What You Always Wanted ( If Only...,#8)

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what you always wanted .

If Only...#8

Kristin Rae.

Publisher  Bloomsbury.

Publication Date: March 29,2016

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance.

Format|Pages:  Hardcover|320

 Source:  Goodreads|Library.

If only…he was the boy she’s been dreaming of.

Theatre girl Maddie Brooks has always had high standards for guys. But she has yet to find one who can live up to the classic Hollywood heartthrobs, especially the dreamy song-and-dance man Gene Kelly. When Maddie begins to carpool with Jesse Morales, her new neighbor and star pitcher of the baseball team, she’s struck by his wit, good looks, and love for his family—but a guy so into sports is definitely not her style. Then Maddie discovers that Jesse was raised as a dancer and still practices in the community theatre’s dance studio to keep in shape. Perhaps her perfect dream guy exists after all! But when it becomes clear that baseball—not dance—is Jesse’s passion, can Maddie find a way to let her dream guy go and appreciate the charms of the amazing guy in front of her?

☂ 

 

WHAT YOU ALWAYS WANTED is my type of a novel and I had a feeling that it would be a novel that I was going to enjoy. Not only did it have romance but it also dealt with musicals and theatre which is both things that I love reading about. Actually I feel that there are not enough books about that subject. I loved how passionate Maddie was about it and despite the obstacles that she faced on the way, she did not give up, instead she ended up worked harder to achieve her goals. I believe that something like that takes a dedication, and unless you are passionate about it, wouldn’t work. I wish that Maddie didn’t push Jesse so much, towards something that was obvious was her dream and not Jesse’s. WHAT YOU ALWAYS WANTED was filled with so much conflict, drama and as a reader you could not help but wonder what would happen next. There were days that I wished that I didn’t have put the novel down. There were so much that I wanted to know.



Jesse and Maddie’s relationship was different because two of them were so opposites. While Maddie was into theatre, musicals and dancing, Jesse was into baseball. Despite that, I could see that she was attracted to him even if she tried not to be. I could see how being around him affected her. I feel like it affected Jesse as well, expect he didn’t seem to show it the way Maddie did. I seen way that they two of them were with each other and how they looked at one another. How can there not be an attraction between the two of them. It felt that Jesse accepted before Maddie did, and with her it took some time. I just wished that she would accepted him for who he was from beginning, that could avoided a lot of heartbreak. I loved the scenes between the two of them and found myself hoping that they would their way back to one another. Two of them need each other.




I was glad that Maddie was able to find a friend like Angela, a type of friend that Maddie never had but needed. What the two of them had was a true friendship, they were for one another through almost everything. There was nothing that I didn’t love about this book, there was always so much going on and you couldn’t help but get sucked into story and soon found yourself falling in love with the characters as well. This was 2nd KRISTIN RAE novel that I have read and it won’t be last. I am looking forward to see what adventures she will come up with next.

The Surrendered.

☆☆☆☆☆

the surrendered.

case maynard.

Publisher  Blaze.

Publication Date: September 20,2016

Genre: YA Dystopian|Adventure

Format|Pages:  EBook|240.

 Source:  Received copy from Netgalley.

After a financial collapse devastates the United States, the new government imposes a tax on the nation’s most valuable resource—the children.



Surrendered at age ten—after her parents could no longer afford her exorbitant fees—Vee Delancourt has spent six hard years at the Mills, alongside her twin, Oliver. With just a year to freedom, they do what they can to stay off the Master’s radar. But when Vee discovers unspeakable things happening to the younger girls in service, she has no choice but to take a stand—a decision that lands her on the run and outside the fence for the first time since the System robbed her of her liberty.



Vee knows the Master will stop at nothing to prove he holds ultimate authority over the Surrendered. But when he makes a threat that goes beyond what even she considers possible, she accepts the aid of an unlikely group of allies. Problem is, with opposing factions gunning for the one thing that might save them all, Vee must find a way to turn oppression and desperation into hope and determination—or risk failing all the children and the brother she left behind

Received electronic copy via Netgalley, in exchange of honest review 

 ☂

An intriguing tale. A story that had me filled with so many emotions. THE SURRENDERED will keep you on edge of your seat and you will find it hard to put the novel down. As a reader you will be so engaged in Vee’s story, to the point that you will find yourself reading it till end, just to find out how it all ends for her. I know that’s how it was for me and there was even couple nights that I found myself reading late into night due to fact that I had to know how it end for all of them, especially Vee. How could I not? Even if Vee was a fictional character, she became real to me. I felt as if she became my friend. Plus everything that was happening in that novel, you can’t help but get hooked into it.



