Tag: goodreads

• Book Review: “Isla and the Happily Ever After” by Stephanie Perkins (ARC)

  Posted at 8:15 am by Laura, on August 13, 2014

  Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins 

  Publisher: Dutton
  Publishing Date: August 14
  Genre: young adult, romance, travel
  ISBN: 9780525425632
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★★★

  From the glittering streets of Manhattan to the moonlit rooftops of Paris, falling in love is easy for hopeless dreamer Isla and introspective artist Josh. But as they begin their senior year in France, Isla and Josh are quickly forced to confront the heartbreaking reality that happily-ever-afters aren’t always forever.

  Three years of crushing on Josh could never prepare Isla for her embarrassing, drug-induced, loopy, spontaneous conversation with him in a Manhattan cafe. But while she curses her lost wisdom teeth for bringing her humiliation, Josh is nothing but ecstatic to find that she seems interested in him. Little does she know that he’s been, more or less, observing and crushing on her all this time in France. As their whirlwind relationship takes hold, they face things for more risky, more thrilling, and more mature than they’ve ever experienced — and pumping the breaks is not an option.

  This was such a lovely end to the full relationship arc. In Anna and the French Kiss, we fall in love with falling in love — all the confusion and anxiety and butterflies and wonderful realization that yes, he likes you! In Lola and the Boy Next Door, we rekindle old love, fit the right pieces together, and experience a honest, easy relationship. And finally, in Isla and the Happily Ever After, we date our long-time crush, become overwhelmed with how easy and perfect it feels, and suddenly become frightened of the future and our insecurities. As promised, this book ends with a reunion — we glimpse Anna and Étienne, Cricket and Lola, and Meredith — and it’s such a great wrap-up.

  Arc aside, I truly enjoyed this book as a stand-alone too. I loved it just as much as Anna. In Anna I loved her internal monologues, her sarcasm, and the entire “does he, does he not” experience. It’s universal and beautiful and made me squee. I’m STILL giggly over that book. And this book makes me feel the same, only in the actual relationship experience. From the high of falling in love, to the crushing heartbreak of facing the future and finding the whole concept of all-consuming love intimidating and frightening. Insecurities get in the way and blinds Josh and Isla of their potential, and it’s just so deep and heartfelt. Loved it. If Anna makes me giggle, Isla makes me hug the book. And both girls are my fictional kindred spirits.

  I really enjoyed the secondary characters, here, too. Kurt, Isla’s best friend with high-functioning autism, is authentic and well-written. Their friendship is purely platonic — thank goodness — and completely plausible. His presence in the book serves a purpose, and I looked forward to his insight on the Isla-and-Josh relationship, too.

  Read Isla. Not only is it a great ending for this trilogy/companion set, it’s a perfect standalone as well. And the two lovers are so deep, serious, loving, passionate, and caring. *sigh*

  Thank you, Edelweiss, for providing this book from Dutton for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 0 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: romance, genre: travel, genre: young adult, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “Lola and the Boy Next Door” by Stephanie Perkins

  Posted at 10:56 am by Laura, on August 10, 2014

  Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins 

  Publisher: Speak
  Published: July 2013
  Genre: young adult, romance
  ISBN: 9780142422014
  Goodreads: 4
  Rating: ★★★★

  Lola Nolan is a budding costume designer, and for her, the more outrageous, sparkly, and fun the outfit, the better. And everything is pretty perfect in her life (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the negihborhood. When Cricket, a gifted inventor, steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

  Lola doesn’t wear clothes — she wears costumes. Fashion is a form of artistic expression, and Lola takes it very seriously. And although she’s a quirky San Francisco individual, she’s quite mature for her age and tries to persuades her fathers that her older rockstar boyfriend Max is perfect for her. But her world is shaken when long-time crush Cricket returns next door with his twin Olympic figure skater sister Calliope. The twins and Lola go way back, and she struggles to reconcile with the past and envision a different future.

