Book Review: It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han
May 5, 2011 (UK)
Publisher: Puffin
Rating: 4 out of 5
Recommended? Yes!
Buy the Book: Amazon US | Amazon UK

Last year, all of Belly’s dreams came true and the thought of missing a summer in Cousins Beach was inconceivable. But like the rise and fall of the ocean tide, things can change-- just like that. Suddenly the time she's always looked forward to most is something she dreads. And when Jeremiah calls to say Conrad has disappeared, Belly must decide how she will spend this summer: chasing after the boy she loves, or finally letting him go. - Goodreads Page

I really enjoyed The Summer I Turned Pretty, the first book in this trilogy, and so when this book arrived in the post I was so annoyed that I had to save it for my holiday. It’s been sitting on my bookshelf for a couple of months, staring at me and teasing me. But I was finally able to read it while I was sitting by the pool in Crete this July, and I’m so glad I waited.

There are a few differences between this book and the first. The main one is that this book is told from two points of view this time – Belly’s and Jeremiah’s. It’s pretty obvious what is going to happen from early on in the book, but I won’t spoil you. You must read this for yourself!

Belly, on the other hand, hasn’t changed much at all. Her main concern was Conrad, as usual, and it annoyed me. SO much. She had much bigger problems than chasing after him, but I guess that’s just Belly for you.

Conrad was also being annoying in this book. No, actually, not annoying, just frustrating. I hate it when people can’t share their feelings and instead they shut off.

That said, they were all going through a lot, so I can’t really blame them. I can’t blame Conrad, anyway.

I absolutely LOVED Jeremiah in this book. He was adorable in the first, and in this one he’s stepped up and matured and... Wow. I love him. And I really enjoyed reading things from his perspective, for example when he talks about how his dad has always favoured Conrad and left him out. I felt so sorry for him, I just wanted to hug him.

This book also marks the beginning of a love triangle. Gah. We’ll have to see where it goes, although I’m pretty sure I know. But it’s okay, because I like what happened at the end. I like it a lot.

It’s Not Summer Without You wasn’t as good a read as the first book in the trilogy, but I think that’s because it doesn’t have such a summery feel to it. The first one was perfect for the beach, whereas this one could have been enjoyed just as much in the hotel room. Plus, look at the title. It’s not supposed to be as summery.

I really did enjoy it, though, and if you haven’t picked up this trilogy yet then I highly recommend doing so. Especially if you’re going on holiday this summer! 

In My Mailbox - (26)

Happy Sunday everyone! I haven't made a vlog this week, mostly because I've had a constant headache all weekend, and partly because my sleeping schedule is crazy. I didn't want to make a vlog while I was wide awake at two in the morning! So here are some pictures.

Review:

Deception by Lee Nichols. Thank you Bloomsbury! This sounds so good. 

Shimmer by Alyson Noel. Thank you Macmillan! I don't think I'll be reading this, as it's the second in a series and I haven't read the first. Nor have I read the Immortals series. However, I'll probably save it until I've at least read Evermore.

Bought: 

The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I haven't read this yet, can you believe it? I started the first book when I was younger, but I didn't really enjoy it. Hopefully I'll be able to get into it this time around. 

Slumdog Millionaire by Vikas Swarup. Loved the movie, can't wait to read the book.

The Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I love this book!

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. I've heard this book is amazing, as is the movie. I haven't read nor seen it, but I hope to soon!

I went into the charity shop a second time, and found these. I love my charity shop!

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton. I've read this before, and I loved it! One of the best books I've ever read. Mostly because of the dinosaurs. 

Congo by Michael Crichton

Next by Michael Crichton

Have I mentioned how much I love my charity shop? It's awesome! Adult books are only 99p, and children's books are only 50p! They don't sort the books very well, lots of children's books end up in the adult section, but it doesn't matter because for those prices, who am I to complain? 

I also got a new bookshelf! I'll probably be doing a bookshelf tour sometime soon. It was second hand and I found it in the local paper. A lovely South African family were selling it for £15! 

Did you all have a good weekend? What did you get this week? Leave your links below!

Book Review: Hawksong by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

Hawksong by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
September 28, 2004
Publisher: Laurel Leaf
Rating: Enjoyable

Danica Shardae is an avian shapeshifter, and the golden hawk's form in which she takes to the sky is as natural to her as the human one that graces her on land. The only thing more familiar to her is war: It has raged between her people and the serpiente for so long, no one can remember how the fighting began. As heir to the avian throne, she'll do anything in her power to stop this war - even accept Zane Cobriana, the terrifying leader of her kind's greatest enemy, as her pair bond and make the two royal families one. 
Trust. It is all Zane asks of Danica - and all they ask of their people - but it may be more than she can give. - Goodreads Page

As most of you may know, I love shapeshifters. From werewolves to werecats, panthers to rats, I’m fascinated and intrigued by these creatures. Wouldn’t you just love to be able to shift into an animal whenever you choose? I certainly would.

I picked Hawksong up for this sole reason. I wanted to read a good shifter novel – something I hadn’t done since I’d finished Rachel Vincent’s Shifters series – and that’s exactly what I found. Hawksong was a very entertaining read.

I absolutely loved the world that Amelia Atwater-Rhodes created. There are so many different types of shifters that have been mentioned that I am so happy to find that this is the first book in a series. I can’t wait to find out more about the snakes, or the tigers!

