ARC Reviews – Page 5 – Zakiya N. Jamal

'Gemina' by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

ARC Book Review: Gemina

Posted on September 1, 2016September 1, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Buy

Synopsis:

Moving to a space station at the edge of the galaxy was always going to be the death of Hanna’s social life. Nobody said it might actually get her killed.
The sci-fi saga that began with the breakout bestsellerIlluminae continues on board the Jump Station Heimdall, where two new characters will confront the next wave of the BeiTech assault.
Hanna is the station captain’s pampered daughter; Nik the reluctant member of a notorious crime family. But while the pair are struggling with the realities of life aboard the galaxy’s most boring space station, little do they know that Kady Grant and theHypatia are headed right toward Heimdall, carrying news of the Kerenza invasion.
When an elite BeiTech strike team invades the station, Hanna and Nik are thrown together to defend their home. But alien predators are picking off the station residents one by one, and a malfunction in the station’s wormhole means the space-time continuum might be ripped in two before dinner. Soon Hanna and Nik aren’t just fighting for their own survival; the fate of everyone on the Hypatia—and possibly the known universe—is in their hands.
But relax. They’ve totally got this. They hope.
Once again told through a compelling dossier of emails, IMs, classified files, transcripts, and schematics, Gemina raises the stakes of the Illuminae Files, hurling readers into an enthralling new story that will leave them breathless.

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Review

*I received a free advanced reader’s copy of this book from First in Line. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on October 18, 2016.*

There will be minimal spoilers for Illuminae in this review so tread carefully if you haven’t read it yet.

As soon as I finished Illuminae I picked up Gemina and I’m so incredible grateful that I was able to do that because this book is SO good! Typically I don’t like when sequels in a series don’t follow the same main characters in the first novel but I was so in love with the new characters in Gemina that it didn’t bother me at all.

In this novel the main characters are Hanna and Nik, two teens that come from two very different backgrounds. Hanna is the spoiled daughter of the Heimdall station’s captain, and Nik is part of the House of Knives crime family. While Hanna, Nik, and the rest of the residents on Heimdall are preparing for Terra Day (basically a day of celebration of parties), Kady and the rest of the Hypatia crew are on their way to Heimdall, as are some BeiTech troops and some drone ships. Awesome.

Although totally unplanned Hanna and Nik found themselves as the only means of protection for Heimdall and the only hope for the Hypatia crew. Together they’ll have to team up and figure out a way to save everyone…and the universe. Naturally things get complicated and Hanna and Nik have to trust each other if they even stand a chance of make it out of all of this alive. Just as with Illuminae, Gemina is filled with adventure, humor, plot twists, and a little romance. Also, the side characters are just as amazing as the MCs. When y’all meet Ella, you’ll know exactly what I mean. She’s a boss.

Anyway, the point is I couldn’t put this book down. I did, however, have to turn it upside down a few times. Just like Illuminae, this book is written in the same format of emails, surveillance logs, chat logs, journal entries, etc. I love how this book is formatted and the ending nearly killed me. I need to know what happens next!

Also, if you love Kady and the rest of the Hypatia crew as much as I did don’t worry they make an appearance in Gemina too but that’s all I’m going to say about that. No spoilers! I can’t wait for this book to come out so I can talk about it with all of you. It’s amazing!

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ARC Book Review: The Boy Is Back

Posted on August 30, 2016August 31, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Buy

Synopsis:

In this brand-new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot, a scandal brings a young man back home to the small town, crazy family, and first love he left behind.

Reed Stewart thought he’d left all his small town troubles—including a broken heart—behind when he ditched tiny Bloomville, Indiana, ten years ago to become rich and famous on the professional golf circuit. Then one tiny post on the Internet causes all of those troubles to return . . . with a vengeance.

Becky Flowers has worked hard to build her successful senior relocation business, but she’s worked even harder to forget Reed Stewart ever existed. She has absolutely no intention of seeing him when he returns—until his family hires her to save his parents.

