YA Contemporary

Review: Listen To Your Heart by Kasie West

~ megs14malloy

Listen to Your HeartListen to Your Heart by Kasie West
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When summer comes to an end, Kate Bailey is bummed she has to return to spending her days in a classroom instead of on the lake at her parent’s marina. Kate is a lake girl through and through and struggles to see herself anywhere else.

This year, however, is going to be all about getting Kate out of her comfort zone.

At the behest of her best friend, Alana, Kate has signed up for a podcasting class where she ends up becoming a cohost of an advice show of her creation.

Being such a private person, Kate prefers to fly under the radar, but she soon finds herself taking on a sort of celebrity persona around school.

Alana gets to be in marketing and we meet a few other kids in the class as well. Victoria, Kate’s cohost, is an absolute doll and her rival, Frank, adds a slightly sinister, bad boy element.

Stealing the storyline however is Alana’s crush, Diego.

Cute, cute, cute — this boy is even grabbing Kate’s attention. But Alana is her best friend and it’s totally against girl code to go after your BFF’s crush.

I mainly picked this book up because I had been told there was a strong podcast storyline in it. That is a big selling point for me.

I have never read a Kasie West but figured, why not? It sounded so cute and fun and it’s summer! The perfect time to pick up a book like this.

I was not disappointed. I really enjoyed listening to this story. Sure, it’s cutesy and sugary sweet but that is exactly what it marketed itself as and that is what I got!

There was miscommunication, drama, funny characters, a cook-off, great family dynamics — the list goes on and on.

I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a quick, adorable YA Contemporary read. I can also see people of all ages enjoying it. I will absolutely be picking up more of Kasie West’s books this summer. Really good stuff!

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Review: On The Come Up by Angie Thomas

~ megs14malloy

On the Come UpOn the Come Up by Angie Thomas
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

ANGIE THOMAS!!!

I am so in love with your words.
Damn, she’s good.

This story follows, Bri Jackson, who also lives in Garden Heights like Starr from THUG. But that is pretty much where the similarities end.

Bri lives with her mother and her older brother. Her father, a once successful rapper, was gunned down in the streets, a victim of gang violence. Bri’s mother is a recovering addict who is doing her best to be able to provide for her children alone.

Bri has plans to follow in her father’s footsteps but she definitely wants to do it her own way and struggles to find her identity apart from him.

She is a super talented rapper and spends most of her time thinking of rhymes and putting together lyrics. She is singularly focused on finding success in order to better the living conditions of herself and her family. To make them ‘good’.

Bri is a great kid but she does have a short fuse. She puts a lot of pressure on herself and I enjoyed getting some insight into her thought process and how she sees the world around her. There is always something that seems to be going wrong in her world. It’s tough. Troubles at school, troubles with bills, being behind in rent and she feels compelled to do something to make it different.

I loved this story. The incorporation of Bri’s lyrics gave the story such depth. I loved that angle, seeing her try to make it and channel her talents for good. Learning to stand her ground and be true to herself. I love stories with music or musicians and this one utilized that trope so well.

I have read some reviews where readers commented on not enjoying this story as much as THUG. That doesn’t surprise me at all but for me, I sort of feel the opposite. I think I actually enjoyed this one more. While Bri, as a character, may seem contentious, to me, she was perfect.

As a 16-year old, many aspects of your life can be extremely frustrating. You can feel like you aren’t being heard, like your desires are pushed aside or seen as not important, and that may cause you to act out in socially unacceptable ways. I get that. Bri was struggling with some heavy shit and she let it get the best of her sometimes but that happens when you are a kid.

I liked how this book focused on a variety of hard-hitting issues that can often be brushed over or ignored. The reality of living in poverty is something that millions of Americans, and people around the world, deal with on a daily basis, and while it isn’t pretty, it is important to shine light on and discuss.

Examples: the fact that Bri’s mom was a recovering addict. The fact of the limits that places on her options to provide for her family. The way Bri, and other black and brown kids, were treated at her school. The lifestyle Bri’s aunt lives and how that affects her entire family. Bri’s brother’s options for a job after college.

All of these things are tough issues. I appreciated how much substance Thomas put into this. This was far from a one issue story. This was the whole cake and I was eating every bite!

