TBR Thursday is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly Faye Reads, where you post a title from your shelf or e-reader and find out what others think about it.
My pick this week is The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre by Robin Talley.
Goodreads Synopsis:
Perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Nina LaCour, this #ownvoices romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Robin Talley has something for everyone: backstage rendezvous, deadly props, and a seemingly insurmountable obstacle to True Love.
Melody McIntyre, stage manager extraordinaire, has a plan for everything.
What she doesn’t have? Success with love. Every time she falls for someone during a school performance, both the romance and the show end in catastrophe. So, Mel swears off any entanglements until their upcoming production of Les Mis is over.
Of course, Mel didn’t count on Odile Rose, rising star in the acting world, auditioning for the spring performance. And she definitely didn’t expect Odile to be sweet and funny, and care as much about the play’s success as Mel.
Which means that Melody McIntyre’s only plan now is trying desperately not to fall in love.
Have you read this book? What did you think of it?
Title: Charming as a Verb Author: Ben Philippe Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Publisher: Balzer + Bray Source: Publisher Format: Paperback arc Release Date: October 13, 2020 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Henri “Halti” Haltiwanger can charm just about anyone. He is a star debater and popular student at the prestigious FATE academy, the dutiful first-generation Haitian son, and the trusted dog walker for his wealthy New York City neighbors. But his easy smiles mask a burning ambition to attend his dream college, Columbia University.
There is only one person who seems immune to Henri’s charms: his “intense” classmate and neighbor Corinne Troy. When she uncovers Henri’s less-than-honest dog-walking scheme, she blackmails him into helping her change her image at school. Henri agrees, seeing a potential upside for himself.
Soon what started as a mutual hustle turns into something more surprising than either of them ever bargained for. . . .
This is a sharply funny and insightful novel about the countless hustles we have to keep from doing the hardest thing: being ourselves.
Review:
Henri Haltiwanger is a charming student at the prestigious FATE Academy in New York. He has created his own dog walking company, and he aspires to attend Columbia University. When he gets a new dog walking client, he’s brought to the home of his neighbour and classmate Corinne Troy. Corinne discovers that Henri’s dog walking company is masquerading as a large corporation when it’s really just rum by him. She blackmails him to help her become more social at school to look better on college applications, or she will expose the truth about his company. Henri and Corinne get closer and closer, until he makes a mistake that jeopardizes everything he’s worked towards.
This story addresses common issues that teens face, such as applying to college and keeping up with your classmates. Henri and his friends applied to colleges, and they each had different experiences. For one friend it was easy to get an acceptance right away, while another had to work a little harder at it. Henri had some problems while applying, and he had to decide if he really wanted to go to Columbia for the right reasons. Though Henri went to a prestigious school, he wasn’t in the same position as the other students. His fellow students were from wealthy families, but Henri’s parents were working class immigrants. His parents’ dreams for Henri got in the way of his own path in life, which led Henri to take an extreme measures.
This story reminded me a lot of The Field Guide to the North American Teenager, Ben Philippe’s first novel. Henri was like Norris, the main character in that novel, with his confident attitude to life. Though some parts of this story were predictable, I still found it exciting when my predictions were correct.
This is a great contemporary story!
Thank you HarperCollins Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe
Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds
Have you read Charming as a Verb? What did you think of it?
This is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. In this post we highlight a book that’s highly anticipated.
The book that I’m waiting on this Wednesday is Hot British Boyfriend by Kristy Boyce. The expected publication date is February 9, 2021.
Goodreads Synopsis:
After a horrifying public rejection by her crush, Ellie Nichols does what any girl would do: she flees the country. To be more precise, she joins her high school’s study abroad trip to England. While most of her classmates are there to take honors courses and pad their college applications, Ellie is on a quest to rebuild her reputation and self-confidence. And nothing is more of a confidence booster than getting a hot British boyfriend.
When Ellie meets Will, a gorgeous and charming Brit, she vows to avoid making the same mistakes as she did with the last guy she liked. Which is why she strikes up a bargain with Dev, an overachieving classmate who she’s never clicked with, but who does seem to know a lot about the things Will is interested in—if he helps her win over her crush, then she’ll help him win over his.
But even as Ellie embarks on a whirlwind romance, one that takes her on adventures to some of England’s most beautiful places, she still needs to figure out if this is actually the answer to all her problems…and whether the perfect boyfriend is actually the perfect boy for her.
