Sick Kids in Love by Hannah Moskowitz

Sick Kids in Love boasts the tagline, "They don't die in this one." This snort-inducing line was a big selling point for me, along with how much I enjoyed Moscowitz's Teeth. It sounded like a refreshing change of pace from weepy dramas about terminally ill teens from Five Feet Apart to vintage Lurlene McDaniel to The Fault in Our Stars (Although that book is amazing and I love it, and I will hear nothing bad about it or John Green).

Isabel, AKA Ibby, is sixteen years old and has rheumatoid arthritis. It's not fatal, but it is a lifelong illness. She writes an advice column for her school newspaper where she asks her friends, family, and even strangers questions and compiles all the answers. Her pseudonym for the column? Sick Girl. One person she always gets an answer from is Claire, her imaginary best friend who died of cancer. It's a little strange, but it makes sense later. Otherwise, Ibby is normal, and has normal friends and a normal dad who works too much at his hospital.

One day at her treatment for RA, Ibby meets a boy. Sasha is receiving treatment for his Gaucher disease. It's a not very fun genetic disorder that means fatigue, easily broken bones, and a possible future ruptured spleen, but is mostly not fatal. They have a very charming encounter, but don't exchange contact information. Ibby counts out how long until their paths cross again when they come in for future treatments, but is surprised to meet Sasha while volunteering at the hospital. She brings him water, and they talk and make plans. Of course, Ibby has to warn him that she doesn't date.

Soon, though, they are "not dating" a lot. The two are in the same boat in that they are sick. Ibby's normal friends don't understand how difficult her RA can be. They invite her to go skiing, even though she can't do a lot of physical activity without suffering for it later. She counts out how far she has to walk to get from the subway to her apartment, how many stairs to climb, etc. She wants to just take a taxi sometimes, so she can just be dropped off at her building, but she never does. Her legs sometimes give out under her, and Sasha urges her to get a cane to help, but she can't do that. She can't let other people see her with a cane, can't let her dad see her with a cane, because she doesn't want a big billboard letting people know she is sick.

The saddest part of Ibby's story is how long it took her to get diagnosed. Doctors said it was growing pains, even accused her of lying. That uncertainty was where Claire came from, a proxy who had a defined illness and was always the same age as Ibby when she died. Sasha was diagnosed much earlier than Ibby, though his doctors believed he had leukemia. As if it wasn't bad enough that Ibby has to pretend to feel okay for her dad and her friends, she also doesn't feel as though she can complain about being sick because Sasha is always sicker.

Sick Kids in Love was a very good book that brought up a lot of important issues. The romance could be sweet, but those kids were also very cringe-inducing at times. I very much liked how Ibby ended up growing through the book. She learned to stand up for herself with her friends and with her dad. True to the tagline, neither one of them dies. What more can you ask for?

Carry On and Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell

I've been working on this review for a while, and I was finally going to polish it and publish it, but I ended up deleting it, so I'm going to quickly do a new one. I read Carry On back when it first came out (I would normally link to my review, but I never actually reviewed it). I loved it back then, so now that the sequel was being released, and with a bit of time to kill waiting for my fancy copy to arrive from England, I decided to do something I never do: reread the first book. *Gasp* *Scream* *Sirens* I enjoyed it just as much the second time, maybe even more! *Reader faints* And I'd read it again too!

Okay, now that all that silliness is out of the way, Simon Snow is a character from the Simon Snow series that Cath and Wren read in Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl. Carry On isn't those books, and it isn't Cath's fan fiction. It's basically Rowell's own fan fiction, but since it's her universe, it's canon.

Simon Snow is the Chosen One, the one the prophecy says will save magic. He was a skinny little orphan when he came to Watford School of the Magick Arts, and now he is the Mage's Heir. Over the years, he has gone on countless adventures and quests, defeated enemies, slain dragons. He has done all this with the help of his best friend, genius Penelope "Penny" Bunce, and with his loyal girlfriend Agatha waiting for him. These adventures were somewhat complicated by his roommate and nemesis Baz.

