WAITING ON WEDNESDAY

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's WoW selection is...

If fate sent you an email, would you answer?

In This is What Happy Looks Like, Jennifer E. Smith's new YA novel, perfect strangers Graham Larkin and Ellie O'Neill meet—albeit virtually—when Graham accidentally sends Ellie an email about his pet pig, Wilbur. In the tradition of romantic movies like "You've Got Mail" and "Sleepless in Seattle," the two 17-year-olds strike up an email relationship, even though they live on opposite sides of the country and don't even know each other's first names. Through a series of funny and poignant messages, Graham and Ellie make a true connection, sharing intimate details about their lives, hopes and fears. But they don't tell each other everything; Graham doesn't know the major secret hidden in Ellie's family tree, and Ellie is innocently unaware that Graham is actually a world-famous teen actor living in Los Angeles. When the location for the shoot of Graham's new film falls through, he sees an opportunity to take their relationship from online to in-person, managing to get the production relocated to picturesque Henley, Maine, where Ellie lives. But can a star as famous as Graham have a real relationship with an ordinary girl like Ellie? And why does Ellie's mom want her to avoid the media's spotlight at all costs. Just as they did in The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, the hands of fate intervene in wondrous ways in this YA novel that delivers on high concept romance in lush and thoughtful prose.

Why I'm Waiting ~ I absolutely loved The Statistical Probablility of Love at First Sight. So basically, I want to read everything Jennifer E. Smith ever, ever writes. Also, the cover is super cute!


Expected publication: April 2nd 2013 by Poppy

You can preorder This is What Happy Looks Like at:
Amazon  |  Book Depository

{REVIEW} SURVIVING HIGH SCHOOL by M. DOTY

Series: A High School Novel #1
Publisher: Poppy
Publication Date: Sept 4, 2012
Format: Paperback
Pages: 224
Source: Received from publisher for review.

Emily Kessler thinks she has it all figured out. She eats, sleeps and trains for competitive swimming. All she has to do is keep her grades high and swim times short -- short enough to live up to her sister Sara's. But walking the crowded maze of unfamiliar high school hallways is like diving headfirst into shark-infested waters. Shark #1: Dominique, her biggest competition on the swim team and all-around mean girl. Shark #2: The adorable and popular Ben Kale... Emily can't resist his smile no matter how hard she tries. When the pressure builds to the point where Emily isn't sure she can stay afloat, she begins to question the strict path her life has always followed.
Maybe there is more to life than studying and swimming. Maybe the secret to surviving high school is just to have a little fun.

The hit mobile game Surviving High School comes to life in an original novel about perfection, failure, and following your dreams.

A story that's not particularly lengthy, but full of a wealth of emotion, Surviving High School is proof that size sometimes doesn't matter.

Surviving High School tricked me. When I saw that it was based on a game, and contains a mere two hundred, eleven pages, I thought it would be sort of a "fluff" book. A book that skims the surface, nice, but never digging too deep. Boy, was I wrong.

Surviving High School centers around Emily, a girl who is beginning high school in the shadow of her newly deceased sister. Since her sister, Sara's death, Emily has been pushed into her role: model student, perfect athlete, quiet daughter. She even eats and trains exactly like her sister did. The other girls on the team? They're not Emily's competition. She's competing against her sister's swim times. It doesn't help that her grieving father is also her swim coach. He pushes and punishes Emily to the very edge, not realizing what a loose grip she has. When Emily becomes involved with a boy from school, and realizes she wants a life outside of the pool and the constraints, she begins to unravel. How long will it takes her perfect life to fall completely apart? And does she even want to save it?

Surviving High School was very nicely written. The third person narrative, and the manner in which the story is told gave me the sense of watching the story unfold from above. Sometimes that doesn't work for me, but in this case it was nice. Emily's emotions were conveyed so simply, yet strong enough that I didn't feel disengaged.

