Review: This Is Where It Ends

Title: This Is Where It Ends 

Author: Marieke Nijkamp

Pages: 292

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Publication Date: January 5th 2016

Synopsis via Goodreads: 

10:00 a.m.

The principal of Opportunity, Alabama's high school finishes her speech, welcoming the entire student body to a new semester and encouraging them to excel and achieve.

10:02 a.m.

The students get up to leave the auditorium for their next class.

10:03

The auditorium doors won't open.

10:05

Someone starts shooting.

Told over the span of 54 harrowing minutes from four different perspectives, terror reigns as one student's calculated revenge turns into the ultimate game of survival.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Review: 

This is going to be a hard review for me to write. It seems that half of the people who read this book found it absolutely amazing and the other half found it fell flat. Sadly, I leaned more towards the later category. I was incredibly excited for this book. I love a good tough topic book and the fact that it takes place over only 54 minutes made it sound even more intense.

This book is less the than 300 pages so initially I expected it to be a fast read. I just could not get my head into it though. I ended up reading a majority of the book in smaller portions and then sat down and made myself finish the book before I could get up again. Since the book only takes place over 54 minutes you would think it would move very fast but I found it rather slow reading.

The book is told from multiple peoples perspectives. I usually love multiple POV books and I thought this would be an interest take on a school shooting since you would see if from all angles. My only problem was that each characters sections were very short. Many of them did not last more than a couple pages. I found this hard to be able to fully learn about the characters and to connect to them.

My biggest problem with the book was the shooter, Tyler. It was not necessarily his character but the fact that you never get to understand him. This book is about a school shooting and yet you do not get to learn much about the shooter. A majority of the book focuses on the other people in Tyler's life and not actually him. When it comes to an event like a mass shooting I think it is very important to understand, why? We are not given this in the book. Yes, it is obvious that there is a revenge motive in the book but what led to it? Tyler is a terrifying person. He took time and planned this whole entire event and ends up killing over 30 people. That does not just happen. I wish we had been able to see into his mind. 

This book is definitely intense, emotional, and makes you think. I just think the lack of character background left me not invested in the book and ended up making the reading experience not as good as it could have been for me. 

Waiting on Wednesday: This Is Where It Ends

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

This week I am waiting on...

Title: This Is Where It Ends

Author: Marieke Nijkamp 

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Synopsis via Goodreads: 

10:00 a.m.

The principal of Opportunity, Alabama's high school finishes her speech, welcoming the entire student body to a new semester and encouraging them to excel and achieve.

10:02 a.m.

The students get up to leave the auditorium for their next class.

10:03

The auditorium doors won't open.

10:05

Someone starts shooting.

Told over the span of 54 harrowing minutes from four different perspectives, terror reigns as one student's calculated revenge turns into the ultimate game of survival.

COMING JANUARY 5th 2016

I love intense, heart wrenching and emotional reads. When I read the synopsis for This Is Where It Ends I knew I had to read it. Also, look at the cover! It is just fantastic. I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this book at BEA and was able to attend the authors signing. Marieke was super friendly and energetic. Being the clumsy person that I am her book went flying out of my hand across the aisle onto the ground. Of course, I just had to go and fling the authors book on the ground right in front of her. I was mortified. I am very excited to pick this one up in the next couple weeks and review it before it hits shelves. 

What are you waiting on this week?

Tell me in the comments below! 

Review: Until We Meet Again

Title: Until We Meet Again

Author: Renee Collins

Pages: 336

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary/Time Travel

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Publication Date: November 3rd 2015

Synopsis via Goodreads: 

They exist in two different centuries, but their love defies time

Cassandra craves drama and adventure, so the last thing she wants is to spend her summer marooned with her mother and stepfather in a snooty Massachusetts shore town. But when a dreamy stranger shows up on their private beach claiming it's his own—and that the year is 1925—she is swept into a mystery a hundred years in the making.

As she searches for answers in the present, Cassandra discovers a truth that puts their growing love—and Lawrence's life—into jeopardy. Desperate to save him, Cassandra must find a way to change history…or risk losing Lawrence forever.

I received an advanced readers copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

REVIEW: 

Until We Meet Again is a mysterious and intriguing book about two teenagers living 90 years apart trying to change the past to save each other and their love.

