Category: Book Review

Review: Sing by Vivi Greene

On By Beth JonesIn Book Review4 Comments

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Multiplatinum pop icon Lily Ross’s biggest hits and biggest heartbreaks (because they are one and the same):
1. AGONY. (That feeling when her ex ripped her heart out of her chest and she never saw it coming.)
2. GHOSTS. (Because even famous people are ghosted by guys sometimes. And it sucks just as much.)
3. ONCE BITTEN. (As in: twice shy. Also, she’s never dating an actor or a musician ever again.)
But this summer’s going to be different. After getting her heart shattered, Lily is taking herself out of the spotlight and heading to a small island in middle-of-nowhere Maine with her closest friends. She has three months until her fall tour starts-three months to focus on herself, her music, her new album. Anything but guys.
That is . . . until Lily meets sweet, down-to-earth local Noel Bradley, who is so different from anyone she’s ever dated. Suddenly, Lily’s “summer of me” takes an unexpected turn, and she finds herself falling deeper and harder than ever before. But Noel isn’t interested in the limelight. She loves Noel-but she loves her fans, too. And come August, she may be forced to choose.

Ah I’m back with another review! It’s been a crazy few days and the only thing I seem to be able to do is read, I’m finding it so hard to focus on anything other than a good book.

I liked this book a lot, but I feel like I actually shouldn’t. This one feels like such a guilty pleasure! It’s somehow addictive, and I had no idea I would be so invested in the story.

Books about singers tend to always be cliche, and this one sounds no different. And in a way, it was cliche…but like I said, it was also a guilty pleasure and one I couldn’t put down.

“We don’t get to be normal.”

The things that really stood out about Sing are the writing, the characters and the setting. The small island where most of this book is based was absolutely perfect, and it complemeneted the story really well. In fact, I really love how Vivi included the location and intertwined it in the story. It really made the book feel summery and like a vacation!

I have to admit I adored Noel and found him very honest and a total sweetheart. If I have any gripes with this book other than the cheesiness, it’s how Lily treated him sometimes and how he would just jump straight back to her.

“I’m just the fool who keeps trying.”

The only other issue I have with this book is the whole pop-star-on-vacation thing. Like, it’s not like actual people in the industry can just do that, have their best friends work for and live with them or have managers that just…accept everything. Frankly, it doesn’t work like that. But then again, this is fiction…and Lily is one ficitional character who is just incredibly lucky.

I did find the plot very simple, but I think that’s actually exactly what this book needed. As long as you go into it knowing it’s going to be totally cliche but utterly heartwarming, this book is everything you could want and more.

So this book might not be the most exciting, action-filled or fast paced. It was completely predictable and not the most complicated out there. But all of this cheese worked together and made for an easy-to-read, addictive novel.

★★★★

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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Review: All the Wicked Girls by Chris Whitaker

On By Beth JonesIn Book Review2 Comments

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Everyone loves Summer Ryan. A model student and musical prodigy, she’s a ray of light in the struggling small town of Grace, Alabama – especially compared to her troubled sister, Raine.
Then Summer goes missing. Grace is already simmering, and with this new tragedy the police have their hands full keeping the peace. Only Raine throws herself into the search, supported by a most unlikely ally.
But perhaps there was always more to Summer than met the eye…

Thank you to Bonnier Zaffre for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I can already tell this one is going to be really hard to review – because I have really, really mixed feelings about this book.

It would be easy to say I disliked it, but that wouldn’t be true. I didn’t dislike it, but I didn’t particularly like it either. The easiest way to describe it would be confusing, because my head is still spinning and I don’t know where I stand. I don’t know how to even begin.

Let’s start with my dislikes, because unfortunately there are a lot of them. For one, there are so many freaking characters and I don’t even know why. Like, I understand we need a lot of characters for the story to progress, but I literally didn’t understand who half of these people where. Like, we had cops that acted like cops but weren’t actually cops? And then we had actual cops that didn’t seem to do much? And then it feels like I met every single person in the town in which this book is set.

“There ain’t a reason for everythin’, some things just were and are and will be.”