I find it very interesting that the story, and subsequent series is based on a game. I'm curious as to how it plays out, and I may even buy it for myself. I would love to talk to someone who has actually played it. The next book in the series, How to Be a Star, is based on Emily's best friend Kimi, who is an absolute riot. I'm definitely interested in reading that book as well.

Surprisingly thoughtful and full of depth, yet fun, Surviving High School is a book that I can recommend to adults and teens.


Favorite Quote:

"Suddenly, Emily's head felt light, and she realized she hadn't taken a breath since she was up on Ben's balcony. She needed some air. Now. Two competing impulses took hold: Press her lips against Ben's or swim to the surface and breathe. A first kiss or oxygen? She wasn't sure which one she wanted more." (pg. 102)

"How much more could she take? Maybe this was the moment when she would break, when the weight of the sky became too much for her shoulders, and it crushed her beneath its weight." (pg 145)

You can purchase Surviving High School at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

TEASER TUESDAY {SURVIVING HIGH SCHOOL by M. DOTY}

 

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

·Grab your current read
·Open to a random page
·Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
·Be careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others.

Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles.

Series: Stand-alone
Publisher: Poppy
Publication Date: Sept 4, 2012

Emily Kessler thinks she has it all figured out. She eats, sleeps and trains for competitive swimming. All she has to do is keep her grades high and swim times short -- short enough to live up to her sister Sara's. But walking the crowded maze of unfamiliar high school hallways is like diving headfirst into shark-infested waters. Shark #1: Dominique, her biggest competition on the swim team and all-around mean girl. Shark #2: The adorable and popular Ben Kale... Emily can't resist his smile no matter how hard she tries. When the pressure builds to the point where Emily isn't sure she can stay afloat, she begins to question the strict path her life has always followed.
Maybe there is more to life than studying and swimming. Maybe the secret to surviving high school is just to have a little fun.

The hit mobile game Surviving High School comes to life in an original novel about perfection, failure, and following your dreams.

My Teaser ~

  "Suddenly, Emily's head felt light, and she realized she hadn't taken a breath since she was up on Ben's balcony. She needed some air. Now. Two competing impulses took hold: Press her lips against Ben's or swim to the surface and breathe. A first kiss or oxygen? She wasn't sure which one she wanted more." (pg. 102)

Check out my full review of Surviving High School.

You can purchase Surviving High School at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

REVIEW: THE BOY RECESSION by FLYNN MEANEY

Series: Stand-alone
Publisher: Poppy
Publication Date: August 7, 2012
Pages: 247 pages
Source: Received from publisher for review

Where have all the boys gone?

Down-to-earth Kelly is always the friend and never the girlfriend. But as her junior year of high school starts, Kelly is determined to finally reveal her true feelings for her long-time crush and good friend Hunter - that is, until the Boy Recession hits.

Over the past summer, an overwhelming number of male students have left Kelly and Hunter's small high school class. Some were sent to private school and others moved away. Whatever the case, the sudden population shift has left the already small Julius P. Heil High in desperate shape. The football coach is recruiting chess champs for his team, the principal's importing male exchange students to balance out school dances,and Hunter is about to become an unexpected heartthrob. Content with his role as the guitar-strumming, class-skipping slacker, Hunter is unprepared to be the center of attention. Desperate coaches are recruiting him for sports teams, and the drama teacher casts him in the lead role of the school musical. Even the Spandexers, powerful popular girls in tight pants, are noticing Hunter in a new light - with a little work, he could have potential. He might even be boyfriend material...

In order to stand out from the crowd and win Hunter's heart, Kelly needs a "stimulus package" in the form of cougar lessons from a senior girl who dates hot freshman boys and advice on the male mind from her Cosmo-addicted best friend, Aviva. As if dating wasn't hard enough without a four-to-one ratio!

What happens when all the boys are gone? From your school, that is. When the most popular guys in school transfer to greener pastures, the Boy Recession hits. Guys who are usually ignored gain the girls' interest and new found popularity. The girls are scrambling to get a guy before they're all taken. Sweet Kelly likes slacker Hunter, who suddenly becomes the biggest catch in school. But now that he has all the girls' attention, Kelly realizes that she may be too late, because in a recession, it's every girl for herself.

