 To read the official synopsis, click here.
It has been a hot minute since I last wrote a book review. But when I heard that one of my favorite podcast The Bright Sessions was getting young adult book focusing around my favorite couple, I knew I had to get it. And then I was over the moon when I received an advance reader's copy from Netgalley. So this book focuses on two main characters Caleb a footballer player who is sent to therapy after a fight where he discovers that he is an atypical. Atypicals are people that have extraordinary abilities, in Caleb's case he is an empath who feels everything that people around him are feeling. Our second character is Adam, who is a quiet boy who suffers from depression. The book focuses on Caleb trying to understand all the emotions and Adam trying to deal with his depression. It is told through alternating chapters so we get a better understanding of both characters are going through. I loved how Caleb describes how he sees or feels emotions that depressions feels like a black sludge taking over. It made everything so tangible and it brought back so many memories of all the heighten emotions from high school. The crippling anxiety that Caleb feels during his trig test, the deep jealously that he feels coming off of classmates and all the insecurities pouring off of the bullies. If you have never heard of The Bright Sessions, which revolves around Caleb's therapist Dr. Bright and her atypical clients with varying powers, this will be a solid read. But because if you have listened to them I think I have a better appreciation of the characters. I loved being in Adam and Caleb's head as they try to navigate a tentative friendship to a first romance to a relationship that deals with depressions and superhero abilities. I do think it would be better to listen to the podcast then read the book. My complaint about this book is that I wish it was longer. I want there to be a sequel so badly but I think we are only getting more companion books focusing around other characters. I give this book a 4/5. To check out The Bright Sessions, click here.
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 To read the official synopsis, click here.
This is Lily Collin’s bio. Lily Collins is an actress that I have been following for years. In this book she talks about the hardships of being in an abusive relationship, her eating disorder, and her growing career. This was wonderfully written. She talked about all the hardships and how she felt going through all those motions. I gave this book an A.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
Jamie and Charlotte have parted ways. They haven’t spoke in almost a year. But someone has it in for Jamie and somehow Jamie doesn’t think they would stop at seeing him expelled. I did not like this book. I am not a fan of miscommunication or I-can’t-see-you-because-I-am-trying-to-protect-you tropes. What really drew me into the first book was the unexpected friendship between Charlotte and Jamie. I tolerated the budding romance in the second book but no more. This book felt like angst for the sake of angst. I don’t think their separation helped propel their story or their character development. It was two steps forward and three steps back. The mystery element was ok, I was able to predict a lot of the twist and turns. I thought this is was going to be the final book in the trilogy but apparently it is going to continue. This will be the final book for me though. I gave this book a D.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
When their car crashed in Saudi Arabia, people started talking about how wild Zarin was. She was always getting in trouble, she smoked and snuck out of school. They said she was so many things but Porus seemed to be the only one who really knew her. Now they are both dead. Leaving nothing but memories behind. This was one of my most anticipated books. I devoured this book. First of all let’s talk about the setting. The author was able to describe her city in Saudi Arabia with so detail about the culture, the people and the food that it made the setting really accessible to western readers. This country was almost like another protagonist. It is because of where Zarin lived that she had to endure so much more critic and harassment. Zarin is a very independent girl. She is smart. She is angry. She is angry that it didn’t her aunt always compared her to mother. She was angry about the inequality between men and women. She was selfish. She was very much a teen girl trying to find her place in the world. I loved that we saw so many different POVs in this book. We saw the potential love interest, her school rival, and her family’s reaction to her life and death. There were so many lies and half truths that surrounded her life. Zarin felt so isolated from everyone around her. This was a very enjoyable but hard read. I gave this book a B.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
This book is set almost three hundred years into the future. Raul Endymion is given the task to meet the child savior and to keep her safe. I think this is my favorite book in the series so far. Raul is a skilled hunter guide who has been entrusted to help Aenea the child savior who the Catholic church fears. Raul, Aenea, A. Bettik and their ship hop between worlds as they try to stay one step ahead of the Church. This was a surprisingly funny and fast paced book. There was so much banter between the characters and it was easier to step into this world again. The only issue I had with this book was with the character Aenea. She is currently 10 or 12 years old. She has all her memories from her entire life, from birth to dead. She sometimes forgets what time she is in and she reveals things from the future. I didn’t like how she revealed how relationships changed. It just seemed so forced at times. But her moments were balanced out by all the other characters. I definitely enjoyed how the author introduced characters this time around. We did have multiple POVs but each character was very distinct. There wasn’t as much info dumping as the previous two books. I gave this book a B.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
