Book Review: Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

Book: Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone    

Series: N/A

Genre: Young Adult

Pages: 368

Rating: 4.5 stars

Summary:

Samantha Mcallister is your typical popular high school girl. She has a lot of friends that are always there for her. Or so it seems. 

Though no one but her psychiatrist and mother knows, Sam actually suffers from Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. She hides it from everyone, including her best friends who aren't very nice at all. Sam second-guesses everything in her life and  has trouble living normally every day. 

That is, until she finds about Poet's Corner from a friend named Caroline. Poet's Corner is a totally private place where a few outcast students can come twice a week to listen and present their own poetry. It's a time for kids to feel themselves. 

Sam finds a home in Poets Corner and finally realizes some things about herself. Things she should have learned a long time ago. 

Review *spoilers*:

I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was a great twist on a normal YA novel. The author really knew how to describe OCD and Sam's everyday struggles. I liked AJ and I thought he sounded super cute! Plus he sings and plays guitar which is adorable.

Sam's friends really bothered me throughout the whole book. They were annoying and snotty, except Hailey was okay. They were just so rude to everyone. I was really glad Sam found a place.

One thing I was totally shocked by was the fact that Caroline wasn't real. It made total sense looking back on it but I had no idea. I thought the way Stone described Sam's suffering after she realized that Caroline was not alive was amazing. It sounded so real. I definitely teared up at this part.

I was so happy for Sam at the end. She finally felt comfortable in her friend group, she was doing well with swimming, and she found a new place to release her emotions. This book was very well written and quite emotional, so I gave it 4.5 stars.

-Madison

Book Review: Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Book - Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Series - N/A
Genre - Young Adult

Pages - 396

Rating - 3 stars

Summary

A devastating plane crash leaves thirteen Miss Teen Dreams stranded on a deserted island. How will they ever survive?

Although the island seems deserted, none of the girls are brave enough to venture to the other side. Little do these girls know The Corporation has a huge sector on the other side. The Corporation is the company who sponsors the prestigious Miss Teen Dream Pageant, pretty fishy they didn't see a huge plane fall out of the sky.

Join these thirteen beauty queens while they teach themselves to build huts, fish and make booby trap, all while they practice their dance routines. These beauty queens will soon realize there is more to each of them than their fake eyelashes and spray tans.

Review and My Thoughts *Spoilers*

This book was nothing like I expected, but I mean that in a good way! This book was super funny! I expected to read a book about a bunch of spoiled girls who were stuck on an island, but it was nothing like that at all! 

At first I was so confused reading this book. It kept switching views to the different Miss Teen Dreams. Also, there was a secret agent as well, so that was another point of view. Plus, they were commercial breaks! Once I got further into the book it was easier to figure out though, especially when the stories collided. 

This book took a little while to get into but once I did, I couldn't put it down! I loved reading about how the girls survived. Their huts were super cool along with their defense systems. Who knew foundation could be a weapon?

Libba Bray did an amazing job adding in twists to this book! I would have never guessed that Petra was from Boyz Will B Boyz, that was a crazy twist! Another twist was Taylor staying on the island! I was actually angry about this. Taylor was the team leader, for the most part, and now she just left them. I know she was all hopped up from those darts but should the poison wear off? The poison wore off on Agent Jones. 

As said before this book wasn't anything like I expected. I would recommend this book to a wide variety of people. This book has action, romance, humor survival etc. Although if you pick this book up, make sure to keep your Miss Teen Dreams straight!

~ Savannah

Book Review: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Book - Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Series - N/A
Genre - Young Adult

Pages - 288

Rating - 3 stars

Summary

Hannah Baker is dead. Hannah Baker is gone. Clay Jensen knew this. He knew he'd never hear her voice again, until a mysterious box of tapes ends up on his doorstep. What he hears on the tape stops Clay in his tracks.

Hannah. Hannah's voice is on those tapes. Clay is shocked to hear Hannah's voice again, but what she has to say, completely shatters his world. The tapes were 13 stories about different people who played a role in Hannah's suicide.

