*taps mic*

... Is this thing on?

It's obviously been a bit since I posted anything other than the Man Calendar. I don't really want to come at you with excuses, but the fact of the matter is that this blog has gotten pushed down my neverending list of things that I need to do—and, in complete honesty, things that I want to do.

I love this space. I don't want to call it quits. But I'm not entirely sure what to do with it. I'm giving it some thought, but it might take me a while to come up with something grand and exciting. So consider this post a past-due announcement of an indefinite hiatus (with the exception of the Man Calendar; those will go up on time as usual).

In addition to a "state of the blog," I also wanted to play a bit of catch-up here. My backlog of series updates has become a bit daunting; consider this a lightning round.

Deadpool 2	Solo	Ocean's 8
★★★★	★★	★★★★½
Hey Ricky Baker! Wade vs. Cable Ness deserved better	Nicholson, not Ford Pretty unnecessary Chewie is my fave	Holy hot ladies Great sequel to the franchise Danny Ocean who?

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom	Ant-Man and the Wasp	Skyscraper
★★★	★★★★½	★★★
Life finds a way (again) Justice for the dinosaurs No one learns lessons	Badass girl power Much-needed MCU laughs Stinger, though—HOW DARE	The Rock saves the day Do not watch if you hate heights Not much dialogue

Crazy Rich Asians	A Simple Favor
★★★★	★★★
Delightful rom-com Crazy beautiful people I want more like this	Unexpected plot Unexpectedly funny Not like the trailer

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You can find all the books I read on Goodreads, but here are some specific shelves:

• March + April | Top read: Obsidio (The Illuminae Files #3) by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman
• May + June | Top read: Neanderthal Opens the Door to the Universe by Preston Norton
• July + August | Top read: The Rook (The Checquy Files #1) by Daniel O'Malley

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TL;DR: Thank you for sticking with me while I've been flaky. I hope to be back soon.

Until then, you can find me over at Forever Young Adult, and on the various social medias. *waves toward the upper-right corner of the blog*

<3!

Nerd News | Ant-Man and the Wasp trailer

If you were curious what's coming next from Marvel post-Infinity War:

Definitely a departure from the tone of IW, but it seems spot-on for an Ant-Man movie. (Which is a good thing.) I have a theory that—highlight to reveal; I don't want to spoil IW for those who haven't seen it—Ant-Man and the Wasp takes place at the same time as IW, and that's where Scott was. (Still unsure about Hawkeye, though.)

Have you seen IW? Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments, just please add a spoiler tag (<spoiler>text</spoiler>) tag around anything that's, well, a spoiler. I'll have a Haiku Revieu up soon!

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Also of note:

• While we're talking Marvel: Clark Gregg, Lee Pace, and Djimon Hounsou have all joined Captain Marvel. (The movie takes place in the 90s, so the Avengers still don't know Coulson's alive. *grumble*)
• And here are 57 YA book recommendations based on the MCU movies. Some of my favorite books/book series are on this list! (Also, some duds. Happy to tell which is which, if you are interested.)
• The next Abramsverse Star Trek movie will be the first to be directed by a woman.
• The Fast and Furious spin-off starring The Rock and Jason Staham is a go. Also, there's a Fast and Furious cartoon—yep, you read that right—coming soon. 
• "The Five Types of Nicolas Cage Movies."

Recently Read | January + February 2018

2018 has been flying by. I honestly don't know where the first four months went!

What did I read during the months of January and February?

Top Read

Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett

The one guy Bailey Rydell can’t stand is actually the boy of her dreams—she just doesn’t know it yet.

Classic movie fan Bailey “Mink” Rydell has spent months crushing on a witty film geek she only knows online as Alex. Two coasts separate the teens until Bailey moves in with her dad, who lives in the same California surfing town as her online crush.

Faced with doubts (what if he’s a creep in real life—or worse?), Bailey doesn’t tell Alex she’s moved to his hometown. Or that she’s landed a job at the local tourist-trap museum. Or that she’s being heckled daily by the irritatingly hot museum security guard, Porter Roth—a.k.a. her new archnemesis. But life is a whole lot messier than the movies, especially when Bailey discovers that tricky fine line between hate, love, and whatever it is she’s starting to feel for Porter.

And as the summer months go by, Bailey must choose whether to cling to a dreamy online fantasy in Alex or take a risk on an imperfect reality with Porter. The choice is both simpler and more complicated than she realizes, because Porter Roth is hiding a secret of his own: Porter is Alex … Approximately.

---

Jenn Bennett is a treasure of the YA contemporary romance world. Her books are filled with sweet moments and characters who feel like real people. But Bennett's books aren't totally fluffy; they include some serious moments and issues that ground them in the realm of reality.

Also, I didn't realize until right now that this was a You've Got Mail retelling, but it totally is! So if you're a fan of that movie, or adorably sweet, swoony romances, I'd definitely pick this one up. Or any of Bennett's other books.

Honorable mentions

Annihilation (The Southern Reach Trilogy #1) by Jeff VanderMeer

Area X has been cut off from the rest of the continent for decades. Nature has reclaimed the last vestiges of human civilization. The first expedition returned with reports of a pristine, Edenic landscape; all the members of the second expedition committed suicide; the third expedition died in a hail of gunfire as its members turned on one another; the members of the eleventh expedition returned as shadows of their former selves, and within months of their return, all had died of aggressive cancer.

This is the twelfth expedition.

Their group is made up of four women: an anthropologist; a surveyor; a psychologist, the de facto leader; and our narrator, a biologist. Their mission is to map the terrain and collect specimens; to record all their observations, scientific and otherwise, of their surroundings and of one another; and, above all, to avoid being contaminated by Area X itself.

