Something in Between by Melissa de la Cruz // A Heartfelt, Almost-True Story

Something in Between, by Melissa de la Cruz
Publication: October 4, 2016, by Harlequin Teen
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 432
Format: ARC
Source: BEA/Publisher
Rating: 

Jasmine de los Santos has always done what’s expected of her. Pretty and popular, she’s studied hard, made her Filipino immigrant parents proud and is ready to reap the rewards in the form of a full college scholarship.
And then everything shatters. A national scholar award invitation compels her parents to reveal the truth: their visas expired years ago. Her entire family is illegal. That means no scholarships, maybe no college at all and the very real threat of deportation.
For the first time, Jasmine rebels, trying all those teen things she never had time for in the past. Even as she’s trying to make sense of her new world, it’s turned upside down by Royce Blakely, the charming son of a high-ranking congressman. Jasmine no longer has any idea where—or if—she fits into the American Dream. All she knows is that she’s not giving up. Because when the rules you lived by no longer apply, the only thing to do is make up your own.

My Thoughts:

Melissa de la Cruz is one of my favourite authors, and I feel like I've read almost everything she has written. They all seem to be cute, fun contemporary romances that you can just pack with you on a trip to the beach. However, Something in Between was the most real out of them all. It also seems to be the most unpopular, as I have not heard much about it (except for the promotion Harlequin Teen did at BEA in 2016). This is a huge (as in MANY pages) read that took me a few days to get through due to the slow pacing, but it was fabulous. I was able to feel every dash of de la Cruz's passion and personal story in the writing, and in Jasmine's character.

This was just an entertaining story that was different than the rest, and it was so applicable to the kinds of political topics we are looking at today: immigration. And even better, it was applicable to people my age - we teens who live in a country where we have full citizenship are so lucky and fortunate. This book is just so smart, so meaningful, that I would like to recommend this to everyone. I love Jasmine as a character, her ambition, the writing, the unique concept of this.

I tore through the book - that is the best way to describe my experience. Once I began reading it, I was unable to put it down and I was just so obsessed with the romance, WITH EVERYTHING. de la Cruz makes it seem, to readers, that we are able to achieve anything we want to. Jasmine was able to be a National Scholar, to have a romance with a guy she fell in love with at first sight, to be happy and to be always beside her family. 

So, to get on the incline and look at what this is really about... it all begins with illegal immigration. Jasmine has huge dreams - she wants to go to Stanford University, and is on the path towards being valedictorian and a National Scholar. Life is basically going the way she wants it to, until her parents reveal that their family is undocumented and that they have a chance of being deported back to the Philippines, where she was born. It's her worst nightmare; she has no chance of getting the scholarships she dreams of to head to university. And to add to this, she begins to fall head first into a romance with Royce, a congressman's son who basically is on the opposite end of where Jasmine stands.

This story was just special, one-of-a-kind. It wasn't the best book I've ever read, but it certainly was enjoyable and I'd like to promote it more. I really can't get this story out of my mind! GO FALL IN LOVE WITH ROYCE RIGHT NOW.

*A review copy was provided by the publisher via BookExpo America in exchange for a honest review. Thank you so much!*

What is your favourite Melissa de la Cruz book?

Legacy of Kings by Eleanor Herman // A Yummy Fantasy!

Legacy of Kings (Blood of Gods and Royals #1), by Eleanor Herman
Publication: August 18, 2015, by Harlequin Teen
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Historical
Pages: 428
Format: ARC
Source: BEA/Publisher
Rating: ½

Imagine a time when the gods turn a blind eye to the agony of men, when the last of the hellions roam the plains and evil stirs beyond the edges of the map. A time when cities burn, and in their ashes, empires rise.
Alexander, Macedonia’s sixteen-year-old heir, is on the brink of discovering his fated role in conquering the known world but finds himself drawn to a newcomer…
Katerina must navigate the dark secrets of court life while hiding her own mission: kill the Queen. But she doesn’t account for her first love…
Jacob will go to unthinkable lengths to win Katerina, even if it means having to compete for her heart with Hephaestion, a murderer sheltered by the prince.
And far across the sea, Zofia, a Persian princess and Alexander’s unmet betrothed, wants to alter her destiny by seeking the famed and deadly Spirit Eaters.
Weaving fantasy with the shocking details of real history, New York Times bestselling author of Sex with Kings Eleanor Herman reimagines the greatest emperor the world has ever known, Alexander the Great, in the first book of the Blood of Gods and Royals series.