Title: The Lady and the Highwayman (The Dread Penny Society #1) Author: Sarah M. Eden Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance Publisher: Shadow Mountain Source: Library Format: Ebook Release Date: September 3, 2019 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Elizabeth Black is the headmistress of a girls’ school and a well-respected author of “silver-fork” novels, stories written both for and about the upper-class ladies of Victorian society. But by night, she writes very different kinds of stories—the Penny Dreadfuls that are all the rage among the working-class men. Under the pseudonym Mr. King, Elizabeth has written about dashing heroes fighting supernatural threats and dangerous outlaws romancing helpless women. They contain all the adventure and mystery that her real life lacks.
Fletcher Walker began life as a street urchin, but is now the most successful author in the Penny Dreadful market, that is until Mr. King started taking all of his readers–and his profits. No one knows who King is, including Fletcher’s fellow members of the Dread Penny Society, a fraternity of authors dedicated to secretly fighting for the rights of the less-fortunate.
Determined to find the elusive Mr. King, Fletcher approaches Miss Black. As a fellow-author, she is well-known among the high-class writers; perhaps she could be persuaded to make some inquiries as to Mr. King’s whereabouts? Elizabeth agrees to help Fletcher, if only to insure her secret identity is never discovered.
For the first time, Elizabeth experiences the thrill of a cat-and-mouse adventure reminiscent of one of her own novels as she tries to throw Fletcher off her scent. But the more time they spend together, the more she loses her heart. Its upper-class against working-class, author against author where readers, reputations, and romance are all on the line.
Review:
Elizabeth Black is the headmistress of a girls’ school and the author of books for upper class women. She also secretly writes penny dreadful novels under the pen name Mr. King. Fletcher Walker is also an author of penny dreadfuls, and he is a member of the Dreadful Penny Society, which is a group who writes the novels and helps less-fortunate children. Mr. King has surpassed Fletcher as the top writer, but Fletcher doesn’t know Mr. King’s identity. When Fletcher discovers that Elizabeth knows Mr. King, he enlists her help to figure out who he is. At the same time, they both help each other with saving children from the adults who want to hurt them.
Elizabeth and Fletcher appeared to be opposites but they had a lot in common. They were both successful writers of penny dreadfuls, even though Elizabeth’s identity was a secret. They also both wanted to help children in need. It was disturbing to see how children were treated and overworked, and there weren’t any laws to help save them or punish the people who endangered them. Though Elizabeth and Fletcher came from different backgrounds, they had the same values.
The penny dreadful serials that Elizabeth and Fletcher wrote appeared between the chapters in this story. They each had distinctive voices apart from the main narrative. Their stories mirrored what was happening in their real lives, except without the supernatural aspects. I liked seeing how the authors incorporated parts of their lives into their work.
This was a fun Victorian story!
What to read next:
The Gentleman and the Thief by Sarah M. Eden
Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore
Other books in the series:
The Gentleman and the Thief
Have you read The Lady and the Highwayman? What did you think of it?
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish and it is now hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s theme is Resolutions/Hopes for 2021, so these are my Goals for 2021. Here’s my list:
Title: Dryad, Vol. 1 Author: Kurtis Wiebe, Justin Osterling (illustrator) Genre: Graphic Novel, Fantasy Publisher: Oni Press Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: January 5, 2021 Rating: ★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Best-selling writer Kurtis Wiebe (Rat Queens) and newcomer artist Justin Osterling launch a new fantasy saga!
The Glass family has spent thirteen years hiding peacefully in the sleepy forest settlement of Frostbrook where Morgan and Yale planted roots and raised their twins, Griffon and Rana. But secrets never stay hidden, and the entire Glass family find themselves the target of an unearthly attack on Frostbrook.
Now on the run from Muse Corp., they must flee to the massive city of Silver’s Bay to hide in plain sight. Rana and Griffon find themselves uprooted and answering for their parents’ mistakes. But, they’ll soon find that the past has a way of finding you, no matter where you run
Review:
Yale and Morgan have hidden their family in a small village for thirteen years. When their children find some hidden ruins in the forest, demons are unleashed. Yale and Morgan have to rescue their children and escape to the city where they came from to fight against the terrorist group Dryad.
This story started slow but sped up as the story progressed. I found it a little difficult to figure out who everyone was at first, especially since there was a thirteen year jump within the first few pages where their children grew up. Once I figured out who all the characters were, the story became more exciting.
