Book Review: Come Back to Me by Mila Gray.

Product details:
Publisher: Pan Macmillan.
eBook, 373 pages.
Release date: June 19th 2014.
Rating:  4 out of 5.
Ages: New Adult
Source: Received from author for review.

Home on leave in sunny California, Marine and local lothario Kit Ryan finds himself dangerously drawn to his best friend's sister, Jessa - the one girl he can't have.

But Kit's not about to let a few obstacles stand in his way and soon Jessa's falling for his irresistible charms.

What starts out as a summer romance of secret hook-ups and magical first times quickly develops into a passionate love affair that turns both their worlds upside down.

When summer's over and it's time for Kit to redeploy, neither Kit nor Jessa are ready to say goodbye. Jessa's finally following her dreams and Kit's discovered there's someone he'd sacrifice everything for.

Jessa's prepared to wait for Kit no matter what. But when something more than distance and time rips them apart they're forced to decide whether what they have is really worth fighting for.

A breathtaking, scorchingly hot story about love, friendship, family and finding your way back from the edge of heartbreak.

Ever since the genre known nowadays as New Adult burst onto the scene not all that very long ago, it’s been a hit and miss affair for me. In all my New Adult reading I’ve had one major hit (Deeper by Robin York), a few major misses (those unnamed books that I could barely –and sometimes didn’t even- finish), but for the most part, I find New Adult to be a mostly okay but somewhat forgettable affair. Sure, I’ll enjoy a New Adult book while I’m reading it, but ask me a few weeks down the road what that book was all about, and chances it won’t have left all that much of an impression on me. I also find a lot of New Adult books are just too similar by far. Think of what Twilight didn’t do for YA when it spawned a million Twialikes with too-many-love-triangles-to-count (Twihards). Substitute those pesky love triangles for innocent good girls falling for heavily-tattooed-bad-boys who ride motorbikes and you’ll see a similar trend emerging in NA.

Thankfully, though it does contain some of those aforementioned NA mainstays, Come Back to Me is not one of thoseNew Adult books.  Come Back to Me is the first New Adult offering from Sarah Alderson writing as Mila Gray. And you need to know that this is Sarah Alderson (she of Hunting Lila and Alex Wakeman –PHWOAR!-fame) because, with Sarah Alderson, you know you’re in good hands.  You can also pretty much guarantee that any guy you encounter in a Sarah Alderson novel will be off the scales hot, and any steamy scenes, will be, well, worth the wait.

And that’s just in her Young Adult novels.

Come Back to Me deals with a forbidden, conducted-in-secret, and therefore all-kinds-of-hot summer romance between just-turned-eighteen Jessa Kingsley and at-home-on-leave-Marine Kit Ryan. A couple years older than Jessa, Kit is hotter-than-hell and has a reputation as a love-them-and-leave-them type. He’s also best friends with Jessa’s over-protective older brother, Riley. Added to that, Jessa’s ever-strict dad (he allows Jessa to have a cell phone for emergencies only?!), hates Kit to the point where he doesn’t even like him calling over to the house. Chances are he’s not going to be all-too-happy about the fact that Kit is hooking up with his daughter every chance he gets. Right from the start Kit and Jessa have quite a number of obstacles thrown right in the path of their blossoming true love. And, true love it is, because while these two enjoy multiple hot hook-ups, this isn’t just a casual fling, it’s not something for them both to pass the time with before Jessa starts college and Kit returns to service. No, these two have admired each other from afar for years, and when they finally get together, well, sparks fly.

Come Back to Me is a joyful reading experience. There is something about Sarah Alderson’s writing that always hooks me from the get go. I read this one last weekend while the sun shone all day long, and I have to say that I loved every minute of it. It’s perfect summer reading. New Adult for me is pure escapism, and Come Back to Me is just like one of those comfort-blanket-Sunday-afternoon-Lifetime-movies that I find myself watching from time to time. You know: heavy on the romance, with a strong possibility of tears, and always, always, always a happy ever after. In terms of plot, Come Back to Me doesn’t offer anything very new or groundbreaking. What it does offer is an all-round pleasurable reading experience from the pen of an author who really knows how to tell a story –and how to write a hot guy. I always say that Alderson’s books read like movies, and this one is no exception.

Come Back to Me is undoubtedly a very romantic story, but there’s more to Kit and Jessa’s story than a simple romance against the odds.  Aspects of military lifestyle, the sacrifices made and the often long-lasting consequences of, are skillfully detailed in this book, as are the tragedies that are a heart-breaking fact of life for many military families day in, day out, the world over. So, this book isn’t all romance, it’s not all sweetness and light, but what it is, is a very good read, and definitely one to add to your summer reading list.

I hope this is the first in a very long New Adult writing career for Mila Gray.

 

Stacking The Shelves #10 - New Books From Abigail Haas, Laura Jarratt, Adi Alsaid & More!

Stacking The Shelves is hosted at Tynga's Reviews.

Links Lead to Goodreads 

Received for Review

Dangerous Boys by Abigail Haas (Netgalley)

Let's Get Lost by Adi Alsaid (Edelweiss)

I LOVED Dangerous Girls when I read it last summer, and this sounds like another great murder mystery from Abigail Haas. I can't wait to get stuck in. Hoping for another deliciously wicked twist!