Now that their final year at Watford is started, Baz is nowhere to be found. Simon believes that he is off plotting against the Mage, or something equally dastardly. He was actually kidnapped so that his mother's ghost couldn't reach him. Instead, she reaches out to Simon and asks him to find Nicodemus, find the person responsible for letting the vampires into Watford, the person responsible for her death.

Once Baz is back at school, he teams up with Simon and Penelope to solve the mystery. It's during the Baz-narrated chapters that we learn that while Simon sees Baz as an enemy, Baz is in love with Simon. He's also a vampire, turned as a child during the attack that killed his mother. Can two enemies ever have a future, especially a vampire and the Chosen One? It might be more likely than you'd think.

I really liked the world Rowell created in Carry On, the spells created out of song lyrics, movie quotes, nursery rhymes, etc. Using famous magicians as curse words also made me laugh. I remember having trouble keeping track of the narrators when I first read the book, so it was easier the second time. It was a lot of fun hearing about all the adventures Penny and Simon have been on over the years, and I wish I could read those books too. The characters are all great, from brave Simon to pining Baz to awesome, feminist Penny to poor, confused Agatha.

Wayward Son takes place not too long after Carry On. Simon and Baz are dating, and they share a flat with Penny. Penny and Baz go to university, but Simon is a bit lost. He's no longer the Chosen One, and he's stuck with dragon wings and a long tail. He has plans to break it off with Baz before Baz breaks up with him, but it's put on hold when Penny decides they should all travel to America. She has been keeping in touch with Agatha, and she senses that something is wrong. They will fly to Chicago to visit her boyfriend, and then the three will drive out to California to check on Agatha.

Once they get to America, Penelope is devastated to learn that she no longer has a boyfriend. He thought he broke up with her, but she didn't listen. They set off in their fancy rental convertible for a much longer trip than anticipated. Along the way, they encounter some unfriendly vampires and are helped by a non-magical young man named Shepard. He offers his guidance for their trip, and the three witches accept his help, then proceed to wipe his memory and dump him. He comes back, because the memory wipe didn't take.

Shephard has travelled the United States seeking out all sorts of cryptids and magical creatures, and making friends with them. One of these friend points them towards Agatha, who has gotten involved with something called NowNext. On the surface, it seems like some New Age business seminar, but it's really a group of vampires with a goal: to learn how to wield magic. They travel to the city of vampires, Las Vegas, so that Baz can cozy up to some vampires and get some information.


Baz does cozy up to a vampire, much to Simon's displeasure. He also comes dangerously close to drinking human blood, a line he has never crossed before. America ends up surprising all of them. Spells are different there- the words come from non-magical people, and people talk differently in America. There are all sorts of dead spots they accidentally wander into, and threatening new enemies they encounter. What started as a fun vacation gets super intense! I'm very excited to read the third book to see what's next with Baz, Simon, Penny, Agatha, and Shepard.

The Haunted by Danielle Vega

I've never read any of Danielle Vega's books, but I've heard she writes some pretty scary stuff. I decided to give her newest book a shot to see if it scared me. Unfortunately (Or should I say fortunately?), the book was not very scary for me.

Hendricks and her family- mom, dad, and baby brother- just moved to their very small town. Her parents flip old houses for a living, sell them, then move on to the next. Something about Steele House makes them decide to stay. For Hendricks, it's a chance to start over.

We find out through the book that they moved to get Hendricks away from her ex-boyfriend. They had to get a restraining order, they changed phone numbers, and finally decided to move away. So when the weird stuff starts happening in the new house, Hendricks is more focused on the past that's still haunting her...when she should be focused on the ghosts haunting her now.

Through her new friends, Hendricks finds out that a young girl was found murdered in the cellar of Steele House. That girl was the sister of Hendricks' neighbor, Eddie. His brother was the one who killed her. So...that's awful. Now, there are invisible cats jumping through walls, ghosts destroying wine bottles, stabbing doors, and throwing babies around. A desperate Hendricks seeks help not from her cool new friends or the sweet boy who wants to date her, but from the loner-next-door, as you do.

