Review: Kiss Crush Collide by Christina Meredith

Kiss Crush Collide
Christina Meredith
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Published: December 27, 2011
Trade Paperback {p.320}
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult
Leah Johnson
Challenge: 100+
Buy the Book: Amazon

Leah has the life most high school girls would kill for—popularity, glowing grades, a rich, athletic boyfriend. So why does she feel like she can’t breathe? And why can’t she stop thinking about the boy from the country club? The one who isn’t her boyfriend, the one that her mother would never, ever approve of, the one that her perfect older sisters would never, ever look at twice. The one who is always looking back at her. Irresistible attraction, smoldering glances, the bad boy and the good girl—Kiss Crush Collide has everything that a steamy forbidden romance should, and then some.

With graceful and honest writing and an electric love story, this is a book about growing into your own skin. For fans of Perfect Chemistry, Sarah Dessen, and John Green.

This book states that it’s for fans of Perfect Chemistry, but I didn’t get that feel from it. Kiss Crush Collide is a very slow starter that didn’t have that much depth. I’m not completely sure if I’m measuring it against Perfect Chemistry because it said it was for its fans, but it didn’t quite measure up.

From the start I was not a fan of Leah’s sister Yorkie or her mother. Yorkie was selfish and her mother was a total pain. Her father wasn’t much better. He completely let his wife run roughshod over everything. I felt he was an unnecessary character in this novel.

It took me a while to complete this book because it just wasn’t holding my interest. I was constantly putting it aside to read something else, and when I was reading this one, I tended to skim the chapters. Neither Leah nor Duffy was all that memorable as characters.

Review: Love and Leftovers by Sarah Tregay

Love and Leftovers
Sarah Tregay
Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books
Published: December 27, 2011
Mass Market Paperback {p.451}
Source: ARC Tour Site
Genre: Young Adult
Martha "Marcie" Iris Foster
Challenge: 100+
Buy the Book: Amazon

My wish
is to fall
cranium over Converse
in dizzy, daydream-worthy
love.

When her parents split, Marcie is dragged from Idaho to a family summerhouse in New Hampshire. She leaves behind her friends, a group of freaks and geeks called the Leftovers, including her emo-rocker boyfriend, and her father.

By the time Labor Day rolls around, Marcie suspects this "vacation" has become permanent. She starts at a new school where a cute boy brings her breakfast and a new romance heats up. But understanding love, especially when you've watched your parents' affections end, is elusive. What does it feel like, really? can you even know it until you've lost it?

Love and Leftovers is a beautifully written story of one girl’s journey navigating family, friends, and love, and a compelling and sexy read that teens will gobble up whole.

I must admit, when I first opened this book I was a bit apprehensive because it’s written in verse. But after I got into it, I hardly even noticed.

This was a truly engaging read. I read the complete book in one night; that’s how caught up in it I was. It being written in verse may have helped too.

Marcie’s parents are recently split and she’s dragged off to New Hampshire to live with her mother while her dad shacks up with his new boyfriend. Back home in Idaho, Marcie was a leftover, not quite fitting in anywhere. Here in New Hampshire, she has caught the eye of one of the most popular boys at school. So of course she basks in that soaking up as much as she can of that attention. Especially when her current Idaho boyfriend, Linus, hardly touches her.

I loved how the author captured the New Hampshire accents. Everytime JD, Marcie’s New Hampshire boyfriend, was speaking I would hear Mark Wahlberg (yes I know he's from Boston) speaking in my head. Weird I know. And “idea-r,” my co-worker who is from Connecticut says that all the time!

I didn’t like how Marcie’s BFF Katie treated her about her relationship with JD. Or how she thought Marcie should tell her every little detail of her life. While Marcie was struggling to find her new pace among the leftovers, I was rooting for her to break free of them and find a new place to belong. That’s just how upset with the rest of them I was for Marcie.

In the end, I was happy with how everything turned out. The style in which Love and Leftovers was written, I think helped to capture Marcie’s voice. I wasn’t ready for her story to end.

Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
Michelle Hodkin
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publish Date: September 27, 2011
Hardcover {p.452}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Mara Dyer, Noah Shaw
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

Mara and her family relocated to Florida after a tragic accident left 3 of her friends dead. Her first day at her new school she meets the notorious Noah Shaw.

The story took some strange twists and turns with Mara and her hallucinations. She doesn’t remember what exactly happened that left her alive and her friends dead, but she tries to get those memories back while trying to have a semi-normal life.