You know how some stories you come across character that becomes your favorite character through the entire book? Vee was that character for me. I loved her from the start till I reached the end of the book. Vee was dedicated, strong, brave, a fighter. What she did, what she went through in order to save her brother, Oliver and to protect her sister, Jane. Despite the danger that she had face, or the challenges she came across, did not stop her and she didn’t give up, not once. Vee had courage and so much love for her family. That’s how real family is supposed to be. The emotions that were displayed in this book were so vivid that I found myself being able to feel all the emotions that she felt. Causing for everything else to become much more real to me.



Of course I loved the tension, the attraction that occurred between Vee and Catson. From moment that the two of them had met, I wondered how deep their feelings for one another actually were. Even though he did act bit harsh towards her in beginning, of course I didn’t blame him, considering what happened to his family. Once they got past that, I loved how the two of them looked out for one another. Anyone could tell that there was some spark, a connection between the two of them. The action, the suspense in this novel was never-ending and one of things that made it so interesting because there was always something happening. Every single page.



A great novel for any YA Dystopian fans.

Kisses On Paper Airplane

☆☆☆☆

Kisses on paper airplane.

sarah vance tompkins.

Publisher  Inkspell.

Publication Date: May 14,2016.

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance

Format|Pages:  EBook|83..

 Source:  Received copy from Netgalley.

Drama student Hannah Evans isn't kissing any frogs on her path to find Prince Charming. She's determined to share the perfect first kiss -- with the perfect boy -- in the perfect place -- or she's not kissing anyone at all. When Hannah meets a cute ginger-haired boy in first class lounge in the London airport, she knows he's 'The One.'



Pop star Theo Callahan is on the road to get as far away as possible from his back-stabbing best friend, and his supermodel girlfriend who broke his heart. Until one shy smile from Hannah has him rethinking all of his travel plans.



Theo is smitten, but he's worried she's just a groupie in search of the ultimate selfie. Can Theo learn to trust Hannah in time to share one perfect first kiss, or will Hannah be forced to kiss a frog?

* Received a copy via Netgalley, in exchange of honest review * 

 ☂

 

KISSES ON PAPER AIRPLANE is a kind of love story that every girl wishes that she could have, meeting a cute, nice boy that you end up falling for. A type of boy that any girl would love to have, I know that I would had. I have come across this novel while I was on Netgalley, and honestly it was the title and the cover that had grabbed my attention first and had me curious about it. KISSES ON PAPER AIRPLANE How can that not grab your attention and have you wonder if there is meaning behind it, and why paper airplane? Those were the thoughts that have ran through my mind. Once I read the story it made sense to me. I felt like both Hannah’s relationship with Theo was in a way like a paper airplane that could fall apart at any moment.



I got admit that you can’t help but love the realthionship between Theo and Hannah, even though if it seemed like a fairytale. I did feel like the two of them fell from each other pretty fast Despite that you could tell that there was connection between the two of them from the minute that the two of them met. You could tell by the way that the two of them talked to each other, looked at each other. Also how Theo switched from first class just so he could be with her, because he knew how nervous flying made her. Why else would he done that unless there was something there between the two of them. Something special. When things had fallen apart, I was rooting for things between the two of them to work out, I wanted for them to work out.



I did feel like a book was a bit short. I wanted, no I needed to see what happened with them next. What would be next for Hannah and Theo. I did feel like the book started a bit slow for me but it picked up fast after that. To the point where I was on the edge of my seat till I reached the end of the book. I refused to put the book down. Of course once I reached the end, I was sad for it to come to the end. It was a sweet short book about love, first kisses. I always found myself smiling between interaction between Hannah and Theo. A novel that is worth picking up and checking out.

Healing Maddie Brees.

☆☆☆

healing maddie brees.

rebecca brewster stevenson.

Publisher  Light Messages.

Publication Date: September 13,2016..

Genre: Contemporary Fiction.

Format|Pages:  EBook|310..

 Source:  Received copy from Netgalley.

A debut novel from a promising new voice in fiction, Healing Maddie Brees is the story of a marriage and the memories that pit themselves against it, of the uncanny power of the body in both disease and desire, and of whether true healing ever really happens.



Maddie Brees has been given bad news: She is seriously ill. But she also has an old friend, an ex-boyfriend who might be able to heal her. She was witness to Vincent Elander’s so-called miracles in the past. But that was a long time ago, a memory that she would rather stay buried.



