Tag: Reviews

Review | Swing by Audrey Meeker

DeAnneLeave a comment

Debut author/illustrator Audrey Meeker playfully explores complicated friendships, gender norms, and navigating other people’s expectations in this charming middle grade graphic novel.

Marcus McCalister wants to fit in. So much so that he’s still playing on a soccer team with his childhood friend Ted, despite not liking soccer—or Ted—all that much.

Izzy Briggs wants to stand out. Being labeled the “weird kid” for her bold fashion choices is the price an aspiring designer must pay for a life of greatness—but being confident isn’t always easy.

So when Izzy and Marcus are paired together to perform a swing dance routine for a gym project, it’s no surprise that everything goes up in flames, including their grade in the class. Until their gym teacher proposes a if the pair performs the swing routine in the upcoming talent show, they’ll receive extra credit and a passing grade. They accept. . . but Izzy has her own proposal for this time, she gets to be the lead.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Oof, eighth grade – I think a lot of people can identify with how formative and hard of a year it can be. This perfectly captured a number of the struggles that kids can face in middle/junior high school. From figuring out who they are and what they want to do despite pressures from family and friends, figuring out the things that truly inspire them and honestly finding out who your real friends are. Throughout the story Marcus and Izzy go through a lot of back and forth, mainly because of influence by outside forces such as the class bully – but watching them find their friendship, courage to speak up and navigating their new school year was a fun read. They did clash a lot, but they also were both dealing with a lot of pressure from family and expectations and finally found a path to understanding. Overall a lovely read that I think a lot of kids would see themselves in.

Happy reading!

Review | The Shape of Lost Things by Sarah Everett

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From the award-winning author of The Probability of Everything, which has been called “one of the best books I have read this year (maybe ever)” (Colby Sharp, Nerdy Book Club) and “Powerful” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review),comes a heartfelt exploration of family and change as twelve-year-old Skye reunites with her older brother, Finn, after he spent four years on the run with their father.

Skye Nickson’s world changed forever when her dad went on the run with her brother, Finn. It’s been four years without Finn’s jokes, four years without her father’s old soul music, and four years of Skye filling in as Rent-a-Finn on his MIA birthdays for their mom. Finn’s birthday is always difficult, but at least Skye has her best friends, Reece and Jax, to lean on, even if Reece has started acting too cool for them.

But this year is different because after Finn’s birthday, they get a call that he’s finally been found. Tall, quiet, and secretive, this Finn is nothing like the brother she grew up with. He keeps taking late-night phone calls and losing his new expensive gifts, and he doesn’t seem to remember any of their inside jokes or secrets.

As Skye tries to make sense of it all through the lens of her old Polaroid camera, she starts to wonder: Could this Finn be someone else entirely? And if everyone else has changed, does it mean that Skye has to change too?

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Though this was a quick read, it was not a story to take lightly. There are a lot of very real and deep subjects tied into this story as Skye and Finn navigate getting to know each other again and all the struggles each of them face respectively. I could see a lot of kids that might be going through similar aspects of situations really identifying with this story and it’s important to have stories like this that a child can see themselves in. Perhaps they wouldn’t identify with being kidnapped by a parent, but they could definitely identify with the struggle of have separated families, or deal with parents that struggle with mental health.

Happy reading!

Review | Take It from the Top by Claire Swinarski

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Set at a camp over the course of six summers, this novel dives into the falling-out of two girls from different backgrounds who thought they’d be friends forever. Claire Swinarski, regional indie bestseller of the ALA Notable What Happened to Rachel Riley?, tackles privilege, perspective, and the power of friendship in this page-turning puzzle that readers will devour.

Eowyn Becker has waited all year to attend her sixth summer at Lamplighter Lake Summer Camp. Here, she’s not in the shadow of her Broadway-star older brother; she’s a stellar performer in her own right. Here, the pain of her mom’s death can’t reach her, and she gets to reunite with her best friend, Jules Marrigan—the only person in the world who understands her.

But when she gets to camp, everything seems wrong. The best-friend reunion Eowyn had been dreaming of doesn’t go as planned. Jules will barely even look at Eowyn, let alone talk to her, and Eowyn has no idea why.

Well, maybe she does…

There are two sides to every story, and if you want to understand this one, you’ll need to hear both. Told in a series of alternating chapters that dip back to past summers, the girls’ story will soon reveal how Eowyn and Jules went from being best friends to fierce foils. Can they mend ways before the curtains close on what was supposed to be the best summer of their lives?

