Review: Being Jamie Baker by: Kelly Oram

Title: Being Jamie Baker

Author: Kelly Oram

Publisher: Bluefields

Series: Jamie Baker #1

Format: e-book ( 353 p.) Personal Purchase

Description:

An accident that should end in tragedy instead gives seventeen-year-old Jamie Baker a slew of uncontrollable superhuman abilities. To keep her secret safe Jamie socially exiles herself, earning the title of Rocklin High's resident ice queen. But during a supercharged encounter with star quarterback Ryan Miller she literally kisses anonymity goodbye. 

Now the annoyingly irresistible Ryan will stop at nothing to melt the heart of the ice queen and find out what makes her so special. Unfortunately, Ryan is not the only person on to her secret. Will Jamie learn to contain her unstable powers before being discovered by the media or turned into a government lab rat? More importantly, can she throw Ryan Miller off her trail before falling in love with him? 

My Thoughts: 

Jamie Baker is just trying to get through high school without dating or really having friends after a recent tragedy what she didn't count on was the yumminess of Ryan Miller and she goes so far as to kiss him when he makes a bet with another jock.   What she didn't count on was the fireworks that came with that kiss literal sparks between them.

Jamie does everything she can to dismay Ryan she's called the Ice Queen for a reason for her own protection as much as everyone else's.  Will Ryan be able to break her down find out what her story is?  Or will he treat her like everyone else does?  

The problem is someone else is watching Ryan and Jamie and who knows what there agenda really is.  Will this find Jamie in a predicament she can't escape?  She knows she's falling for Ryan but can she get out before she's in too deep?

I love this series it's like Smallville in a weird way we have the superhuman girl we have teen drama and the big issue will she or won't she.  We see many sides of Jamie as she tries to get through high school with as little drama as possible.  Of course real life also gets in the way it's was so much fun to watch Jamie figure out where to go from here.  It was tons of fun.

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Review: Small Town Monsters by: Diana Rodriguez Wallach

Title: Small Town Monsters

Author: Diana Rodriguez Wallach

Publisher: Underlined

Format: e-book ARC ( 314 p.) NetGalley

Description:

The Conjuring meets The Vow! This terrifying paperback original tells the unputdownable story of a girl, a dark angel, and the cult hellbent on taking over her small, coastal town.

Vera Martinez wants nothing more than to escape Roaring Creek and her parents' reputation as demonologists. Not to mention she's the family outcast, lacking her parents' innate abilities, and is terrified of the occult things lurking in their basement.

Maxwell Oliver is supposed to be enjoying the summer before his senior year, spending his days thinking about parties and friends. Instead he's taking care of his little sister while his mom slowly becomes someone he doesn't recognize. Soon he suspects that what he thought was grief over his father's death might be something more...sinister.

When Maxwell and Vera join forces, they come face to face with deeply disturbing true stories of cults, death worship, and the very nature that drives people to evil.

Underlined is a line of totally addictive romance, thriller, and horror paperback original titles coming to you fast and furious each month. Enjoy everything you want to read the way you want to read it. 

My Thoughts: 

This book follows Vera Martinez whose trying to survive in a town where everyone treats her like a dead freak because of her parents work which is similar to the Warren's work in the Conjuring movies.  In this book though Maxwell Oliver needs Vera's help with her parents in Barcelona helping someone else the pressure is on Vera to help Max whose Mom has gone crazy.

Vera notices that the people in town are all crazy about a self help group.  But is the group helping or are they taking over?  Vera whose adamant she has no powers feels compelled to help her class mate.  With the help of Vera's aunt and a local priest the hunt is on to help one helpless woman so over taken by grief she can barely get through the day.

This book was incredible especially for anyone who loves The Nun and The Conjuring movies it pulls you in and you can't put it down til you know the kids will be alright!  I feel in love with Vera and felt for her when you read about her issues and Max's issues you want to take them somewhere safe! 

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Book Blitz by: Anna Katmora

Seventeen Butterflies
Anna Katmore
Publication date: August 23rd 2021
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult

The embarrassment of being the only unkissed girl in high school is something Sandy Cardington refuses to accept. The first kiss project is her foolproof plan to finally get rid of the status at her 17th birthday party, while her parents are out of town.

