If It Wasn't for Bad Luck, She Wouldn't Have Any Luck at All...

Title: Girl Against the Universe
Author: Paula Stokes
Series: stand-alone
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: May 17, 2016
Source: ARC received from publisher
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Maguire is bad luck.

No matter how many charms she buys off the internet or good luck rituals she performs each morning, horrible things happen when Maguire is around. Like that time the rollercoaster jumped off its tracks. Or the time the house next door caught on fire. Or that time her brother, father, and uncle were all killed in a car crash—and Maguire walked away with barely a scratch.

It’s safest for Maguire to hide out in her room, where she can cause less damage and avoid meeting new people who she could hurt. But then she meets Jordy, an aspiring tennis star. Jordy is confident, talented, and lucky, and he’s convinced he can help Maguire break her unlucky streak. Maguire knows that the best thing she can do for Jordy is to stay away. But it turns out staying away is harder than she thought.

From author Paula Stokes comes a funny and poignant novel about accepting the past, embracing the future, and learning to make your own luck.

I've admired Paula Stoke's work since she was writing as Fiona Paul for Paper Lantern Lit, but I have to admit that the contemporary stories she's written under her own name are among my favorites. Her characters are refreshing and genuine and I just love the journey Paula takes them on. I'm not sure if I love Maguire and Jordy as much as Lainey and Micah yet, but this is only my first read-through. ;-)

If it wasn't for bad luck, Maguire wouldn't have any luck at all. This girl thinks she's Cursed, and it's easy to see why, when she's the sole survivor of one near-death experience after another. Maguire can't see just how fortuitous her own survival is, though, because she's convinced that she's bringing bad luck to anyone she comes into contact with. Which is why her mom insists she go to therapy, where she meets Jordy, the solution to all her problems...she just doesn't know it yet.

I liked the juxtaposition of Maguire's therapy sessions with her therapy "homework" with Jordy. I enjoyed seeing their progress toward their eventual goals through these challenges, to see how they affected each other and then how that was reflected in Maguire's visits to her therapist. This was probably the most positive portrayal of therapy I've read in a young adult novel, at least in some time. I also liked the author's note about the therapy and what changes she made just to fit it into the constraints of the novel, as well.

Jordy challenges Maguire to be a better version of herself, to stop hiding from the world at large on the off-chance that something is going to happen to those around her. There's definite chemistry there, but each has their own reasons for taking things slow, most especially Maguire. That didn't keep me from swooning the entire time.

Other aspects I enjoyed: all the tennis because I played in high school and I miss it. The family dynamic because it isn't perfect but even the stepdad is involved and that's kind of rare to see in YA. Friends -- and frienemies -- who aren't cliched stereotypes. No mean girls for the sake of being mean. And a twist at the ending that I partially saw coming but not until something else happened right near the end. I LOVE SURPRISES!!! =D

This was one of those stories where I pretty much smiled from beginning to end. There are obviously some less-than-happy moments, especially where Maguire's history comes into play, but it was just such a genuinely heartwarming story. When we were sick last week, I let my daughter go to my TBR pile and pick my next read based on the title and cover, and I'm so glad she chose this one. What a very surprising and pleasant way to spend a sick day!

GIF it to me straight:

Yeah, it was kinda like that: surprise slo-mo hit to the heart.

About the author:

Paula Stokes is half writer, half RN, and totally thrilled to be part of the world of YA literature. She started out writing historical fiction under a pen name and is now branching out into other YA genres.

When she's not working (rare), she's kayaking, hiking, reading, or seeking out new adventures in faraway lands. She's petted tigers, snuggled snakes, snorkeled with stingrays, and once enjoyed the suction-cuppy feel of a baby elephant's trunk as it ate peanuts from her palm. Her future goals include diving with Great White sharks, learning Krav Maga, and writing a whole slew of novels, not necessarily in that order.

Find Paula:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Read More

Labels: beautiful covers, contemporary, favorite authors, funfunfun, funny, girl against the universe, harper-collins, paula stokes, reviews, sports, tough subject

{Audiobook} Review: Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

Title: Wild Cards
Author: Simone Elkeles
Narrator(s): Amy Rubinate, Kirby Heyborne
Series: Wild Cards, book #1
Length: 8 hrs 53 mins
Publisher: Bloomsbury/Dreamscape Media, LLC
Publication Date: October 28, 2013
Source: from publisher via Netgalley, audio borrowed from library
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

After getting kicked out of boarding school, bad boy Derek Fitzpatrick has no choice but to live with his ditzy stepmother while his military dad is deployed. Things quickly go from bad to worse when he finds out she plans to move them back to her childhood home in Illinois. Derek’s counting the days before he can be on his own, and the last thing he needs is to get involved with someone else’s family drama.

