Category Archives: Young Adult/Teen 12-18

Review: The Secret of the Moon Conch by David Bowles and Guadalupe García McCall

Book Review and Content, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,
The Secret of the Moon Conch by David Bowles and Guadalupe Garcia McCall

The Secret of the Moon Conch
David Bowles and Guadalupe García McCall
Bloomsbury
Published June 6, 2023

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About The Secret of the Moon Conch

Award-winning authors David Bowles and Guadalupe García McCall join forces to craft a sweeping fantasy romance about falling in love despite all odds.

In modern-day Mexico, Sitlali has no family left and has caught the attention of a dangerous gang leader. She has no choice but to make the perilous trip to the US border and track down her long-absent father. The night before her journey, she finds a beautiful conch shell detailed with ancient markings.

In 1521, Calizto is an Aztec young warrior in Tenochtitlan, fighting desperately to save his city from Spanish imperialists. With his family dead and the horrors of war surrounding him, Calizto asks a sacred moon conch for guidance.

Connected by the magical conch, Sitlali and Calizto can communicate across centuries, finding comfort in each other as they fight to survive. With each conversation, they fall deeper in love, but will they be able to find a way to each other?

My Review

I loved the romance in this story and the connection forged between Sitlali and Calizto. Unfortunately, I don’t know much about Mexican history, so a lot of the details about Calizto’s timeline were unfamiliar to me. I knew the broad strokes of colonialism, but it was cool to get to see some (fictionalized) snapshots from history and think about how those moments affected the ordinary people living them.

The story shows firsthand the dangers that Sitlali faces, especially those which prompt her to flee her home in Mexico to the United States, where her only surviving relatives, her father, and godmother, live. It also paints a stark, terrible picture of what life in the US is like for the undocumented: few opportunities, wages below legal limits, and constant fear of discovery and deportation, all without any legal protection. We also encounter scenes of prisoners kept in inhumane conditions in ICE custody.

Pairing sixteenth-century Mexican history from the perspective of indigenous people with the experiences of a young undocumented immigrant to the United States was a powerful choice. I feel like I’m still processing some of my thoughts about it.

Above all, though, THE SECRET OF THE MOON CONCH is a spiritual story. It’s about the connection between two people whose love and humanity transcend time. It’s about their journey of discovering the power they have through the conch shell and through their love for one another and their people. And it’s about how to use that power to help others, even when they know some moments of history are already decided.

All in all, this was a truly unexpected story. I tend to really like faith-positive stories because I believe faith can be a positive, powerful part of our lives. So I enjoyed the ways in which both Sitlali and Calizto’s faith guided them and helped them along their paths. I think readers who enjoyed SKY BREAKER by Addie Thorley will enjoy this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Representation
Both Sitlali and Calizto are Mexican. She lives in 2019, and he lives in 1521.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
A gang member pursues Sitlali, determined to possess her. In one scene, he grabs her and forces a kiss on her. Later, consensual kissing between a boy and a girl. In one scene, he puts his hand under her shirt, and she stops the interaction from going further, fearing they’re moving too fast. She asks for privacy from him when changing or bathing and offers him the same.

In one scene, a married couple undress in front of one another, and the scene ends as we assume they consummate their love.

Spiritual Content
Sitlali and Calizto are connected by a conch shell that belonged to the Moon Goddess. As the phases of the moon progress toward a full moon, their connection to one another increases. They discuss the faith and spirituality of their people and how it has changed over the past 500 years. Sitlali prays to the Virgin of Guadalupe. Calizto prays to the Moon Goddess, whom his mother served.

Sitlali sees and interacts with the ghosts of her grandmother and her mother, as well as other ancestors.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Gang members surround Sitlali, and one tries to force her to agree to marry him. A coyote attacks a young woman. A man shoots another man. A young woman stabs someone and shoots them. Calizto fights in many battles. Several scenes describe combat and gruesome injuries.

Some scenes show inhumane conditions inside an ICE detention center. A mother begs for medical care for her young child. Guards perform an illegal body cavity search on a prisoner kept in isolation.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of THE SECRET OF THE MOON CONCH in exchange for my honest review.


