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.
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 A Holly Jolly Diwali by Sonya Lalli.
Goodreads Synopsis:
One devoted modern girl + a meddlesome, traditional grandmother = a heartwarming multicultural romantic comedy about finding love where you least expect it
Raina Anand may have finally given in to family pressure and agreed to let her grandmother play matchmaker, but that doesn’t mean she has to like it–or that she has to play by the rules. Nani always took Raina’s side when she tried to push past the traditional expectations of their tight-knit Indian-immigrant community, but now she’s ambushing Raina with a list of suitable bachelors. Is it too much to ask for a little space? Besides, what Nani doesn’t know won’t hurt her…
As Raina’s life spirals into a parade of Nani-approved bachelors and disastrous blind dates, she must find a way out of this modern-day arranged-marriage trap without shattering her beloved grandmother’s dreams.
Title: Blame It on the Mistletoe Author: Beth Garrod Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary Publisher: Sourcebooks Source: Purchased Format: Paperback Release Date: November 2, 2021 Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Tweet Cute meets the movie The Holiday in this funny holiday rom-com where two very different girls swap lives for a Christmas adventure.
Elle is a social medial star with the #DreamLife…or so it seems. Determined to shake up her content and gain new followers, she’s on a mission: can she find a British fan to swap with for Christmas?
Holly loves everything about Christmas. But after a mortifying mistletoe disaster with her ex, her perfect plans unravel like a bad Christmas sweater. Can Holly save the holidays when she switches places with favorite social media influencer?
Elle gets more than she bargained for when she meets the cute boy from across the street. And Holly wasn’t expecting Elle to have a handsome twin brother. This holiday is full of surprises.
Review:
Elle is a teenage influencer who wants to grow her social media followers to 30,000 by the end of the year. She decides to do a holiday swap with a fan in Britain to change up her content for the holidays. Holly is obsessed with Christmas in her small British town of Little Marsh. She’s getting over a tough breakup, and finds comfort watching her favourite influencer on social media. When Elle announces that she wants to trade places with a British fan for Christmas, Holly decides she has to live out her dream Christmas in New York City. Luckily, Elle and Holly have a family connection, so trading places is easy. However, they didn’t expect to find romance during their holidays: Elle with Holly’s cute friend and Holly with Elle’s twin brother.
This story was a fun look at social media and the lengths that influencers will go to to get followers. This was an extreme tactic, switching places with a fan, but it was an interesting technique. Elle also had to deal with trolls and fake people on social media, so it also showed the dangers that teens and any influencers can face online.
Holly’s narrative began this story, and her voice reminded me of the Georgia Nicolson books that I loved when I was a kid. She was quirky and funny. However, she lost this humourous outlook throughout the story as things became more serious. I would have loved to have more of that funny narrative voice.
One thing that I didn’t understand is the cover. I didn’t count this against my rating for the author, because I know it wasn’t completely her decision, but I’m not sure why there was only one male and one female character on the cover when the story was mainly about two girls and two different couples. It always bothers me when the cover doesn’t match the book. It would have made more sense to have both the main characters on the cover.
Blame It on the Mistletoe is a cute YA rom com.
What to read next:
The Holiday Switch by Tif Marcelo
I’m Dreaming of a Wyatt Christmas by Tiffany Schmidt
Have you read Blame It on the Mistletoe? What did you think of it?
Title: The Holiday Switch Author: Tif Marcelo Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary Publisher: Underlined Source: Purchased Format: Paperback Release Date: October 5, 2021 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
A paperback original romance about a bookish Filipino-American girl who crosses paths with the innkeeper’s aggravating nephew–but when they accidentally switch phones, their newly discovered secrets draw them together.
Lila Castro is ready to take on her last winter break of high school. The snow is plentiful, the mood is full of holiday cheer, and she’s earning extra cash working at the cozy local inn. But her perfect holiday plans crash to a halt when her boss’s frustratingly cute nephew, Teddy Veracruz, becomes her coworker. When they accidentally switch phones one afternoon, they both realize they’ve been hiding things from each other. Will their secrets–and a dash of holiday spirit–bring them closer to love?
Underlined is a line of totally addictive romance, thriller, and horror paperback original titles coming to you fast and furious each month. Enjoy everything you want to read the way you want to read it.
