My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick

My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick
Release Date - June 14, 2012
Publisher Website - Penguin
Publisher Social Media - Twitter
Pages - 394 pages
My Rating - 4/5
**borrowed from a friend for review**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

"One thing my mother never knew, and would disapprove of most of all, was that I watched the Garretts. All the time."

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, messy, affectionate. And every day from her rooftop perch, Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs up next to her and changes everything.

As the two fall fiercely for each other, stumbling through the awkwardness and awesomeness of first love, Jase's family embraces Samantha - even as she keeps him a secret from her own. Then something unthinkable happens, and the bottom drops out of Samantha's world. She's suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?

A transporting debut about family, friendship, first romance, and how to be true to one person you love without betraying another. 

The boy next door. It's a romantic cliche for a reason and Huntley Fitzpatrick showcases exactly why the guy next door can be oh so swoon worthy in My Life Next Door. A novel filled with romance, family, and just the right amount of drama. A sweet, sensitive look at falling in love while finding yourself.

This is the kind of of book that begs to be read at the beach or by the pool. It offers up some quieter sexy moments, and a plot that examines loyalty, morals, and the strength behind doing what feels right in your heart. It's writing offers up a well paced, but leisurely read that is the definition of a summer read.

Both Jase and Samantha are well developed characters. The exist together and apart with their characterization not solely dependent on their romance. Samantha and Jase are both passionate about the people and things they care about. They both have a strong sense of self. While they grew up on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of family life, they fit as a couple. Samantha, in general, was a favourite due to her story arc of learning that her opinions do not have mirror her mothers. It's part of growing up, and something everyone has to struggle with.

The other Garretts are a delight. From George's tendency to see the worst case scenario in everything, and Patsy's adorable toddler speak, they are a vibrant, vivid family that feels full of love. The fact that they love one another is woven into each interaction between them. It's an integral part of each of them and who they are. Family being such a large part of the story, and how involved they were was refreshing. It made the characters feel more their age, and added an extra touch of realism to the story. Each of the older characters has the potential for their story to be told in a companion novel, but it's the family bonds that truly resonates in this story.

Equal attention is paid to the other side characters on the other end of the love story. The people in Samantha's life such as her best friend Nan, Nan's brother Tim, and even Samantha's mother and sister are more than what they first appear to be. Each of them has depth to them and even those who could have been caricatures come out feeling incredibly developed.

She showcases that people are neither all good or all bad. Good people can do horrible things, and 'bad' people can redeem themselves. We're the choices we make, and even if we make the wrong ones sometimes we're more than just that one choice. We have the ability to fix our mistakes, learn from them and make amends. Huntley Fitzpatrick embraces the sheer vastness of what makes up human beings and ensures all of her characters are given that brush stroke with her writing.

Sex positive young adult novels are always a pleasant surprise. The focus on realistic expectations was something that really stood out in this novel. Huntley Fitzpatrick included everything I feel is important when dealing with sex in teen novels. Talk of waiting until you're ready without any pressure, proper safe sex discussions and follow through with decisions being made by both parties, and the notion that your first time may not be perfect but it can be special because of who you share it with. This approach is healthy and encourages discussion which is so important, especially for the age group this novel is marketed to. It doesn't throw around labels or judgement. It just offers up a healthy, realistic take on the subject matter that is so vital to teen literature.

A perfect example of well developed and utilized for both primary and secondary characters. Huntley Fitzpatrick writes them as realistic, complex and layered in the most beautiful ways. A newly discovered favourite in the young adult contemporary genre. If you haven't already fallen in love with her books, this is the summer to do it. 

Weekly Obsessions

The awesome Kelly at KellyVision started posting a weekly post highlighting whatever she happened to be obsessed with that week. I LOVE this idea, so much in fact that I will be doing it myself every Saturday.

BOOK

Cover of Cruel Crown by Victoria Aveyard (goodreads)

This is a bind up for the two novellas being released (Steel Scars, and Queen Song) and I am in love with this cover. It's stunning. I honestly love these novella covers more than the cover for Glass Sword. Looking forward to seeing the cover for the third book and having this gorgeousness on my bookshelf.

Queen of Shadows Pre-Order Campaign

Alright, so the pre-order campaign for Queen of Shadows was already awesome. Those buttons are awesome. Bloomsbury just went and sweetened the whole thing with THIS...

