The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (Mara Dyer #1) by Michelle Hodkin

Publication: September 27, 2011

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Source: Gift from friend

Mara Dyer believes life can't get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there. It can. She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her strangely unharmed. There is. She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love. She's wrong.

This. Book. I feel like there are not enough words to properly convey my true feelings for this book. But I am going to try. Forgive me if I ramble!

The story  begins with Mara waking up in the hospital with no recollection of what occurred to get her there. Mara’s parents inform her that her best friend, boyfriend, and boyfriend’s sister are dead. It seems that all four of them had previously decided to go into an abandoned Asylum and spend the night, but Mara was the only one who actually made it out alive. She doesn't understand how she could have been the only one to survive the building collapse. Why was she the only one? And how did the building collapse in the first place? Looking for a fresh start, Mara and her family uproot their lives and move to Florida.  New state, new school, and a completely fresh start where no one knows about what happened. But she finds that her past won’t let her escape unscathed.

Noah, Mara’s love interest in the book, comes from a wealthy family. His family is a little lax in his upbringing and he pretty much does anything he wants. By all accounts, he seems like a typical rich kid. He feels bored with school and his life, but things start to improve when he crosses paths one day with Mara at school.

Mara was an easy character to love. All she wants is to be normal and find happiness and peace. But that is easier said than done in her case. At times she becomes a little bit of a mess and it’s hard to tell if things are really happening like she says or if she is actually crazy. Unreliable narrators are so much fun! I never knew what was going to happen next or why.

This book came to me at the perfect time. I was in a really bad reading funk. Nothing seemed to bring me out, until I began reading this book. It was the perfect book to cure me. I had my eye on this one for awhile, but I was never 100% sure I would even like it, especially since there was some romance involved.

It seems I can go either way with romances lately. Especially YA romances. I find that they are usually too cheesy, too dramatic, too unrealistic, and too much insta-love. When I read a romance with any of those elements, I am like no. Just no. But the romance between Mara and Noah. OMG! It just may be my favorite romance to date. 30% into the book and I found myself falling for Noah myself. I LOVED NOAH AND MARA.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer was a surprisingly easy and addictive read.  It took me on a rollercoaster ride filled with crazy emotions. I literally devoured this book and the other two in the series.  I would definitely recommend this book to readers who enjoy young adult paranormal romances in a heartbeat.

RATING: 5 out of 5.

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The Darkest Corners by Kara Thomas Blog Tour!

Publication: April 19, 2016

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Source: Publisher

The Darkest Corners is a psychological thriller about the lies little girls tell, and the deadly truths those lies become. There are ghosts around every corner in Fayette, Pennsylvania. Tessa left when she was nine and has been trying ever since not to think about it after what happened there that last summer. Memories of things so dark will burn themselves into your mind if you let them. Callie never left. She moved to another house, so she doesn’t have to walk those same halls, but then Callie always was the stronger one. She can handle staring into the faces of her demons—and if she parties hard enough, maybe one day they’ll disappear for good. Tessa and Callie have never talked about what they saw that night. After the trial, Callie drifted and Tessa moved, and childhood friends just have a way of losing touch. But ever since she left, Tessa has had questions. Things have never quite added up. And now she has to go back to Fayette—to Wyatt Stokes, sitting on death row; to Lori Cawley, Callie’s dead cousin; and to the one other person who may be hiding the truth. Only the closer Tessa gets to the truth, the closer she gets to a killer—and this time, it won’t be so easy to run away.

Thank you for joining me on my stop of The Darkest Corners Blog Tour!

The Darkest Corners turned out to be a pretty enjoyable YA mystery read. The story starts off with Tessa on her way to Fayette to see her father in prison because he's dying. Once there, she is forced to face her demons and deal with secrets long ago buried.

Tessa is an interesting character. She's smart, easily likable, but her confidence in herself waivers a bit. Her once best friend Callie (who is still attempting to avoid her) now has an appetite for partying hard and drinking even harder.

