Book in Review: Secret of the Sevens by Lynn Lindquist

2015 pubication
Title: Secret of the Sevens
Author: Lynn Lindquist
Publisher: Flux
Publication Date: June 2015
Pages: 408 pages, Paperback

 Synopsis (via Goodreads):

 Everyone at Singer, a boarding school for underprivileged kids, knows the urban legend of the Society of Seven. Decades ago, the original members of the secret guild for elite students murdered the school's founder and then perished in the fire they lit to hide the evidence. Or so the story goes. Talan Michaels doesn't care about Singer's past. He's too focused on his future and the fact that he'll be homeless after he graduates in May. To take his mind off it, he accepts a mysterious invitation to join a group calling itself the Sevens. He expects pranks, parties, and perks. Instead, he finds himself neck-deep in a conspiracy involving secret passages and cryptic riddles about the school's history. Even worse, he's now tangled in web of lies someone will kill to keep hidden. 
When I read the synopsis of this book, I was very excited to get to read it. Now, it's not that the book disappointed me, I just know that it could be better. Although the plot isn't cliché, it isn't uncommon either, certainly not something that is completely foreign to me. I thought that this book is, in fact, very average. There's nothing particularly terrible, and there's nothing all that great either. This is disappointing considering that with the plot Lynn is working with, she could do a lot more to make it stand out. 

It took me a very long time to get through this book, even though i thought the story was interesting. I attempted to read thrice and ended up stopping just a couple of pages in. The book just couldn't seem to absorb me, hook me, get me to empathize with its characters. The character development was a bit abrupt and gratuitous, but acceptable enough. I felt like things went too smoothly, especially with all that hype surrounding the Sevens and the mystery of the murders. The riddles weren't very complicated although that is understandable since they are high school students and not genii. 

One thing I can say though is that this book was a sweet tale about friendship, family, loyalty, strength, love, maturity, and growing up. Those aspects of the story we're, I believe, portrayed well. Maybe in a bit of a cheesy manner, but certainly satisfying for people who just want a happy story. Some people might not like it because they succeeded not really because of their own ingenuity but because of sheer luck and other people's help. 

All in all, Secret of the Sevens is an normal(ish), sweet story that is mostly angst-free and doesn't keep you in the dark for long.



Book in Review: The Kiss by Lucy Courtenay

2015 books
25617446
Title: The Kiss
Author: Lucy Courtenay
Publishing Date: July 2nd 2015
Publisher; Hachette Children's Group
Format: ARC
Rating: 3/5 

 Summary:

 'Aphrodite kissed a mortal once by the light of this moon, many thousands of years ago. It drove him crazy. The next person that he kissed - boum. The craziness travelled like this from person to person. It travelled through time. Everywhere - boum! Tu comprends?' 'Where did it end up?' I whisper. His lips are on my cheek now. 'It ended with me. And now I am going to pass it to you. You will like that, mermaid?' Imagine the perfect kiss. A legendary kiss that makes people crazy with love. Imagine a summer's night, on a moonlit beach in the South of France, as French boy Laurent kisses 16-year-old Delilah after the best chat-up line she's ever heard. BOOM! Delilah is pretty sure the Kiss is fiction, despite her head-spinning holiday fling. But with all the sudden crushes, break-ups and melt-downs happening back at home, the Kiss starts looking a little too real for comfort. If only Delilah could keep track of where it's gone ...Who knew one kiss could cause this much trouble? A hilarious rom-com that will delight Geek Girls everywhere!

If you're looking for that romantic summertime read that's fun, flirty, cute, and swoony, then The Kiss is the perfect book for you. This book is filled with hilarious moments, interesting characters and good old British humor that's filled with just the right amount of sarcasm. With a storyline that is reminiscent of Shakespeare plays, plus a premise that involves a little bit of mythology and the wonderful and romantic setting, this book is what you would call simply a delight!

Blog Tour: Don't Ever Change by M. Beth Bloom -- REVIEW + PLAYLIST + GIVEAWAY!!!

2015 books


Don't Ever Change
by M. Beth Bloom
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: July 7th 2015
Rate: 3/5 stars

Synopsis:

Eva has always wanted to write a modern classic—one that actually appeals to her generation. The only problem is that she has realized she can't "write what she knows" because she hasn't yet begun to live. So before heading off to college, Eva is determined to get a life worth writing about.