This book flicks between so many viewpoints, and authors have to really be skillful to be able to do that without confusion. I can see how it could have worked, but I really needed more depth of character for me to truly enjoy the book.

I also unfortunately found this one a bit of a tough read. One, because it is incredibly depressing and two, because it just read like that. In a weird way, I felt like I was reading a classic or something, because it really dragged. Also, is this book YA? I mean, it’s a mix between adults and teens and it confused me so much. I didn’t even realise Noah and Purv were teens until near the end of the novel.

“We are passengers trapped. If you trust, if you truly believe, then you’re immortal.”

Okay, so what did I even like? Well, I can’t lie, Whitaker really does have a talent in creating atmosphere. I felt fully absorbed and immersed in the dark world of Grace and what was happening there. I also really enjoyed the writing and especially Summer’s chapters.

Overall, I did enjoy this book. I didn’t love it, but I would recommend it as a great thriller mystery.

★★★

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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Circus of the Unseen. Book Review #24

On By paperbackpeteIn Book Review, PeteLeave a comment

Hey everyone!

This week i’m going to be reviewing a book I read a while ago which I wish I never read at all.

Circus of the Unseen by Joanne Owen is a YA magical realism novel about Rosie, a girl who, after an accident at her grandmother’s house slips into another world where nothing is quite right and nobody is safe to trust. This story follows a cast of carnivalesque characters who all live out their lives in the sinister Circus without any hope of leaving. Yet this is all Rosie wants to do. In her quest to get home Rosie must find herself, discover who her grandmother really was and try to uncover the secrets of a Circus that has always remained unseen.

The premise of this book was so so promising and the world itself was actually quite beautiful. Owen believably crafts this dark and elusive elsewhere that is rich with a character and history. Going into this book I was sure I would love it: Who doesn’t love other worlds and sinister circus acts?

Sadly my hopes for this story were not met. I am not in the belief that any one book is truly terrible or ‘bad’ but the Circus of the Unseen possesses such an odd and poorly planned plot that at no point during my reading of it could I ever find myself fully immersed or fully addicted. It is a great shame that Owen’s writing of the plot was such a downfall because otherwise I think the unique ideas behind COTU and it’s gothic world could’ve made this book a winner. The writing did not live up to my expectations: the narrative was poorly paced and all of the characters felt flat. The worst of it was how unexplained Rosie’s situation seemed to be at all times. As a result of this I never found myself caring about what happened to them either way.

The whole story although unique in Rosie’s slipping into another world was just that – unique. Past it’s originality the book didn’t have the literary skill to make it anything more.

Sadly I would not recommend this book

I give it a 1 out of 5 stars.

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth.

Review: Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson

On By Beth JonesIn Book Review5 Comments

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It was Sloane who yanked Emily out of her shell and made life 100% interesting. But right before what should have been the most epic summer, Sloane just…disappears. All she leaves behind is a to-do list.
On it, thirteen Sloane-inspired tasks that Emily would normally never try. But what if they could bring her best friend back?
Apple picking at night? Okay, easy enough.
Dance until dawn? Sure. Why not?
Kiss a stranger? Um…
Emily now has this unexpected summer, and the help of Frank Porter (totally unexpected), to check things off Sloane’s list. Who knows what she’ll find?
Go skinny-dipping? Wait…what?

This wasn’t my favourite Morgan Matson book (Amy and Roger definitely still holds that title!), but I did still really enjoy it. I loved a lot about this book – but some things did disappoint me. For one, I kind of knew everything that was happening. Nothing shocked me or made me think Matson had written outside of her comfort zone – but I did find it very comforting to read.

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it was a great contemporary summer read, but I did unfortunately have a few issues with it.

“Real friends are the ones you can count on no matter what.”

So let’s start with the good stuff! The whole friendship and mystery I really loved. I don’t think I’ve read a book with a list to complete like this one did, and it definitelty made for good plot development.

I also loved the friendship between Dawn, Collins, Frank and Em. It felt really cute and real. I also think Em’s family offered something we don’t often see in YA, and I do love books with great relationships with family. Beckett made for such an adorable little brother!