  With her outrageous outfits and fun personality, Lola was an easy character to like. Her fathers were endearing and strong, and their belief that Max is too old for her seeps through the pages of the book. And while it sometimes made me feel old (I’m older than Max!), I would’ve had to agree with them. 17 and 23 is different from 23 and 29 — there’s that huge period in one’s life in the early twenties one needs to experience first. But apart from the age, I was okay with Max. Soon enough his true colors show, and I wanted to throttle Lola to make her see sense. She’s the friend you love and adore and hope never wanders down the wrong path.

  That said, Cricket was almost too perfect. He’s a very good guy, extremely smart and passionate, and most certainly the Good Boy Next Door. I liked him well enough, but there was something about his relationship with Lola that seemed a little forced too. Honestly, this may come from the fact I’m still on an Anna-and-Étienne high (having related to Anna so much), and couldn’t connect with this particular couple. But I still thoroughly enjoyed this book for what it was: another romance, in another wonderful city.

  Also, Anna and Étienne were central characters in this story as well. Not mentioned in passing, not forced into situations, but genuine secondary characters. Anna is Lola’s manager at the movie theater, so of course her boyfriend is always around. It is convenient though that he and Cricket both attend Berkeley. Even still, it was beautiful to watch those two from a third party observer.

  Isla and the Happily Ever After is out this week!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 2 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: romance, genre: young adult, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “Secrets of the Lighthouse” by Santa Montefiore (ARC)

  Posted at 7:17 am by Laura, on July 29, 2014

  Secrets of the Lighthouse by Santa Montefiore 

  Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  Publishing Date: August 5
  Genre: fiction
  ISBN: 9781476735375
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★★

  Ellen Trawton is running away from it all – quite literally. She is due to get married to a man she doesn’t love, her job is dragging her down and her interfering mother is getting on her nerves. So she escapes to the one place she know her mother won’t follow her – to her aunt’s house in rural Ireland. Once there, she uncovers a dark family secret – and a future she never knew she might have.Meanwhile, Caitlin Macausland is mourning the future she can never have. She died tragically in what the village thinks is suspicious circumstances, and now she is stuck in a limbo, unable to move on.

  And between the two of them is an old lighthouse – the scene of so much tragedy. Can each woman find the peace she so desperately longs for? And can they find the way to live again?

  Overwhelmed with her mother’s expectations and a life she does not want to continue living, Ellen flees to Ireland in search of an aunt her mother rarely spoke of and whom Ellen has never met. Upon arrival, Ellen discovers a whole new family: uncles and cousins she never knew she had, her mother’s surprising history, a rough musician with whom she finds a kindred spirit, and a man burdened by a family secret and town gossip pertaining to his long-dead wife Caitlin. As Ellen begins to piece together her new life and discover her true self, a Pandora’s box of family history and Irish roots unravel.

  Montefiore likes to take her time in this novel. I’ve never read her before, but I want to read her now. Her language is lush, the descriptions stunning, the dialogue authentic, and the characters so fully fleshed — including the secondary characters. I fell in love with the landscape, and then I fell in love with Ellen’s transformation and liberation, and then I fell in love with her and Conor’s love. Everything was so deep and purposeful, and I was filled with a sense of longing to be there at that moment while I was reading (so much so I had to turn on my Irish playlist to satisfy myself!).

  I’m not sure what I could compare this to. It has that ghosts-torturing-from-the-beyond feel to it, reminding me of Wuthering Heights, but Caitlin and Conor’s relationship was nothing like that. She had something wrong with her, an ability to charm and quick to jealousy, much like borderline personality disorder. It was a tumultuous past that inflected Conor with guilt. But watching this dark man change into something light and wonderful around Ellen felt modern and true, realistic and beautiful. I couldn’t put this book down, and whether it was for the landscape or the story, I’m not sure. It’s worth reading and savoring.