Now Reed and Becky can’t avoid one another—or the memories of that one fateful night. And soon everything they thought they knew about themselves (and each other) has been turned upside down, and they—and the entire town of Bloomville—might never be the same, all because The Boy Is Back.

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Review

*I received a free advanced reader’s copy of this book from William Morrow Paperbacks via Edelweiss. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on October 18, 2016.*

Meg Cabot is back! Not that she ever really left, but you know what I mean. I was so excited to hear about this novel. At first I didn’t even realize The Boy is Back is part of Cabot’s Boy series but once I realized that I knew I had to read it. For those that don’t know the Boy series are three (now four) books written in the form of emails, online chat rooms, text messages, journals, etc. Basically it’s an unconventional writing style and I’ve read and loved every single one.

I believe the first three are all connected somehow but I’m not sure how The Boy is Back is connected. Then again I haven’t read the Boy series in years so I probably missed the connection but I’m pretty sure Dolly and Tim were in the other books. Again, I’m not sure though. Anyway, the point it just as I loved the other books in the series I absolutely loved The Boy is Back. It was funny, romantic, and only took me a day to read. I couldn’t put it down.

I loved the cast of characters in this book. Becky and Reed were perfect and I loved Becky’s sister, Nicole. She was so funny and pretty spot on about everything going on in Becky’s life. Also, Reed’s family is a hot mess of hilarity. I loved them all, except Trimble. She was super annoying but she’s supposed to be so that’s fine.

The only issue I had with this book is you it shouldn’t read be read as an ebook. This may be because I have an advanced edition but the formatting of the emails and some of the texts looks a little off digitally. Plus, I think the formatting is way more fun when you can see it in print. That’s how I read the other books and loved it that way.

Other than that this book was amazing. If you’re looking for a cute, quick, and fun read make sure to check out this novel. You’ll love it.

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ARC Review: Interference by Kay Honeyman

ARC Book Review: Interference

Posted on August 11, 2016August 10, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Buy

Synopsis:

As a Congressman’s daughter in Washington, D.C., Kate Hamilton is good at getting what she wants — what some people might call “interfering.” But when her family moves to West Texas so her dad can run in a special election, Kate encounters some difficulties that test all her political skills. None of her matchmaking efforts go according to plan. Her father’s campaign gets off to a rough start. A pro tip for moving to Texas: Don’t slam the star quarterback’s hand in a door. And whenever Kate messes up, the irritatingly right (and handsome) Hunter Price is there to witness it. But Kate has determination and a good heart, and with all her political savvy — and a little clever interference — she’ll figure out what it takes to make Red Dirt home.

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Review

*I received a free advanced reader’s copy of this book from Arthur A. Levine at Book Con. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on September 27, 2016.*

I’m a huge fan of Jane Austen retellings so when I heard this was a retelling of Emma I knew I had to read this book. Kay Honeyman does an amazing job of putting her own twist on this classic romance and I absolutely loved it. Interference takes place in a small town in Texas and the main character Kate is a congressman’s daughter that thinks she knows it all. Just like Emma she tries to play matchmaker for her friends, while her new friend, Hunter, tries to tell her to stay out of everyone’s business. Naturally, Kate doesn’t listen.

Add in your typical high school hijinks, football games, and political campaigns and this book was a roller coaster of drama, laughs, and romance. I absolutely loved the characters in this book and Hunter gave me full on heart eyes. For anyone that doesn’t really like Emma because they find Emma annoying you will like Kate more than Emma. I found Kate to be very relatable and even though a lot of the time I would think, “Kate, no!” it was hilarious seeing her make so many mistakes.

If you’re looking for a cute and quick romance that will give you Friday Night Lights feels, you should definitely pick up Interference. You won’t regret it.

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ARC Book Review: Blood for Blood

Posted on July 12, 2016July 12, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Buy

Synopsis:

For the resistance in 1950s Germany, the war may be over, but the fight has just begun.