They arrive expecting the unexpected, and Area X delivers—they discover a massive topographic anomaly and life forms that surpass understanding—but it’s the surprises that came across the border with them, and the secrets the expedition members are keeping from one another, that change everything.

---

I picked up this book after a recommendation from a friend, and seeing the trailer for the movie. Although I didn't love the movie—and I wouldn't recommend reading this book too close to seeing it—I really enjoyed this book.

It's a very unique read that is both hopeful and disquieting. It's not full-out horror, but it's certainly suspenseful. I haven't read the latter two books in the trilogy, but from reading the synopses, I'm not sure they'll be as unique, but I hope they reveal more of the mystery. There's so much to uncover!

Thunderhead (Arc of a Scythe #2) by Neal Shusterman

Rowan and Citra take opposite stances on the morality of the Scythedom, putting them at odds, in the second novel of the chilling New York Times bestselling series from Neal Shusterman, author of the Unwind dystology.

Rowan has gone rogue, and has taken it upon himself to put the Scythedom through a trial by fire. Literally. In the year since Winter Conclave, he has gone off-grid, and has been striking out against corrupt scythes—not only in MidMerica, but across the entire continent. He is a dark folk hero now—“Scythe Lucifer”—a vigilante taking down corrupt scythes in flames.

Citra, now a junior scythe under Scythe Curie, sees the corruption and wants to help change it from the inside out, but is thwarted at every turn, and threatened by the “new order” scythes. Realizing she cannot do this alone—or even with the help of Scythe Curie and Faraday, she does the unthinkable, and risks being “deadish” so she can communicate with the Thunderhead—the only being on earth wise enough to solve the dire problems of a perfect world. But will it help solve those problems, or simply watch as perfection goes into decline?

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The first book in the Arc of the Scythe series, Scythe, was a top pick the year I read it, so I had high hopes for this sequel. It's honestly not what I expected, but it really packs a punch. Shusterman's created a near-future society that feels all too real, but is fascinating because of how scary it is.

And for a science fiction novel about the dangers of immortality, Thunderhead makes some poignant and important connections to modern-day issues that are impressive in their subtlety (or not, as the case may be.)

Pitch Dark by Courtney Alameda

Set against a future of marauding space scavengers and deadly aliens who kill with sound, here is a frightening, fast-paced YA adventure from the author of the acclaimed horror novel, Shutter.

Tuck has been in stasis on the USS John Muir, a ship that houses Earth’s most valued artifacts—its natural resources. Parks and mountains are preserved in space.

Laura belongs to a shipraiding family, who are funded by a group used to getting what they want. And they want what’s on the Muir.

Tuck and Laura didn’t bargain on working together, or battling mutant aliens who use sound to kill. But their plan is the only hope for their crews, their families, and themselves.

In space, nobody can hear you scream ... but on the John Muir, the screams are the last thing you'll hear.

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I'm not a big horror fan, and Pitch Dark isn't exactly horror-horror, but it's a spooky, creepy read that I made sure not to read in the dark.

I enjoyed Alameda's debut novel, Shutter, in large part because of the way she wove disturbing and down-right-gross elements into the story. Pitch Dark is equally disturbing, but in a fun way? (Maybe I should read more horror.)

Other reads

★★★★

Bloodline by Claudia Gray | Gone Rogue: Wires and Nerve (Wires and Nerve #2) by Marissa Meyer | Markswoman (Asiana #1) by Rati Mehrotra | Speak Easy, Speak Love by McKelle George

★★★

Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart | Ink, Iron, and Glass (Ink, Iron, and Glass #1) by Gwendolyn Clare | Into the Bright Unknown (The Gold Seer Trilogy #3) by Rae Carson | The Lost Plot (The Invisible Library #4) by Genevieve Cogman


★★

Shadowsong (Wintersong #2) by S. Jae Jones


Have you read any of these books? If not, what have you read lately that you'd recommend?

Haiku Revieu | Love, Simon

Love, Simon
★★★★1/2

Heartwarming and fun
Harkens back to old rom-coms
Important movie

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Simon Spier keeps a huge secret from his family, his friends, and all of his classmates: he's gay. When that secret is threatened, Simon must face everyone and come to terms with his identity.

---

I read Becky Albertalli's Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda—the YA book that Love, Simon is based on—a couple of years ago for FYA Book Club, and I loved it. It's a super sweet, funny coming-of-age novel about a young man who isn't quite sure how to reveal to the world that he's gay. And from the moment I heard that it was going to be a movie, I was on board. Hesitant, because it's such a great novel, and we all know how adaptations can go, but excited for Simon to get his day on the big screen.

Happily, I can say that my hesitations were pretty much for naught, because Love, Simon is a fantastic adaptation—and an all-around delight of a movie.

The movie is very reminiscent of romantic comedies of old, with a freshening up for today's audiences. (I've seen it described as John Hughes-ian, which I think is very apt.) It's cute and awkward (SO AWKWARD) in equal amounts, and you'll find yourself falling in love with Simon, his friends and his family from the very start.

Nick Robinson—a current YA film go-to—is adorable as Simon. He's not a stereotype, and I think anyone can see their own early identity investigations in his, regardless of whether they're a young gay man. His struggles, while not universal, are believable and honest; they resonate. Simon's parents, played by Jennifer Garner and Josh Duhamel, are brilliant (even though it's somewhat hard to watch the two play parents) and are involved in some of the most moving moments of the movie.

As Simon's email relationship with Blue (an anonymous guy at Simon's school who's also hiding the fact that he's gay) progresses, it's easy to get swept up in the romance of it all. You'll cheer, you'll shed a tear, and you'll be all the better for it.

