Firsts by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn

Title: Firsts

Author: Laurie Elizabeth Flynn

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: January 5, 2016

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

Seventeen-year-old Mercedes Ayres has an open-door policy when it comes to her bedroom, but only if the guy fulfills a specific criteria: he has to be a virgin. Mercedes lets the boys get their awkward, fumbling first times over with, and all she asks in return is that they give their girlfriends the perfect first time—the kind Mercedes never had herself. 

Keeping what goes on in her bedroom a secret has been easy—so far. Her absentee mother isn’t home nearly enough to know about Mercedes’ extracurricular activities, and her uber-religious best friend, Angela, won’t even say the word “sex” until she gets married. But Mercedes doesn’t bank on Angela’s boyfriend finding out about her services and wanting a turn—or on Zach, who likes her for who she is instead of what she can do in bed.

When Mercedes’ perfect system falls apart, she has to find a way to salvage her reputation and figure out where her heart really belongs in the process. Funny, smart, and true-to-life, FIRSTS is a one-of-kind young adult novel about growing up.

From the first moment I heard about Firsts by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn, I just knew that I had to read it. When I started seeing what other people were saying about it, it just reinforced that desire to read the book. And now that I’ve read it, I can say that it was everything I hoped it would be.

Mercedes isn’t shy when it comes to sex and she’s willing to help those who need. Her one condition when boys seek her help is that they be virgins and that they treat their girlfriends right when they give them their first time. That’s all she asks for. The one thing she never had. No one has ever suspected what Mercedes is up to, and her system is working. Or it would be working if she had been able to stop after helping five boys, like she had told herself she would. But now she’s helped ten boys and her best friend’s boyfriend is seeking out her help. And then there’s Zach, the one boy who doesn’t want Mercedes’s help but actually wants her for who she is. Mercedes had a system and it was working. But now that it’s fallen apart, she isn’t sure how to handle all the fallout. 

From the moment I first heard about Laurie Elizabeth Flynn’s Firsts, I knew I had to read it. It sounded so different from other YA books out there and like it could be a very powerful read. It was certainly both of those things. And on top of that, it was absolutely my kind of book. I will say straight off the bat that Firsts won’t be for everyone. There are people who will read the synopsis and it will immediately make them not want to read this book. And that makes me sad on so many levels because this is such an important and powerful story. There were plenty of times when Firsts wasn’t easy to read. Because of the subject matter it dealt with. Because I wanted so much for Mercedes. And because the story was real. And I’m realizing as I’m sitting here, trying to write this story, that Firsts is hard to put into words. Especially because I don’t want to give too much away, since everyone should read this story the way I did: without knowing anything beyond the synopsis.

Mercedes is the definition of a flawed character. And she’s the kind of character that a lot of people are going to have trouble liking. But her imperfection is what makes her so perfect. And it’s what made Mercedes feel so real as I was reading. So it should go without saying that I loved Mercedes and all her flaws, and I wanted so much for her. Even though I didn’t agree with what she was doing, I understood why she was doing it. And it broke my heart a little. And it made me want so much for her. And I wanted so badly for her to realize that Zach was perfect for her and that he wanted her for who she was. And can I just take a moment to share my love for Zach? Because I really, really loved Zach. And for much of the book, I was just waiting for Mercedes to come to the same conclusion about him I had. And Faye was pretty much the perfect friend for Mercedes. Mercedes just had to realize all that for herself. 

I can’t say enough good things about Laurie Elizabeth Flynn’s Firsts. This is an important story that I fully believe everyone needs to read. It was real, it was heartbreaking, it was touching. It was just a perfect story where I’m concerned. 

All the Rage by Courtney Summers

Title: All the Rage

Author: Courtney Summers

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: April 14, 2015

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

The sheriff’s son, Kellan Turner, is not the golden boy everyone thinks he is, and Romy Grey knows that for a fact. Because no one wants to believe a girl from the wrong side of town, the truth about him has cost her everything—friends, family, and her community. Branded a liar and bullied relentlessly by a group of kids she used to hang out with, Romy’s only refuge is the diner where she works outside of town. No one knows her name of her past there; she can finally be anonymous. But when a girl with ties to both Romy and Kellan goes missing after a party, and news of him assaulting another girl in a town close by gets out, Romy must decide whether she wants to fight or carry the burden of knowing more girls could get hurt if she doesn’t speak up. Nobody believed her the first time—and they certainly won’t now—but the cost of her silence might be more than she can bear.

