Genre: Young Adult

YA Mini Reviews: The Inheritance Game and Majesty

Posted January 25, 2021 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments

The Inheritance Games was one of my most anticipated books of 2020, so I was excited to be able to squeeze it in as my last book of the year! The description was giving me major The Westing Game vibes, one of my favorite middle grade novels, so I was excited to dive into the story. As expected, it was a very twisty plot with Barnes’ signature plot twists, puzzles and opportunities for readers to be kept on their toes. The whole wish-fulfillment premise was really fun (who doesn’t like to daydream what they’d do if they unexpected came into […]

YA Mini Reviews: Chasing Lucky + The Voting Booth

Posted December 28, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments

I was a little nervous going into Chasing Lucky, because I’ve had mixed luck with Jenn Bennet books. I adored Starry Eyes but never even got around to finishing Serious Moonlight, and I didn’t know where Chasing Lucky would end up on the spectrum of enjoyment for me. Luckily (pun intended), Chasing Lucky proved to be an enjoyable read for me, falling right under Starry Eyes in my ranking of Jenn Bennet books. Chasing Lucky follows protagonist Josie who is returning to her hometown after being gone for several years moving all over the east coast with her mom. She’s […]

Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco | Review

Posted December 7, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments

I have to admit, the second I heard Italy + witches I was all in for this book. I love that witches seem to be making more of a comeback in paranormal YA and I’d never read an Italian historical fantasy about them, so I was more than ready to dive into Kingdom of the Wicked. I didn’t have high expectations given my lukewarm experience with Stalking Jack the Ripper, but I found myself torn between flying through the novel and being exasperated with some of the writing and plot points. To be clear, I did enjoy this novel. It […]

Admission by Julie Buxbaum | ARC Review

Posted November 23, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments

I remember exactly where I was the day the news broke about the college bribery scandal. It was all anyone at work could talk about that day, and though I was far removed from my college days, I remember the anger and disappointment I felt remembering how grueling the college application process was back in my day, and I’m sure it’s just become even more competitive. It was a scandal that really highlighted a truth I think many “knew” as an unspoken rule but now had tangible evidence for: the deck is stacked for the wealthy, the admissions process is […]

Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao | ARC Review

Posted November 9, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments

It’s no secret that I am a huge fan of YA set in college, so I was eager to dive into Gloria Chao’s newest novel, Rent a Boyfriend. Having adored American Panda, I was eager to experience her witty yet realistic storytelling centered on a first generation American college student. Chao’s latest novel did not disappoint, and at times felt full of more emotional turmoil than her fantastic debut novel. The novel seems to have a surprising plot at first- Chloe hires a fake boyfriend through a service to bring home for the Thanksgiving holiday to get her parents off […]

Love & Olives by Jenna Evans Welch | ARC Review

Posted November 2, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 2 Comments

First and foremost, I ADORE this companion series. I love how all of the titles are stand-alones but have corresponding titles and covers that are so simple but so effectively capture the magic of these European stories of self discovery and exploration. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: I wish Ms. Welch could be my own personal European tour guide because every single one of these books makes me feel as though I just went on vacation! While I’ve enjoyed each book in this series for different reasons, I think Love & Olives by far had the […]

I’ll Be the One by Lyla Lee | Review

Posted September 28, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments

I’m not a parent (yet), but I’ll Be the One is EXACTLY the type of book I hope my future child reads someday. It’s so full of body positivity, confidence, vulnerability, friendships and family dynamics that I think any reader can draw positivity and courage from. Following teen Skye Shin as she auditions for a K-Pop talent search show, I’ll Be the One was a refreshing addition to the YA contemporary genre and definitely my favorite K-Pop focused book to date! As mentioned in the synopsis, a significant part of Skye’s identity is her confidence, and I love how this […]

White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L Armentrout | Someone Call High School Cristina

Posted September 21, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 2 Comments

White Hot Kiss is the first book I picked up for Lauren’s Rainbow Try a Chapter Unhaul Challenge for 2020, which has the basic premise of forcing you to chose 1-2 books per month of a certain color and reading the first chapter. If you are engaged, you have to keep reading it and finish it that month, and if you don’t you have to unhaul the book. January’s color was white and I actually don’t have that many white books on my physical TBR, but my copy of White Hot Kiss is the original white cover so I decided […]

A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow | ARC Review

Posted September 7, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 2 Comments

A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow is the perfect recipe of all things I love in a YA book: a big, loving Latinx family, absolutely mouth-watering depictions of food, and a summer adventure in Europe. Following Lila, a recent high school graduate who has big plans to run her family’s Cuban bakery after graduation, the story takes an unexpected turn when Lila’s well-intentioned family sends her to England for the summer to recover from multiple heartbreaks and a sense of grief she can’t (quite literally) outrun. At first I was a bit apprehensive about Lila’s journey to England, […]

Mini Reviews: Deadly Little Scandals, The Two Lives of Lydia Bird, and Broken Things

Posted August 17, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 4 Comments

Despite my saltiness about a mid-series cover change, I was excited to pick up the sequel to Little White Lies relatively soon after reading it (so refreshing to actually remember what happened in book 1, lol). I was a little apprehensive going in because even though the first book ended on a huge cliffhanger, I heard that the multiple timelines that happened in book 2 were convoluted and a bit confusing. While there WAS a lot going on in flashbacks in this book, I didn’t find it too difficult to follow and the story delivered quite a few twists! Seriously, […]