I can see why this format may not sit well with everyone. It punches the whole way through but it is an exceptionally told story.

Thomas is a true wordsmith. Her writing leaps off the page with realness…is that a word? Realness?

You know what I’m saying.

As you can tell, I loved this. I want everyone to read it and seriously, I am on the EDGE of my seat until Angie Thomas puts out another book. I am really hoping for another story set in Garden Heights!!!

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Review: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

~ megs14malloy

The Hate U GiveThe Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

While attending a Spring Break party, Starr Carter, runs into her best childhood friend, Khalil. They haven’t seen each other in a while and Starr is happy to catch up with him. They used to be real close but drifted apart once Starr started attending a private school out of their neighborhood.

After a violent incident erupts at the party, Khalil offers to give Starr a ride home, which she accepts. On the way, they get pulled over. A nightmarish scene then plays out in front of Starr’s eyes. Khalil removed from the car and ultimately gunned down in the street by a police officer. Badge number 1-1-5.

The rest of the books follows Starr in the aftermath of this killing; what she goes through, what her family goes through and what her community goes through.

There is nothing that I can write that hasn’t been written before in regards to this book.

It’s so important, so well written and so needed.
I loved it beginning to end.

Believe the hype. If you haven’t picked this up yet, please do.
I’m so glad that I did. As an aside, I listened to the audiobook while following along in my hardcover edition. As I already knew, but maybe you don’t, Bahni Turpin is a goddess. She is such a great narrator, bringing stories to life.

I will definitely be picking up On the Come Up very soon! Thank you for writing this, Angie Thomas.

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Review: Anger is a Gift by Mark Oshiro

~ megs14malloy

Anger Is a GiftAnger Is a Gift by Mark Oshiro
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an absolutely engrossing story.

I don’t think I will ever ‘review’ this.
I don’t think it is my place to review this.

This is a hard story to read but one that needed to be told and heard.

This one will be going on my ‘books everyone should read in a lifetime’ list.

Taken from the synopsis on Goodreads: “A story of resilience and loss, love and family, Mark Oshiro’s Anger is a Gift testifies to the vulnerability and strength of a community living within a system of oppression.”

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Review: In Another Life by C.C. Hunter

~ megs14malloy

In Another Life: A NovelIn Another Life: A Novel by C.C. Hunter
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

When Chloe Holden moves to Joyful, Texas, with her mother, her once perfect life is in shambles. Her mother is in remission from her cancer but still very sick. Her Dad, who she has always considered her super hero, has cheated on her mom and left her for a much younger woman. They’re not speaking at all and using Chloe as a go-between.

In spite of all of this, Chloe is doing her best to hold it all together. Her mom is in the throes of a terrible depression and most days, Chloe functions more as a parent than a child. With her mom’s utter lack of being able to get out of her own way, Chloe is left to deal with a lot of stressful things by herself.

When Chloe bumps into Cash Colton at a local convenience store, he has an unexpected and far from friendly reaction to her.

Cash believes Chloe is lurking in town to scam his foster parents, the Fullers. They had a baby girl who was kidnapped when she was three years old and Chloe looks exactly like an age progression photograph that has been used to scam them before.

This would seem ludicrous except for the fact that Chloe is actually adopted. She remembers nothing of her life prior to being surrendered by her bio parents. Well nothing except for one vague memory that his been haunting her: her 3-year old self in a princess dress, sitting on a dirty sofa, crying and having a scary man tell her, your momma and daddy don’t want you anymore.

As you can imagine, this memory frightens her so she does her best to suppress it. As her and Cash eventually strike up a friendship, then begin to grow closer, he confesses to her what he fears. As they begin to explore the idea that she could actually be the missing girl, Emily Fuller, Chloe begins to remember more details.

In Another Life is a solid YA Contemporary story. I had moments in the beginning that gave me pause but as the story continued, I felt myself drawn in more and more. Chloe and Cash’s relationship was enjoyable. It was interesting to me to have two main characters who were part of the adoptive/foster care system. Both Chloe and Cash are struggling with issues stemming from that, Chloe definitely less so, and I found those topics interesting to explore.

Cash’s back story was very interesting and when I would find myself getting frustrated at some of his choices and behaviors, I had to remind myself of how he perceived the world differently than myself.