“The ones who go into the forest to find you and bring you home.”

Unfortunately I did have a few tiny niggles about this book, as I did with The Unexpected Everything. For one, the ending! As cute as it was for two characters, what happened to the others? Without spoilers, is Em forgiven by a certain girl? Or the other friend?

Another thing I have to mention is Slaone. As close as her and Em were, I have to say she just kind of…annoyed me. Like, she literally abandoned Slaone and Em just forgives her when she manages to get new friends. I felt like the ending of the book, and the whole road trip (without giving any spoilers), should have been…more important. Bigger, somehow.

“And real friends never have to tell you that they’re your friends.”

Other than that, I really loved this book. The love interest was really good, and even though it was predictable as I mentioned before, it was also relaxed and comforting. If you love a good summery contemporary or anything by Morgan Matson, I’d definitely recommend it!

★★★★

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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The Smell of Other People’s Houses. Book Review #23

On By paperbackpeteIn Book Review, Pete3 Comments

Hey guys!

It’s that time of the year again when summer slowly and then quickly begins to slip away and everyone begins to go back to their actual lives. Some people hate the change in weather or the going back to school but I think we should embrace it! Plus, rainy days are the best kind for reading.

This week i’m going to talk about a book that really is as good as it’s title makes it out to be.

The Smell of Other People’s Houses by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock is a young adult short novel that follows Ruth, Dora, Alyce and Hank – four teens who are each struggling with the shifting state that their lives are in. Ruth only wants to be remembered by a Mother who forgot. Alyce is locking away her future to please her parents. Dora wishes she could hide forever from her abusive father and Hank and his brothers are running from a family home that doesn’t want them anymore. Set in the gritty and nostalgic backdrop of 1970s Alaska, this story is about hope, love, pain and family.

This book is completely different to anything I have ever read before. Hitchcock’s execution of the winding and well crafted plot is so seamless that the book simply drips with realism.

One of my favourite elements of the story is the effort Hitchcock puts into the culture and landscape of her characters. TSOOPHs touches lightly on the statehood that Alaska faced in the late 50s yet the feelings of resentment and strife are present all throughout. These emotions represent an ethos at the time felt by many who didn’t want to lose their traditional way of life. This issue along with others raised such as the discrimination Alaskan natives faced educated me immensely on topics I didn’t even know existed. It is a massive credit to Hitchcock’s talent that she is able to weave such an addictive and adventurous story that is also able to enlighten the reader all within under 300 pages.

The tone and general feel of the book possessed that intangible and rare quality that makes you feel nostalgic and reminiscent of another life despite never reading the story before. It was a genuine treat to experience such a rich cast of characters each with their own problems that were explored just the right amount through the alternating four chapter layout Hitchcock follows.

A final point that must be made, aside from the writers beautiful use of words, is her ability to see the bigger picture at all times and, as a result of that, amalgamate a tale that offers hidden easter eggs and those light bulb moment links that pull each of the character’s individual adventures together in a warming and intelligent way.

If would recommend The Smell Of Other People’s Houses highly and consider it as one of the best books I have read this year.

I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars.

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth

Review: Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett

On By Beth JonesIn Book Review6 Comments

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Bailey “Mink” Rydell has met the boy of her dreams. They share a love of films and talk all day – Alex is perfect. Well, apart from the fact that they’ve never actually met . . . and neither of them knows the other’s real name.
When Bailey moves to sunny California to live with her dad, who happens to live in the same town as Alex, she decides to track him down. But finding someone based on online conversations alone proves harder than Bailey thought, and with her irritating but charismatic (and potentially attractive?) colleague Porter Roth distracting her at every turn, will she ever get to meet the mysterious Alex?

I knew I would like this book. It has everything I look for in a good YA summer contemporary. I had no idea that I would absolutely adore it. Okay, so I picked this one up yesterday and I finished it this morning…literally because I could. Not. Put. It. Down. This means I’m now forced to queue 2 reviews 2 days in a row – because I’m reading so much!

