GRIT By Gillian French

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

GRIT By Gillian FrenchGrit by Gillian French
Published by HarperTeen on 5/16/17
Genres: Contemporary, Realistic Fiction, Social Issues, Young Adult
Pages: 304
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon

ReviewedbyDani

Seventeen-year-old Darcy Prentiss has long held the title of “town slut.” She knows how to have a good time, sure, but she isn’t doing anything all the guys haven’t done. But when you’re a girl with a reputation, every little thing that happens seems to keep people whispering—especially when your ex-best friend goes missing.

But if anyone were to look closer at Darcy, they’d realize there’s a lot more going on beneath the surface. Staying out late, hooking up, and telling lies is what Darcy does to forget. Forget about the mysterious disappearance of her friend. Forget about the dark secret she and her cousin Nell share. Forget about that hazy Fourth of July night. So when someone in town anonymously nominates Darcy to be in the running for Bay Festival Princess—a cruel act only someone with a score to settle would make—all of the things that Darcy wants to keep hidden threaten to erupt in ways she wasn’t prepared to handle…and isn’t sure if she can.

Short and Sweet

Darcy Prentiss lives in a small town and has the reputation of “town slut.” During the summer Darcy works picking blueberries with her cousin and her sister. Things are going fine until talk starts about Darcy’s ex-best friend Rhiannon who went missing the last summer, now people are trying to figure out what happened and if Darcy knows more than shes saying.

Characters

Darcy: Our main character who is unfairly judged. I think she’s gone through a lot she’s lost her dad and her reputation has people judging her before they even know who she really is.

Nell: Darcy’s cousin. Nell is a bit slower which makes Darcy feel like she has to protect Nell all the time, but Nell is compassionate and sweet.

Romance

There is a bit of Romance between Darcy and Jesse one of her fellow workers who picks blueberries. It was interesting to see how this relationship would develop. Darcy is known to be a good time which isn’t a secret to anyone in town but Jesse has her confused when he doesn’t seem to care about that.

My Thoughts

~ There were two storylines in Grit, one about Rhiannon who went missing the summer before and then one about Darcy’s day to day life and how she deals with family, work, and everything else that comes her way. There’s also a bit of a mystery surrounding why Darcy is so protective of Nell.

~ There’s a lot going on in this book and it’s not hard to follow at all, it made it more captivating if anything.

~ Darcy was an enjoyable character I felt bad because of how much everyone judged her, but she just owned it and I love how she felt like she didn’t have to explain anything to anyone.

~Rhiannon’s storyline is interesting. What really happened to Rhiannon? The police are now questioning everyone again because they found something of hers. The police also thinks Darcy knows more than she’s telling. I liked seeing this unfold because we slowly learn what actually happened that night and what Darcy knows.

~ Nell’s storyline is also interesting. Her and Darcy and they both knew if their secret got out everything in their lives would unravel.

~ I liked seeing Darcy’s day to day life shes headstrong and smart she knew what she wanted. She definitely didn’t let people walk all over her.

~ I loved Mags, Darcy’s older sister. She was like another mother to Darcy she was caring and protective and was always there for Darcy.

~This book was hard to put down I wanted to know what happened and how each character had something to do with what was going on in the present day based on what they did in the past.

Overall

Grit was raw and memorable. I couldn’t put this book down there were so many twists that just had me wanting to know what was going to happen next. I recommend this book, it would be a perfect read for the summer!

SmileRatingsSmileRatingsSmileRatingsSmileRatings

DUFF by Kody Keplinger

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

DUFF by Kody KeplingerDUFF by Kody Keplinger
Published by Poppy Genres: Social Issues, Young Adult
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

ReviewedbyDani

In honor of DUFF coming out in theaters this month I decided to read the book. This was a short and quick read. This was a pretty good book. When I first picked upped DUFF and started reading it didn’t really capture me. But the farther I got, the better it became. The characters were relatable and easy to follow. I really liked the fact that while Wesley and Bianca were hooking up they realized how they both need to face there problems and find a way to deal with them. I also really loved the ending it was adorable.  I would recommend this book. I also can’t wait until the companion novel comes out!

BEWARE THE WILD
by Natalie C. Parker

I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

BEWARE THE WILD by Natalie C. ParkerBeware the Wild by Natalie C. Parker
Series: Beware the Wild #1
Published by Harper Collins on 2014-10-21
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Social Issues, Young Adult
Pages: 336
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Reviewed by Dani

Southern Gothic gets a whole new twist in this debut novel, sure to appeal to fans of the New York Times bestselling Beautiful Creatures series. The swamp in Sterling's small Louisiana town proves to have a power over its inhabitants when her brother disappears and no one but Sterling even remembers that he existed. Now Sterling, with the help of brooding loner Heath, who's had his own creepy experience with the swamp, must fight back and reclaim what—and who—the swamp has taken.Beware the Wild is a riveting and atmospheric page-turner readers won't want to miss.

It’s an oppressively hot and sticky morning in May when Sterling and her brother, Phin, have an argument that compels him to run into the town swamp — the one that strikes fear in all the residents of Sticks, Louisiana. Phin doesn’t return. Instead, a girl named Lenora May climbs out, and now Sterling is the only person in Sticks who remembers her brother ever existed. Sterling needs to figure out what the swamp’s done with her beloved brother and how Lenora May is connected to his disappearance — and loner boy Heath Durham might be the only one who can help her.

