To All The Boys I've Loved Before by Jenna Han

I had seen this book at the store many times and thought, one day I will get to it. About a week before I decided to read it, my sister told me to watch the movie, which I did. I am one of those people that if I loved the movie and there is a book about it, I want to read it really bad. Which brings me to this: I loved this book. It took me just over a day to read the entire thing. That may not seem all that great but with work, and other commitments, I really did not have that much time. I burned through it, and loved it just as much as I loved the movie.

There will be spoilers so if you have yet to read this or watch the movie and do not want to know what happens, then stop reading.

Lara Jean is a quirky high school student who write love letters to boys she "loves". The letters are never meant to get out, but one day they do. You find out near the end it was her little sister Kitty who sent them out, and if you are like me, you figure it out right away.

The first person who confronts her about her letters is Peter. Peter seems like your typical high school Jock. He this handsome, athletic, people love him, and he thinks he can get whatever he wants. He seems like a douche. Luckily, you find out he is not a douche and along with Lara Jean you start to fall for his charms. He is super cute, and you can tell that he starts to really like her before they bring that out in the story. You really start to hope that it works out.

Then there is Josh. Lara Jean's best friend/sister's boyfriend turned ex. He is sweet, and gets along great with the whole family, and is devastated when Margot (Lara Jean's oldest sister) breaks up with him before she goes away to college. You feel sorry for him, mostly because you at some point in your own life have had someone break up with someone who felt life family because of the relationship. At the beginning you hope that Lara Jean and Josh get together because she liked him first, and you feel for her. As the story goes you find that Josh needs to move on, find someone else and the Lara Jean and Peter are better together. When he kisses her, I cringed because I did not want them together. It was going to ruin everything, and in turn caused her and Margot to have a bad sister fight.

Which brings me to Margot. For the majority of this story, I did not like her at all. She was cold, self-righteous, and not very friendly. She also was mean to Lara Jean about Peter. She only tried to give him a chance after being rude and mean about him for the first bit. Eventually she comes around and I am hoping in book 2, that she is much nicer.

This story was filled with high school love, and drama, and mean girls. The family bond was really fun to read. Also.. Kitty gets her puppy. :)

Empress Unveiled by Jenna Morland

I was very excited for this novel to come out. I follow Jenna on Facebook and Instagram, and I am friends with her sister, so I heard a lot about this novel before it finally ended up in my hands. All of the anticipation was worth it. I start writing this review before I have finished the book, but only so I can get my thoughts on what has happened until now before all hell breaks look in the book.
** THERE WILL BE SPOILERS*** so if you do not want to hear about things that happen in the book, please stop reading now.

I am 73% finished as of writing this part of the review... we will see if my views change but as of right now I am on #TeamTyler. I always love the best friend who is in love with the protagonist in most stories. He has been there for her through everything she has gone through. How can you do anything but love him? Yes he is a teenage jock who can be an ass, but only when his ego gets bruised or hes trying to protect his own feelings. I am happy to say that Mellie thinking she had a chance then being publicly "humiliated" by Tyler and Swayzi kissing was perfect in my mind.

Now that I have gotten that off my chest lets talk about the story. When I first heard that her name was Swayzi, I was worried this was going to be an interesting book. Once you get to know the characters and reason behind how she was named, then it makes too much sense. The beginning of the story plays with your heartstrings. She's going to die. Most people know there would be no story if she actually dies, but Jenna still makes you feel for Swayzi, Linda (her mom), Penelope and Tyler. They all think she will die and are doing what they can to make her last part of life the best they can.

From the very beginning you can tell Tyler is in love with her. He never goes to far away in case something happens to her, he feels he needs to be there. He is very protective of her, which you can tell when she breaks down at Mellie's party. Can I just say... I HATE MELLIE!! She is the embodiment of the type of girls I cannot stand in life.

Tyler and Penelope save Swayzi from the party and her breakdown. Tyler later sneaks into her room and takes her away to hopefully make the night better and to talk to her. This is when it starts to get interesting, as Sway sees three people supposed to be getting executed, screams and saves them. Dayan is now into the story.