Okay so on to my actual thoughts of the book, which I don’t honestly know how to put into words simply because my mind is still in the crazy, beautiful and incredibly chaotic world of Bailey. I’m now going to go through every single thing I liked about this book (which let me warn you, is a lot)…so we may be here a while…

“He looks toward the ocean, dark purple with the last rays of light. “My mom says we’re all connected–people and plants and animals. We all know one another on the inside.”

Let’s start with Bailey. She made for such an awesome main character, although I have to say I didn’t like her right away. She seemed kind of…stuck up. Superior. But that soon fizzled out as we discovered more and more about the mystery of Bailey. Above all, I found Bailey real. She was a real teenager with real (a lot) of real struggles – and I found her voice perfect for the story. I loved a lot about Bailey, especially her love of film. It showed real depth of character and I felt really connected to her. She also suffered a lot with her nerves and even PTSD at some points, which I found very relatable. I’ve unfortunately suffered with anxiety in the past and panic attacks, and I found Bailey’s very real and well described. She was also funny, quick witted and sarcastic, which made for an entertaining read.

Alex, Approximately also has a great collection of side characters. Porter is the perfect love interest – someone the reader can grow to adore as Bailey does. He can be a little bit of an asshole at times but he is so sweet and loving that I didn’t care after a while. Grace makes a great best friend, and a great first best friend for Bailey. Bailey’s dad is honestly a lovely parent figure, and Wanda becomes one too. All of the other characters – the other security guard, Patrick and even Davy, built the book up to be something I loved. The characters all bounced off each other and aided each others paths, and I think that’s simply genius.

“It’s what’s on the outside that distracts. Our clothes, our words, our actions. Shark attacks. Gunshots. We spend our lives trying to find other people.”

There are so many other things I loved about this book that we may, quite honestly, be here all day. But I’m ploughing on, because I just need to write it all down.

So, I also adored the location! This book actually made me fall in love with California, and it’s suddenly so much higher on places I would love to visit. I also felt like the location worked really well with the romance – because without the vivid, real descriptions of the setting…the romance would have been to unreal. Too fairytale-ish. But nope, even though the beautiful romance is totally unrealistic in real life, the setting made it seem possible. It made anything seem possible.

There are also so many random things I adored about this book. The museum(s). The way random characters appreciate cars and scooters. The surfing. The lines from movies at the start of every chapter. The fact Grace is in a long distance relationship and *whoops* it SURVIVES THE SUMMER. Patrick and his boyfriend. The complete adoration Porter has for weather. The scenes on the lifts, on the front porch, in the *ahem* back of Porter’s van. I could literally list things all day.

“Sometimes we get confused and turned around by the distractions.” He smiles at me. “But we didn’t.”

Before I go, let’s just talk about Alex for a moment. I’m not going to say much, but can I just mention I knew who he was from the moment Bailey started that job. But even that, I don’t really care about. Because even though I knew all along, I still found it the most amount of fun to watch play out in front of me.

Okay, so I loved a lot about this book. But the thing I adored most is how it all worked together. See, many books have awesome things. But the perfect book has all of these awesome things and makes them bounce of one another in such a way, us readers just fall head over heels for them.

Jenn Bennett, how I admire you right now. I can safely say that Alex, Approximately is possibly my favourite read of the year so far. And I just hope that somehow I have thrown enough love into this review that someone here picks up your books. You have stolen my heart with your beautiful words.

★★★★★

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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Review: Marly’s Ghost by David Levithan

On By Beth JonesIn Book Review3 Comments

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When Ben’s girlfriend, Marly, dies, he feels his life is over and the prospect of Valentine’s day without her fills him with bitterness. But then Marly arrives – or at least, her ghost does – along with three other spirits. Now Ben must take a journey through Valentines past, present and future – and what he learns will change him forever.

I have to say, this book really shocked me. I’m not the biggest fan of A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens or even David Levithan, but I was a fan of this book.

For a start, I started this book last night, and finished it this morning. I wanted quick read to finish before the end of the month, but I didn’t expect to read half of it in an hour. This book just flew past!

