Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Goodreads Blurb

Cath is a Simon Snow fan.
Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan . . .
But for Cath, being a fan is her life — and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.
Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.
Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.
Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.
For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?
Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?
And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?

In all honesty, Fangirl didn't sound like my kind of book. But after reading Eleanor and Park, of course I had to give it a try. I mean, with all the feels I had then...well Fangirl was bound to give those feels too right?

Yes. Yes it was.

Cath was such a real and complicated character. She's, quite possibly, the most relatable character I've read in quite a while. Cath's one of the ultimate fangirls, something we book nerds can definitely relate to. But it's not just that. She, like so many other characters, is trying to find who she is without her sister, her twin. She's trying to figure out her life and watching her grow as a character was so heartwarming. She dealt with familial issues, romantic issues, academic issues, but throughout it all she tried to keep her head up and her shoulders back. She made her mistakes and she tried to fix them without losing herself, something that was way harder than she expected. And she was awkward so many times. She was (as we bloggers so often say) a brilliantly flawed character.

And then. There were our other characters. They were all so well written and so...well I'm going to use that word again. They were so real. And seeing how they helped Cath along their way, how they each showed her different things, it was, well, enlightening. And it was so realistically written and so well done, I couldn't help but fall in love with their story.

Levi was by far my favorite character (I think I love him more than Cass actually!) He was so adorable and so sweet. He made me want to strangle him when he made some...not so smart decisions, but he always redeemed himself in the end. I couldn't help but fall in love with this sweet, unbelievably flawed boy who's lanky and tall and goes out of his way to make everyone, from babies to the elderly, feel special. He's officially made it to my list of Top Ten YA Boyfriends. And my friend, that's something very hard to accomplish.

There's something about the way Rowell writes her stories. They have a simple concept, but the way she writes them makes the story flourish into something that's hilarious and heartbreaking in a way that can only be described as subtly sad. The writing is beautiful and gorgeous and so Rowell.

To sum up the review in one sentence? I fangirled over Fangirl. It's enthralling and it's so raw and it shows how we fanatics are! It's sweet and hilarious, yet heartbreaking at the same time. While it's not a perfect book, the flaws make it as amazing as it's characters and it's a book that you can't stop from falling in love with. It's stunning and endearing and something I absolutely must recommend!

FANGIRL WITH ME.

Pages: 405

Genre: Contemporary/NA

Series: Standalone

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Release Date: Sep 10, 2013

Rating: 5 stars

How to Lead a Life of Crime by Kirsten Miller

Goodreads Blurb

A meth dealer. A prostitute. A serial killer.
Anywhere else, they’d be vermin. At the Mandel Academy, they’re called prodigies. The most exclusive school in New York City has been training young criminals for over a century. Only the most ruthless students are allowed to graduate. The rest disappear.
Flick, a teenage pickpocket, has risen to the top of his class. But then Mandel recruits a fierce new competitor who also happens to be Flick’s old flame. They’ve been told only one of them will make it out of the Mandel Academy. Will they find a way to save each other—or will the school destroy them both?

How to Lead a Life of Crime surprised me. In all honesty, I was anxious to read this, but I definitely didn't expect anything so conniving!
This book was...wow. A bit of romance, a bit of acting, a bit of betrayal, a bit of sacrifice, a bit of lying, a bit of stealing...well, a bit of everything really! Even a little scientific theory that this entire plot is based on.


There's really no good place to start this review. But let's start with the originality of How to Lead a Life of Crime, because I love its idea. The way Miller pulled this idea off was stunning and original with an engaging plot that captivates you from the first theft. There's a lack of original plots in the YA market, so the fact that I haven't read anything like this is definitely a shock in itself!

Because of the unique idea, the plot ultimately had me twisted in knots. I couldn't predict anything, and these characters' actions were so unpredictable and cold. My heart was beating furiously and if a fire was burning down my house, I don't think I'd really notice; I'd be too busy trying to figure everything out! There were so many complexities, and no question was left unanswered. There was a cause and affect for everything that happened and nothing happened for no reason: that's what happens when you deal with socio/psychopaths.