Let's Get Lost is top of my TBR for a couple reasons: 1- It's a contemp and in summer I'm all about contemps! 2 - It's got a road trip! 3- It's got a hint of mystery. 4-Every time I see this book I think of this song. And...I'm sold.

The Good Girl by Mary Kubica (Netgalley)

Virgin by Radhika Sanghani (Edelweiss)

Louder Than Words by Laura Jarratt

Bought

Lobsters by Tom Ellen & Lucy Ivison

Wish You Were Italian by Kristin Rae

I've heard great things about LOBSTERS from a bunch of bloggers and I have to say I've loved the sound of this one ever since I first heard of it. Sounds like a really great (and really funny!) coming-of-age tale.

I picked up Wish You Were Italian, because, well, ITALY! One thing: This is listed as part of a series (If Only #2) on Goodreads. I was pretty sure this was a standalone -- can anyone shed some light on this? Are they other books in this series linked to this one somehow? Companion novels etc? I'm really not sure.

Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walters

The Wrong Knickers - A Decade of Chaos by Bryony Gordon

The Lemon Grove by Helen Walsh

Beautiful Ruins: I know, I haven't read this yet. I've heard all good things. I actually had a copy for review from Netgalley last year, but just like so many of my review copies from Netgalley this expired before I could get to it.

The Wrong Knickers: Here's my quick review from Goodreads:  Bright, bubbly (and often hungover!) Bridget-Jones-style memoir from Telegraph columist Bryony Gordon. I laughed a lot!

The Lemon Grove: I picked this up to see what all the fuss is about (This book has gotten a lot of press coverage!) My verdict: Hmmmm...I think this book is WAY over-hyped. It's was just an OK read for me.

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That's it for this week!

Special thanks to my good friend Jess from Jess Hearts Books who very kindly sent me a copy of Written in the Stars by Ali Harris after discovering that the formatting in my review copy from Netgally had messed up formatting. Thanks, Jess! :)

Current Read: A Midsummer's Nightmare by Kody Keplinger. 

Read All About It: News, Deals and Cover Reveals from Stephanie Perkins, Leila Howland, Abigail Haas, Samantha Young & More!

Here's a round up of the latest book news, deals and some cover reveals that I've discovered over the past while.  It's also basically a digest of all the exciting news stories that come my way and which I've mostly already posted on my twitter and Facebook feeds, so if you want up-to-the-minute book news and you don't want to have to wait around for me to type this up, you can follow me on those sites!

 Like DaisyChainBookReviews on Facebook  ||   Follow  @daisychainbooks on Twitter and then you'll never miss a thing!

My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories Ed: Stephanie Perkins

Release date: October 2014.

If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you’re going to fall in love with MY TRUE LOVE GAVE TO ME: TWELVE HOLIDAY STORIES by twelve bestselling young adult writers, edited by international bestselling author Stephanie Perkins. Whether you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah, Winter Solstice or Kwanzaa, there’s something here for everyone. So curl up by the fireplace and get cozy. You have twelve reasons to stay indoors and fall in love.

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 Everything That Makes You by Moriah McStay

Release date: March 2015.

One girl. Two stories. Meet Fiona Doyle. The thick ridges of scar tissue on her face are from an accident twelve years ago. Fiona has notebooks full of songs she’s written about her frustrations, her dreams, and about her massive crush on beautiful uber-jock Trent McKinnon. If she can’t even find the courage to look Trent straight in his beautiful blue eyes, she sure isn’t brave enough to play or sing any of her songs in public. But something’s changing in Fiona. She can’t be defined by her scars anymore.

And what if there hadn’t been an accident? Meet Fi Doyle. Fi is the top-rated female high school lacrosse player in the state, heading straight to Northwestern on a full ride. She’s got more important things to deal with than her best friend Trent McKinnon, who’s been different ever since the kiss. When her luck goes south, even lacrosse can’t define her anymore. When you’ve always been the best at something, one dumb move can screw everything up. Can Fi fight back?

Hasn’t everyone wondered what if? In this daring debut novel, Moriah McStay gives us the rare opportunity to see what might have happened if things were different. Maybe luck determines our paths. But maybe it’s who we are that determines our luck.

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Book Deals, Book Deals, Book Deals....

[Untitled] by Leila Howland 

 

Emily Meehan at Hyperion has bought world English rights to Nantucket Blue author Leila Howland's new untitled YA novel, about a hardworking 18-year-old student at prestigious Carter Academy who is rejected from every college due to a misstep sophomore year. Knowing only a huge risk can save her, she moves to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming an actress. Publication is slated for 2016; Sara Crowe at Harvey Klinger, Inc. brokered the two-book deal. 

Fourteen Dreams by Brenna Yovanoff

Krista Marino at Delacorte Press has acquired North American rights to Fourteen Dreams by Brenna Yovanoff (The Replacements), in a preempt. Pitched as Say Anything meets Donnie Darko, the story is about a high-achieving girl who falls for the most imperfect boy in school through a series of mysterious dreams that change how she feels about herself, her future, and love. Publication is planned for spring 2016; Sarah Davies at the Greenhouse Literary Agency did the two-book deal. 

