The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

I’ve been aware for a while that The Statistical Probably of Love at First Sight is a good book. I don’t know why I kept putting it off, maybe I just wasn’t in the right kind of mood for it. So I waited and I finally felt like reading it on my flight from Singapore to the States back in March. I thought it would be a very fitting read because I was also on my way to attend a wedding (although unlike Hadley, I was excited for the wedding that I was going to). It was fun to read a book about a character who was experiencing something similar to what I was going through.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan’s life. Having missed her flight, she’s stuck at JFK airport and late to her father’s second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley’s never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport’s cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he’s British, and he’s sitting in her row.

A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?

Quirks of timing play out in this romantic and cinematic novel about family connections, second chances, and first loves. Set over a twenty-four-hour-period, Hadley and Oliver’s story will make you believe that true love finds you when you’re least expecting it.

A draft for this review has been sitting in my dashboard for a while now. I don’t know why I’ve been having a hard time trying to capture how I felt about this book so let me keep it short and concise. I found it a little funny that I was traveling by myself and I was reading a book about a girl who meets a guy while traveling by herself. I mean how likely is that, right? Now that I’m based abroad, I mostly fly on my own whenever I travel and I’ve never had an experience like that. In spite of that, I think this is the perfect book while waiting to board a plane or during the flight itself. It’s a quick and fun read with just enough emotional depth to make things interesting. I liked the family dynamics in story, how complicated Hadley’s life is because her dad is about to marry the woman responsible for her parents’ divorce. Hadley’s reluctance to attend the wedding is understandable. But it’s a good thing she did because one flight becomes a turning point in her life. I really liked this passage about Hadley’s dad giving her books:

“It wasn’t that she was meant to read them all. Maybe someday she would, but for now, it was more the gesture itself. He was giving her the most important thing he could, the only way he knew how. He was a professor, a lover of stories, and he was building her a library in the same way other men might build their daughters houses.”

Every book lover will be able to appreciate the sentiment. Who wouldn’t want to receive books to slowly build a library? And it’s a great feeling to share a mutual love of books with someone that’s a huge part of your life. It’s nice that even though the title, the cover and the premise all suggest that this is a love story, it really is more than that. This is a short and sweet novel, recommended for fans of first loves, meet cutes and family interactions. Looking forward to Jennifer E. Smith’s next novel, This Is What Happy Looks Like.

The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding

Thank you so much to my friend Maggie of Young Adult Anonymous for giving me a signed copy of Amy Spalding’s debut novel, The Reece Malcolm List. I kept hearing good things about this contemporary YA novel so I was pretty excited to read it.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

Things I know about Reece Malcolm:

1. She graduated from New York University.
2. She lives in or near Los Angeles.
3. Since her first novel was released, she’s been on the New York Times bestseller list every week.
4. She likes strong coffee and bourbon.
5. She’s my mother.

Devan knows very little about Reece Malcolm, until the day her father dies and she’s shipped off to live with the mother she’s never met. All she has is a list of notebook entries that doesn’t add up to much.

L.A. offers a whole new world to Devan—a performing arts school allows her to pursue her passion for show choir and musicals, a new circle of friends helps to draw her out of her shell, and an intriguing boy opens up possibilities for her first love.

But then the Reece Malcolm list gets a surprising new entry. Now that Devan is so close to having it all, can she handle the possibility of losing everything?

I felt like I read this book at just the right time. I just came back from L.A. when I read this more than a month ago and I was able to appreciate all the references to L.A. in the book. I got excited whenever I recognized any of the places or things mentioned – like having a burger from In N Out, which is something that I always make a point of having whenever I visit L.A. I’m a fan of musicals although I’m not as into the whole thing as Devan is – I mean I would like to be but I obviously don’t have her talent. I just enjoy watching musicals and I try to watch as many as I can. I wish I was more familiar with Merrily We Roll Along because that was the musical featured in the book. I probably would have appreciated Devan’s rehearsals more if I’ve seen Merrily We Roll Along on stage or if I knew the songs. I also love having karaoke sessions (we call it videoke back home in Manila) with my friends though because I like to sing even if I’m all heart and no talent. So I could totally relate to the karaoke scene in the book, I find it interesting that for a seriously talented singer like Devan, a fun karaoke session lets her unwind.