Death camp survivor Yael, who has the power to skinshift, is on the run: the world has just seen her shoot and kill Hitler. But the truth of what happened is far more complicated, and its consequences are deadly. Yael and her unlikely comrades dive into enemy territory to try to turn the tide against the New Order, and there is no alternative but to see their mission through to the end, whatever the cost.

But dark secrets reveal dark truths, and one question hangs over them all: how far can you go for the ones you love?

This gripping, thought-provoking sequel to Wolf by Wolf will grab readers by the throat with its cinematic writing, fast-paced action, and relentless twists.

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Review

*I received a free advanced reader’s copy of this book from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers at Book Con. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on November 1, 2016.*

If you haven’t had the pleasure of reading Wolf by Wolf yet, do not read this review. There will be spoilers!

Wolf by Wolf pleasantly surprised me with how amazing it was therefore I went into Blood for Blood expecting to be blown away and I was not disappointed. For most of this novel I was on the edge of my seat worried about Yael and Luka, wondering what would happen in this terribly, twisted world Ryan Graudin put together, and questioning how this could all come to an end in just one book. Thankfully I had no reason to worry because Graudin tied up everything perfectly, leaving no loose ends.

Although this book was also written in the third person point of view, just as Wolf by Wolf was, Graudin gave us more insight into Luka and Felix’s lives before and after they get tangled up with Yael. It was really interesting seeing how these two boys, who were lucky enough to be born in the right skin/race, both handled their privilege and how they treated Yael. I especially loved Luka in this book and he’s now been added to my book boyfriends list.

This book was filled with twists and turns and I was honestly taken by surprise multiple times, which I loved. I was on an emotional roller coaster while reading this book and I did cry because Graudin apparently likes to rip her reader’s hearts out. But it’s fine, I’m fine. Maybe. Nope, still crying.

Anyway, if you enjoyed Wolf by Wolf as much as I did you’ll love Blood for Blood even more. I honestly can’t wait until it’s finally released so I can discuss it more deeply with you guys. Until then I’ll stop here and refrain from spoiling anything.

Definitely grab a copy of this novel as soon as it comes out. You won’t regret it!

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ARC Book Review: You Know Me Well

Posted on June 7, 2016July 12, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Borrow

Synopsis from Amazon:

Who knows you well? Your best friend? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? A stranger you meet on a crazy night? No one, really?

Mark and Kate have sat next to each other for an entire year, but have never spoken. For whatever reason, their paths outside of class have never crossed.

That is until Kate spots Mark miles away from home, out in the city for a wild, unexpected night. Kate is lost, having just run away from a chance to finally meet the girl she has been in love with from afar. Mark, meanwhile, is in love with his best friend Ryan, who may or may not feel the same way.

When Kate and Mark meet up, little do they know how important they will become to each other — and how, in a very short time, they will know each other better than any of the people who are supposed to know them more.

*I received a free digital advanced reader’s copy of this book from St. Martin’s Griffin via NetGalley. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on June 7, 2016.*

I wanted this book to be like Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares (which I loved) and not like Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List (which I didn’t finish). This book fell somewhere in the middle of that spectrum. I really liked Mark. I thought he was sweet, witty, and kind of dorky and I totally related to his relationship/friendship with Ryan. I also liked Kate. I understood her anxiety and her fear and I found that 100 percent relatable. I hated her friend, Lehna, though. She was so irritating and I kind of skimmed her dialogue and I agreed with Kate in that I didn’t understand why they were friends.

Truthfully my biggest issue with this book was how it was written. That’s not to say that the writing itself was bad. It wasn’t. It was really good actually and I feel like I learned a lot about the LGBTQ community and some of their struggles that I myself as a cisgender straight woman could never understand. What I didn’t like was that the chapters didn’t say if it was Matt or Katie’s point of view. For the most part they just switch back and forth except there are two chapters of Matt back to back at one point and that threw me off for a second before I caught on. I found that irritating and I just think it makes sense to identify the narrator when you have a book that alternates POV.