The Remedy by Suzanne Young

Liesa Abrams at Simon Pulse has bought The Remedy, a new YA novel by Suzanne Young, author of The Program and The Treatment. In the book, 17-year-old Quinn McKee has the unusual job of helping grieving families with their loss by playing the role of a recently deceased loved one, working alongside grief counselors. The line between work and life begins to blur, though, when Quinn begins acting the part of the girlfriend whom fellow teenager Isaac has just lost. Publication is set for spring 2015; Jim McCarthy of Dystel & Goderich did the deal for world English rights. 

Enter Title Here by Rahul Kanakia

Lisa Yoskowitz at Disney-Hyperion has bought world English rights to Rahul Kanakia's debut YA novel, Enter Title Here, at auction. Pitched as Gossip Girl meets House of Cards, the story follows overachiever Reshma Kapoor as she launches a Machiavellian campaign to reclaim her valedictorian status after being caught plagiarizing. Publication is set for fall 2015; John M. Cusick of Greenhouse Literary brokered the two-book deal.

The Marked Girl by Lindsey Klingele

Jessica MacLeish at HarperCollins acquired world English rights to Lindsey Klingele's debut YA novel, The Marked Girl. Klingele is a writers' assistant on the ABC Family show Twisted. The story, set in a medieval, Game of Thrones-esque world, centers on a group of royal teens who are dropped in modern-day Los Angeles. There, they befriend a street-smart girl who is torn about helping them find their way home, since she's fallen for the charming bad-boy prince of the group. Reiko Davis at Miriam Altshuler Literary Agency did the three-book deal.

The Last Harvest by Kim Liggett

Melissa Frain at Tor Teen has acquired Kim Liggett's YA horror thriller The Last Harvest at auction. Pitched as Friday Night Lights meets Rosemary's Baby, it's the story of 17-year-old former football star Clay Tate, who, as the one-year anniversary of a horrific slaughter approaches, is forced to come to terms with his family's – and his rural Oklahoma town's – role in a plot to deliver Satan back to earth. It's set for summer 2016 publication; Josh Adams at Adams Literary negotiated the two-book deal for North American rights. 

Wanderlost by Jen Malone

Annie Berger at HarperTeen has bought Jen Malone's YA debut Wanderlost in a two-book deal. It tells the story of a teenage girl who agrees to impersonate her older sister to keep her from losing her summer job working as a tour guide for a senior-citizen bus trip through Europe. When their carefully constructed plan derails, she'll have to put her improv skills to the test to avoid causing an international incident. Publication is planned for summer 2016; Holly Root of the Waxman Leavell Literary Agency did the deal for world rights.

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A Couple More Covers...

Dangerous Boys by Abigail Haas || Release date: August 2014

Three teens venture into the abandoned Monroe estate one night; hours later, only two emerge from the burning wreckage. Chloe drags one Reznick brother to safety, unconscious and bleeding; the other is left to burn, dead in the fire. But which brother survives? And is his death a tragic accident? Desperate self-defense? Or murder?

Chloe is the only one with the answers. As the fire rages, and police and parents demand the truth, she struggles to piece together the story of how they got there-a story of jealousy, twisted passion, and the darkness that lurks behind even the most beautiful of faces…

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If I Stay (Movie Tie-In) by Gayle Forman

Release date: July 2014

In the blink of an eye everything changes. Seventeen -year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall what happened afterwards, watching her own damaged body being taken from the wreck. Little by little she struggles to put together the pieces- to figure out what she has lost, what she has left, and the very difficult choice she must make. Heartwrenchingly beautiful, this will change the way you look at life, love, and family. Now a major motion picture starring Chloe Grace Moretz, Mia's story will stay with you for a long, long time.

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US Cover

Echoes of Scotland Street (On Dublin Street #5) by Samantha Young

Release date: February 2015

Shannon MacLeod has always gone for the wrong type of man. After she drifted from one toxic relationship to the next, her last boyfriend gave her a wakeup call in the worst possible way. With her world shattered, she’s sworn off men—especially those of the bad-boy variety.

Cole Walker is exactly the sort that Shannon wants to avoid—gorgeous, tattooed, charming, and cocky. But his rough exterior hides a good man who’s ready to find “the one.” He’s determined to pull Shannon from her self-imposed solitude and win her heart.

As Shannon opens up in the face of Cole’s steady devotion, the passion between them ignites to blazing levels. But when Shannon’s past comes back to haunt her, her fears may destroy the trust Cole has built between them—and tear them apart for good…

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And, Finally, Some UKYA Updates...

The Manifesto on How to be Interesting by Holly Bourne
Release date: August 2014

Apparently I'm boring. A nobody. But that's all about to change. Because I am starting a project. Here. Now. For myself. And if you want to come along for the ride then you're very welcome.

Bree is a loser, a wannabe author who hides behind words. Most of the time she hates her life, her school, her never-there parents. So she writes.

But when she’s told she needs to start living a life worth writing about, The Manifesto on How to Be Interesting is born. Six steps on how to be interesting. Six steps that will see her infiltrate the popular set, fall in love with someone forbidden and make the biggest mistake of her life.

From the bestselling author of Soulmates comes a fearlessly frank take on school, cliques and crushes.

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The Memory Keepers by Natasha Ngan || Release date: September 2014

"No one can take your memories from you... can they?"

