Content and trigger warnings: graphic depiction of sexual assault, dieting, biophobia, anxiety/panic attacks, mentions of gaslighting and racism.
*.·:·.☽✧ 2.7 stars ✧☾.·:·.* "Off The Record" tried to accomplish too many things, and lost not only its main focus in the process, but my interest in it as well. For 17-year-old Josie Wright, writing articles and pieces is her identity, and is the one thing that grounds her when her whole life is a mess. I was very interested in her home life because there are mentions of how her life at home is, and it seemed like there was such an intricate dynamic between Josie and her family. Because of her anxiety disorder, I feel as if Josie's view and judgement of her family was clouded, and I really wish that they could've talked about it. But sadly, this is one of the plot points that's forgotten. So when she wins a contest to write a celebrity profile for Deep Focus magazine, she's immediately jetted off onto a multi-city tour with her sister Alice and becomes very fond of her celebrity profile subject, Marius Canet. Now while this seems like a dazzling world, she soon realizes a dark side of fame that she just can't ignore. But when she makes a commitment to shed light on this issue in an article and has to simultaneously write a celebrity profile for Deep Focus magazine, she begins to recognize that she's in over her head. I mean, that would be an obvious realization to anyone who plans the logistics of this whole "plan". When Josie does complete the celebrity profile in one day, I found that completely unrealistic. I understand that this is a novel, and that she had the materials to do so before-hand, but that just didn't make sense to me. My main issue with this novel was the inconsistent plot points and focuses. I know that from the way I described the novel, it would seem clear what the main idea of this novel was, but it wasn't for me. Like, is this novel about ageism, image insecurity, and finding love through the mist of it all? Or is this about sister rivalry, the "Me Too" movement, and white feminism? Now, I'm not making this claim to discredit the importance of these topics. I just feel as if when these various topics were juggled around, they took away from Josie's character. And because of this, I couldn't absorb what she was thinking or try to find out who she was since I was trying to comprehend all the other things happening in the novel. While the plot was the main reason I disliked this noel, I still appreciated the various forms of representation throughout the novel. There was a fairly diverse cast of characters through the book that made me cheerful and somewhat content with the story. To be honest, the representation was the main reason that I even finished the novel. But to be frank, I'm just disappointed. I had fairly high expectations for this novel before reading it because I thoroughly enjoyed Garrett's debut YA novel "Full Disclosure", so I expected "Off The Record" to be better executed than it was. I didn't think the romance was necessary, and I wish that I could've learned more about Josie's character by herself than with Marius. Because of the issues I had with this novel, I sincerely doubt that I will read this again. Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this title!
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Trigger Warnings: murder, uncomfortable sexual encounter, suggested drug use, and underage drinking.
*.·:·.☽✧ 2.5 stars ✧☾.·:·.* "Homewrecker" follows the story of Bronwyn as she waits for her mother on their small trailer porch after school, only to have to hide in a gas station with her neighbor Kingston as a tornado strikes their hometown. While Bronwyn made it out of the disaster alive, her mother wasn't so lucky. So when Bronwyn's estranged father, Senator David Soliday, takes her home with him to meet the rest of his family, Bronwyn is distant to the rest of the family and wants nothing to do with them. They never cared about her for most of her life, so why would they care now? Confused, resentful, and absolutely raging, Bronwyn enters a world she’s never been introduced to, while reeling from the news that her mother wasn’t killed by the tornado but murdered. Torn between two identities: the daughter of a single drug addict and the middle child of a well-respected senator, Bronwyn is forced to navigate through this new, unfamiliar life alone and with a gut feeling she can’t shake. Her mother’s killer isn’t unfamiliar. The plot was intriguing and could've been strong enough to carry the novel if it focused more on the mystery aspect and less on Bronwyn adjusting to a new family while simultaneously acting like Sherlock Holmes to find her mother's murder. In my opinion, I think the mystery part of the novel was sort of rushed and wasn't developed enough. I feel as if there could've been so much more added to the mystery that would've added so much more depth and complexity to the story. Because of this, the plot fell flat for me and just wasn't making sense because it didn't truly pertain to the synopsis. And the writing was pretty standard, but confusing at times. [page 260] "David sighed. "He [Kingston] left his brownies" I nodded, not meeting his eyes. "They weren't good. You know what