Review: Narwhal’s Otter Friend (A Narwhal and Jelly Book #4)

Title: Narwhal’s Otter Friend (A Narwhal and Jelly Book #4)
Author: Ben Clanton
Genre: Children’s
Publisher: Tundra Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: February 5, 2019
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Narwhal and Jelly . . . and Otty?! Exuberant Narwhal and skeptical Jelly test the waters of adding a new friend to their pod when they meet Otty the super-adventurous otter in the fourth book of this blockbuster early graphic novel series!

Dive into three new stories about the joy of adventure and the power of friendship! In the first story, Otty the otter makes her debut splash; while Narwhal greets her with immediate enthusiasm, Jelly’s not so sure about her…mostly because he worries she’ll take his place as Narwhal’s best friend. Readers will easily see why Narwhal’s so excited to meet Otty, a boisterous explorer who even has an aunt who’s a real live sea captain! But readers will also relate to Jelly’s uneasiness seeing his best friend making a new pal.

Jelly tries to work out his jealousy in story two, and in story three, the new trio say “Ahoy, adventure!” and discover they all have more in common than they thought . . . including a love of waffles! Jelly also takes over the “Super Waffle and Strawberry Sidekick” comic providing a sidekick’s-eye-view of defeating the dreaded dEVILed egg!

Review:

The Narhwal and Jelly books are so much fun! They’re a quick read, but very enjoyable.

In this story, Narwhal meets Otter the explorer. They become friends and plan an adventure together. However, Jelly feels left out. He is suspicious of Otter. He tries to find other friends to play with, but in the end he goes back to his best friend, Narwhal.

This book was full of puns. They were very funny. There was a birthday “shellabration” for a turtle. The famous snail explorer Captain Goodhart had the motto “Seas the day.” I couldn’t help but laugh at all of the puns.

I love this book! If you’re looking for a funny read, you should check this one out.

What to read next:

Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea (A Narwhal and Jelly Book #1) by Ben Clanton

Super Narwhal and Jelly Jolt (A Narwhal and Jelly Book #2) by Ben Clanton

Have you read Narwhal’s Otter Friend? What did you think of it?

‘Waiting on’ Wednesday – February 6

This is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine. In this post we highlight a book that’s highly anticipated.

The book that I’m waiting on this Wednesday is Opposite of Always  by Justin A. Reynolds. The release date is March 12, 2019.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Jack Ellison King. King of Almost.

He almost made valedictorian.

He almost made varsity.

He almost got the girl . . . 

When Jack and Kate meet at a party, bonding until sunrise over their mutual love of Froot Loops and their favorite flicks, Jack knows he’s falling—hard. Soon she’s meeting his best friends, Jillian and Franny, and Kate wins them over as easily as she did Jack. Jack’s curse of almost is finally over.

But this love story is . . . complicated. It is an almost happily ever after. Because Kate dies. And their story should end there. Yet Kate’s death sends Jack back to the beginning, the moment they first meet, and Kate’s there again. Beautiful, radiant Kate. Healthy, happy, and charming as ever. Jack isn’t sure if he’s losing his mind. Still, if he has a chance to prevent Kate’s death, he’ll take it. Even if that means believing in time travel. However, Jack will learn that his actions are not without consequences. And when one choice turns deadly for someone else close to him, he has to figure out what he’s willing to do—and let go—to save the people he loves. 

What books are you waiting on this week?

Top 5 Wednesday – Nostalgic Ships

This meme is hosted by Sam from Thoughts on Tomes. The Goodreads Group for Top 5 Wednesday can be found here.

This week’s prompt is Nostalgic Ships. These are the first fictional couples I loved when I was younger:

1. Suze and Jesse (The Mediator series by Meg Cabot)

2. Ron and Hermione (Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling)

3. Edward and Bella (Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer)

4. Ned and Nancy (Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene)

5. Reeve and Janie (The Face on the Milk Carton series by Caroline B. Cooney)

What were your most disappointing reads of 2018?

Review: Best Babysitters Ever (Best Babysitters Ever #1)

Title: Best Babysitters Ever (Best Babysitters Ever #1)
Author: Caroline Cala
Genre: Middle Grade
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: February 5, 2019
Rating: ★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

A funny new middle grade series about three 12-year-old best friends who start a babysitting club in their small California town. Perfect for fans of series like Whatever After and the Dork Diaries.

Once upon a time, a girl named Kristy Thomas had a great idea: to form The Baby-Sitters Club with her best friends. And now twelve-year-old Malia Twiggs has had a great idea too. Technically, she had Kristy’s idea. (And technically, little kids seem gross and annoying, but a paycheck is a paycheck). After a little convincing, Malia and her friends Dot and Bree start a babysitting club to earn funds for an epic birthday bash. But babysitting definitely isn’t what they thought it would be.  

Three friends. No parents. Unlimited snacks. And, okay, occasionally watching other people’s children. What could possibly go wrong? 

Review:

This is a great book about friendship.

Malia gets the idea to create a babysitting club after reading Kristy’s Great Idea, which is the first book in the Baby-Sitters Club series. I loved that series when I was growing up! This is a great way to update the story for today’s young readers. Even though there are new graphic novel versions of the Baby-Sitters Club books, some of the things in the books are still dated. This story had modern characters, complete with cell phones!

