It's not exactly easy
living in a shrine to your dead sister. Since birth, I've known that
everyone loved Shannon. She was perfect--beautiful, smart, talented. And
me? Not so much. My parents always expected me to live up to her
greatness. But I could never measure up to her, so why even try?
This
summer, I've started reading the journal Shannon kept just before she
died . . . and suddenly nothing is what I thought it was. The more
secrets I learn about Shannon and our family, the more everything
changes. And as it turns out, facing the truth is no cakewalk, either.
My Review:
This book had a very unique-sounding premise. I put it on my TBR, and I just got around to reading. I found it to be a very enjoyable read. I kept reading it to learn the stories of both Summer and Shannon.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS
The idea behind this story was very unique. There are many YA books that have protagonists with a dead sibling, but, in those books, the protagonist has actually met his or her sibling. In this book, Summer was born after her sister Shannon died. Her parents had thought Shannon was perfect, and they were so upset about her death that they went and had another child. This child, Summer, feels like she can never live up to Shannon. Her parents hold Shannon on a pedestal, and Summer's few achievements pale in comparison.
Before her senior year, Summer is given her sister's journal. Her Aunt Nic had found it in Shannon's old room. Summer decides to read it since she feels like she doesn't really know her sister. As she reads the journal, she discovers that her perception of Shannon is not accurate. Shannon may not have been as perfect as she had been made out to be.
One awesome character in this book was Gibs. He was Summer's smart, hard-working friend. He was a boy who was new to the school. He was a great friend to her, encouraging her to read Shannon's journal. Summer's first-person narrative makes it clear that she has feelings for him (as more than a friend), but she doesn't know if he returns the feelings. I loved watching their relationship progress.
If you like YA contemporary, read this book.
Katie
‘If she’d waited less than two weeks, she’d be June who died in June. But I guess my sister didn’t consider that.’
Harper
Scott’s older sister has always been the perfect one so when June takes
her own life a week before her high school graduation, sixteen-year-old
Harper is devastated. Everyone’s sorry, but no one can explain why.
When
her divorcing parents decide to split her sister’s ashes into
his-and-her urns, Harper takes matters into her own hands. She’ll steal
the ashes and drive cross-country with her best friend, Laney, to the
one place June always dreamed of going, California.
Enter Jake
Tolan. He’s a boy with a bad attitude, a classic-rock obsession and
nothing in common with Harper’s sister. But Jake had a connection with
June, and when he insists on joining them, Harper’s just desperate
enough to let him. With his alternately charming and infuriating
demeanour and his belief that music can see you through anything, he
might be exactly what she needs.
Except June wasn’t the only one
hiding something. Jake’s keeping a secret that has the power to turn
Harper’s life upside down again.
My Review:
Saving June was a book that I completely loved. I loved the characters, the places they visited on their road trip, and the story. With scenes both happy and sad, this book contains an amazing portrayal of grief after a family member's death.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS
First, there was the protagonist, Harper. She had just lost her older sister to suicide, and her grief seemed realistic. She wanted to know the answer to why her sister would do this to her and her family. She was an amazing character. I do not think stealing her sister's urn from her family was a good choice, though. She spent parts of the book pushing away those who care about her, but she learned to open up to them.
Then there were the two people on the road trip with Harper - her best friend Laney, and the mysterious Jake Tolan. Laney was a great character, probably my favorite in the book. She had her own problems, but she never stopped supporting Harper. She understand that Harper was grieving her sister's death, and she wanted to help her friend through the hard times. Then there was Jake. He was a guy who had a connection to June. He was tutored by her and was her friend as well. He loved music and loved to introduce Harper and Laney to new songs and artists. He spent some of the road trip bantering with both girls. The romance that developed between Jake and Harper was realistic and slow. At times, it was a love-hate relationship, but they both needed each other. He kept some secrets from her, but she was able to forgive him eventually. I loved their relationship.
If you like YA contemporary with grief and a road trip, read this book.
Katie
Sophomore year broke
Clementine Williams’ heart. She fell for her best friend’s boyfriend and
long story short: he’s excused, but Clem is vilified and she heads into
summer with zero social life.
Enter her parents’ plan to spend
the summer on their sailboat. Normally the idea of being stuck on a tiny
boat with her parents and little sister would make Clem break out in
hives, but floating away sounds pretty good right now.
Then she
meets James at one of their first stops along the river. He and his dad
are sailing for the summer and he’s just the distraction Clem needs. Can
he break down Clem’s walls and heal her broken heart?
Told in alternating chapters that chronicle the year that broke Clem’s heart and the summer that healed it, Unbreak My Heart is a wonderful dual love story that fans of Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, and Susane Colasanti will flock to.
My Review:
When I saw this book, I thought it looked like a cute summer read, so I picked it up. It was a very enjoyable book that I read in a day. It was a story of friendship, family, and romance.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS
I liked Clem and her entire family. Clem was depressed after she fell for her best friend's boyfriend. At the beginning of the book, she was upset that she was going on a boat trip with her family. By the end, she grew and realized that the boat trip had helped heal her heartbreak. Clem's ten-year-old sister, Olive, was adorable. She loved Clem, and she wanted Clem to be the old, happy Clem she had been before. Both of Clem's parents were good parents. They wanted to help Clem, but they didn't understand the entire situation that had occurred sophomore year. By the end, the entire family had helped Clem through her problems.