I liked reading about the characters and how Devan slowly got to know them – her theater friends, her love interests, her mom and even her mom’s boyfriend. There were interesting characters and dynamics within the novel. I really, really enjoyed reading this book and I felt like I would have fallen in love with it if it just had a little more emotional depth. I felt like there was enough room to draw upon the characters’ feelings – maybe more grief or anger from Devan over all the bad things that have happened in her life. I guess I was expecting something like that since her father passed away and she suddenly has to move in with a mom she has never met. I think that this novel is a very good debut and I’m definitely curious about Amy Spalding’s next book – it’s just that I wanted more than the overall lighthearted tone presented in The Reece Malcolm List. If you’re a fan of contemporary YA, then you should definitely check this one out. I’m not surprised that I’ve seen so many rave reviews for it because it’s a really fun read.

Other reviews:
Young Adult Anonymous
Good Books and Good Wine
The Allure of Books

A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge

I remember being fascinated by The Lost Conspiracy a few years ago and I’ve been meaning to read more of Frances Hardinge’s novels since then. But you know how it goes, you get distracted by other books in the TBR pile and you forget your intentions to read books by a certain author. Fortunately, I was attracted by the pretty cover of A Face Like Glass when I saw it in one of the bookstores here. I’ve been hearing good things about this book so I was pretty excited to read it.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

In the underground city of Caverna the world’s most skilled craftsmen toil in the darkness to create delicacies beyond compare – wines that can remove memories, cheeses that can make you hallucinate and perfumes that convince you to trust the wearer, even as they slit your throat. The people of Caverna are more ordinary, but for one thing: their faces are as blank as untouched snow. Expressions must be learned, and only the famous Facesmiths can teach a person to show (or fake) joy, despair or fear – at a price.

Into this dark and distrustful world comes Neverfell, a little girl with no memory of her past and a face so terrifying to those around her that she must wear a mask at all times. For Neverfell’s emotions are as obvious on her face as those of the most skilled Facesmiths, though entirely genuine. And that makes her very dangerous indeed…

At a little less than 500 pages, A Face Like Glass is quite lengthy compared to some of the other YA novels that I’ve been reading lately. Which is why it kept me captivated for several days. Towards the end of the book, I decided to stay up late one night to finish it, I was so curious about where the story would go. I can’t even remember the last time I did that, probably not since I moved from Manila to Singapore last year. I found A Face Like Glass engaging for several reasons:

- I found the idea of wearing Faces like most people wear clothes intriguing. You can never know what a person is feeling based on just the expression that they’re wearing because they can choose which Face to use at any given moment. I’m fascinated by characters who are unreadable because they can surprise you in so many ways. In this book, most of the characters are like that because you can’t even use facial expressions to gauge what they’re thinking of.

- I enjoy reading about how complicated court intrigue is. I love how subtle court movements are and how the smallest of things can be significant because everything means something. There are complicated rules that courtiers follow and it requires a highly intelligent person to navigate the tricky waters of court. I liked how the craftsmen are divided into mafia-like families that compete against each other.

“It is terribly bad form to admit to being terrified for one’s life, but nobody in their right mind would go to a Court banquet without making preparations. One must have the right costume, the right Faces, and at least eighty-two ways of avoiding assassination.”

- I’m a big fan of cheese so I found Neverfell’s apprenticeship with Cheesemaster Grandible interesting. I can’t imagine what it must be like to have to take care of cheese that has its own personality – they can explode and harm people if not handled properly. The same goes for wine and everything else that Caverna excels at making, here’s a passage that I really liked:

“They were masters of memory, its loss and recovery. They could brew Wine that would make you remember the face of your dead love so clearly you could count her eyelashes, or that would make you forget specific chapters of a book so that you could read them again with pleasure.”

- The underground setting because I’ve lived in tropical countries all my life and I can’t imagine living in a dreary world below ground with no sunlight. I would probably feel claustrophobic and suffocated most of the time. It was interesting how Caverna’s inhabitants functioned underground and how they were willing to suffer the consequences just to keep the secrets of their craftsmen.

- There’s a mysterious thief in this novel called the Kleptomancer. As you well know, sneaky thieves in fiction have a special place in my heart. So when bits and pieces about the Kleptomancer started showing up in this book, I was immediately curious. I wanted to know more about him and his reasons for stealing.