The Boy Recession was a super cute, though very light, story. Kelly is the fairly typical character found in a lot of young adult books. She's just popular enough to fit in, kind of shy, very sweet, and feels like she isn't noticed. I did like her, but didn't feel overly invested in her story. Hunter, on the other hand, was pretty great. He's a bit of a slacker (Be still my teenage heart!), does just enough to get by, is very cute but doesn't seem to realize that, and is a really nice guy. I loved his story, maybe because he has more to work through than Kelly. He was funny and just made me smile. Their friends were fun and I did enjoy their part in the story. The one who stood out the most was Eugene. He's a bit of an exaggerated character. He's a teen entrepreneur who apparently makes his money from supplying beer and other difficult to come by items to his schoolmates. There were some aspects to his part of the story that felt a bit unrealistic, but it did help move the story along.

The Boy Recession was a good story, for me, that could have been really good or even great if it had dug deeper. I felt some aspects of the story were an overview. Almost an entire year passes, and I felt like so much more could have been discussed. Kelly and Hunter's families are mentioned, but other than a few scenes between Hunter and and his father and one (I think) with his mom, they are absent.  Kelly remains largely the same throughout the book, but Hunter makes huge changes. I felt that this was never really examined. I would have liked to have gotten a real sense of his motivations. Maybe The Boy Recession was never meant to be a particularly deep story.

All of this is not to say that I didn't enjoy The Boy Recession, because I absolutely did. Meaney's writing was enjoyable. Her characters were witty, and the dialogue was excellent. If you want a fun, mostly light-hearted story that will put a smile on your face, The Boy Recession just may be the book for you!


Favorite Quote:

  " 'Are you the bartender?' Aviva asks him.
   'I delivered all this crap,' Derek says. 'I work for Eugene now. He paid me in beers. You can have one of mine, if you want.'
  Derek holds out the can he's drinking from, and Aviva reads the label.
  'Milwaukee's Second Best?'
  'Is that a real brand?' I ask him.
  'MSB? Hell, yeah, it is,' Derek says. 'Official beer of slackers.' "  (pg 82)

You can purchase The Boy Recession at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Book Depository

Review ~ A MIDSUMMER'S NIGHTMARE by Kody Keplinger

Whitley Johnson's dream summer with her divorcé dad has turned into a nightmare. She's just met his new fiancée and her kids. The fiancée's son? Whitley's one-night stand from graduation night. Just freakin' great.

Worse, she totally doesn't fit in with her dad's perfect new country-club family. So Whitley acts out. She parties. Hard. So hard she doesn't even notice the good things right under her nose: a sweet little future stepsister who is just about the only person she's ever liked, a best friend (even though Whitley swears she doesn't "do" friends), and a smoking-hot guy who isn't her stepbrother...at least, not yet. It will take all three of them to help Whitley get through her anger and begin to put the pieces of her family together.

Filled with authenticity and raw emotion, Whitley is Kody Keplinger's most compelling character to date: a cynical Holden Caulfield-esque girl you will wholly care about. ~From GoodReads

Here's a first: I'm almost speechless. Not because I didn't like the book (I loved it). Not because I have nothing to say (you know me better than that). I'm struggling because I have so much to say. A Midsummer's Nightmare struck such a nerve with me, and I have a lot of feelings about the themes. Apparently.

So first off, let me start with Whitley. This girl, she's not easy to love. At all. I spent the first half of the book wanting to smack the crap out of her. She's rude, abrasive, swears so much she even got on my nerves (tough feat, as I'm quite the accomplished potty mouth), and is just an all-around beyotch. The girl had a hot, sweet guy who wanted more than a one-night stand; she turns him down, harshly. She has a new almost-step family who genuinely wants to embrace her; she barely tolerates them. She has the opportunity to make true friends; she keeps her distance. All these things about Whitley made me almost struggle with the book.

