artsy musings of a bibliophile

romance

Review: Before You by Amber Hart

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AMBY

ABOUT THE BOOK

Before You by Amber Hart
young adult contemporary romance published by K-Teen on July 29th, 2014
first book in the Before & After series

Some say love is deadly. Some say love is beautiful. I say it is both.

Faith Watters spent her junior year traveling the world, studying in exquisite places, before returning to Oviedo High School. From the outside her life is picture-perfect. Captain of the dance team. Popular. Happy. Too bad it’s all a lie.

It will haunt me. It will claim me. It will shatter me. And I don’t care.

Eighteen-year-old Diego Alvarez hates his new life in the States, but staying in Cuba is not an option. Covered in tattoos and scars, Diego doesn’t stand a chance of fitting in. Nor does he want to. His only concern is staying hidden from his past—a past, which if it were to surface, would cost him everything. Including his life.

At Oviedo High School, it seems that Faith Watters and Diego Alvarez do not belong together. But fate is as tricky as it is lovely. Freedom with no restraint is what they long for. What they get is something different entirely.

Love—it will ruin you and save you, both.

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Review: The Promise of Amazing by Robin Constantine

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RCTPOA

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Promise of Amazing by Robin Constantine
young adult contemporary romance published by Balzer + Bray on December 31st, 2013

Wren Caswell is average. Ranked in the middle of her class at Sacred Heart, she’s not popular, but not a social misfit. Wren is the quiet, “good” girl who’s always done what she’s supposed to—only now in her junior year, this passive strategy is backfiring. She wants to change, but doesn’t know how.

Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe’s. Star of the lacrosse team, top of his class, on a fast track to a brilliant future—until he was expelled for being a “term paper pimp” Now Gray is in a downward spiral and needs to change, but doesn’t know how.

One fateful night their paths cross when Wren, working at her family’s Arthurian-themed catering hall, performs the Heimlich on Gray as he chokes on a cocktail weenie, saving his life literally and figuratively. What follows is the complicated, awkward, hilarious, and tender tale of two teens shedding their pasts, figuring out who they are—and falling in love.

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Review: Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

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Wild Cards | #1 | Simone Elkeles | YA Contemporary Romance | Walker | 1 October 2013 | 353 (eARC)
ABOUT THE BOOK
After getting kicked out of boarding school, bad boy Derek Fitzpatrick has no choice but to live with his ditzy stepmother while his military dad is deployed. Things quickly go from bad to worse when he finds out she plans to move them back to her childhood home in Illinois. Derek’s counting the days before he can be on his own, and the last thing he needs is to get involved with someone else’s family drama.
Ashtyn Parker knows one thing for certain–people you care about leave without a backward glance. A football scholarship would finally give her the chance to leave. So she pours everything into winning a state championship, until her boyfriend and star quarterback betrays them all by joining their rival team. Ashtyn needs a new game plan, but it requires trusting Derek—someone she barely knows, someone born to break the rules. Is she willing to put her heart on the line to try and win it all?

THE RATING

THE REVIEW
Ah, where do I start with this book? I had been crazy excited for Simone Elkeles brand new series because I loved her Perfect Chemistry and Leaving Paradise series. She’s basically on my auto-buy list and rightly so. I squealed with joy when I got approved for Wild Cards on NetGalley. All I knew abou Wild Cards is that it’s a sports book where the girl plays football and there’re going to be snarky dialogues and hot scenes. I was so sure I’d love it but alas.

Derek Fitzpatrick is a former football star player and a self-acclaimed bad boy who loves to pull off pranks. He has perfected his I-couldn’t-care-less attitude to a tee. Nothing gets under his skin. I was really surprised to see him as unfazed as he was when he got expelled. His priorities are definitely messed up. The guy is more concerned about the unruly backyard than he was of getting kicked out.

Ashtyn Parker is a newly elected football captain with a body that begs for attention and an attitude that bites. She’s equally tough and girly though I did like her tomboy side more than her insecure, crying-into-the-pillows side. Oh yes, the book is heavy on emotions. However, due to the uneven pace, I found it hard to fully connect with what was happening with the characters.

