Island Girls (And Boys) by Rachel Hawthorne

It's Jen's last summer before she goes off to college. Her last summer to be with her friends. So why not invite them to live in her grandparents beach house with her? There will be no parents, it can teach them about living on their own, and give them time together before they all go their separate ways. Jen, Chelsea, and Amy are all prepared for a fantastic good-bye party of the summer. They aren't prepared for love and how their friendship will change.

I have to admit, I had very low expectations of this book. It was one of those romance novels that looked really cheesy, plus it wasn't exactly new haha.  I don't remember why I picked it up, except the cover was cute lol. And I was blown away by how fantastically I was wrong! I absolutely adored this story.

The characters were amazing. Jen, Amy, and Chelsea are all so different and I found pieces of me in all of them. Jen is the organized one who loves planning (sometimes verging on bossy), Chelsea is the spoiled one, and Amy is the peacekeeper. I didn't really like Chelsea, and I think that was the whole point, but she had her moments that redeemed herself. I loved Jen, I really felt like I could relate with her. I totally felt her pain when it came to Chelsea. I honestly don't even know how they're friends. And with Dylan, I was always on her side. When she was mad at him, I was mad at him too. I didn't think I would be able to forgive him until that one turning point. And it was so sweet, so I forgave him along with Jen. I even found good parts in Noah, who I didn't really like.

The only thing I can think of that would have made this book better is an epilogue. I would have liked to know what happened to everyone, but then again maybe it's better without it haha. And also, the line under the cover that says "Just 3 girls (and 3 dogs, 2 boyfriends, and 1 true love)" could have been omitted. All it did was confuse me!! Also, the count changes throughout the story, so it gets a little confusing haha.

The story is a cute idea and I liked how it covered all sorts of topics, not just love as it suggests. It's about friendship, discovering yourself, making decisions, and learning about love and loss, all tied in to 336 pages. It's a great summer read, and I loved it. 5 out of 5 stars . I would definitely recommend this if you're looking for a light, fun summer read. :)

Ripple by Mandy Hubbard



Lexi has always been drawn to the ocean, but on the night of her 16th birthday, she finds herself compulsively wanting to go for a swim and convinces her crush Steven to go with her. Something happens, and before she knows it she surfaces and finds Steven dead. Lexi is a siren, and must swim every night. When she sings her song, men can't help but follow her in to their death. After she kills Steven, she distances herself from her friends. She can't resist hurting anyone else, and its safer that way. Plus, they all blame her for Steven's death anyway (even though the autopsy shows he simply drowned). Then she meets Cole, who was Steven's best friend. She finds herself falling in love with him and wanting to share things with him. And then there's the mysterious Erik, who tells her that there is a way to end the curse and live a normal life. The catch, is that she would have to give up Cole.

 

I honestly wasn't a huge fan of Lexi. She kinda frustrated me with all of her fickleness. She was sooo in love with Steven. Then he dies, and she finds herself falling in love with Cole, who happened to be his best friend. And then there's Erik, and is she falling for him too? Okay that's getting confusing haha. I felt pretty loyal to Cole, so Erik angered me for sticking his head in Lexi's life. Also, she's sort of a b*tch to people. I guess it goes with the whole "distancing" thing, but she's kinda mean. She has her moments where I like her, but I wouldn't want to be BFFs with her. I don't blame Sienna for not really liking her afterward.

 

As for the concept of the story, amazing. I've never read anything about sirens, in fact, I barely know anything about them. And I had never heard of a nix before. I really liked the whole modern-day siren story. Ripple had a few slow moments, but it got really exciting towards the end. It was truly like an adventure because I wasn't able to predict a lot of things.

 

I think the cover is really beautiful, even though I'm not a huge fan of book covers with people on them. The title was kinda ehhh, it was simple and intriguing but not the most relevant to the story. Or at least not as relevant as it could have been haha.

 

A few things that bothered me was the location. Maybe I missed it, but I had no idea where this took place. I probably missed it somewhere though haha. Also, the grandmother. Ripple doesn't mention what she thinks of her granddaughter never sleeping at home. Hmmm...

 

I would have given this book 5 stars, but I think the conclusion could have been a little longer and things could have been said that would have tied the whole thing together, and there was the whole fact that Lexi was kinda mehh for me. But I really did like the concept and the story, so its like a 4.5 out of 5 stars. It's a unique, magical read, and I would recommend it.

Shopaholic Takes Manhattan (Shopaholic #2) by Sophie Kinsella

In this adventurous sequel to Confessions of a Shopaholic, Becky Bloomwood has it made. She has a wonderful boyfriend, a fantastic best friend, a loving and supportive family, and a career she (somewhat) likes as a finance guru on a morning TV show. And when her boyfriend announces that he’s going to New York and asks her to go with him, she finds herself in the glamour and glitz of America. There's just one tiny, tiny problem. She's in debt... AGAIN.

This is the second time I've read this book, and it was just as funny as the first.