- Of course, Neverfell is also another intriguing character. She’s a bright and curious individual and has such a good heart. She genuinely cares for other people, even if she had an isolated childhood. She’s always interested in helping out whenever she can.

With all the reasons listed, I think it’s pretty obvious that I loved reading A Face Like Glass. This beautiful book will definitely make it to my best of 2013 list. Highly recommended for MG/YA fans of fantasy, political intrigue, class conflict and unique world-building. I look forward to reading the rest of Frances Hardinge’s books, I have a copy of Fly By Night waiting for me back home in Manila.

Other reviews:
The Book Smugglers
The Readventurer

Just One Day by Gayle Forman

Gayle Forman’s If I Stay and Where She Went were two contemporary novels that I loved last year. Mia and Adam are even included in my list of Favorite Literary Couples in the past year. I couldn’t wait to read Just One Day as soon as I found out about it. I did consider waiting for the companion novel to be released before I read it but when rave reviews starting popping up in the blogosphere, I knew I wouldn’t be able to wait. I was delighted when Just One Day finally became available in bookstores here, I grabbed a copy and read it as soon as I could.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

When sheltered American good girl Allyson “LuLu” Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.

It’s been a couple of weeks since I finished reading Just One Day and I have no idea why I keep putting off writing my thoughts about it. I guess because I really enjoyed reading Just One Day but it felt incomplete without Just One Year. I wanted to get to know Willem more because obviously, meeting him was a turning point in Allyson’s life. In any case, it’s a lovely contemporary YA novel but I didn’t love it as much as If I Stay and Where She Went. While I was reading this, I kept thinking of how realistic Allyson’s situation is. I tend to be cautious while traveling so I was wondering if I ever found myself in her shoes, would I be willing to go off to Paris to spend the day with a guy I just met? Without a phone that has international roaming activated and without being familiar with the language of the country? If I push all of that aside and focus on the story, it’s all very romantic though. I get the feeling that Just One Day would make a great movie. I like how we see a different side of Paris in this novel. Like Allyson said, it’s not the “Paris of the movies.” I’ve always wanted to go to Paris but this novel made me want to explore the non-touristy sections of the city, to get lost and just see what I end up discovering. Here’s one of quote from the book that stood out for me:

“…being Lulu, it made me realize that all my life I’ve been living in a small, square room, with no windows and no doors. And I was fine. I was happy, even. I thought. Then someone came along and showed me there was a door in the room. One that I’d never even seen before. Then he opened it for me. Held my hand as I walked through it. And for one perfect day, I was on the other side. I was somewhere else. Someone else. And then he was gone, and I was thrown back into my little room. And now, no matter what I do, I can’t seem to find that door.”

I chose this passage because I like how it highlights how certain experiences can open our eyes to a wider world. I guess it reminds me of traveling and reading – how those activities make you realize that there’s so much more out there than what you know. I also really liked the college setting of the novel and could relate to Allyson’s situation – how she felt that she has to go the pre-med track because it’s what her parents want, even when she’s interested in classes like pottery or Shakespeare Out Loud. I’m jealous at the wide selection of classes available at her school. Allyson’s parents, her mom in particular, are very controlling people. While my parents weren’t like that, I had to take up a science or engineering degree in college because I was a scholar in a science high school that required all students to go into that field. I found science interesting but I wasn’t really passionate about it and I felt like it didn’t love me back because I had a hard time with some of my subjects. In spite of that, I felt like I had a great college experience and I wanted the same thing for Allyson. Other details in the book that I enjoyed reading about were: Shakespeare (made me realize that I’ve never seen a performance in person, now I want to watch one of his comedies on stage), Allyson’s buddy D’Angelo (he seems like an awesome friend), Paris and macarons (LOVE macarons! They’re not that common back home in Manila but several bakeries sell them here in Singapore). A pleasant read overall and one that I would recommend to fans of older contemporary YA, traveling, getting lost and finding yourself in the process. Really can’t wait to read Just One Year:

Other reviews:
The Readventurer
Good Books and Good Wine
Alexa Loves Books
Makeshift Bookmark

Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff

I’m not a huge fan of horror books or even horror movies or horror stories. What can I say, I’m a big scaredy-cat. So I don’t think I would have read Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff if it wasn’t the YAckers pick for this month. Since the book is available in the Singapore public library and I didn’t have to buy a copy, I thought I might as well give it a try. Plus, I didn’t want to miss a YAckers discussion two months in a row – last month’s discussion was about Anna Dressed in Blood, another horror book. Also, I haven’t read any of Brenna Yovanoff’s books and I’ve heard good things about her writing from other book bloggers.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

The city of Ludlow is gripped by the hottest July on record. The asphalt is melting, the birds are dying, petty crime is on the rise, and someone in Hannah Wagnor’s peaceful suburban community is killing girls.

