Top Ten Tuesday: Books About Friendship

 

A weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

1.) The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
An obvious choice but I'm a big fan of this series and its four protagonists and their coming of age story. Through the good and the bad these friends are there for each other. Tibby, Bridget, Lena, and Carmen may fight and grow apart from time to time but they love and support one another as best friends forever.

 2.) Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
At the heart of this book is the friendship between Jennifer and Beth who we only meet through their emails. Their relationship is so genuine and realistic however it made me want to be their friend. This book reminded me so much of actual conversations I've had with friends it's not even funny! I mean it is funny, it's very funny actually.

3.) The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
Three words: Liam and Chubs. I ship Liam and Chubs, that's for damn sure. No, not in the romantic sense (though it wouldn't surprise me), just as friends. These two have been through so much together and they have helped one another through it all. Plus the group on the whole is a great group of friends. This book is full of delightful friendships!

 4.) Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Amid a phenomenal world and an action-packed plot there is a great story of friendship, but it's not your normal friendship. It's friendship that begins online. There's this huge theme in this book about your IRL self vs. your online self and at the heart of that issue is the friendship of the characters. As I prepare to meet some fellow bloggers at BEA I can relate.

5.) No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale
If you've read this book it may surprise you being on this list, but for me I loved the underlying theme of friendship and finding that one person who gets you for you. This book was pretty realistic in it's view of friendship that it reminded me of my friends. Sometimes it's not all puppies and rainbows, it can be backhanded compliments and tough love but that's okay.

 6.) A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
Sure it's a book about magic, but the core of this coming of age story is the relationship between four girls who are trying to figure out who they are and who they want to be in a world that's changing. Through it all they have one another for guidance and support. I love the friendships in this book, especially between Ann and Gemma, though Felicity and Pippa are a close second.

 7.) Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne
Okay, so confession time, I loved Winnie the Pooh as a child. I wished I could live in the 100 Acre Wood. I was totally jealous of Christopher Robin and his friends. These characters are all so delightful and friendly and they went on exciting adventures and.... OH HOW I WANTED TO JOIN THEM!

 8.) The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Charlie is a shy and awkward dude having a tough time in high school but he has Sam, Patrick, and some great friends to help him through it all. The way that they support one another and help Charlie break out of his shell and cope is so amazing it makes me feel feels!

9.) The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers
I mean sure, this book is super depressing and made me ugly cry in public but it also is a hauntingly poetic narrative about the struggle to find human connection and someone to talk to. Isn't that what we're all searching for in a friend?

10.) The Harry Potter series by JK Rowling
Ron and Hermione were by Harry's side no matter what, no questions asked (well Hermione probably asked questions, but you know what I mean). They were such good friends that they even quit school and traveled all over the country to hunt down these objects they knew almost nothing about. They risked their lives countless times for Harry and never thought twice about it. They were incredible friends and definitely the two people I would want by my side in a battle against evil!


What are your favorite books about friendship? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Feature and Follow Friday #26

A weekly meme hosted by Alison Can Read & Parajunkee's View 

 How it Works: 
The Feature & Follow is hosted by TWO hosts, Parajunkee of Parajunkee's View and Alison of Alison Can Read. Each host will have their own Feature Blog and this way it'll allow us to show off more new blogs!

How does this work? First you visit the blogs of our illustrious hosts and leave your name on the post using using the linky tools, then you create a post on your own blog that links back to this post (easiest way is to just grab the code under the #FF picture and put it in your post) and then you visit as many blogs as you can and tell them "hi" in their comments (on the post that has the #FF image). You follow them, they follow you. Win. Win. Just make sure to follow back if someone follows you!

What sets this Hop apart from others, is our Feature. Each week we will showcase a Featured Blogger, from all different genres and areas. Find out below. Just remember it is required, if you participate, to follow our Features and you must follow the hosts (Parajunkee & Alison Can Read) as a courtesy. How do you follow someone? Well, if you have a preference, state it in your #FF post. A lot of blogs are transitioning to Wordpress in which they do not have the luxury of GFC, so an RSS subscription is appreciated or if you choose an email subscription. If you don't have GFC please state in your post how you would like to be followed.

