Genre: Young Adult

Thriller Mini Reviews: More Than You’ll Ever Know & I’m the Girl

Posted January 23, 2023 in Books, Reviews / 1 Comment
Thriller Mini Reviews: More Than You’ll Ever Know & I’m the Girl

I honestly can’t remember how More Than You’ll Ever Know ended up on my radar- probably a Goodreads email or round up post. However, I do remember the striking cover and vaguely knowing that it was a thriller/mystery. When my library hold came in, I didn’t rush to read it, and almost let it slip through the cracks. I’m so glad I didn’t, because it ended up being one of my favorite reads of 2022! Told in a dual POV with alternating timelines, More Than You’ll Ever Know centers around Cassie, an aspiring true crime writer, and Lore, an infamous […]


As Good as Dead (A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder #3) by Holly Jackson | Review

Posted February 7, 2022 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
As Good as Dead (A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder #3) by Holly Jackson | Review

Whoa. Whoawhoawhoawhoawhoa. Just when I think Holly Jackson can’t build upon her previous mysteries BAM she gets me with a twist so unexpected that I’m left reeling. I have a lot of whiplash from this book, the third and (likely) final installment in the Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, and it went in a direction I was NOT expecting. I’ll admit, I considered DNF-ing this one initially, because the beginning is super slow. Pip is obviously dealing with PTSD (as she was after the first book, however it’s amped up a LOT after what she went through in the […]


The Witch Haven by Sasha Peyton Smith | ARC Review

Posted September 27, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments
The Witch Haven by Sasha Peyton Smith | ARC Review

This year, I started celebrating ~spooky season~ on August 31st, and was already building out my autumnal TBR weeks before then. When I was pitched the opportunity to read The Witch Haven as an ARC, I knew it would be an amazing story to officially kick off my autumn themed TBR. I’m a huge fan of historical fiction, so a paranormal, witchy boarding school story set in the early 1900s sounded right up my alley! The story follows Frances, a girl living in New York in 1911, who is reeling after the death of her brother and working as a […]


Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley | Review

Posted August 2, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley | Review

I’ve procrastinated on writing this review because there is just so much to unpack with this novel. At almost 500 pages, I didn’t expect this contemporary/mystery book to lean so far into the realm of a thriller, but it’s one of the most well-written mysteries I’ve read in a long time (and probably the best one I’ve read so far in 2021). The story follows 18 year old protagonist Daunis, who is a half-Native, unenrolled tribal member and the outcome of a scandal between her Native father and her white, upper class mother. Daunis often struggles with her biracial identity, […]


How To Love by Katie Cotugno | Review

Posted July 12, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
How To Love by Katie Cotugno | Review

I swear, Katie Cotugno never fails to disappoint me. She takes the realest, rawest emotions from being a teenager and manages to spin them into a story that takes me right back into that state of mind, empathizing with the characters even if I haven’t been in their exact situation before. Such was the case when I read How to Love, which I requested from my library on a whim, and absolutely tore through it, inhaling it in a way I haven’t read a contemporary YA novel in a while. The story follows protagonist Reena, who is a teen mother […]


Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare | Review

Posted May 24, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments
Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare | Review

Look, I love a good Shadowhunter book. But there’s just something about historical fiction Shadowhunter novels that are just *chef’s kiss.* I keep thinking there’s no way Cassie Clare can top her previous novels but I absolutely adored Chain of Iron and could honestly read about these Shadowhunter babies doing the most boring, everyday things and still be completely and utterly charmed. I honestly wish I could scrub this book from my brain so I could read it for the first time all over again (and I already know that it’s going to be a definite reread for me in […]


Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean | ARC Review

Posted May 17, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 2 Comments
Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean | ARC Review

I absolutely adore books that have the “modern royalty” premise, so when I found out that Tokyo Ever After had major Princess Diaries vibes, I knew I had to read it! Following Japanese America protagonist Izumi Tanaka, the story chronicles her adventures in finding out her estranged father is actually the crown prince of Japan. What follows is a whirlwind of Izumi going to visit her father and learning about her Japanese heritage and responsibilities of being the descendant of a future monarch, which is a far cry from her life in small town, rural California. Tokyo Ever After was […]


Good Girl, Bad Blood (A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder #2) by Holly Jackson | Review

Posted April 26, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
Good Girl, Bad Blood (A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder #2) by Holly Jackson | Review

I absolutely adored A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. It was a YA thriller that fully leaned into the popularity of the true crime genre but didn’t sacrifice character building or writing quality for the sake of a shocking plot. The pacing was phenomenal, the mystery was brilliant, and I was honestly a little wary when I found out it was going to be a whole series because why mess with perfection? However, I can safely say that Good Girl, Bad Blood surprised me in a wonderful way and that Holly Jackson’s writing seems to be just improving with time. […]


Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi | ARC Review

Posted April 19, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi | ARC Review

I’ve found that there’s something so incredibly raw and real about Mary H.K.Choi’s writing, and her novel Yolk is no exception. A tale of two sisters both trying to make their way in NYC, Yolk confronts the messy, indulgent, and self-destructive tendencies of the younger generation today in a world where a carefully crafted persona is oftentimes prioritized over well being and relationships, and the extreme loneliness and sadness that lives beneath that lifestyle. Protagonist Jayne was honestly hard to read at times. She’s messy, selfish and materialistic, but also so desperately eager for attention and affection that its honestly […]


A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer | Review

Posted March 22, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer | Review

This was pretty good! I go back and forth on how much I enjoy this series- at times I really do and at others it doesn’t feel like anything that special- but I really flew through this book! It actually focused much less on Harper (the protagonist from book 1) and much more on the relationship between Rhen and Grey (I love a good brother story- hence my love for the Salvatores in The Vampire Diaries). They had a LOT to figure out after the last book and I think the slow reparation of their relationship was well done and […]