Contemporary – Page 7 – Jill's Book Blog

Review: Ghosted

Title: Ghosted
Author: Amanda Quain
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: July 25, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Never Have I Ever meets The X-Files in Amanda Quain’s Ghosted, a gender-bent contemporary retelling of the Jane Austen classic, Northanger Abbey.

Hattie Tilney isn’t a believer. Yes, she’s a senior at America’s most (allegedly) haunted high school, Northanger Abbey. But ever since her paranormal-loving dad passed away, she’s hung up her Ghostbusters suit, put away the EMF detectors and thermal cameras, and moved on. She has enough to worry about in the land of the living–like taking care of her younger brother, Liam, while their older sister spirals out and their mother, Northanger’s formidable headmistress, buries herself in her work. If Hattie just works hard enough and keeps that overachiever mask on tight through graduation, maybe her mom will finally notice her.

But the mask starts slipping when Hattie’s assigned to be an ambassador to Kit Morland, a golden retriever of a boy who’s transferred to Northanger on—what else—a ghost-hunting scholarship. The two are partnered up for an investigative project on the school’s paranormal activity, and Hattie quickly strikes a deal: Kit will present whatever ghostly evidence he can find to prove that campus is haunted, and Hattie will prove that it’s not. But as they explore the abandoned tunnels and foggy graveyards of Northanger, Hattie starts to realize that Kit might be the kind of person that makes her want to believe in something—and someone—for the first time.

With her signature wit and slow burn romance, Amanda Quain turns another Austen classic on its head in this sparkling retelling that proves sometimes the ghosts are just a metaphor after all.

Review:

Hattie Tilney is a senior at Northanger Abbey. She used to love her dad’s ghost stories and ghost hunting, but since he died, she no longer believes in ghosts. When her mom, headmaster of Northanger Abbey, asks Hattie to guide the new student, Kit Morland, around the school, Hattie agrees to get her mom’s approval. However, Kit is attending the school on a scholarship from a ghost hunting association. Hattie and Kit must work together on an assignment about the ghosts that haunt Northanger Abbey, but while Kit is eager to share their stories, Hattie wants to prove that they don’t exist.

This was a great gender-swapped retelling of Northanger Abbey. Northanger Abbey is told by the perspective of Catherine Morland, who believes in ghosts. I liked that this story is told from the perspective of Hattie, who’s skeptical about ghosts. It gave the story more tension, as she was surrounded by ghost stories and she used to believe in them as a kid.

Ghosted is a great YA ghost story!

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

Content warnings: cancer, death of parent

Have you read Ghosted? What did you think of it?

Review: The Unfinished

Title: The Unfinished
Author: Cheryl Isaacs
Genre: Young Adult, Horror, Contemporary
Publisher: Heartdrum
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: September 3, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In this debut YA horror novel by Cheryl Isaacs (Mohawk), small-town athlete Avery is haunted by the black water and Unfinished beings of Kanyen’kehá:ka stories and must turn to the culture she hasn’t felt connected to in order to save her town.

The black water has been waiting. Watching. Hungry for the souls it needs to survive.

When small-town athlete Avery’s morning run leads her to a strange pond in the middle of the forest, she awakens a horror the townspeople of Crook’s Falls have long forgotten.

Avery can smell the water, see it flooding everywhere; she thinks she’s losing her mind. And as the black water haunts Avery—taking a new form each time—people in town begin to go missing.

Though Avery had heard whispers of monsters from her Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) relatives, she’s never really connected to her Indigenous culture or understood the stories. But the Elders she has distanced herself from now may have the answers she needs.

When Key, her best friend and longtime crush, is the next to disappear, Avery is faced with a choice: listen to the Kanyen’kehá:ka and save the town but lose her friend forever…or listen to her heart and risk everything to get Key back.

In her stunning debut, Cheryl Isaacs pulls the reader down into an unsettling tale of monsters, mystery, and secrets that refuse to stay submerged.