But then, it hit me, all of these aversions were a reflection of Whitley and the way she uses them in her own life. Because the deal is, if you don't let people close to you, they can't hurt you. In theory. You can pretend that the things people say about you doesn't hurt, because you they're not your friends and you know it's not true. And hey, when your parents pay zero attention to you, any attention is good attention, right?? But the fact of the matter is, words hurt, bad perceptions hurt, can even cause you harm or danger, and that's a lesson the Whitley must learn. That fact that Whitley undergoes this journey towards self-worth, self-esteem was not something that expected when I began reading A Midsummer's Nightmare. But I found it the most moving, thought-provoking theme in the book.

If you haven't read the book yet, you don't know Nathan Caulfield. You must remedy that immediately! And I'll say it, I love good guys in my books. Yes, bad boys can be a lot of fun, but I'll take the good guy any day of the week. Nathan is Whitley's soon-to-be step-brother, with whom she has a funny, and cringe-worthy connection. Nathan was my favorite character in the story. He is practically perfect, in a non-annoying way: handsome, smart, a bit nerdy, athletic, and is so sweet and generous to his family.  But Nathan has a few issues of his own, and Whitley learns that perception does not equal reality. That maybe she's capable of hurting others in the same way she's been hurt.

How I wish more books like A Midsummer's Nightmare had been around when I was a teen. Were there any books like this in the 90s? If they were out there, I didn't know about them. Teen girls now are so lucky. Yes, society is a cruel place sometimes. But they have so many resources now, books out there that can help them in many situations, with characters that can help see them through. Kody Keplinger. Wow. This young lady is brilliant. I've heard a lot about her books, but haven't read any. If A Midsummer's Nightmare is any indication of her talent, I will definitely be reading the rest.

I could talk for days about this book. It took me an hour to read the last few chapters because I kept getting teary-eyed and choked up with emotions. The level of growth that Whitley experiences is remarkable. The amount of love that Whitley finds herself embraced in, despite her best efforts, was almost overwhelming.  A Midsummer's Nightmare is a book that I find myself in awe of and it will be treasured. I can't recommend it highly enough.



Favorite Quote:

"Every second Nathan's hands were on me, another moment from graduation night flooded back into my memory. The way his fingertips had pressed into my hips. The way I'd practically thrown him on the bed. The way he'd kissed me, more passionately than anyone ever had. I remembered the half-crazed feeling when he took his time kissing me, touching me, whispering things in my ear." (pg 72)

" '..-you seemed...real. We laughed a lot that night. And when you led me back to the bedroom and I knew what you wanted to do, I just remember thinking, If this girl isn't perfect for me, no one is.' "  (pg 188)

Published June 5th 2012 by Poppy

You can purchase A MIDSUMMER'S NIGHTMARE at:
Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Book Depository


Source: Received from publisher in exchange for an honest review.

TEASER TUESDAY

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

·Grab your current read
·Open to a random page
·Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
·Be careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others.

Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles.

Whitley Johnson's dream summer with her divorcé dad has turned into a nightmare. She's just met his new fiancée and her kids. The fiancée's son? Whitley's one-night stand from graduation night. Just freakin' great. Worse, she totally doesn't fit in with her dad's perfect new country-club family. So Whitley acts out. She parties. Hard. So hard she doesn't even notice the good things right under her nose: a sweet little future stepsister who is just about the only person she's ever liked, a best friend (even though Whitley swears she doesn't "do" friends), and a smoking-hot guy who isn't her stepbrother...at least, not yet. It will take all three of them to help Whitley get through her anger and begin to put the pieces of her family together. Filled with authenticity and raw emotion, Whitley is Kody Keplinger's most compelling character to date: a cynical Holden Caulfield-esque girl you will wholly care about. ~From GoodReads

My Teaser ~

"I groaned and pulled the blanket over my face, shielding my eyes from the sunlight that filtered through the window over my head. Why did it have to be so g*d*mned bright?

