Young Adult – Page 43 – Jill's Book Blog

Review: Loveboat, Taipei (Loveboat, Taipei #1)

Title: Loveboat, Taipei (Loveboat, Taipei #1)
Author: Abigail Hing Wen
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback
Release Date: January 7, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

“Our cousins have done this program,” Sophie whispers. “Best kept secret. Zero supervision.”
And just like that, Ever Wong’s summer takes an unexpected turn. Gone is Chien Tan, the strict educational program in Taiwan that Ever was expecting. In its place, she finds Loveboat: a summer-long free-for-all where hookups abound, adults turn a blind eye, snake-blood sake flows abundantly, and the nightlife runs nonstop.
But not every student is quite what they seem:
Ever is working toward becoming a doctor but nurses a secret passion for dance.
Rick Woo is the Yale-bound child prodigy bane of Ever’s existence whose perfection hides a secret.
Boy-crazy, fashion-obsessed Sophie Ha turns out to have more to her than meets the eye.
And under sexy Xavier Yeh’s shell is buried a shameful truth he’ll never admit.
When these students’ lives collide, it’s guaranteed to be a summer Ever will never forget.

Review:

This was an exciting book about a group of teenagers sent to Loveboat, where they are supposed to learn about their culture but end up partying instead.

The characters were complex in this story. They each had a detailed backstory and storyline, though Ever was the main character. They had all been through things, which shaped the choices they made. They also changed throughout the story, so my opinions of them were different by the end from when they were first introduced. I was surprised at how some of the characters developed, but I won’t give the names so it isn’t spoiled.

The kids in this book were pretty wild. They snuck out of Loveboat and had wild parties. There was also tons of romance. It was fun to read, because it seemed like a summer long party.

I really enjoyed this book!

Thank you HarperCollins Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Blog Tour Review: A Love Hate Thing

Title: A Love Hate Thing
Author: Whitney D. Grandison
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: January 7, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

When they’re stuck under one roof, the house may not be big enough for their hate…or their love.
When Tyson Trice finds himself tossed into the wealthy coastal community of Pacific Hills, he’s ready for the questions, the stares and the feeling of not belonging. Not that he cares. After recovering from being shot and surviving the rough streets of Lindenwood, he doesn’t care about anyone or anything, much less how the rest of his life will play out.
Golden girl Nandy Smith has spent most of her life building the pristine image that it takes to fit in when it comes to her hometown Pacific Hills where image is everything. After learning that her parents are taking in a troubled teen boy, Nandy fears her summer plans, as well as her reputation, will go up in flames.
Now with Trice living under the same roof, the wall between their bedrooms feels as thin as the line between love and hate. Beneath the angst, their growing attraction won’t be denied. Through time, Trice brings Nandy out of her shell, and Nandy attempts to melt the ice that’s taken Trice’s heart and being. Only, with the ever-present pull back to the Lindenwood streets, it’ll be a wonder if Trice makes it through this summer at all.

Review:

This is a great modern romance.

I loved that Nandy and Tyson came from two completely different worlds, yet they made such a good couple. Nandy is from Pacific Hills, which is a wealthy community. Tyson came from Lindenhood, where he was involved with dangerous people. They still found common ground, though they had very different upbringings.

The story was fast paced. Though it was long, there were so many ups and downs, so I was always kept guessing as to what would happen next. There was loads of tension between Nandy and Tyson, so I kept wondering if and hoping that they would get together.

I was a little confused about the ending. I had an ARC of the book, so it may have been different in the final edition. My copy had it ending in the middle of a conversation. I’m not sure if that’s what was supposed to happen because it was kind of abrupt.

I really enjoyed this book!

Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

About the Author:

Whitney D. Grandison was born and raised in Akron, Ohio, where she currently resides. A lover of stories since she first picked up a book, it’s no surprise she’s taken to writing her own. Some of her works can be found on Wattpad, one of the largest online story sharing platforms, where she has acquired over 30,000 followers and an audience of over fifteen million dedicated readers.

Buy the Book:

Have you read A Love Hate Thing? What did you think of it?

