Maybe We Should See Other People... (2)

Ever start a book you were really looking forward to reading and it just...didn't live up to your expectations? I, personally, hate that. Your first instinct is to blame it all on the book. But then you think about it, and it's not really the book's fault. So then you start to wonder if there's something wrong with you. Surely you must be missing something because this person loved it and it won that award. Again, I hate that feeling. And so this feature, Maybe We Should See Other People, was born. Because you know, every book deserves a chance, and I'm sure there's someone else out there who will love it - maybe even a future me.

No Safety in Numbers
Dayna Lorentz
May 29, 2012

Raves:
The Hiding Spot
Our Time in Juvie
The Book Monsters

I gave this one 100 pages. I tried; I really did, but unfortunately I couldn't get into the plot and I didn't care about the characters. I thought it was extremely promising, and I had really looked forward to it. But I ultimately became very frustrated with it and decided not to suffer through the 170 pages after realizing it was the first in a series. I may have pushed through for a standalone, but I wasn't forcing myself through an entire series.

Monument 14

Emmy Laybourne

June 5, 2012

Raves:

Hobbitsies

Bookish Sarah

Books with Bite

The most frequent complaint I've heard about this novel was the lack of action. During what appears to be the beginning of the end of the world, the story is trapped inside a supermarket while earthquakes, tsunamis, and hail the size of houses are destroying the earth. This, actually, was not what kept me from reading past page seventy. I'm a contemporary girl, so I can handle a controlled environment. Hell, one of my favorite contemporaries features a main character who spends most of her time in a beach house. But what I can't handle is unrealistic dialogue and bland characters.  I don't think this book is without merit, but it just didn't click with me.

Have any of you tried either of these books? Loved 'em? Hated 'em? Let me know what you thought in the comments.

FTC: I received ARCs of these novels from Penguin and Macmillan, respectively, via Cavalier House Books in exchange for an honest review.

Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson

Flirting in Italian
Lauren Henderson
Publisher: Delacourte
Released: June 12, 2012
Genre: Contemporary
Pages: 336
Source: Netgalley

Four girls. One magical, and possibly dangerous Italian summer. Family mysteries, ancient castles, long hot nights of dancing under the stars . . . and, of course, plenty of gorgeous Italian boys!

The Good: Post-high school Violet. Italy. Cute boys. Italy. Mysterious girl in 18th Century painting who looks exactly like Violet. Italy.

The Bad: The last few pages felt like a rush of, "Oh, you expected a resolution? Oh, well, there's going to be a sequel for that. Oh, you didn't see that coming? Oh, sorry!"

I love "older" YA, so girl going on a senior trip of sorts to Italy sounded like a fantastic story. Violet is very interested in art, and during a trip to a nearby museum, she comes across a painting of herself - except it was painted in an Italian castle in the 1700's. Haunted by the eeriness of the resemblance, Violet discovers a summer program in Italy that features a private tour of the castle where the portrait was painted. Desperate to know more, she convinces her mother this will be a unique opportunity for her future in art even though it really isn't more than a fancy finishing school.

Violet is in attendance with another British girl and two Americans, all of whom become her friends sooner or later. More important, however, is her acquaintance with Luca, who turns out is part of the family living in the mysterious castle. Violet is quite taken with Luca, partially with his possible connection to her past. Things between them fluctuate from hot to cold, and when weird things happen to Violet when she visits the castle, she isn't sure what to think of Luca or his family.

All of this I enjoyed. I really liked Violet, I liked her housemates, even Luca was okay. I loved the scenery: the Italian countryside, the foreboding castle. And I didn't mind that it was the first in a series, even if I didn't realize it before picking up the book. However, I did not enjoy the rush of the last few pages which ended with no resolution whatsoever. It didn't even end with a cliffhanger! It just stopped! Very very strange. I sincerely hope this is not a trend because I very much want to read Lauren's Scarlett Wakefield books, as well as the apparent sequel to this story.

FTC: I received an eARC of this novel from Random House via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Waiting on Wednesday (37)

Waiting on Wednesday was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine. It features upcoming releases we can't wait to get our hands on.

This week's pick is...

Burn for Burn

Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

Coming September 18, 2012 - Preorder it below

Indiebound | BN | Book Depository

Isn't it funny how my last WoW pick was a Jenny Han book? I swear I didn't plan it that way. I just happened to see this cover in the last week, and man did it catch my eye. I originally wasn't looking forward to this book very much. In fact I talked about it in my last WoW post. But then I saw the cover and actual synopsis and I must say, it's definitely up near the top of my list now.

Of Poseidon by Anna Banks

Of Poseidon
Anna Banks
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Released: May 22, 2012
Genre: Paranormal/Fantasy
Pages: 336
Source: Cavalier House Books

Galen, a Syrena prince, searches land for a girl he's heard can communicate with fish. It’s while Emma is on vacation at the beach that she meets Galen. Although their connection is immediate and powerful, Galen's not fully convinced that Emma's the one he's been looking for. That is, until a deadly encounter with a shark proves that Emma and her Gift may be the only thing that can save his kingdom. He needs her help--no matter what the risk.

There were a few things about this novel that kept me from loving it; however, I did thoroughly enjoy it and would recommend it to fans of this genre.

