REVIEW: This Song is (Not) For You by Laura Nowlin

This Song is (Not) For You by Laura Nowlin

Publication Date: January 15, 2016

Publisher: Sourcebooks
Source: Received from Publisher 

Buy it at: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This eARC was received from the publisher, but it did not influence this review in any way *

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Bandmate, best friend or boyfriend? For Ramona, one choice could mean losing them all.

Ramona and Sam are best friends. She fell for him the moment they met, but their friendship is just too important for her to mess up. Sam loves April, but he would never expect her to feel the same way--she's too quirky and cool for someone like him. Together, they have a band, and put all of their feelings for each other into music.

Then Ramona and Sam meet Tom. He's their band's missing piece, and before Ramona knows it, she's falling for him. But she hasn't fallen out of love with Sam either.

How can she be true to her feelings without breaking up the band?

I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as I thought I would. Being a huge fan of Nowlin's first book, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book, but after reading the first few chapters I knew this wasn't your standard story.

For one, the three main characters are each a bit odd in their own ways. Ramona is this super quirky pixie girl that couldn't be "normal" if she tried. Maybe that's a good thing though. In a way I kind of liked her weirdness. I mean, i've read odd characters before but Ramona definitely takes the cake. Then there's Sam. I really liked Sam's personality. He was the calm to Ramona's storm. He was level headed and cool while Ramona was off beat and eccentric. And good 'ol Tom was our last MC. Tom was kind of weird in his own way. He meets the other two bff's at an audition and Ramona instantly knows that Tom is "magic." Though Sam is a little bit reluctant, Ramona convinces him to let Tom be a part of their band. Together, the three of them become best friends and make the most magical music together. Oh and btw Ramona falls in love with Tom while already being in love with Sam.

So basically a love triangle forms between the three of them and that's when things really start to get weird. All I can say about this is that we have one character that seems a bit polygamous while another character seems very much asexual. It's all very weird and interesting to see how everything unfolds.

Other than this crazy love triangle situation that is going on, the story doesn't appear to have any real plot or twist. It just seems like a story about a bunch of kids (that are apparently very mature for their age) that fall in love. I feel like certain feelings displayed in the book and their reactions are a bit off. Especially in this day and age when people are cruel and unforgiving.

Overall, this book was an interesting read (to say the least!) and I think anyone with an open mind with enjoy reading it!

FEATURE: Waiting on Wednesday~ Yellow Brick War (Dorothy Must Die #3) by Danielle Paige (#52)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Morning Swooners :-)

This week my "can't-wait-to-read" pre-publication selections are:

Yellow Brick War (Dorothy Must Die #3) by Danielle Paige

Expected release date: March 15, 2016

Purchase: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Summary from Goodreads:

In this dark, action-packed third book in the New York Times bestselling Dorothy Must Die series, Amy Gumm—the new girl from Kansas—must do everything in her power to save Kansas, kill Dorothy, and make Oz a free land once more.

Amy Gumm’s mission to take down Dorothy Gale is not going according to plan. Dorothy has found a way to bridge the worlds of Oz and Kansas, and if the power-hungry dictator of Oz has her way, Kansas will be destroyed forever. Now, Amy has to team up with the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked to save her home, restore the balance between the magic and nonmagic worlds, maybe get the guy—and kill that not-so-sweet Kansas farm girl once and for all.

In the third installment of the New York Times bestselling Dorothy Must Die series, Danielle Paige’s twisted versions of beloved Oz characters are back, including the biggest, baddest, most famous of all: the Wicked Witch of the West.

Welcome to the other side of the rainbow. Here there’s danger around every corner, and magic shoes won’t be able to save you

Why I'm waiting:

I'm pretty much obsessed with this retelling of The Wizard of Oz and this book sounds just as good as the others! Does anyone else love retellings as much as I do?

What are you anxiously waiting for?

Quotes (#21)

Morning Swooners!

It's been a crazy two weeks since school started! Can you believe i'm only on my third week and I already have two tests coming up?!? Crazy right?! So while i'm here just studying away, I wanted to take a minute to pop in and leave you with some Monday motivation.

“Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad.” ― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


“The worst part of success is trying to find someone who is happy for you.” ― Bette Midler


“Success is getting what you want, happiness is wanting what you get” ― W.P. Kinsella


“Please believe that things are good with me, and even when they're not, they will be soon enough. And I will always believe the same about you.” ― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower


“I think and think and think, I‘ve thought myself out of happiness one million times, but never once into it.” ― Jonathan Safran Foer


“It's so hard to forget pain, but it's even harder to remember sweetness. We have no scar to show for happiness. We learn so little from peace.” ― Chuck Palahniuk, Diary


“Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.” ― Mother Teresa


“I have my standards. They're low, but I have them.” ― Bette Midler

REVIEW: What You Left Behind by Jessica Verdi

What You Left Behind by Jessica Verdi

Publication Date: August 4, 2015

Publisher: Sourcebooks
Source: Received from Publisher 

Buy it at: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

*This eARC was received from the publisher, but it did not influence this review in any way *

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

It’s all Ryden’s fault. If he hadn’t gotten Meg pregnant, she would have never stopped her chemo treatments and would still be alive. Instead, he’s failing fatherhood one dirty diaper at a time. And it’s not like he’s had time to grieve while struggling to care for their infant daughter, start his senior year, and earn the soccer scholarship he needs to go to college.

The one person who makes Ryden feel like his old self is Joni. She’s fun and energetic—and doesn’t know he has a baby. But the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to keep his two worlds separate. Finding one of Meg’s journals only stirs up old emotions, and Ryden’s convinced Meg left other notebooks for him to find, some message to help his new life make sense. But how is he going to have a future if he can’t let go of the past?

DONT. GET. ME. STARTED. ON. THIS. BOOK!

Soooooo....can you tell that i'm unhappy? Huh? Can ya?!?!?!?!

Ok so there are so many things that I loved about this story....and then there are sooooooooo many things that I hated about this story!

How do I begin, guys? Well let me start by saying what I loved about the book. Ryden was actually a pretty good dad. He had such a difficult time with his baby girl in the beginning of the book, but I loved seeing his character growth and seeing how much he wanted to make his baby girl happy. That right there melts my heart. I also loved Joni as the crazy funky new "friend" that essentially helps Ryden let go of his past and move on from all the pain he was holding on to. His mom though, his mom is the real MVP for supporting her son no matter what and letting him make his own mistakes in his own time, She knew right away that some of his ideas were never going to work out, but instead of pushing her opinion on him and telling him he wasn't allowed to do something she let him see for himself that the idea was not good. I think that's great parenting! 

Now, let's get into what I hated about the book, well what I can actually tell you anyway. I hate MEG! I understand why she did what she did, but I just can't forget her for how she did it. I think that it was the most selfish thing a person could ever do to someone they love. Don't fall for her sweet girl act guys, she was a liar and I really don't like the lies she told! And don't even get me started on her parents! I mean they are just horrible people. There is absolutely no reason in the world for them to handle the situation as they did. Meg was there daughter and they should have put more feelings into that fact than into any other feeling they felt. Then there was Ryden's relationship with Joni. I mean I loved that she helped him move on but I kind of feel like it was way too soon. 

And the ending! I mean, I feel like there was so many things that I needed resolutions for. I still have so many questions!

So overall, I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand I loved the happy ending that came about after all the notebooks were found and everything was finally put to rest, but the things that I disliked I REALLY disliked. But I also have to admit that I thought the writing was really good and the situation as well as the characters reactions seemed pretty realistic. So that's all I have to say for that lol

Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR SWOONERS!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't believe that it's already 2016!!!! It feels like 2015 went by in such a speedy blur!!! It was a crazy year, but also a blessed year that i'm so thankful for! I hope all of you had a great 2015 year as well! But who's ready to move on though?! 2016 Whoop whoop!

So I just wanted to take a minute to say Happy New Year to all of you, my amazing followers, and to tell you all that I hope the new year brings nothing but success and happiness to your lives. Let's do amazing things this year, Swooners!

Xoxo.

P.S. Don't forget to enter my last giveaway of 2015 for your chance to win a signed copy of Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. ENTER HERE

Giveaway Ends: 1/2/2016