The two crazy kids end up visiting a New Age store in a nearby town to seek help to perform a séance. They perform the rituals and fight back as the ghosts continue to terrorize them, but emerge victorious...or do they? There are still more secrets to be revealed, plus a very abrupt and strange ending. The Haunting didn't end up "haunting" me very much at all. I liked the characters and Hendricks' trauma stemming from her ex-boyfriend was affective. The parallels between the physical haunting and emotional haunting were interesting, and I sort of thought it would be more psychological than actual ghosts. Alas, the actual haunting was not as satisfying.

Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan

It's the summer before senior year, and Elouise/Lou is determined to make it the best, most epic summer yet. This plan centers on winning over long-time crush Nick. They work together at Magic Castle Playland, a small local amusement park. Nick is one of the diving pirates, but Lou has spent her two years serving as a hot dog outside the food stands. Unfortunately, Nick has a girlfriend, the pretty, nice, literally-plays-Cinderella Jessa. How is a hot dog supposed to compete with that?

Other than her tragic lack of love life, Lou has to face the unfortunate truth that Magic Castle Playland will be closing. The owner has announced it will be the last year. The park she loves, where she grew up, will be torn down and turned into a factory. This is unacceptable, of course, so Lou brings her coworkers together to come up with some fundraising ideas to save the park.

Unfortunately, plans on the love life front don't work out so well. Because she can't get close to Nick, Lou plots to find love for her best friend Seeley. She schemes to get her to go out with fellow ride operator Angie. Unfortunately, things don't work out on that front. Then Eloise comes up with the "bright" idea of pretending to date Seeley. Then she can get close to Nick without making Jessa think she's a threat, she can feel out their relationship, she and Seeley can fake break up, and Nick and Lou can get together.


Thankfully, it's not a case of pretending to be gay to impress the boy. Seeley is a lesbian, Lou is bisexual. This plan is still problematic for a LOT of reasons. Most important and biggest of these reasons being that Seeley is obviously in love with Lou. She just can't see it until it's too late.


The majority of Hot Dog Girl is cute and fun. Lou could be a little annoying, especially when she was too obsessive over Nick and making every little thing between them have to mean something, and when she was being rude to Jessa for no reason. I'm really not sure I actually liked her, to be honest. I will say that I was surprised to have a bisexual main character. I thought it would be the story of Elouise trying to get the boy while her lesbian friend also tried to find love in the background. The story ended up going in a different direction, and I really liked the change from what I expected.

What If It's Us by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera

“I believe in love at first sight. Fate, the universe, all of it. But not how you’re thinking. I don’t mean it in the our souls were split and you’re my other half forever and ever sort of way. I just think you’re meant to meet some people. I think the universe nudges them into your path.”

Arthur is staying in New York for the summer while interning at his mom's law office. While out getting coffee one day, he runs into the boy of his dreams at the post office. This boy is going to send a package back to his ex-boyfriend, but the postage is more expensive than anticipated. Before they can exchange names, the dream boy is gone. Some might give up at this point, but Arthur knows that the universe brought them together, and the universe will bring them together again.


Meanwhile, dream boy, AKA Ben, is not having the best summer. He has to attend summer school with his ex. Ben's best friend Dylan, who is girl crazy, has a new girl he is seeing. So Ben is feeling both stupid and lonely.


To help Fate along, Arthur decides to post a Missed Connections notice at a coffee shop. Dylan's girlfriend finds the notice and gives it to Ben. Arthur and Ben find each other and everything is perfect! Well, maybe not perfect. They come from very different backgrounds- Ben's family is poor and Arthur's is rich, Arthur will be headed to Yale next year, Ben is in summer school and has no idea what he'll do after graduation, if he graduates. They also have to deal with slightly clashing personalities and end up having to redo their first date a couple times to get it just right.


The worst of it is when the constantly late Ben plans the date of Arthur's dreams but accidentally ruins it with his flakiness. That one hurt. The universe brought them together, but their relationship has a lot of obstacles, biggest of which is what will happen when Arthur leaves the city after the summer.


