Anything But Ordinary by Lara Avery

When Bryce wakes up in the hospital, she knows that she was in a diving accident. It feels like it might have been a few days since she hurt her head in the pool, but she comes to find out that it was 5 YEARS!

Her little sister is now 17 years old. Bryce herself is now 22 years old. She missed her high school graduation, she missed going to the Olympics and getting gold medals. She missed going to college and graduating with her Bachelor's Degree.

She missed a lot of things.

And worse? Her boyfriend Greg and her best friend Gabby are now engaged to be married.

Everyone moved on without her. They continued her lives while she was in a coma for five years.

Everyone was surprised when she woke up. Because her injuries should have made Bryce be a coma forever.

Now Bryce is doing the unthinkable. She is walking, talking, and functioning after a few mishaps. She wants to get her life back in track again. And she has the help of Carter, the med student who has been watching over her for five years.

Carter has become her crutch, someone she can talk to because she can't talk to anyone else. Everyone else has either moved on or is expecting her to be the same Bryce she was five years ago.

But Carter just listens to Bryce and is there for her.

Things get really weird, though, when Bryce keeps having visions. But the visions aren't always about Bryce. Sometimes she has visions about other people. Things that have happened sometime during the last five years. Things that Bryce should have no way of knowing what happened because she was in a coma.

Somehow she does know. And this gift does not come without a price.

Just when things are starting to get better for Bryce, she gets another shock. Can Bryce survive this surprise, or will it be too much for her after everything she's been through? Read Anything But Ordinary by Lara Avery to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This was a very intriguing book. I was first sucked in when I read the summary, and it only got better when I started reading the novel.

I really liked the topic of diving and going to the Olympics. I found it refreshing and something I haven't read a thousand times in a YA novel. And Bryce knew that she was good; she wanted to win at least one gold medal, if not two by the time she was 22.

The idea of waking up after 5 years of being in a coma is scary. To wake up and realize that not only is she supposed to be graduated from college, but she is legal to drink and gamble? That is a bit much to process for anyone.

I think Bryce did a great job adjusting though. And the recovery she did! For being in one position for 5 years, she was able to start walking and moving around like normal in a remarkable time span!

I really liked Carter. He was always there for her and never asked questions. He looked after her and wanted to protect her. Even though he has seen her for five years, he never made assumptions about her after she woke up.

And the ending. It's gut wrenching. So bittersweet. I'm almost  unsure if I actually liked this book when I think about it as a whole. I mean, I do like this book and there is a great message in this novel, but at the same time... Very sad and heart breaking. I almost want another novel but in Carter's viewpoint to see what happens after the ending scene.

Overall, really, really enjoyed this book! Did not see a few things and other things were very obvious. I would definitely recommend this to other readers because there is a lot of different topics in here that could appeal to a variety of readers!

Broken at Love by Lyla Payne

This is the first novel in the Whitman University series by Lyla Payne.

After Quinn messed up his knee, his goals and dreams of being a professional tennis player went out the window. And not to mention his Russian tennis playing girlfriend as well. She dumped him the day he found out he couldn't play tennis anymore.

So now he off at college. At first it was just to party, but now he wants to get a degree and try to prove to his father that he can take over his company one day. Unfortunately, his father has never given Quinn the time of day to listen to him, let alone think that he could run his 500 fortune company.

During the tennis world cup matches, him and his step-brother devised a game. Well, really, Sebastian created it because he is blackmailing Quinn with pictures he got when Quinn was in a bad stage.

For every game, Quinn would have to get a girl to fall in love with him, and then dump her before the next game. While Quinn may have been enjoying the benefits, he was getting bored with the same routine and the same girls.

But then Sebastian picked Emilie, and she is definitely not an easy girl to ensnare in his game. In fact, Emilie wants nothing to do with Quinn and knows that he is a man-whore since he just dumped one of her sorority sisters recently.

And even though Emilie knows this about Quinn, she slowly lets him in. Especially because he understands her paintings, which not many do. Including her parents, who say if she doesn't go to school for pre-med or pre-law, they will take away her funds and she won't be able to stay in college.

Even though both Emilie and Quinn are starting to fall for one another, they still have dark pasts that might get in the way of their relationship.

And when Emilie finds out that Quinn did the same routine to other women, she wonders if anything that happened between them was real, or if it was just a game to win over a girl. Because Quinn won Emilie' heart, but he might lose her with the game he is playing.

Will Quinn and Emilie be able to overcome their dark pasts and be together, or is it too late? Can Emilie forgive Quinn for playing her, or was Quinn just playing a game all along? Read Broken at Love by Lyla Payne to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Just a forewarning, this is a NEW ADULT novel, which means that it's a little bit more mature and graphic than a YA novel but not too racy like an adult novel. Mainly, New Adult (NA) novels are set in college and are about characters who are starting to grow up, but still do things that are immature.

I've been wanting to read this book for awhile and finally just paid the $3.99 price on Amazon because I was too impatient to wait and see if it would lower. And so glad that I did!

Quinn was in a bad place with his step-brother, which makes more sense for why he did what he did with all of the girls during the tennis matches. But he never expected to fall in love with one of the girls he had to make fall in love with him.

And I adored Emilie. She tried to fight off her attraction to Quinn knowing that he is a player and breaks hearts. But they had a lot in common and she found out that he is not as cocky as he plays.

I really liked about this book that Emilie fought for Quinn and not the other way around. It's nice to see the female character go after what she wants instead of pinning away for the guy that broke her heart. Granted, I really like seeing the guy go after the girl, but I also like the girl going after the guy.

So while I did like this book, I also thought there were some flaws. There were times that I just didn't feel like finishing it, which is never a good thing.

But overall, I'm glad I gave in and bought it. It looks like it's the first of a series - I wonder who the second book will be about? I may end up having to buy it as well just to see what Payne writes about next!

For anyone wanting a different scenario in a New Adult novel, I would definitely recommend this book!

Deeper We Fall by Chelsea M. Cameron

This is the first novel in the Fall and Rise series by Chelsea M. Cameron.

Going to college is a fresh start for Charlotte "Lottie" Anders. She went to the same college as her twin
brother, Will, and doesn't know a lot of the students there, so she can start over.

Except her past is coming back to haunt her. Namely, the Parker brothers, Zack and Zan.

They are both responsible for Lottie's best friend, Lexie, getting into a car accident two years ago and made her forget everything, even her best friend. Now, Lexie will never be able to go to college, fall in love again, get a job. She will just be a little girl in mindset.

So when Lottie realizes that the two people she hates the most in the world is at the same college as her, and even living in the same dorm building as her, she was extremely mad at life.

And even worse? Lottie's new roommate, Katie, is dating Zach, the worst of the Brother's of Doom. Zach has always given Lottie the creeps rather than had her panting after him. But the opposite could be said about how Lottie feels about Zan. Even though he was the one who was driving when the car accident happened.

With the help of her brother, Simon (Will's roommate and friend), and her new coworker, Trish, Lottie has been able to somewhat avoid seeing Zan.

But only for a little bit. Lottie realized that she's always thinking about him, wondering what he is doing and what he does when they aren't in the same room. But how can she have feelings for Zan knowing what he did?

