Category Archives: Ya Contemporary

Excerpt: Ultimatum by K.M. Walton [Giveaway]

6 March, 2017 1:44 am , 3 Comments ,

Ultimatum
by K.M. Walton
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Publication Date: March 7, 2017
Genre: Young Adult

A gripping, emotional story of two brothers who must decide what’s more important: family or their differences.

Oscar is misunderstood. Ever since his mother died, he’s been disrespected and bullied by his family, and he seeks refuge in his art. Vance is a popular athlete and wishes his brother would just loosen up and be cool. It was hard enough to deal with their mother’s death without Oscar getting all emotional. Vance just wants to throw himself into partying, to live.

But when their father’s alcoholism sends him into liver failure, the two boys must come face-to-face with their demons-and each other-if they are going to survive an uncertain future.

 

 

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Review: Ultimatum by K.M. Walton

27 February, 2017 1:39 am , 9 Comments ,

Ultimatum
by K.M. Walton
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Publication Date: March 7, 2017
Genre: Young Adult
Rating:

A gripping, emotional story of two brothers who must decide what’s more important: family or their differences.

Oscar is misunderstood. Ever since his mother died, he’s been disrespected and bullied by his family, and he seeks refuge in his art. Vance is a popular athlete and wishes his brother would just loosen up and be cool. It was hard enough to deal with their mother’s death without Oscar getting all emotional. Vance just wants to throw himself into partying, to live.

But when their father’s alcoholism sends him into liver failure, the two boys must come face-to-face with their demons-and each other-if they are going to survive an uncertain future.

 

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Posted in: YA Contemporary, Young Adult , Tagged: ,

Review: Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles

30 January, 2017 2:51 am , 6 Comments ,

Leaving Paradise
(Leaving Paradise #1)
by Simone Elkeles
Publisher: Flux
Publication Date: April 8, 2007
Genre: Young Adult
Rating:

Nothing has been the same since Caleb Becker left a party drunk, got behind the wheel, and hit Maggie Armstrong. Even after months of painful physical therapy, Maggie walks with a limp. Her social life is nil and a scholarship to study abroad—her chance to escape everyone and their pitying stares—has been canceled.

After a year in juvenile jail, Caleb’s free . . . if freedom means endless nagging from a transition coach and the prying eyes of the entire town. Coming home should feel good, but his family and ex-girlfriend seem like strangers.

Caleb and Maggie are outsiders, pigeon-holed as “criminal” and “freak.” Then the truth emerges about what really happened the night of the accident and, once again, everything changes. It’s a bleak and tortuous journey for Caleb and Maggie, yet they end up finding comfort and strength from a surprising source: each other.

 

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Posted in: YA Contemporary, YA Romance, Young Adult , Tagged: ,

Review: Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

13 January, 2017 2:19 am , 3 Comments ,

Holding Up the Universe
by Jennifer Niven
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: Oct. 4, 2016
Genre: YA
Rating:

Everyone thinks they know Libby Strout, the girl once dubbed “America’s Fattest Teen.” But no one’s taken the time to look past her weight to get to know who she really is. Following her mom’s death, she’s been picking up the pieces in the privacy of her home, dealing with her heartbroken father and her own grief. Now, Libby’s ready: for high school, for new friends, for love, and for every possibility life has to offer. In that moment, I know the part I want to play here at MVB High. I want to be the girl who can do anything.

Everyone thinks they know Jack Masselin, too. Yes, he’s got swagger, but he’s also mastered the impossible art of giving people what they want, of fitting in. What no one knows is that Jack has a newly acquired secret: he can’t recognize faces. Even his own brothers are strangers to him. He’s the guy who can re-engineer and rebuild anything, but he can’t understand what’s going on with the inner workings of his brain. So he tells himself to play it cool: Be charming. Be hilarious. Don’t get too close to anyone.

Until he meets Libby. When the two get tangled up in a cruel high school game—which lands them in group counseling and community service—Libby and Jack are both pissed, and then surprised. Because the more time they spend together, the less alone they feel. Because sometimes when you meet someone, it changes the world, theirs and yours.

 

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Review: Lost Girls by Merrie Destefano [Giveaway]

6 January, 2017 8:43 am , 4 Comments ,

Lost Girls
by Merrie Destefano
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Publication Date: Jan. 3, 2017
Genre: YA
Rating:

Yesterday, Rachel went to sleep listening to Taylor Swift, curled up in her grammy’s quilt, worrying about geometry. Today, she woke up in a ditch, bloodied, bruised, and missing a year of her life.

She doesn’t recognize the person she’s become: she’s popular. She wears nothing but black.

Black to cover the blood.

And she can fight.

Tell no one.

She’s not the only girl to go missing within the last year…but she’s the only girl to come back. She desperately wants to unravel what happened to her, to try and recover the rest of the Lost Girls.

But the more she discovers, the more her memories return. And as much as her new life scares her, it calls to her. Seductively. The good girl gone bad, sex, drugs, and raves, and something darker…something she still craves—the rush of the fight, the thrill of the win—something she can’t resist, that might still get her killed…

The only rule is: There are no rules.

