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.
Title: I Hate Everyone But You Author: Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, LGBTQ Publisher: Wednesday Books Source: Library Format: Ebook Release Date: September 5, 2017 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin’s I Hate Everyone But You is a hilarious and heartfelt debut novel about new beginnings, love and heartbreak, and ultimately the power of friendship.
Dear Best Friend, I can already tell that I will hate everyone but you. Sincerely, Ava Helmer (that brunette who won’t leave you alone)
We’re still in the same room, you weirdo. Stop crying. G
So begins a series of texts and emails sent between two best friends, Ava and Gen, as they head off to their first semesters of college on opposite sides of the country. From first loves to weird roommates, heartbreak, self-discovery, coming out and mental health, the two of them document every wild and awkward moment to each other. But as each changes and grows into her new life, will their friendship be able to survive the distance?
Review:
I loved this book! It made me laugh so many times. It was a rough week, so this book made me feel a lot better.
Ava and Gen reminded me of my best friend and I. Ava is more conservative like me, while Gen is more outgoing like my friend. We definitely aren’t as funny as these two girls though!
I really liked the gender diversity in the story. Gen comes out as queer while she is at college. She makes a few friends who have a variety gender identities. Meanwhile, Ava can’t understand any of it. She made insensitive comments because she didn’t know any better. I loved how Ava represented how many people think, and Gen was able to point out the problems with her comments.
I loved this book and I can’t wait to read the next one!
What to read next:
The Summer of Jordi Perez by Amy Spalding
Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
Have you read I Hate Everyone But You? 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 I Hate Everyone But You by Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin.
What I’m currently reading:
I’m currently reading Killing November by Adriana Mather.
What I’m reading next:
Next I will be reading The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton.
What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?
The meme that dares to ask what book has been in your bed this morning? Come share what book you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed, or which book you wish you had time to read today! This meme is hosted by Midnight Book Girl.
This Sunday I’m reading I Hate Everyone But You by Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin.
Goodreads Synopsis:
Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin’s I Hate Everyone But You is a hilarious and heartfelt debut novel about new beginnings, love and heartbreak, and ultimately the power of friendship.
Dear Best Friend, I can already tell that I will hate everyone but you. Sincerely, Ava Helmer (that brunette who won’t leave you alone)
We’re still in the same room, you weirdo. Stop crying. G
So begins a series of texts and emails sent between two best friends, Ava and Gen, as they head off to their first semesters of college on opposite sides of the country. From first loves to weird roommates, heartbreak, self-discovery, coming out and mental health, the two of them document every wild and awkward moment to each other. But as each changes and grows into her new life, will their friendship be able to survive the distance?
Title: Queenie Author: Candice Carty-Williams Genre: Fiction, Romance Publisher: Simon and Schuster Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: March 19, 2019 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Bridget Jones’s Diary meets Americanah in this disarmingly honest, boldly political, and truly inclusive novel that will speak to anyone who has gone looking for love and found something very different in its place.
Queenie Jenkins is a 25-year-old Jamaican British woman living in London, straddling two cultures and slotting neatly into neither. She works at a national newspaper, where she’s constantly forced to compare herself to her white middle class peers. After a messy break up from her long-term white boyfriend, Queenie seeks comfort in all the wrong places…including several hazardous men who do a good job of occupying brain space and a bad job of affirming self-worth.
As Queenie careens from one questionable decision to another, she finds herself wondering, “What are you doing? Why are you doing it? Who do you want to be?”—all of the questions today’s woman must face in a world trying to answer them for her.
With “fresh and honest” (Jojo Moyes) prose, Queenie is a remarkably relatable exploration of what it means to be a modern woman searching for meaning in today’s world.
Review:
This is a modern romantic comedy.
Queenie is a British woman who works for a newspaper in London. She is of Jamaican descent. Her storyline reminded me of Bridget Jones’s Diary, because of the way she has to balance her work with her romantic life. However, there were some serious issues in the story.
I really liked the way realistic issues were addressed in the story. Queenie got a little carried away with dating multiple men after her serious relationship ended. She ended up at health clinics a few times because of these encounters. I appreciated that she had to deal with the consequences of her actions, unlike many characters in romance stories.
The story wasn’t all serious. There were some funny parts as well. Queenie refers to her friends in their group chat as the “Corgis” because they support their queen. There were also some funny situations with Queenie’s grandparents. Though there were a lot of serious parts of the story, I enjoyed the light humour as well.
I really enjoyed this story! It’s a refreshingly modern take on a romantic comedy.