I can’t even explain how much I loved this book. Sterling’s brother Phin goes into the swamp and he doesn’t come out but Lenora May does. Sterling is the only one in town who remembers her brother even existed, but she gets a little help from Heath the only person who believes Sterling and doesn’t think she’s crazy. I just related to Sterling so much and I was rooting for her to find brother. I didn’t like Lenora, because when she climbed out of the swamp she thought she belonged there, and I was like where is Phin? I also really liked the relationship between Sterling and Heath it was really sweet that he believed her even when others didn’t. The setting and the swamp were just creepy but I loved it. I would recommend this book to others in a heart beat!

GIVEAWAY! GET EVEN by Gretchen McNeil

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

GIVEAWAY! GET EVEN by Gretchen McNeilGet Even by Gretchen McNeil
Published by Harper Collins on 2014-09-16
Genres: Death & Dying, Emotions & Feelings, Friendship, Mysteries & Detective Stories, Social Issues, Young Adult
Pages: 400
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon

Reviewed by Dani

The Breakfast Club meets Pretty Little Liars in Gretchen McNeil’s witty and suspenseful novel about four disparate girls who join forces to take revenge on high school bullies and create dangerous enemies for themselves in the process. Bree, Olivia, Kitty, and Margot have nothing in common—at least that’s what they’d like the students and administrators of their elite private school to think. The girls have different goals, different friends, and different lives, but they share one very big secret: They’re all members of Don’t Get Mad, a secret society that anonymously takes revenge on the school’s bullies, mean girls, and tyrannical teachers.When their latest target ends up dead with a blood-soaked “DGM” card in his hands, the girls realize that they’re not as anonymous as they thought—and that someone now wants revenge on them. Soon the clues are piling up, the police are closing in . . . and everyone has something to lose.


I can't even explain how much I loved this book. I think I have a book hangover, I can't stop thinking about this book. Bree, Olivia, Kitty, and Margot are all apart of Don't Get Mad a group that gets revenge on people they think deserve it, like bullies. When one of their targets end up dead everything gets turned upside down. Someone wants their own revenge on the girls and they don't know who it is. I finished this book in two days I could not put it down. In Get Even you see things from each of the girls point of view so you won't get bored. Each of the girls live very different lifestyles and it's interesting seeing things through each of their eyes. I loved the characters even though the girls are different I felt like I could relate to each one of them. My favorite thing about this book is that they're all in DGM but when things get crazy they realize they don't know each other as well as they thought they did. Get Even had the biggest cliff hanger. Gretchen McNeil is a genius! I will definitely check out some of her other books, I can't wait until the sequel Get Dirty comes out! I would recommend this book to anyone who likes mysteries and thrillers.

 

In honor of GET EVEN’S release today. Reading in Wonderland will be giving one lucky ready some swag. Author Gretchen McNeil graciously sent some swag for us to share with our readers!

To enter for the swag leave a comment below for extra entries like our Facebook page & Twitter page. Leave the extra links in your comment.

arock_bright&merry_elements_owlstickers (5)

 

 

Xoxo,

Miranda

DISSONANCE by Erica O’Rourke

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

DISSONANCE by Erica O’RourkeDissonance by Erica O'Rourke
Published by Simon and Schuster on 2014-07-22
Genres: Music, Science Fiction, Social Issues, Young Adult
Pages: 496
Source: Publisher

Reviewed by Dani

In this inventive romantic thriller, Del has the power to navigate between alternate realities—and the power to save multiple worlds.Delancey knows for sure that there is more than one universe. Many more. Because every time someone makes a choice, a new, parallel world is spun off the existing one. Eating breakfast or skipping it, turning left instead of right, sneaking out instead of staying in bed—all of these choices create alternate universes in which echo selves take the roads not traveled. Del knows all of this because she’s a Walker, someone who can navigate between the worlds, and whose job is to keep the dimensions in harmony. But Del’s decisions have consequences too. Even though she’s forbidden from Walking after a training session goes horribly wrong, she secretly starts to investigate other dissonant worlds. She’s particularly intrigued by the echo versions of Simon Lane, a guy who won’t give her the time of day in the main world, but whose alternate selves are uniquely interested. But falling for Simon draws Del closer to a truth that the Council of Walkers is trying to hide—a secret that threatens the fate of the entire multiverse.

Synopsis: For Delancey Sullivan, alternate universes aren’t just a theory: they’re a way of life. Every time someone makes a choice—to eat breakfast or skip it, to sneak out or stay in bed—parallel realities are created, and echo versions of ourselves take the roads not traveled in the Key World. As a Walker, Del navigates between the Echoes, keeping the dimensions in harmony. But when her own choices go horribly wrong, she must decide between her heart and her duty—and live with the consequences.

I don’t even know where to start. This book was amazing! Del is a walker and a walkers job is to keep the key world safe. Del makes a mistake in one of the echoes and she is put on suspension. When Del realizes with the help of her friend Elliot that the mistake she made shouldn’t have happened she’s on a mission to find out what happened and how to fix it. The characters in this book are great. Del is a headstrong main character and will do things that are reckless if she thinks its going to benefit the people she loves. And Del’s love interest Simon was an interesting character. We don’t really get to know Simon at first but only his echoes Del sees in different dimensions. The romance between the two was sweet, I think they were a great couple. I really liked the secondary characters in this book and how they were treated. Elliot, Del’s friend, was such a sweet guy who was always their for his best friend. Addison, Del’s sister, came across as a perfectionist type snob at first, but we see deeper into her character as the book progresses and she proved to be a Walker who would do anything to ensure the safety of the Key World. I loved the relationship between Del and her grandpa Monty, who has a secret of his own. This book was a page turner, I was hooked. I’m ready for the sequel!