FOUR: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth | Book Review

FOUR: A Divergent Collection by Veronica Roth

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Reading Group Rating: Young Adult

Personal Rating: 5 Stars

Given Summary: Two years before Beatrice Prior made her choice, the sixteen-year-old son of Abnegation’s faction leader did the same. Tobias’s transfer to Dauntless is a chance to begin again. Here, he will not be called the name his parents gave him. Here, he will not let fear turn him into a cowering child.

Newly christened “Four,” he discovers during initiation that he will succeed in Dauntless. Initiation is only the beginning, though; Four must claim his place in the Dauntless hierarchy. His decisions will affect future initiates as well as uncover secrets that could threaten his own future—and the future of the entire faction system.

Two years later, Four is poised to take action, but the course is still unclear. The first new initiate who jumps into the net might change all that. With her, the way to righting their world might become clear. With her, it might become possible to be Tobias once again.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth comes a companion volume to the worldwide bestselling DIVERGENT series, told from the per-spective of the immensely popular character Tobias. The four pieces included here—THE TRANSFER, THE INITIATE, THE SON, and THE TRAITOR—plus three additional exclusive scenes, give readers an electrifying glimpse into the history and heart of Tobias, and set the stage for the epic saga of the DIVERGENT trilogy.


Cover: When I first purchased this book I thought the cover was so cool.  It's Chicago with the ferris wheel that Tobias climbs in Divergent even though he's afraid of heights.  I wasn't 100% sure why it was on fire, maybe just to show how scary something like that is to Tobias or just because the Dauntless symbol is flames.  However, after reading Four I'm not a huge fan of the cover.  The ferris wheel scene isn't mentioned in the book at all so there is really no point for it to be on the cover.  I think whoever came up with this cover could have come up with something that had to do more with the book itself and not just Tobias.  Maybe just flames for Dauntless or flames burning the Abnegation symbol or some other way to resemble his fears.

My Review: I have a thing for stories from multiple perspectives and I definitely favor the male perspective.  I don't know why, I just do.  So I was excited when I bought this novel to read from Tobias' point of view.  However, I didn't really like the ending of the Divergent series so my excitement to read this book wavered a little.  I did really enjoy Four though.  It was interesting to get inside of Tobias' head and see who he was before he met Tris.  I liked that this book was almost a prequel to the main series.  You get to learn how Dauntless was when Tobias was going through initiation versus Tris' initiation.  I just loved being inside Tobias' head because he was such an introvert in Divergent so it was nice to get to know him better.  I loved how in the back of the book there were three scenes from Divergent in Tobias' point of view.  Just three little scenes, not the whole book.  And how within Four these events had already happened, but they weren't elaborated on and then they were put in as little extras.

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After by Anna Todd | Book Review

After by Anna Todd

Reading Group Rating: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars 

Given Summary: There was the time before Tessa met Hardin, and then there’s everything AFTER... Life will never be the same. 

Tessa is a good girl with a sweet, reliable boyfriend back home. She’s got direction, ambition, and a mother who’s intent on keeping her that way. 

But she’s barely moved into her freshman dorm when she runs into Hardin. With his tousled brown hair, cocky British accent, tattoos, and lip ring, Hardin is cute and different from what she’s used to. 

But he’s also rude—to the point of cruelty, even. For all his attitude, Tessa should hate Hardin. And she does—until she finds herself alone with him in his room. Something about his dark mood grabs her, and when they kiss it ignites within her a passion she’s never known before. 

He’ll call her beautiful, then insist he isn’t the one for her and disappear again and again. Despite the reckless way he treats her, Tessa is compelled to dig deeper and find the real Hardin beneath all his lies. He pushes her away again and again, yet every time she pushes back, he only pulls her in deeper. 

Tessa already has the perfect boyfriend. So why is she trying so hard to overcome her own hurt pride and Hardin’s prejudice about nice girls like her? 

Unless…could this be love?


Cover: The cover of this novel is covered in dark blue-green clouds.  The clouds show that a storm is coming and it almost stands as a warning.  However, rain itself is very cleansing and shows rebirth.  So maybe this cover is saying that although a big storm is coming and it may destroy some things, there is also a new start on its way afterwards.

My Review: I did read this novel on Wattpad so I know what happens.  I think that's why I was a little hesitant to to read it again.  It also makes it a little harder to write this review because I have to focus on just this part of the story, even though I know what happens next.
The story itself is great.  I like that they fight and struggle to understand each other, but still love each other.  I mean obviously Hardin is hiding something so he sometimes acts like it and gets mad seemingly out of no where.
I think you also have to give a lot of credit to Anna Todd for this story.  She wrote it chapter by chapter and uploaded everyday (for the most part).  She wasn't able to go back and change anything and she didn't change that much when it was printed into a real book.  It just shows hoe good of a writer she actually is, no matter what people may say about her writing a FanFiction online.
I did notice that during Tessa's first meeting of Ken Scott he is said to have brown eyes, but then later he has green eyes.  I also didn't like how much Tessa yelled.  She's always yelling at Hardin.  Maybe it's because I can't relate to that, I don't scream at people even when I'm mad so I just couldn't take it seriously when she was yelling at Hardin all those times.

