The Last Forever by Deb Caletti

Pages: 320

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Release Date: April 1, 2014

Endings and beginnings sit so close to each other that it’s sometimes impossible to tell which is which.Nothing lasts forever, and no one gets that more than Tessa. After her mother died, it’s all she can do to keep her friends, her boyfriend, her happiness from slipping away. And then there’s her dad. He’s stuck in his own daze, and it’s so hard to feel like a family when their house no longer seems like a home.Her father’s solution? An impromptu road trip that lands them in a small coastal town at Tessa’s grandmother’s. Despite all the warmth and beauty there, Tessa can’t help but feel even more lost.Enter Henry Lark. He understands the relationships that matter. And more importantly, he understands her. A secret stands between them, but Tessa’s willing to do anything to bring them together—because Henry may just be her one chance at forever.

This was my first Caletti book and I'd been hearing wonders about her writing, so I was eager to start! The gorgeous cover helped too, and going into it, I was in love with the gorgeous writing and how quick the beginning was. I'll admit, it was a bit too fast, but I still enjoyed it.

But once she met Henry, things just went down from there.

At first I thought it would just be a rushed romance--and I've dealt with that so many times, I didn't think it would bother me that much. But it did. She felt a connection with him, was obsessed with him, tried to, basically, stalk him, after their first "fated" meeting. And she straddled him and forced a kiss on him at...I think their third meeting. When he didn't really show that much interest (or at least, not as much as I'd expect for a kiss on the third meeting.) And sometimes the things they said were so utterly cheesy and cliche.

But that really wasn't the bad point for me. While I got that it made it more realistic, I hated how Tessa acted so desperately to make friends with these three people, trying to force her way into the group. And when they didn't let her in, she just settled on insulting them behind their backs to their friend and her obsession, Henry and her grandmother.
Basically when things didn't go her way, she judged them on that one reason. She acted spoiled and I thought her to be assumptive and just a little bit deluded, thinking she knew someone after only a few meetings. And every time she would act self conscious or insecure, the writing made it feel more like she was just fishing for compliments instead.

 I was so very close to DNFing this, but I continued on for the plant. The mystery of what the plant was and the history behind it. But we learn what it is a little over half way into the story and after that...I didn't have much motivation to read it.

So I sort of skimmed the rest. (Before you all yell at me, I did read 75% of it and only skipped a bit to 80% then read from there.) The giant twist did surprise me, though! I was shocked, and while the way Tessa reacted was normal, I felt a little irritated by how drastic her reaction was. Then again, I've never felt that kind of betrayal.

I'll admit, I was sort of in a book slump (or, at least, it was the second book I'd almost DNF'd that week.) but unless you've read and loved several of Caletti's works, I can't really say I'd recommend it, though I do think you should give it a try if it sounds like something you'd love!

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Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy

Pages: 336

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Release Date: Mar 18, 2014

What if you’d been living your life as if you were dying—only to find out that you had your whole future ahead of you? 
When sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis is grim. To maximize the time she does have, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs—however she sees fit. She convinces her friend Harvey, whom she knows has always had feelings for her, to help her with a crazy bucket list that’s as much about revenge (humiliating her ex-boyfriend and getting back at her arch nemesis) as it is about hope (doing something unexpectedly kind for a stranger and reliving some childhood memories). But just when Alice’s scores are settled, she goes into remission.
Now Alice is forced to face the consequences of all that she’s said and done, as well as her true feelings for Harvey. But has she done irreparable damage to the people around her, and to the one person who matters most? 

(Review is marked with the slight snark stamp)

Let me be totally honest here--I was unbelievably excited for Side Effects May Vary. I was ecstatic when I got a review copy. I was practically in love with the synopsis before I ever saw the cover. And then it went ahead and, well, disappointed me.

Side Effects went off with a bang, I'll give it that, but things slowly started to go downhill from there.

The absolute first thing that irritated me was Alice. She was, frankly, a huge bitch and I couldn't see why anyone would like her. Sympathize, yes. But like? That was sort of a stretch for me.
She was a bitch to everyone around her and I'm not surprised she didn't have friends. I mean, I guess you could call her "flawed", but that didn't really excuse her for all the terrible things she did. (Yes, I know Luke was terrible and that Celeste and Mindi were terrible to you, but seriously? Then again they did some pretty extreme stuff too.) I think Harvey and his friends were the only decent teen characters in this book, in all honesty, and his friends didn't even really seem that well written.

Harvey, I'm not sure if I loved or what, though I'm leaning towards love. He was sweet, adorable, caring, and undeniably real. I loved that he actually tried to get past his love for Alice instead of pining after her like some lovesick puppy, but the thing is...he sort of just let her walk all over him and just sort of adored her for it. He would never stay angry at her, and while that was sweet, it just felt so weak of him to do that, but can you argue with a man in (puppy) love?

Another thing I wasn't really happy with, but didn't mind so much, was the way the story was told with alternating "Then" and "Now" chapters. Typically, I'm okay with that. In fact, I love it. But there was not set rhythm to them and we'd have maybe five "Then" chapters and two "Now" chapters or something, along with two POVs.

But, you know, as bad as I think I make it sound, Side Effects May Vary wasn't a completely terrible book, and I actually liked some of it. Alice did have her good and kind moments, though they were rare, but those parts redeemed her, if only a little. The story itself though was amazing and heartwarming and there were so many bits of it that just sort of stuck with  me--I just couldn't really get over Alice herself and the way Harvey just let himself be used.

