The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

It's rather daunting to approach a review of The Starless Sea. It's a winding story that weaves inside and out, and I've heard (and personally believe) that it benefits from multiple reads. Alas, I am approaching this review having only read the book once. Still, I shall try my best. Zachary Ezra Rawlins once discovered a door painted on the side of a building. He did not go through the door that day, but he remembered it. When he finds a mysterious book in his university's library, called Sweet Sorrows with no author and donated by a particular person, he is surprised to find that he is featured in the story. There are also tales of acolytes and guardians and keepers, bees and keys and swords. He is lead to a party in New York where he meets an intriguing man who calls himself Dorian, a man who tells him stories and talks him into helping steal back another book. He also meets a pink-haired woman called Mirabel, though Zachary calls her Max. Max rescues Zachary when their heist goes bad and takes him to the Harbor, an underground series of rooms full of books and cats. The Harbor (And Max) is responsible for the doors, for leading people to the Starless Sea. There are also people, led by a woman named Allegra, who paint over the doors to keep people out. Thus, the central conflict. Anyways, it's all very complicated. There is the main story, and every other chapter are different stories from Sweet Sorrows and Fortunes and Fables, stories that have nothing to do with the main storyline until they do. Yeah, it's one of those books. I loved The Night Circus, so I was extremely excited to finally get a new book from Ms. Morgenstren. Despite the complicated nature of the story, I enjoyed The Starless Sea, and I look forward to understanding it even better when I finally get around to reading it a second time.

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.

Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli

“Imagine going about your day knowing someone’s carrying you in their mind. That has to be the best part of being in love- the feeling of having a home in some else’s brain...”

I loved Simon Vs. the Homosapiens Agenda and The Upside of Unrequited, so of course I wanted to read Albertalli's newest book. Leah on the Offbeat is more of a direct sequel to Simon, as Upside focused on different characters on the very outskirts of the universe. Here, Simon's friend Leah deals with high school drama of her own.

Leah knows who she is; she's fat, she's a Slytherin, she's a drummer. She's a little self conscious about not being as rich as her classmates, as she was raised by her single mother. What she hasn't told any of her friends, including Simon, is that she is bisexual. It changes her feelings towards Abby in the previous book. Where it seemed that she didn't like the new girl because of a crush on mutual friend Nick, Leah had actually been struggling with an attraction to Abby.

It turns out that those feelings haven't gone away. What's worse is that it makes every interaction with Abby awkward. Not that it matters if Leah likes Abby because Abby is dating Nick and Abby is straight. But Abby and Leah are going to the same college, and Abby wants Leah to go with her for a campus visit. Then she breaks up with Nick because she doesn't want a long distance relationship. Also, it turns out that Abby might not be as straight as she thought she was.

I love the characters in Albertalli's books. In general, teenagers make me nervous and frightened, but these kids are so sweet and funny. I want to help them with their homework and give them hugs and bake them cookies and help them with their complicated love lives (Although, at least they have love lives...maybe they can help with mine!) Leah on the Offbeat is another excellent book and I'm excited to read more from Albertalli.

The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli

"There's just something terrifying about admitting you like someone. In a way, it's actually easier when there's no chance of anything happening. But there's this threshold where things suddenly become possible. And then your cards are on the table. And there you are, wanting, right out in the open..."

The Upside of Unrequited is set in the same universe as Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, but it's not technically a sequel. The main characters, Molly and her twin sister Cassie, are cousins of Abby from the previous book. Abby makes a couple appearances here, along with Simon and Nick. It's nice to see the characters again, but also nice not to have to remember a lot of details about the previous book to enjoy this one.

Our main character is Molly. She's seventeen and has had lots of crushes, but no boyfriend. Molly meets a girl named Mia and introduces her to her twin sister Cassie. Cassie and Mia start a relationship, which is different for Cassie. Molly's twin has had casual flings, but never anything serious. Unfortunately, the sisters start to drift apart a bit. Cassie urges Molly to get together with Mia's friend Will. Will also seems to like Molly. Yet Molly can't stop thinking about Reid, the geeky guy she works with.

Molly was so easy to relate to, both for teenage and current Caitlin. Seriously, there were so many lines for me to write down afterwards. I'm also a big fan of how LGBTQ friendly the book was. Molly is straight, Cassie is gay, and they were raised by two moms. Mia is pansexual (I think?). None of this is treated as a big deal, which I loved.

Honestly, The Upside of Unrequited is completely delightful. It made me laugh and cry, and make little squealing noises. You should totally read this, and read Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda if you haven't. Hopefully, Becky Albertalli will write even more awesome books for me to love and recommend in the near future (Please and thank you!).