Review: Scavenge the Stars (Scavenge the Stars #1)

Title: Scavenge the Stars (Scavenge the Stars #1)
Author: Tara Sim
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: January 7, 2020
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

When Amaya rescues a mysterious stranger from drowning, she fears her rash actions have earned her a longer sentence on the debtor ship where she’s been held captive for years. Instead, the man she saved offers her unimaginable riches and a new identity, setting Amaya on a perilous course through the coastal city-state of Moray, where old-world opulence and desperate gamblers collide.
Amaya wants one thing: revenge against the man who ruined her family and stole the life she once had. But the more entangled she becomes in this game of deception—and as her path intertwines with the son of the man she’s plotting to bring down—the more she uncovers about the truth of her past. And the more she realizes she must trust no one…
Packed with high-stakes adventure, romance, and dueling identities, this gender-swapped retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo is the first novel in an epic YA fantasy duology, perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Sabaa Tahir, and Leigh Bardugo.

Review:

This story is a gender swapped retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo. I’ve never read that book, but I really enjoyed this story.

The narrative switches between Amaya, a prisoner on a ship, and Cayo, the son of a businessman in the main city. Amaya escapes her captivity, and she tries to take down the men who were keeping her prisoner. Cayo also does his own investigation to figure out who is making counterfeit money in their city.

I liked the pacing of this book. There were some small reveals every couple of chapters. I was surprised at the twists that happened. I also liked the main characters. They had good chemistry with each other. I’m curious to see where the story goes next.

Thank you Disney Book Group for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review: The Reckoning of Noah Shaw

Title: The Reckoning of Noah Shaw
Author: Michelle Hodkin
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Canada
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: November 13, 2018
Rating: ★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Noah Shaw confesses all in this second novel of a chilling new companion series to Michelle Hodkin’s New York Timesbestselling Mara Dyer trilogy!
Noah Shaw doesn’t think he needs his father’s inheritance.
He does.
Noah believes there’s something off about the suicides in his visions.
There is.
Noah is convinced that he still knows the real Mara Dyer.
He does not.
Everyone thought the nightmare had ended with Mara Dyer’s memoirs, but it was only the beginning. As old skeletons are laid bare, alliances will be tested, hearts will be broken, and no one will be left unscarred.

Review:

I was looking forward to this book after the cliffhanger of the previous one, but it was so disappointing.

The main problem with this story was that it didn’t progress the plot. There were some interesting flashbacks to what happened when Noah was in the hospital, which was in the Mara Dyer series. However, there were also flashbacks to Noah’s ancestors, which could have been explained in a couple of sentences, rather than multiple chapters.

I had a hard time keeping track of the characters by the end. There were some new people, but they all seemed the same. They had long drawn-out conversations about the same things over and over. There wasn’t much that actually happened in the story, other than many conversations.

Unfortunately, this book didn’t live up to my expectations. I expected a lot more from the book.

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Other Books in the Series:

The Becoming of Noah Shaw

Have you read The Reckoning of Noah Shaw? What did you think of it?

Review: On the Come Up

Title: On the Come Up
Author: Angie Thomas
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: February 5, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Or at least make it out of her neighborhood one day. As the daughter of an underground rap legend who died before he hit big, Bri’s got big shoes to fill. But now that her mom has unexpectedly lost her job, food banks and shutoff notices are as much a part of Bri’s life as beats and rhymes. With bills piling up and homelessness staring her family down, Bri no longer just wants to make it—she has to make it.
On the Come Up is Angie Thomas’s homage to hip-hop, the art that sparked her passion for storytelling and continues to inspire her to this day. It is the story of fighting for your dreams, even as the odds are stacked against you; of the struggle to become who you are and not who everyone expects you to be; and of the desperate realities of poor and working-class black families.

Review:

This is another amazing book from Angie Thomas! I read it in one day because I couldn’t put it down.

There were some elements of this story that reminded me of The Hate U Give. It is set in the same community, though the characters don’t know each other. They do mention the shooting that happened in THUG a year previously.