“When the heart stops, you die. Love is everywhere that life is, and if there is no love for life, you die.”

I actually thought the whole Valentine’s themed retelling of A Christmas Carol was really clever. It had a familiarity to it I liked, but the Valentine’s theme kept it really fresh and interesting.

I adored Ben and the other characters – I felt like his grief and how it affected him was explained really well. He was really bitter over the death of Marly, but that’s not how he was like inside nor how he wanted to be. I really felt like I had a close connection with him.

There was also an adorable gay couple called Tiny and Tim who I loved! They gave a whole new element to the story and I like how they were included. I also loved Ben’s group of friends and how sweet they were in trying to support him.

“Giving up on love is the same thing as giving up on life itself.”

However, I can’t lie when I say I didn’t have issues with this book. It felt a little…weird in places. Some of it felt very wintery, some summery, which kind of reflected Ben’s mood but in a strange way! Also, the voices of Ben and his friends were definitely not teenage. In fact, I just felt like they fitted more in A Christmas Carol itself than in this modern day retelling. Another problem I had is just that this book isn’t really my thing. But that’s just personal, and I still enjoyed it!

★★★

-Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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Review: Summer Days and Summer Nights

On By Beth JonesIn Book Review5 Comments

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Maybe it’s the long, lazy days, or maybe it’s the heat making everyone a little bit crazy. Whatever the reason, summer is the perfect time for love to bloom. Summer Days & Summer Nights: Twelve Love Stories, written by twelve bestselling young adult writers and edited by the international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins, will have you dreaming of sunset strolls by the lake. So set out your beach chair and grab your sunglasses. You have twelve reasons this summer to soak up the sun and fall in love.

With this one being a collection of stories, I honestly don’t know how to review it. I think I’m just going to have to go one by one – because this book is so diverse!

Head, Scales, Tongue, Tail by Leigh Bardugo – 4 out of 5 stars

“The person she liked best didn’t like her enough to want more of her, and she didn’t want to pretend that wasn’t awful.”

I really enjoyed this start to the book, and it genuinly surprised me! Leigh Bardugo has a great way of interspersing romance and fantasy, and I honestly didn’t expect it to work as well as it did.

The End of Love by Nina Lacour – 5 out of 5 stars

“As much as people want to look on the bright side, skip straight to the future when everything will be okay, the truth is that there is this time, where you sometimes have trouble breathing, and you feel powerless.”

I would say that The End of Love was possibly my favourite of all the 12 stories. It had a great summery feel and the love was adorable. I totally related to the main characters love for school and I liked the way it included difficult topics such as her parents divorce. The camping off summer vibes perfectly.

Last Stand At the Cinegore by Libba Bray – 3 out of 5 stars

“I get it’ Dani said, suprising me. ‘When you watch one of these old movies in a place like this, you’re connected to everybody else who’s ever watched it. You can practically feel them around you.'”
I liked some parts of this story – especially the appreciation of film! – but it was just so weird. The whole thing is about this creepy horror movie that like, comes out of the screen and turns everybody to demons. And the whole demon attacking thing seems so damn unrealistic. What’s summery about that? That said, I liked the characters and the concept was very unique!

Sick Pleasure by Francesca Lia Block – 2 out of 5 stars

“Love can be so sttange and sad. It can be hard to understand why we run toward certain people and away from others at different times in our lives. Why we search so hard for that thing we are looking for, and the run so fast when we find it”

Unfortunately I am giving this one such a low rating for two reasons.

  1. The characters names are literally letters. Like M, L, J and A. Oh, and I. What could possibly be more confusing than naming the narrator I? It might seem like a small thing, but it annoyed me from the off.
  2. I literally don’t remember anything happening in this story. Maybe nothing happened, maybe it was just really not memorable. Either is pretty bad.

In Ninety Minutes Turn North by Stephanie Perkins – 5 out of 5 stars

“The person she liked best didn’t like her enough to want more of her, and she didn’t want to pretend that wasn’t awful.”

