Keturah by Lisa Tawn Bergren

Title: Keturah
Series: The Sugar Barons Daughters
Author: Lisa T. Bergren

In 1772 England, Lady Keturah Banning Tomlinson and her sisters find themselves the heiresses of their father's estates and know they have one option: Go to the West Indies to save what is left of their heritage.

Although it flies against all the conventions for women of the time, they're determined to make their own way in the world. But once they arrive in the Caribbean, proper gender roles are the least of their concerns. On the infamous island of Nevis, the sisters discover the legacy of the legendary sugar barons has vastly declined--and that's just the start of 
what their eyes are opened to in this unfamiliar world. 

Keturah never intends to put herself at the mercy of a man again, but every man on the island seems to be trying to win her hand and, with it, the ownership of her plantation. She could desperately use an ally, but even an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend leaves her questioning his motives. 

Set on keeping her family together and saving her father's once-great plantation, can Keturah ever surrender her stubbornness and guarded heart to God and find the healing and love awaiting her? 

Unhinged by A.G. Howard

Title: Unhinged
Series: Splintered, #2
Author: A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet Books
Date Published: January 7, 2014
Rating: 3.5 Stars

Alyssa Gardner has been down the rabbit hole and faced the bandersnatch. She saved the life of Jeb, the guy she loves, and escaped the machinations of the disturbingly seductive Morpheus and the vindictive Queen Red. Now all she has to do is graduate high school and make it through prom so she can attend the prestigious art school in London she's always dreamed of.

That would be easier without her mother, freshly released from an asylum, acting overly protective and suspicious. And it would be much simpler if the mysterious Morpheus didn’t show up for school one day to tempt her with another dangerous quest in the dark, challenging Wonderland—where she (partly) belongs.

As prom and graduation creep closer, Alyssa juggles Morpheus’s unsettling presence in her real world with trying to tell Jeb the truth about a past he’s forgotten. Glimpses of Wonderland start to bleed through her art and into her world in very disturbing ways, and Morpheus warns that Queen Red won’t be far behind.

If Alyssa stays in the human realm, she could endanger Jeb, her parents, and everyone she loves. But if she steps through the rabbit hole again, she'll face a deadly battle that could cost more than just her head.

My Thoughts and Ramblings:

Blog Tour, Giveaway & Review: Operation Prom Date by Cindi Madsen

We're celebrating the release of OPERATION PROM DATE by Cindi Madsen!

Title: Operation Prom Date

Author: Cindi Madsen 

Age: YA

Genre: Contemporary Romance/RomCom

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Goodreads

Amazon | BN | iBooks |  Google Play | Kobo

Blurb:

Kissing practice has never been more fun.
Kate ships tons of fictional couples, but IRL her OTP is her and Mick, the hot quarterback she’s crushed on since, like, forever. With only one semester left of senior year, it’s now or never if she wants to land him in time for prom. Since she’s flirtationally challenged, she enlists Cooper Callihan, the guy who turned popular seemingly overnight but who used to be a good friend.

Cooper lives and breathes rowing, but his partner just broke his wrist. When he remembers Kate’s good with a set of oars, he strikes a deal: help him train, and he’ll make sure her crush notices her. Only he didn’t know how addicting spending time with her would be. Or how the more successful the Operation is, the more jealousy he experiences.

The mission has been set. The troops have their marching orders. But what if the target is the wrong guy all along?

Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains stargazing, accidental swimming, and poker swindling. This kissing practice will melt your ereader…and give you a new couple to ship.

My Thoughts:

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Title: Caraval
Series: Caraval, #1
Author: Stephanie Garber
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Date Published: January 31, 2017
Rating: 4-4.5 Stars

Whatever you've heard about Caraval, it doesn't compare to the reality. It's more than just a game or a performance. It's the closest you'll ever find to magic in this world . . . 

Welcome, welcome to Caraval―Stephanie Garber’s sweeping tale of two sisters who escape their ruthless father when they enter the dangerous intrigue of a legendary game.

Scarlett has never left the tiny island where she and her beloved sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval, the far-away, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show, are over.

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But she nevertheless becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic with the other players in the game. And whether Caraval is real or not, she must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over, a dangerous domino effect of consequences is set off, and her sister disappears forever. 