Review:

One morning when teenage Avery is on her morning run in the forest, she goes off the trail, gets lost, and finds the legendary black water. She’s always been told to stay on the trails, and now she has awoken the horrors that were lurking in the black water. Avery starts seeing faceless people following her in town, and then people start disappearing. When Avery’s best friend, Key, goes missing, she becomes more determined to find out what is causing these horrors and put an end to it for good.

This was such a creepy thriller. There was so much unknown about the black water that Avery encountered. She had to learn from some elders that were familiar with it, but her family was just her, her mom, and her great-aunt who had dementia, so her resources were limited. As the disappearances got closer to Avery, the story became more suspenseful and scary. Read this one with the lights on!

The Unfinished is a great horror!

Thank you Frenzy Books for providing a copy of this book!

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

Review: Better Than the Movies (Better Than the Movies #1)

Title: Better Than the Movies (Better Than the Movies #1)
Author: Lynn Painter
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: May 4, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In this rom-com about rom-coms, in the spirit of Kasie West and Jenn Bennett, a hopeless romantic teen attempts to secure a happily-ever-after moment with her forever crush, but finds herself reluctantly drawn to the boy next door.

Perpetual daydreamer Liz Buxbaum gave her heart to Michael a long time ago. But her cool, aloof forever crush never really saw her before he moved away. Now that he’s back in town, Liz will do whatever it takes to get on his radar – and maybe snag him as a prom date – even befriend Wes Bennet.

The annoyingly attractive next-door neighbor might seem like a prime candidate for romantic-comedy fantasies, but Wes has only been a pain in Liz’s butt since they were kids. Pranks involving frogs and decapitated lawn gnomes do not a potential boyfriend make. Yet, somehow, Wes and Michael are hitting it off, which means Wes is Liz’s in.

But as Liz and Wes scheme to get Liz noticed by Michael so she can have her magical prom moment, she’s shocked to discover that she likes being around Wes. And as they continue to grow closer, she must reexamine everything she thought she knew about love – and rethink her own ideas of what happily ever after should look like.

Review:

Liz Buxbaum loves rom coms because it connects her to her mom who passed away when she was a child. She dreams of having her own romance her childhood crush, Michael, who moved away when they were kids. Now, Michael has moved back to town. Liz wants to have her rom com moment with Michael and go to prom with him. She convinces her next-door neighbour and frenemy Wes to help her get Michael to notice her. However, the more time Liz spends with Wes, she wonders if he’s meant to be the romantic lead in her love story.

This was such a cute romance! I loved all the references to rom com movies and books. Liz was living her own rom com. At first, Wes convinced her to change things about herself to attract Michael. Liz eventually had to learn the hard lesson that it’s important to find someone who loves you for who you are, not to turn yourself into someone different to please someone else.

Better Than the Movies is a cute YA rom com!

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a digital copy of this book!

Content warnings: death of parent (off page), car accident, vomiting, blood

Other books in the series:

Nothing Like the Movies (Better Than the Movies #2)

Have you read Better Than the Movies? What did you think of it?

Review: Icebreaker (UCMH #1)

Title: Icebreaker (UCMH #1)
Author: Hannah Grace
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Atria Books
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: August 23, 2022
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Anastasia Allen has worked her entire life for a shot at Team USA. It looks like everything is going according to plan when she gets a full scholarship to the University of California, Maple Hills, and lands a place on their competitive figure skating team.

Nothing will stand in her way, not even the captain of the hockey team, Nate Hawkins.

Nate’s focus as team captain is on keeping his team on the ice. Which is tricky when a facilities mishap means they are forced to share a rink with the figure skating team—including Anastasia, who clearly can’t stand him.

But when Anastasia’s skating partner faces an uncertain future, she may have to look to Nate to take her shot.

Sparks fly, but Anastasia isn’t worried . . . because she could never like a hockey player, right?

