Review: Bookworm Crush

Bookworm Amy desperately wants to win the social media contest to meet her favorite author. But she's going to need some help. She runs a blog with her best friend. While her book recommendations are great; she's shy about getting her voice out there.

Amy's crush is a surfing champion. He has swagger with a capital S. After a run in with him, she reluctantly asks him for help. No one is more surprised when he agrees.

Now if only she could breathe and act normal around him - she just might have a chance at her own happily ever after.

My Thoughts: I loved this book. I loved the book references. I loved Amy's passion when talking about books - especially the romance genre. I love how she defended the genre and it's readers. It was great to read in a teen book. I loved that she worked in a bookstore - and for a mystery writer. I love that she waned to win this competition and di everything in her power to win. I loved the chemistry and the banter between her and Toff. The moments between Toff and her brother were also adorable. I loved watching Amy come out of her shell and own her awesomenewss. A fantastic novel about romance, social media, books, and paying attention to your heart. 

Cover Thoughts: Adorable
Source: Book sent for review
Library Recommendation: Grab this one for your teen romance collection.

Review: Match Me if You Can

Mia's friend Robyn has matchmaking skills, but she refuses to set Mia up with Vince. She knows they are not right for each other. But Mia refuses to believe that. She sneaks an email from Robyn's address to her crush.

Vince asks Mia out, causing a whole lot of problems in a domino effect:
Robyn finds out and becomes mad at Mia.
Robyn had another boy in mind for Mia.
That other boy is causing Mia to rethink everything...

My Thoughts: I enjoyed this book even though the bonds of friendship weren't as strong as I wanted them to be. Romance and high school is so hard. I really liked the newspaper and photography aspects of the story. I really liked the dates. As the reader, you can tell who's perfect for each other, even when the characters haven't figured it out yet. A strong debut that leaves me looking forward to Tiana Smith's next book.

Cover Thoughts: Cute
Source: My Library
Library Recommendation: Grab this one for your school and public libraries.

On Your Radar (14)

Title:  Unclaimed Baggage

Author:  Jen Doll

Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux

Publication Date: September 18, 2018

Why it Should be on Your Radar:

* Quirky Summer Job

* Finding new friends

* Facing your demons
* Life's baggage

* Finding yourself

* Balloon Fields

* Romance

* Standing Your Ground

* Friendship to the Max

I reviewed this title for SLJ

On Your Radar (4)

Title: All the Forever Things 

Author:  Jolene Perry 

Publisher:Albert Whitman and Company

Publication Date: April 1, 2017

Why it Should be on Your Radar:

Quirky Characters
Vintage Clothes
Funeral Home Setting
Tight Family
New Boy
Prom Night
Plot Twist

Review: Die for You

After Emma's parents divorced, she moved to be with her father - which meant changing schools. She meets Dillon almost immediately. She's drawn to him and can't believe her good luck when he feels the same way. Now near the end of their senior year, they're planning their futures together.

When an opportunity comes knocking for Emma, she knows she'd be crazy to turn it down. But Dillon isn't excited about her news. It's the first time they fight and it never seems to go away.

How can the person who loves her the most be against her happiness? And more importantly - how can she make it up to him?

My Thoughts: I really wanted to read this book - both because of the author and because of the subject matter. I loved her previous book: Matter of Heart

In many ways, this was a hard book to read because of the subject matter. And there were a few instances where I had to skip paragraphs. But this book was Powerful! And Heart-wrenching. And Honest. 

Before she knows it, Emma's is in an abusive relationship. She knows something isn't quite right. But she's not sure what to do. She dismisses some of Dillon's actions but when push comes to shove, she tries to make things right. I felt terrible for Emma going through this relationship. Dillon saved her, loved her, and manipulated her. But I also admired her at the end. She sought help. She saved herself. 

She had a lot of issues to sort out with her own family being torn apart. And she wasn't the best of friends. She didn't share her life with her sister or her best friend from home. She cut herself off from the rest of the world. 

I really enjoyed Emma's interest in archaeology and Pompeii especially.  I wasn't a fan of the majority of Dillon's friends with the exception of Jace.  I really enjoyed her relationship with her father and how that grew back to normal. 

While this isn't a romance, it ends in a hopeful manner with a thoughtful afterword. 

About an important subject matter, Die for You is a perfect book to pick up, share, and start a conversation. 

Cover Thoughts: Intriguing
Source: Book sent for Review
Fun Fact: There's a blurb on the back that's from my Matter of Heart Review!
Come back Saturday for a brochure of other books featuring this topic.

Library Recommendation: A Highly Recommended Purchase for both school and public libraries and hand sell it to teens. This is a must read for teens, especially girls. 

Blog Tour: Windfall

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Alice doesn't believe in luck— at least not the good kind. But she does believe in love, and for the last few years, she's been pining for her best friend Teddy. She and he are alike: both are outsiders, both know tragedy. She lost both her parents when she was 9 and lives with her cousin now. Teddy's father abandoned the family, leaving his mother to grapple with the weight of his gambling debts and barely able to hold it all together. 

Then, on Teddy's 18th birthday, Alice buys him a lottery ticket, and to their astonishment, he wins 145 million dollars. In an instant, their lives are completely upended. But what at first seemed to be a blessing, soon starts to feel like a curse. As Alice and Teddy deal with the ripple effects caused by that one little ticket, they learn more about themselves than they ever could have imagined, and about the unexpected ways that luck and love sometimes intersect. Now, if only Teddy can see through his windfall and back to the ones who love him.

WINDFALL is a story about luck, love and fate, and what the world owes us. Jennifer E. Smith’s unique voice is one to watch and you are in for a for a treat!

RELEASE DATE: May 2, 2017
PUBLISHER: Delacorte Press

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

JENNIFER E. SMITH (@JenESmith) is the author of seven novels for young adults, including The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight. She earned a master's degree in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland and spent years working as an editor on a number of bestselling books, including Ballantine's New York Times bestseller Tell the Wolves I'm Home. Her work has been translated into thirty-three languages, and four of her novels are currently in development for film. She lives in New York City.

MY THOUGHTS: I adored this book as expected. I'm a huge fan of the authors, so I was very happy to be asked to be part of this tour! I love the relationships in this book from Alice and Teddy and Alice and Leo. I love Alice bought Teddy the ticket for his birthday and it changed his entire life. I like how he and his mom needed the money. There were times when I wasn't Teddy's biggest fan, but I grew to like him again in the end. I like how Leo and Alice tired to help keep him grounded and not go crazy spending money left and right. I adore love how he tried to make all their childhood dreams comes true. I loved Max and Leo and their relationship.  I felt terrible for Alice and her past. I admired her determination. I admired her desire to help people - the way her parents helped people. But I also loved how she started to lean on her friends more and become part of something for herself. I love the romances and the friendships in this book. I love the idea of paying it forward and helping to change the world with a ripple effect of kindness - what a beautiful sentiment! 

I've often thought about what I would do if my husband and I won a huge lottery like this. There are so many options. Paying off debt would be first. Then traveling. I have lots of places I'd love to visit. Of course charities would be involved. And taking classes about all the things I still want to learn. 

How would you spend your money if you won the lottery?

YA Political Books - Contemporary (again)

Just in case you like politics, but need a better world than the one we have today, I'm linking to a fun book list made previous in the year when we all had so much more hope for the country. Since this is going to be a tough weekend, I've decided to do what makes me happy. So I'm watching West Wing and crafting and playing with the puppy all day because that makes me smile. I invite you to do something that makes you smile (maybe read one of these books!)

Check out my list of books here.