WHAT LIGHT By Jay Asher

December 20, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

WHAT LIGHT By Jay AsherWhat Light by Jay Asher
Published by Razorbill on 10/18/16
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 259
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Sierra's family runs a Christmas tree farm in Oregon—it's a bucolic setting for a girl to grow up in, except that every year, they pack up and move to California to set up their Christmas tree lot for the season. So Sierra lives two lives: her life in Oregon and her life at Christmas. And leaving one always means missing the other.

Until this particular Christmas, when Sierra meets Caleb, and one life eclipses the other.

By reputation, Caleb is not your perfect guy: years ago, he made an enormous mistake and has been paying for it ever since. But Sierra sees beyond Caleb's past and becomes determined to help him find forgiveness and, maybe, redemption. As disapproval, misconceptions, and suspicions swirl around them, Caleb and Sierra discover the one thing that transcends all else: true love.

Short and Sweet Review

Sierra’s parents own a Christmas tree farm in Oregon but around the holidays her family packs up and goes down to California to sell the trees. Sierra feels like she lives two lives the one she’s used to for 11 months a year and the other she lives during Christmas time. This time around in California, Sierra meets Caleb but he has a past that most others won’t forget about and warn Sierra to stay away from him, but Sierra is willing to look beyond what happened in the past.

This is the third holiday book I’ve read and I’m just striking out. My problem with this book is that it’s one note and predictable. Sierra meets Caleb he has a bad reputation, she ends up spending more time with him and learns about what he did but she knows the person he is now so she isn’t trying to focus on the past. We see those closest to Sierra try to warn her against him but she wants to change everyone’s opinions about him. Anyway the plot of this book is something I’ve seen before it wasn’t original and I was bored. I’m glad the book was short because if this went on I don’t know what I would have done. Sierra isn’t a great character, she’s not a girls girl and she becomes obsessed with Caleb after meeting him for a few minutes and after that she can’t stop thinking about him and blows off her friends. Also when you find out what Caleb did it’s not hard to understand why others in this small town are so wary of him. I’m trying to think about something that was good about this book for you all. The only good thing about this book is that people got Christmas trees.

Overall, I don’t want you guys to think I don’t like Christmas or the holidays but the books I’ve been reading haven’t been getting me in the spirit and they’re really not doing it for me and I feel like the grinch. What Light was an attempt at a holiday book about forgiveness and not judging people but it really missed the mark.

Filed Under: Reviews

HOW TO EXCAVATE A HEART By Jake Maia Arlow

December 18, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

HOW TO EXCAVATE A HEART By Jake Maia ArlowHow to Excavate a Heart by Jake Maia Arlow
Published by HarperTeen on 11/1/22
Genres: Contemporary, LGBT, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 380
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

It all starts when Shani runs into May. Like, literally. With her mom’s Subaru.

Attempted vehicular manslaughter was not part of Shani’s plan. She was supposed to be focusing on her monthlong paleoichthyology internship. She was going to spend all her time thinking about dead fish and not at all about how she was unceremoniously dumped days before winter break.

It could be going better.

But when a dog-walking gig puts her back in May’s path, the fossils she’s meant to be diligently studying are pushed to the side—along with the breakup.

Then they’re snowed in together on Christmas Eve. As things start to feel more serious, though, Shani’s hurt over her ex-girlfriend’s rejection comes rushing back. Is she ready to try a committed relationship again, or is she okay with this just being a passing winter fling?

Short and Sweet Review

During the holiday season, Shani decides to take an internship analyzing fish fossils for a month in DC. While making the drive with her mom to DC her mom accidentally hits a girl with her car. Shani and her mom drive away like it was nothing and the girl walks away. Shani ends up taking a dog walking gig and she runs back into the girl her mom hit with the car, May. Shani and May get closer and they even get snowed in on Christmas. Shani wants to make this work but she isn’t so sure especially because she was just broken up with.

