Tag Archives: Sequels

Review: Nothing Special by Geoff Herbach

1 May

Nothing Special coverTitle: Nothing Special

Author: Geoff Herbach

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release Date: May 1st, 2012

Interest: Author / Sequel

Source: ARC received from the author

Summary (From Goodreads): Felton Reinstein thought he had it all-a great girlfriend, an athletic scholarship in the bag, and football friends he could totally count on. Wrong Like an elephant storming a house of cards, it all comes crashing down. And it’s Felton’s fault. Turns out his little brother has taken an impromptu road trip to Florida (aka desperate flight from all the talented people) to make a bid for stardom (aka fronting a hotel rock band with escapees from a retirement community). What’s a big brother to do but help pick up the pieces, even if it means giving up all the status, all the glory and once again facing a life of nothing special.

If you’ve been following my blog, then you know that I LOVED Geoff Herbach’s debut Stupid Fast.  Felton Reinstein is an authentic character with a real voice which rocked my socks as a reader.  Herbach doesn’t disappoint with his sequel Nothing Special.  Around the time Stupid Fast released, Geoff was posting about the sequel and at the time it was going to be told from Andrew’s point of view.  I really liked that idea, but somewhere down the line the story changed slightly so Nothing Special is told from Felton’s point of view instead of Andrew’s.  Staying true to what I assume was Geoff Herbach’s original idea (I could be totally wrong in my assumption), Nothing Special focuses on Andrew and his relationship with Felton.  Some people are calling Nothing Special a companion, but I don’t recommend reading it without having read Stupid Fast; there’s too many references to events from his debut.

Nothing Special is really different from Stupid Fast.  To clarify, it’s different because Felton has matured since the first book which is apparent from the first page.  Also, Nothing Special is written as a letter of sorts from Felton to Aleah.  This change wasn’t what I expected and I liked it because it’s a change that really works and fits with the novel.  Something that hasn’t changed is how important family is to Felton.  He does have an odd way of showing the importance at times though.  Still, even though it’s not always apparent how important his family is to him, Felton really cares about Andrew and we get to see that in Nothing Special.  I love the balance between how Felton is handling life changes (Aleah being away for music, thinking about playing college sports, dealing with friendships) and the problems Andrew is (has) been facing.

Speaking of Andrew–I love that quirky kid!  He really cares about Felton and wants at least some of those feelings returned by his brother.  At times he seems like the typical annoying little brother, but Andrew’s really more than that.  He’s very smart, intuitive, and quite sneaky.  I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know him better in Nothing Special.  Andrew kept tugging at my heart while at the same time had me cheering for him.  I hope we get to see more of him in the future, especially if he has more surprises up his sleeve!

Just as I expected, Geoff Herbach has written another winner.  My Stupid Fast fans in class are very excited to read Nothing Special, especially after I’ve been talking it up in class.  I hope everyone who’s read Stupid Fast goes out and gets a copy of Nothing Special to read because it’s actually quite special!

Review: Insurgent by Veronica Roth

23 Apr

Insurgent book coverTitle: Insurgent, 525 pages

Author: Veronica Roth

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release Date: May 1st, 2012

Interest: Awesome series

Source: ARC received from the publisher

Summary of Insurgent (From Goodreads): One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris’s initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth’s much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

Exciting.  Gripping.  Thrilling.  These are the best words I can use to describe the awesome that is Insurgent by Veronica Roth.

Let me say first, that if it’s been a while since you’ve read Divergent then I recommend either re-reading the whole book or at least the last few chapters because Insurgent starts right where Divergent left off.  There aren’t any recaps either.  I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started Insurgent, but let me tell you I wasn’t disappointed!  We’re thrown right back into the chaos we were left with and I couldn’t stop reading.  I think I was about 60 pages in and then BAM!  Major action was happening all around.  It was exciting and non-stop action.  I sat there, awe-struck and completely engrossed the entire time I was reading.   In some ways Insurgent reminded me of Mockingjay in the way the tone changed from Divergent to Insurgent.  It’s not dismal and depressing like Mockingjay was, but Insurgent has more of an intense urgency to it.  Thankfully Roth allowed us some breaks from the action and intensity with scenes full of well-done humor and romance.