Review:

Anastasia Allen is a competitive figure skater at University of California, Maple Hills, who is trying to get to the Olympics in two years. Nate Hawkins is the captain of the UCMH hockey team. When one of their rink facilities is destroyed by their rivals, the figure skaters and hockey players must use the same rink for months. Nate likes Anastasia when they meet at a hockey house party, but her skating partner, Aaron, gets jealous and makes life hard for Anastasia. Despite not liking hockey, Anastasia realizes she’s starting to fall for a hockey player.

This was such a spicy romance! I loved Anastasia and Nathan. One part that was really disturbing was the way Anastasia was treated by her skating partner. He was manipulative in a way that wasn’t obvious at first but later became undeniable. A character who I loved was a hockey player named Henry! I’m so glad that the third book in the series is his love story!

Icebreaker is a spicy hockey/skating romance!

Content warnings: disordered eating, death of parent (off page)

Other books in the series:

Wildfire (UCMH #2)
Daydream (CUMH#3)

Have you read Icebreaker? What did you think of it?

Review: Return to Midnight

Title: Return to Midnight
Author: Emma Dues
Genre: Thriller, Contemporary
Publisher: Thomas and Mercer
Source: Firefly Books Distributed Lines
Format: Paperback
Release Date: August 27, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

On the anniversary of a savage mass murder, a survivor returns to the scene of the crime―and all its buried secrets―in a twisting novel of suspense.

Nearly ten years ago, five Ohio university students were murdered in an off-campus Victorian home. The media dubbed it the Midnight House Massacre. Ever since, survivor and novelist Margot Davis has wanted to forget it, and never again utter the killer’s name. Until she’s compelled to write her side of the story. To do that, she’s returning to Midnight House.

It’ll be a chance for Margot to reconnect with other survivors, heal the trauma, and dispel the ugly conspiracy theories of obsessed true crime fanatics. But when news of Margot’s book gets out, she receives a threatening note that demands she stop lying. Or else. It chills Margot’s blood. Because she hasn’t been telling the whole truth.

As the threats continue, each more sinister than the last, a journalist comes to Margot with new suspicions about that brutal October night. Now, to save her own life, Margot must reveal her well-guarded secrets―ones that, for good reason, she’s been too terrified to share.

Review:

Almost ten years ago, five college students were massacred in their home called Midnight House. Margot Davis was one of the survivors, and she’s still traumatized from the murders of her best friends. Another one of her best friends was convicted for the murders, but he has always maintained his innocence. Margot decides to finally tell her side of the story and write a book about the murders, so she returns to Midnight House, which is now owned by her friends and other survivors, to do research. However, when her book is announced, Margot starts getting threats, telling her to stop lying about the massacre. Margot does have secrets from her college years, but she can’t figure out who would threaten her about them. She must figure out who is sending the threats before she’s the next victim.

This was the scariest thriller I’ve read in a long time. It was creepy and fast paced. I was hooked right from the first page. I was on the edge of my seat for most of the book. There were some graphic scenes, that were more like a horror story, but the suspense made this a thrilling read!

Return to Midnight is a thrilling debut!

Thank you Firefly Books Distributed Lines for sending me a copy of this book!

Content warnings: death, blood, vomiting, stabbing, overdose, gaslighting

Have you read Return to Midnight? What did you think of it?

Review: I Kissed Shara Wheeler

Title: I Kissed Shara Wheeler
Author: Casey McQuiston
Genre: Young Adult, LGBTQ, Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: May 3, 2022
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

From the New York Times bestselling author of One Last Stop and Red, White & Royal Blue comes a debut YA romantic comedy about chasing down what you want, only to find what you need…

Chloe Green is so close to winning. After her moms moved her from SoCal to Alabama for high school, she’s spent the past four years dodging gossipy classmates and a puritanical administration at Willowgrove Christian Academy. The thing that’s kept her going: winning valedictorian. Her only rival: prom queen Shara Wheeler, the principal’s perfect progeny.

But a month before graduation, Shara kisses Chloe and vanishes.

