Review: The Tyrant's Daughter by JC Carlson

Book: The Tyrant's Daughter by JC Carlson

Released: February 11, 2014

Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers

Pages: 304 (Kindle)

Rating: 3.75

 

Goodreads 

 

*I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an open and honest review*

From Goodreads:

THERE: In an unnamed Middle Eastern country, fifteen-year-old Laila has always lived like royalty. Her father is a dictator of sorts, though she knows him as King—just as his father was, and just as her ttle brother Bastien will be one day. Then everything changes: Laila's father is killed in a coup.

HERE: As war surges, Laila flees to a life of exile in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. Overnight she becomes a nobody. Even as she adjusts to a new school and new friends, she is haunted by the past. Was her father really a dictator like the American newspapers say? What was the cost of her family's privilege?

Far from feeling guilty, her mother is determined to regain their position of power. So she's engineering a power play—conspiring with CIA operatives and rebel factions to gain a foothold to the throne. Laila can't bear to stand still as yet another international crisis takes shape around her. But how can one girl stop a conflict that spans generations?

 

 One of my goals for this year was to read more books outside of my favorite genre. So when I came across this book on Netgalley, I immediately requested it. I held off on reading it for a few weeks after downloading it to my kindle and piggy-backed it with the series my book club was reading (Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia by Jean Sasson). They were a great pairing together. Since I was already immersed in the culture of Middle Eastern countries,  it made the transition into this world much easier. 

This story centers around 15 year old Laila. She is forced to flee her home country with her mother and younger brother in the wake of her father's (who was the king) death during a coup. Carlson does not name a specific country, but rather describes the country in generalizations for that area of the world. Occasionally I tried to picture a specific country, but it really didn't affect my enjoyment of the story not having one named in particular.

 

Upon arrival in the US, Laila struggles, while her 6 year old brother adapted much more easily. Laila was surprised, and often disgusted with the American culture that was so much different than her own. I really enjoyed reading how Laila was dealing with the differences. Things that seem minor or not a big deal to us (shorts, tank tops, fast food lines, etc), were a totally new thing to her. 

 

One of the parts I enjoyed the most was her conversation with two of her friends about the differences in relationships between girls and guys in their respective countries.. In Laila's country, they rarely interact with the opposite sex, and discussion with other females is truly about friendship and camaraderie; whereas in the US, all the girls talked about was the boys.

Speaking of boys.... Laila meets the super cute and sweet Ian. He takes her to do all the fun, normal American things. And tries to teach her how to drive, which provided some great moments of discussion between the two. I loved the development of their relationship, including the ups and downs which is very indicative of high school students dating.

I also loved the developing and complicated friendship between Laila & Emmy. Emmy quickly adopts Laila in to her group and tries to show her "the ropes" in school and other parts of Laila's new world. I loved how Carlson wrote this friendship. Things weren't always easy, and they often clashed or had problems with each other, but that's how friendship is, especially in high school. It was an accurate portrayal of how each of the girls would have interacted together.

Even through all of this, Laila (and her brother) never truly feel comfortable and find their place in the US. Despite everything Laila learns about how the rest of the world views her country, she still yearns to return home. I was glad to see that Carlson didn't take the easy way out and just make the story about how impressed Laila was with everything and how she wanted nothing more than to stay in America. I felt it was much more realistic this way.

 

The journey Laila goes on through this story is great. From despair at leaving her home country, to trying to adjust to a "new normal," to uncovering things about her father and her country, Laila learns a lot during the course of the book. And still remains good. I definitely enjoyed her as a main character, and would read more about her in the future.

 

While this book was more political than what I usually read, I really enjoyed it overall. It definitely succeeding in making me see that part of the world in a different light. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading about different cultures, in fact I immediately suggested it to my sister-in-law who particularly enjoys books of this genre.

Review: Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Book: Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Released: November 22, 2011

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Pages: 251 (Nook version)

Stars: 2 Stars out of 5

   Harper Scott's sister, June, is the golden child; she has perfect grades, she's pretty, and popular. So when June commits suicide, no one can explain why and Harper is devastated.

   Searching for answers and attempting to keep June's ashes from being split in two by her divorcing parents, Harper steals them and sets off on a road trip. She's accompanied by her best friend, Laney, and Jake Tolan, the mysterious boy with secrets of his own and some sort of connection to June. The three of them set off to take June to the one place she had always dreamed of ... California. 