This book starts off with our main character Shani arguing with her mom, which is why mom couldn’t keep her eyes on the road and ended up hitting May. Our first introduction to Shani put a bad taste in my mouth from that moment on I had a problem with her. I found Shani to be incredibly rude, to her mom, and just the way she responds to people. When May sees Shani again she isn’t exactly thrilled, because of the whole car thing. The two start walking May’s dog together and start to hit it off, so much so that even at her internship Shani isn’t doing her job she’s just texting the day away. As I mentioned before Shani wants to be with May, but her last relationship left her with some trauma when it comes to having sex. Shani isn’t completely sure but I feel like the book was hinting at her being raped so here’s your warning this is talked about towards the end of the book. I feel like Hanukkah was mentioned because both characters are Jewish but we never got to lean into that aspect, so don’t expect much from that.

I thought this would be a cute book to read during the holiday season but I was wrong. I talk about Shani being rude but quite frankly so is May, but we see much more of it from Shani because we only get her point of view. I don’t think either character was fleshed out and the plot was very predictable. I’m only giving it two stars because of the cute dog and Shani’s mentor who basically told her to get her shit together.

Filed Under: Reviews

THEIR VICIOUS GAMES By Joelle Wellington

December 13, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

THEIR VICIOUS GAMES By Joelle WellingtonTheir Vicious Games by Joelle Wellington
Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on 7/25/23
Genres: Contemporary, Mystery & Detective, Thrillers, Young Adult
Pages: 415
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

You must work twice as hard to get half as much.

Adina Walker has known this the entire time she’s been on scholarship at the prestigious Edgewater Academy—a school for the rich (and mostly white) upper class of New England. It’s why she works so hard to be perfect and above reproach, no matter what she must force beneath the surface. Even one slip can cost you everything.

And it does. One fight, one moment of lost control, leaves Adina blacklisted from her top choice Ivy League college and any other. Her only chance to regain the future she’s sacrificed everything for is the Finish, a high-stakes contest sponsored by Edgewater’s founding family in which twelve young, ambitious women with exceptional promise are selected to compete in three mysterious events: the Ride, the Raid, and the Royale. The winner will be granted entry into the fold of the Remington family, whose wealth and power can open any door.

But when she arrives at the Finish, Adina quickly gets the feeling that something isn’t quite right with both the Remingtons and her fellow competitors, and soon it becomes clear that this larger-than-life prize can only come at an even greater cost. Because the Finish’s stakes aren’t just make or break…they’re life and death.

Adina knows the deck is stacked against her—it always has been—so maybe the only way to survive their vicious games is for her to change the rules.

Short and Sweet Review

Adina has had to work hard for a lot of things in life. She attends Edgewater Academy on a scholarship and ended up getting into the Ivy League school of her choice, but one fight ends up getting her blacklisted from the school and trying to figure out what her options are. The Remington family has a lot of power in town and they have a competition called The Finish. The Finish is a contest that has 12 of the most ambitious girls compete in three different events and the winner gets the Remington family’s power to get what they want, and Adina just wants to be able to go to Yale. Adina is invited to the finish but it wasn’t a competition where people get eliminated and go home, they die.

The synopsis of this book is what really drew me in, but I initially thought that The Finish would be more like The Hunger Games, but this was kind of like The Selection but more cut throat. The Finish takes place in a mansion and all the girls are together, every other girl knows what she’s in for except for Adina. After the first girl dies it’s made very clear for Adina that she needs to get with the program or die. Not only is the prize for the winner to become part of the Remington fold but it’s really to win the heart of Pierce Remington. Although most of the girls are there to win Pierce, Adina ends up making a connection with his older brother Graham who ends up helping her out for the three challenges. The first challenge is the ride, the next is the raid, and the last is the Royale. I didn’t particularly care for any of the challenges I was more invested in who was going to die next and which girl would show her true colors. This book was just okay to me, I can’t really pinpoint what element didn’t hold my interest but maybe it was Adina. Adina was like hot and cold towards Graham who was invested in making sure she stayed safe and alive and it was almost like she didn’t appreciate the help it was weird and it threw me. Also the beginning of the book starts off slow and some of the focus on the challenges wasn’t necessary, for example we spent two to three chapters talking about the ride when we didn’t have to. Anyway the ending was chaotic and it was interesting to see how everything played out. The Remington house was beautiful in the beginning but in the end it became a house of horrors.