Also, based on the synopsis I was under the impression that this book would take place in the span of one night but it didn’t. It took place in the span of about a week, which is fine but it just threw me off. I also wish that we got to be a part of the fun party that Katie and Mark go to. We get details about all that really happened later but they just completely skipped it in the present, jumping to the next day, and that really bothered me. I wanted to know what happened. Like I said we get details later but I just didn’t see the point in skipping it and then coming back to it later.

Lastly, I had trouble believing Katie and Mark’s insta-friendship. I just didn’t buy it and it seemed kind of strange to me. Maybe this is just because I’ve never experienced this but they’re immediate friendship didn’t seem genuine or organic to me at all.

Honestly, I just didn’t love this book as much as I would’ve liked to. There were definitely some moments that made me laugh and the poetry slam made me cry, but the book as a whole just didn’t really do it for me. This one has to be a borrow for me.

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ARC Book Review: First Comes Love

Posted on May 24, 2016May 24, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Borrow

Synopsis from Amazon:

Growing up, Josie and Meredith Garland shared a loving, if sometimes contentious, relationship. Josie was impulsive, spirited, and outgoing, Meredith hardworking, thoughtful, and reserved. When tragedy strikes, their delicate bond splinters.

Fifteen years later, Josie and Meredith are in their late thirties, following very different paths. Josie, a first grade teacher, is single—and this close to swearing off dating for good. What she wants more than the right guy, however, is to become a mother—a feeling that is heightened when her ex-boyfriend’s daughter is assigned to her class. Determined to have the future she’s always wanted, Josie decides to take matters into her own hands.

On the outside, Meredith is the model daughter with the perfect life. A successful attorney, she’s married to a wonderful man, and together they’re raising a beautiful four-year-old daughter. Yet lately Meredith feels dissatisfied and restless, secretly wondering if she chose the life that was expected of her rather than the one she truly desired.

As the anniversary of their tragedy looms, and painful secrets from the past begin to surface, Josie and Meredith must not only confront the issues that divide them but also come to terms with their own choices. In their journey toward understanding and forgiveness, both sisters discover that they need each other more than they knew—and that in the search for true happiness, love always comes first.

*I received a free digital advanced reader’s copy of this book from Ballantine Books via NetGalley. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on June 28, 2016.*

For the record, although I personally wouldn’t buy this book I didn’t hate it I just didn’t love it as much as I had hoped I would.

First Comes Love is told in the alternating point of views of Josie and Meredith. While Meredith has a more type-A kind of personality and a seemingly perfect life, Josie is more carefree and a little crazy. The sisters handle the death of their brother, Daniel, very differently. For Meredith she feels like she has to be the perfect daughter for her parents and do whatever will make them happy. Josie, conversely, doesn’t discuss her brother’s death and tries not to think about it all.

I found Meredith to be irritating. I just didn’t really like her personality and I definitely sided with Josie for most of the novel, though Josie does make mistakes as well. I was also confused by the direction of the plot, particularly Josie’s storyline. There’s three significant men in Josie’s life: Will (her ex), Gabe (her best friend), and Pete (a guy she kind of dates). I was surprised by how Josie’s relationship with all three of them played out and honestly, I didn’t really like it. It just seemed like a strange ending to me and I didn’t get it at all.

I did, however, like how Meredith’s story ended, or more accurately, how it was kind of left open ended. Meredith definitely grew on me towards the end, but Josie is definitely my favorite of the two sisters.

Overall, I just didn’t love this book. Out of all the characters I think my favorite was Gabe but I still didn’t really connect with him. As always Emily Giffin’s writing was superb but the plot itself didn’t enthrall me, which is why I won’t be adding it to my shelf.

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ARC Book Review: The Haters

Posted on March 22, 2016March 21, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Buy

Synopsis from Amazon:

From Jesse Andrews, author of the New York Times bestselling Me and Earl and the Dying Girland screenwriter of the Sundance award–winning motion picture of the same name, comes a groundbreaking young adult novel about music, love, friendship, and freedom as three young musicians follow a quest to escape the law long enough to play the amazing show they hope (but also doubt) they have in them.