I positively love Tris’s character, and in Insurgent we see a different side of Tris—a more vulnerable side.  She’s still reeling from the death of her parents and suffering over the fact that she killed Will.  These deaths haunt her for most of the novel and affect her personality.  She’s not as tough, but she’s still stubborn, adventurous, brave, and reckless (reckless according to Tobias).  We also witness how loyal she is, even if at times she and others question her loyalty.  Tris begins to learn who she really is in Insurgent.  In Divergent she was still figuring that out, especially since she switched factions.  I often worried about Tris, but ultimately I’ve grown to love her character even more because of her supposed weakness which results in immense character growth.  You have to love a protagonist that can overcome her demons.

I don’t want to give anything away, but I can’t write this review without mentioning Tobias.  I still love his character, and I still love him and Tris together.  All I will say is that it’s rocky between Tris and Tobias and I admire Veronica Roth for how she handled their relationship.  She kept it real and didn’t add any extra unnecessary dramatics like so many authors do.  That is all :)

It’s been a week since I finished Insurgent, and my mind is still reeling over everything we learn.  Tris finds out so much more about what it means to be Divergent, but the ending left me with even more questions when I thought many were answered.  But not only am I questioning things about the Divergents, I’m wondering about Amity and Abnegation.  Veronica Roth blew my mind with the ending which is the biggest reason I’m reeling and slightly incoherent.  I need to know more about ALL OF THE THINGS that I can’t discuss b/c it would spoil the book. But ALL OF THE THINGS are exciting and mind-boggling and discussion worthy.  Seriously, read Divergent if you haven’t already so you can read Insurgent and enjoy the awesome!

Book Trailer Thursday (59)–Insurgent by Veronica Roth

5 Apr

Squee!  The book trailer for Insurgent by Veronica Roth doesn’t tell us too much about the book, but it makes me extra excited for the release anyway.  This book trailer is, however, better than the trailer for Divergent.  Is anyone else über excited about the release of Insurgent?  Has anyone been lucky enough to read it already?!  If you didn’t already know, Insurgent releases on May 1st!

Insurgent Book CoverSummary of Insurgent (From Goodreads): One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris’s initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth’s much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

 

Books I’d Play Hooky to Read

27 Mar

Ssshhh!  Don’t let my principal know this (j/k), but I’d definitely play hooky to stay home and finish a book.  Wouldn’t you?  Or maybe skip out on some plans so you can read that last chapter?  This week’s Top 10 Tuesday post is all about being excited for spring and picking the books we’d play hooky to read. I’d love to know which books you’d add to this list!

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

Spellbound by Rachel Hawkins (Goodreads)—I <3 Sophie.  The cliffhanger endings at the end of the chapters keep me reading, and I can easily see myself skipping something so I can finish reading this book.

Insurgent by Veronica Roth (Goodreads)—Is there really an explanation needed for this one? ;)

Something Like Normal by Trish Doller (Goodreads)—All I’ve read are positive reviews for this book, so it must be a book worth playing hooky to read.

Star Cursed by Jessica Spotswood (Goodreads)—I’m kind of obsessed with Born Wicked. This doesn’t come out until February, but I was so hooked when reading Born Wicked I know I’d skip something to read this sequel. (The cover isn’t available yet.)

Bad Hair Day by Carrie Harris (Goodreads)—I’m not a zombie fan at all, but I’m a big fan of Kate Grable and Bad Taste in Boys. It’s a hilarious book and a fast read, so I expect the same from Bad Hair Day.

Insurgent CoverBad Hair Day Cover

If I Lie by Corrine Jackson (Goodreads)—This book sounds like it has major playing hooky potential.  I love that there are secrets, relationship & cheating issues, a boyfriend serving in the war, etc.

Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin (Goodreads)—I skipped yoga so I could finish reading this J  It’s so stinkin’ funny!

Love & Leftovers by Sarah Tregay (Goodreads)—I didn’t need to skip anything to finish reading this, besides maybe missing sleep because I stayed up until 2am to finish it.  It’s a fantastic book!

This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers (Goodreads)—Have you read anything by Courtney Summers yet?  If not, you really need to pick up one of her books.  She writes gut-wrenching stories, and I know this one won’t be any different.  Like I said before, I’m not a zombie fan, but I’ll read this simply because it’s written by Courtney Summers.  And if you’re like me, you’ll expect to possibly play hooky to finish reading it because I’ve been in that situation with all of her books.  Every one has been an “I can’t put this down” book.

Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach (Goodreads)—I skipped doing work during my prep hour so I could finish reading this, and in the teaching world, prep time is vital.  Felton is a character I adore and really enjoyed reading.  I can’t wait to read the sequel Nothing Special.