On a furious hunt for answers, Chloe discovers she’s not the only one Shara kissed. There’s also Smith, Shara’s longtime quarterback sweetheart, and Rory, Shara’s bad boy neighbor with a crush. The three have nothing in common except Shara and the annoyingly cryptic notes she left behind, but together they must untangle Shara’s trail of clues and find her. It’ll be worth it, if Chloe can drag Shara back before graduation to beat her fair-and-square.

Thrown into an unlikely alliance, chasing a ghost through parties, break-ins, puzzles, and secrets revealed on monogrammed stationery, Chloe starts to suspect there might be more to this small town than she thought. And maybe—probably not, but maybe—more to Shara, too.

Fierce, funny, and frank, Casey McQuiston’s I Kissed Shara Wheeler is about breaking the rules, getting messy, and finding love in unexpected places.

Review:

Chloe Green is competing with Shara Wheeler to be valedictorian at her conservative Christian school. After prom night, Shara vanishes without a trace. Everyone in school is obsessed with her and wondering where she is, and Chloe can’t help but be curious too. Shara randomly kissed Chloe in school one day, and Chloe thinks that has something to do with her disappearance. While she’s searching for answers, Chloe discovers that Shara left cryptic notes for her boyfriend Smith and her next door neighbour Rory. Though they don’t have anything else in common, Chloe, Smith, and Rory follow the clues that Shara left behind to figure out the secrets Shara has been keeping.

This was a great YA novel. Chloe had two moms and she was bisexual, so she was constantly fighting against the homophobic rules that were in place at her school. Shara seemed like a Regina George-type character at the beginning. She was the most popular girl in school and everyone seemed to be obsessed with her. However, there was more to her, and to most of the students at their school, than there appeared to be on the surface. I really liked the twist that happened once they solved all of Shara’s clues!

I Kissed Shara Wheeler is a great queer YA romance!

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

Content warnings: homophobia

Have you read I Kissed Shara Wheeler? What did you think of it?

Review: The Pairing

Title: The Pairing
Author: Casey McQuiston
Genre: Romance, LGBTQ, Contemporary
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Source: Purchased
Format: Paperback
Release Date: August 6, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In #1 New York Times bestselling author Casey McQuiston’s latest romantic comedy, two bisexual exes accidentally book the same European food and wine tour and challenge each other to a hookup competition to prove they’re over each other—except they’re definitely not.

Theo and Kit have been a lot of things: childhood best friends, crushes, in love, and now estranged exes. After a brutal breakup on the transatlantic flight to their dream European food and wine tour, they exited each other’s lives once and for all.

Time apart has done them good. Theo has found confidence as a hustling bartender by night and aspiring sommelier by day, with a long roster of casual lovers. Kit, who never returned to America, graduated as the reigning sex god of his pastry school class and now bakes at one of the finest restaurants in Paris. Sure, nothing really compares to what they had, and life stretches out long and lonely ahead of them, but—yeah. It’s in the past.

All that remains is the unused voucher for the European tour that never happened, good for 48 months after its original date and about to expire. Four years later, it seems like a great idea to finally take the trip. Solo. Separately.

It’s not until they board the tour bus that they discover they’ve both accidentally had the exact same idea, and now they’re trapped with each other for three weeks of stunning views, luscious flavors, and the most romantic cities of France, Spain, and Italy. It’s fine. There’s nothing left between them. So much nothing that, when Theo suggests a friendly wager to see who can sleep with their hot Italian tour guide first, Kit is totally game. And why stop there? Why not a full-on European hookup competition?

But sometimes a taste of everything only makes you crave what you can’t have.