he did to them?" "They're vegan" "Your mother used to make really good brownies. From a box, but she would add things to make it taste better...." I kind of understand what David was trying to say, but I was confused because it seemed to me like he was trying to insinuate that Kingston added some substance to the brownies. Yet instead of David continuing to talk about that point, he then talks about how Bronwyn's mother made brownies. This could just be how David's character is supposed to act, but he doesn't speak this way in other conversations with other characters, so I'm presuming that the writing is to blame. In addition to that, the characters of this novel... weren't great. Bronwyn Larson-Soliday was naive and close-minded. I couldn't stand how she jumped to conclusions so quickly without fully reviewing the evidence and explaining her theory to others. And in the process, she ended up hurting other people with her unreasonable theories and claims. But instead of correctly apologizing to the people hurt because of said claims and trying to understand why they're hurt, she tried to show how since she's been through this, that, and the third that she shouldn't be held accountable. That behavior was very annoying, and even when she did make valid points about her mother's murder, I couldn't focus on those because she went back to making foolish claims. Her character did change after gaining new perspectives and meeting new people, but the way she treated people did not help me enjoy the novel any more than I already did. [page 275]""[Andi] You're so......narrow-minded! My parents didn't just buy you stuff, they gave you somewhere to live when all you had was a broken-down, rusted old trailer, and that was before the tornado hit it! My mom got you a therapist for when we go home, sh enrolled you in private school, and Dad has been making you a freaking vegetable garden because you wanted one!" [Bronwyn]"That's just more stuff, more money thrown at everything like that makes it all better-" She laughed, sardonically. "Seriously? "You're the one who's so hung up on money". "Because I never had any! You're, like, numb to it. You don't even care." "We don't care? We do all those things for you! To make you happy, but you're the one who never cares. When your mom died, I gave you my bed so you didn't have to sit on the floor. When you blew off work to get drunk with Kingston, I covered for you with Sheila and Hank. Jason and Kimberly have been scrambling to find something for you at their wedding so you don't feel left out. All of this, literally everything we've done since you got here, was such a waste because it didn't matter to you at all." I was quiet for a moment, a tightness building in my chest." Donna Larson (Bronwyn's mom) had good intentions, but couldn't execute them well. She had a fair share of secrets she kept from Bronwyn that truly messed with Bronwyn when they were revealed. And since some are revealed that relate to Donna's murder, I wish that there was some way I could have learned her reasoning for keeping those secrets from Bronwyn for so many years about Donna's addiction and her relationship with David. David and Amy Soliday pretty much did the most they could to provide for Bronwyn after they met her, but couldn't communicate well with her. Because they couldn't be honest with Bronwyn at first, Amy, David, and Bronwyn because more divided. But towards the end, they become more vulnerable with her, so they ended up bonding. Yet I would've liked to learn more about the dynamic between David, Amy, and Donna because that could've been explored a lot more than just the surface-level situation. Kingston Castaneda was a dusty 20-year-old who was horrible at lying. I can't say much about him without spoiling, so I'll leave it at this: Kingston was a horrible character that I despised once I put the puzzle pieces together. Andi Soliday was cold and distant at first, but opens up to Bronwyn farther into the story, so they end up having a real sisterly bond. I truly enjoyed learning about why Andi was so distant towards Bronwyn because it added more complexity to their relationship. To be honest, I didn't like Andi at first because I thought she was really stuck-up, but my opinion of her changed as I saw more of who she was and her goals. Ethan Denver was sweet and selfless, but insecure about not only his body but his abilities as a whole. I liked how Bronwyn was able to help Ethan confront his insecurities, and then it's shown that Ethan is becoming a little more confident in himself towards the end of the novel. In addition to that, Ethan really brought some humor and amusement to the book. I mean, he loves horror films so much that he would always share horror movie facts that made the book somewhat entertaining. But I don't know why Ethan supported and comforted Bronwyn while she did all that foolish stuff. Also, I don't know if it's just me, but it felt like there were so many additional characters being introduced that I just couldn't keep up. I can't even recall how many siblings Bronwyn had because they were insignificant. I honestly don't think there were that many supporting characters, but the problem was that these supporting characters didn't have enough of a presence in this story to be remembered or deemed significant. Again, this might not be a valid critique because it could only apply to me, but I just wanted to make that point anyway. To conclude, "Homewrecker" had so many weak spots and flaws that prevented me from enjoying this novel. I'm thinking that maybe this wasn't made for me because I just didn't enjoy it. But if you're someone who likes novels with a protagonist who pretends to be the naive version of Sherlock Holmes, then I'm sure you'll enjoy this book. Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this title! Trigger Warnings: sexual content, bullying, kidnapping, assault, homophobia, and panic attacks/disorders