With several kissable boys on her guest list, this should be a walk in the park. But she didn’t count on her older brother returning from college and throwing a wrench into her plans. To make matters even more complicated, he has a friend in tow, and the cute hockey player stirs unexpected butterflies in her stomach every time their paths cross.

While Sandy moves heaven and earth to make her party and project come true, it looks as if Thane Griffyn has his own plans to teach her the real meaning of a first kiss…

A compelling, sweet high school romance, perfect for fans of Kelly Oram, L A Cotton, Cassie Mae, and Erin Watt.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

“Who. Are. You?”

The words fly out of my mouth even before the front door falls shut behind me. There’s a stranger in my house—built like a demi-god, demonic dark hair, and with eyes like an angel. He comes out of the bathroom as if he’d just taken a break after parking himself in my home for a cozy film marathon. Hello?

The intruder with the white t-shirt wipes his still damp hands on the back of his washed-out jeans, not even half as confused as I am, obviously. “My name’s Thane,” he says. Then he smiles, and the sun is rising a second time today at half past six in the evening. What the hell?

He cocks his head. “And yours?”

My backpack slides from my right shoulder, pulling one side of my unzipped dark blue hoodie with it, and hits the tiled hallway floor with a thud so loud the neighbors could hear. That’s from the five new books I just borrowed from the library. All hardcovers. “Huh?”

Dimples and an amused look make the young man’s eyes scrunch a little tighter. “Your name?”

Jeez, burglars don’t usually smirk and engage you in conversations, do they? Then again, we’ve never been robbed before, so what do I know?

With a jerk of my shoulder, I push my hoodie back in place and then grab my brother’s old hockey stick from behind the chest in the foyer. We’ve been keeping it there since the day I watched my first murder mystery as a kid, and today I swing it for the first time.

“I’m Sandra Michelle Cardington. Cardington as in the name written on the mailbox outside this house. My house.” Need I say, “I live here!” My fingers clenching around the wood, I move one step closer to the housebreaker. “You don’t.”

“Whoa.” His chuckle runs wild into nice boyish laughter, and he lifts his hands in surrender.

Not gonna help, cutie. I’ll knock your lights out.

As I scowl like a wild dog, he keeps his body rigid, but his star-blue eyes move to the right as he shouts over his shoulder, “You didn’t say you’re living with Harley Quinn, Cam.”

The next instant, he moves forward so swiftly I totally miss the moment. With just one hand, he brings my arms down then casts a friendly look straight into my eyes. “Let me show you how this works. This isn’t a baseball bat, you know. You use it a little closer to the ground.”

Author Bio:

"I'm writing stories because I can't breathe without."

Anna Katmore lives in an enchanting world of her own, which allows only those to enter who are ready to hand in logic and rationalism. But beware, if you dare to step through this door, you'll never want to leave again...

Disney is her attitude towards life, and if she could, she'd save the world from itself. Her patronus is a wolf, her wand the broken twig of an apple tree, 13 inches long with a unicorn hair core. Glitter on her shoes is a must, though she doesn't care for Cinderella's glass slippers. Too risky that something might break...

For more information, please visit www.annakatmore.com

Website / Goodreads / Facebook

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Review: Saint Anything by: Sarah Dessen

Title: Saint Anything

Author: Sarah Dessen

Publisher: Viking

Format Hardcover ( 417 p.) Personal Purchase

Description:

A New York Times bestseller

A TIME Magazine Top 10 Children's Book of 2015

"Saint Anything is a poignant, honest story about how we might suffer the misfortune of someone else's bad choices, how people who love us can become family when we desperately need it, and how starting over might - miraculously - mean taking a solid leap forward." —Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling novelist of Leaving Time and My Sister’s Keeper

Sydney has always felt invisible. She's grown accustomed to her brother, Peyton, being the focus of the family’s attention and, lately, concern. Peyton is handsome and charismatic, but seems bent on self-destruction. Now, after a drunk-driving accident that crippled a boy, Peyton’s serving some serious jail time, and Sydney is on her own, questioning her place in the family and the world.