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The Lure by Lynne Ewing

Pages: 288

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

Release Date: Feb 11, 2014

Fifteen-year-old Blaise Montgomery lives in the gritty outskirts of Washington, DC, where a stray bullet can steal a life on the way to school. Drugs and violence are the only ways to survive, so Blaise and her friends turn to gangs for safety, money, and love. When Blaise is invited to join Core 9, one of the most infamous crews, she jumps at the chance. Though her best guy friends, Rico and Satch, warn her about the danger, she agrees to be beaten for a minute straight as part of the gang's initiation ritual.
Now Blaise is finally part of a crew. A family.
But things get only more dangerous when she becomes a member of Core 9 and tensions with a rival gang heat up. Trek, the head of Core 9, asks Blaise to be his "lure," the sexy bait he'll use to track down enemy gang members and exact revenge. Rico and Satch tell her it's a death sentence, but Blaise can't resist the money and unparalleled power. As Trek puts Blaise in increasingly dangerous situations, she begins to see that there's more to lose than she ever realized-including Satch, the one person who has the power to get under her skin. With death lurking around every corner, should Blaise continue to follow the only path she's ever known, or cut and run?

I wasn't so sure about The Lure when I first heard of it, especially since the character already felt a bit naive and idiotic when the synopsis says that Rico and Satch warn her about the dangers (also it sort of reminds you of a love triangle right?) I was definitely wary and didn't really plan on reading it, but I got a copy and one thing lead to another...
And well, I'm so glad I took a chance!

Gritty is sort of an understatement for this book, where gang life is pretty much the only life--literally. In YA you'll see mentions of gangs where they're evil, someone caught up in gang life and desperate to get out, but I've never seen a book where a character strives to get in and thinks of it as a safety zone, and that's one of the things about The Lure. I'm probably one of the least qualified to know, but Blaise's situation struck me as heart achingly true and completely possible for anyone.

Blaise and her friends were naive and they were impulsive and they did make shitty decisions. But they were all understandable with their situations and they were portrayed in a desperate light where none of them really had a choice, and I pitied them.

Blaise, specifically though, didn't really seem to care about her friends in the latter part of the book. She did things behind her friends back and never really gave a crap about how her decisions would affect them unless it pushed the story forward.
I also wish that we'd seen more of her friends' situations and their own story lines throughout the story because, honestly, Blaise seemed to get herself into trouble most of the times while her friends had all been manipulated or pretty much forced into their situations.

The romance isn't really focused on throughout the story and I wouldn't necessarily SAY there was a love triangle, but there was definitely something. I'm not too sure I'm happy with the way it ended, but I'm glad it wasn't a love triangle at least!

The Lure is unlike so many books I've read before and while I was a bit out of my comfort zone, I still loved the gritty atmosphere, the desperate characters, and the wrenching story of no way out. I'd definitely recommend it if you're a lover of contemporary! (Gritty or otherwise.)

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Pretty Sly by Elisa Ludwig

Pages: 368

Genre: Suspense/Contemporary

Series: Pretty Crooked #2

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Release Date: March 18, 2014

Willa Fox was told to stay out of trouble. In fact, it was an order from a very serious juvenile court judge.However, that was before Willa found her house ransacked and a mysterious email from her mother telling Willa she had to leave Paradise Valley for a while and not to come looking for her. Willa knows her mom’s in danger and that no one at school will miss her after her recent sticky-fingered stunts with the Glitterati. So with the help of her pal Tre and with her degenerate crush Aidan as her wingman, Willa violates her probation and hits the California highway in search of her mom.But when Willa and Aidan’s journey turns dangerously criminal and they wind up being the focus of a national manhunt, they realize it’s sometimes easier to escape the law than the truth—and that everything Willa thought she knew about her mom, and her life, was wrong.

(I read this as the early early ARC that had the old cover, so I'm unsure whether it was significantly changed or not!)

I loved reading Pretty Crooked last year--it was sweet, it was cute, and it had an undercurrent of sinister happenings that undoubtedly perked my interest. In Pretty Sly, we explore those happenings and we discover that things are a lot more complicated than we thought and a lot more dangerous.

Pretty Sly starts off right where Pretty Crooked ended and things go crazy from there. Suddenly Aidan and Willa are on the run from cops in four states and, surprisingly have a fan club. And that's one of the things I really loved about this! Even though it isn't shown halfway throughout the book, the fact that they had a Facebook page and a Kickstarter and all these crazy things made me LOL so many times! It was another one of the cute elements that managed to sneak itself into the more dangerous plot and that's one of the things about it. Even though Pretty Sly should, by all means, be a thriller, it somehow ended up being as cute and hilarious as the first! And that's not a bad thing at all!
There were so many other things that made me laugh and giggle and I just loved it all. They were just little things like Willa leaving little notes behind and getting a free slice of cake or something and, even though technically they were so absolutely unrealistic, it just made the book so cute I couldn't help but fall in love with it!

Willa went through quite a bit of character development, though I'll admit--she did get on my nerves once in a while. She honestly didn't seem to have a plan and didn't seem to always understand how much the others were risking for her. But she was an amazing character who was hilarious and snarky and pretty much made my day! (We'd totally be BFFs.)

Aidan, oh Aidan. I never will know what runs through that boy's mind--but I'm sure it'd make me swoon and drop dead at his feet. He's sweet and cocky, charming and he knows it. I loved him so much and he's by far my most favorite character. He's a swoony love interest that was so sweet towards Willa and was unbelievably protective. He did make a few stupid decisions sometimes, though, but then again, who doesn't? (Or am I being blindsided by my love for him. Darn, not again.)

