Jill lives in Toronto, Canada. She has studied English, Creative Writing, and Publishing. Jill is the creator and content producer of Jill’s Book Blog, where she has published a blog post every day for the last four years, including 5-7 book reviews a week. She can usually be found with her nose in a book.
This is a weekly meme hosted by Laurie Reads and Niffler Reads. Every Friday, they post a list of bookish things based on the prompt they provided. The prompts for Feb to May can be found here.
This week’s prompt is Overhyped Books. Here’s my list:
Battle Angel Alita, Vol. 1 by Yukito Kishiro
Don’t You Cry by Mary Kubica
The Reckoning of Noah Shaw (The Shaw Confessions #2) by Michelle Hodkin
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire
Title: Every Reason We Shouldn’t Author: Sara Fujimura Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Publisher: Tor Teen Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: March 3, 2020 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Warning: Contains family expectations, delightful banter, great romantic tension, skating (all kinds!), Korean pastries, and all the feels.
Fifteen-year-old, biracial figure skater Olivia Kennedy’s Olympic dreams have ended. She’s bitter, but enjoying life as a regular teenager instead of an athlete… until Jonah Choi starts training at her family’s struggling rink. Jonah’s driven, talented, going for the Olympics in speed skating, completely annoying… and totally gorgeous. Between teasing Jonah, helping her best friend try out for roller derby, figuring out life as a normal teen and keeping the family business running, Olivia’s got her hands full. But will rivalry bring her closer to Jonah, or drive them apart?
Every Reason We Shouldn’t by Sara Fujimura is a charming multicultural romance perfect for the many fans of Jenny Han and Rainbow Rowell.
Review:
Olivia is the daughter of two former Olympic champions. She was a gold medal junior champion until her and her partner had one failed performance. Now she helps teach kids at her parents’ ice rink, because her mom has chronic pain from a skating injury. When a speed skater, Jonah, moves to Phoenix, he reignites her love of skating and her desire to go for the gold.
I don’t know much about skating, but I’ve always been fascinated by it. It was amazing to see how hard Olivia and Jonah had to train. Their goal was the Olympics, but few people actually make it there. Skating has the unique position in sports as also being artistic. I could relate to that creative side to the sport.
Olivia’s Japanese heritage played an important role in the story. Olivia and Jonah are both biracial. She has a few friends at school who are also Asian. There were lots of Japanese and Korean foods mentioned in the story, which made me so hungry.
I loved this new story!
Thank you Tor Teen for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
Tweet Cute by Emma Lord
Have you read Every Reason We Shouldn’t? What did you think of it?
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 House by the Sea by Santa Montefiore.
Goodreads Synopsis:
An irresistibly compelling from the internationally bestselling author Ten-year-old Floriana is captivated by the beauty of the magnificent Tuscan villa that overlooks the sea just outside her small village. She likes to spy from the crumbling wall into the gardens, and imagine that one day she’ll escape her meagre existence and live there. One day, Dante, the son of the villa’s powerful industrialist owner, invites her inside. From that moment on Floriana knows that her destiny is there, with him. But as they grow up they cross an unseen line, jeopardising the very thing they hold most dear. Decades later and hundreds of miles away, a beautiful old country house hotel on England’s Devon coast has fallen on hard times. Its owner, Marina, advertises for an artist-in-residence to stay the summer and teach the guests how to paint. Rafael Santoro is charismatic and wise, and soon begins to pacify the discord in her family. However, Rafa is not who he seems. He has his own agenda. Whether to destroy, to seduce, or to heal, it is certain to affect them all. Spanning four decades and sweeping from the Italian countryside to the English coast, this new story by Santa Montefiore is a moving and mysterious tale of love, forgiveness and the past revealed.
Have you read this book? What did you think of it?
Title: Star Pig Author: Delilah S. Dawson, Francesco Gaston Genre: Graphic Novel, Science Fiction Publisher: IDW Publishing Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: March 10, 2020 Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Two Castaways. One Goal. Zero in common. Get lost in this inventive sci-fi graphic novel about an extraordinary friendship and an incredible journey home.