The illustrations of this graphic novel were beautiful. The village and forest at the beginning had vibrant colours. When the story shifted to the city, the colours were darker and more monotone. These colours reflected the change in tone of the story.
I found the ending a little confusing. Some new characters were introduced, setting up the story for the next graphic novel. This left me wondering what was happening, since it wasn’t really an ending for the main characters.
This was a good graphic novel, but I’m not sure if I’ll continue with the next one.
Thank you Oni Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Saga, Vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples
Have you read Dryad, Vol. 1? What did you think of it?
This blog meme is hosted by Book Date. It is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week. It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment, and er… add to that ever growing TBR pile!
What I just finished:
This weekend I finished Glimpsed by G.F. Miller.
What I’m currently reading:
I’m currently reading Charming as a Verb by Ben Philippe.
What I’m reading next:
Next I will be reading Amina’s Voice by Hena Khan.
What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?
Title: Glimpsed Author: G.F. Miller Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Fantasy Publisher: Simon and Schuster Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook, Paperback ARC Release Date: January 5, 2021 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Perfect for fans of Geekerella and Jenn Bennett, this charming, sparkly rom-com follows a wish-granting teen forced to question if she’s really doing good—and if she has the power to make her own dreams come true.
Charity is a fairy godmother. She doesn’t wear a poofy dress or go around waving a wand, but she does make sure the deepest desires of the student population at Jack London High School come true. And she knows what they want even better than they do because she can glimpse their perfect futures.
But when Charity fulfills a glimpse that gets Vibha crowned homecoming queen, it ends in disaster. Suddenly, every wish Charity has ever granted is called into question. Has she really been helping people? Where do these glimpses come from, anyway? What if she’s not getting the whole picture?
Making this existential crisis way worse is Noah—the adorkable and (in Charity’s opinion) diabolical ex of one of her past clients—who blames her for sabotaging his prom plans and claims her interventions are doing more harm than good. He demands that she stop granting wishes and help him get his girl back. At first, Charity has no choice but to play along. But soon, Noah becomes an unexpected ally in getting to the bottom of the glimpses. Before long, Charity dares to call him her friend…and even starts to wish he were something more. But can the fairy godmother ever get the happily ever after?
Review:
Charity is a fairy godmother. She’s also a teenager at Jack London High School. Charity gets “glimpses” of people’s dreams coming true, so she has to figure out how to make it happen for them. But when one of her granted wishes ends in disaster, she has to wonder if she’s doing the right thing. Then she gets an anonymous message threatening to expose that she’s a fairy godmother who is manipulating students. Noah, her blackmailer, agrees not to expose her identity, if she grants his wish. After spending time with Noah, Charity has to question if she deserves her own happily ever after.
This story is a cute play on the traditional fairy tale. Usually the fairy godmother is a side character who doesn’t get a happily ever after. Charity comes from a family of fairy godmothers. Her grandmother is also a fairy godmother, and she acts as her mentor. The fairy godmothers who manipulated their “Cindys”, the people they get glimpses of, and didn’t give them a happy ending, are known as witches in fairy tales. I liked this comparison of fairy godmothers and witches, since they are both usually characters who guide the heroes to either succeed or fail.
Charity believes that since she’s the fairy godmother, she doesn’t get to have a happily ever after. She gives her “Cindys” their happily ever after, which she thinks is her entire purpose. However, even when she grants the wishes, it doesn’t always turn out the way it was destined to end. Charity has to fix the wishes she’s already granted as well as figure out her own happily ever after.
This is an adorable modern fairy tale.
Thank you Simon and Schuster for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Geekerella by Ashley Poston
Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer
About the author:
G.F. Miller can write 80,000-word novels, but ask her to sit down and write 250 true and meaningful words about herself and she is likely to have an existential crisis. Who am I, really? She ponders. What do I want to be known for? Does anyone even read the back flap or visit author websites?
But eventually she will pull herself together and tell you that…She married her college sweetheart and is mom to three littles who routinely make her heart burst and her head explode (it’s a messy business, love). There are puppies big and small residing at her house (you’ll be seeing a lot of them if you follow her on Instagram). She’s been to a dozen countries, but not nearly as many as she would like. She loves learning all the things. She cries at all the wrong times. She makes faces at herself in the mirror. She believes in the Oxford comma. And she’s always here for a dance party.
While the stories she has brewing in her soul vary wildly from one another, there are three things they will always have in common: love, snappy dialogue, and happy endings.
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