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The Beauty That Remains is a gripping, beautiful story of life and love after loss. This book is both heart-breakingly sad and hopeful at the same time, with so many wonderful characters you immediately fall in love with.  This beautifully written story follows three teens who are dealing with the loss of a loved one either through accident, illness or suicide. I love all the amazingly diverse and well developed characters - Autumn, Sasha and Logan - and how we get to know each of them individually and their lives and relationships. The story goes on from Autumn’s grief over her best friend Tavia’s sudden death, to Sasha who’s lost her twin sister in leukemia, and finally to Logan, whose guilt over the horrible things he said when breaking up with his boyfriend is eating him alive after Bram’s unexpectedly committed suicide.
But there is so much more than dealing with grief in this story. Autumn is also struggling with her confusion on her emotions towards Tavia’s brother and with dealing with her other school friends, when the glue that connected her to them is gone. Sasha on the other hand is struggling with herself, now being ‘twinless’ and having panic attacks. And Logan is acting out, no longer able to write music like he used to and drinking too much to silence the voice telling him it was his fault that Bram died. In a way it was so hard to read this book, with all the characters going through so much and learning as they go how to find themselves again, but making so many mistakes and having such hard times. But then things started to overlap and from the middle of the book forward, these seemingly individual struggles met and found their ways to healing through music, in such a hopeful and beautiful, metaphorically way via the band that sort of had died with the lost ones and now rose again to spread love and joy. I also have to say something about the side characters, as there were so many wonderful persons in this book. I loved Dante and the fragile love story between him and Autumn that was so lined with grief and guilt. I don’t remember the last time, if ever, I’ve read a story so full of sorrow and sadness, but also full of hope and joy of life. It’s the type of story that breaks your heart and mends it at the same time. It’s a story that has everything; loss, pain, grief, confusion, anger and regret, but also beauty, love, friendship and happiness. And so much diversity and LGBTQ+ awareness! Despite all sadness, I felt hopeful and comforted at the end. If you like strong and emotional reads, you should definitely give this book a chance. Rating: 4 stars Get your own copy: Bookshop.org Amazon Book Depository Author info: Ashley Woodfolk
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This book is part of Becky Albertalli’s wonderful Simonverse, with crossovers from the characters in Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda, which made me so happy and warm at heart, that I could recommend this book for that reason alone! In addition thereto, it’s wonderful character-driven cute and relatable story about sisterhood, family, body image, and first love.  The main character in this story is 17-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso, She is a bit on the larger side and has never dated or kissed any guy, despite her 26 crushes, since her fear of rejection and low self-esteem keeps her from taking chances in her life. Her twin sister, Cassie, on the other hand is Molly’s totally opposite; bold, courageous and popular. She’s had many hookups, but not any serious relationships. But in the beginning of the book, Cassie meets her first real girlfriend, Mina, which changes the twin dynamic and in a way pushes Molly to open up a bit more, just in time for crush number 27, Mina’s cool hipster friend Will. At the same time however, Molly meets co-worker Reid, who is a Tolkien fan and the kind of guy who wears nerdy t-shirts, but who Molly likes more than expected.