With a shocking conclusion and writing that will absolutely knock you out, All the Rage examines the shame and silence inflicted upon young women after an act of sexual violence, forcing us to ask ourselves: In a culture that refuses to protect its young girls, how can they survive?

There are certain books out there that I strongly believe people need to read. Not because it’s a heartwarming romance (that’s my usual reason) or because one of the characters is the best I’ve read in a while (typically, my second go-to reason), but because the story is powerful and needs to be read by everyone. And that’s how I feel about Courtney Summers’s All the Rage.

All the Rage wasn’t an easy book to read. In fact, at times it was downright painful to read and I had to take breaks before it got to be too much. That had absolutely nothing to do with the writing, because Courtney Summers’s writing, as usual, was absolutely fantastic. It had to do with the story itself and the subject matter it dealt with. All the Rage is a book about sexual assault, and the way that society has a tendency to treat victims of sexual assault. In this story a girl was sexually assaulted but no one in her small town believes her and instead chooses to bully her because she tried to speak up. It’s not right, not even close. But sadly, that’s how our society has a tendency to react when someone says they were sexually assaulted. In All the Rage, Courtney Summers did a fantastic job depicting this. For most of the book, I wanted to scream and get angry at the people in this town. Because the way they were treating Romy wasn’t right, but sadly, it was very realistic. That’s what made this story so difficult to read at times, how real it felt. How much I could see this happening in real life because it does happen to people on a daily basis. I could go on about this, and in fact I’ve already done so over at my friend Ciara’s blog, Lost at Midnight Reviews, as part of her month long feature for the book.

Much of the reason this story felt so real was because of Romy herself. Romy is flawed and imperfect and some people might find it hard to like her. But that wasn’t the point. For me, reading about Romy was reading about her struggle, both with what happened to her and going on with her life after what happened to her. Because of what happened to her, she has trouble opening up to people (understandably) and believing that her voice will be heard when she speaks up. It was hard to read about it all. The whole time I was reading, I felt her pain and I just wanted to be able to tell her that I heard her and that what she had to say mattered. When Romy finally had her voice heard, she couldn’t believe it. And that made me both extremely sad and extremely angry. No one should be made to feel like what they say doesn’t matter, that their experiences don’t matter. I did take some comfort in the fact that Romy did have a few people on her side. There weren’t many, but they were there. I wanted to hug those people for being there for Romy because she needed some people on her side. Desperately. 

Once again, Courtney Summers wrote a story that hits all the right marks, challenging her readers to think about issues that need to be talked about. I can’t recommend All the Rage enough and I hope that if this books gets into enough hands, we might start to change the way we view sexual assault.

Sway by Kat Spears

Title: Sway

Author: Kat Spears

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: September 16, 2014

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

In Kat Spears’s hilarious and often poignant debut, high school senior Jesse Alderman, or “Sway,” as he’s known, could sell hell to a bishop. He also specializes in getting things people want—term papers, a date with the prom queen, fake IDs. He has few close friends and he never EVER lets emotions get in the way. For Jesse, life is simply a series of business transactions.

But when Ken Foster, captain of the football team, leading candidate for homecoming king, and all-around jerk, hires Jesse to help him win the heart of the angelic Bridget Smalley, Jesse finds himself feeling all sorts of things. While following Bridget and learning the intimate details of her ice, he falls helplessly in love for the very first time. He also finds himself in an accidental friendship with Bridget’s belligerent and self-pitying younger brother who has cerebral palsy. Suddenly, Jesse is visiting old folks at a nursing home in order to run into Bridget, and offering his time to help the less fortunate, all the while developing a bond with this young man who idolizes him. Could the tin man really have a heart after all?

A Cyrano de Bergerac story with a modern twist, Sway is told from Jesse’s point of view with unapologetic truth and biting humor, his observations about the world around him untempered by empathy or compassion—until Bridget’s presence in his life forces him to confront his quiet devastation over a life-changing event a year earlier and maybe, just maybe, feel something again.

I love books that are told from a boy’s perspective and there just aren’t enough of them in YA. Because of that, I was really excited about Kat Spears’s Sway. It was even one of the boys I was most excited about this fall. And I’m happy to say that it didn’t disappoint me.

