From the shelf: Wallbanger

Title: Wallbanger
Author: Alice Clayton
Genre: Romance, Humor, Chick-Lit
Date read: July 11-13, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★ (3/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

Caroline Reynolds has a fantastic new apartment in San Francisco, a KitchenAid mixer, and no O (and we’re not talking Oprah here, folks). She has a flourishing design career, an office overlooking the bay, a killer zucchini bread recipe, and no O. She has Clive (the best cat ever), great friends, a great rack, and no O.

Adding insult to O-less, since her move, she has an oversexed neighbor with the loudest late-night wallbanging she’s ever heard. Each moan, spank, and–was that a meow?–punctuates the fact that not only is she losing sleep, she still has, yep, you guessed it, no O.

Enter Simon Parker. (No, really, Simon, please enter.) When the wallbanging threatens to literally bounce her out of bed, Caroline, clad in sexual frustration and a pink baby-doll nightie, confronts her heard-but-never-seen neighbor. Their late-night hallway encounter has, well, mixed results. Ahem. With walls this thin, the tension’s gonna be thick…

In her third novel, Alice Clayton returns to dish her trademark mix of silly and steamy. Banter, barbs, and strutting pussycats, plus the sexiest apple pie ever made, are dunked in a hot tub and set against the gorgeous San Francisco skyline in this hot and hilarious tale of exasperation at first sight.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

After the emotionally draining novel in the guise of Me Before You, I opted to read something light and funny so I began to read this. The story revolves around Caroline being irritated with her next door neighbor Simon especially when he does his business in a time inconvenient for a working woman. The novel is full of laughs and I was mostly interested at the progress of their jovial relationship.

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From the shelf: Me Before You

Title: Me Before You
Author: Jojo Moyes
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Romance, Chick-Lit
Date read: July 9-11, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★★ (5/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

Lou Clark knows lots of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in The Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick.

What Lou doesn't know is she's about to lose her job or that knowing what's coming is what keeps her sane.

Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he's going to put a stop to that.

What Will doesn't know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they're going to change the other for all time.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

This book has been quite emotionally exhausting for me. The kind that after reading the book, you want to curl up and drown with a bucket of ice cream...that drained. This is the first book I read from Jojo Moyes and I must say she did great in throwing my hopes around throughout the story. It features the promising Will Traynor who got into a severe accident and suddenly became a quadriplegic, a 180 degree turn from what he was...resulting to him being depressed and wanting to end everything now. Here comes Lou Clark, a carer employed by his parents to change his mind for 6 months. I loved the humor, but in contrast I was dreading the pages till the end. I was really into it and was hoping for a better ending. But I guess it is the taste of reality. No one knows the pain someone is going through until they are in that situation. I wanted to push Will off his chair for being so selfish but somehow you could sympathize with him. As I said, this book messed up my emotions like a mean thunderstorm. I want to read the author's other books some other time. I really like how she portrays the reality within the fiction. But first, I have to take a break with all this heavy drama and go read something light. 

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From the shelf: Until Fountain Bridge

Title: Until Fountain Bridge
Author: Samantha Young
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Chick-Lit
Date read: July 7, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★ (4/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

Ellie Carmichael had a crush on Adam Sutherland, her brother, Braden’s, best friend, for years, and although Adam treated her with proprietary concern he made it clear he thought of her only as a little sister. 

Over the years, as Ellie’s crush develops into love, her romantic idealism makes it difficult for her to move on. To make matters worse, as she’s gotten older, Adam’s attitude has changed toward her. His affection for her is now joined by attraction, but his loyalty to Braden, and his fear of losing the only family he has, stops him from claiming Ellie the way she wishes he would. 

But one night his attraction is put to the test, and as much as Adam would like things to remain the same everything changes between them in a simple brush of the lips. 

Soon lust, love, jealousy and heartbreak combine to force change upon their relationship… and Adam discovers the hard way that life is too damn short to spend it on regret.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

After Brandon and Joss, Adam and Ellie is my fave team. At some point I even thought that I liked them better than Brandon and Joss especially when Joss went emo. Ellie is such a big bundle of energy and it was amusing to see her and Adam and their sexual tension. This short story happens after the events where the both of them live together and she is contemplating on giving Joss her love story for her next writing project. It then revolves on Adam and Ellie reminiscing their progress through her diaries. I gave this a pretty good rating for a short story mainly because I loved the Adam-Ellie tandem and I loved that the author gave them the spotlight they deserve.

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From the shelf: On Dublin Street Christmas

Title: On Dublin Street Christmas
Author: Samantha Young
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Chick-Lit
Type of book: e-book
Date read: July 5, 2013

My Review: (also in goodreads)

Apparently, since On Dublin Street was too popular the author thought on writing a short story featuring our beloved characters, Brandon and Joss. The events happen some time after where they are now living together in her apartment, apparently Ellie moved in with Adam, and the two are enjoying life as a couple. This basically just narrates their first Christmas together.