Seven is a thief with a difference - he steals downloadable memories from banks and memoriums to sell onto London's black market, trading secrets and hidden pasts for a chance at a future of his own. He makes sure he keeps some special stuff back to 'surf' himself though - it's the only real form of entertainment he can afford. But one night, as Seven is breaking into a private memorium in a wealthy part of London, he is caught in the act by one of its residents; Alba, the teenage daughter of London's most famous criminal prosecutor. Instead of giving him away, Alba promises to keep Seven's secret - as long as he allows her to go memory-surfing herself. In doing so, they discover a hidden memory about Seven's past, revealing a shocking secret about Seven's childhood, the government and a mysterious experiment known as The Memory Keepers...

Now Seven and Alba will have to race against time to unlock the maze of The Memory Keepers - but can they keep themselves out of harm's way before the London Guard - and Alba's father - catches up with them?

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Girl Online by Zoe Sugg a.k.a Zoella

Penguin Children's has acquired the debut novel of YouTube vlogger (video blogger) Zoella. Zoella, whose real name is Zoe Sugg, is a beauty and fashion blogger with 4.9 million YouTube subscribers and two million Instagram followers. Her debut novel, Girl Online, is a YA title about a 15-year-old’s relationship with American pop star and what happens when her anonymous blog goes viral. Penguin fiction publisher Shannon Cullen acquired the world rights to the book in a two-book deal from Dominic Smales at Gleam Futures.

About the Book:

 I had no idea GirlOnline would take off the way it has - I can't believe I now have 5432 followers, thanks so much! - and the thought of opening up to you all about this is terrifying, but here goes...

Penny has a secret.

Under the alias GirlOnline, she blogs about school dramas, boys, her mad, whirlwind family - and the panic attacks she's suffered from lately. When things go from bad to worse, her family whisks her away to New York, where she meets the gorgeous, guitar-strumming Noah. Suddenly Penny is falling in love - and capturing every moment of it on her blog.

But Noah has a secret too. One that threatens to ruin Penny's cover - and her closest friendship - forever.

What the Publishers Are Saying: 

Amy McCulloch, editorial director of Penguin Children’s, said: “Zoe has an incredible voice for teens and she drew on her wealth of experience dealing with real issues like anxiety and cyber-bullying to deliver a poignant, romantic and heart-warming debut novel. The whole team was bursting with excitement at the prospect of working withZoe, and we know her fans – and the rest of the world – are going to fall head-over-heels with her writing.”

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And there you have it! I haven't done one of these posts since early May so there's quite a lot to get through! I've had to cut a number of deals that I wanted to include - but there were far too many to mention them all! I am noticing a bit of a trend in some of latest deals - YA Game of Thrones - it's a thing. Along with The Marked Girl by Lindsey Klingele (mentioned above) Kiersten White also has a GoT-esque trilogy on the way!

I'm very excited about Leila Howland's as-yet-untitled new book! I loved her Nantucket books SO much! I'm excited too about the next instalment in Samantha Young's On Dublin Street series - although I was hoping that Cole would get to narrate! 

Oh, and I'm super excited to read Dangerous Boys. Loved Dangerous Girls when I read it last year!

Also, any Zoella fans read this blog? Did you know she has a book coming out? ^^ See above!

Let me know what you think of the latest covers and deals in comments!

Please note that book covers may not be final and may be subject to change.  Additional sources:  The Bookseller, PW Children's Bookshelf & Goodreads.

Delightful Debutantes #41 - Emery Lord and Open Road Summer!

Hi, Emery! Congratulations on the release of Open Road Summer – I love your book and it’s a big hit amongst my blogger friends too! What inspired you to write Open Road Summer?

Thanks! I passed a few country music tour caravans on the highway--once while listening to the Mike Posner song "Cooler Than Me." That planted the first seed.

Can you tell me the journey you took with Open Road Summer from ‘initial ideas’ to the day when you received ‘The Call’ telling you your book was going to be published?

I actually wrote and sold Open Road Summer pretty quickly compared to...um...everything else I've written before or since? Haha. Everything locked into place fast: I knew I wanted abandonment and grief and heartache, devoted friendship and a "mean girl" narrator with no moralistic plotting from me as the writer. And I knew I wanted to balance all of that summer and music and falling in love.

What are your top tips for any aspiring writers out there who would like to one day see their work published?

Typical but vital tip: read widely, in your genre and outside of it. Write at the intersection of a good story and what matters to your soul. So...kind of what I described in my last answer! In any given book, I have things that are weighing on my heart, issues I want to explore in a story, moments I want to place in front of readers for consideration. Those will be the things that keep you at your desk. Those will be the things that keep you fighting past rejection. Yes, it's important to tell a compelling story. But it's just as important to press your fingerprints into the pages, the way only you can.

I love a good romance, and the romance between Reagan and Matt in Open Road Summer is sweet, relatable and all kinds of adorable. What are some of your favourite YA romantic couplings?

Thank you! Ella & Char from Ella Enchanted, Finnikin & Someone (I don't want to spoil it!) in Melina Marchetta's Lumatere Chronicles series, and Jessica Darling & Marcus Flutie FOREVER.

I also love a good road trip –and if it’s with my BFF, then, even better. If you could go on a road trip (anywhere in the world!) where would you go – and why? Oh, and who would you take along with you?

Nashville with my girl friends, always. (We're only 4 hours from Nashville, so it's a perfect drive without getting sick of being in the car.)

Five Things readers might not know about Open Road Summer:

- The couple on the front cover is actually married in real life.

- They just had a baby boy this past spring.