Definitely get to the theater to see this movie, and show the powers that be that representation matters!

Check it out:

P.S.—I also highly recommend reading the book, but maybe not right before or after you see the film.

Nerd News | Legion: Season 2 teaser

Are you ready for another mind-bending, totally insane season of Legion?

April 3 can't come soon enough.

H/t to Colt for the link.

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Also of note:

• The creators of the Game of Thrones TV series are planning a new series of Star Wars films.
• Here are a bunch of photos from Solo: A Star Wars Story. Still not sold on Alden, but Donald is KILLING IT.
• Have a Venom trailer. How long did it take you to realize that was Tom Hardy doing the voiceover? 
• And, as a palate cleanser, here's a Deadpool trailer.
• This episodic Wolverine podcast sounds neat. I love that "old" art forms (e.g., radio serials) are coming back in new forms. Also, Richard Armitage is an inspired choice for Logan.
• Will Kilgrave be back in Jessica Jones' second season? The purple at the end of this trailer is sure leaning that way.
• After so many years of waiting, is this Incredibles 2 teaser kind of a let down?
• Firefly's back! (In book form.)
• I am HERE for this new Doctor Who logo and promo image. Can't wait to really meet Thirteen.

Have y'all seen Black Panther? Wasn't it awesome? Haiku Revieu to come soon!

Recently Read | 2017 recap

Unsurprisingly, 2017 was a good year in books. They helped me escape certain not-so-good aspects of reality and dive into some timely and important topics.

However ... I didn't meet my goal of reading 100 books; I only read 85. I was a little upset about it for a moment or two, but then I realized that meeting an arbitrary number of books read isn't important. It's enjoying the reading that really matters. And although I read a few stinkers, for the most part enjoy them I did.

My favorite reads of the year were:

• Wires and Nerve, Volume One (Wires and Nerve #1) by Marissa Meyer
• Geekerella by Ashley Poston
• Hunted by Megan Spooner
• The Memory Book by Lara Avery
• The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis
• The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
• A Court of Wings and Ruin (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3) by Sarah J. Maas
• The Nowhere Girls by Amy Reed
• Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore
• Defy the Stars (Constellation #1) by Claudia Gray

You can check out short reviews of these books, and others I read, in my bimonthly Recently Read posts:

January + February | March + April | May + June | July + August | September + October | November + December

And here's a fun little infographic about my 2017 reading stats, via Goodreads:

(Check out the full graphic here.)

What were your fave books of 2017? Do you have any goals for reading in 2018?

Recently Read | November + December 2017

Although I didn't complete my Goodreads goal of 100 books—more on that later, in my upcoming 2017 reading recap—I finished out the year with some great books.

What did I read during the months of November and December?

Top Read

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil's name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.

But what Starr does or does not say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

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I didn't exactly mean to sleep on reading The Hate U Give—it was published way back in February 2017—but I knew that we were reading it for the Forever Young Adult Book Club in November, so it kept getting pushed down (my immense) TBR list. I should have known, however, that it would end of being one of my favorite reads of the year. The hype is valid y'all.

The Hate U Give is a timely and extremely important novel inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement and cases of police violence. But it also shines light on the normality of a black family that lives in a non-gentrified part of a city with a father who one once involved in a gang. Never does the book feel like it's a stereotype; the Carter family is messy, but also one of the most loving and loyal families I've ever read about.

Since it's publication, The Hate U Give has seen backlash, thanks to Thomas' inclusion of curse and slang words, and "ripped from the headlines" events, that some find offensive, but I applaud Thomas for not shying away from the truth. If you haven't already read this book, don't be like me—read it ASAP.

Honorable mentions

Meet Cute: Some People Are Destined to Meet by various authors

Whether or not you believe in fate, or luck, or love at first sight, every romance has to start somewhere. Meet Cute is an anthology of original short stories featuring tales of "how they first met" from some of today’s most popular YA authors.

Readers will experience Nina LaCour's beautifully written piece about two Bay Area girls meeting via a cranky customer service Tweet, Sara Shepard's glossy tale about a magazine intern and a young rock star, Nicola Yoon's imaginative take on break-ups and make-ups, Katie Cotugno's story of two teens hiding out from the police at a house party, and Huntley Fitzpatrick's charming love story that begins over iced teas at a diner. There’s futuristic flirting from Kass Morgan and Katharine McGee, a riveting transgender heroine from Meredith Russo, a subway missed connection moment from Jocelyn Davies, and a girl determined to get out of her small town from Ibi Zoboi. Jennifer Armentrout writes a sweet story about finding love from a missing library book, Emery Lord has a heartwarming and funny tale of two girls stuck in an airport, Dhonielle Clayton takes a thoughtful, speculate approach to pre-destined love, and Julie Murphy dreams up a fun twist on reality dating show contestants.

This incredibly talented group of authors brings us a collection of stories that are at turns romantic and witty, epic and everyday, heartbreaking and real.

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I'ma hopeless romantic, and a huge sucker for cute stories about how two people find each other. Enter Meet Cute, a collection of 14 stories that are all about those first butterfly moments, or the moments before those first butterflies even take flight. It's a super fluffy read, and was a perfect way to cap off 2017. (It was my official last read of the year!)

The best part of these stories, for me, was the diversity of the couples. Four of the 14 feature two ladies, and quite a few others feature non-white main characters. And, if you're curious, my fave stories were “Oomph” by Emery Lord, about two girls who meet in the airport security line; “The Dictionary of You and Me” by Jennifer L. Armentrout, about a "missing" library book; and “The Department of Dead Love” by Nicola Yoon, which is a sort of science fiction take on romance and destiny. The only stories I didn't really enjoy, however, were the two written in second person POV. But they just read weird; their actual plots weren't bad.