A button for Team Dorian! I cannot wait to get these now. The grey colour is also my favourite out of the bunch so this makes me REALLY happy. If you haven't pre-ordered QoS yet do it immediately and secure your own set of these buttons.

TV/MOVIE

The Way

I've been super interested in The Way since I read that Aaron Paul had been cast in a role. Now more details and casting have been announced and I am ready to watch this already. The show revolves around a young man who becomes involved in a cult like faith based group and it's charismatic leader. TVline has a great write up about it. Hugh Dancy was recently announced as the leader of the group and I am VERY intrigued to see how Aaron and Hugh play off each other. This could be amazing. It'll air on Hulu so it'll be perfect for binge watching.

OTHER

DigitalAquamarine Etsy Shop (link)

I stumbled across this beautiful Etsy shop recently and am basically obsessed.  She does these amazing watercolour images, most of them based on pop culture items (like Disney, Star Wars, etc).

I fell in love with this print from Beauty and the Beast.

Image from DigitalAquamarine Etsy Shop

Stunning, right? All of her art is amazing. The best part? You can purchase the JPG file and print itself for easy framing without the high shipping costs. I could easily have these all over my apartment. Take a look, I am sure there is at least one image that will catch your eye (and if not she does custom orders!)

What are you obsessed with this week?

Waiting On Wednesday ........ Never Never

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick this week is Never Never by Brianna Shrum

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

James Hook is a child who only wants to grow up.

When he meets Peter Pan, a boy who loves to pretend and is intent on never becoming a man, James decides he could try being a child—at least briefly. James joins Peter Pan on a holiday to Neverland, a place of adventure created by children’s dreams, but Neverland is not for the faint of heart. Soon James finds himself longing for home, determined that he is destined to be a man. But Peter refuses to take him back, leaving James trapped in a world just beyond the one he loves. A world where children are to never grow up.

But grow up he does. 

And thus begins the epic adventure of a Lost Boy and a Pirate.

This story isn’t about Peter Pan; it’s about the boy whose life he stole. It’s about a man in a world that hates men. It’s about the feared Captain James Hook and his passionate quest to kill the Pan, an impossible feat in a magical land where everyone loves Peter Pan.

Except one. 

It's not a secret that I love all things Peter Pan and Neverland. The quickest way to have me add a book to my wishlist is to tell me it's a Peter Pan retelling. This one offers up a unique twists in that it's Hook's perspective from the sounds of it, and there is the tease that perhaps Peter Pan is the evil one!

Luckily I don't have long to wait (especially since I have an ARC teasing me from my bookshelf) as this one is released next month.

Expected release date - September 22, 2015

Under The Lights by Dahlia Adler

Under The Lights by Dahlia Adler
Release Date - June 30, 2015
Publisher Website - Spencer Hill
Publisher Social Media - Twitter
Pages - 312 pages
My Rating - 4/5
**borrowed from a friend for review**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

Josh Chester loves being a Hollywood bad boy, coasting on his good looks, his parties, his parents' wealth, and the occasional modeling gig. But his laid-back lifestyle is about to change. To help out his best friend, Liam, he joins his hit teen TV show, Daylight Falls ... opposite Vanessa Park, the one actor immune to his charms. (Not that he's trying to charm her, of course.) Meanwhile, his drama-queen mother blackmails him into a new family reality TV show, with Josh in the starring role. Now that he's in the spotlight—on everyone's terms but his own—Josh has to decide whether a life as a superstar is the one he really wants.

Vanessa Park has always been certain about her path as an actor, despite her parents' disapproval. But with all her relationships currently in upheaval, she's painfully uncertain about everything else. When she meets her new career handler, Brianna, Van is relieved to have found someone she can rely on, now that her BFF, Ally, is at college across the country. But as feelings unexpectedly evolve beyond friendship, Van's life reaches a whole new level of confusing. And she'll have to choose between the one thing she's always loved ... and the person she never imagined she could.

Growing into who you'll become is filled with mistakes, regrets, and learning experiences. It is even harder to do under the harsh light of scrutiny. Dahlia Adler's Under The Lights makes the spotlight literal as Josh and Vanessa grow up in Hollywood, but it's the recognizable part of becoming your own person with the expectations of those around you that shines through this incredibly readable novel.

