Only Mostly Devastated, by Sophie Gonzales ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

Contemporary Fiction, Death, Fat-Shaming, Homophobia, Humor, LGBTQ, Romance, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: March 3rd, 2020

272 Pages

Synopsis: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda meets Clueless, inspired by Grease.

When Ollie meets his dream guy, Will, over summer break, he thinks he’s found his Happily Ever After. But once summer’s ended, Will stops texting him back, and Ollie finds himself one prince short of a fairytale ending. To complicate the fairytale further, a family emergency sees Ollie uprooted and enrolled at a new school—Will’s school—where Ollie finds that the sweet, affectionate and comfortably queer he knew from summer, isn’t the same one attending Collinswood High. This Will is a class clown, closeted—and to be honest, a bit of a jerk.

Ollie has no intention of pining after a guy who clearly isn’t ready for a relationship. But as Will starts ‘coincidentally’ popping up in every area of Ollie’s life, from music class, to the lunch table, Ollie finds his resolve weakening. 

The last time Ollie gave Will his heart, Will handed it back to him, trampled and battered. Ollie would have to be an idiot to trust him with it again.

Right?

Right.

Only Mostly Devastated is an adorable read that as advertised combines elements of Grease, Clueless and Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (Love Simon was the film adaptation.) When I first began this I was a little worried that it would be too derivative, especially of Grease, but I’m very happy that while similar to the Sandy, Danny, the Pink Ladies, Sophie Gonzales does a fantastic job having her characters stand out on their own. Ollie, who has been out since he was thirteen, and received acceptance from his family and friends, is understandably hurt and bewildered when Will, who hasn’t come out, is reluctant to acknowledge their relationship. Their actions, and feelings are both understandable and relatable. The other characters: Juliette, Lara, and Niamh who form this modern day incarnation of the Pink Ladies are much more diverse and complex than their predecessors. I especially loved Lara (Rizzo), who initially comes off as a callous you-know-what, but the more you find out about her, the more you can’t help but love her.  As much as I loved Ollie’s and Will’s rocky romance, the eventual friendship between Lara and Ollie also captured my heart.

The only reason why I’m not giving giving this a full 5 stars is because a few of the secondary characters needed some development but instead they came across as rather pointless. While there are some touching scenes with Ollie and his ailing aunt, and some humorous ones with his young cousins, I wish I had a better sense of his relationship with his parents. They’re obviously close and supportive, but we’re told this rather than shown this. At the end of the book I really knew nothing more about them and their relationship with their son than I did in the beginning. Overall though, Only Mostly Devastated is a wonderful novel that deals with serious issues like the death of a loved one, homophobia, and fat-shaming, in a thoughtful manner, and balances these with sweet humor. It’s a book I’d recommend to YAs and adults who are looking for a cute fun read that will make them smile.

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Swipe Right For Murder, by Derek Milman ~ 5.0 Stars

Tags

Contemporary Fiction, Homophobia, Humor, LGBT, Romance, Suicide, Terrorism, Thriller, YA Fiction

Thanks to JIMMY Patterson Books for providing an ARC in exchange for and honest review.

Release Date: August 6th, 2019

336 Pages

Synopsis:

On the run from the FBI.

Targeted by a murderous cult.

Labeled a cyber-terrorist by the media.

Irritated by texts from his best friend.

Eye contact with a nice-looking guy on the train.

Aidan has a lot to deal with and he’s not quite sure which takes top priority.

Finding himself alone in a posh New York City hotel room for the night, Aidan does what any red-blooded seventeen-year-old would do—-he tries to hook up with someone new. But that lapse in judgement leads him to waking up next to a dead guy, which sparks an epic case of mistaken identity that puts Aidan on the run from everyone—-faceless federal agents, his eccentric family, and, naturally, a cyber-terrorist group who will stop at nothing to find him. 

He soon realizes the only way to stop the chase is to deliver the object that everyone wants, before he gets caught or killed. But for Aidan, the hardest part is knowing who he can trust not to betray him—-including himself.