Leia, Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray

Sixteen-year-old Princess Leia Organa faces the most challenging task of her life so far: proving herself in the areas of body, mind, and heart to be formally named heir to the throne of Alderaan. She's taking rigorous survival courses, practicing politics, and spearheading relief missions to worlds under Imperial control. 

But Leia has worries beyond her claim to the crown. Her parents, Breha and Bail, aren't acting like themselves lately; they are distant and preoccupied, seemingly more concerned with throwing dinner parties for their allies in the Senate than they are with their own daughter. 

Determined to uncover her parents' secrets, Leia starts down an increasingly dangerous path that puts her right under the watchful eye of the Empire. And when Leia discovers what her parents and their allies are planning behind closed doors, she finds herself facing what seems like an impossible choice: dedicate herself to the people of Alderaan—including the man she loves—or to the galaxy at large, which is in desperate need of a rebel hero ...

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A long time ago, in a city kinda far away, I read a large majority of the Star Wars Extended Universe books—and I loved them all. Getting to read about these iconic characters outside of the movies was delightful, and I came to know them all pretty well. Cut to a few years ago, when Disney bought Lucasfilm and decided to de-canonize the Extended Universe books ... I was bummed, to say the least. But there is a bright side: New books to read, and new stories about my favorite characters to get lost in.

Leia, Princess of Alderaan, tells the story of Leia before she got involved in the rebellion. It expands on some of the events that went into making Leia the strong female character we all know and love, and—no spoilers—introduces a character from The Last Jedi, giving them some background that actually made me like them more.

Not Now, Not Ever by Lily Anderson

Love grows such strange things.

Elliot Gabaroche is very clear on what she isn't going to do this summer.

1. She isn't going to stay home in Sacramento, where she'd have to sit through her stepmother's sixth community theater production of The Importance of Being Earnest.
2. She isn't going to mock trial camp at UCLA.
3. And she certainly isn't going to the Air Force summer program on her mother's base in Colorado Springs. As cool as it would be to live-action-role-play Ender's Game, Ellie's seen three generations of her family go through USAF boot camp up close, and she knows that it's much less Luke/Yoda/"feel the force," and much more one hundred push-ups on three days of no sleep. And that just isn't appealing, no matter how many Xenomorphs from Alien she'd be able to defeat afterwards.

What she is going to do is pack up her attitude, her favorite Octavia Butler novels, and her Jordans, and go to summer camp. Specifically, a cutthroat academic-decathlon-like competition for a full scholarship to Rayevich College, the only college with a Science Fiction Literature program. And she's going to start over as Ever Lawrence, on her own terms, without the shadow of all her family’s expectations. Because why do what’s expected of you when you can fight other genius nerds to the death for a shot at the dream you’re sure your family will consider a complete waste of time?

This summer's going to be great.

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Lily Anderson's The Only Thing Worse Than Me is You—a retelling of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing—was one of my top books of 2016, so I was excited to read Not Now, Not Ever, a "sequel" of sorts, this time based on Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest.

Once again, Anderson sucked me in with many nerdy references that don't seem like name-dropping and realistic and delighful characters I'd love to be friends with.

Other reads

★★★★

The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley | By Your Side by Kasie West | Godsgrave (The Nevernight Chronicle #2) by Jay Kristoff | No Limits by Ellie Marney | Renegades (Renegades #1) by Marissa Meyer

★★★

Paper Girls, Vol. 1 (Paper Girls #1) by Brian K. Vaughn, Cliff Chiang, and Matthew Wilson | Ready to Fall by Marcella Pixley

★★

Pride & Prejudice & Mistletoe by Melissa de la Cruz | Rebel Seoul by Axie Oh


Have you read any of these books? If not, what have you read lately that you'd recommend?

Recently Read | September + October 2017

Continuing with my catch up!

What did I read during the months of September and October?

Top Read

The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis

Alex Craft knows how to kill someone. And she doesn’t feel bad about it.

Three years ago, when her older sister, Anna, was murdered and the killer walked free, Alex uncaged the language she knows best—the language of violence. While her own crime goes unpunished, Alex knows she can’t be trusted among other people. Not with Jack, the star athlete who wants to really know her but still feels guilty over the role he played the night Anna’s body was discovered. And not with Peekay, the preacher’s kid with a defiant streak who befriends Alex while they volunteer at an animal shelter. Not anyone.

As their senior year unfolds, Alex’s darker nature breaks out, setting these three teens on a collision course that will change their lives forever.

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The Female of the Species is another FYABC pick that I likely wouldn't have read otherwise. It's also not an easy novel—by any stretch—but I'm once again very glad I read it.

People who don't read a lot of YA novels don't often realize how well YA books can tackle timely, sensitive topics. The Female of the Species is a prime example of this, and McGinnis absolutely pulls no punches with the story. The main character, Alex, is a complicated anti-hero; you can't help but root for her even as you find out just how dark she can get. She grows a lot in the novel, too, and it makes her someone

It's also the kind of book that is hard to read, but I absolutely couldn't put it down.

Honorable mentions

The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo

Love speaks in flowers. Truth requires thorns.

Travel to a world of dark bargains struck by moonlight, of haunted towns and hungry woods, of talking beasts and gingerbread golems, where a young mermaid's voice can summon deadly storms and where a river might do a lovestruck boy's bidding but only for a terrible price.

Inspired by myth, fairy tale, and folklore, #1 New York Times–bestselling author Leigh Bardugo has crafted a deliciously atmospheric collection of short stories filled with betrayals, revenge, sacrifice, and love.