My Thoughts: 

Traveler by L.E. DeLano

Title: Traveler
Series: Traveler, #1
Author: L.E. DeLano
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Date Published: February 7, 2017

A teen writer discovers that every mirror is a portal into an alternate version of her life in this romantic YA fantasy by author L.E. DeLano.

Jessa has spent her life dreaming of other worlds and writing down stories more interesting than her own, until the day her favorite character, Finn, suddenly shows up and invites her out for coffee. After the requisite nervous breakdown, Jessa learns that she and Finn are Travelers, born with the ability to slide through reflections and dreams into alternate realities. But it’s not all teacakes, pirates and fantasy lifestyles…Jessa is dying over and over again, in every reality, and Finn is determined that this time, he’s going to stop it… this Jessa is going to live.

My Thoughts:

Splintered by A.G. Howard

Title: Splintered
Series: Splintered, #1
Author: A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet Books
Date Published: January 1, 2013
Narrator: Rebecca Gibel
4 Stars

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence.

Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.

When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

My Thoughts (more like rambles?) :

Review: One Paris Summer by Denise Grover Swank

Title: One Paris Summer
Series: a standalone
Author: Denise Grover Swank
Publisher: Blink
Date Published: June 7, 2016

Most teens dream of visiting the City of Lights, but it feels more like a nightmare for Sophie Brooks. She and her brother are sent to Paris to spend the summer with their father, who left home a year ago without any explanation. As if his sudden abandonment weren't betrayal enough, he's about to remarry, and they’re expected to play nice with his soon-to-be wife and stepdaughter. The stepdaughter, Camille, agrees to show them around the city, but she makes it clear that she will do everything in her power to make Sophie miserable.

Sophie could deal with all the pain and humiliation if only she could practice piano. Her dream is to become a pianist, and she was supposed to spend the summer preparing for a scholarship competition. Even though her father moved to Paris to pursue his own dream, he clearly doesn't support hers. His promise to provide her with a piano goes unfulfilled.

Still, no one is immune to Paris’s charm.

Cover Reveal: The Great Pursuit by Wendy Higgins

I am so excited to help reveal the cover of The Great Pursuit, by Wendy Higgins!  

It is the sequel to The Great Hunt, and final book in the Eurona Duology. 

The Great Pursuit publishes March 7, 2017 from HarperTeen.

Ready?

Review: Get Happy by Mary Amato

Title: Get Happy
Author: Mary Amato
Date Published: August 1, 2014
Publisher: Egmont USA

In this poignant, realistic, contemporary YA by a state master list star, perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen and Gayle Forman, a young songwriter builds a substitute family with her friends in place of the broken family she grew up with.

A hip high school girl who loves music, writes songs, and is desperate for a ukelele, learns to her shock that her father did not abandon her years ago and has been trying to keep in touch. She begins to investigate him, only to discover that he has a new life with a new family, including the perfect stepdaughter, a girl who Minerva despises.

Review: The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: The Problem with Forever
Series: (standalone)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Date Published: May 17, 2016
Publisher: Harlequin Teen

For some people, silence is a weapon. For Mallory “Mouse” Dodge, it’s a shield. Growing up, she learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime.

Now, after years of homeschooling with loving adoptive parents, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at public high school. But of all the terrifying and exhilarating scenarios she’s imagined, there’s one she never dreamed of—that she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.

It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet the deeper their bond grows, the more it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with the lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory faces a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants, and the truths that need to be heard. 

Review: That Summer by Sarah Dessen

Title: That Summer
Series: (standalone)
Author: Sarah Dessen
Date Published: orig January 1, 1996
Narrator: Mia Barron

The more things change...

As far as Haven is concerned, there's just too much going on.

Everything is changing, and she's not sure where she fits in.

Then her sister's old boyfriend shows up, sparking memories of the summer when they were all happy and everything was perfect...

But along the way, Haven realizes that sometimes change is a good thing.

Series a Month Challenge: Relentless series by Karen Lynch

So, I had signed up for the Series a Month challenge awhile back. It is being hosted by Danielle over at Love at First Page. I've been slacking a bit, but I'm trying to get back to reading book series back-to-back.

This month I read the Relentless series by Karen Lynch, and I am so glad that I did! It was so good. 