   I'll start off by saying that I had a difficult time relating to Harper. She's self obsessed and lacks awareness of others around her. She doesn't seem to have thought about what stealing her sister's ashes would do to her grieving parents. After all, she's taking away what remains for their dead daughter. It came off as heartless and selfish. 

The black and white contrast between June and Harper was very cliche. June was the perfect one and Harper has a bad attitude and is always in trouble. June was gorgeous and outgoing, Harper is plain and unpopular. Harper's constant sulking and focus on how perfect everyone else is compared to her was extremely tiresome and obnoxious.

The road trip portion of the book does make story a bit lighter. The group has many interesting encounters along the way. However, when they reach their destination, Harper is forced to confront the secret Jake has been keeping from her. That particular scene was so anti-climatic that I almost stopped reading the book right then and there. It seemed that the only point of Jake's secret was to cause conflict between him and Harper. For me, personally, this big secret came off as inconsequential and Harper's reaction to it made her even more juvenile in my eyes. 

As far as the mystery of June's suicide? There is no real resolution. I was hoping for something emotional, something cathartic. But it wasn't any one thing that caused her to take her life. June was just a girl who kept all her real emotions hidden and was in far more pain than anyone realized. This tends to be the case in a lot of teen suicides; so the aspect of the book was realistic, I suppose.

There are a few more bits of drama here and there. Laney's drama for instance, though her issues came late in the book and seemed forced. As did Harper and Jake's romance. They literally go from their first kiss to having sex for the first time in the same scene. 

The only aspect of this book that actually saved it from getting one star or no stars at all was the music. Jake has some interesting taste in music, much of which I appreciate. 

With all of that said ... The suicide of a sibling seems so devastating to me that it’s hard to imagine any sort of closure within this book actually being achieved and in a few short months at that. All in all I gave Saving June two stars. It was mediocre at best. 

Happy reading!

SJ

Review: Lingering Echoes by Erica Kiefer

Book: Lingering Echoes by Erica Kiefer

Released: October 30, 2013

Publisher: Clear Teen Publishing

Pages: 278 (Kindle)

Rating: Uhhh 1? DNF

Goodreads

*Note: I received this free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

 

 

From Goodreads:

She's broken with guilt.
He harbors a chilling past.
It's safer if they keep their distance...
But, the echoes that linger connect them.

Returning to Hidden Pines is the last thing Allie Collins wants to do during her final summer before college. For her, the family cabin she spent her youthful summers in, now holds a dark memory that has haunted her every day for the last year.

While struggling to forget her past, Allie runs into Damien, a local rebel with secrets of his own. He's dark, dangerous and he keeps showing up when Allie least expects him to. She has every reason not to trust him. So why does she find herself opening up to him in a way she hasn't been able to with anyone?

As pieces of Damien’s identity emerge, answers to a rumored mystery begin to unfold. By the time Allie unearths the secrets of Damien’s past, she realizes just how intricately they are connected. Now she is caught in a dangerous battle that threatens her life and those she loves.

I don't even know where to start with this. For the first time ever (seriously), I DNFd a book. I don't know if it's because I had a review copy or if I'm just really not the target audience for this. I don't know. I do know that I did not enjoy this at all. Since I don't want this to be all negative, I'll start off with 3 things I enjoyed about the book.

1. It has a pretty cover.

2. The setting sounds nice.

3. I like the name Allie.

Okay. Now that that's over with, I'll go in to a little bit about why I DNF this one. First of all, there were some spelling and grammar errors (yes, I know it is a review copy) which totally took me out of the story. I know it's not a major thing to most people, but as a person who refuses to abbreviate, misspell or ignore spelling of words in texts and on facebook, etc, it seriously bugged me.

The story jumped around a lot to me. One page they would be doing one thing, then in the following paragraph they would be doing something completely different on a totally different day. It was jarring and I just couldn't get a grasp on the story, the world, or the characters.

Speaking of the characters, I know I was supposed to feel something for Allie, but I just couldn't muster the energy to care. Yes her situation sucked, but I didn't get the emotion behind it.While she had some issues, she also came across as slightly spoiled, although nothing like her friend Brooke who read rather vapid to me. Brooke appeared to only care about her looks and guys. Not my favorite. At all.

 

Even though I didn't make it extremely far into the story, I could see the makings of a love triangle that was already reminding me of Twilight and Edward-Bella-Jacob. I don't really need to read another story about a "nice girl" who falls in love with the dark and secretive "bad boy." It's just not really my cup of tea.