Now she is happily married to Frank and mother of their three young boys. The religion of her past is behind her, along with any confidence she once had in it. With the onset of her cancer, the memories of Vincent won’t leave Maddie alone, and before long they are affecting everything else: her marriage, her husband, the things they thought they agreed on, the beliefs they thought they shared. Soon Frank, who was to be Maddie’s rock throughout her treatment, is finding fault-lines of his own. In this exquisitely written narrative, Stevenson explores the questions of honesty and commitment, of disease and isolation, and of the many shapes healing takes.

*Received Electronic book from Netgalley, in exchange of review *

3.5 Stars 

 ☂

HEALING MADDIE BREES Was a powerful novel that dealt with a hard subject, such as cancer and of course hope. It was unlike other novels that I had read through the years. I have read quite few religious based books but none of them were way that this book was. I feel like HEALING MADDIE BREES was the most religious book that I have read, it was based a lot on faith. Considering what Maddie was dealing with at that moment, it was not surprising. Breast cancer is hard to deal with, and in a way it hits close home to me because my grandmother had breast cancer when I was a teenager. I remember how hard it was for her to go through it. I can’t even imagine what Maddie must been going through, especially with three young kids. All those emotions that she went through, they were so vivid that I felt as I was going through emotions along with Maddie. I am just glad that her husband Frank was there to help her through it all. I feel that she made it as far as she did, and stayed as strong as she had because Frank was there with her every step of the way, no matter how hard it got.



HEALING MADDIE BREES was not what I expected it to be. There were few parts within novel that felt like they were dragging on for too long, and few things that felt that they were repeating, and I found hard to keep my interest on some of the parts of the book. Mostly it was the long drawn out descriptions of character’s faith. I have nothing against religion, to me it just felt like the description was bit too long. It was a bit hard to get through. On other hand I loved the story, the flashbacks between Maddie and Vincent, I could see how different their relationship was than Frank and Maddie. I actually found myself feeling a bit sorry for Vincent, I felt like people was asking too much of him when they assumed he could heal. Especially Justine. There was only so much one person can do. There is a chance that he couldn’t help, but was just luck. Yet it like people assumed him to be able to heal others, no matter what it was. I can’t even imagine how he must felt like at that moment.



I loved the cover, and the description and that was one of the things that had captured my attention to begin with. Just go back and look at the cover, isn’t it beautiful and haunting? As a reader you can’t help but let curiosity get the best of you when you look at the cover. I feel like it tells a story of it’s own. If you love books about religion, that dealt with both family and hope, HEALING MADDIE BREES is a book that you will enjoy. A book that worth giving a try.

Through The Lens (Through The Lens, #1)

☆☆☆☆☆

through the lens .

Through The Lens,#1

shannon dermott.

Publisher  Shannon Dermott.

Publication Date: August 25,2016

Genre: YA Contemporary Romance | Suspense. 

Format|Pages:  EBook|304.

 Source:  Received  E Copy from Netgalley.

Being a twin isn’t all that bad, nor is it all that good. Being the fat twin makes things a little worse. Seventeen year old, Jessa Shelby has been all but ignored. Trimmed down, but not skinny like her sister, she has decided to make her mark in her final year in high school.



Things begin anew the summer before her senior year when she meets Ethan Hart, a super hot boy with a twisted past. Unfortunately, he has a girlfriend. Relegated to friend status with Ethan, she turns her eyes on football jock, Josh Macon, whose crush worthy too. No longer the ‘fat girl’, Josh seems to be interested in her too.



Spending more and more time with Ethan causes unexpected complications and she finds herself falling for the wrong boy. Josh is sweet but wants more than she can give. His warning about Ethan’s past may have come too late. And gasping for air with a noose around her neck, she has to wonder if trust came at a very high price.

Received a Copy From Netgalley, in exchange of review.

 ☂

Have you ever came across a book one that gave you feeling? One that you knew you were going to fall in love with? The feeling that got up when I came across THROUGH THE LENS . I’m not sure what it was about the book and from moment I read the summary of the book I got a good feeling about it. Title of the book, THROUGH THE LENS is what caught my attention first, followed by cover and summary. I feel, as a reader you cannot help but be captured by the title, and wonder if there is meaning behind the title and how it fits with the story. I was. Plus the summary had both suspense, thriller and mystery added to the mix. I know that I wondered if Ethan was as dangerous as others warned Jessa about? If she truly has anything to fear about? As for me, I wasn’t sure how I should feel about Ethan, I got both good and bad vibes about him. I felt like there could be possibility that he could be violent just by the way he acted with Jessa at times, but at times he came to her rescue. There were times that I was confused about him, about his actions like Jessa was. Ethan was a complicated person, at least to me.