Jesse Alderman is the person to go to no matter what you need. He’s made quite the name for himself when it comes to getting people what they want. But he never thought that would mean having to get Ken Foster, football captain and major meathead, a date with Bridget Smalley, the nicest girl in school. It shouldn’t be a difficult job. After all, Jesse is an expert when it comes to reading people. And everything would be going according to plan if Jesse wasn’t suddenly developing feelings for Bridget. Now Jesse finds himself spending time at an old folks’ home and in an unlikely friendship with Pete, Bridget’s belligerent younger brother. No one expected this to happen less than Jesse. Especially since he’s supposed to be getting Bridget to go out with Ken, not himself.

Have I mentioned that I loved books that are told from a boy’s perspective? Because I do. I really do. And it often feels like there just aren’t enough of them in YA. Or at least I’m not finding and reading them (as a side note — if you’ve any recommendations, just leave them in the comments). All that is to say that I was initially really excited about reading Kat Spears’s Sway because of the boy perspective. But it also sounded like it had the potential to be quite an interesting story, considering the main character is trying to get the girl he’s in love with to fall in love with someone else. And that definitely turned out to be true. It definitely led to some interesting situations. What disappointed me a little was that there wasn’t as much humour as I thought there was going to be. Considering the premise, there definitely could have been more honour injected in the story. Instead, the humour that was there was more dry and the story was more angsty than I thought it was going to be. And though at first that disappointed me, by the end I really loved that about the story. Because angst, when done well, really makes for some awesome stories. And Jesse brought all the angst. Granted he had his reasons, but he was on angsty boy.

In case you missed it ten seconds ago, Jesse Alderman was one angsty guy. From the bits and pieces I got about his family’s past over the course of the story, I totally understand where the angst came from. In his situation, I probably wouldn’t have been the happiest person ever. At times, though, Jesse was borderline self-destructive. And I don’t know what it says about me, but I kinda liked this angsty, slightly self-destructive boy quite a bit. I really wanted him to get over himself and actually fell something for a change. Because of that, I really enjoyed seeing him come to terms with everything that was happening between him and Bridget, and almost even more so between him and Pete. The friendship between Jesse and Pete was kind of an unexpected relationship, but it might just be my favourite relationship in the whole book. In a way, Pete challenged Jesse to actually feel something, and in return, Jesse didn’t treat Pete in a special way just because he has cerebral palsy. And those two together led to some of my favourite moments in this story. 

I really enjoyed Kat Spears’s Sway. It was a great story that had just the right balance of humour, heart and angst. And to make it even better, it was a great story that also happened to be told from a boy’s perspective. So if you’re looking for a book with any and all of these things, than Sway is the book you should be reading.

Blonde Ops by Charlotte Bennardo & Natalie Zaman

Title: Blonde Ops

Author: Charlotte Bennardo & Natalie Zaman

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Release Date: May 6, 2014

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

Pitched as The Devil Wears Prada meets James Bond for teens, featuring a fashion magazine intern in Rome who uncovers a plot to kidnap the First Lady.

Expelled from yet another boarding school for hacking, sixteen-year-old Rebecca “Bec” Jackson is shipped off to Rome to intern for Parker Phillips, the editor-in-chief of one of the world’s top fashion magazines. But when a mysterious accident lands Parker in a coma, former supermodel and notorious drama queen Candace Worthington takes the reins of the magazine. The First Lady is in Rome for a cover shoot, and all hands are on deck to make sure her visit goes smoothly.

Bec quickly realizes that Parker’s “accident” may not have been quite so accidental, and when the First Lady’s life is threatened, Bec is determined to uncover the truth. On top of that, Bec must content with bitchy models, her new boss, Candace, who is just as difficult as the tabloids say, and two guys, a hunky Italian bike messenger with a thousand-watt smile and a fashion blogger with a razor-sharp wit, who are both vying for her heart.

Can Bec catch the person who’s after the First Lady, solve the mystery of Parker’s accident, and juggle two cute boys at the same time? Blonde Ops is a fun, action-packed romp through the hallways of a fashion magazine and the cobblestone streets of Rome.

Much like I’m a sucker for a good, traditional contemporary story, I’m also a sucker for contemporaries that have some sort of twist. In the case of Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman’s Blonde Ops, the twist involved a teenaged hacker trying to figure out who wants to kidnap the First Lady. Needless to say, I got sucked in and I enjoyed every page of it.

