Follow Along with the Resisting the Rebel Blog Tour!

If you've ever seen the movie Sky High and always thought that Layla should've ended up with "bad boy" Warren, then you don't want to miss Lisa Brown Roberts' Resisting the Rebel. Were you a fan of her September 2015 novel, Playing the Player, then trust me when I say you will also not want to miss this swoony, contemporary YA romance. Seriously. Please return to this site each day to celebrate the release of this book and follow along with the blog tour from July 25-Aug. 5, 2016:

July 25, 2016:

Lisa from Lost in Lit - Excerpt & Giveaway

Rachel from Confessions of a Book Geek - Spotlight

Rhianna from Rhi Reading - Spotlight

July 26, 2016:

Megan from Under the Book Cover - Spotlight

Samantha from Musings of Madjy - Review

Kristen from Victim of Books - Review

July 27, 2016:

Jessica from OMG Reads - Spotlight

July 28, 2016:

Beth from Hike2Forty and Beyond - Spotlight

Kaitlin from Kaitbooktopia - Review

July 29, 2016:

Cristina from The Princess of Everything - Spotlight

Aug. 1, 2016:

Valia from By Valia Lind - Review & Spotlight

Hadassah from Haddie's Haven - Spotlight

Aug. 2, 2016:

Moriah from A Leisure Moment - Review

Key from Key Read That - Review

Aug. 3, 2016:

Lisa from Lost in Lit - Review

Michelle from What Is That Book About - Spotlight

Aug. 4, 2016:

Angela from Wicked Reads - Review

Jennifer from Never Too Many to Read - Review

Aug. 5, 2016:

Elaine from Splashes into Books - Review

Vox Libris - Review

Enter to Win the Resisting the Rebel Prize Pack!

Does Resisting the Rebel sound like your kind of book? Find out more now:

About Resisting the Rebel:

Disclaimer: This book contains a villain pretending to be a hero, a hero pretending to be a villain, a disco-dancing heroine, two overprotective sidekicks, a little bit of bad language, and a whole lot of swoony kissing. Spirit committee leader Mandy Pennington is secretly in love with her best friend, Gus, but when he hooks up with her archenemy at a party, she decides to win him over once and for all. She just doesn’t know how. But who better to help than hot loner Caleb Torrs? Caleb’s got his own problems, but when he sees Mandy pining over Gus at a party, he thinks she’s finally smoked the spirit stick and lost her mind. Maybe he has, too, because he just asked Mandy to be his fake girlfriend.She’ll get her loser friend’s attention, and he’ll get his stalker ex off his back.It’s a win-win. But soon one fake date blends into the next and before he knows it, he actually wants to kiss Mandy. For real. Too bad their plan is working, and Gus is finally noticing the one girl Caleb just might be falling for…

Want to Read More? Pre-order Resisting the Rebel Today!

Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Kobo | Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.ca |Entangled Publishing

Review: Young Widows Club

Young Widows Club by Alexandra Coutts

Release Date:  November 10, 2015
Publisher:  Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Source: Publisher
Format: ARC
Pages:  304
Amazon  |  Goodreads


Seventeen-year-old Tamsen Baird didn’t set out to become a teenage widow. All she did was fall in love and get married. But when her nineteen-year-old husband, Noah, dies suddenly in the middle of the night, her whole life changes. Now Tam is forced to return to the existence she thought she’d left behind—beginning with moving back home and finishing high school. But in order to overcome her loss and find her way forward, she’ll need to reinvent herself and reach out to others in ways she never imagined. She’ll need to open herself up to living—and even loving—again.

In Young Widows Club, Alexandra Coutts depicts a teenager whose struggle with grief and disappointment is heartbreakingly real and, in the end, powerfully uplifting.

The Young Widows Club centers our Tamsen who by the age of 17 has already fallen in love, gotten married, and become a widow. After her husband's death she's reeling with depression and goes on a string of mistakes and bad decisions which ultimately lands her in court. The judge sentences her to move back in with her parents, go back to high school, and go to group therapy. Enter the Young Widows Club, where Tamsen meets other widows trying to piece their lives back together.