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Christina Lauren | Author Appreciation

Okay, so I'm not going to lie to you guys, I didn't have/make time to read a book this week.  It just went by too fast and all of a sudden it's Tuesday.  I thought about writing a review about a book I've already read, but then I thought that that would be cheating and if I start doing that I might continue to do that and I would never reach my GoodReads Reading Challenge (I'm trying to read 50 books in 2015).  So I have decided to write an Author Appreciation post instead.  Today I appreciate Christina Lauren.

The Bio from their website:

Yes, there are two of us! Lauren (on the left) and Christina (on the right).

Christina Lauren is the combined pen name of long-time writing partners/besties/soulmates/brain-twins Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings. The coauthor duo writes both Young Adult and Adult Fiction, and together has produced ten New York Times bestselling novels. Their books have been translated into 28 languages.

So basically these two women met over the internet, wrote a Twilight fanfic-turned-novel together, and now continue to write fantastic novels together.  They have two series between all ten adult books; The Beautiful Series and the Wild Seasons.  However, in their last novel, Beautiful Secret, the two series crossed courses.  

Once you read a few of their novels you do notice a pattern in their writing: Boy and girl meet, boy and girl have sex numerous times, boy and girl finally admit they love each other, boy and girl get into a fight, boy and girl break up, boy and girl make up, boy and girl live happily ever after.  However, at the same time each story is very different.  I actually love that they are able to take a similar storyline and create multiple different stories.  It reminds us that no two people go through the same situation.

I also love that all of the characters are friends.  It makes it fun when you're reading a novel about Sara and Max and you wonder what's going on with Will and Hanna since you left off in their novel.  And yes, you get a little bit of information from Sara and Max's point of view, but you also know there is stuff they don't know and can't share.  It's also interesting because if there is someone single in the novel you wonder when that person is going to get a novel and what that story is going to be.

I shared these books with a friend from school and we would be up texting each other about them really late at night.  Talking about our favorite characters, our favorite cute scenes, and our favorite funny scenes.  Christina Lauren has a very impressive gift of being able to have these romantic novels that contain a lot of sex, but still has moments where the characters are just normal people, joking around with friends or being supper cute with their partners without having sex (Sometimes that overlaps, though)

They also have a Young Adult novel Sublime that is published and The House which comes out in October.  Sublime is unlike any other book I've read.  It is a romantic novel, but in a way that it can be for young adults.

Even their website is fun.  It contains extra writings and sneak peeks.  A bunch of little things to hold you over when you're going through withdrawals and not so patiently waiting for the next book to be published.  I do wish there was a "Coming Soon" section, but I'll take what I can get!

And they're on Wattpad!  These girls do it all!  They have one story on the website and it's not super long, but it is super good.

Christina Lauren is such a talented author (it's confusing because it's two people, but because they have one pen-name it's singular pronouns and stuff) that can make every story make you wish it was your story.  I can read a Christina Lauren book in a day, no matter what size.  They just captivate me and I have to keep reading.  Then, when I finish, I wish I wasn't.

Thank you Christina Lauren and keep doing what you do!

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How I Decorated My Graduation Cap | DIY

I am a High School Graduate!!!  It's still a very crazy concept for me!  However I'm going to backstop and show you how, like many others, I decorated my graduation cap for the big day.

I started by searching Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr for inspiration.

This is the one I ended up choosing.  It's themed as the Marauder's Map from Harry Potter. 

 Next I found some things from online that I wanted to use as footprints and castles (I decided I wanted it to look like I was walking from one "castle" aka school to another.  Like High School to College.)

I used this to trace because I liked the font.

I used this as a way to trace footprints and the banner to write my name in.  When you print it out the foot prints don't move, obviously.

I used this castle for my college because I thought it was a little fancier.

And I used this castle for my high school.

After I had everything prepared it was time to decorate!

I started with a piece of paper that was a yellowy color.  It looked like aged paper.

I found the center by drawing a line diagonally from one corner to another.  Then I did the same with the other two corners.  Where they cross over each other is the center.

I needed the center to cut out a circle for the little bump that's in the middle of the cap.

Next I took some gem stone tape and put it around the edge of the paper.  It didn't completely fit which was kind of annoying.

To redraw the writing and castles and banners and footprints I taped the paper they were all printed out on to a window in my room.  Then I put the yellowed paper over it and the sun shone through so I could use it as a stencil.  I traced it in pencil and went over it in Sharpies.

And this is the finished project!  My name is the one walking from castle to castle.  The name on the bottom is of a boy in my grade who passed away in October from cancer.  We all wrote his names on our caps and wore green ribbons as a tribute to him.