Then there was Amanda and Ethan. They both had their own faults. I liked Amanda at first, but I wasn't a fan of her by the end. She never gave Clem a chance to tell her side of the story. She just made assumptions about Clem's and Ethan's relationship. I also liked Ethan at first. He seemed sweet and charming. He should not have been forgiven by Amanda. He encouraged his own relationship with Clem, even when she tried to stop it. I would have liked to know what happens between Amanda and Clem once Clem was back home from her boat trip.
One of my favorite characters in the book was James. He was a red-haired boy who boated near Clem's family's boat. He was sweet and funny and just what Clem needed that summer. The two of them started out as friends, and they slowly became more. He helped Clem by being happy all the time despite his parents' divorce. This helped her realize she could have worse problems. He was a really great male character.
If you want to read a sweet YA contemporary, pick up this book.
Katie
Sixteen-year-old Dani
is convinced she has nine lives. As a child she twice walked away from
situations where she should have died. But Dani’s twin, Jena, isn’t so
lucky. She has cancer and might not even be able to keep her one
life. Dani’s father is in denial. Her mother is trying to hold it
together and prove everything’s normal. And Jena is wasting away. To
cope, Dani sets out to rid herself of all her extra lives. Maybe
they’ll be released into the universe and someone who wants to live more
than she does will get one. Someone like Jena. But just when Dani
finds herself at the breaking point, she’s faced with a startling
realization. Maybe she doesn’t have nine lives after all. Maybe she
really only ever had one.
My Review:
When I saw this book, I immediately thought the premise sounded interesting and I added to my TBR. Luckily, it did not disappoint. The elements of sisters, family, friendship, and illness all made this book amazing.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS
First, there was the main character Dani. She is not the nicest character all the time. She teases a boy at school and she can be rather mean to those who care about her. Despite this, I really loved reading about her character. She had become broken due to her twin sister, Jena's, illness. She is so determined to do anything to save her sister, even at her own expense. The whole nine lives idea was interesting. I wonder how she was able to survive all her self-destruction with only one life.
Then there was the family relationship. It was obvious how close Dani and Jena were. Their love for each other shone through in scenes in the present and in flashbacks. Jena knew that Dani was up to something, and she wanted Dani to live just as much as Dani wanted Jena to live. I loved the scene where Dani realized that instead of trying to do die for Jena, she should try to live for Jena. The parents each had their own way of coping. The mom became Jena's nurse. She constantly worried about Jena's health, but she tried not to ignore Dani. Dani's dad tried to stay involved in their lives. He went out grocery shopping and drove Dani to auditions. He seemed like a good guy who cared about his daughters.
I also should mention Jack Penner. He was a boy from school whom Dani has known for years. Dani enjoyed teasing him by calling him "hot stuff" and "sweet thang." Jack was a sweet, nerdy boy who really seemed to care about Dani. He interpreted her name-calling as flirting, which led to a few awkward moments between the two. There was a little romance between the two, and one kiss, but their relationship was mainly a sweet friendship.
If you like YA contemporary that is both light and heavy at the same time, read this book.
Katie
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.
My Review:
Between The DUFF and Shut Out, my favorite Kody Keplinger book had been The DUFF. Now, I think my favorite Kody Keplinger book is A Midsummer's Nightmare. Everything about it, from the story to the characters to the cameos, was awesome. I absolutely loved this book!
POSSIBLE SPOILERS
First, there was the protagonist, Whitley Johnson. She is a character who is rather broken by her parents' divorce, but she pushes away the people who care about her. After the divorce, she began to act out by partying and sleeping around, but her mom didn't even notice, and she only saw her dad in the summer. She always loved spending these summers with her dad. This summer, she goes to visit him and he has a fiancee and she has two children. Throughout the book, Whitley really grew as a character. She realized it was okay to let people in her life be close to her.
Then there were the secondary characters. Her mom was not in the book very often, but she needed to work on being a better parent. She was just depressed and angry about her divorce with Whitley's dad, so she stopped noticing Whitley. Then there was her dad who didn't really know how to be a dad. When Whitley visited him in the summer, he often drank with her and acted more like an older brother. He had cheated on her mom, but no one had told Whitley that. Overall, he was okay, but he made a lot of mistakes. Then there was Sylvia, Whitley's soon-to-be stepmother. She really seemed to care about Whitley so I liked her. Next was Bailey, Sylvia's thirteen (almost fourteen) year old daughter. She was a sweet kid and it would be impossible not to like her (as Whitley realized). Finally, there was Nathan, Whitley's future stepbrother and one-night-stand from graduation night. He was an awesome guy. I loved him as a character, and I loved how he ended up helping Whitley.
Next, there were the characters who had been in other Keplinger books. First, there's Harrison. I can't call him a cameo because he has a much larger role in this book than in The DUFF. He became Whitley's best friend, and they had a good relationship. I liked the Bianca and Wesley cameo since it showed that they were still together.
Overall, I loved this book. Read it if you like YA contemporary.
Katie