Like many late-21st-century teens, geeky 16-year-old Vess gets packed off to spend her summer at Space Camp–which is literally in space. Tragically, a shuttle accident sends her and the rest of the passengers careening toward a cold, frosty death among the stars. But when a gigantic, space-faring water bear miraculously rescues Vess and her beloved retro Discman, it’s the beginning of an extraordinary friendship, all set to the nostalgic tunes of Vess’s 1990s-heavy playlist.
Delilah S. Dawson is the New York Times bestselling writer of Star Wars: Phasma, plus the The Secrets of Long Snoot, The Perfect Weapon, and Scorched; the Blud series, Servants of the Storm, the HIT series, Wake of Vultures and the Shadow series (as Lila Bowen). Her previous comics work includes Ladycastle, The X-Files: Case Files – Florida Man, Adventure Time, Rick and Morty: Pickle Rick, Star Wars Adventures, and Sparrohawk.
Review:
Vess is traveling through space to a space camp when her ship crashes. She is saved by a space pig, or a tardigrade, who sucks her into his body. Then, they are captured by an alien who collects things from earth. They come into contact with some other space creatures through the rest of the comic.
I went through so many different emotions while reading this graphic novel. Some parts were funny, like when they referenced earth songs that the aliens liked. Other parts were really gross, such as how the different aliens looked and behaved.
I had to look up a tardigrade after I read this book, because there were some fun facts about them at the end. They are a real creature, though only about 1mm in length in real life, not giant sized like in the book. They really look like a space pig, so that’s an appropriate name for them!
This was a great space graphic novel.
Thank you IDW Publishing for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Sparrowhawk by Delilah S. Dawson, Matias Basla, Rebecca Nalty
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 Date Me, Bryson Keller by Kevin van Whye. The expected publication date is May 19, 2020.
Goodreads Synopsis:
What If It’s Us meets To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before in this upbeat and heartfelt boy-meets-boy romance that feels like a modern twist on a ’90s rom-com!
Everyone knows about the dare: Each week, Bryson Keller must date someone new–the first person to ask him out on Monday morning. Few think Bryson can do it. He may be the king of Fairvale Academy, but he’s never really dated before.
Until a boy asks him out, and everything changes.
Kai Sheridan didn’t expect Bryson to say yes. So when Bryson agrees to secretly go out with him, Kai is thrown for a loop. But as the days go by, he discovers there’s more to Bryson beneath the surface, and dating him begins to feel less like an act and more like the real thing. Kai knows how the story of a gay boy liking someone straight ends. With his heart on the line, he’s awkwardly trying to navigate senior year at school, at home, and in the closet, all while grappling with the fact that this “relationship” will last only five days. After all, Bryson Keller is popular, good-looking, and straight . . . right?
Kevin van Whye delivers an uplifting and poignant coming-out love story that will have readers rooting for these two teens to share their hearts with the world–and with each other.
Title: Thorn Author: Intisar Khanani Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy Publisher: HarperTeen Source: Publisher Format: Paperback Release Date: March 24, 2020 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
A princess with two futures. A destiny all her own
Between her cruel family and the contempt she faces at court, Princess Alyrra has always longed to escape the confines of her royal life. But when she’s betrothed to the powerful prince Kestrin, Alyrra embarks on a journey to his land with little hope for a better future.
When a mysterious and terrifying sorceress robs Alyrra of both her identity and her role as princess, Alyrra seizes the opportunity to start a new life for herself as a goose girl.
But Alyrra soon finds that Kestrin is not what she expected. The more Alyrra learns of this new kingdom, the pain and suffering its people endure, as well as the danger facing Kestrin from the sorceress herself, the more she knows she can’t remain the goose girl forever.
With the fate of the kingdom at stake, Alyrra is caught between two worlds and ultimately must decide who she is, and what she stands for.