Join Clay as he racks his brain trying to figure out why he is involved in Hannah's death, his crush's death. Follow Clay as he makes his way around town discovering the secrets of the people he thought he knew. 

Review and My Thoughts *Spoilers*

Overall, I enjoyed this book! I started listening to it on audio book but became impatient so I picked up the physical book! 

On the positive note I found the plot very interesting, although very depressing. The time and detail Hannah put into these tapes was amazing. The map leading from place to place I thought was one of the best parts. Rosie's Diner sounds like the coolest, place ever!

Tony was my favorite character in this book. I loved how caring and gentle he was when Clay was listening the tapes. He let Clay steal his Walkman. He drove Clay around as he listened to the tapes, crying and wishing to change the past. What got me is Tony wasn't even involved in Hannah's story, yet he still helped her. Hannah gave Tony the second set of tapes and he made sure everyone else listened to the tapes. He could have just threw out the tapes and never looked back yet he kept him. He was loyal to someone he never knew. 

Although I enjoyed the book and plot, Hannah Baker herself kind of annoyed me. I may get hate for this opinion but she did. I get where she was coming from, she did have it rough. Suicide was not the best decision, it never is. She didn't try to get help which irritated me. Yes she went and talked to that teacher, but she shut him out. She was telling him about the situation between her and Bryce. He gave her three options and she said no to all of them and left. He tried to help her but she pushed him away. That really frustrated me.

Anyway, I did enjoy this book. It was a very quick read. I personally think this is a great book for teenagers to read. It deals with many topics that many high school students face, alcohol, bullying, rape etc. 

~ Savannah

Book Review: City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Book: City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Series: The Mortal Instruments                     
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Pages: 576
Rating: 5 stars

Summary of Book:

This is the 3rd book in the six book series. It starts with Clary, who is getting ready to travel to Alicante, which is the home city of Shadowhunters. Clary must travel there in order to find answers about her mother, who is still in a comatose state.

Though someone tries to stop her, Clary arrives in Alicante in an interesting way. While there, she searches for a cure for her mother's 'illness'. Throughout the trip, Clary meets some new people; some who do not turn out to be who she thought they were.

The Nephilim have to work with a few of their enemies to stop Valentine's plans to destroy the race of Shadowhunters. Clary tests herself in ways she didn't know possible to save the people she loves.

Review *Spoilers*:

I loved this book so much! It's definitely my favorite of the series so far. The action was awesome. Clary can be a bit of a handful but she's an okay main character. I do have to give her points for bravery. It was pretty sweet how Clary made her own portal, like who does that? Then, there's Sebastian. Ugh, he just kind of disgusts me. I thought he was sketchy from the start. Then you find out he killed the real Sebastian Verlac, Aline Penhallow's cousin. Sebastian is so creepy. I can't believe he kissed Clary.

One of my favorite scenes was when Jace and Clary went to the mansion to get the book for Magnus. The angel part was sad, but when the house exploded and Jace and Clary land on each other... It was pretty cute. I can't believe they finally told us Jace and Clary aren't siblings! I knew it but it was pretty agonizing waiting. But of course, Sebastian just has to be Clary's brother. Ugh, he's annoying.

The ending of this book was so crazy. Jace dies. Then he comes back to life because Clary was pretty genius about changing the rune Valentine made. But Valentine is finally gone! I was so excited until I remembered how much I hate Sebastian and that he's all evil now.

Can I just say how much I love Malec? Like honestly, Magnus is hilarious and Alec is so awkwardly cute and they're just so perfect. The best part is when Magnus is getting attacked by demons and Alec is going to save him. Then Alec is like "why didn't you call me?" in the middle of the battle. It was so funny to me. I loved this book.

-Madison

Book Review: Champion by Marie Lu

Book - Champion by Marie Lu

Series - Legend Trilogy #3
Genre - Dystopian 

Pages - 369

Rating - 5 stars

Summary of Series

Day is the most wanted criminal in the Republic. He is fifteen-years-old and is trying to provide for his poverty stricken family. 
June is the Republic's sweetheart. She is fifteen-years-old and is already a higher ranking soldier than people twice her age. 
The Republic of America is a corrupt society living over one-hundred years in the future. The Republic is at constant war with The Colonies of America. The war is not The Republic's only problem, fatal plagues sweep the nation as well. 

