Genre: Coming of Age

Valley Girls by Sarah Nicole Lemon | ARC Review

Posted April 25, 2018 in Reviews / 6 Comments

*Many thanks to Amulet Books and NetGalley for providing an ARC for review!* I loved loved loved Sarah Nicole Lemon’s debut Done Dirt Cheap, which I picked up on a whim, knowing not much about but loving the girl power vibe of the cover and unorthodox name. I loved her ability to write resilient, strong female characters and went into her sophomore novel, Valley Girls, with similar expectations. What I encountered was a story that was much, much different than her debut, and that unfortunately failed to compel me the way Done Dirt Cheap did. While Valley Girls has a […]

Without Merit by Colleen Hoover | Review

Posted March 12, 2018 in Reviews / 6 Comments

My first and only experience with a Colleen Hoover book so far has been It Ends With Us which was a solid five star, highly emotional read, so I went into Without Merit equal parts excited + anxious, because I had such high expectations. However, Without Merit bore little to no resemblance to IEWU…in fact, it was pretty much unlike anything I’ve ever read before, and I’m not completely sure if that’s a positive or a negative thing. While reading Without Merit, I sort of felt like I was reading a satire or absurdist novel. The novel focuses on a […]

Mini Reviews | Hello, Sunshine and Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave

Posted February 26, 2018 in Reviews / 6 Comments

Every so often I get in the mood to binge some adult fiction to break up all of the YA fiction I read. Hello, Sunshine kept popping up this summer around the blogosphere and as a huge Food Network junkie I was really intrigued by the premise. I finished the book pretty quickly and then decided to dive into another book by the author since I needed another Kindle book to accompany me during my time spent on the elliptical at the gym, lol. Do you ever go through phases where you just want to read adult fiction? Hello, Sunshine […]

Blog Tour: American Panda by Gloria Chao | Review

Posted February 2, 2018 in Blog Tours, Reviews / 10 Comments

I’m so excited to be participating in the blog tour for American Panda! It’s one of my FAVORITE 2018 reads and gets extra points from me because it’s YA set in college (which I love)! I’m thrilled to share all of the things I loved about this debut with you today! A huge thank you to Simon and Schuster for providing an ARC via NetGalley! Don’t let the adorable cover fool you- American Panda was the first 2018 novel I’ve read, and it’s also one of the most honest, interesting, and evocative books I’ve ever read regarding struggling to find […]

Far From the Tree by Robin Benway | Review

Posted December 22, 2017 in Reviews / 10 Comments

There’s a reason Robin Benway seems to be winning ALL THE AWARDS this fall for Far From the Tree– it’s a brilliant, emotional, evocative novel that takes a simple yet vast question from its dust jacket- “What does it mean to be a family,” and builds such a beautiful and layered world around exploring the answer, or many different answers between siblings Maya, Joaquin, and Grace. The novel begins with a brilliant parallel foundation of protagonist Grace following the fate of her family pattern and giving birth to her daughter as a teenager. As Grace struggles with the cascade of […]

Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu | Review

Posted November 27, 2017 in Reviews / 8 Comments

It seems like no matter what social media platform I was on at the beginning of fall this year, Moxie was everywhere- Instagram, Twitter, news articles, etc. The punchy hot pink and black cover screamed feminism! in a way that I haven’t seen a YA book do in such a headstrong way before. I was thrilled to see Moxie was taking the internet by storm, and it took me back to my college days where I took several Women’s Studies classes and, like Viv in the book, truly understood what feminism was for the first time and learned about its […]

The Boy Most Likely To by Huntley Fitzpatrick | Review

Posted December 28, 2016 in Reviews / 6 Comments

I think everyone goes into reading The Boy Most Likely To with two thoughts in mind: they can’t wait to see more of the Garretts, and they can’t wait to hear more of Tim’s cutting sarcasm. The novel definitely hits the mark on both counts- the Garretts are an ever present entity in Tim’s life as he tries to refocus and reevaluate his life. Huntley Fitzpatrick is so gifted at bringing such a large and vibrant family to life in her stories, and it juxtaposes so well with lost and lonely souls such as Tim, or Samantha from My Life […]

When We Collided by Emery Lord | ARC Review

Posted April 4, 2016 in Reviews / 20 Comments

I found myself lucky enough to acquire a copy of When We Collided last summer at ALA, when I chatted with a lovely Bloomsbury representative who recommended it when I told her I was interested in heavier contemporaries. I had of course heard Emery Lord’s name due to the success of her first two YA novels, but I hadn’t had a chance to read her work yet. I decided I wanted to go in blind and have my ARC of When We Collided be my first experience with Lord’s work, so I wouldn’t have any preconceived notions or expectations about […]

Devoted by Jennifer Mathieu | Review

Posted March 9, 2016 in Reviews / 6 Comments

*Many thanks to Macmillan and Brittany @ The Book Addict’s Guide for my copy of Devoted! Jennifer Mathieu has managed to write a stellar sophomore novel that, like her debut The Truth About Alice, provides a riveting view into a social issue that might make most uncomfortable to look too closely at. While The Truth About Alice focused on slut-shaming and bullying, Devoted addressed modern day religious fundamentalist communities, and as a religious studies major I have to applaud Mathieu’s handling of the topic. Devoted focuses on Rachel, a nearly 18 year old living in a Christian fundamentalist community (the […]

Nantucket Red by Leila Howland | Review

Posted November 4, 2015 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments

My Review There’s something about Leila Howland’s writing that makes it compulsively readable among the huge selection of YA contemporaries on the market today. I think it’s due to a combination of the dreamy, beachy setting of Nantucket along with her willingness to go just a little farther than other YA authors in her heavier content, from sex to grief to bullying. There’s a rawness around Cricket’s experiences that makes the narrative hit home a little more without compromising its status as a fun, beachy read. The first thing that I, (and many other reviewers, I’m sure), have to bring […]