The story went back and forth between Emma's and Galen's points of view. This would normally excite me to no end, but Emma's chapters being told in first person and Galen's chapters being told in third person threw me in the beginning. After several chapters the switch didn't so much bother me except for the way it made me feel differently about Emma. While reading Emma's chapters, I really felt for her. Sure she let her temper get the best of her on more than one occasion, but being in her head gave validity to everything she did. While seeing her actions and reactions through Galen's chapters made her seem like a whiny snot. There were several points where I thought I had enough, and then a new chapter began and Emma was back in my good graces. While it wasn't enough to keep me from finishing, I would be interested in knowing why the author chose to tell the story this way.

The story itself was pretty good. I had a few issues with the believability of the plot. There were a few small details that didn't quite fit with one another. But the mythological basis for the story was very interesting, and overall I was invested in it. I really enjoyed a few of the side characters. I really enjoyed the ending. I figured out part of the mystery, but another part surprised me. I was definitely interested enough to be looking forward to the sequel.

FTC: I received an ARC of this novel from Macmillan via Cavalier House Books in exchange for an honest review.

Character Interview: Alice from Reunited

Today I have Alice, the main character from Hilary Weisman Graham's Reunited, for an interview! She is here courtesy of the Teen {Book} Scene blog tour.

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1. Twitter style: describe yourself in 140 characters or less.

I’m a quick-witted, eco-conscious, independent thinker whose curly hair is extremely susceptible to frizz on rainy days.

2. How worried were you about convincing Tiernan and Summer to go along with the road trip?

In a word: very. But I was way more nervous about talking to Summer than Tiernan. To be honest, I was pretty shocked that Summer came along.

3. Favorite part of the trip? Least favorite?

Favorite part: Meeting Quentin. Duh. Least favorite: the night we spent in West Virginia. For obvious reasons.

4. Other than Level3, of course, what kind of music would you recommend for a road trip playlist?

Brett Dennen, Gotye, Carly Rae Jepsen, Dilly Dilly, Florence and the Machine

5. Any future road trips planned?

Not yet. But there are some super secret plans brewing for next summer that may or may not involve a whole different continent. Fingers crossed.

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Thanks, Alice (and Hilary) for stopping by bookmarked today! Be sure to check out the other tour stops for more interviews, guest posts, and reviews!

I'm Back! and In My Bag (41)

So it's been a while... I've been pretty busy. You know, getting married and stuff. I haven't gotten any professional pictures back yet, but don't worry. I'll share some with you as soon as I can. Overall it was beautiful. All our family and closest friends were able to share the day with us, and Josh and I finally said, "I do." It's been a long time coming, and honestly we're both thrilled it's all behind us. We had a wonderful day and a relaxing "mini-moon," and now we're just enjoying married life, which, for the record, is the same as life was before. That is very comforting.

In My Bag is my version of the weekly meme, In My Mailbox. IMM was started by Kristi over at The Story Siren, and it explores the contents of my mailbox or shopping bag on a weekly basis.

Bought:

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Catalyst by Laurie Halse Anderson

I went thrift store shopping with my mom yesterday and found these beauties! All hardcovers and less than $10 spent. Unfortunately my mom didn't have the same luck, but we'll just plan another trip.

The Wicked and the Just by J. Anderson Coats

The Wicked and the Just
J. Anderson Coats
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Released: April 17, 2012
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 352
Source: Netgalley

Cecily’s father has ruined her life. He’s moving them to occupied Wales, where the king needs good strong Englishmen to keep down the vicious Welshmen. At least Cecily will finally be the lady of the house.

Gwenhwyfar knows all about that house. Once she dreamed of being the lady there herself, until the English destroyed the lives of everyone she knows. Now she must wait hand and foot on this bratty English girl.

While Cecily struggles to find her place amongst the snobby English landowners, Gwenhwyfar struggles just to survive. And outside the city walls, tensions are rising ever higher—until finally they must reach the breaking point.

This did start out a bit slow for me. I heard about it months ago and sort of forgot the synopsis by the time I actually picked it up. It wasn't really what I expected, but I ended up really enjoying it. Cecily and Gwenhwyfar found themselves forced into one another's worlds when Cecily's father moved them to a home in Wales where Gwenhwyfar was content to keep an empty house. Cecily immediately took issue with Gwenhwyfar, as they had very different ideas about what their roles should be.

I couldn't help but like Cecily more, because despite her often inappropriate behavior, she was mostly just a victim of ignorance. The guilt and remorse she felt throughout the book seemed very honest to me. Gwenhwyfar, on the other hand, was an extremely vengeful person. Even though she was surprised by Cecily's few acts of kindness, she had no empathy toward the hardships Cecily faced. And while I could definitely understand why Gwenhwyfar was so hardened, the emotional distance she kept prevented me from really connecting to her.

British history is something that really fascinates me, and the history of the Welsh being occupied by the English is not a historical event I know much about. However, after reading The Wicked and the Just I am very intrigued by this time, and I plan on doing some research to learn more.

I do fear that although this is a book written for teens it may not be well received by them, and that is a shame. This is not an action-driven story, and I think historical fiction is already under-appreciated in the young adult world. I, for one, will read anything this author pens as I very much appreciated the amount of research and care it takes to write a story like this.