Overall, this book was just okay to me. For some reason it felt like there were times where a lot was happening and then. there’d be a lull in the action and Adina was not my favorite character. I did like the premise and seeing how things did play out though. I do think that other people should give this book a shot, because there was honestly more good attributes to this book than the bad, for me anyway.

Filed Under: Reviews

GHOSTED By Amanda Quain

December 11, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

GHOSTED By Amanda QuainGhosted by Amanda Quain
Published by Wednesday Books on 7/25/23
Genres: Contemporary, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 380
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Hattie Tilney isn’t a believer. Yes, she’s a senior at America’s most (allegedly) haunted high school, Northanger Abbey. But ever since her paranormal-loving dad passed away, she’s hung up her Ghostbusters suit, put away the EMF detectors, and moved on. She has enough to worry about in the land of the living—like taking care of her younger brother, Liam, while their older sister spirals out and their mother, Northanger’s formidable headmistress, buries herself in work. If Hattie just tries hard enough and keeps that overachiever mask on tight through graduation, maybe her mom will finally notice her.

But the mask starts slipping when Hattie’s assigned to be an ambassador to Kit Morland, who’s just transferred to Northanger on—what else—a ghost-hunting scholarship. The two are paired up for an investigative project on the school’s paranormal activity, and Hattie quickly strikes a deal: Kit will present whatever ghostly evidence he can find to prove that the campus is haunted, and Hattie will prove it’s not. But as they explore the abandoned tunnels and foggy graveyards of Northanger, Hattie starts to realize that Kit might be the kind of person who makes her want to believe in something—and someone—for the first time.

Short and Sweet Review

Hattie goes to Northanger Abbey which is allegedly one of the most haunted high schools in America, but Hattie isn’t a believer. After the death of her father, Hattie decided to do away with anything involving ghosts including believing in them. When new student Kit, who is a huge believer, and Hattie are paired to work on a project to investigate the paranormal activity around the school. Hattie and Kit come to an agreement that Kit can try to prove that the campus is haunted and she’ll try to prove that it’s not.

Hattie is our main character and after the death of her father she became a shell of her former self. She doesn’t like ghost or paranormal things anymore, she doesn’t let even her best friends get to close to her, and she feels like she has to be an over achiever to get her mom to be proud of her. Hattie does have a holier than thou attitude and it got exhausting at times to see her think that she was better or above other people, especially her sister Freddie. I think that the death of her dad affected everyone in the family and Hattie doesn’t see it that way and I don’t think she understands that her mom throwing herself into her work was her way of grieving. It does seem like Hattie’s mom is absent and that the kids are basically raising herself, but she just doesn’t know the right thing to do and assumes that working all the time is what she needed to do. Also Hattie’s mom also is the head of the school and she picks Hattie to show Kit around. Hattie and Kit don’t hit it off right away and that’s mainly because Hattie isn’t feeling it especially with how excited Kit is about ghosts. The more time Hattie spends with Kit the more she opens up and kind of reverts back to herself when she was willing to be open with people and her interests. Kit was good for Hattie in the way that he was able to push her to do more than just what she thought her mom expected of her. I will say this eventually led to the character growth that Hattie had. I do think the character growth and realization about things in her life came a little too late for me because it wasn’t until the last 40 pages that this happened. I do wish that there was more ghost hunting that went on in the book. The first half of the book was fast paced but when we got past the investigation part and more into Hattie’s life and why she is the way she is things slowed down a lot.

Overall, this was an enjoyable book, I didn’t know beforehand that it was a retelling. I do think I would have enjoyed this book more if Hattie had her character growth earlier on before the end of the book, and I wanted more ghost hunting to happen!

Filed Under: Reviews

STAY WITH MY HEART By Tashie Bhuiyan

December 8, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

STAY WITH MY HEART By Tashie BhuiyanStay with My Heart by Tashie Bhuiyan
Published by Inkyard Press on 1/2/24
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 340
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon

Liana Sarkar lives and breathes music, hoping to follow in the footsteps of her A&R coordinator father. Maybe if she succeeds, he’ll finally give her the time of day instead of drowning himself in work to distract from the grief of her mother’s passing.

