Summer Reads Recommendations

Summer will soon be upon us, and for some lucky people it has already started, so I thought I would share with you some books to read in summer.

Personally, I tend to read contemporary books in summer and these are some of my favourites from the past year and a half.

The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

If you're in the mood to be a little sad, then this is the book for you. Nelson's writing really draws you in to the characters and the story. Be prepared to hate certain decisions, but you can love this book through that and that's what makes it really stand out.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

This book has been hyped and plugged so much over the past year, so you're probably sick of hearing about it, but I can guarantee that at least one of you won't have read it. So, why should you give into the hype? This book mixes the importance of family, the stresses of schoolwork and exploring new relationships with being part of a fandom, making it extremely relatable and, secretly, we all want Cath's life.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

This is my favourite out of Anna, Lola and Isla and is the perfect starting point if you want to explore the contemporary genre. If you're in the mood for a sweet romance and a couple that's extremely shippable, pick this up.

Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

This book surprised me, in a good way. This is a great story about friendships, new and old, and the perfect way to spend your summer. It's both inspiring and heartbreaking; the perfect holiday read.

If you end up reading any of these, let me know what you think of them! What books would you recommend to read over the summer?

Holiday Reading - A Collection of Reviews

Over the past two weeks, my Easter holidays, I have read four books and I thought that instead of posting individual reviews on them, I should combine them into one post.

Scarlet -Marissa Meyer

Upon seeing that this book was not focused on Cinder, I became worried that we would leave her storyline completely and after the end of the first book, I was utterly devastated and confused by that. Thankfully, though this book did have focus on Scarlet, it also had focus on Cinder as well.

This book picked up the story very soon after Cinder had finished and that really reminded me of how little time this book actually covers. The number of events and depth of this book makes it seems as if weeks or months could have passed, but in reality it was only a few days.

The story of Scarlet I could instantly link to the fairytale of Little Red Riding Hood from the disappearance of her grandmother and her red hoodie. I do love how this series links into different fairytales and adapts them so that they can fit in with a more complex universe. As a person, I liked Scarlet for her passion and how she was not always wanting to rely on others. However, I did feel that she started to trust Wolf too soon and that meant that I wasn't totally on board with their relationship until she managed to stop him from attacking her.  As well as that, I could tell that he hadn't betrayed her and actually had feelings for her when they went into the old theatre from the way he was acting beforehand and though that may have been part of Meyer's plan as an author, to me, I would have preferred to be surprised and experience Scarlet's way of thinking.

Exploring Cinder's powers was something that I was hoping would happen in this book. I think that the phrase 'power is addictive' fits in well with what Cinder was struggling with and I am actually quite scared for how it will influence her in the future. We have already seen her break down because of her actions, but will the consequences in later books be more severe? As well as that, learning what Kai was having to do to try and keep the peace was also heartbreaking. It was good to hear that he was not repulsed by Cinder being a cyborg because after the ending of the first book, I was willing to cast him aside completely for what he had done. Finally the return of Iko and introduction of Thorne was something that really drew me into the book; I can't wait to see how their storylines will continue.

Overall this book was sublime and I can't wait to get my hands on Cress!

(Goodreads parallel)

I'll Give You The Sun - Jandy Nelson

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started this book. However, I was soon caught up in the parallel storylines that took place at different times and fell in love with both of the twins for different reasons. I liked Jude for her quirkiness and seeming rebellion from what she was expected to be and act like. I loved how Noah would imagine situations as paintings and how he wanted a life that he was never going to have because I think that can be applied to a lot of people's lives.

Noah at thirteen was someone who I admired for his talent and love of art and also someone who I felt sorry for as he couldn't express himself as he really wanted to, especially with Brian. There was the competition of sibling rivalry on top of that, which Jude experienced as well, and wanting something so much that he focused so much of his time and effort on. Then a few things started to change and I was very happy for Brian and Noah, but I knew from Jude's perspective that something must have gone wrong, which only made the end of their relationship more terrible.

