From My Head and Heart: June 2015

Monday, June 29, 2015

Sophie Suggests: Summer Reads

3:51 PM

After some contemplation I have decided to create a "feature' for my blog where I give you all 5 book suggestions that fit a specific category. I realized that my blog is getting pretty boring because all I post are reviews and a couple memes here and there. While those things are important, I also feel like creativity is a very crucial aspect to have. I know that this isn't that creative, but it is a start. Hopefully, I can eventually make better and more creative content. I'm naming this "Sophie Suggests" because I really couldn't think of a better name.

Book Review: Meant To Be by Lauren Morril

7:45 PM

Title: Meant To Be

Author: Lauren Morrill

Release date: November 13th 2012
Pages: 304
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Delacorte Books For Young Readers
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

Meant to be or not meant to be . . . that is the question.

It's one thing to fall head over heels into a puddle of hazelnut coffee, and quite another to fall for the—gasp—wrong guy. Straight-A junior Julia may be accident prone, but she's queen of following rules and being prepared. That's why she keeps a pencil sharpener in her purse and a pocket Shakespeare in her, well, pocket. And that's also why she's chosen Mark Bixford, her childhood crush, as her MTB ("meant to be").

But this spring break, Julia's rules are about to get defenestrated (SAT word: to be thrown from a window) when she's partnered with her personal nemesis, class-clown Jason, on a school trip to London. After one wild party, Julia starts receiving romantic texts . . . from an unknown number! Jason promises to help discover the identity of her mysterious new suitor if she agrees to break a few rules along the way. And thus begins a wild goose chase through London, leading Julia closer and closer to the biggest surprise of all: true love.

Because sometimes the things you least expect are the most meant to be.

(taken from goodreads)

Feature and Follow Friday #9 {Required Reading}

8:30 AM

Feature Follow is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee at Parajunkee's View and Alison at Alison Can Read.

This will give everyone the opportunity to not only gain followers, but also meet more bookish people and share the book love!

*For those who would like to follow me (thank you!), please do so through either GFC or Bloglovin'! I will make sure to follow all of you!*

Book Review: Even In Paradise by Chelsey Philpot

8:50 PM

Title: Even In Paradise

Author: Chelsey Philpot

Release date: Octobber 14th 2014
Pages: 360
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Harper Teen
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

When Julia Buchanan enrolls at St. Anne’s at the beginning of junior year, Charlotte Ryder already knows all about the former senator’s daughter. Most people do... or think they do.

Charlotte certainly never expects she’ll be Julia’s friend. But almost immediately, she is drawn into the larger than-life-new girl’s world—a world of midnight rendezvous, dazzling parties, palatial vacation homes, and fizzy champagne cocktails. And then Charlotte meets, and begins falling for, Julia’s handsome older brother, Sebastian.

But behind her self-assured smiles and toasts to the future, Charlotte soon realizes that Julia is still suffering from a tragedy. A tragedy that the Buchanan family has kept hidden... until now.

(taken from goodreads)

Waiting on Wednesday #12: Don't ever change by M. Beth Bloom

7:22 AM

Title: Don't Ever Change

Author: M. Beth Bloom

Publisher: Harper Teen

Publication date: July 7th 2015

Synopsis:

Eva has always wanted to write a modern classic—one that actually appeals to her generation. The only problem is that she has realized she can't "write what she knows" because she hasn't yet begun to live. So before heading off to college, Eva is determined to get a life worth writing about.

Soon Eva's life encounters a few unexpected plot twists. She becomes a counselor at a nearby summer camp—a job she is completely unqualified for. She starts growing apart from her best friends before they've even left for school. And most surprising of all, she begins to fall for the last guy she would have ever imagined. But no matter the roadblocks, or writer's blocks, it is all up to Eva to figure out how she wants this chapter in her story to end.

Perfect for fans of E. Lockhart, David Levithan, and Rainbow Rowell, Don't Ever Change is a witty, snarky, and thought-provoking coming-of-age young adult novel about a teen who sets out to write better fiction and, ultimately, discovers the truth about herself.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

My thoughts:

I was drawn in by the synopsis simply because this seems like an overall good read. I love it when main characters have similar interests to mine and in this case that'd be writing. It seems witty and relatable. I can't wait to read it!

What are you guys excited for? Let me know in the comments!