  Thank you, Simon & Schuster, for providing this book for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 0 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: adult fiction, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “Anna and the French Kiss” by Stephanie Perkins

  Posted at 7:51 pm by Laura, on July 24, 2014

  Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins 

  Publisher: Speak 
  Published: August 2011
  Genre: young adult, romance, travel
  ISBN: 9780142419403
  Goodreads: 4.16
  Rating: ★★★★★

  Anna is happy in Atlanta. She has a loyal best friend and a crush on her coworker at the movie theater, who is just starting to return her affection. So she’s less than thrilled when her father decides to send her to a boarding school in Paris for her senior year. But despite not speaking a word of French, Anna meets some cool new people, including the handsome Étienne St. Clair, who quickly becomes her best friend. Unfortunately, he’s taken —and Anna might be, too.

  It’s not that Anna’s unhappy to be in Paris. She’s upset her parents didn’t give her a choice to go to boarding school, to leave her best friend and work crush. Besides, she can’t even speak French. But as the days pass, Anna begins to make friends, and rather rapidly becomes close with Étienne St. Clair, resident Beautiful Guy. No matter how hard she tries, she can’t stop her growing affections, even though she knows he’s not available at all.

  

  This book is so stinkin’ cute. I couldn’t stop giggling, I struggled to repress any squeals of giddiness, and I simply struggled to put this down. It’s adorable. It’s honest. Truly, think back on high school relationships (heck, even adult ones are like this!) when you were confused but excited — he likes me…he likes me not — about your crush. Tack on the fact he’s unavailable, your determination to keep this great friendship intact despite your awkwardness and feelings of blatant attraction, and you’ve got this book. Yes, it’s about a girl who studies abroad, who learns French, who goes to the cinema to watch and critique films for her blog, who obsessively cleans and straightens her surroundings, and who comes to terms with her father’s growing collection of cliché cancer romance books. But all of this is background to the actual story: her crush on St. Clair.

  

  His character is wonderful. He’s American by birth, but his British accent and impeccable French confuse Anna at first. He’s not your usual tall-and-gorgeous male lead. St. Clair likens himself to Napoleon Bonaparte, because he too is rather short, with crooked teeth and unkempt hair. He’s friendly with everyone, charming, intelligent, and artistic. Whether he’s being a friend, an almost-boyfriend, or boyfriend, St. Clair is remarkably observant and immensely loyal. I loved the moments when his British slang slipped out, and experiencing those cultural differences all over again was so much fun.

  St. Clair and Anna quickly become best friends. They’re lab partners, they share stories, they go to the movies together, he helps her order food in French, he gives her tours of the city, she helps him deal with his mother’s illness, she aids in confronting his controlling father — and everything about their relationship is filled with tension and mixed signals. Does he like her? Does he know she likes him? Why did he do this, say that? And why is Ellie still in the picture when it’s so very clear to the both of them that they’re more than friends?

  Oh my gosh. Anna’s basically my brain. Any girl’s brain. From the overanalyzing minute details, to basking in the absolute thrill of being the object of a guy’s affections for the briefest space of time, Anna and the French Kiss is just…sweet, young romance perfection. Perkins truly captured the whole journey of falling in love.

  In short, I want to read this again. Right now.

  I think I will.

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 3 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: romance, genre: travel, genre: young adult, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “The Major’s Daughter” by J.P. Francis (ARC)

  Posted at 9:55 am by Laura, on July 22, 2014

  The Major’s Daughter by J.P. Francis 

  Publisher: Plume
  Publishing Date: July 29
  Genre: historical fiction
  ISBN: 9780452298699
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★.5

  April, 1944.  The quiet rural village of Stark, New Hampshire is irrevocably changed by the arrival of 150 German prisoners of war.  And one family, unexpectedly divided, must choose between love and country.

  Camp Stark is under the command of Major John Brennan, whose beautiful daughter, Collie, will serve as translator. Educated at Smith and devoted to her widowed father, Collie is immediately drawn to Private August Wahrlich, a peaceful poet jaded by war. As international conflict looms on the home front, their passion blinds them to the inevitable dangers ahead.