Maybe I should've given this more of a chance, but I couldn't bring myself to continue reading it. Not with so many other books on my TBR beckoning me.

Top Ten Tuesday: 10 Reasons I Love Being a Blogger & a Reader

Hosted by: The Broke & The Bookish

I'm super excited about this week's topic as I enjoy nothing more than talking about why I love to read. For real. I like books. I like to talk about books. And blog about books. So this week is perfect for me.

(Also, we are currently in the middle of a giveaway for some cookies based on Rainbow Rowell's book covers + a copy of my personal favorite, Attachments, so make sure you go check it out and enter before it closes on Wednesday night! Click here.)

Without further ado.... my Top 10 reasons I like to be a blogger & a reader.

1. I participated in the #Love-A-Thon this weekend hosted by Alexa & Kate. It was a blast! They put together such a fun event for all of us! I met so many wonderful new-to-me bloggers and found a ton of new blogs to follow throughout the event. I'm already looking forward to next year. I've found the book blogging community is so very nice and I'm lucky to be a part of it. I could go on and on about all the wonderful bloggers I met this weekend, but then this post would be ridiculously long. Just know that you guys are awesome!

2. I recently received my first ever review request from an author. While I've received a few books from netgalley to review, this was the first one I specifically got an email about asking me to review their book. I am so excited and I can't wait to read it and review it. For only have been blogging for about 4 months, I was super psyched. It's definitely a nice, unexpected perk of blogging about books.

3. I love, love, love recommending books to people. Whether it's on twitter, or at the bookstore (which will earn a person a few odd looks), or to friends in person or on facebook, I seriously love telling people about books I think they'll enjoy. I've had a few friends from high school come out of the woodwork lately and ask me about what books I think they should read. I'm even happier when they come back and tell me how much they loved my suggestion! Furiously happy feelings occur.

4. I've been able to interact with so many authors on twitter and through other social media since I started blogging. The YA authors in particular that I've interacted with are absolutely wonderful and supportive. And not just about books. I've had many a twitter conversation about Sherlock with Rainbow Rowell and CJ Redwine.

5. I greatly enjoy learning about and reading books that I may not have otherwise heard of until another blogger suggested it either on twitter, goodreads, or via review. I've come across so many great stand-alones and series this way. I love how bloggers are constantly ahead of the curve in what's coming out and what is most likely to be a hot new book. It's been one of my favorite things to be a part of since I started blogging.

6. My book club is absolutely wonderful. We meet about once a month to discuss our book, have dinner, and catch up with each other. While none of them read quite as often as I do, it's always a good time. We've read so many different types of books, which is probably one of my favorite things about my group. I definitely have a favorite genre, but through their suggestions (we rotate each month who picks the book) I've read a wide variety of genres. We've read historical fiction, young adult, autobiographies, adult contemporary, YA contemporary, YA fantasy, you name it, we've probably read it at some point.

7. While I generally do all of my book buying through Amazon, this past weekend I actually visited two different bookstores in my area for the first time in months. The first was for Valentine's Day where my wonderful husband let me pick out a book as my gift (thanks husband!). And on Sunday I took my kiddo with me to our local chain and I browsed the YA section (which was conveniently, and thankfully, next to a huge toy section. It worked out well for both of us!). The best thing about this bookstore is they offer a ton of used books by well-known authors. I picked up 3 fantastic books I'd been wanting to read for less than $10. I'm planning on doing a Stacking the Shelves post on Saturday-so I'll tell you all about my book haul then. But to sum up, support your local bookstores! You never know what you'll find.

8. Blogging has brought me to a point that I'm proud to say I'm a READER. That it perfectly normal to read as much as I do. Which is a lot. And it's all of the time. That it's normal to read more than one book in a day. More than 3 in a week. That it's normal to want to talk about books constantly. That it's normal to obsess over books and tell everyone you know that they should read them too. I've found my tribe. And it's wonderful.

9. One of the things I am most proud about is that I've passed along my love of reading to my 3 1/2 year old son. He loves to read. He has an insane amount of books on his bookshelves, and more stored in boxes that he's outgrown, or isn't quite old enough for yet. We read at 2-3 every night before bed, and every single night he always asks to read "one more book, mama." We recently finished his very first chapter book (Bad Kitty Gets a Bath by Nick Bruel, just FYI). A lot of people may say that a kid his age, especially a boy, might not be able to handle a chapter book yet. But you know what, he loved it and he did a great job. It makes this mama proud.