Review:
Lila Castro lives in the small town of Holly, New York, which is always festive. She’s looking forward to working extra hours during the winter break at the gift shop where she works so that she can save money for college next year. However, the extra hours she planned to work are taken over by her boss’s nephew, Teddy Veracruz, who is visiting for the holidays. Teddy doesn’t want to follow the rules they’ve always had at the shop, so Lila becomes frustrated while training him. Then one day, they end up switching phones by accident. Lila and Teddy each discover a secret the other is keeping while they have each other’s phone. Now they have to work together so that they don’t expose their secrets, while possibly finding a holiday romance along the way.
There was great Filipino representation in this holiday story. Lila and her boss, Ms. Velasco, were both Filipino. The star of her favourite holiday movie was also of Filipino descent. I had many Filipino friends while I was growing up, but I didn’t see them represented in North American books or movies, so it was really nice to see this kind of representation in a fun holiday rom com!
I could relate to Lila’s love of books. She organized a free library at the gift shop where she worked and had a secret romance novel blog. There were blog posts throughout the story of her holiday romance novel reviews. They were so cute and relatable as a book reviewer myself!
The Holiday Switch is a fun YA holiday rom com!
What to read next:
All I Want for Christmas by Wendy Loggia
New Year’s Kiss by Lee Matthews
Have you read The Holiday Switch? What did you think of it?
Title: Oddball (Sarah’s Scribbles #4) Author: Sarah Andersen Genre: Comics, Humour Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: December 7, 2021 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
The newest Sarah’s Scribbles collection from New York Times bestselling author Sarah Andersen
The fourth book in the enormously popular graphic novel series, the latest collection of Sarah’s Scribbles comics explores the evils of procrastination, the trials of the creative process, the cuteness of kittens, and the beauty of not caring about your appearance as much as you did when you were younger. When it comes to humorous illustrations of the awkwardness and hilarity of millennial life, Sarah’s Scribbles is without peer.
Review:
This is a new comic collection in the Sarah’s Scribbles series. These comics comment on millennial life, and they are so hilarious. While I was reading, I constantly had to take screenshots of my favourite comics because they were so funny.
Some of the themes in these comics are introverted people, millennial lifestyle, artists, and cats. There were many comics that comment on how millennials use the internet. The first comic had an aging millennial as a senior in a nursing home who reacts to a dog with comments like the We Rate Dogs social media accounts. Anyone who has a cat or has spent time with a cat will relate to the cat comics. Some comics showed the differences between a cat’s and a dog’s reactions to human love, while another answered the question of why witches only have black cats. These were hilarious and relatable comics.
Oddball is a hilarious comic collection!
Thank you Andrews McMeel Publishing for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
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 Guest List by Lucy Foley.
Goodreads Synopsis:
The bride ‧ The plus one ‧ The best man ‧ The wedding planner ‧ The bridesmaid ‧ The body
On an island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. The groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. The bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. It’s a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. The cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed.
But perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. As the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. The groomsmen begin the drinking game from their school days. The bridesmaid not-so-accidentally ruins her dress. The bride’s oldest (male) friend gives an uncomfortably caring toast.
And then someone turns up dead. Who didn’t wish the happy couple well? And perhaps more important, why?
Have you read this book? What did you think of it?
Title: The Thirteenth Fairy (Never After #1) Author: Melissa de la Cruz Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Contemporary Publisher: Roaring Brook Press Source: Purchased Format: Hardcover Release Date: December 1, 2020 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Nothing ever happens in Filomena Jefferson-Cho’s sleepy little suburban town of North Pasadena. The sun shines every day, the grass is always a perfect green, and while her progressive school swears there’s no such thing as bullying, she still feels bummed out. But one day, when Filomena is walking home on her own, something strange happens.
Filomena is being followed by Jack Stalker, one of the heroes in the Thirteenth Fairy, a series of books she loves about a brave girl and her ragtag group of friends who save their world from an evil enchantress. She must be dreaming, or still reading a book. But Jack is insistent–he’s real, the stories are real, and Filomena must come with him at once!
Soon, Filomena is thrust into the world of evil fairies and beautiful princesses, sorcerers and slayers, where an evil queen drives her ruthless armies to destroy what is left of the Fairy tribes. To save herself and the kingdom of Westphalia, Filomena must find the truth behind the fairytales and set the world back to rights before the cycle of sleep and destruction begins once more.