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Very Good Lives by J.K. Rowling | Book Review

Very Good Lives: The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination by J.K. Rowling

Reading Group Rating: Anyone & Everyone

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: When J.K. Rowling was invited to deliver the commencement address at Harvard University, she chose to speak to the graduating class about two topics very close to her heart: the benefits of failure and the importance of imagination.  Having the courage to fail, she said, is so vital to a good life as any conventional measure of success; imagining ourselves into the place of another-particularly someone less fortunate than ourselves-is a uniquely human quality to be nurtured at all costs.

The stories Rowling shared and the provocative questions she asked of those young graduates have since inspired countless others to consider what it means to live a "good life."  Now in print for the first time, her words serve as both a comfort and a call to arms for anyone-of any age- who finds themselves at a turning point.  In daring to take a risk, and perhaps fail, and by harnessing the power of our imaginations, we can all begin to live less cautiously and, in doing so, become more open to the opportunities life has to offer.

"As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters."

-SENECA

Sales for Very Good Lives will benefit Lumos, a charity origination founded by J.K. Rowling that works to transfer the lives of disadvantaged children, and university-wide financial aid at Harvard University.  

Cover: The cover is simple, yet still a little cartoony.  There are cartoon drawing throughout the entire book so I think having drawn words on the cover really ties it together.

My Review: I read this book in fifteen minutes and I felt a gained enough knowledge to last me a lifetime.  It's amazing to me that words can do that, that words can open up so many things to the people who are willing to read them.  Now, obviously J.K. Rowling has a way with words and the ability to make them sound magical, however I could completely relate to her advice.  Failure and imagination and incredibly important aspects to lee with you at all times.  Failure reminds you that you're human and that you're not invisible.  But imagination can give you a reason to believe you are.  You can be invincible if you remember that it's okay to fail as long as you can rebuild from it.  Live your life without the fear of failure because you are going to fail, and you will all live very good lives. 

To me, this book, along with books like The Last Lecture and Oh! The Places You'll Go are coffee table books or books you would give as a graduation present.

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Beautiful Secret | Book Review

Beautiful Secret by Christina Lauren

Reading Group Rating: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5

Given Summary: When Ruby Miller’s boss announces he’s sending her on an extended business trip to New York City, she’s shocked. As one of the best and brightest young engineers in London, she knows she’s professionally up to the task. The part that’s throwing her is where she’ll be spending a month up close and personal working alongside—and staying in a hotel with—Niall Stella, her firm’s top urban planning executive and The Hottest Man Alive. Despite her ongoing crush, Ruby is certain Niall barely knows she’s alive…until their flirty overnight flight makes him sit up and take notice.

Not one for letting loose and breaking rules, recently divorced Niall would describe himself as hopeless when it comes to women. But even he knows outgoing California-girl Ruby is a breath of fresh air. Once she makes it her mission to help the sexy Brit loosen his tie, there’s no turning back. Thousands of miles from London, it’s easy for the lovers to play pretend. But when the trip is over, will the relationship they’ve built up fall down?

Cover: This cover is actually different from the other novels in The Beautiful Series.  Usually the whole cover is black and white and only the title is in color.  This cover looks more like the novellas in the series and The Wild Seasons covers.  Other than that though it's a typical Christina Lauren cover with a body and no face.  I actually like the French cover of this novel a little bit better because the british flag is on his suit and not over his mouth. 

My Review:  Christina Lauren are back with a new novel to add to their brag worthy collection.  And this one is the first novel to bring together both The Beautiful Series and The Wild Seasons.  It also introduces London as a more major character than she was in Dirty Rowdy Thing so it will be interesting to see who her character becomes!  (P.S. There is a London and Luke (if his name sounds familiar it's because he is Mia's ex) book on it's way, but first Lola and Oliver!!!  I'm so excited!)  In a way this novel was just like Christina Lauren's others:  Boy and girl hook up, boy and girl say they love each other, boy and girl get in fight, boy and girl break up, boy and girl get back together.  However, like always, the authors are able to put a spin on Ruby and Niall's story and it's fabulous!  Ruby is so funny and Niall is so serious, together they make quite the pair.  They had so many funny moments together.  However, my favorite part of the entire novel is at the end when Ruby goes to Niall's apartment.  She has a huge speech to say that she wants to get back together, but she ends up saying "I just really really love you."  I DIED!!  It was the cutest thing ever!  This story was fantastic and I think it was the perfect way to intertwine the two series and introduce London as a future character.

Have any of you read this novel?  What did you think?

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Third Grade Letter to Myself

A letter came for me in the mail last Thursday.  A letter that I wrote to myself in third grade.  A letter that I thought I would share with you because so much has changed in the past nine years, but some things are still the same.  So here it is:

