Jill's Book Blog

Title: Girls Made of Snow and Glass
Author: Melissa Bashardoust
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Source: NetGalley
Release Date: September 5, 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

At sixteen, Mina’s mother is dead, her magician father is vicious, and her silent heart has never beat with love for anyone—has never beat at all, in fact, but she’d always thought that fact normal. She never guessed that her father cut out her heart and replaced it with one of glass. When she moves to Whitespring Castle and sees its king for the first time, Mina forms a plan: win the king’s heart with her beauty, become queen, and finally know love. The only catch is that she’ll have to become a stepmother.

Fifteen-year-old Lynet looks just like her late mother, and one day she discovers why: a magician created her out of snow in the dead queen’s image, at her father’s order. But despite being the dead queen made flesh, Lynet would rather be like her fierce and regal stepmother, Mina. She gets her wish when her father makes Lynet queen of the southern territories, displacing Mina. Now Mina is starting to look at Lynet with something like hatred, and Lynet must decide what to do—and who to be—to win back the only mother she’s ever known…or else defeat her once and for all.

Entwining the stories of both Lynet and Mina in the past and present, Girls Made of Snow and Glass traces the relationship of two young women doomed to be rivals from the start. Only one can win all, while the other must lose everything—unless both can find a way to reshape themselves and their story.

Review:

I loved this fairy tale retelling!

One of my favourite things about this story, is that even though you can tell that it’s a retelling of Snow White, the story also has many original points. The story didn’t follow the typical plot of the Snow White story. I don’t want to give away any spoilers so I won’t name them, but I liked that the story was unpredictable. 

This is a modern, feminist story. The two main characters are Lynet and Mina, stepdaughter and stepmother. Again, if I say too much about the women in this story it would spoil it, but let’s just say there  is a lack of a prince here (which enhances Lynet’s power and independence). 

The chapters alternated between Lynet and Mina. At the beginning, it followed both of them through their teen years, jumping back in time to when Mina arrived at Whitespring. But halfway through, Mina’s story suddenly jumped many years and continued in the present along with Lynet. I liked the way it showed the ways these two different women acted during the same point in their lives at the beginning. But it was also important to give Mina’s perspective of the current events. 

I loved this story! It definitely lived up to the hype for me. 

Title: My Sophomore Year of Rules (School Dayz Book 3)
Author: Jennifer DiGiovanni
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Swoon Romance
Source: Enchanted Book Promotions
Release Date: September 5, 2017
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Colette Rodriguez hates rules. Just ask her perfect, older, gorgeous, rule-following sister, Jana.

But now that Jana’s away at college and Colette’s a sophomore in high school, things are going to change. She’s gotta find a way to get out from under her sister’s shadow.

The problem is, everyone, including the boys, remembers perfectly-hot-Jana and they constantly compare Colette to her.

With Jana finally out of the house, Colette decides that sophomore year is the best time to make her mark on the world. She vows to follow the rules, although rule-following has never been her strong point. When a teacher asks Colette to lead a STEM Mentoring project, working with middle school kids, Colette sees her chance to stand out, though she doubts her ability to take charge.

Enter Will Gamen, junior football star. Looking for a club to boost his chances of a college scholarship, Will signs up for STEM. From the first meeting, when Will inadvertently takes over, Colette wonders if he should really be the person to run the project. And, in an even more confusing turn of events, Will starts to drop by her house for unplanned study dates. After the two spend one fabulous Saturday night together, he suddenly backs off.

But Colette and Will started out as friends and she’s determined not to let one meaningless kiss come between them. Plus, keeping Will on her team is the best thing for the STEM project. And it also gives her more time to convince him that they work better as a couple.

Review:

This is a cute story. 

I really liked the importance of STEM in this story. Collette demonstrates how it is important to teach younger kids about this possible career path. She also represents girls who are not necessarily leaders of STEM programs. 

The romances and relationships in the story weren’t predictable, so I enjoyed the story. 

I liked that the story was told by Collette. It gave her perspective of events, and developed her character further. 

I haven’t read any other books in this series, but I was able to enjoy it. Some things were mentioned in passing that may have happened in past books, but I didn’t feel like I was left out of anything. 

This is a great book if you want a light, YA read.  

Links:

Buy on Amazon: http://amzn.to/2vQphjY

Add on Goodreads

Author Bio:

Jennifer DiGiovanni is a freelance writer and YA author of the School Dayz series. When she’s not writing, you can find her reading, working on home design projects, or trying to meet the daily goals on her Fitbit. She also likes to try new sports and activities, from archery to ballroom dancing, with varying degrees of success.

Swoon Romance on Twitter: @SwoonRomance

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Title: Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #3)
Author: Marissa Meyer
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Source: Purchased
Release Date: February 5, 2013
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Review:

This is the second book in the Lunar Chronicles series. Cinder’s story gets more intense in this instalment. Now Scarlet (who plays the role of Little Red Riding Hood) is added to the mix.

I like the role that Wolf plays in the story. He is a fighter who saves Scarlet. Their relationship is very cute to see unfolding.

When I read this book, I found I kept waiting for Cinder’s story to return. I like Scarlet but Cinder will always be my favourite character.

I love this series so much! My review for Cinder can be found here.