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Thursday, July 30, 2015

My Life Next Door

12294652"One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time."

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, messy, affectionate. And every day from her rooftop perch, Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs up next to her and changes everything.

As the two fall fiercely for each other, stumbling through the awkwardness and awesomeness of first love, Jase's family embraces Samantha - even as she keeps him a secret from her own. Then something unthinkable happens, and the bottom drops out of Samantha's world. She's suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A transporting debut about family, friendship, first romance, and how to be true to one person you love without betraying another.
 

I am so glad I am finally getting to read a Huntley Fitzpatrick novel. I have been following her on Goodreads for quite awhile and have heard nothing but great things from people about any of her books. I found this one at a garage sale a couple of weeks ago and had to read it. So I did. And I loved it. I love that there is a large family in this book, I come from a family of 6 kids and I feel like it is hard for me to connect to the characters that have say 1 or 2 or 0 siblings. But the Garrets aren't quite my family but close enough. I give this 5 stars all the way!

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Perfect You

1754206Kate Brown's life has gone downhill fast.

Her father has quit his job to sell vitamins at the mall, and Kate is forced to work with him. Her best friend has become popular, and now she acts like Kate's invisible.

And then there's Will. Gorgeous, unattainable Will, whom Kate acts like she can't stand even though she can't stop thinking about him. When Will starts acting interested, Kate hates herself for wanting him when she's sure she's just his latest conquest.

Kate figures that the only way things will ever stop hurting so much is if she keeps to herself and stops caring about anyone or anything. What she doesn't realize is that while life may not always be perfect, good things can happen -- but only if she lets them...

I have had this sitting on my shelf for a while now. And decided I was going to force myself to read it. A do or die type thing.  SO  I did read it. and enjoyed it instead of dreading every time I saw it. I really liked the story the only thing that bothered me was how obvious some things were and she had such a hard time excepting that they were happening. The only other bad part was the ending, it kind of just puttered off. Then had a an epilogue and was done. So other then those things I liked it and really liked it and enjoyed it tons. 

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Stealing Jake

Stealing JakeWhen Livy O’Brien spies a young boy jostling a man walking along the boardwalk, she recognizes the act for what it is. After all, she used to be known as Light-fingered Livy. But that was before she put her past behind her and moved to the growing town of Chestnut, Illinois, where she’s helping to run an orphanage. Now she’ll do almost anything to protect the street kids like herself. 

Sheriff’s deputy Jake Russell had no idea what he was in for when he ran into Livy—literally—while chasing down a pickpocket. With a rash of robberies and a growing number of street kids in town—as well as a loan on the family farm that needs to be paid off—Jake doesn’t have time to pursue a girl. Still, he can't seem to get Livy out of his mind. He wants to get to know her better . . . but Livy isn’t willing to trust any man, especially not a lawman. 

I wasn't sure what I was going to think of this one. It sounded good but was she going to pull it off right? She did, by blending the different stories together and showing the real side of each character and making them individual.  Some books told by different points of view are really hard to understand and see the contrast of them, like when I read Allegiant, I had the worst time trying to follow the story and be able to tell the voices apart. I also liked that she was able to mix the different voices, instead of switching views every other chapter and retelling things just from the other person's point of view. I thought the ending was easy to tell and the mystery part was figured out for me be page 50 or so. So that wasn't very surprising either. But for more of an easy reading chick lit, this one hit the spot. 

I received this book for review through Tyndale's blogger review program. 

Tuesday, July 21, 2015

The Little Paris Bookshop

23278537“There are books that are suitable for a million people, others for only a hundred. There are even remedies—I mean books—that were written for one person only…A book is both medic and medicine at once. It makes a diagnosis as well as offering therapy. Putting the right novels to the appropriate ailments: that’s how I sell books.”

Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can't seem to heal through literature is himself; he's still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.

After Perdu is finally tempted to read the letter, he hauls anchor and departs on a mission to the south of France, hoping to make peace with his loss and discover the end of the story. Joined by a bestselling but blocked author and a lovelorn Italian chef, Perdu travels along the country’s rivers, dispensing his wisdom and his books, showing that the literary world can take the human soul on a journey to heal itself.

Internationally bestselling and filled with warmth and adventure, The Little Paris Bookshop is a love letter to books, meant for anyone who believes in the power of stories to shape people's lives.

I Loved this book. At first I was thinking I am really not going to be able to get into it at all, but shortly latter, I was already into it. The only reason it took me as long as it did to finish it was simply because life got in the way. I overall feel like this is a book that would be more suited to someone older, but I still enjoyed it even though I am younger. 
I received this book for review from blogging for books. 

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

The School For Dangerous Girls

3702423Girl, Interrupted . . . as written by V. C. Andrews.

Angela's parents think she's on the road to ruin because she's dating a "bad boy." After her behavior gets too much for them, they ship her off to Hidden Oak. Isolated and isolating, Hidden Oak promises to rehabilitate "dangerous girls." But as Angela gets drawn in further and further, she discovers that recovery is only on the agenda for the "better" girls. The other girls -- designated as "the purple thread" -- will instead be manipulated to become more and more dangerous . . . and more and more reliant on Hidden Oak's care.

This really intrigued me when I read the back. But when I got so far I was getting far less impressed. It wasn't very believable and hard to imagine that really happening at certain points. Like did anyone at the school ever leave and tell the outside world?  Like the ending was bad to me, like what the heck???    Overall it was good, just not amazing or super believable

Sunday, July 5, 2015

24 Girls in 7 Days

2861108There are few things sadder than Jack Grammar's love life.