I have a feeling that Stephanie Perkins has this amazing secret ability where she can just put anyone under a spell that makes us fall in love with her writing. Because this story is just so goddamn cute, and I love it so much. The whole location gave it a unique feel, the speech was adorable and omg, even the title is so cute. Yes, it may not be the most summery story, but I don’t even care.

Souvenirs by Tim Federle – 2.5 out of 5 stars

“What is life, it comes to me, without the occasional risk of pizza?”

I didn’t dislike this story – I just had…issues with it. Keith for a start was not the best love interest, and I felt like he was quite inconsiderate of Matt’s feelings. However, I did like the setting being in a theme park and it gave off a summery vibe! The narrative was pretty unique as well – it reminded me of David Levithan actually.

Inertia by Veronica Roth – 2 out of 5 stars

“Some people might leave you,’ he said, for once ignoring a joke in favor of something real. ‘But it doesn’t mean you’re worth leaving. It doesn’t mean that at all.”

The first thing that stood out about this one is that the technology they use is so damn similar to that in Divergent. Like come on, I want something new. This story also had nothing to do with summer, but I guess the concept was pretty cool and I felt for the characters.

Love is the Last Resort by Jon Skovron – 4 out of 5 stars

“Because if we are all fools, then perhaps there is some wisdom in falling in love.”

I actually really liked this one – it shocked me quite a lot! The whole summer resort gave the right vibes and I loved the varying characters. I definitely thought Skovron pulled off having a number of characters in a short story, and even though it was pretty predictable and unrealistic, I enjoyed watching this story play out. It even made me laugh out loud at points!

Good Luck and Farewell by Brandy Colbert – 3 out of 5 stars

“I think maybe saying good-bye isn’t bad at all. Maybe it meabs I’m making room for someone new.”

I remember enjoying this one a lot at the time, but the reason I’m giving it such a low rating is because I really can’t remember it very well. And what I do remember, I don’t really think much actually happened. However, I did like the representation, LGBTQIA+ relationship and the fact this story tackled grief.

Brand New Attraction by Cassandra Clare – 2 out of 5 stars

“I snuggled into his arms as the last of the fireworks faded, and high above, Mephit flapped across the sky, his wings silhouetted against the moon.”

This story was just weird. I’m not one for demons or dark magic etc, so I honestly found it quite hard to grasp. I don’t think that’s just me though – going in depth about magic and demons might be a little too much for such a short story. I also didn’t get the summery vibes I was hoping for, and I actually had a problem with…incest. Like, I know the people aren’t actually family..but they are by marriage. I just found that a bit weird.

A Thousand Ways this Could All Go Wrong by Jennifer E. Smith – 5 out of 5 stars

“He was a mystery that—for reasons I didn’t quite understand—I felt desperate to solve.”

Oh my, here we go. This is exactly what I was looking for. For one, the love interest is goddamn sweet and has a love of kids. The main character works in a summer camp, giving off the perfect vibe for summer. Also, back to the love interest again – he is on the autism spectrum! And it doesn’t change the way she feels for him! Just yes, omg. This one was so good. Maybe my favourite?

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things by Lev Grossman – 5 out of 5 stars

“Probably falling in love is always a little like that: You discover that one other person who understands what no one else seems to, which is that the world is broken and can never, ever be fixed. You can stop pretending, at least for a little while. You can both admit it, if only to each other.”

Okay so I actually really liked this one and I actually thought the concept was pretty original compared to some of the other stories. It gave a different vibe, but I still found it pretty summery. Also, the love interests were both interesting and had good character depth. The plot was interesting, and left some intruige for the reader.

So overall, I did enjoy this book. There were plenty of stories I didn’t like, but the ones I did really brought my rating back up and made me love this novel a lot!

★★★★

-Beth
May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

 

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The Darkest Minds. Book Review #22

On By paperbackpeteIn Book Review, PeteLeave a comment

Hi fellow readers!

I hope you are all enjoying the weather we’re having at the moment (if it’s sunny where you are).

This week’s post is about I book I finished only a few days ago but has been on my Tbr for what feels like forever.