The munchkin & his new book

And finally, #10. Without books I would have never been to Narnia. I wouldn't have carried the ring along with Frodo and experienced Middle Earth. I wouldn't have anxiously awaited my owl telling me I'm actually a wizard and I've been accepted to Hogwarts. I wouldn't know that clapping can save a fairy. I wouldn't have fallen in love with England. And Scotland. I wouldn't have known what it was like to fear being put into the arena to fight to the death in the Hunger Games. Or experience space, with a cyborg Cinderella. Or a Titanic-like spaceship crashing and landing on a crazy planet. Or cheering for the bearer of a godstone to find herself. Or a female assassin to rise above it all and just continue to be awesome. Or any of the thousands of other things I've learned to appreciate from books. None of these things would be possible if I didn't read.

Make sure & leave me the links to your TTT posts!

Love-A-Thon Cookie Cover Sweepstakes!

Now that the Love-A-Thon has come to a close, it's time for a cookie sweepstakes!

Remember these Rainbow Rowell Book Cover Cookies I showed you earlier today?

Well now's your chance to win them + a copy of Attachments (my favorite of her books)!!!

**Due to the fact that these are actually edible cookies, and I want them to remain delicious for you to enjoy, the giveaway will end on Thursday morning & I'll ship them as soon as I receive your mailing address**

Open to ages 13 & up. US Residents Only.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

(You can find all of our posts from the Love-A-Thon here) 

The Love-a-Thon Awards!

Check out all of our Love-A-Thon posts by clicking here!

Our votes for the Love-A-Thon Awards!

(I had really planned on making this look SO much better and adding links, but time, and cookie decorating interfered. Oops.)

Best Weekly Feature:
1. Top Ten Tuesday by The Broke & The Bookish
2. Waiting on Wednesday by Breaking the Spine

Friendliest Blogger:
1. Gillian Berry (@mizgillianberry)
2. Jamie M (@brokeandbookish)
3. Judith (@paperiot) 

Favorite Author Blog:
(Does Tumblr Count?)
1. Rainbow Rowell
2. Leigh Barudgo

Favorite Author Twitter:

1. Tahereh Mafi
2. CJ Redwine
3. Leigh Bardugo 
4. Rainbow Rowell

Favorite Bloggers To Fangirl With: 
1. Gillian Berry
2. Blythe Harris
3. Debby (Snuggly Oranges) 

Love-a-Thon Letter to Yourself!

Check out all of our Love-A-Thon posts by clicking here! 

Dear my 19 year old self,

   Nineteen wasn't our best year. This is the year that we started out at the top of a very slippery slope. Where do I even begin?

   Ok. Here. You met a boy. You think he's hung the moon. He makes you feel all "creative" and "dark" but in all actuality, he's making you depressed and a total pain in the ass to be around. Those poems you're writing are lame and your painting sucks. Your poems are making people worry and no one can see what you're painting when you only pain in black and red. Get a grip. He's not "interesting" and "different." He's a douche and treats you like dirt. Get rid of him and run far, far away. Trust me. There's someone better waiting for you and he'll give you the greatest gift on Earth. 

   You love to write, so write everything down! Every idea that comes to mind, write it down. No matter how inconsequential it seems, you may need it later on. Keep a journal and pen handy. Cause one day you'll be walking trough Barnes and Noble and you'll see a book with the EXACT same title and plot you concocted some eight years ago and you'll be kicking yourself for not writing it first.

   Also keep writing your music and poetry. It may not go anywhere but it'll make you feel good. As long as it's not that crap what's-his-name brings out of you. *cringe* And painting! Don't stop painting. You're actually pretty good. And it makes you happy, genuinely happy. Especially when bright, happy colors are involved. You're incredibly creative and ridiculously talented. To stop doing what you love would be a waste. These things are a part of who you are. Don't lose them. 

Read, read, read. That's what Dr. Seuss recommends and I would agree. Don't stop reading, ever. Keep every book you buy and start buying books you would want to read to your future child. 

   Don't smoke. It's gross and ten years later you'll wonder why in the hell you even started. Don't get that tattoo on your back. Don't start dropping the "F" bomb. Ten years later you'll still be saying it, only then you'll have to worry about it becoming your child's first word. (Though, you can always blame your husband.) 

   Lastly, Be who you are. Don't try to be someone you're not ... Especially for that A-hole, what's-his-face. You're bold, adventurous, creative, and fearless. Those are traits you love about yourself. Don't stop being those things! Be happy and the rest will follow. 

See you soon,

SJ