Ashtyn Parker knows one thing for certain--people you care about leave without a backward glance. A football scholarship would finally give her the chance to leave. So she pours everything into winning a state championship, until her boyfriend and star quarterback betrays them all by joining their rival team. Ashtyn needs a new game plan, but it requires trusting Derek—someone she barely knows, someone born to break the rules. Is she willing to put her heart on the line to try and win it all?

Until Wild Cards, I'd never read a Simone Elkeles book. I have the How to Ruin series on my shelf thanks to ALA one year, but I've never actually read it. And I've heard great things about her Perfect Chemistry books, so those books were added to my TBR list ages ago. Basically, this all this adds up to is a lot of build-up to a story that was a bit of a let-down.

Honestly, I borrowed this audiobook from the library because I needed a bit of a palate-cleanser after all the Heir of Fire feels last week. And it worked fine for that purpose. I originally requested to read it for review because of all the Simone Elkeles fangirl hype, but I just never got around to it. Waiting on the audio may or may not have been a good decision. I am familiar with and like both of the narrators, nothing against them. But Amy Rubinate made Ashtyn sound so breathy and whiney and just plain annoying. In this audiobook, her technique reminded me a lot of Justine Eyre's narration style, which is not a good thing. I'm not sure if I would have read the character so whiney, hence why listening instead of reading may have been a detriment to my experience with the story, at least for Ashtyn's point-of-view. On the plus side, Kirby's narration as Derek was perfect. Either I really prefer the way Elkeles writes her male characters, or Kirby just nailed it because Derek oozes the Southern charm. And I didn't find his darlin's and sugar pies nearly as annoying as I probably should have.

The story was fine, nothing that hasn't been done before. But I found myself wanting to read other iterations in hopes that I'd discover a heroine I could actually root for. In fact, I think I have Catching Jordan on my Kindle already, and I've been told that Dairy Queen is even better than that one. The girl who plays football on the boys' team is always an interesting story, to say the least. There are a lot of stereotypes and a certain amount of stigma to overcome with this type of story. Some do it well where others only try to. 

I had a friend in junior high who fully planned on playing on our school's football team when we entered high school the following year. She was a total jock, not girly in the least, and even so, the guys wouldn't accept her and she quit before ever playing a game. Every girl may not run into this, especially if she's already been playing with the boys for awhile or she's got an in with the coach or something, but I doubt it's very easy for most girls. Probably nearly impossible. I'd like more stories to showcase that aspect instead of having the players be completely accepting from the onset. And I admit that one of the characters in Wild Cards mentions that the team had a problem with Ashtyn in the beginning, so kudos for that, but I'd like to have seen it rather than being told about it.

I liked Wild Cards and I think I'll probably pick up the subsequent books in the series, even after that lame ending. But would I recommend the audio over the print version? I couldn't honestly tell you. However, if you're looking for a light contemporary read about two teens who find themselves in a weird family situation and with a light focus on football, this might be just the book you're looking for.

GIF it to me straight:

About the author:

Simone Elkeles is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of novels for teens. Simone’s books have won many awards including being YALSA Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, being named to the YALSA Popular Paperbacks and Teens Top Ten lists, and added to the Illinois “Read for a Lifetime” Reading List. Simone also won the coveted RITA award from the Romance Writers of America for her book Perfect Chemistry. Simone is especially proud of the fact that the Illinois Association of Teachers of English named her Author of the Year.

Find Simone:

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Read More

Labels: audiobooks, bloomsbury, contemporary, reviews, simone elkeles, sports, wild cards

{Joint} Review: On the Fence by Kasie West

Title: On the Fence
Author: Kasie West
Series: n/a
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: July 1, 2014
Source: from publisher via Edelweiss
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

She's a tomboy. He's the boy next door…

Charlie Reynolds can outrun, outscore, and outwit every boy she knows. But when it comes to being a girl, Charlie doesn't know the first thing about anything. So when she starts working at a chichi boutique to pay off a speeding ticket, she finds herself in a strange new world. To cope with the stress of her new reality, Charlie takes to spending nights chatting with her neighbor Braden through the fence between their yards. As she grows to depend on their nightly Fence Chats, she realizes she's got a bigger problem than speeding tickets-she's falling for Braden. She knows what it means to go for the win, but if spilling her secret means losing him for good, the stakes just got too high.