"On Dublin Street Christmas" gets: ★★★★ (4/5)

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From the shelf: Down London Road

Title: Down London Road
Author: Samantha Young
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Chick-Lit
Date read: July 7-9, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★ (4/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

Johanna Walker is used to taking charge. But she’s about to meet someone who will make her lose control....

It has always been up to Johanna to care for her family, particularly her younger brother, Cole. With an absent father and a useless mother, she’s been making decisions based on what’s best for Cole for as long as she can remember. She even determines what men to date by how much they can provide for her brother and her, not on whatever sparks may—or may not—fly.

But with Cameron MacCabe, the attraction is undeniable. The sexy new bartender at work gives her butterflies every time she looks at him. And for once, Jo is tempted to put her needs first. Cam is just as obsessed with getting to know Jo, but her walls are too solid to let him get close enough to even try.

Then Cam moves into the flat below Jo’s, and their blistering connection becomes impossible to ignore. Especially since Cam is determined to uncover all of Jo’s secrets …even if it means taking apart her defenses piece by piece.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

This is the second book in Samantha Young's romantic novel universe after On Dublin Street. It focuses on Johanna Walker and Adam MacCabe. A story about believing in oneself and being independent. How to move past the bullies and the dark of the past and hope that there might be a bright future. I was going to give this 3 1/2 stars due to the fact that at first it relied on how strong Braden and Joss' story was for me. It relied on the secondary characters more than what the buildup fr the protagonist would do. But there were a few moments in which I was actually teary-eyed: the dad scene, Uncle Mick scene and the little brother Cole scene that is why it earned 4 stars. All in all, I was appreciated their story as well as the familiar faces

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From the shelf: The Son of Sobek (Percy Jackson and Kane Chronicles Crossover #1)

Title: The Son of Sobek (Percy Jackson and Kane Chronicles Crossover #1)
Author: Rick Riordan
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Greek/Roman Mythology
Date read: July 4, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★★ (5/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

In this audio e-book short story narrated by Rick Riordan, Carter Kane is investigating rumored sightings of a monster on Long Island when he runs into something else: a mysterious boy named Percy Jackson. And their meeting isn't exactly friendly. . . . Includes a sneak peek chapter from HOUSE OF HADES, Book Four in the Heroes of Olympus series.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

This is why I love Rick Riordan. A Percy Jackson-Carter Kane crossover! The fangirl in me practically leaped with joy. I devoured the 40-page short story in one sitting. Yes, I'm that addicted. This meet-up is everything I ever wanted and call me greedy but I want more! I hope he does a whole crossover book especially with the ending, such a cliffhanger! But yea~ that's what authors do so I should get used to it by now. All I have is to hope that a book will somehow be in the works in the future. *nudges Rick*

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From the shelf: On Dublin Street

Title: On Dublin Street 
Author: Samantha Young
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Chick-Lit
Date read: July 4-5, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★ (4/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

Jocelyn Butler has been hiding from her past for years. But all her secrets are about to be laid bare…

Four years ago, Jocelyn left her tragic past behind in the States and started over in Scotland, burying her grief, ignoring her demons, and forging ahead without attachments. Her solitary life is working well—until she moves into a new apartment on Dublin Street where she meets a man who shakes her carefully guarded world to its core.

Braden Carmichael is used to getting what he wants, and he’s determined to get Jocelyn into his bed. Knowing how skittish she is about entering a relationship, Braden proposes an arrangement that will satisfy their intense attraction without any strings attached.

But after an intrigued Jocelyn accepts, she realizes that Braden won’t be satisfied with just mind-blowing passion. The stubborn Scotsman is intent on truly knowing her… down to the very soul.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

I thought this was your typical rich boy with a dark background meets this naive girl who refuses to acknowledge the sexual tension between them then does eventually (yep, I did read a lot of this kind of plot)..but it was more than that. The male protagonist Braden Carmichael may be pushy and bossy but in equality, Joss Butler also has problems with commitment. It may be because of what happened to her family, her childhood best friend and her PTSD tendencies. What touched me the most (made me teary-eyed) is Ellie and Joss' scene.

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From the shelf: Suicide Notes

Title: Suicide Notes
Author: Michael Thomas Ford
Genre: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction
Date read: July 1-4, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★ (4/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

I'm not crazy. I don't see what the big deal is about what happened. But apparently someone does think it's a big deal because here I am. I bet it was my mother. She always overreacts.

Fifteen-year-old Jeff wakes up on New Year's Day to find himself in the hospital. Make that the psychiatric ward. With the nutjobs. Clearly, this is all a huge mistake. Forget about the bandages on his wrists and the notes on his chart. Forget about his problems with his best friend, Allie, and her boyfriend, Burke. Jeff's perfectly fine, perfectly normal, not like the other kids in the hospital with him. Now they've got problems. But a funny thing happens as his forty-five-day sentence drags on: the crazies start to seem less crazy.

