Waiting on Wednesday: After Hours

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine ,where we get to showcase upcoming releases we are eagerly anticipating!

This week I am waiting on...

Title: After Hours

Author: Claire Kennedy

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

Publisher: Simon Pulse

 

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Isa, Xavi, Peter, and Finn know that a job at the high-end Waterside Cafe isn't just about waiting tables. It's about the gossip, the hook-ups, the after-hours parties and, most of all, it's about Tips.

Tips--the high-stakes game based on dares. Whoever completes the most dares wins the collected money. A sum that could change a wasted summer into a Summer to Remember.

Isa is the new girl with an embarrassing secret, and as long as she stays on top of her game, she sees no reason why anyone could ever find out.

Xavi will do anything for the money...absolutely anything.

Peter, Xavi's stepbrother, has been in love with her for years, and he thinks the game is the perfect time to confess his feelings.

Finn is in the game just for the thrill. He has enough tips coming in to keep him happy...even if those tips come with some conditions.

From seduction to stealing to threats, the dares are a complete free-for-all, and only the best can win.

The sophisticated Waterside Cafe is anything but classy behind the scenes...and things are about to get dirty.

 

COMING JUNE 16th 2015

 

 

A behind the scenes game of dare at a local café sounds like a lot of fun and may lead to some awesome shenanigans! This one is high on my TBR list for summer!

 

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

 

Review: Compulsion

Title: Compulsion

Author: Martina Boone

Pages: 448

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy/Southern Gothic

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publication Date: October 28th 2014

 

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Three plantations. Two wishes. One ancient curse.

All her life, Barrie Watson has been a virtual prisoner in the house where she lives with her shut-in mother. When her mother dies, Barrie promises to put some mileage on her stiletto heels. But she finds a new kind of prison at her aunt’s South Carolina plantation instead--a prison guarded by an ancient spirit who long ago cursed one of the three founding families of Watson Island and gave the others magical gifts that became compulsions.

Stuck with the ghosts of a generations-old feud and hunted by forces she cannot see, Barrie must find a way to break free of the family legacy. With the help of sun-kissed Eight Beaufort, who knows what Barrie wants before she knows herself, the last Watson heir starts to unravel her family's twisted secrets. What she finds is dangerous: a love she never expected, a river that turns to fire at midnight, a gorgeous cousin who isn’t what she seems, and very real enemies who want both Eight and Barrie dead.

 

 

REVIEW:

I just started reading southern gothic novels this fall and loved them. When I heard about Compulsion and saw that beyond beautiful cover I got super excited and had very high expectations for it, which where immediately met!

The book does start off a little slow. Not as in nothing is happening or that its boring, there is just a lot of background information you need to know and characters to be introduced to. Once you get past that part I promise the book will pull you right in. The pace picks up and lots of intrigue, mystery, and romance start to happen.

 I loved the characters in this book. Barrie was a phenomenal main character. She was very strong and determined to fix things on her own. She was also very witty. I immediately wanted to be friends with her. I also found her very relatable and likeable. I also ended up really liking her Aunt Pru. She was very real. She had her own struggles but was always trying to help Barrie too. I also found her kind of quirky which added a uniqueness to her. I ended up really liking the relationship they grew to have. And don't even get me started on Eight. He is definite swoon material. He was a southern gentleman and always trying to help Barrie no matter what but he also had a witty side like Barrie that made them work perfectly together.

That leads me perfectly into talking about the books romance. Barrie and Eight were excellent together. There was so much fun and cute witty banter between them. Barrie always wanted Eight but she always gave him a hard time keeping him on his toes. They worked so well together in a romantic sense but they were also just a great team. They do fall for each other at the beginning of the book but it does not feel like insta-love. That also allowed you to watch them together and see their romance bud over the whole story, which I loved.

I thought Boone incorporated the magical part of the plot in well. There is a magical element to the family curses but it does not take the lead in the story. It is fully described and feels very complete but it was still more in the background. I really liked this because it was a really interesting fun twist to the novel but it did not take over the book and plot. There is also a mystery incorporated into the story that I had no idea was going to happen. It added more suspense to the novel and I really enjoyed it.

This book had it all for me. A southern gothic with curses, generations-old family feud, mystery, magic, and a compelling romance. If you like any of the things I just listed I highly recommend giving Compulsion a try. I am now early awaiting the sequel Persuasion which is excepted to release in October 2015.

 

Review: The Sound

Title: The Sound

Author: Sarah Alderson

Pages: 320

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publication Date: May 13th 2014

Genre: Young Adult Mystery

Synopsis via Goodreads:

When aspiring music journalist Ren Kingston takes a job nannying for a wealthy family on the exclusive island of Nantucket, playground for Boston's elite, she's hoping for a low-key summer reading books and blogging about bands. Boys are firmly off the agenda.

What she doesn't count on is falling in with a bunch of party-loving private school kids who are hiding some dark secrets, falling (possibly) in love with the local bad boy, and falling out with a dangerous serial killer...

Review:

The Sound follows Ren Kingston a teenage girl who takes a job nannying for a family in Nantucket for the summer. Throughout the summer Ren discovers secrets about the wealthy family's on Nantucket, may fall in love with somebody unexpected, and steps right into the path of a serial killer.

 

The sound is set in Nantucket making it the perfect atmosphere for a summer beach read. The setting added charm to the book. I also liked how Alderson showed us into the world of the wealthy Nantucket summer goers but also let us into the world of the year round locals. It added interesting contrast and diversity for the book.