For Hannah, the summer is a complicated one. Her best friend Lillian died six months ago, and Hannah just wants her life to go back to normal. But how can things be normal when Lillian’s ghost is haunting her bedroom, pushing her to investigate the mysterious string of murders? Hannah’s just trying to understand why her friend self-destructed, and where she fits now that Lillian isn’t there to save her a place among the social elite. And she must stop thinking about Finny Boone, the big, enigmatic delinquent whose main hobbies seem to include petty larceny and surprising acts of kindness.

With the entire city in a panic, Hannah soon finds herself drawn into a world of ghost girls and horrifying secrets. She realizes that only by confronting the Valentine Killer will she be able move on with her life — and it’s up to her to put together the pieces before he strikes again.

How about that cover? Looks lovely, doesn’t it? It’s so pretty that I don’t think I would have realized it was a horror book just based on the cover. But now that I’ve read the book, I think the cover design is a good fit. It took a while for me to get into the story and it wasn’t because I found the book creepy. It was spooky but that’s expected since it’s a story that involves ghosts and a serial killer. I guess I just found the start a little slow and dragging. Even after a hundred pages or so, I felt like I was still getting to know the main character, Hannah. And I did care enough about Hannah to read on. I liked how creative she is in designing her own dresses because she wants to look bright and happy even if she doesn’t feel like that inside. She hasn’t gotten over her best friend’s death and that probably has to do with the fact that Lillian’s ghost is constantly haunting her. I also liked the start of Hannah’s love story because it was tentative and hesitant and she liked a guy that was an unusual choice for her. I just wish there was more time for the romance to develop fully. So yes, it wasn’t like I didn’t like Hannah as a character, I guess I just didn’t like her enough to get over everything else that didn’t work for me in the novel.

After I finished reading the book, I thought to myself, “That’s it?” because I guess I was expecting more from the story. It’s not that Brenna’s writing wasn’t good because it is, she has a way of vividly describing scenes and using beautiful phrases while she’s at it. I just felt like there was too much going on for me to like the whole thing. There’s the murder mystery, the ghosts haunting Hannah, Lillian’s death and how strong her hold on Hannah is, the romance, Hannah’s family and her interactions with so many other secondary characters. There were just too many bits and pieces struggling to be noticed that it felt like there weren’t enough pages to elaborate on all of them. Also, there was a build up to the murders but the revelation at the end was kind of a letdown for me. I don’t want to go into details for fear of spoilers but if you’ve read the book and want to hear about more in-depth thoughts, then please check out the YAckers discussion (will link to it once it’s up). It saddens me that I’m a little disappointed in my first Brenna Yovanoff but if you’ve read her other books, please let me know if they’re any good and whether I should pick them up. If you’re a fan of creepy ghost stories and murder mysteries then by all means, go ahead and read Paper Valentine. You might end up liking it a lot more than I did, it looks like that’s the case for other bloggers based on reviews that I’ve seen.

Other reviews:
Good Books and Good Wine
Charlotte’s Library
Emily’s Reading Room
The Nocturnal Library

Queen of the Clueless by Mina V. Esguerra

Queen of the Clueless by Mina V. Esguerra is the sequel to Interim Goddess of Love. Do the books need to be read in order? I think so because that will give the reader a better understanding of the story. In fact, I reread the first book before starting on this because I didn’t want to be confused about the characters and everything that happened before. These books are Filipino young adult fiction that has a hint of local mythology (so “goddess” in the title of the first book isn’t a metaphor). It’s going to be a trilogy and there’s no release date for the third book yet but I’m hoping it will be published soon.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

If you’ve been feeling neglected by the Goddess of Love lately, don’t worry – Hannah Maquiling, college sophomore, is in training to take over. The Original Goddess is missing, but Hannah is Interim Goddess now, and she should figure out how to solve humanity’s love problems soon. Quin (God of the Sun) is still her mentor, still really hot, but apparently isn’t as honest about his other earthly relationships as she thought. It’s frustrating, and enough to make her check out possibilities with Diego (God of the Sea) and Robbie (Cute Human).