Compelling, witty, and refreshingly real, Suicide Notes is a darkly humorous novel from award-winning author Michael Thomas Ford that examines that fuzzy line between "normal" and the rest of us.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

When this book was recommended to me, I thought this would go way too dark and angst y...which I don't have a problem with; its just that too much can be an emotional burden. However, I was somewhat wrong. Sure it has angst, but the humor balanced it all out. The novel came in 1st person POV where the protagonist Jeff was narrating his 45 day stay in rehab (?) each representing a chapter. I thought at first that he had amnesia or he is in denial at whatever he really felt, but then you get to realize that the author wrote this knowledgeable of the milestones in accepting that something is indeed wrong. I enjoyed the therapy sessions with Dr. Katzrupus or as he would say, cat poop. I loved the twist, thought it caught me off guard; though I had a bit of an idea at the middle part. The ending however was a bit of a cliffhanger, I had many questions swirling but a part of me was satisfied so I'm a bit in a pinch. Overall, it was a bit of an emotional roller coaster.

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From the shelf: The Sea of Tranquility

Title: The Sea of Tranquility
Author: Katja Millay
Genre: New Adult, Romance
Date read: June 24-July 1, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★★ (5/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.

Former piano prodigy Nastya Kashnikov wants two things: to get through high school without anyone learning about her past and to make the boy who took everything from her—her identity, her spirit, her will to live—pay.

Josh Bennett’s story is no secret: every person he loves has been taken from his life until, at seventeen years old, there is no one left. Now all he wants is be left alone and people allow it because when your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space.

Everyone except Nastya, the mysterious new girl at school who starts showing up and won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. But the more he gets to know her, the more of an enigma she becomes. As their relationship intensifies and the unanswered questions begin to pile up, he starts to wonder if he will ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding—or if he even wants to.

The Sea of Tranquility is a rich, intense, and brilliantly imagined story about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

This is a story that brings forth two complex persons (Josh Bennet and Emilia Ward masking as Natsya Kashnikov) finding solace in each other. Both broken and somewhat dark, they find peace with each other's presence where they could at least pretend that there is still something to hold on to..even for a while.

This story is so complex and profound that you could emotionally drown in every scene. Every character introduced in this story has their own part to play. Seriously, I wanted to slap Natsya and get her out of the black hole which is her misery but she has every right to hold on to her rage and shut everyone out. Someone stole her identity and killed her. She may be alive, but she is now a shadow of her old self, a shell. But I was glad she was able to redeem herself.

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From the shelf: Keep Holding On

Title: Keep Holding On
Author: Susane Colasanti
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Chick-Lit
Date read: June 21-23, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★★★ (5/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

A romantic and empowering book about bullying

Noelle's life is all about survival. Even her best friend doesn't know how much she gets bullied, or the ways her mom neglects her. Noelle's kept so much about her life a secret for so long that when her longtime crush Julian Porter starts paying attention to her, she's terrified. Surely it's safer to stay hidden than to risk the pain of a broken heart. But when the antagonism of her classmates takes a dramatic turn, Noelle realizes it's time to stand up for herself--and for the love that keeps her holding on.

My Review: (also in goodreads)

Noelle is a poverty-stricken teenage kid in high school struggling to live an everyday life with a neglectful mother, bullies and having no reason to live.

This story is a powerful one. Kids in school should read this novel that could open their eyes from the shallowness and immaturity of a young life. There were times that I was teary-eyed that there are actual kids who were bullied everyday (maybe because I wasn't bullied in school or if I had been, I just didn't care). I was a bit irritated that she was so weak and has a low self-esteem to the point that she wanted out the easy way she knew how (suicidal). But then I realized how strong she was by resisting and bottling everything deep inside. Everyone has their right to live and shape their life the way they want it. And in no circumstance does anyone have the right to prevent that. That, for me, is the worst form of cowardice.

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From the shelf: Beside Your Heart

Title: Beside Your Heart
Author: Mary Whitney
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Chick-Lit
Date read: June 19-20, 2013
Dawn Rates: ★★★☆ (3.5/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

"It's an emotional story that will take the reader back to those feelings that made the late teen years such a powerful time."

Late one night Nicki Johnson plays with emotional fire and Googles her high school love, only to find his name splashed across the British gossip columns. Back in his native England, Adam Kincaid is successful and dating a woman from an aristocratic family like his own. With a career in politics, Nicki’s no slouch, but she knows Adam is living a world away from her life.

Yet there was a time he was no farther than the next locker. Nicki will never forget their year together in high school—the year of her sister’s death, the year her mother checked out. Adam helped Nicki through suffocating grief, and she led him through a coming of age. Was it just high school, or was it something more?

My Review: (also in goodreads)

A story which revolves around Nicki Johnson and Adam Kincaid. This involves reminiscing about the past, of a time they weren't oceans apart. Adam is a British exchange student who is interested in Nicki who then was in an emotional turmoil after her sister's death. He helps her see the world more in a positive light and is there for her during those difficult times.

Their story is somewhat everybody had back in the teen years. Something to look back with a smile. Something to regret upon. Someone who got away. Some what ifs. The moment can forever be etched in your memory and heart. One memory that could be one of the reasons you are what you are today. I love the epilogue (after 15 years has passed) and if the sequel to this is true, I can't wait. After all, I wish there would be that closure or the happy ending.

Till the next read...