Inspired by the years he spent playing bass in a band himself, The Haters is Jesse Andrews’s road trip adventure about a trio of jazz-camp escapees who, against every realistic expectation, become a band.

For Wes and his best friend, Corey, jazz camp turns out to be lame. It’s pretty much all dudes talking in Jazz Voice. But then they jam with Ash, a charismatic girl with an unusual sound, and the three just click. It’s three and a half hours of pure musical magic, and Ash makes a decision: They need to hit the road. Because the road, not summer camp, is where bands get good. Before Wes and Corey know it, they’re in Ash’s SUV heading south, and The Haters Summer of Hate Tour has begun.

In his second novel, Andrews again brings his brilliant and distinctive voice to YA, in the perfect book for music lovers, fans of The Commitments (author Rody Doyle raves “The Haters is terrific. It is shocking and funny, unsettling and charming.” ), and High Fidelity, or anyone who has ever loved—and hated—a song or a band. This witty, funny coming-of-age novel is contemporary fiction at its best.

*I received a free advanced reader’s copy of this book from Amulet Books. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on April 5, 2016.*

First, when I said I was going to take a break I never intended it to be a week long thing so I’m super sorry about that. I hit a really bad reading slump and I had to stop reading a book because it was just going too slow for me.

But enough about that. Now I’ll just tell you guys about how much I loved The Haters. A book hasn’t made me laugh this hard in a long time. I couldn’t even tell you the last time I read a book that made me laugh this much.

I haven’t had a chance to read Me and Earl and the Dying Girl yet so this was my first Jesse Andrews novel and I absolutely loved it. His writing style is so different and creative and his characters are flawed, witty, and a little insane. I absolutely fell in love with the narrator and main character, Wes. He’s pretty weird and dorky but also an overall good guy.

His best friend, Corey, is equally strange but in a very different way. And the way that Corey and Wes interact with each other is fantastic. They have this weird bit they do about harming their dicks, which like I said is very weird, but was very funny to me.

Then you have Ash who I had a love/hate relationship for various reasons. Mainly, I’m just not sure if I’m supposed to like her. Throughout the novel I feared she’d come between Corey and Wes’ friendship but also I just didn’t want her to hurt Wes. I love Wes so much and I just had a, “We need to protect Wes at all costs,” vibe going throughout my whole reading of this novel.

Overall, though, I really enjoyed how Wes, Corey, and Ash worked together. Their band is a bit of a hot mess but their friendship is solid. One of my favorite parts of this novel was the way the dialogue is written. Sometimes it’s the typical way with quotations but a lot of times it was written in script format. And then there was one or two chapters where Andrews just seemed to say, “Eff it,” and just wrote with no quotations or script style but people were communicating. Things got a little hazy during that part but I’m pretty sure that was intentional because the characters were high.

I will state for the record that I don’t think this book is for everyone. I think you have to have a certain sense of humor or at least be open to a different kind of humor to really enjoy this book. If you don’t like the humor you’re not going to like this book at all. I could definitely see some people thinking this novel is strange or not good but for me I loved it. Andrews made me laugh but more than that I think this book had a pretty good message about being yourself and also not being afraid to take risks sometimes.

I say give this book a chance. If it’s not for you then fine, but I’d definitely purchase myself a copy if I were you.

Borrow or Buy: Buy, duh!

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Book Review: You Were Here

Posted on March 1, 2016July 12, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Buy

Synopsis from Amazon:

Jaycee is about to accomplish what her older brother Jake couldn’t: live past graduation.

Jaycee is dealing with her brother’s death the only way she can – by re-creating Jake’s daredevil stunts. The ones that got him killed. She’s not crazy, okay? She just doesn’t have a whole lot of respect for staying alive.

Jaycee doesn’t expect to have help on her insane quest to remember Jake. But she’s joined by a group of unlikely friends – all with their own reasons for completing the dares and their own brand of dysfunction: the uptight, ex-best friend, the heartbroken poet, the slacker with Peter Pan syndrome, and… Mik. He doesn’t talk, but somehow still challenges Jayce to do the unthinkable-reveal the parts of herself that she buried with her brother.