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Book Review: Asylum by Madeleine Roux

10:05 PM

Title: Asylum (Asylum #1)

Author: Madeleine Roux

Release date: August 20th 2013 by HarperTeen
Pages: 313
Genres: Horror, paranormal
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

Asylum is a thrilling and creepy photo-novel perfect for fans of the New York Times bestseller Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.

For sixteen-year-old Dan Crawford, New Hampshire College Prep is more than a summer program—it's a lifeline. An outcast at his high school, Dan is excited to finally make some friends in his last summer before college. But when he arrives at the program, Dan learns that his dorm for the summer used to be a sanatorium, more commonly known as an asylum. And not just any asylum—a last resort for the criminally insane.

As Dan and his new friends, Abby and Jordan, explore the hidden recesses of their creepy summer home, they soon discover it's no coincidence that the three of them ended up here. Because the asylum holds the key to a terrifying past. And there are some secrets that refuse to stay buried.

Featuring found photos of unsettling history and real abandoned asylums and filled with chilling mystery and page-turning suspense, Madeleine Roux's teen debut, Asylum, is a horror story that treads the line between genius and insanity.

(taken from goodreads)

Feature and Follow Friday #7 {Tattoos}

7:30 AM

Feature Follow is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee at Parajunkee's View and Alison at Alison Can Read.

Book Review: Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

6:22 PM

Title: Under the Never Sky

Author: Veronica Rossi

Release date: January 3rd 2012
Pages: 374
Genres: Young Adult, Sci-fi, Dystopian
Publisher: Harper Collins
My rating: 5/ 5
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

Since she'd been on the outside, she'd survived an Aether storm, she'd had a knife held to her throat, and she'd seen men murdered.

This was worse.

Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland--known as The Death Shop--are slim. If the cannibals don't get her, the violent, electrified energy storms will. She's been taught that the very air she breathes can kill her. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He's wild--a savage--and her only hope of staying alive.

A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile--everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria's help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must accept each other to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.

(taken from goodreads)

Book Review: Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

10:30 PM

Title: Twenty Boy Summer

Author: Sarah Ockler

Release date: June 1st 2009
Pages: 290
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Little Brown Books For Young Readers
My rating: 4/ 5
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

"Don’t worry, Anna. I’ll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it."
"Okay."
"Promise me? Promise you won’t say anything?"
"Don’t worry.” I laughed. “It’s our secret, right?"

According to Anna’s best friend, Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy every day, there’s a pretty good chance Anna will find her first summer romance. Anna lightheartedly agrees to the game, but there’s something she hasn’t told Frankie–she’s already had her romance, and it was with Frankie’s older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago.

TWENTY BOY SUMMER explores what it truly means to love someone, what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every beautiful moment life has to offer.

(taken from goodreads)

Book Review: The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

8:22 AM

Title: The Summer I Turned Pretty (Summer #1-3)

Author: Jenny Han

Release date: May 5th 2009
Pages: 279
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
My rating: 4.5/ 5
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

Belly measures her life in summers. Everything good, everything magical happens between the months of June and August. Winters are simply a time to count the weeks until the next summer, a place away from the beach house, away from Susannah, and most importantly, away from Jeremiah and Conrad. They are the boys that Belly has known since her very first summer--they have been her brother figures, her crushes, and everything in between. But one summer, one terrible and wonderful summer, the more everything changes, the more it all ends up just the way it should have been all along.

(taken from goodreads)

Book Review: Made You Up by Francesca Zappia

6:36 PM

Title: Made You Up

Author: Francesca Zappia

Release date: March 19th 2015
Pages: 448
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Mental illness
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
My rating: 5/ 5
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

Reality, it turns out, is often not what you perceive it to be—sometimes, there really is someone out to get you. Made You Up tells the story of Alex, a high school senior unable to tell the difference between real life and delusion. This is a compelling and provoking literary debut that will appeal to fans of Wes Anderson, Silver Linings Playbook, and Liar.

Alex fights a daily battle to figure out the difference between reality and delusion. Armed with a take-no-prisoners attitude, her camera, a Magic 8-Ball, and her only ally (her little sister), Alex wages a war against her schizophrenia, determined to stay sane long enough to get into college. She’s pretty optimistic about her chances until classes begin, and she runs into Miles. Didn't she imagine him? Before she knows it, Alex is making friends, going to parties, falling in love, and experiencing all the usual rites of passage for teenagers. But Alex is used to being crazy. She’s not prepared for normal.

