Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Review: From What I Remember

I was a huge fan of KARMA BITES so I was more than excited to read FROM WHAT I REMEMBER. What a roller coaster this book is, it reads so quick and light that I felt like I was watching a movie. Just when I thought what else could possibly happen, something does!

There is a lot going on in the book. The different points of view make it something special. While I loved Kylie, Will, and even Max...I really loved the bits thrown in from Jake, Kylie's brother. I think the portrayal of his character was right on.

This crazy trip to Mexico turns into quite the life experience for these High School Seniors. It is amazing what stress, anxiety, and even sadness can do to a person and how sometimes even young people need to UNLOAD. And boy, do they. 

This book highlights the most loyal of friendships and the excitement of an unexpected romance. There are struggles, successes, confessions, and more. All in all, a great summer read!

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Review: A World Away



<-----Look at this cover! Beautiful!








I was so surprised at the depth of this book. This wasn't just a story about an Amish girl who gets the chance to wear jeans and listen to cd's, it is a story about choices and figuring out a place in the world. Eliza gets the opportunity to work as a nanny for the summer, leaving her simple Amish community behind. When she gets to her new home, she learns all about the modern conveniences of microwaves, bagged salad, and video games. With each new discovery, she continues to be impressed of this modern world and all of its tricks and tools. Eliza really begins to question where she belongs--back home in her safe, simple world or in the new city where everything seems possible.

After a couple of shocking discoveries, Eliza learns more about her family (especially her mother) and discovers that the grass isn't always greener on the other side...or maybe it is?



See the rest of my review over at YABC

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Review: My Life Next Door

This book had so much going on that I'm not sure how to sum it up in one short review but I'll try.

First, I want to tackle the relationship between Samantha and her mom. WOW. Samantha's mom, Grace, is running for reelection in the State Senate race. She gets involved with Clay who is apparently some sort of political genius and all of a sudden Samantha doesn't even recognize who her mom has become. They have an interesting relationship in that Grace is so overly involved in everything in Sam's life, like organizing her clothes in her dresser drawers and making sure her schedule is always filled with proper activities. However, when Grace really needs her mom the most, she isn't there. Clay and the campaign seem to take up all of her time. I'd like to say that their relationship healed itself by the end of the book but I'm not sure that it did.

Next, the next door neighbors the Garretts. This is a family I want to know. They are big (in numbers), loud, a little disorganized but love each other so much. Samantha is fascinated by this family that she has never met until one night when Jase changes everything. Jase introduces Sam into his family and his life. Jase's family is everything Sam's is not. Their relationship starts off as friendship and quickly involves into more. They have a sweet romance that isn't over the top.

Now, add in Sam's best friend, Nan, and her brother Tim. Sam and Nan have been friends for years and when they were younger Tim used to hang out with them as well. Tim has a lot of problems and does work to overcome them, and the book shows how difficult it is for him. In the end, Tim turns out to be a better friend to Sam than Nan was. 

This is a lot, right? There's more....In one night, everyone's life changes and it's up to Samantha to make a choice and whichever way she chooses, she is certain she will lose someone she loves. 

I really enjoyed this book. For as intense that it was at times, it flowed really nicely. There was never any downtime. The secondary characters, like Tim and the Garrett kids were some of my favorites and rounded out this story. Definitely pick this book up!

Friday, July 13, 2012

Review: Princess for Hire: A Farewell to Charms

I was really looking forward to finding out how Desi's story would end in this final book of the Princess for Hire series. I am a huge fan of princess stories and this series is a fun and different take on the "ordinary girl becomes a princess" story line.

The longer Desi works for Facade, the more she finds things that she doesn't like about her employer. She, along with her handsome prince sub Reed, decide to take on Facade. Of course, things don't always go as planned and soon Desi gets herself into quite a jam.

If you have read the first two books in the series, this is one not to miss. If you are looking for a new middle grade series for your daughter, then this would be a great one to start. This is one that I will definitely keep for my little girl one day. As of now, there are no plans to continue this series but I would love to see what happens with Desi, Reed, and Facade down the road.