This is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews and Reading Reality. Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!
I got another bunch of books this week! It’s going to be a great spring and summer for new releases!
I received seven books from Penguin Random House Canada:
Killing November by Adriana Mather
We Are the Perfect Girl by Ariel Kaplan
Eve of Man by Giovanna and Tom Fletcher
Wilder Girls by Rory Power
Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim
My Ideal Boyfriend is a Croissant by Laura Dockrill
The Importance of Being Wilde at Heart by R. Zamora Linmark
I was approved for a book from St. Martin’s Press on NetGalley:
Please Send Help by Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin
I was approved for two books from Simon and Schuster on NetGalley:
Order of the Majestic by Matt Myklusch
Lizzie by Dawn Ius
I was approved for a book from Text Publishing on NetGalley:
The Rosie Result (Don Tillman #3) by Graeme Simsion
Thank you Penguin Random House Canada, St. Martin’s Press, Simon and Schuster, and Text Publishing for these books!
Title: The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 1: The Apocalypse Suite Author: Gerard Way, Gabriel Bá, Dave Stewart Genre: Graphic Novel Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Source: Library Format: Ebook Release Date: October 17, 2007 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
In an inexplicable worldwide event, forty-seven extraordinary children were spontaneously born to women who’d previously shown no signs of pregnancy. Millionaire inventor Reginald Hargreeves adopted seven of the children; when asked why, his only explanation was, “To save the world.”
These seven children form the Umbrella Academy, a dysfunctional family of superheroes with bizarre powers. Their first adventure at the age of ten pits them against an erratic and deadly Eiffel Tower, piloted by the fearsome zombie-robot Gustave Eiffel. Nearly a decade later, the team disbands, but when Hargreeves unexpectedly dies, these disgruntled siblings reunite just in time to save the world once again.
Collecting: The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite 1-6, as well as out-of-print short stories and an expanded sketchbook section featuring work by Gabriel Bá, James Jean, and Gerard Way
Review:
Whenever I hear a book has been adapted into a movie or tv series, I have to check it out. I saw ads for The Umbrella Academy on Netflix, so I wanted to read the graphic novel before watching the show. I was shocked when I saw that it was written by Gerard Way, the lead singer of My Chemical Romance. I loved their music when I was growing up, but I never expected that Gerard Way would write a super hero graphic novel.
This was a great graphic novel! It has an ensemble cast of people who grew up together, and had special powers, but drifted apart as they got older. They are reunited when their father dies, and they have to save the world from the apocalypse.
This story reminded me of Marvel’s Runaways because of the ensemble cast of characters with different powers. The narrative style reminded me of Lemony Snicket’s voice in the Series of Unfortunate Events. There were funny comments on events in the story, which is a great way to bring the reader into the story.
I loved this story! I can’t wait to watch the show now.
What to read next:
The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 2: Dallas by Gerard Way, Gabriel Bá, Dave Stewart
Have you read The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 2: Dallas? What did you think of it?
This is a weekly meme hosted by Wandering Words, where you give the first few lines of a book to hook your readers before introducing the book.
Here are my first lines:
“I had one leg in the feathery yellow costume my boss called a uniform when Cam stomped into my room like a runway model on crack and thrust his chest out at the end of my bed. ‘Pops? Be honest. Do I have’ – he paused for effect – ‘moobs?'”
Do you recognize these first lines?
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And the book is… Chicken Girl by Heather Smith.
Goodreads synopsis:
Everybody has a story that will break your heart; a poignant coming-of-age YA for fans of David Arnold, from the author of the acclaimed The Agony of Bun O’Keefe, a Kirkus Best of the Year selection.
Poppy used to be an optimist. But after a photo of her dressed as Rosie the Riveter is mocked online, she’s having trouble seeing the good in the world. As a result, Poppy trades her beloved vintage clothes for a feathered chicken costume and accepts a job as an anonymous sign waver outside a restaurant. There, Poppy meets six-year-old girl Miracle, who helps Poppy see beyond her own pain, opening her eyes to the people around her: Cam, her twin brother, who is adjusting to life as an openly gay teen; Buck, a charming photographer with a cute British accent and a not-so-cute mean-streak; and Lewis a teen caring for an ailing parent, while struggling to reach the final stages of his gender transition. As the summer unfolds, Poppy stops glorifying the past and starts focusing on the present. But just as she comes to terms with the fact that there is good and bad in everyone, she is tested by a deep betrayal.
Have you read Chicken Girl? What did you think of it?
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