Review:
Princess Alyrra is sent to marry a prince of the largest kingdom. However, along the way to the palace, she is put under a spell which switches her body with her enemy who was traveling with her. Now Alyrra no longer looks like the princess who was sent to the kingdom. The new princess sends Alyrra to work in the barns with the geese, where she lives with servants. She has to figure out how to protect the kingdom from the witch who cursed her and the girl who has taken her place.
I wasn’t familiar with the fairy tale of The Goose Girl before reading this book. I didn’t look it up, because I didn’t want to spoil the story. The story was quite suspenseful, since I didn’t know what was going to happen.
There were some heartbreaking parts of this story, which really made me sympathetic towards Alyrra. She was abused by her brother before she went to the kingdom. She was on bad terms with her mother for a controversy she caused in her home kingdom. She also had to help some servants who were in less fortunate circumstances.
I really enjoyed this story! It’s a great debut fantasy novel.
Thank you HarperCollins Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Ash Princess (Ash Princess Trilogy #1) by Laura Sebastian
The Black Witch (The Black Witch Chronicles #1) by Laurie Forest
Title: Music From Another World Author: Robin Talley Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ Publisher: Inkyard Press Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: March 31, 2020 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
It’s summer 1977 and closeted lesbian Tammy Larson can’t be herself anywhere. Not at her strict Christian high school, not at her conservative Orange County church and certainly not at home, where her ultrareligious aunt relentlessly organizes antigay political campaigns. Tammy’s only outlet is writing secret letters in her diary to gay civil rights activist Harvey Milk…until she’s matched with a real-life pen pal who changes everything.
Sharon Hawkins bonds with Tammy over punk music and carefully shared secrets, and soon their letters become the one place she can be honest. The rest of her life in San Francisco is full of lies. The kind she tells for others—like helping her gay brother hide the truth from their mom—and the kind she tells herself. But as antigay fervor in America reaches a frightening new pitch, Sharon and Tammy must rely on their long-distance friendship to discover their deeply personal truths, what they’ll stand for…and who they’ll rise against.
A master of award-winning queer historical fiction, New York Times bestselling author Robin Talley once again brings to life with heart and vivid detail an emotionally captivating story about the lives of two teen girls living in an age when just being yourself was an incredible act of bravery.
Review:
Tammy and Sharon were set up as penpals through their Catholic schools in 1977. Tammy lived in Orange County with a very religious family, while Sharon lived in San Francisco with her mother and brother. Sharon’s brother and Tammy are gay. Sharon and her brother help the gay community in San Francisco by supporting Harvey Milk’s campaign. When Tammy gets in trouble at her school, she runs away to the only person she knows who will support her, Sharon.
This story was devastating at times. Tammy’s aunt and uncle, who ran the church in her community, were so extreme and closed minded. They constantly bashed gay people, which Tammy had to listen to. She also had to work against the gay community to promote her aunt and uncle’s beliefs. It was so upsetting to see her go against herself in these ways.
One good thing about this story, is that the world is much more welcoming today. It isn’t a perfect situation for queer people today, but I think Tammy and Sharon would have a more positive place to live today. There are still people like Tammy’s aunt around today, but there is more positivity for queer people.
This was a great story!
Thank you Inkyard Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me by Mariko Tamaki, Rosemary Valero-O’Connell
King, Queens, and In-Betweens by Tanya Boteju
Author Info:
Robin Talley studied literature and communications at American University. She lives in Washington, DC, with her wife, but visits both Boston and New York regularly despite her moral opposition to Massachusetts winters and Times Square. Her first book was 2014’s Lies We Tell Ourselves. Visit her online at robintalley.com or on Twitter at @robin_talley.
Have you read Music From Another World? 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 Music From Another World by Robin Talley.
What I’m currently reading:
I’m currently reading Thorn by Intisar Khanani.
What I’m reading next:
Next I will be reading Every Reason We Shouldn’t by Sara Fujimara.
What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?
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