Month: July 2017

Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch | Review

Posted July 31, 2017 in Reviews / 19 Comments

Love & Gelato is one of those books that always caught my eye during my trips to Barnes & Noble because the cover was so pretty in its simplicity. Yet I never pulled the trigger on purchasing it because the cover also made it seem like it might be too young for me (I have a lot of thoughts regarding the large age range YA covers, and don’t usually enjoy books geared toward the younger end of the spectrum). However, I was looking for a book to borrow on my phone via Overdrive (I always like to have a book […]

Real Talk: Book Pushing

Posted July 28, 2017 in Discussions / 26 Comments

Real Talk is an original feature here at Girl in the Pages where I’ll discuss random things that come across my mind in an honest and sometimes spontaneous manner. It may be about books, blogging, life, or anything else! I’ve noticed something. The second I tell someone I am a reader or that I like to read, it’s like it opens an immediate floodgate for them to list all of the books you ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY have to read. Right. This. Instant. I’m not talking about interacting with other people in the community, where book recommendations are a given and everyone […]

When You Just Can’t Commit | Finding the Energy and Time to Devote to Longer Books

Posted July 26, 2017 in Discussions / 29 Comments

I’ve always proudly said that I’ve always preferred paranormal and fantasy books over contemporaries. I loved getting swept away by the magic, the alternate universes, and the sheer creativity of them. My favorite books/series of all time are usually rooted in the fantasy genres (ACOTAR, Harry Potter, etc.) but I’ve noticed a rather disturbing trend- the older, and busier, I get, the more I reach for contemporary novels. I think this has less to do with the genre itself but rather with the fact that those epic fantasy tales are always so. damn. long. I used to breeze through a […]

Lady Midnight (The Dark Artifices #1) by Cassandra Clare | Review

Posted July 24, 2017 in Reviews / 4 Comments

Be still my Shadowhunter heart. It’s been seven years since I picked up my first book set in Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunter world, and I have to say the first book in her Dark Artifices series has reminded me of exactly why I fell in love with the Shadowhunter world in the first place. Her characters are diverse and dynamic, the Institutes are interesting and vibrant settings, and the West Coast setting in Lady Midnight so perfectly captures what it’s like to live in Southern California…this book is a beautiful tribute to LA and so uniquely Californian. I’m in love. Now […]

Hello, Sunshine by Leila Howland | ARC Review

Posted July 16, 2017 in Reviews / 14 Comments

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Disney-Hyperion for providing a review copy! I have such a soft spot for Leila Howland’s Nantucket series, so I was thrilled to see a new book by her, although set on the West Coast. My NetGalley request to read Hello, Sunshine was approved with perfect timing as I had just listened to Leila’s podcast interview with Sarah Enni on First Draft, and learned about her time spent as an aspiring actress herself. It set the stage perfectly for my reading of Hello, Sunshine as I felt more connected and as though I had […]

Let’s Talk About Unhauling Books

Posted July 13, 2017 in Discussions / 24 Comments

Every time I move it’s brought to my attention just how many books I own. Compared to a lot of other bloggers, it’s probably not that many, but packing and unpacking them always leaves me feeling like they’ve multiplied. Now don’t get me wrong, I LOVE all of my books, and don’t in any way think I own too many. However, many of my books have sat in boxes for years because I don’t have enough shelf space for them. My current shelf situation consists of two large Ikea Hemnes shelves and two smaller bookcases that are more for decorative […]

California Here We Come | Books Set in the Golden State [Part 2]

Posted July 12, 2017 in California Here We Come, Features / 6 Comments

It’s probably no secret by now that I am a beloved West Coast native and I LIVE for books set in California. I’m thrilled to see that a golden state setting is becoming more and more common, and will 100% prioritize books set in California on my TBR. I’ve decided to start compiling lists of the top YA books set in California and chronicling them on my blog. Today’s post features books set in both NorCal (San Francisco!) and SoCal. And no, NOBODY who lives in SF actually refers to it as “Frisco” so if you ever come to the […]

Lucky In Love by Kasie West | ARC Review

Posted July 10, 2017 in Reviews / 13 Comments

*Many thanks to Scholastic for providing a review copy of this book!* Lucky In Love was a book I wasn’t planning on picking up at YallWest, having had mediocre experiences with West’s other works (The Fill-In Boyfriend, The Distance Between Us). However, when I heard Kasie was signing the copies and got a look at the GORGEOUS ARC (seriously, the cover AND the back are too cute!) I knew I had to give her books another shot. While Lucky In Love won’t be topping my list of all time favorite books anytime soon, it was a very cute, very easy […]

June 2017 | Month in Review

Posted July 5, 2017 in Features, Month In Review / 14 Comments

The first “summer” month is over (can you believe that?!) and it seems like June passed by in the blink of an eye! Honestly I can barely remember what happened at the beginning of June (aside from starting my new role at work and dealing with a major heat wave here on the West Coast) but I ended the month with a lot of travel and reading surprisingly more books than I realized. So in news that will probably surprise no one Max and I went down to SoCal for a quick Disneyland trip to celebrate my promotion at work. […]