Tag: Book Review

ARC Book Review: Tilly in Technicolor by Mazey Eddings

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 320 pages
Author: Mazey Eddings
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: August 15th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Tilly in Technicolor is Mazey Eddings’s sparkling YA debut about two neurodivergent teens who form a connection over the course of a summer.

Tilly Twomley is desperate for change. White-knuckling her way through high school with flawed executive functioning has left her burnt out and ready to start fresh. Working as an intern for her perfect older sister’s start up isn’t exactly how Tilly wants to spend her summer, but the required travel around Europe promises a much-needed change of scenery as she plans for her future. The problem is, Tilly has no idea what she wants.

Oliver Clark knows exactly what he wants. His autism has often made it hard for him to form relationships with others, but his love of color theory and design allows him to feel deeply connected to the world around him. Plus, he has everything he needs: a best friend that gets him, placement into a prestigious design program, and a summer internship to build his resume. Everything is going as planned. That is, of course, until he suffers through the most disastrous international flight of his life, all turmoil stemming from lively and exasperating Tilly. Oliver is forced to spend the summer with a girl that couldn’t be more his opposite—feeling things for her he can’t quite name—and starts to wonder if maybe he doesn’t have everything figured out after all.

As the duo’s neurodiverse connection grows, they learn that some of the best parts of life can’t be planned, and are forced to figure out what that means as their disastrously wonderful summer comes to an end.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an eARC.

SUNSHINE.

Oh my gosh, I LOVED THIS BOOK. It is everything I love about reading upper YA and I am a puddle of goo over Tilly and Oliver. THEY ARE PRECIOUS. The whole book is swoony and absolutely one of the sweetest books ever. I loved the descriptions of how Tilly and Oliver were both feeling towards each other. That burst of first love that overtakes your soul is next level and it was brought to life by Eddings.

I loved both of the main characters separate and together. I loved Tilly for her continual resilience and perseverance while maintaining this breath of optimism. She’s been put under so much pressure to succeed a “certain” way that watching that unravel broke my heart. Those conversations with her Mom and sister, Mona, in the second half of the book pulled at all of my heartstrings. And Oliver?? The cutest grumpy boy EVER. I loved his journey too and learning about how he saw the world as well. The undeniable chemistry between Tilly and Oliver will make you giddy.

The setting and general plot was fantastic. I loved all of the color aspects, the nail polish business, traveling around Europe, sight seeing and all of the falling in love scenes. It’s a perfect balance of the romance with the sub-plots that brought this whole book together. I had a hard time putting this down because it brought a smile to my face every time I picked it up. It’s full of meaning and impact and gosh dang everyone should pick this one up.

I LOVED IT SO MUCH PLEASE READ IT.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: a little strong
  • Romance: one very brief & super vague scene
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: ableism towards ADHD and autism, alcohol consumption

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Book Review: Upgrade by Blake Crouch

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Sci-Fi
Length: 352 pages
Author: Blake Crouch
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Release Date: July 12th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

At first, Logan Ramsay isn’t sure if anything’s different. He just feels a little . . . sharper. Better able to concentrate. Better at multitasking. Reading a bit faster, memorizing better, needing less sleep.

But before long, he can’t deny it: Something’s happening to his brain. To his body. He’s starting to see the world, and those around him—even those he loves most—in whole new ways.

The truth is, Logan’s genome has been hacked. And there’s a reason he’s been targeted for this upgrade. A reason that goes back decades to the darkest part of his past, and a horrific family legacy.

Worse still, what’s happening to him is just the first step in a much larger plan, one that will inflict the same changes on humanity at large—at a terrifying cost.

Because of his new abilities, Logan’s the one person in the world capable of stopping what’s been set in motion. But to have a chance at winning this war, he’ll have to become something other than himself. Maybe even something other than human.

And even as he’s fighting, he can’t help wondering: what if humanity’s only hope for a future really does lie in engineering our own evolution?

Intimate in scale yet epic in scope, Upgrade is an intricately plotted, lightning-fast tale that charts one man’s thrilling transformation, even as it asks us to ponder the limits of our humanity—and our boundless potential. 

NOTHING TO WRITE HOME ABOUT.

I like a good Crouch book. Dark Matter is still my absolute fav, and I did like this more than recursion. I think something is missing from the middle? The first half was intense and mysterious. I liked the main character diving in deep to what was happening to him and finding corrupted family is always a good twist. Then I thought with the time jump it left a gap in the middle of slowing down to build back up to the wild ending.

This is definitely an eery read. Which did play into my anxiety a lot (not the book’s fault, since I didn’t read the synopsis, but I mention it for others!). It’s very realistic future and wow that always makes me feel filled with dread. It did make for a very good setting though that I liked a lot in regards to all of the genetic mutation discussions.