Surprisingly, Becky is easy to love. Yes, she's just ridiculous and crazy and has a serious problem. But she's funny and lovable and has a good heart. She's rather shallow and I have no idea how Luke and Suze put up with her. She really is lucky, it's just dumb luck how things always end up in her favor at the end. However unrealistic and lucky she is, I find myself laughing with her, feeling her pain, and cheering for her the entire book. Mostly I'm just rolling my eyes at the ways she gets into all these crazy situations. I love how she explains to the reader exactly why she needs ANOTHER pair of shoes again and again, and yet it makes sense in a twisted way.

I love the Shopaholic series because the things that come out of this girl's mouth are just too ridiculous. Becky is very much in denial, and I hope that she'll get her act together in the next books. I've read them before, but I forget what happens lol. I would recommend this book to anyone who is in the mood for a mindless chick-lit novel and enjoyed the first book in the series. The writing is the same as the first one, and there isn't any huge new things. If you didn't really like the first one, don't read this one because for you, it will basically be the same thing all over again.

4 out of 5 stars because I really did enjoy this one, as fluffy as the story was. :)

Absolutely Positively Not by David Larochelle

Steven is questioning his sexuality. He knows he's not gay, because why else would he have Victoria's Secret models on his wall or sit with the jocks at lunch? But then again, he does spend a lot of time eyeing Coach Bowman and looking at male underwear catalogues. Throughout the story, Steven learns what it means to be a guy and to be true to himself.

First of all, I'm going to put aside the fact that parts of this book were very stereotypical and unrealistic. I am noting that, and that I am not going to go into detail about it.

I absolutely loved this book. It made me laugh on quite a few occasions because it was just TOO funny. Steven is hilarious and someone I would want as my best friend. The writing is witty and the characters are easy to understand. This is an adorable story about coming out. I wished that the pages never ended because I was totally absorbed into Steven's words. I loved Steven's personality and how brave and positive he is. I found myself cheering him on in all the "illegal" things he does and when he was trying to get his driver's license.

I also enjoyed how there wasn't any messy romances in the plot line, so that didn't take away from the story. It distinguishes this novel from being about a gay romance to being about coming out. And that is such a refreshing change.

The one thing that I was disappointed about was Coach Bowman. I would have really liked for Steven and him to have talked at the end of the story instead of Bowman just disappearing from the plot line.

I loved this book because it made me smile and laugh and put me in a good mood. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in a hilarious story about a not-sure-if-he's-gay guy.This fantastic novel definitely deserves 5 out of 5 stars.

Perfect Chemistry (Perfect Chemistry #1) by Simone Elkeles

Brittany Ellis is beautiful, rich, and popular. All the guys want to date her, and the girls want to be her. She's the head cheerleader, and is dating the quarterback, Colin. Her life is perfect, or at least that's what she wants you to believe. Hidden under the stereotype she feels pressured by everyone to keep up the act. Her parents expect too much of her, because their other daughter has cerebral palsy. "Shelley can't be perfect, so she has to be." She's running from her own demons and trying to figure out what she wants and how to keep everyone happy.

Alex Fuentes is a member of the Latino Blood Gang. He's a total bad-a... most of the time. Most people stay are scared of him and stay away. You never know who he'll pick a fight with next, and he has the scars to prove it. No one expects too much of him. Everyone is just waiting for him to drop out of high school. What they don't know is that Alex loves his family very much. The only reason he joined the gang was so that he could protect them from harm. He's a lot smarter than people give him credit for, and has a secret desire to graduate from high school and go to college.

So what happens when these two very different people get put together as partners in chemistry class? The preppy, popular cheerleader and the cocky, dangerous gangbanger? Well, that should be obvious. Perfect Chemistry. They can't believe it, but they fall in love with each other. And then they are way over their heads with decisions to make for themselves, each other, friends, and their family.

I really did enjoy this book. I liked how it showed that you can't judge people by looking at them, because we all have our secrets. Brittany wasn't just some blonde ditz, she was smart and just wanted to follow her heart. Alex isn't the bad guy all the time, he's smart and actually has goals. The characters were stereotypical, but broke the mold at the same time.

While the overall story was kinda unrealistic, I loved it just the same. It was sweet and the characters were honest and relatable. The concept wasn't very original, but it was still intriguing and very fun to read. I wonder what a book would be like if the roles were reversed, where there was a preppy guy and a girl from a gang. Hmm... Someone should write that story.

The only thing I didn't really like was the epilogue. I liked it, but it wasn't really necessary. If it was a stand alone book, I would have liked it. But since there are two more books, I think it could have been taken out and the story would have been fine. It was sweet, but unnecessary.

I think this book would have been fine on its own, without other books in the series, but I will be reading the other ones when I get the chance :) I really did enjoy this romance novel, and I would recommend it if it sounds interesting to you.  5 out of 5 stars !!