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I haven’t read any of Claire Swinarski’s books before, but I was pleasantly surprised at how well crafted this story was. There was a definite emphasis on characters with a lot of depth and identity. This one is definitely on the younger side of YA since a lot of the characters are 13, so there are definitely age specific things and behaviors that are pretty present – which for the target age group is fantastic. It’s not all light topics though, there’s definitely some conflicts and tougher subjects such as losing a parent and grief, and how other people can be affected by the same events. Overall this story was really cute, with those slices of heavier topics, it was really well balanced and a fun read.

Happy reading!

Review | The Last One by Rachel Howzell Hall

DeAnneLeave a comment

Explosive and enthralling romantasy debut from New York Times bestselling author Rachel Howzell Hall…

Thrown into a desolate land of sickness and unnatural beasts, Kai wakes in the woods with no idea who she is or how she got there. All she knows is that if she cannot reach the Sea of Devour, even this hellscape will get worse. But when she sees the village blacksmith fight invaders with unspeakable skill, she decides to accept his offer of help.

Too bad he’s as skilled at annoying her as he is at fighting.

As she searches for answers, Kai only finds more questions, especially regarding the blacksmith who can ignite her body like a flame, then douse it with ice in the next breath.

And no one is what—or who—they appear to be in the kingdom of Vinevridth, including the man whose secrets might be as deadly as the land itself.

I haven’t read a ton of romantasy, but was anticipating this one and excited to read it. I thought the premise had amazing potential and sounded unique, but the overall execution didn’t really hit the highs I wanted it to. I thought the worldbuilding was really well done and though I’m not a huge fan of slow burn all the time, I did feel like this story did it well. There were times where it almost felt like the tone changed a little, almost like it was kind of shifting to more simplistic, so that wavering of tone did break me out of the story and was a distraction. That being said, I would be interested in seeing how the story and world continued to build in following books as the characters were compelling and had depth. There were a lot of good points to this story and I feel it was a solid first venture into romantasy.

Happy reading!

Review | A Constellation of Minor Bears by Jen Ferguson

DeAnneLeave a comment

Before that awful Saturday, Molly used to be inseparable from her brother, Hank, and his best friend, Tray. The indoor climbing accident that left Hank with a traumatic brain injury filled Molly with anger.

While she knows the accident wasn’t Tray’s fault, she will never forgive him for being there and failing to stop the damage. But she can’t forgive herself for not being there either.

Determined to go on the trio’s post-graduation hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, even without Hank, Molly packs her bag. But when her parents put Tray in charge of looking out for her, she is stuck backpacking with the person who incites her easy anger.

Despite all her planning, the trail she’ll walk has a few more twists and turns ahead. . . .

Rating: 4 out of 5.

This is truly a coming of age story among a group of friends who have planned a hike along the Pacific Crest Trail. All of the friends are kind of in different places in their lives and journeys as they navigate the trail. There were a lot of heavier and valid topics that are very current, but at some points some of this felt a little more in your face than it should have been, perhaps a little too intense. With most of the characters you can feel their struggle and it feels very authentic, but some don’t feel as fully fledged or connect as well. Still, this was a great coming of age novel that I think a lot of people will connect with.

Happy reading!

Review | Aisle Nine by Ian X. Cho

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“It’s Black Friday—and the apocalypse is on sale!

Ever since the world filled with portals to hell and bloodthirsty demons started popping out on the reg, Jasper’s life has gotten worse and worse. A teenage nobody with no friends or family, he is plagued by the life he can’t remember and the person he’s sure he’s supposed to be.

Jasper spends his days working as a checkout clerk at the Here For You discount mart, where a hell portal in aisle nine means danger every shift. But at least here he can be near the girl he’s crushing on—Kyle Kuan, a junior member of the monster-fighting Vanguard—who seems to hate Jasper for reasons he can’t remember or understand.

But when Jasper and Kyle learn they both share a frightening vision of the impending apocalypse, they’re forced to team up and uncover the uncomfortable truth about the hell portals and the demons that haunt the world. Because the true monsters are not always what they seem, the past is not always what we wish, and like it or not, on Black Friday, all hell will break loose in aisle nine.

Perfect for fans of Grasshopper Jungle or The Last of Us comes Aisle Nine, the debut young adult novel from rising YA star lan X. Cho.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

I did really enjoy the humor woven into this story, very dark at points, but I found myself wishing for more of it. The beginning especially was packed with humor, but as the story went on it seemed to fade a little bit and I wanted it to be more consistent throughout the story. That being said I really enjoyed the near-apocalypse world that was created and the stab at apocolypse+retail and can appreciate the blend the author was going for. Some elements were predictable, but I liked the effort that went into worldbuilding and character development, those were definitely well done. I did want more from it, but it was still a fun read.

Happy reading!

Review | Desert Echoes by Abdi Nazemian

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From Abdi Nazemian, the award-winning author of Like a Love Story and Only This Beautiful Moment, comes a suspenseful contemporary YA novel about loss and love.

