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Fri, May 24, 2013

Our Song by Jordanna Fraiberg Review

Our Song
By Jordanna Fraiberg
Publication date: May 2, 2013
Razorbill, 352 pages
Source: Publisher

Olive Bell has spent her entire life in the beautiful suburb of Vista Valley, with a picture-perfect home, a loving family, and a seemingly perfect boyfriend. But after a near-fatal car accident, she’s haunted by a broken heart and a melody that she cannot place.

Then Olive meets Nick. He’s dark, handsome, mysterious . . . and Olive feels connected to him in a way she can’t explain. Is there such a thing as fate? The two embark on a whirlwind romance—until Nick makes a troubling confession.

Heartbroken, Olive pieces together what really happened the night of her accident and arrives at a startling revelation. Only by facing the truth can she uncover the mystery behind the song and the power of what it means to love someone.

— Goodreads.com description

I read Our Song by Jordanna Fraiberg on an airplane. And I have to say…the cover sort of mortified me in public.

But that’s what Kindles were invented for, so let’s all learn from my mistake and move on to the book itself!

Our Song was a tad bit too dramatic for me, and in all honesty I didn’t really get the song motif throughout. Maybe I was reading too fast?

That being said, amid the drama were some very real, relatable issues, and I appreciated how the author handled them. Olive misunderstands her parents’ actions, grapples with mixed feelings about her loser ex-boyfriend because he’s, well, comfortable and totally takes her bestie for granted till it’s too late. Oh, we’ve all been there. Olive might not be the most likable, but her story and path is super interesting.

Readers who like books about two troubled teens who fall in love and learn to heal together will eat this one up. You know who you are, people!

Mon, April 22, 2013

The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler Review

The Book of Broken Hearts
By Sarah Ockler
Publication date: May 21, 2013
Simon Pulse, 352 pages
Source: Publisher

When all signs point to heartbreak, can love still be a rule of the road? A poignant and romantic novel from the author of Bittersweet and Twenty Boy Summer.

Jude has learned a lot from her older sisters, but the most important thing is this: The Vargas brothers are notorious heartbreakers. She’s seen the tears and disasters that dating a Vargas boy can cause, and she swore an oath—with candles and a contract and everything—to never have anything to do with one.

Now Jude is the only sister still living at home, and she’s spending the summer helping her ailing father restore his vintage motorcycle—which means hiring a mechanic to help out. Is it Jude’s fault he happens to be cute? And surprisingly sweet? And a Vargas?

Jude tells herself it’s strictly bike business with Emilio. Her sisters will never find out, and Jude can spot those flirty little Vargas tricks a mile away—no way would she fall for them. But Jude’s defenses are crumbling, and if history is destined to repeat itself, she’s speeding toward some serious heartbreak…unless her sisters were wrong?

Jude may have taken an oath, but she’s beginning to think that when it comes to love, some promises might be worth breaking.

— Goodreads.com description

Hello, The Book of Broken Hearts. Welcome to your new home on my favorites shelf. I think you will be very happy there…

One word: LOVED!

Okay, so, to start: Sarah Ockler should be on your auto-read list. Twenty Boy Summer was “gut-wrenching to read, but beautifully done.”. Bittersweet was “delightful.” So clearly I was already a fan going into this one. But, guys, I have to say: The Book of Broken Hearts is Sarah Ockler’s best book yet.

Jude, an extremely likable and lovely main character, is struggling with her role as her father’s caretaker over the summer. Her mom is busy working and her three older sisters are off living their own lives. Jude is tasked with the very demanding and heart-wrenching job of caring for her dad as he begins to fall deeper into the grasp of early-onset Alzheimer’s.

Stumped as to how to help him, she turns to Emilio to help her restore her father’s beloved motorcycle and give him some focus and hope. Only, Emilio is part of the forbidden Vargas family, filled with boys who have broken her sisters’ hearts.

The family dynamics are beautiful, Jude’s strength and growth is powerful and her relationship with Emilio — gah! If you like “bad boys” with softer sides, you are going to fall straight in love.

Also worth noting about them: Slightly older than your typical YA main characters and struggling with issues well beyond their years, Jude and Emilio made me think of all the new adult novels I’ve been reading lately. Only, where those novels failed for me by overly dramatizing their characters, Sarah Ockler has succeeded in telling this story softly yet strongly. Reading it, I kept feeling like Goldilocks: “Ahhh, now this is JUST RIGHT.”

Thu, April 4, 2013

Also Known As by Robin Benway Review

Also Known As
By Robin Benway
Publication date: Feb. 26, 2013
Bloomsbury Juvenile US, 320 pages
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Being a 16-year-old safecracker and active-duty daughter of international spies has its moments, good and bad. Pros: Seeing the world one crime-solving adventure at a time. Having parents with super cool jobs. Cons: Never staying in one place long enough to have friends or a boyfriend. But for Maggie Silver, the biggest perk of all has been avoiding high school and the accompanying cliques, bad lunches, and frustratingly simple locker combinations.