- The musical inspiration for Dee was one part Taylor Swift, one part Mindy Smith, one part Patty Griffin, and about 7 parts Nashville songwriter Nicolle Galyon. Love her music, so perfect for Dee.

- Matt's songwriting style is based on Mat Kearney, Matt Wertz, Matt Nathanson, Ben Rector, and Andy Grammer.

- Yes, I very briefly considered naming him Ben or Andy ;)

Four Books you recommend to anyone who loved Open Road Summer:

For the BFF factor...Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

For the celeb factor...Behind the Scenes by Dahlia Adler

For the summer lovin'...My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

For the musical element...This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales

Three Actors to play the parts of Reagan, Dee and Matt in the movie of Open Road Summer:

Matt Lauria as Matt Finch (also why Matt Finch is named Matt! ;))

As for Reagan and Dee, I've never really found actors who look like them to me! I've seen a few pictures of Ashley Benson and Lucy Hale from Pretty Little Liars that are kind of Reagan-and-Dee-ish, with different styling maybe!

Two Books you can’t wait to read this summer:

Ruin & Rising by Leigh Bardugo and Isla & the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins!

One all time favourite author of yours: 

Melina Marchetta

Finally, can you tell me anything about your next book?  I can’t wait to read it!

It's called The Start of Me & You. And it's about a girl named Paige who is trying to start over in her junior year of high school, after the guy she was dating died in an accident the year before. (...that makes it sounds sad. Which it is. But it's happy too. Like life ;))

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Thanks so much for the great Q&A, Emery! Open Road Summer is a new favourite of mine and is THE perfect summer read! You can read my review here. 

To keep up to date with all things Emery Lord follow her on Twitter: @emerylord

Book Review: Open Road Summer by Emery Lord.

Product details:
Publisher: Walker Children's.
eBook, 353 pages.
Release date: April 15th 2014.
Rating:  4½ out of 5.
Ages: 12+
Source: Received from publisher for review.

After breaking up with her bad-news boyfriend, Reagan O’Neill is ready to leave her rebellious ways behind. . . and her best friend, country superstar Lilah Montgomery, is nursing a broken heart of her own. Fortunately, Lilah’s 24-city tour is about to kick off, offering a perfect opportunity for a girls-only summer of break-up ballads and healing hearts. But when Matt Finch joins the tour as its opening act, his boy-next-door charm proves difficult for Reagan to resist, despite her vow to live a drama-free existence. This summer, Reagan and Lilah will navigate the ups and downs of fame and friendship as they come to see that giving your heart to the right person is always a risk worth taking. A fresh new voice in contemporary romance, Emery Lord’s gorgeous writing hits all the right notes.

Reagan O’ Neill and her best friend country superstar Lilah Montgomery (Dee to her friends) could not be more different. A wild child with a penchant for rebellion, Reagan likes to date bad boys, has a quick, usually snarky, answer for just about anyone, and she never, ever lets her guard down. Dee, on the other hand, is a sunny sweetheart who fell for her first love Jimmy years before. On paper, Reagan and Dee are such opposites that their friendship shouldn’t work; but it does. Reagan and Dee have been friends forever and are there for each other through thick and thin.  When we meet the two, both girls are a little bit bruised; Dee is nursing a recently broken heart, while Reagan’s pain is physical, the constant reminder of a relationship gone badly wrong. Reagan needs an escape, Dee needs her best friend, and so, as Dee embarks on a city-wide tour of the US, Reagan joins her for what will be a summer of fun and friendship on the road.

Dee’s image is squeaky clean and she is a consummate professional, so this tour should be scandal-free plain sailing. However, the media who built her up, are eager to find a chink in Dee’s perfect armor and when some seemingly-explicit photos of the teenage country superstar surface, it’s time to consider a plan of action. Enter Dee’s friend Matt Finch, formerly of The Finch Four, and now in need of a career re-boot. What better way to get the paparazzi off Dee’s tail than to offer them a flirty fauxmance with a very cute guy? Ever-cool Reagan rolls her eyes at Matt’s country charm, but even she has to admit there’s something about the guy who is pretending cozy up with her BFF…

Open Road Summer is all round cute coming-of-age-best-friends-on-the-road summer read that just begs to be soundtracked to Taylor Swift. This one is not so much as road-trip book as a ‘Life on the Road’ book, so don’t expect to see too much pretty scenery on the way. Trust me, though, the arrival of Matt Finch, and his laidback love of lost, lazy days and midnight swims, makes up for a lack of road-trip adventure.

I admit that my attention was drawn to Open Road Summer almost purely because of blogger hype, and don’t you just love it when that happens? This book is all about friendship, the highs and lows of it, the always-being-there-for-each-other and the awful things you say in the heat of the moment that nobody could ever forgive –nobody, that is,  but a best friend. I loved Reagan and Dee’s very real friendship; all too often female friendships in books just don’t ring true – they are either entirely sugarcoated or too-heavy-on-the-drama. Sure, Reagan and Dee have their fair share of drama, but it’s never overdone. Emery Lord gets it just right, from the love they have for each other, to their shared memories,  to the petty jealousies and grudges between them that sometimes rear their ugly little heads.