While I enjoyed reading Young Widows Club I feel like for some readers it may tend to lean more on the problematic side. I live in Texas, and here in the south people tend to get married very young. Married at 18 or 19 and having several children by the time your 21 is much more the norm here, so having a main character that's married and widowed at 17 isn't such a shock for me. I grew up with a close friend who married at 16 and knew many others, so Tamsen wasn't a shocking character to read. But again, things like this differ depending on the area you've grown up.

Another thing I kind of didn't like was I really hoped there would be a lot more about the Young Widows Club itself. There wasn't too much about it in the story, and I really missed that since it was actually what drew me to pick this book up. But again, I feel like the few things I disliked about the book are just nit picky things I would have liked to see in the story.

I personally didn't identify with this character too much, I have suffered with bouts of pretty severe depression but I've never gone on a string of self destructive behaviour. What I can relate to are the feelings of being lost, and not sure what you want to do with your life when everyone else around you has college's and a career path already picked out. This was a fast read and despite the few things I mentioned I really enjoyed it, although I don't think it's for everyone.

 

Review: The Assassin Game

The Assassin Game by Kirsty McKay

Release Date:  August 2, 2016
Publisher:  Sourcebooks Fire
Source:  Publisher
Format:  eARC
Pages:  336
Amazon  |  Goodreads

Who will be left after lights out?

At Cate's isolated boarding school, Killer is more than a game- it's an elite secret society. Members must avoid being "Killed" during a series of thrilling pranks, and only the Game Master knows who the "Killer" is. When Cate's finally invited to join the Assassins' Guild, she know it's her ticket to finally feeling like she belongs. 

But when the game becomes all too real, the school threatens to shut it down. Cate will do anything to keep playing and save the Guild. But can she find the real assassin before she's the next target?

The Assassin Game was originally published in the UK as "Killer Game"  I never read it then, but I am so happy that I read it now. This kind of book is right up my alley! The main character Cate is sent to a remote boarding school on an island that her parent's own, cuz...that's totally normal! haha I was really fascinated with this boarding school itself and it's history oddly enough. It has been around for over 100 years and had even been a lunatic asylum until the 60's when it was turned into a school for gifted kids.  Anyways... at her school there is an elite secret society with a very select group chosen every year. They must participate in hazing type tactics in order to be initiated into the group. Then start the annual Assassin Games. Each year a "killer" is picked who through a series of pranks picks off their team mates one by one until their identity is guessed OR they are the last one standing.

The story itself reminded me of Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None" so if you enjoy that type of story, like I do, then you will love this book! I was pretty impressed by the pranks and how well thought out and elaborate they were. Things however, take a turn for the serious as the pranks begin to grow more sinister and the race is on to find out who the "Killer" is!

I devoured this book in one sitting, reading until 5 am when I could hardly see anymore. I raced through the pages dying to know what would happen next and who was behind it all. Throughout the book I had my guesses and I was completely wrong each time.

This was a fast paced, heart pounding suspenseful read and one of my favorite reads of the year!

Review: None of the Above

None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio

Release Date:  April 7, 2015
Publisher:  Balzer + Bray
Source: Publisher
Format: ARC
Pages:  328
Amazon  |  Goodreads



A groundbreaking story about a teenage girl who discovers she was born intersex... and what happens when her secret is revealed to the entire school. Incredibly compelling and sensitively told, None of the Above is a thought-provoking novel that explores what it means to be a boy, a girl, or something in between.

What if everything you knew about yourself changed in an instant?

When Kristin Lattimer is voted homecoming queen, it seems like another piece of her ideal life has fallen into place. She's a champion hurdler with a full scholarship to college and she's madly in love with her boyfriend. In fact, she's decided that she's ready to take things to the next level with him.

But Kristin's first time isn't the perfect moment she's planned—something is very wrong. A visit to the doctor reveals the truth: Kristin is intersex, which means that though she outwardly looks like a girl, she has male chromosomes, not to mention boy "parts."