  Very little is known about the POW camp set up in Stark, New Hampshire, in 1944. But it was there, and one can only imagine what sort of fascinations and wonders it induced. Under Major John Brennan, the German prisoners of war are sent out to work for the logging community, treated humanely despite everyone’s mistrust. Major Brennan’s daughter, Collie, serves as his translator and assistant, which brings her close to another translator and POW, Austrian Private August Wahrlich. The attraction is instantaneous, and noticed by all at the camp, but both know that nothing could come from it, nothing could be built on unsteady ground of war. But as the months pass, as Collie watches her friends change and August’s hope for a return to his family diminishes, the lovers consider a future together despite all costs.

  This slow and quiet novel was quite beautiful. The reader follows all sorts of characters, not just Collie and August. We’re privy to Collie’s best friend Estelle’s mind and heart, the difficult decisions she makes regarding her future. We follow the rich brothers Amos and Henry, how vastly different they are from one another, with different dreams and ambitions. We track Major Brennan and his dedication to running a smooth, cooperative camp. Everyone’s story interweaves with another, ultimately colliding in the end’s momentous flight.

  Collie and August’s love is pure. He’s poetic, artistic, and very much a dreamer. He shows us that not all German soldiers are Nazis — there’s a different between fighting with the Germans (enlisted and drafted from Austria and other countries overtaken by Germany) and being a member of the political party. He is kind and open-hearted, a gentleman and a boy, with no ulterior motives. It’s sweet. Collie is an educated young woman, who fights hard to suppress her growing affection. She struggles to maintain that her feelings are simply a little crush, but when she gives in, her fall is great.

  Nothing about this book felt rushed. In fact, everything about it was smooth, enchanting, romantic, and quite authentic. For anyone in need of a deep, powerful historical romance that really does consider the weight of war, this is most certainly the book to read.

  Thank you, Penguin, for providing this book for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 3 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: historical fiction, genre: romance, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “The Book of Life” by Deborah Harkness

  Posted at 7:42 pm by Laura, on July 19, 2014

  The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness 

  Publisher: Viking
  Published: July 15, 2014
  Genre: fiction, fantasy
  ISBN: 9780670025596
  Goodreads: 4.39
  Rating: ★★★★★

  Historian and witch Diana Bishop and vampire scientist Matthew Clairmont return to the present to face new crises and old enemies. At Matthew’s ancestral home at Sept-Tours, they reunite with the cast of characters from A Discovery of Witches—with one significant exception. But the real threat to their future has yet to be revealed, and when it is, the search for Ashmole 782 and its missing pages takes on even more urgency. In the trilogy’s final volume, Harkness deepens her themes of power and passion, family and caring, past deeds and their present consequences. In ancestral homes and university laboratories, using ancient knowledge and modern science, from the hills of the Auvergne to the palaces of Venice and beyond, the couple at last learn what the witches discovered so many centuries ago.

  One of three missing pages from Ashmole 782 is in Diana and Matthew’s possession. After the news of Diana’s pregnancy takes hold on the de Clermont family, the politics of the covenant and Congregation, the secrets inside the manuscript, Diana’s growing power and purpose, and Matthew’s blood rage and past guilts become more pressing than ever. From the laboratories at Yale to the many homes of Europe, from Diana’s childhood home to a deserted concentration camp in Poland, Diana and Matthew must face the world together and fight for the love, family, and future.

  

  Once again, I’m stunned by Harkness’s brilliance. She somehow managed to write a stunning, scholarly, thrilling ending to this trilogy — all while continuing to career as a professor and academic. Wow. I bow to her. I am Fernando to her Diana.

  Like A Discovery of Witches and Shadow of Night, The Book of Life is filled with academic jargon across all disciplines and fields, making this reviewer long once more to be locked in a library and researching just for the sake of researching (and the hot beverages and tweed and autumn leaves and cozy warmth…I digress). Everything from modern science and DNA coding to history and art helps piece together the giant puzzle that is the connection between vampires, witches, daemons, and humans. This book could also be described as one giant family reunion, one crisis after another around every page turn. Characters from the previous books crop up and play their role, some of them more crucial than before. My heart swelled for Gallowglass, to name just one character in many.