Noah and Mara well written characters, although not very relatable. The creepy things they dealt with seemed a bit far-fetched but not so much so that it would deter me from wanting to see what would happen next.

Noah and his smart comments kept me entertained between breaks in the creepy. Mara’s mother I felt was overbearing and it came across as though she didn’t want Mara to get her memory back. She just wanted to keep her medicated. But that could have just been me.

The book ended on somewhat of a cliffhanger, so I’m sure there’s bound to be a sequel. I will be tuning in to see if what Mara saw at the end was real or fantasy.

Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Lola and the Boy Next Door
Stephanie Perkins
Publisher: Dutton
Publish Date: September 29, 2011
Hardcover {p.354}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Lola Nolan, Cricket Bell
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

Budding designer Lola Nolan doesn’t believe in fashion . . . she believes in costume. The more expressive the outfit -- more sparkly, more fun, more wild -- the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood.

When Cricket -- a gifted inventor -- steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

I loved Cricket! He was quirky and charming in a way all of his own. Not the same fun-loving charm of Etienne, but none the less engaging.
And as always, Perkins manages to paint such descriptive detail of the city, that it feels like one of the lead characters.

Lola and Cricket were the perfect match for one another. Even their style complimented each other. Although at times I did feel as if Lola’s boyfriend Max had a point about Lola and her costumes. I was always wondering who she was going to be today.

The addition of Anna and Etienne was a very welcome surprise. I knew that they would be in this one, but I didn’t know they would be in it so much. They’re still my favorite. I also loved Lola’s BFF Lindsey. She was the perfect side-kick to Lola.

Lola and the Boy Next Door was a very fun, heartwarming read. Of course there were a few tearjerker moments (happy tears), but more laughs than tears.

Review: Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

Chain Reaction
Simone Elkeles
Series: Perfect Chemistry #3
Publisher: Walker Books for Young Adults
Publish Date: August 16, 2011
Hardcover {p.320}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Nikki Cruz, Luis Fuentes
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

Luis Fuentes has always been sheltered from the gang violence that nearly destroyed his brothers’ lives. But that didn’t stop him from taking risks — whether he’s scaling a mountain in the Rockies or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis can’t stop looking for the next thrill. Nikki Cruz lives her life by three rules — boys lie to get their way, don’t trust a boy who says “I love you,” and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Her parents may be from Mexico, but as a doctor’s daughter, she has more in common with her north-side neighbors than the Latino Blood at her school. Then she meets Luis at Alex’s wedding, and suddenly, she’s tempted to break all her rules. Getting Nikki to take a chance on a south sider is Luis’s biggest challenge, until he finds himself targeted by Chuy Soto, the new head of the Latino Blood. When Chuy reveals a disturbing secret about Luis’s family, the youngest Fuentes finds himself questioning everything he’s ever believed to be true. Will his feelings for Nikki be enough to stop Luis from entering a dark and violent world and permanently living on the edge?

I was a little back and forth with this one. Luis seemed to have everything going for him and was going to make it unscathed by the LB. Wrong. Of all the Fuentes brothers, Luis by far made some of the stupidest decisions.

What made it an enjoyable read for me was Luis and Nikki together, and her struggle to get past her trust issues. If it was just Luis and his struggles, I probably wouldn’t have bothered. I didn’t like him as much as I loved his brothers. He seemed to be all over the place emotionally. I know he found out a difficult secret, but really? Did his reaction have to be him losing his mind? Because he was built up in the previous two novels as being so smart, I thought he would have been more logical in how he choose to handle things.

Like the other books in the trilogy, this one is totally steamy. These are some of my favorite YA novels because they are so real when it comes to teens and sex. Some YA novels tend to skip over it like it doesn’t exist, when we all know it does.

Perfect Chemistry is yet another series/trilogy I hate to see end.

Review: Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

Shut Out
Kody Keplinger
Publisher: Poppy
Publish Date: September 5, 2011
Hardcover {p.273}
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Melissa Daniels, Cash Sterling
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

Most high school sports teams have rivalries with other schools. At Hamilton High, it's a civil war: the football team versus the soccer team. And for her part, Lissa is sick of it. Her quarterback boyfriend, Randy, is always ditching her to go pick a fight with the soccer team or to prank their locker room. And on three separate occasions Randy's car has been egged while he and Lissa were inside, making out. She is done competing with a bunch of sweaty boys for her own boyfriend's attention.

