RBD Review #23 | Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell

Book info:
Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell | 96 pages (actually, the story is like 54, but there’s an excerpt for another book at the end) | Published February 2016 | YA Contemporary, Short Story

Summary:
'Everybody likes everything these days. The whole world is a nerd.'
'Are you mad because other people like Star Wars? Are you mad because people like me like Star Wars?'
'Maybe.'

If you broke Elena's heart, Star Wars would spill out. So when she decides to queue outside her local cinema to see the new movie, she's expecting a celebration with crowds of people who love Han, Luke and Leia just as much as she does. What she's not expecting is to be last in a line of only three people; to have to pee into a collectible Star Wars soda cup behind a dumpster or to meet that unlikely someone who just might truly understand the way she feels. Kindred Spirits is an engaging short story by Rainbow Rowell, author of the bestselling Eleanor & Park, Fangirl and Carry On, and is part of a handful of selected short reads specially produced for World Book Day (courtesy of Goodreads).

My thoughts:
Read June 11, 2016 | 5 Stars

RBD Review #22 | Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #2) by Maggie Stiefvater

Book info:
Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #2) by Maggie Stiefvater | 360 pages/10h 40m | Published July 2010 by Scholastic Press | YA Fantasy

Summary:
Once Grace and Sam have found each other, they know they must fight to stay together. For Sam, this means a reckoning with his werewolf past. For Grace, it means facing a future that is less and less certain.

the loss.

Into their world comes a new wolf named Cole, whose past is full of hurt and danger. He is wrestling with his own demons, embracing the life of a wolf while denying the ties of being a human.

the linger.

For Grace, Sam, and Cole, life a constant struggle between two forces--wolf and human--with love baring its two sides as well. It is harrowing and euphoric, freeing and entrapping, enticing and alarming. As their world falls apart, love is what lingers. But will it be enough?

My thoughts:
Read May 31-June 6, 2016 | 3.5 stars (3 on GR)

RBD Review #21 | The Raven King (The Raven Cycle #4) by Maggie Stiefvater

Book info:
The Raven King (The Raven Cycle #4) by Maggie Stiefvater | 439 pages | Published April 2016 by Scholastic Press | YA Fantasy (external image)

Summary:
For years, Gansey has been on a quest to find a lost king. One by one, he’s drawn others into this quest: Ronan, who steals from dreams; Adam, whose life is no longer his own; Noah, whose life is no longer a lie; and Blue, who loves Gansey… and is certain she is destined to kill him.

Now the endgame has begun. Dreams and nightmares are converging. Love and loss are inseparable. And the quest refuses to be pinned to a path (courtesy of Goodreads).

My thoughts:

Read May 19-27, 2016 | 5-Stars

*NEW* RBD Review #32 | The Women in the Walls by Amy Lukavics

Book info:
The Women in the Walls by Amy Lukavics | 288 pages | Published September 2016 by Harlequin Teen | YA Horror, Paranormal, Mystery, Supernatural, Suspense

Summary:
Lucy Acosta's mother died when she was three. Growing up in a Victorian mansion in the middle of the woods with her cold, distant father, she explored the dark hallways of the estate with her cousin, Margaret. They're inseparable—a family.

When her aunt Penelope, the only mother she's ever known, tragically disappears while walking in the woods surrounding their estate, Lucy finds herself devastated and alone. Margaret has been spending a lot of time in the attic. She claims she can hear her dead mother's voice whispering from the walls. Emotionally shut out by her father, Lucy watches helplessly as her cousin's sanity slowly unravels. But when she begins hearing voices herself, Lucy finds herself confronting an ancient and deadly legacy that has marked the women in her family for generations.

My thoughts:
Read October 20-22, 2016 | 3 stars
Trigger Warning: self harm (at the end)

*NEW* RBD Review #33 | You (You #1) by Caroline Kepnes

Book info:
You (You #1) by Caroline Kepnes | 422 pages |  Published September 2014 by Atria/Emily Bestler Books | Adult Mystery, Contemporary, Thriller

Summary:
When a beautiful, aspiring writer strides into the East Village bookstore where Joe Goldberg works, he does what anyone would do: he Googles the name on her credit card.

There is only one Guinevere Beck in New York City. She has a public Facebook account and Tweets incessantly, telling Joe everything he needs to know: she is simply Beck to her friends, she went to Brown University, she lives on Bank Street, and she’ll be at a bar in Brooklyn tonight—the perfect place for a “chance” meeting.

