Category Archives: Book Review and Content

Review: For This Life Only by Stacey Kade

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For This Life Only by Stacey KadeFor This Life Only
Stacey Kade
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

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A bonfire he had to escape. Ice on a roadway. A night that changes everything for Jacob Palmer. The night his twin brother is killed in a car accident. Jace almost shared his brother’s fate, and in that moment when his heart stopped, there was no light welcoming him to something after. There was only nothing. And now that Jace has survived, he can’t help feeling like fate got it wrong. Eli, the good son, the one who loved everyone around him, the one who made people feel loved, should have been the one to … Continue reading →

Review: Tell Me Something Real by Calla Devlin

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tell-me-something-realTell Me Something Real
Calla Devlin
Simon & Schuster / Atheneum

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Her mother’s cancer dominates Vanessa’s life. Alternative treatments in Mexico are the only hope for her mom, whose cancer is terminal. While Vanessa tries to anticipate her mother’s every need and keep her sisters (foul-mouthed Adrienne and saint-obsessed Marie) together, she also dreams of a day when she can pursue her own dreams. She pours out her grief in her music and counts the days until she’ll hear back from music schools about applications she’s secretly sent out.

Then two new members join Vanessa’s family group—a boy whose cancer is in remission and his overprotective mother. As Vanessa and Caleb begin to fall in … Continue reading →

Review: One Paris Summer by Denise Grover Swank

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oneparissummerOne Paris Summer
Denise Grover Swank
Blink / Zondervan

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Anyone would be thrilled to spend the summer in Paris, but Sophie dreads it. Meeting her dad’s new wife and stepdaughter? Leaving her friends behind in the States? Not fun at all. When Sophie arrives, things only get worse. Her dad promised her a piano but never follows through. Her stepsister Camille torments her constantly, and even recruits her friends to help make Sophie miserable. Then one of Camille’s friends reaches out to Sophie. His charm and sweetness are the lifeline Sophie needs to get her through the difficult summer. The two grow closer, but if Camille finds out, she’ll do everything within her power to … Continue reading →

Review: First & Then by Emma Mills

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First & Then by Emma MillsFirst & Then
Emma Mills
Henry Holt & Co.

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With college application deadlines fast-approaching, Devon is under pressure to be her most extraordinary self. The problem? How would Jane Austen say this? She’s remarkably uninteresting. Devon has never minded the sidelines. Especially when her best friend Cas and secret love takes the football field. When her socially awkward cousin Foster moves in with Devon’s family, his presence changes everything, bringing the local unapproachable football star, Ezra, into Devon’s path. Like, almost constantly. Ezra’s new closeness seems to stir some jealous feelings in Cas, and at first Devon thinks this might be the moment in which he discovers his deep love for … Continue reading →

Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

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TOG-NYT-CoverThrone of Glass
Sarah J. Maas
Bloomsbury USA Children’s

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The royal prince offers an imprisoned assassin the one thing she wants most—freedom—at a heavy cost. She must compete for the honor of serving the king who imprisoned her as his champion. At first Celaena is only determined to bide her time until she can escape. The competition begins with a chilling event. Competitors are found murdered, their bodies mutilated. Celaena fears the murders may be tied to dark rituals, but no one else will believe her. As she investigates further, she finds herself caught deeper in a web that would keep her from running away. As romance blooms … Continue reading →

Review: Be Light Like a Bird by Monika Schröder

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Be Light Like a Bird by Monika SchröderBe Light Like a Bird
Monika Schröder
Capstone Young Readers

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After Wren’s father unexpectedly dies, her mother rips her away from her only home. Move after move takes Wren further and further across the country, and Wren can’t help but wonder what her mom is running from. Then Wren finds a beautiful pond to secret herself away to watch birds the way she and her father used to do. When Wren discovers the local landfill owner plans to demolish her sacred place, Wren vows to stop him.

The birdwatching elements felt very natural to me. I’m not an experienced birdwatcher by any means, but my daughter and I … Continue reading →