 

I enjoyed the relationships in the book too. The growing chemistry between Ren and apparent bad boy Jesse added some nice steamy aspects to the book. Their banter and attitudes towards each other also added for some fun in their complicated relationship. Romance aside I also really enjoyed the relationships between Ren and the family she works for. I specifically loved the dynamic between Ren and Brodie, the little girl she nannies for. Ren helps her through bullying and in exchange Brodie says some rather funny things 4 years olds should not know about quite yet.

 

The characters themselves did not astound me though. I enjoyed Ren's music blogging and her music references but besides that nothing really stood out about her and she could come off as bland at times. There were also many characters that I wanted to reach into the book and smack around a bit by the end of the story, which is understandable in the context of this book.

 

My one real critique for this book is that there are actually two crimes happening in the book. This led to a lot of back and forth between storylines. It also made one of the crimes take a back seat and left it rushed and unsatisfying at the end. I wish Alderson had chosen one crime to focus the book around to make it more fully plotted and complete.

 

The Sound is a fast summer contemporary/mystery beach read filled with intrigue, a glimpse into the world of the wealthy, and romance.

 

 

 

Review: How My Summer Went Up in Flames

Title: How My Summer Went Up in Flames

Author: Jennifer Salvato Doktorski

Genre: Contemporary 

Pages: 307

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Publication Date: May 7th 2013

“I cover my eyes with both hands. I think I'm either going to vomit or cry. At the moment, I can't decide which would make me feel better. I part my fingers to look at Matty. "It was only a few emails and texts."
"A few?"
"And maybe I showed up at ShopRite once or twice when he was getting off work.
"Good way to keep busy after a breakup. Hoping incarceration would fill those empty hours?" Matty says.” 
― Jennifer Salvato Doktorski, How My Summer Went Up in Flames

Review:

How My Summer Went Up in Flames follows the story of Rosie. Rosie's ex-boyfriend, Joey has just recently cheated on her and when she sees him with his new bimbo girlfriend she goes and lights a box of all the things he's ever given her on his driveway but his car by accident goes up in flames in the process. Before she knows it Rosie is given a temporary restraining order from Joey and to keep her out of trouble her parents send her on a road trip with their next door neighbor, Matty and his two friends Spencer and Logan. Rosie sets off on the road and she soon realizes this trip might not be as bad as she though it was going to be.

How My Summer Went Up in Flames was a fun summer read but that was all it was. It was enjoyable, funny, and a great teen girl summer read. There was nothing very special about it though. I was hoping for this to be a stand out summer read from the interesting and unique synopsis on the back cover, I mean what other book has a girl getting a restraining order for almost blowing up her ex boyfriends car, sadly it didn't pull through for me though. It was still a funny summer read though and I would suggest it as a vacation read for a teen girl who likes road trip themed novels.

The best part of the book was the characters and their chemistry, especially the four who went on the road trip together. The three guys always were sarcastically funny with Rosie and by the end of the trip they all genuinely cared about each other. These four characters worked very well together and it made the road trip aspect of the book work better. The authors writing in this book was good too. Her writing was rather funny a lot of the time but she was also able to incorporate heartfelt moments into the theme of the book too and I enjoyed that through out the book. 

Overall it was good book, it just didn't completely my hook me for some reason. I feel like the author got me really excited for the book through the blurb on the book but then did not run with the unique parts of the story enough and it just turned out to be another regular road trip book.

How My Summer Went Up in Flames is a funny book with great characters and is a good book to take on a vacation

About the Author: Jennifer Salvato Doktorski

In addition to writing for teens, I’m a freelance writer who has written articles and essays for national publications including, Cosmopolitan. I think I’ve always wanted to be a writer even though I often referred to my college major in English as “PreLaw” because it held the promise that I might actually find work someday.

As it turns out, I did find work. My first paid writing gig was as an editorial assistant for the North Jersey Herald & News, where, in addition to developing a life-long passion for coffee and news, I wrote obituaries for eight months. I’ve also worked as a speech writer, bank teller, ghostwriter, bookkeeper in a lampshade factory, pet shop clerk, and music zine editor.

Check out more bout her and her books here

Summary from Goodreads

First she lost her heart. Then she lost her mind. And now she’s on a road trip to win back her ex. This debut novel’s packed with drama and romance!

Rosie’s always been impulsive. She didn’t intend to set her cheating ex-boyfriend’s car on fire. And she never thought her attempts to make amends could be considered stalking. So when she’s served with a temporary restraining order on the first day of summer vacation, she’s heartbroken—and furious.

To put distance between Rosie and her ex, Rosie’s parents send her on a cross-country road trip with responsible, reliable neighbor Matty and his two friends. Forget freedom of the road, Rosie wants to hitchhike home and win back her ex. But her determination starts to dwindle with each passing mile. Because Rosie’s spark of anger? It may have just ignited a romance with someone new…

Stacking the Shelves (7/20/13)

Stacking The Shelves is hosted over at Tynga's Reviews and is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

Guidelines:

• Create your own Stacking The Shelves post. You can use my official graphic or your own, but please link back to Tynga’s Reviews so more people can join the fun!
• You can set your post any way you want, simple book list, covers, pictures, vlog, sky is the limit!
• I am posting Stacking The Shelves on Saturdays, but feel free to post yours any day that fits you.
• Visit Tynga’s Reviews on Saturday and add your link so others can visit you!

• Visit other participants link to find out what they added to their shelves!

Here is what I got this week:

In The After by, Demitria Lunetta

The Book of Broken Hearts by, Sarah Ockler

 

Ashes on the Waves by, Mary Lindsey