Jude at sixteen was someone who was living with a lot of regret and shame, who instead of sharing it, was letting it all pile up on her shoulders when screaming it out would have probably been better for her mind and soul. Carving her sculptures was a way for her to scream it out and her relationship with Oscar was something that she was not prepared for because at that point she hadn't yet learning to let go of the past. As a character, I loved her immensely because I could feel the weight she carried as if it were my own and I was pleased that she tried to make up for her past mistakes.

I especially loved this book because of how all the events interlinked and how all the characters were involved in each other's lives. The realisation of those connections really left me in a state and I can't thank my friends enough so listening to my ramblings on this book that probably made no sense because I was so emotionally invested in the story.

After reading this book, I would highly recommend it and I think I will have to go on a search for more Jandy Nelson books as a result of how this book made me feel.

(Goodreads parallel)

Isla and the Happily Ever After - Stephanie Perkins

I have been told by numerous people that Isla is their favourite book in the series that started with Anna. I cannot agree with that opinion and think that this is more a 4.5 star book, though I think I prefer it to Lola.

Having the first small section of the book months before the rest of it started was a really nice ease into the book as it introduced Isla to us in a simple way and also let us in on her crush on Josh without taking away from the aspect of her going back to school, which it would have done otherwise.

As a character, I did quite like Isla. She was hard-working and quite self-sufficient as she only really had one friend. That one friend, Kurt, I ended up feeling quite sorry for because it became plain that as soon as Josh started taking an interest in Isla that their relationship would change. As well as that, the fact that he had autism reminded me that this book was not supposed to be about perfect people living a perfect life. It didn't overly restrict him, but it made the book feel more real.

Josh was a main character in Anna's book, though I have to admit that I didn't pay as much attention to him as I should have. So, for me it was really interesting to get a deeper look into his life, his love of art and how he dealt with certain situations. All his friends had left the year before and he was struggling with his school life, which I had got from the first book, but I barely knew anything about Josh then - it was nice to see more into who he really is in this book.

This book was different in its set up to the others. It didn't focus on the characters getting together as much, but rather what happened once they were together. It felt odd to have a teen romance book set up in that way and though I am not against it (I liked how this book got to focus on the actual relationship rather than some 'friendship' that could be put into question), but to have Isla and Josh go on a trip to Barcelona to have sex less than halfway through the book did feel a bit soon. I think that it made me question their relationship more than I did the other couples, but also made their relationship feel like it was closer to what would happen in real life because not all couples spend ages pining after each other, they get together and then things progress from there.

I was happy that we got to see the other characters again, though in a way their introduction in this book did feel a bit like it was pinned on the end. I think I preferred it to Anna's constant involvement in Lola's book though as I want them to be able to be read as separate stories.

Overall this was a good read, but definitely not Perkins' best. Maybe I set my expectations too high after hearing so many amazing things about it.

(Goodreads parallel)

To All The Boys I've Loved Before - Jenny Han

Even though I have given this book five stars, I would say that it is more accurately 4.5 stars. The concept of this book was something totally different to romance books that I have read before and that really made it so much more interesting. The idea of writing someone a love letter to get over them is not something that I would have ever thought about before, but thinking over it, it actually makes sense. This book was not based off something that would never happen, just something that was unlikely to happen and that is what made it special.

I also love that this book wasn't your typical 'white girl' romance book. The infusion of slight differences in culture made this book stand out as well and though we don't learn much about the girl's deceased mother, her absence was felt throughout the whole book by the girl's having to be a lot more mature than anyone would expect someone of their age to be.

In terms of the romance, I am left totally confused. We are presented with two boys, one of whom Lara Jean thinks she fancies and the other she used to fancy but no longer feels that way. Then there is the concept of fake dating from which a true romance blossoms, but because of lasting ties and other people's views, it is a romance that doesn't work out the way that both parties would want it to. At the beginning, I was thinking that Josh had it in the bag, but now I am utterly on Peter's side.