The plot was quick paced and I absolutely loved it, being whisked from one place to another quickly and never having a dull moment. It's an intense ride that you can't help but be sucked into and with all the twists, it's a ride you have to pay attention to! I couldn't predict anything and their next step was always surprising. I was anxious throughout the book, so sure that they'd be captured and locked up the next chapter in.

Pretty Sly is a thrilling sequel that absolutely must be read! I'm in love with the fluffy, yet enthralling and suspenseful feeling that Elisa Ludwig manages to capture and can absolutely not wake for book three! I need more Aidan! And Sly Fox. But mostly Aidan.

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Bright Before Sunrise by Tiffany Schmidt

Pages: 304

Genre: Contemporary/Romance

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Walkers Childrens

Release Date: Feb 18, 2014

When Jonah is forced to move from Hamilton to Cross Pointe for the second half of his senior year, "miserable" doesn't even begin to cover it. He feels like the doggy-bag from his mother's first marriage and everything else about her new life—with a new husband, new home and a new baby—is an upgrade. The people at Cross Pointe High School are pretentious and privileged—and worst of all is Brighton Waterford, the embodiment of all things superficial and popular. Jonah’s girlfriend, Carly, is his last tie to what feels real... until she breaks up with him. 
For Brighton, every day is a gauntlet of demands and expectations. Since her father died, she’s relied on one coping method: smile big and pretend to be fine. It may have kept her family together, but she has no clue how to handle how she's really feeling. Today is the anniversary of his death and cracks are beginning to show. The last thing she needs is the new kid telling her how much he dislikes her for no reason she can understand. She's determined to change his mind, and when they're stuck together for the night, she finally gets her chance. 
Jonah hates her at 3p.m., but how will he feel at 3 a.m.? 
One night can change how you see the world. One night can change how you see yourself.

*Caution: Review is slightly blather because.*

After naming SEND ME A SIGN by Tiffany Schmidt one of my favorites of 2012, I was absolutely aching for her next contemporary and when I heard of Bright Before Sunrise, I almost died. After all, writing two people falling in love in a night was hard, never mind the fact that Jonah practically hated Brighton.

Almost 20 pages in, I already started to sympathize with the characters, especially Brighton. I've never seen a character who was so desperate to look fine or a character who was so...perfect. Or as perfect a heroine could get without being too annoying. She honest-to-God felt bad whenever she even slightly ignored someone or didn't please them or make them happy. She wasn't just pretending to be perfect--it was just in her nature, to make everyone feel as happy as she wasn't. But her flaw was that she kept doing what she thought her father wanted to do and Jonah was right--she repressed herself to be the perfect daughter, though I'm still not sure if she realized she was doing that until Jonah mentioned it.

Jonah wasn't exactly my favorite character at first, especially because he seemed so prejudiced towards everyone in Cross Pointe, but I could see how easy it was to mistake their kindness for snobbier tendencies, but still. Of course, as the story goes on, you start to understand him and his prejudices and you start to love him. He doesn't necessarily go through character development, but his eyes are certainly opened when he realizes the people at Cross Pointe aren't all mean or snobbish or as terrible as he thought. And we readers get to see what he's really like as he comes to Brighton's rescue several times, and in more ways than one.

The side characters were also pretty brilliant, and I loved Carly. While, when we first meet her, she seemed like a bitch. Clingy, possessive, and insecure. The typical mean girl. But through her few scenes, we see that she's more than just that stereotype. She seemed like that sweet misunderstood girl in the story, and I feel like I'd love to see things from her point of view.
Amelia seemed like an awesome friend, and protective of Brighton, but beyond that I can't really say. In the 24 hours of this book, she doesn't really show up much past the introduction, but she did seem like a supportive friend that I would love to have!

While the romance was a tad rushed (after all, they fall in love withing the span of about 5 hours) I did love that they didn't just immediately kiss, and that their love story started out pretty rocky with Jonah using her, then realizing how wrong he was about her. And, perhaps my favorite thing about it, they didn't claim they loved each other or anything and their relationship felt pretty open. We didn't have much resolution, and for once I loved that kind of ending. It just worked with the story! 

So yeah, I absolutely adored Bright Before Sunrise and it feels like the perfect summer read (or reread!) It's a book I'd definitely recommend to anyone looking for a cute fluff or a love story where you fall in love with the characters as they fall for each other. 

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Faking Normal by Courtney C. Stevens

Pages: 336

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books 

Release Date: Feb 25, 2014

Alexi Littrell hasn't told anyone what happened to her over the summer by her backyard pool. Instead, she hides in her closet, counts the slats in the air vent, and compulsively scratches the back of her neck, trying to make the outside hurt more than the inside does.When Bodee Lennox—"the Kool-Aid Kid"—moves in with the Littrells after a family tragedy, Alexi discovers an unlikely friend in this quiet, awkward boy who has secrets of his own. As their friendship grows, Alexi gives him the strength to deal with his past, and Bodee helps her summon the courage to find her voice and speak up.

Let me be honest--when I first heard about Faking Normal, I wasn't sure if it was my kind of book. I adore emotional stories--they're definitely my favorite. But there's something about the raw stories (and not my toned down definition of raw--I mean that really heartbreaking, heart aching kind of raw about those issues that always manage to tear away at you.) that sort of wards me off. But I couldn't get the synopsis of Faking Normal out of my head. And I realized I needed to read it. And I tweeted for a contest.

And then I won an ARC. And I read it. And I loved it.