The characters...I can't even describe how manipulative, cruel, and calculating they were. Miller created the perfect criminals and they were terrifying. They made you realize just how deceiving and cruel criminals could be, and how some criminals may just be pretending to be as cold. The characters weren't lovable, but they were amazing and seemed real, albeit a bit intimidating. Flick, our narrator who had a great, compelling voice, was smart and sneaky, but not necessarily cruel—just desperate, in the way that a lot of people are capable of. He brought a lot of dry humor into the story and was a strong believer in sarcasm which made me smirk, despite of whatever situation he was currently in. However, Joi was by far my favorite character. Her abilities were shocking, to say the least. She could see what Flick couldn't and knew what was wrong and what was right and, unlike many other characters, acted on those instincts.

What was beyond different with How to Lead a Life of Crime was that enemies were allies, allies were enemies, and you never knew whether a friend was a real one or one who'd stab you straight in the back. It was a game of cat and mouse, but you never knew who was in what role. And, while fictional (for all we know!), there's something about this book that just makes you realize just how evil the world can be and how the people we look up to, how almost everyone, has a secret they're willing to kill for. 


Pages: 358
Genre: Thriller/Action
Series: Stand alone
Publisher: Razorbill
Release: Feb. 21, 2013
Rating: 5 stars

52 Reasons to Hate my Father by Jessica Brody

Goodreads Blurb

Being America’s favorite heiress is a dirty job, but someone’s gotta do it. 
Lexington Larrabee has never to work a day in her life. After all, she’s the heiress to the multi-billion-dollar Larrabee Media empire. And heiresses are not supposed to work. But then again, they’re not supposed to crash brand new Mercedes convertibles into convenience stores on Sunset Blvd either.
Which is why, on Lexi’s eighteen birthday, her ever-absent, tycoon father decides to take a more proactive approach to her wayward life. Every week for the next year, she will have to take on a different low-wage job if she ever wants to receive her beloved trust fund. But if there’s anything worse than working as a maid, a dishwasher, and a fast-food restaurant employee, it’s dealing with Luke, the arrogant, albeit moderately attractive, college intern her father has assigned to keep tabs on her.
In a hilarious “comedy of heiress” about family, forgiveness, good intentions, and best of all, second chances, Lexi learns that love can be unconditional, money can be immaterial, and, regardless of age, everyone needs a little saving. And although she might have 52 reasons to hate her father, she only needs one reason to love him.

Ok, I'll be cutting this review a bit shorter than normally since I'm in a time crunch! Sorry, guys!
The short pitch: Hilarious and fun, this is definitely one to read if you need a good LOL moment!

Now the only thing that I didn't absolutely LOVE was the romance. While it was endearingly sweet, it wasn't very well developed or believable. The two characters were hating each other, slowly (like, turtle slowly) becoming friends, then BOOM. Love.It just didn't match and I really didn't like it. It was more like it was thrown in for the more...crazier stuff that happens in the second half of the book.

Character development is obviously a giant thing here and I loved that! Lexi was such a...well, let's face it. She was a huge, spoiled bitch in the beginning, but by the end, you have this fun character who jokes around, but knows what's right and that she's not entitled to everything. And it wasn't as sudden as the romance, trust me. You could see her personality change from spoiled to caring. She learns so much throughout the entire book and it was so...I can't say touching, since it wasn't, really. But it was amazing seeing how much she slowly changed. 

So I read this during the summer and let me say, it fit the season perfectly. It was a fun, light read that will make you laugh and make you smile. It will fill you with emotional turmoil, so BEWARE. 52 Reasons was a wonderful read that made me want to read more of Jessica Brody's books! And I have no doubt they'll be just as amazing and sassy as this one! Definitely pick this up if you've liked her other books or if you're tired of all those sci-fi/fantasy/paranormal books!