We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han (Summer #3)

It’s been two years since Conrad told Belly to go with Jeremiah. She and Jeremiah have been inseparable ever since, even attending the same college– only, their relationship hasn’t exactly been the happily ever after Belly had hoped it would be. And when Jeremiah makes the worst mistake a boy can make, Belly is forced to question what she thought was true love. Does she really have a future with Jeremiah? Has she ever gotten over Conrad? It’s time for Belly to decide, once and for all, who has her heart forever.

Belly is a sweetly naive college girl who has been with her boyfriend, Jeremiah for the last two years, after having broken up with his brother Conrad. When Jeremiah cheats on her, her entire world comes crashing down on her. In a moment of weakness and desperation, he proposes to her and she takes him back and it brings them closer than ever before. This drives a wedge between Belly and her mother, and generally causes a huge amount of upset. So, Belly is forced to carry on with everything as planned and get ready for a wedding — without her mother’s help, or her blessing. Belly’s naiveté was both endearing and grating at times.

I could envision myself laying by the pool, tanning and reading this. It isn’t too involved or overly complicated, and Han’s writing is pretty solid and engaging. The story line is predictable, and it’s pretty obvious who she’s going to end up with in the end. I actually really liked Conrad a lot. Jere was kind of an inconsiderate pig and he seriously annoyed the bejesus out of me.

I think I’m going to read the first two books now. I wanna know more. =]

Final verdict? 3/5.

This book is due for release on April 26, 2011.

Betrayal by Mayandree Michel (Descendents #1)

At seventeen, Cordelia is an ordinary teen with an extraordinary and frightening secret. A secret that induces vivid dreams which she not only experiences true love, but crippling fear while barely escaping with her life each night.

After a life altering event, Cordelia has an unexpected encounter with Evan, the mysterious boy from her dreams, who reveals who and what she is – a descendant of the Greek gods. At that moment everything she knows of her world is a lie, and she must leave the present and go into the past to assume the role she was put on this earth for – safeguarding her ancient empire amidst evil forces that toil hastily to destroy it.

In a race against time, Cordelia must decide if she is truly a part of this dangerous world, or risk defying the gods, and ultimately lose the boy who has put a claim on her heart.

Gods, Goddesses, shifters, vampires.. Betrayal had it all. Forbidden love, scandal, secrets. Michel paints both beautiful and grotesque imagery in the first installment of her freshman series The Descendants. The beginning drags a bit, not gonna lie, but some disturbing, and life changing events grab you by the shoulders and you realize what a gem you’re holding in your hands. There’s a wealth if information in this book, and nothing is lacking. From character building to world building, there were no small parts in this book. Everyone had a purpose, every place described was an integral part of the story. No one was simply a prop in this story, and I found myself wanting to know more about the characters described in this book. The fight scenes, which can often end up lame, were beautifully choreographed and gripping. Michel istruly a master of her craft. The must-read of the year, hands down. 

Final verdict? 5/5.  Damn near perfect.

This book is due for release on April 1st, 2011.

The Ghost and the Goth by Stacey Kade

Alona Dare was the most popular girl in Groundsboro High School — that is until she met her untimely demise. Death by schoolbus aka, the loser cruiser. Lame, right? Alona sure thinks so. And now she’s stuck wearing red polyester gym shorts and a see-through white t-shirt for the rest of her life.. *ahem*afterlife. She’s quickly learning that while she may have been popular, she wasn’t actually very well-liked. Just when she thinks that her afterlife couldn’t possibly get any worse, the only person who can see and hear her is the freaky goth kid, Will Killian. Will has an extremely interesting ability — he can communicate with the dead and vice versa. The day following Alona’s death, he sees her crying and laughs at her before stuffing his earbuds back into his ears and walking away from her. This was all the confirmation she needed to know that he could see and hear her. Surely Will has the key to all of the answers allowing her to be sucked up into that big white light, right? Wrong. Alona unknowingly assigns herself to the task of being Will’s spirit guide and the two fall into an unexpected friendship.

This was a light, cute read. Pure fluff, feel-good pretty much. I enjoyed watching the relationship develop between Alona and Will, and the lessons that they taught one another and I was totally cool with the “lack of affection” as another reviewer described. It seemed more real and genuine the way things panned out in the end.

Be sure to add it to your TBR list, guys. You won’t be disappointed. =]

Final verdict? 4/5.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

“I love you. Remember. They cannot take it.”

Okay, so this book has pretty much left me speechless. I literally finished like, a few minutes ago and my mind is still seriously blown.

