Format: ARC

Fame, Fate, and the First Kiss by Kasie West

February 7, 2019 3 Comments Regina

There’s just something about Kasie West’s writing-style that makes an otherwise silly plot and shallow romance into something sophisticated and poignant. Her stories are addictive, entertaining, and just plain fun–in the truest sense of the word. The majority of the action unfolds on a zombie-romance movie set and in the on-set trailer of 17 year-old Lacey Barnes (FUN, right!?). Lacey is an ambitious and talented teen on the verge of stardom now that she is […]

ARC REVIEW + GIVEAWAY (US ONLY): Slayer (Slayer #1) by Kiersten White

December 28, 2018 2 Comments Regina

By now everyone knows that a re-imagining/series sequel of the CW hit television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Joss Whedon) is in the works. As if that weren’t exciting enough, Kiersten White’s new series set in the Buffy universe is hitting the shelves on January 8th! Buffy’s back (sort of), bitchezzzz! via GIPHY From what I’ve read on Goodreads, Slayer (Slayer #1) closely follows the Buffy comics and picks up shortly after the ending of […]

ARC REVIEW + GIVEAWAY (US ONLY): We Told Six Lies by Victoria Scott

December 28, 2018 2 Comments Regina

Have you ever seen the COMPLETELY ABSORBING AND BRILLIANT film starring Guy Pearce called Memento (2000)? (If not, you should get right on that because you’re a couple of decades behind.) Victoria Scott brings the same kind of mind-boggling magic to her upcoming novel from Entangled Teen. From what I gather via social media buzz in the book world, We Told Six Lies is hands-down one of the most anticipated upcoming releases in young adult […]

Review + GIVEAWAY (US ONLY): The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White

December 28, 2018 2 Comments Regina

This past October, in conjunction with Frankenreads.org, I hosted a month of programming centered around Mary Shelley and her Frankenstein at my library. The publisher was kind enough to send us a book club kit of TDDoEF, so we featured the novel as our October Young Adult Fiction for Adults book club pick. Overall, feelings from our book club attendees were lukewarm about Kiersten White’s spin on Mary Shelley’s dark fictional world and characters. The book was […]

The Future Will Be BS Free by William McIntosh

August 6, 2018 2 Comments Regina

NOTE: I elaborate on some of my issues with this book at the end of my review. It is a little spoiler-ish. I will give a heads-up for when to stop reading/scrolling if you do not wish to know more. I was ecstatic when I got an ARC of this book because I thought it was going to be full of commentary on the most pressing social and political issues of the past four years. […]

Neverworld Wake by Marisha Pessl

July 23, 2018 2 Comments Regina

I know it’s shallow and totally frowned upon to make decisions this way, but I *almost* took a pass on this book because I didn’t like the cover. The synopsis, however, was just vague enough and intriguing enough to pull me in. This book had some I Know What You Did Last Summer vibes, but it is much more sophisticated and way less cheesy. I am not going to spend much time talking about the […]

Fatal Throne: The Wives of Henry VIII Tell All

May 1, 2018 2 Comments Regina

Back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, I used to like this punk band named Anne Boleyn. You should definitely do a Spotify search of “Anne Boleyn” to see all of the musical treasures in honor of her. This book gets five stars because I had a hard time putting it down. Riveting, like it says on the back cover, is an apt description of the novel. I […]

Picture Us In The Light by Kelly Loy Gilbert

April 17, 2018 1 Comment Regina

First, I would like to thank Disney Hyperion for the chance to read this story pre-publication. My review is based off an uncorrected ARC. This is definitely one of those books that you HAVE to HAVE because of the brilliant cover. The author’s way with words is brilliant as well. I loved the lyrical prose and syntax that threaded this story together. The characters are vibrant and intense; they were complex and saturated with emotional […]

Murder, Magic, and What We Wore by Kelly Jones

January 23, 2018 1 Comment Regina

“To understand the things that are at our door is the best preparation for understanding those that lie beyond.” -Hypatia One of the things I loved best about this book was the use of quotes under the chapter headings. I am such a sucker for this. There can never be too many quotes introducing a chapter or section of a book in my opinion. I also loved that the author’s use of quotes to introduce/capture […]

Haunting the Deep (How to Hang A Witch #2) by Adriana Mather

November 15, 2017 0 Comments Regina

You can check out my review of Adriana Mather’s fantastic debut novel, How to Hang a Witch HERE. Here is the super awesome book trailer for Haunting the Deep: Sam and The Descendents are back in another spine-tingling, atmospheric adventure. Adriana Mather’s stories appeal to the side of me that wants to suspend reality and languish in a world of magic, ghosts, romance, high-school, and haunted histories. Haunting the Deep was every bit as fun […]

The Suffering Tree by Elle Cosimano: The Review, the Controversy

October 15, 2017 2 Comments Regina

“It’s Dark Magic Brings Him Back.” The name and the cover of this book were not appealing to me. I did, however, think that the dark synopsis was original, therefore intriguing. I did not want to be lame and judge a book by its cover, so I started reading it. Long story short, I could not put this book down. This novel was a refreshing departure from the market-driven YA books that I have been […]

New Release Review: A Map for Wrecked Girls by Jessica Taylor

August 26, 2017 0 Comments Regina

I thought a setting like this was going to be boring. Beautiful, yes, but ultimately dull. I was sooo wrong. I’ll be blunt. I do not have a sister and reading about drama between sisters is the LAST THING I want to do with my precious reading time. But throwing in the male character tipped the boat in favor of reading this novel for me. I know this is an unpopular position, but I am […]

The One That Got Away by Melissa Pimentel + GIVEAWAY!!!