I read this at the perfect time, I think, when I was dying for one of those heart wrenching stories, and I got it. But on a much more higher level than expected.
Faking Normal is, if anything, an honest-to-God raw story, a real story, and one that just makes you love it all. There's something beautiful in the way Stevens writes her novel in a blunt style. There's no flowery writing, no random deep ponderings--it's a straight up story about a girl who's blaming herself and a secret she'd rather keep hidden.

Alexi was such a complex character, and I don't mean that lightly. Her personality was...explored, and she had such a strong voice throughout the story. Or, rather, not a strong voice, but a distinct voice. You could tell that Alexi blamed herself more for what happened than who did it to her. You could see the struggle she went through as she lied to everyone, as she pretended to be the same as she'd always been. And it was just...heartbreaking. Alexi is a character I could relate to though, despite what happened to her. Her wanting to tell someone, to get it out, her wanting to fall in love, to be loved, it was all...so...real.

One of my favorite things about this story, though, was the relationship between Bodee and Alexi. It wasn't romantic, it wasn't attraction, it was so much more than that. It was friendship throughout the book. It was love, but not the romantic kind that happens so often so quickly In fact, throughout almost the entire book, their relationship was pretty platonic. And for a girl who's always said that she needed kissing in her books, I loved it. So, so, so much. It was, I think, because that was what Alexi needed the most. A friend. Not a boyfriend, not a date, just a best friend she could trust and someone who would help her, if not understand her.

Bodee was just as intriguing a character as Alexi. He was layered and he was sweet and he was caring. But he was also protective and he got jealous and he was flawed. And so, in my book, he's one of the best literary guys out there. It's hard, I think, to write a character so imperfectly perfect, and even harder to write a supporting character as such. But Courtney C. Stevens pulled it off and I couldn't be more impressed or more in love with a story.

And then, the thing I loved, possibly the most, about this book: The bad guy...didn't seem like such a bad guy. Bad guys are always the evil ones, the manipulating ones, the one who's so absolutely playing you. But I don't think I've ever really seen a bad guy who wasn't that bad, who was just broken, upset, and alone. A bad guy where their "bad" action was a mistake. And it's just heartbreaking to realize that sometimes the bad guy never meant to be the bad guy.

Faking Normal is a book that'll stick with me for a long time coming and a book I think everyone should read. It's raw and it's heartbreaking and it's something I never thought I would love, but did.  Beautiful and broken and absolutely stunningly real, I don't think I've ever run into a book quite like Faking Normal. It's a read that you won't want to miss, and I mean that with all my heart.

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Click to Subscribe L.M. Augustine

Pages: 214
Series: Standalone
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Indie
Release Date: May 9, 2014

135,789. That’s how many subscribers sixteen-year-old West Ryder has on his web vlog series. But he only has eyes for one of them. As one of the internet’s most prestigious video bloggers, West talks about high school relationships under the name “Sam Green.” As far as he knows, no one from school, not even his best friend, Cat, has seen his videos. But the highlight of the whole thing is Harper Knight, who comments every day at exactly 2:02 in the afternoon. He doesn’t know anything about her aside from the occasional deep philosophical messaging on why pizza tastes so delicious, but as stupid as it sounds, he might be falling for her. So when they finally agree to meet in real life, West’s hope for romance seems more and more in reach. But that all changes as soon as he arrives at their meeting spot and sees Cat walking toward him, wearing the same “I <3 Sam Green” T-shirt Harper promised she'd have on.To his alarm, West realizes he is falling in love with the best friend who has always been a sister to him.

So, after Eileen ranted about this, of course I had to read it. (First of, you must know how I thought that Eileen was just advertising her YouTube thing because she had the words "Click to Subscribe" as her profile pic. What?)

So this was an adorable read that was just so cute! (And sort of highlights how guys can be so stupid when it comes to girls. No offense, guys.) I loved Cat and West's relationship because of how hilarious they were together and how perfect they were! L.M. Augustine did a wonderful job bringing these characters to life and their humor was definitely contagious! They acted so realistically and I loved the awkward moments! Because, honestly, those were sort of hilarious.

Now, I haven't had the best experience with Indie books, but Click to Subscribe was one of the few I really liked! It was a rather short read, but definitely enjoyable! And this book definitely made my eyes wet. Surprisingly, there was a subject that was touched in this book, and it made me want to cry. It was horrible, but I also kind of felt bad for his father. I also hated it when West would push Cat away, just because he was her best friend.

Speaking of, I felt like West was just an idiot when it came to his relationships. Maybe this is because I'm a girl or because I sort of could understand how Cat felt, but I really wanted to slap him sometimes. He kept giving her hope, then pushing her away, giving him hope, then pushing her away. I really wanted to cry for Cat sometimes, but I got why he didn't want to risk it. She was his best friend and if their dating didn't go well...he'd be basically alone. But Cat loved him so much, and I just wanted to shove him and give her a chance. He was in love with Harper--he's already in love with Cat.

Cat was my favorite character. She was fiery and hilarious! She made me laugh and I loved how she was okay to accept not being a couple with the guy she loved per his request. I loved how she said she'd never give up on him, and I loved how sweet she could be! Not to mention she was entirely snarky and I'd love to have her as one of my close friends!

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Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor

Pages: 304

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Harper Teen

Release Date: Feb 18, 2014

Zoe and her best friend, Olivia, have always had big plans for the future, none of which included Olivia getting sick. Still, Zoe is determined to put on a brave face and be positive for her friend.
Even when she isn't sure what to say.
Even when Olivia misses months of school.
Even when Zoe starts falling for Calvin, Olivia's crush.
The one thing that keeps Zoe moving forward is knowing that Olivia will beat this, and everything will go back to the way it was before. It has to. Because the alternative is too terrifying for her to even imagine.