This book did not turn out to be how I thought it would be. When I read the synopsis I was expecting this epic love story. I honestly did not see this book as extremely romantic. Yes, there is a romance in it but it almost seems pushed into the background. You also do not get to see many romantic scenes between the two love interests, Cassandra and Lawrence. There are not many kiss scenes and the ones that do exist are not that swoon worthy. There was also no deep and love professing scenes. There was an absence of a falling in love period too, which is one of my favorite parts of a romance. I think Collins let the other plot line block out the romance, sadly.

This does not mean I didn't like the book. The way the book went I actually did enjoy. In my opinion a majority of this book would be categorized as a mystery. Cass and Lawrence find out that something terrible is meant to happen to Lawrence that might even end his life. They spend a majority of time doing research in both time periods to try and figure out what happens in order to prevent it. The mystery is why I kept reading because I found it interesting and I was curious to know what was going on. The truth revealed was a great twist and was my favorite part of the book.

I did find the book to be slow. I found myself only reading a little bit at a time and it took my a while to finish the whole thing. The pacing was a little slow and it did not seem like a lot happened until the end. The end was my favorite part. It picked up in intrigue and most importantly pace. I also appreciated how she ended the story. I found it much more realistic and honest.

Overall I liked Until We Meet Again. I did not dislike it but I did not love it. I think the lack of romance from what I was expecting and the slow reading made it hard for me to fully invest myself in this book.

Review: My Secret To Tell

Title: My Secret To Tell

Author: Natalie D. Richards

Pages: 320

Genre: Young Adult Mystery

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Publication Date: October 6th 2015

I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for and honest review.

Synopsis (via Goodreads):

There was blood on his hands. Where was the guilt in his eyes?

Emmie's had a crush on her best friend's brother forever. Deacon is the town bad boy who's always in trouble, but she sees his soft side when he volunteers with her at the local animal shelter. She doesn't think he's dangerous…until he shows up in her bedroom with blood on his hands.

Deacon's father has been violently assaulted and Deacon is suspect number one. Emmie's smart enough to know how this looks, but she also knows Deacon's biggest secret—he's paralyzed by the sight of blood. She's sure he didn't do this. Or did he? Because even Deacon's own sister thinks he's guilty…

REVIEW:

I have been a big fan of Natalie D. Richards ever since I read her debut Six Months Later last year and then went straight onto to read her second book Gone Too Far. I think Natalie D. Richards is one of the better mystery writers in young adult today and her latest book My Secret To Tell just proved this point even more.

One thing I love about Natalie D. Richards books is that she chooses storylines that have not been overdone. A lot of the time in young adult mystery people use the same plot lines again and again and it gets old. But Richards spices things up. The mystery Richards has laid out for us in My Secret To Tell is original, complex, and high stakes. She also has a knack for throwing you curve balls you did not see coming. This has happened to me in her previous and books and this curbeball ending was by far the biggest surprise for me. I honestly had no idea who was behind the scheme until they said it themselves. Richards is very good at putting your suspicions on someone else until the very end. Another thing I enjoy is that the characters are trying to solve the crime too. I think it is more fun that way because you get to figure everything out with the characters.  

I was thoroughly pleased with the characters. The main character Emmie was a strong and ambitious heroine. You also get to see Emmie evolve throughout the story. Emmie becomes more confident with who she is and learns to stand up for the things and people that she cares about. Emmie's love interest Deacon is the perfect bad boy with a good heart. You also get to learn a lot about his backstory and see him evolve as well, which was important to the story. The only character that got on my nerves was Emmie's mother. The way she wouldn't let Emmie follow her dreams or do basically anything she wanted and the way she acted drove me crazy. I do know that was probably one of her purposes in the book though.

Richards does a fantastic job balancing plot and romance. The romance in this book never took away from the main conflict but it was still satisfying and complete on its own. Emmie and Deacon have great chemistry. The two of them being on the run from the police and Deacon being the forbidden bad boy definitely added to the thrill of their romance.

If you enjoy a mystery with the back drop of a summer town I would definitely suggest picking this book up. I loved the setting of them being on the docks in a small summer town with tourists and attractions like charter boats. I also loved how Richards made the stakes higher by having the characters go on the run and hide from the police. It helped add more suspense and intrigue to the book.

My Secret To Tell did not disappoint, It was full of intrigue, mystery, romance, clues, and danger. If you are a fan of Natalie D. Richards I bet you will love this book and if you have not read her yet I highly recommend all of her books. 

Review: Gone Too Far

Title: Gone Too Far

Author: Natalie D. Richards

Pages: 304

Genre: Young Adult Mystery

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Publication Date: January 6th 2015

 

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Keeping secrets ruined her life. But the truth might just kill her.