In the meantime, she’s decided to spend some of her precious training time helping to break up a relationship, instead of putting one together. Why? Because the girl in question happens to be her best friend Sol, whose boyfriend is stealing not just from her, but from other people on campus. Sol didn’t exactly summon the Goddess, but this is what power over Love is for, right? Surely it’s not just about matchmaking, but ending doomed relationships too. (Even when it’s not what people want.)

Hannah is still the temporary Goddess of Love and while she’s still pretty clueless about certain aspects of the job, she’s learning slowly and surely. She gets regular training sessions with Quin, God of the Sun, on how to improve her game as a goddess. She enjoys these sessions with Quin but keeps hoping that they will lead to more than just doing “work” stuff. What’s funny about Hannah’s situation is, she helps other people navigate the tricky waters of love and yet she’s hopelessly in love with someone she can’t have. I think that’s what makes Hannah a relatable character – even if she’s part-time goddess now, she’s still a normal college girl in so many ways. Clearly, she doesn’t have things figured out and like any non-goddess person does, she just goes with her instincts and what she feels is right. I also think it’s ironic that the main plot thread in this installment is Hannah trying to break up a couple instead of bringing them together. I liked that Queen of the Clueless focused on Sol’s love story, it was nice to get to know Hannah’s best friend since we really didn’t get to do that in the first book. I also liked that we learn more about some of the other secondary characters, like Diego and Robbie. Although I wish there was more of Quin in the story, I felt like he didn’t get enough face time in this book. I would have liked to learn more about Quin’s character, a little more insight on how he is both as Quin the mortal guy and as God of the Sun.

I’m really, really curious about the third book in this series. If I had a copy of it right now, I’d dive into it right away. I have no idea how Hannah’s story arc will get resolved and I’m hoping it won’t feel rushed because these books are on the short side. I found Queen of the Clueless an enjoyable read but I definitely wouldn’t have minded if it was a little longer. I think it was a good idea on Mina’s part to try writing a different genre from her usual contemporary romance featuring women in their twenties. I’m all for Filipino fiction with a college setting, especially if it reminds me of my own college experience. I know I’ve mentioned this before but I really couldn’t help but feel that Hannah’s school is like a smaller version of my own alma mater. So many details about the school was reminiscent of my own school – the cafeteria, some of the classes, the rich kids and scholarship kids. I know that Mina attended the same college so maybe it served as an inspiration for her writing. Since I loved my school, I think that’s a good thing. I recommend this to fans of Mina’s writing and readers curious about Filipino fiction. I know I don’t feature enough of them here in my blog so I would gladly recommend this.

Some lomo shots of my college, which can pass off as Ford River:

Retro Friday: Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway

Retro Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Angie over at Angieville and focuses on reviewing books from the past. This can be an old favorite, an under-the-radar book you think deserves more attention, something woefully out of print, etc.

When I asked for music-themed contemporary YA books, Audrey, Wait! was one of the titles that people kept recommending. I decided to borrow it when I saw that a copy was available at the library. I thought it would be a good idea to read this along with my good friend Heidi of Bunbury in the Stacks because she mentioned that she hasn’t read this one either. I had so much fun reading this with Heidi – we divided the book into several sections and we’d email each other back and forth about our thoughts after we’re done reading certain parts. We managed to talk about so many other things during the course of our discussion – ice cream, bands, laundry, college and work. Feel free to check out what she has to say about the book.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

California high school student Audrey Cuttler dumps self-involved Evan, the lead singer of a little band called The Do-Gooders. Evan writes, “Audrey, Wait!” a break-up song that’s so good it rockets up the billboard charts. And Audrey is suddenly famous!

Now rabid fans are invading her school. People is running articles about her arm-warmers. The lead singer of the Lolitas wants her as his muse. (And the Internet is documenting her every move!) Audrey can’t hang out with her best friend or get with her new crush without being mobbed by fans and paparazzi.

What I liked about this book is that it focuses on music but the main character isn’t a musician. Audrey is a music lover but she doesn’t play an instrument and she’s not part of a band. Most of the other music-themed books that I’ve read have musicians as main characters instead of just being music fans. I kind of thought it’s like being a book lover but not a writer. I felt like I could relate to Audrey more because of that. And I enjoy listening to music even if I don’t love it as much as she does. This book reminded me of what it was like to attend various gigs and campus concerts back in college. Like Audrey, I had friends back then who were members of bands. Although there was never a song written about me.