Bri goes viral with a rap song she wrote, but it gives people the wrong impression of her. It’s compared to an incident that’s she had in school where the security guards threw her down when she was entering the school. Bri has the conflict of being who she is, versus becoming famous for something she didn’t do.

Even though this book is similar to The Hate U Give, Bri and Starr come from different backgrounds. Starr comes from a middle class family, and she goes to a predominantly white private school. Bri’s father was shot when she was a child, and her mother is a former drug addict. Though they have different backgrounds, they come from the same community and fight for social justice.

I loved this book! I can’t wait to read what Angie writes next!

Review: The Fever King (Feverwake #1)

Title: The Fever King (Feverwake #1)
Author: Victoria Lee
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction, LGBTQ
Publisher: Skyscape
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: March 1, 2019
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In the former United States, sixteen-year-old Noam Álvaro wakes up in a hospital bed, the sole survivor of the viral magic that killed his family and made him a technopath. His ability to control technology attracts the attention of the minister of defense and thrusts him into the magical elite of the nation of Carolinia.
The son of undocumented immigrants, Noam has spent his life fighting for the rights of refugees fleeing magical outbreaks—refugees Carolinia routinely deports with vicious efficiency. Sensing a way to make change, Noam accepts the minister’s offer to teach him the science behind his magic, secretly planning to use it against the government. But then he meets the minister’s son—cruel, dangerous, and achingly beautiful—and the way forward becomes less clear.
Caught between his purpose and his heart, Noam must decide who he can trust and how far he’s willing to go in pursuit of the greater good.

Review:

I had a hard time getting into this story at the beginning because it was very political. It takes place in the future, where the United States is divided up into separate countries. There were protests from the refugees who were being deported from the countries. There was also a virus going around that either killed people, or, for a few, gave them a magic power.

Once the story went from the broad political story to a plot about the main characters, I really enjoyed it. I couldn’t tell who was lying and what side people were on. It was especially tricky because some characters were telepathic, so they knew when others were lying to them.

This was an exciting story. I really enjoyed it!

Thank you Skyscape for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Blog Tour Review: Hearts, Strings, and Other Breakable Things

Title: Hearts, Strings, and Other Breakable Things
Author: Jacqueline Firkins
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: December 17, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In this charming debut about first love and second chances, a young girl gets caught between the boy next door and a playboy. Perfect for fans of To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before.
Mansfield, Massachusetts is the last place seventeen-year-old Edie Price wants to spend her final summer before college. It’s the home of wealthy suburbanites and prima donnas like Edie’s cousins, who are determined to distract her from her mother’s death with cute boys and Cinderella-style makeovers. Edie has her own plans, and they don’t include a prince charming.
But as Edie dives into schoolwork and applying for college scholarships, she finds herself drawn to two Mansfield boys who start vying for her attention. First there’s Sebastian, Edie’s childhood friend and first love. He’s sweet and smart and . . . already has a girlfriend. Then there’s Henry, the local bad boy and all-around player. He’s totally off limits, even if his kisses are chemically addictive.
Both boys are trouble. Edie can’t help but get caught between them. Someone’s heart is going to break. Now she just has to make sure it isn’t hers.

Review:

I just started reading Mansfield Park for the first time a couple of weeks ago, so I was so excited when I discovered that this book was a retelling. I’ve only read the first couple chapters of Mansfield Park so far, so I didn’t know how the story ends. I’m even more excited to read the whole story now, to see how this story was adapted from the original. There were many things in this one, such as high school, teen parties, and sex, which I know weren’t in the original story by Jane Austen.

I loved this story! The romance was great. There was lots of drama in the many relationships, between all the different characters. I didn’t really agree with Edie’s final decision, but that was just my personal choice.

I wished there was more of Edie’s aunt, Norah, in the story. The aunt, Mrs. Norris, in Mansfield Park was hilarious. She was very opinionated. Her aunt Norah was in this story a little bit, but she seemed more cruel by denying Edie from money, rather than exaggerated like in the original novel.

This was a great story!

