Anticipated releases: April 2018

What’s up, guys? I can freely admit I’ve been a terrible person in March, I only posted one review other than the usual WWW Wednesdays, but I promise I’ll try harder in April. It’s safe to say that with these exciting new releases, there will never be a dull moment in my reading schedule.

Release date: April 10th, 2018

Welcome to the City of Sin, where casino families reign, gangs infest the streets…
and secrets hide in every shadow.

Enne Salta was raised as a proper young lady, and no lady would willingly visit New Reynes, the so-called City of Sin. But when her mother goes missing, Enne must leave her finishing school—and her reputation—behind to follow her mother’s trail to the city where no one survives uncorrupted.

Frightened and alone, her only lead is a name: Levi Glaisyer. Unfortunately, Levi is not the gentleman she expected—he’s a street lord and a con man. Levi is also only one payment away from cleaning up a rapidly unraveling investment scam, so he doesn’t have time to investigate a woman leading a dangerous double life. Enne’s offer of compensation, however, could be the solution to all his problems.

Their search for clues leads them through glamorous casinos, illicit cabarets and into the clutches of a ruthless mafia donna. As Enne unearths an impossible secret about her past, Levi’s enemies catch up to them, ensnaring him in a vicious execution game where the players always lose. To save him, Enne will need to surrender herself to the city…

And she’ll need to play.

I’ve been looking forward to this one for quite a while! I’ve seen some comparisons to Six Of Crows on Goodreads, and I can definitely see that, but I won’t let it affect my judgment on it (mostly because Six Of Crows is a masterpiece that will probably never be matched).

Release date: April 10th, 2018

The New York Times Bestselling duo behind Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist and The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily return with twins out to throw the party of a lifetime–or at least the best party of high school!

Siblings Sam and Ilsa Kehlmann have spent most of their high school years throwing parties for their friends–and now they’ve prepared their final blowout, just before graduation.

The rules are simple: each twin gets to invite three guests, and the other twin doesn’t know who’s coming until the partiers show up at the door. With Sam and Ilsa, the sibling revelry is always tempered with a large dose of sibling rivalry, and tonight is no exception.

One night. One apartment. Eight people. What could possibly go wrong? Oh, we all know the answer is plenty. But plenty also goes right, as well…in rather surprising ways.

I have problems with pretentious, know-it-all John Green-esque characters, and judging by the Goodreads reviews, this book happens to have … just that. But, but! I’m still holding out for this one because I happened to like a previous Cohn-Levithan collaboration, The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily. Plus, stories that take place in one night are quite intriguing, in movies or books or anything.

Release date: April 17th, 2018

1780. Albany, New York.

As the war for American Independence carries on, two newlyweds are settling into their new adventure: marriage. But the honeymoon’s over, and Alexander Hamilton and Eliza Schuyler are learning firsthand just how tricky wedded life can be. Alex is still General George Washington’s right-hand man and his attention these days is nothing if not divided–much like the colonies’ interests as the end of the Revolution draws near. Alex & Eliza’s relationship is tested further by lingering jealousies and family drama.

Alex and Eliza was such a sweet story that ended so succinctly that I almost feel as though a sequel is unnecessary. But I’ll be damned if I don’t come back for more Alex and Eliza. Honestly, I’m scared for my babies! They’re going to be separated for most of this novel and that broken heart on the cover isn’t doing me any favors.

Leah Burke—girl-band drummer, master of deadpan, and Simon Spier’s best friend from the award-winning Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda—takes center stage in this novel of first love and senior-year angst.

When it comes to drumming, Leah Burke is usually on beat—but real life isn’t always so rhythmic. An anomaly in her friend group, she’s the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends—not even her openly gay BFF, Simon.

So Leah really doesn’t know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high. It’s hard for Leah to strike the right note while the people she loves are fighting—especially when she realizes she might love one of them more than she ever intended.

Words can’t express how hyped I am for this release! I loved Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (even though I still haven’t seen the movie yet… don’t hate me!) and while Leah wasn’t totally on my radar before, I so want to know more about her.

Thanks for viewing, guys! What April releases are you most hyped for? Let me know in the comments below 🙂

New Releases in YA for April 2017

Hey dudes. How was your March? I had actually fit in more books than I thought I would, and even reread 2 that I had previously disliked in preparation for the ‘better’ sequels. March was pretty stressful for me, I won’t lie, I had a bunch of things going on at the same time, but I’m glad I still managed to finish 5 new books by the end of the month. April seems to be a great month for contemporary/romance releases. Let’s get into it!

1. Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett – Coming April 4th, 2017

In this delightfully charming teen spin on You’ve Got Mail, the one guy Bailey Rydell can’t stand is actually the boy of her dreams—she just doesn’t know it yet.

Classic movie buff Bailey “Mink” Rydell has spent months crushing on a witty film geek she only knows online by “Alex.” Two coasts separate the teens until Bailey moves in with her dad, who lives in the same California surfing town as her online crush.

Faced with doubts (what if he’s a creep in real life—or worse?), Bailey doesn’t tell Alex she’s moved to his hometown. Or that she’s landed a job at the local tourist-trap museum. Or that she’s being heckled daily by the irritatingly hot museum security guard, Porter Roth—a.k.a. her new arch-nemesis. But life is whole lot messier than the movies, especially when Bailey discovers that tricky fine line between hate, love, and whatever-it-is she’s starting to feel for Porter.

And as the summer months go by, Bailey must choose whether to cling to a dreamy online fantasy in Alex or take a risk on an imperfect reality with Porter. The choice is both simpler and more complicated than she realizes, because Porter Roth is hiding a secret of his own: Porter is Alex…Approximately.

I love a witty and cute summer story and Alex, Approximately seems like a great one. The reviews that have been rolling in seem to really love it, and while the synopsis is a tad spoiler-y, I’m highly anticipating it.

2. Gem and Dixie, by Sara Zarr – Coming April 4th, 2017

Gem & Dixie is the new novel from renowned young adult author and National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr—a deep, nuanced, and gorgeously written story about the complex relationship between two sisters from a broken home.

Gem has never known what it is to have security. She’s never known an adult she can truly rely on. But the one constant in her life has been Dixie. Gem grew up taking care of her sister when no one else could: not their mother, whose issues make it hard for her to keep food on the table; and definitely not their father, whose intermittent presence is the only thing worse than his frequent absence. Even as Gem and Dixie have grown apart, they’ve always had each other.

When their dad returns for the first time in years and tries to insert himself back into their lives, Gem finds herself with an unexpected opportunity: three days with Dixie, on their own in Seattle and beyond. But this short trip soon becomes something more, as Gem discovers that to save herself, she may have to sever the one bond she’s tried so hard to keep.

National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr has written her most personal and affecting book yet—an unforgettable story of breaking apart and of coming together again.

Zarr’s past novel How To Save A Life pretty much saved my life, so I’m down for anything and everything she writes. Gem and Dixie definitely sounds like a mysterious and emotional story, and I’m really curious to Zarr’s take on this complicated relationship between sisters.

3. Always And Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han – Coming April 4th, 2017

Lara Jean’s letter-writing days aren’t over in this surprise follow-up to the New York Times bestselling To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and P.S. I Still Love You.

Lara Jean is having the best senior year a girl could ever hope for. She is head over heels in love with her boyfriend, Peter; her dad’s finally getting remarried to their next door neighbor, Ms. Rothschild; and Margot’s coming home for the summer just in time for the wedding.

But change is looming on the horizon. And while Lara Jean is having fun and keeping busy helping plan her father’s wedding, she can’t ignore the big life decisions she has to make. Most pressingly, where she wants to go to college and what that means for her relationship with Peter. She watched her sister Margot go through these growing pains. Now Lara Jean’s the one who’ll be graduating high school and leaving for college and leaving her family—and possibly the boy she loves—behind.

When your heart and your head are saying two different things, which one should you listen to?

Jenny Han’s novels have always been guilty pleasures of mine, and the To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before series is no exception. While I had my issues with the past two books (which mostly have to do with Lara Jean herslef, can you blame me?), I still have love for these sweet and sugary books and am anticipating the conclusion.

4. The Upside Of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli – Coming April 11th, 2017

Seventeen-year-old Molly Peskin-Suso knows all about unrequited love. No matter how many times her twin sister, Cassie, tells her to woman up, Molly can’t stomach the idea of rejection. So she’s careful. Fat girls always have to be careful.

Then a cute new girl enters Cassie’s orbit, and for the first time ever, Molly’s cynical twin is a lovesick mess. Meanwhile, Molly’s totally not dying of loneliness—except for the part where she is. Luckily, Cassie’s new girlfriend comes with a cute hipster-boy sidekick. If Molly can win him over, she’ll get her first kiss and she’ll get her twin back.

