S-T-R-E-T-C-H-E-D Stories

National Virtual Library - Idea

National Virtual Library - Idea

Just a thought I was having.

Five Ways to Fall Out of Love

 

Five Ways to Fall Out of Love

by Emily Martin

Aubrey Chase is a pessimist who thinks of herself as a realist. Based on her parents' dying marriage, Aubrey believes that there's not much point to love since all she sees is breakups and fighting.

Across the street lives Webster. Just when Aubrey was ready to give love a try, Webster stands her up for Homecoming and then embarrasses her in front of the school. Over a year later and they still wage a daily battle to tick the other one off. 

But there's still a little something there. 

There's also Webster's cousin who might be able to show Aubrey that love can be more than the end of the relationship; it can be the beginning, too.

Now there's a triangle and Aubrey is more confused about relationships than ever.

Final Thoughts: I was not a fan of this one. The characters were pretty flat and the story just didn't flow well. I finished the book but not with the satisfaction of reading a good story. 

Rating: 2/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Of Curses and Kisses

 Of Curses and Kisses

by Sandhya Menon

Jaya Rao has been raised to put family reputation above all things. When her family name is put in jeopardy, she moves with her sister to a boarding school in Colorado to help the rumors die down and keep her sister's reputation safe.

Grey Emerson has been raised to believe in a curse put on his family generations before. He has been taught that he will be the last of his name and his father has pretty much abandoned him to that boarding school in Colorado since he was able to start school.

Now the two of them will meet. Jaya will need to decide if reputation is everything, while Grey will need to decide if he will be ruled by the curse or by his heart.

Final thoughts: Ok book. Not a super attention-grabber, but it's solid in the writing and the main characters are decent. 

Rating: 3/5

Kind of a Big Deal

Kind of a Big Deal

by Shannon Hale

 

Josie Pie peaked in high school but she just can't admit that. In high school, she was kind of a big deal, being popular, dating the popular guy, and getting all the juiciest roles in the drama productions. People recognized her and called her name in the hallways and around her tiny town. She was going to be BIG!

 

When her drama mentor convinces her to try out for a Broadway production in New York, she eagerly drops out of high school and heads to NY to make it big.

 

And she flops. 

 

Big time.

 

She barely gets by with a cruddy apartment, acting workshops, and a credit card that her mom got her, which she maxes out fast.

 

Josie Pie desperately takes a job to be a nanny and moves out to Montana with the single mom and daughter to try and get her life together and find a way to be the big deal she was always meant to be.

 

After visiting a strangely vibing bookstore, Josie sits down at the park to read and take her mind off her failures when she's suddenly IN the book with bandits, treetop hideouts, corsets, and more.

 

Once out, Josie wants back in. In the book, she was kind of a big deal again. That feeling is too good and Josie needs to feel it as much as possible.

 

So while her real world, friendships, and love life crumble around her, Josie dives into book after book, hoping to be the big deal she was always supposed to be.

 

Final thoughts: Um.No. I pushed my way through this book, mostly because I spent real money on it. Reading the book jacket, I thought this would be a Jasper Fforde Thursday Next type of book and it just turned out to be bad. Shannon Hale is kind of a big deal in YA lit so I don't really know what happened here, but everything was stilted and confused. The ending was completely strange and didn't fit with the reality of the book beyond that. I have no idea what happened here, but it wasn't good.

 

Rating: 2/5

The Quantum Weirdness of the Almost-Kiss

 

The Quantum Weirdness of the Almost-Kiss

by Amy Noelle Parks

Evie and Caleb have known each other pretty much forever. Where Evie goes, Caleb follows. This includes the exclusive Newton Academy, a boarding school for math and science geniuses. 

Evie knows her physics inside-out and understands much of her own personal knowledge and lack, but she doesn't understand relationships yet. Even at 17, and nearing graduation, Evie has never kissed a boy and has always firmly rejected the idea.

So far, Caleb has been OK with all of that. He loves Evie and all of her quirks. He knows her better than anyone. He has always suspected that it would just take time, but that when Evie figured out how good kissing could be, it would be with him.

But things suddenly shift when Evie gets her first boyfriend, and her first kiss, and it's not Caleb.

Now Caleb must do what he can to support his best friend, but also try and shift her attention back to him without being the villain of the story.