Perfect for new readers and dedicated fans, these tales will transport you to lands both familiar and strange—to a fully realized world of dangerous magic that millions have visited through the novels of the Grishaverse.

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Bardugo certainly knows how to weave a tale, and the ones included in this collection—which are the stories children growing up in the Grishaverse would have heard growing up—feel both fresh and familiar.

I also enjoy the feminist spin on the more familiar tales, and the many strong female characters who prove that ladies can save themselves quite well, thank you. And the illustrations of the stories (done by artist Sarah Kipin; see more of her work here), which get more detailed and change as the plot progresses, are fabulous companions to the tales.

The Nowhere Girls by Amy Reed

Three misfits come together to avenge the rape of a fellow classmate and in the process trigger a change in the misogynist culture at their high school transforming the lives of everyone around them in this searing and timely story.

Who are the Nowhere Girls?

They’re every girl. But they start with just three:

Grace Salter is the new girl in town, whose family was run out of their former community after her southern Baptist preacher mom turned into a radical liberal after falling off a horse and bumping her head.

Rosina Suarez is the queer punk girl in a conservative Mexican immigrant family, who dreams of a life playing music instead of babysitting her gaggle of cousins and waitressing at her uncle’s restaurant.

Erin Delillo is obsessed with two things: marine biology and Star Trek: The Next Generation, but they aren’t enough to distract her from her suspicion that she may in fact be an android.

When Grace learns that Lucy Moynihan, the former occupant of her new home, was run out of town for having accused the popular guys at school of gang rape, she’s incensed that Lucy never had justice. For their own personal reasons, Rosina and Erin feel equally deeply about Lucy’s tragedy, so they form an anonymous group of girls at Prescott High to resist the sexist culture at their school, which includes boycotting sex of any kind with the male students.

Told in alternating perspectives, this groundbreaking novel is an indictment of rape culture and explores with bold honesty the deepest questions about teen girls and sexuality.

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The Nowhere Girls is a brutal, powerful read that, unfortunately, is all too timely in our current political and social climate. It's not an easy read, but the characters are the kinds of heroes we need in YA these days.

The book is similar to The Female of the Species in theme, but it's easier to connect with The Nowhere Girls' main characters. I particularly appreciate how Reed wrote three main characters who weren't traditional YA MCs; one is chubby and plain, another is on the Autism spectrum, and the third is a lesbian and Latina. Additionally, Reed doesn't shy away from examining the many different sides ofthe situation, even including the viewpoints of the story's men's rights activists. (Which are SUPER gross, but do serve a purpose in progressing the plot. I promise they're not just there for sensationality's sake.)

Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore

Love grows such strange things.

For nearly a century, the Nomeolvides women have tended the grounds of La Pradera, the lush estate gardens that enchant guests from around the world. They’ve also hidden a tragic legacy: if they fall in love too deeply, their lovers vanish. But then, after generations of vanishings, a strange boy appears in the gardens.

The boy is a mystery to Estrella, the Nomeolvides girl who finds him, and to her family, but he’s even more a mystery to himself; he knows nothing more about who he is or where he came from than his first name. As Estrella tries to help Fel piece together his unknown past, La Pradera leads them to secrets as dangerous as they are magical in this stunning exploration of love, loss, and family.

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I love how McLemore mixes magic and culture in her novels, and sincerely appreciate how she includes non-binary, non-straight characters without turning them into tropes. Reading Wild Beauty felt a little like getting lost in a dream, and I hated waking up at the end.

This is the seond year in a row that one of McLemore's novels has been one of my best books of the year, and I hope this trend continues for many years to come.

Other reads

★★★★

The Dire King (Jackaby #4) by William Ritter | Invictus by Ryan Graudin | P.S. I Like You by Kasie West | Tower of Dawn (Throne of Glass #6) by Sarah. J Maas

★★★

All the Wind in the World by Samantha Mabry | Rosemarked (Rosemarked #1) by Livia Blackburne | Spinning by Tillie Walden | Uncanny by Sarah Fine


Have you read any of these books? If not, what have you read lately that you'd recommend?

Recently Read | July + August 2017

In the last edition of this series, I voiced the thought that 2017 has beena year of playing catch-up. That was, apparently, a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts, as it's December, and I'm just now posting my July–August reads. (September–October to come soon, too.)

What did I read during the months of July and August?

Top Read

The Memory Book by Lara Avery

They tell me that my memory will never be the same, that I'll start forgetting things. At first just a little, and then a lot. So I'm writing to remember.

Sammie was always a girl with a plan: graduate at the top of her class and get out of her small town as soon as humanly possible. Nothing will stand in her way—not even a rare genetic disorder the doctors say will slowly start to steal her memories and then her health. What she needs is a new plan.

So the Memory Book is born: Sammie's notes to her future self, a document of moments great and small. It's where she'll record every perfect detail of her first date with longtime crush, Stuart—a brilliant young writer who is home for the summer. And where she'll admit how much she's missed her childhood best friend, Cooper, and even take some of the blame for the fight that ended their friendship.

Through a mix of heartfelt journal entries, mementos, and guest posts from friends and family, readers will fall in love with Sammie, a brave and remarkable girl who learns to live and love life fully, even though it's not the life she planned.

---

I read The Memory Book for the Forever Young Adult Book Club (see if there's one in your area!), and wasn't sure what to expect going in. I mean, I'd read the synposis, and the FYA review, but neither prepared me for the gut punch of the actual novel. Y'all—there were tears.

This is one of those books that I had to sit for a while after reading and let myself take it all in. It's equal parts heartwarming and heartbreaking, swoony and silly. Avery's characters feel very real, and having Sammie be the main character, even while her situation is deteriorating drastically, is unique; she's an unreliable narrator, but Avery doesn't make it clear just how much Sammie's "changed the story" until the very end.