As for Matt Finch? This guy is sa-woon! I know, I know, I recently read The Truth About Forever, and now I can’t stop describing all the hot book boyfriends in sa-woony terms. And Matt Finch is definitely sa-wooony; he writes songs, and he is honest and charming and sensitive and funny and good-looking. And he has nice hair. Nice hair is always a bonus. Reagan, though, is instantly suspicious of Matt’s presence on the tour, thinking that he may just be Dee’s misfortune as an opportunity to further his failing career. But we know, and deep down so does Reagan, that’s not what Matt’s all about.

 It’s also pretty clear from the get go that Matt is quite taken with Reagan’s own very peculiar brand of charm. Reagan is a fabulously-written character; complex and cool, some might find Reagan difficult to warm to – I did at first. But to know this girl is to love her, and on finishing this book, I pretty much think she’s the best. Reagan needs to learn to like herself; she needs to learn that she’s worthy of love.

Hurt, heartbreak and grief; Open Road Summer deals with all of these themes, and yet this book is somehow so feelgood and happy making; a beautiful sunburst of a book that shines with laughter and light and hope. Beautifully written this is the perfect book for anyone who enjoyed the awesomeness that is Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour. It’s also made Emery Lord the latest addition to my auto-buy author list and I’m already counting down the days to her next book The Start of Me & You coming in 2015.

Reviewed by Arianne: 17 First Kisses by Rachael Allen.

 Product details:
 Publisher: HarperTeen.
Paperback, 319 pages.
Release date: June 17th 2014.
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Ages: 13+
 Reviewed by: Arianne.

No matter how many boys Claire kisses, she can’t seem to find a decent boyfriend. Someone who wouldn’t rather date her gorgeous best friend, Megan. Someone who won’t freak out when he learns about the tragedy her family still hasn’t recovered from. Someone whose kisses can carry her away from her backwoods town for one fleeting moment.

Until Claire meets Luke.

But Megan is falling for Luke, too, and if there’s one thing Claire knows for sure, it’s that Megan’s pretty much irresistible.

With true love and best friendship on the line, Claire suddenly has everything to lose. And what she learns—about her crush, her friends, and most of all herself—makes the choices even harder.

In her moving debut, Rachael Allen brilliantly captures the complexities of friendship, the struggles of self-discovery, and the difficulties of trying to find love in high school. Fans of Sarah Ockler, Susane Colasanti, and Stephanie Perkins will fall head over heels for this addictive, heartfelt, and often hilarious modern love story.

From the moment I first heard about this book, I loved its premise. It’s reminiscent of 10 Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn’t Have) or To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before: it just sings contemporary romance. And it’s more than just story of a girl searching for the perfect first kiss. It’s a story about friendship and loyalty. It’s a story about family and feuds. It’s a story about identity and what it means to show the world a side of yourself you’re not particularly proud of. It’s about finding something real under all the false pretences.

All Claire - or CJ as she's known - wants is a guy she can rely on. Someone she can trust – not just with herself, but someone she can trust with her family secrets, and someone she can trust not to ditch her for her best friend Megan. When she meets Luke, she thinks maybe he could be the one; but this is YA, and nothing’s ever that easy.

17 First Kisses is about friendship. It’s also about boys, and we’ll get to that later, but the one theme that runs consistently through its pages is how tough high school friendships can be. Friendships are hard work when you’re all headed in different directions and struggling not to slide down the slippery slope of catty selfishness. 

Unfortunately, the characters within these friendships weren’t always to my taste. As a narrator, Claire doesn’t seem like the kind of girl many readers are going to truly identify with. She’s vain, popular, she constantly gives in to peer pressure, and her main concern through most of the book is trying to find a good-looking guy to take her to the mall and whisk her away from her backwater town. Sure, she’s opinionated, but she can also be incredibly passive and her narrative style errs on the irritating side more than once. I may just be unused to the rich, claustrophobic tone through which Claire's world is defined, but reading this book made me really grateful for the sharp, biting, realistic voices we’re lucky enough to find in UKYA and other related genres. It’s as if Claire’s story is covered in bubble wrap, and it just makes you want to puncture that perfect little world of hers with some stark reality from time to time.

One of the only instances where the harshness of life infects Claire’s narrow outlook is the revelation that her mother is suffering from, and battling with, severe depression. Allen deals with this subplot with tact and wisdom – if only she could have been a little less heavy-handed with her dialogue. Specific elements of writing style never usually bother me, but with 17 First Kisses, I couldn't help but be irritated by certain aspects of the storytelling. The dialogue feels forced from the beginning, while interval chapters take you back to each of Claire’s seventeen ‘first’ kisses; this structure is certainly unique, if you’re a natural cynic, you’re probably better off using up your suspension of disbelief quota on the next episode of Game of Thrones.

That said, I loved that Claire was a soccer fan – a stellar characterisation choice on the author’s part, and so memorable. I loved that Claire’s best friend, Megan, eventually found a way to pursue her own ambitions despite her parents’ misgivings. Amberly, too, made me smile. If you’re looking for a book with a wide cohort of female leads, you’ve found one in this debut - unfortunately, these traits signal the end of this book's portion of character development. I doubt I'll be recommending any of the main characters for Role Model of the Year awards anytime soon. They're shallow, selfish, and they hide any semblance of intellect beneath dull conversations about boys, boys and, you guessed it, more boys. It's as if they've been kept under a rock all this time; they're flat and have outdated mannerisms as well as ideals. These characters, Claire included, are not realistic. They are not admirable. They are not the kind of heroines we need in modern YA.