 

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Posted in: YA Contemporary, YA Suspense , Tagged: ,

Review: The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout

23 December, 2016 9:09 am , 3 Comments ,

theproblem The Problem with Forever
by: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Publication Date: May 17, 2016
Genre: Young Adult
Rating:

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For some people, silence is a weapon. For Mallory “Mouse” Dodge, it’s a shield. Growing up, she learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime.

Now, after years of homeschooling with loving adoptive parents, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at public high school. But of all the terrifying and exhilarating scenarios she’s imagined, there’s one she never dreamed of—that she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.

It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet the deeper their bond grows, the more it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with the lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory faces a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants, and the truths that need to be heard.

 

 

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Posted in: YA Contemporary, Young Adult , Tagged: ,

Excerpt: The French Impressionist by Rebecca Bischoff [Giveaway]

12 December, 2016 1:14 am , 3 Comments ,

The French Impressionist
By: Rebecca Bischoff
Publisher: Amberkjack Publishing
Publication Date: Dec. 6, 2016
Genre: Young Adult

Rosemary is fifteen and gloriously free, on her own for the very first time. Part of an exchange program for aspiring artists, she arrives in sunny southern France with a single goal: she doesn’t plan to leave, ever. She wants a new life, a new family, and a new identity. But her situation, crafted from lies big and small, is precarious.

Desperate to escape haunting images from her past and a stage one helicopter parent, Rosemary struggles to hide her lack of artistic talent and a communication disorder that has tormented her all her life. She believes her dream of a new start will come true, until she unwittingly finds herself enveloped in a decades-old mystery that threatens to ruin her only chance for success. Determined to stay, Rosemary must choose whether or not she’ll tell the biggest lie of all, even if it means destroying the life of someone she cares about.

Dramatic, heartwarming, and full of teenage angst, The French Impressionist perfectly captures the struggle of those who feel they have no voice, and also shows the courage it takes to speak up and show the world who we really are.

 

 

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Posted in: Excerpt, YA Contemporary, Young Adult , Tagged: ,

Excerpt: Unforgiving by Alisic Adnan [Giveaway]

7 December, 2016 8:33 am , 3 Comments ,

unforginv UNFORGIVING
By: Alisic Adnan
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: January 2017
Genre: Young Adult

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12 years after surviving horrific massacre, 15-year- old Meho commits ruthless murders and sets in motion the event which could change the world order.

The murders are followed by the trial of the century, where media vilifies Meho as a psychopath, mass murderer, and a monster — all under the influence of FBI, who are trying to conceal the identity of the victims and protect the National Security.

The only person who believes that Meho is innocent is his 10-year-old brother Bucky, who will turn heavens and earth to free Meho. After learning the truth, Bucky is devastated, but not all things are as they seem, and the truth will be revealed at the very end.

 

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Review: The Bad Boy Bargain by Kendra C. Highley [Giveaway]

21 November, 2016 2:04 am , 5 Comments ,

badboybargainThe Bad Boy Bargain
By: Kendra C. Highley
Publisher: Entangled Crush
Publication Date: Nov. 14, 2016
Genre: Young Adult
Rating:

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Baseball player Kyle Sawyer has many labels: bad boy, delinquent, ladies’ man, fearless outfielder… Only one of them is actually true. But then sweet ballet dancer Faith Gladwell asks him to help wreck her reputation, and everything goes sideways.

Faith knows a thing or two about love, and what she had with her cheating jerk of an ex wasn’t it. When he starts spreading rumors about her being an Ice Queen, Faith decides it’s time to let a little bad into her life.

Lucky for her, Kyle Sawyer—dark, dangerous, totally swoonworthy Kyle Sawyer—is landscaping her backyard over Spring Break. Shirtless. And if she can convince him to play along, “dating” Kyle will silence the rumors.

But Faith’s plan threatens to expose Sawyer’s biggest secret of all…and that’s a risk he’s not willing to take.

 

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Posted in: YA Contemporary , Tagged: ,

Excerpt: The Homecoming by Stacie Ramey [Giveaway]

16 November, 2016 2:44 am , 4 Comments ,

thehomecoming The Homecoming
By: Stacie Ramey
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Publication Date: Nov. 1, 2016
Genre: Young Adult

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Forced to return to his estranged family, John discovers how hard it is to truly go home.

It’s been a year since John lost his girlfriend, Leah, to suicide. Living with his uncle keeps his mind from the tragedy and his screwed up family-until he gets into trouble and a judge sends him back home. With a neglectful mother and abusive brother, John’s homecoming is far from happy.

As he tries to navigate and repair the relationships he abandoned years ago, Emily, the girl next door, is the only bright spot. She’s sweet and smart and makes him think his heart may finally be healing. But tragedy isn’t far away, and John must soon face an impossible decision: save his family or save himself.

 

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Posted in: YA Contemporary, Young Adult , Tagged: ,