If I Lie CoverLove & Leftovers CoverThis Is Not a Test CoverStupid Fast Cover

My Favorite Books of 2011

27 Dec

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

I’ve read over 100 books in 2011 which includes a mix of young adult, middle grade, graphic novels, etc.  Creating a list of favorites is no easy task, but it’s also fun to look back at the books I’ve read.  I based my decision on the books that have stuck with me whether it’s because of strong characters, impressive writing, and/or deep emotional connections.  I can’t encourage you enough to read these novels!

P.S. Some favorites of 2011 I’m not listing because I read them in 2010, but they’ll be mentioned in my upcoming favorite debut authors post :)

In no particular order (because creating this list was hard enough!), here are my favorite books of 2011:

Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King (My Review) (Goodreads)

Something Like Hope by Shawn Goodman (My Review) (Goodreads)

Rival by Sara Bennett Wealer (My Review) (Goodreads)

Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach (My Review) (Goodreads)

Warped by Maurissa Guibord (My Review) (Goodreads)

Where She Went by Gayle Forman (My Review) (Goodreads)

Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins (My Review) (Goodreads)

Split by Swati Avasthi (My Review) (Goodreads)

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (My Flash Review) (Goodreads)

But I Love Him by Amanda Grace (My Review) (Goodreads)

Waiting on Wednesday–Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

12 Oct

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine.  It’s designed for bloggers to spotlight the upcoming releases that they simply can’t wait to read.

Most of my WoW posts have been devoted to upcoming contemps releases, but I had to switch it up this week.  I absolutely, positively, can’t hardly wait to read Beautiful Chaos!  The last book ended with such a cliffhanger that I’m practically counting down the days until I can get my hands on a copy of this book.  I hope it’s very fallish on the 18th because that will make reading this book that much better.

Is anybody else eager to get a copy of Beautiful Chaos?  What are you waiting on this Wednesday? :)

Title & Author: Beautiful Chaos by Margaret Stohl & Kami Garcia

Release Date: October 18th, 2011

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Summary (From Goodreads): Ethan Wate thought he was getting used to the strange, impossible events happening in Gatlin, his small Southern town. But now that Ethan and Lena have returned home, strange and impossible have taken on new meanings. Swarms of locusts, record-breaking heat, and devastating storms ravage Gatlin as Ethan and Lena struggle to understand the impact of Lena’s Claiming. Even Lena’s family of powerful Supernaturals is affected – and their abilities begin to dangerously misfire. As time passes, one question becomes clear: What – or who – will need to be sacrificed to save Gatlin?

For Ethan, the chaos is a frightening but welcome distraction. He’s being haunted in his dreams again, but this time it isn’t by Lena – and whatever is haunting him is following him out of his dreams and into his everyday life. Even worse, Ethan is gradually losing pieces of himself – forgetting names, phone numbers, even memories. He doesn’t know why, and most days he’s too afraid to ask.

Sometimes there isn’t just one answer or one choice. Sometimes there’s no going back. And this time there won’t be a happy ending.

Flash Reviews (6)

8 Oct

Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles
Source: Purchased

Summary (From Goodreads): Luis Fuentes has always been sheltered from the gang violence that nearly destroyed his brothers’ lives. But that didn’t stop him from taking risks—whether he’s scaling a mountain in the Rockies or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis can’t stop looking for the next thrill.

Nikki Cruz lives her life by three rules—boys lie to get their way, don’t trust a boy who says “I love you,” and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Her parents may be from Mexico, but as a doctor’s daughter, she has more in common with her north-side neighbors than the Latino Blood at her school. Then she meets Luis at Alex’s wedding, and suddenly, she’s tempted to break all her rules.

Getting Nikki to take a chance on a southsider is Luis’s biggest challenge, until he finds himself targeted by Chuy Soto, the new head of the Latino Blood. When Chuy reveals a disturbing secret about Luis’s family, the youngest Fuentes finds himself questioning everything he’s ever believed to be true. Will his feelings for Nikki be enough to stop Luis from entering a dark and violent world and permanently living on the edge?

Flash Review:  I’m a big fan of the Perfect Chemistry trilogy and the Fuentes brothers.  The stories are predictable, but the characters are engaging, the plots move quickly, and the relationships are exciting.  Luis is quite different from his brothers in the sense that he tries to avoid violence and the gang life, which was a nice change of pace from the other two books.  I would have enjoyed Chain Reaction more, however, if it would have been more of its own novel.  What I mean by that is Luis’s story was a mixture of Alex’s story and Carlos’ story.  Just like Alex, Luis and Nikki have chemistry together.  Very much like Carlos, Luis falls for a girl that’s tough around the edges and wary of him.  I felt like I was reading both Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction.  Luis was confronted with many of the same conflicts that his brothers were in their novels.  The story does become , but it’s not until later in the book.  I did enjoy reading it, it just wasn’t a 4 or 5 star novel like the other two.

