review: the upside of unrequited by becky albertalli

Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love. No matter how many times her twin sister, Cassie, tells her to woman up, Molly can’t stomach the idea of rejection. So she’s careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.

Then a cute new girl enters Cassie’s orbit, and for the first time ever, Molly’s cynical twin is a lovesick mess. Meanwhile, Molly's totally not dying of loneliness—except for the part where she is. Luckily, Cassie's new girlfriend comes with a cute hipster-boy sidekick. If Molly can win him over, she'll get her first kiss and she'll get her twin back.

There's only one problem: Molly's coworker, Reid. He's a chubby Tolkien superfan with a season pass to the Ren Faire, and there's absolutely no way Molly could fall for him.
Right? ~ Goodreads

Source: ARC via ALA16

Review: 

Boy does this book have a lot to live up to. Becky Albertalli’s debut novel, Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda was a HUGE hit and trying to strike gold twice is a very difficult thing.
IMO, The Upside of Unrequited succeeded in carrying on Albertalli’s trademark adorable, relatable characters combined with a story filled with heart that leaves the reader with a giant smile on their face.

I got sucked in right from the first laugh out loud line:

"I'm on the toilet at the 9:30 club, and I'm wondering how mermaids pee."

(*There is context in the book for that quote lol)

I know readers are probably headed into this book for the romance, and both Molly and Cassie have really sweet love interests but it was the sisters changing dynamics that had me hooked.

Cassie and Molly are twins that share everything. Even though Cassie is the is the outgoing, fearless of the two and Molly often feels relegated to the sidekick roll – they are totally in sync until Cassie falls for Mina. Instead of sharing stories of first kisses with Molly as she usually does, Cassie becomes secretive and wants to spend all her time with Mina instead leaving Molly confused and hurt.

Molly is just trying to get her first kiss but her insecurities about being overweight and her past experiences keep her from taking chances with boys.

“And I’m sorry, but there’s a reason I’m so careful. Boys like Will don’t like girls like me. And if they find out we like them, they are cruel. Always.”

The further Cassie drifts away, the more Molly decides to take a chance. Like ripping off a band-aid – maybe it’s better to just get that first heartbreak done and over with.

“ So, maybe I should let my heart break, just to prove that my heart can take it.”

The romances…swoon BUT Cassie and Molly? I don’t have sisters but these two tugged at my heart strings. They have such a hard time figuring out the new dynamics of their relationship with Mina added to the mix. It’s completely natural to want to spend all your time with your new girlfriend/boyfriend and not share those moments with anyone – including your twin. The anger and resentments build and it was both beautiful and heartbreaking to read.

“We started walking on the same day. Cassie first, and then me.

Now it feels like all we do is take tiny steps away from each other.

Towards crushes.

Towards girlfriends.”

The best thing about this book is how it shows that relationships aren’t static. That they’re always in flux and that it's not good or bad - just the natural order of things. I think Albertalli is a master at expressing teen anxiety and insecurities in such a realistic way. And I adore how she includes family, especially parents, who are so often AWOL in YA.

I’ll be honest and say I enjoyed Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda more. While TUoU is adorable, it also lagged a bit in the middle. Several readers felt the beginning was slow and took awhile to build, while I thought it started strong then the focus drifted a bit but finished strong. It’s told from only Molly’s perspective and while I enjoyed Molly immensely – I think adding Cassie’s POV would have elevated the story from merely adorable to something truly special.

I love Becky Albertalli’s unique voice and can’t wait to she what she publishes next!

review: holding up the universe by jennifer niven

Everyone thinks they know Libby Strout, the girl once dubbed “America’s Fattest Teen.” But no one’s taken the time to look past her weight to get to know who she really is. Following her mom’s death, she’s been picking up the pieces in the privacy of her home, dealing with her heartbroken father and her own grief. Now, Libby’s ready: for high school, for new friends, for love, and for every possibility life has to offer. In that moment, I know the part I want to play here at MVB High. I want to be the girl who can do anything.