There’s only one problem: Molly’s coworker, Reid. He’s a chubby Tolkien superfan with a season pass to the Ren Faire, and there’s absolutely no way Molly could fall for him.

Right?

Becky Albertalli’s debut novel Simon Vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda definitely made me a fan of her work, and this new contemporary sounds right up my alley. I love books with humor, emotion, and intelligence and I’m pretty sure Albertalli has tons of that packed in this one.

5. Given To The Sea by Mindy McGinnis – Coming April 11th, 2017

Khosa is Given to the Sea, a girl born to be fed to the water, her flesh preventing a wave like the one that destroyed the Kingdom of Stille in days of old. But before she’s allowed to dance – an uncontrollable twitching of the limbs that will carry her to the shore in a frenzy – she must produce an heir. Yet the thought of human touch sends shudders down her spine that not even the sound of the tide can match.

Vincent is third in line to inherit his throne, royalty in a kingdom where the old linger and the young inherit only boredom. When Khosa arrives without an heir he knows his father will ensure she fulfills her duty, at whatever cost. Torn between protecting the throne he will someday fill, and the girl whose fate is tied to its very existence, Vincent’s loyalty is at odds with his heart.

Dara and Donil are the last of the Indiri, a native race whose dwindling magic grows weaker as the island country fades. Animals cease to bear young, creatures of the sea take to the land, and the Pietra – fierce fighters who destroyed the Indiri a generation before – are now marching from their stony shores for the twin’s adopted homeland, Stille.

Witt leads the Pietra, their army the only family he has ever known. The stone shores harbor a secret, a growing threat that will envelop the entire land – and he will conquer every speck of soil to ensure the survival of his people.

The tides are turning in Stille, where royals scheme, Pietrans march, and the rising sea calls for its Given.

I hate to add in a fantasy to screw up this happy contemporary party we are having here, but that cover? That synopsis? ASDFGHJK is my response. I’ve read some pretty disappointing fantasy ARCs lately, and with that kind of summary, Given To The Sea could either be a winner or a sore loser. Let’s hope it’s not the latter!

That concludes it, peeps. Let me know what you think and thank you for reading!

-Haven

Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda, by Becky Albertalli

4 stars

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.

It’s wonderful to see so many diverse, eye-opening novels on important subjects published these past few years (and I see some great ones coming up in 2017 as well!), LGBTQ, feminism, and racism being only a few. I think exploring darker and more moving tones in YA literature is great, and while that is important, I loved seeing a happy and light gay romance represented in Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda. This novel doesn’t shy away from topics such as self-acceptance and embracing your sexuality, but the way it is presented works so well with this heart-felt, humorous tale.

The story is started off immediately with Martin picking up a conversation with Simon, subtly threatening to expose his screenshots of Simon’s emails to Blue, a mystery boy that Simon had been wholeheartedly talking to since they randomly found each other on Tumblr — if Simon does not set Martin up with his crush, Abby. Simon is conflicted and confused about this situation, but this whole fiasco is not the main plot of the novel. The main point lies around Blue and his identity, as well as Simon’s struggles with his friends and coming out. The writing was honestly effortless, it’s incredibly genuine, natural, and realistic and this helped a lot when formulating realistic struggles and relationships between Simon’s best friends and family. Unfortunately, discovering Blue’s true identity was just a conformation for me, as I had guessed the character long before he was truly revealed, but I loved the added mystery element regardless. What impressed me the most is the consistency of the warm and uplifting composure, even with representations of homophobia and racial tension. Albertalli perfectly explores realistic scenarios and character angst while still weaving a loving, adorable story.

Simon Spier is honestly a gift. He’s intelligent, funny, and witty as ever, just the kind of protagonist this book needed. His voice was incredibly natural and relatable as he mulled over his relationships and thoughts on his family, friends, and overall composure of his school and its crazy characters. Simon’s friends, Abby, Leah, and Nick were also realistically portrayed in the book, and I love how they were so supportive of Simon. In fact, the relationships are one of my favorite things about this novel, the characters’ vulnerability massively boosts the naturalness in Simon’s interactions with his friends and family.

The romance is extremely cute, and while that’s practically the only thing every reviewer is saying, it’s true! The final moments leading to Blue’s reveal will have you nervous and excited for Simon, and the moments after that will keep you smiling until the end. SO CUTE.

Overall, Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda is a great contemporary novel that has managed to mesh ideas of self-acceptance and coming out with an adorable, fuzzy romance. I highly recommend to readers looking for a sweet, honest, and diverse story.

-Haven