Final thoughts: This is a modern retelling of The Shop Around the Corner (aka You've Got Mail), with teens, math, physics, and a slightly psychotic mother. Cute cotton candy fluff. 

Rating: 3/5

ARC thanks to NetGalley

Midnight Sun

 

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Midnight Sun

by Stephenie Meyer

Too much to say so I said it in my podcast. 

The Princess Trials

The Princess Trials

by Cordelia K. Castel

Zea-Mays Calico has lived her life as a Harvester and dreamed of a day with the Red Runners will finally take over Phangloria and make all things equal across the land. For years, she has watched the Nobles and the other higher Echelons reap the rewards of the work of the lower groups and she wants to share all the wealth equally.

When Zea finally steps up and takes action against a Guardian who threatens another Harvester, the head of the local Red Runner league really notices Zea and recruits her for a new mission.

Join the Princess Trials, get close to the Prince, explore the castle, and find all the hidden passageways so that the Red Runners can attack and take over the kingdom.

But things don't go as planned and everything turns topsy-turvy as Zea makes her way to the Oasis and then has to survive something much more dangerous than the Guardians... The other girls in the competition.

Final thoughts: This has moments of decent scattered among a LOT of copying from The Hunger Games and The Selection. It's hard to read this with any sense of joy once you see all of the parallels and almost point for point plot theft at some points. I wanted to like it more but I just can see past the duplicate story lines.

Rating: 3/5 (barely)

Podcast of my rant here: https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/shayanasls/episodes/2020-05-27T15_20_56-07_00

Not Your #LoveStory

Not Your #LoveStory

by Sonia Hartl

It was just supposed to be a special day for her mom. Macy Mae had saved and saved to be able to take her mom to a live Royals game. It was just supposed to be a great day.

And it seemed great at the time.

Even after accidentally spilling a drink on her seatmate, his subsequent t-shirt removal, and a few sparks, the day went pretty well.

Unfortunately, Macy Mae had no idea that her special day with her mom was going to be completely blown out of proportion when the woman sitting behind them decided to use this "meet-cute" between Macy and that boy into a way of earning instant Internet fame.

Within hours of getting home, Macy Mae has been all over the Internet and the news, and speculation is running wild about her and her #baseballbabe. Soon, her YouTube channel is blowing up and getting trolled. Her identity is doxxed and leaked out to the world. And Macy Mae gets everything she always thought she ever wanted, but never knew how to achieve.

But there's a cost.

Local boy Paxton finally seems to be ready to step up and talk to Macy Mae about more than just movies, but now she's Internet famous and her fame is dependent on dating #baseballbabe.

Final thoughts: This is a fictionalized version of the July 2018 #PlaneBae incident that took over the Internet for a few days. While the meet-cute incident is different, the players are much the same with a woman behind posting to improve her Internet presence and the boy playing it up for his own fame. Neither seems to care about the girl in this instance or how this all affects her life. This is a realistic and somewhat scary tale of what the Internet does far too well... make assumptions and run with them. This is not so much a YA novel as it is a NA (New Adult) novel, as Macy and all of the characters are post high school.

Rating: 3/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Pixieland Diaries

Pixieland Diaries

by Christina Bauer

Calla is a faeling. This means that she has human parents who abandoned her because she was born with magic. She was born with magic because her parents lived just a little too close to the realm of Pixieland.

So, being "just" a faeling means that Calla has been fostered by the fae, raised by the fae, taught by the fae, but she doesn't have the evil intentions her parents hold dear and all she really wants to do is play pranks on others.

Well... that and stare at Darius "Dare" the Winter Court's heir apparent.

Unfortunately, being 16 and looking 9 mean that he doesn't ever stare back at Calla.

And it also means that people don't believe that she's anything more than a pest.

She'll show them...

Final thoughts: Nope. Not for me. Calla is an unlikable character who behaves like she's on a triple espresso dosed with speed and a ton of sugar. It seems like the writer may have been too since there are sooo many errors in this thing. Even for an ARC, this is riddled with things like the names changing between sentences, spelling mix-ups (i.e. not to drag instead of not to brag) and, in the middle of a sentence there was an apostrophe-s just sitting there. No reason at all. Just  's.  WHY???? The plot is random with things popping out of nowhere. The characters are bare. Why is she writing in her diary the entire time? Stuck in a void and unable to do anything at all? Write in her diary. HOW? About to go into battle! Stop everything so she can write in her diary!!!