This Week's Question:

Have you met a favorite author and have a picture? Share

This Week's Answer:

Well I actually haven't met many authors. I don't live in a very popular author destination spot. This fact is why I am so excited for BEA in a few weeks! I did however meet Lois Lowry when I lived in Rhode Island. She was at a children's book festival I went to. I don't have a picture with her but I did but a book for her to sign.

What authors have you met? Leave me a comment with your thoughts.

And remember this is a blog hop so take a look around and if you like what you see give me a follow and leave me a comment so I can follow back. I am indifferent to the manner in which you follow so pick your poison: GFC, Bloglovin, or Twitter. Thanks for dropping by, Happy FF and HAPPY READING!

ARC Review: Second Star by Alyssa Sheinmel

Title: Second Star Author: Alyssa B. Sheinmel Published: May 13, 2014 by Macmillain Amazon Goodreads Synopsis: A twisty story about love, loss, and lies, this contemporary oceanside adventure is tinged with a touch of dark magic as it follows seventeen-year-old Wendy Darling on a search for her missing surfer brothers.  Wendy’s journey leads her to a mysterious hidden cove inhabited by a tribe of young renegade surfers, most of them runaways like her brothers. Wendy is instantly drawn to the cove’s charismatic leader, Pete, but her search also points her toward his nemesis, the drug-dealing Jas. Enigmatic, dangerous, and handsome, Jas pulls Wendy in even as she is falling hard for Pete.  A radical reinvention of J.M. Barrie’s classic tale, Second Star is an irresistible summer romance about two young men who have yet to grow up – and the troubled beauty trapped between them.

*** I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest view in return. This has not affected my opinion***

I was pretty excited to read this Peter Pan retelling. The surfer theme felt like the perfect summer read and the synopsis sounded really fantastic. Unfortunately the book just didn't quite resonate me.

Everything started out really good. The author set the tone for a mysterious adventure and the world of the surfers was interesting and lighthearted which was a nice balance to the heavier moments of Wendy’s life. The world of the surfers was really engaging and the imagery or the ocean and waves made me miss living close to the beach. Sheinmel did a great job of immersing you in the world of surf culture. The best part of the book, without a doubt, was the retelling aspects. I’m not intimately familiar with the story of Peter Pan but I found myself completely entertained by the creative and interesting way that Sheinmel played with familiar aspects of the story like Peter Pan climbing through the window, fairy dust, thinking happy thoughts so you could fly, and even the characters themselves.

But while the characters were creative plays on the familiar ones from Peter Pan they were not at all likable, and for that was part of how this book fell flat. I can usual get over an unlikable character if I can understand their motivation and can empathize with them. However in Second Star I didn’t quite get that. I just couldn’t find any redeeming qualities for many of the characters. All but a few came off as jerks, idiots, or both. Even our narrator came off as impulsive and almost idiotic at times. She often found herself in hot water from her reckless behavior and after awhile it just became too much to take.  My other problem I think, is that were no real character arcs. There was the opportunity for many characters to learn from the error of their ways but they kept making the same mistakes over and over again, it got repetitive.

But even more repetitive was the romance of the book, making it one more aspect of the book that fell flat for me. For a lot of people this was their main frustration about the book, but I honestly didn't mind it as much. The romance in Second Star was the dreaded insta-love triangle. There was even a moment in the book when Wendy points out how absurd it was for her to so quickly fall in love with two guys, but her recognizing the situation didn’t make it any better or change her behavior (see what I mean about not learning from your mistakes). Wendy didn’t seem very picky where her heart was concerned. For me when romance seemed imminent I chose the one character that I thought had redeeming qualities, but this is the first time I have ever read a book where I would say that I shipped the ship in but I didn’t feel the warm and fuzzy swoons. I'm not sure what it was but I wasn't emotionally invested in the romance.

But then I wasn't emotionally invested in a lot of what happened in this book. When the final mystery and twist was revealed it should have been shocking and emotional. I didn't entirely see it coming but it also didn't come as much of a shock. I didn’t feel sad or even surprised. I just felt generally disaffected by this book. It didn’t hit me in the feels, instead it just sort of fell a little flat. The only emotion I felt was disappoint for this books missed potential.

I give Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel a 6 out of 10

I wouldn't not recommend it despite my less than favorable review. If you don't like inst-love or unlikable characters then give this book a pass. If you are a fan of creative retellings, Peter Pan, or are looking for a quick beach read that will make you feel connected with the ocean then check it out.