The character growth is the center of the story. The story makes you feel like you're being allowed to peek into the lives of real people. Both of them are struggling with what they want, and with what others want from them. The industry that is their world plays the role of just another thing that wants something from them. The character development is not only authentic but earned. Each of them questioning who they are, what they want, and what it all means for their future is something that is entirely relatable to those reading it. It makes falling into the story effortless, and it adds a human element that is often missing in the usual Hollywood set character archetype.

The dual narration worked for this particular story. Dahlia Adler created two vastly different characters, and crafted both of them through their voices. Each is distinct, and fits within both the story, and the setting. Dahlia's talent seems to most evident in her characterization and the attention to detail she shows in getting the voice right is supremely evident here.

The romance is sweet, tentative, and with just the right amount of drama to increase the stakes. Tying the romance directly into Vanessa's character arc worked to make it feel vital to the story but not something that overtook it. The slight issue I had was that, while we get to see a lot of the relationship development, I wanted more. I wanted more scenes where Van and Bri talk. I wanted Vanessa to spend more time discussing her feelings, and what it meant. The moments felt quick, and some of them didn't carry the weight I wished they would have. This may have been the only draw back of the dual narration - not enough time spent with either character (in my opinion). You got the impression things were happening 'behind the scenes' so to speak and I felt some of that could have added to the story.

The importance of stories like this can not be stressed enough. To be someone finishing up high school and going through what Vanessa goes through and seeing yourself reflected in a novel would be huge. I had friends in high school that a novel like this would have helped. It includes different forms of diversity and does so in a really organic way.

The ending of the story left me wanting a third novel about Josh. While this novel focuses on him, I would not say no to another novel that focuses solely on his journey. This felt more like Van's story with it being a set up for Josh to find his own way. This character, for me, stole the spotlight and it doesn't feel like his journey is quite done yet.

Dahlia offers up an atypical Hollywood ending in this one, and it's most welcome. She doesn't make the obvious choices, and instead gives us endings that are totally fitting for the characters, uncertainty and all. A story that examines the various ways we struggle to find ourselves, and to accept ourselves once we do. A sequel that surpasses the original as the characters, and their story shine just a little more brightly. 

Never Always Sometimes by Adi Alsaid

Never Always Sometimes by Adi Alsaid
Release Date - August 4,  2015
Publisher Website - Harlequin Teen
Publisher Social Media - Twitter
Pages - 320 pages
My Rating - 3/5
**borrowed from a friend for review**

Here is the Goodreads synopsis

Never date your best friend

Always be original

Sometimes rules are meant to be broken

Best friends Dave and Julia were determined to never be cliché high school kids—the ones who sit at the same lunch table every day, dissecting the drama from homeroom and plotting their campaigns for prom king and queen. They even wrote their own Never List of everything they vowed they'd never, ever do in high school.

Some of the rules have been easy to follow, like #5, never die your hair a color of the rainbow, or #7, never hook up with a teacher. But Dave has a secret: he's broken rule #8, never pine silently after someone for the entirety of high school. It's either that or break rule #10, never date your best friend. Dave has loved Julia for as long as he can remember.

Julia is beautiful, wild and impetuous. So when she suggests they do every Never on the list, Dave is happy to play along. He even dyes his hair an unfortunate shade of green. It starts as a joke, but then a funny thing happens: Dave and Julia discover that by skipping the clichés, they've actually been missing out on high school. And maybe even on love.

Best friends. The end of high school. A daring list. Never Always Sometimes seemed to have all the makings of a fun summer read. While there is certainly some cute and vibrant moments, it was the lack of urgency to the story, and the connection to the characters that never quite worked for me.

The characters wind up being rather forgettable, as nothing about them really grabs the reader to make them stand out. Their relationships, outside of the one with each, felt under developed to the point that I never came to care about them. One of the relationships is vital to the novel, and it never clicked into place for me. It failed to transport me into the story in a way that made me invest in the outcome for any of the characters. It's a cute premise, and an unique twist on a familiar story line, but I didn't feel it fully came together the way it could have.

Adi Alsaid has been praised for his writing. There are moments in both this and Let's Get Lost where his talent truly radiates. He captures the emotions that a character would be feeling within a scene using only a few words. I predict he'll continue to grow as a writer with each book he writes. While the emotions being felt came through, I felt at times that instead of using words to show us, they were instead used to tell us. We were told how someone was feeling, instead of being shown. Emotional scenes require that connection to resonate, and in both of his books I've felt that feeling of disconnect.