I know some people are #TeamDaylan, and hes kinda awesome... but he needs to find someone else to love in my opinion. Like I said, that opinion may change based on what happens next.

Swayzi keeps hoping to see Daylan again, and when she does she also is feeling better which we find out she has been magically healed, at least temporarily. Daylan is a Faerie and here to try and protect Sway now, along with his siblings. Swayzi finds out about this, and that her best friend Penelope is a witch all within a short period of time. Just after they all get attacked by the bad guys minions. The bad guys name is Medallion, hes an evil Faerie who wants to do bad things. Everyone makes it out of the fight, and it all becomes real to Swayzi.

She also finds out that the magic keeping her alive is coming from Daylan, because of his life in Empress which is where Swayzi's father was the king. She has to be ready to fight to take back the throne, move away from her mother and Tyler, and be a Queen, all while being a teenager who is in love with two guys. Classic YA fantasy story line, but written really well.

Time to finish the novel so I can finish this review... which I will also leave this part in because, you know, whimsy.

I finished it. Loved the battle and how Tyler showed up after Swayzi said whatever she could to hurt him so he would stay home. Using a gun to try and take down a faerie was great. Finding out that the Aura around the Tengu was not real was a nice twist. My heart broke a bit when Medallion's sword went through Tyler, and essentially killed him. Or did he? I guess we wait til book two to find out, but I do not think he has died and I am still firmly on Team Tyler.

The epilogue is a little heart wrenching when Linda gets home to celebrate Swayzi's birthday to find out she had gone. I could feel how devastated she was when she read the letter, and the hope when she ran to Tyler's house. Hopefully knowing Tyler is with her will make Linda feel better, until Swayzi returns home... because I have a feeling she will. She will be Queen but she will find a way to make it work so she can be with her mom and Tyler.

Well done Jenna, this was one of the best novels I have read from a first time author. I did not feel like there was any filler or dead story spots, and the writing was really good. Can't wait for book two!

Doctor And King by Camille Esther

I was given this ARC from Voracious Readers for an honest review. 
There will be spoilers in this review, so if you do not want to know, then please refrain from reading. 

A twist on sleeping beauty, how many different ways can tales be told? Well this one definitely was not what I expected in the best possible way. I expected there to be very large undertones of the original story, but it was more of a light dusting. When Gervaise finds Vannie, poisoned and almost dead, and saves her with medicine and not a kiss, I knew this was going to be different. 

We all know the story, a prince saves the princess and they live happily ever after. There is always one main conflict that the prince overcomes to get to his "true love" that he has only known for a day. Although I love fairy tales, the falling in love in a day is complete crap. This version however, focus' on the two of them getting to know each other in perilous conditions, after he saves her life. They try to not fall in love but start building a friendship which blooms into love. Both of them know they are to marry someone and dread it, however they are falling in love with their betrothed. Small things happen that cause them too see each other as humans, and not the king or princess of a kingdom... It does help that neither are aware of who the other person is. 

The two of them go through a lot together, running from "King's men" trying to kill Vannie, Highway men wanting a reward, and Vannie trying to run away from Gervaise. As the story moves on you can tell the two of them are falling for each other, which gives you the warm and fuzzies because as a reader we know they will end up together. (I say before I finish the novel... there could be a twist)

You do find out how Vannie was poisoned and who the culprit to that is. I had a guess that it was one of her cousins, and I was right. Clara... the overbearing motherly figure who plays her part of doting cousin well. She was smart enough to let her sister, the sweet and actual loving Constance believe it was her fault Vannie ate the mushroom. It wasn't. 

When Vannie gets back to the castle to see her father, and finally realizes that she had been with her betrothed, I could imagine the look on her face as she put those pieces together. The author made it clear as day how that would have gone down. Then you find out the king is ill which is why he wants her married off. 

One of my favorite parts of the novel are when Gervaise figures out how to get onto Vannie's veranda to protect her. Mistakes the maid for a heathen and breaks into the room, and Vannie helps him get out without being caught. Carla, the horrible human she is, makes sure its known it was him. 

