Review: A Breath After Drowning by Alice Blanchard

Title: A Breath After Drowning

Author: Alice Blanchard

Genre: Thriller/Mystery

Pages: 441 (Paperback)

Publisher: Titan Books

Publication date: April 10th, 2018

Synopsis from A Breath After Drowning's Goodreads page

The stunning new psychological thriller from the award-winning author of Darkness Peering and The Breathtaker.

Child psychiatrist Kate Wolfe's world comes crashing down when one of her young patients commits suicide, so when a troubled girl is left at the hospital ward, she doubts her ability to help. But the girl knows things about Kate's past, things she shouldn't know, forcing Kate to face the murky evidence surrounding her own sister's murder sixteen years before, bringing Kate face to face with her deepest fear.

THOUGHTS

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

I have always been a fan of a good murder mystery (I am a die-hard fan of Agatha Christie's books), as well as psychological thrillers. Lately, all I want to read is thrillers! However, I do sometimes find it hard to find a good one that feels different from all the other thrillers that are out there lately. This one is one of those ones that is different, and is really well done!
This book is not a small one - it is a larger thriller, and that made me a bit hesitant going into it. I normally like smaller ones, where there is less details so the details that are there are important. That being said, I FLEW through this book, in 3 days!
I really enjoyed every aspect of this book - I loved how the main character is a child psychologist, and how she slowly starts believing that she is going crazy and losing her mind. I love how we get to see her slow descent into her (supposed) madness (everything makes sense in the end - but there's no spoilers here, so you will have to read the book to find out!)
I also love how the characters were so well thought out; they are all extremely important and there isn't any extra characters sitting around. I love thrillers and mysteries where the author is able to hide the killer in plain sight, not in the background. It really makes the twist at the end more exciting, and more memorable!
The plot itself was also really well done. It was fast-paced and memorable, and every aspect of the plot had some significance. It was very well written, and I loved every part of it.
When I also received this book from Penguin, they sent me a vial with some fake blonde hair in it, as well as a fake hospital bracelet. I was so confused as to why they sent those things, until I read the book, and everything made sense in the end! It really was well thought out to send me those things, because it made me want to get to the end to see why they had sent them to me!
This was my first Alice Blanchard book, and I really want to get my hands on her other books, especially if they are at the same level of amazing as this one was!
Overall - ★★★★☆.5

Review: The Amateurs by Liz Harmer

Title: The Amateurs

Author: Liz Harmer

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 336 (Harcover)

Publisher: Knopf Canada

Publication date: March 21st, 2018

Synopsis from The Amateurs' Goodreads page

PINA, the largest tech company in the world, introduces a product called port. These ports offer space-time travel powered by nostalgia and desire. Want to go back to when your relationship was blossoming? To when your kids were small, or when your parents met? To Elizabethan England? To 1990s Seattle? Easy. Step inside the port with a destination in mind, and you will be transported. But there is a catch: it's possible that you cannot come back. And the ports are incredibly seductive, drawing in those with weaker wills...
Nearly everyone buys the ports, and soon, nearly everyone is gone. Those who are left attempt to sort out how to survive in this world nearly devoid of humans. Animals are increasing in numbers, roads are degrading, the Internet is down, and gasoline is running out. The survivors are also left with numerous unguarded ports, which are as mysterious as they are threatening.
In this world we follow a motley crew camped out in the abandoned mansions and stately church of a former steel-town that has seen its own share of collapse and growth. The group of about thirty adults and children are looting and surviving on what food they can find. But the harsh winter is fast approaching--do they make the choice to head south as a group, or wait to see if their loved ones will return through the ports?
The Amateurs focuses on a thirty-something artist and shopkeeper, Marie. She has never gotten over her ex-husband, Jason, and stubbornly hopes he'll return to her from his new marriage and from the world beyond the port. Meanwhile, in California, life at PINA is breaking down. Brandon, the former head of PR and right-hand man to Albrecht Doors, the mad genius who invented the ports, decides to get out while he still can. He steals a solar-powered car and drives north-east, where he hopes to find his missing mother, and start a new life, maybe a family. And there he meets Marie.