Like the title of this book suggests, this story is a little bit dark. There are several characters with their own set of problems, secrets, and of course lies. I like that the bad person wasn't easy to guess. And that there were red herrings planted all across the story. It had me second guessing everyone and everything.The story was a bit slow going at first, but after a few chapters things began to pick up for me. I enjoyed the writing style and the complexity of some of the characters.  While it may not be a keep you on the edge of your seat type thriller. It is however, a nicely done mystery with dysfunctional characters and relationships and a ending I did not see coming.

RATING: 3½  out of 5.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kara is the author of THE DARKEST CORNERS, coming from Penguin Random House/Delacorte Press in Spring 2016. She also wrote the Prep School Confidential series (St. Martin’s Press) and the pilot The Revengers for the CW under the pen name Kara Taylor. She’s represented by Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary & Media for books and United Talent Agency and Brillstein Entertainment Partners for film. You can find her on Twitter, Instagram, or on the couch with her rescue cat, Felix.

Author website: http://kara-thomas.com/

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Blog Tour

3/14 Fresh Fiction

3/15 Jessabella Reads

3/16 The Life & Times of a Book Addict

3/17 Hollywood News Source

3/18 Undeniably (Book) Nerdy

3/19 Curling Up with a Good Book

3/20 Out of Time

3/21 Supernatural Snark

3/22 Live to Read, review

3/23 Dark Faerie Tales

3/24 Ex Libris

3/25 Reading with Cupcakes

3/26 The Reader Bee

3/27 The Eater of Books!

3/28 Reading Teen

3/29 Chapter by Chapter

3/30 Winter Haven Books

3/31 Once Upon A Twilight

4/1 Intellectual Recreation

4/2 The Hiding Spot

4/3 Carina Books

4/4 Cover Contessa

4/5 Me Read A Lot

4/6 The Writer Diaries

4/7 Whimsically Yours

4/8 Hook of a Book

4/9 Reading Nook Reviews

4/10 Downright Dystopian

4/11 Such A Novel Idea

4/12 Across the Words

4/13 Reviews From a Bookworm

4/14 Itching For Books

4/15 Waste Paper Prose

4/16 The Irish Banana

4/17 The Book Rat

4/18 YA Reads

4/19 No BS Book Review

4/20 Serenity’s Lovely Reads

4/21 Pandora’s Books

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The First Time She Drowned by Kerry Kletter Pre-Order Promo!

New books are amazing. New books that come with free gifts are even better!

Debut Young Adult author Kerry Kletter is giving you just that!
Pre-order THE FIRST TIME SHE DROWNED on or before March 14th, 2016 and you’ll get a signed poster and bookmark! Supplies are limited to 50 sets, and ship ONLY in the US.

Getting your free poster and bookmark is as easy as 1..2..3..4..

1. Go to whatever book seller you like and pre-order THE FIRST TIME SHE DROWNED (links below in case you need them!)

2. Screen shot your receipt!

3. E-mail that receipt to meandmyshelf(at)gmail(dot)com  ATTN: TFTSD Pre-Order

4. Fill out THIS FORM so Kerry knows where to send your goodies!

Direct Link to form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1fIJfMFoVysjIYhQ2-Kk5veSQ3xdxv7A_OWUPkx12quc/viewform

Synopsis:

Cassie O’Malley has spent her whole life trying to keep her head above water—literally and metaphorically. It’s been two-and-a-half years since her mother dumped Cassie in a mental institution against her will, and now, at eighteen, she enrolls in college, ready to reclaim her life and enter the world on her own terms.

But as she struggles to find her way forward, the startling truths she uncovers about her own family narrative make it impossible to cut the tethers of a tumultuous past. And when the unhealthy mother-daughter relationship that defined Cassie's childhood and adolescence threatens to pull her under once again, Cassie must decide: whose version of history is the truth? And more important, whose life must she save?

A bold, literary story about the fragile complexities of mothers and daughters and learning to love oneself,  The First Time She Drowned reminds us that we must dive deep into our pasts if we are ever to move forward.