Zan has had a crush on Lottie since he first saw her in grade school. Just when he decides to finally talk to her, he ruins her life and the life of her best friend. Now he's just watching from afar, wondering "what if" and wishing that he was a different person.

And even though Zan knows Lottie hates him, he still finds ways to talk to her and be around her. Even though it's wrong, Zan is always wishing that things were different between the two of them.

Secrets come out and friends get hurt. Can Zan and Lottie ever be together, or is their past too strong to overcome? How can they possibly find common ground if, when they look at each other, the past is staring them straight in the face? Read Deeper We Fall by Chelsea M. Cameron to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Just a forewarning, this is a NEW ADULT novel, which means that it's a little bit more mature and graphic than a YA novel but not too racy like an adult novel. Mainly, New Adult (NA) novels are set in college and are about characters who are starting to grow up, but still do things that are immature.

I've read this book twice now, and definitely loved it both times! I think what I loved the most was Zan's point of view. He knew that he could never have Lottie, but that didn't change his feelings toward her or what he wished could happen.

Zan is really quiet, so I'm glad Cameron wrote in his perspective as well. Then the reader got to see what he was thinking, not necessarily what he was saying out loud.

And the inner struggle Zan had was agonizing. He had this secret that two people knew, and not the people he wanted to know. Plus, he had to live with Zack, be related to him. That in itself is torture. Zack is a jerk and definitely acts like a spoiled boy who gets away with everything.

I had a little bit more trouble with liking Lottie than Zan. Yes, she was going through her own inner struggle on dealing with Zan. Yes, he caused the accident that injured Lexie forever. But the blaming game? Not good for anyone - especially after two years. That can ruin a person's life.

I also really liked that the deep dark pasts of the characters involved the other person. It was more of a struggle to overcome because they had to deal with the past, present and sometimes the future.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book! I think other New Adult lovers will like this as well. I think it's a little darker than some other NA that I've read, but that's just me.

For anyone wanting an edgy, dark, but "light at the end of the tunnel" New Adult novel, I would definitely recommend picking this up!

Paradise by Jill S. Alexander

Paisley's one wish is to get out of her biased little town in Texas. She hates being under a microscope and wants to play drums for a band.

Her mother hates that Paisley won't do something else but plays the drums in her marching band. Little does her mother know that she is secretly the drummer for Waylon Strikers band and they are trying to get ready for Texapalooza where tons of high school bands come to play and get a chance for an internship or a job offer from professional band corporations.

The only problem is that their band needs a singer. When Gabe shows up, Paisley gives him one shot and he nails it. Until Gabe, otherwise known as Paradise by Paisley since he is from Paradise, TX, pulls out an accordion  That doesn't bode well for their country rock band, but he somehow pulls it off.

And the band can't be picky right now since they really need a good singer to win the Texapalooza competition.

So now Paisley is secretly practicing with Paradise, Cal, Levi, and Waylon while trying to keep it away from her parents attention. Although Paisley is pretty sure her father has figured it out, but he hasn't said anything to indicate he does.

Things get bad at home when Paisley's older sister, Lacey, decides she's not going to do what her mother wants her to do anymore. Unlike Paisley's decision to tell her mother she wasn't going to sing or dance, Lacey has gone with her mother's wishes and has sang at any performance her mother has snuck her way in.

Now Lacey is going off to college and wants to go for hair and make up, cosmetology  But her mother is going to have a cow and Paisley wants this all to happen after her performance at Texapalooza.

And on top of that, Paradise keeps showing up around Paisley and makes Paisley feel things she's never felt before. All she's ever wanted was to be a drummer - that is her only passion.

But now with Paradise around, things might change as she can't stop thinking about him and gets jealous when he dances with another girl...

Can Paisley have both her drumming career and a life with Paradise, or is she wanting too much and won't get either? And how long can she keep the secret about drumming away from her parents before it explodes in her face? Read Paradise by Jill S. Alexander to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This was a cute story. Paisley was living a lie after a lie, so I knew they were going to explode in her face by the end of the novel.

The one thing that I loved about this book was Paradise. He came into the band audition as confident as anyone, even though he pulled out an accordion and started playing like it was a guitar and nothing was wrong with it.

And he was very confident around Paisley, even though she tried her hardest to ignore her feelings toward him and only focus on drumming and the band.

There were a few things I didn't enjoy about this novel.

One, the ending. Didn't enjoy that at all and wish it would have ended differently. But in a way, I could have seen it coming if I wasn't focused on the "here and now".

Two, the writing. For some reason, I felt like there wasn't enough description in the book. I had to go back many times just to figure out what happened that I skipped, only to find a few words describing what happened. Some places were very vague and I didn't get a lot of feeling from this book. Just an author telling a story, not describing in detail what happened.

I did like this story, but there were times when I found myself bored or missing a major plot and had to go back. Like I said, I liked Paradise the most and really enjoyed when he was in the scene because he was so confident and never got embarrassed by things that he did.

For anyone who likes music, I would definitely recommend this novel to you. And even though I didn't have the best time with this novel, I think a lot of other readers will really enjoy this book!

On Dublin Street by Samantha Young

This is the first novel in the On Dublin Street series by Samantha Young.

When Jocelyn was a freshman in high school, she got the tragic news that her mother, father, and baby sister were killed instantly in a car accident. Because she was a minor and had no other family, she had to go into the foster system for the next four years.

During those four years, she also lost her best friend who died at a party, so Joss was very guarded and secretive. She didn't get close to anyone again and was very quiet about her past and her likes/dislikes.

After college, Joss moved to Scotland and pursued her dream to be a published writer. Her parents had a lot of money with her father's job, so she didn't have to worry about working a steady job to pay rent/food, etc.

Joss had to go into her trust fund, though, when she was looking for a new apartment. Ellie's apartment was great and was close to the pub she worked at a few nights a week, so she decided to move in.

And the first thing that happens to her when she has the apartment to herself and taking a bath, Ellie's older brother Braden walked in. On Joss. Naked.

The attraction between them is undeniable. But Joss will not let Braden get inside. She will not allow herself to care about someone because it will just mean more hurt later.

Except that Braden and Ellie are worming their way inside. She is starting to care for them and after she makes an arrangement with Braden to just have a physical relationship with him rather than going out as girlfriend/boyfriend, she's have all sorts of feelings that she doesn't want.

Just when things seem to be going great in Joss's life, another tragedy happens - this time, it's Ellie who got sick and may be dying.

Joss wants out. She doesn't want to go through another death and is ready to run away.

But now she's dedicated to this family. She doesn't know what to do, but either way, things are about to change in Joss's life. Read On Dublin Street by Samantha Young to find out what happens!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Just a forewarning, this is a NEW ADULT novel, which means that it's a little bit more mature and graphic than a YA novel but not too racy like an adult novel. Mainly, New Adult (NA) novels are set in college and are about characters who are starting to grow up, but still do things that are immature.

I really liked this novel! It was a random pick from Target when I got a gift card and I was intrigued by the synopsis - so glad I grabbed it!