I did have a slight issue with Chloe’s mom. She was annoying AF and I think we had a bit too much of her. Her constant issues sucked me out of the story by taking the focus off of Chloe and Cash. I found her distracting, TBH. Also, I wouldn’t classify this as a mystery/thriller. I have heard some people talking about it and I think if you go into this with that assumption, you will be disappointed — at least if you read a lot of thrillers, which I do.

Overall, I enjoyed my time reading this story and would definitely pick up more works by this author. Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate the opportunity.

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Review: Sadie by Courtney Summers

~ megs14malloy

SadieSadie by Courtney Summers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My Reaction:

Alternating between a Serial-type podcast, researched and narrated by a man named West McCray, and Sadie’s perspective, this book is a gut-punching tour de force of modern-American noir.

By the time she is in her teens, and maybe even before, Sadie has accepted the fact that she is the sole person responsible for the care and upbringing of her little sister, Mattie.

Although at times infuriating, she does love Mattie with her whole heart and has done her best to provide her with a safe and constant environment. Their mother, a junkie whose biggest concern is what man she’ll be shacking up with next, never truly provided the care the girls needed.

Sadie has never felt loved by her mother and this lack of connection displays itself through her outlook on the world. Jaded and cynical, Sadie has good reason to be, her situation only made more difficult by the severe stutter that has plagued her since early childhood. Her stutter makes it challenging for her to express her feelings and she feels people judge and underestimate her because of it.

After her mother runs off, seemingly for good, Sadie’s fate is sealed. She is left to provide for Mattie around the clock. After a fight regarding their mother’s whereabouts, Mattie runs off one night, only to be discovered later, murdered.

Sadie, rocked by her loss and overcome with anger and despair, is determined to track down Mattie’s killer and bring him to justice. Her own. She knows who killed her and won’t rest until he pays.

As sad as this story is, it is boldly realistic and I respect the fact that Summers never shied away from tough, taboo topics. I am not going to go into them here, but if you are a sensitive reader, you may want to check other reviews for trigger warnings.

I listened to the audiobook for this, while also reading the hardcover version. The audiobook is definitely worth listening to. The podcast sections were particularly well done and listening to it enhanced my reading experience.

While I did enjoy this a lot, I wasn’t as blown away by it as others seemed to be. It was really well told and the topics were well handled. I just think the hype made me expect a little more. I read a lot of gritty, dark stories, so nothing about this surprised me or felt particularly groundbreaking besides the format.

Overall, the story is depressing but important and I would recommend it to anyone, particularly the audiobook.

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Contemporary-A-Thon Wrap-Up!!!

~ megs14malloy

As some of you may know, if you have been following me, last week I participated in my second Contemporary-A-Thon. Essentially this is a week long readathon dedicated to reading Contemporary books. There were 7-challenges this round but, as always, you can double up on challenges, so you do no necessarily need to read 7-books over the course of the week.

For the first time ever, I has a successful readathon. I completed all 7-challenges and even stuck to my original 4-book TBR. 

Without further ado, let’s get into the books that I read and what challenges they met:

1. The first book I finished was Love & Luck by Jenna Evans Welch. This is a YA book that involves a strained sibling relationship, a couple of broken hearts and road-trip through Ireland. This book was 303-pages and I ended up giving it 3.5-stars. This helped me complete two challenges: read a book in a non-traditional format (I listened to this on audiobook) and read a book with a picture on the spine.

2. The second book I finished was They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera. Again, this was a YA book that followed two boys on their ‘death’ days as they learn how to live. This was such a moving story. Silvera’s writing is top-notch and definitely known to break hearts. This book was 373-pages, I read it in under 24-hours by reading both the audiobook and hard copy versions, and I gave it a full 5-stars. Additionally, I added this book to my all-time ‘favorites’ shelf on Goodreads. This completed two challenges: read a dark or taboo contemporary (story about death) and book you planned to read in 2018 and never got around to.