With Molly trying to figure which of the boys she’s into and if she should dare to put herself out there and make herself vulnerable, there are some really fun plot twists and realistic teenager situations. Especially the struggle between choosing the boy Molly herself actually likes the most and the one that seems ideal to everyone else. Overall, this book has some of the most realistic portrayals of teenagers I’ve ever read in a YA book; they drink, they talk about sex, they lie and make stupid decisions, they are selfish and immature and wonderful and adorable and freak out about stuff. What I didn’t like so much after a while though was how pushy and selfish Cassie acted when pushing a crush on Molly without caring about her wishes or feelings. There were also times when reading the book that I got a bit annoyed at Molly’s indecisiveness. Luckily though, Cassie did end up being nicer and Molly did make a decision (the right one too!) by the end, so the book ended in a funny and fluffy, give-you-all-the-feels kind of read. What I loved most about this book was the parents (Molly’s two moms must be my favorite literature parents ever!) and the diversity. There’s Molly with an underrepresented body type without making excuses for it and with anxiety issues, there’s the twin sister who’s into girls, they have two moms, Patty and Nadine, and the twins themselves are sperm-donor babies. Patty and Nadine are such a lovely couple and amazing mothers and their wedding was one of the best things in the book. I really loved all of the family dynamic in this book, it felt so real and warm. All in all, this is a wonderful book! Even though I didn’t love it quite as much as Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda, The Upside is still a sweet, relatable, fast-paced and touching book, with awesome characters and dynamics. Rating: 4 stars Get your own copy: Bookshop.org Amazon Book Depository Author info: Becky Albertalli I was a bit skeptical going into Children of Blood and Bone, since it was so hyped. But it’s definitely worth the hype. It’s one of the best YA fantasy books I’ve read in a long time. It has an amazing world building and strong female lead, and it was full of emotions, magic and epic adventures. The story also tackled issues of racism and general prejudice in society made up entirely of people of colour, which felt really unique.  The writing style was also really different, with the three POvs; Zélie, Amari, and Inan. I love Zélie so much. She is so fierce and headstrong, but at the same time struggling with grief and fear. Amari is the spoilt and naïve princess, who follows her heart and fights for what is right. Her character development must be one of the best ever written. And then there’s Inan. To be honest I don’t really know what I think of him. My feelings for him changed all through the book; from sympathy for him being so misguided to just anger for the choices he makes to feeling bad for him. But all in all, I loved the characters and their development. Basically, the story is about fighting evil and bringing back magic, with each of the characters going on their own journey (literally as they race to get to the magic items needed for the resurrection of the Orishan gods before it’s too late, and metaphorically as they grow up and explore so much about themselves and their backgrounds throughout the story). I really enjoyed the magic system in this story, and how we got to visit so many different locations across the country that were aesthetically distinct.
What I didn’t like as much though was the romance. Normally, enemies to lovers is my favorite trope, but it has to be better executed. I just couldn’t buy how they went from outright hating each other to being all over each other in less than 50 pages and after knowing each other for about three days… But all in all, this is a great YA fantasy with a unique world building with references to West African mythology and a lot of epic fantasy action and intense emotions. Rating: 4 stars Get your own copy: Bookshop.org Amazon Book Depository Author info: Tomi Adeyemi |