Soon Eva's life encounters a few unexpected plot twists. She becomes a counselor at a nearby summer camp—a job she is completely unqualified for. She starts growing apart from her best friends before they've even left for school. And most surprising of all, she begins to fall for the last guy she would have ever imagined. But no matter the roadblocks, or writer's blocks, it is all up to Eva to figure out how she wants this chapter in her story to end.

Perfect for fans of E. Lockhart, David Levithan, and Rainbow Rowell,Don't Ever Change is a witty, snarky, and thought-provoking coming-of-age young adult novel about a teen who sets out to write better fiction and, ultimately, discovers the truth about herself.



Everyone knows I'm such a sucker for contemporary. Writer MC? Summer romance? Highschool to college coming of age story? Yes yes yes! As expected, Don't Ever Change was such a fun, and cute read for me. Aside from it being very enjoyable, I also found the narrative very honest and real, this being the main selling point of this book. I always favor character-driven books as opposed to those that have so many things going on but have zero character development. I'm glad to say that Don't Ever Change is able to succeed with the former.

It really appealed to me how Eva is made to be so unlike-able as a character, with her up-tightness and high sense of pride,  that I actually ended up liking her. I loved how ambitious and driven she is with her writing, that she's trying hard to find her voice by creating new experiences and trying new things - and doing a lot of wrong things along the way. But hey, that's all part of the self-discovery, right? I loved how willing she is to change and learn new things, and her renewed sense of self-awareness is admirable. She may appear to be snobby and socially inept at times, but the way she improves her interaction with her peers, namely her campers, reflect her character growth as the story progresses.

Book in Review: Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

2015 books
19547856Title: Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda
Author: Becky Albertalli
Publishing Date: April 7th 2015
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Format: ARC
Rating: 3/5 stars

Summary:

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met
I have mixed thoughts about this book and I am not too sure of what to think about it. On one hand, I found this to be an enjoyable and adorable read that got me giddy all over, but on the other, I felt like it lacked depth and substance to the story. The story is pretty simple to follow: Simon is a closeted gay boy, who has a secret online relationship with this guy named Blue. When one of his classmates, Martin, discovers their email conversations, he blackmails Simon to play matchmaker for him and Simon's friend Abby. Simon, who doesn't want his secret to be exposed, plays along.

Eventually, Simon is forced to go out of the closet and we see how Simon deals with the sudden turn of events. 

Let me get this straight - the only thing I honestly liked about this book is the romance, and I didn't even like it that much that I could overlook all the other things I didn't like. What I didn't like? The blandness of the story and the over characterization.

Blog Tour: Biggie by Derek E. Sullivan

3 stars


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Biggie by Derek E. Sullivan
Published by: Albert Whitman & Company
Publication date: March 1st 2015
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult

Synopsis:
Henry “Biggie” Abbott is the son of one of Finch, Iowa ‘s most famous athletes. His father was a baseball legend and his step-dad is a close second. At an obese 300+ pounds though, Biggie himself prefers classroom success to sports. As a perfectionist, he doesn’t understand why someone would be happy getting two hits in five trips to the plate. “Forty percent, that’s an F in any class,” he would say. As Biggie’s junior year begins, the girl of his dreams, Annabelle Rivers, starts to flirt with him. Hundreds of people have told him to follow in his dad’s footsteps and play ball, but Annabelle might be the one to actually convince him to try. What happens when a boy who has spent his life since fourth grade trying to remain invisible is suddenly thrust into the harsh glare of the high school spotlight?

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23217531-biggie?ac=1

Biggie is all about an overweight teenage boy named Henry. He got his nickname "Biggie", well because he practically weighed over 300 pounds. He's also a nerd who enjoys spending his time talking to strangers online than people at his school.

In my opinion, Biggie's character isn't someone that everyone could get along with since he's really a bit weird. But, as the book progresses, I slowly understood him and came to like him more. We all get to know what he's thinking and what he's feeling. Basically, its all about getting to know Biggie.

What I liked about the book? Well, I love that it's very realistic. Someone out there could easily have the same situation as Biggie. Most of us wants to fit in, to be noticed by people we like. All of us make mistakes, even Biggie does! The writing style of Derek was just simple yet very clear. Next thing I liked about the book is the story itself. It's not your average YA. It's a fresh read, and it seems a bit like a coming of age plot.

As much as I liked those aspects of the book, I took two stars because of my own feelings about the main character, Henry "Biggie". It's not about him being weird or freaky. He actually improved on that slowly. What I didn't like was how he expresses that he loves Annabelle. Sometimes, I feel like it's just about the looks. If Annabelle wasn't hot like Biggie's descriptions, then maybe he wouldn't care for her in the first place.