Dealing with her body is difficult enough, but when her diagnosis is leaked to the whole school, Kristin's entire identity is thrown into question. As her world unravels, can she come to terms with her new self?

In my effort to obliterate my physical TBR which is extremely out of hand, I pulled this book off the shelf and dove in, knowing absolutely nothing about it. I am so glad that I reached for this, it was informative, well written, entertaining and at times heart wrenching!

I've heard about people being born with male and female body parts/organs (sorry I'm at a total loss for a better term) but I never really paid it too much thought, until now. None of the Above centers around our MC Kristin. She's beautiful. smart, a champion hurdler with a full college scholarship and she seemingly has it all, homecoming queen, dating a football player and popular friends. Homecoming night however, changes Kristin's life forever. She decides to sleep with her boyfriend for the first time. After a very painful evening she visits the doctor where she learns the startling truth, she has testicles, and is Intersex.

Kristin is faced with so many questions and decisions, such as should she have them removed< that it seems no high school student should have to deal with. As if that wasn't enough to handle on it's own, the info is leaked to the entire school! Now she has to face not just her boyfriend, and her friends, but her entire school with the truth!

I got so sucked into this book and it made me feel a thousand different things at once. I felt heartache for Kristin as her boyfriend finds out and reacts to the news. I felt confusion as she struggles to wrap her head around what is happening to her and what it really means. I felt scared as she made up her mind between permanent surgery and hormone therapy, and just living as she is. I felt anger as she became bullied and ostracized by her peers, and then I became furious when she was asked to leave school and her scholarship stripped from her. I cried, I laughed, and I hooted as she forged on, determined and hopeful.

None of the Above is a book that will be etched in my memory for many years to come. My heart goes out to not just Kristin but anyone who has had to face this struggle in their life. I am so glad that the author tackled this subject because it really educated me not just on what Inter Sex is, but also what an Inter Sex person might be going through, the struggles they face, and how I can be a supportive person. This is a definite must read and I highly recommend it!

 

Review: Shackled by Tom Leveen

Shackled by Tom Leveen

Release Date:  August 18, 2015
Publisher:  Simon Pulse
Source:  Publisher
Format:  ARC
Pages:  224
Amazon  |  Goodreads

From author Tom Leveen comes a taut, suspenseful novel about a girl’s abduction that leaves her best friend emotionally paralyzed, until a chance encounter points her toward the truth…and a terrifying new danger.

Sixteen-year-old Pelly has a master plan. After years of therapy, medication, and even a stint in a mental hospital, she’s finally ready to re-enter the world of the living. Pelly has been suffering from severe panic attacks ever since her best friend, Tara, disappeared from a mall six years ago.

And her plan seems to be working, until an unkempt girl accompanied by an older man walks into the coffee shop where she works. Pelly thinks she’s seen a ghost, until the girl mouths “help me” on the way out, and Pelly knows she’s just seen Tara.

Too shocked to do anything, Pelly helplessly watches Tara slip away again as she steels herself against a renewed spiral of crippling anxiety. But rather than being overcome by anxiety, Pelly feels more energized than she has in years. Determined to track down enough evidence to force the police to reopen Tara’s file, Pelly’s master plan takes a turn for the dangerous.

Pelly decides she cannot be shackled by her past—and the anxiety, fear, and grief that comes with it—any longer if she wants to save Tara. But in seeking answers through whatever means necessary, she’ll come face-to-face with true evil. And not all the shackles are in her head... 

At first, I really wasn't sure about this book. Most of the author's I read are female's and Tom's style of writing was . . . a little different. It was by no means bad, there's just something different that I can't put my finger on, most likely just a male perspective. haha  Anyways . . . this book centers around Pelly.  Six years ago when she was at the mall shopping with her best friend, she disappeared and never returned. Her friend's disappearance has haunted Pelly every day since. She lives with severe anxiety, and she struggles with day to day life . However, one day at work a girl comes in and mouths "help me" to Pelly, and she's convinced it's her childhood friend Tara. She takes it upon herself to do something she wasn't able to do 6 years before, save Tara and bring her home!