Everyone thinks they know Jack Masselin, too. Yes, he’s got swagger, but he’s also mastered the impossible art of giving people what they want, of fitting in. What no one knows is that Jack has a newly acquired secret: he can’t recognize faces. Even his own brothers are strangers to him. He’s the guy who can re-engineer and rebuild anything, but he can’t understand what’s going on with the inner workings of his brain. So he tells himself to play it cool: Be charming. Be hilarious. Don’t get too close to anyone.

Until he meets Libby. When the two get tangled up in a cruel high school game—which lands them in group counseling and community service—Libby and Jack are both pissed, and then surprised. Because the more time they spend together, the less alone they feel. Because sometimes when you meet someone, it changes the world, theirs and yours. ~ Goodreads 

Source: ARC provided by the publisher via ALA

Review:

There are a lot of *important/issue* books out right now. What I really love is how much better they’ve gotten in not only representation but also how the issues are just one part of the person and not the whole story. A few that come to mind are the recent - The Upside of Unrequited, Geekerella, Queens of Geek and last years Dumplin’, If I Were your Girl, to name a few. They don’t shy away from anything but aren’t thumping you over the head with a message. They aren’t ISSUE books – but books with issues. – if that makes any sense.

Holding Up the Universe is an issue book and never lets you forget it. It’s a constant stream of how difficult life can be (it can be!) and perfectly delivered inspirational messages to make everyone cheer just when all hope is lost. I can see how readers loved this book but I was never able to let go of the authors voice and fall into the characters lives. Instead of immersing in Libby and Jack’s story – I always aware that it was Niven telling it.

There were things that I could personally relate to in Libby. Her mom died and she feels intense panic about dying herself or losing those she loves. That was pretty much me after losing my mother at her age. Everything is factually on point – but I didn’t feel the intensity of what Libby is going through.

The bullying is AWFUL in this book. And relentless. I did like how Libby stood up for herself, liked who she was, understood she deserved more and demanded it but almost everything is centered around her weight and how she has to accommodate others feelings about it. Some of it makes sense to the story but it never allows Libby to be more than the fat girl waiting on others to let her in which was sad because she’s such a vibrant person.

Jack was interesting. Definitely flawed. He has something called Prosopagnoosia where he can’t recognize faces. Even his parents, siblings, girlfriend. Every time he looks at them, it’s like seeing them for the first time. He compensates by basically being an asshole. If he comes into a room all cocky then people either stay away or say something that triggers an identifying feature so that he can figure out who they are. He does something very cruel to Libby but they manage forge a friendship that blossoms into more.

But most of Holding Up the Universe felt very “important” instead of natural. Jack does something horrible, then he writes the perfect letter or says the most perfect thing and voila! forgiven or Libby takes this bold stand against her bullies – loves herself only to be bullied again until love conquers all…or something.

I guess it read more like a well meaning inspirational after school special to me – hitting all the correct notes, checking all the boxes but lacking the emotional punch to the gut or connection to the characters that I was hoping for.

monday musings…

I know I’ve been doing Monday Mini’s for a few weeks now and I was proud that I had finally gotten some kind of blogging groove going. But me being me and all… I didn’t even read enough for mini’s this week. Why am I so schedule/planning resistant?? lol

So for today we have Monday Musings. Hey, it’s my blog just go with it! It still has the two M's thing going on. lol

It gives me a chance to declare my April TBR pile. I've been doing this the past few months hoping it would keep me on track and so far so good. We’ll see if I can continue the TBR reading streak. It’s not looking good. It’s April 10th and I still haven’t started any of these. But I read fast so there’s hope!



*Title links lead to Goodreads
*Quoted summaries from Goodreads
*All books were either provided by the publisher/via ALA

Alex & Eliza: A Love Story by Melissa de la Cruz – “the love story of a young Alexander Hamilton and Eliza Schuyler”
With the Hamilton craze still in full force the publisher is really pushing this one. I have yet to find a de la Cruz book that struck a chord with me but I’m willing to give it a try.

Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven – “Everyone thinks they know Libby Strout, the girl once dubbed “America’s Fattest Teen.” But no one’s taken the time to look past her weight to get to know who she really is.”
I posted a pic of my TBR pile on Instagram and asked people to help me pick what to read – this book was recommended by several people so here it is!

The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli – “Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love. No matter how many times her twin sister, Cassie, tells her to woman up, Molly can’t stomach the idea of rejection. So she’s careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.
Then a cute new girl enters Cassie’s orbit, and for the first time ever, Molly’s cynical twin is a lovesick mess.”
This is the book I’m most excited to read. I loved Albertalli’s adorable and poingant Simon vs the Homo Sapien Agenda and hoping for the same squishy feelings twith this one.

What Light by Jay Asher – “Sierra's family runs a Christmas tree farm in Oregon—it's a bucolic setting for a girl to grow up in, except that every year, they pack up and move to California to set up their Christmas tree lot for the season. So Sierra lives two lives: her life in Oregon and her life at Christmas. And leaving one always means missing the other. 
Until this particular Christmas, when Sierra meets Caleb, and one life eclipses the other.”
I’ve had this one on my pile for a long time and I know it’s April but the Christmas theme is calling to me right now.

Black Widow: Red Vengeance (Black Widow #1) by Margaret Stohl – “The Avengers’ iconic master spy is back, and she’s seeing red.”
It appears that I might need to read book #1 first so this one is a might read for now until I look into it a bit more.

Bought:

I don’t know if I’m about to go through another huge reading genre shift – before blogging I mostly read biographies and travel books – but I’m really getting drawn to non-fiction. The only reason I haven’t dove in is because of how many books I have on my TBR pile. I REALLY need to make a dent before buying dozens of new books. But I did cave and pick this one up.

The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World by Dalai Lama XIV, Desmond Tutu, Douglas Abrams (translator) 

“Two great spiritual masters share their own hard-won wisdom about living with joy even in the face of adversity."

I was flipping through this book at Target and was struck by the humor between the two men and how their religions and approach to life may be different but they so easily saw each others perspectives and did so respectfully. There’s so little of that in our world right now that I want to absorb as much of it as I can wherever I can.



On a non bookish note:

I have a horrible attention span but want to try audio books one day so I started with shorter podcasts.

I’ve been listening to Presidential by The Washington Post and I’m almost done with all 54 presidents! Woo-hoo!

It’s been very illuminating. I remember very little about history and thought I would be bored to death but it’s been fun! It’s not a super heavy history lesson but more a glimpse at the men’s lives so that you understand why they led the way they did or better understand some of the decisions they made. Even my husband, who does know his history, found it interesting. I found the lesser known presidents to be the most interesting which was a surprise.

I also thought by listening to this, I could maybe understand how we got to our current political climate. On that front it gave me conflicted feelings. I’ve learned that we have always been a volatile democracy. So in that sense I felt less worried. America has been through a lot of awful things in the past and we've always come out the other side. On the other hand – we’re always volatile. There’s always been partisanship, corruption and media bias. And now we have the internet to amplify it all. 

That leaves me wondering if we will ever come together. But I digress – it was a good podcast to brush up on the presidency AND yes! I have expanded my attention span so win-win.

Hopefully, I will have read enough to get back to my mini reviews next week.

monday musings…May TBR pile

‘Sup, nerds?

Behold my May reading pile. I’m both intimidated and excited by this one. It’s a bigger TBR pile than usual – so intimidated, but it’s my final big arc pile – so excited. After this, I only have one or two arc’s per month for the next few months. I’m not going to ALA or BEA this year so I will be free and clear to tackle my older books and that’s been my reading goal for 2017.




Let’s take a closer look at the books shall we?

*Title links lead to Goodreads
*Quoted summaries from Goodreads
*All books were either provided by the publisher/or via ALA

~ The Truth About Happily Ever After by Karole Cozzo – “Chin up, Princess, or the crown will slip.
A theme park princess must put her life back together after her happily ever after falls apart in this contemporary YA romance from Karole Cozzo, author of How to Keep Rolling After a Fall and How to Say I Love You Out Loud.”