3. The next book I finished was Fat Angie: Rebel Girl Revolution by E.E. Charlton-Trujillo. This was an ARC-copy as the book actually doesn’t release until March 5, 2019. Basically a story about a girl really struggling to find her place in the world after the loss of her sister and suffering severe bullying at school. This was a very tough story to read. I didn’t end up giving it a star rating as I was so all over the place on how I felt about it. This was 352-pages long and I used it to complete two challenges: read your most recently acquired contemporary (I received this from the publisher a couple of days before the readathon started) and read a book with blurple (blue or purple) on the cover (this book had a lot of purple on it).

4. Finally, the last book I completed was Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann. This is a YA book about a girl coming to terms with her sexuality and trying to navigate relations with her family as she doesn’t want to do with her life what they want her to do with it. There’s a lot of drama in this one. This book is 304-pages long, one of the shortest of my week, but it took me the longest to read. This was the first book I began for the readathon and the last book I finished. I found it to be a tad boring and really had to force myself to complete it. Something about the writing style just didn’t mesh with me. I ended up giving this one 3-stars and frankly, the last star was mainly for the diversity which I really liked and appreciated. I am looking forward to Kann’s next book releasing later this year. I am just hoping her writing has evolved a bit since this one. I used this book to complete one challenge: read a diverse contemporary.

So that sums it up! My first ever successful readathon. I completed all 4-books on my designated TBR, which is a minor miracle if I am being honest as I rarely stick to a TBR, and read 1,332-pages for the week. This put me a little behind with some of my other reading but I am trying not to get stressed about the amount of ARCs I have to read over the coming weeks! Also me:

Did you participate in Contemporary-A-Thon? How did it go for you? If you didn’t, what did you read last week? I want to know! Comment below or reach out to me through any of my social media outlets.

Cheers & Happy Reading~

 

Review: They Both Die in the End by Adam Silvera

~ megs14malloy

They Both Die at the EndThey Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I may never be the same again!

What would you do if you were told your life would end within the next 24-hours?

A lot of us may say, spend as much time with our loved ones as we could, right?

But what if they were inaccessible or unavailable to you? What then?

You wouldn’t want to stay inside would you?
Curled up with your books…
Okay, maybe YOU would and maybe I would but most people would want to go out there, live life, have experiences…but with who?

For Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio these are very real questions. The day, September 5th, and they both have received their Death-Cast alerts. They will both die within the next 24-hours. Due to circumstances I will not go into here, they do not have loved ones to spend their last day with.

Through the use of a cleverly imagined social app called, Last Friend, they connect with one another. So begins the last adventure of their lives.

To say this book gutted me would be an understatement.

Once I started down the path of Ruf and Mateo’s journey, I could think of nothing else. I read this, via audio and hardcover, within the course of 24-hours which seemed fitting, considering the subject matter. Upon completion, I immediately added it to my ‘favorites’ shelf, an act I do not take lightly.

The emotions that Silvera is able to draw out – He is a master.

Who would I recommend this to? Anyone who has a heart and wants to read about what it means to LIVE.
All the stars.

Original: Book #4 for Contemporary-A-Thon!!!

Why did I save this one for last?
Basically, I think I will enjoy this one the most but I also KNOW it will crush me.

Pray for me.

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Review: Love & Luck by Jenna Evans Welch

~ megs14malloy

Love & LuckLove & Luck by Jenna Evans Welch
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

When Addie embarks on a family trip to Ireland for her Aunt’s destination wedding, she couldn’t be happier to get out of town. It has been the
worst summer of her life
 for dramatic reasons unknown to the reader for pretty much the entire book.

The plan is that after the wedding, Addie and her brother Ian, will travel on to Italy to visit Addie’s best friend, Lena. That’s right, Lena from Love & Gelato, the book that completely stole my heart last month.

However, things do not go exactly as planned when Addie catches Ian running away from their hotel room on the morning they are suppose to depart. Ian has other plans and none of them include Lena or Italy.

What happens next is a wild road trip through Ireland with their new friend, Rowan, in one of the biggest POS cars in the country.

While this book did have moments of cute and quirky, it also had moments that were highly annoying and bland. Ian and Addie are in a petty sibling battle pretty much for the entirety of the book that, frankly, was wearing on my last nerve.