It’s only halfway through 2019, but I already know that Swipe Right For Murder is going to be one of my favorite books of the year. An ingenious ode to Alfred Hitchcocks North by Northwest and a poignant coming-of-age story, it tackles some serious issues such as: terrorism, homophobia, an inappropriate relationship between an adult and a teen, and suicide. At the same time it displays a wry sense of humor that had me laughing out loud several times. While Aidan is immature at the beginning, his personal growth expands by leaps and bounds as the story progresses. He’s someone you want to shake and hug at the same time. The plot itself is absolutely crackers, but it’s so much fun that it’s easy to suspend disbelief and just hang on for the wild ride. 

I loved Derek Milman’s first book, Scream All Night, and honestly wondered if his sophomore effort would live up to his debut. I’m thrilled to say that I think it actually surpassed it! Both books blend the world of classic film, with contemporary coming-of-age themes, sympathetic and relatable main characters, and over-the-top (in a good way) storylines. I can’t recommend this author highly enough to both teens and adult fans of YA fiction, and fans of classic films in general. I can’t wait to see what this incredible author comes out with next!

Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe, by Preston Norton ~ 4.5 Stars

Tags

Bullying, Child Abuse, Contemporary Fiction, Drug Abuse, High School, Homophobia, Humor, Religious Fanaticism, Suicide, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Disney-Hyperion for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: June 5th, 2018

400 Pages

Synopsis: Cliff Hubbard is a huge loser. Literally. His nickname at Happy Valley High School is Neanderthal because he’s so enormous—-6’6” and 250 pounds to be exact. He has no one at school and life at his trailer park home has gone from bad to worse since his older brother’s suicide.

There’s no one Cliff hates more than the nauseatingly cool quarterback, Aaron Zimmerman. Then Aaron returns to school after a near-death experience with a bizarre claim: while he was unconscious he saw God, who gave him a list of things to do to make Happy Valley High suck less. And God said there’s only one person who can help: Neanderthal.

To his own surprise, Cliff says he’s in. As he and Aaron make their way through the List, which involves a vindictive English teacher, a mysterious computer hacker, a decidedly unchristian cult of Jesus Teens, the local drug dealers, and the meanest bully at HVHS—-Cliff feels like he’s part of something for the first time since losing his brother. But fixing a broken school isn’t as simple as it seems, and just when Cliff thinks they’ve completed the List, he realizes their mission hits closer to home than he ever imagined.

Neanderthal Opens the Door To The Universe is one of those books that took me by surprise in regards to how much I liked it. While some of the dialogue is a little awkward and it’s intentionally filled with high school cliches, because of the well-rounded and relatable characters, interesting plot, and positive message, it has a certain charm to it that I think will appeal to a wide audience. The story tackles many social issues: suicide, drug abuse, religious fanaticism, homophobia, bullying, and child abuse. But it never devolves into an annoying after school special/soap opera. This is partly due to the dry humor that pervades the story, but also because the darker themes are balanced by the inspiring responses from the teenage characters.

In the end, Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe is quite uplifting and it’s a story I won’t forget anytime soon. Because of the colorful language involved and dark topics, I wouldn’t recommend this for older teens. I think it’s a wonderful choice for high school classrooms, forthcoming summer reading lists, and book discussion groups.

It Looks Like This ~ By Rafi Mittlefehldt – 4.0 Stars

Tags

Contemporary Fiction, Family Relationships, Gender Identity, Homophobia, Self-Acceptance, Suicide, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Candlewick for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

336 Pages

Synopsis: A new state, a new city, a new high school. Mike’s father has already found a new evangelical church for the family to attend, even if Mike and his plain spoken little sister, Toby, don’t want to go. Dad wants Mike to ditch art for sports, to toughen up, but there’s something uneasy behind his demands.

Then Mike meets Sean, the new kid, and “hey” becomes games of basketball, partnering on a French project, hanging out after school. A night at the beach. The fierce colors of sunrise. But Mike’s father is always watching. And so is Victor from school, cell phone in hand.