Jessa I loved from beginning of the novel. Thought I was never overweight like she had been, I felt as I could relate how she was feeling, to how others treated her because she was different. I feel like in a way I am aware how that feels like. I saw how much she changed from start of the book to the end. I loved that she kept on going, not giving up once despite the challenges that she was facing, one of the things that I loved about her. No matter what others might thought about her or of her, she kept on going. Not just that but I loved how she way trying to stay loyal to Allie by trying to stay away from Ethan. It was clear that their friendship meant a lot to her, despite the fact that Allie was Ethan’s girlfriend. I loved the friendship that the two of them had. Plus, Allie is one character that you felt that you should dislike but you couldn’t because of how nice she was. It’s horrible what she had to go through. I have feeling that it probably changed her.



You can’t help but wonder about mystery disappearance of the girls. Especially when it all seemed to follow a pattern, they seemed to be connected to Ethan in some way. That pattern started to look suspicious to me. I started to wonder if there was a possibility that Ethan could had something do with it. I started wonder if maybe he was as dangerous as everyone said he was. Expect I knew how much he loved, cared for Jessa, I could tell that she meant everything to him, so why would he got after her? What came afterwards wasn’t what I had suspected and not the person I suspected. That discovery came as shock to me like it had to everyone else. I was on edge of my seat. However I was glad that the person responsible was finally caught. A twist that you won’t see coming.



Haunting. Mysterious. Beautiful

Firebolt(The Dragonian,#1)

☆☆☆☆☆

Firebolt .

The Dragonian,#1

Adrienne woods.

Publisher  Fire Quill Publishing.

Publication Date: September 14,2014

Genre: YA Fantasy|Adventure.

Format|Pages:  EBook|320

 Source:  Received  E Copy from Netgalley.

Dragons. Right. Teenage girls don’t believe in fairy tales, and sixteen-year old Elena Watkins was no different.



Until the night a fairy tale killed her father.



Now Elena’s in a new world, and a new school. The cutest guy around may be an evil dragon, a Prince wants Elena’s heart, and a long dead sorcerer may be waking up to kill her. Oh. And the only way Elena’s going to graduate is on the back of a dragon of her own.



Teenage girls don’t believe in fairy tales. Now it’s time for Elena to believe – in herself

- Received Electronic Copy through Netgalley, in exchange of honest review - 

 ☂

I was sucked into this story within first few words. It was filled with a lot of action, and suspense. I couldn’t get enough of this novel, what a great new series about dragons. I have gotten into books about dragons couple years earlier, and after coming across FIREBOLT while on Netgalley I have fallen in love with them even more. Despite fact that I read few novels about dragons, each of them were unique in their own, especially this one. FIREBOLT was unlike any of the others that I came across before. Who would have thought that dragons had to be claimed, and fact that there is different type of dragons? It wasn’t something that entered my mind, up till I read this book. I know that it’s fictional novel but feels like I learned so much more about dragons that I was aware of before reading this book. To me it was like a complete new experience and everything that happened in the book, was breathtaking.



Elena, you couldn’t help but love her and feel sorry for her. That girl went through so much. Discovering that her father was a dragon, and that all those times it what he been protecting her from them. I felt like she didn’t have time to grief her father’s death the way that she should been able to because she had to start new school pretty fast, and having to deal with new school, new classmates. Top of that I could tell that she was struggling with her classes as well. Of course those classes were not like any regular classes. Not only that but fact that in order to graduate, she had ride on back of a dragon. That’s a lot to handle for one person. I can’t even imagine how she managed to do all that. I loved fact that she didn’t give up even as things got tough. She kept on going. Especially once she decided go after that sword, that was the biggest risk that she took. I was afraid that she would get herself killed. That took a lot of courage. I could tell how much she changed from the beginning of the book to the end.



I cannot wait till the next installment in the novel. I’m still finding myself thinking about the story, the characters even though few days had passed since I had finished the book. FIREBOLT is a story about family, love, discovery, courage and hope. Part of me felt like I was reading harry potter, expect with dragons in the mix. A magical adventure that you will be glad you picked up. A story, an author who will transport you into this fabulous adventure. Be ready for an adventure of lifetime.