This isn't my favorite mystery/thriller of the year or anything but I did thoroughly enjoy it. It really flew by and the pacing was great, I read this in one day. I've suffered with a pretty big case of anxiety my entire life, and it has become so much worse this year. In December at the store I worked, there was a gun shooting and things became even worse for me. My anxiety grew exponentially worse, which I didn't think possible, I was plagued by nightmares, fear and an inability to sleep. So a lot of the things Pelly said, and did, and the way people around her re-acted to her as her anxiety mounted and she grew more agitated was written extremely accurately. I could 100% identify with how Pelly felt and why she behaves the way she does, which to others may seem odd.

The ending wasn't the picture perfect ending you sometimes see and have come to expect in books, and you know what, I actually liked that! You don't always get a happy ending or the answers that your looking for in life, and that's totally okay. It wasn't rainbows and sunbeams, it was raw and it was real. And I loved Tom Leveen for writing it that way!

Review: Life After Juliet

Life After Juliet by Shannon Lee Alexander

Release Date:  July 5, 2016
Publisher:  Entangled Teen
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC
Pages: 304
Amazon  |  Goodreads



Becca Hanson was never able to make sense of the real world. When her best friend Charlotte died, she gave up on it altogether. Fortunately, Becca can count on her books to escape—to other times, other places, other people...

Until she meets Max Herrera. He’s experienced loss, too, and his gorgeous, dark eyes see Becca the way no one else in school can.

As it turns out, kissing is a lot better in real life than on a page. But love and life are a lot more complicated in the real world...and happy endings aren't always guaranteed.

The companion novel to Love and Other Unknown Variables is an exploration of loss and regret, of kissing and love, and most importantly, a celebration of hope and discovering a life worth living again.

I had NO idea this was a companion book to Love and Other Unknown Variables which I have not read. But now I NEEEEED it you guys. Like, yesterday! To say I loved Life After Juliet would be a crazy ridiculous understatement! There are just ... no words to express the feels. 

This isn't just one of my favorite books of the year, it's one of my favorite books of ALL time! It was unbelievably well written. The main character Becca is going through so many things. Her best friend died and she has just withdrawn into a bubble. She doesn't ever want to feel that loss again.  She retreats into the world of books, choosing to live in the stories unfolding on page rather than in the real world. I can completely identify! 

But things completely change when she gets involved in the school play Romeo and Juliet. She meets Max, who..let me just say is my FAVORITE male character. I wish he were real..oh how I wish he were real. I'm not going to say another word because you need to read this amazing book for yourself!

Review: My Hero Academia

My Hero Academia Vol #1 by Kohei Horikoshi

Release Date:  August 4, 2015
Publisher:  Viz Media LLC
Source:  Library
Format:  Finished Copy
Pages:  192
Amazon  |  Goodreads


What would the world be like if 80 percent of the population manifested superpowers called “Quirks” at age four? Heroes and villains would be battling it out everywhere! Being a hero would mean learning to use your power, but where would you go to study? The Hero Academy of course! But what would you do if you were one of the 20 percent who were born Quirkless?

Middle school student Izuku Midoriya wants to be a hero more than anything, but he hasn’t got an ounce of power in him. With no chance of ever getting into the prestigious U.A. High School for budding heroes, his life is looking more and more like a dead end. Then an encounter with All Might, the greatest hero of them all, gives him a chance to change his destiny…

I was perusing Amazon looking for another good Manga series to try out and I am so glad I happened upon My Hero Academia. The story is just way too cute and fun! It's set in a dystopian world where 80% of the population have super powers called Quirks. They go to specialized schools to learn how to use their powers and control them. But our Main Character Izuku is one of the 20% who are born without Quirks.

Poor Izuku is teased about it his whole life, but he's so determined that he doesn't let that get him down. He's inspired by his favorite superhero All Might, and is determined to get into the famous U.A. high school.

I loved his spunk, determination and drive which made him so endearing. This story was fantastic and really fun! The concept of living in a world where NOT having a super power makes you a minority was absolutely genius to me! I really, really loved this one and I think you would too!