January 25, 2006
Dear Grown-up Juliann,
I am in the 3rd grade at ----- School.  It is an elementary school, pre k to 5th grade.  My friends are ES, JP, CC, LK, C&JJ.  My friends are out of this world.  I have many other friends too.  I live on ----.  My teachers are Mrs. T, Mrs. W, and Miss S.  I'm going to do a play called The Boston Tea Party.  I am 9 years old.  I love to play soccer, lacrosse, baseball, figure skating, and swimming.  My favorite authors are Lemony Snicket, Ronald Dahl, and J.K.Rowling.  I am 51 inches.  My favorite candy is Now and Laters and Rolos.  My favorite holiday is Christmas.  I also like Halloween.  I like puppies and dogs as my favorite animal.  When I grow up I want to live in ------- like I do now.  My favorite singer is Kelly Clarkson.  I like Fallout Boy too.  My favorite colors are greens and blues.  I love to read.  I am reading Matilda. I like the Red Sox and the Pats.  I want to live in Boston because the sing says, "Boston You're My Home."  My cousins are weird too.  My friend E and I (when we were little) painted ourselves when we were in bathing suits.
Sincerely,
Juliann

Receiving and reading this letter made me laugh and cringe and reflect on everything that my life has been since third grade.  Some of the friends I talked about are still my best friends and some I only say hello to in passing these days.  I only play tennis now and that wasn't even on my radar when I was in third grade.  I still love to read, which you guys probably could have guessed.  The fact that I made sure to say I have more friends than I listed is a little ridiculous.  Also, the fact hat I said my cousins are just as weirs as I am without any talk of cousins beforehand is so random.  My reasoning for wanting to live in Boston is valid though.  HAHA No it's not.  I know exactly what I was talking about in that last sentence memory because my mom has a picture of it.  I don't remember the actual day.  This writing is just a random list of things.  However, it's fun to read because it was written by me for me.  It reminds me of where my mindset was in third grade as opposed to where I am now.

Did any of you write letters in elementary school to your future self?  Have any of you received yours back?  Wasn't it fun to read?

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Apolonia by Jamie McGuire | Book Review

Apolonia by Jamie McGuire

Reading Group Rating: Slightly Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: “They killed me, but I survived.”

Three years after Rory Riordan foiled her own murder, she still trusts no one. Not Dr. Z, the eccentric college professor who has taken her under his wing, not Benji, the endearing, attractive classmate who insists on following her around, and certainly not Cy, the beautifully dark and mysterious boy who sits on the first row in Dr. Z’s Astrobiology class and asks far too many questions.

When Rory witnesses Cy being abducted by soldiers in the middle of the night, she finds herself submersed in a world that holds even more secrets than she could imagine--even darker secrets than her own.

Cover: The cover of this novel is really interesting.  It's very busy in a very artistic way, every time you look at it you seem to see something new.  It's got the code, rocks, colors, and much more.

My Review: I loved this novel!  You guys all know I love Jamie McGuire, but this is not The Beautiful Series at all.  I have read Red Hill so I know she likes to also write about sci-fi stuff, but this book went above all of my expectations.  I loved it.  I loved how she was able to combine a teenage tragedy with a teenage romance and saving the world.  It's quite the page turner because you don't know which boy Rory is going to chose, why her parents and best friend were murdered, or if she was going to survive to the end of the novel.  I would definitely recommend this novel to any of my friends because it covers so many topics.  There's something for everyone inside one, 228 page book.  

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We Were Liars by E. Lockhart | Book Review

We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

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Reading Group Rating: Teens

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5

Given Summary: A beautiful and distinguished family.  A private island.  A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.  A group of four friends-the Liars-whose friendship turns destructive.  A revolution.  An accident.  A secret.  Lies upon lies.  True love.  The truth. 

Cover: The cover depicts three people.  Two boys and I girl.  I think that this is Johnny, Mirren, and Gat, but it very well could be Cadence.  I think it's the last scene with the three characters before they go off into heaven or wherever you go after you die.

Summary: Find out why I no longer write summaries 

My Review: This book threw me off.  I was not expecting that plot twist!  With every page I had a new question, but ghosts (or whatever you want to consider them) was not what I was expecting.  For all of the money in the world I wouldn't have expected this to turn into a supernatural novel.  And that's something I really liked about it!  I don't even know how to explain this novel because some people may even say that this isn't supernatural, that people have had experiences with spirits that are maybe a little similar to this... I really liked it.  This novel shows how destructive having a lot of money can be.  We all want to say we own a private island, but at what cost are you willing to own that island?  Would you want to be responsible for the reputation of the name connected to that money?  Would you want your parents to be divorced because your dad couldn't live up to that name?  Would you want your mom to tell you to be close to your grandfather so that you become the heir?  Money does weird things to people when they have too much of it.  But it's also hard to make a change.  The kids try to destroy the house, but they end up killing each other.  It makes you wonder what they could have done to get the message across that their family needed to change. 

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After Dark by M. Pierce | Book Review

After Dark by M. Pierce

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Reading Group Rating: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 stars 

Given Summary: Matt Sky is trying to return to normal, having faked his death and come back to life. He and Hannah move back in together, and Matt attempts to put his demons to rest as they strive to grow their relationship into something durable and honest. But as the two become more and more entangled, and the heat between them intensifies in all the best possible ways, Matt's desire for Hannah ignites cravings he has kept at bay for a long, long time.

Hannah finally has the life she's always wanted: she's pursuing her career as a literary agent at Granite Wing Agency, she is writing her first novel, and she is living with her hot, passionate lover. But as Matt and Hannah explore a new intimacy, Hannah finds that there are parts of Matt-dark, wild, uncontrollable parts-that he has yet to show her…that he has yet to show anyone.

