Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

Summary:(from goodreads) In a land where magic has been forgotten but peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest is simmering. Three kingdoms grapple for power—brutally transforming their subjects' lives in the process. Amidst betrayals, bargains, and battles, four young people find their fates forever intertwined:Cleo: A princess raised in luxury must embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of a magic long thought extinct.Jonas: Enraged at injustice, a rebel lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country impoverished—and finds himself the leader of a people's revolution centuries in the making.Lucia: A girl adopted at birth into a royal family discovers the truth about her past—and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.Magnus: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, a firstborn son begins to realize that the heart can be more lethal than the sword. . . .The only outcome that's certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?
Review: I wasn't really sure what to expect when I started reading this book. The plot was interesting although, I was surprised at how much of it was the more political aspect. The fantasy element is definitely what kept things exciting. The characters were all well developed. The books switches perspective between Cleo, Jonas, Magnus and Lucia. I liked the two boys better than the girls. I didn't really mind them, but Cleo and Lucia both did things that annoyed me. I thought Magnus and Jonas had a lot more development. One thing that surprised me about the book was how much death and violence there was. I guess I should have expected it because of the war and conflict that happens between the kingdoms. One thing I liked was at the beginning of the book there was a map and a list of all the important characters and their roles. This made it a lot easier for me to keep track of who everyone was especially at the beginning before I got to know the characters.Overall, This was an enjoyable book. I think fans of fantasy should give this one a try.

The Beginning of After by Jennifer Castle

Summary:(from goodreads) Anyone who’s had something truly crappy happen to them will tell you: It’s all about Before and After. What I’m talking about here is the ka-pow, shake-you-to-your-core-and-turn-your-bones-to-plastic kind of crappy.Sixteen-year-old Laurel’s world changes instantly when her parents and brother are killed in a terrible car accident. Behind the wheel is the father of her bad-boy neighbor, David Kaufman, whose mother is also killed. In the aftermath of the tragedy, Laurel navigates a new reality in which she and her best friend grow apart, boys may or may not be approaching her out of pity, overpowering memories lurk everywhere, and Mr. Kaufman is comatose but still very much alive. Through it all there is David, who swoops in and out of Laurel’s life and to whom she finds herself attracted against her better judgment. She will forever be connected to him by their mutual loss—a connection that will change them both in unexpected ways.  
Review:  I really liked this book. This is a character driven book and I really connected with Laurel. Even though I have never dealt with anything even close to what she is going through. I liked the buildup of her relationship with David. It was very slow and subtle which isn't something that is seen very often. This book is not really focused on the romance it's just there as a little side note. The way the characters develop is really great. Laurel changes a lot of the course of the book but at the same time she is still so much the same.  It's kind of hard to explain but I think the reason I fell in love with this book is because it felt so real. There was nothing overly dramatic or unrealistic. I am really excited to read this author's other books. My only complaint about it is that the immediate aftermath of the accident was not emotional enough. This isn't a huge deal because the whole book is emotions and dealing with how to move on, but I still noticed it. Really, I loved this book.

Unwholly by Neal Shusterman

This review may contain spoilers of previous books in the series.
Summary:(from goodreads) Thanks to Connor, Lev, and Risa—and their high-profile revolt at Happy Jack Harvest Camp—people can no longer turn a blind eye to unwinding. Ridding society of troublesome teens while simultaneously providing much-needed tissues for transplant might be convenient, but its morality has finally been brought into question. However, unwinding has become big business, and there are powerful political and corporate interests that want to see it not only continue, but also expand to the unwinding of prisoners and the impoverished.Cam is a product of unwinding; made entirely out of the parts of other unwinds, he is a teen who does not technically exist. A futuristic Frankenstein, Cam struggles with a search for identity and meaning and wonders if a rewound being can have a soul. And when the actions of a sadistic bounty hunter cause Cam’s fate to become inextricably bound with the fates of Connor, Risa, and Lev, he’ll have to question humanity itself. 
Review: This is the second book in the unwind series. I read the first book in this series years ago and so it was difficult for me to remember some of the details as i jumped back into this world. However, this didn't affect my enjoyment of the story all that much. This book deals with a lot of the problems surrounding unwinding and there is even a small amount of history about how this society came to be. I really liked all of the characters in  this book but my favorites were Lev and Cam. Both of them have some interesting things going on and I think they will both play a big part in the next book. The plot of this book was pretty well paced and I liked the alternating perspectives. I don't think the story would have been as good if we were limited to one character. I am excited for the next book even though there is a small part of me that this series is going to get a little bit repetitive. Lets' hope that things will stay new and exciting for the rest of the series.