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AMAZON: http://www.amazon.com/First-Time-She-Drowned/dp/0399171037/ref=sr_1_1_twi_har_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1451592733&sr=8-1&keywords=kerry+kletter

BARNES & NOBLE: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-first-time-she-drowned-kerry-kletter/1122187349?ean=9780399171031

INDIEBOUND: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780399171031?aff=yainterrobang

PRAISE:

Blurbs: "Beautiful and passionate . . . [Kletter is] a writer of great distinction and infinite promise." —Pat Conroy, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Prince of Tides and South of Broad

"A lovely and haunting keep-you-up-all-night heart-wrencher that is both beautiful and raw, painful and uplifting. An incredible read." —Jennifer Niven, New York Times bestselling author of All the Bright Places

"Sentence by sentence . . . one of the most lyrical novels I’ve ever read. Haunting and exquisite." —Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything, Everything

"The First Time She Drowned is an exquisite and masterful dive, a brave exploration into the complexities of family, and the saving grace of friendship. Kletter’s writing is hypnotic, her characters alive, her story tragic, beautiful, hopeful. Simply put, this book is stunning." —David Arnold, critically acclaimed author of Mosquitoland

AUTHOR BIO:

Kerry Kletter has had a lifelong passion for story. She holds a degree in literature and has an extensive background in theater, having appeared in film, television, and onstage. When not writing, Kerry can be found surfing, running, working with animals, or singing loudly in her car while stuck in LA traffic. A native of Ridgewood, New Jersey, Kerry now lives in Santa Monica, California, with her partner, screenwriter David Zorn. The First Time She Drowned is her debut novel. Follow her on Twitter @kkletter.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/kkletter

INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/kkletter/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/k.kletter

AUTHOR WEBSITE: http://www.kerrykletter.com/

Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum Blog Tour!

Thank you for checking out my stop on the Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum Blog Tour! Julie Buxbaum’s first Young Adult novel doesn’t come out until April, but read on for an early review of the book and links to pre-order it.

Publication: April 5, 2016

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Source: Publisher

What if the person you need the most is someone you’ve never met?   Everything about Jessie is wrong. At least, that’s what it feels like during her first week of junior year at her new ultra-intimidating prep school in Los Angeles. Just when she’s thinking about hightailing it back to Chicago, she gets an email from a person calling themselves Somebody/Nobody (SN for short), offering to help her navigate the wilds of Wood Valley High School. Is it an elaborate hoax? Or can she rely on SN for some much-needed help? It’s been barely two years since her mother’s death, and because her father eloped with a woman he met online, Jessie has been forced to move across the country to live with her stepmonster and her pretentious teenage son. In a leap of faith—or an act of complete desperation—Jessie begins to rely on SN, and SN quickly becomes her lifeline and closest ally. Jessie can’t help wanting to meet SN in person. But are some mysteries better left unsolved?

Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum was a cute contemporary YA book that I wasn’t really expecting to like as much. I don’t normally read a lot of YA contemporary, but I am glad that I read this one.

Jessie is a very likeable character. I thought that she was easy to get to know and relate to. She isn’t much of a social butterfly, but she is a smart, witty, and realistic character. She is going through some emotional issues at the moment and her relationship with her father is not the greatest. Jess is a teenager, so she can be somewhat self absorbed and she may not think things through all of the time, or completely understand things. But having to cope with your mom’s death, and dealing with a new stepmom, and stepbrother in a new place can be a lot to take in.  I liked that her character does grow during the course of the book….no major growth, but still.

One neat aspect of the story that I really enjoyed was that the author included text messages, IM’s and emails into the story. It added an interesting and fun feature to the story.

Julie Buxbaum has created a cute YA contemporary that kept my interest from beginning to end. The story flowed and the writing (also trying to figure out who SN was) kept me turning the pages. I’m interested to see what other books Julie Buxbaum writes in the future. If you’re looking for a YA contemporary with a simple yet unique storyline and realistic characters then check out Tell Me Three Things when it releases on April 5, 2016.

P.S. Find out more about Julie and what she is up to here:  Website |  Facebook  | Twitter

RATING: 3½ out of 5.

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