June and Day would never cross paths until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered. The prime suspect is Day. It becomes June's job to hunt him down and provide justice, the only problem is, June doesn't know what Day looks like, no one does.

Join June as she hunts down her brother's killer while learning the secrets of The Republic. Join Day as he begins the race to bring his family the cure for the plague before it's too late! 

Review and My Thoughts *Spoilers*

This trilogy is without a doubt my favorite dystopian trilogy I have ever read. I gave each book a five out of five stars! Marie Lu really had my emotions all over the place in this book! There were parts where I felt like crying, parts where I felt like laughing and parts where I felt like throwing the book across the room. Did anyone else feel like that? Overall I really enjoyed this book and this trilogy as a whole, but a few parts I did not really like.

First off, I was super happy when Day woke up from his coma. I was thinking that him and June were going to be together finally and live long happy lives in the Republic, but when does trilogy ever end that good? We find of that Day lost his short term memory so he of course doesn't remember June. June doesn't want to remind him that she was the reason that his family was killed, so she acts as though she doesn't know him. At this point I was furious! Why can't a dystopian trilogy have a nice ending? They do end up rekindling their relationship 10 years later though which is a semi-good ending I guess. This memory loss ending does sound a bit like the Mockingjay ending though. 

A section I really liked was when Day was shot and on the brink of death. This sounds morbid I know, but Day gets to see his mother! This section was so heart warming because Day never really got to say goodbye to his mother. This was a chance to kind of have closing about his mother's death. I was hoping that we would get to see John again though. I wanted to see Day and John's reaction/feelings about how John passed on. 

Overall this trilogy was amazing!  I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys fast paced action books or enjoys dystopian books. Another great thing about this trilogy is that there is no love triangle, which I'm sure frustrates us all. 

~ Savannah

Book Review: Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

Book: Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson
Series: N/A
Genre: Young Adult
Pages: 449
Rating: 4 stars

Summary:

Emily Hughes has never been someone to stand out. She was always in the background, but she was happy. Then, she meets Sloane Williams. Sloane is outgoing and fun and everything someone would want for a best friend. Except Emily is still stuck in the shadow of Sloane. People know her as 'Sloane's friend'.

Until one day when Sloane goes missing at the beginning of the summer. Emily's life turns upside down. The only thing that manages to offer her some sanity is a list. Sloane left Emily a bucket list, as she often does when Emily goes on a trip. The list has 13 tasks, such as 'break something' and 'kiss a stranger'. Emily decides to complete the list in hopes that it leads her to Sloane's whereabouts.

Throughout the summer, Emily accomplishes crazy tasks and makes some new friends along with way. She learns things about herself she never took time to realize. It's a great summer read about friendships and fun.

Review (Spoilers):

I personally really enjoyed this book. I thought it was full of humor and it was very easy to read. I especially liked the friends Emily makes, mostly Frank Porter. I loved how although Frank was known as the really smart and careful guy at school, he didn't act like it normally. I thought Frank and Emily's relationship was really cute and fun. One scene that frustrated me to no end was when Emily kissed Frank in her car. Frank was still dating his girlfriend, so he didn't react well after it was over. Plus, Emily lost her new three friends. But eventually, she makes up with Frank. I just wish I'd known what happened with Collins and Dawn.

One of my favorite sections of this book was when Emily and Frank went on the road trip, because Emily finally realized where Sloane was. Even though Emily and Frank weren't friends, he was still nice enough to drive her such a long way. Of course, in the end they make up and kiss. It was a little cliche but that didn't bother me at all. It was so sweet.

Overall, I liked this book a lot. The writing was easy to read but not in a bad way. Morgan Matson used a variety of flashbacks that really added to the story. It is a really great book in my opinion.

-Madison