Review: Borrow My Heart by Kasie West

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , ,

Borrow My Heart
Kasie West
Delacorte Press
Published June 13, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Borrow My Heart

When a girl overhears a guy getting verbally destroyed by his friends for being catfished, she jumps in to save the day—and pretends to be his online crush. A young adult romance from the critically acclaimed author of Places We’ve Never Been.

Wren is used to being called a control freak. She doesn’t care; sticking to the list of rules she created for herself helps her navigate life. But when a cute guy named Asher walks through the door of her neighborhood coffee shop, the rulebook goes out the window.

Asher is cute, charming . . . and being catfished by his online crush. So Wren makes an uncharacteristically impulsive decision—she pretends to be the girl he’s waiting for to save him from embarrassment. Suddenly she’s fake-dating a boy she knows nothing about. And it’s . . . amazing.

It’s not long before Asher has her breaking even more of her own rules. But will he forgive her when he finds out she’s not who she says she is? Wren’s not so sure. . . . After all, rules exist for a reason.

My Review

Kasie West books are kind of a go-to when I need a sweet, fluffy romance. Usually, the characters’ families are involved in the story– especially their siblings. The romance tends to be sweet (as opposed to spicy), and the stories lots of times grapple with fear, vulnerability, and navigating changing relationships. I love all of that and BORROW MY HEART hit all the notes of those things that I was looking for.

I enjoyed the relationship between Wren and Kamala. Everyone needs that no-nonsense friend in their lives who tells them the things they need to hear, even if sometimes they’re not ready to hear them. Someone who sees who you are and decides that person, warts and all, is a person whose friendship they cherish. So I loved that about those two girls and their friendship.

I also thought the scenes where Wren works at the animal shelter were sweet. While I’m not a dog person, I thought it was really cool that she loved the dog, Bean, so much and worked so hard to try to find the right home for him. I liked that he wasn’t just a misunderstood sweetheart, either, but that he was pretty spunky.

The dynamic between Wren and Asher was sweet, too. I liked the way that he didn’t pressure her to do things she wasn’t comfortable with, and anytime she communicated her discomfort, he was quick to make space for her feelings and support her in what she needed. But he also made space to let her process things and come to him when she was ready rather than pressing her to admit things she wasn’t ready to talk about yet.

All in all, I think fans of Kasie West’s other books will love the fun, fluffy romance of BORROW MY HEART. It’s a great summer read to take to the beach or read poolside.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Wren is white and lactose intolerant. Her best friend Kamala is Indian American.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
Wren’s older sister (who is twenty) drinks beer at a party. Wren confronts her about drinking underage and ultimately leaves the party.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of BORROW MY HEART in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Always Isn’t Forever by J. C. Cervantes

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , , , ,

Always Isn’t Forever
J. C. Cervantes
Razorbill
Published June 6, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Always Isn’t Forever

Best friends and soul mates since they were kids, Hart Augusto and Ruby Armenta were poised to take on senior year together when Hart tragically drowns in a boating accident. Absolutely shattered, Ruby struggles to move on from the person she knows was her forever love.

Hart can’t let go of Ruby either…. Due to some divine intervention, he’s offered a second chance. Only it won’t be as simple as bringing him back to life–instead, Hart’s soul is transferred to the body of local bad boy.

When Hart returns to town as Jameson, he realizes that winning Ruby back will be more challenging than he’d imagined. For one, he’s forbidden from telling Ruby the truth. And with each day he spends as Jameson, memories of his life as Hart begin to fade away.

Though Ruby still mourns Hart, she can’t deny that something is drawing her to Jameson. As much as she doesn’t understand the sudden pull, it can’t be ignored. And why does he remind her so much of Hart? Desperate to see if the connection she feels is real, Ruby begins to open her heart to Jameson–but will their love be enough to bridge the distance between them?

My Review

I feel like I’ve seen a lot of books by J. C. Cervantes, but this is the first one I’ve ever read. Since it was compared to YOU’VE REACHED SAM, I really wanted to check it out.

It took me a few chapters to get into the story and really fall in love with Hart and Ruby. I’m not sure why, but once I invested, I felt like it was really easy to enjoy the story.