Bec Jackson has been expelled for hacking from more boarding schools than she can count. Her parents don’t know what to do with her anymore. In effort to help Bec things around, her mother ships her off to Rome to inter for Parker Philips at one of the world’s top fashion magazines. But from the moment Bec gets to Rome, things seem to be going wrong everywhere. First a car accident lands Parker in a coma, leading to her being replaced by a former supermodel. The more Bec looks into Parker’s accident, the more convinced she becomes that it wasn’t an accident and that someone might be planning to harm the First Lady during her upcoming visit. With the help of some of her new colleagues and hot Italian bike messenger, Bec sets out to catch the person who’s after the First Lady. But can she do it before the culprit puts their plan in action?

When I first read the synopsis for Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman’s Blonde Ops, I knew I was interested in reading it. I just knew it was going to be a fun story, filled with mystery. Plus it was set in Rome, so that made it that much better. And I enjoyed every page of the story. Though I’ll admit, there was good chunk of time at the beginning of the story that I kept picturing the movie When In Rome with the Olsen twins—the one where they discover someone is trying to sabotage the fashion company they are interning at for the summer. Once I moved on from that though, I really got into the story. Granted, I had a good idea of who was responsible for the plot against the First Lady pretty early on, it wasn’t clear until well into the story how it all fit together. And looking back on it, there were clues that I missed. It was just a fun story, though. I got sucked into it, reading page after page, unable to put the book down. And sure, the mystery aspect kept me reading, but what really drew me into the story was Bec, herself. 

I loved Bec right from the start. She was definitely different and she wasn’t what I expected but that’s actually what made me like her as much as I did. And really, she’s kinda hard to put into words. For starters, she’s a hacker and she’s not afraid to put her skills to good (and not so good) use. And because of that, and her general curiosity and need to know everything, she often put herself in some pretty bad and awkward situations. Half the time, I wanted to shake my head at her plans, but they were entertaining all the same. My one issue with Bec was her romantic life. Granted, in the end it kind of resolved itself, but I was a little annoyed at the fact that she was basically dating both Taj and Dante at the same time. Sure, it made for some funny moments when the two boys were trying to prove they were the best for Bec’s sake, but still. Since the focus of the story wasn’t on the romance, though, it all took a back seat to the plot to harm the First Lady. Regardless of it all, I still loved Bec.

I really enjoyed Charlotte Bennardo and Natalie Zaman’s Blonde Ops. It was a fun story that sucked me right in. If you’re looking for a fun story filled with action, twists and romance, then Blonde Ops is the perfect book for you.

Waiting on Wednesday (67)

For those who don't know, Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine where book bloggers showcase books they are particularly looking for to. For the next few weeks, I'm going to be doing this a little differently. Like I did last year, each week I will be talking about books that are coming out early next year from different publishers. Up this week are January 2013 releases coming from St. Martin's Griffin.

Vortex by Julie Cross
January 8, 2013

Julie Cross's Vortex is the thrilling second installment of the Tempest series, in which the world hangs in the balance as a lovelorn Jackson must choose who to save.

Jackson Meyer has thrown himself into his role as an agent for Tempest, the shadowy division of the CIA that handles all time-travel-related threats. Despite his heartbreak at losing the love of his life, Jackson has proved himself to be an excellent agent. However, after an accidental run in with Holly--the girl he altered history to save--Jackson is once again reminded of what he's lost. And when Eyewall, an opposing division of the CIA, emerges, Jackson and his fellow agents not only find themselves under attack, but Jackson beings to discover that the world around him has changed and someone knows about his erased relationship with Holly, putting both their lives at risk all over again.

Though I had my issues with the first book, Tempest, it ended on a really interesting note that left me wondering what would happen next. It was the kind of book where it took me a while to get into it and I started liking it right before it ended, so I'm really interested to see where Julie Cross is going to take the story in Vortex.

Uses for Boys by Erica Lorraine Scheidt

January 15, 2013

Anna remembers a time before boys, when she was little and everything made sense. When she and her mom were a family, just the two of them against the world. But now her mom is gone most of the time, chasing the next marriage, bringing home the next stepfather. Anna is left on her own--until she discovers that she can make boys her family. From Desmond to Joey, Todd to Sam, Anna learns that if you give boys what they want, you can get what you need. But the price is high--the other kids make fun of her; the girls call her a slut. Anna's new friend, Toy, seems to have found a way around the loneliness, but Toy has her own secrets that even Anna can't know.

Then comes Sam. When Anna actually meets a boy who is more than just useful, whose family eats dinner together, laughs, and tells stories, the truth about love becomes clear. And she finally learns how it feels to have something to lose--and something to offer. Real, shocking, uplifting, and stunningly lyrical, Uses for Boys is a story of breaking down and growing up.

