Review: I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

Title: I Have Lost My Way

Author: Gayle Forman

Genre: Contemporary

Pages: 304 (Hardcover)

Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers

Publication date: March 27th, 2018

Synopsis from I Have Lost My Way's Goodreads page

Around the time that Freya loses her voice while recording her debut album, Harun is making plans to run away from everyone he has ever loved, and Nathaniel is arriving in New York City with a backpack, a desperate plan, and nothing left to lose. When a fateful accident draws these three strangers together, their secrets start to unravel as they begin to understand that the way out of their own loss might just lie in help­ing the others out of theirs. 

An emotionally cathartic story of losing love, finding love, and discovering the person you are meant to be, I Have Lost My Way is best­selling author Gayle Forman at her finest.

THOUGHTS

I received a finished copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review -- Thank you Penguin Random House!

I've always been a fan of Gayle Forman, having read her If I Stay duology when I was in high school. So when I saw that she had a new book coming out, I HAD to get my hands on it!
I Have Lost My Way is told from three perspectives - Freya who lost her voice and is an up and coming singer, Harun, a closeted gay youth who just wants to be the perfect son, and Nathaniel, who is running from a lot of problems and is trying to figure out a way that he can be the person he wants to be.
Every character in this book was extremely well thought out, and each was unique and relate able in some way or another. They all had some amazing qualities, and they all had issues and problems that everyone is able to understand or relate to in some way. Some of the issues tackled in this book are mountainous for young people, such as being a part of the LGBTQ+ community, trying to be the perfect son/daughter, and trying to figure out who you are and not have anyone disappointed in you because of it.
The story itself is heart-breaking in the best way possible, although it was super hard for me to read at times. Every aspect was hard to read because it is always hard to read something where the characters are struggling so much, especially when you are invested in the characters and what happens to them. With that being said, it is an amazing book. All of the issues were tackled very well, and I couldn't have thought of a better way for the characters to be able to get through them.
However, I did find that the book should have been a bit longer than it actually is. 304 pages is not small, considering that it did take place in one day, but I feel that a lot more could have been added to it. A bit more detail, a few more conversations.
The ending also I found was believable, but I wish that there had been a bit more to it. Another chapter or two, or even just an epilogue. What happens to these three people who just met that morning after that last moment? (I so badly want to talk about it but spoilers are awful - you'll have to read the book to find out exactly what happens!)
I Have Lost My Way comes out today - March 27th! Be sure to check it out!
Overall - ★★★☆☆.75

Review: A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena (ARC)

Title: A Girl Like That

Author: Tanaz Bhathena

Genre: Contemporary

Pages: 369 (Paperback - ARC)

Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers

Publication date: February 28th, 2018

Synopsis from A Girl Like That's Goodreads page

A timeless exploration of high-stakes romance, self-discovery, and the lengths we go to love and be loved. 

Sixteen-year-old Zarin Wadia is many things: a bright and vivacious student, an orphan, a risk taker. She’s also the kind of girl that parents warn their kids to stay away from: a troublemaker whose many romances are the subject of endless gossip at school.  You don't want to get involved with a girl like that, they say. So how is it that eighteen-year-old Porus Dumasia has only ever had eyes for her? And how did Zarin and Porus end up dead in a car together, crashed on the side of a highway in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia? When the religious police arrive on the scene, everything everyone thought they knew about Zarin is questioned. And as her story is pieced together, told through multiple perspectives, it becomes clear that she was far more than just a girl like that. 

This beautifully written debut novel from Tanaz Bhathena reveals a rich and wonderful new world to readers. It tackles complicated issues of race, identity, class, and religion, and paints a portrait of teenage ambition, angst, and alienation that feels both inventive and universal.

THOUGHTS

I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review -- Thank you Raincoast Books!!