Some of the mechanics of the plot do require a bit of willing suspension of disbelief. As Jameson, Hart has a super limited amount of time in which he’ll retain his memories of his life as Hart. Once that passes, he’ll have Jameson’s memories but still be Hart in spirit or soul. The rules of Hart’s exchange (his soul in Jameson’s body) state that he can’t tell anyone the truth about who he is and what happened.

There’s a bit of dancing around the edges of those rules and bending them here and there. I think it might be harder to enjoy the story if you needed the spiritual/afterlife side of it to make perfect sense and be perfectly self-consistent.

Fortunately, I found it pretty easy to suspend my disbelief because I wanted to know if and how Ruby and Hart could find one another again. I’m always up for a “Can true love conquer all?” type of story, and this one definitely delivered on that trope.

All in all, I can see fans of YOU’VE REACHED SAM or THEY BOTH DIE AT THE END liking this one. It’s a great light summer book with a sweet love story.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Hart and Ruby are Latine. Ruby’s sister Gabi is in a relationship with another girl.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to sex. Ruby and Hart agreed to wait until college to have sex.

Spiritual Content
Hart meets an angel after his death who gives him a choice to return to life with his soul in the body of someone else.

Ruby’s sister Gabi has a tarot card deck made for her by Ruby’s aunt. When she does a reading with this deck, Gabi senses her ancestors speaking to her. The readings are always insightful and accurate.

Violent Content
Vague descriptions of a drowning death. Vague descriptions of a motorcycle accident. A player is injured during a game of football.

Drug Content
Hart learns Jameson was under the influence of alcohol when he crashed his motorcycle. Jameson drank a lot of alcohol, but Hart doesn’t.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of ALWAYS ISN’T FOREVER in exchange for my honest review.

Review: The Byways by Mary Pascual

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

The Byways
Mary Pascual
Sparkpress
Published June 6, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Byways

Neurodivergent high school student CeeCee Harper has a temper, and a reputation for trouble. Angry at the rumors and afraid she’ll never fit in, she makes a wrong move—and lands in the Byways, a world of alleys, magic, and forgotten people . . . some that aren’t even human. And if she doesn’t escape quickly, CeeCee learns, she’ll be trapped for good.

Searching for a way out, she gets lost among monsters, drug pushers, the homeless, and political upheaval, and soon finds there are those who will stop at nothing to keep her from leaving. But the Byways pull people in for a reason. CeeCee must figure out why she got stuck in the first place—before her loved ones are put in danger and she loses them forever.

A dark retelling of Alice in Wonderland meets Neverwhere, this contemporary fantasy will enchant Neil Gaiman and Christina Henry fans.

My Review

NEVERWHERE is probably my favorite book by Neil Gaiman, so I was really intrigued by the description of this book. I can see the comparison in some ways. THE BYWAYS takes place in a city that has a sort of dark, twisted magical underbelly that CeeCee stumbles into by mistake.

The writing took me a while to get used to. While the content is more mature and intense, the early chapters reminded me a lot more of a middle grade book. The way CeeCee describes her peers and her experiences at school made me think she was maybe 14 or 15, so I kept forgetting that she was supposed to be in high school. Though I guess it’s possible to be 15 in high school, so maybe that makes sense? As the story progressed, I think the tone shifted to more of a YA style of writing.

Some of the imagery in the magical area was pretty disturbing to me. At one point, CeeCee meets a super creepy guy who shows her a screen that she realizes is showing child p*rn and asks her to play a game with him. She’s disgusted and flees, but the other people around her kind of just shrug their shoulders about it and agree that yeah, that guy should probably be avoided. I could have done without that whole thing, honestly.

The whole story feels very much like a bad fever dream– which I suppose makes sense as a retelling of ALICE IN WONDERLAND? It’s definitely dark and twisted.

At the beginning and end of the story, the scenes focus a lot on CeeCee’s neurodivergent experience and what she does to navigate challenges. I think the middle of the story is less focused on that, though.

Conclusion

All in all, THE BYWAYS wasn’t a big hit for me. I really didn’t care for some of the creepy stuff, and the winding, slower pace of the plot made it tough for me to get through. If you like darker, fever-dream-type stories, THE BYWAYS could be just what you’re looking for, though.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 18 up.