Thank you HMH Books for Young Readers for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Author Info:

Jacqueline’s a writer, costume designer, and lover of beautiful things. She’s on the fulltime faculty in the Department of Theatre & Film at the University of British Columbia where she also takes any writing class they’ll let her into. When not obsessing about where to put the buttons or the commas, she can be found running by the ocean, eating excessive amounts of gluten, listening to earnest love songs, and pretending her dog understands every word she says.

Giveaway:

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👫 G I V E A W A Y 💔 . . Happy Wednesday, Beautiful Bookish People! Have you visited any Christmas Markets? What is your favourite drink during winter time? . Today, we have a very cute and special book to share with you: #HeartsStringsAndOtherBreakableThings by Jacqueline Firkins. I say special, because I love summer romances, and this book is perfect for this winter because it makes me start daydreaming about summer and my favourite stories! In this novel, we meet Edie about to spend her last summer before colleague in a place she would rather not be while dealing with her mother's passing. While she keeps trying to stay focused on colleague, 2 distractions in the form of a bad-boy and her old-time crush come knocking on her door, leading to heartbreak and romance. Edie just needs to make sure she's not the one getting her heart broken! . I LOVE stories like this one and today we have partnered with Jacqueline (@jfkillsdarlings) to give you not only the chance to win a hardcopy of #HSAOBT but also a book-inspired dress! 3 designs available. 3 prizes! Swipe left to see pics (⬅️). . . ENTRIES FOR THE GIVEAWAY: ▪︎Follow @theffbc & @whatmakespatri ▪︎Follow the author @jfkillsdarlings ▪︎Follow the publishing house @hmhteen ▪︎Comment (to let us know you are participating!): Which dress do you like the most (& why)? . EXTRA ENTRIES FOR THE GIVEAWAY: ▪︎Tag a friend (each friend will be an extra entry). ▪︎Share on your stories about the giveaway (remember to tag me @whatmakespatri and @theffbc) ▪︎Follow @michellesulk & @artsyreadergirl . ▪︎Follow any other FFBC team member participating in the tour (let us know on the comment section who did you follow). Check everyone's Instagram handles below: @wishfulendings @l.m.durand @BookBriefs @stars.brite @booknerdanonymous @shelflifechronicles @agingerlyreview @lauren.bodiford . Also, stop by my site to read an interview with Jacqueline and learn more about #HSAOBT! . . #bookshimmy #giveaway #bookstagram #bookblogger #bookstagramming #bookgram #yabookstagram #ireadya #booksatgrammer #bibliophile #bookphotography #booknerd #booklover #amreading #yalit #booksofinstagram #bookgiveaway #booksbooksbooks #bookcommunity #bookworm

A post shared by Patricia Lopez ❁ (@whatmakespatri) on Dec 11, 2019 at 9:37am PST

Have you read Hearts, Strings, and Other Breakable Things? What did you think of it?

Review: The Black Mage

Title: The Black Mage
Author: Daniel Barnes, D.J. Kirkland
Genre: Young Adult, Graphic Novel
Publisher: Oni Press
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 29, 2019
Rating: ★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

The School for Good and Evil meets Dread Nation in this subversive original graphic novel where race, history and magic collide.
When St. Ivory Academy, a historically white wizarding school, opens its doors to its first-ever black student, everyone believes that the wizarding community is finally taking its first crucial steps toward inclusivity. Or is it? When Tom Token, the beneficiary of the school’s “Magical Minority Initiative,” begins uncovering weird clues and receiving creepy texts on his phone, he and his friend, Lindsay, stumble into a conspiracy that dates all the way back to the American Civil War, and could cost Tom his very soul.

Review:

Tom was the first black student admitted to the magical academy, St. Ivory. He discovers that there was another black student who went there before, which sends him on a search to find out what happened to her.

There was a lot of racism in this book. The school was completely run and attended by white students, and the teachers all wore white hoods like the Ku Klux Klan. That was really disturbing to see.

The racism in the story made me really uncomfortable. I understand that the story was meant to show how extreme racism is, but it was disturbing to see illustrated in this book. Even though it isn’t the intention of the book, I worry that this could normalize the racism, rather than point out how wrong it is.