Stuck together due to unusual circumstances, Derek and Ashtyn feel instant love-hate attraction towards each other. While one is too blatant about it, the other does her best to hide it for fear of being laughed at. The hot makeout scenes are definitely intense and oh-so-good. All the drama due to miscommunication and witty dialogue exchanges are interesting to read about. However, because of the alternating viewpoints, the story lacked in build-up.

Wild Cards turned out to be an enjoyable read for me. Where it lacked in depth and emotion it made up for it with all the crazy attraction between the main characters. Some of the scenes are definitely swoon-worthy, I enjoyed the non-date-date scene a lot. Humorous at times, Wild Cards is a predictable book that one can finish in a few hours. I’d recommend it to readers of Simone Elkeles and anyone looking for a quick read.

THE QUOTES

“Just because you can deal with bullshit on your own doesn’t mean you should.” 

“I know he wants to fight for something. . . deep down he’s got a basic, intense desire to compete. It’s killing him that he’s ignoring his instincts and instead is determined to keep himself a ghost of who he can be.”

Review: My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

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ABOUT THE BOOK

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
young adult contemporary published by Dial on 14 June 2012

first book in My Life Next Door companion duology


‘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.

THE RATING

THE REVIEW

My Life Next Door is one-of-a-kind read of 2013 for me. No, not because it’s outstanding or extraordinary but because I went through the phase commonly known as everyone-loves-the-book-I-just-can’t-see-why. There were just too many factors at play and I was irked by almost all of them. I went into My Life Next Door thinking that I’d be awed by the characters, their story and of course, the Garretts. I wanted to admire Samantha and swoon over Jase. But as it turned out, for me, the story lacked the punch to blow my mind away. 
Samantha Reed is a not-so-typical girl living in a not-so-typical neighborhood which could only be because of the loud and large family of Garretts. Having always been lived in a small family consisting of a mother who’s too busy trying to advance her career in politics and an elder sister Tracy, who’s too busy with her life. Samantha feels alone. Yes, she had Tim as a best friend once but his habit and an uncaring attitude towards her drowned that friendship. Samantha did almost nothing to save it despite feeling as if she should have at least tried. Then she found a best friend in Tim’s sister, Nana. Nana the ambitious one. It always comes back to bite you, doesn’t it? 
Samantha’s summer days are going to be more dull than ever because of her mother’s constant lectures on how to fill her days working, Tracy leaving for her last-summer-before-college experience, Nana being too busy with her boyfriend and finally, the new man in her mother’s life, Clay Tucker. The name begs for some attention and instant suspicions sprout in her mind. Samantha accepts all this because she lacks courage to stand up and speak for herself to the point of being a pushover. Sometimes it seemed that she used to watch the Garretts just to spite her mother secretly. There had to be some solid issues than a parent just driving you to work harder for her to actually speak up on the said issues. So she continues her habit of watching the Garretts from the trellis outside her bedroom window. But this is the summer everything changes. 
Jase Garrett is literally the boy next door; he’s gorgeous, caring and loving. But I wasn’t blown away by his words and I couldn’t figure out why he was interested in ‘a girl with a trust fund.’ You know there’s going to be some serious complications. I was honestly more interested in the eldest Garrett, biker Joel. What I did like about Jase though, was the way he really cared for his family. Alice always found a reason to whine about babysitting and what not but Jase’s feelings about his siblings are genuine. The guy really has no flaws and I admired the way Huntley Fitzpatrick portrayed the budding relationship of Jase and Samantha. 
Out of the Garretts, George Garrett is the best part of My Life Next Door. His curious questions is what made me enjoy this book as much as I did. Honestly, he’d be the sole reason for me reading the sequel. But there is another reason: Tim. He’s raw and actually tries to improve himself. These two are the reason I liked My Life Next Door as much as I did. Nana seemed like a bad news to me early on and I hated how that dealt with. Alice had quite a spunky attitude which I liked a lot. Mrs. Garrett is another character that I admired. 
However, the involvement of her mother and Clay Tucker with the Garretts just seemed fake to me. The whole thing could be realistic but the way they were handled is most certainly not. It bothered me to see how Samantha reacted to a very grave situation, I so wanted to shake some sense into her. Yeah, I understand her desire for love and attention which were so easily attained when the Garretts were around. She clearly suffered under her disguise of being the responsible and sensible child and I could see the appeal of living life the Garretts way. They didn’t stop their children from pursuing whatever they wanted to, they gave their children the freedom. So yes, she belonged more in the Garretts household than she ever did in her home. I liked that part, it’s the drama that really put me off. In the end, all the characters made up for the conveniently dramatic storyline in the book. Sometimes it’s just hard to genuinely connect with a book and sadly, this was one of those times.