  What’s fantastic about these characters and their secrets are how all their stories are truly interwoven, without many of them realizing it. It makes the world feel more authentic. Even more so, it humanizes these creatures — many of whom (particularly one of Matthew’s disowned offspring who is the main villain of this book) remind us that the horrors we read in books do, in fact, happen to people every day.

  Book One focused on discoveries, particularly on an all-consuming love. Book Two focused on accepting one’s identity, and the growing love between Matthew and Diana, and how the boundaries changed in that relationship. This book particularly tested them — as partners, as lovers, as mates, as parents, as creatures — and while all was not rosy, it was never without love. So beautiful. I thoroughly enjoyed watching them grow together. I’m sad to see the trilogy end, as I’d love to know what happens (to every character), but that’s the joy of imagination: I can think of their futures in my head and believe it to be true.

  Intelligent and exciting, the All Souls trilogy is not one to be missed.

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 4 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: fantasy, genre: fiction, genre: history, genre: romance, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “The Fortune Hunter” by Daisy Goodwin (ARC)

  Posted at 9:15 am by Laura, on July 15, 2014

  The Fortune Hunter by Daisy Goodwin 

  Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
  Publishing Date: July 29
  Genre: historical fiction
  ISBN: 9781250043894
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★★★

  In 1875, Sisi, the Empress of Austria, is the woman that every man desires and every woman envies.

  Beautiful, athletic and intelligent, Sisi has everything – except happiness. Bored with the stultifying etiquette of the Hapsburg Court and her dutiful but unexciting husband, Franz Joseph, Sisi comes to England to hunt. She comes looking for excitement and she finds it in the dashing form of Captain Bay Middleton, the only man in Europe who can outride her. Ten years younger than her and engaged to the rich and devoted Charlotte, Bay has everything to lose by falling for a woman who can never be his. But Bay and the Empress are as reckless as each other, and their mutual attraction is a force that cannot be denied.

  Meet Charlotte Baird, a young heiress with a dislike of snobbery and a passion for photography. Enter Bay Middleton, a calvary captain who notices and flatters Charlotte and her family, while still stubbornly maintaining his “lower” position as a pilot during hunting season. Chaos ensues not when Charlotte hears of Bay’s past philandering ways, but when Sisi, the Empress of Austria, visits England to experience the English hunt. Rumored to be the most beautiful woman of Europe, Sisi captures every man’s attention and feeds the fire of gossip among the women. Charlotte is eager to take a photo of the Empress for her portfolio, but after one glance at the finished result, her trust in Bay begins to waver.

  Though the book comes across as a character study on Sisi, there’s an equal balance of attention given to Sisi, Bay, and Charlotte, whose lives were indeed intertwined in history. Charlotte is wealthy but leans toward the liberal, modern woman. She’s quirky and fun, focused on artistry rather than class distinctions and the upcoming season — to her future sister-in-law’s dismay. Bay is a womanizer, but there’s something about his character that switches and softens with Charlotte, leaving you wondering if he’s truly loyal to her up to the very end. Finally there’s Sisi, who truly was a beautiful woman with very strange habits in maintaining beauty. She led an interesting life, and much of what happened to her — or, in this case in the book, will happen to her — is reflected and hinted toward in Goodwin’s novel. Absolutely fascinating. If you ever get the chance to research her or the Hapsburg history, you’ll understand what I mean. She’s a poster girl for the future standard of female beauty and the media.

  Like all great historical fiction, this book took it’s time in unfolding the plot. The drama is slow and low — it’s intriguing, layered, and watching the story come to life is the most fascinating process. Not only are the characters interesting, but the history and social class politics and trinkets at the time, too! For example: photography. The time it takes for a photo to be shot and later developed, the ways in which photography was viewed by various people across the classes, the great things people could do to manipulate their photos. So exciting! And though I’m not much of a horse person, the hunting scenes were thrilling and wonderful — and the race at the end! Phew. Even English cultural norms for the time were compared to that in Vienna when Sisi’s chapters were showcased.

  Well done. A great read for hist-fic readers interested in a particular time in English and Hapsburg history.