Under the surface of Matt and Hannah's domestic bliss, deeply buried secrets burn, and all of a sudden, the least foreseen obstacle threatens to shatter everything they've worked so hard for.

Cover: This is the third book in the Night Owl series and if you line all three books up against each other the ribbon connects and weaves through all three covers.  I love this feature of the books.  I think it's really cool and creative.

Summary: Find out why I no longer write summaries 

My Review: This is the third and final novel in the Night Owl trilogy!!  It was a little sad to see it come to an end, but I did like how it ended.  Everything just kind of fell into place.  Well, minus Seth of course (*cries*).  This novel dealt with some regret on Matt's side as he wasn't on the best terms with Seth because of what happened with him and Hannah back in Last Light.  It majorly discussed family and what you're willing to do for your family.  Nate flew to Matt and tried to help him instead of going to Seth's funeral.  Matt adopts Chrissy's baby, even without Hannah's permission, because he knows that's the right thing to do.  Hannah find the perfect house with Matt in mind.  Hannah also does some new things sexually that she never imagined doing before meeting Matt (*blushes*).  A lot of the book is everyone trying to make Matt happy, but he does suffer from some serious anxiety so little things that maybe wouldn't bother us so much have a huge impact on him.  I love that they got married!!!!  They went through a lot together and they didn't know each other for years and years like some people do, but honestly who else were they supposed to end up with of not each other?  Matt, at least, would have been single forever.  It takes a very special girl to put up with everything he put Hannah through.  I'm saddened to see this trilogy end, but I'm excited to see what m.pierce comes up with next!
P.S. I totally think m.pierce is a woman...what do you think?

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Bleed Like Me by C. Desir | Book Review

Bleed Like Me by C. Desir 

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Reading Group Rating: Sensitive Subject Matter (drugs and cutting)

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Seventeen-year-old Amelia Gannon (just ?Gannon? to her friends) is invisible to almost everyone in her life. To her parents, to her teachers?even her best friend, who is more interested in bumming cigarettes than bonding. Some days the only way Gannon knows she is real is by carving bloody lines into the flesh of her stomach.

Then she meets Michael Brooks, and for the first time, she feels like she is being seen to the core of her being. Obnoxious, controlling, damaged, and addictive, he inserts himself into her life until all her scars are exposed. Each moment together is a passionate, painful relief.

But as the relationship deepens, Gannon starts to feel as if she?s standing at the foot of a dam about to burst. She?s given up everything and everyone in her life for him, but somehow nothing is enough for Brooks?until he poses the ultimate test.

Bleed Like Me is a piercing, intimate portrayal of the danger of a love so obsessive it becomes its own biggest threat.

Cover: The cover of this novel shows a heart bleeding into another.  The blood refers to the cutting that occurs in the novel and the hearts represent love.  After reading the novel you may be able to think of the cover as asking whether or not you would bleed for the one you love or how far are you willing to go?  That seems to be a theme in C. Desir's books.

Summary: Find out why I no longer write summaries

My Review: Again, C. Desir gives us a book that makes us think about ourselves and can spur great discussions.  If Gannon didn't feel completely invisible to the world would she have ended up cutting herself and running away with Brooks?  But at the same time it seems like she isolated herself.  She was afraid to have friends because she was afraid to bring them to her house.  The thing is, if you become friends with someone you can explain to them that your house isn't the hang out house because your little brothers are crazy and honestly, a real friend won't care.  You guys will figure out another place to spend time.  It's important to be honest with your friends, but also your family.  If you feel like you need more time to be with your parents, or just be noticed by them, make it known.  It's important to be happy in life and your loved ones should understand that, it should never get to the point where you have to hurt yourself to feel something.  Cutting is a serious issue and if that is something you are doing or contemplating, you need to find someone to confide in.  There is always someone who is willing to listen to you, I promise.  This novel deals with so many topics: family, lack of friends, self-harm, drugs, obsession, addiction.  All very serious issues that we all have different opinions of.  I think C. Desir does a fantastic job of showing how they can all go hand in hand and quickly escalate into a very bad situation.  Bleed Like Me is the perfect book to exemplify the "it can't happen to me attitude" that I think any young adult can learn something from.   

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Fault Line by C. Desir | Book Review

Fault Line by C. Desir

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Reading Group Rating: Sensitive Subject Matter (Rape)

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Ben could date anyone he wants, but he only has eyes for the new girl—sarcastic, free-spirited Ani. Luckily for Ben, Ani wants him, too. She’s everything Ben could ever imagine. Everything he could ever want.

But that all changes after the party. The one Ben misses. The one Ani goes to alone.

Now Ani isn’t the girl she used to be, and Ben can’t sort out the truth from the lies. What really happened, and who is to blame?

