To all the boys I've loved before: Jenny Han

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is the story of Lara Jean, who has never openly admitted her crushes, but instead wrote each boy a letter about how she felt, sealed it, and hid it in a box under her bed. But one day Lara Jean discovers that somehow her secret box of letters has been mailed, causing all her crushes from her past to confront her about the letters: her first kiss, the boy from summer camp, even her sister's ex-boyfriend, Josh. As she learns to deal with her past loves face to face, Lara Jean discovers that something good may come out of these letters after all.
(Goodreads)



I'd heard a lot about this book saying that it was very good and that it was super cute... Well it wasn't. It was actually really annoying. It could have been worse it wasn't necessarily good, or bad. It was just annoying. Lara Jean was so vain and annoying and everything was about her... 
I guess it was a simple read and if you really like teen contemporaries then this would be a fun read.

Unwind: Neal Shusterman

Blurb from Goodreads:
The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state, is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.
Review:
Well I read this book because of a book trailer I saw in my English class, and oh my goodness that was such a haunting trailer. It ensnared me, and the book was just incredible. It was a haunting dystopian that made me think. What if someone thought this was a good idea? A good compromise for those pro life and those pro choice. I found I liked the way it was written in different perspectives, that it took time to really introduce you to the characters without boring a person to death with the details. I think the best part was how it showed the accident on the freeway from all their perspectives. 
The teens, were just teens, he didn't make them into adults or have Connor's head inflate because of his new reputation... He kept them children for as long as possible. He showed the selfishness of adults. The selfishness of the poachers for CHILDREN, who would find children and strip them of their parts and sell them. He showed harsh realities of the world disguised in a book for teens. This is a powerful book that will forever hold in my heart because it showed parts of reality disguised as a book for teens, but even for adults this book will be interesting. 
The most haunting part of this book was how he described the process of unwinding, if nothing else interests you read it for that moment because it is just described in such way that it'll stay with you for a while.
Until next time
Kat  

These Vicious Masks: Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas

England, 1882. Evelyn is bored with society and its expectations. So when her beloved sister, Rose, mysteriously vanishes, she ignores her parents and travels to London to find her, accompanied by the dashing Mr. Kent. But they’re not the only ones looking for Rose. The reclusive, young gentleman Sebastian Braddock is also searching for her, claiming that both sisters have special healing powers. Evelyn is convinced that Sebastian must be mad, until she discovers that his strange tales of extraordinary people are true—and that her sister is in graver danger than she feared.
(Goodreads)
You know It was a lot better than I thought it would be, on Goodreads it just has 3 and a half stars and some of the review were very negative. But I, myself, found that I really enjoyed it. I loved the story itself sister is kidnapped, elder sister come to the rescue with two handsome men vying for her attention. Kind of swoon worthy. 
What was the best part though was that Evelyn was actually pretty likeable, she wasn't nearly as annoying as other female leads. I liked that you also found her growing more as a person throughout the book, growing more comfortable with her power, more confident with herself, that her acceptance of her healing was an acceptance of herself. Evelyn wasn't easily swept away with the prospect of romance, even with a tall brooding, prideful male. She cared more for her sister and Roses wishes to be a nurse.
The book had great witty moments, for example:

“Rose,” I said, turning to my younger sister. “In your esteemed medical opinion, is it possible to die of ennui?”
“I . . . can’t recall a documented case.”
“What about exhaustion? Monotony?”
“That could lead to madness,” Rose offered.
“And drowning in a sea of suitors? After being pushed in by your mother?”
“It would have to be a lot of suitors.”

This is just one of many, but it fit the book, it didn't feel forced. It was just a natural part of the characters personality. 
Most of all I loved the ending, it wasn't sunshine and rainbows. It was sad and kind of expected, but still had hope in the end that everything was going to be fine.
Overall I would recommend this book to those who want a mix of Pride and Prejudice with X-Men with witty comebacks. It seemed accurate in the historical sense. But what do I know.
Until next time
Kat

 

Teen Idol By: Meg Cabot

High school junior Jenny Greenley is so good at keeping secrets that she's the school newspaper's anonymous advice columnist. She's so good at it that, when hotter-than-hot Hollywood star Luke Striker comes to her small town to research a role, Jenny is the one in charge of keeping his identity under wraps. But Luke doesn't make it easy, and soon everyone—the town, the paparazzi, and the tabloids alike—know his secret...and Jenny is caught right in the middle of all the chaos.
(Goodreads)

I actually really liked it. I just found it in the library, while looking for new books to read and just thought, "what the heck, might as well." It was fun, and a very fast, simple read.  I really enjoyed it and the ending was different to what I thought, and I loved it. The main character Jenny Greenly was pretty likeable. Obviously annoying at times, when she wouldn't do anything against the bullying to the girlie that I absolutely can't remember her name... She would always check on her afterwards, and yes that great and all but, as Luke said she has power. Which, at first I didn't believe and still think is very unlikely, but was quite awesome. And it was so simple, she just had to (wo)man up and start doing the right thing. Just like Luke said. Now, on the subject of Luke, I absolutely for the life of me, thought that he would start liking Jenny, and I was absolutely wrong! Like most cliques, she would have ended up with the guy, fix the school, get the cabbage baby back, and life would be amazing. Wrong! Jenny ended up with Scott who was absolutely perfect for each other :D and I was too oblivious to notice anything going on between them... Anyways I really enjoyed the book
Later ^^

Stirring Up Trouble: Juli Alexander

What’s worse than lusting after my best friend’s on again off again boyfriend? How about my dad dating his mother, and my mom redesigning his bedroom for her show? With fate interfering so cruelly, can you really blame me for putting my magic potions to not-so-good use?