I received my copy of The Upside of Unrequited from Edelweiss, courtesy of Balzer & Bray/Harperteen. It's available for purchase now.

Cress by Marissa Meyer

At the end of 2015, I challenged myself to read the entire Lunar Chronicles series, according to Marissa Meyer's recommendations. I had hoped to finish the series by the end of the year, but came a little short. I reread Cinder and Scarlet, as well as the novellas in between the books, and managed to finish Cress just after the new year.

You can read my reviews of Cinder and Scarlet through the links. I am somewhat ashamed that it took me so long to read Cress, but that's the way books are: too many titles, too little time.

The Lunar Chronicles is a fairy tale-science fiction mash-up. Cinderella is part cyborg and Red Riding Hood is in love with a genetically modified super soldier. The earth is being decimated by plague and the only salvation is from Lunar (As in from the moon) Queen Levana, who is evil. In the third installment, we meet our Rapunzel, Cress.

Cress is a Lunar, but she doesn't have any powers. (Normally, Lunars can control other people with their minds.) Since Cress can't control or be controlled, she is labelled a shell. Shells are traditionally rounded up and killed, but Cress ended up being sent to live on a satellite. She has all kinds of technological training and hacking skills and she does lots of secret work for her Mistress, Sybil, the head Thaumaturge/bodyguard for Levana.

All Cress thinks about is the world outside her tiny satellite. She watches videos, looks at pictures, and listens to music from earth, dreaming that she might experience earth firsthand. She also develops a huge crush on Carswell Thorne, the cocky criminal who escaped from prison with Cinder. She read about his various crimes through the years and considers him to be misunderstood.

Thorne, Cinder, Scarlet, and Wolf are all traveling on his (stolen) ship the Rampion when they contact Cress to get some hard evidence of Levana's plans (At the end of the first book, Cress had been the girl in the android's file who warned Cinder about Levana's bad intentions towards earth). They decide to rescue the stranded girl, but are interrupted by Sybil. Team Cinder escapes, but Sybil captures Scarlet and takes her back to Luna. They also end up with Jacin Clay, Sybil's pilot. Unfortunately, Sybil sends the satellite plummeting to earth...with Thorne and Cress still on board!

Fortunately, Cress was able to slow their landing, and the pair end up wandering through the desert. Thorne can't see because of the crash, and they have a terrible time between the hunger, thirst, and foot pain. They eventually come across a caravan of helpful people who escort them to a city. Thorne ends up disappointing Cress by gambling and flirting with an android escort, which gives their rescuers the chance to kidnap Cress and sell her to someone buying Lunars.

Meanwhile, the Rampion crew heads to Africa to meet up with Dr. Erland, the secret Lunar. Erland ends up being the guy buying Lunars, and he is also Cress' father. Team Cinder decides to stop the wedding and save earth by kidnapping Kai. There's some minor betrayal, but it all goes off without a hitch otherwise.

I remember the first time that I read Scarlet, it was sometimes hard to follow the story because I had trouble keeping track of whether the narrator was Scarlet or Cinder. It was easier the second read, but I have a bit more trouble with Cinder/Cress here. I am still a fan of Cress and Carswell Thorne is fantastic, so I love this book. We even get a glimpse of Miss Winter towards the end to gear us up for the last book.

 

Bones & All by Camille DeAngelis

"The truth is like the waiting jaws of a monster, a more menacing monster than I'll ever be. It yawns beneath your feet, and you can't escape it, and as soon as you drop it chews you to pieces..."


Bones & All tells the story of a very different young woman. When Maren gets close to someone, she gets the overwhelming urge to eat them. The first time was when she was too young to remember and ate her babysitter. Over the years, there were many boys and young men. After every time, Maren's mother packed their things and they moved away. She had to protect her daughter from what she did, what she was.

The day after Maren turned 16, her mother left. The note read: "I'm your mother and I love you but I can't do this anymore." Maren packed up only her things, took the money her mother left her, and set off to try to find her father. She's never met him. Her mother never talked about him, but Maren has a strong feeling that he shares her secret.

On her journey, she meets people like her. There is an old man named Sully who only eats dead people. She also meets Lee, a young man who helps her, protects her, and also eats anyone who offends him. It's about being on your own for the first time, about finding out that you aren't as alone as you thought you were, and about figuring out who you can trust.

I was a little afraid to read Bones & All, but it turned out to be surprisingly free of blood and gore given the subject matter. I liked Maren. Any girl who liked books as much as her can't be all bad. I can see how you can form a lot of metaphors and such from the book, but I'm really not in a philosophical mood at the moment. Maybe a girl who eats anyone who gets too close is exploring the power of her sexuality, or maybe she's just a really hungry girl. I'd like to just see it as a book about a girl who sometimes eats people. It really is a good book. In fact, I ate it right up. (It's okay, I'll see myself out)

I was invited to be a part of the Bones & All Street Team on the Goodreads website. I received an ARC and tote bag from St. Martin's Press. The book will be available for purchase March 10, 2015.

