Tag: Emma Lord

REVIEW: Begin Again by Emma Lord

REVIEW: Begin Again by Emma Lord

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Andie has pulled off the impossible – a mid-year transfer to Blue Ridge State. It’s going to be perfect – she can experience all the things she has grown up hearing about. And she’s going to surprise her boyfriend, Connor, with the news that they will be at Blue Ridge State together.

Except nothing goes as planned.

Her first class is a disaster. She loses the pivotal ribbon in the scavenger hunt that was the primary reason for pushing to transfer mid-year. And then Connor announces his own surprise – he’s transferred home to go to the local community college with Andie.

As Andie tackles her first semester at Blue Ridge State, some of her expectations – for her relationship with Connor, for her quest to connect with her late mother by being at BRS, and for herself get challenged and leave her wondering what path she wants to be on after all.

Review

I have been a huge fan of Emma Lord for awhile. When You Get the Chance, You Have a Match, and Tweet Cute are some of my favorite YA stories of recent years. This story was a bit “quieter” for me – more introspective – but also a great read.

I connected with this story in a way I haven’t with the author’s earlier books. As a student of the Enneagram, I saw a lot of Type 2 thinking and behaving in Andie. This drew me to look at the story a bit more clinically rather than being able to just fall into the story. It’s good – and spot on. Just a different reading experience for me.

This is more Andie’s story than it is a romance. Oh, the romance is there – and it’s good! But Andie’s on a journey of personal growth and self-discovery that will have to take precedence over everything else. And the journey is so well done. I loved that the Andie is in college. It’s the perfect setting for her journey. There’s tons to love – from the dorm to the relationships to Bagelopolis. It’s all lovely.

There were several laugh-out-loud moments in this – as I’ve come to expect from the author – as well as great characters, and an engaging story. Emma Lord fans should not miss this one. And if the author is new to you, go ahead and pick up her backlist, too, because you are going to want to read them all! (Language)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥ = Great! Might re-read.

REVIEW: When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord

REVIEW: When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Millie Price’s star is on the rise. She’s worked her butt off to get into a theater pre-college program. But her dad is reluctant to let her go. And his resistance seems to have something to do with Millie’s mother.

Millie doesn’t know who her mother is, but she stumbles on her father’s LiveJournal from college. Reading through the entries around the time she would have been conceived, Millie finds some names of women who could be her mother. She’s sure if she can find the woman – who was also into musical theater – she could get her mother’s help to convince her dad to let her go.

But Millie’s plan to check out each of these women hits a snag when she ends up competing with her high school nemesis, Oliver, for an internship she doesn’t even want. But as it’s a chance to work with one of the potential moms, she sticks with it while getting to know the other women on her list. But Millie has no way of knowing how this search for her mom and her quest to attend this theater program is going to change everything.

Review

Emma Lord is the author of the fantastic Tweet Cute and You Have a Match, and after this third delightful story, she’s a must-read author for me.

I loved this! Millie is such a great character. She has a big personality, and sometimes the dramatic theater types can be abrasive to read. But that was never the case here. While she’s abrasive to Oliver, that’s part of the fun of the story, but I loved her (and Oliver) from the start.

Millie’s quest for her big theater program and for finding her mom opens up SO many great threads for this story – with the internship, with Oliver, with her family and friends, and with the new people she meets along the way. But none of those external pieces overshadows the internal work Millie does which is equally great.

Fans of Emma Lord’s previous books should absolutely pick this up – the character work here is excellent! And the romantic bits and the humor is icing on the cake. RomCom fans and musical theater lovers – you’re going to want to read this one too! (Language, LGBTQ+)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½ = I loved it! Would re-read.

YEAR IN REVIEW - Best of 2021 for Kids and Teens

YEAR IN REVIEW – Best of 2021 for Kids and Teens

Posted on by Jaymie

Continuing my best of lists for 2021, here are the lists for books for kids and books for teens/young adults.

Best of 2021 – Books for Kids

The Hunger Heroes: Missed Meal Mayhem – If I could only pick one kids book from 2021 to highlight, it would be this one. I struggle to find early chapter books that I really love and am excited to share with kids, but this is one I literally handed to anyone and everyone in 2021. This graphic novel was a delight to read and to share. Don’t miss it! You can read my full review here.
The Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery – Book 2 in this fantastic series for kids 10 and up from the amazing Ally Carter was another favorite from 2021. You can read my full review here for book one and here for this second book in the series.
Bea Is for Blended – A lovely, powerful middle grade story that shouldn’t be missed. You can read my full review here.
What Comes Next – A stand alone story from the author of the Mr. Terupt series as well as the Perfect Score series. You can read the full review here.
Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Boy – I don’t usually read a lot of nonfiction for kids, but I was intrigued by this kid-friendly version of the author’s show/book Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man. This is for readers 10 and up. You can read my full review here.

