Publisher: Simon Pulse

YA Mini Reviews: Chasing Lucky + The Voting Booth

Posted December 28, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
YA Mini Reviews: Chasing Lucky + The Voting Booth

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 […]


Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao | ARC Review

Posted November 9, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao | ARC Review

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
Love & Olives by Jenna Evans Welch | ARC Review

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 […]


Girl, Unframed by Deb Caletti | ARC Review

Posted July 13, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
Girl, Unframed by Deb Caletti | ARC Review

It’s no secret that I absolutely ADORED A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti and it will forever be one of my favorite contemporary novels, so when I heard Deb Caletti was going to be writing a thriller set in San Francisco I clicked that NetGalley request button SO fast. Girl, Unframed proved to be a dark, unsettling story about the burdens of beauty, whether it be regarding artwork or a real, living girl who’s appearance is commodified, scrutinized, and weaponized at every turn. Protagonist Avery is the daughter of a stunning movie star who’s clinging […]


Girls with Razor Hearts by Suzanne Young | ARC Review

Posted March 16, 2020 in Books, Reviews / 1 Comment
Girls with Razor Hearts by Suzanne Young | ARC Review

It’s no secret that Girls with Sharp Sticks was one of my favorite books of 2019. I was absolutely thrilled when I was offered an ARC of the sequel, Girls with Razor Hearts and could not wait to dive into this sci-fi/dystpopian story again (which is a true testament to how well written this series is, as those are genres not typically in my reading wheelhouse!) While I found Girls with Razor Hearts to have an overall different vibe than its predecessor, I still very much enjoyed this story of feminism, strength and resilience. *Note, this review will contain spoilers […]


Our Wayward Fate by Gloria Chao | ARC Review

Posted November 10, 2019 in Books, Reviews / 0 Comments
Our Wayward Fate by Gloria Chao | ARC Review

American Panda was quite possibly my favorite contemporary book of 2018. It had everything I love in an upper YA contemporary: college setting, diversity, the exploration of family relationships, adorable chapter art etc. It was something so fresh and different feeling from many of the YA contemporary options available, even with today’s booming YA market. I therefore went into Gloria Chao’s sophomore novel, Our Wayward Fate, with absolutely no doubts that I would enjoy it. Much to my surprise, while Our Wayward Fate did share a few thematic elements with American Panda (straddling two cultures, strained family relationships) it unfortunately […]


There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon | ARC Review

Posted April 29, 2019 in Books, Reviews / 6 Comments
There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon | ARC Review

*A huge thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for providing a review copy in exchange for an honest review!* I always know that when I pick up a story by Sandhya Menon it’s going to be sweet, fluffy, and full of heart. There’s Something About Sweetie is no exception, however it has the added bonus of being my favorite Sandhya Menon book to date! I was utterly charmed by Sweetie’s resilience and confidence and she’s the perfect type of protagonist I know I would want my future children to encounter when they’re reading YA one day. There’s Something […]


Girls with Sharp Sticks by Suzanne Young | ARC Review

Posted March 18, 2019 in Books, Reviews / 2 Comments
Girls with Sharp Sticks by Suzanne Young | ARC Review

Thank you so much to Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review! I’ve only read one book by Suzanne Young and it wasn’t my favorite, and I somehow completely missed the hype train for her successful The Program series. Couples with the fact that I’m not a huge dystopian fan, I didn’t think much of Girls with Sharp Sticks when I first came across it on Goodreads. However, I started seeing more and more of my trusted blogger and reviewer friends post about how intensely good the story was and […]


A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti | ARC Review

Posted December 24, 2018 in Books, Reviews / 3 Comments
A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti | ARC Review

As the year comes to a close, my biggest question of 2018 is: How is it that everyone isn’t raving about this book? A Heart in a Body in a World snuck up on me and is quite possibly my favorite book of 2018. The novel is heartbreak and activism and politics and grief all wrapped up in a story that manages to capture a tragedy in such a deeply visceral and personal way that the media and news cannot. The novel follows Annabelle, a teenager who has suffered a terrible tragedy and decides to run from Seattle to Washington […]


From Twinkle, With Love | ARC Review

Posted May 31, 2018 in Reviews / 0 Comments
From Twinkle, With Love | ARC Review

*Thanks so much to Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing and NetGalley for providing a galley in exchange for an honest review!* What’s not to love about From Twinkle, With Love? The title is adorable, the cover is STUNNING, and the epistolary format was really fun to read. In some ways, I loved Menon’s sophomore novel even more than her first, because it was just so much fun. Twinkle’s personality coupled with some of the tried and true YA tropes and laugh out loud writing had me itching to pick up the story at every spare moment I had the week […]