My Thoughts:

Every year, the YA book community is lucky to discover many new reads that will end up on many of our "Top 10" lists. In 2015, although it took me more than a year to actually get to, the world discovered and was lucky to receive a book by a lovely fantasy author that will change the way we look at high fantasy literature and retellings: Eleanor Herman. With this gorgeous Legacy of Kings, readers are thrown into a story that features many perspectives in the first person (my favourite!), a love square (or something like that—trust me, everyone's connected and in love with each other), retelling aspects, and story about Alexander the Great, something that has never been done before and carries on with George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones and Sarah J. Maas's Throne of Glass vibes. I am not saying this simply because of the fact that the two are high fantasy novels with assassins and all of that cool gear, but because I feel this historical fantasy vibe while I did read this lovely thing.

I was hesitant, trust me. Reviews are kind of slamming back and forth with this one, and I felt this sure thing that I wouldn't enjoy it. I had a review copy from BEA, so why not take the risk? But you should imagine when I took the risk. I took the risk in May, deciding to lug this one with me on my trip to Chicago, where Eleanor Herman was signing the sequel to this. THANK GOODNESS I GRABBED A COPY. High fantasy either becomes a hit or a miss for me, and I find myself frequently disliking books with magic and hierarchies, and then there are the times where I go on this high fantasy stroll and try to add every book that exists like this to my bookshelf.

Legacy of Kings is such a great read. Every single fantasy lover out there needs to grab their wallets, hitch a ride to the bookstore (or log onto Amazon) and just pick this up. I love the family ties and how every character is connected to one another, and I loved the fact that this takes away from our ordinary Mary Sue books about war. Hell yeah, there was fighting and action, but Herman knows exactly what she was doing to make sure that her debut YA book would stem in the opposite direction from others. 

In order to summarize this huge 428-paged bundle of madness into a paragraph, I will require a good mood. Check. Okay, so... We readers get to sit in the perspectives of three lovely people who are featured in this love square, as I like to call it. Alexander, Katerina and Jacob all live in this Roman period of time or whatever the correct terms seem to be, but this is kind of a prequel prior to Alexander's greatness and so on. Katerina likes Alexander, who likes Zofia, who likes Jacob, who likes Katerina. You see what I mean? At least these characters have a lover somewhere, someone who loves them, even though they may not realize that they love that person instead. YOU SEE MY FRIENDS? THIS IS COMPLICATED. This book is complicated by itself, without the romance, and I strongly recommend buying book one and two together and binge reading them. I feel like I am experiencing some kind of great loss without Empire of Dust in my hands right now. See above: I do own it. I also recommend reading this without any distractions: it is amazingly important to cherish Eleanor's writing with its details and the captivation that she writes with without any distractions. All of fantasy is like that: no distractions needed.

I keep blabbing the positives here, my fellow kings and queens. THIS WAS BORING IN THE BEGINNING. Everyone was and still is saying that, and I seriously agree. This book is really difficult to get into, because there is so much destined to happen but there's nothing occurring at the same time, you know what I mean? I was bored out of my mind for the first hundred pages, and expected that I would DNF this. Once the romance picked up and the real drama (psstt.... OLYMPIA) arrived, I knew that this would be my kind of read.

The character relationships are so complex and yet so interesting that I feel that they are the stars of this novel. Not the idea. Not the plot. THEM. And the amount of plot twists that Eleanor adds in to keep us reading? MAGNIFICENT.

Legacy of Kings was a plus for me, but it could surely be a minus for you, depending on your patience. I JUST NEED TO READ THE SEQUEL NOW. That's what's bothering me, poking at me whenever I decide to add a different book onto my currently reading shelf on Goodreads. Alex's voice is just stuck with readers from start to finish, and definitely way after. I just cannot get this twisted story out of my head and can only wish that I was part of this fictional world somehow. 

*A review copy was provided by the publisher via BookExpo America in exchange for a honest review. Thank you so much!*

What is your favourite genre of books overall? What are some other books that could compare to Game of Thrones or Throne of Glass?