The problems don't end there, either. This book centres around the idea that the main characters have somehow single-handedly managed to kiss, date, love and hate every eligible bachelor in their entire town within the space of a few high school years, and without any other substantive plots to back it up, it lacks action and drive. Claire and Megan completely lose their identities for the sake of popularity; their friendship suffers as it becomes apparent that they have little in common except similar taste in men and a mutual desire to punish the other for perceived misdeeds. 

Thankfully, there is one person who makes up for all of this, and that character is Sam. Sweet, always-there, always-waiting Sam. My heart broke for him. I can guarantee that in the race to win the reader’s affections, Sam will beat Luke every time. He was the reason I kept reading. I needed to know where the ending of his story would be, and I have to say, the way it was handled by Rachael Allen was absolutely fantastic. 

In short: I really wanted to like 17 First Kisses, but sadly it let me down. YA is filled with brilliant, sharp, challenging reads, but this book isn't one of them. It features a stifling setting and characters who are difficult to relate to from the start; it's got a good story but it doesn't offer the reader anything we haven't seen before. For readers patient and forgiving enough to stick with it, there is a huge payoff towards the end that makes it more worthwhile, but ultimately, it just doesn't live up to the high standards currently being set on the YA shelf.

 

--Arianne.

Book Review: Wicked Games by Sean Olin.

Product details:
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books.
ebook, 352 pages.
Release date: June 10th 2014.
Rating:  3½ out of 5.
Ages: 14+
Source: Received from publisher for review.

Wicked Games is the first book in a sexy thriller series where passion, lies, and revenge collide-perfect for fans of Simone Elkeles and Sara Shepard.

To all the locals in the small beach town of Dream Point, Carter and Lilah seem like the perfect It Couple-but their relationship is about to brutally unravel before everyone's eyes.

Carter has always been a good guy, and while Lilah has a troubled past, she's been a loyal girlfriend for the last four years. When smart, sexy Jules enters the picture at a senior-year bash, Carter succumbs to temptation. And when Lilah catches wind of his betrayal, she decides that Jules needs to pay.

By the end of the summer, the line between right and wrong will be blurred beyond recognition. Blood will be shed. Nothing in Dream Point will ever be the same.

This juicy summer read will keep readers turning pages until the shocking, nail-biting finale.

  

Carter and Lilah started dating at fourteen with a promise of forever.  Four years on the couple are still together, but theirs is no longer a match made in heaven. In fact, if you wanted to quote Lady Gaga, you could say that Carter and Lilah are caught in a bad romance.  Lilah has issues; deep-rooted, destructive issues that manifest in relentless self-loathing and physical self-harm. And the truth is that while Carter does his best to placate Lilah, and to keep her happy on a day to day basis, her problems are more than he can deal with.  In his heart, he knows their relationship can’t continue like this, but he also doesn’t know how to walk away.  He feels bad for even thinking of walking away, because he knows Lilah is hurting. And he’s afraid of the consequences of leaving Lilah – he’s afraid she might hurt herself, or worse, if he leaves.

Lilah would do just about anything to keep Carter in her life, but there’s no doubt about it, she treats him terribly. Lilah’s insecurity and her own self-loathing lend her to jealousy and suspicion: she questions Carter at every turn, calls him incessantly when they’re apart and distrusts him where there’s no reason to distrust him – until there is.  One night after a major bust up with Lilah, Carter meets Jules, an aspiring actress, and the two hook up. Jules has been into Carter for a while; he’s a lot different to the surfer dudes she usually dates, but there’s just something about smart, preppy, dependable Carter that Jules can’t resist. As for Carter, well, he falls for Jules, of course he does – she offers a release from the pressure-cooker that is his relationship with Lilah. Jules is laidback, carefree, fun and free-spirited –everything that Lilah is not. But still, Carter won’t end his relationship with his girlfriend. After all, he promised her forever, and he’s not one to just give up.  He has to make this work.

Wicked Games by Sean Olin (Brother/Sister) is a sexy, summer thriller of relationship drama and revenge. Already unhinged, when Lilah figures out what is going on between Carter and Jules, she completely loses the plot and is determined to take down her love rival by any and all means possible. As for Carter, well, Lilah is still in love with him, so he’s safe from her plan of revenge. Jules, though, had better watch her back, because Carter and Lilah are forever, and Lilah is not letting go of her man without a fight.  Wicked Games definitely veers towards completely crazy late-night-soap-opera plots at certain points, but it’s a wild ride, and it also, just like Brother/Sister, contains an unexpectedly dark twist that will leave you wanting more.

Thankfully, for those who want more, this is the first in a series (although it reads like a standalone.) Wicked Games is not a book that will be universally loved -- just take a look at all those one-starred Goodreads reviews for confirmation of this. This book deals with mental illness but it skims the surface of this issue; it’s not a book that takes itself too seriously, and it’s definitely not a book that deals in with Lilah’s issues in a subtle or thoughtful manner – so if you’re looking for that, of if you have issues with books that portray people with mental illness in a negative light, then this book is not for you. Me, I just enjoyed the book for the far-fetched crazy, wild ride that it is. Also, I love my late-night Soap Operas, and I always love a good revenge story, so this one suited me to a tee.

If you liked Beautiful Malice by Rebecca James or Choker by Elizabeth Woods, then I think Wicked Games by Sean Olin might just be the book for you.