THOUGHTS

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

I was SO insanely excited for this book when I saw the possibility of getting a copy for review. I'm a massive science fiction nerd and when I read the synopsis for this book, I was SUPER excited. Not only that, but it takes place in Canada, in Southern Ontario, which is where I'm from! Nothing is cooler than going into a book and when the characters talk about streets and roads and being able to picture them perfectly because you have been to the city multiple times (it takes place in Hamilton!). So that made me have really high expectations, and although I enjoyed the book, it did have some flaws in my opinion.
The Amateurs takes place in the not so far future, and makes the reader contemplate what every character in the book contemplates - if you could go anywhere, any time, where would you go? and, WOULD you go? This book really makes the reader question their beliefs and their values, and that is really refreshing in a science fiction book.
I really enjoyed a lot of the aspects of the story. I loved the setting of the story because I was so easily able to connect with it, because I've been to Hamilton. I loved the way that the author was so descriptive of the buildings and the escarpment, how even little details were very well described, which made it really easy to picture.
I also really enjoyed how the author made some outlandish ideas seem just commonplace. All the tech, PINAphones and other tech devices, were spoken of as though they exist in the real world and we should know exactly what they are. The only qualm I had about this is I wish that she had described them a little better - there were some things I was a little confused about, and other things that my nerdy self wanted a bit more detail of.
I also enjoyed the characters themselves. There were not too many in the story, so it was very easy to keep them all straight and to remember which ones are which. I loved how they all fought and bickered and communicated, but were still families and still were able to work together.
The only problem that I had with the characters were that they didn't seem to develop a drastic amount. I found that only the main male and the main female character developed in any truly noticeable way, and even then, it was really only one major decision by either of them that showed any true development. I wish there had been a bit more from them; I feel like the story could have gone in so many more directions if there had been more monumental moments and decisions from the two main characters.
The plot itself I enjoyed, and the idea of the story itself I absolutely loved. I just wish that there had been more of the time during which the ports were being created and going around the world, when the population had been drastically dropping. The book itself takes place completely after the world's population has been demolished by the ports, and I feel like if there had been more talk and more flashbacks of the time during the ports that more could have happened in the book itself.
Overall, I thought that the book was dark, but enlightening, and that it was bold and one of the most creative books that I have read in a long time!
Overall - ★★★★☆

Review: Other People's Houses by Abbi Waxman

Title: Other People's Houses

Author: Abbi Waxman

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Pages: 352 (Paperback)

Publisher: Berkley Books

Publication date: April 3rd, 2018

Synopsis from Other People's Houses Goodreads page

And now the author of The Garden of Small Beginnings returns with a hilarious and poignant new novel about four families, their neighborhood carpool, and the affair that changes everything.

At any given moment in other people's houses, you can find...repressed hopes and dreams...moments of unexpected joy...someone making love on the floor to a man who is most definitely not her husband...

*record scratch*

As the longtime local carpool mom, Frances Bloom is sometimes an unwilling witness to her neighbors' private lives. She knows her cousin is hiding her desire for another baby from her spouse, Bill Horton's wife is mysteriously missing, and now this...

After the shock of seeing Anne Porter in all her extramarital glory, Frances vows to stay in her own lane. But that's a notion easier said than done when Anne's husband throws her out a couple of days later. The repercussions of the affair reverberate through the four carpool families--and Frances finds herself navigating a moral minefield that could make or break a marriage.

THOUGHTS

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

I have heard a lot of buzz around this book, especially from a lot of book bloggers and booktubers in the US, because it was featured on Book of the Month a few months ago. Ever since I heard of it, I was instantly interested in getting my hands on it!
Other People's Houses is about how one single decision can ruin more than one person's life, and ruin it to the point of no repair. It was so sad but also so funny, however this book is definitely for a more mature audience!
There were so many different characters in this book, so many crazy kids, so many out-there parents, that there was always something crazy going on throughout the entire story. That was an aspect of the book that I really enjoyed - that everyone got an equal amount of time in the story, and how every group of people had their own problems and how they were each just trying to live their lives and work through it. I really enjoyed the kind of "secret look" into each and every married couples' lives, and I thought that it was really interesting how they each had their own problems.
Also being said about the characters, is that they were all different and they were all unique in their own way. With a book this length with the amount of characters that there is, I was really expecting to struggle keeping up with all of the characters and how they were all connected. But each one of them had some either redeeming quality or some quality that drove me CRAZY, so it was easier to keep them straight than I thought it was going to be!
Another thing that I really liked about the book was how everyone had something either bad or just difficult happening in their lives. I don't want to say that I like bad things happening to characters that I like, but it makes them easier to connect with if they have something bad happening in their lives that impacts them in some way. Seeing characters struggling to deal with things, in my opinion, makes it easier to like them and easier to see parts of yourself in them as well. Having each character dealing with something made the story itself more realistic.
I did have a few issues with the story, however. Personally, I didn't like the ending, because to me it seemed a bit rushed and a bit unrealistic given what happens to the characters throughout the story. I found it to be a bit rushed and a bit forced, and that made the book not quite as good as it had been to me.
Overall I did enjoy this book! The characters were realistic, the plot was easily followed and the story line was quirky and interesting!
Overall - ★★★☆☆.5

Stacking the Shelves (2): So Many Books

Hello everyone!
Stacking the Shelves is a tag that I've seen around the book world, where people talk about the books and bookish things that they've acquired over the last little while.
Since the stack of books on my desk has gotten fairly large, I figured I'd do another one!
These are all the books I've gotten recently!

Adult books:

1. The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
2. Bachelor Girl by Kim Van Alkemade
3. I Found You by Lisa Jewell
4. The Light We Lost by Kill Santopolo
5. War at the Edge of the World by Ian Ross
6. City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty
7. Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker
8. All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda
9. Local Girl Missing by Claire Douglas

Teen books:

1. The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline
2. History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera
3. A List of Cages by Robin Roe
4. The Beauty That Remains by Ashley Woodfolk
5. I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

I'm super excited to get to all of these books!

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