Biggie is still an enjoying read though. It teaches us to bring out the best in ourselves. Also, if we truly believe in ourselves then nothing is impossible. I am looking forward to reading more books by Derek Sullivan!







Purchase:

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AUTHOR BIO:
Derek E. Sullivan is an award-winning reporter and columnist at the Rochester Post-Bulletin in Minnesota. As a reporter, he has written more than 1,000 stories about the lives of teenagers, which he attributes to helping him find his YA voice. He has an MFA from Hamline University and lives in Minnesota with his wife and three sons.

Author links:

Giveaway:

Tour-wide giveaway (INTL)
a Rafflecopter giveaway
  • 2x 50$ B&N Gift Cards
  • 3x Signed copies of BIGGIE hardcover
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Book in Review: The Before Now and After Then by Peter Monn

3 stars
The Before Now and After Then
Title: The Before Now and After Then
Author: Peter Monn
Pages: 304
Publlication Date: July 28, 2014
Publisher: Pen Name Publishing
Rating: 3/5 

Summary:

Danny Goldstein has always lived in the shadow of his identical, twin brother Sam. But when a hurricane of events forces him into the spotlight, he starts to realize that the only thing he’s truly afraid of is himself. With the help of his costume changing friend Cher, a famous gay uncle with a mysterious past of his own, two aging punk rocker parents and Rusty, the boy who will become his something to live for, Danny begins to realize that the music of the heart is truly the soundtrack for living.






I started reading this book and I was so stoked for it. I was expecting something cool. That is because it's quite difficult to write a book revolving around gay people that's not offensive, not too opinionated and is handled well. I like reading lgbt books because there aren't much of it in the world. 

When I reached about 30% of the book, you can ask my sister how much I was having the gay feels. Rusty and Danny were really cute! 

But, there was a twist of mindset when I was somewhere in the middle of the story. I got a bit bored. I still read it, but not like I still had the feels. Majority of the content of the book was how Rusty and Danny spent one whole week together so happy and full of butterflies. They literally just met, and they already knew that they liked each other and after again a few days, they loved each other. I'm not a fan of immediate relationships. I don't believe in those, even though both characters believed that time cannot measure love. 

I was kind of dissapointed because their relationship could have been more on getting to know each other first before anything. Another thing was that I was already expecting what was going to happen, in almost all parts of the book. There was nothing spectacular about the ending as well, but it's a great way to end the book. I was happy that it ended that way. 

The beginning and ending was great, and the way Danny thinks was a bit relatable too. I just think that it could've been more exciting, and less boring in the middle. Nonetheless, I did not regret reading this book. I was still glad that I read it. This book is worth checking out if you want to read something light and cute.


Book in Review: The Summer I Found You by Jolene Perry

3 stars


Title: The Summer I Found You
Author: Jolene Perry
Publisher: Albert Whitman Teen
Hardcopy: 256 pages
Genre: YA
Publication Date: March 1, 2014 
Rating: 3/5 

Kate's dream boyfriend, Shelton has just broken up with her because they'll be going to different colleges. At the same time, she's trying her best to keep her secret of having type 1 diabetes. She soon gets to know Aidan, an army veteran who recently lost his arm in Afghanistan. Both of them are not so perfect. Both of them are trying to find the perfect distraction. Are they going to be meant for each other, or will their disabilities hinder them from deepening their relationship with each other? 

While I was still reading this book, I added it to our last week's Top Ten Tuesday where we shared the top ten books we think are unique. In this book's case, the plot, the writing style, or the cover wasn't that unique, but the characters were. I admire that the author was brave enough that she created imperfect protagonists, as it is usually difficult to root for characters who remind us too much of ourselves. It was very realistic, and I loved it.

The book was written in double POV's which allowed me to get to know the characters in a visceral way.The plot development was just right. There weren't scenes that were too long or too short. There were just some parts that were too predictable.

To sum it all up, The Summer I Found You is the perfect book for a lazy day. All the scenes and events in the book weren't too complex or tiring to read. I gave the book a 3 out of 5 rating because I was glad to review the book, but I wasn't all that amazed by its story. All I can say is that the story was good but not great. Nevertheless, the book was worth it and all YA lovers should give it a try. 

Have you read The Summer I Found You? What do you think? Leave a comment!