It's a hard book, and maybe one that I wouldn't have read had I not "had" to for FYABC. But I'm really glad I did!

Honorable mentions

Every Move (Every #3) by Ellie Marney

After the dramatic events of London, a road trip back to her old home in Five Mile sounds good (in theory) to Rachel Watts, with her brother Mike in the driving seat. But when Mike picks up his old buddy—the wildly unreliable Harris Derwent—things start to go south.

Back in Melbourne, Rachel’s ‘partner in crime’, James Mycroft, clashes with Harris, and then a series of murders suggest that the mysterious Mr Wild—Mycroft’s own personal Moriarty—is hot on their tail. When tragedy strikes, Rachel and Mycroft realise they’ll have to recruit Harris and take matters into their own hands …

---

I've mentioned this series before, I think, but I can't say enough good things about Ellie Marney's Every books. Every Move is the final book in the trilogy, and it bring a close to the high-stakes action mixed with crazy hot chemistry the series is known for.

In addition to some serious swoon and the ability to make you afraid for her main characters, Marney has a great gift for wolrd building. I've never been to Australia, but I feel like I have a good grasp of what to expect when/if I get to visit. But if I don't run into hot, tortured dudes solving mysteries, I will be a little disappointed.

Roar (Stormheart #1) by Cora Carmack

In a land ruled and shaped by violent magical storms, power lies with those who control them.

Aurora Pavan comes from one of the oldest Stormling families in existence. Long ago, the ungifted pledged fealty and service to her family in exchange for safe haven, and a kingdom was carved out from the wildlands and sustained by magic capable of repelling the world’s deadliest foes. As the sole heir of Pavan, Aurora’s been groomed to be the perfect queen. She’s intelligent and brave and honorable. But she’s yet to show any trace of the magic she’ll need to protect her people.

To keep her secret and save her crown, Aurora’s mother arranges for her to marry a dark and brooding Stormling prince from another kingdom. At first, the prince seems like the perfect solution to all her problems. He’ll guarantee her spot as the next queen and be the champion her people need to remain safe. But the more secrets Aurora uncovers about him, the more a future with him frightens her. When she dons a disguise and sneaks out of the palace one night to spy on him, she stumbles upon a black market dealing in the very thing she lacks—storm magic. And the people selling it? They’re not Stormlings. They’re storm hunters.

Legend says that her ancestors first gained their magic by facing a storm and stealing part of its essence. And when a handsome young storm hunter reveals he was born without magic, but possesses it now, Aurora realizes there’s a third option for her future besides ruin or marriage.

She might not have magic now, but she can steal it if she’s brave enough.

Challenge a tempest. Survive it. And you become its master.

---

I'm a sucker for fantasy novels that star strnge female characters who don't realize what power they truly hold until later in the book. That sort of plot can turn really trope-y, fast, but with Roar Carmack did a great job of creating something fresh that didn't lean too heavily on all the similar stories that have come before but also didn't shy away from what makes those stories great. In this case: magic, action, and a good dose of swoon.

I'm also a fan of the unique form of magic Cormack has created for her world, and the way she created a "found family" out of a group of characters who otherwise might not seem to work well together. I love it when outsiders find their place. I'm definitely looking forward to future books in this series.

Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia

Her story is a phenomenon. Her life is a disaster.

In the real world, Eliza Mirk is shy, weird, and friendless. Online, she’s LadyConstellation, the anonymous creator of the wildly popular webcomic Monstrous Sea. Eliza can’t imagine enjoying the real world as much as she loves the online one, and she has no desire to try.

Then Wallace Warland, Monstrous Sea’s biggest fanfiction writer, transfers to her school. Wallace thinks Eliza is just another fan, and as he draws her out of her shell, she begins to wonder if a life offline might be worthwhile.

But when Eliza’s secret is accidentally shared with the world, everything she’s built—her story, her relationship with Wallace, and even her sanity—begins to fall apart.

---

This is the second book I've read by Zappia, and she once again impressed me with her ability to create complex characters with "issues" who feel real, and not like stereotypes or plot devices. I also love her inclusion of fandom themes.

Additionally, the relationship between Eliza and Wallace is a unique one that stands out amongst YA relationships. It's a slow burn, but totally worth sticking around for.

Other reads

★★★★

The Bear and the Nightingale (Winternight Trilogy #1) by Katherine Arden | Ready Player One by Ernest Cline | Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

★★★

Blacklight Express (Railhead #2) by Philip Reeve | Shadow Run (Kaitan Chronicles #1) by AdriAnne Strickland and Michael Miller | Tash Hearts Tolstoy by Kathryn Ormsbee | What Goes Up by Katie Kennedy

★★

Of Jenny and the Aliens by Ryan Gebhart | Secondborn (Secondborn #1) by Amy A. Bartol


Have you read any of these books? If not, what have you read lately that you'd recommend?

Recently Read | May + June 2017

It's already August, and I can barely believe it. 2017 has been a year of playing catch-up, it seems. (Or perhaps I just overextend myself a tad?)

What did I read during the months of May and June?

Top Read

Hunted by Megan Spooner

Beauty knows the Beast’s forest in her bones—and in her blood. Though she grew up with the city’s highest aristocrats, far from her father’s old lodge, she knows that the forest holds secrets and that her father is the only hunter who’s ever come close to discovering them.

So when her father loses his fortune and moves Yeva and her sisters back to the outskirts of town, Yeva is secretly relieved. Out in the wilderness, there’s no pressure to make idle chatter with vapid baronessas … or to submit to marrying a wealthy gentleman. But Yeva’s father’s misfortune may have cost him his mind, and when he goes missing in the woods, Yeva sets her sights on one prey: the creature he’d been obsessively tracking just before his disappearance.

