Contemporary – Page 14 – Jill's Book Blog

Review: Confetti Realms

Title: Confetti Realms
Author: Nadia Shammas, Karnessa
Genre: Graphic Novel, Contemporary, Fantasy
Publisher: Mad Cave Studios
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 17, 2023
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A group of teens are transported from a graveyard to another realm where they must collect teeth— and learn about themselves— in order to return home.

On Halloween night, when the moon is full, teenagers get up to mischief. But when an encounter with a giant, sentient puppet in a graveyard sends five teens to a mysterious dimension called the Confetti Realms, they must overcome obstacles in their own friendships–and collect the debted teeth owed to the puppet–in order to make their way home. But the allure of staying in a fantasy world is a hard one to beat, and going home to their normal lives is starting to sound less and less appealing for some. Will these friends return home?

Featuring a diverse cast of characters, this Tim Burton-esque, comedic, modern, and high-energy story is written by Eisner Award-winner Nadia Shammas, with art by Karnessa and colors by Hackto Oshiro.

Review:

On Halloween night, a group of four teens decide to explore a graveyard. They come across a mausoleum which has a giant puppet inside. He comes to life and sends them to another dimension called the Confetti Realms. He gives them the task of finding him five teeth from various creatures throughout the realm. If they find them all before that night, he will send them back home. However, as the night goes on, each of the friends realize that if they stay in the confetti realm, they won’t have to face their problems at home, so they must decide if they will stay or go back.

This story had lots of queer representation. It had a spooky atmosphere which is perfect for this time of year! The creatures they encountered were fun and entertaining. I laughed a few times while reading this graphic novel. I would have liked the ending to be less open ended because I like the closure of knowing exactly what happened.

Confetti Realms is a great Halloween graphic novel!

Thank you Mad Cave Studios for providing a copy of this book!

Content warnings: seizure (mention), panic attack (mention), homophobia (mention)

Have you read Confetti Realms? What did you think of it?

Review: Scream for the Camera (Graveyard Girls #2)

Title: Scream for the Camera (Graveyard Girls #2)
Author: Lisi Harrison, Daniel Kraus
Genre: Middle Grade, Horror, Contemporary
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: October 3, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

New York Times bestselling authors Lisi Harrison and Daniel Kraus deliver a s lightly scary, extremely addictive contemporary middle-grade series—perfect for fans of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps and Ann M. Martin’s The Babysitters Club.

It’s been a month since the Graveyard Girls—Gemma, Whisper, Sophie, Frannie, and Zuzu—discovered Silas Hoke’s empty grave. A month, and no answers. That changes when messages from the other side start to creep up on the Graveyard Girls. Gemma’s good-luck charm. The skull in Whisper’s spilled milk. Sophie’s vanishing phone. Frannie’s theater curse. And Zuzu’s possessed Jōurnal. Who is trying to reach them . . . and why?

The good There might be one person with some answers. The bad She’s a mortician . . . with a deadly secret.

Speaking of bad news, straight-A Sophie is quickly sliding down the scale to becoming a B-flat friend. She is spending way more time hanging out with “Danger Me” and way less time with the Graveyard Girls and her schoolwork. Will her scary story be enough to win back her pals, or will her picture-perfect life become the ultimate photo bomb?

Review:

A month ago, the Graveyard girls discovered the infamous killer Silas Hoke’s grave was empty. They’re still wondering what happened when strange things start happening. Gemma breaks her mother’s good luck charm, Whisper sees a skull in spilled milk, Frankie curses the theatre, Sophie’s phone disappears, and Zuzu is possessed by Ginny Baker, who was Silas’s murder victim. The girls have to figure out why these strange things keep happening, while also searching for Silas Hoke’s body and dealing with the everyday challenges of being a preteen.

This was another great Graveyard Girls book! I really like the way the characters are developed. The narrative alternates between each of the five girls, but they are all distinct characters with different lives and challenges. One of the girls in the first and second books tells her own spooky story, which is included in the book. It’s a fun little bonus story that’s connected to the main plot. This story ended on a very good cliffhanger so I hope there will be more books in the series!

Scream for the Camera is a great middle grade story for spooky season!

Thank you Union Square Kids for sending me a copy!

Content warnings: child death (mention), death of parent (mention)

Other books in the series:

1-2-3-4, I Declare a Thumb War (Graveyard Girls #2)

Have you read Scream for the Camera? What did you think of it?