The last 100 pages were very hard to put down. I just needed to know how it was going to end, although I already knew. When Gervaise goes to sleep in the Romeo and Juliet style, I was worried that it would not end well. Luckily there was nothing to worry about. He beat the evil Clara and the fight that ensued was intense. Clara was not killed but forced to live her life as a prisoner. Her not being killed leaves it open for a second novel should the author chose. I was very happy with how the story ended, and how they got their happily ever after. I look forward to reading more from her in the future. 

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood.

This is my review of  The Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood, both the TV show and the novel. I will be discussing differences between the two, and which I enjoyed more than the other. I will also have spoilers for both, so if you have not read or watched,  you may not want to read this.

The Handmaid's Tale is a story about a "New" country made inside of the USA named Gilead. Gilead exists by the commanding group taking away the rights of privileges that women have come to know. Women can no longer own land, work, read, write or do anything that makes them similar to a man. The exception being the "Aunts" who are allowed to read and write. There are different types of women; Handmaids, Wives, Marthas, Econowives and Unwomen.

This story is about a handmaid named Offred. Handmaids are women who essentially get raped once a month to get pregnant by their Commander so his barren wife can have a baby. I kid you not, that is really her sole purpose for this whole new world. She is chosen by the government for this because she has done something they see as bad in her past, and have proven she is fruitful.

Her Commander seems like a dick. He does things because he can, and knows he will be able to get away with it. He breaks rules just to show that he has the power. He likes Offred because she was considered smart before all her rights and freedoms were taken away. The Wife, in the novel seems like a bitter old fool who just wants a baby. The Wife on the show I liked more than the woman in the book. Serena Joy in the show was younger, and you got more of a sense of who she was, and you get to see that she really wants that baby. Serena Joy from the show, you also get to see her back story a bit and they she was a huge part in bringing Gilead to fruition. As the second season happens, which is after the novel has finished you can see she has some regrets to what she has done, but won't admit it.

As the story moves on, you get to see that Offred, whose real name is June, gets paired up with Ofglen for all the Handmaid duties. These duties include shopping everyday, going for their walks, and being paired up whenever they have to do something as a group. While reading the novel you find out very little about Ofglen, just that Offred learns to trust her, and then she takes her own life to get out of being punished or killed by Gilead for not being a true believer. Ofglen in the TV is much more complex. You get to know that she is a married lesbian with a child. Gilead called lesbians and gays, gender traders. Ofglen being a gender trader which a child, is why she was made a handmaid.

Offred is not happy, but she learns to try to enjoy small things she has been given. She plays scrabble with the Commander, talks a bit with Ofglen, and has a sexual if not romance with Nick. The novel does not go into too much detail for what goes on between her and Nick, however the show played out the relationship more and showed how that little bit of love in weird world can make a huge difference.

One big difference from the novel to the show, was at the end of the show Offred was confirmed pregnant. She also defied the government in a public manner which is where Mayday was able to take her away with a reason before the bad guys could.

All in all the book and tv show were both good, I enjoyed both. The show however, I enjoyed a bit more.

22 Scars by CM North

I was given this ARC from Voracious Readers for an honest review. TRIGGER WARNING ** This novel deals with depression, suicide, mental and physical abuse as well as rape. If any of these are a trigger for you, please do not read this book. 

I really enjoyed this book. That may be hard to believe based on the theme of what you are reading. So let me explain.

This novel is raw, powerful and shows what it can be like for someone who is depressed and suicidal.
22 Scares has 2 different story lines that finally weave themselves together near the end.

It starts out with Amy, a teenage girl who wears goth clothing and makeup, and is obviously suffering. Her one light in her life is her friend Beth. Beth is a positive influence, who Amy flocks to trying to make herself feel better. Beth is keeping Amy afloat in her life. Then Beth dies, and Amy goes into a greater tailspin of depression and sadness. Her mom tries to get her help, but her dad is a douche and thinks she just wants attention.
Through out the whole Amy part of the story, you can feel how much pain she is in. You want to help her and you want to smack her dad for being a complete useless jackass. When Beth died, I cried because it was so heartbreaking that someone who was such a light in their own lives and the lives of their friends was taken away. Amy felt like she had no one, and all I wanted was for someone to come into her life and save her.