The Sweetest Thing by Christina Mandelski
Source: Purchased

Summary (From Goodreads): In the world of Sheridan Wells, life is perfect when she’s decorating a cake. Unfortunately everything else is a complete mess: her mom ran off years ago, her dad is more interested in his restaurant, and the idea of a boyfriend is laughable.

But Sheridan is convinced finding her mom will solve all her problems – only her dad’s about to get a cooking show in New York, which means her dream of a perfect family will be dashed.

Using just the right amount of romance, family drama, and cute boys, The Sweetest Thing will entice fans with its perfect mixture of girl-friendly ingredients.

Flash Review: I need to say first that The Sweetest Thing had me going through all sorts of cravings.  Sheridan is an absolute perfectionist about her cakes, so her descriptions were quite detailed which made my mouth water more times than not.  Christina Mandelski has written a novel that girls who like novels by Sarah Dessen and Susane Colasanti will enjoy.  Sheridan is a character that a variety of readers can relate to, whether they aspire to be a baker, feel like an outsider, lack a relationship with their mother, or simply want to read a novel and empathize with a character.  While I enjoyed Mandelski’s debut, I did at times find myself irritated with Sheridan.  She is so stubborn about connecting with her mother and not cooperating with her father or friends.  It makes for a layered conflict, but it could have been resolved sooner without hurting the novel.  Still, Sheridan is a character that girls can learn from.  My girls in book club chose this as our first novel, and I’m really looking forward to discussing it with them this week.

 

Thank you for the Flash Reviews idea, GreenBeanTeenQueen :)

In My Mailbox (25)

18 Sep

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme sponsored by The Story Siren.  It’s a way for bloggers to share what books they’ve received for review, borrowed from the library, or bought from the store.

I feel like I’ve been a bad blogger because I have not been able to keep up since school started a couple weeks ago!  I’m sure I’ll get back in the groove soon **fingers crossed**.

Books Purchased:

Hush by Eishes Chayil (Goodreads): I love the cover for this one and the summary is really intriguing.  I’ve been on a realistic fiction kick for almost a month now, so I’m sure this will be read soon.

Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick (Goodreads): I’ve read some positive reviews for this, but the real selling point is that it takes place in Michigan.  I want to read this one sooner rather than later so I can hand it off to my students.

Supernaturally by Kiersten White (Goodreads): I finally bought my copy!  I read Paranormalcy last fall, so I guess it makes sense for me to read the sequel this fall :)

The Sweetest Thing by Christina Mandelski (Goodreads): My book club has grown this year!  We had our first meeting last Tuesday and decided that each person will get a chance to pick the book we read.  Tristan drew first and she decided on The Sweetest Thing.  I have an ARC that Christina sent me in the spring for my kids to read for their Students Want to Know interview with her, but because I have a bigger group this year, I had to buy a finished copy so more kids can read it at the same time.  I’m excited to hear their thoughts!

Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

12 Sep

Ellen Hopkins Perfect

640 pp.  McElderry Books (Simon & Schuster)

Source: ARC received from the publisher

Release Date: September 13, 2011

Summary (From Goodreads): Everyone has something, someone, somewhere else that they’d rather be. For four high-school seniors, their goals of perfection are just as different as the paths they take to get there.

Cara’s parents’ unrealistic expectations have already sent her twin brother Conner spiraling toward suicide. For her, perfect means rejecting their ideals to take a chance on a new kind of love. Kendra covets the perfect face and body—no matter what surgeries and drugs she needs to get there. To score his perfect home run—on the field and off—Sean will sacrifice more than he can ever win back. And Andre realizes that to follow his heart and achieve his perfect performance, he’ll be living a life his ancestors would never have understood.

Everyone wants to be perfect, but when perfection loses its meaning, how far will you go? What would you give up to be perfect?

A riveting and startling companion to the bestselling Impulse, Ellen Hopkins’s Perfect exposes the harsh truths about what it takes to grow up and grow into our own skins, our own selves.

The first thing I want to bring up in this review is that if you haven’t yet read Impulse you’ll want to wait to read Perfect.  Many companion novels have related characters and/or settings and can usually be read without reading the companion.  Perfect, however, takes place at the same time as Impulse following Conner’s twin sister, Cara and other characters.  I even thought about reading Impulse again once I made this realization about the story.