CategoriesAll 1 Star 2 Stars 3 Stars 4 Stars 5 Stars Abbi Glines Abdi Nazemian Adam Silvera Adib Khorram Aiden Thomas Aisha Saeed Aislinn Brophy AJ Collins Alexandra Christo Alex Beltran Alexene Farol Follmuth Alexis Hall Alex Kelly Alex Sanchez Alice Dolman Alice Oseman Ali Hazelwood Alison Cochrun Al Riske Alwyn Hamilton Amanda Ferreira A. Meredith Walters Amy Aislin Amy Harmon Amy S. Foster Amy Spalding André Aciman Andy V Roamer Angie Thomas Annabeth Albert A. Poland Ashley Poston Ashley Woodfolk Ashlyn Kane Audrey Coulthurst Ban Gilmartin Becca Fitzpatrick Becky Albertalli Benjamin Alire Saenz Beth Bolden Bill Konigsberg B.L. Maxwell Briar Prescott Bri Spicer Brooke Skipstone Cale Dietrich Cara Dee Casey McQuiston Cassandra Clare C.F. White C.G. Drews Charlie Adhara Charli Meadows Chasten Buttigieg Chris Bedell Christina Lauren Ciara Smyth Clarissa Pattern C.L. Beaumont Colette Davison Colleen Hoover Courtney Kae Crystal Frasier C.S. Pacat Dallas Smith Daven McQueen David Biddle David Yoon Dean Atta Debbie McGowan Debbie Rigaud Debbie Schrack Deborah Harkness Delia Owens D.G. Carothers Dhonielle Clayton D.N. Bryn Douglas Stuart Dustin Thao Elisa A. Bonnin Elizabeth Acevedo Elizabeth Arroyo Elle Kennedy Elle Wright E.L. Massey E. Lockhart Emery Lee Emily M. Danforth Emily Mims Erin Watt Ernest Cline Evan J. Corbin Eve Morton Everina Maxwell Evie Dunmore Felice Stevens F.T. Lukens Grace Williams Gwen Martin Hannah Grace Hanya Yanagihara Hayden Stone Heather Truett H.E. Edgmon Hettie Bell Holly Black Hope Irving H.S. Valley Hudson Lin Ingrid Sterling Jacqueline Lee Jacqueline Woodson James L. Sutter Jamie Deacon Jandy Nelson Jax Calder Jay Hogan Jeanette Winterson Jeff Zentner Jen Bailey Jenna Evans Welch Jenn Burke Jennifer E. Smith Jennifer G. Edelson Jennifer Gilmore Jennifer Iacopelli Jennifer Kropf Jennifer Niven Jenny Downham Jenny Han Jeremy Ray Jesse H. Reign Joelle Lynne John Green Jonny Garza Villa Julianne Donaldson Julian Winters Kacen Callender Kami Garcia Kara Leigh Miller Kasie West Kate Larkindale Katharine McGee Kathleen Mareé Kathy Anderson KD Casey Kendall Grey Kevin Van Whye Kiley Reid Kim Fielding Kim Holden Kim Liggett Kitty Bardot Kris Ripper K.S. Marsden Laura Hall Laura Pavlov Laura Silverman Lauren James Lauren Shippen Laurie Frankel Leah Johnson Lee Matthew Goldberg Leigh Bardugo Leylah Attar Lisa Henry Lisa Williamson Lisa Wingate Liv Rancourt Liz Plum Lola Noire Lynn Michaels Mackenzi Lee Madeline Miller Magdalena Di Sotru Maggie Doolin Maggie Stiefvater Malin Persson Giolito Malorie Blackman Margaret Stohl Marie Lu Mary E. Pearson Mason Deaver Matthew R. Corr Melina Marchetta Meredith Russo Miel Moreland Mila Gray Miranda Kenneally Moa Backe Astot Morgan James M. Tasia Nancy Garden Natalie Haynes Nathaniel Shea Nicholas Sparks Nicola Yoon Nic Starr Nic Stone Nina Kenwood Nita Tyndall Nora Sakavic N.R. Walker Nyla K. Owen Lach Penny Aimes Phil Stamper Quinn Anderson Rachael Brownell Rachael Lippincott Rachel Hawkins Racquel Marie Rainbow Rowell Ray Stoeve Renée Dahlia Rhiannon Wilde Riley Hart River Braun Roan Parrish Robin Gow Roseanne A. Brown Rowan MacKemsley Ruby Moone Ruta Sepetys Ryan La Sala Sally Green Sally Rooney Sarah J. Maas Sarah Waters Sarina Bowen Sasha Laurens Saundra Mitchell Saxon James Serena Bell Shannon O’Connor Sidney Bell Simone Elkeles Siryn Sueng Sophia DeRise Sophia Soames Sophie Gonzales S.R. Lane Stephen Chbosky Stephenie Meyer Steven Salvatore Susan Mac Nicol Suzanne Collins Tahereh Mafi Tal Bauer Tamara Girardi Taylor Jenkins Reid Teagan Hunter Terry J. Benton-Walker Tiffany D. Jackson Timothy Janovsky T.J. Klune T.L. Bradford Tobly McSmith Tomasz Jedrowski Tomi Adeyemi Tracy Deonn Tucker Shaw Val Wise Veronica Rossi Veronica Roth V.E. Schwab Wesley Chu Victor Dixen Victoria Aveyard V.L. Stuart Xan Van Rooyen Yamile Saied Méndez Archives
May 2023
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