Review:

Theo and Kit were childhood best friends and eventually became partners when they finally acknowledged their feelings for each other. Then they had a sudden break up on a plane to Europe and they didn’t see each other again. Now, it’s four years later, and Theo has decided to use the tickets for a European food and drink tour that they were meant to take together just before they broke up. When she gets on the bus in London, Kit is sitting there. Kit also had the same idea to use the tour tickets before they expired, so Kit and Theo are stuck on the tour together for three weeks. Neither one of them wants to acknowledge their lingering feelings for each other, so they decide to have a competition to see who can hook up with the most people on the tour. However, it isn’t easy seeing the person you love with other people. Theo and Kit must decide if they confront these feelings or continue with their single lives.

This book is the perfect summer read! I felt like I had traveled on this trip with Theo and Kit because it was so descriptive. They had a lot of delicious food and drinks, which made me so hungry while reading. It was also quite a steamy read. Both Kit and Theo were bisexual and hooked up with men and women. There was also some nonbinary representation, as one of the characters was still learning how they felt in their body.

The Pairing is a great summer read!

Content warnings: death of parent (off page)

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

Review: Sedona

Title: Sedona
Author: Kerry Fryar Freeman
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Source: Publisher
Format: Ebook
Release Date: November 15, 2023
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sedona, AZ is a tourist town that lures people from around the world who believe there is more beyond the veil of reality. They come for the whispering pines, Hopi legends, vortices, magic crystals, and healing springs. Enter Cal Novak, a spunky editor from Atlanta, Georgia, who gives up the city life because she is searching for more time, more adventure, more meaning. The magic of her new hometown does not disappoint. Behind the curtain of every window there are secrets waiting to be uncovered. For those searching for more, there’s no place like Sedona.

Review:

Cal Novak moved from her home in Atlanta to Sedona with her grandmother after her grandmother was diagnosed with cancer. The climate in Sedona was better for her illness. Cal gets a job as an editor for a magazine about crystals, but it isn’t enough work for her. She also gets a job at a new tourist attraction that’s opening. She is a tour guide that leads groups on hikes around caves and cliffs. However, Cal suspects there’s something strange happening at this new attraction. The owner is suspicious, and almost all of the employees have been brought in from outside of Sedona. Cal decides to investigate to figure out what is happening with this new business.

This was a great, fast paced story. It’s fairly short, under 250 pages, so it was a quick read. I liked how it showcased the culture in Sedona. The town was a big tourist location, so the residents promoted their natural attractions as well as their magic crystals and healing environment. I also liked the mystery that Cal had to solve about what was really going on behind the scenes at her new job.

Sedona is a great, light mystery!

Thank you The Wild Rose Press and iRead Book Tours for providing a copy of this book as part of a sponsored campaign!

Content warnings: cancer, alcohol use, death of parents (off page)

Have you read Sedona? What did you think of it?

Review: Lies and Weddings

Title: Lies and Weddings
Author: Kevin Kwan
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Source: Publisher
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: May 21, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A forbidden affair erupts dramatically amid a decadent Hawaiian wedding in this hilarious, sophisticated, and thrillingly plotted story of love, money, murder, sex—and the lies we tell about them all.

Rufus Leung Gresham, future Earl of Greshambury and son of a former Hong Kong supermodel, has a problem: his family fortune, the legendary Gresham Trust, has been depleted by decades of profligate spending. While magazine covers and Instagram stories display impeccably designed manors and shiny new yachts, the secret reality holds nothing more than a gargantuan mountain of debt. The only solution, put forth by Rufus’s scheming mother, is for Rufus to seduce a woman with money, thereby securing the family’s precarious financial future.

Should he marry Solène de Courcy, a French hotel heiress with honey-blond tresses and a royal bloodline? Should he pursue Martha Dung, the tattooed venture capital genius who passes out billions like lollipops? Or should he follow his heart, betray his family, squander his legacy, and finally confess his love to the literal girl next door, the humble daughter of a doctor, Eden Tong?

When the Gresham family descends on the Big Island of Hawaii to host a veritable who’s who of sultans, barons, and oligarchs for the wedding of the decade, Rufus must merely flex his famous abs to bewitch the heiress of his choice. But instead a hot mic exposes a secret tryst, a volcanic eruption burns through the nuptials, and the Gresham family’s plans—and their reputation—go up in flames.