And, the thing I hate most SPOILER ALERT!!!! When she finds out she's not a tiny pixie, but a full elf with the bod to match (the glamour she didn't even know she had being stripped away), suddenly Dare is more than a little interested. Tiny, flat pixie... ignore. Boobs and curves? Go for it!!!  Same person but changed appearance and suddenly he takes an interest. Ummm. No.

Rating: 2/5 (and that's pushing it)

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Kissing Lessons

Kissing Lessons

by Sophie Jordan

Hayden is the most notorious girl in school, even when she really hasn't done anything to deserve that distinction. Her home life is crap and her looks are too good, so she has to face each day as if she's taking on the entire world. Boys claim that they've known her. Girls slut shame her. And Hayden just tries to get through to graduation so that she can leave town and never see her mother or their tiny town again.

Unfortunately, leaving town means getting money and with Hayden basically having to pay for everything on her own, saving is hard. When Emmaline approaches her with cash in exchange for lessons on how to be so confident with guys, Hayden can't afford to say no... even when Emmaline's older brother and hot jock, Nolan, tries to push her away.

Hayden gets in deeper than she ever thought when she starts to fall for Nolan and the possibility that maybe not everyone in the world is out for themselves.

Final thoughts: I liked parts of this book and Hayden started out strong, but like Sandy at the end of Grease, she changes herself in strange ways that don't fit in with how her character behaved throughout the rest of the book. Things feel unfinished and rushed by the end. There are so many areas that were never discussed and others that were just obviously placed for the moment of the plot and then forgotten. I didn't feel the ending was organic to the rest of the story and I definitely didn't feel like things were resolved well.

Rating: 2/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Today Tonight Tomorrow

Today Tonight Tomorrow
by Rachel Lynn Solomon

On her last day of her last year of high school. Rowan Roth reflects back on what she thought high school would be and what it ended up being. The only thing that hasn't changed is her need to beat Neil McNair at anything and everything, including Valedictorian and the Howl senior game.

When she and Neil are forced to work together, she remembers every time he bested her in school from their first essay contest to their election to the Student Council.

But THIS... this she will win no matter what.

And then she will head off to college to learn how to be the best writer possible and fulfill her dreams of being a romance author and give power and advice to all those girls who were just like her in high school.

What she doesn't realize is that being exactly who she really is is tougher than she ever thought possible. And that maybe Neil isn't who she thought he was, either.

Final thoughts: Cotton candy fluff with a predictable ending, but still a nice little ride. There were some formatting issues with the Kindle ARC, but nothing that couldn't be adjusted to pretty easily. It was also a nice little tour of Seattle and the overall story and relationships throughout felt real.

Rating: 3/5

Thanks to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, and Simon Pulse for the ARC

Smoke Bitten

Smoke Bitten

by Patricia Briggs

Mercy has survived miniature zombie goats, vampire attacks, the fae, angry werewolves, a rapist, and her own bad luck. Now she needs to survive an unknown fae who has escaped Underhill, a rogue group of werewolves, the tension in her own marriage, and killer bunnies. (Monty Python would be so proud.)

For some reason, Adam, her husband and werewolf mate, has shut down their mating bond, while also spending late nights at work and sleeping in the guest room, effectively cutting Mercy out of his life. Mercy is trying to be patient and wait him out, but some people need a little offense instead of waiting in defense.

Tilly, the physical manifestation of Underhill, has dropped a door to her land in the Hauptman backyard in order to be closer to their semi-adopted son and former Underhill resident. Upon entering this world, she lets out an unknown fae who can take over the minds of its victims and make them do evil things to the people around them. 

There is a group of werewolves who have decided that now is the perfect time to try and take over their pack.

There's Wulfe, who has become radically changed after the events of the last book and who is now even more scary and unstable than ever before.

And there are killer bunnies...

With all the juggling that Mercy must do now, she should probably join a circus. 

Final thoughts: I love new Mercy books and this is no exception. She is such a strong character who knows her own mind and heart. She also seems to be the focus of a lot of bad juju, compliments of her father, Coyote. I hope that she gets a few days off of the crazy someday, although that will probably mean that I won't have anything to read and that would be sad. As with all of her books, Briggs has a complicated and convoluted story that makes sense at the end and makes better sense after a reread or two. I LOVE the return of some characters that we haven't seen for a while. I can't wait for the next book.