Maybe One Day was honestly one of my most anticipated reads of the year and I expected it to be absolutely heartbreaking, which I can confidently say it was. It was a beautiful story, really.

The most prominent thing about this poignant book was Zoe and Olivia's relationship. The story focuses solely on their friendship and it was absolutely beautiful how much they loved each other, depended on each other, and just...seemed to rely on each other all the time. It's rare to see such a strong relationship between friends in YA books where romance dominates and it's honestly one of the best things about this story. Seriously it made me fall in love with the characters even more, knowing how much they loved each other. Is that strange?

While you didn't see much of it, it's evident that Zoe and Olivia were passionate people, especially about dance and in general.
Zoe irritated me a bit, at first. She seemed selfish, bitchy, and just completely annoying, but she grew into a kinder person, but retaining her personality. Watching her evolve into this new person was heartbreaking, knowing she was changing for her best friend who never asked, but it made me hopeful, for a reason I can't really deduce.
Olivia was a sweet person who was nice to everyone, loved everyone, and was really just one of those people who considered others before her, and it was just...terrible, seeing her get weaker and weaker in the story even as Zoe became stronger and stronger.

There was a bit romance in the story, but it only really appeared in the middle of the book and even then, it only made rare occurrences. I loved Calvin, our love interest though, although I did find their relationship a bit random and the fact that the reason Zoe hated him was immature and pretty idiotic, all in all. But dammit, their relationship was adorable and I just adored it!

Kantor did an amazing job with Maybe One Day, a story of a gorgeous friendship rather than a guilty romance, and I'm so fully in love with it. The characters were beautiful, the story wonderful, and their friendship just absolutely heartbreaking, I can't even. I feel like it's absolutely perfect for fans of The Fault in Our Stars or for everyone who needs a good tearjerker.

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Heartbeat by Elizabeth Scott

Pages: 240

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Harlequin Teen 

Release Date: January 28, 2014

Life. Death. And...Love?
Emma would give anything to talk to her mother one last time. Tell her about her slipping grades, her anger with her stepfather, and the boy with the bad reputation who might be the only one Emma can be herself with.
But Emma can't tell her mother anything. Because her mother is brain-dead and being kept alive by machines for the baby growing inside her.
Meeting bad-boy Caleb Harrison wouldn't have interested Old Emma. But New Emma-the one who exists in a fog of grief, who no longer cares about school, whose only social outlet is her best friend Olivia-New Emma is startled by the connection she and Caleb forge.
Feeling her own heart beat again wakes Emma from the grief that has grayed her existence. Is there hope for life after death-and maybe, for love?

I've been dying for Heartbeat since about June last year. It sounded sweet, it sounded heartbreaking, and I'm always one for a good girl/bad boy romance and contemporary standalone. And I tried to love the book, I really did. But I couldn't get past the hypocrisy and annoying character and thoughtless actions, no matter how much I wanted to love this story.

My main problem with the story was Emma. I just felt like she was so hypocritical when she kept going on and on about how Dan (her stepfather) didn't know what her mom would want while, at the same time, saying how her mother wouldn't have wanted this then going to "Well she can't do/say anything now. She's dead." It just made me want to slap her because how could she not realize how much pain Dan was going through? What made me want to slap her even more was that she hurt Dan as much as she could. Of course she couldn't just ignore him right? She had to give him even more grief about keeping his own son alive. 

I didn't really get her side. I did sort of understand how painful it must've been, but I just didn't understand why the hell she would think her mom would want the baby she sacrificed herself for to die? How could she think her mother would want the child to die and how could she think it was selfish of Dan to want to keep his son, her brother, alive. It made me so angry that she wanted the baby to die (at a certain point) and then suddenly contradict herself. Or at least, that's how it seemed to me.
There were times Emma seemed like an okay character, but that wasn't very often and she really just annoyed me.

The romance was...interesting. So I wasn't quite the biggest fan of it because I felt like it was really rushed--but I do think that for such a short story that it was pretty well paced, though I still wasn't wholly satisfied by it.

Despite all my misgivings though, Heartbeat seems to be a pretty well loved novel and the feel of the novel is actually pretty New Adult, so if you're a fan of NA, I definitely think this could be one of your next favorites!

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Secret for a Song by S.K. Falls

Pages: 206

Genre: Contemporary/Psychological

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Createspace

Release Date: May 31, 2013
UPDATE: The book has been bought by a literary agent so it's no longer available. When it re releases though you guys need to get it and read it!

Saylor Grayson makes herself sick. Literally.She ate her first needle when she was seven. Now, at nineteen, she’s been kicked out of college for poisoning herself with laxatives. The shrinks call it Munchausen Syndrome. All Saylor knows is that when she’s ill, her normally distant mother pays attention and the doctors and nurses make her feel special.Then she meets Drew Dean, the leader of a local support group for those with terminal diseases. When he mistakes her for a new member, Saylor knows she should correct him. But she can’t bring herself to, not after she’s welcomed into a new circle of friends. Friends who, like Drew, all have illnesses ready to claim their independence or their lives. For the first time, Saylor finds out what it feels like to be in love, to have friends who genuinely care about her. But secrets have a way of revealing themselves. What will happen when Saylor’s is out?

After seeing this floating around the blogosphere for a while, I caved and asked the author for a review copy. And was it a good idea? Yes.