Cori McCarthy’s gripping narrative defies expectation, moving seamlessly from prose to graphic novel panels and word art poetry, perfect for fans of E. Lockhart, Jennier Niven, and Jandy Nelson. From the petrifying ruins of an insane asylum to the skeletal remains of the world’s largest amusement park, You Were Here takes you on an unforgettable journey of friendship, heartbreak and inevitable change.

*I received a free digital advanced reader’s copy of this book from Sourcebooks Fire. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel will be released on March 1, 2016.*

This book was better than I expected it to be. I don’t really know what I was expecting but I wasn’t prepared to fall in love with it as much as I did. Told in multiple point of views, Cori McCarthy weaves together a story of forgiveness, love, moving on, and hope.

It’s been five years since Jaycee’s older, dare devil brother Jake died while doing a dare. Since then Jaycee has kind of lost herself. She wears Jake’s clothes and follows his dares, trying to keep the memory of Jake alive.

On the night of her own graduation Jaycee realizes she’s lived past the age her brother did. Planning to go to the old, abandoned mental hospital she always does on the anniversary of her brother’s death she’s joined by her ex-best friend, Natalie, Natalie’s boyfriend, Zach, and his friend, Bishop. Creating a rag tag team that’s soon joined by Mik, Jake’s friend and Jaycee’s…something, they decide to go through Jake’s dares together, each for their own personal reasons.

Jaycee’s chapters are told in first person, Zach and Natalie’s are told in third person, Bishop’s sections are just illustrations of the art he makes, and Mik’s point of view is told in the form of comics. You Were Here is put together so creatively and I sympathized and related to each of these characters. Plus, there’s just so much going on but not so much that the important themes get lost.

Each character is going through their own issues. Jaycee is still reeling from her brother’s death, Natalie feels guilty about not being there for Jaycee five years ago, Zach isn’t sure about his future, Bishop is getting over his break-up, and Mik is a selective mute who struggles to speak around Jaycee, the one person he really wants to talk to.

You Were Here is released today and you should all do yourselves a favor and purchase this one. It’s seriously a book you’ll want on your shelf.

Borrow or Buy: Buy!

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Blog Tour Review: How Willa Got Her Groove Back

Posted on February 23, 2016March 22, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Blog Tours, Book Reviews

How Willa Got Her Groove Back by Emily McKay

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance

Series: Creative HeArts #2, companion series

Publication: February 25th, 2016

Synopsis:

When your life feels like a bad movie, rewrite the script.

When Willa Schofer’s father comes home from a business trip with an über-famous new fiancée, Willa’s senior year blows up in paparazzi-fueled flames. Overnight, she has a new house, a new car, and a new soon-to-be stepbrother–the unbelievably hot, unbelievably arrogant, Finn McCain. Thank god he’s constantly pushing her buttons, or she might do something irresponsible. Like fall for the jerk.

Just when Willa’s decided to avoid him for, oh, ever, Finn lands in the center of her senior project team. Seriously–how hard is it to shake a guy? At least her work on the project snagged the attention of the (second) hottest guy in school. He might only be into her because of her famous stepmom, and he’s not quite as exciting as a certain annoying housemate, but at least she’s allowed to crush on the guy.

Because crushing on your annoying stepbrother? So not cool.

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Review

*I received a free digital advanced reader’s copy of this book from Entangled: Crush. This did not influence my review of this book in anyway. This is an honest review of the novel as I saw it. This novel was released on February 22, 2016.*

This book had it’s ups and downs. I really liked the concept of Willa and Finn being forced together because of their parent’s impending marriage. Plus, Finn is really cute and I like that he keeps his emotions hidden, making him dark and brooding, my favorite kind of book boyfriend. And I loved Willa. She was funny, honest, and I sympathized with her greatly.