Representation
CeeCee is white and neurodivergent. She experiences sensory and impulse issues.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
CeeCee meets a man she describes as very overweight who shows her a screen that she realizes displays child p*rn. She recoils and flees from him. Another man pursues her, and she wonders if he’s a drug dealer or human trafficker.

Kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
CeeCee experiences some things that depart from reality: an alley that shrinks down around her, a woman with dirt spilling from her lips when she speaks, and a man who appears to be part slug.

Violent Content
Multiple men try to capture or coerce CeeCee into doing things or staying with them.

One character is described as overweight, and the more he says or does gross things, the larger and more overweight he appears to be. That felt pretty fatphobic to me.

Drug Content
CeeCee meets a man she assumes is homeless, and when he doesn’t appear to be making sense, she wonders if he’s mentally ill or addicted to drugs.

In one alley, mushrooms grow. CeeCee’s told that, basically, only the most desperate addicts end up there. She tastes a mushroom and experiences a kind of high from it.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of THE BYWAYS in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Everyone Wants to Know by Kelly Loy Gilbert

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , , , ,

Everyone Wants to Know
Kelly Loy Gilbert
Simon & Schuster
Published June 13, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Everyone Wants to Know

This ripped-from-the-tabloids young adult drama by the critically acclaimed author Kelly Loy Gilbert about a girl’s famous-for-being-famous family fracturing from within as their dirty laundry gets exposed.

The Lo family sticks together. That’s what Honor has been told her whole life while growing up in the glare of the public eye on Lo and Behold , the reality show about her, her four siblings, and their parents.

Their show may be off the air, but the Lo family members still live in the spotlight as influencers churning out podcasts, bestselling books, and brand partnerships. So when Honor’s father announces that he’s moving out of their northern California home to rent an apartment in Brooklyn, Honor’s personal upset becomes the internet’s trending B-list celebrity trainwreck—threatening the aspirational image the Los’ brand (and livelihood) depends on.

After one of her best friends leaks their private conversation to a gossip site, bruised and betrayed Honor pours all her energy into reuniting her family. With her parents 3,000 miles apart, her siblings torn into factions, and all of them under claustrophobic public scrutiny, this is easier said than done. Just when Honor feels at her lowest, a guarded yet vulnerable boy named Caden comes into her life and makes her want something beyond the tight Lo inner circle for the first time. But is it fair to open her heart to someone new when the people she loves are teetering on the edge of ruin?

As increasingly terrible secrets come to light about the people Honor thought she knew best in the world, she’s forced to choose between loyalty to her family and fighting for the life she wants.

My Review

Typically I like books about intense family drama, but I will admit I struggled with this one. Maybe because the toxicity of some of the characters was so high? And the betrayals just kept mounting while people insisted their behavior was okay? I’m not sure.

I really liked Honor as a character, and thought in the context of this story about a family who framed every decision with “but what will this do to our image” kinds of inquiries, her name is pretty bold and appropriate. I loved that choice.

Her relationship with her twin brother Atticus is also a bright spot in the book for me. I like the way they balance each other, tease each other, and speak truth to one another.

It took a while for her relationship with Caden to really grow on me, but when it did, I found that I really liked him. I couldn’t tell for a bit whether he was truly emotionally closed off or whether he was keeping his distance because she asked for that kind of relationship. As the story progressed, though, and I got to know him a little better, I really liked him. He’s messy but smart. Aloof, but not cold.

Some of the secrets that came out about the family I did not see coming. I did see some things coming, though. Some of the things were dealt with in a way that felt complete and emotionally satisfying, but other things are kind of left without being fully resolved. That’s pretty true to real life, so I don’t mean that as a complaint. I sometimes struggle with stories that end with emotionally messy stuff still in an emotionally messy state.

Conclusion

I definitely feel like the author brought me directly into the center of all the Lo family drama, and I’m impressed by her ability to do that so consistently and believably, and yet, I’m also kind of exhausted. Ha! I enjoyed the book, though, especially Honor and her relationships with Atticus and Caden.

Fans of BOYS I KNOW by Anna Gracia will find a similar exploration of tension within family relationships and tenuous forays into romantic relationships.