Then she meets the Chatham family. Drawn into their warm, chaotic circle, Sydney experiences unquestioning acceptance for the first time. There’s effervescent Layla, who constantly falls for the wrong guy, Rosie, who’s had her own fall from grace, and Mrs. Chatham, who even though ailing is the heart of the family. But it’s with older brother Mac—quiet, watchful, and protective—that Sydney finally feels seen, really seen, at last.

Saint Anything is Sarah Dessen’s deepest and most psychologically probing novel yet, telling an engrossing story of a girl discovering friendship, love, and herself.

My Thoughts:

In this book Sydney is dealing with the repercussions of her brother what he's done which has landed him in jail.  So Sydney tries to move on and finds it might be easier in a new school so she enters Jackson High School and leaves her posh high school behind.  It takes a bit for Sydney to make some friends due to being shy and wanting desperately to go unnoticed.  Not long she meets Layla and they become quick friends.

Of course Peyton Sydney's brother keeps becoming a front issue in Sydney's home life.  Sydney hasn't figured out where in this family she fits.  

Sydney really has to work on fixing her relationship with her mom, and her mom has to learn to work on her relationship with her son and so on.  This book was a great read and you find yourself right there with Sydney wishing you could give her the strength to fix the relationships in this book!  Definitely worth checking out!

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Review: The Moon and More by: Sarah Dessen

Title: The Moon and More

Author: Sarah Dessen

Publisher: Speak

Format: Paperback ( 435 p.) Personal Purchase

Description:

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?

Sarah Dessen's devoted fans will welcome this story of romance, yearning, and, finally, empowerment. It could only happen in the summer.

My Thoughts: 

Emaline is heading to college and spending her last summer at home making some money for school what she doesn't count on is relationship issues with her boyfriend, a new love interest, a crazy film maker and life getting in her way.  

We see so much happen with Emaline as she manuvers life and relationships and gets ready for college.  Situations arise that really push Emaline to see what she can do and how far she can be pushed.  I loved this book we get to go back to Colby and see what's going on and meet Emmaline's family and friends.  It was a great adventure and my favorite part has to be Benji Emmaline's half brother he's cute and spunky and great!

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Review: Tweet Cute by: Emma Lord

Title: Tweet Cute
Author: Emma Lord
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Format: e-book ( 368 p.) Personal Purchase

Description:

Meet Pepper, swim team captain, chronic overachiever, and all-around perfectionist. Her family may be falling apart, but their massive fast-food chain is booming ― mainly thanks to Pepper, who is barely managing to juggle real life while secretly running Big League Burger’s massive Twitter account.

Enter Jack, class clown and constant thorn in Pepper’s side. When he isn’t trying to duck out of his obscenely popular twin’s shadow, he’s busy working in his family’s deli. His relationship with the business that holds his future might be love/hate, but when Big League Burger steals his grandma’s iconic grilled cheese recipe, he’ll do whatever it takes to take them down, one tweet at a time.

All’s fair in love and cheese ― that is, until Pepper and Jack’s spat turns into a viral Twitter war. Little do they know, while they’re publicly duking it out with snarky memes and retweet battles, they’re also falling for each other in real life ― on an anonymous chat app Jack built.

As their relationship deepens and their online shenanigans escalate ― people on the internet are shipping them?? ― their battle gets more and more personal, until even these two rivals can’t ignore they were destined for the most unexpected, awkward, all-the-feels romance that neither of them expected.

A fresh, irresistible rom-com from debut author Emma Lord about the chances we take, the paths life can lead us on, and how love can be found in the opposite place you expected.

My Thoughts: 

This book is a cute rom-com about Jack and Pepper who both are connected to a restaurant service of some kind.  When their business life crosses to personal life all sorts of things happen.

Pepper has been with her mom and still talking to her sister Paige and her dad.  Her life is in New York even if she is just trying to get through school without much fuss.

Jack is sick of living in his brothers shadow.  Even if only he is seeing it that way.  He's not sure what he wants to do in the future but he's sure it's not working in his parents cafe. 

As the two juggle life they end up in a very heated twitter war with the companies.  But through most of it they don't realize who they are sparring with?  This book was definitely full of so much drama and chaos.

I love this book it was so much fun watching Pepper and Jack try to figure out life and twitter and businesses.  It was such a trip and a half to see how the book went and was great to see how it played out to Jack and Pepper!

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