I love all of Ellen Hopkins’ novels, especially Impulse and Burned, but Perfect may be her best novel yet.  The four characters we follow are developed extremely well, each with their own unique voice.  At one point I marked my page, set the book down for a bit, and when I came back I couldn’t remember which character I was reading.  As soon as I started reading the page I knew it was Sean because his voice is that clear in the novel.  Not only are the characters distinguishable, I loved that so many different issues are addressed.  I’ve been making a conscious effort to read more LGBT novels, so I was pleasantly surprised to find Cara realizing her sexual identity.  Cara’s navigation through these new experiences is done with care and grace.  I didn’t expect Andre to be a dancer, but that’s something I really appreciated because I can’t say that I’ve read any novels portraying a straight teenage guy who loves to dance.  This works well into the idea of being “perfect” because of the many different gender expectations there are.  Both Andre and Cara are dealing with developing identities that aren’t accepted by their family or understood by society.  Sean and Kendra want physical perfection among other things.  Kendra is dealing with what happened to Conner and trying to gain some control over her life.  The only way she can do that is by controlling how she looks and what she eats.  Sean has lost his dad which has left a large hole in his life.  He still wants to make his father proud, so he delves into the world of steroids so he can be the best baseball player he can.

Like always, the verse is superb.  As one character’s point of view ends, the next character’s point of view begins with a phrase or saying something similar that the last character just said.  For example, one of Cara’s sections ends with “Somewhere deep.  Dark.  Empty.”  On the next page Kendra’s section begins with “Empty is the perfect state of being.”  Ellen Hopkins has been doing this in a variety of ways with her last couple of novels.  She makes it look so easy, but I can’t imagine it is.  I think you’d really need to know your writing style and your characters to make them connect this way.  Also, like many of her multiple point of view novels, these characters connect and mesh in a variety of ways.  One example of this that I especially enjoyed is how Andre and Kendra connect through Kendra’s sister Jenna.  Jenna doesn’t have her own section in Perfect, but I felt like I knew her character well because of Kendra and Andre.

I couldn’t put Perfect down, and when I had to, I couldn’t stop thinking about what was happening to the characters.  Seriously, this book is amazing and a must read.  It comes out tomorrow, so I hope you’ll get a copy!

Top Ten Tuesday: Fall TBR List

30 Aug

I’m switching things up this week by participating in the weekly meme–Top Ten Tuesday–hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

This week’s topic is all about the books at the top of our fall TBR list.  I know I’m not the only one who can never truly dwindle my TBR pile because I’m always adding new books to it!

In no particular order, here are my top 10 fall TBR books:

1. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi (Goodreads): This one has a dystopian/super hero feel to the summary, which is really appealing.  This releases on November 15th.

2. Witch Eyes by Scott Tracey (Goodreads): I’m surprised by the amount of witch-type novels that are releasing this year, but this is one that I’ve been looking forward to for almost a year.  This releases on September 8th.

3. As I Wake by Elizabeth Scott (Goodreads): I’m a fan of Elizabeth Scott and I love this cover.  This releases on September 15th.

4. Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl (Goodreads): I don’t really have to explain this choice, do I? The release date is October 18th.

5. Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick (Goodreads): Crescendo ended with such a cliffhanger, I absolutely can’t wait to read this one. The release date is October 4th.

6. Bunheads by Sophie Flack (Goodreads): I haven’t read too many YA novels that deal with dance/ballet, so I’m really looking forward to this debut.  Plus, I love that the author danced with the New York City Ballet.  This releases on October 10th.

7. The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (Goodreads): The only books I’ve read by Stiefvater are her Wolves of Mercy Falls novels.  The early reviews for this one have been really positive.  It sounds like a fun book to read considering the summary gives it an exciting, action/adventure sort of feel.  The release date is October 18th.

8. The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson (Goodreads): I’m not always a big fan of fantasy, but many of the early reviews for this one have stated that this is a book for those who are and are not fantasy fans.  The summary and cover have grabbed my attention in addition to the positive reviews I’ve read.  This releases on September 20th.

9. My Beating Teenage Heart by C.K. Kelly Martin (Goodreads): One of my friends told me about this book and that I absolutely have to read it.  When I get a statement like that from her, I know the book is going to be good.  This releases on September 27th.

10. Every You, Every Me by David Levithan (Goodreads): It’s David Levithan, what more can I say?  I love, love, love his writing and this one sounds a little different because it has a mystery/thriller element to it.  The release date is September 13th.

 

 

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