One thing I noticed right off the bat is that the story isn’t realistic in the sense that things got blown way out of proportion. I mean, how many songs out there are about girls who broke a guy’s heart (or vice versa) and how many times does the public go after the subject of the song? I was fine with the whole thing as long as I recognized that reading it would involve a fair amount of suspension of disbelief. The breakup didn’t even involve a lot of drama – Evan wasn’t really a bad guy, Audrey just decided that things weren’t that great between them. It was supposed to be a normal high school breakup until Evan wrote a song about Audrey that suddenly became popular.

I really enjoyed the first half of the book, the banter between the characters was fun to read. I liked Audrey’s friendship with her BFF, Victoria, and it was cool how reasonable her parents were. We rarely get to see great parents in YA novels so it’s always a good thing when they appear. However, I wasn’t such a fan of the second half. I really can’t put my finger on why that is but I just didn’t find it as engaging as the start of the novel. I guess it felt a bit rushed and I was waiting for a bigger, more complex climax to the story. Also probably because I felt like the romance could have been developed further. It really is a fun book to read but I think my expectations were pretty high because so many other blogger friends loved this. If you’re into music-themed contemporary YA, then I think you’d really enjoy this one. I wanted to make a playlist of all the songs featured as chapter headings – I think it would have been great if I could have listened to that while reading the book. I’m curious still curious about Robin Benway’s other books and will definitely check them out when I get the chance.

Other reviews:
Angieville
One More Page
Good Books and Good Wine
See Michelle Read

YAckers Discussion: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Remember the YAckers Secret Santa that I mentioned a few weeks ago? Well, I participated in my first ever YAckers discussion and we talked about The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. The post can now be viewed over at the YAckers blog. Head on over there to check out our thoughts about the book. I’m glad the latest pick was a book that I’ve been planning to read for a while, The Raven Boys was one of my anticipated titles this year because I loved The Scorpio Races last year.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

I had a lot of fun reading and discussing this with fellow YAckers and I look forward to more YAcking in the coming months.

Amplified by Tara Kelly

Amplified by Tara Kelly was one of the first few books that I borrowed from the library. I’m glad I was able to borrow a copy because I’ve heard good things about this contemporary novel. I think it can be classified as either YA or New Adult since Jasmine just graduate from high school and is exploring her options.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

When privileged 17-year-old Jasmine gets kicked out of her house, she takes what is left of her savings and flees to Santa Cruz to pursue her dream of becoming a musician. Jasmine finds the ideal room in an oceanfront house, but she needs to convince the three guys living there that she’s the perfect roommate and lead guitarist for their band, C-Side. Too bad she has major stage fright and the cute bassist doesn’t think a spoiled girl from over the hill can hack it…

I had almost forgotten what it was like to devour a book because it’s so very easy to get into. I started reading this on a Sunday and the buzz was good enough to make me NOT dread Monday. So I should just make sure that I’m reading a good book at the start of every work week to make things easier for me. It’s funny how easy it was for me to relate to what Jasmine was going through because I’m not a musician. I would love to be able to play an instrument but piano and guitar lessons when I was a kid didn’t work out. I do have stage freight though. People think that because I’m so talkative and expressive, I enjoy public speaking. But no, I’m terrified of speaking in front of too many people – I get nervous even in big meetings. So I can totally get how Jasmine freaks out at the idea of performing in front of a live audience. I do admire how spunky she is for someone who has never performed in front of a live audience. She was willing to delay going to Stanford for college (Can you imagine? Would love to get admitted in a school like that) to see if she can live her dream of becoming a musician. I can’t talk about Amplified without mentioning how much I enjoyed the slow burn romance depicted. Here’s one of the snippets that I really liked:

“He studied me like I was a complicated book. All intensity, no hint of a smile. Which could be good or bad. Some books are intoxicating, while other get thrown across the room.”