Sounds like a lighter, fun read

~ Grit by Gillian French – “His presence beside me is like heat, like weight, something I’ve carried around on my back too long.
Raw and moving, this contemporary realistic debut novel will leave readers of E. Lockhart and Gayle Forman breathless as it unflinchingly unfolds the tragic secrets being kept in a small, deceptively idyllic Maine town.”

I’m not too sure about this on TBH but what the hell – I’ll give it a go.

~ I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo “Desi Lee knows how carburetors work. She learned CPR at the age of five. As a high school senior, she has never missed a day of school and has never had a B in her entire life. She's for sure going to Stanford. But—she’s never had a boyfriend. In fact, she’s a disaster in romance, a clumsy, stammering humiliation-magnet whose botched attempts at flirting have become legendary with her friends. So when the hottest human specimen to have ever lived walks into her life one day, Desi decides to tackle her flirting failures with the same zest she’s applied to everything else in her life. She finds her answer in the Korean dramas her father has been obsessively watching for years…”

I’m super excited for this one. It just sounds like an adorable summer read.

~ Done Dirt Cheap by Sarah Nicole Lemon “two girls are stronger than the circumstances that brought them together, and their resilience defines the friendship at the heart of this powerful debut novel.”

The reviews for this one are *best book ever* or *dnf* It sounds fairly dark – a mom in prison, biker clubs, lawyers that don’t respect the law – it could go either way for me I guess but I’m trying to take more chances with my reading so we’ll see.

~ Noteworthy by Riley Redgate “It’s the start of Jordan Sun’s junior year at the Kensington-Blaine Boarding School for the Performing Arts. Unfortunately, she’s an Alto 2, which—in the musical theatre world—is sort of like being a vulture in the wild: She has a spot in the ecosystem, but nobody’s falling over themselves to express their appreciation. So it’s no surprise when she gets shut out of the fall musical for the third year straight.
Then the school gets a mass email: A spot has opened up in the Sharpshooters, Kensington’s elite a cappella octet. Worshiped ... revered ... all male. Desperate to prove herself, Jordan auditions in her most convincing drag, and it turns out that Jordan Sun, Tenor 1, is exactly what the Sharps are looking for.”

Ok – I admit I fell for the cover for this one and had no idea what it was about lol I was happy to see my favorite reviewer – Jen from YA romantics - review on Goodreads saying that she loved it so whoop!

~ When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon “A laugh-out-loud, heartfelt YA romantic comedy, told in alternating perspectives, about two Indian-American teens whose parents have arranged for them to be married.”

This is the book that I’m looking forward to reading the most. *please be good…please be good…*

April reading:

I cleared all 5 books from the April TBR pile. The Upside of Unrequited was my fave, What Light was meh, Alex & Eliza wasn’t quite what I expected but still enjoyable, I DNF’d Black Widow because you really need to have read book #1 and I haven’t, I’m just finishing up Holding Up the Universe – so far it’s pretty good but I’m not blown away.

I read a total of 20 books for the month   

And I’m 23 books ahead on my Goodreads reading challenge:

  

2017 Reading Challenge

Karen has read 62 books toward her goal of 120 books.

hide

62 of 120 (51%)

view books        

If you like the nerd socks in the picture, check out Blue Q Socks. They have a great variety of socks and other items. I bought mine at our local health food grocery story but online they have a bigger NSFW selection that I'm definitely going to be buying 😏

Review: Lover at last (Black Dagger Brotherhood #11) by J.R. Ward

Qhuinn, son of no one, is used to being on his own. Disavowed from his bloodline, shunned by the aristocracy, he has finally found an identity as one of the most brutal fighters in the war against the Lessening Society. But his life is not complete. Even as the prospect of having a family of his own seems to be within reach, he is empty on the inside, his heart given to another....