So when his friends take it upon themselves to get him a date to the prom by placing an intensely humiliating ad in the school paper, they think they are doing him a favor. Jack doesn't agree. But then the most amazing thing happens: responses to the ad are overwhelming. So overwhelming, in fact, that Jack must narrow the list down. A lot. Not an easy task. Turns out, the girls at City High are quite competitive. From drive-by flashings to breaking and entering to cell phone stalkers, these potential prom dates will stop at nothing to snag the suddenly popular Jack. How will he ever choose just one?

So i was hoping for amazing, but it wasn't. Still it was good. The beginning was funny, and made you want to laugh out loud. The second half, not so much. The ending was okay but kind of just thrown together, it made it seem like Jack had no feelings what so ever and had no problem being rude and there was way to much floating around to girl to girl. Overall it was okay, but not amazing.

Vibes

3212848Nothing is beyond Kristi Carmichael’s disdain—her hippie high school, her friend Jacob, her workaholic mom. Yet for all her attitude and her mind-reading abilities, Kristi has a vulnerable side. She can hear the thoughts of her fellow students, calling her fat and gross. She’s hot for Gusty Peterson, one of the most popular guys in school, but of course, she’s sure he thinks she is disgusting. And she’s still mad at her father, who walked out on them two years ago. Soon, a school project brings her together with Gusty, her father comes home and drops a bombshell, and a friend comes out of the closet, and suddenly she is left doubting that she can read people at all.

Bitingly funny but ultimately poignant and positive, this YA novel is completely on the mark.
 

Wow. I loved this. I enjoyed reading a book that doesn't star a perfect or semiperfect teenage girl that is on a one track quest to find the guy of her dreams. Which I still love those, this is just a welcomed change. Kristi is anything but normal and doesn't feel the need to change ( you go girl!). I really loved her relationships in the book and how much she changed and grew throughout the story. I really loved this and highly recommend it!

Thursday, July 2, 2015

Emmy and Oliver

13132816Emmy’s best friend, Oliver, reappears after being kidnapped by his father ten years ago. Emmy hopes to pick up their relationship right where it left off. Are they destined to be together? Or has fate irreparably driven them apart?

Emmy just wants to be in charge of her own life.

She wants to stay out late, surf her favorite beach—go anywhere without her parents’ relentless worrying. But Emmy’s parents can’t seem to let her grow up—not since the day Oliver disappeared.

Oliver needs a moment to figure out his heart.

He’d thought, all these years, that his dad was the good guy. He never knew that it was his father who kidnapped him and kept him on the run. Discovering it, and finding himself returned to his old hometown, all at once, has his heart racing and his thoughts swirling.

Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. In Emmy’s soul, despite the space and time between them, their connection has never been severed. But is their story still written in the stars? Or are their hearts like the pieces of two different puzzles—impossible to fit together?

Readers who love Sarah Dessen will tear through these pages with hearts in throats as Emmy and Oliver struggle to face the messy, confusing consequences of Oliver’s father’s crime. Full of romance, coming-of-age emotion, and heartache, these two equally compelling characters create an unforgettable story.
 

What to say, what to say. First off I won this book from Epic Reads (thanks!). I loved this so much! I love Sarah Dessen and any books like them. This book was amazing and I loved it so much! It was realistic, sad, ans sappy all at the same time. I would highly recommend it as a great summer read!

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Arranged

12935956Anne Blythe has a great life: a good job, good friends, and a potential book deal for her first novel. When it comes to finding someone to share it with, however, she just can't seem to get it right.

After yet another relationship ends, Anne comes across a business card for what she thinks is a dating service, and she pockets it just in case. When her best friend, Sarah, announces she's engaged, Anne can't help feeling envious. On an impulse, she decides to give the service a try because maybe she could use a little assistance in finding the right man. But Anne soon discovers the company isn't a dating service; it's an exclusive, and pricey, arranged marriage service. She initially rejects the idea, but the more she thinks about it -- and the company's success rate -- the more it appeals to her. After all, arranged marriages are the norm for millions of women around the world, so why wouldn't it work for her?

A few months later, Anne is travelling to a Mexican resort, where in one short weekend she will meet and marry Jack. And against all odds, it seems to be working out -- until Anne learns that Jack, and the company that arranged their marriage, are not what they seem at all.
 

I am not normally into books that have main characters that are a lot older than I am. But this one was different to me. I just really liked the storyline, and not one I have ever seen as a modern storyline. I was more than intrigued, I was pumped. I ended up only having this book for a couple of weeks before I broke down and read it.  So glad I did! I loved it so much, the story was well thought out and well paced. I seriously can't help but say, please read it! Its so good!

The Heir

22918050Princess Eadlyn has grown up hearing endless stories about how her mother and father met. Twenty years ago, America Singer entered the Selection and won the heart of Prince Maxon—and they lived happily ever after. Eadlyn has always found their fairy-tale story romantic, but she has no interest in trying to repeat it. If it were up to her, she'd put off marriage for as long as possible.

But a princess's life is never entirely her own, and Eadlyn can't escape her very own Selection—no matter how fervently she protests.

Eadlyn doesn't expect her story to end in romance. But as the competition begins, one entry may just capture Eadlyn's heart, showing her all the possibilities that lie in front of her . . . and proving that finding her own happily ever after isn't as impossible as she's always thought.

While some people were angry hearing there were going to be more books in the selection series, I wasn't. I loved this continuation of the story and that its a jump in the future to the next selection. I love Maxon and America as parents and how the raise and treat their kids. I can't wait to read the next one. Kiera Cass you need to get your next book out pronto. Or let me read it early? PLEASE?????!!!!!