Lena lives in a world where love is the enemy, where passion is anathema, where poetry and art have fallen by the wayside, and romantic tendencies must be put down at all costs. some seriously hardcore brainwashing helps guide young citizens through the complexities of these norms, while upon reaching their majority a more comprehensive (invasive, horrifying) solution is offered: a procedure, not so far removed from a lobotomy, that results in a total dulling of the emotions. Recipients of this procedure feel nothing. Love, happiness, anger are null.

Lena does the unthinkable – she falls in love.

Okay, so this book has pretty much left me speechless. I literally finished like, a few minutes ago and my mind is still seriously blown. And the cliffhanger? GOD, WHY?! I need to know what happens! I also absolutely loved the way that bible stories, Shakespeare and other literature were intertwined into the narrative – either left unaltered and banned by the government for its subversiveness or altered in order to conform to the dystopian ideologies. Final verdict? 5/5. This book was utterly perfect.

“Love, the deadliest of all deadly things:
It kills you both when you have it, and when you don’t.
But that isn’t it, exactly.
The condemner and the condemned;
The executioner the blade; the last-minute reprieve;
the gasping breath and the rolling sky and the thank you, thank you, God.
Love. It will kill you and save you, both.”

Lipstick Laws by Amy Holder

Here, we’re introduced to April “boobless” Bowers, a fifteen year old high school sophomore who’s only friend has been transplanted in another state, leaving April to fend for herself. When she catches the eye of beautiful, popular Britney in her gym class, she’s more than overjoyed. Soon, she becomes Britney’s protege and becomes initiated into her clique of mean girls. However, when April breaks the Lipstick Laws, she is promptly kicked out of the group and Britney vows to ruin her life. Not one to stand by idly, April discovers that there are other girls out there like her- girls who have been shunned by Britney and her group; and they all want revenge. While the characters each fit into the typical roles necessary for this type of story – mean girl and her devoted followers and nice but socially awkward girl – the author has made April charming, witty, sarcastic, awkward and insecure, but not without a spine — plus, there’s a lesson to be learned! I would absolutely recommend this for any preteen girl. 

This plot follows the film, Mean Girls almost verbatim (Britney being Regina George, and April being Cady Heron). It’s an overused story line, but Amy Holder does it in such a fun, refreshing way and really makes the story her own. 

Final verdict? 4/5 stars!

This book is due for release on April 4, 2011.

Jane by April Lindner

Okay, so this book was the biggest timesuck of my life. A few of the passages were actually painful to read. Like a good little reader, I just kept slogging right though because I had high hopes for this. I kept hoping that it would get better because I really did enjoy Jane Eyre when we read it in my english class. 

We follow Jane Moore through her many unfortunate situations, affairs, etc. How much more pitiful could she have gotten? I’ll tell you. Her parents died in a car accident, her mother constantly berated her for being plain, and unpretty, choosing only to dote on her prettier and more talented older sister, was bullied by her older brother (Yea, I know right? Boo fucking hoo.), Had an AFFAIR with an older man/rock star only to find that he was keeping his previous wife who suffered from schizophrenia locked up in his attic.. the list goes on. 

Stay away if you can’t stand pitiful female progatonists who cease to exist when they don’t have a man in their life, because that’s exactly what this was. 

Final verdict? One star. Out of five. Yea. 

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton

Before Ellie turned seventeen, she was a regular teenager with regular problems. She loved parties, Valentino, ice cream, and Friday Movie Night. Except for one thing. Ellie is a Preliator, an ancient warrior, and has been reincarnated into a seemingly average teenage girl roughly every decade for thousands of years to fight the battle the agents of the fallen angel Lucifer in the Grim under the instruction of Will, her Guardian. I really enjoyed this concept and found the new viewpoint on the “old topic” of good vs. evil a breath of fresh air. 

Will and Ellie’s relationship developed at a reasonable, steady pace and didn’t feel rushed at all. I really loved his character, and the scenes between he and Ellie gave me the warm fuzzies. OOHHH Lordy, the chemistry! Freaking awesome. 

It wasn’t just the two main characters. All of the secondary characters were fully developed and each had their own unique personalities. Even the reapers had their own fully developed personalities! 

This book was pretty similar to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series in a lot of ways. Being a huge Buffy fan, of course I loved it. I adored it. A lot of books in this genre out there lately are severely lacking in a strong, female protagonist, and Angelfire certainly fits the bill. The fight scenes are beautifully choreographed, no other angel book out there right now could even hope to touch the intricacy of the mythology described in this book. 

Final Verdict? FREAKING EPIC. 5/5 stars. I can’t wait for the second installment in the trilogy!

This book is scheduled for release on February, 15, 2011.