Content Notes for Everyone Wants to Know

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Honor and her family are biracial– white and Chinese American.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to sex and some brief/vague descriptions of hands touching and bodies pressed together.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Some brief exploration of what toxic relationships and gaslighting look like.

Drug Content
One character’s mom is a recovering addict, so he and his friend group do not drink alcohol or use any drugs. In one scene (at a wedding), a bride holds a glass of champagne.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of EVERYONE WANTS TO KNOW in exchange for my honest review.


Weekly Wrap-Up: May 28-June 3, 2023

Young Adult/Teen 12-18

Weekly Wrap-Up: May 28 – June 3, 2023

Well, here I am again– trying something new! I used to try to do a monthly wrap-up, but they got to be so overwhelming. It was a lot of work trying to sort out what I’d read and write up the little “what you need to know” summaries. I gave it up, but have been feeling bad about losing a regular, more newsy post. Plus it was nice to be able to include the backlist titles I’d added successfully read in posts like that. Otherwise, it’s a long time between when I read the book and when my review goes live. (This is because I have a calendar problem… in that I keep agreeing to review too many books to leave room for very many backlist titles on my calendar.)

At any rate, I thought if I could come up with a simple format where I could just share what I’ve read this week, it might be fun to do that. It’s few enough books that, hopefully, the posts don’t take long to put together. And the books are fresh enough in my mind that I don’t have to think very hard in order to write the summaries. So, yay! Maybe a winning strategy?? We’ll find out together.

At any rate, here are the books I read this week and the ones I’m currently reading now. Let me know if there are other stats or things you’d like to know about each of these titles.

What I Read This Week

Time Out by Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: There might have been a bit of a mix-up leading me to receive a finished copy of this book from the publisher. I asked for a different one, but received this instead (I think). While it wasn’t something that immediately drew my attention, I found the story deeply compelling and the characters realistic and easy to identify with. Definitely one for fans of Bill Konigsberg (OPENLY STRAIGHT, etc).

Published: May 30, 2023 | My Review

The Night in Question by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: I really enjoyed book one in The Agathas series, so I had been very much looking forward to this one. If you’re familiar, expect more of the same amateur detective hijinks and fun cast of characters. I especially loved that the murder connects to a mysterious death in the past.

Published: May 30, 2023 | My Review

Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty, Michael Moreci, and Braeden Sherrell

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: I actually got an email from the author’s assistant asking if I wanted to review this book, but then I never heard back from them. Fortunately, I was able to get a copy from the library, so it’s still on my review list! I hadn’t read the original book, but I really enjoyed this version of the story, especially the themes about identity and family, and the expressions on the characters’ faces in the panels. (Serafina’s expressions especially.)

Published: April 4, 2023 | Review to Come: fall/winter

The Kingdom Over the Sea by Zohra Nabi

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: I’m reading an ARC of this one that I received from the publisher. I love the Middle Eastern-coded fantasy elements and magic. I’m super intrigued by the characters, especially the woman reluctantly helping our heroine. The pacing was different than I expected, but I liked it. Expect the review for this one next week!

Published: June 6, 2023 | Review to Come: next week

What I’m Currently Reading

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: I’ve been listening to the audiobook version of CASTE since early May. It’s gripping. The author compares the caste system of India to Nazi Germany and slavery and race relations in the United States. It’s definitely the kind of thing you can’t unsee afterward if that makes sense. I’ve got the young readers’ ebook from the library, so I’ll compare the two versions and write up a review when I’m finished with that. I’m about 80% done.

Published: August 4, 2020 | Review to Come: fall/winter

Don’t Look Back: A Memoir of War, Survival, and My Journey to America by Achut Deng and Keely Hutton

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

What you need to know: I’ve just barely started reading this one, but I’m already feeling drawn into the story of Achut Deng and her escape from her war-torn homeland. It sounds like it’s going to be a heartbreaking story, but it promises hope and beauty, too.

Published: October 11, 2022 | Review to Come: fall/winter

What did you read this week?

How was your week this past week? Did you read or acquire any new books you’re excited about? Have you read any of the books on my list? Leave a comment and let me know!