Tag: young adult contemporary

Book Review: ASAP (XOXO #2) by Axie Oh

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Axie Oh
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: February 6th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

New York Times bestselling author Axie Oh’s ASAP is the much anticipated companion novel to beloved romance XOXO, following fan favorites Sori, the wealthy daughter of a K-pop company owner, and Nathaniel, her K-pop star ex-boyfriend, in a swoon-worthy second chance love story.

Sori has worked her whole life to become a K-pop idol, until she realizes she doesn’t want a life forever in the spotlight. But that’s not actually up to Sori—she’s caught between her exacting mother’s entertainment company and her father’s presidential aspirations. And as the pressure to keep her flawless public image grows, the last person she should be thinking about is her ex-boyfriend.

Nathaniel is off limits—she knows this. A member of one of the biggest K-pop bands in the world and forbidden from dating, he isn’t any more of an option now than he was two years ago. Still, she can’t forget that their whirlwind romance was the last time she remembers being really happy. Or that his family welcomed her into their home when she needed it most. . . .

So when Nathaniel finds himself rocked by scandal, Sori offers him a hideaway with her. And back in close quarters, it’s hard to deny their old feelings. But when Sori gets an opportunity to break free from her parent’s expectations, she will have to decide: Is her future worth sacrificing for a second chance at love?

VERY FRUSTRATING.

I adored XOXO and this was a big letdown. I felt like a lot of this book happened around the main character and she was on the sidelines. Sori was helping everyone else and doing things for other people while she was standing still. I would have loved to see her more involved in the plot.

And the second chance romance was on the eh side too. The third act conflict about had me throw my phone across the room. The level of unnecessary drama to drag out the story made much of it feel like filler plot lines rather than a cohesive novel.

The audio narrator was fantastic and that had me holding on. Otherwise this book left a lot to be desired for me.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: closed door

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ARC Book Review: Nothing Like the Movies (Better Than the Movies #2) by Lynn Painter

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: NA Contemporary Romance
Length: 440 pages
Author: Lynn Painter
Publisher: Simon Teen
Release Date: October 1st, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

In this highly anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestselling Better than the Movies, Wes and Liz struggle to balance their feelings for each other with the growing pains of being a college student.

For a few beautiful months, Wes had his dream girl: strong-willed girl-next-door Liz. But right as the two were about to set off to UCLA to start their freshman year together, tragedy struck. Wes was left dealing with the fallout, which ultimately meant losing Liz in the process.

Flash forward months and months later and Wes and Liz find themselves in college, together. In a healthier place now, Wes knows he broke Liz’s heart when he ended things, but he is determined to make her fall back in love with him.

Wes knows Liz better than anyone, and he has a foolproof plan to win her back with the rom-com worthy big gestures she loves. Only…Liz will have none of it. Wes has to scheme like a rom-com hero to figure out how to see her. Even worse, Liz has a new friend…a guy friend.

Still, Wes won’t give up, adapting his clever plans and going hard to get Liz’s attention and win back her affection. But after his best efforts get him nowhere, Wes is left wondering if their relationship is really over for good.

Thank you Simon Teen for the gifted ARC.

SMITTEN.

I enjoyed this story so dang much. I love Wes and Liz and I loved seeing how their relationship progressed through this book. It’s messy and complicated, has a bit of drama and struck many chords of life in college and figuring things out. I loved watching the character growth for both Wes and Liz. Each had some tough truths to learn and adapt from and I love that they found their way back to each other in the end.

And this is a subtle baseball romance?? Heck yes. I could not get enough of the baseball content and I loved Liz’s college job! I think it worked perfectly for this story and added to the necessity of some good ol’ forced proximity moments that I crave.

The side characters were fantastic too. I loved all of Wes’s teammates (and please tell me we might get more stories from this UCLA crew??). Liz’s roommates were also so fun and it really reminded me of the joy that being on a college campus can bring.

Bonus points if you catch the little Taylor Swift references throughout. I loved all of the song lyric additions and gosh dang am I obsessed with a good argument scene, bring me all of the passionate confessions. This truly did read like a movie for me and I would watch it in a heartbeat.

Overall audience notes:

  • NA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: high and present throughout
  • Romance: kisses
  • Content Warnings: loss of a parent (heart attack), grief depiction, panic attacks

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Book Review: Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute by Talia Hibbert

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Talia Hibbert
Publisher: Joy Revolution
Release Date: January 3rd, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He’s a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes . . . except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine.

Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption–yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.)

These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her.

Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?

LOVED THE REP.

This was my first Talia Hibbert book and I enjoyed it! It was a good young adult contemporary that brought a lot of things I love seeing in the genre.

The mental health rep was probably my favorite aspect. It was like being inside of my own mind and I appreciated seeing how these situations were handled and I love the kind responses and sincere friendships of loving who someone is as they are, without a need for change.

While occasionally frustrated with both characters I think that just stems from the age category. Mistakes are made, wrong things are said, BUT they are resolved and worked through and I realllllly love seeing that kind of work put into relationships (of all kinds).

Some of the plot set up with the camping, etc. was fine. I don’t feel like I was fully invested in those pieces. This was a heavily character driven story and that is my general sweet spot. I flew through this and thought the themes were right on point.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: make-outs
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: anxiety and OCD rep, parental abandonment

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Book Review: Spells for Lost Things by Jenna Evans Welch

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: YA Contemporary + Romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: Jenna Evans Welch
Publisher: Simon Schuster
Release Date: September 27th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Willow has never felt like she belonged anywhere and is convinced that the only way to find a true home is to travel the world. But her plans to act on her dream are put on hold when her aloof and often absent mother drags Willow to Salem, Massachusetts, to wrap up the affairs of an aunt Willow didn’t even know she had. An aunt who may or may not have been a witch.

There, she meets Mason, a loner who’s always felt out of place and has been in and out of foster homes his entire life. He’s been classified as one of the runaways, constantly searching for ways to make it back to his mom; even if she can’t take care of him, it’s his job to try and take care of her. Isn’t it?

Naturally pulled to one another, Willow and Mason set out across Salem to discover the secret past of Willow’s mother, her aunt, and the ambiguous history of her family. During all of this, the two can’t help but act on their natural connection. But with the amount of baggage between them—and Willow’s growing conviction her family might be cursed—can they manage to hold onto each other?

From the New York Times bestselling author of Love & Gelato comes a poignant and romantic novel about two teens trying to find their place in the world after being unceremoniously dragged to Salem, Massachusetts, for the summer.

LOOOOOOVED.

Well this was magnificent and everything I could hope for when I picked it up. I’ve been looking forward to this book since it was announced and it’s an easy must read from me.

I loved the plot surrounding Willow, dealing with the fallout of her parent’s divorce, and Mason, dealing with the foster care system and wanting to know where his Mom is located. Both of these teens flat out needed some LOVE. And by golly, they found that and more. As someone who had to deal with her own parent’s divorce I felt really seen by many of the things Willow mentioned and talked about.

There is a very subtle romance between Willow and Mason that is just the sweetest. Why not at the forefront of the book (don’t think this is a romance please!), it gave both characters another layer to their stories and I adored it all the more. I loved how unassuming and caring they were to one another. Allowing the chance to be seen and heard and just to have someone on their side. My heart was an absolute puddle.

Misty eyes found their way to me with some of those ending conversations with parents and guardians. It was incredible and beautiful and pulled at every heart string I have. I loved this book and all it presented. READ IT.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary + Romance
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: divorce, a parent with a substance abuse

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