Blay, after years of unrequited love, has moved on from his feelings for Qhuinn. And it’s about time: The male has found his perfect match in a Chosen female, and they are going to have a young—just as Qhuinn has always wanted for himself. It’s hard to see the new couple together, but building your life around a pipe dream is just a heartbreak waiting to happen. As he’s learned firsthand.

Fate seems to have taken these vampire soldiers in different directions... but as the battle over the race’s throne intensifies, and new players on the scene in Caldwell create mortal danger for the Brotherhood, Qhuinn finally learns the true definition of courage, and two hearts who are meant to be together... finally become one. ~ Goodreads

Review:
I feel like I've waited at least a decade for Qhuinn and Blay's HEA. I know it hasn't actually been that long but I don't think any other BDB couple has had greater obstacles thrown at them than these two. They almost felt insurmountable.

As I waited for their book it was with a mix of total terror that she would write a threesome with Layla and fear that it wouldn't live up to EVERYTHING that I hoped and imagined for Qhuay. Eventually as time passed I became a little blasé about it. I think as a way to buffer my expectations. So really I went in with none.

As always the slang and brand name dropping is overwhelming. It calmed down after a few chapters but man - I almost feel like I'm reading a commercial sometimes. Does Ward get paid for product endorsements? I had always felt it was just her style of writing and rolled with it but now it seems like a product placement quota. The pop culture references were more successful with jabs at Justin Beiber, Miley Cyrus and Honey Boo Boo.

Again with the 500 POV's. I don't even bother to read anything about the lessers anymore. It never matters. Whenever I read the Trez / iAm POV's I kept thinking of the Will i Am Brittany Spears song Scream & Shout. Very distracting. The multiple POV's at least seemed to tie in together better in this book so while I still hate it, I hated it less than usual. It’s just so annoying to be in the middle of something interesting and keep getting pulled away.


 *Thanks a lot for getting this song stuck in my head J.R.

The Brotherhood was a HUGE part of this story and I loved it. They've been scattered or forgotten for so long it just didn't feel like a brotherhood anymore. They really come through for each other and Qhuinn in this book. The BDB is at a major crossroads and it's going to be so cool watching it unfold. I like the new tactic the Band of Brothers is implementing. It could actually work - which is scary in a way the Lessers never are.

I feel like Ward is still adding too many new plot threads while leaving behind many that are unresolved. Friendships that were so important, barely pop up now. A great example is JM, Qhuinn and Blay. They were inseparable many books ago but now have just a few passing conversations. Where the hell is the Scribe Virgin? And without revealing too much - she keeps writing an easy out for characters. First Mary, then Jane....I'm not really worried about anyone anymore if poof! everything can be fixed in a snap.

Qhuinn. He experiences SO much growth in this book. We find out that the rejection from his family has affected his life in more ways than even he realized and why Blay has always been an important person to him. He finally starts to take accountability for his actions and how they have hurt Blay over and over. He steps up and becomes a real male of worth.

Qhuay. Could they ever possibly live up to the expectations I had for them? No, but after some highs and lows I'm pleased with how it all turned out. I have closure and I believe in them as a committed couple. Ward did NOT shy away from the m/m sex scenes. They were hotter than hell but honestly the lack of any emotional connection left me feeling empty at first. Thankfully, we get each of their POV's so we know what they were really thinking and feeling as opposed to how they were acting and what they were saying. Otherwise it just felt like angry sex. Hot - but hollow.

They create a whole lot of unnecessary drama and confusion because they won't just talk to each other but I got it. It felt real to me. Frustrating…but real. Just when I wasn't sure I could be convinced, she delivered in a big way. I'm so so so happy with it all. Closure. *happy sigh*

Layla. I disliked her from the very first time she ever showed up and just hated her more and more with each book. I can't say I love Layla now but I don't hate her anymore. I even felt bad for her. I'm still not a fan of the pregnancy plot. Not just because of the obstacle it created for Qhuay but the motivations for it never rung true to me but it happened and now she's kind of an afterthought to everyone, even though Qhuinn is there for her. But she's no afterthought to Xcor. They have the best scene in the book IMO. I almost melted from their encounter. I truly believe that if Ward doesn't drag their story out over a bijillion books, and thereby water it down, they will be the best couple in the BDB series.