Right when I read the summary, I knew that I just had to read Uses for Boys. It honestly sounds like it has the potential to be a great story, and one that will no doubt have my heart breaking on more than one occasion. I honestly can't wait to be able to read this one.

Stolen Nights by Rebecca Maizel

January 29, 2013 

Lenah Beaudonte should be dead. But having sacrificed herself to save another, she finds herself awakening with strange powers that are neither vampire nor human--and a new enemy on her trail. In her vampire life, Lenah had thought that being human was all she ever wanted; but the human heart suffers pain, heartbreak and loss. 

With her new powers growing and the dark force of the Nex after her soul, Lenah faces a choice: between the mortal love of gorgeous Justin, whose passion fed her human soul, and taking a different path to become the mistress of her own destiny, wherever that may lead…

I cannot even begin to explain how long I have been waiting for Stolen Nights. I absolutely loved Infinite Days when I read it over 2 years ago and I have been (im)patiently waiting for the second book. Though I feel a reread of Infinite Days may be in order so I know what's going on when I pick up Stolen Nights. 

So these are the January titles from St. Martin's Griffin I'm eagerly awaiting. From all these posts the last few weeks I feel like January is going to be an awesome month for books. Be sure to come back next week to see what books I'm waiting on from HBG & Disney-Hyperion!

Fated by Alyson Noël

Title: Fated (The Soul Seekers #1)

Author: Alyson Noël

Publisher: St Martin's Griffin

Release Date: May 22, 2012

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depsitory

The first book in a magnificent new series about a girl who can navigate between the worlds of the living and the dead by #1 New York Times bestselling author Alyson Noël.

Lately strange things have been happening to Daire Santos. Animals follow her, crows mock her, and glowing people appear out of nowhere. Worried that Daire is having a nervous breakdown, her mother packs her off to stay in the dusty plains of Enchantment, New Mexico with a grandmother she's never met.

There she crosses paths with Dace, a gorgeous guy with unearthly blue eyes who she's encountered before…but only in her dreams. And she'll get to know her grandmother--a woman who recognizes Daire's bizarre episodes for what they are. A call to her true destiny as a Soul Seeker, one who can navigate between the worlds of the living and the dead. her grandmother immediately begins teaching her to harness her powers--but it's an art that must be mastered quickly. Because Dace's brother is an evil shape-shifter who's out to steal her powers. Now Daire must embrace her fate as a Soul Seeker and find out if Dace is one guy she's meant to be with..or if he's allied with the enemy she's destined to destroy.

Despite still having to read the final book, I am a big fan of Alyson Noël's Immortals series, so I was really excited when she announced she had a new series coming. While Fated wasn't exactly everything I hoped it would be, it still shows promise for the rest of the series. 

Daire hasn't really had a normal life traveling all over the world, following her make-up artist mother from one movie set to the next. But when she starts having weird visions and going through "episodes" where she's a danger to everyone around her, she knows something is wrong. Now sent to live with the grandmother she's never met, Daire is trying to make sense of what is happening to her. Soon enough, Dare will discover there is more to her and her family than she ever knew. And she's going to have to use her gifts to save those she loved before it's too late.

I had relatively high expectations when I started reading Fated by Alyson Noël. I have read and loved her Immortals series, so I was hoping Fated would be just as good. The premise made it sound like it had the potential to live up to my expectations, but in the end it didn't do so entirely. The store was off to a good start and it caught my attention, bu then somewhere int eh middle it got lost. For me, it felt like the middle part of the book kind of dragged. And then at the end it got really good again. I wish the action could have picked up again sooner and I'm hoping this will happen in the next Soul Seekers book. 

Despite the story kind of letting me down, it didn't stop me from liking the characters. Daire was interesting and I liked about her that she didn't just roll over and accept what was happening to her. Instead, she questioned it every step of the way and that was something I really liked about Daire. That, and her relationship with her grandmother, which was really touching. Cade and Dace were very much opposites. Where one was dark, the other was completely light. And I'm not going to lie, while Cade annoyed me, I may have developed a small crush on Dace. I'm definitely looking forward to more of him.

While it didn't live up to all my expectations, Alyson Noël's Fated shows promise for what's to come in the following book in this new series. And despite it falling somewhat short of my expectations, I will probably be reading the next book in the Soul Seekers series.