*.·:·.☽✧ 3 stars ✧☾.·:·.* "Never Kiss Your Roommate" tells the story of mainly Evelyn and Seth through their two perspectives, but two other characters (Noelle and Jasper) have significant roles as well. Evelyn and Seth meet on a train to a prestigious boarding school, and both have their own reasons for being sent there. Then Evelyn arrives and meets her broody and rude roommate, Noelle, who wants nothing to do with her. And Seth now has a messy roommate, but Jasper, his charismatic and confident peer, brightens up any negatives attached to attending Seven Hills. Yet as Evelyn, Seth, Noelle, and Jasper become closer, trouble soon arises because of the anonymous Chitter Chatter Blog. While I did enjoy seeing this premise executed, it seemed like the story was mainly character-driven because there weren't huge problems, and the reader is just following their everyday activities with other characters. Yet towards the end of the book, the conflict really sets itself in, and the plot takes more control. I did see very minuscule problems arise throughout the novel, but they aren't the main conflict that's shown in the synopsis. And yet one of the many reasons as to why I rated this novel somewhat highly was because of the characters. Evelyn was a very sweet and caring character. She showed lots of compassion towards not only her friends, but also other people around her. This trait was very prevalent in her relationship with Noelle, which really evened out Noelle's bitterness. But I will say that Evelyn is naive at times and doesn't always think things through. Yet when I was reading about her past struggles with her sexuality, it was so touching and felt very sincere. I think because of that reason, I was able to connect with her character a lot more than I initially would. Noelle was a very bitter and rude person in the beginning, but I enjoyed seeing her character being fleshed out. I'd argue that Noelle had the most development out of all the characters because her character truly flipped after spending time with Evelyn. Noelle had a pretty mysterious backstory that intrigued me until the end since there were little pieces of her history sprinkled throughout the story. Seth had a dry sense of humor and was my favorite character. I loved reading the story from his perspective, and I was so invested in his backstory. I liked how the story shed light on Seth's issues without portraying him as a villain. But I do wish that there was more of Seth's perspective because there wasn't much of that. That main point leads me into Jasper's character. I liked jasper a lot because he was very snarky and charismatic, yet I'd argue that he had the smallest presence in the story out of Evelyn, Noelle, and Seth. And for that reason, I can barely describe his character because I felt like I didn't know much about him. Look, I loved the LGBTQIA+ representation present in this story. We had 2 bisexual main characters, a lesbian mc, a pansexual mc, and other queer side characters. And Noelle was dyslexic, so I was excited to see that included in the story. I really enjoyed seeing pretty diverse characters throughout the story because I don't see that very often. Now while that was something that truly made me admire the story, there were some problems in this novel as well. The writing and plot were all over the place. The writing wasn't horrible, but it was a bit clunky and unfinished in some places. And as I briefly mentioned before, the plot doesn't really include the Chitter Chatter Blog conflict until the end. But I had a problem with that because when I was about 75% through the novel, a drastic event happened and the story turned into a mystery/thriller/suspense type of novel instead of a fluffy romance. I mainly had a problem with this because it really made the story take a dark turn that I believe was unbelievable, unrealistic, and most importantly, unnecessary. And while I did appreciate the dual POVs, as I briefly stated before, I think that Seth should have had more chapters from his perspective. I feel like I only had a glimpse into his interactions with the other characters (mainly Jasper), and because of that, I learned even less about Jasper's character than I did Seth's. Not to say I didn't enjoy Evelyn's POV (because I did), but I just think that there could have either been more of the story in Seth's perspective, or his POV chapters should have just been cut all together. The latter seems like it would add less depth to the story, so I'm sticking with my opinion that Seth should have had more chapters in his perspective. Because the problems I had with "Never Kiss Your Roommate" over weighed the things I liked about this story, I gave this novel a 3-star rating. I would still highly recommend this novel to someone who wants a story with diverse characters and doesn't mind a most character-driven plot, but I don't think I would read this again. Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this title. *.·:·.☽✧ 5 stars ✧☾.·:·.*