 

Best of 2021 – Books for Teens/Young Adults

Amelia Unabridged – If I could only pick one “Best of 2021” book, regardless of audience, I would pick this one. This book rocked my world when I first read it, and it stuck with me all year. I’m looking forward to carving out some time for a re-read soon. You can read my full review here.
Teen Titans: Beast Boy Loves Raven – I have really enjoyed this graphic novel series. Yes, I wish the series had more depth to the characters, but once I accept the limitations of the format for digging deeper into character details, I just enjoy the story and characters for what they are – fun. You can read my full review of this book here and the whole series here.
Bookish Boyfriends: Get a Clue – This series has been a delight since book one. You can read my full review of this book here, and you can read more about the whole series here.
Counting Down with You – Loved this powerful YA novel this year! You can read my full review here.
The Hawthorne Legacy (♥♥♥♥♥) – Book 2 in the Hawthorne series by my favorite YA author, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, was a powerhouse, It delivered on all the things I thought were missing for the first book while not losing any of the parts I loved. I can’t wait to read book 3 later this year. You can read my full review of book 1 here.
Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche – After the delightful Netflix movie starring Enola Holmes, this book was a must read for me – and it did not disappoint! You can read my full review here.
Never Saw You Coming – I heard a lot about this book last year as I follow the author on social media. The book did not disappoint. Read my full review here.
You Have a Match – This was my second Emma Lord book and I loved it! You can read my full review here, and check out the author page here – she has a new book out that I will be reviewing soon.

REVIEW: You Have a Match by Emma Lord

REVIEW: You Have a Match by Emma Lord

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

When Abby takes a DNA test to be supportive of her best friend (and crush) Leo, she never expects it will shake every foundation of her life. But when the results come in, it says she has a sister. A full-blooded, older sister.

When Abby and Savvy meet up in secret, it’s obvious the results are accurate. The questions start piling up – why did Abby’s parents place Savvy for adoption? How are they connected to Savvy’s adoptive family? Why have they kept this secret from Abby her whole life?

Abby decides to meet Savvy at Camp Reynolds for the summer. It meets her parents’ insistence on academic recovery work, but it will also let the girls dig into this mystery and get to know one another for the first time.

Review

Emma Lord is now a must-read author for me. Last year I fell in love with her delightful debut, Tweet Cute. And now I have fallen again for Abby and Leo and Savvy and Mickey and Finn and the rest. This was a start-to-finish read for me. It’s funny, suspenseful, and emotionally touching. It’s everything I want when I sit down with a YA novel. I can’t wait to read it again. And again. (In fact, the minute I finished reading the ARC, I pre-ordered my own copy.)

The family story was the hook for me. There are other things happening in the story – Abby’s feelings for Leo, the pressures from her parents regarding school, the camp, her reluctance to share her photography with others, her grief over the loss of her grandfather, and her questions about the future. And every one of those pieces was beautifully handled and part of the joy that is this book. But I was all in on the relationship between Abby and Savvy and on finding out the truth of their story. And it was so satisfying! There were moments when I couldn’t read fast enough to take in everything as quickly as I wanted to.

“Comfort reads” are a real thing, especially in these weird days. These are the books you know you love and you go back to them over and over to enjoy sinking into a great story with great characters. I have many YA comfort reads – Tweet Cute, 10 Blind Dates, Prince in Disguise and more. And now You Have a Match. The writing, the characters, the story, the humor, the heart – all of it was fantastic. YA fans do not want to miss this one! (Language, LGBTQ+)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥♥ = Outstanding!

REVIEW: Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

REVIEW: Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Pepper’s parents started Big League Burgers when their whole family still lived in the same town. Now, Pepper’s parents are amicably divorced. Her sister, Paige, is away at college, and Pepper is trying to survive her senior year at an incredibly competitive private school. Her life revolves around her school work, staying ahead of her academic rival, and swim team responsibilities as the captain. When she’s not consumed with all that, she bakes to let off steam. Her mom, in a bit of tone deaf parenting, also expects her to help with the business’ Twitter account. While there’s an employee assigned to it, she doesn’t have Pepper’s instincts or snark.

Jack’s parents run the deli Girl Cheese which was started by Jack’s grandmother. Jack’s parents seem to assume Jack will take over the deli some day, although they don’t make those assumptions about his twin brother, Ethan. Jack would rather design apps. In fact, he’s the secret designer of Weazel, a wildly popular social app at his private school. He also sometimes tweets things on the deli’s Twitter profile.

When Big League Burgers announces a new line of grilled cheese sandwiches, Jack and Ethan realize one is a direct rip off of their grandmother’s secret grilled cheese recipe at the deli. Their dad wants to ignore it, but Jack fires off a tweet. And Pepper, not knowing who is on the other side of the Twitter war, fires back.

Let the games begin.

Review

“You can’t just casually tell someone you carry caramel sauce around and walk away like that’s a normal thing. What other emergency condiments do you have stashed in your bag?”

This is delightful!! Sharp writing – and so funny! I loved Pepper and Jack! There are tons of levels to this – their assumptions about each other from school, their anonymous conversations on Weazel, their face-to-face interactions, and then the Twitter war. And it was all so fun!

There’s a lot of depth to the characters and the relationships amid the banter back and forth. Both teens are thinking about their futures. They’re struggling under expectations, and they’re trying to discover who they are. There are also some fascinating family dynamics for both teens.

And all of that – along with some mouth-watering food descriptions – is woven together so well. I loved it. The only thing missing is some recipes. Do not miss this fun novel! The paperback of this will release after the first of the year along with the author’s second book, You Have a Match. I’ll be reviewing that one in 2021. (Language, LGBTQ+)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½ = Loved it! Would read again!