My criticisms of this book are that, for a nine year old, Kitty seemed far to mature. I have a nine year old sister myself and feel like sometimes the language she was using and way she was acting reminded me more of an eleven or twelve year old. As well as that, the fact that Lara Jean  was never questioning of her elder sister put me on edge a bit. Real sisters never seem to me to be as perfect as they are and it made the words on the page feel more like a story than I would have liked.

Overall, I really liked this book and cannot wait for the next book to come out! The cliff-hanger we're left on may not be as dramatic as in some action novels, but it is raising my heart rate just as much.

(Goodreads parallel)

Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Before I even picked up this novel, I was told that it wasn't as good as 'Anna and the French Kiss' (AFK) and after reading this book, I have to agree. With a book that is so closely entwined with the universe of AFK, it is almost impossible not to make comparisons between the two, which though I do feel slightly bad about, is a given.

This book had some wonderful characters in it. I really liked Lola for her eccentric fashion choices and her ability not to conform. I personally wouldn't have made some of the decisions that she made and actually got quite annoyed with her at points, but I think that that was important to make her a well-rounded character. I also liked her for her creative skills, both in baking and in her sewing. My nan is always telling me that having sewing skills will come in handy one day and although I don't think I'll be making a costume for a national figure skating star, it definitely inspired me to want to pick up my needle and thread again.

I think that this may be the first book that I've read that has the main character with two dads, even if the circumstances of her being their child were slightly out of the ordinary. I think it was great how natural this book made it for them to be a couple and how it challenged certain ideas, like the 'who's the woman?' question, which I always get really tired of as well. I'm really happy that even though this book is about Lola and her various boyfriends, this book had that aspect of accepting all couples within it.

If I were Cricket Bell, I would have probably stopped trying with Lola as soon as I found out that she had a boyfriend. Obviously though, I'm not and without that key factor this book wouldn't be a book. Personally, I really liked the idea of communicating to your neighbour through windows that face each other. It reminded me of that Taylor Swift music video that we all know and love and almost made me wish that I could have something similar. The idea itself does sound very romantic and added something to Lola and Cricket that was wholly theirs.

With each time that we met Max, I started to dislike him more and more. Firstly the fact that part of his and Lola's relationship was technically illegal and yet he went with it, made me think that he was a bit untrustworthy. If they really liked each other that much, surely they could have waited? Then the next moment that sticks out is when he was rude to Lindsey. Being rude to your girlfriend's best friend is on the unacceptable list to me and if I were Lola, I would have ended it right there. Finally, we have the overwhelming evidence of how he treated Lola throughout the whole book. I saw a spark of hope for him in the beginning, but the candle never even got close to lighting.

My final point on characterisation is that it was great. I love how Perkins goes into so much detail with all of her characters, even if they are not the main protagonists. I could have talked about Lindsey's love of crime shows and Norah's past and present as well. To me, characterisation like that it what makes a book real. In real life we aren't all flat, so it was good to see characters that weren't.

I have to say, however, that this novel was utterly predictable and in some aspects seemed like AFK, but with the roles reversed. As soon as Cricket was introduced, I knew that Lola was going to end up with him and it would have been nicer if Max were someone that I could actually find myself rooting for, rather than getting annoyed with Lola for being an idiot over her boy choices. I also couldn't help but make the comparisons of Lola to St. Clair and Cricket to Anna. That was what this book felt like to me; AFK, but with adapted characters.

As well as that, I personally feel like Anna and St. Clair were in this book too much. I liked where the end of AFK left me and from then on I could use my own imagination to come up with what happened to them when they graduated and from then on. Of course, they had an important role to play, but their involvement just wasn't to my taste.

Overall though, this was a good book and I'm happy with where it ended. I look forward to getting my hands on 'Isla and the Happily Ever After' next.

(Goodreads parallel)