As Joe invisibly and obsessively takes control of Beck’s life, he orchestrates a series of events to ensure Beck finds herself in his waiting arms. Moving from stalker to boyfriend, Joe transforms himself into Beck’s perfect man, all while quietly removing the obstacles that stand in their way—even if it means murder.
My thoughts:
Read October 22-29, 2016 | 3 stars

*MINOR SPOILERS*

RDB Review #20 | Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Stiefvater

Book info:
Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Stiefvater | 390 pages/10h 45m | Published August 2009 by Scholastic | Teen fantasy, romance (external image)

Summary:
For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without.

Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human… until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

My thoughts:
Read May 24-31, 2016 | 4-stars

RBD Review #13 | The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle #1) by Maggie Stiefvater

Book info:
The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle #1) by Maggie Stiefvater | 408 pages. Published 2012 | Teen Fantasy, Mystery, Paranormal

Summary:

• First and foremost I DO NOT AGREE WITH THE BOOK JACKET SUMMARY. Read the review if you’re interested in knowing why. 

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them--until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.

His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can't entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She doesn't believe in true love, and never thought this would be a problem. But as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she's not so sure anymore (courtesy of Goodreads).

My thoughts:
Read April 07-24, 2016 | 4/5 stars

RBD Review #19 | Believarexic by J.J. Johnson

Book info:
Believarexic by JJ Johnson | 464 pages | Published October 2015 by Peachtree Publishers | Biological novel, YA realistic fiction (external image)

Summary:
Fifteen-year-old Jennifer has to force her family to admit she needs help for her eating disorder. But when her parents sign her into the Samuel Tuke Center, she knows it’s a terrible mistake. The facility’s locked doors, cynical nurses, and punitive rules are a far cry from the peaceful, supportive environment she’d imagined.

In order to be discharged, Jennifer must make her way through the strict treatment program—as well as harrowing accusations, confusing half-truths, and startling insights. She is forced to examine her relationships, both inside and outside the hospital. She must relearn who to trust, and decide for herself what “healthy” really means.

Punctuated by dark humor, gritty realism, and profound moments of self-discovery, Believarexic is a stereotype-defying exploration of belief and human connection (courtesy of Goodreads).

My thoughts:

• I was given a digital copy of Believarexic in exchange for an honest review by Peachtree Publishers. 

*NEW* RBD Review #31 | The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich

Book info:
The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich | 448 pages | Published August 2016 (my edition) by Little Brown Books | YA Horror, Mystery, Paranormal, Thriller

Summary:
Welcome to the Dead House.

Three students: dead.

Carly Johnson: vanished without a trace.

Two decades have passed since an inferno swept through Elmbridge High, claiming the lives of three teenagers and causing one student, Carly Johnson, to disappear. The main suspect: Kaitlyn, "the girl of nowhere."

Kaitlyn's diary, discovered in the ruins of Elmbridge High, reveals the thoughts of a disturbed mind. Its charred pages tell a sinister version of events that took place that tragic night, and the girl of nowhere is caught in the center of it all. But many claim Kaitlyn doesn't exist, and in a way, she doesn't - because she is the alter ego of Carly Johnson.

Carly gets the day. Kaitlyn has the night. It's during the night that a mystery surrounding the Dead House unravels and a dark, twisted magic ruins the lives of each student that dares touch it.

Debut author Dawn Kurtagich masterfully weaves together a thrilling and terrifying story using psychiatric reports, witness testimonials, video footage, and the discovered diary - and as the mystery grows, the horrifying truth about what happened that night unfolds.

My thoughts:
Read October 14-20, 2016 | 4 stars

RBD Review #18 | The Crow by James O'Barr

Book info:
The Crow by James O’Barr | Published 1989 | 240 pages | Adult Graphic Novel, Horror, Supernatural, Paranormal

Summary:
Eric has returned from the dead, driven only by hate and the need to wreak revenge on those who killed him and raped and then killed his beloved Shelly. 

My thoughts:
Read May 17-18, 2016 | 5/5 stars 

RBD Review #17 | Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea! by Ben Clanton

Book info:
Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea! by Ben Clanton | 64 pages | Expected publication, October 2016 by Tundra Books | Children’s graphic novel.

Summary:
Narwhal is a happy-go-lucky narwhal. Jelly is a no-nonsense jellyfish. The two might not have a lot in common, but they do they love waffles, parties and adventures. Join Narwhal and Jelly as they discover the whole wide ocean together.
A wonderfully silly early graphic novel series featuring three stories. In the first, Jelly learns that Narwhal is a really good friend. Then Narwhal and Jelly form their own pod of awesomeness with their ocean friends. And finally, Narwhal and Jelly read the best book ever -- even though it doesn't have any words...or pictures!
Ben Clanton showcases the joys of friendship, the benefits of working together and the power of imagination in the delightful Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea.

My thoughts:
Read May 17, 2016 | 5/5 stars

• I was given a digital copy of Narwhal and Jelly in exchange for an honest review by Penguin Random House Canada.