When Liana accidentally sabotages an up-and-coming local band, Third Eye, she makes it her mission to steer them towards success—without them discovering her role in their setback. But as she gets closer to Third Eye, especially their enigmatic leader Skyler Moon, it becomes harder to hide the truth.

With both her heart and their futures on the line, will Liana be able to undo the damage she’s caused?

Short and Sweet Review

Liana’s life revolves around music, which makes sense because her dad is an A&R coordinator for a popular record label. Liana falls for a guy, Thomas, and ends up giving his demo to her dad not knowing that Thomas stole the songs from his former band, Third Eye. Now Liana is determined to make it right with the band and she tries to make her interest in helping them about getting them success without them knowing what she did.

Liana’s life at the moment is very complicated. After the death of her mother, Liana and her father only speak when its about his work which centers around music. It was hard to see this relationship or lack of one play out because you can see Liana reaching out to him but he’s not even trying, and everyone grieves in their own way but to Liana it feels like she’s invisible to him. When Liana gives him the demo and he likes it she feels like he’s finally proud of her which is why when she finds out she’s messed up she’s too scared to tell him in fear that he’ll basically shut her out again. Also because of this big demo mishap Liana tries to fix things with Third Eye without them knowing that she kind of but without wanting to actually helped Thomas get noticed. Liana goes through the trouble of getting the band a place to practice and eventually becomes their publicist. I did like the relationship Liana had with the band members, she even goes on to have a romance with Sky. I did like that Liana had a support system with her cousin Riya and her best friend Evie, it was also nice seeing that the band also became part of her support system. The plot was interesting and even though Liana could have stopped this whole thing by coming clean early I did understand her motives. This book did cover hard topics like anxiety, depression and grief but it did it in a way where it was well explained and not just thrown in the book for the sake of being in there.

Overall, I did enjoy this book. It was heartfelt and it was fun watching Liana do everything in her power to fix her mistakes. I did also like that each chapter had a song title and the little playlists that were sprinkled around in some of the chapters. I would recommend this book, its a cute romance and the getting to know Liana and Third Eye just made this book that much better.

Filed Under: Reviews

THE REUNION By Kit Frick

December 4, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

THE REUNION By Kit FrickThe Reunion by Kit Frick
Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books on 8/29/23
Genres: Contemporary, Mystery & Detective, Thrillers, Young Adult
Pages: 317
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Eleven Mayweathers went on vacation. Ten came home.

It’s been years since the fragmented Mayweather clan was all in one place, but the engagement of Addison and Mason’s mom to the dad of their future stepbrother, Theo, brings the whole family to sunny Cancún, Mexico, for winter break. Add cousin Natalia to the mix, and it doesn’t take long for tempers to fray and tensions to rise. A week of forced family “fun” reveals that everyone has something to hide, and as secrets bubble to the surface, no one is safe from the fallout. By the end of the week, one member of the reunion party will be dead—and everyone’s a suspect:
The peacekeeper: Addison needs a better hiding place.
The outsider: Theo just wants to mend fences.
The romantic: Natalia doesn’t want to talk about the past.
The hothead: Mason needs to keep his temper under control.

It started as a week in paradise meant to bring them together. But the Mayweathers are about to learn the hard way that family bonding can be deadly.

Short and Sweet Review

Addison and Mason’s mom is marrying Theo’s Dad which means a little family vacation so that everyone can get to know each other. The family goes to a resort in Mexico and also invited were Addison and Mason’s aunts and two cousins, Natalia and Mia, and also their uncle Corey and his girlfriend Holly. Addison wants to try to talk to Natalia and Mason about something that happened in the past but they’re avoiding her. Theo is being avoided by Mason and there’s just a lot of secrets that each of the teens know about each other. At some point on the trip one of the Mayweathers ends up dead and only one of them knows what happened.