 

#TGTRAT No.2 Wrap-Up

Hey Lovelies!

So over the weekend the lovely Sierra at Yearning to Read hosted the Great Twitter Readathon, aka #TGTRAT for the second time. I've participated both times and it's been such a blast!!!

While I definitely wasn't as successful with my reading as I had been in the previous TGTRAT, only reading 1 book (Blood Will Tell by April Henry)  this time around, I feel like I accomplished so much!

One of my goals this year is to re-connect with the reading world. I want to make lasting friendships, discover new bloggers, bookstagrammers, and booktubers. I also want to be a more active presence, which means much more to me than just having regular content to share. I want to interact and engage with those in the community, which for me means commenting instead of just trolling blogs, replying instead of just liking or retweeting someone's tweets.

I met some really amazing people during The Great Twitter Readathon, and I feel like I made some friendships that will last for years to come!

I definitely am still working on having a more active presence in the reading community. But hey, baby steps for this shy girl from Texas!

The Great Twitter Readathon is a 3 day readathon done monthly and it's been such a blast! I'll post the info for the next one for you below and make sure you follow Sierra on Twitter @yearningtoread so you can join in when signups are open!



See you soon and as always

Happy Reading!

XOXO

June 2016 Wrap Up

Hi Lovelies!

Summer is officially in full swing and we are halfway through the year! Can you believe it? I still feel as if 2016 just started! Where does the time go?

Over the past few months I re-fell in love with books and blogging again. I am back with vigor and an excitement that I haven't had in far too long! I definitely upped my reading game in June, which is incredible for me! I'm such a slow reader and I am amazed at how much I accomplished in June.

I fell and really messed up my knee halfway through May. I was still in some pretty severe pain for most of the month of June. So I was kind of a captive audience. And I shockingly was getting tired of watching tv. So tons of reading for me! I was also able to relaunch my blog and get that going full time, which I have REALLY missed doing.

Now that I've moved I have only 1 room and virtually no space for books. They are over flowing! So I've really made it a priority to shop my own shelves and whittle down my physical TBR pile this month. So here's what I got up to

The Books

• Secrets in the Snow by Michaela MacColl
• The Assassin Game by Kristy McKay
• My Hero Academia #1 by Kohei Horikoshi
• Frayed by Kara Terzis
• Life After Juliet by Shannon Lee Alexander (this was incredible!!!)
• Shackled by Tom Leveen
• None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio
• Young Widows Club by Alexandrea Coutts
• The Cabin by Natasha Preston
• Hotel Ruby by Suzanne Young
• We'll Never Be Apart by Emiko Jean

The Challenges

• I read 11 books towards my 2016 Goodreads Reading Challenge
• I read 5 books from my physical TBR shelf

June was a really great month for me! I read 11 books, which is fantastic! I also had 13 blog posts, 8 of which were reviews.

My goals for next month are to focus on reading from my TBR shelf, which will mean review books will have to wait.

I also want to get better about using Twitter. In my long absence from blogging I also disappeared from Twitter and I feel so lost. I virtually have no blogging friends anymore so part of my goals for July is to have a more active presence on Twitter. Visit more blogs, connect with more bloggers and readers, and comment as I peruse the web instead of just trolling.

I also signed up for the The Great Twitter Readathon for the month of July. This will be my second time participating and I hope to be more balanced with socializing and not just having my nose stuck in a book. I have also signed up for Camp NanoWrimo in July and I am hoping to finish a project I've had in the works for 2 years now. 

As of late I seem to have no problem reading, but I seem to have an issue with reviewing. haha I am officially backed up and have 7 books read and just waiting to be reviewed. So I am really hoping that in July I can get that under control.

That's it for me, all in all I had a really successful month! How about you? Let me know in the comments and feel free to leave the link to your wrap up post below so I can stop by and say hi!

Happy Reading!