I really love Becky Albertalli's books, and while I haven't read any Adam Silvera, I definitely have his stuff on my To Read list. So, I was psyched for What If It's Us, and I really enjoyed the story. The characters are a lot of fun, not just Ben and Arthur. It's a really sweet love story, and I'm glad I read it.

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

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Emoni has always had a passion for cooking. Ever since she was young, she had an instinct for adding extra flair to her recipes, almost never making the same dish the same way twice. Some even claimed that her cooking is magic, even brings back forgotten memories. Emoni isn't sure about that, she just likes to cook.

During Emoni's senior year, her school finally introduces the perfect elective: culinary arts. This class will focus on Spanish cuisine, and there will be a special trip to Spain. It's an exciting opportunity, but also challenging for Emoni, who will have to work very hard to make sure she graduates while also juggling a part-time job at a burger restaurant and the full-time job of raising her two-year-old daughter. An extra class, and an expensive foreign trip, seem out of the question. Yet, Emoni still signs up for the course.

Culinary Arts is amazing, seeing all the kitchens and utensils finally put to good use. Unfortunately, starting with the basics gets Emoni feeling a little antsy. When the teacher criticizes her for adding a little extra flair to a dish instead of sticking to the recipe, Emoni starts to skip the class. It seriously worried me because I cared about her and worried about her academic future, and it also worried her new friend Malachi. Emoni doesn't have much time or interest in boys, but new student Malachi shows a lot of interest in her. Despite her initial protests, Emoni eventually warms up to him.

With the Fire on High was a really great book. It was really hard not to care about the characters, especially Emoni. I rooted hard for that girl. I would love to try her cooking!

The Princess and the Fangirl by Ashley Poston

I very much enjoyed Poston's Geekerella, so I was excited to get back into that world with The Princess and the Fangirl. It's set in the same universe, but focuses on different characters at the same convention in a time far, far away...or maybe like a year or so.

At the latest ExcelsiCon, the new Starfield movie was a smashing success. Now, they are gearing up for a sequel. The only person not excited is leading lady Jessica Stone. Her Amara was killed off in the first film, and Jessica hopes she stays that way. Jessica had been a "serious" actress, and she wants to get back to indie films that earn Oscars, not sci-fi popcorn flicks. She also has a tendency to read every tweet and negative post about her, and the fandom is not kind.


Meanwhile, Imogen Lovelace practically grew up at ExcelsiCon. Her top priority is the #saveamara campaign she started. She even rented a booth with her online friend Harper so she can hand out buttons and get more signatures on her petition. The trouble starts when Imogen is mistaken for Jessica and pulled onstage during a Q&A. Nobody can tell that she isn't the actual actress, although her positivity towards Starfield makes some people suspicious given how much everyone knows Jessica Stone hates Starfield.

That should be the end of Jess and Imogen's encounter, but Jessica needs a stand in. The director of Starfield gave her some important documents, and Jessica threw them in the garbage. It turned out to be a copy of the script to the Starfield sequel. Now, someone is leaking the script on twitter, and it's only a matter of time until someone finds out it was her script. Imogen will take over as Jessica, doing meet and greets for the fans, while Jessica mans her booth with Harper and investigates the leaker.


The girls learn valuable lessons from switching lives; Imogen finally feels seen, but learns some of the downsides to celebrity, and understands why Jessica doesn't want to be Amara. Jess appreciates the anonymity of being Imogen, and starts to understand what the Starfield movies, and Amara, mean to a lot of fans. Of course, they both also fall in love. Imogen clashes with Jessica's prickly assistant Ethan, but anyone can tell it's one of those love to hate you/hate to love you things. Jess, for her part, falls for Harper. There's even a big declaration of love scene that is adorable.


All in all, The Princess and the Fangirl wasn't quite as good as Geekerella but it was fun and it helped me out of my reading slump. I liked that we got to see more of Elle and Darien. I also liked that Jessica fell in love with a girl, and it wasn't a Big Deal. It's a pretty good time, and I hope to see more Once Upon a Con books in the future.