Fifteen-year-old Kam is head over heels for Ash, the boy who swept him off his feet. But his family and best friend, Bodie, are worried. Something seems off about Ash. He also has a habit of disappearing, at times for days. When Ash asks Kam to join him on a trip to Joshua Tree, the two of them walk off into the sunset . . . but only Kam returns.

Two years later, Kam is still left with a hole in his heart and too many unanswered questions. So it feels like fate when a school trip takes him back to Joshua Tree. On the trip, Kam wants to find closure about what happened to Ash but instead finds himself in danger of facing a similar fate. In the desert, Kam must reckon with the truth of his past relationship—and the possibility of opening himself up to love once again.

Desert Echoes is a propulsive, moving story about human resilience and connection.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

From the description I could tell there were going to be some heavy topics in this book, but I was not expecting it to have the depth that it did. There are so many complex themes packed into this book, from experiencing and getting over your first love to loneliness and loss. There are a lot of important conversations happening here and the dual timelines really make it more impactful as you find out just what happened in the then timeline and how it has impacted the now timeline. It was really a beautiful story that will definitely tug at your heart once things are fully revealed.

Happy reading!

Review | Ghost Camera by Darcy Coates

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When Jenine finds an abandoned polaroid camera, she playfully snaps a photo without a second thought. But there’s something wrong with the image: a ghostly figure stands in the background, watching her.

Fixated on her.

Moving one step closer with every picture she takes.

Desperate, Jenine shares her secret with her best friend, Bree. Together they realize the camera captures unsettling impressions of the dead. But now the ghosts seem to be following the two friends. And with each new photo taken, a terrible danger grows ever clearer…

INCLUDES CHILLING NEW BONUS STORIES:

*A woman survives a plane crash in a remote arctic tundra, accompanied only by a stranger who seems fixated on something moving through the blinding snow.

  • A house stands empty. Hungry. Waiting for the children drawn to it like moths to a flame.

*A woman finds a shoebox filled with old VHS tapes. They have a note attached: “Don’t watch. You’ll regret it.”

*And more!

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I’ve enjoyed other works by Darcy Coates in the past so I was excited to get the chance to pick this one up and I was not disappointed. There was a really good mix of stories in this collection, ranging from pretty short and sweet to similar to a novella length. They were not all ghost stories but had a great range of different types of supernatural events and creatures, which I found I really enjoyed. It’s a toss up what my favorite story was, between the first and last stories, but there weren’t any that I disliked. Coates’ writing is easy to consume and definitely at points of high tension does a really good job of holding the attention and keeping the pages turning. They are an auto buy author for me already and each book I read just further cements that.

Happy reading!

Blog Tour | The Midnight Club by Margot Harrison | Review

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It’s been twenty-five years since The Midnight Club last convened. A tight-knit group of college friends bonded by late nights at the campus literary magazine, they’re also bonded by something darker: the death of their brilliant friend Jennet junior year. But now, decades later, a mysterious invitation has pulled them back to the pine-shrouded Vermont town where it all began.

As the estranged friends gather for a weeklong campus reunion, they soon learn that their host has an ulterior motive: she wants them to uncover the truth about the night Jennet died, and she’s provided them with an extraordinary method—a secret substance that helps them not only remember but relive the past.

But each one of the friends has something to hide. And the more they question each other, the deeper they dive into their own memories, the more they understand that nothing they thought they knew about their college years, and that fateful night, is true.

Twisty, nostalgic, and emotionally thrilling, The Midnight Club explores that innate desire to revisit our first loves, our biggest mistakes, and the gulf between who we are and who we hoped we’d be.

Buy Links | HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org

Rating: 4 out of 5.

This sounded like an intriguing story from the get go, but I was still surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I found it to be a read that was easy to consume and moved along very quickly. I couldn’t help but think of concepts like Flatliners when reading this, but the concept itself was still unique in its own way. It was definitely a fun ride, and a good read for spooky season. It definitely makes you think, but was a really fun experience overall.

Happy reading!

Review | Necessary Poisons by Andrea Blythe

DeAnneLeave a comment

“The world is automatic

in the courses of its living. Time

keeps the living and the dead

in its pocket…”

A woman troubled by her place in the dark manuscript of her life rediscovers her strength and power in this collection of wicked poems. Poison, plants, bloodshed, and the supernatural collide as Blythe weaves a haunting series of horror poems not for the faint of heart.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Found poetry can be a bit hit or miss for me, it’s not always something I enjoy, but I thought the premise of this collection was good. The imagery in the poems was top notch, but at times almost a little too much. That being said, it didn’t take away from the overall journey of the poetry and the themes were consistent across the collection which made it a quick, enjoyable read.

Happy reading!