I can see similarities to 50 Shades of Grey, but it's more low key. The guy is rich and the girl just got out of college who wants to work with books. Other than that, things start to become more On Dublin Street rather than 50.

I cannot even imagine what Joss went through. To hear that your whole family is gone one day and then having to spend the next four years with strangers? I think Joss did very well under the circumstances.

And I love Braden! He knew he couldn't treat Joss the way he usually acts around females and knew how to make her comfortable by being with him. He was trying to get her to loosen up so he can slowly pick away at the wall around her heart that she has built for the past 8 years.

So yes, I very much enjoyed this novel and I think fans of 50 would like it as well. I would also say that older teens/20 years olds would really enjoy this book since it's an NA novel.

This is part of a series, but the second book following is not about Joss and Braden's story. Rather, it's about a secondary character, Jo, who Joss works with at the pub, and her unique lifestyle that she has in order to survive. It sounds very entertaining and I will definitely be keeping an eye out for it to see what Young has in store for Jo.

I would definitely recommend this novel (I already have!) and I think many might enjoy this story line!

The Ex Games by Jennifer Echols

When Hayden moved to Colorado from Tennessee 4 years ago, everything went perfectly. She had friends and dated the hottest boy in her class.

That was until she found out Nick only dated her because he was dared to.

Four years later, the dislikeness between the two has not dimmed from each other. They still pick on each other and say cruel things to one another because of what happened when they were 13 years old.

During that time, Hayden has become very competitive in snowboarding and is one of the best female snowboarders in her class. She even won a competition and got lessons from a famous female boarder.

The only problem is that Hayden is afraid of heights. She won't do any jumps when snowboarding - just small tricks that are impressive for the low distance she goes off the ground. The famous female boarder likes very big jumps, and now Hayden has to find a way to keep her secret still a secret.

But once Nick said that she would not win against the guy that won his class, they declared war and have made a competition between the two of them to see who would win.

The prize being the loser has to buy the other one tickets to the dance/concert on Valentine's Day. It seems that everyone in their town has heard of this bet and the guys have sided with Nick to win, while the girls have sided with Hayden to win.

There is no way Hayden can back out of this bet with the whole town vouching for the ultimate win, but she can't do the jump. Everytime she tries, she gets too scared and ends up quitting. How can she win this bet and show Nick that she really is a great boarder if she can't make a jump? Read The Ex Games by Jennifer Echols to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
I got this book from a library because my all time goal is to read all of Jennifer Echols novels she has published. I really enjoyed this book as well! Very cute and funny, but also serious and mature in some aspects.

I think I really liked this novel because I was able to relate to it - well a little bit. I work inside at a ski resort during the winter and have heard a lot of my friends talking about boarding and skiing, so it was familiar in a way that I could relate to the competition between Hayden and Nick.

And I can definitely relate to Hayden's fear of heights because of a broken leg many years ago since I won't even touch a snowboard or skis, knowing I'll probably break my own leg!

Hayden is very confident for a 17 year old, saying she isn't going to go to college but is instead going to be a professional boarder. Unfortunately, she needs to be able to do high jumps and she's terrified of them, so I'm glad Nick came along and challenged her to their bet.

Otherwise I don't think she could have become a professional boarder by the time she wanted to be one!

There were some points where I thought it was immature - especially the miscommunication between the two main characters. But then I thought back to high school years and realized that Echols got that exactly right because high schoolers like to jump to conclusions without thinking through everything.

Heck, adults do that as well! But the things Hayden and Nick assumed were very obvious, so it was more high schoolish than adult mistakes.

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel and I think that other readers who are into sports and competitions  along with  battle of the sexes and exes will really like this novel!

Salvation by Anne Osterlund

Salva
Growing up with his immigrant Mexican father who just got his U.S. Citizenship, Salva has grown up with the thought of succeeding at everything that he does. And he has been very successful.

Salva has taken the football team to state and won. He has the highest GPA in his class, making him valedictorian. He's taken the hardest classes and has passed every single one of them. He will go to a college and get a degree, from the persistence of his parents.

He will prove to his father that he was successful and will get an education that will mean something.

Senior year should be easy. But with a schedule mishap, he now has to take AP English - a class that is taught by a teacher nicknamed "the Mercenary". That name is not to be taken lightly. Salva has found himself getting an F for the first time in his life and he must do everything to make sure this class won't ruin everything he's worked so hard for.

And that's where Beth - the walking disaster - comes in. For some reason, she's able to get A's in the Mercenary's class. She may be a disaster who can't keep anything in the right spot, can't walk into a room without spilling papers everywhere, or losing things left and right, but she is very smart.

Smart enough to want to go to Stanford and might have a chance at getting in.

And now Salva is going to have to ask someone for the first time to help him.

Beth
Since Beth was 13 years old, she has had a crush on Salva. Too bad he has never looked at her before, or since, she obtained her crush.

Over the years, she's gotten used to it. Sure, she still gets twinges when he's around, but it's not as bad as it used to be when she was younger.

The moment Salva came to talk to her about the AP English course, Beth thought a joke was being played with her. The most popular guy at school is now talking to her. Not just talking to her - asking her for help in their class. She wants to say no, but after he says please and seems so depressed, Beth couldn't say no to him again.

So now Beth is working with Salva. And she's  having a great time just hanging out with Salva. He's a great guy, smart, kind and is very protective of his family and friends.

Life at home isn't the greatest for Beth, so getting to know Salva has been a blessing. And since she is working her tail off to hopefully get into Sanford because she doesn't have all of the money in the world, she's a little leery on letting him in to hurt her again - even if he didn't know about the first one.

But their lives are very different from one another and not everyone likes the idea of the two of them hanging out. The thing is, though, Beth becomes more open around Salva and Salva starts to wonder about what he really wants - because Beth makes him question everything.

Can things work out for the two of them, or are they destined to follow the paths that their peers vision for them? Read Salvation by Anne Osterlund to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Wow. I really, really enjoyed this novel! I've read one other novel by Osterlund and enjoyed that as well, but this one was really amazing for me!

The characters are minorities in a school that makes them the majority. Salva is a Mexican American and Beth lives in a trailer, hoping that there would be something to eat when she gets home. I think this alone is amazing because it shows a different lifestyle that people live through everyday and isn't really depicted well throughout YA fiction.

Also, both students are determined to get out of their town and make a name for themselves by going to college and getting the degree they need to have a life outside of the little town. Neither of them slack and are very dedicated.

The home lives for both of the characters made my heart wrench for them. To be around people who either judge them too harshly or ignore them completely is hard and doing that for years can really effect a teenager.

So yes, I absolutely loved this novel and I think that all teens should read this! It would really show the reader how the "other side of the tracks" looks and how life goes for people in these situations. Also, both Salva and Beth are narrating the book, so I think guys could like reading this book as well.

I just ordered the other two YA novels from Osterlund that I haven't read yet because I really like her as an author and I'm looking forward to see what the other series is about.

Another great thing about this book? It's a standalone! No sequel :) Everything is in this novel and I think Osterlund wrapped it up very nicely.

So go read this! I think you'll really enjoy it!

Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

Being the rebel of the town is a hard job, but Meg does it well. She's got bright blue hair, tattoos, and dresses a little under the preferred requirements. She has to work for her parents at their breakfast diner for free, and can't wait to get out of dodge and go to college.

After a stupid stunt where Meg, her friend Tiffany, Eric and Brian snuck onto the bridge where two students years ago died, they got caught by a new officer who doesn't take crap from any of the kids.

To punish them for their stupid stunt, Officer John After decides to take away their spring break trip in FL and make them stay in town to follow the ambulance crew, the fire department, and the police department to write a report about the safety of following the rules.

Meg's hatred toward John cannot be described, but then, come to find out, John is only 19, just two years older than Meg herself!

Meg gets tagged with following John around for the week with the police department, and after a few nights they start to understand each other a little bit more.

But both Meg and John have dark pasts, secrets that they are keeping from each other. And as they start to get closer and closer, those pasts are catching up to reality and how it has influenced their daily routines.

John has decided to stay in their small town, working as an officer to help people in need.

Meg wants to run away from her hometown as soon as graduation is finished.

But with their attraction toward one another, how can they decide to go separate paths without finding out what is between them? Or will their dark pasts interfere with what could happen between them? Read Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Sigh, Jennifer Echols. Thank you for this book! I loved it! I loved Meg, I loved John, I just loved it.

There aren't many YA contemporary's out there that have a "bad" girl and "good" guy (yes, they are quoted, because they aren't necessarily the good and bad that you might be thinking).

Meg is a drinker, does pot, and breaks the rules. But she has a reason and doesn't care if she gets into trouble. John needs to follow rules, and he's been pretty good at doing that until he meets Meg. Then things start to go downward for him, but not necessarily in a bad way.

The back stories of Meg and John are amazing. They are so torn up by what has happened that they can't see too far into the future. But when they are faced with those ghosts, along with the ghosts of the future and not being with each other, they have to figure out which one they need to conquer.

And the romantic chemistry between the two? Yeah, that was good too, even when they were denying their feelings.

I labeled this a NEW ADULT novel even though it is and it isn't. There are some steamy scenes, but nothing too racy. Just enough to get your heartbeat racing!

I am a huge fan of Echols, so I was really happy that I liked this book as well. It's a standalone novel, so no waiting for another book to find out the ending and I think it has a lot of great lessons that young adults could learn from.

I'll have to see if I need to read any more of her novels - I've read quite a few, but I still think I'm behind.

I would recommend this to older teen girls who want to read a contemporary novel about dark pasts and bright futures.

Wrecked by Anna Davies

After her parents accident on their home island, Miranda and her brother Teddy have stayed with their grandmother on Whym Island for the last ten years.

There is a legend, a curse, on Whym Island that is you say the sea witch's name while on a boat in the ocean that she will get revenge and take the souls on the boat.

When Miranda and 7 of her friends were on Miranda's boat, one of the passengers said Sephie and before the night was out, 4 of her friends died in a boating accident and 3 were severely injured before the life rescue came.

But Miranda was miraculously saved. She got caught in the cable underwater and she remembers someone saving her, carrying her out of the water and onto shore. She should have died with her best friends and boyfriend, but for some reason someone saved her.

Life on Whym Island wasn't easy before the boating accident, but now that she was one of the survivors and it was her boat that caught on fire, she is even more outcasted than before. Miranda has no friends now, she can't talk to her grandmother or Teddy because they are getting the social outcast stare, so Miranda is just keeping her thoughts to herself.

That is, until she met Christian, who just happened to be the one who saved her from the accident.

And Christian has a secret that he's keeping from Miranda: he's a betwixted, part human, part merman. When he saved Miranda, he took a soul from Sephie and now she wants revenge.

Either Christian takes Miranda's soul to make up for her mistake or Sephie will take Christian's soul. One way or another Sephie will have her soul to add to the many souls in the ocean.

But when Christian meets Miranda and starts talking to her, he realizes that he is getting feelings for her.

Can Christian do what he is supposed to do, or will he disobey Sephie? And can Miranda trust Christian with all of his secrets, or will the secrecy tear them apart? Read Wrecked by Anna Davies to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This book was...eh. I did finish it, which was a plus because there were a few times where I just wanted to call it quits. But I stuck through it to know the ending, since I don't think it's part of a series.

I don't know. The writing, for one, was not my style. There would be two lines of dialogue and then half a page of narration, of observance and I'm more of an action and dialogue reader than a ponderer.

Plus Miranda was ready to run away from everything because it wasn't going her way. There were a few moments where she talked back and fought against someone, which I liked, but being docile and timid is not a quality that I like in my lead characters.

Christian was alright as well. He was confused being on the surface rather than in the water, so I'll give him a leeway because of that but he didn't fight very hard overall.

I'm going to have to say that this book is not for me. I was intrigued by the synopsis, but overall it turned out to be a good that I enjoyed at all.

And the ending is something else. I won't say that it was horrible, because it wasn't. It was just different than most endings that might cause it to be hated by many readers.

So yeah, I didn't really like this book. There were some parts that peaked my interest enough to read a full two pages in a row, but otherwise it was a snooze fest.

But anyone who wants to read a twist on merpeople, you might enjoy this novel. It's also in alternative viewpoints between Miranda and Christian, though Christian doesn't have many pages of narration.

It is also the author's debut novel, so maybe for her next one I'll pick it up and see if she changes her style.

Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Two years ago, Ember was in a car accident with her family. She died in that accident, felt her soul leave her body. But her 3 year old sister, Olivia, brought her back from the dead. Just by touching her.

Now, two years later, Ember is taking care of her mother and Olivia. Her father died in the car accident and her mother is acting like Ember died with him - which she technically did though now she's alive and doing the everyday normal stuff.

Well...almost normal.

When Olivia brought her back to life, she got her own ability. While Olivia can bring back dead things to life, Ember has the opposite ability - with just one touch, any living thing will die.

Ember found this out by touching animals and plants, so now she has a no touch policy that everyone in her life knows.

But no one wants to get close enough to touch her anyway. A side effect of being dead is that her blue eyes are now pale blue, almost transparent. And she has scars on her arms and upper body. She's known as the freak and gets tormented everyday at school or in town.

That doesn't stop her from taking care of Olivia, though. Her mother is useless when it comes to going to work, etc. so Ember gets the groceries, takes care of Olivia going to school and back, pays the bills, and other adult things.

It's not a great life, but it's hers. Then everything changes when she sees an attractive guy in town. It changes because he actually looks at her and doesn't look disgusted by Ember's disfigurement.

Turns out Hayden is like Ember and Olivia - he has his own ability. So does his "family" who he lives with in West Virginia. And that is where Ember is sent after being ... abducted ... from her house.

Now she has to live with complete strangers to stay with Olivia. And everyone at this house hates her. Her ability to kill with a touch is not looked at lightly and no one wants her near them. Except Hayden. Hayden acts like her guardian angel and tries to help her handle her "gift".

When things start to show up in her locker, things that no one should know about Ember, she claims someone in the house did it. But other things start to happen, like a car trying to run her over, that makes Ember realize her past is not what she thought it was...

