Night School by C.J. Daugherty

Goodreads Summary:

Allie’s world is falling apart…

She hates her school. Her brother has run away. And she’s just been arrested.

Again.

Now her parents are sending her away to a boarding school where she doesn’t know a soul.

But instead of hating her new school, Allie finds she’s happy there. She’s making friends. And then there’s Sylvain, a suave French student who openly flirts with her. And Carter, the brooding loner who seems to have her back.

Soon, though, Allie discovers Cimmeria Academy is no ordinary school. Nothing there is as it seems. And her new friends are hiding dangerous secrets.

Thanks for Netgalley and HarperTeen for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A school set in a boarding school with secrets galore AND hot boys?  This book had my name all over it and as soon as I heard about it on Epic Reads’ Tea Time, I added it to my to-read list.  Allie moves to Cimmeria Academy after several brushes with the law, when her parents are seemingly at the end of their rope with her.  Almost immediately she realizes all is not what it seems and she sets out to discover the truth, while trying to make friends, navigate her love life, and keep herself safe.

For someone who has a criminal record, Allie isn’t all hardened and jaded.  Her past behavior stemmed from a family tragedy and she continues to process that during her time at Cimmeria.  She navigates the social hierarchy, which includes getting attention from Sylvain, the hottest eligible bachelor and Carter, resident badboy.  I am firmly Team Carter, flaws and all.  Allie struggles with who to trust, not only because of her sketchy past but also because the school’s mysteries start to show themselves and she has no idea who is on her side.

Daugherty does a masterful job of building suspense and keeping the reader guessing.  I literally had no idea what the big reveal was going to be until I read it and it wasn’t any of the ideas I had swirling around in my head.  The explanation of what exactly is going on at Cimmeria was only partially explained – but have no fear, there are 2 more books!  Daugherty gave us just enough that I was sated, but left enough out that I will totally keep reading.  I liked Allie a lot, she has some definite kick-ass potential.  Carter, as mentioned above, was a fine swoony boy love interest, and many of the secondary characters were really fascinating, especially Isabelle, the headmistress.  I don’t feel I can discuss anything more because I don’t want to ruin the surprise and truly, as I pointed out earlier, the suspense of why there are bumps in the night at Cimmeria is one of the biggest strengths of this book.

If you like boarding school settings or books with mysterious elements, this is definitely worth a try.

4/5

The Boleyn King by Laura Andersen

Goodreads Summary:

Laura Andersen brings us the first book in an enthralling trilogy set in the dramatic, turbulent, world-altering years of Tudor England. What if Anne did not miscarry her son in January 1536, but instead gave birth to a healthy royal boy? Perfect for fans of Philipa Gregory and Allison Weir.

Henry IX, known as William, is a 17-year-old king struggling at the restraints of the regency and anxious to prove himself. With the French threatening battle and the Catholics plotting at home, Will trusts only three people: his older sister, Elizabeth; his best friend and loyal counselor, Dominic; and Minuette, a young orphan raised as a royal ward by Anne Boleyn. Against an undercurrent of secret documents, conflicting intelligence operations, and private murder, William fights a foreign war and domestic rebellion with equal resolve. But when he and Dominic both fall in love with Minuette, romantic obsession menaces a new generation of Tudors. Battlefields and council chambers, trials and executions, the blindness of first love and the betrayal of true friendship…How far will William go to get what he wants? Who will pay the price for a king’s revenge? And what twists of fate will set Elizabeth on the path to her destiny as England’s queen?

Thank you to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have been a Tudor-phile for many years now.  I will read basically anything, fiction or nonfiction, having to do with old Henry and his wives and the fascinating politics of their time.  I always thought that Catherine of Aragon had the most pathetic story, I felt the worst for her, but Anne Boleyn is my favorite.  Such a smart, conniving, creative woman, someone who went after what she wanted and unfortunately met her match and lost her head for it.

Laura Anderson imagines the huge “what if” in The Boleyn King – what if Anne Boleyn hadn’t miscarried her last baby, and that baby had been a boy, a boy who became king?  The story revolves around William, or Henry number 9, his BFF Dominic, older sis Elizabeth (still apparently destined to be queen), and Minuette, a ward of Anne Boleyn’s who ends up in Elizabeth’s service. The four get drawn into a political plot regarding William’s legitimacy, scary Mary shows up, the French want to fight, and the Howards are behaving badly as usual.