I get it, siblings fight sometimes but good grief. I also wasn’t crazy about the format. Not knowing what Addie’s drama was all about until the very end. I would have rather known up front so that I could have at least had some sympathy for the girl. Instead I just felt like…

It had a lovely ending which bumped it up a half a star but otherwise, I was underwhelmed. I didn’t feel as connected to Addie as I did with Lena and the overall plot of Love & Gelato was much more to my personal preference than this book. Overall, I am glad I read this and I would read more books by this author but I am glad to be done with this one.

Original:Book 3 for Contemporary-A-Thon Round 4!!! I am using this to meet two of the challenges:

6. Read a book in a nontraditional format (audiobook)
7. Read a book with a picture on the spine

I really enjoyed Love & Gelato last month! Looking forward to this as well as it is set in Ireland which is basically my favorite place in the world.

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Review: Fat Angie: Rebel Girl Revolution by E.E. Charlton-Trujillo

~ megs14malloy

Fat Angie: Rebel Girl RevolutionFat Angie: Rebel Girl Revolution by E.E. Charlton-Trujillo

Angie’s life is in absolute shambles. It is the start of a new school year, her sister is dead, having been killed while serving overseas in the military, her girlfriend has moved away to Texas to live with her father and her best friend has ghosted.

Returning to school, Angie faces extreme bullying and acts of violence. During one particularly heinous incident, she stands up to her bully and breaks his nose. Since no one will come forward and tell the truth, that she was protecting herself from a violent assault, Angie is now facing expulsion.

Her mother, an absolutely atrocious woman who can CHOKE, is threatening to send Angie away to in inpatient treatment center. Suffering from severe depression, grief over the loss of her sister and debilitating panic attacks, Angie is left to navigate what is left of her life essentially on her own.

This book was difficult to read. I was uncomfortable pretty much the entire time and now that I am done, I am not comfortable assigning a star-rating. I know this may seem silly but I just can’t narrow down my thoughts to one number.

This book was oddly compelling. The writing was a little strange to me and the narrative was much more ‘stream of consciousness’-based than I tend to like but I could not stop reading.

I wanted to know where Angie would end up and how her life would go. She is a character who is in a really bad place, physically, mentally, emotionally and literally, her home is terrible. She doesn’t feel positive about anything in her life and was just so down on herself. It hurt to read this.

In addition to all of that, there are horrible scenes of violence, fat-shaming and hate speech. I questioned at times whether or not it was necessary for the plot and I’m not sure. At times, it almost felt like certain aspects were thrown in more for shock value but I don’t know, life does get messy sometimes. Ugh, I am just so torn on this one, you guys.

As a consumer reviewer, I can tell you this story made me uncomfortable, but I feel by ‘judging’ (aka. adding a rating) it, I am in essence casting judgement on the author’s story. ‘Isn’t that what we always do?’ you may ask. In a way, yes, but this story just felt so personal, probably due to the ‘stream of consciousness’ narrative, and it did have a lot of aspects to it that I liked and respected but other things that felt ‘off’.

I am making zero sense right now, I know. That is what this book will do you.

I wouldn’t know where to begin in recommending this book to anyone. Trigger warnings are too numerous to list but there was a lot of diversity and a lot of serious topics that should be explored more.

The road trip aspect of the story was my favorite element. Basically, before Angie’s sister was killed, she wrote a letter to Angie listing a bunch of things she wanted to experience with her, via a road trip in their state, when she got back home. Since she never made it back, Angie, along with her sister’s urn, convinces an old friend to take her parent’s RV and drive them to the different locations listed in the letter. They are joined by two additional characters and your typical road trip hijinks ensue.

It is important to note that this book is a continuation to a prior book, titled Fat Angie. I never read that first book and I don’t feel like I was missing anything. This felt like a complete story to me. If you are interested in this one, and haven’t read the first, it is my opinion that you do not need to go back and read that first one.

This is not my typical review. In fact, I have been dreading writing this. No gifs, no attempts at humor, this story just doesn’t seem the place for it. My final decision is to not add a star rating. I want people to read this. I want to hear other’s opinions on this. I think there are so many important issues throughout this that should be discussed more, not just the ‘real life’ issues but how we express and take in those topics via literature.

Original: Book 2 for
Contemporary-A-Thon
!!! I will be using this for two challenges:

1. my most recently acquired Contemporary novel
2. read a book with blurple on the cover

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