My biggest issue with this novel was I found Finn’s reasoning for pretending he was okay with his mom marrying Willa’s dad a bit unbelievable. Every time he thought about why he needed to pretend he was happy I got annoyed because it seemed so ridiculous to me. Also, I hated Willa’s dad and I don’t think I was supposed to. I just found his blatant disregard for his daughter’s feelings completely unacceptable and I also hated that he couldn’t understand why Willa was upset.

Still, I thought this book was well written and I’m honestly intrigued to know what happens next, especially because dating and falling in love with your stepbrother is definitely taboo. I really want Willa and Finn to be together but does that mean their parents won’t be? Or will this be some weird family set up? Also, this is the second book I’ve read recently where step siblings have a romance. I don’t know how I feel about that or what that says about me.

Anyway, honestly this book was funny and cute and a pretty quick read. I liked that for the most part it’s told in Willa’s point of view but occasionally we got chapters about Finn in the third person. Those chapters are what made me really like Finn. And his motorcycle. I really liked his motorcycle.

Borrow or Buy: Buy! For only $2.99 on the Kindle, this book is definitely worth it.

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About the Author

Emily McKay is a life-long fan of books, pop-culture and anything geeky. She has a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and baking cookies. When she’s not kicking-ass and scooping cookie dough, she’s watching videos from Screen Junkies (her favorite Youtube channel) or Pemberly Digital or Classic Alice. Okay, she has a Youtube problem! She’s seeking help. Really. Though, she may also have a slight problem with procrastination.

When the internet is down and there are no chocolate chips in the house, she does write books – everything from Harlequin romance novels to post-apocalyptic YA. Though her interests may appear broad, the common denominators are swoony heroes and snarky humor.

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Book Review: The Steep & Thorny Way

Posted on February 2, 2016March 22, 2016 by Zakiya N. Jamal in ARC Reviews, Book Reviews, Books to Buy

Synopsis from Amazon:

A thrilling reimagining of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, The Steep and Thorny Way tells the story of a murder most foul and the mighty power of love and acceptance in a state gone terribly rotten.

1920s Oregon is not a welcoming place for Hanalee Denney, the daughter of a white woman and an African-American man. She has almost no rights by law, and the Ku Klux Klan breeds fear and hatred in even Hanalee’s oldest friendships. Plus, her father, Hank Denney, died a year ago, hit by a drunk-driving teenager. Now her father’s killer is out of jail and back in town, and he claims that Hanalee’s father wasn’t killed by the accident at all but, instead, was poisoned by the doctor who looked after him—who happens to be Hanalee’s new stepfather.

The only way for Hanalee to get the answers she needs is to ask Hank himself, a “haint” wandering the roads at night.

In all honesty I’m always hesitant to read books about a person of color written by a white person and historical fiction isn’t really my genre but this book interested me so I gave it a try.

It was slow in the beginning and it took me a little while to get into but I’d say about 40 pages in the pace picked up. I either forgot or skipped over the part of the blurb that mentioned this was inspired by Hamlet but I immediately got that vibe and because of that I thought I knew what was going to happen. I was worried this book would be very predictable but as the book went along the author, Cat Winters, hit me with more twists and surprises. Some I began to suspect as I read but others really took me by surprise.

I also really enjoyed the relationship between Hannalee and Joe, the suspected murderer of Hannalee’s father. Their relationship, at least to me, seems to teeter the line between just friends and more than friends, which is interesting once you learn more about Joe.

Over all, I think Winters did well with this novel. She definitely did her research and I liked how she touched on a lot of issues in just one book. One thing I could’ve done without was the pictures between chapters. If there were just a few photos at the end to show the history of everything that would’ve been cool but having the images between every few chapters didn’t really add anything for me.

I’d say this book is definitely worth a read. The ghost story and mystery aspect made this book way more interesting, as did the relationship between Joe and Hannalee. Although I’m not sure how it’d be done I’d be interested in a sequel to this novel. I want to know what happens to the characters next. Even so, I think this book had a satisfying ending so I’m fine with this being a stand alone. But if Winters wants to throw us another book and make this a series I wouldn’t mind.

Borrow or Buy: Buy!

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