The Scar Boys by Len Vlahos

"I noticed a similar thing with my dad, and it made me wonder if people, when they reach a certain age, forget how to be happy. Like maybe they grow up to become what they were once rebelling against, and it makes them sad without even knowing it..."

This is the story of a little-known band called the Scar Boys. It is narrated by Harbinger "Harry" Jones, written as an essay for a college application. He describes the most defining moments of his life. The first happened when he was 8 years old. Some bullies tied him to a tree, then left him outside as it started to rain, then storm. The tree was hit by lightning and caught fire. Harry was badly burnt and left with severe scars on his face and body.

Harry's scars made him subject to stares and fear from other children and even adults. He is understandably surprised the day that Johnny befriends him. Johnny is athletic, popular, and handsome. Him wanting to hang out with Harry is practically mind-boggling. The two boys start running together. Johnny gets Harry to go Trick or Treating, even gets him a date. He sounds too good to be true, and he was. Though Johnny was nice to Harry, actually his only friend, he also ended up using Harry to make himself seem better. He needed to show that he was able to have what Harry never could.

After Harry is rejected by the girl Johnny set him up with, Johnny suggests that they form a band. They got guitars, found a drummer and a bass player, and the Scar Boys was born. They practice, get better and better, and grow a following at their high school. They play parties, and even manage to get a gig at CBGB. Unfortunately, their bass player quits right before that huge gig. They are upset about missing the opportunity, but even more upset to have to audition a replacement.

They decide upon a cute girl named Cheyenne. To maintain the stability of the band, the boys vow that they won't hook up with her. One guess for who ends up breaking that vow.

Meanwhile, Harry comes up with the idea that the Scar Boys should go on a cross-country tour. Most of the members will be graduating. Johnny already has a scholarship and a place at college waiting next fall. The summer will most likely be the final chapter for the Scar Boys. The band is met with indifference at first, but they win over even the smallest audience. They had sent out singles to college radio stations, so their shows attract more and more people. They were on top of the world, and there was nowhere left to go but down (This feels very VH1 Behind the Music).

The Scar Boys was difficult to read sometimes, but it was really funny. It reminded me a lot of King Dork by Frank Portman. Every chapter features a song, and the song title relates to what happens. I made a playlist from the chapters, though I'm not sure if the songs relate past the title. This was one of those stories that made me want to start a band, though I am not especially musical. There is this really unexpected event towards the end, and it leads to a sweet ending. I'm always a sucker for a happy ending.

I received my copy of The Scar Boys from Edelweiss, courtesy of Egmont USA. It's available for purchase now.

Just One Day by Gayle Forman

Just One Day is the story of a girl who lets other people control her life. Allyson is taking a tour of Europe, a graduation present before heading off to college and medical school, the life she has had planned for years. In England, her plans change when she attends a Guerrilla Shakespeare performance of Twelfth Night, and falls for the guy playing Sebastian. Willem is Dutch and alluring. He takes her to Paris and they spend a lovely day together before he disappears into thin air.

Willem's disappearance breaks her. Allyson does poorly at college. She doesn't connect with her roommates, she does terribly at her classes, and she doesn't keep up with her parents or former best friend. The first part of the book was really difficult to read. I wanted to like Allyson, but it was very difficult. She was so bad that part of me wanted to stop reading the book. The girl was stuck in a plan she made when she was 12 or something, pining over some guy that she knew for one day and didn't even learn his last name!

Thankfully, Allyson eventually moves out of her rut. I'm always a sucker for a good girl empowerment story. Despite the excruciating beginning, I'm going to come down on the positive side here. I greatly empathize with the difficulty of growing up. It's hard to figure out what to do with your life and who you want to be. Lord knows that I haven't figured everything out yet. What we get here is a girl who figures out that she doesn't want what she thought she wanted. By the end, she has moved in a direction to find out what she actually wants. It seems as though there will be a sequel from Willem's point of view. I almost don't want to hear from him, as he comes off as a bit of a dog. I'll probably still end up reading it when it comes out.

I received my copy of Through the Ever Night from Edelweiss, courtesy of Dutton Juvenile. It's available for purchase now.

Everneath by Brodi Ashton

As I was reading Everneath, I pretty much figured out early on how it would end. When the expected ending came, I was thinking, "Woo! I'm right again. Can't get one past me!" Then the sobbing started. Because this book really did have an effect on me.