Fun, original, and endearing, On the Fence is a romantic comedy about finding yourself and finding love where you least expect.

Jen:  Although I've loved every single one of Kasie West's books -- and I've read them ALL -- I think On the Fence will go down as my favorite. Well, at least until her next novel is released. :) Best friend romances are my absolute favorite because from the get-go, you know the characters know each other and the risk of insta-love is fairly non-existent. Having said that, this may also be my favorite best friends romance. I loved this story THAT much.

April:  I have only read one other Kasie West book so far and that was The Distance Between Us. I loved it, but if I had to choose a favorite, On the Fence wins hands down. I adore best friend romances and I have to agree with you, I think this may be my favorite one too. I think that has a lot to do with the characters. West just has this way of making you fall in love with them.

Jen:  She does, doesn't she? I mean, I love that Charlie's a tomboy who finds her girly side, but I also love all of her brothers and her dad and the influence they have on her, besides the swoony Braden. But what I loved best was how much effort Braden puts into convincing Charlie that she's perfect the way she is, that she shouldn't change for a guy or pretend to be something she's not so that a boy will like her. That is such a great message, one that more girls need to hear.

April:  Absolutely, it's the best message for girls. As a mom of a young girl, I want her to read books like these. Books that will show her that being yourself is what's most important. Never change for anybody. Her dad and brothers were a real trip for sure. They made me laugh numerous times. One other thing I really liked was how she tied this story in with The Distance Between Us. I knew going in that there was a cameo appearance, but I thought it was just Caymen and Xander. Not another character I had loved, but made me so happy when she showed up.

Jen:  I love when authors do that, too...just give you glimpses of characters from previous books. It's just nice to know that they're still doing okay. ;0) What else was great about this story was those fence chats. My goodness, the honesty that pours out from both Charlie and Braden...it was refreshing to see the wall come down between them, even though there was technically a fence separating them. Even if the potential for something more between them hadn't been there, I would still have loved this aspect because it felt so genuine and we learned so much about the characters and their families through these talks.

April:  Those fence chats were killer. I looked forward to every single one, they really were the highlight of the story for me. I didn't really connect the whole walls coming down, and fence thing, but yes! Great symbolism. Another thing I found really interesting was the mystery behind her mom. I wasn't expecting any serious undertones, but I felt like they added some depth to the story.

Jen:  I had a feeling there was more to the story, especially since no one seemed to want to talk about it, but I tried not to dwell on it too much while I was reading. I did like how the family seemed to have pulled together over the years and practically made Braden one of their own since his own home situation wasn't ideal. Besides those fence chats, I liked the closeness, the bonds between all of the characters. And I also enjoyed the competitive nature between them. So much fun watching them all try to outdo each other, especially when it came to their wacky dares.

April:  Their dares were hilarious. Especially that first one we are introduced to, I will admit I may have gagged a bit. lol Too Funny. My ending thoughts are... On the Fence is a great summer read. And I know that we said that last Friday about Since You've Been Gone, but we have just been so extremely lucky when choosing our buddy reads/ listens. *high five*

Jen:  *return five* We have definitely had some great luck picking our summer reads. But it also helps that we've had really good experiences with both of those authors prior to their new releases, too. =D I highly recommend this one, though...even if you've never read a Kasie West book, even if you don't normally like contemporaries. This book is just too much fun to pass up!

GIF it to me straight:

About the author:

I write YA. I eat Junior Mints. Sometimes I go crazy and do both at the same time. My novels, published through Harper Teen are: PIVOT POINT, its sequel SPLIT SECOND (Feb 2014), and THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US (a contemporary novel). I also have two more contemporaries, ON THE FENCE coming out July 1, 2014, and THE FILL-IN BOYFRIEND coming out the summer of 2015. My agent is the talented and funny Michelle Wolfson.

Find Kasie:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Read More

Labels: all the feels, all the swoons, beautiful covers, contemporary, favorites, harper-collins, joint reviews, kasie west, must-read, on the fence, reviews, sports, summer