I liked the idea for the plot, but I think it should have had less racism.

Thank you Oni Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review: 10 Blind Dates

Title: 10 Blind Dates
Author: Ashley Elston
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Source: Indigo Fall Preview
Format: Paperback
Release Date: October 1, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sophie wants one thing for Christmas-a little freedom from her overprotective parents. So when they decide to spend Christmas in South Louisiana with her very pregnant older sister, Sophie is looking forward to some much needed private (read: make-out) time with her long-term boyfriend, Griffin. Except it turns out that Griffin wants a little freedom from their relationship. Cue devastation.
Heartbroken, Sophie flees to her grandparents’ house, where the rest of her boisterous extended family is gathered for the holiday. That’s when her nonna devises a (not so) brilliant plan: Over the next ten days, Sophie will be set up on ten different blind dates by different family members. Like her sweet cousin Sara, who sets her up with a hot guy at an exclusive underground party. Or her crazy aunt Patrice, who signs Sophie up for a lead role in a living nativity. With a boy who barely reaches her shoulder. And a screaming baby.
When Griffin turns up unexpectedly and begs for a second chance, Sophie feels more confused than ever. Because maybe, just maybe, she’s started to have feelings for someone else . . . Someone who is definitely not available.
This is going to be the worst Christmas break ever… or is it?

Review:

This is the cutest holiday story!

When Sophie and her boyfriend break up, her family decides to set her up on 10 blind dates over Christmas. Some of the dates were good, such as going to a hockey game. Others were not so good, but kind of hilarious. While these dates were happening, Sophie reconnected with her cousins who she used to be her best friends.

The story also had a lot of tension. Sophie’s parents were staying with her sister, who was having a complicated pregnancy. It was tense and scary at times. However, the light tone of the blind dates kept the story upbeat.

I loved this book! It’s the perfect book to read over the holidays!

Thank you Chapters Indigo for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass

Title: Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass
Author: Mariko Tamaki, Steven Pugh
Genre: Young Adult, Graphic Novel
Publisher: DC Ink
Source: Purchased
Format: Paperback
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Harleen is a tough, outspoken, rebellious kid who lives in a ramshackle apartment above a karaoke cabaret owned by a drag queen named MAMA. Ever since Harleen’s parents split, MAMA has been her only family. When the cabaret becomes the next victim in the wave of gentrification that’s taking over the neighborhood, Harleen gets mad.
When Harleen decides to turn her anger into action, she is faced with two choices: join Ivy, who’s campaigning to make the neighborhood a better place to live, or join The Joker, who plans to take down Gotham one corporation at a time.
Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass is at once a tale of the classic Harley readers know and love, and a heartfelt story about the choices teenagers make and how they can define—or destroy—their lives. This is the first title in DC’s new line of original graphic novels for middle grade and young adult readers.

Review:

I love Harley Quinn, so I was really excited to see her as a kid in this graphic novel. Her mom goes to work at a cruise company, so Harley is sent to live with her grandmother. When she arrives at her grandmother’s apartment in Gotham City, she discovers that her grandmother has passed away. The man who owns the apartment let’s Harley stay in the apartment for a while. When the town is taken over by Kane Enterprises, Harley has to work with her friends to save their homes. She tries to pay back the vandals who destroy their homes, but she meets a vandal who goes by the pseudonym, The Joker.

This origin story was really different from the other ones I’ve read. In the traditional story, Harley was a psychologist at Arkam Asylum, where she met the Joker who corrupted her. However, this story still had elements of the original Harley. She became friends with a girl named Ivy at school, like Harley’s best friend Poison Ivy. She also lived above a drag queen club, like in the original Harley story.

There were a lot of important issues in this story too. Ivy fought to have films by women shown in the film club at school. Ivy also called out the principal for disrespecting her. Harley didn’t wear the skimpy costume that was left for her, and opted for something that was more covered up. I liked that these feminist issues were addressed in this graphic novel, because they are not present in most comics.

I loved this book! I hope there will be a sequel.

Goodreads Synopsis:

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