Thank you so much to Netgalley and Random House Children's for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. Just when I thought I couldn't find a book made for me, I found this novel. By the way, there are spoilers in this review about a lot of things in this novel. I'm sorry to the people who haven't read this before, but it would be so hard to write this review without spoilers. "My Epic Spring Break (up)" follows Ashley, a 17-year-old junior who prioritizes college readiness. And while she's a part of various clubs at her school; Coding Club, Mathletes, and a math tutoring program, she's never been on a date or had a boyfriend. So after a step back with her spring break internship, Ashley realizes she might be missing out on her high school experience. Then she decides to have more fun and just follow her heart by going on a date with Walker Beech, a guy in her American History class she has a crush on, and tutoring him as well to get to know him better. But things get complicated when Ashley acknowledges the problems she has with her father, views Walker from a different perspective, and may see her long-time best friend Jason as something more. I felt so fulfilled when I finished this book. Even though I got frustrated so many times throughout the story, I truly respect a story that can evoke so many of my emotions through the storytelling, plot, characters. While reading this, I sometimes wanted to rip the hair off my head, but at other times, I wanted to cry just because a character was crying (or doing something foolish). Ashley seemed like the stereotypical Good Student Who Does Everything Right, Is Intelligent, and Joins Various Clubs So They Can Get Into A Prestigious College. But she really had somewhat of a complexity to her character that always drew my attention. While Ashley could fit into that stereotype from an outsider's perspective, on the inside, I think she always wanted to feel understood and welcomed. Ashley genuinely had a passion for computer science and math, so she excelled in school and joined those clubs to put her skill into good use. Yet she also loved Taylor Swift and just wanted her father to understand who she is. Jason Eisler may have seemed like the high school prankster, but the moment his character was first introduced, I knew that he was using his humor as a cover to his true feelings, and I was correct. He loves to make pranks and joke around, but he's a really caring and supportive person. Jason always helps Ashley and believes in her dreams unlike a jerk bag we'll talk about next, which made me thoroughly enjoy his character. I loved when he started getting interested in coding and decided to show other people how to code on YouTube. Jason probably had the most development out of all the other characters because we can easily see his character change and evolve throughout the book. speaking of annoying and insensitive jerk bags, I now introduce Walker Beech who is a "good student" not really, but we'll get into that and has daddy issues the author doesn't expand on. He also has two secret tattoos and uses fake IDs to buy beer, so he's a rEal BAd bOy. Ashley thought that Walker was such a good student because she saw him "taking notes" in class and teachers love him. But he was just making little doodles in his journal for funsies, and I have no idea why teachers liked him because it's never really explained. Walker was a flat character who didn't have any development, and he never cared about Ashley at all. He just wanted her to do all his work for him and be his love-buddy, which didn't happen because Ashley was an intelligent girlie who knew better than that. so while we're talking about trash characters, let's welcome Annoying Character #2: Rachel, who I cannot stand. She was a supporting character, but that didn't mean I couldn't develop a strong dislike for her. At first, I kinda respected her for having such a large following on ZigZag (a fictional social media networking site in this novel), but then she scrutinized Ashley for not having a large following on ZigZag like her. But that wasn't even the worst part. She continues to act like she's better than Ashley because Ashley was denied for an internship program ZigZag had. That's when I wanted to ignore Rachel's existence. now Heaven and Christine are Ashley's best friends who are also in Coding Club, but they play small roles, so I'll discuss them together. I liked them both because they were always supportive of Ashley and were compassionate, but I loved how their personalities weren't clouded with Ashley's. Again, we don't learn too much about them, but I'll try and distinguish their personalities. Heaven is pretty sassy and confident, so she always helped Ashley in those areas. But Christine seems like more of the chill and academic friend that always has some wise advice, but