At first I was a bit wary because I've heard of this type of psychological syndrome before and I've never understood it. I got that people wanted attention sometimes, especially from absent parents, but I could never fathom how people could hurt themselves, make themselves sick, when others who were naturally sick were trying desperately to live their normal life or become better.
So it wasn't really a surprise that I hated Saylor at first. She didn't seem to understand the people around her, and her hurting herself--for attention, no less--irritated me to no ends. She had a sick fascination and all she wanted was attention, bad or not. She wanted to be noticed, and I loathed that, not to mention that she faked a terminal illness just to feel "special".

Saylor also developed as a character throughout the book, but it was so gradual I almost didn't notice. She starts to learn about the people behind the diseases, and how horrible it is, being sick. She starts realizing that maybe there are things more important than attention--much more important. She grew on me, and I honestly didn't realize it until her world fell apart and my heart just started hurting for her.

Falls clearly did a lot of research on not only Munchausen Syndrome, but all the other diseases mentioned, and it definitely seemed like she knew what she was talking about (but I'm no medical professional!) Not only that, she managed to delve into the mind of a teen with Munchausen and create a realistically portrayed character with it. No matter how annoying she was at first.

All the secondary characters were all amazing and I loved each individually, but we have to focus on Drew. He was absolutely sweet and adorable. And it was deja vu all over again with The Fault In Our Stars. Knowing that the YA love interest you're falling in love with has a disease that'll eventually kill him? It's horrible and bittersweet, especially when you feel like you're invested in their romance. The two just seemed to compliment each others' personalities and how they reacted around each other was just too sweet for words.

At the end of this novel, I actually couldn't read the last two pages because tears were rolling down my face and blurring my vision. I'm not even kidding. Secret for a Song is heartbreaking, but hopeful, and it leaves us with an open ending, giving us just a little bit of hope for our characters. Gorgeously written, beautiful, and lyrical, Secret for a Song is one I have to recommend. And will likely shove in your face should you mention standalones or contemporaries.

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Being Sloane Jacobs by Lauren Morrill

Pages: 352

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Release Date: Jan 7, 2014

Meet Sloane Emily Jacobs: a seriously stressed-out figure-skater from Washington, D.C., who choked during junior nationals and isn’t sure she’s ready for a comeback. What she does know is that she’d give anything to escape the mass of misery that is her life.Now meet Sloane Devon Jacobs, a spunky ice hockey player from Philly who’s been suspended from her team for too many aggressive hip checks. Her punishment? Hockey camp, now, when she’s playing the worst she’s ever played. If she messes up? Her life will be over.When the two Sloanes meet by chance in Montreal and decide to trade places for the summer, each girl thinks she’s the lucky one: no strangers to judge or laugh at Sloane Emily, no scouts expecting Sloane Devon to be a hero. But it didn’t occur to Sloane E. that while avoiding sequins and axels she might meet a hockey hottie—and Sloane D. never expected to run into a familiar (and very good-looking) face from home. It’s not long before the Sloanes discover that convincing people you’re someone else might be more difficult than being yourself.

Being Sloane Jacobs was definitely high on my TBR, especially since Meant to Be managed to get to my Favorites of 2012. And having the covers match? Score!
The premise definitely excited me--a YA version of the Parent Trap? Please! And I have always been one for these contemporaries that have a dramatic flair.

Being Sloane Jacobs didn't disappoint! At first, I felt a bit iffy about it--what are the chances of meeting someone with the exact same name and looks similar to you, has family problems, and ice skates too? But that's the thing about books like this--you can't help but fall in love with them, even with all their improbabilities.

To be honest, I wasn't exactly the biggest fans of these two girls. Sloane Devon seemed to judge to quickly, one of those "Shoot now, ask questions later" kind of people and Sloane Emily seemed a bit cliche in her rich-girl-with-problems situation. And yet, there's something about them that grows on you and makes you love them throughout the story. We get to see them develop as a character, seeing them out of their comfort zone, but still making the best of it. They were so different, dealing with their own problems, their own secrets, but they were still the same--wanting to forget themselves and live another life.

But, to me, the romance is my favorite part. Being Sloane Jacobs wasn't by any means focused on the romance, but really. Who can resist two swoony guys?
While we didn't really get the full story on them, they were still adorably wonderful. We had Matt, Sloane Emily's love interest, who was a player-turned-sweet kind of guy who was surprisingly romantic and unbelievably adorable.
Nando, Sloane Devon's blast from the past, had that mysterious thing going on and it was clear that he had a thing for our tomboy turned girly! He was just as adorable, really, and how he acted around Sloane? Squeals!
My only complaint was that both romances were a bit underdeveloped and that our love interests were lacking and not entirely written well.

But honestly, we can't forget the writing. Morrill's writing style is brilliant and that's pretty much all I have to say about that! For someone who usually dislikes dual POV, I enjoyed how the author split the scenes and how she would perfectly keep us hanging without making the cutoff seem too abrupt.
And oh, the hilarity! I loved the humor in the book and I honestly LOL'd so many times I'm pretty sure my stomach hurt at the end of the day!

Being Sloane Jacobs was a pretty fantastic read that had me falling in love with the characters--and falling out of my chair! Morrill has a way with words that makes you giggle too many times than any human should be allowed to and makes your heart ache. While there were a few things I didn't exactly like, I definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a light read that'll cheer you right up!