Have you read Second Star? What were your thoughts? Leave me a comment.  Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Discussion Post: Solving Twists

I read a lot of books with some kind of major twist or mystery as part of their plot. Whether it's fantasy, SciFi, or your standard mystery novels they all have a big reveal that attempts to shock the readers and clues along the way that force me to theorize and wonder what's going to happen. Over the years I've become pretty good at solving those mysteries. I can pick up on the subtle clues, avoid suspecting red herrings, and solve the twists both big and small. I blame all the episodes of Scooby Doo I watched as a child! It's honestly more of a surprise these days for me not to solve the twist.

I'm not saying this to make myself sound like a brilliant detective, I'm no Sherlock Holmes, I'm saying this because even though I've basically figured out the ending, it doesn't ruin anything for me, and here's why.

When It Works

 1.) It's Just a Theory 
If a mystery is well done I may have found a few clues and developed an elaborate theory as to the twist, but I won't know for sure until the very end. Maybe I'm not very confident of my theory or maybe I have narrowed it down to two possible culprits, either way I want to keep reading to prove myself right. I want to find more clues or for validation of my theory. That "I WAS RIGHT" moment is always satisfying!

Example: Don't Look Back by Jennifer Armentrout (which I finished last night)

 2.) Small Twists Along the Way 
So if a book is well-written it doesn't just have one major reveal it has a bunch of smaller reveals leading up to the big one. This is often the case for a lot of Fantasy and Sci Fi novels. For me I'm  often so distracted by finding clues to the big mystery that the smaller ones catch me off guard.

Example: Sekret by Lindsay Smith

3.) The Manner in Which They Solve the Mystery
This is especially true for straight up mysteries but I often enjoy figuring out the twists in a book if I am along for the investigation with the characters. While they are off hunting for clues we are along for the ride as readers so we are able to hunt for them too or pick up on the subtleties that the characters may have missed. I enjoy this so much more than a left field reveal that's only purpose is shock factor.

Example: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

4.) The Rest of the Plot is Thrilling
In a lot of cases the mystery or the search for the truth ends up finding our fearless hero or heroine in a position where the culprit doesn't want to be found out and is doing anything in their power to make sure they don't uncover the truth. In more traditional mysteries this results in things like car chases, explosions, and brushes with death. In Fantasy and SciFi novels there is usually something more going on than the twist at the end. Therefore if there is more to keep me interested past the mystery then the book is still going to be enjoyable.

Example: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

When It Doesn't Work

1.) Dramatic Irony
I am not a fan of this literary technique. When something is perfectly obvious to me as the reader either because of something that happened earlier in the book or because of the synopsis of the book and then it is served up as the major twist of the book it's extremely annoying and insulting to my intelligence. For most of books where this happens I find myself annoyed and frustrated that the characters haven't figured things out yet. I don't like knowing things that the characters don't know it makes it hard to empathize with them.

Example: Dracula by Bram Stoker

2.) Ignorant Characters
Plus dramatic irony makes the characters look stupid, another bookish pet peeve of mine. But worse than that is characters who aren't even trying to find the truth or solve the mysteries. If something seems completely suspicious and they are paying no attention to it's suspicions and then it's revealed as a big twist at the end of the book not only am I thinking "DUH!" but I'm thinking how idiotic the characters seemed for not realizing it sooner.

Example: Frozen by Erin Bowman

2.) Dues Ex Machina
But even worse than dramatic irony and stupid characters is this most dreaded literary technique. It's a plot device where the seemingly unsolvable mystery or problem has a random and sudden solution that is all too convenient. If I have spent an entire book looking for clues and theorizing a murderer or mystery and you throw at me some left field convenient solution I am going to hate your book. I'm not opposed to things like the tell-all where the culprit confesses their crime but if they confess without the hero figuring it out themselves, NOT COOL. This is even worse in fantasy novels where things are solved by magic or an elaborate part of the world !

Example: The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkein

Honorable Mention to a Few Books I Didn't Solve the Twists On

1.) These Broken Stars by Aime Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

2.) The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan

3.) Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken

How do you feel about solving the twists when you're reading? Do you like it or not? What are some books that you predicted the twists and you still enjoyed the book? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Almost Put Down

A weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

So I've said this before, I have a very hard time DNFing a book. I like to give books the benefit of the doubt that it will get better. Sometimes this comes back to bit me in the butt and the book doesn't get any better and sometimes it ends up working in my favor and I end up enjoying it. But what I don't have a hard time doing is wanting to stop reading them. Many a book I consider putting down. It's one of the reasons I always read multiple books. So this question wasn't all that hard for me. The hardest part was narrowing it down to ten, so I broke it up into two categories.