Relentless | Refuge | Rogue

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Vassa in the Night by Sarah Porter

Coming September 20, 2016!

Review: Summer of Sloane by Erin L. Schneider

Title: Summer of Sloane
Series: (a standalone)
Author: Erin L. Schneider
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Date Published: May 3, 2016

Warm Hawaiian sun. Lazy beach days. Flirty texts with her boyfriend back in Seattle.

These are the things seventeen-year-old Sloane McIntyre pictured when she imagined the summer she’d be spending at her mom’s home in Hawaii with her twin brother, Penn. Instead, after learning an unthinkable secret about her boyfriend, Tyler, and best friend, Mick, all she has is a fractured hand and a completely shattered heart.

Once she arrives in Honolulu, though, Sloane hopes that Hawaii might just be the escape she needs. With beach bonfires, old friends, exotic food, and the wonders of a waterproof cast, there’s no reason Sloane shouldn’t enjoy her summer. And when she meets Finn McAllister, the handsome son of a hotel magnate who doesn’t always play by the rules, she knows he’s the perfect distraction from everything that’s so wrong back home.

But it turns out a measly ocean isn’t nearly enough to stop all the emails, texts, and voicemails from her ex-boyfriend and ex-best friend, desperate to explain away their betrayal. And as her casual connection with Finn grows deeper, Sloane’s carefree summer might not be as easy to find as she’d hoped. Weighing years of history with Mick and Tyler against their deception, and the delicate possibility of new love, Sloane must decide when to forgive, and when to live for herself.

Review: Not in the Script by Amy Finnegan

Title: Not in the Script
Series: If Only...#3
Author: Amy Finnegan
Date Published: October 7, 2014
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens

Not in the Script was a really cute, YA contemporary book. I really liked the Hollywood spin on the story, and getting a glimpse of what it could be like for young actresses and actors, from dealing with the paparazzi to putting together a T.V. show. Actually, most of my favorite parts of the book were when they talked about production, edits, and sets, especially when we learned about sound studios and what they are used for. It takes so much time and effort to just put a small scene together! Anyhow, I found all of that fascinating.
Emma did not seem like your stereotypical starlet that one might envision for a celebrity. She was very down to earth and approachable. She was kind, considerate, and very likable. I also admired how she was attending online courses while having a career in acting. There were times that she did frustrate me, however. She could be naive and let others take advantage of her. So many of her problems could have avoided with simple communication and/or not waiting so long to explain herself.
The love interest in the story was pretty sweet. I could really see why the two could relate to each other and be compatible. There wasn't and epilogue at the end, but I could see the couple staying together, despite it being a Hollywood romance.
Surprisingly, I think my favorite character was Kimmie. Yes, she was mostly a brat, but I got a kick of her sarcasm and quick whit. I appreciated that she stood up for herself and expected others do the same. 
I would definitely recommend Not in the Script to those looking for a fun, light, contemporary romance. This is a book I would even share with my own teenage daughter. It was pretty clean, and I think she would enjoy the same aspects that I did.

Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

P.S. I Like You 

by Kasie West

Coming July 26, 2016

Review: Angelfall by Susan Ee

Title: Angelfall

Series: Penryn & the End of Days, #1

Author: Susan Ee

Date Published: August 28th, 2012

Publisher: Skyscape

Rating: 4.5 Stars

It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again. 

My Thoughts:

Review: An Ember in the Ashes

Title: An Ember in the Ashes
Author: Sabaa Tahir
Publisher: Razorbill- Audio
Date Published: April 28, 2015
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Narrators: Fiona Hardingham & Steve West

Laia is a slave.

Elias is a soldier.

Neither is free.

Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.

It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.

But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.

There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.

Review: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Title: Everything, Everything
Series: Standalone
Author: Nicola Yoon
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Date Published: September 1, 2015
Audio Version
Narrator: Bahni Turpin
Rated: 5 Stars

My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster. 

Waiting on Wednesday: Three Wishes by Lisa T. Bergren

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I am a huge fan of Lisa T. Bergren's River of Time series. When I found out she was writing another book, with different characters, I could not be more excited! I need this book now!

Three Wishes, book one of the River of Time: California series, is expected be released in April of this year.