The Reunion, is a pretty engaging story. There’s eleven Mayweathers on this vacation but we only get the POVs of Addison, Mason, Natalia, and Theo. We immediately get the sense that they each have something to hide and it was interesting trying to figure out what they were all trying to avoid. I will say my least favorite character was Mason, mainly because he had this jock energy about him but his dislike of Theo wasn’t really warranted. Addison also had some things she wanted to talk about but Natalia and her brother were avoiding her and she kind of feels helpless because she’s getting texts about a situation that they were all involved in. Natalia spends her time talking to her boyfriend who she met online and also looking out for her little sister Mia. Theo is just trying to get to know his new family and also defend his dad against Masons misconceptions about him. At the beginning of each section we get to read emails sent by the hotel about a guest that has gone missing, and this is my favorite thing because it also mentions this surf school along the beach that could also be involved. I liked the way everything was unraveled in the end, secrets were exposed and we find out who died and what actually happened.

Overall, I was glued to this book from the very first page. I liked reading from the different characters POVs and learning more about them and what was going on in their lives, and also trying to figure out who was the one who ends up dying. The Reunion is a fun mystery book and I loved the writing and how everything was eventually revealed.

Filed Under: Reviews

THERE’S NO WAY I’D DIE FIRST By Lisa Springer

December 1, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

THERE’S NO WAY I’D DIE FIRST By Lisa SpringerThere's No Way I'd Die First by Lisa Springer
Published by Delacorte Press on 9/5/23
Genres: Contemporary, Horror & Ghost Stories, Thrillers, Young Adult
Pages: 292
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Seventeen-year-old Noelle Layne knows horror. Every trope, every warning sign, every survival tactic. She even leads a successful movie club dedicated to the genre. Who better to throw the ultimate, most exclusive Halloween party on all of Long Island?

With some of the top influencers in her school on the guest list, including gorgeous singer-songwriter Archer Mitchell, her popularity is bound to spike. She could really use the social boost for an upcoming brand expansion. Nothing is going to ruin this party.

Except…maybe the low budget It clown she hired for a stirring round of tag. He axes one of her classmates. From the looks of his devilish grin and bag full of killer tricks, he's just getting started.

A murderous clown is out for blood, but Noelle has been waiting her entire life to prove that she’s a Final Girl.

Short and Sweet Review

Noelle loves horror movies, she knows all the tropes, and survival tactics, she’s even in charge of the movie club at school. So Noelle decides to throw a halloween party and invites all the cool kids and even hires a clown. Unfortunately, this clown isn’t for show, he’s there to kill the party guests and even know’s some of their secrets. Noelle know’s she’s going to survive this because she’s final girl material.

This book was not good at all. Noelle loves horror movies and in her head because she has watched so many she thinks that makes her qualified to survive. When this killer clown named Gage crashes her party, well actually she paid for him but he goes off script, anyway she just know’s she’s going to survive hence the title of the book. There was nothing redeeming about this book, Noelle was rich and so were all of her friends but even with that fact Noelle thought she was better than them. I think my biggest problem was when this clown is going around killing everyone and Noelle is just thinking of movie plots and how she was going to survive, honestly there was no sense of urgency from her. The clown? He was ridiculous too. He also had no urgency, he came in to kill these kids but at one point he decides to use the bathroom in a birkin bag. I will say that scene had no business being as detailed as it was and it was just unhinged and from then on I knew this book wasn’t going to get any better… shitting (excuse my language) in a birkin bag?!? Just crazy. Anyway the motives of Gage the clown aren’t original and he could have done better than crashing a party full rich kids with no care, had no effect on them whatsoever. The ending was also trash and I kind of wish Noelle was not the final girl.

Overall, this was not a good book. I’m kind of upset that I’ve read two bad horror books in a row but oh well.

Filed Under: Reviews

SERIOUS MOONLIGHT By Jenn Bennett

November 13, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

SERIOUS MOONLIGHT By Jenn BennettSerious Moonlight by Jenn Bennett
Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on 4/16/19
Genres: Contemporary, Mystery & Detective, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 432
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
Buy on Amazon

Mystery-book aficionado Birdie Lindberg has an overactive imagination. Raised in isolation and homeschooled by strict grandparents, she’s cultivated a whimsical fantasy life in which she plays the heroic detective and every stranger is a suspect. But her solitary world expands when she takes a job the summer before college, working the graveyard shift at a historic Seattle hotel.