 

Book Review: Fall from India Place by Samantha Young.

Product details:
Publisher: Piatkus.
Paperback, 370 pages.
Release date: June 3rd 2014.
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Ages: Adult
Series: On Dublin Street #4.
 Other Books in Series: On Dublin Street, Down London Road, Before Jamaica Lane.
Source: Received from publisher for review.

When Hannah Nichols last saw Marco D’Alessandro, five long years ago, he broke her heart. The bad boy with a hidden sweet side was the only guy Hannah ever loved—and the only man she’s ever been with. After one intense night of giving into temptation, Marco took off, leaving Scotland and Hannah behind. Shattered by the consequences of their night together, Hannah has never truly moved on.

Leaving Hannah was the biggest mistake of Marco’s life, something he has deeply regretted for years. So when fate reunites them, he refuses to let her go without a fight. Determined to make her his, Marco pursues Hannah, reminding her of all the reasons they’re meant to be together.…

But just when Marco thinks they’re committed to a future together, Hannah makes a discovery that unearths the secret pain she’s been hiding from him, a secret that could tear them apart before they have a real chance to start over again.

 Note: This is a next-in-a-series book. As such here may be spoilers for previous books in the series in this review.

If you were to ask me to describe Hannah Nichols, the protagonist of the fourth installment in Samantha Young’s highly-readable On Dublin Streetseries, I’d say she was intelligent, intuitive and level-headed and that she cared a lot about friends and family. Young’s characters are so well developed and I’ve been reading about them for so long now, that I feel like I know them all inside-out. Hannah has always been a favourite of mine since she was first introduced to readers of the series as a teenager with a voracious reading-habit and an all-consuming crush on hot older guy, the delectable Marco D’Alessandro. Fast-forward five years, and Hannah, at twenty-two has a pretty nice life; she has her own home (courtesy of brother Braden and sister Ellie), good friends – especially her best friend Cole,  and is well on her way to being a fully-qualified English teacher.  She doesn’t have a man in her life, hasn’t had a man in her life for a long, long time, not since the night five years ago that she hooked up with Marco D’Alessandro for the first and only time; the same night he walked out of her life.

But Marco is back and Hannah can’t deny that she’s still attracted to all his gorgeousness (Marco IS Jesse Williams of Grey’s Anatomy fame –you must picture him if you’re reading this!) The truth is that Hannah’s been in love with Marco since she was fourteen years old; she’s been in love with him forever. And she wants him now. But something in her past is stopping her. And as for Marco, he’s got baggage. Five years have passed, and both Marco and Hannah have changed, but are their secrets enough to keep them apart, or are these two meant to be together, forever?

Welcome to Fall From India Place.

Samantha Young knows how to weave a tale so that it captures your interest from the get go and holds it right till the very end. I’ve been a fan of Young’s writing for a long time – ever since she self-published her work – and it’s safe to say that I am pretty addicted to this series. I look forward to each new and I haven’t yet been disappointed. That said, those of you who loved On Dublin Street for its absolute hotness might find this one a little tame for your tastes. I’m not sure why the sexytimes have been toned down in these books –let’s face it Braden and Joss were hardly ever out of the bedroom! – but this book focuses more on Hannah’s day to day life, her family, her job and her struggle to come to terms with her past, than it does on her love life. Don’t get me wrong – Hannah has her fun, including a sexy country getaway and some sizzling shower action; and Marco is the hotness, but after Joss and Braden, these two seemed a little tame in comparison. I guess Hannah as a character is more reserved than feisty Joss, but still. At the time of its release Samantha Young pointed out that On Dublin Street was most definitely not a New Adult novel – and it’s not. This one, though, could pass as NA. Hannah is twenty-two and the bedroom action, while pretty hot, is not off-the-scale-Braden Carmichael-hot.

And that right there is the important information that you really needed to know!

As stories go, this one is a pretty emotional read; Hannah has been through a lot and there is an unexpected twist in this tale that blindsided me and made me tear up just a bit. The storyline is also pretty predicable – if you’ve read the blurb then you’ll probably have guessed the secrets these two are keeping from each other – I did. The blurb pretty much gives the game away here.  It’s all good, though, because knowing what went on in Hannah’s past and figuring out Marco’s secret in no way detracts from the emotional impact of this tale.

For those of you who want to know if we catch up with characters from previous books in the series – yes, yes, and yes. Five years have passed since we last caught up with Braden, Joss, Jo, Cam, Nate, Liv and the rest, and I’m glad to say that those Nichols Sunday dinners are still happening and going stronger than ever. In the meantime, there have been weddings and lots and lots of kids.  One quibble I have about those books (after reading four of them) is that, in their conclusions, they are all pretty similar. And I know, everyone loves a happy ending, but with such a wide cast of characters does it have to be the same happy ending – every time?

Maybe the next book in this series will bring something new to the mix. The fifth book is as yet untitled, but I do know that it’s Cole’s book (that’s Jo’s brother and Hannah’s best friend), and with his background and connection to the other characters, it should be another great read.

Fall From India Place might be less frenetic in pace than its predecessors but it is nonetheless another great read from Samantha Young; as always I was hooked from first page to last.

* The UK paperback of Fall From India Place includes the complete text of Castle Hill – the Joss and Braden novella that was previously only available in digital format. That’s some very nice bonus material right there –especially the airport scene!