Review: The A and A Detective Agency: The Fairfleet Affair

Title: The A & A Detective Agency: The Fairfleet Affair
Author: K.H. Saxton
Genre: Middle Grade, Mystery, Contemporary
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: September 19, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Follow clues, solve puzzles, crack the code… find the missing millionaire.

The celebrated museums of the Fairfleet Institute are known for curating the mysteries of humanity. But they don’t solve mysteries. Luckily, twelve-year-old friends Alex Foster and Asha Singh of the A&A Detective Agency do. Or they will . . . once they get a real case to test their skills as sleuths.

When Dr. Alistair Fairfleet, the institute’s eccentric chairman, disappears on the first day of Alex and Asha’s summer vacation, they receive a letter written by the missing millionaire himself inviting them to a game involving complicated clues and puzzles. It is just the sort of case they’ve been waiting to tackle. But nothing in the Fairfleet case has a simple solution. As the kids track down clues, they uncover art forgeries, archaeological crimes, and Fairfleet family secrets. All of this tests their partnership and forces them to confront the complicated legacies of the people and places they admire most.

Review:

Alex and Asha are twelve-year-old detectives in Northbrook who haven’t had a real case yet. When Dr. Alistair Fairfleet, the chairman of the Fairfleet Institute, goes missing, Alex and Asha get their first case. Dr. Fairfleet sent letters to his four directors of the Institute, as well as Alex and Asha, which were to be delivered if he ever went missing. They are on a countdown to find Dr. Fairfleet by July 15th. The two friends follow a series of clues to discover art forgeries, archaeological crimes, and secrets of the Fairfleet family.

This was a fun middle grade mystery filled with puzzles! I loved this kind of puzzle story as a kid and now as an adult. It felt like a combination of The Da Vinci Code, The Westing Game, and The Inheritance Games. The puzzles were intricate but fun to solve along with the characters. I had figured out most of the ending before I reached it, but I’m sure most middle grade readers would be pleasantly surprised at the twists!

The Fairfleet Affair is a fun mystery! I hope there will be more books in this series!

Thank you Union Square and Co for sending me a copy!

Have you read The A & A Detective Agency: The Fairfleet Affair? What did you think of it?

Review: The Umbrella House

Title: The Umbrella House
Author: Colleen Nelson
Genre: Middle Grade, Contemporary
Publisher: Pajama Press
Source: Publisher
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: June 6, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In this intimate and inspiring novel about the power of
art and the value of community, award-winning author and former New Yorker Colleen Nelson brings life and liveliness to an eccentric cast of New York City neighbors . Middle-schooler and Manhattanite Ruby Markowski wants to tell the truth fearlessly and powerfully, just like her idols at Veracity News. She and her best friend Scout already make YouTube videos together about East Village life, so when Veracity News announces a Young Voices video competition, Ruby knows it’s the perfect opportunity to make a name for herself, if only she can find a story worth telling. When a real-estate mogul threatens to buy her historic East Village apartment building, Umbrella House, Ruby sets out to create a
video about the people who live in her building, depicting their love for art, community, and family.

With time—and her options for saving Umbrella House running
out, Ruby finds herself caught up in the mystery of the Midnight Muralist, a famous East Village artist whose murals once buildings
famous and valuable. Could finding this enigmatic artist be the key to saving her historic East Village apartment building?

Review:

Twelve-year-old Roxy Markowski has a YouTube channel with her best friend Scout where they talk about their lives in the East Village in New York City. They both live in an apartment building called The Umbrella House, which is a historic building. When a real estate mogul wants to buy The Umbrella House and tear it down, Roxy becomes determined to do anything to save her home. Along with help from Scout and her grandmother, Roxy starts a campaign to save her historic home.

I had never heard of The Umbrella House before reading this story. There was a brief note at the beginning of the book that explained the history of the building. It was an abandoned building that was made uninhabitable, but squatters still moved in. Eventually the squatters improved the building, making it habitable again, and turned it into a co-op building. It was so nice to learn about this through a middle school story. The story showed first hand why it’s important to save historical buildings that embody the personality of a neighbourhood.

The Umbrella House is a fun and empowering story!

Thank you Pajama Press for sending me a copy of this book!

Have you read The Umbrella House? What did you think of it?

Review: Don’t Want to Be Your Monster

Title: Don’t Want to Be Your Monster
Author: Deke Moulton
Genre: Middle Grade, Contemporary, Fantasy
Publisher: Tundra Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: August 1, 2023
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Two vampire brothers must set aside their differences to solve a series of murders in this humorous and delightfully spooky novel for young readers. For fans of Too Bright to See.