Ben wants to help Ani, but the more she pushes him away, the more he wonders if there’s anything he can do to save the girl he loves

Cover: The cover of this book shows a lighter.  Obviously the lighter has very important meaning in this novel.  Ani has to get a lighter surgically removed from her after she is raped.  But more than that, a lighter produced fire and fire can spread and destroy everything in its path.  The lighter shows how quickly things can change, like a domino effect.  After Ani is raped everything changes faster and faster.

Summary: Find out why I no longer write summaries

My Review: This book was unlike anything I've ever really read before.  I loved it.  I liked that it could be a book that you read in class or in a book club and have a really sophisticated conversation about it.  What is your fault line?  What has to be the final straw to break you?  How long can you keep a secret for a loved one?  It takes Ben maybe a little too long to call Ani's mom and tell her what happened at the party months before.  He gives up everything for a girl who seems to no longer love him.  And Ani, something terrible happens to her and she seems to self-distruct.  She sleeps around with random people to prove to herself that she still as control over her body.  She makes her own choices, even if they're aren't the best choices.  We may not agree with any of the choices either of these characters made, but at the same time who are we to say anything?  Everyone reacts to every situation differently.  I hope none of you have ever been in either of these situations and if you have maybe you want to explain how you reacted, but if you haven't then you don't know how you would react and I hope you never will.  One of the most interesting/important parts of the novel (in my opinion) is when Ben says something like 'I don't share my girlfriend' and Ani replies that he already has.  Ani is clearly hurting and needs help, but doesn't want to ask for it.  She's afraid of how her mom will react and what she'd have to do after the truth is told to her mom.  Ani needs someone to tell for her, even though she said she didnt want anyone to.  Part of me thinks that she was seeing how far she could push Ben until he would break his promise and rat her out to her mom.  She sleeps with random kids at school: nothing.  She tries to seduce his best friend: nothing.  She goes for the percy teacher:  bingo.  That's the final straw for Ben.  What would be the final straw for you?

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Dirty Rowdy Thing by Christina Lauren | Book Review

Dirty Rowdy Thing by Christina Lauren 

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Reading Group Rating: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Unlike her best friends Mia and Lola, Harlow Vega has a reputation for always being up for a fling.  Twelve drunk and wild hours in Sin City married to ridiculously hot and rugged Canadian fisherman Finn Roberts, who (no surprise) is amazing with his muscular hands--and his lips and the rest of his body--was just her speed.

But it was just a think: dirty, rowdy, and easy...until Finn turns up in her hometown on business.  Harlow's not ready to be tied down, but when the whole crew is hanging out together, there's just something about him.  It may not be love (hell, it may not even be like), but their exciting, tension-filled hookups provide the perfect distraction from the scary life changes they're both facing -- challenges neither is sure how to handle, let alone fix.  One night together turns into two, and soon Finn's mysterious business trip has gone on for weeks.  They agreed on the sex--wild, wet, kinky-- but now their border-crossing booty call is starting to feel like the real deal.  And for two people used to being in control, taking the ultimate plunge by falling in love feels a lot more like fat out falling.

Cover: Finn.  Standoff pose with his arms crossed in front of his chest.  Classic "don't come near me, don't talk to me, don't even look at me."  And of course, only half a face.

Summary:  Finn's in San Diego.  He seems to be here for Oliver's comic book store opening, but it's more than that.  His brothers and dad sent him to meet with the producers who want to make a reality show out of their fishing business because he's the only one who doesn't like the idea.  Harlow's mom was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer, same thing that Finn's mom died from.  They both need each other.  Finn needs someone to confide in and Harlow needs a distraction.  But distraction quickly leads to real feelings and neither of them know how to handle it.  They stop hanging out together for a little bit before realizing that it's okay to admit to each other that they care.  Harlow tries to help Finn out.  She asks a director friend if he would fix up Finn's boats and use them in his movie instead of Finn having to go on a reality show.  Finn gets really mad at Harlow for going behind his back and giving so much personal information to someone Finn doesn't know.  He goes back to Canada without saying goodbye to Harlow.  She starts working for that director and goes to Canada with him to help film.  She goes to talk to Finn, but he gives her the cold shoulder and barely talks to her.  He calls Mia that night to ask for advice and she basically tells him to run to Harlow's hotel, which he does, obviously, he's not stupid.  They end up together and Harlow makes a comment about Finn having her as his hot wife.  He can't believe that their on the same page and even though its not right away, they both want to remarry each other.

My Review: Oh these two...They're both the type to keep things to themselves and try to fix everything alone.  How they managed to be good together is beyond me, but love is love.  Harlow is the kind of girl who tries to surprise people with her ability to fix things, but doesn't always realize that some people just need to talk about their problems, they doth need her to go behind their backs and try to fix it.  I think a lot of people can relate to that.  Finn doesn't tell people anything until it's certain and already achieved.  People, myself included, can relate to that as well.  They hate each other, but they love each other.  Obviously, they're going to end up together.  This is just another excellent read from Christina Lauren.