Books That Ended Up Getting Good 

1.) Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates 
This is kind of cheating because I did put this one down. But I picked it up after a long absence only to realize that it was just about to get interesting. A huge dramatic thing was about to happen and the book left me intrigued and emotionally wrecked afterwards! I was glad I went back to it but it ruined me for DNFing books for a long time.

 2.) The Sherlockian by Graham Moore 
I read this book at a time where I was reading too much Historical Mystery and I was feeling a little burned out to the genre. But I powered through and ended up really enjoying the twist and it was very well researched. This book was another example of how it got good immediately after I almost put it down.

 3.) The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas
Another example of feeling burned out from a specific genre. I read this back in January for my High Fantasy month and that was a bit too overwhelming. I put it down, read a few other books, went back to it and it ended up having a really exciting ending!

 4.) Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy
When I started this one I wasn't sure about the characters. The protagonist was not at all likable and it made the start of the book a little frustrating but as it went on I started empathizing with her and understanding her motivations more. The ending was very satisfying and I was glad I stuck it out.

 5.) Stardust by Neil Gaiman 
So hear me out... This was my first Gaiman. Everyone was raving about how fantastic he was as an author so I had high expectation. I had also just finished the A Song of Ice and Fire series and read the first two Grisha trilogy books, so it wasn't a fair fight. But the ending was enjoyable and I'm glad I didn't give up.

 Books That Didn't Get Better 

6.) Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton
I blame myself for this one. I knew it was an incomplete book but I still read it and expected Jurassic Park standards from Crichton. This book was posted posthumously and was incomplete and believe me it felt that way. It had all the world-building but no plot or character development. I should have known better!

 7.) A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
I really didn't like this book. It just felt unoriginal with unlikable characters and a storyline that could have been fantastic but fell extremely flat. It had some serious first book syndrome and some even more serious insta-love. It was an adult book that felt like a really poorly done YA.

 8.) The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne 
I have always been really interested in old houses and their secrets. I also love Gothic literature and this book seemed to fit both categories. But it just wasn't all that interesting. I should have stopped reading it but I didn't. I mostly felt compelled to read it because I bought it at the actual house the book is based on.

 9.) Three Princes by Ramon Wheeler 
I should have remembered that I don't like alternate histories and passed on this book. But even worse than that this book was pretty much all about world-building and there was almost no plot. But it was my first ARC and I really didn't want to DNF!

 10.) Mr Darcy, Vampyre by Amanda Grange 
This was one if the first books I reviewed for this blog. It was at a time where supernatural retellings of classic novels and vampires were all the rage. But in the case of this one it was just too much dramatic irony and made one of my favorite characters in literature, Lizzie Bennett, unlikable.

What books did you want to put down but didn't? Have you read any of these books and did you want to put them down too? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

ARC Review: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Title: We Were Liars Author: E. Lockhart Published: May 13, 2014 by Delacorte Press (Random House) Amazon Goodreads Synopsis: A beautiful and distinguished family. A private island. A brilliant, damaged girl; A passionate, political boy. A group of four friends - The Liars- whose friendship turns destructive. A revolution. An accident. A secret. Lies upon lies. True love. The truth. We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from Nation Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart. Read it. And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

*** I received an eARC of this book via Netgalley in return for an honest review. My opinion has not been changed by this fact ***

Everyone who has read this book says the same thing, go in blind. Don't read the synopsis, don't read reviews, just read the book. I did my best to do just that and I absolutely agree with this statement. This is the kind of book that is made better by lack of knowledge. So therefore I would advise you that if you haven't read We Were Liars stop reading this and start reading that! Suffice to say, it's fantastic!

The book on the whole was incredibly well-written. Like all good Contemporary novels it balanced the deeper moments with the light-hearted and romantic. This one however hovered more around the dramatic. The writing style was poetic and deep and it really set the scene of a wealthy family living their summers on a private island. Like the island itself the book felt part gorgeous and part mysterious. The tone of the book gave a sense of uneasy confusion that kept me intrigued from beginning to end. In the interest of trying not to reveal too much about this book I will only mention two of my favorite things, the characters and the mystery.