Nikki just came back after spending one hundred years in the Everneath. Now she has only six months before she will be taken back forever. The problem is that she disappeared without a trace. Her friends and family had no idea where she was for months. Now, Nikki has to find a way to make peace with them, and with the boy she loves, Jack.

If all that wasn't stressful enough, Nikki is being followed by Cole, the Everliving who took her to the Everneath. He wants her to return with him and make a power play so they become king and queen of the Everneath. Cole could have been cartoonish or unlikeable, but he was written very well. Jack was very sweet, but I really like a bad boy.

Sorry to write such a short review, but I'm afraid of giving away too much. Everneath reads like a modern myth, which was intentional as the book is a modern retelling of the Persephone myth. I enjoyed the narrative style, which has chapters showing current Nikki and then flashbacks to before she went underground. It makes you want to keep reading so you can find out what happened that made Nikki agree to go to the Everneath. Just be careful, because that ending creeps up on you.

I got my copy of Everneath from Netgalley. It's available for purchase now.

Flawless by Sara Shepard

 

The first Pretty Little Liars book left off with the discovery of Alison's body and her funeral. All the girls got a text from the mysterious and threatening A:

"I'm still here, bitches. And I know everything."

Flawless, the second book in the series, starts with a flashback to "the Jenna incident." Toby had been peeping in the Liars' window. Alison was affronted and decided to get revenge. She was going to set off some firecrackers outside of Toby's tree house to scare him. Something went wrong, and Jenna was permanently blinded. Toby took the blame for the accident. Alison always said that he kept her secret because she was keeping his secret, but none of the other girls knew what that secret was, except Spencer.

None of the secrets have changed in this book. Aria is still hot for teacher, then hot for Hanna's ex Sean. Hanna still has daddy issues and body issues. Spencer is still chock full of sibling rivalry. Emily still has sexuality issues.

The big event of the book is Foxy, a charity dance thing. Hanna's dad invites her for a fancy weekend, but invites his new wife and daughter. A texts Hanna that Sean is attending Foxy with someone else, and Hanna sneaks away to the event. Sean invited Aria and the two are the talk of the party. Spencer is there with Andrew, her main academic rival. It's obvious that he's smitten with her, but she hurts his feelings by revealing she's attached to her sister's ex. Finally, Emily invited Toby Cavanaugh as her date. When Spencer sees them together, she freaks out. By the time she gathers the others, Emily has disappeared.

The girls think Toby might be A and that he could hurt Emily. During their ride home, Toby suddenly becomes angry and mentions how much he hated Allison. There's a hilarious misunderstood conversation where Emily accuses him of a terrible deed. It's funny because she's referring to killing Alison while he's referring to having inappropriate relations with his stepsister. Well, not funny-haha. Emily thinks that he killed Alison and she runs away from his car. She makes it home safely, though Toby follows her and tries to talk to her. In the morning, his body is found in the woods, dead from a suspected overdose.

Because they think Toby was A, the Liars believe that everything is over. Of course, there's still a whole bunch of books left in the series, so it's not quite as simple as that.

Death's Daughter by Amber Benson

Chick lit has never been my thing. Don't get me wrong, I like boys and clothes like most heterosexual females (Though not enough to describe either man morsels or Prada anything as "yummy," "scrumptious," or, well, "man morsels."). I like the idea of girly books with lovey dovey content and shopping. It's just that most of what I have read (Lots of Meg Cabot, a couple pages of the abysmal Confessions of a Shopaholic) is just so incredibly shallow. Stupid girls with stupid problems act stupid and get stupid boyfriends. And...I just don't care.
Now, Death's Daughter, a novel by Amber Benson, A.K.A. Tara from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," features Calliope Reaper-Jones. Callie is pretty much the typical chick lit protagonist. She's all about designer clothes, her job as a put-upon magazine assistant, and her failed overtures at a love life.
Where Callie differs is that she is the daughter of Death, hence the title of the book. She had been living a normal chick lit life under a Forgetting Charm and reluctantly reenters the strange realities of her actual life when her father- and the other top executives of Death, Inc.- is kidnapped.
In order to keep the world in order and allow her family to keep their immortality, Callie must complete three tasks to prove she is capable of taking control of the company. All this, and nobody has any idea who would have kidnapped Death. I can't say much more without giving something essential away.
In conclusion, I enjoyed the book. Callie could be infuriating a lot of the time, but she was okay. My slightly sadistic side enjoyed seeing the chick lit girl forced to endure hardship, blood, and gore. You know, beyond a sample sale (Zing! Drumbeat!). Maybe if more chick lit books featured dismemberment, hellhounds, and demon fighting, I'd like chick lit better. Nicholas Sparks, Sophie Kinsella, and Meg Cabot- take that as a hint.