The story was fast paced. There were a lot of similarities between the characters in this book and the ones from the Babysitters club. For instance, Bree has a large blended family, just like Kristy in the Babysitters club. Malia has an annoying older sister just like Claudia. However, some of the characters were kind of extreme and annoying. Bree was emotional and cried a lot. She was also obsessed with glitter and Taylor Swift. She seemed very over the top most of the time.

I’m curious to see what happens next in this series, and to see how much it will be like the Baby-Sitters Club.

What to read next:

Kristy’s Great Idea (Baby-Sitters Club Graphic Novels #1) by Raina Telgemeier, Ann M. Martin

Have you read Best Babysitters Ever? What did you think of it?

Top Ten Tuesday – Upcoming Releases I’m On The Fence About

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 Upcoming Releases I’m On The Fence About. This is such a hard list to write because there are so many good books coming out! These are the ones that I don’t have ARCs of, and I’m not sure if I’ll be buying. Here’s my list:

1. Enchantée by Gita Release

2. The Antidote by Shelley Sakier

3. Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

4. We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia

5. Superman: Dawnbreaker by Matt de la Peña

6. Sherwood by Meagan Spooner

7. Internment by Samira Ahmed

8. Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan

9. With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

10. Somewhere Only We Know by Maurene Goo

(All photos taken from Goodreads)

Review: Cadaver & Queen (Cadaver & Queen #1)

Title: Cadaver & Queen (Cadaver & Queen #1)
Author: Alisa Kwitney
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: February 27, 2018
Rating: ★★★★★

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Goodreads Synopsis:

When Lizzie Lavenza enrolled at Ingold as its first female medical student, she knew she wouldn’t have an easy time. From class demands to being an outsider among her male cohorts, she’ll have to go above and beyond to prove herself. So when she stumbles across what appears to be a faulty Bio-mechanical–one of the mechanized cadavers created to service the school–she jumps at the chance to fix it and get ahead in the program.

Only this Bio-mechanical isn’t like the others. Where they are usually empty-minded and perfectly obedient, this one seems to have thoughts, feelings… and self-awareness.

Soon Lizzie realizes that it is Victor Frankenstein–a former student who died under mysterious circumstances. Victor, it seems, still has a spark of human intelligence inside him, along with memories of things he discovered before his untimely death.. .and a suspicion that he was murdered to keep that information from getting out. Suddenly Lizzie finds herself intertwined in dark secrets and sabotage that put her life, and the lives of Victor and their friends, in danger. But Lizzie’s determined to succeed–even if that means fighting an enemy who threatens the entire British Empire. 

Review:

This is a great adaptation of Frankenstein.

I haven’t read the original Frankenstein, but that didn’t affect my reading. This story used some of the characters from the original story and some of the same themes, but the story was different.

I loved Lizzie! She has to deal with a lot of discrimination, but she doesn’t give up. She is the only girl in medical school, and many people assume she is in the nursing program. She is also American at a British school. I really liked the way that she took chances and stood up for what she believed in.

The second book in this series comes out in a couple of weeks and I can’t wait to read it!

What to read next:

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White

Have you read Cadaver & Queen? What did you think of it?

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? – February 4

This blog meme is hosted by Book Date. It is a place to meet up and share what you have been, are and about to be reading over the week.  It’s a great post to organize yourself. It’s an opportunity to visit and comment, and er… add to that ever growing TBR pile!

What I just finished:

This weekend I finished Cadaver & Queen by Alisa Kwitney.

What I’m currently reading:

I’m currently reading Best Babysitters Ever by Caroline Cala.

What I’m reading next:

Next I will be reading Lady Smoke (Ash Princess Trilogy #2) by Laura Sebastian.

What are you guys reading this week? Have you read any of these books?

Jill’s Weekly Wrap-Up – February 3

Here are my reviews for the week with my ratings:

I did 9 weekly blogging memes:

How was your week? What did you guys read?

Sundays in Bed With… Cadaver and Queen

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 Cadaver & Queen by Alisa Kwitney.

Goodreads Synopsis:

When Lizzie Lavenza enrolled at Ingold as its first female medical student, she knew she wouldn’t have an easy time. From class demands to being an outsider among her male cohorts, she’ll have to go above and beyond to prove herself. So when she stumbles across what appears to be a faulty Bio-mechanical–one of the mechanized cadavers created to service the school–she jumps at the chance to fix it and get ahead in the program.

Only this Bio-mechanical isn’t like the others. Where they are usually empty-minded and perfectly obedient, this one seems to have thoughts, feelings… and self-awareness.

Soon Lizzie realizes that it is Victor Frankenstein–a former student who died under mysterious circumstances. Victor, it seems, still has a spark of human intelligence inside him, along with memories of things he discovered before his untimely death.. .and a suspicion that he was murdered to keep that information from getting out. Suddenly Lizzie finds herself intertwined in dark secrets and sabotage that put her life, and the lives of Victor and their friends, in danger. But Lizzie’s determined to succeed–even if that means fighting an enemy who threatens the entire British Empire.

What book are you in bed with today?

Six for Sunday – Favourite LGBT Books

This meme is hosted by Steph at A little but a lot. The weekly prompts for 2019 can be found here.

This week’s prompt is Favourite LGBT Books:

1. Simon Vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

2. The Summer of Jordi Perez by Amy Spalding

3. The Brightsiders by Jen Wilde

4. The Unbinding of Mary Reade by Miriam McNamara

5. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

6. The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

Did you write a #SixforSunday post? What was your list of Favourite LGBT Books?