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My Life After Now by Jessica Verdi

Goodreads Blurb

Lucy just had the worst week ever. Seriously, mega bad. And suddenly, it's all too much—she wants out. Out of her house, out of her head, out of her life. She wants to be a whole new Lucy. So she does something the old Lucy would never dream of.
And now her life will never be the same. Now, how will she be able to have a boyfriend? What will she tell her friends? How will she face her family?
Now her life is completely different...every moment is a gift. Because now she might not have many moments left.

I'm a contemporary girl and if there's a book that'll make me cry or laugh, I'm going to read it. So when I heard about My Life After Now...well I was intrigued! The synopsis was a bit vague so I was curious--and when Ashley recommended it, I decided to grab a copy. I just didn't know how much I'd fall in love with the story!

The most prominent thing about My Life After Now is that it focuses on HIV, something that hasn't really been done before. Sure, we learn about HIV in health, but it never really stuck. Reading about a character, who we're attached to, go through it? That's a different matter and it was brilliant how Verdi wrote about it, giving us not only a heartbreaking story, but also giving us a warning and a lesson.
You can tell how well researched this is and her portrayal of how quickly everything can change was heartbreaking. Suddenly Lucy isn't just worrying about her absent-no-longer mom, or her tool of a boyfriend--now she's wondering how long she'll live, how she can possibly lead a normal life, and how people will ever love her again knowing her secret.

Lucy was such a strong and real character who didn't try to let anyone hurt her, though she did have her moments. She's been hurt again and again, but she rarely lets it get to her. And when she gets HIV, she's determined to keep it a secret from her parents, her friends, and everyone around her. While it wasn't the best decision, you have to admire her for trying to live out a normal life, despite everything that's happened.
All the characters, minor or major, were so well written and they all seemed to build Lucy up, even if they'd wanted to tear her down. It's beautiful how well Jessica Verdi was able to reflect the situation in My Life After Now and I can't deny that I shed a few tears throughout the book.

Romance takes a backseat in this story and instead we focus more on the relationships--before and after HIV. The relationships, like pretty much everything else in the book, are beautifully written, and I couldn't help but love most of the people around her.
Unlike most books, the parents play a big role in this book. Her mom ran away after giving birth to Lucy, leaving her with her dad and, later on, Papa, her other dad. And then right when things are already going downhill, her mom shows up, adding more stress than needed. Her dads were wonderful parents who supported, cared, and loved Lucy to no end and I loved their heartfelt dynamic.
Her relationships with her school friends become strained, though they don't know about HIV yet, and I hurt for Lucy. Then there was Evan, the love interest in this story--I absolutely loved him. He was sweet and cute, and loved Lucy. And, of course for other reasons. But you'll just have to read it for yourself!

Real, beautiful, and hopeful, My Life After Now gives us a story filled with dreams, tears, and a despair that makes you think about how quickly your life can turn around and how you'd respond to such terrifying news. It's a story of how one mistake can break you, but how it could build you up too. My Life After Now is a must read emotional rollercoaster that gives you a story you'll never forget.

Pages: 287

Genre: Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release Date: April 2, 2013

Rating: 7/5 stars

Premeditated by Josin L. McQuein

Goodreads Blurb

A week ago, Dinah’s cousin Claire cut her wrists.
Five days ago, Dinah found Claire’s diary and discovered why.
Three days ago, Dinah stopped crying and came up with a plan.
Two days ago, she ditched her piercings and bleached the black dye from her hair.
Yesterday, knee socks and uniform plaid became a predator’s camouflage.
Today, she’ll find the boy who broke Claire.
By tomorrow, he’ll wish he were dead.

Ever since I read the synopsis oh-so long ago, I've been aching to read this. The short and to the point phrasing makes the synopsis absolutely chilling, dark, and unbelievably intriguing, not to mention revenge stories are always amazing! 
I'm a bit torn up around the ending, so it's still a bit hard to write this review. I'm sort of a wreck right now!

The first few pages were absolutely amazing, but I started worrying that I may not love Premeditated as much as I'd hoped. No matter how realidtic it can make a character seem, I've always hated it when characters seemed flat and obsessed with only one goal, forcing the story to go on. 

But that didn't happen--instead I just sort of fell in love with Dinah's character and her heart. Premeditated focuses on the characters more than the plot, and I can't say I didn't love that! Seeing Dinah grow from hell bent on making Brooks pay to sympathizing and reluctantly starting to like him was one of my favorite parts. I always do love some internal conflict. 

Along with character development, the story also focuses on relationships, and not just romance. I'd been rooting from the start for Brooks and Dinah (and by start I mean when I first discovered this) and I was unbelievably excited to see that my ship was happening--though it wasn't mentioned much throughout the book. Their friendship seemed to be more important, Dinah struggling to find the Brooks in Claire's diary in the person in front of her, and Brooks starting to let down his walls. 
More than that, seeing how much Dinah cared for Claire was heartbreaking and heart warming all at once. It's a touching relationship that I couldn't help but love, but made everything so much more painful. 

I honestly can't say much about the plot since it'll pretty much ruin the entire thing, but I will say that the plot twist was fairly predictable, but it made everything so much more suspenseful!

Filled with suspense and a wide range of quirky and lovable characters, Premeditated is one of the books I've been anticipating all year--that managed to not disappoint me, which is actually pretty impressive!  The relationships are gorgeous and the development throughout the story just warms your heart. The suspense in the novel is brilliant and I was just blown away by the entire story.