Can Ember figure out how to control this curse she has been given? Will she find out who is trying to kill her and why? Read Cursed by Jennifer L. Armentrout to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
I. Love. This. Author.

There, I said it. I first read her through the Lux series and now I just ordered her Half-Blood series which I know I'll love just as much as the previous series. And Armentrout didn't disappoint with this novel!!

Could you imagine killing a person with just a touch? Just a whisper of a touch, or bumping into someone at the grocery story and naked skin connected? That would be horrible, and Ember had to go through that everyday for two years.

Plus she was taking care of her 5 year old sister, and if anyone knows 5 year olds, they always want something and put up a fight when they don't get it. So having to take care of her and making sure she is wearing long sleeves and gloves before touching her has got to be hard on a person.

Ember is strong willed and tough, even if she thinks differently. Thankfully she is kind spirited and didn't want to use her "gift" or curse for bad.

I have always been a fan of X-Men and this reminded me of that movie a little bit. All of these gifted teens in one house learning to live with their ability. Although it was different because a lot of the abilities were mental - empathetic, telepathic, healing, killing. It wasn't shooting fire or ice at others in battle and it was a lot of internal struggling.

I feel the need to pick up every one of Armentrout's works and read and re-read over and over again. Sadly, I don't own any of her novels - I've checked all of the ones I've read out from the library. When I find some extra cash, I will be fixing this problem and probably buying all of her novels just so I can stare at them lovingly on my bookcase.

So basically, go read this book. And her other books! I would recommend this for any reader wanting to read something similar to X-Men that shows a lead female character struggling to live one day at a time, just to find out that she's not alone and may be able to make friends who are like her.

Fantastic novel! Fantastic Author!

The Temptation by Alisa Valdes

This is the first novel in The Kindred series by Alisa Valdes.

When Shane was going to a musical recital to play her violin, she never expected to get into a major car accident initialed by a coyote with glowing red eyes.

She also never expected to meet a gorgeous stranger who miraculously healed her from fatal wounds that were slowly killing her.

But that is what happened. And it changed Shane's life after that. She was saved from dying, but she also couldn't forget Travis, the mysterious man who came to her rescue. Thankfully, Travis felt that deep connection with Shane as well, so they were always trying to seek one another out.

Except for one thing... Travis is dead. He's a revenant, a spirit traveling in a physical body and he is supposed to protect and help any living creature at the area where Shane had her car accident.

If he does enough good in the world, he may be able to get out the Vortex and go to the Afterlife. But he if goes against the Vortex's rules, he will be sent to the Underworld.

When Shane tells her best friend, Kelsey, the truth, she just wanted to talk to someone about this. But Kelsey told her mom, who decided that Shane had a terrible head injury and that she needs to see a psychiatrist.

Then things get even worse for Shane. Not only are she and Travis soul mates, but they are not allowed to be intimate with each other -  otherwise Travis will be going against the rules and will disappear forever.

But that's not the worst part. Travis has a mortal enemy - even in death. Victor is the one who killed Travis and also his father and older brother many years ago.

Victor is still out to punish Travis's family, and Shane is the next victim since Travis loves her.

Will Travis and Shane be able to survive Victor's hatred, or will Travis have to give in and break the rules in order to get rid of Victor? Read The Temptation by Alisa Valdes to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
I randomly saw this at a local library and decided it sounded like something up my alley. And I really did enjoy it, for a random pick up :)

This is one of those "love at first sight" novels where the two characters know they are supposed to meet one another.

But of course there are complications, like the majority of novels out there.

Shane is a tough cookie. She takes being healed by Travis like a champ, and even took to him being dead fairly quietly - not something a normal girl would take lightly. She also took the criticism of her classmates at school when they started calling her insane and crazy.

Really, Shane didn't really care what others thought of her as long as she knew Travis would be with her since they were in love.

Overall, this was a good book. Not my favorite, but I loved the story line of another revenant plot. This is the second series I've read about revenants (the first being the series by Amy Plum, Die for Me) so it gave me another aspect of this topic to consider.

This is the first in a series, though I don't know when the second will come out or when. This was just released April 2012 so it's still somewhat new, and it's also the first I've read of this author, though it's not her debut novel.

I will be keeping my eye out for the sequel to see what happens with Shane and Travis.

I would recommend this to any female reader wanting a new supernatural creature of Revenants and one that wants to read an automatic love story where the characters don't question the connection.

Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park

Julie goes from high school in Ohio to college in Boston, MA. Mainly to start over and to find friends who really appreciate her love for reading old literature novels about the past.

But when she arrives to Boston and finds out that her apartment that she bought on Craigslist is really a burrito restaurant, things weren't looking too good for her.

Thankfully, Julie's mom called in a favor from her old roommate, Erin Watkins, when she was in college - who just happened to live near Julie's college.

And they had a spare bedroom that they were happy to let Julie use until she found a different apartment.

After awhile, when Julie found out that getting an apartment in a college town with a limited spending fee was extremely hard, Erin offered for her to stay at their house in exchange for picking up her youngest daughter, Celeste, from school.

And speaking of Celeste... she's a bit different than other 13 year old girls. Very different. In fact, she carries around a life-size cardboard figure of her old brother, Finn, who Celeste calls Flat Finn everywhere she goes. Everywhere.

Finn is traveling around the world and Julie is assuming Celeste created Flat Finn because she is having a hard time without Finn around.

Then there is the middle boy, Matt, the 21 MIT genius who wears geeky slogan shirts and is a very big nerd. But he is so good to his sister and does a lot to manage the house when his parents go AWOL.

So Julie is not bored at the Watkins house.

Oh, and another thing? She's been having very long conversations with real Finn through e-mail and Facebook, getting to know the eldest Watkins very well.

And she's sorta, kinda, maybe just a little bit falling for Finn - a guy that she has  never met before in real life but is quite charming over the Internet.

But Julie still wants to know why Flat Finn is there. The family is not a normal family - they definitely have their quirks. Not that Julie minds, but she wants to find out what really happened to make them like that.

However, when Julie really finds out what happened, there is no turning back. The connection between Julie and the Watkins will be stretched so far that there might not be a chance to go back to before. No matter how hard they try... Read Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park to find out what happens!

My Thoughts/Reflections 
When I first heard about this book, it was always connected with Jamie McGuire's novel Beautiful Disaster, which I absolutely loved (and reviewed here)! So I had extremely high hopes for this novel!

And was sorry to find out that I didn't love it as much as I wanted to... There was just something about the characters that I wasn't able to connect with. The way they talked and rambled about random stuff. The way they kept repeating the same thing with different words.

Where I really loved this book was at the very end. When the reader found out the big secret. I was able to guess what happened 3 pages before it was revealed to me and that is when I fell in love with this novel. But that was so close to the end that I didn't get to appreciate my love I gained for this book that much before it ended.

What I also loved was the way Julie became a part of the Watkins family. The way she treated Celeste was amazing. Flat Finn had a brain and Celeste made it known. And Julie didn't even blink by the life-size cardboard brother. She went along with it right from the beginning and had her own conversations with Flat Finn! It was pretty adorable I thought.