There are definitely some swoon-worthy scenes in this book. That’s probably one of the reasons why I enjoyed reading this. I know I always say this but I’m a fan of romance that doesn’t happen out of the blue – I like the tension and the teasing around between characters before they even realize that they’re attracted to each other. I also think it’s amazing how Tara Kelly was able to write about making music in such a way that a non-musician like me would still understand. I’ve always wondered what it’s really like to play an instrument so I enjoy novels that paint a clear picture of how that feels like. It’s funny because even though Amplified doesn’t have a cliffhanger ending, I thought that I would have liked it better if the ending was a bit longer. Then I discovered that Tara Kelly is writing a sequel so yay, I look forward to reading that. I hope it’s just as good as this one. Amplified is a good read if you’re feeling a bit slump-ish because of how engrossing it is. Music lovers would probably be able to relate to it more. I feel like a lot of contemporary YA novels focus on music nowadays. Some of the ones that I’ve read and enjoyed are Saving June by Hannah Harrington and If I Stay by Gayle Forman. And I’m planning to check out Audrey Wait by Robin Benway and Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John. Any other suggestions?

Other reviews:
Steph Su Reads
The Reading Date

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente is one of those books that make an impact the moment you hear the title. You immediately wonder what it’s all about. I saw this one pop up in several Best of 2011 lists end of last year so I’ve been planning to read it for a while now. The perfect opportunity arrived when read-along buddies Janice and Holly agreed that this would be our next pick.

Here’s the summary from Goodreads:

Twelve-year-old September lives in Omaha, and used to have an ordinary life, until her father went to war and her mother went to work. One day, September is met at her kitchen window by a Green Wind (taking the form of a gentleman in a green jacket), who invites her on an adventure, implying that her help is needed in Fairyland. The new Marquess is unpredictable and fickle, and also not much older than September. Only September can retrieve a talisman the Marquess wants from the enchanted woods, and if she doesn’t… then the Marquess will make life impossible for the inhabitants of Fairyland. September is already making new friends, including a book-loving Wyvern and a mysterious boy named Saturday.

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland is a delightful read. If I was the type of reader who highlighted books then my copy would have colorful pages. I wanted to take note of so many of the passages that I liked. This is the type of novel that has lyrical writing that just sweeps you away. I’m definitely a fan of that kind of writing but there were times when it felt a bit much. There were moments when I had to read this in bits and pieces instead of swallowing everything in one big gulp because I felt like I could use a break. In a way, I wasn’t as engrossed in the story as I wanted to be. I still enjoyed reading about September’s adventures in Fairyland though. September is a pretty easy character to like – a reader craving to be part of something bigger than what she feels like is a very ordinary life. I guess my expectations were just a bit high after everything that I’ve heard about the book. Since I loved how unique the writing is, I thought it would be a good idea to give non-spoilery samples:

“Stories have a way of changing faces. They are unruly things, undisciplined, given to delinquency and the throwing of erasers. This is why we must close them up into thick, solid books, so they cannot get out and cause trouble.”

*nods head* Here’s another one I really liked:

“For the wishes of one’s old life wither and shrivel like old leaves if they are not replaced with new wishes when the world changes. And the world always changes. Wishes get slimy, and their colors fade, and soon they are just mud, like all the rest of the mud, and not wishes at all, but regrets.”

Wishes that become regrets, I think that’s beautiful. Last but not the least:

“Temperament, you’ll find, is highly dependent on time of day, weather, frequency of naps, and whether one has had enough to eat.”

Love that last bit because that is so me. My mood is dependent on whether I’ve had enough food and sleep. Also, if I’m reading a good book or not. The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland is reminiscent of the Narnia books, Alice in Wonderland and other books that follow the same format – a human child gets whisked off to a magical land, where he or she has to go on a quest although September’s story has its own twists and turns. This book is also September’s coming-of-age story, how she learns to view the world in a different light as she matures. While I did find Fairyland fascinating, I was hoping that the story would have something different to surprise me and I was starting to think that it wasn’t going to happen until revelations near the end resulted in events that I didn’t expect. I apologize for being vague but I finished reading the book on a high note and I’m really looking forward to reading the sequel. If it was available in the library or any of the bookstores that I’ve visited, I would have grabbed a copy of it already. Even though this one didn’t make it to my list of favorites for this year, I very much enjoyed reading it and I get the feeling that most fantasy readers will feel the same way about it. I feel like we made a good choice when we picked this to read together.

One of the chapter illustrations in the hardcover edition

Reviews by readalong buddies:
Book Harbinger
Janicu’s Book Blog