The differences in the hawks and snakes cultures were very well done. I loved reading about these differences, as well as a few similarities. Everything either of the species did reflected on those said differences, and it was so unique. And so much fun!

Danica was a strong leader, and she was willing to give anything up for her people. She was a great protagonist to read about. It was great being inside her head. Her love interest slash arch enemy, Zane, was amazing. He definitely gives Marc and Jace a run for their money. He was HOT, and I really enjoyed reading about him and his kingdom. He was an even better leader than Danica, and that’s saying something.

I did feel, however, that this book was too short. I could have easily read another one hundred plus pages, and as a result of this short length, I think that the last third of the book is very, very rushed. I’d have liked to have seen more build up in the relationship between Danica and Zane (as Danica spent most of her time ill) and there was very little climax.

I would definitely recommend picking this up if you’re a fan of shifters, but I would also recommend picking up the next book in the series because you’ll be left wanting more than this book gives you. 

Top Ten Tuesday: Trends in YA

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Come and join in!

This week's TTT is

Top Ten Trends You'd Like to See More/Less of in YA

I've split mine into two, as I could barely think of ten trends as it is. And yes, I know it's Wednesday! I just forgot to schedule the post for yesterday. Fail.

More

1. Dystopia! I’m loving the current trend, especially as it brought me some amazing reads such as Divergent and Enclave.

2. Fairytale retellings! Need I say more?

3. Greek myths. I have been obsessed with Greek myths since my Nanny bought me a huge book of 100 stories when I was younger. They're so much fun, and so much can be done with them. Plus, there are hundreds of them!

4. Shapeshifters. We have plenty of werewolves, but we need more werecats, leopards, tigers, hawks... Just, more!

5. Badass female leads. Tris, Rose, Deuce... They’re all strong, well developed female leads. Give me a fighter any day.

Less

1. Vampires. I'm just getting really bored with this particular creature, as it's often not necessary for the story for the love interest to be a vampire!

2. Love Triangles. If you've been a reader of this blog for a while, you'll have noticed that I generally dislike love triangles in books, especially if they are not needed, or they come out of the blue. Like one does in Enclave.

3. Instant love. You don’t fall in love with someone you barely know because they smell good. Insta-attraction, on the other hand, I love. When it’s done right.

4. Plain black covers. Enough already, I want to see more brighter colours!

5. Weird cropping angles on covers. You know, those that cut off half the forehead, or half the face. I’d rather see something like these:

Book Review: Rockoholic by C J Skuse

Rockoholic by C J Skuse

March 7, 2011

Chicken House

Source: Publisher. Thank you!

Rating: 3 out of 5

Recommended? Yep!

Buy the Book: Amazon US | Amazon UK

Jody loves Jackson Gatlin. At his only UK rock concert, she’s right at the front. But when she's caught in the crush and carried back stage she has more than concussion to contend with. Throw in a menacing manager, a super-wired super-star, and a curly-wurly, and she finds herself taking home more than just a poster. It’s the accidental kidnapping of the decade. But what happens if you’ve a rock-god in your garage who doesn’t want to leave? Jody’s stuck between a rock-idol and a hard place! 

From the pen of C.J. Skuse, author of last year’s super cool debut Pretty Bad Things, comes a tale of rock star obsession gone nuts. Hilariously and sharply explores the fantasy and reality of celebrity obsession through a teenager’s eyes. C. J. Skuse has been billed as the new Nick Hornby for teens. - Goodreads

Jody, Rockoholic’s main character, is Jackson’s biggest fan. When her best friend Mac gives Jody a ticket to The Regulator’s gig she jumps at the chance to go. After queuing up outside all day Jody gets to see just three songs before she hits her head and is taken to the nurse’s room.

Mac drives her home, plus one – Jackson , who is so high on drugs at the time he thinks that Jody's Curly Wurly is a knife. Yes, you read that right!

Honestly, I found the concept of this novel to be very bizarre. I mean, a fan kidnapping her idol and stashing him away in her sound proof garage is a little strange, right? But I loved it.

Rockoholic is filled with humour and various references which had me laughing out loud. Skuse has an original and unique writing style which drew me in straight away. She also deserves bonus points for the Harry Potter references!

Mac was a fantastic character. I loved it when Mac was looking after his younger sister. I also loved the fact that he stars as Frankenfurter from The Rocky Horror Picture Show in a play.

Now, the parts of the book that I didn’t like were Jody and Jackson. Both characters were immature and got on my nerves – Jackson more so than Jody.

Jody kidnaps a rockstar and thought it was completely okay to keep him for a few days, and Jackson was a 27 year old drug addict living in a 16 year old’s garage. 

I don’t know if Jody’s behaviour was realistic – as realistic as it could be, anyway – or not, but I would have never acted like she does at sixteen. Then again, my stepmum does say I’m abnormal, haha. I admit that Jody did grow on me after a while, and there was a hell of a lot of character growth there. 

That said, the book does send out a good message towards the end and I feel that this is important amongst the teen hysteria. 

Overall, I liked the book. I loved Mac and Cree and Skuse’s writing, but I just couldn’t connect with Jody. Although, there are probably lots of teenage girls out there who can.