Phury. WHY is this guy the Primal? WHY? His freed Chosen are just left out there confused and to suffer. He has no idea what's going with any of them then comes rushing in passing judgment. *SMACKS upside head*

Final thoughts: I went in without a lot of expectations just so I wouldn't be crushed with disappointment. Despite a bumpy start, the multiple POV's (typical of a BDB book), and lack of the emotional connection I was looking for between Q & B at first, I ended up very satisfied with the conclusion. This felt like a throwback to the earlier BDB stories when being in the Brotherhood meant something. I even managed to accept Layla. I no longer feel like she needs to die. lol I want her to get her HEA. (that was for you Jen S)

Author: Website
Source: Purchased
Buy the book! Lover At Last: A Novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood

friday fast 5

1.

I mentioned on last week’s FF5 that I was going to watch Kubo and the Two Strings on Netflix. I did and it was fantastic! And I loved this version of Guitar Gently Weeps by Regina Spektor that played at the end of the movie.

2.

I love the art of tattooing but most of the television shows I’ve seen are reality shows and that’s not my thing. I stumbled upon Tattoo Age on VICE and it really dives into the artistry and the people behind the tattoo's. Each episode is an hour long and features one artist. Really good show!

3.

I loved this discussion post over at Ksenia’s blog – Something Delicate about book hype

Link: Do you feel hype pressure?

I think every person who has a book blog has dealt with this issue in some way. Go forth to Ksenia’s blog and discuss!

4.

I have VERY limited crafting skills but I saw these cute origami bookmark corners on Instagram and decided to give it a go. It was actually really simple and if I can do it – you can do it!

Here are a few links to get you started if it’s something you want to try.

Simple Trick To Make Your Own Origami Bookmarks – I did method #2

How to Make an Origami Corner Heart Bookmark

If you Google origami bookmarks, you’ll see lots of options like this cat, embellished, monsters, foxes to name just a few.

*Tip: when working with patterned paper, lay the side you want as your color/pattern face down. I actually used to sheets of contrasting paper on the orange and blue ones so there would be contrast. So the inside of the bookmark will be the side facing up when you are folding. Hope that makes sense. I didn’t see that mentioned in any of my tutorials.

*And that really big heart on the bottom right in the top picture is over sized – I was practicing with a larger sheet of paper first. You’ll want to use a 4x4 sheet so it fits on the corner of the page neatly.

5.

And finally – how cute are these book-ish shoes from Groove Bags??!!!

They have sneakers, tote & handbags, socks, pillows for almost any hobby. Photogrophy, horses, cats, sewing, music, theatre, baking…

At the time of writing this post, everything was on sale & a 10% off coupon popped up while I was there.

***
In case you missed it this week on the blog:

Monday mini's
Review: The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli

Happy TGIF everyone!

Random stuff - books, movies, tv…

I see a lot of my blogger friends are struggling with reading/posting lately and I’m right there with you. I’ve reading here and there but nothing that’s wowed me (unfortunately because all of the books were by my favorite authors and I thought they would be slam dunks 😭)

We did finish our kitchen renovations – if you’ve been following that saga on twitter/Instagram and I might do a before and after post soon. I’m really happy with how it turned out. I’m waiting to see if it makes me cook more – or better. lol

Despite my previous post about my out of control TBR pile, I added more books. *shame* But look how pretty! I’m really excited about When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon, The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli, I Believe in a thing Called Love by Maurene Goo, and The Valiant by Lesley Livingston but they all look great.



Non-bookish related fun -

We watched A Series of Unfortunate Events in Netflix and it was so much fun. Dark, smart and very well acted. I haven’t read any of the Lemony Snicket books or seen the movie before so I was a little lost at first but I can see why everyone is so in love with it. My favorite thing is how they didn’t talk down to kids. If there was a difficult word or new concept (like dramatic irony) they weaved the explanation seamlessly into the story. It has already been picked for two more seasons so yay!