So there were good and bad parts to this novel. I did enjoy it, and loved the ending, but it was lacking something. Plus, if anyone compares a book to Beautiful Disaster, I am almost always disappointed because my love for that book is over the top.

However, for readers who want to read about an odd family who a strange girl slowly heals from an event that broke them, just to become a family member herself and falls in love with each and every one of them, this would be a perfect book for you.

Also, this is a New Age book, meaning between YA and Adult. College setting. This genre is starting to become more and more popular lately, which I'm really enjoying!

I'm glad that I finally got to read it and see what everyone was all hyped up about. It was a great story line and definitely makes me look at things differently!

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

When the Garretts moved in years ago when Samantha was 5, her mother said, "Oh, no, not one of those families" and told her two daughters to never talk to them.

What Samantha's mom meant was, the Garretts have 8 children, a messy house and yard, and nothing is ever quiet or in their proper place. A total nightmare for Samantha's mom.

But an intriguing setting for Samantha to observe. She's always been fascinated by the Garretts and has envied their lifestyle, since it's just Samantha and her older sister Tracy with their single mother.

Now, years later at 17-years-old, Sam's mom is the senator of the state, and Sam has grown up in a very strict household to keep her mother happy.

And it's also the first time Samantha has talked to Jase Garrett - Number 3 in the eight kid household and also 17-years-old.

Soon, Samantha finds herself lost in the Garrett household. She visits their house more often than staying at her own house and has now learned how to feed an army of 8, while also changing her first dirty diaper.

Samantha finds out, though, that she is a natural at it and really enjoys the insanity that happens everyday.

She is also finding herself falling very much in love with Jase. But Samantha is okay with that. She just needs to find a way to tell her mother without being evicted from the house or "ruining" her mother's chance for re-election come November.

Things that are too good to be true often show the dark, ugly side later, as Samantha found out the hard way. Everything is going amazing until her mother ruined not only Samantha's life, but another family's life.

Now Sam has to make a decision. Keep quiet and let her mother run for office with a clean slate, helping her chances of winning again, will ruining a family's life, or betraying her mother to do the right thing, the moral decision that she was raised to do.

Whichever choice Samantha picks, she is going to hurt someone in the end, and Samantha isn't sure what is the right thing to do anymore... Read My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick to find out what Samantha does!

My Thoughts/Reflections
I've been eyeing this book on Goodreads for awhile and was very happy when I checked it out from the library. However, I have to say this book didn't live up to the hype I thought it had originally...

Don't get me wrong, I really liked the storyline even though most of it was just being a rebellious daughter and dating a boy her mother doesn't like.

And there were tons of topics in this novel, like the political side with Samantha's mother and the sport aspect with Sam loving swimming and Jase training to get a football scholarship for college after senior year.

But for some reason I wasn't able to connect with the characters as well as I wanted.

I think the beginning of the book was the worst, especially when Jase and Samantha first talk to each other after 12 years of silence. Jase seemed really weird and his style of talking was abnormal.

Toward the middle and end, though, when Jase and Samantha became comfortable around each other, their personalities got better. But then it just felt like Samantha was trading families and moving from one lonely house to a house with too many people to keep track of.

One thing that I absolutely loved about this novel was Jase's family. Just think, a family of 8 - 10 if you count the parents. It's like 7th Heaven only a little bit more. And a lot more chaotic. Yet Jase's parents made it work, from having a 20-year-old to a some-odd-number month old baby. And I absolutely loved the scenes with the younger Garretts because they talked about the most random topics - just like normal kids to today.

So, this was a good novel, but not a great novel. I would like to see if I can connect with other novels from Fitzpatrick in the future, since this is her debut novel. I think I could get into her writing after reading her style a few more times.

Anyone who wants another read like Maureen Johnson and Sarah Dessen will love this novel. A summer romance ending in a twist, showing how life throws twists and turns in a relationship and whether love can outlast betrayal and family.

The Raft by S.A. Bodeen

Living on an island with no cell phone reception and internet/television that goes in and out gets old for a teenage girl.

So that's why Robie likes to go to the mainland to hangout with her cool aunt and eat fast food.

But when Robie's aunt, AJ, has to leave for a week, Robie is excited to be on her own with no grown-ups - not that AJ is strict or anything. The idea of being on her own sounded freeing though.

That was until she got attacked outside by a crazy man. Then Robie just wanted to go home to her parents so they could protect her. The idea of being on her own was not so enticing anymore.

Robi decided to get on the plane that takes supplies to Midway, her home island. She's done it before and knows the pilot - they always let her on if she wants to go home early.

But things went downhill when the plane's engine stopped working. There were 3 people on the plane: Robie, Larry the pilot and Max the co-pilot.

Max and Robie were able to get out of the plane before it hit the water, but Larry died right away trying to keep Max and Robie safe.

They were able to get a raft open and got into it after jumping from the plane. But Max and Robie didn't have any food or water, and were soaked to the bone.

Max hit his head and was out most of the time, leaving Robie alone to worry about their situation. Things weren't looking very good, but Robie always tried to think of something worse than her situation.

But can Robie and Max survive this in time for someone to find them? Or will they be stuck on the raft until they die? Read The Raft by S.A. Bodeen to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This novel reminded me of many different tv shows/movies. First off, Castaway with Tom Hanks, and also Lost television show. I also found it humorous that Robie talked about Lost and The Hunger Games, making this relatable to today's readers.

I thought this novel was alright. It wasn't my favoriet, the beginning really lagged but I think it was supposed to since she was stranded in the middle of the ocean with a guy who was sleeping most of the time.

Also, I've never been in this situation before, so I can't say it was really lagging. Robie was very strong and fought to find water, food, land, shelter, fire.

For a girl who doesn't really go out in the wilderness too often, I say she did an amazing job fighting to stay alive until someone could find her when they realized she was missing.

I think this could appeal to teens who like the television show Lost. It's not exactly the same; in fact it's more similar to Castaway but both are the main idea for this novel.

Also, I think that either guys or girls could read this. There is no romance and even though it's through Robie's point of view, I think guys could really get in the story line because Robie is just trying to live day by day.

This was my first novel that I've read by S.A. Bodeen and I really enjoyed it. It was a fast paced book, small, and I'll be looking out for more books by this author.

Die For Me by Amy Plum

This is the first novel in the Revenants series by Amy Plum.

After Kate and Georgia's parents died in a car accident, they decided to move to Paris to live with their grandparents. Paris has always been a part of their lives since they visited their grandparents every summer, so it wasn't a huge change as far as the culture and language.

But Kate has been dead inside. The death of her parents was extremely hard on her and her sister.

So she was surprised when she got a glimmer of life back after seeing a French boy at a cafe shop.

Kate got to know Vincent a little bit more when they kept bumping into each other at cafe's and museums.

However, Vincent is not a normal boy. Not at all. Turns out he is a revenant - a dead man walking. Not really a zombie, not really a ghost, but someone who died in the 1940's and woke up in his body 3 days later.

When some people die in the place of another, they come back to life. Vincent died while protecting another, saving his life but sacrificing himself, so he was "chosen" to come back to life to save more people who are about to die.