'Don't be so dramatic. I'm not that ugly,' a deep, groggy voice murmured beside me." (pg 1)


So far, I'm really enjoying this. Come back to see my review on Thursday.



Published June 5th 2012 by Poppy

Review ~ The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, by Jennifer E. Smith

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. She's stuck at JFK, late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's in seat 18C. Hadley's in 18A.

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it. ~From GoodReads

I swore, when I sat to write this review, that I wouldn't do this. I was going to be calm and reasonable and rational. But...that's just not me, not with this book. So, in an effort to not make a total idiot of myself, I'll keep this review short and oh so sweet. Before I get started, I have to get one thing out of my system. Ready? Here goes. SQUEEEEEEEE!!!!! I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!!!!

Whew. I am so glad I got that out of my system. But in all seriousness, my feelings about Statistical Probability can pretty much be summed up with those frantic words above. Now that I'm somewhat collected, let me tell you why I loved this book.

My initial reading of this book was on a roadtrip with my husband. After showing much affection towards the cover, I finally cracked it open. I read the prologue. I sighed. I read the prologue again. I sighed harder. This cycle repeated itself about five times, with my husband, who I'll lovingly refer to as "Mr. Nonfiction", growing increasingly nervous. After many shifty-eyed glances my way, and seeing that I hadn't  moved past page three, he finally asked what my deal was. That question was all the prodding I needed to burst forth with my swoonage. "Do you understand how beautiful this is?" I asked in a desperate manner. His answer: a blank stare. So, like anyone who has a trapped listener would do, I read The Prologue to Mr. NonFiction. After I finished reading, I leaned back, clutching this beauty to my chest and asked what he thought. To be honest, I expected an eye roll or a snarky comment. But he looked at me, blinked about five times as if he wondered how in the hell he'd gotten into this situationwith his loon of a wife and then replied "Not bad", with a half-smile. That reaction might not mean much to you, but knowing him like I do, it might as well have been an "OMG!".  That was a huge seal of approval coming from him.

The entire book can be summed up by this one line from the prologue:

"Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?"

Kind of promising, right? This book read like a beautiful, heart-warming movie. Love, Actually and Serendipity come to mind. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight was a book about chance, circumstance, fate, and trusting your heart. This book made me happy beyond belief. It will likely end up being the "feel good book of the year". Highly, highly recommended. In fact, I might be willing to throw down a money-back guarantee if you don't love this book.

Favorite Quote (There were too many to choose from!):

"It seems impossible that she could have liked someone like Mitchell when there was someone like this guy in the world, someone tall and lanky, with tousled hair and startling green eyes and a speck of mustard on his chin, like the one small imperfection that makes the whole painting work somehow." (pg 31)

Hardcover, 236 pages

Published January 2nd 2012 by Poppy

You can purchase The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight at:
Barnes & Noble | Amazon | Book Depository

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along, just do as following:

·Grab your current read
·Open to a random page
·Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
·Be careful not to include any spoilers so as not to ruin the book for others.

Make sure to share the title and the author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR piles.

This week's Teaser is from

Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. She's stuck at JFK, late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon to be step-mother that Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's in seat 18C. Hadley's in 18A.

Twists of fate and quirks of timing play out in this thoughtful novel about family connections, second chances and first loves. Set over a 24-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver's story will make you believe that true love finds you when you're least expecting it. ~From GoodReads

My Teaser ~

"And though all grooms look happy on their wedding day, there's something in the eyes of this one in particular that nearly takes Hadley's breath away. It knocks the wind out of her, that look of his, the joy in his eyes, the depth of his smile. It stops her cold, splits her right open, wrings her heart out like it's nothing more than a wet towel."  (pg 120)

This book blew me away. The writing was beyond gorgeous. Come back later this week to catch my review!

Hardcover, 236 pages

Published January 2nd 2012 by Poppy

You can purchase The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight at:
Barnes & Noble  |  Amazon  |  Book Depository