  Thank you, Edelweiss, for providing this book from St. Martin’s Press for review!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 8 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: historical fiction, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “Landline” by Rainbow Rowell

  Posted at 8:33 am by Laura, on July 14, 2014

  Landline by Rainbow Rowell 

  Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
  Published: July 8, 2014
  Genre: fiction
  ISBN: 9781250049377
  Goodreads: 4.08
  Rating: ★★.5 or ★★★

  Georgie McCool knows her marriage is in trouble. That it’s been in trouble for a long time. She still loves her husband, Neal, and Neal still loves her, deeply — but that almost seems besides the point now.

  Maybe that was always besides the point.

  Two days before they’re supposed to visit Neal’s family in Omaha for Christmas, Georgie tells Neal that she can’t go. She’s a TV writer, and something’s come up on her show; she has to stay in Los Angeles. She knows that Neal will be upset with her — Neal is always a little upset with Georgie — but she doesn’t expect to him to pack up the kids and go home without her.

  When her husband and the kids leave for the airport, Georgie wonders if she’s finally done it. If she’s ruined everything.

  That night, Georgie discovers a way to communicate with Neal in the past. It’s not time travel, not exactly, but she feels like she’s been given an opportunity to fix her marriage before it starts . . .

  Is that what she’s supposed to do?

  Or would Georgie and Neal be better off if their marriage never happened?

  Georgie finally catches a big break in her TV writing — an opportunity to write the show she and her college best friend Seth have been planning for over a decade — but it’s due a few days after Christmas. Her husband, Neal, is not too thrilled she can’t join him and their daughters in Omaha for the holiday, and leaves without her. Frustrated, tired, and confused, Georgie attempts to contact him to make sure their marriage isn’t ruined, but Neal won’t answer her calls. At least, not modern day Neal. When Georgie uses her mother’s old landline phone to call Neal’s mother’s landline, she winds up speaking to the Neal she fell in love with, the Neal of 1998, shortly before he proposed to her. This is her chance to fix her marriage, or alter history.

  It breaks my heart a little inside that my rating is so low for this book. It has absolutely nothing to do with Rowell and her writing and everything to do with the characters. And that’s where the stickler comes in. I’ve spoken to other bloggers and booksellers, and there’s a difference between younger, mainly single people’s opinions of the book (rather low) and older, married people’s opinions (rather high). I genuinely think there’s a specific audience for this book because of that. The younger, mainly single group really liked Georgie’s flashbacks to college and modern day Georgie talking to 1998 Neal passages. The Neal and Georgie of not-yet-married. Young love is thrilling and exciting and wonderful, and you begin to see how hard they work to make the relationship last. The Neal and Georgie of the modern day are distant, seemingly unloving, and appear to only be together to keep their daughters happy. It’s a sad, exhausting situation, yet many long-time married readers understood it. The married readers enjoyed the whole book because it reminded them of why they fell in love with their spouse, and how hard they work to continue that partnership.

  Despite understanding that, Neal and Georgie’s characters frustrated me. Mostly Georgie. Her family means the world to her yet she does next to nothing to contribute to their happiness other than bring home paychecks. I could sympathize with Neal’s near-silence towards her. I come from a stay-at-home-Dad-and-working-Mom family, and I can tell you that my mother and father took equal share in raising us and taking care of the home. I really don’t think that’s the issue here. It’s Georgie’s promises to be better and not following through. Her anxiety is sky-high and yet she doesn’t acknowledge it or accept it, which in turn ruins her marriage. I wanted to shake her and tell her to snap out of it, wake up, and look at what’s happened before it’s too late.

  The phone was the star of the book. I dragged through all the TV script writing scenes with Seth — Seth, I really liked Seth — and the Mom-and-sister drama scenes and looked forward to the phone. The phone made everything worth it.

  Rowell did not write a poor book. She wrote a genuine book with authentic characters. Not everyone you meet will be good, likable people — and that’s not to say they’re bad, either. Not everyone’s lives, especially love lives, work out the way they hope, the way they imagine. I understand that completely. The protagonist doesn’t need to be likable and relatable, just authentic. Georgie and Neal are authentic, but I simply believe that my life experiences (and lack thereof) prevented me from liking them and sympathizing their situation. But their story of young love? And this magical phone? Loved it. I understand that. I understand thinking about the what ifs and how we might be able to change history. I understand wondering whether the person you’re deeply in love with right now is truly the one for you forever and ever. Those portions of the story I loved.