also knows how to have fun. Also, Christine was interested in epidemiology, so we're twins. It's official everyone, don't question it. Maybe I'm just making claims about their personalities without evidence, but those are the vibes they gave me. and the parents are messy. Ashley's mother lives in an apartment building with Ashley since Ashley's mother and father separated while Ashley was at a young age. And Ashley's mother has a curfew at 10:00pm and demands that Ashley has her GPS on while out, which is understandable because the world can be cruel. Now I did like Ashley's mother for most of the story, but I didn't like some of her decisions because they affected Ashley negatively and could've been avoided. Ashley's father has a girlfriend who has two tween sons, and it seems to Ashley that he cares more about his new family than Ashley, but I can totally understand why she thinks that. Ashley's father isn't consistent with his visits, and never really asks about how Ashley's doing or how she's feeling. But towards the ending, I could see their relationship somewhat develop, which made me really happy because I want Ashley to have a good relationship with her parents. so after reading my little comments about the characters, hopefully you have a little insight on the construction of the plot. The plot was well established and kept me very entertained. I truly underestimated this novel's plot because the synopsis sounds very simple, but this novel didn't just recycle a plot and made it unique; Kristin Rockaway flipped the script and made such an enjoyable novel. there wasn't a dull moment throughout the whole book, and I think the writing/storytelling definitely played a part in this. The writing isn't spectacular, but it definitely exaggerates certain points. I love that the story was told from Ashley's perspective because she's the one making new experiences and learning lessons along the way. It's so refreshing to have a likeable protagonist who acts their age and isn't annoying me by using slang in every sentence. oh, and I flipping loved Jason and Ashley's relationship. I did get very frustrated when they got together with other people instead of recognizing their feelings for each other because they were so obvious, but my spirit was lifted when they confessed their love to each other. Now I can't say if they actually loved each other because they were adolescents, and I know that it's easy to think that you love someone during that time period, but we'll say that they were in love. And I made a ship name for them: ✨Jasley✨. *cue applause* I know, I know, the ship name is perfection. It's just my big brain at work. Modesty? We don't know her here. okay, I think that's about it. To wrap this long review up, I flipping loved this novel. This story evoked so many of my emotions through the characters, plot, and writing/storytelling. That's never happened to me before with a book, so that's saying a lot. I felt connected to Ashley so much, Jasley is legit, and Walker Beech can go be with Rachel for all I care because they're both bad people. I will most definitely be reading this novel again because it gave me an experience that I would love to experience again. *.·:·.☽✧ 2 stars ✧☾.·:·.*
Thank you so much to Netgalley and Macmillan-Tom Doherty Associates for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. "Victories Greater Than Death" tells the story of Tina, who is an alien raised on Earth by her mother. There’s a beacon inside her that when she’s ready will alert both allies and enemies to her location. With her best friend Rachael she goes to space to fulfill her destiny. This sounds like a somewhat captivating premise, right? That's what I thought too, but sadly, it wasn't executed well. Here are some reasons why I couldn't fully enjoy this book, finish it, and rate it 3 stars. ✨slow pacing Truthfully, I don't think this book needed to be 288 pages. The novel felt dragged and had slow pacing, so I became incredibly bored and didn't want to read this. This problem intertwines with the writing, but we'll get into that. ✨confusing writing that ruined the experience and annoyed me. When something is happening, I always feel confused because scenes weren't described well and the writing didn't seem very articulate. I usually had to flip back a couple of pages to figure out what was happening, which got annoying quick. And I felt like the author just dumped info about different things without giving me anytime to understand it. This might be different for someone else, but this problem kept arising for me. And sometimes, the writing was interrupted by abrupt changes in scenery and I felt like I was constantly trying to keep up. To make matters worse, there were certain parts of the book that were explained in great detail which made the novel feel very dense. But then there were other moments when things weren't explained well at all, and I'm left befuddled. ✨dialogue that felt forced and weird internal thoughts A lot of the characters' interactions felt unnatural and weird. I get that because humans and other-worldly creatures are interacting, things would be a little weird, but that wasn't the reason for this. Tina's thoughts were pretty awkward and slightly annoying. Her dialogue with