The ending did bring some feels. I wasn’t expecting to feel that attached and while it had notes of sadness, I liked the acceptance and hopefulness of it all too. It wasn’t some knock out, why did I read this, kind of ending. It was a satisfying conclusion to this type of read and I liked that it was a quick audiobook.

Overall audience notes:

  • Sci-Fi
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: genetic mutations without consent, gun violence, loss of a sibling, murder, quarantines

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Book Review: Cupid’s Compass (The Soulmate Seekers Series #1) by Ashley Weiss

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Magical Realism
Length: 434 pages
Author: Ashley Weiss
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: June 20th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Some say it’s a blessing. Others swear it’s a curse.
Cupid’s compass is the enchanted tattoo that links soulmates and reveals when they will first meet. Most seekers, such as fifteen-year-old Lacey Baker, are thrilled to wake up to their sealed fate, but not everyone’s future is clear.
Her best friend is cursed by a compass that never moves but she can’t figure out why. Her mother’s soulmate link spontaneously changes, leaving their family in shambles. And Lacey’s soulmate. . . that’s another story.
A city away, Jaylynn Clare has a different problem. After a haunting prediction from a local psychic, her life becomes a high-stakes game of cat and mouse. Promised unavoidable tragedy if she meets her linked partner, she takes it upon herself to run at all costs. But can fate be avoided, or only prolonged?
In a mad dash of love, lies, and long-forgotten curses, seekers across the globe weave together in this heart-wrenching narrative of entangled soulmates.

Thank you to the author for a gifted copy.

UNIQUE CONCEPT.

If you’re looking for a very diverse read with a concept I haven’t heard of, this might be the book for you! I loved the compass idea and how this book looked into MANY types of love situations. From love of a friend, companion, partner, self and more. I enjoyed finding out each person’s story.

There was a looooot of POV’s though. I think I counted 12?? And that really didn’t feel necessary. I feel like the author was trying to make sure we saw every single angle, but it took me awhile to remember who was who and which story line and everything in between.

I liked how short and fast the chapters were. And this isn’t a FANTASY book. More of a urban fantasy + magical realism kind of vibe. I didn’t mind, as I thought it functioned well within the world built around these compasses and the Roman gods. I loooove meddling gods and look forward to hopefully seeing more of them too.

The writing was fantastic. I had set out to read x amount of pages a day, and proceeded to find something continually wanting to pick it up. It was an engaging story and after that ending I NEED ANSWERS.

Overall audience notes:

  • Urban Fantasy / Magical Realism
  • Language: low
  • Romance: Kisses
  • Violence: moderate
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: sexual assault, suicidal thoughts, death of loved ones, a religious cult, self-harm off page, homophobia, emotional abuse

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Book Review: The Stolen Heir (The Stolen Heir Duology #1) by Holly Black

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy Romance
Length: 358 pages
Author: Holly Black
Publisher: Little Brown Books
Release Date: January 3rd, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A runaway queen. A reluctant prince. And a quest that may destroy them both.

Eight years have passed since the Battle of the Serpent. But in the icy north, Lady Nore of the Court of Teeth has reclaimed the Ice Needle Citadel. There, she is using an ancient relic to create monsters of stick and snow who will do her bidding and exact her revenge.

Suren, child queen of the Court of Teeth, and the one person with power over her mother, fled to the human world. There, she lives feral in the woods. Lonely, and still haunted by the merciless torments she endured in the Court of Teeth, she bides her time by releasing mortals from foolish bargains. She believes herself forgotten until the storm hag, Bogdana chases her through the night streets. Suren is saved by none other than Prince Oak, heir to Elfhame, to whom she was once promised in marriage and who she has resented for years.

Now seventeen, Oak is charming, beautiful, and manipulative. He’s on a mission that will lead him into the north, and he wants Suren’s help. But if she agrees, it will mean guarding her heart against the boy she once knew and a prince she cannot trust, as well as confronting all the horrors she thought she left behind.

I AM INVESTED.

I do admit to thinking that this was going to be from Oak’s perspective??? Or at least dual. Sadly that was not the case. BUT I did love Suren. She was feisty and intense. Full of every emotion and just wanting a safe place to land and be loved. I am wholly invested in her journey and can’t wait to see how it further twists in Elfhame.

Oak is just flat out adorable. In his murderous rampage + golden retriever personality ways. It’s a fantastic combination that worked beautifully for me. I love these two together. And I actually like that they have a different vibe than Jude/Cardan. I don’t think I would have enjoyed reading a repeat kind of storyline/personality dynamics.

As usual, I still think these books are too short. I did like everything else though. There’s a good amount of action and plenty of twists that are hard to see coming. This is an adventure tale with lots of travel but doesn’t feel stagnant or drawn out. Another truly good read from Holly Black.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy Romance
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: medium-high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of life, attempted murder, kidnapping, imprisonment, weapons and physical violence

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