Lissa decides to end the rivalry once and for all: she and the other players' girlfriends go on a hookup strike. The boys won't get any action from them until the football and soccer teams make peace. What they don't count on is a new sort of rivalry: an impossible girls-against-boys showdown that hinges on who will cave to their libidos first. And Lissa never sees her own sexual tension with the leader of the boys, Cash Sterling, coming.

Lissa is in a relationship with Randy, who she's not exactly in love with, more like comfortable. Her family loves him, or at least likes him, so I think that's what keeps her with him. So when he goes a bit to far with the rivalry he and the rest of the football team has with the soccer team, she decides a sex strike is in order.

She manages to get all the girlfriends of both teams on board, but what she doesn't expect is for Cash Sterling to be the ringleader for the boys. These two obviously have major chemistry, but neither seems to want to be the first one to open up and tell the other how they feel.

Cash is a really great guy who genuinely cares for Lissa. Whereas Randy, he's just all about sex. He came across as a bit dense and caring only about himself. I was surprised to see Lissa with someone like him. It left me wondering how these two get together in the first place.

As far as secondary characters go, I loved Chloe. She said and did whatever she pleased and didn't care what others said or thought about her. Ellen too was a pleasant surprise. She wasn't at all what I expecting her to be. She was a strong one too, she just didn't express it in the manner in which Chloe chose to.

Another great read by Kody.

Review: Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

Rules of Attraction
Simone Elkeles
Series: Perfect Chemistry #2
Publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers
Publish Date: April 27, 2010
Audio Book {8hrs}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Kiara Westford, Carlos Fuentes
Challenge: 100+, Whisper Stories
Buy the Book: Amazon

When Carlos Fuentes returns to America after living in Mexico for a year, he doesn’t want any part of the life his older brother, Alex, has laid out for him at a high school in Colorado . Carlos likes living his life on the edge and wants to carve his own path—just like Alex did.

Then he meets Kiara Westford. She doesn’t talk much and is completely intimidated by Carlos’ wild ways. As they get to know one another, Carlos assumes Kiara thinks she’s too good for him, and refuses to admit that she might be getting to him. But he soon realizes that being himself is exactly what Kiara needs right now.

Let me start by saying, I loved this book! These Fuentes brothers are the perfect bad boys.

I enjoyed every minute of watching the relationship progress between these two. Carlos so wanted to be a tough guy but never could pull it off with the people closest to him. The only time I feel he achieved his act was when he first moved in with his brother Alex with his attitude toward Brittany.

Kiara is the type of girl you would never suspect Carlos to be with, but she is the girl he truly needs to be with. What started out as him just trying to get under her skin, turned into him not being able to get her out of his head.

I must say that after reading this and Perfect Chemistry, I am hooked on Simone Elkeles. I do believe I'm going to have to buy any and everything with her name on it. She did an amazing job of once again capturing both the male and female points of view. The way the story flows together comes across as a well scripted movie.

And the epilogue is just icing on the cake. I truly hated to see the book end.

Read by Blas Kisic and Roxanne Hernandez
Duration: 8 hours
Brilliance Audio

Narration: A+
The two narrators flowed together seamlessly! I always enjoy it when audiobooks have both male and female readers working together. Both narrators managed to capture both the youthfulness and maturity of the characters.

Review: Epic Fail by Claire LaZebnik

Epic Fail
Claire LaZebnik
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publish Date: August 2, 2011
Trade Paperback {p.295}
Source: Personal Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Elise Benton, Derek Edwards
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

Will Elise’s love life be an epic win or an epic fail?

At Coral Tree Prep in Los Angeles, who your parents are can make or break you. Case in point:

As the son of Hollywood royalty, Derek Edwards is pretty much prince of the school—not that he deigns to acknowledge many of his loyal subjects.

As the daughter of the new principal, Elise Benton isn’t exactly on everyone’s must-sit-next-to-at-lunch list.

When Elise’s beautiful sister catches the eye of the prince’s best friend, Elise gets to spend a lot of time with Derek, making her the envy of every girl on campus. Except she refuses to fall for any of his rare smiles and instead warms up to his enemy, the surprisingly charming social outcast Webster Grant. But in this hilarious tale of fitting in and flirting, not all snubs are undeserved, not all celebrity brats are bratty, and pride and prejudice can get in the way of true love for only so long.

Epic Fail was a light, fun read that kept me engaged throughout. Elise's instant dislike of Derek and how she was always willing to believe the worst of him was a bit off-putting. But that is how the story is supposed to go. Derek on the other hand, I liked from the start. Although Derek seemed rather closed off, upon a closer look it was more a protective mechanism.

