Tag: contemporary

Sweet & Steamy Gender-Swapped Pretty Woman — The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang {Book Review}

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The Kiss Quotient by Helen HoangTitle: The Kiss Quotient
Author: Helen Hoang
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: June 5th, 2018
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Adult – Contemporary – Romance

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My rating in stars: 4 stars
My rating in words: Loved it!

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

A heartwarming and refreshing debut novel that proves one thing: there’s not enough data in the world to predict what will make your heart tick.

Stella Lane thinks math is the only thing that unites the universe. She comes up with algorithms to predict customer purchases — a job that has given her more money than she knows what to do with, and way less experience in the dating department than the average thirty-year-old.

It doesn’t help that Stella has Asperger’s and French kissing reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish. Her conclusion: she needs lots of practice — with a professional. Which is why she hires escort Michael Phan. The Vietnamese and Swedish stunner can’t afford to turn down Stella’s offer, and agrees to help her check off all the boxes on her lesson plan — from foreplay to more-than-missionary position…

Before long, Stella not only learns to appreciate his kisses, but to crave all the other things he’s making her feel. Soon, their no-nonsense partnership starts making a strange kind of sense. And the pattern that emerges will convince Stella that love is the best kind of logic…
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A Four-Step Guide On How To Get Lindsey To Read A Book About Soccer — Running With Lions by Julian Winters {Book Review}

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Running With Lions by Julian WintersTitle: Running With Lions
Author: Julian Winters
Publisher: Duet Books
Release Date: June 7th, 2018
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult – Contemporary

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My rating in stars: 3,5 stars
My rating in words: I liked it!

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

Bloomington High School Lions’ star goalie, Sebastian Hughes, should be excited about his senior year: His teammates are amazing and he’s got a coach who doesn’t ask anyone to hide their sexuality. But when his estranged childhood best friend Emir Shah shows up to summer training camp, Sebastian realizes the team’s success may end up in the hands of the one guy who hates him. Determined to reconnect with Emir for the sake of the Lions, he sets out to regain Emir’s trust. But to Sebastian’s surprise, sweaty days on the pitch, wandering the town’s streets, and bonding on the weekends sparks more than just friendship between them.

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Don’t You Know Who You Are, You’re My Shooting Star — Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett {Book Review}

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Starry Eyes by Jenn BennettTitle: Starry Eyes
Author: Jenn Bennett
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release Date: April 3rd, 2018
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult – Contemporary

Goodreads link

My rating in stars: 4,5 stars
My rating in words: Loved it!

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

Ever since last year’s homecoming dance, best friends-turned-best enemies Zorie and Lennon have made an art of avoiding each other. It doesn’t hurt that their families are the modern day, Californian version of the Montagues and Capulets.

But when a group camping trip goes south, Zorie and Lennon find themselves stranded in the wilderness. Alone. Together.

What could go wrong?

With no one but each other for company, Zorie and Lennon have no choice but to hash out their issues via witty jabs and insults as they try to make their way to safety. But fighting each other while also fighting off the forces of nature makes getting out of the woods in one piece less and less likely.

And as the two travel deeper into Northern California’s rugged backcountry, secrets and hidden feelings surface. But can Zorie and Lennon’s rekindled connection survive out in the real world? Or was it just a result of the fresh forest air and the magic of the twinkling stars?

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Fandom, Friendship and Anxiety — I Was Born For This by Alice Oseman {Book Review}

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I Was Born For This by Alice OsemanTitle: I Was Born For This
Author: Alice Oseman
Publisher: Harper Collins
Release Date: May 3rd, 2018
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult – Contemporary

Goodreads link

My rating in stars: 4,5 stars
My rating in words: Loved it!

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

For Angel Rahimi, life is only about one thing: The Ark – a pop-rock trio of teenage boys who are currently taking the world by storm. Being part of The Ark’s fandom has given her everything – her friendships, her dreams, her place in the world.

Jimmy Kaga-Ricci owes everything to The Ark too. He’s their frontman – and playing in a band is all he’s ever dreamed of doing. It’s just a shame that recently everything in his life seems to have turned into a bit of a nightmare.

Because that’s the problem with dreaming – eventually, inevitably, real life arrives with a wake-up call. And when Angel and Jimmy are unexpectedly thrust together, they will discover just how strange and surprising facing up to reality can be.