Deaf to her sisters’ protests, Yeva hunts this strange Beast back into his own territory—a cursed valley, a ruined castle, and a world of creatures that Yeva’s only heard about in fairy tales. A world that can bring her ruin or salvation. Who will survive: the Beauty, or the Beast?

---

I'm always game for a retelling, and the Beauty and the Beast tale is one of my all-time favorites. (Regardless of how problematic it can sometimes be.) The character of Belle is one that I really connect with—from her love of books to her feeling out of place in her community. In Hunted, Megan Spooner has created a "Belle" that is a stronger, more complex version of the character in the animated movie and other retellings, a character who's been forced to deal with more hardships in life and who's a little more self aware. (It's easier to dive into such topics in a book, natch.)

The story itself is darker, and more influenced by folklore. It takes a decidedly non-Disney turn at points, and Spooner makes a point to call out some of the issues with other versions, namely Yeva's conflicting feelings about the Beast and the somewhat insane decision to return to him.

I also really enjoyed Spooner's expansion of the world, and her inclusion of other characters, including Yeva's sisters and a boy from town who could have turned out like Gaston—a dude bro-y stereotype—but was actually pretty awesome. (Don't get me wrong, I love Gaston, but we all know he's The Worst.)

Honorable mentions

A Court of Wings and Ruin (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3) by Sarah J. Maas

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin’s maneuverings and the invading king threatening to bring Prythian to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit—and one slip may spell doom not only for Feyre, but for her world as well. As war bears down upon them all, Feyre must decide who to trust amongst the dazzling and lethal High Lords—and hunt for allies in unexpected places.

---

Y'all know how much of a Maas fangirl I am, particularly when it comes to the Court of Thorns and Roses series, so it should come as no surprise that I was super pumped to read this book. And it didn't disappoint—although I do still like the second book best—bringing plenty of action,  swoon and time spent with the fabulous characters who make up the Court of Dreams.

This isn't the last book in the series, but it is the last book that Feyre and Rhysand have the starring roles. I'm really excited to see who the main characters of the subsequent books are; I could read books about this world and the myriad of people who live in it for a very long time to come and never tire of it/them.

Flame in the Mist (Flame in the Mist #1) by Renée Ahdieh

The only daughter of a prominent samurai, Mariko has always known she’d been raised for one purpose and one purpose only: to marry. Never mind her cunning, which rivals that of her twin brother, Kenshin, or her skills as an accomplished alchemist. Since Mariko was not born a boy, her fate was sealed the moment she drew her first breath.

So, at just seventeen years old, Mariko is sent to the imperial palace to meet her betrothed, a man she did not choose, for the very first time. But the journey is cut short when Mariko’s convoy is viciously attacked by the Black Clan, a dangerous group of bandits who’ve been hired to kill Mariko before she reaches the palace.

The lone survivor, Mariko narrowly escapes to the woods, where she plots her revenge. Dressed as a peasant boy, she sets out to infiltrate the Black Clan and hunt down those responsible for the target on her back. Once she’s within their ranks, though, Mariko finds for the first time she’s appreciated for her intellect and abilities. She even finds herself falling in love—a love that will force her to question everything she’s ever known about her family, her purpose, and her deepest desires.

---

Another retelling, of sorts, Flame in the Mist incorporates elements of Mulan, Robin Hood, and Japanese folklore into a lush, engaging story. I've not read any of Ahdieh's other books, but I've heard that she's a great storyteller, and this book definitely leads me to believe that the rumors were correct.

Ahdieh also brings the swoon, which is always a check in a Pros column for me, and the main character of Mariko is a feminist in an era in which her kind of progressive thinking was not only frowned upon, it was unheard of. Do be warned, however: the ending of this series starter is a bit of a cliffhanger.

Spill Zone (Spill Zone #1) by Scott Westerfeld

Nobody's ever really explained the Spill. Was it an angelic visitation? A nanotech accident? A porthole opening from another world? Whatever it was, no one's allowed in the Spill Zone these days except government scientists and hazmat teams. But a few intrepid explorers know how to sneak through the patrols and steer clear of the dangers inside the Zone. Addison Merrick is one such explorer, dedicated to finding out what happened that night, and to unraveling the events that took her parents and left her little sister mute and disconnected from the world.

---

Spill Zone is one of those books that I might not have picked up had I not gotten involved in a book tour for FYA. I didn't love any of the other Westerfeld books I've read, and I tend to be behind the trend when it comes to picking up graphic novels. However, I'm thankful I chose to get involved with the promotion for this book, because I super enjoyed the mix of spooky and suspense.

The book features a post-apocalyptic "zone" that will give you more questions than answers, and leave you wanting more. The art style is a little choppy at times, but it really works with the strange look and feel of the story.

Other reads

★★★★

Giant Days (Vol. 1, Vol. 2, Vol. 3, Vol. 4, and Vol. 5) by John Allison

★★★

Now I Rise (The Conqueror's Saga #2) by Kiersten White | Our Dark Duet (Monsters of Verity #2) by Victoria Schwab | Roses and Rot by Kat Howard | Royal Bastards (Royal Bastards #1) by Andrew Shvarts | The Evaporation of Sofi Snow (The Evaporation of Sofi Snow #1) by Mary Weber | The Gold-Son by Carrie Anne Noble | The Sandcastle Empire by Kayla Olson | The Traitor's Kiss (The Traitor's Trilogy #1) by Erin Beaty | Violet Grenade by Victoria Scott

★★

Conviction by Kelly Loy Gilbert | The Black Witch (The Black Witch Chronicles #1) by Laurie Forest


Have you read any of these books? If not, what have you read lately that you'd recommend?