This is an excellent novel!  I was so excited to read it, with all my Tudor love, and when I started reading, literally, my mind was blown.  I was all “wait a sec, Anne Boleyn is in her forties and losing her eyesight with her old age??” I had a hard time wrapping my brain around this concept that these people who are actually dead have new life breathed into them by Andersen’s genius imagination.  This is a wonderful mix of political intrigue, historical information, and yes, romance.  The story is told 3rd person mostly omniscient, so the reader gets lots of different thoughts and feeling, which is very fun.  Elizabeth at 21 is just as you would imagine her, stately and intelligent.  Minuette, effectively the heroine, is sweet and demure, but also not above playing the political game.  William, our king, goes through a transformation that echoes the one his father went through when he took the throne.  And then there’s Dominic, a very swoon worthy gentleman, who is loyal almost to a fault and, I hope, doesn’t succumb to the courtly nonsense.

Andersen gets all the gold stars for her amazing research AND her ability to seamlessly blend new characters with real people.  I am so curious to see where she goes with this, who ends up with who, and how Elizabeth gets on the throne and puts history back on course.  The next book, The Boleyn Deceit, comes out in November 2013 – how many days??

4.5/5

Waiting on Wednesday: Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Goodreads Summary:

While flying an Allied fighter plane from Paris to England, American ATA pilot and amateur poet, Rose Justice, is captured by the Nazis and sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious women’s concentration camp. Trapped in horrific circumstances, Rose finds hope in the impossible through the loyalty, bravery and friendship of her fellow prisoners. But will that be enough to endure the fate that’s in store for her?

Elizabeth Wein, author of the critically-acclaimed and best-selling Code Name Verity, delivers another stunning WWII thriller. The unforgettable story of Rose Justice is forged from heart-wrenching courage, resolve, and the slim, bright chance of survival.

Having just finally read Code Name Verity, I am really looking forward to this companion novel.  I’ve always enjoyed stories of courage from WWII and this promises to be a good one.  And bonus, this is a BEA book, so I’m hoping to snag it later this month!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Dealing With Tough Subjects

Top Ten Tuesday s a weekly meme asking “What are your top ten____________ books?”  This week’s topic = Books Dealing With Tough Subjects

 

1.  Speechless by Hannah Harrington – bullying/relational aggression/mean girls

2.  If I Stay & Where She Went by Gayle Forman – grief, in this case loss of family members specifically

3.  Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park – family issues, mental illness, grief

4.  If I Lie by Corrine Jackson – military issues, keeping secrets

5.  The Wind Blows Backward by Mary Downing Hahn – suicidal thoughts

6.  Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher – suicide

7.  Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson – eating disorders

8.  Room by Emma Donoghue – kidnapping/abduction

9.  The Fault in Our Stars by John Green – cancer

10.  Wonder by R.J. Palacio – bullying/disabilities

 

What are your favorite “issue” books?

PTB Review: The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen

Goodreads Summary:

Luke is the perfect boyfriend: handsome, kind, fun. He and Emaline have been together all through high school in Colby, the beach town where they both grew up. But now, in the summer before college, Emaline wonders if perfect is good enough.

Enter Theo, a super-ambitious outsider, a New Yorker assisting on a documentary film about a reclusive local artist. Theo’s sophisticated, exciting, and, best of all, he thinks Emaline is much too smart for Colby.

Emaline’s mostly-absentee father, too, thinks Emaline should have a bigger life, and he’s convinced that an Ivy League education is the only route to realizing her potential. Emaline is attracted to the bright future that Theo and her father promise. But she also clings to the deep roots of her loving mother, stepfather, and sisters. Can she ignore the pull of the happily familiar world of Colby?

Emaline wants the moon and more, but how can she balance where she comes from with where she’s going?

I’ve been a Sarah Dessen fan since way back.  She has a knack for creating realistic characters set in situations that anyone, regardless of age, can relate to.  This is the first book of hers I’ve read in several years, though, and I was pleased to see that the Dessen I always loved is still there.