First is the characters. We Were Liars is full of interesting and complex characters. First we have our narrator and main protagonist Cadence or Cady. Cady is a unreliable narrator in the vein of Holden Caulfield. When we are first introduced to her we find out that she had an accident that messed with her memories and throughout the rest of the story she is trying to remember what happened to her. She is an interesting character who is easy to sympathize with, you want to help her figure out the truth and come along for the ride. But Cady is quick to introduce us to her complicated family, the rich and perfect Sinclair family, but we learn pretty quickly that their perfection is merely an act. There's no real villain in this story and instead there is a bunch of people keeping secrets and trying to act like they are better than everyone around them. Cady's only real friends and confidants are her cousins and her love interest Gat, the Liars. They were good friends and helped Cady deal with the rough patches. All of the characters were interesting and complex. They all seemed to be hiding something, the truth.

But that hidden truth was the major part of the book after all. The book was full of mystery and intrigue. Add an unreliable narrator to a world full of secrets and that kind of thing is bound to happen. This was the kind of book that had me curious and intrigued throughout the entire novel. It had me asking so many questions and at one point I had the incredible urge to skip ahead to the ending to find out what happens. Then about a third of the way through the book I figured out the big mystery, but that didn't mean that the story felt predictable or uninteresting (come back Wednesday for a discussion post about this topic). In fact it had me instead searching for clues to prove my theory correct, and those clues where there for the taking.

And when everything was all said and done I was still emotionally effected by the ending. In fact I was surprised by how affected I was. I'm a crier to begin with and while I did shed a few tears it was a deeper sort of effect, I felt the emotion deep in my soul and when the book was over I couldn't feel feelings anymore and I mean that in the best possible way.

I give We Were Liars by E. Lockhart a 9.5 out of 10

Between the beautiful writing, complex characters, and heart-breaking mystery I loved this book. With an unreliable narrator and a mystery that was intriguing and solvable I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes mysteries, thrillers, and contemporary novels.

Cover Reveal: Her Secret Inheritance by Jen McConnel

What would you risk for a second chance?

Five years after the trip to Scotland that changed her life, Lou is back in the misty, magical country. But this time, she’s not on vacation.

When Brian, her old Highland fling, turns up at the scene of some depressing family business, tension mounts between the former lovers. But dealing with Brian is only part of the problem; something wicked is stirring in Scotland. Lou must use all her strength to handle the increasingly desperate situation, but will she be strong enough to battle both a vengeful ghost and her heart? 

Lou may have thought that she was finished with the witch Isobel Key, but some secrets can't stay buried forever. Coming June 12, 2014, HER SECRET INHERITANCE is a story of risk, second chances, and magic.

Visit Bloomsbury Spark for more information.

Want to find out where it all began? Check out THE SECRET OF ISOBEL KEY now!

Learn More Bloomsbury | Website| Goodreads | Bloomsbury Spark | Purchase Amazon | B&N | Google | iTunes | Kobo | Audible |  

About Jen McConnel Jen McConnel first began writing poetry as a child. A Michigander by birth, she now lives and writes in the beautiful state of North Carolina. A graduate of Western Michigan University, she also holds a MS in Library Science from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. When she isn't crafting worlds of fiction, she teaches college writing composition and yoga. Once upon a time, she was a middle school teacher, a librarian, and a bookseller, but those are stories for another time. Her debut NA novel, THE SECRET OF ISOBEL KEY, is out now from Bloomsbury Spark, and the sequel is coming in June. She also writes YA and nonfiction. Visit http://www.jenmcconnel.com to learn more.

Connect With Jen

| Twitter | Goodreads | Pinterest | Facebook | Blog | Website |

To celebrate the cover reveal, Jen's got three fabulous giveaway prize packs up for grabs. US only, please. Each prize pack includes an eARC of HER SECRET INHERITANCE, and you might also win the "Naughty Celt" candle, graciously donated by BookScents Candles. Check out the other awesome book-inspired candles from BookScents: Etsy Store: www.bookscentscandles.com Twitter: twitter.com/NalanaLillie Blog: wherethestoryistold.wordpress.com/






What are you waiting for? Enter  a Rafflecopter giveaway for your chance to win!