Piper Woods can't wait for the purgatory of senior year to end. She skirts the fringes of high school like a pro until the morning she finds a notebook with mutilated photographs and a list of student sins. She's sure the book is too gruesome to be true, until pretty, popular Stella dies after a sex-tape goes viral. Everyone's sure it's suicide, but Piper remembers Stella's name from the book and begins to suspect something much worse.

Drowning in secrets she doesn't want to keep, Piper's fears are confirmed when she receives an anonymous text message daring her to make things right. All she needs to do is choose a name, the name of someone who deserves to be punished...  

 

 

REVIEW:

I thoroughly enjoyed Natalie D. Richards' debut novel Six Months Later. When her sophomore novel hit shelves I immediately scooped up to be taken on another whirlwind thrilling ride.

I expected this book to have a lot of the same feel of Six Months Later but I did not always find this. Six Months Later was much more of a high-stakes and life or death thriller. Gone Too Far is much more tamed and mainly based around high school social groups and popularity. I would say it has a small hint of a Pretty Little Liars feel with all the anonymous texts and blackmail. I still thoroughly enjoyed the story it just wasn't what I was expecting based off of Richards' debut novel.

I enjoyed the main character, Piper. Piper is a photographer and has a spot in the artsy clique, since I tend to lead more to this side I really enjoyed reading it. I have not read a lot of books lately that take place within an artistic group of young individuals. Piper becomes a sort of assistant vigilante after she feels guilt over a fellow students suicide. At first she is very satisfied with exposing these classmates who she believes have committed wrong doings but things soon start to spiral out of control as police get involved and students and teachers lives start to fall apart due to their vigilante "pranks".

I also liked Piper's love interest Nick. The thing that I liked most about him was that he helped Piper see that not everything is as it seems, especially when it comes to people. He helps show her that everybody has things going on in their lives too and that people can make mistakes and still be a good person. He helped her see past stereotypes and I give Richards' a lot of credit for putting that storyline into the book because most people still believe in stereotypes or at least follow them in high school. I was very glad she brought that subject to light. The one thing I had some trouble with was Nick and Piper's relationship. It seemed that before the start of the book Nick and Piper had never really talked and then all of a sudden Nick is pursuing her out of the blue. I did think they had chemistry and Nick brought out the good qualities in Piper but I just had a hard to time believing in and falling for the romance after their abrupt start.

The mystery itself was very well planned out. I thought it was many different people the whole time and so did Piper. Their are little clues that are actually just deceiving and lead you off the track of the vigilante. You will never guess who they are. I know I can be slow at finding the culprit but everybody else who I know has read this has also said they never saw that coming. And if you are like me and were hoping for a little more life or death action like in Richards' debut you do get one fight scene at the end that puts Piper's life in danger.

Natalie D. Richards' sophomore novel did not disappoint. I wish there had been some more high-stakes action but she did a great job of turning her mystery into a way to highlight the problems with stereotypes, how people are perceived and the issues with popularity in schools today. She also did a great job of keeping me guessing the whole time. I am very excited to see what thrilling ride she will take us on in her next novel.

 

Waiting on Wednesday: The Summer After You and Me

Title: The Summer After You and Me

Author: Jennifer Salvato Doktorski

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

 

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Sunbathing, surfing, eating funnel cake on the boardwalk—Lucy loves living on the Jersey Shore. For her, it's not just the perfect summer escape, it is home. And as a local girl, she knows not to get attached to the tourists. They breeze in over Memorial Day weekend, crowding the shore and stealing moonlit kisses, only to pack up their beach umbrellas and empty promises on Labor Day. Lucy wants more from love than a fleeting romance, even if that means keeping her distance from her summertime neighbor and crush, Connor.

Then Superstorm Sandy tears apart her barrier island, briefly bringing together a local girl like herself and a vacationer like Connor. Except nothing is the same in the wake of the storm. And day after day, week after week, Lucy is left to pick up the pieces of her broken heart and broken home. Now with Memorial Day approaching and Connor returning, will it be a summer of fresh starts or second chances?

 

 

COMING MAY 1st 2015

 

 

Every year I look for the perfect summer themed reads to occupy me under the sun. Beaches, summer tourists, and complicated romance makes this book sound right up my alley. I also read Doktorski's book How My Summer Went Up in Flames two years ago and it was a lot of fun. I think this one will make a great beach read!