I have to admit my feelings are a little all over the place about this novel. From the very first chapter, which was two pages long, I was completely hooked. It made me smile, it made me angry, and it made me cry. Before I get to the good stuff though, I want to warn you that there are no quotation marks used for dialogue. Some readers may not mind this, but it did drive me a little crazy. There were times that I found it hard to differentiate between a Mike’s inner thoughts and actual conversations. In a way, I think because the rest of the book was so well-written, that this was even more jarring to me. So, speaking of the good stuff, lets begin with the amazing characters. Mike is your quintessential underdog. He has a few friends, but is the victim of frequent bullying. He’s an introvert, and a lot of the story focuses on his inner thoughts about school, family, friends, and his struggles over his sexuality. Making matters worse is that his family is extremely religious, particularly his father and grandmother. This leads to some of the more tragic moments of the book. I absolutely loved how Mike and Sean’s first meeting is sweetly awkward. This definitely isn’t a case of insta-love, which made it even more believable. Instead, their relationship slowly develops as they work on a school project together. Oh God. Just thinking about them again is making me teary, and I finished this 5 days ago! I also LOVED the relationship between Mike and his eleven-year-old sister Toby. She is absolutely adorable and funny, and wise beyond her years. She understands and supports her big brother more than anyone else in their family. What makes this story so compelling is that you know there are a multitude of versions of this playing out in the real world. While there are more than a few tear-jerking moments, this book is also filled with hope and inspiration. I have to be honest though and say there’s some tough topics in this including homophobia, conversion camps, and suicide. It’s not done in an “after school special” kind of way though. While there are many YA novels out there that focus on how acceptance of LGBTQs is becoming more prevalent, let’s face it. There’s still a lot of work to be done before we can say that this community is treated with respect and considered equal. There were moments that even shocked me as an adult, so while I highly recommend this, I’d say this is more for older teens and adults. It Looks Like This would lend itself beautifully to book discussion groups and family reads. I’m certainly going to be on the lookout for future books by Rafi Mittlefehldt.

The Steep & Thorny Way ~ By Cat Winters – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Anti-Semitism, Eugenics, Historical Fiction, Homophobia, Ku Klux Klan, Mystery, Racism, Supernatural, YA Fiction

Thank you to NetGalley and Amulet Books for providing this e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: March 8th, 2016

Synopsis: A thrilling reimagining of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, The Steep & Thorny Way tells the story of a murder most foul and the mighty power of love and acceptance in a state gone terribly rotten. 

1920s Oregon is not a welcoming place for Hanalee Denney, the daughter of a white woman and an African-American man. She has almost no rights by law, and the Ku Klux Klan breeds fear and hatred in even Hanalee’s oldest friendships. Plus, her father, Hank Denney, died a year ago, hit by a drunk-driving teenager. Now her father’s killer is out of jail and back in town, and he claims that Hanalee’s father wasn’t killed by the accident at all but, instead was poisoned by the doctor who looked after him–who happens to be Hanalee’s new stepfather.

The only way for Hanalee to get the answers she needs is to ask Hank himself, a “haunt” wandering the roads at night.

Cat Winters is a well respected author who I’ve been meaning to try for quite some time, but The Steep & Thorny Way is the first book I’ve read by her. All I can say is that her reinterpretation of Hamlet and combining it with an incredibly dark time in America’s history is a compelling read and leaves me wondering why it’s taken me this long to read one of her books.

The 1920s in the U.S. wasn’t just the era of flappers, and the beginning of the jazz age. It was also a time where racism, homophobia, and anti-Semitism were rampant, as was distrust of Catholics, and of course Prohibition. All of these are on display in the fictional small town of of Elston, Oregon. As the child of an African-American father and a white mother, Hanalee’s future prospects for an kind of a meaningful life are pretty much nonexistent. At the age of sixteen she knows that if she’s to have any kind of future, she’ll have to leave her hometown and strike out for the bigger cities who are far more accepting of those who are “different”. When the story opens though, she’s about avenge her father’s death on Joe Adder, the young man just released from prison for his killing. She discovers though that things are definitely not as they seem, and she winds up embarking on a quest to discover the truth with the very person she’s blamed and hated for the past year. Hanalee is someone teens can relate to even though this story is set decades ago. She’s not perfect, she makes mistakes, but despite the hate and prejudice aimed at her she remains pretty open-minded toward other people, which I thought was amazing.

While Hanalee is clearly the main character of the book, Joe is equally important and his story at times overtakes the main mystery. This isn’t a bad thing though. What is done to him and his desperate desire to also escape had me just as emotionally invested in him as I was with Hanalee.