other characters was just...off. That's the best way I can explain it. So I have a few bones to pick with the writing and dialogue, but there was one or two reasons as to why I rated this book higher than 1 star. ✨creative worldbuilding The scenery for the different places the characters visit is either explained in great detail, or barely described, but I can still admire the creativity that went into creating these worlds and settings. I wish I had more to say about this, but there isn't much to say about it anyway. ✨diverse representation of races, sexualities, and genders So when Tina teams up with different characters on her "journey", we're introduced to different types of people (and other-worldly creatures I guess). I enjoyed how different identities and pronouns were normalized because that's something I truly look for in a novel. Now while I did like this at first, the discussions of representation were extremely explicit. I think that certain conversations about important issues could have been incorporated more gracefully and less obviously into the plot. Because of these reasons, it was very hard for me to try and enjoy this book, which is why I had to DNF (did not finish) "Victories Greater Than Death". Although it didn't work for me, that doesn't take away from the creative worldbuilding and unique characters. I would recommend this book to sci-fi lovers who prioritize having diversity and unique characters in novels they may want to read. *.·:·.☽✧ 5 stars ✧☾.·:·.*
"A Good Girl's Guide To Murder" tells the story of 17-year-old Pippa Fitz-Amobi as she tries to uncover and solve the murder of Andie Bell, who was supposedly killed by her boyfriend Sal Singh, who then killed himself. Even though this situation took place five years ago and people think they know the whole story, Pip knows there's still more to uncover. And as she revisits the case with Sal's brother Ravi for her final school project to cast doubt on the original investigation, she uncovers a trail of dark secrets that could prove Sal Singh's innocence.... and put not only herself but others at danger because someone doesn't want these secrets revealed. The plot was action-packed throughout the whole book, and that's what kept me wrapped around this novel's finger. For most of the novel, we follow Pippa and Ravi as they interrogate their suspects and put together the pieces to the mystery, and it's so exciting. While a 17-year-old solving a mystery isn't very realistic, I didn't care because the thrilling story made me forget all about that. Every time they uncovered new information in the case and found a new suspect, I became more enthralled in the story. There were so many twists and turns throughout the story, but it wasn't too hard to catch up. The plot just kept building and building, so I was at the edge of my seat just wondering who committed the crime. And the ending was so explosive yet surprising that I was left speechless. Now if we're being honest, the plot wouldn't have been as interesting without the writing. I adored how it didn't feel like there were fillers in the writing. It just got to the point, and I couldn't even appreciate that until I reflected on it. And I liked how there were journal entries in the novel right after Pippa and Sal discovered something, but they were written in Pip's first-person perspective, while the rest of the novel was written from a third-person perspective. Here is an example of one of Pip's capstone project entries and an example from the regular third-person perspective in the story for comparison. [Capstone Project Log] "I'll keep trying the ones that went to generic voicemails, just in case anything comes of it. But I really need to get going with my application. Should I write about that time I got lost at the zoo? Was that a formative experience? Gah, 650 words is far too many for someone who doesn't know who they are." [Regular Chapter Text] "She was on the train to Westport. Ravi was coming straight from work to meet her at the station. Pip looked away from the blank expectant page and out the window instead; they had to be nearly there. She'd taken the train to fit in some application time but had nothing to show for it." It made me feel like I could understand Pippa's motives from the journal entries, and then I saw her execute those actions from a looking-glass in the rest of the story. The writing just had a good combination of articulation, suspense, and mystery. Pippa was a great high-school detective, but she was still a one dimensional character. She doesn't develop much in character, but she definitely gains new perspectives on what's right and wrong. If you wanted me to tell you about some of her qualities, I wouldn't have anything to say. Pippa is a "good girl" who does her work on time, asks for extra assignments, does exceptionally well, and cares about her family. But she questions herself because her judgement is clouded while revisiting the case, even though she used to know exactly what's right and wrong. Though I think her character is supposed to be like this because throughout the story, we see her realize why she strides to be a "good girl" in the first place. And after coming to this realization and gaining all these new perspectives, I