In her new job, Birdie hopes to blossom from introverted dreamer to brave pioneer, and gregarious Daniel Aoki volunteers to be her guide. The hotel’s charismatic young van driver shares the same nocturnal shift and patronizes the waterfront Moonlight Diner where she waits for the early morning ferry after work. Daniel also shares her appetite for intrigue, and he’s stumbled upon a real-life mystery: a famous reclusive writer—never before seen in public—might be secretly meeting someone at the hotel.

To uncover the writer’s puzzling identity, Birdie must come out of her shell…discovering that most confounding mystery of all may be her growing feelings for the elusive riddle that is Daniel.

Short and Sweet Review

Birdie loves mysteries and has an over active imagination mainly due to the fact that her strict grandparents had her isolated and homeschooled. But since her grandmother died Birdie’s grandfather has given her a bit more freedom and now she has a job in Seattle at a hotel. Birdie doesn’t think she’ll know anyone but then she runs into Daniel, a boy she had an awkward encounter with in the past. Now that they’re working together and Birdie is still standoffish, Daniel suggest they solve a mystery together about one of the hotel guest; an author who may be having a romantic relationship.

Serious Moonlight is one of those books where the premise sounds exciting but the execution wasn’t great. Birdie is one of those people that hasn’t had a lot of experiences due to being confined to one place. Now Birdie has a job and she runs into Daniel a boy she had a romantic encounter with that didn’t end well. Daniel tells her about an author that frequents the hotel but comes under a fake name, Birdie is determined to find out the authors true identity. I thought that this book would revolve more around the mystery but we see a lot of Daniel trying to get back on Birdies good side and try to be a romantic interest to her. We also learn what happened between Birdie and Daniel which is pretty funny in a the situation did not call for that kind of way. Anyway I didn’t like the romance between these two, they would have been better off as friends and just seeing the dynamic between the two it didn’t work. I didn’t like Birdie much and its one of those situations where when someone is on such a tight leash and they get some freedom that they’re indecisive and all over the place, that was Birdie. The ending of the book made me mad, I won’t spoil it but Daniel has some nerve and the fact that Birdie thinks she’s in love with him is mind boggling.

Overall, I didn’t like this book. I wanted more mystery but what I got was a sheltered girl experiencing her first romance and being completely clueless and giving us a snooze fest of a book that was 432 pages. I feel like Jenn Bennett has books for me personally that are hit or miss and this was a miss.

Filed Under: Reviews

PRITTY By Keith F. Miller Jr.

November 9, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

PRITTY By Keith F. Miller Jr.Pritty by Keith F. Miller Jr.
Series: Pritty #1
Published by HarperTeen on 11/14/23
Genres: Contemporary, LGBT, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 416
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon

On the verge of summer before his senior year, Jay is a soft soul in a world of concrete. While his older brother is everything people expect a man to be—tough, athletic, and in charge—Jay simply blends into the background to everyone, except when it comes to Leroy.

Unsure of what he could have possibly done to catch the eye of the boy who could easily have anyone he wants, Jay isn’t about to ignore the surprising but welcome attention. But as everything in his world begins to heat up, especially with Leroy, whispered rumors over the murder of a young Black journalist and long-brewing territory tensions hang like a dark cloud over his neighborhood. And when Jay and Leroy find themselves caught in the crossfire, Leroy isn’t willing to be the reason Jay’s life is at risk.

Dragged into the world of the Black Diamonds—whose work to protect the Black neighborhoods of Savannah began with his father and now falls to his older brother—Leroy knows that finding out who attacked his brother is not only the key to protecting everyone he loves but also the only way he can ever be with Jay. Wading through a murky history of family trauma and regret, Leroy soon discovers that there’s no keeping Jay safe when Jay’s own family is in just as deep and fighting the undertow of danger just as hard.

Now Jay and Leroy must puzzle through secrets hiding in plain sight and scramble to uncover who is determined to eliminate the Black Diamonds before someone else gets hurt—even if the cost might be their own electric connection.

Short and Sweet Review

Pritty centers around two teens, Jay and Leroy. Jay is more soft around the edges and isn’t one to find himself in a lot of trouble. Leroy is more rough around the edges and is one to find himself in trouble even when he isn’t looking for it. Jay seems to think he belongs in the background but Leroy always notices him. We see a group called the Black Diamonds who are dedicated to protect black neighborhoods in Savannah, but someone is coming after them and isn’t afraid to start killing to get what they want. Leroy is closely affiliated with the Black Diamonds as his brother and Aunt currently run it and Leroy knows to keep Jay safe he needs to keep his distance.