There is no real romance in this book which I think was a wise decision on the part of the author. Instead, there’s a tentative friendship between Hanalee and Joe which flourishes into something quite beautiful. The rest of the characters aren’t quite as well fleshed out, but they still successfully serve to further the story, particularly Laurence, Hanalee’s old childhood friend who’s loyalties are divided.

I did think the central mystery concerning the death of Hanalee’s father could have used a little more development. All the answers are basically provided to her by his ghost. It would have been nice to have a little more sleuthing on her part. But honestly, this wasn’t enough to detract from my overall fascination with this book. Cat Winters does a magnificent job spinning her tale, and I was completely spellbound while reading it. A true measure of it’s impact is the amount of time I’ve spent researching some of the topics it brought up, especially eugenics (forced sterilization of people belonging to certain groups), which much to my surprise and disgust was still happening as late as 1981.

I believe it’s especially important for people to read books like The Steep & Thorny Way given what’s happening in the world right now. For anyone who thinks that hateful idealogy is a thing of the past, pick up a newspaper or turn on the tv. All the same prejudices and bigotry are still very much a part of our society, and stoking the flames are politicians who claim they have their country’s best interests at heart. This is a perfect book for discussion, whether in a high school classroom, a book group, or at home. The best way to combat hatred is to start with our young people and I fervently believe this is something we must do if we are to prevent history from repeating itself.

This Is Where It Ends ~ By Marieke Nijkamp – 1.5 Stars

Tags

Abuse, Bigotry, Bullying, Homophobia, School Shootings, YA Fiction

 

I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: January 5th, 2016

Synopsis: 

10:00 a.m.

The principal of Opportunity, Alabama’s high school finishes her speech, welcoming the entire student body to a new series semester and encouraging them to excel and achieve.

10:02 a.m.

The students get up to leave the auditorium for their next class.

10:03 a.m.

The auditorium doors won’t open.

10:05 a.m.

Someone starts shooting.

Told over the span of 54 harrowing minutes from four different perspectives, terror reigns as one student’s calculated revenge turns into the ultimate game of survival.

This Is Where It Ends has been a much hyped book since last fall, so when I actually was approved for a coveted e-ARC from the publisher I was thrilled. I’ve been sitting on my hands to stop myself from reading it until closer to the publishing date. After all that, it wound up being one of my biggest disappointments of the past year.

So, where did it go wrong? Well, let’s start with the general layout of the book. Although it’s only 292 pages, I found myself forcing my way through the pages at times and more than once I completely lost focus. The chapters are short, but in addition to alternating between four characters, they also flash back and forth between the horrific events that are unfolding and the past. This made things confusing and disjointed.

And this leads me to what really annoyed me about this novel–the characters. Because of the way the chapters are written it is impossible to get any kind of real sense of these kids, let alone emphasize with them. It also seemed as though the author tried too hard to make the characters diverse, especially for a small southern town. Perhaps this is because Marieke Nijkamp is a member of We Need Diverse Books. While I think I can appreciate what she was attempting, instead this comes off as cynically manipulative. It was almost as if she had a list she went through:

Muslim-American -check

Hispanic-Americans – check

African-American -check

Disabled boy – check

Two gay teens in love – check

Ironically, the person you most want to hear from–the shooter, you don’t except through wooden dialogue. Tyler Browne is an evil, one-dimensional character from beginning to end. Honestly, I kept expecting him to break out in a “Mowahaha!” every five seconds as he strutted in front of his victims. In real life, we’ve unfortunately heard all too many stories of school shooters who were bullied either at school, home or in some cases both. These are not instances of children being teased. No, oftentimes these kids are tormented beyond endurance until they snap. In this story I never came to understand what turned Tyler into the monster he became.There’s a few vague explanations, but nothing I could buy into. The only thing I came away with is that he’s a homophobe and a rapist, who while is physically abused by his alcoholic father, and bullied a little by a few classmates, gives as good as he gets. He even turns on his twin sister Autumn, going as far as to report on her to their father when he knows full well she’ll receive a beating. This is someone who has absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever.