Pages: 336

Genre: Thriller/Contemporary

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Release Date: Oct 8, 2013
Rating: 4 stars

Racing Savannah by Miranda Kenneally

Goodreads Blurb
They’re from two different worlds.
He lives in the estate house, and she spends most of her time in the stables helping her father train horses. In fact, Savannah has always been much more comfortable around horses than boys. Especially boys like Jack Goodwin—cocky, popular and completely out of her league. She knows the rules: no mixing between the staff and the Goodwin family. But Jack has no such boundaries.
With her dream of becoming a horse jockey, Savannah isn’t exactly one to follow the rules either. She’s not going to let someone tell her a girl isn’t tough enough to race. Sure, it’s dangerous. Then again, so is dating Jack…

Racing Savannah is one of those books that I'm just...not quite sure how I feel about it. I haven't read Catching Jordan or Things I Can't Forget (but I plan to!), but I have read Stealing Parker. And it wasn't my style. So when I started Racing Savannah, I was a bit wary. And, apparently for a good reason.

Honestly, I almost DNF'd (did not finish) it because I just couldn't stand Savannah. Or maybe this just wasn't my type of book. I wasn't the biggest fan of Savannah, honestly. She assumed the most ridiculous things sometimes and she had such a giant prejudice against rich people, although we never really see what fueled it. She was a mostly flat, rather annoying character, and I couldn't really relate to her all that much. Except, perhaps, her passion for what she loved to do. And that was pretty much the only reason I tolerated her throughout the book.

Jack was a pretty cute love interest, but I just wasn't swooning over him as much as I wished. I hated how he kept backing away from Savannah for fear of his father, but what I found interesting was that Mr. Goodwin was actually really nice and seemed to really care about his staff, including Savannah. I just couldn't really see him all that angry if Jack wanted to date Savannah.

The romance did seem pretty rushed though--almost insta-love. Despite Savannah's prejudice, she was almost instantly enamored with Jack and he pretty much crushed on her almost as quickly. Surprising since he was supposed to be leading on a different girl and never had a serious girlfriend. They didn't really understand each other that much, I think.
But it was cute, the stolen moments, the secrecy, the teasing. If Kenneally hadn't rushed it so much, I'm sure I would've loved the romance wholeheartedly!

Since I've only read one other Kenneally book, I'm pretty sure there were a lot of inside jokes I didn't really get. (Hey, I read the teasers of the other books!) We do get to see some old characters and, even though I haven't read the books, it was hilarious to watch them! (And the siblings of two old characters pop up! And oh, one of our couples get married. And another are engaged. Fun, right?)

All in all, I was pretty disappointed, but it wasn't totally bad. Fans of Miranda Kenneally are sure to love it! (And I'll go get started on the other books, yeah?)

Pages: 304

Genre: Contemporary/Romance

Series: Hundred Oaks #4

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Release Date: Dec 3, 2013

Rating: 3 stars

Promise of Amazing by Robin Constantine

Goodreads Blurb

Wren Caswell is average. Ranked in the middle of her class at Sacred Heart, she’s not popular, but not a social misfit. Wren is the quiet, “good” girl who's always done what she's supposed to—only now in her junior year, this passive strategy is backfiring. She wants to change, but doesn’t know how.
Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe’s. Star of the lacrosse team, top of his class, on a fast track to a brilliant future—until he was expelled for being a “term paper pimp.” Now Gray is in a downward spiral and needs to change, but doesn’t know how. 
One fateful night their paths cross when Wren, working at her family’s Arthurian-themed catering hall, performs the Heimlich on Gray as he chokes on a cocktail weenie, saving his life literally and figuratively. What follows is the complicated, awkward, hilarious, and tender tale of two teens shedding their pasts, figuring out who they are—and falling in love.

I'm always a sucker for those kind of good girl/sweet bad boy (and/or broken) romances so when I heard of Promise of Amazing, I was thrilled! Sure it sounded a bit cheesy, but a romantic wants what a romantic wants.

And while the romance was sweet, it just wasn't all there for me. 

The romance was pretty much instalove and while I understand why Grayson would've been captured by Wren (after all it's not every day someone saves your life) it was like he had an obsession with her after that one moment. And then he (and she) couldn't stop thinking about each other. Then he picks her up from school which I found a little bit creepy. I, personally, wouldn't really take a ride from a random guy I saved and knew nothing about. But it seemed Wren didn't really have those kind of reserves.

After all, they did say "I love you" maybe two weeks in (at most). And that was when I got a bit irritated. 

I sort of let it go though, because Wren and Grayson were just so adorable around each other. They just seemed so in love and so cute together that I couldn't help but smile at how goofily they acted around each other. Although throughout the entire thing, I think Grayson only took Wren out on one proper date. 1.5 if we're counting the coffee shop (and Wren hates coffee. HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?) so I do wish we got to see their relationship develop more.

Not to say, of course, that I didn't love the unexpected and (surprisingly) drama filled plot. Grayson has a few secrets up his sleeves--ones I definitely didn't expect. And it was an interesting ride, seeing our two protagonists deal with it, Wren struggling to pry out the truth and Grayson trying so desperately to hide it. 

The only complaint I have towards the plot was that our antagonist seemed to get off easy, despite all the pain he caused. And that's all I can say because, as Whovians (and, well, regular people) would say, SPOILERS!

The Promise of Amazing was a quick, light read that I enjoyed, but found a few problems with. I'd recommend it if you're a bit desperate for a cute fluff that'll cheer you up, but if you're looking for a more...meaningful book, I'd suggest something else! 

So, unfortunately, there's no promise of amazing.

See what I did there?

Pages: 320

Genre: Contemporary/Romance

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Balzer+Bray

Release Date: Dec 31, 2013

Rating: 3 stars