The crazy, scary, amazing time that is the end of high school is punctuated by a lot of things. Goodbyes impact people in different ways. The characters in this novel make mistakes. They are indecisive. They hurt others. They act impulsively. They grapple with all the changes that are happening. These are all very true experiences. Teenagers do make the mistakes these characters make. It was refreshing to see, and something that Adi Alsaid does perfectly within the story. If this story leaves any lasting impression it's what can happen when we push ourselves outside our comfort zone We can discover that people are not who we think they are. We can discover new sides to ourselves, discover that what we wanted for so long is perhaps not what we need, and that love isn't perfect. It's messy and complicated and that there is more than one way to love someone. These elements of the story were the bright spots in an otherwise average story.

The latter half of the novel was not as strong, or entertaining as the first. There are some pacing issues that are felt towards the midpoint into the end. It, for me, rapidly spiraled into committing a few too many cliches of it's own allowing them to take over the story, while the beginning embraced them and worked with them to create a charm that really worked for the story. The ending does offer up an atypical ending to this type of story but I am not sure the ending felt true to the story, and it felt hurriedly put together. The aftermath of all the events are neatly brushed away instead of being felt and recognized.

A story of embracing cliches, the bittersweetness of moving on and leaving things behind as high school ends, and the rush of possibility that comes from what might be next. While this book didn't quite charm me as much as I'd hoped, I predict others will enjoy it far more than I did.

New To My Book Closet

It's that time of the week again. Time to show you what bookish goodies made their way into my home and book closet (to be saved from the evil book eating cat monster named Aria). This is inspired by the various "mailbox" posts out there (eg. In My Mailbox by The Story Siren, and Stacking the Shelves by Tynga's Reviews).

A few awesome sounding books made their way into my mailbox this week that I am very excited to read!

First up is a squeal inducing book for review from Harper Collins Canada!

A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis (goodreads)

A huge thank you to Suman for sending this along. Cannot wait to dive in. This totally sounds like a ME book and I cannot wait to fall madly in love with it.

I am taking part in #OTSPSecretSister this round and my 'sister' sent me a love e-gift card from Chapters that I used to snag Nil at the suggestion of my 'sister' (2.99 sale going on right now for those who haven't read it). I also snagged The Broken Hearts Society of Suite 17C at the same time.

Nil by Lynne Matson (goodreads)
The Broken Hearts Society of Suite 17c by Leigh Ann Kopans (goodreads)

A huge thank you to my 'sister'. The gift card was a lovely surprise (and cheered me up after a long day of meetings).

What books made their way into your mailbox this week?

Happy Weekend and Happy Reading!

Weekly Obsessions

The awesome Kelly at KellyVision started posting a weekly post highlighting whatever she happened to be obsessed with that week. I LOVE this idea, so much in fact that I will be doing it myself every Saturday.

BOOK

Cover of Tell The Wind and Fire by Sarah Rees Brennan (goodreads)

This novel has been on my radar since I first heard it described as A Tale Of Two Cities with magic. Immediately sold. This stunning cover only makes me all the more eager to read it.

Pretty, right? I cannot wait to read this one as I expect it's going to be really good.

TV/Movie

Trailer for Room

I read Room by Emma Donoghue and remember it leaving a lasting impression. It's one of those books that you just don't let go of easily as it leaves you examining it for days after you've finished it.

The movie based on the novel is going to be released this October 16th and it looks fantastic.

This trailer is pretty much perfect. It seems to capture everything from the book. I am hoping it's just as memorable as the book it's inspired by. The casting seems to be perfect, and so much of it hinges on them getting Jack right, and they seemed to have gotten a fantastic little boy to play this role.

If you're able to attend this year's Toronto International Film Festival, be sure to check out Room there as it's one of the movies scheduled for viewing.

OTHER

Real Life Disney Princes

Who hasn't imagined what those charming Disney Princes would look like in real life. Artist  Jirka Väätäinen has created stunning illustrations that show what they might look like as part of our world. The results are, of course, insanely good looking.

Buzzfeed has all of the portraits posted so rush over there and take a peek. I'll wait....

Helllooo, Prince Eric! Oh, and hi, Beast. Yeah, they're certainly YA inspiration worthy. Someone needs to write them into a fairytale retelling immediately. Let me know in the comments which guy is your favourite.

Side note- doesn't John Smith look at a lot like Jason Lewis?

What are you obsessed with this week?