This book does kind of end vaguely.  They're together and obviously I love that, but what's next?  Harlow is working in Canada at the moment so she can be with Finn while she's there, but what about after that?  Her life is in San Diego and Finn is tied to Canada with the show and his business.  In the book he does ask Ansel how the long distance thing worked for him and Mia which leads you to believe that he would be willing to do that, but for how long?  Ansel was ready to move once Mia left Paris, but he had to stay until the end of his case.  Finn's job isn't just going to end.  Harlow is going to have to move to Canada and I just can't see that.  I have a feeling that Christina Lauren will answer this in an upcoming novel.  I think that Lola and Oliver are going to get a story and if it's not in that there will be a novella probably.  Or it might even be in Beautiful Secret because that's about Niall and Ruby and Ruby was supposed to be Lola and London's roommate.  Who knows when it;s going to be cleared up, but I have a good feeling it will be somehow.

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Sweet Filthy Boy by Christina Lauren | Book Review

Sweet Filthy Boy by Christina Lauren 

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Reading Group Rating: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: One-night stands are supposed to be with someone convenient, or wickedly persuasive, or regrettable. They aren’t supposed to be with someone like him.

But after a crazy Vegas weekend celebrating her college graduation—and terrified of the future path she knows is a cop-out—Mia Holland makes the wildest decision of her life: follow Ansel Guillaume—her sweet, filthy fling—to France for the summer and just…play.

When feelings begin to develop behind the provocative roles they take on, and their temporary masquerade adventures begin to feel real, Mia will have to decide if she belongs in the life she left because it was all wrong, or in the strange new one that seems worlds away.

Cover: A typical Christina Lauren cover.  This one shows Ansel and only half of his face. 

Summary: Mia was a ballerina.  Dance was her life and she expected to be her life forever.  But senior year of high school she was riding her bike when she got hit by a truck.  She was in the hospital for a week and emerged with a scar from her hip to her knee and the future of dancing diminished.  So she went to college and afterwards her dad was paying for her to Boston to go to BU.  But on the day of her college graduation, Mia and her two best friends (Harlow and Lola) go to Las Vegas for the weekend.  While they're there they meet some boys (Ansel, French; Finn, Canadian; and Oliver, Australian) and all end up getting married.  Ansel to Mia, Finn to Harlow, and Oliver to Lola.  The next morning after Harlow and Lola know that they're going to get annulments, but Ansel tells Mia that she told him the night before not to let them get annulled.  Mia doesn't remember anything, but Ansel gives her a letter that she wrote to herself that fills in some of the gaps (like the fact that she proposed to him!  And that she basically told him her life story).  She decides that they can stay married until the end of the summer when she has to move to Boston, but Ansel is going back to France and wants Mia to go with him.  She decides to on a whim and meets him at the airport without him knowing that she's coming.  She ends up coming down with the flu and is sick for the first week or so she's in France.  When she feels better Ansel has to get back to work.  He's a lawyer and working on a really big project, but he actually wants to teach law.  He just has to get through this case so that he has experience.  Mia spends her days traveling around Paris and she doesn't seem to mind being alone doing so too much.  However, she can't seem to be very intimate with Ansel.  She likes him and is attracted to him, but she gets inside her own head.  She was always shy, except when she was on stage.  So she decides to buy some costumes to see if that can help; it does.  Mia and Ansel are really falling for each other.  Ansel brings Mia to a party at a friends house where she meets Perry, Ansel's ex-girlfriend.  The boys mentioned Perry before, but Mia assumed perry was another boy and Ansel never corrected her whenever she brought the name up again.  Perry tells Mia that she and Ansel dated for six years (they were broken up for three weeks before Mia and Ansel got married), lived together in Ansel's apartment, and that they were going to get married.  Mia is furious with Ansel and leaves the party.  He follows her home, giving her enough space to walk without him, but not enough that's she's out of his sight.  He explains that while he and Perry were dating there were a few years where they only saw each other once or twice.  He was totally over her and totally dedicated to Mia.  Mia leaves in the middle of the night and goes back home to San Diego.  She gets her own apartment and starts working at her old studio as a teacher (Ansel's idea).  On her first day of work Ansel is in the class, Mia has missed him so much, but needed to figure out her on life before she could invite him into it.  They reconcile and Ansel says that once his case is over he would move to San Diego and find a job there.  Until then he will visit whenever he can.

My Review: I loved it!  Of course you guys all know I'm an avid Christina Lauren fan, but they just keep blowing me away with their novels.  Ansel is lovable guy who may seem a bit compulsive, but it works out fine for him.  Mia is a relatable girl who seems to have made a huge mistake.  Drunk marriage in Vegas to a complete stranger?  It's not what most people expect.  Even less do people actually expect it to work out and lead to a happily ever after.  But everything happens for a reason right?  The crash that took Mia's planned future away?  Getting married?  Going to Paris?  Finding out about Perry the way Mia did?  It all lead to her with the life she wanted and not the one her dad wanted for her.  Sweet Filthy Boy reminds us that even when bad things happen, we can take those experiences and make something great from them.  