Review:
Filomena Jefferson-Cho lives an ordinary life in North Pasadena, but she loves to escape to the world of Never After in her favourite book series. When she gets the disappointing news on the release day that the thirteenth and final book in the series won’t be published, she’s so disappointed. As she walks home, she’s followed by someone who looks like Jack Stalker, the main character in the series. Jack catches up to her and tells her the world of Never After is real and she must go there with him to save it. The world is being taken over by ogres and Filomena has to help Jack and his friend Alistair. Filomena gets to enter her favourite fictional world that is closer to her reality than she can imagine.
As an avid reader since I was a kid, being able to enter my favourite fictional worlds would be a dream come true. It was so fun to read about Filomena being able to enter Never After. There are a few series I would have loved to enter as a kid, so this was such an entertaining premise.
I loved the references to fairy tales throughout the story. There were many fairy tale characters mentioned in passing, such as Goldilocks and the Three Little Pigs. This was a great set up for more books in the series to explore other fairy tale stories.
The Thirteenth Fairy is a fun middle grade fairy tale story!
What to read next:
The Isle of the Lost by Melissa de la Cruz
The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani
Have you read The Thirteenth Fairy? 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 a Freebie, so I decided to do Favourite Holiday Reads. Here’s my list:
1. The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer
2. In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren
3. Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
4. The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand
5. 10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston
6. All I Want for Christmas by Wendy Loggia
7. Mistletoe and Mr. Right by Sarah Morgenthaler
8. An Alaskan Christmas by Jennifer Snow
9. A Wedding in December by Sarah Morgan
10. Finding Christmas b Karen Schaler
(All book covers from Goodreads)
What’s your list of books on your Top Ten Tuesday?
Title: You’ll Be the Death of Me Author: Karen M. McManus Genre: Young Adult, Thriller, Contemporary Publisher: Delacorte Press Source: Publisher via NetGalley Format: Ebook Release Date: November 30, 2021 Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
Ivy, Mateo, and Cal used to be close. Now all they have in common is Carlton High and the beginning of a very bad day.
Type A Ivy lost a student council election to the class clown, and now she has to face the school, humiliated. Heartthrob Mateo is burned out–he’s been working two jobs since his family’s business failed. And outsider Cal just got stood up…. again.
So when Cal pulls into campus late for class and runs into Ivy and Mateo, it seems like the perfect opportunity to turn a bad day around. They’ll ditch and go into the city. Just the three of them, like old times. Except they’ve barely left the parking lot before they run out of things to say…
Until they spot another Carlton High student skipping school–and follow him to the scene of his own murder. In one chance move, their day turns from dull to deadly. And it’s about to get worse.
It turns out Ivy, Mateo, and Cal still have some things in common. They all have a connection to the dead kid. And they’re all hiding something.
Now they’re all wondering–could it be that their chance reconnection wasn’t by chance after all?
From the author of One of Us Is Lying comes a brand-new pulse-pounding thriller. It’s Ferris Bueller’s Day Off with murder when three old friends relive an epic ditch day, and it goes horribly–and fatally–wrong.
Review:
Ivy worked hard to be the top student and was class president for the last three years. That’s why she was shocked to lose the student council election to class clown Brian “Boney” Maloney. It upsets her so much that she decides to skip school on the day after the election results. She runs into her two former best friends: Cal and Mateo. Cal was just stood up for a date again, and Mateo is burned out from working two jobs and being lied to by his cousin. Ivy, Cal, and Mateo decide to skip school, to recreate the first time they met and skipped school years before. However, this time, they come across the body of a student who they’re all connected to. Each of them are suspects, so they spend the day investigating the death and running from everyone else.
This was another fabulous thriller from Karen M. McManus. It was fast paced and thrilling the entire time. It was so hard to put this book down. I needed to know how it ended.
I haven’t read many thrillers lately, because I’ve found them formulaic and easy to figure out. This one has so many shocking twists that kept me reading. I was truly surprised at every twist, especially the big reveals at the end. This was such a well written, suspenseful thriller.
You’ll Be the Death of Me is an amazing new thriller!
Thank you Penguin Random House for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What to read next:
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
This Is Why We Lie by Gabriella Lepore
Have you read You’ll Be the Death of Me? What did you think of it?
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