Can the once-great earldom rise from the ashes? Or will a secret tragedy, hidden for two decades, reveal a shocking twist? Spanning the black sand beaches of Hawaii, the red city of Marrakech, the Los Angeles bachelor pad of a billionaire playboy, and the inner sanctum of England’s oldest family estate, Lies and Weddings reveals an enthralling family saga that is as scandalous and satirical as it is full of heart.

Review:

Rufus Leung Gresham is the future Earl of Greshambury, but his family’s fortune is quickly disappearing. His mother, Arabella, wants to marry off her three children to rich matches so her style of life can continue. At her daughter’s wedding to a Prince, Arabella is scheming to match Rufus with a wealthy heiress. However, the wedding ends in disaster, and Rufus leaves with his childhood best friend, Eden, instead of the heiress. Arabella will do anything to make her son marry a wealthy woman, including ruining Eden’s life.

This story followed many members of an extended family and their friends. There were three different weddings, and the characters travelled around the world. Each chapter focused on a different character. It was cinematic, because the scenes followed the story, rather than focusing on a single character. I liked that the story followed both the parents and their young adult children. The characters were extremely rich, or acted like they were, which made for some funny moments. Fans of Crazy Rich Asians will love this book!

Lies and Weddings is an entertaining romance!

Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for sending me a copy of this book!

Content warnings: death, cancer, death of parent, alcoholism, drug use, overdose

Have you read Lies and Weddings? What did you think of it?

Review: Hannah Tate Beyond Repair

Title: Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair
Author: Laura Piper Lee
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Union Square and Co.
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: February 13, 2024
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Hannah Tate can hardly believe her sleep-deprived eyes when she finds an engagement ring hidden in the closet. Killian, her super responsible, incredibly attractive boyfriend—and the father of her new baby, Bowie—is finally going to propose. But a romantic night out goes horribly wrong when Killian reveals he’s dumping Hannah, not proposing.

Furious and heartbroken, Hannah takes Bowie and moves in with her mama and stepdaddy in the mountains of Blue Ridge, Georgia. Hannah realizes that her parents’ cabin has vacation property gold written all over it—and could save her mama from going broke. Again.

Only problem? The cabin’s décor is . . . mildly terrifying and it’s in desperate need of renovation. Hannah hires the hot carpenter living in the treehouse next door to fix up the place. Not only does River respect Hannah’s business acumen, he looks at her like she’s a woman, not a hot mess. And Hannah can’t deny that River awakens something new inside her.

Can Hannah embrace a future that looks different from the picture-perfect family she once dreamed of . . . and maybe start living life on her own terms?

Review:

Hannah Tate is the mother to a newborn baby, Bowie. When she finds an engagement ring in her boyfriend’s closet, she’s excited that he’s finally going to propose. However, instead of proposing, Killian says he thinks they should break up instead. On top of that, Hannah has been fired from her job while on maternity leave. Hannah is devastated so she moves in with her mom and stepdad. Her parents are starting up an Airbnb, but the cottage desperately needs a makeover, so Hannah takes over that job. She hires River, the hot carpenter who lives next door, to help her with the renovations. Even though she’s freshly out of a relationship, Hannah feels an undeniable attraction to River. She wants to welcome this new romance, while also working hard to make the Airbnb a success.

This was a sweet slow burn romance. It was an unconventional romance, since it started out with Hannah with a newborn baby, and then breaking up with her boyfriend. There were a few different kinds of relationships in this book. Hannah and her ex were co-parenting their son. Hannah’s mom was married to a good man who she found later in life after many bad relationships. Hannah’s two best friends were a same sex couple who had a baby daughter. These relationships were all at different stages in their lives, which was nice representation in a romance.

Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair is a great romance!

Thank you Union Square and Co. for sending me a copy of this book!

Content warnings: heart attack, childbirth complications

Have you read Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair? What did you think of it?