think her character will truly develop in the upcoming novels of this series. While Ravi was my favorite character, he didn't have much development either, but I'm not mad about it. Ravi was a sweet but grief-stricken character who just wanted justice for his brother. He was really determined to help Pippa prove Sal's innocence, yet he was also supportive and understanding towards Pip when she felt distraught. Their friendship was so wholesome, and I wholeheartedly enjoyed it. I can't remember much about Ravi's character, but trust me when I say he's great. So I decided to dissect Sal's character with Andie's character because I don't have enough to say about the two separately. Sal was kind, selfless, and clever. He didn't have a good relationship with Andie, and it's sad that their relationship ended in his death because his family really cared about him. And Andie was callous, vulnerable and self-conscious, but seen as a beautiful victim by the public. So all I can say without spoiling is that Andie had a lot of secrets that she really didn't want anyone to know about. Usually, I would dissect or give an overview of the supporting character's traits/personalities, but I can't do that well without spoiling, so I guess we'll leave it here. I adored everything about this book from the developed plot, to the fresh writing, and the intriguing characters. I'm really excited to read the sequel because I want to see how Holly Jackson can add more to this addicting tale. After reading "A Good Girl's Guide To Murder", I have no doubt that she will deliver in the sequel. I do hope that in the following book, not only will the main characters' personalities have development, but also the supporting characters' personalities as well because I'd love to learn more about them. This is truly is a nail-biting mystery that I would recommend to anyone, but be prepared for thrilling twists you wouldn't suspect. *.·:·.☽✧ 3 stars ✧☾.·:·.*
Thank you so much to Atmosphere Press and KristaLyn A. Vetovich for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. I tried, okay? I really did try, and I failed with this one. "Shifted" by KristaLyn Vetovich is built around the concept of a spirit guide, Anya, who has been assigned to guide her charge, Kade, to save the Chosen One. But Kade can't hear Anya, so this makes it extremely difficult for her to guide him. And Anya has to get through to Kade before her rival, Jordin, tempts him away from his life Plan, so the world doesn't end the way it wasn't supposed to. Now I was somewhat interested in this concept at first, but then it became a struggle to even read this book. I did not finish this book at about 6.6%, which is just sad. Whenever there was some type of action going on, I was still bored, and I didn't even understand why it was happening in the first place. I didn't understand what was going on with Anya and how she's a spirit guide, or what the Chosen One even is, and I couldn't even remember the other characters that were introduced. Nothing was really making sense, so I wasn't interested, and I had to force myself to keep reading. That's when I knew this isn't working. The writing was generic at times, and didn't help whenever there was an action scene. And the characters didn't catch my attention and seemed bland, so I had a hard time keeping up with them. I wish that I could've enjoyed this more because it seems interesting, but it didn't capture my attention, so I was left bored and uninterested. Maybe I'll try this novel again, but I'm not sure. *.·:·.☽✧ 3 stars ✧☾.·:·.*
Thank you so much to Publisher Spotlight and Netgalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. "You Were Made For Me" by Jenna Guillaume describes the story of sixteen-year-old Katie Camilleri who just created a boy with Libby, her best friend and at-home scientist. Katie hasn't had her first kiss yet, but that's because she wants it to be with the perfect boy, so she can have the perfect first kiss. And that's where the boy they created, Guy, comes in. Guy had beautiful blue eyes, lips perfect for kissing, blond hair, and a great body. And after Katie and Libby realize they've created a boy, Katie starts to date Guy, and everything seems perfect. But having a fumbled human creation as a boyfriend is pretty complicated since Katie still needs to figure out her feelings toward him and if he actually wants to be with her for who she is, or because he was born made to love her. This wasn't my favorite read. I was very frustrated while reading this, so I couldn't enjoy this as much as I wanted to. But this novel still had kind of cute moments and little character development that made this somewhat redeemable. The plot of this novel wasn't very complex at all, but it was still intriguing, at first. Now when I started reading a few pages of this, it felt exactly like the Disney movie "How To Build A Better Boy" and the movie "Weird Science". There were similar themes from both those movies, which makes sense because this novel was inspired by "Weird Science". But even though I was intrigued by the plot and how it was inspired by a movie at the beginning, I got bored and frustrated quick. The whole plot is based on this minuscule problem that is solved when Guy is made, yet it felt