Minnow Bly survives a cult, but is now in juvie for assaulting a man. This was one interesting read. I really wished I would have saved this book for October. This is a very eerie book that highlighted the worst in people. This was a very big book that actually read pretty quickly. I am not sure if it was because of the subject matter or how the author alternated the story between the present and the past. The story really captivated me. Minnow rebelled against a cult that tried to keep her in line, only to escape lose control and commit a crime that ends with her locked up. It is juvie that Minnow can begin to process her life. She has survived a hard upbringing, had her hands removed and assaulted a man. This was a tough book but it contained an unexpected friendship. Yes, there is a romance in this book but it is the friendship that really shined. I loved the support that Minnow found in juvie, they challenged her and helped her. I gave this book a B.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
Grace is the school outcast. The entire student body as well as the rest of the community believes she is the girl who cried rape. Ian once had a crush on Grace but when she hooked up with his best friend, he knew she was off limits. When a week long detention forces them together they both must have to find a way to survive it. Argh this book was so frustrating. I did not expect this book to be told in two point of views. I thought this was a going to be a book following Grace as she tries to deal with the aftermath of her rape. Instead this book also had Ian’s POV. He is best friends with the boy allegedly attacked Grace and is unsure about how he feels about her. I am not a fan of Ian. I thought he was a stereotypical dude bro for the majority of this book. He is very dismissive of Grace’s assault. He refuses to acknowledge her around his friends. He is just such a waffler. While I enjoyed Grace’s POV, I just couldn’t make sense of her affections for Ian. I thought this was about a girl dealing with a traumatic event but instead I got a story about a boy who is reluctant to believe a girl over his best friend until he tries to save her. I gave this book a D.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
This is a mystery set in Japan. When Ren’s sister Keiko is killed he travels to the town she used to live in. He is trying to process his grief while trying to find out what happened to his sister. I wanted to love this book. It had a beautiful backdrop, a close sibling relationship and a good mystery. Unfortunately, this book was very dry. I don’t think this was just about the culture. While the characters were reserved, there just wasn’t enough to have this book be very memorable. There was a murder mystery and an almost supernatural element but it still didn’t feel like enough. I kept hoping there would be an event that pushes the story further. I gave this book a C.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
Xiomara is about to start a new school year. She feels so isolated in her home and school. When she feel like she can no longer talk to her twin or her mother, she turns to slam poetry. I LOVED this book. There were so many moments that I could relate to her and her family. Xiomara is a young latinx girl that has to deal with double standards that her twin brother doesn’t have to deal with. She is very self conscious of her body and she has a rocky relationship with her mother. Growing up as a young girl being a first gen America is daunting. Xiomara has a hard time finding herself because of how strict her family is on her. So she is so protective of her emotions and her poetry. This book was written in verse and I actually listened to the audiobook, which I highly recommend. The author read the book herself and just hearing her brought a new into the words. It was a captivating story. I loved Xiomara’s relationship with her family. It wasn’t the easiest family dynamic but they felt so authentic. There is so much love and compassion between the twins. And I just can’t get over Xiomara’s relationship with her mom, it very much reminded me of my own relationship with my mom. While they do love each other, they just can’t see eye to eye. I gave this book an A.  To read the official synopsis, click here.
Sylvie and Dan has been happily together for the past ten years. They have two beautiful daughters. But when their family doctor tells them they could potentially spend the next seven decades together they begin to panic. I absolutely loved the premise of this book. Here is a couple that are so happily in love but once they realize they could spend almost 80 years together they begin to worry about how they will keep their relationship alive. Sylvie and Dan begin to plan surprises for one another that don’t always go as plan. I thought these were such great characters. They are both just content with their lives and the surprises really reveal that they want more with the lives. I thought this was a great book with a realistic relationship. They have their ups and downs. They are trying their best to understand one another but they don’t always communicate. This was a wonderfully entertaining book filled with so many laugh out loud and cringe worthy moments. I gave this book a B+. |
Becca "Buho"I devour worlds with each new book. I am making up for lost time as a late bloomer of the reading world. Archives
September 2019
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