Adam and Victor are brothers who have the usual fights over the remote, which movie to watch and whether or not it’s morally acceptable to eat people. Well, not so much eat . . . just drink a little blood. They’re vampires, hiding in plain sight with their eclectic yet loving family.

Ten-year-old Adam knows he has a better purpose in life (well, death) than just drinking blood, but fourteen-year-old Victor wants to accept his own self-image of vampirism. Everything changes when bodies start to appear all over town, and it becomes clear that a vampire hunter may be on the lookout for the family. Can Adam and Victor reconcile their differences and work together to stop the killer before it’s too late?

Review:

Adam and Victor are brothers who are also vampires. They live quiet lives with their moms and older siblings, hidden away from everyone else. When a serial killer starts murdering people in their town, they both start to venture away from their home. Ten-year-old Adam wants to help solve the murders, so he befriends two mortals who don’t know he’s a vampire. Fourteen-year-old Victor wants to find his purpose as a vampire but he ends up encountering a vampire hunter instead. When the serial killer begins to target vampires, the brothers must work together to save their family.

This was a fun middle grade vampire story. I really liked the characters. Adam and Victor were trying to learn how to be vampires, while their moms wanted them to stay children. The characters were all diverse, from different cultures, religions, and sexualities. There were twists at the end that kept me guessing what would happen next.

Don’t Want to Be Your Monster is a great middle grade vampire story!

Thank you Tundra Books for providing a digital copy of this book.

Have you read Don’t Want to Be Your Monster? What did you think of it?

Review: The Long Game

Title: The Long Game
Author: Elena Armas
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Atria Books
Source: Publisher via Fable app
Format: Ebook
Release Date: September 5, 2023
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A disgraced soccer exec reluctantly enlists the help of a retired soccer star in coaching a children’s team in this smalltown love story in the vein of Ted Lasso and It Happened One Summer —from the New York Times bestselling author of The Spanish Love Deception.

Adalyn Reyes has spent years perfecting her daily routine: wake up at dawn, drive to the Miami Flames FC offices, try her hardest to leave a mark, go home, and repeat.

But her routine is disrupted when a video of her in an altercation with the team’s mascot goes viral. Rather than fire her, the team’s owner—who happens to be her father—sends Adalyn to middle-of-nowhere North Carolina, where she’s tasked with turning around the struggling local soccer team, the Green Warriors, as a way to redeem herself. Her plans crumble upon discovering that the players wear tutus to practice (impractical), keep pet goats (messy), and are terrified of Adalyn (counterproductive), and are nine-year-old kids.

To make things worse, also in town is Cameron Caldani, goalkeeping prodigy whose presence is somewhat of a mystery. Cam is the perfect candidate to help Adalyn, but after one very unfortunate first encounter involving a rooster, Cam’s leg, and Adalyn’s bumper, he’s also set on running her out of town. But banishment is not an option for Adalyn. Not again. Helping this ragtag children’s team is her road to redemption, and she is playing the long game. With or without Cam’s help.

Review:

Adalyn Reyes works as an executive for the Miami Flames soccer team, with her father who is the owner. Her life is changed when a video of her attacking the team’s mascot goes viral. Instead of firing her, her dad sends her to the small town of Green Oaks in North Carolina to help improve their soccer team, the Green Warriors. She didn’t expect the team to be full of nine-year-old girls. When she arrives at the cottage where she’ll be staying, she finds former soccer star Cameron Caldani already living there. Adalyn isn’t sure why he’s living in this small town, and coaching a children’s team when he was a soccer superstar. They instantly dislike each other, but Adalyn needs to make this team a success so she can return to her life in Miami, so they must learn to work together.

This was a fun enemies-to-lovers romance. It reminded me of Ted Lasso, in the way that an unexpected coach is brought in to coach a soccer team. The connection between Green Oaks and the Miami Flames wasn’t revealed until the end of the story, so I was wondering about it for most of the story. The romance was a super slow burn, but it was worth it in the end.

I was given the opportunity to read this book on the Fable app, in a book club with the author. I highly recommend checking out the app for fun reading opportunities like this!

The Long Game is a sporty slow burn romance!

Thank you Atria Books and Fable for providing a copy of this book!

Have you read The Long Game? What did you think of it?

Review: You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight

Title: You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight
Author: Kalynn Bayron
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Horror
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: June 20, 2023
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

At Camp Mirror Lake, terror is the name of the game . . . but can you survive the night?