Don't take that to mean I disliked Elise, because I didn't. I just did not like her unwillingness to give Derek a chance. Plus her instant trust and acceptance of Webster, who had done nothing to deserve it, but agree with her dislike of Derek.

When I discovered this contemporary take on Pride and Prejudice I was excited to read it. The story stayed true to character, with the annoying little sister Layla and the overly sweet sister Juliana.

Although I did enjoy this quick and breezy read, it felt liked it ended rather abruptly. I found myself turning the pages at the end expecting there to be more to the story. But indeed it was. The whole thing left me with unanswered questions about the progress of Elise and Derek's relationship.

Review: The Darlings in Love by Melissa Kantor

The Darlings in Love
Melissa Kantor
Series: The Darlings Are Forever #2
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Publication Date: January 10, 2012
Kindle {p.320}
Source: Publisher/Net Galley
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Jane, Natalya, Victoria
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

The Darlings have just begun their second semester of ninth grade, and love is in the air. Victoria can hardly believe how perfect life is now that Jack is her boyfriend. Every moment they spend together seems to be better than the last. Meanwhile, Natalya is thrilled and a little nervous when her old crush, Colin, challenges her to a rematch of an unfinished chess game. Could he still like her too?

Jane can't help but feel a tad jealous of her two best friends’ exciting romantic prospects—even if she has sworn off love. Performing in a production of famous love scenes is just about the last thing she wants to do. But when Jane meets her acting partner—sweet, gorgeous Simon—she may just have to give love another chance.

Still, nothing about love is as simple as it seems. Victoria’s plan to surprise Jack with a romantic night out on Valentine’s Day goes disastrously wrong, and just when things start heating up between Natalya and Colin, Natalya discovers that Colin has been hiding something important from her. Even as Jane falls hard for Simon, she has to wonder: what if he’s too good to be true?

In the face of both joy and heartbreak, the Darlings know that they'll always have each other. Boys come and go, but the Darlings are still forever.

Each of the Darlings try to navigate relationships with the opposite sex in this novel. Each brings their own individual take on relationships. I liked all three girls, which was suprising because I thought at least one of them I would not be to my liking. But that was so not the case.

Jane had the misfortune of falling for the wrong guy not once but twice. Who can't relate to that, right? Natayla seemed to be finding love once again after letting it slip through her fingers before. Victoria, the only Darling with a boyfriend, seemed to be the only one giving in that relationship.

The guys in their life left a lot to be desired, but the girls had an unbreakable friendship. Kantor did a wonderful job of capturing that. This novel truly is about girls and their friendships. The message of these novel was clearly that guys may come and go in our lives, but Darlings are forever.

Review: Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

Forbidden
Tabitha Suzuma
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date:  June 28, 2011
Trade Paperback {p.454}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Maya Whitely, Lochan Whitely
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

Seventeen-year-old Lochan and sixteen-year-old Maya have always felt more like friends than siblings. Together they have stepped in for their alcoholic, wayward mother to take care of their three younger siblings. As defacto parents to the little ones, Lochan and Maya have had to grow up fast. And the stress of their lives—and the way they understand each other so completely—has also also brought them closer than two siblings would ordinarily be. So close, in fact, that they have fallen in love. Their clandestine romance quickly blooms into deep, desperate love. They know their relationship is wrong and cannot possibly continue. And yet, they cannot stop what feels so incredibly right. As the novel careens toward an explosive and shocking finale, only one thing is certain: a love this devastating has no happy ending.

This was an interesting read. I enjoyed the overall story. The author manages to handle a taboo subject in a manor that is very well written. As a reader, even though you know incest is wrong, you still feel sorry for them.

I spent the majority of the story trying to figure out Lochan. Although all his siblings seemed as normal as possible given their situation, something about Lochan eluded me the entire time. He seemed to always have some sort of internal struggle and not just with his feelings for Maya.

The ending was very emotional and totally unexpected. I know what they were doing was wrong, but what they received for their troubles was way too harsh. I found myself feeling resentment toward their younger brother and mother for setting all this into motion.

I knew going into this read that there was not going to be a happy ending because their love could never be. I was so upset by the time I finished this book, I literally did not even want to look at it. That's how strongly I felt about the punishment these kids received.

Ms. Suzuma did a fantastic job of drawing me in.