The second story we find out near the end, is the story of Amy's parents. How they met, fell in love, and fell into the resentment ridden relationship they are in now. Amy's dad originally was a great guy, until he physically and mentally abused her mom. For some reason Amy's mom stays with him, they get married, he disappoints her over and over. She no longer trusts him, so he tries to build the trust back... just to get her to have sex with him. He fails at building that amount of trust, but she lets him back into their bed for sleeping. Night one, HE RAPES HER. Yes, this man rapes his wife and doesn't feel any remorse. He is a complete narcissistic asshole. 
I have read many books with many deplorable characters, but Amy's dad is right up at the top of my hate list. He is what is wrong with parts of our society today. He thinks he is entitled to what he wants and does not actually care about what it means to take it without permission. 

The end of the book is really well written but hard to read. Amy finds out she was a product of rape. Her last chance at finding someone to help her out of her depression does not call or text her. She ends her life just like you expect from the beginning. Its so sad how people can see she needs help, but she never gets what she needs. I was so upset when I was done. The last chapter is diary entries from Amy. Even though I knew that she had taken her own life I was hoping that there would be an entry after she had been saved in the hospital.
This novel was more like real life than most. There was no real sugar coating of how it feels to be Amy, which is pretty powerful. I will be seeing what else this author comes out with, as the writing and story were very well done. I did not want to put it down. I kept reading hoping for the happy ending that I never got, but that would have been to easy. This was hard, and what really happens in normal peoples lives all over the world. This story now has a piece of my soul, and it belongs to Amy.

Eloy's Discovery by Kara Timmins

I was given this ARC from Voracious Readers for an honest review.

This review has spoilers for the story. If you do not want to know what happens, please stop reading.

 

The beginning of this story started out slow, and there seemed to be a lot of wordiness that were not needed. At times during the first few chapters I also felt the author used big words for the sake of sounding like she was smart, however as the story progresses she stops doing this, which makes the story more enjoyable.

I felt like there were two possible times for a climax in this story, and both were underwhelming. When Eloy and Corwin find the underground city and meet Evas there is build up as to why the city lives underground. The night when Eloy and Corwin are out to see what the evil creatures are was well written. You worried about if they would make it through the night, and when they are discovered you start to panic a bit that they won't make it.... Well Corwin anyway, as the story is about Eloy so you know he will get through it. Eloy then comes up with a viable plan, and they work towards this plan. Once the put into the motion the burning of the creatures, I feel like other than Charlin having to sacrifice himself to start the fires, but the fact that Corwin ended up with a scratch and Eloy was fine, doesn't seem realistic. There should have been more detail in this scene, and more injuries, even if they live through them, it should have been a little more realistic than barely anything. I was a little disappointed with this part of the story because of all of the build up to it that it should have been more exciting.

I enjoyed when Eloy and Corwin went back to the Bowl. The description of Corwin learning they were going back, and how angry he was, was very well done. Going back to something that changed who those little boys were was great. When they find that the Bowl is no longer filled with people they are creating to just be war fodder, and their disappointment that Tudek is lost to insanity, and no longer the man they hated was very well done. You felt the anger, sadness and relief when they got out again. That horrible time in their lives was over, and they never had to go back to it. It also gave Eloy a lead to where Francena was. 

Which brings me to the second possible climax of the story, and again it was underwhelming. I felt like Francena fell into Eloy's lap too easily. His determination to find his sister is a main theme throughout the whole book, and then he just finds her after he gets his first lead. I understand that she ended up being treated well, but it should not have been so easy. Even if the person who came out of the house with an arrow to his face was someone else, and they bring him into the house to try and figure out what he wants from them, and eventually she comes in, would have been better then him walking in front of the house too many times and she bolts out. It was too easy. I expected more, because of the arc of the storyline of her being taken. It just wasn't enough. 

Francena's relationship with Corwin however, I like. She has not been broken, or burdened with a loveless marriage, and now she can love, and so can he. Corwin and Eloy have been through so much together that it is nice to have something good happen for him. Eloy will not get his happy ending til the end of the third book. 

Although there were things I would change about this book, I did enjoy it. I look forward to the rest of the series and to finding out what the heck that stone opens.