This heart-pounding slasher by New York Times bestselling author Kalynn Bayron is perfect for fans of Fear Street.

Charity Curtis has the summer job of her dreams, playing the “final girl” at Camp Mirror Lake. Guests pay to be scared in this full-contact terror game, as Charity and her summer crew recreate scenes from a classic slasher film, Curse of Camp Mirror Lake. The more realistic the fear, the better for business.

But the last weekend of the season, Charity’s co-workers begin disappearing. And when one ends up dead, Charity’s role as the final girl suddenly becomes all too real. If Charity and her girlfriend Bezi hope to survive the night, they’ll need figure out what this killer is after. Is there is more to the story of Mirror Lake and its dangerous past than Charity ever suspected?

Review:

Charity Curtis works at her dream summer job, playing the “final girl” at Camp Mirror Lake, a horror simulation. Guests pay for Charity and the rest of her team to scare them while recreating scenes from the horror movie Curse of Camp Mirror Lake. During their final weekend of the summer, some of the employees go missing. Then someone breaks into the camp, and someone else ends up dead. Charity becomes the final girl in her own horror story, and she has to figure out who the killer is before it’s too late.

I’m not usually a fan of horror stories, but when I saw this awesome edition from Waterstones, I knew I had to have this book. This was a fast paced slasher story. I read it in under a day, it was so good and hard to put down! I thought I had the story figured out but I was wrong. The ending was so good and unexpected!

You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight is the perfect horror read for spooky season!

Thank you Bloomsbury US for providing a digital copy of this book!

Content warnings: body horror, stabbing, death, gun use, murder, death of animal (bird)

Have you read You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight? What did you think of it?

Review: The Reunion

Title: The Reunion
Author: Kit Frick
Genre: Young Adult, Thriller, Contemporary
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: August 29, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

From the author of I Killed Zoe Spanos comes a YA thriller in the vein of The White Lotus and Karen M. McManus’s The Cousins following a doomed family reunion at a posh Caribbean resort, where old grudges and dangerous secrets culminate in murder.

Eleven Mayweathers went on vacation. Ten came home.

It’s been years since the fragmented Mayweather clan was all in one place, but the engagement of Addison and Mason’s mom to the dad of their future stepbrother, Theo, brings the whole family to sunny Cancún, Mexico, for winter break. Add cousin Natalia to the mix, and it doesn’t take long for tempers to fray and tensions to rise. A week of forced family “fun” reveals that everyone has something to hide, and as secrets bubble to the surface, no one is safe from the fallout. By the end of the week, one member of the reunion party will be dead—and everyone’s a
The Addison needs a better hiding place.
The Theo just wants to mend fences.
The Natalia doesn’t want to talk about the past.
The Mason needs to keep his temper under control.

It started as a week in paradise meant to bring them together. But the Mayweathers are about to learn the hard way that family bonding can be deadly.

Review:

The Mayweather family went on a vacation in Cancun together. The grand finale is supposed to be an engagement party for Addison and Mason’s mom to Theo’s father. Their parents planned this as a bonding trip for the teens, but they weren’t aware of the tension between all of the teens. Addison and Mason haven’t seen their cousin Natalia in three years, since the “incident.” They all have secrets that they’re hiding from each other now because of the “incident.” Each of the teens have something to hide, and by the end of the week one of the family members will be dead.

This thriller was fast paced and twisty! It followed four teens who were related, but they each had their secrets. I liked how many of their secrets and the “incident” weren’t revealed until the close to the end of the story. This kept up the mystery and suspense of the story. I was really surprised when the killer was revealed. The ending was left open for a possible sequel which I would love to see!

The Reunion is the perfect YA read for fans of White Lotus!

Thank you Simon Teen for sending me a copy of this book!

Have you read The Reunion? What did you think of it?

Review: The Brothers Hawthorne (The Inheritance Games #4)

Title: The Brothers Hawthorne (The Inheritance Games #4)
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Thriller
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: August 29, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Four brothers. Two missions. One explosive read. Jennifer Lynn Barnes returns to the world of her #1 bestselling Inheritance Games trilogy, and the stakes have never been higher.

Grayson Hawthorne was raised as the heir apparent to his billionaire grandfather, taught from the cradle to put family first. Now the great Tobias Hawthorne is dead and his family disinherited, but some lessons linger. When Grayson’s half-sisters find themselves in trouble, he swoops in to do what he does best: take care of the problem—efficiently, effectively, mercilessly. And without getting bogged down in emotional entanglements.