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 4 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: adult fiction, genre: fiction, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “Blythewood” by Carol Goodman

  Posted at 8:42 am by Laura, on June 30, 2014

  Blythewood by Carol Goodman 

  Publisher: Viking
  Published: October 2013
  Genre: young adult, fantasy, historical fiction, gothic
  ISBN: 9780670784769
  Goodreads: 3.87
  Rating: ★★★★★

  At seventeen, Avaline Hall has already buried her mother, survived a horrific factory fire, and escaped from an insane asylum. Now she’s on her way to Blythewood Academy, the elite boarding school in New York’s mist-shrouded Hudson Valley that her mother attended—and was expelled from. Though she’s afraid her high society classmates won’t accept a factory girl in their midst, Ava is desperate to unravel her family’s murky past, discover the identity of the father she’s never known, and perhaps finally understand her mother’s abrupt suicide. She’s also on the hunt for the identity of the mysterious boy who rescued her from the fire. And she suspects the answers she seeks lie at Blythewood.

  But nothing could have prepared her for the dark secret of what Blythewood is, and what its students are being trained to do. Haunted by dreams of a winged boy and pursued by visions of a sinister man who breathes smoke, Ava isn’t sure if she’s losing her mind or getting closer to the truth. And the more rigorously Ava digs into the past, the more dangerous her present becomes.

  Avaline Hall struggles to make ends meet after her mother’s death by working as a seamstress in a factory. Though she gets along well with the other factory girls, she still needs to keep many things secret — like the man in the Inverness cape who appears on every corner breathing smoke, the black feather she found near her mother’s body, and the bells that toll in her head when danger occurs. They toll again when the factory catches fire and she’s rescued by a winged boy; they toll when she’s sent to an asylum; and they toll once more when she’s sent to Blythewood, the elite boarding school her wealthy grandmother attended and from which her mother was expelled. Blythewood, with all its secrets and history, enchants Ava and her friends. She’s determined to discover the source of her mother’s suicide. As she unravels one secret, many more are unearthed, and Ava learns so much more than she could ever imagine.

  It’s so hard to write a succinct summary for this book, because there’s so much to it — so many layers. Ava’s mother’s death, the factory fire, the asylum, and the rescue to her grandmother’s home all take place within the first 50-some pages. Though quick, they’re key to the rest of the story. The Inverness-caped man haunts Ava, the bells constantly toll in her head, and the winged boy appears again once in a while, and during Ava’s stay at Blythewood their meanings become clear. The three are interwoven with her mother’s death, and they reveal more about Blythewood’s history and mission than anything else.

  Blythewood, too, is beautiful and enchanting. It’s a boarding school of mysteries, founded on stories so fantastical they feel like fairy tales. These stories, told by different people with different perspectives, enlighten Ava and her friends in their search for the truth. This felt like a blend of Libba Bray’s A Great and Terrible Beauty and Harry Potter, and yet still so very unique on its own. The classes, the magic, the mysteries, the varied characters, and even the politics and discrimination enrich the story. Blythewood’s purpose is to train young women to protect our world from those of Faerie — a place where faeries of Celtic myth reside — but many are turning against the “old ways” of fighting and seeking peace and understanding. Ava learns of the Faerie hierarchy, the purpose of the Darklings and the shadows, and wonders just how much her mother became entangled in the history.

  There’s so much I want to say about this book, but I can’t without giving too much away. There are faeries and magic, cocoa parties and study sessions in the library, dungeons and labs, a forest and a magical land, a giant school and a quaint town, bells and books and letters, poetry and music, fires and archery, politics and friendship. Thank goodness the sequel, Ravencliffe, will be out in December. This series has such a romantic gothic feel to it that one must read it with a hot beverage and roaring fire nearby!