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Free Falling by Kirsty Moseley | Book Review

Free Falling by Kirsty Moseley 

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***This is a companion novel to Always You by Kirsty Moseley.  You don't necessarily have to read that before you read this one, but I would highly recommend it***

Reading Group Rating: I would say High school+  But maybe more like Sophomore Year+

Personal Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: They say that your school years are supposed to be the best years of your life, and that you should make the most of them because you’ll miss them when you’re all grown up. Up until Maisie Preston’s senior year, she would have totally agreed with that statement. Life was great, she had everything going for her, excellent grades, great parents, an annoying yet caring twin brother, and an impossibly sweet boyfriend. 
Everything was perfect - that is until the arrival of Zach Anderson. A misfit delinquent that seemed to bring with him a lot of bad karma. Is it just a coincidence that his arrival marks a significant change in Maisie’s life? Up until senior year, life was perfect, but things seem to be going downhill fast.

Cover: An envelope and Calla Lily, the things that held the threatening messages towards Maisie, the main plot of the story

Summary: Senior year of highs school and Maisie's life is perfect.  However, after attending a party and witnessing her boyfriend, Luke,  having sex with her arch nemesis, Sandy, her world flips upside down.  She leaves the party in Luke's car intoxicated.  She nearly crashes into Zach Anderson, a new boy in town who she's supposed to be tutoring, but he hadn't showed up in school.  Zach is into parkour and dreams of being a stunt man for movies, but he has ADHD and hasn't been able to focus in school.  Maisie and him become very close and she makes sure that he graduates high school.  She told Luke that they can't be together anymore because every time she sees him she thinks about him and Sandy, but she agrees they can be friends.  He takes this, but he is still trying to get her back.  He loves her and made a mistake (they discover that Sandy put something in Luke's drink, but he does say he didn't feel that she took advantage of him).  One day at school a frog escapes from a science room.  Maisie is petrified of frogs and jumps into Luke's arms to get away from it.  Soon after that she starts getting weird phone calls and threats.  Her dog even gets poisoned.  She thinks it's Sandy, but when Sandy gets murdered and the calls still come she doesn't know who it could be.  She goes to the local fairground with a group of friends to watch Zach's parkour group and that night she get's back together with Luke.  The next morning they're driving home from a bakery when Maisie's friend, a computer whizz, texts her the phone number of the caller.  She calls the number and realizes it's Luke who has been terrorizing her.  After the frog incident he realized that if he could get Maisie to see that she still needs him, she would take him back, but he the whole thing got out of control.  Maisie tells him that she doesn't think she can get past this (SINCE HE KILLED SOMEONE), but he has a "if I can't have you no one can" mentality and drives them off a bridge.  Luke, who was unbuckled, dies on impact.  Maisie can't get the seatbelt off her once they're in the water and drowns, but is saved by someone who say the accident.  She wakes up in a hospital a few days later.  She decides to not tell anyone about the conversation she had with Luke before he died because she doesn't want his reputation to be ruined.  She goes off to college and the next year runs into Zach, who's the main stunt guy in the movie that's being filmed on Maisie's campus.  The book ends hinting that Zach and Maisie will soon be dating.

My Review: Can I just start by saying that I love/think it's funny that Kirsty Moseley is from the UK, but her characters are in the United States.  She never says what town or even what state this book takes place, but she'll give you a distance (it takes 9 hours for Maisie to drive to Oregon State College) so you're sitting here reading and trying to figure out where the characters are.  She also writes in UK English obviously so there are a lot of extra "u's" (favourite) and "s's" instead of "z's" (realised).  These aren't wrong from her point of view, but the first time I read it (in Always You) I was a little taken aback.  Her characters also so "yeah" a lot (let's do this, yeah?), which I think is a UK thing or at least no one I've met says yeah that much.  None of this stuff has anything to do with the plot, nor does it change my opinion of the novel, I just think it's cool.
The only thing that really bothered (that word seems too harsh here) me about the book was that there were some spelling/grammar mistakes.  It would say "he" instead of "her," "rough" instead of "through," once it said "a" when I thought it should have said "he."  Kirsty Moseley is a self-published author and I have so much respect for that, but I know from myself that when I write I miss things even if I reread it eight times.  Even on here I'll look back at old posts and be like, "Oh, that's not right.  Should have read that one more time."  I feel that Kirsty Moseley just needed someone else to read it one time before she published it (a job I would happily do!).  The mistakes weren't ginormous, you could still read the book easily, they just stopped for a moment.
The book itself was so good!  I loved it!  I got frustrated with Maisie because I wanted her to be with Zach from the beginning and leave Luke completely.  He still could have tried to get her to need him, but I wish she called Zach for help a few times instead of Luke.  This book also had a very serious message to it that I think we could all benefit from:  If your partner (or anyone in your life really) is doing things to get your attention and you find out in a place where you can't easily get away, like alone with him in a car, don't say you're breaking up with him.  Say whatever you need to to get home safe and then go to the police.  I thought it was cute how protective her brother was when he needed to be.  And having already read Always You it was funny to see how Maisie's dad eluded to stuff that happened in that novel (dealing with police, Maisie's mom being good in hospitals).  This book was definitely worth the read!   

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