Dying to Know you by Aidan Chambers

Summary:(from goodreads) Karl, aged seventeen, is hopelessly in love. But the object of his affections, Firella, demands proof, and poses him a series of questions regarding his attitude to the many sides of love. But Karl is dyslexic, and convinced that if Firella finds out, she will think he is stupid, and unworthy of her, and leave him.So Karl asks a local writer to help him construct his replies - and an unlikely, but extremely touching, friendship develops between the two men. They both come to learn a great deal about about life from a very different perspective, and when an act of violence shatters their calm, they find their respective appraisal of life shifting in profound ways.Review: I wasn't really sure what to think about this book when I picked it up. The premise is an interesting one, but I was worried that it was going to be lacking in action. It was a definitely a more character driven story. I was surprised to find that the story is narrated by the author that Karl visits who is never named. I thought this book was just OK. I liked the depth that developed over the course of the novel. However, I feel like there was never any character development. Things weren't really much different by the end and the original premise of the story is forgotten pretty early on. Another thing is I didn't really have a connection with any of the characters. I enjoyed them but didn't love them. I feel like I maybe would have enjoyed it more if it was told form Karl's perspective. It seems like it would have been more relatable that way.  Despite those things I did get drawn into the story and enjoyed it quite a bit while i was reading it. I enjoyed it but it wasn't one of my favorites.

Bewitching by Alex Flinn

Summary:(from goodreads) Bewitching can be a beast. . . .
Once, I put a curse on a beastly and arrogant high school boy. That one turned out all right. Others didn't.I go to a new school now--one where no one knows that I should have graduated long ago. I'm not still here because I'm stupid; I just don't age.You see, I'm immortal. And I pretty much know everything after hundreds of years--except for when to take my powers and butt out.I want to help, but things just go awry in ways I could never predict. Like when I tried to free some children from a gingerbread house and ended up being hanged. After I came back from the dead (immortal, remember?), I tried to play matchmaker for a French prince and ended up banished from France forever. And that little mermaid I found in the Titanic lifeboat? I don't even want to think about it.Now a girl named Emma needs me. I probably shouldn't get involved, but her gorgeous stepsister is conniving to the core. I think I have just the thing to fix that girl--and it isn't an enchanted pumpkin. Although you never know what will happen when I start . . . bewitching.
Review: This is another one of Alex Flinn's fairy tale retellings and this one was just as good as the others. I liked that this book had retellings of a few different fairy tales thrown in. Although, the main focus of the story was the story of Emma and Lisette. Emma was a really great main character in a lot of ways. She was quiet and liked to read, and didn't really have to many friends. She was easy to relate to. Kendra was also a really awesome character. Hearing her stories of some of the places she has been throughout history added a lot to the story. My only problem was that I wish she had been in the story more. Hopefully we get more of Kendra's story some day. You don't necessarily have to read Beastly first but I think this book will be way more enjoyable if you do.   If you are a fan of Alex Flinn's other fairy tale retelling I think you will enjoy this one as well.

Flash Burnout by L.K. Madigan

Summary:(from goodreads) Fifteen-year-old Blake has a girlfriend and a friend who’s a girl. One of them loves him; the other one needs him.
 When he snapped a picture of a street person for his photography homework, Blake never dreamed that the woman in the photo was his friend Marissa’s long-lost meth addicted mom. Blake’s participation in the ensuing drama opens up a world of trouble, both for him and for Marissa. He spends the next few months trying to reconcile the conflicting roles of Boyfriend and Friend. His experiences range from the comic (surviving his dad’s birth control talk) to the tragic (a harrowing after-hours visit to the morgue).In a tangle of life and death, love and loyalty, Blake will emerge with a more sharply defined snapshot of himself.
Review: This is a book I have been wanting to read for a really long time and I was happy to finally get my hands on a copy. There wasn't to much going on as far as plot, this book was all about the characters. The best thing about this book is Blake. He is such a realistic character and his struggles are something that I think a lot of teens can relate to. The photography element was interesting as well. Not only was it Blake's hobby but a lot of the time the photos he took added another dimension to the story. I don't know if that makes sense but it feels more thought out then just giving a random hobby to a character.  I liked Marissa a lot as well. There was quite a bit of dram going on in this book and it kept things from getting boring. My only problem with this book was the way thing ended, especially regarding Marissa. I wish their had been a little bit more closure. This book more than met my expectations that I had for it.

Seth Baumgartner's Love Manifesto by Eric Luper

Summary:(from goodreads) Seth Baumgartner just had the worst day of his life.His girlfriend dumped him (at Applebee's), he spied his father on a date with a woman who is not his mother (also at Applebee's!), and he lost his fourth job of the year. It's like every relationship he cares about is imploding, and he can't figure out what's going on.To find answers, Seth decides to start an anonymous podcast called The Love Manifesto, exploring "what love is, why love is, and why we're stupid enough to keep going back for more." Things start looking up when Seth gets a job at a golf club with his hilarious and smut-minded best friend, Dimitri, and Dimitri's sister, Audrey. With their help, Seth tracks down his father's mystery date, hits the most infamous bogey in the history of golf, and discovers that sometimes love means eating the worst chicken-salad sandwich you can ever imagine. 
Review: This book was a lighthearted and fun book that takes a look at the meaning of love. Seth was an easy character to relate to.The way things ended up was a little bit surprising but it added a lot to the story. I thought the love manifesto wasn't a big enough part of the story. Although, we do get some brief segments from it, apart from that Seth doesn't really talk about it. Seth does learn a lot about love over the course of the book and I think that was my favorite part of it. The plot was pretty  character driven, which is to be expected. Seth was really the only character that I liked, everyone else was kind of annoying. overall, this was a fun and cute story.