Jameson Hawthorne is a risk-taker, a sensation-seeker, a player of games. When his mysterious father appears and asks for a favor, Jameson can’t resist the challenge. Now he must infiltrate London’s most exclusive underground gambling club, which caters to the rich, the powerful, and the aristocratic, and win an impossible game of greatest stakes. Luckily, Jameson Hawthorne lives for impossible.

Drawn into twisted games on opposite sides of the globe, Grayson and Jameson—with the help of their brothers and the girl who inherited their grandfather’s fortune—must dig deep to decide who they want to be and what each of them will sacrifice to win.

Review:

Though the games that Tobias Hawthorne left for his family have been completed, there are still games for the Hawthorne brothers to solve. When Grayson finds out that his half-sisters are in trouble, he goes to Phoenix to help them, since their father won’t be able to. Jameson finally finds his father in London, who asks him to infiltrate an exclusive and private club to win back his family’s estate. Both brothers have to solve these puzzles with the help of their two other brothers and Avery, their grandfather’s heiress.

This book started out feeling a little different from The Inheritance Games trilogy, since this book followed two of the Hawthorne brothers instead of Avery. She was still in many of Jameson’s scenes though since they’re a couple. I liked the alternating plot lines between Grayson and Jameson. The story really picked up in the middle when they both had intense puzzles to solve. I also liked that the puzzles were related to their fathers, who we didn’t know that much about in the original trilogy. The ending set up the next book in the series, which I can’t wait to read!

The Brothers Hawthorne is a fun continuation of The Inheritance Games.

Other books in the series:

Have you read The Brothers Hawthorne? What did you think of it?

Review: A Smile in a Whisper

Title: A Smile in a Whisper
Author: Jacquelyn Middleton
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Kirkwall Books
Source: Tandem Collective Global
Format: Paperback
Release Date: August 10, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

NOT ALL FAREWELLS ARE FOREVER…

Evie Sutherland throws herself into everything. Like many on Scotland’s picturesque Orkney Islands, she works several jobs: managing her family’s shop, researching genealogy for tourists, and writing historical romance novels. Evie aces most challenges—except love. With a childhood diagnosis of Crohn’s disease and a disastrous dating history, Evie has convinced herself that guys won’t date the “sick girl” and the blame falls on the shoulders of her first love, a famous boy from London who spent his summers on her island.

To the outside world, Nikolai Balfour lives a charmed life. Starring in a popular British TV series as a teen, young Nick stole fans’ hearts from the Isle of Wight to Shetland. However, that was a lifetime ago, and the years since have been filled with “Didn’t you used to be…” moments, career wrong-turns, and empty relationships. Now finding success behind the cameras, Nick is still racked with regret and guilt over how things ended with the Orcadian girl he’d loved and left behind.

But when a television series filming in Orkney blows Nick back into Evie’s quiet life, they’re forced to face their heartbreaking past and revisit old secrets that should never have been kept.

Unfolding in alternating past and present timelines, A Smile in a Whisper is a touching story of first love and second chances, and the enduring summer memories that shape us.

Review:

On the Scottish Orkney Islands, Evie Sutherland has had Crohn’s Disease since childhood but she lives a quiet life in her hometown. She blames her disease for her disastrous love life, starting with her first love, Nick Balfour. Nick visited the islands in the summer as a teen, when he was on a break from filming a popular teen soap opera. Now it’s been over a decade since their romance ended. Nick has returned to Orkney to produce a tv show and Evie is catering the food for the crew. They must revisit their past, learn each other’s secrets, and figure out if they can have a future together.

This was such a sweet second chance romance. The story alternated between their past and present relationships, which showed all the heartache they had both been through. There was great representation of Evie’s Crohn’s disease as well as Nick’s panic disorder and anxiety. I have IBS which has some of the same symptoms of Crohn’s, though not the damaging flare ups and hospital stays. I could relate to the way it affected Evie’s social life, food choices, and even clothing choices. I haven’t seen much representation that was as close to my lifestyle like this, so I really appreciated it! I think fans of second chance romances like Every Summer After will love this story!

A Smile in a Whisper is a beautiful summertime romance!

Thank you Tandem Collective and Jacquelyn Middleton for sending me a copy!

Content warnings: Crohn’s disease/chronic illness, panic attacks, hospital scenes, allergic reaction, underage drinking, and drug use

Have you read A Smile in a Whisper? What did you think of it?