There are more revenants in Paris that live with Vincent and they do the same thing that Vincent does.

Kate was not supposed to find out about Vincent and his family. But after seeing one of his friends die by a train and then was alive 3 weeks later, it was a little difficult to explain. And Kate also saw an obituary for Vincent from the late 40's - so she was getting some of the clues before she was let in on the secret.

But the revenants have an enemy - the numa's who basically do the opposite of what the revenants do. They get humans to commit murders so when they die, they can come back to life to keep murdering.

Kate met Vincent's mortal enemy - Lucien. And found out that her sister, Georgia, was an item with him. Can Kate convince Georgia to stay away from him without giving away Vincent's secret? And will Kate be able to stay in a relationship with Vincent knowing that he will die and come back to life every time he saves a human, with her history of death in her family? Read Die For Me by Amy Plum to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This was a breath of fresh air!

I've never read a book quite like this before. Like I said, they aren't quite zombies and they aren't quite ghosts, even though they have similar abilities to both supernatural creatures.

Plus, if they were anything like zombies, I don't think Vincent would be nearly as gorgeous as he is described in this book ;-)

Kate is very brave. After the devastating way her parents died and how close she was to them, dating an undead guy who will die every time he saves a human from dying to give them another chance to live would be extremely hard to do.

But she has a physical and emotional attachment to Vincent, just like he does to her. It was harder for them to be apart than together, so an alternative plan had to be created.

I also really liked how well the author describe Paris! For the readers who have never been there, I sure felt like I was sitting at the cafe with Kate or at the nightclubs! It's also a change of scenery for me since I usually read stories based in the U.S.

I'm glad I finally got this book to read - it's been in my "To-Read" list on Goodreads for awhile. But, the plus side of waiting so long for it is that I have the second novel right next to me to pick up and read it right away :) Which is what I'm going to do after writing this post!

I would recommend this to anyone female who wants to read something different with a interesting plot line and a steamy romance! I think I read it in 2 sittings, in one day, so it's very easy to read and you will be left wanting more of the characters!

Nerve by Jeanne Ryan

Vee has a boring life compared to her best friend, Sydney, who is the star in the school play and is amazing at whatever she does.

But when Sydney kisses Vee's crush for over a month longer during the play than was necessary, Vee feels betrayed and decides to do a dare for the online reality hit NERVE.

NERVE is basically real live dares that are filmed live onto the Internet. Each dare has a prize for completing each dare to entice the player. The more dares, the bigger and better the prizes are until the players get a chance to participate in the Final Round.

Along with NERVE the players have to deal with Watchers: people who've paid to watch the players either online or in person, where they can win money for whomever posts the best live stream of the dares as they are happening.

Vee didn't really think her little dare would get that much attention. But after her and her wingman, Tommy, post it on NERVE's website, she's wanted for another dare - this time with a new partner to do dares with, Ian.

What started off as a way to do something daring and different than her normal personality is now becoming very serious.

And Vee's prizes are becoming more and more useful for when she finishes high school.

But are the dares becoming too hard? Can Vee handle the intensity of the dares or will she finally give up and lose all of the prizes that she has won? What is NERVE worth to Vee? Read Nerve by Jeanne Ryan to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
When I first read the synopsis of this book on Goodreads, I had the impression that it would be an online version of The Hunger Games, but I was definitely wrong.

This is just a very real and public game of Truth or Dare only without the "truth" option.

But don't be fooled - NERVE is not nice in all of their dares and they definitely hit home for every one of their players to make the dares hard to complete for the juicy prizes.

Vee is a hard character to love. She's easily likable but there are times when I either want to strangle her or slap her.

She does a great job with the dares, though, and trying to find ways around the rules that NERVE gave her for each dare. She's known as shy by her friends, but after this night of dares she won't be called that again.

So, yes, I did like this book. It was different, especially the topics in this novel making it fresh and new in today's YA literature.

But it wasn't a novel that I fell in love with automatically. I find time to set it down rather than staying up ungodly hours to finish it.

One thing I did like was the twists. A friend backstabs Vee, a new friendship occurs, and truths are revealed throughout each dare. It kept me on my toes til the last page.

I would definitely recommend this to teens who are looking for a bit of an adventure and a side book from The Hunger Games, even though it's considerable different. And anyone looking for a futuristic/sci-fi novel might find this rather interesting, especially with the different technology that's in this novel.

Also, so far this is a standalone novel so I won't be biting my nails to wait for the sequel, even though Ryans did leave it open at the end for another novel to be written.

Love Sick by Jake Coburn

Ted had it all in high school. He had the popularity and a full-ride scholarship to college for playing basketball.

That was before he drove drunk and smashed his knee.

He is a recovering alcoholic. Instead of going to college now, he is living with his parents, working a crappy job, and going to AA meetings to resist drinking again, because it already messed up his life once.

But then Ted gets a random opportunity...

Erica is going to college. She wants to get away from her dad and stepmother. And she wants to have more ways to binge.

She's bulimic - she deliberately goes out, buys sweet food, like donuts, eats as many as she can in a limited time, then makes herself throw up.

Her dad knows about this after she collapsed at a 4th of July outing.

So now, Erica's dad is giving Ted the chance to go to school, all expenses paid for, if he will just keep an eye on Erica.

Ted's not sure what to say. He doesn't want to pass up the opportunity to go to school for free, so he says yes.

And he meets Erica. They don't talk too much at first, but then secrets start leaking out and they get to know each other better.

But Ted has this horrible secret looming around them. He can't face Erica knowing that he's keeping the biggest omission of all. Will he confess to Erica? Will he leave when the secret too much? Because one thing's for sure: he didn't mean to fall in love with the girl he was supposed to be spying on. Read Love Sick by Jake Coburn to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
This was a random book that I picked up from the used book store, and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

These two topics are not easy to talk about. They are real life situations that people go through everyday, and I think Coburn portrayed the process very well.

Also, at the beginning, Coburn stated that he talked to Erica and Ted about writing this novel, so it's a true story. Sure, the names and schools, etc. are different, but this really occurred in the past and I think that hits home just as much as the topics presented in this book.

The format of this book was interesting. It was split into months, no chapters, and we got both Ted and Erica's point of view, along with reading the emails sent between Ted and his "bosses" about Erica, while also reading Erica's conversations with her shrink through online chess games.

I think this could be a good book for older teens, or any teen going through a horrible time with their health. It is very descriptive on how Erica binges, so I'm not sure if it's suitable for all readers, but I think it could be worth reading for those finding them in situations where they know they need help.

Again, a surprise from a random purchase. I love it when that happens!

Crash by Nicole Williams

Things haven't been going well for Lucy for a few years. And her senior year in high school is no different. She had to leave her prestigious private school, leave the house she grew up in, and move to the shabby beach house her parents bought awhile back to go to a public school, which has metal detectors at the doorway.

Not exactly what she had in mind for senior year.

But then she saw him. Jude Ryder. Bad boy to the extreme and for some reason kept attracting her attention whenever he was in the same room as her.

Only he was arrogant. The first words out of his mouth were, "I don't do girlfriends, relationships, flowers, or regular phone calls. If that works for you, I think we could work out something special."