like problems kept arising just to add to a flat plot. This isn't horrible, but the problems that arose felt useless and could be easily solved. But of course, they couldn't be because of how Katie handles them. And the writing only made my problems with the plot worse. I didn't like how even though Katie was narrating the story from a 1'st person perspective, Libby would cut in between certain thoughts to add her opinion or comment. And while I did agree with some of Libby's opinions, I still think that it wasn't needed. And when Katie is the main narrator, she makes juvenile comments that made this harder to read. An example of this is at about 2% through the novel. "We have the kind of friendship where you can tell the other person anything -anything- and we won't take offense or judge each other. I mean, we even fart around each other. That's how you know it's real friendship (Libby)" This felt juvenile to me, and reminded me of something I would've said in the 4'th grade. This is a recurring theme in this novel, which didn't make it enjoyable. But other than that, the writing wasn't horrible. If anything, it was pretty mediocre and just told the story. Katie was my least favorite character, and I have a lot to say about her. She was a messy girlie, but not in a good way. Katie always said how she wanted her first kiss to be perfect, and she wanted it with her perfect boyfriend. But when she finally gets this, she's unsatisfied (for some reason), and starts doing all this stuff and gets messy when her life is literally perfect. And one of the messes she started was with Libby when she paid less attention to her, and more to Guy because he was devoted to her and didn't want her to leave. Because of this, Katie didn't even notice what was going on with Libby. Katie has a perfect life, yet she always has to find more and more to satisfy her, when all she needs is right in front of her, and she just needs to open her eyes. Also, Katie doesn't have a personality or a backbone. All Katie does is fantasize about her perfect kiss with the perfect boyfriend and paint. Oh, and she works at a pharmacy or something. That's it. Other than that, she was just an insecure person who let the stereotypical mean girl, Mikayla, walk all over her. Even though I liked that Libby helps Katie stand up to Mikayla towards the end, I wish that Katie actually believed in how she was and knew what she deserved. Katie's character did evolve towards the end, but not very much. Libby was a good character who cared for her friend and liked science, but that's about it. There is something revealed towards the end of the book that tells us Libby's sexuality, and I was glad to have that type of representation, but she wasn't really anything else. I was actually more interested in her life than Katie's because we didn't get to learn enough about her personality and who she was without Katie. Theo was probably my favorite character in the novel because it seemed like his personality actually had substance. He had a tough past and a lot of grief following him, so he really depended on his friendship with Katie. Theo really cared for Katie and always helps her, even when she didn't deserve it and I wouldn't have helped her. But I couldn't stand how I think about two times, the weight he lost was brought up negatively. As in, they were trying to make him feel bad about gaining weight in the past. Theo deserved a lot better than what he got. Guy knew how to cook, had a "nice body", and was attached to Katie. He didn't have any personality, which is expected since he was magically made in a kitchen by two teenage girls. Guy was made solely for the purpose of giving Katie her first kiss, but he did help her figure out what she wanted. He didn't really develop because there was nothing to develop from the jump. Supporting Characters Most of these supporting characters were added to give substance to the story, so they had no personality whatsoever. Alex was Katie's co-worker who was also gay, so yay, ✨representation✨. He was just nosy and wanted to get in Katie's business, which is understandable because she was messy. Mikayla was just a bitter, stereotypical mean girl who messed with Katie for no reason. I didn't understand her motives, and she was just annoying and sad. Declan Bell Jones was a douchebag who excused Mikayla's horrible actions because of her past. He used Katie, and I don't care about him at all. Luke was Katie's older brother, and he was there just to snitch on her, but then remind her he loved her. Katie's parents seemed sexist to me because they gave Katie all these rules about dating Guy (stuff about sex and keeping the door open when they're together), but they didn't do that to Luke when he was dating a year earlier than she was. They just got on my nerves. Overall, I just wasn't feeling this book. There were too many things that frustrated me in this book or left me feeling blank to be ignored. The characters weren't great, the plot had no substance, and I didn't like the writing or the narrator(s). I would recommend this to someone who wants a quick read with a protagonist who complains about minuscule problems and bland characters. *.·:·.☽✧ 4 stars ✧☾.·:·.*
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