THE QUOTES

‘Maybe if I can just sleep for a hundred years, I’ll wake up in a better story.’

‘It’s as though I don’t make a ripple as I drop off the face of the earth.’

Review: Golden by Jessi Kirby

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ABOUT THE BOOK
young adult contemporary road trip published by Simon & Schuster on 14 May 2013 

Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a clue in her lap—one that might be the key to unraveling a town mystery—she decides to take a chance.
Julianna Farnetti and Shane Cruz are remembered as the golden couple of Summit Lakes High—perfect in every way, meant to be together forever. But Julianna’s journal tells a different story—one of doubts about Shane and a forbidden romance with an older, artistic guy. These are the secrets that were swept away with her the night that Shane’s jeep plunged into an icy river, leaving behind a grieving town and no bodies to bury.
Reading Julianna’s journal gives Parker the courage to start to really live—and it also gives her reasons to question what really happened the night of the accident. Armed with clues from the past, Parker enlists the help of her best friend, Kat, and Trevor, her longtime crush, to track down some leads. The mystery ends up taking Parker places that she never could have imagined. And she soon finds that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference.

THE RATING

THE REVIEW
There are books that leave you feeling breathless, then there are the ones that leave you feeling overwhelmed. The ones that leaves you restless like a thought that has come to a halt after reaching a point of realization and words that die on your lips. Golden left me feeling all three of these and more. So much more. A ‘love and a question.’
Each chapter begins with a line from a poem, the words just enough to travel inside the words written on the page. The beautiful, beautiful words which made me fall in love with the book. I’ve always been attached to words. Silence is something which will always be something you put in a corner and pick it up from time to time. But words, words are alive, the center of the being. Especially written words because they’re a mixture of silence and sound. The words of Julliana Farnetti.
Parker Frost is someone I could’ve been a few years back if I haven’t gathered my bearings and took a stand to study something in life that I wanted to instead of just driving myself crazy in order to become a doctor. It’s just something I thought I needed to become so I completely understand the choices she makes and why.
However, Parker is one of those who needs proof they can see and feel before they can believe in something. It is stupid yes, but for certain things in life, it’s all you need. A shock, a trigger, a flash and belief is there. Just like Kat’s believe in carpe diem. 
Kat, the one I admire so much. She’s one of those people who make you realize that it’s okay not to be perfect and do your own thing. A reminder like that never hurts because really, it is all about seizing the day which cannot be done if we’re acting on choices others make for us.
In between Parker’s hesitation and Kat’s boldness in life, Trevor Collins proved to be awesome. Really, there is no other word to describe him. His words are full of smiles and are true to the core. He’s substantial and real and yin to Parker’s yang. Chasing after the mystery of the love that was, it’s beautiful to read about the love that could be.
Golden is one of those books that do more than just tell a story. They change something inside of you. As I read Golden, I was reminded that poems are essential in life. They’re the fire and ice of words in life. And in the end, ‘nothing gold can stay.’ But y’know what? I’m glad the words of Golden will forever stay inside me.
THE QUOTES

‘But it seems to me that the experiences that stay with you, the things you’ll always remember, aren’t the ones you can force, or go looking for. I’ve always thought of those things as the ones that somehow find you.’

‘I sink into it completely, letting everything else fall away so all that’s left is this. A moment like a poem.’