I’m Zoe Miller, a fifteen-year-old witch with only one power-—a talent for potions. I have my life all mapped out. I plan to be a doctor and develop drugs to cure disease. We already have potions to help all kinds of symptoms, but none of them will get by the Food and Drug Administration. I mean, the government bureaucrats are not going to okay the ingestion of bat wings or unicorn horns. Luckily, fat-free margarine has already been found to be an adequate substitute for dead man’s toe. So, I really hold out hope that I can make things work. Looking for edible substitutions to use in the potions is my passion.
(Goodreads) 

I remember reading it a while back (June 17 2012 to be exact)  and I thought that it was super good, and very interesting, but the second time around... Meh. It could have been a lot better, and at times it was childish. I know that she's, like, 15 and all. But I mean come on! It was ridiculous at times, I mean she wouldn't stand up for her self when it came to her friend (that was not a good friend, she was absolutely horrible) she just kept making up excuses as to why she couldn't stand up to her.

Trouble's Brewing By: Juli Alexander

Fifteen-year-old Zoe has managed to turn her crush into a boyfriend without using any magic at all. But can it really work with Jake when Zoe’s father is dating Jake’s mother? Talk about a dysfunctional family.

After the Frog Fiasco, the Council is watching Zoe’s every move but studying under renowned Potions Master, Martin Finnegan, fulfills a lifelong dream of Zoe’s, even if the ninety-five-year-old man looks like a teenager. Zoe can’t juggle friends, school, potions, and dating without letting something slide, and Trouble’s Brewing as her tutor is forced to reveal deeply hidden truths about her experiments and those of her ancestors.
(Goodreads)

Meh, I thought it was better. At least I hoped, but alas, it didn't turn out as good as I hoped. Zoe is now so flipping annoying. THE. ENTIRE. TIME. Ok, so I understand, she wants everyone to be happy. Especially her mom, but the way she shows it is just so dumb. "Oh she can't like my teacher, I'll just zap up a potion and hope it works." Absolutely annoying, and the whole not-standing-up-to-your-friend gets old really fast. And then there was the ending. The ending was just so abrupt, they go to a dance and kiss. The End. HOLD IT!! Was that it. I put myself through that for nothing? Really... There was absolutely no closure to this book it just went on, and then suddenly ended. I think it might have been better if I had read it when I was younger, it seems to appeal to a younger audience. Meh 

Alice in Zombieland (The White Rabbit Chronicles) By: Gina Showalter

She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.
Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.
Her father was right. The monsters are real….
To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….
I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish.
(Goodreads)

So my beloved mom recommended this book to me because of the author, Chibi (my mum) is always telling me about the other (adult) books she's written and how awesome they are. I have no idea how I could have doubted her. This is a one in a kind book. I'm always saying that the books I've read are different from others but this; this was a whole new category. Truthfully this book had nothing to do with Alice and Wonderland, and that is absolutely okay. Gina Showalter brought the very used zombies and completely changed them, and for the better. These zombies were of the spirit, and I had never thought of that, but it was really very interesting. Since these zombies were more like ghosts no one could see them unless you were special… and so Ali the entire time thought that her dad was crazy, all because he could see these monsters that one else could. Gina Showalter created something new and amazing, and very modern. I actually screamed for happiness when she mentioned the Iron Fey series by Julia Kagawa, and the band Skillet. It was very modern and very teenage, absolutely perfect for us teens :3 Now the characters, oh my flipping gorsh the characters !!! Dear lord Cole is tall dark and handsome with violet eyes but he is just a great character, he's complicated and mysterious. Sarcastic and sweet. So awesome. Of course he had the common characteristics of a possessive boyfriend, that didn’t want Alice to do anything on her own. And that was very annoying at times, but luckily Ms. Showalter kept that to a minimum. Also!! I absolutely loved that Cole was a bass, with a sexy low gravelly voice. In most books they have boys with deep tenors… or baritones… that really doesn’t happen !! Get it right ladies. Now Alice, Alice is such an Independent girl. She does what she wants and is so flipping awesome. I have a feeling she won't go Bella on us :3 I also love how she kicks arse, most female characters are not like that. And Ali was just so amazing! Her spirit was poison to the zombies making her a perfect weapon. Not that she should always be bitten. But she is just so kick arse and is always trying to find a way to figure things out, instead of just waiting. Now the plot is so unique and different, I say that a lot, but I mean it this time (like always). It has been such a long time since I stayed up to READ. Most books I'm like "meh I can keep reading tomorrow" with this I was all like "heck no I am not going to bed !! I need to finish !!" I dreamt about possible outcomes, once I had finished the book, this book just had me flipping pages, anticipating what would happen next. Absolutely loved it, and have read it about three times since the first time, and every time I notice more things. Absolutely recommended for everyone, adult and teen alike.