Then Maggie and her parents are sent to New York for her first solo assignment, and all of that changes. She’ll need to attend a private school, avoid the temptation to hack the school’s security system, and befriend one aggravatingly cute Jesse Oliver to gain the essential information she needs to crack the case . . . all while trying not to blow her cover.

— Goodreads.com description

Trapped in an airport during a four-hour (!!!) flight delay, I was thrilled to remember I had Also Known As by Robin Benway awaiting me on my Kindle. And it was the perfect book to help the time pass quickly — fast-paced and fun. Needless to say, I finished it all in one sitting.

If, like me, you grew up longing to be Trixie Belden or Harriet the Spy, you’ll love this book. Fans of Heist Society particularly will want to check it out.

Passing my time with Robin Benway’s Maggie Silver in Also Known As was an absolute treat and, in my case, a sanity-saver. If you’re not familiar with Robin Benway, also be sure to check out Audrey, Wait!, a book I called “non-stop entertaining” and “soooo me!” Love it.

Tue, April 2, 2013

Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt Review

Going Vintage
By Lindsey Leavitt
Publication date: March 26, 2013
Bloomsbury, 320 pages
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

When Mallory’s boyfriend, Jeremy, cheats on her with an online girlfriend, Mallory decides the best way to de-Jeremy her life is to de-modernize things too. Inspired by a list of goals her grandmother made in1962, Mallory swears off technology and returns to a simpler time (when boyfriends couldn’t cheat with computer avatars).

The List:
1. Run for pep club secretary
2. Host a fancy dinner party/soiree
3. Sew a dress for Homecoming
4. Find a steady
5. Do something dangerous

But simple proves to be crazy-complicated, and the details of the past begin to change Mallory’s present. Add in a too-busy grandmother, a sassy sister, and the cute pep-club president–who just happens to be her ex’s cousin–and soon Mallory begins to wonder if going vintage is going too far.

— Goodreads.com description

Cute.

That’s the best word for Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt. Cute main character. Cute concept. Cute romance. Cute family. Loved, loved, loved it.

Bonus factor: A great message for teens about the contrasting sides of technology. It’s scary when it’s overused and misused, but…it’s also sort of a blessing when it comes to doing your homework, as Mallory comes to discover. And, trust me, I remember having to use encyclopedias for homework (OMG I AM OLD), and it was a pain in the you-know-what.

For a fun and light but ultimately meaningful contemporary story — with a cute romance to boot! — absolutely check out Going Vintage.

DOUBLE BONUS FACTOR: The boy sings her Jimmy Eat World! Teenage Anna would have died!!!

Fri, March 15, 2013

Anatomy of a Single Girl by Daria Snadowsky Review

Anatomy of a Single Girl
By Daria Snadowsky
Publication date: Jan. 8, 2013
Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 240 pages
Source: Gifted from the author

With Judy Blume-like honesty and insight, this sequel to Anatomy of a Boyfriend is about life after first love–romance, sex, friendship, family, and the ups and downs of life as a single girl.

After everything that happened—my first boyfriend, my first time, my first breakup—jumping back into the dating game seemed like the least healthy thing I could do. It’s not that I didn’t want to fall in love again, since that’s about the best feeling ever. But as a busy college premed still raw from heartbreak, which is the worst feeling ever, I figured I’d lie low for a while. Of course, as soon as I stopped looking for someone, an impossibly amazing—and devastatingly cute—guy came along, and I learned that having a new boyfriend is the quickest way to recover from losing your old one.

The moment we got together, all my preconceptions about romance and sex were turned upside down. I discovered physical and emotional firsts I never knew existed. I learned to let go of my past by living in the present. It was thrilling. It was hot. It was just what the doctor ordered.

But I couldn’t avoid my future forever.

In Daria Snadowsky’s daring follow-up to Anatomy of a Boyfriend, eighteen-year-old Dominique explores the relationship between love and lust, and the friendships that see us through.

— Goodreads.com description

“Judy Blume-like” is right — that’s exactly the comparison I thought as I read this forthright and refreshing book by Daria Snadowsky.

Like Blume before her, Snadowsky takes on every aspect of sex in Anatomy of a Single Girl: the emotional consequences, birth control, what it’s like to get your first checkup at the gynecologist, masturbation, you name it. Told from the point of view of funny, likable main character, this story answers all the questions girls want to know but may be too shy to ask.

To be honest, at first I was shocked by how clinically and honestly it was written. You don’t read about these things every day. But then I thought: “Why not?” It’s responsibly done and, truly, when I was 18, this is exactly the stuff I wanted to know about. It’s spot-on for the age group and if I were a librarian, I would make sure all my older teens read it.

Plus, I love the new adult aspect here: The story is set over Dom’s summer break home from college. It’s a tricky age: Friends are moving on, parents are adjusting to live without you, high school boyfriends are long gone…there need to be more realistic books about this time of life.

This book is actually a sequel, but I hadn’t read the first book. You don’t need to, but just be prepared to have it spoiled for you pretty quickly. All in all, I really love what the author did here. Did it resonate with me? Well, not really — I’m an old married lady. So while I didn’t love this story, I know it wasn’t written for me and I still absolutely liked and respected it.