Keep reading……

Crossing The Line by Katie McGarry

Goodreads Summary:

Lila McCormick, Echo’s best friend from Pushing the Limits, first met Lincoln Turner when tragedy struck both their lives. But she never expected their surprise encounter would lead to two years of exchanging letters—or that she’d fall for the boy she’s only seen once. Their relationship is a secret, but Lila feels closer to Lincoln than anyone else. Until she finds out that he lied to her about the one thing she depended on him for the most.

Hurting Lila is the last thing Lincoln wanted. For two years, her letters have been the only thing getting him through the day. Admitting his feelings would cross a line he’s never dared breach before. But Lincoln will do whatever it takes to fix his mistakes, earn Lila’s forgiveness—and finally win a chance to be with the girl he loves.

I have anything Katie McGarry writes on auto-purchase, after loving Pushing The Limits and Dare You To.  She creates such great characters and interesting story lines.  This is no different.  Lila has been writing letters to Lincoln for two years and both have fallen for each other.  When Lincoln shows up at Lila’s doorstep, they have to confront their feelings for each other and their fears for the future.  Great idea for a story, right?  Definitely.  My complaint?  It was a novella, not a novel.  There is SO much meat to this story and to both Lila and Lincoln’s backgrounds, it needed more to make it a fully complete story.  It felt rushed and just….not enough to make me feel like their story was finished.  I wanted more!  The things that McGarry touches on – family issues, transitioning to college, death and grieving, are very serious and important, things anyone can relate to.  I’m glad she chose to tackle them.  She is always so thoughtful with her characters and the plot and this is no different, just on a smaller scale.

I would definitely recommend this to McGarry’s fans and I know people will love it.  I enjoyed it and was definitely entertained, but I wish it had been written as a full length novel.  Is that selfish of me?

3.5/5

Towering by Alex Flinn

Goodreads Summary:

Rachel is trapped in a tower, held hostage by a woman she’s always called Mama. Her golden hair is growing rapidly, and to pass the time, she watches the snow fall and sings songs from her childhood, hoping someone, anyone, will hear her.

Wyatt needs time to reflect or, better yet, forget about what happened to his best friend, Tyler. That’s why he’s been shipped off to the Adirondacks in the dead of winter to live with the oldest lady in town. Either that, or no one he knows ever wants to see him again.

Dani disappeared seventeen years ago without a trace, but she left behind a journal that’s never been read, not even by her overbearing mother…until now.

 

Thanks to HarperTeen and Edelweiss for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of those books that I really liked while I was reading and then as I have gone back to reflect and think about it for  review, I’ve come up with some holes and sticky places.

So, as the description says, this is a modern retelling of Rapunzel.  We all remember that Rapunzel is the child, taken from her parents as payment for taking a witch’s greens during mom’s pregnancy, trapped in a tower with really long hair and a prince who tries to rescue her, but who gets stabbed in the eyes by the witch during the rescue and is healed by Rapunzel’s tears, HEA.  In some way or another, all of these items are incorporated into Towering.  We have Rachel, trapped in a tower with long hair and magic tears, Wyatt, escaping from something painful, Mrs. Greenwood, who lost her daughter, and yes, some greens.

I’m finding it hard to write this review without spoilers, so please forgive me if this sounds really vague.  Going with bullet points:

- Rachel is the perfect Rapunzel.  Sweet, sheltered, angelic.  I would have thought that for someone who spent most of her life alone, she would’ve been a little less forward, though.

- Wyatt was pretty good too.  I liked that he was kind of an everyman.  His personal grief was an excellent motivator for helping Rachel fulfill her destiny in the end.

- The build up to the ending, the big reveal, was great.  I figured out bits and pieces along the way but didn’t see the whole thing until it was on the page in front of me.  It was well paced and just enough information was dropped to keep me hooked.

- The actual reveal was a little far fetched, yet also convenient, in my mind.  We got this great, possible beautiful, gothic ghosty story and then boom, weird ending.  The two pieces didn’t seem to match – the ending was something that I felt belonged more in a dystopian or scifi book.

I think ultimately this is a mash-up of so many genres that some of it worked, some of it didn’t, and it is what it is.  I will say that I was entertained throughout, was never bored, and read it very quickly.  I wanted to know what happened!!

3/5 – worth checking out, especially if you like retellings.