This Is Where It Ends could have been a groundbreaking novel that lent itself to some much needed discussion between teens and adults, but instead it’s an exploitative tale that takes real issues such as: physical abuse, bigotry, rape, etc., and reduces them to the kind of cheap thrills you find in some awful Lifetime movie of the week. For those of you who don’t live in the U.S. Lifetime is a cable channel which specializes in “issue oriented” movies. There are so many deaths here that after the first few, I found myself for the most part, not caring anymore. There’s one secondary character who I did become emotionally invested in which is why I’m giving this even 1.5 stars. There are already many reviews on Goodreads and if you are a parent or teacher, I encourage you to read some of them before sharing this with your teens. Because I wanted to make sure I was being fair to this much publicized book, I read it twice, but from my perspective I cannot find anything at all to recommend about it and I can’t tell you how this saddens me.

Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend ~ By Katerina Bivald – 5.0 Stars

Tags

Adult Fiction, Americana, Books, Chick-lit, Homophobia, Humor, Racism, Relationships, Religious Beliefs

 I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: January 1st, 2016

Synopsis: Once you let a book into your life, the most unexpected things can happen…

Broken Wheel Iowa, has never seen anyone like Sara, who has traveled all the way from Sweden just to meet her book-loving pen pal. When she arrives however, she finds Amy’s funeral guests just leaving. The residents of Broken Wheel are happy to look after their bewildered visitor–not much else to do in a small town that’s almost beyond repair. They just never imagined she’d start a bookstore. Or that books would bring them together–and change everything.

There’s a book for every person…and a person for every book.

Others might have found themselves stuck in a tired, old high school in Haninge, but had been a geisha in Japan, walked along China’s last empress through the claustrophobic, closed off rooms of the Forbidden City, grown up with Anne and the others in Green Gables, gone through her fair share of murder, and love and lost over and over again.

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend is already an international bestseller and after reading this utterly charming book, I understand why.

First of all, let me warn you there’s a few elements in this book that may have you rolling your eyes, or asking “Seriously?!” But trust me. Put those feelings on the backburner, because the rest of the story with it’s captivating plot and quirky characters are worth it!

The first eye-rolling moment comes right at the beginning when Swedish bookworm Sara Lindquist who has played it safe her entire life, finds herself out of work after the small bookshop that she’s worked for many years, goes out of business. She shocks her family when she decides to travel to Broken Wheel Iowa to visit pen-pal and fellow Bibliophile Amy Harris. Once you get past that “She did what?” moment,  Sara and the inhabitants of this small dusty town–that has never really seen better days–will mesmerize you until the very last page. I have to admit that part of the attraction for me was that I completely identified with Sara. She’s quiet and unassuming, and people tend to overlook her. She literally lives through her books. Her only friend is Amy who she’s never met. She’s devastated when she embarks on her grand adventure, only to find once she’s arrived that her kindred spirit has passed away. But then something strange happens. The quirky folks of Broken Wheel sort of adopt her, even to the extent of not letting her pay for anything. Sara, in turn winds up adopting them as well and comes up with the idea of opening a small bookstore using her’s and Amy’s collections as stock. The only problem is that no one besides Sara understands the magical appeal of books, so she is forced to come up with some creative ploys to attract these reluctant readers into her store. This results in quite a few laugh-out-loud moments. There’s even a sweet little romance here as well which for a change isn’t filled with large amounts of drama and angst. 

You’ll also hear from Amy through her handwritten letters to Sara. It’s through this detailed correspondence that you realize Amy was the glue that held this fading community together. Once she’s gone they’re lost and bewildered. But then this stranger from halfway around the world with all her odd ideas enters the picture and the healing begins. 

Despite it’s overall lighthearted tone, the story does tackle a few weightier issues including: religion, racism, and homophobia. The author does this in a thoughtful manner, yet never lets them overtake her story. This is small town America with all it’s strengths and weaknesses.

By the end of the story, while Sara has made quite an impact on Broken Wheel, she finds herself transformed as well. For the first time she sees that there’s a whole world outside of the ones she’s lived in through her books. Going on this journey with her is pure, unadulterated joy.

If you love books about not only the love of books, but self discovery, recovery, and small town America, I urge you to read this. Particularly if you’re a fan of 84 Charing Cross Road,  by Helene Hanff, and The Guernsey Literary And Potato Peel Society, by Annie Barrows and Mary Ann Shaffer. The only disappointment you’ll feel is when the story is over. I guarantee you’ll be as reluctant to leave Sara and the small dusty town of Broken Wheel as I was.