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 4 Comments | Tagged book review, books, genre: fantasy, genre: gothic, genre: historical fiction, genre: young adult, goodreads, review

• Book Review: “Through to You” by Lauren Barnholdt (ARC)

  Posted at 9:07 am by Laura, on June 24, 2014

  Through to You by Lauren Barnholdt 

  Publisher: Simon Pulse
  Publishing Date: July 8
  Genre: young adult, romance
  ISBN: 9781442434639
  Goodreads: —
  Rating: ★★ 

  It starts with a scribbled note in class: I like your sparkle. Harper had casually threaded a piece of blue and silver tinsel through her ponytail in honor of school spirit day. And that carefree, corny gesture is what grabs Penn Mattingly’s eye. Penn—resident heartbreaker of the senior class. Reliably unreliable. Trouble with a capital “T.” And okay, smolderingly sexy.
  
  Harper’s surprised by Penn’s attention—and so is Penn. The last thing he needs is a girlfriend. Or even a friend-with-benefits. The note is not supposed to lead to anything.
  
  Oh, but it does. They hang out. They have fun. They talk. They make out. And after a while, it seems like they just click. But Penn and Harper have very different ideas about what relationships look like, in no small part because of their very different family backgrounds. Of course they could talk about these differences—if Penn knew how to talk about feelings.
  
  Harper and Penn understand their attraction is illogical, yet something keeps pulling them together. It’s like a crazy roller coaster—exhilarating, terrifying, and amazing all at once. And neither knows how to stop the ride…

  Penn, once-baseball star of the high school, drops a note on good girl Harper’s desk. All it says is I like your sparkle, but it sets off a flurry of excitement and second-guessing. Before she knows it, Harper finds Penn everywhere in her life, and she begins to wonder what it all means. As they circle around one another, attempting to make sense of whatever is happening between them, they discover a mutual attraction that defies logic and reasoning. Harper wishes Penn would open up more to her, but Penn isn’t sure where to begin. It all comes down to trust.

  I’d imagine if I were in the right mood, this would’ve been a far more enjoyable read. That, or if I were into this good-girl-meets-bad-boy storyline in general. I’d hoped this book would show some depth and strength, span several months rather than a few weeks. I’d thought the issues Penn and Harper encountered would be on very serious matters, rather than Harper constantly pestering Penn with questions and drilling him as to why he isn’t talking to her about stuff. A part of me — freshman-in-high-school me — completely understood her thought process, but cringed every time she voiced her questions or jumped to conclusions. Harper was clearly forcing a relationship with Penn, imagining a future with the idea of Penn rather than with who he is in reality.

  However, there were great things going for this book. Penn did have a bit of an unstable home life, and a precarious situation regarding college and baseball scholarships. I would’ve loved to dive deeper into his story. It felt like there was more for him to say. The two perspectives, immediately after one another in pivotal moments, made for an honest interpretation of events and hilariously opposite thought processes. While Harper is filled with racing thoughts, worries, concerns, and assumptions about every little detail, Penn stands there with point-blank thoughts that nowhere near match hers. Example: Harper wonders about the meaning behind his note and what he wants; Penn tells the reader he has no idea why he wrote it. An interesting look into typical girl and guy thought patterns.

  While this book was not for me, and had potential to be something more, I’m sure another reader out there would enjoy something light and fun to read this summer.

  Thank you, Edelweiss, for providing this book from Simon Pulse for review.

  Posted in books, Reviews 2014 | 2 Comments | Tagged advance reading copy, ARC, book review, books, genre: romance, genre: young adult, goodreads, review

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• Hello, I’m Laura!

  I'm a bookish bookworm and book hoarder. By day I'm a literary agent, and by night I'm forever rearranging my bookshelves. I could talk your ear off about Gothic literature, and in my past life people thought I'd become a professional musician. I have a fluffy black cat named Rossetti, I love to travel, tea is my drink of choice, British TV is the best, and I'm always down for chips-and-queso nights. Welcome to Scribbles & Wanderlust! Grab your favorite hot beverage and let's chat books!

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