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Boys, Religion, Writing and Love — Autoboyography by Christina Lauren {Book Review}

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Autoboyography by Christina LaurenTitle: Autoboyography
Author: Christina Lauren
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books
Release Date: September 12th, 2017
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult – Contemporary

Goodreads link

My rating in stars: 5 stars
My rating in words: New all-time favorite

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

Three years ago, Tanner Scott’s family relocated from California to Utah, a move that nudged the bisexual teen temporarily back into the closet. Now, with one semester of high school to go, and no obstacles between him and out-of-state college freedom, Tanner plans to coast through his remaining classes and clear out of Utah.

But when his best friend Autumn dares him to take Provo High’s prestigious Seminar—where honor roll students diligently toil to draft a book in a semester—Tanner can’t resist going against his better judgment and having a go, if only to prove to Autumn how silly the whole thing is. Writing a book in four months sounds simple. Four months is an eternity.

It turns out, Tanner is only partly right: four months is a long time. After all, it takes only one second for him to notice Sebastian Brother, the Mormon prodigy who sold his own Seminar novel the year before and who now mentors the class. And it takes less than a month for Tanner to fall completely in love with him.

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Our Fave Fat Slytherin Rory Gilmore — Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli {Book Review}

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Leah on the Offbeat by Becky AlbertalliTitle: Leah on the Offbeat
Author: Becky Albertalli
Publisher: HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
Release Date: April 24th, 2018
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult – Contemporary

Goodreads link

My rating in stars: 4 stars
My rating in words: Really liked it

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

Leah Burke—girl-band drummer, master of deadpan, and Simon Spier’s best friend from the award-winning Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda—takes center stage in this novel of first love and senior-year angst.

When it comes to drumming, Leah Burke is usually on beat—but real life isn’t always so rhythmic. An anomaly in her friend group, she’s the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends—not even her openly gay BFF, Simon.

So Leah really doesn’t know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high. It’s hard for Leah to strike the right note while the people she loves are fighting—especially when she realizes she might love one of them more than she ever intended.

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Diverse Beauties — Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann & American Panda by Gloria Chao {Mini Book Reviews}

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Mini Book Reviews Let's Talk About Love and American Panda

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Hi everybody! Today I’m combining two reviews into one post because both books were amazing, fun and diverse YA contemporaries, written by two amazing diverse debut authors. And well.. I wanted to gush about them both at the same time… So here we go!

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5 Reasons Why Roomies by Christina Lauren Is The Successful New Adult Book You Need To Read {Book Review}

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Roomies by Christina LaurenTitle: Roomies
Author: Christina Lauren
Publisher: Gallery Books
Release Date: December 5th, 2017
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: New Adult – Contemporary – Romance

Goodreads link

My rating in stars: 4 stars
My rating in words: Really liked it

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

Marriages of convenience are so…inconvenient.

Rescued by Calvin McLoughlin from a would-be subway attacker, Holland Bakker pays the brilliant musician back by pulling some of her errand-girl strings and getting him an audition with a big-time musical director. When the tryout goes better than even Holland could have imagined, Calvin is set for a great entry into Broadway—until he admits his student visa has expired and he’s in the country illegally.

Holland impulsively offers to wed the Irishman to keep him in New York, her growing infatuation a secret only to him. As their relationship evolves from awkward roommates to besotted lovers, Calvin becomes the darling of Broadway. In the middle of the theatrics and the acting-not-acting, what will it take for Holland and Calvin to realise that they both stopped pretending a long time ago?

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There Are Monsters In The Sea — Eliza and her Monsters by Francesca Zappia {Book Review}

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Eliza and her Monsters by Francesca ZappiaTitle: Eliza and her Monsters
Author: Francesca Zappia
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Release Date: May 30th, 2017
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult – Contemporary

Goodreads link

My rating in stars: 4,5 stars
My rating in words: LOVED IT!

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

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.

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Haunting, Emotional and Beautiful — They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera {Book Review}

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They Both Die At The End by Adam SilveraTitle: They Both Die At The End
Author: Adam Silvera
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: September 5th, 2017
Standalone/Series: Standalone
Genre: Young Adult – Contemporary

Goodreads link

My rating in stars: 5 stars
My rating in words: New all-time favorite

WHAT IT’S ABOUT:

On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure and to live a lifetime in a single day.

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