Rating: 4.5/5

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Elsker

Elsker

S.T. Bende

When Kristia decides to take a leap of change and take a year of university courses in Cardiff, Wales, she never thought she'd end up on a course to save all life everywhere.

It helps that there's a literal Norse God there to help her out.

Final thoughts: Ugh! This is almost a literal plot point by plot point retelling of Twilight with Norse gods instead of vampires. Why?? It's dull, repetitive, plodding, and the "insta-love" has no chemistry whatsoever. 

Rating: 2/5

Join or Die

Join or Die

by J. Adrian Ruth

Alex Ayers is a regular kid with a bit of a temper, a best friend, a single mom, and a pretty good life in Las Vegas. That all changes when his absent father's best friend shows up and tells him he has to leave to attend an exclusive magic school before he Changes into some sort of mythological/magical creature.

At 14, he doesn't have any choice, so he's sent off to Fios Academy to learn about his past, his present, and his possible future as the next Scion who, with his ciorcal of friends, keeps the Creature community in line.

He's got competition for the Scion job, though, and also a few Creatures who aren't happy with any Scion being in charge. 

Alex has to learn about his own half-Creature self and history before things get out of control.

Final thoughts: I enjoyed the book while reading it, but I can't help comparing it to Harry Potter. He's about the same age. He si half-human (Muggle) and half-Creature (Wizard). He's a Chosen One. There are forces against him from the start from competition in the school to dangers from without. There's a barrier to protect the school from outside harm. There's a mysterious headmaster. He's forming a circle of friends who all specialize in different things that he'll need as time passes. The list goes on and on. But, again, I enjoyed the read. If I see the sequel pop up, I'll probably read it, too. And it does look to be at least a few books if it goes year-by-year at the school.

Rating: 4/5

Thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the ARC.

Of Silver and Shadow

Of Silver and Shadow

by Jennifer Gruenke

In a world of magic, the magicians have been all but wiped out. 

Generations before, the king purged all the silver wielders from the land except for his own family. Since then, the only magic in Erdis has been hoarded by the the royal family and used to keep the rest of the land and the surrounding countries in line.

But things are changing.

A new silver wielder has grown and she may be what the rebellion needs to finally take the country back and keep the king from destroying everything.

Final thoughts: I wanted to like this much more. The characters had a lot of depth and it was fun to read from four different character points of view. However, that multi-view did get a little confused from time to time and story had to backtrack more than once to cover the viewpoints. I also struggled with some of plot as ideas seemed to be thrown in after the fact to cover for plot holes. Why does she have this power when no one in her family did? Let's use this idea to over that hole. How are you going to convince the people to overthrow the king? Here's something to cover that hole (and we've been planning it for years so just go with it). And there were other issues here and there that bugged me like the repeating over and over at how skilled someone was at something. She's good with a bow and arrow. We get it!

I'm not sure if there's a sequel since the ending could be considered final by some. It is nice to see a fantasy novel that doesn't necessarily automatically have to be a trilogy.

Rating: 3/5 

Thanks to NetGalley and North Star Editions for the ARC.

Spontaneous

Spontaneous

by Aaron Starmer

For some people, Pre-Calculus is difficult enough to make a person feel like her mind will explode, but no one expected that to literally happen... Until 3rd period pre-calc when Katelyn Ogden goes BOOM!

Literally.

Blood everywhere. 

One-time fluke, though. Nothing to worry about.

Until Brian Chen explodes in the middle of a group therapy session for the pre-calc survivors.

Suddenly all bets are off and seniors start exploding pretty regularly.

The government has no idea what's happening. The doctors are confused. The parents are panicking. And no senior is safe.

But Mara and her fellow seniors can't just sit there. They have to do something. They can't just wait for the day to come and they go BOOM. They need to live what little life they have left.

And they do.

Even if it kills them.

Final thoughts: I am not sure what the author was going for beyond a live each day to the fullest message. Otherwise, this book is just weird. I also don't think this author should be writing a teen girl point of view because he doesn't really know what he's doing. Maybe he should have gone with Dylan instead. The ending is a little ambiguous and leaves room for a sequel, but doesn't really feel like there will be one. Overall, meh.

Rating: 3/5