August 21, 2017 2 Comments Regina

The One That Got Away by Melissa Pimentel is the perfect read to bridge your summer book binges over into your more selective fall reading schedule. This witty and poignant novel taps into the same vein of magic as Bridget Jones’s Diary, and any gal or guy who has loved and/or lost will enjoy the personal and romantic journeys of the two leading characters. I absolutely love modern retellings of romantic literary classics, and this […]

Little Monsters by Kara Thomas

August 10, 2017 0 Comments Regina

PLEASE DO NOT GO INTO THIS BOOK THINKING IT IS COMPARABLE TO PRETTY LITTLE LIARS LIKE THE BLURB SUGGESTS. IT IS SOOOO NOT. I had a love/hate relationship with PLL, mostly after things started to get old and predictable, after the fourth season. But I still watched it, and I was still highly entertained until the last episode. I read The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas, and I liked it. I was intrigued by it, […]

Blog Tour: The Forbidden by Jodi Ellen Malpas

August 9, 2017 0 Comments Erin

Erin’s Review Oh MY GOD. JEM is one of those authors that I don’t even bother reading the synopsis for her books, I just dive right in. This book was no exception..though when I got into and discovered what made it “Forbidden” I thought about DNFing the book. But this is JEM and she hasn’t let me down before so I kept at it. She did not disappoint. After awhile I got over the forbidden […]

BLOG TOUR+GIVEAWAY: Hear the Wolves by Victoria Scott

March 23, 2017 1 Comment Regina

About the Book: Title: HEAR THE WOLVES Author: Victoria Scott Pub. Date: March 28, 2017 Publisher: Scholastic Press Pages: 240 Formats: Hardcover, eBook Find it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Goodreads It’ s survival of the strongest in a contemporary, girl-versus-wild middle-grade début from Fire & Flood author Victoria Scott! Sloan is a hunter. So she shouldn’ t be afraid of anything. But ever since her mom left the family and she lost hearing in one ear in a blizzard, it’ s been hard […]

Blog Tour: Holding Up The Universe by Jennifer Niven + GIVEAWAY!!!

October 29, 2016 1 Comment Regina

Armed with wit and humour, Niven delivers a poignant story that reads like an insta-classic. It is the “Can’t Hardly Wait” of this generation. This novel was a fast read for me. I couldn’t put it down once I started. Alternating chapters reveal two characters that find a common heart-string among the awkwardness of high-school despite their night-and-day experiences. While the chapters were short and sweet, the characters were smart and addicting. Being inside of Libby […]

Blog Tour Review + GIVEAWAY: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

August 8, 2016 4 Comments Regina

Don’t forget to ENTER TO WIN an awesome prize at the end of this post! Nevernight could be classified as a pop-up book because every character and detail leaps from the pages. This book has a PRESENCE albeit a sadistic one. I found myself compelled to finish Mia’s story in as few sittings as possible. When I first read Ann Rice’s Lasher series at the tender age of ADULT, I would hide the books in […]

Blog Tour: The Shadow Hour by Melissa + GIVEAWAY!!!

July 19, 2016 4 Comments Regina

The Shadow Hour by Melissa Grey Author: Melissa Grey Pub. Date: July 12, 2016 Publisher: Delacorte Press Pages: 432 Format: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook Find it: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Goodreads Everything in Echo’s life changed in a blinding flash when she learned the startling truth: she is the firebird, the creature of light that is said to bring peace. The firebird has come into the world, but it has not come alone. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction, and Echo can feel a […]

Midnight in Berlin by James MacManus

June 20, 2016 0 Comments Regina

This book goes beyond capturing the music, fashion, and style of the WWII era and paints a picture of the chaotic attitudes, theories, failed diplomacy, and missed connections that contributed to the start of the world’s bloodiest war to date. The tone of the novel is serious and the author does an excellent job of capturing the psychosis and sexism of not only the Nazi party but the culture in general. Pre-Nazi party, Berlin was […]

Blog Tour: With Malice by Eileen Cook + GIVEAWAY!!!

May 31, 2016 5 Comments Regina

A read about a teenage girl who wakes up in a hospital bed and cannot remember the last six weeks of her life, including the accident that killed her best friend– only what if the accident wasn’t an accident? (REMEMBER TO SCROLL TO THE END FOR THE AWESOME GIVEAWAY! US ONLY.) About the Book Title: WITH MALICE Author: Eileen Cook Pub. Date: June 7, 2016 Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers Format: Hardcover, eBook, & audiobook Find it: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Goodreads Eighteen-year- old […]