Pritty is a deep novel, we have Jay and Leroy and it truly feels like a coming of age novel. Jay has a lot of character development throughout the book, so does Leroy but I thought Jay did a lot of growing. The Black Diamonds are a group that want to protect black neighborhoods but when a reporter ends up dead and someone shoots at Leroy and Jay things change. Taj is Leroy’s brother and the head of the black diamonds and he’s basically an older brother and a father figure for Leroy. Jay has his older brother Jacob who tries to protect him. The book is about Jay and Leroy but also so much more, it includes love, family, and friends. There’s a lot that goes on through the book but I think my favorite part is seeing the effort Leroy puts in to show Jay that he truly does care about him. There is also a bit of a mystery surrounding who is after the black diamonds and I’m interested in seeing how that will play out in the next book.

Pritty is a beautiful book, and its raw and thought provoking. Jay and Leroy are characters that you can connect to and feel for. I loved the integration of the families and seeing Jay and Leroy’s upbringing. Jay and Leroy are different but when they get together the world around them disappears. This is a book I highly recommend.

Filed Under: Reviews

LOVEBOAT FOREVER By Abigail Hing Wen

November 3, 2023 by Leave a Comment

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.

LOVEBOAT FOREVER By Abigail Hing WenLoveboat Forever by Abigail Hing Wen
Series: Loveboat,
Published by HarperTeen on 11/7/23
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 399
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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Pearl was ready for a worldwide stage. Instead, she needs to stage a comeback.

Seventeen-year-old music prodigy Pearl Wong had the summer of her dreams planned—until a fall from grace leaves her in need of new plans…and a new image.

Where better to revamp her “brand” than at Chien Tan, the Taipei summer program for elite students that rocketed her older sister, Ever, on a path to romance and self-fulfillment years ago.

But as the alumni know, Chien Tan is actually Loveboat—the extravagant world where prodigies party till dawn—and there’s more awaiting Pearl there than she could have ever imagined, like a scandalous party in the dark, a romantic entanglement with a mysterious suitor...and a summer that will change her forever.

Short and Sweet Review

Pearl Wong is on her way to being a music prodigy until one of her performances goes viral on Tik Tok for all the wrong reasons. Her invite to an exclusive music program is rescinded, and her manager advises her to lay low. So Pearl decides to go to Taipei and maybe have the same amazing experiences her sister Ever had, while also making a comeback.

Loveboat Forever follows Ever Wong’s younger sister Pearl. I loved this book. Pearl is a musician a pianist to be exact and after finding out how cruel people can be on social media she ends up having to stay out of the spotlight and to do that she goes to Taipei. Loveboat is different than when Ever was there, but the kids still want to go out and have fun and at a masked party Pearl ends up kissing someone but she doesn’t know who it is. Honestly, this book follows the same formula as the first book, while Pearl is immersing herself in the culture she also finds herself in a love triangle. Pearl ends up meeting Ethan Kang who is also a musical prodigy in his own right but he’s a bit controlling and doesn’t know how to be himself. Kai on the other hand is hard to get to know and is very judgmental towards her and the other kids at love boat. Ethan and Pearl decide to team up and do a duo for the end of the program talent show which is Pearls chance to get some good publicity. Kai and Pearl on the other hand work together trying to get back Pearl’s great grandmothers pipa and also they play music on the street. I did like Pearl and Kai together mainly because she was allowed to be herself and not worry about the outside world telling her who she needs to be. My favorite part of this book was how we get to see characters from the past books like Ever, Rick, Sophie, and Xavier and honestly their involvement in this book is what upped my rating.

Loveboat Forever, was magical and fun and it just keeps alive the feelings you had from reading the other books. Pearl had a lot of character development throughout the book and I was so happy to follow her journey. We get to see Pearl immerse herself in culture and learn more about her family and also about herself. Definitely check this book out and relive the magic of Loveboat one more time!

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