XOXO

Review: Frayed

Frayed by Kara Terzis

Release Date:  June 7, 2016
Publisher:  Sourcebooks Fire
Source:  Publisher
Format:  eARC
Pages:  304
Amazon  |  Goodreads



Dear Kesley,

My therapist tells me I should write you a letter. Like flushing all my thoughts and feelings out of my system and onto paper. I tell her it's a stupid idea.

But here I am, writing a letter to a dead girl. Where do I start? Where did our story begin? From the moment you were born...or died?

I'll start with the moment I found out the truth about you. Your lies and my pain. Because it always begins and ends with you.

And that end began when Rafe Lawrence came back to town...

Ava Hale will do anything to find her sister's killer...although she'll wish she hadn't. Because the harder Ava looks, the more secrets she uncovers about Kesley, and the more she begins to think that the girl she called sister was a liar. A sneak. A stranger.

And Kesley's murderer could be much closer than she thought...

A debut novel from Wattpad award-winner Kara Terzis, Frayed is a psychological whodunit that will keep you guessing!

This book was crazy explosive for me from beginning to end! In a totally amazing way of course ;) hehe The main character Ava's life is affected in every way the day her older sister Kesley goes missing. There was never a body found, or a Kesley sighting...so the family has so many what if's and fears running through their minds.

Frayed is a book I would categorize as a Mystery which as you know is totally my thing! The story is told all through Ava's eyes, partly in first person, and partly as a letter she's writing to her sister Kesley that is weaved throughout the story. I really enjoyed the letter portions of the story, I felt like it made the story different and gave it a bit of a psychological aspect as we got more into Ava's head and her personal world.

I really enjoyed this book, the pacing was well done in my opinion, and as I got to the last 50 pages or so I was flying through the book to find out what happened. I read it in one sitting, staying up until 4 am when my eyes were hurting and begging me to put the book away and turn the lights off.

The ending was so explosive for me and to this day I am still reeling from it. Even after that last page I still couldn't sleep..I was DYING to talk to someone about the ending, I was so stunned! When you've been an avid reader for years, storylines, character's, plots, etc can be pretty predictable and you can usually tell where the story is going. I loved that Kara Terzis completely stunned me with Frayed. This book held my attention from the beginning to the explosive ending and I highly recommend it!

Review: Library Wars: Love & War #1

Library Wars: Love & War #1 by Kiiro Yumi

Release Date: June 1, 2010
Publisher: Viz Media
Source: Library
Format: Finished Copy
Pages: 186
Amazon  |  Goodreads


In the near future, the federal government creates a committee to rid society of books it deems unsuitable. The libraries vow to protect their collections, and with the help of local governments, form a military group to defend themselves--the Library Forces!

Iku Kasahara has dreamed of joining the Library Defense Force ever since one of its soldiers stepped in to protect her favorite book from being confiscated in a bookstore when she was younger. But now that she's finally a recruit, she's finding her dream job to be a bit of a nightmare. Especially since her hard-hearted drill instructor seems to have it in for her!

                                                                                                   
                                                              

I've really been enjoying Manga lately, so I went to my local library to pick up a few new ones. I stumbled on the series Library Wars and I was instantly intrigued. I grew up going to the library every week, it was our family outing every Friday when my Dad got home from work. And afterwards we'd all pile in the car with our picks for the week and we'd head to our favorite burger joint for burgers and ice cream. I have such fond memories of those nights. 

Library Wars is set in the future (think dystopian!) in Japan where the government has created a committee to basically censor all media. They swoop in and confiscate anything they feel is inappropriate or threatening. They can drop in anywhere, at any time, and snatch up someone's beloved book. Seriously, I'd go crazy! 

The Libraries form a group to protect themselves, a military group called the Library Defense Force.  Our main character Iku has always dreamed of becoming a LDF and this book gives you the background on why this is so important to her. We also learn who the LDF is and follow the new recruits as they go through their military training.

I really enjoyed this Manga, to me the story was original and entertaining. I could just imagine myself feeling exactly like Iku and protecting my beloved libraries collection! The art was great, although I did find myself a little lost from time to time. However, I am really looking forward to continuing this story very very soon.