Recently Read | March + April 2017

I am a leeetle¹ behind on updating this series, but I blame work, vacation, and being sick for the entire month of June.

What did I read during the months of March and April?

Top Read

Geekerella by Ashley Poston

Anything can happen once upon a con …

When geek girl Elle Wittimer sees a cosplay contest sponsored by the producers of Starfield, she has to enter. First prize is an invitation to the ExcelsiCon Cosplay Ball and a meet-and-greet with the actor slated to play Federation Prince Carmindor in the reboot. Elle’s been scraping together tips from her gig at the Magic Pumpkin food truck behind her stepmother’s back, and winning this contest could be her ticket out once and for all—not to mention a fangirl’s dream come true.

Teen actor Darien Freeman is less than thrilled about this year’s ExcelsiCon. He used to live for conventions, but now they’re nothing but jaw-aching photo sessions and awkward meet-and-greets. Playing Federation Prince Carmindor is all he’s ever wanted, but the diehard Starfield fandom has already dismissed him as just another heartthrob. As ExcelsiCon draws near, closet nerd Darien feels more and more like a fake—until he meets a girl who shows him otherwise.

---

I love a good retelling, and y'all know how I feel about geekery, so the whole idea of Geekerella appealed to me from the very start. I was hesitant going into it, however, thanks to my recent experience with fandom/geek books. (Spoiler alert: It hasn't been good.) Thankfully, Poston has written a novel that feels true in its examination of fandom. In my review for Forever Young Adult, I put it this way: It is an ode to fandom without an overabundance of name dropping or stereotyping, a celebration of geek culture that doesn’t resort to tropes, and a book that I’m excited to tell my fellow nerds about. (Sorry not sorry for quoting myself.)


Poston's characters are fun, real-feeling individuals who obviously love their fandoms as much as I love mine. They never felt like caricatures, which I appreciate so much. The relationship between Elle and Darien is sweet and funny, and although it's fictional and more than a little unrealistic, still felt like something that just maybe could have happened. And I love how Poston updated elements of the Cinderella tale to fit with her story, from turning the magic pumpkin into a food truck and having the prince only play one in the movies.

Geekerella's plot isn't anything too deep, but sometimes you just want to get lost in a flight of fancy.

Honorable mentions

Defy the Stars (Constellation #1) by Claudia Gray

She’s a soldier.

Noemi Vidal is seventeen years old and sworn to protect her planet, Genesis. She’s willing to risk anything—including her own life. To their enemies on Earth, she’s a rebel.
He’s a machine.

Abandoned in space for years, utterly alone, Abel has advanced programming that’s begun to evolve. He wants only to protect his creator, and to be free. To the people of Genesis, he’s an abomination.

Noemi and Abel are enemies in an interstellar war, forced by chance to work together as they embark on a daring journey through the stars. Their efforts would end the fighting for good, but they’re not without sacrifice. The stakes are even higher than either of them first realized, and the more time they spend together, the more they’re forced to question everything they’d been taught was true.

---

With her Firebird series and the Star Wars novel Lost Stars,  Gray has quickly become one of my "must-read" authors. Defy the Stars isn't my most favorite of her books that I've read so far, but it's no exception to the "I love Claudia Gray's books" rule.

Starring an android who's way too human for his own good and a rebellious young woman who's willing to do whatever it takes to bring peace to her world, the novel is an exciting adventure featuring a surprising amount of swoon—which is one of the reasons I enjoy Gray's books so much; she's very skilled at mixing these sometimes disparate ideas. I'm excited to see where the rest of the series takes us.

Traitor to the Throne (Rebel of the Sands #2) by Alwyn Hamilton

Rebel by chance. Traitor by choice.

Gunslinger Amani al'Hiza fled her dead-end hometown on the back of a mythical horse with the mysterious foreigner Jin, seeking only her own freedom. Now she’s fighting to liberate the entire desert nation of Miraji from a bloodthirsty sultan who slew his own father to capture the throne.

When Amani finds herself thrust into the epicenter of the regime—the Sultan’s palace—she’s determined to bring the tyrant down. Desperate to uncover the Sultan’s secrets by spying on his court, she tries to forget that Jin disappeared just as she was getting closest to him, and that she’s a prisoner of the enemy. But the longer she remains, the more she questions whether the Sultan is really the villain she’s been told he is, and who’s the real traitor to her sun-bleached, magic-filled homeland.

---

I really enjoyed the first book in Hamilton's series (Rebel of the Sands) and was glad to find that Traitor to the Throne didn't fall prey to the dreaded Bridge Book Blues (i.e., not serve any real purpose other than transition from the first in a trilogy to the last).

Hamilton's world-building is superb, and the books are a fascinating mix of middle eastern, western, and fantastical elements. The plot moves a bit slowly for much of the book, but the pace picks up with a gusto as the end nears. It'll be bittersweet to read the last in the trilogy when it's released given how much I've enjoyed spending time in this world.

Other reads

★★★

Beneath the Shine by Sarah Fine | Freya (Freya #1) by Matthew Laurence | Here We Are: Feminism for the Real World edited by Kelly Jensen | Places No One Knows by Brenna Yovanoff | The Ship Beyond Time (The Girl from Everywhere #2) by Heidi Heilig

★★

Definitions of Indefinable Things by Whitney Taylor | Perfect (Flawed #2) by Cecelia Ahern | Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde


If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hear what you thought! And definitely let me know if you've read anything lately that you'd recommend. My TBR pile is laughably large, but that doesn't mean I don't love adding to it.

 

¹ A lottle, actually. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