When I first started this book, I had no expectations. I don't mean that in a bad way, I just mean that no one I know had ever even heard of it, so I had no people telling me that it was good, or bad, or mediocre, or just any thoughts whatsoever. I also had very little knowledge, which was a nice change for once. It was nice to be able to go into a book, with no expectations, no thoughts from other people, and no real knowledge of what the book was about.
Saying that, I really enjoyed this book. I don't see a lot of diverse books around - which has been changing lately and I'm super happy about it - but there still aren't a lot of diverse books. It was refreshing to be able to read a beautiful, diverse book, and to be able to submerge myself into a  culture that I know very little about.
Onto the story itself! The plot of this book was beautiful and heart-wrenching, it made me feel happy and sad (mostly sad) to see how some of the girls were treated and to see how Zarin especially was being treated by the other girls in her school. It was heart-wrenching and so sad and made me just want to be friends with Zarin to try and just help her through all of the things that she was going through in her life. At the very least, she did have Porus, who I adored in every single way. He was so sweet and kind, and he was basically Zarin's knight in shining armor, even if she refused to believe it.
The characters were all also amazing, with every single character being believable, from the good ones to the bad ones. It's very hard to create a contemporary character who is a bad person seem not TOO bad, without it being believable, but Tanaz Bhathena did an amazing job of it. Every single character was written perfectly, being believable the whole way through, and the development of every single one of them making them even more so.
The only reason this book wasn't a 5/5 stars for me was because I found Zarin to be a little bit annoying at times (which I completely understand is one of the most important parts of her personality, and is a major influence in the book and the story itself) but it was just a litttleee bit too  much for me. Other than that, it was perfectly written. This was a beautiful, powerful story, and I am privileged to have been able to read it.
A Girl Like That came out just last week, and everyone should read it!
Overall - ★★★★☆

Review: Suitors and Sabotage by Cindy Anstey (ARC)

Title: Suitors and Sabotage

Author: Cindy Anstey

Genre: Contemporary

Pages: 336 (Paperback - ARC)

Publisher: Swoon Reads

Publication date: April 17th, 2018

Synopsis from Suitors and Sabotage's Goodreads page

Shy aspiring artist Imogene Chively has just had a successful Season in London, complete with a suitor of her father's approval. Imogene is ambivalent about the young gentleman until he comes to visit her at the Chively estate with his younger brother in tow. When her interest is piqued, however, it is for the wrong brother. 

Charming Ben Steeple has a secret: despite being an architectural apprentice, he has no drawing aptitude. When Imogene offers to teach him, Ben is soon smitten by the young lady he considers his brother's intended. 

But hiding their true feelings becomes the least of their problems when, after a series of "accidents," it becomes apparent that someone means Ben harm. And as their affection for each other grows—despite their efforts to remain just friends—so does the danger. . .

THOUGHTS

I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review -- Thank you Raincoast Books!!

I had never seen or heard about this book before, until I was perusing through the the publishers catalogue, and came across this beautiful cover, and I was immediately interested. I absolutely love cute contemporary books, especially ones that take place in the 1800s. I immediately wanted to read it, and I'm glad I did!
This book is about a young woman in the 1817s who is courting a young man...but somehow begins to fall in love with his younger brother, and the problems that ensue because of it. It's a sweet, beautiful contemporary book with a bit of a mysterious twist to it!
I'm going to start off by saying that I adored the writing style of this book. It was heartfelt and sweet, and it was beautifully written. I found a few small things about this book that bothered me a little bit, but overall I enjoyed it and I'm happy I read it.
I find that sometimes the romance between two characters can be forced in some ways, but this is definitely not the case here! I loved how Imogene and Ben were falling in love slowly, even though they try everything in their power not to. They fall for each other without any warning, and I enjoyed how it didn't feel forced in any way. It felt like they had no control over it, and it was just the way that it was supposed to be. And the ending!! Oh, the ending crushed me in the best way possible.
I also enjoyed how this book was a cute romance story, instead of a steamy one. It was cute and sweet and funny and awkward, which is exactly how young love is supposed to be. I loved how the characters were embarrassed by the little things they did awkwardly, as well as how they were flirting and the build up to the ending. The love story felt real and not forced, and the characters seemed to be the ones controlling the story.
With that said, I found the book to be a bit slow at the beginning, and that there was quite a gap between the actual beginning of the book and the beginning of the story itself. The beginning was a bit difficult to get into, as the action didn't really start until about 50-60 pages in. However, once I hit that point, I flew through the book and read the rest in one sitting.
The book also has a bit of a mysterious aspect to it, as there are "accidents" that keep happening and keep either getting Ben into trouble, or almost killing him. I really enjoyed how the characters reacted to these "accidents" and how the girls were doing everything in their power to try and get to the bottom of them. The only problem I had was that I think that the way the person who was causing these accidents was found out was a bit unrealistic - with them just outright saying that it was them. With the mystery that was being built up through the entire book about these "accidents", I would have enjoyed it better and found it more realistic if one of the main characters had found out who it was and confronted them, or found evidence to prove it, instead of the person doing it out and out saying that it was them.
I did thoroughly enjoy the book with that being said, and I found the characters to be well developed, the conversations to be awkward and sweet, and I loved every single character (even the bad person), and the writing was a perfect fit for the story that was being told. Be sure to check this book out when it comes out in April!
Overall - ★★★☆☆.5