And I know I’m way behind the cool kids with this one but we just started Stranger Things, also on Netflix. I’m really enjoying it so far.

We saw Hidden Figures (fantastic!) and the final Resident Evil (not really my thing but Kevin enjoyed it) at the movies.







So what have you all been up to? Any good book/movie/tv rec’s? I hope to have a few reviews up next week. I’ll be reading My Not So perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella next and hopefully it’s the kind of escapist reading fun I’m looking for right now.

And my little fulffball, Fonzi, has to go in for minor surgery on Friday so please send good vibes out way if you can. Please & thank you!

2017 Reviews

A.
Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett (YA, Contemporary) 💓
Alex & Eliza: A Love Story by Melissa de la Cruz (YA, Historical romance)
All In Pieces by Suzanne Young (YA, Contemporary issue/romance)
At Attention (Out of Uniform #2) by Annabeth Albert (M/M, contemporary romance) 💓
Autumn (Crow City 2.75) by Cole McKade (M/M, Contemporary Romance)

B.

Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios (Contemporary, YA) 💓

C.
Coming Up for Air (Hundred Oaks) by Miranda Kenneally (YA, Contemporary) 💓
Covalent Bonds (Red Moon Anthologies Book 3) various authors (Adult, romance)

D.

E.
Enemies Like Us by Anikka Martin, Joanna Chambers (M/M romance) 💓

F.
Faking It (A Ringside Romance Novel) by Christine D'Abo (M/M, contemporary)

G.
Geekerella by Ashley Poston (Contemporary, YA) 💗
The Great Hibernation by Tara Dairman (Mid-Grade)
Grit by Gillian French (YA)

H.
Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven (YA contemporary)

I.
I Believe in a thing Called Love by Maureen Goo (YA, Contemporary Romance)
In Memoriam by Nathan Burgoine (LGBQT, Contemporary, novella)
In Some Other Life by Jessica Brody (YA Contemporary)

J.

K.

L.
Last Seen leaving by Caleb Roehrig (YA, Contemporary, Thriller, LGBQT) 💓

M.
Madly (New York #2) by Ruthie Knox (Adult contemporary romance)
Mature Content (Cyberlove #4) by Megan Erickson & Santino Hassell (M/M, Contemporary Romance)
Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu (YA Contemporary)
Ms. Marve, Volume 1: No Normal (Graphic Novel)
My (Not So) Perfect Life by Sophie Kinsella (Contemporary Romance)

N.
No Good Deed by Kara Connelly (YA, Contemporary Robin Hood Re-telling)
Noteworthy by Riley Redgate (YA Contemporary)

O.
Operation Prom Date (Tactics in Flirting #1) by Cindi Madsen - Contemp romance, YA💓

P.
Paint the Stars by Nyrae Dawn, Christina Lee (NA, M/M, contemporary) 💓
Pashmina by Nidhi Chanani (YA, Graphic Novel)
Perfect Ten by L. Philips (YA, LGBQT, contemporary)
Pip Bartlett's Guide to Magical Creatures #1 by Jackson Pearce and Maggie Steifvater (mid-grade)

Q.

R.

S.
The Sumage Solution (San Andreas Shifters #1) by G.L. Carriger (M/M, PNR)

T.
Tender with a Twist (Rainbow Cove #2) by Annabeth Albert (M/M, contemporary romance) 💓
Trust Me (Paris Nights #3) by Laura Florand (Adult Contemporary Romance)
The Truth About Happily Ever After by Karole Cuzzo (YA contemporary)

U.
The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli (YA, Contemporary, LGBQT)

V.

W.
We Are Okay by Nina LaCour (YA, LGBT)
When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon (YA, Contemporary Romance)
Wild Bird by Wendelin Van Draanen (YA Contemporary)
Wolf by Wolf Duology by Ryan Graudin (YA, Alternative History, Paranormal)