Funny, provoking, and ultimately moving, this debut novel featuring the quintessential unreliable narrator will have readers turning the pages and trying to figure out what is real and what is made up.

(taken from goodreads)

Feature and Follow Friday #6 {Trading places with a character}

3:36 PM

Feature Follow is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee at Parajunkee's View and Alison at Alison Can Read.

Waiting On Wednesday #11: Slasher Girls and Monster Boys

2:49 PM

Title: Slasher Girls and Monster Boys

Author: Various Authors

Publisher: Dial Books

Publication date: August 18th 2015

Synopsis:

For fans of Stephen King, Neil Gaiman, Lois Duncan, and Daphne Du Maurier comes a powerhouse anthology featuring some of the best writers of YA thrillers and horror

A host of the smartest young adult authors come together in this collection of scary stories and psychological thrillers curated by Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea’s April Genevieve Tucholke.

Each story draws from a classic tale or two—sometimes of the horror genre, sometimes not—to inspire something new and fresh and terrifying. There are no superficial scares here; these are stories that will make you think even as they keep you on the edge of your seat. From bloody horror to supernatural creatures to unsettling, all-too-possible realism, this collection has something for any reader looking for a thrill.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

My thoughts:

This had me at "For fans of Stephen King..." I just want to jump up and down with excitement! It sounds creepy and eerie, not to mention totally badass. Plus, look at the list of authors. I can't wait for August 18th!

What are you guys excited for? Let me know in the comments!

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

ARC Review: Skeletal by Katherine Hayton

4:42 PM

Title: Skeletal

Author: Katherine Hayton

Release date: January 25th 2015
Pages: 266
Genres: Mystery/thriller, psychological thriller
Publisher: Katherine hayton
My rating: 3.5/ 5
Source: Netgalley

Synopsis:

Three months before she died Daina Harrow faced a bully at school.
Six weeks before she died Daina Harrow suffered an assault in the park.
One week before she died Daina Harrow stole a secret people had killed to hide.

That was ten years ago. Ten long years.

Now, her bones have been found on a building site. A coroner's inquest has been reopened. A parade of witnesses is about to start.
And Daina's here. Watching every day as her mother cries in the courtroom. Watching every day as her friends, and her enemies, and her killers lie about her on the stand.
Watching, and making sure that no matter what the coroner hears, you know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

So help you God.

(taken from goodreads)

ARC Review: Fragile Bones by Lorna Schultz Nicholson

8:44 PM

Title: Fragile Bones (One-2-one)

Author: Lorna Schultz Nicholson

Release date: March 15th 2015
Pages: 254
Genres: Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
Publisher: Clockwise Press
My rating: 5/ 5
Source: Netgalley

Synopsis:

Meet Harrison and Anna.

One is a fifteen-year-old boy with an uncanny ability to recite every bone in the skeletal system whenever he gets anxious ― and that happens a lot. The meaning of “appropriate behaviour” mystifies him: he doesn’t understand most people and they certainly don’t understand him.

The other is a graduating senior with the world at her feet. Joining the Best Buddies club at her school and pairing up with a boy with high-functioning autism is the perfect addition to her med school applications. Plus, the president of the club is a rather attractive, if mysterious, added attraction.

Told in the alternating voices of Harrison and Anna, Fragile Bones is the story of two teens whose lives intertwine in unexpected ways.

(taken from goodreads)

Book Review: I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

8:19 AM

Title: I'll Give You the Sun

Author: Jandy Nelson

Release date: September 16th 2014
Pages: 371
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Glbtq
Publisher: Dial Books
My rating: 5/ 5
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

A brilliant, luminous story of first love, family, loss, and betrayal for fans of John Green, David Levithan, and Rainbow Rowell

Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new force in her life. The early years are Noah's story to tell. The later years are Jude's. What the twins don't realize is that they each have only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one another, they’d have a chance to remake their world.

This radiant novel from the acclaimed, award-winning author of The Sky Is Everywhere will leave you breathless and teary and laughing—often all at once.

(taken from goodreads)

Feature and Follow Friday #5 {Book to movie adaptations}

10:30 PM

Feature Follow is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee at Parajunkee's View and Alison at Alison Can Read.