Stacking the Shelves (1): The Start

Hi everyone! I've seen quite a few people posting a tag called "Stacking the Shelves", in which they share the books and bookish things that they've acquired over the last while. Since I've realized that a monthly haul isn't good for me (it makes me feel like I need to buy books for something to post) I've decided to give this a go! I'll post these irregularly (whenever the stack of new books on my desk reaches a certain point!)
These are all the books I've gotten recently!

Adult books:

1. Perfect Remains by Helen Fields
2. If You Knew Her by Emily Elgar
3. In a Cottage in a Wood by Cass Green
4. An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
5. The Dragon's Path by Daniel Abraham
6. The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst
7. The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn
8. How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

Teen books:

1. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert
2. Scythe by Neal Shushterman
3. Suitors and Sabotage by Cindy Anstey
4. A Girl like That by Tanaz Bhathena

February 2018 Wrap-Up

Hi everyone! Last month was a pretty good reading month for me, considering that I'm in university, but I had a fair amount to say about every book I read, so I figured that I would do a wrap-up for the month.
The books I read:

      1. The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan
This was the first book I read this month, and I enjoyed it! It was written in a very different way, with each page being a new word in the dictionary, and the story being told using each word as a different part of the story. It was weird, but in a good way.
I have a full review of The Lover's Dictionary here if you want to read more of my thoughts!

      2. How to Stop Time by Matt Haig

This one I've been looking forward to reading for awhile. I read Matt Haig's Reasons to Stay Alive over the summer, and even though that that book was non-fiction and How to Stop Time is fiction, I knew that it was going to be great because I love his writing style. He writes in a beautiful way, and you can tell that a lot of thought goes into his work.

I absolutely loved this book, I loved how it was told, how it had famous characters like Shakespeare and Fitzgerald in it, and I found that the entire book was wonderfully created and the build up to the ending was amazing. I highly recommend it!

      3. Unraveling Oliver by Liz Nugent

This is a psychological thriller that I personally found to be more of a psychological analysis, of sorts. It focuses solely on the character of Oliver, and even though I was expecting more of a thriller, the aspects of a thriller were there and I definitely enjoyed the book overall.

I have a full review of Unraveling Oliver here if you want to read more of my thoughts!

      4. The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn

This one is also a psychological thriller, and I quite enjoyed this one too. I found the plot to be a bit slow for the first 100 pages or so, but when it did pick up the pace, it REALLY picked up the pace. I enjoyed all the characters and the plot overall, and the ending really shocked me.

I have a full review of The Woman in the Window here if you want to read more of my thoughts!

      5. The Wicked + The Divine Vol 6 by Kieron Gillen

I've had mixed feelings about all of these graphic novels in this series, as can be seen by my review of the first five volumes here. I've loved some, and I've hated others, and this one sits more on the disliked side than the loved side.

I enjoyed the artwork in this one, as it was consistent and I could easily follow it through, but I found the story to be a bit lackluster in this volume. Some of the volumes in this series were fast-paced all the way through, but I found this one to be more of a filler between the fourth, and the seventh (which I will have to wait until it comes out to see how much of a filler this volume was).

Overall, it was alright, and I'll definitely read the next volume to see if it will pick up a bit.

      6. Suitors and Sabotage by Cindy Anstey

I was kindly sent an ARC of this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This was the last book that I read this month. After all of the psychological thrillers I was reading, I wanted a lighter, cute contemporary read to finish my month off with.

Overall, I quite enjoyed this book. It was a super sweet and lighthearted romance story that took place in the 1800s, with a bit of a mysterious twist to it, which was a nice change!

I have full review of this here