossom; in the naive young magician's eyes, she is destined to be his "faithful assistant"...but after a horrific discovery, the two are ripped apart without even a goodbye. Years later, they meet again. But will their past once more conspire to keep them apart?

Excerpt:

“'She is sick, maybe,' Vaclav says.

'She was in school?'

'No,' says Vaclav.” (Hardback, pg. 105)

What are you reading?

Teaser Tuesday[246]: Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith

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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Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Delacorte Press (Random House)

Release Date: May2, 2017

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

Let luck find you.

Alice doesn’t believe in luck—at least, not the good kind. But she does believe in love, and for some time now, she’s been pining for her best friend, Teddy. On his eighteenth birthday—just when it seems they might be on the brink of something—she buys him a lottery ticket on a lark. To their astonishment, he wins $140 million, and in an instant, everything changes.

At first, it seems like a dream come true, especially since the two of them are no strangers to misfortune. As a kid, Alice won the worst kind of lottery possible when her parents died just over a year apart from each other. And Teddy’s father abandoned his family not long after that, leaving them to grapple with his gambling debts. Through it all, Teddy and Alice have leaned on each other. But now, as they negotiate the ripple effects of Teddy’s newfound wealth, a gulf opens between them. And soon, the money starts to feel like more of a curse than a windfall.

As they try to find their way back to each other, Alice learns more about herself than she ever could have imagined…and about the unexpected ways in which luck and love sometimes intersect.

Excerpt:

“The money arrives on a rainy day in the middle of March.” (Hardback, pg. 133)

What are you reading?

Teaser Tuesday[239]: A Shadow Bright and Burning (Kingdom on Fire, #1) by Jessica Cluess

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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A Shadow Bright and Burning (Kingdom on Fire, #1) by Jessica Cluess

Genre: YA Fantasy

Publisher: Random House

Release Date: September 2016

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

Henrietta can burst into flames.

Forced to reveal her power to save a friend, she’s shocked when instead of being executed, she’s named the first female sorcerer in hundreds of years and invited to train as one of Her Majesty’s royal sorcerers.

Thrust into the glamour of Victorian London, Henrietta is declared the prophesied one, the girl who will defeat the Ancients, bloodthirsty demons terrorizing humanity. She also meets her fellow sorcerer trainees, handsome young men eager to test her power and her heart. One will challenge her. One will fight for her. One will betray her.

But Henrietta is not the chosen one.

As she plays a dangerous game of deception, she discovers that the sorcerers have their own secrets to protect. With battle looming, how much will she risk to save the city—and the one she loves?

Excerpt:

“As I rose, Dee said, 'You really should name your stave, you know. Names give one a bit more control over something.“ (ARC, pg. 82)

What are you reading?

Teaser Tuesday[238]: All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

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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All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Ember/Knopf (Random House)

Release Date: 2015

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

The Fault in Our Stars meets Eleanor and Park in this exhilarating and heart-wrenching love story about a girl who learns to live from a boy who intends to die.

Soon to be a major motion picture starring Elle Fanning!
 
Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good, no matter how small, stops him.

Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister’s recent death.

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it’s unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself—a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who’s not such a freak after all. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink.

This is an intense, gripping novel perfect for fans of Jay Asher, Rainbow Rowell, John Green, Gayle Forman, and Jenny Downham from a talented new voice in YA, Jennifer Niven.

Excerpt:

“I lean forward, like I'm a rocket, like I. Am. The. Car. And I start yelling because I'm getting more awake by the second.” (Paperback, pg. 57)

What are you reading?

Teaser Tuesday[231]: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

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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We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Genre: YA Contemporary

Publisher: Delacorte Press (Random House)

Release Date: 2014

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from New York Times bestselling author, National Book Award finalist, and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.

And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

 

Excerpt:

“'I'm not supposed to talk about you ending up in the water and everything,' says Will.” (Hardback, pg. 92)

What are you reading?

Teaser Tuesday[229]: The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily (Dash & Lily, #2) by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

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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The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance; Christmas

Publisher: Knopf (Random House)

Release Date: October 18, 2016

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

 
New York Times bestselling authors Rachel Cohn and David Levithan are back with a life-affirming Christmas romance starring Dash and Lily.

Dash and Lily have had a tough year since readers first watched the couple fall in love. Lily’s beloved grandfather suffered a heart attack, and his difficult road to recovery has taken a major toll on her typically sunny disposition.

With only twelve days left until Christmas—Lily’s favorite time of the year—Dash, Lily’s brother Langston, and their closest friends take Manhattan by storm to help Lily recapture the holiday magic of New York City in December.

Told in alternating chapters, The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily reunites two beloved characters and is bound to be a Christmas favorite, season after season.

Excerpt:

“Lily went to the base of her bookshelf and picked up a tissue paper-wrapped package. 'Here,' she said, handing it over.” (ARC, pg. 41)

What are you reading?

Teaser Tuesday[193]: Don’t Expect Magic (Magic, #1) by Kathy McCullough

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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Don’t Expect Magic (Magic, #1) by Kathy McCullough

Genre: YA Supernatural Romance

Publisher: Ember (Random House)

Release Date: 2011

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

Goodreads Synopsis:

Delaney Collins doesn't believe in fairy tales. And why should she? Her mom is dead, her best friend is across the country, and she's stuck in California with "Dr. Hank," her famous life-coach father—a man she barely knows. Happily ever after? Yeah, right. Then Dr. Hank tells her an outrageous secret: he's a fairy godmother—an f.g.—and he can prove it. And by the way? The f.g. gene is hereditary. Meaning there's a good chance that New Jersey tough girl Delaney is someone's fairy godmother.

Even though she's not the pink and sparkly type, Delaney soon finds herself with a client: Flynn Becker, a boy at her new school who's hopelessly in love with a girl who doesn't know he exists. Flynn's wish is Delaney's command. With her customized black boots and chopstick wand, Delaney does everything in her power to make Flynn's wish come true. But what happens when a fairy godmother needs a wish of her own?

Excerpt:

“What’s the point of having superpowers if it’s not about awing everybody? Although now that I think about it, pretty much every famous superhero is in the closet.” (Paperback, pg. 111)

What are you reading right now?