This week's question, as suggested by Girl of 1000 Wonders is:

How would you pitch to the biz to make your favorite book into a movie?

To be honest, I don't think I would really pitch in any shape or form simply because I have a slight fear of any book to movie/tv show adaptation. I mean, there are so many books that are so special to us, and it kind of hurts a little bit when all of it's preeminence gets partially taken away when moves on to the big screen or tv show.With movies they usually try to cramp so many details in that it becomes sort of a mess and many important details get left out anyway. This obviously isn't the case with every adaptation; there are quite a few good ones out there. I do find however, that most of the times it turns out to be a let down. Although, if i had to pick one, I guess I would go with a tv show because at least there would be more time for the whole thing to develop thus include more details and a better portrayal of what the story really is.

Waiting On Wednesday #10: The Lies About Truth

5:22 PM

Title: The Lies About Truth

Author: Courtney C. Stevens

Publisher: Harper Teen

Publication date: November 3rd 2015

Synopsis:

Sadie Kingston, is a girl living in the aftermath. A year after surviving a car accident that killed her friend Trent and left her body and face scarred, she can’t move forward. The only person who seems to understand her is Trent’s brother, Max.

As Sadie begins to fall for Max, she's unsure if she is truly healed enough to be with him — even if Max is able to look at her scars and not shy away. But when the truth about the accident and subsequent events comes to light, Sadie has to decide if she can embrace the future or if she'll always be trapped in the past.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

My thoughts:

This book sounds like a full-on roller coaster of emotions. I don't know how I'll make it till November!

What are you guys excited for? Let me know in the comments!

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Book Review: The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

9:35 AM

Title: The Distance Between Us

Author: Kasie West

Release date: July 2nd 2013
Pages: 312
Genres: Ya, Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Harper Teen
My rating: 4/ 5
Source: Bought

Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers studies the rich like her own personal science experiment, and after years of observation she’s pretty sure they’re only good for one thing—spending money on useless stuff, like the porcelain dolls in her mother’s shop.

So when Xander Spence walks into the store to pick up a doll for his grandmother, it only takes one glance for Caymen to figure out he’s oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and that he’s one of the first people who actually gets her, she’s smart enough to know his interest won’t last. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned from her mother’s warnings, it’s that the rich have a short attention span. But Xander keeps coming around, despite her best efforts to scare him off. And much to her dismay, she's beginning to enjoy his company.

She knows her mom can’t find out—she wouldn’t approve. She’d much rather Caymen hang out with the local rocker who hasn’t been raised by money. But just when Xander’s attention and loyalty are about to convince Caymen that being rich isn’t a character flaw, she finds out that money is a much bigger part of their relationship than she’d ever realized. And that Xander’s not the only one she should’ve been worried about.

(taken from goodreads)

Thank You For a 100 followers + Giveaway!

7:03 PM

I just reached a 100 Bloglovin' followers!

Pages

Monday, June 29, 2015

Sophie Suggests: Summer Reads

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Book Review: Meant To Be by Lauren Morril

Friday, June 26, 2015

Feature and Follow Friday #9 {Required Reading}

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Book Review: Even In Paradise by Chelsey Philpot

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Waiting on Wednesday #12: Don't ever change by M. Beth Bloom

Friday, June 19, 2015

Book Review: Asylum by Madeleine Roux

Feature and Follow Friday #7 {Tattoos}

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Book Review: Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Book Review: Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

Monday, June 15, 2015

Book Review: The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

Friday, June 12, 2015

Book Review: Made You Up by Francesca Zappia

Feature and Follow Friday #6 {Trading places with a character}

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Waiting On Wednesday #11: Slasher Girls and Monster Boys

Monday, June 8, 2015

ARC Review: Skeletal by Katherine Hayton

Sunday, June 7, 2015

ARC Review: Fragile Bones by Lorna Schultz Nicholson

Saturday, June 6, 2015

Book Review: I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

Friday, June 5, 2015

Feature and Follow Friday #5 {Book to movie adaptations}

How would you pitch to the biz to make your favorite book into a movie?

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Waiting On Wednesday #10: The Lies About Truth

Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Book Review: The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

Monday, June 1, 2015

Thank You For a 100 followers + Giveaway!