Review: Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Perfect Chemistry
Simone Elkeles
Series: Perfect Chemistry #1
Publisher: Walker Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: December 23, 2008
Audio Book {10hrs}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Brittany Ellis, Alex Fuentes
Challenge: 100+, YA Romance
Buy the Book: Amazon

When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created “perfect” life is about to unravel before her eyes. She’s forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, and he is about to threaten everything she's worked so hard for—her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend, and the secret that her home life is anything but perfect. Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But soon Alex realizes Brittany is a real person with real problems, and suddenly the bet he made in arrogance turns into something much more. In a passionate story about looking beneath the surface, Simone Elkeles breaks through the stereotypes and barriers that threaten to keep Brittany and Alex apart.

Brittany and Alex are two totally different people from two different worlds. But in their senior chemistry class they are partnered together. Alex makes it his mission to get under Brittany's skin. Brittany struggles to keep him off her mind and focus her attention on her boyfriend.

This book was so well written, and showed a very realistic view of life in a gang. I loved both Brittany and Alex. Alex is a part of a gang but wants better for not only himself but his family.

Getting to know Alex, you learn that being in a gang is not something he truly wanted, but something he felt he had to do to protect his family. Outwardly he appears to be this bad boy, but underneath it all he's a really good guy caught up in a bad situation. It goes to show that you can't always judge a person on their outward appearance.

His interaction with Brittany was great great! I loved every minute of his teasing and flustering her. You can see why Brittany fell for his bad boy ways.

The storyline flowed smoothly and kept me so very engaged from start to finish. Elkeles provided such vivid detail that made you feel as if you were living the story instead of reading it. This definitely won't be my last book by Elkeles.

Read by Roxanne Hernandez and Blas Kisic
Duration: 10 hours
Brilliance Audio

Narration: A+
The two narrators flowed together seamlessly! I always enjoy it when audiobooks have both male and female readers working together. Both narrators managed to capture both the youthfulness and maturity of the characters.

Review: Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss
Stephanie Perkins
Publisher: Dutton
Publication Date:  December 2, 2010
Hardcover {p.372}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Anna Oliphant, Etienne St. Clair
Challenge: 100+

Anna can't wait for her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a good job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. So she's not too thrilled when her father unexpectedly ships her off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair, the perfect boy. The only problem? He's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her crush back home. Will a year of romantic near-misses end in the French kiss Anna awaits?

From page one, I was drawn into this story. Anna is the average teen that everyone can relate to, who is crushing on a guy and hating to be separated from him. But indeed she must, because he parents are sending her to Paris for a year. Oh the horror!

All the characters are so well written that they come alive on the pages. I really enjoyed Anna's Paris friends, especially Rashmi. She wasn't a large character, but she was fundamental. It felt like I was along on the journey with Anna and her friends. I enjoyed it so much that I want to go back to high school just to be shipped off to boarding school.

Etienne is the greatest guy. He struggled a lot with his feelings for Anna and staying true to his girlfriend. That made him all the more endearing that he didn't drop his girlfriend at the first sight of Anna.

I had heard so many great things about this novel that I had to give it a try, and I'm so glad that I did. It was a truly amazing read. I so look forward to reading much, much more from Stephanie. This is the kind of fun-loving young adult novels that I enjoy.

Review: What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen

What Happened to Goodbye
Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers
Publication Date: May 10, 2011
Audio Book {10 hrs}
Source: Public Library
Genre: Young Adult
Characters: Maclean Sweet
Challenge: 100+, Whisper Stories

Since her parents' bitter divorce, McLean and her dad, a restaurant consultant, have been on the move-four towns in two years. Estranged from her mother and her mother's new family, McLean has followed her dad in leaving the unhappy past behind. And each new place gives her a chance to try out a new persona: from cheerleader to drama diva. But now, for the first time, McLean discovers a desire to stay in one place and just be herself, whoever that is. Perhaps Dave, the guy next door, can help her find out.

What Happened to Goodbye was all about how Maclean was dealing with the divorce of her parents.

The characters in this novel were described in such vivid detail that they felt like real people. I couldn't help but to be drawn into Maclean's struggle with the mother. As a reader, I understood how Maclean felt and truly sympathized with her.

I'm not sure if this book was supposed to be a young adult romance with the ineraction with Dave and Maclean. If so, it fell short on that aspect. The connection between the two of them was secondary and more of an afterthought thrown in at the very end of the book.

Every other aspect of this novel was great, and the overall story could have done without the lackluster romance of Dave and Maclean.

Read by Meredith HagnerDuration: 10 hoursPenguin Audio Narration: A