Waiting on Wednesday #39: The Problem With Forever

The Problem With Forever, by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publication: May 17, 2016, by Harlequin Teen
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 480

For some people, silence is a weapon. For Mallory “Mouse” Dodge, it’s a shield. Growing up, she learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime.
Now, after years of homeschooling with loving adoptive parents, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at public high school. But of all the terrifying and exhilarating scenarios she’s imagined, there’s one she never dreamed of—that she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.
It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet the deeper their bond grows, the more it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with the lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory faces a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants, and the truths that need to be heard.

Every time a new JLA book is announced, my heart jumps and my insides squirm because the anticipation has begun. I had not thought about the possibility that Jennifer will be writing a new romance slash new adult slash YA story! WOOOOO SOUND THE SIRENS PEOPLE! I discovered this book after making my BEA schedule and I am crossing my fingers for a copy! (You wouldn't know what I wanted to actually type: my insides are crossing? Don't even ask).

What are you book lovers anticipating the most this week? Are you looking forward to JLA's new book?

Diamonds Are Forever by Michelle Madow // I'm So Sad to See This Amazing Series Go

Diamonds Are Forever (The Secret Diamond Sisters #3), by Michelle Madow
Publication: October 27, 2015, by Harlequin Teen
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 368
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Rating: 

It's cold outside, but the drama is hot!

The Diamond sisters jet to the mountains for spring break, and Savannah's flirt-mance with an international pop star heats up as her pursuit of stardom succeeds. But is this romance meant to be, or has the right guy been in front of her all along? Meanwhile, Courtney takes the next step with her secret boyfriend—and future stepbrother—and as their parents' wedding approaches, the pressure's on to reveal their relationship.

Peyton's figuring out a plan for her future, but she still feels guilty about getting her former bodyguard fired and wonders if she can get over him in the arms of someone else. But the biggest bombshell will change everything once again, because Madison's ready to tell the huge secret she's uncovered. And with the boy who betrayed her but who could be the love of her life fighting for his own life, she might need the Diamond sisters more than ever.

My Thoughts:

Minor SPOILERS from the previous novels are present, I'm warning you. I'm so sad to see this series go because it... it just hurt me fully. As always, I was captivated and I couldn't stop thinking about the beauty of this story even after it was all over, which is the real power that Michelle Madow's writing does. I'm in love with this book, honestly, and this whole series. It's so, so sad to see Savannah, Madison, Peyton and Courtney all go off into their world of drama, rivalry and dreams being followed without me actually being there to monitor and keep all of the little cute moments stuck in my heart, y'know? Diamonds Are Forever really signifies the fact that the Diamond sisters will be stuck with us forever. They are a gorgeous group of characters, that's for sure.

Diamonds Are Forever immediately follows where the sequel left us off at. Oliver is still in the hospital, getting over his horrible injuries and Madison is freaking out. This time around, we're again introduced into her perspective and get to hear how she reacts with the news about her and the Diamond Sisters. And each of the sisters are dealing with their own issues, and things are deepening. Courtney is thinking about Britney and her decisions for the future with Brett, while Peyton is struggling to not think about college, since she isn't thinking about going into that field. And Savannah? Her YouTube singing career is hitting the charts, with lots of hate associated as well.

The romance and struggles of deciding what to do in life is real. Love and all of those issues that teenagers have to deal with are found here, and it literally teared me apart. Savannah was with Damien/Perry, Courtney and Brett, Peyton and Jackson. They were all pretty cute, and the romances that once were set together were formed again, whether we liked them or not, but I do kind of wish that there weren't so many of these flings happening for the sake of realism. Hmmph. But my favourite ship is the Brett/Courtney clan. At least I could relate to them the most and their ways of looking at high school.

As always, with Michelle's writing, you'll find that it'll be so easy to fall in love with the characters. There's something in every Diamond sister or side character that you'll be able to relate to and adore. AND THE FEELS ARE REAL.

There just isn't something that you cannot enjoy and want to devour about this book. If you loved the first one, Madow's storytelling will just enchant you for the third time again.

Diamonds Are Forever is beautiful and engaging. The ending was just amazing and perfect, slowly getting readers afraid for what is yet to come because there's no more. I wish I could read a hundred of these books about all of these characters and not get bored at all. This is something remarkable and fabulous, and I hope that you go for this, because no regrets will arise.

Giveaway:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/YjA1MGVmMjkwYTE2NWQzYWI3ODNiODExNGJiNGU0OjE0Mg==/?

What do you think of final books in trilogies? Do you get sad when they're your favourite books in the world?