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken is young adult dystopian novel that follows Ruby: a sixteen year old girl who at the age of ten was abducted from her family and taken to a camp for other ‘special’ children just like her. Just months before Ruby was taken away millions of children started to mysteriously die across the whole of America, the cause: a deadly disease that left those who were immune with strange powers. The government, afraid of these children that they couldn’t control sent them to camps just like Ruby. She has spent her whole life trapped and afraid of who she is until now. Because Ruby is free and she wants to find out how to tame the monster she always thought she was.

Wow. I actually haven’t enjoyed anything as much as TDM for so long that I almost forgot what it felt like to be addicted to a book. The only annoying part about my experience with this story is that I didn’t read it sooner.

The uniqueness of this book is what I feel makes it so special, but also it has, to some degree, be down to Bracken’s simple talent with words. The plot is weaved in such a delicate and intriguing way that all throughout we are left with burning questions about the dystopian and seemingly reminiscent world that we learn of. The movement of this book is just fast enough that you’re never bored but also not so fast that it’s over before it has already begun and teens with superpowers? Seriously YES. The ending is also perfect and deadly to all readers so be aware!

I’ll talk quickly about the characters because I don’t want you to waste your time reading this review when you could be getting out there and getting your hands on this book! Ruby is cleverly crafted in a way that makes you constantly feel sorry for her but also feel kind of annoyed at her for not simply embracing who she is. It’s like this weird internal battle that Bracken forces you into whilst reading but I can’t say I ever complained. The relationship Bracken builds between Ruby and the friends she meets along the way is not only believable (because more often than not in YA, protagonists manage to make insta-friends with every character in the book) but also genuinely heart warming. I respect that the author placed obstacles in the way of Ruby’s friendship with Chubs because it gives the narrative a life like feel. The romance in TDM is very fluffy and cute and I didn’t even mind because it really felt like these two people would really have connected. I will not spoil, but one word- Clancy?!

The ultimate and obvious question is: would I recommend this book? The answer is a clear and beautiful YES.

I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth

Review: Aurabel by Laura Dockrill

On By Beth JonesIn Book Review1 Comment

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It has been two years since Rory drowned, and Lorali is in Hastings, living the quiet life of a normal teenage girl. But her safe life on land won’t last for long. Life in The Whirl has become a hotbed of underwater politics and as the council jostles to oust the king, one Mer in particular has her eye on Lorali as the key to her own rise to power.
Meanwhile, Aurabel, a lowly Mer from the wrong side of the trench, is attacked by sea beasts and left for dead – and without a tail. Raging with righteous anger, she rebuilds herself a mechanical tail and reinvents herself as a fearless steampunk Mer seeking revenge. But she never expected the most important job that was about to drop into her lap.

Disclaimer: I received this book from Hot Key UK in exchange for an honest review. This has not changed my views in any way.

I read the first book in this series – Lorali – back in May, and you can see from my review that I didn’t enjoy it as much as I would have liked.

But I bring good news – I enjoyed Aurabel more! I still stand by most of the thing I explained in my previous review, but I definitely liked more about this book.

“Some threads are too deep and thick to fray.”

The story was fast paced and definitely not as confusing! Instead of being mainly on land, this one is based mainly underwater and I actually really enjoyed that. Aurabel is a completely new character, and the story is now told by both her and Lorali. I expected that to be confusing, but it actually wasn’t.

This book seamlessly followed on from Lorali, but it felt very much like a standalone too. The story is something completely different – definitely more action than romance based – but I really liked that! The new factors of power, fighting and even cyborg mermaids really worked and helped the unqiue aspects of this novel.

“Some lines, in love, outlive the veins.”

Again, I found Dockrill’s writing very unique and interesting. But this time, it worked. Maybe it’s because I’m more used to her writing after Lorali, or maybe she’s just more experienced after writing a book before…but I actually really liked it. The random poeticness of her writing really worked.

Also can I just say – this includes a bi mermaid! Like…

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Need I say more?

So it’s safe to say I really liked Aurabel! If you’re looking for a mermaid themed pre-teen or YA novel, I’d recommend it 🙂

★★★

Beth

May your shelves forever overflow with books! ☽

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