Bad Taste in Boys (Kate Grable #1) by Carrie Harris

Kate Grable is the student trainer for the football team. They suck, btw. She tends to any small injuries they have and gives them Gatorade. This position gives her the chance to watch her crush Aaron (get beaten up every game) all the time. When she discovers that the boys on the football team are being injected by something that was thought to be steroids, she’s concerned. She becomes even more concerned when they start turning into zombies. Now, it’s up to her to find a cure before the entire town turns into a worm fest!

The characters were lovable and quite entertaining. I have to say that my favorite character was the pubescent younger brother Jonah. He was wayyy awkward and funny. Like some people I know. Hmmm…

The story was actually pretty gory and gross at times. There’s detatched fingers, black vomit, and bite marks. It gets really graphic, and that really isn’t my thing.

I loved the cover, it’s what caught my eye. It’s just gorgeous. It was kinda disappointing though, because it didn’t really fit the book at all. And neither did the cover. I loved them, I just didn’t think they were appropriate for this book.  

I thought the story line was just okay, and the ending was way too fast. This book is only 200 pages long, so I don’t know what I expected haha.

Bad Taste in Boys was just an okay book for me. It had its moments, but it wasn’t something that really stood out to me. I wouldn’t really recommend it to anyone, except for maybe if you were really into zombies. The concept was interesting enough, but after I started reading it, it was just weird! Overall, it was funny and entertaining, and the characters were easy to like. It really wasn’t my thing, and gross and graphic at a lot of times. It was mostly just strange for me. It was a fun, quick read, but nothing too special for me. 2 out of 5 stars.

Bumped (Bumped #1) by Megan McCafferty

Bumped features a dystopian world that takes place in 2036. In this time, there is a virus that makes everyone around the age of 18 infertile. This means that teenagers are the most important people in society, because they are the only ones that can move the human race along. This leads to parents paying teenage girls to be surrogates and being pregnant and getting pregnant being a fad.

Our two main characters are Melody and Harmony. They are identical twins that were separated at birth. Harmony lives in a super-religious community called Goodside, where she is trained to be a good wife, mother, and worshipper. Melody was raised to be a perfect surrogate so that she would land the best possible contract for pregnancy. Harmony finds out she has a twin and that her sister is "pregging for profit" and decides to journey to Melody's doorstep so that she can save her from her sins.

I was beyond confused at first. There was a lot of "neggy" slang that made it hard to follow along. I think that it would have been very helpful if there was a glossary at the end of the book, or footnotes explaining what these words were. It's like when I read the Uglies by Scott Westerfeld and everything was "bubbly" and I had no idea what that meant so I spent a lot of the book confused lol. Once you get used to that, it's fascinating and very interesting. It's a great idea and so much fun to be living in this world.

I liked Melody, she was easy to relate to with the whole fitting-in at high school thing. Harmony kinda pissed me off. She was very... religious. I don't have a problem with religious people, but she was just over the top. I found myself being very annoyed reading about her worshipping and all. She's just so innocent! Argh. Haha hard for me to relate to. It was also kinda confusing at moments because the names "Harmony" and "Melody" are very similar, so at times I was confused at who was who.

I wasn't too excited after I read the inside flap because of the similarities it had to a book I had recently read (Possession by Elana Johnson). They both had a character called Zen or Zenn and had a places called Goodside or Goodgrounds. Hmmm...

It was a little disturbing about how young all these pregnant girls are. It's kinda sad actually :( And in this book pregnancy is made up to be a glamorous thing, so maybe it isn't giving off the right vibe to teenage readers haha.

This book is supposed to take place in 2036. That's really not that long if you think about it. Now, would names REALLY change that much in that time? They have really foreign names like Shoko and Zen and Ram. In the 1800's which was hundreds of years ago, they had names like Elizabeth and Henry and stuff. And we still use those names today... I just don't think that names will change THAT much in 20 years. Anyway...

I didn't like the ending. The book basically ended in the middle of the scene, and it kinda sucks even though you know there's going to be a sequel.

The cover, not cute. If I hadn't been recommended this book, I probably never would have read this book. The covers are what mainly get me interested (I'm horrible, I know), and seeing a cover with an egg on it with the words "Bumped" does not seem very enthralling. Also, roughly translated, the book could be called "F*cked" because that's basically what bumping means. Now why would you want to read a book called that? It could have been way cuter, and the judging-before-reading could have been a lot better haha.

I liked how this wasn't your basic dystopian read. It's doesn't just focus on the romance, it's also about family. I would recommend it to an older teen, because its about a more mature topic, but the writing is targeted towards a younger teen so it wouldn't be fore everyone.

Despite how I seemed to spend most of this review criticizing things, I really did enjoy the story. It was frightening and fascinating at the same time, while being humorous at others. It was thought provoking and the concept is a really great idea. It's original and fantastic, though it takes a while to get used to.

I'm sorry I seemed to find more bad things than good, but overall its a pretty good read. So 4 out of 5 stars . I probably liked it better than Matched (but not as much as the Uglies series of course). I will be looking forward to the sequel, which I hope gives more information about the virus and the past. You might want to give this one a try! Thanks to Talia for recommending it to me :)