So Lucy said no, she didn't want that. Which is how she got the one guy in all of Southpointe to get out of his 'use-her and lose-her' philosophy.

Now the whole school thinks she's either a slut or a magician, because Jude is not the same guy who left their school last year.

He pays attention to her, follows her to her classes, and is pursuing her rather than having Lucy chase after Jude.

But Lucy is unsure if her and Jude will work out. She needs to keep her nose clean because she wants to go to Julliard to be a dancer. She dances any type of dance, has since she was 3, and she's not going to chance losing that opportunity over a boy who has been to jail too many times to count and has dealt drugs, stolen cars, started fights, etc.

Only she can't stop thinking about him and when she's with him, everything just feels right.

Lucy has no idea what to do, and then the worst thing that could happen, happened.

It may be too much for Lucy and Jude to get past, because the event that unfolded 5 years ago has connected these two much more than they ever thought possible, or ever wanted to know about.

Can Lucy and Jude find a way to be together despite all odds? Or will it be too much for them? Read Crash by Nicole Williams to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Many reviewers have compared this book to Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire, and I can see the resemblance a little bit, but I don't think it was as great as BD was.

For some reason, the characters rubbed me the wrong way. Some of the things that occurred in the book didn't fly for me either.

Don't get me wrong, it was a great novel with unexpected twists and turns that made my jaw drop when reading them. But I felt like there was too much in one novel to really delve deep into the characters and that the reader only got the dramatic love you/can't stand you scenes.

Which is how Lucy and Jude's relationship was.

So anyway, Lucy is an okay character. She likes to self-doubt herself, likes to make excuses, and happened to date the wrong boy who had a dark past because she couldn't get over Jude and made a dumb decision.

Jude has had a harder life than Lucy maybe. So to say he's a troubled boy would be an understatement. And for some reason I absolutely loved him. He was possessive, angry (very, very angry), and reckless. But somehow he pulled it off.

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. I would give it a 2.5 rating, because I really loved it and I really hated it. Others who've read it have adored it, so I must be in the minority.

For anyone who wants to read a book somewhat similar to Beautiful Disaster, this might be a book you could try. I'm not making any promises, just a suggestion.

Also, there is a sequel coming out, Clash, in September 2012. So basically, now-ish. I might *might* get it to see how things go for Lucy and Jude now that they are in college, but I'm not sure if I will or not. Guess I'll just have to wait and see!

13 to Life by Shannon Delany

This is the first novel in the 13 to Life series by Shannon Delany.

Jess hasn't been having a good life the past few months. So when she is called to the guidance office, she's expecting the worse.

When she's told she has to show the new, hot, moody boy around the school for the first few days, let's just say she wasn't all that happy about it.

In fact, she was probably the one girl that wasn't impressed by Pietr Rusakova. Which of course made her very interesting in Pietr's eyes and he wanted to know more.

With the recent events that happened with Jess's mom's death and her friend Sarah's memory loss, Pietr was too much to handle. Then, Sarah became very possessive of Pietr, something that hadn't happened since her accident, so Jess felt it necessary that Pietr and Sarah get together as a couple.

Even though Jess was very, very attracted to Pietr. And sometimes kissed him when she shouldn't have.

Along with this new boy/best friend drama, Jess has been in contact with large animals - larger than she's ever seen before. They are all around her farm and her dogs go crazy when they are around.

Plus, with the wolf situation that happened in a few towns over, things were definitely changing in the town of Junction.

Will Jess figure out what the Rusakova's were keeping secret? Can she stay away from Pietr so Sarah can  have her happily ever after? Or are things about to get very weird and dark? Read 13 to Life to find out!

My Thoughts/Reflections
Goodreads and LibraryThing have both been suggesting these books to me, and boy am I glad they did! There was so much mystery and romantic suspense in this novel that I couldn't put it down! Finished it in one day and am very glad that I have the next novel in the series in my possession to continue the story!

I love Jess. She is one of those characters who wants to do everything right for her friends before herself. This occurred because of what happened with her mother and her friend Sarah, but now the best interest of her friends is her top concern - no matter how hard it may be for her.

I also really liked the first meeting between Jess and Pietr. It was dislike at first sight, but slowly got more relaxing and friendly, though not as friendly as either character would have wanted it.

And I think that both characters are VERY mature for the age, having been through horrors already in their young age.

One thing I will say is that there wasn't too many answers to this complex story. I know it's because it's part of a series, but it would have been nice to get SOME answers before the end of the novel.

I guess it will just leave the reader in suspense until they can get their hands on the second novel.

For anyone who is interested in supernatural and *ahem, spoiler, spoiler* werewolves (no, no vampires here!) then this book is just for you! I really enjoyed the fast paced reading and I was definitely craving for more at the end of the novel.

Yes, it is a cliffhanger.

Good thing, though, is that the whole series is now out and complete! So no waiting!

Off to the next one! Fingers crossed that it gets better and better :)

Unraveling by Elizabeth Norris

Janelle thought she had a lot going on in her life. Her father is an FBI agent, her mother is fading away - living in a shell, so Janelle has been taking care of her 14-year-old brother Jared.

And to add to Janelle's problems, she gets hit by a truck that came out of nowhere and dies by the impact.

Only she wakes up... And Ben Michaels is standing over her, a boy she has never talked to before. But Janelle knows, deep down inside, that Ben brought her back to life.

And she's set to prove it one way or another.

There happens to be more that's going on besides Janelle dying. There are people in her town that are dying from radiation burns - horrible burns. Only no one can find out who these people are. There are no records about them; the Feds can't even get a match on their dental records.

Janelle and her best friend Alex like to snoop in her father's FBI cases, so they get in a little too deep in this radiation case.

And find out that there is a bomb ticking down to 40 days before it blows up... Which will destroy Earth.

But then Janelle finds out Ben's secret... And it links to her father's FBI cases...

After her father was killed by 3 gunshots, Janelle is even more determined to figure out this case.

Because solving this case could mean the survival of the whole planet. And finding out her father's killer.

My Thoughts/Reflections
I tagged this as a science fiction novel because it does go into alternate universes and non-human abilities. This is also one of the very few Young Adult science fiction novels I have read and I was really impressed with it!

Janelle is a character that I really liked. She was the head of the house since both of her parents were MIA - in person and in spirit. That's enough for a 17-year-old to handle with a younger brother.

But she also wanted to help her father in his cases before he died. And she caught on to certain aspects very quickly that even her father was impressed - and he was in charge of his own group in the FBI.

While I'm not a sciencey person, I was sucked into this story and wanted to know all of the answers to the mysteries in this novel. And the author, Elizabeth Norris, wrote it well enough for a non sciencey person to understand, which I really appreciated!

I do have to warn any interested readers - this is a sad novel. I can count right now 4 sad parts to this book, and most of them were right at the end.

So it's a tearjerker, but good news is that there will be a second novel coming out in this series. It won't be out until April 2013, but we will get to delve more into the world that Norris has created and maybe get some happy news rather than crying some more.

I definitely recommend this novel to anyone wanted a "forbidden" love with a bad boy, a science fiction setting, or a novel about survival.