Top Ten Tuesday

Here is the link to the Top Ten Tuesday information from The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top Ten New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2014. All author links will go to the Goodreads page of the book pictured, and each book is just the first book I read by that author.

1. J.K. Rowling

Starting this out with an obvious one. Before this year, I had not read anything by J.K Rowling. Now, I've finished five of the books and am working on finding time for the sixth - I'm actually using it as a bribe to complete my review copies. If I finish three this month, I get to read the sixth book!

2. Edith Pattou

I received a review copy of Ghosting earlier this year. I requested it on Netgalley knowing little about it, mostly just that it was a story told in verse - and I love those! I have always liked poetry and books like these are such quick reads. What I did not expect was to love it as much as I did. My review for this one can be found here.

3. Ginger Scott

This is another author I found through review books. I received two of her novels for review, on separate occasions, through Netgalley. Although I liked How We Deal With Gravity best, and found it to be more unique, I will likely continue to read her books, even the more standard New Adult ones. My review for How We Deal With Gravity can be found here, and my review for This is Falling can be found here.

4. Huntley Fitzpatrick

I was unsure about the hype regarding My Life Next Door, but ended up loving it so much! I fell in love with the characters, gave the book five stars, and will definitely be checking out more books by the author. My review is here.

5. Kat Spears

Yet another book I received for review! I had excellent luck with review copies this year, but this was definitely one of my favorites - it actually makes my favorites list for all the books I've read this year. I adored it. My review can be found here and I also have a book talk here.

6. Jamie Kain

The Good Sister was another review book (surprise!) that I really enjoyed, and I would love to see more of Jamie Kain's work. My review is here.

7. Alison Cherry

I very recently read For Real, and I really loved it. While not perfect, it was so fun that I had very few negative things to say. I definitely plan to read more of her books as they release. My review of For Real is here.

Cutting the list short here, since I could not find any others that fit.

Book Review: For Real by Alison Cherry

Quick Facts

My Rating: 4 stars

Series: N/A

Date Read: December 5, 2014

Source: Free review copy from Netgalley

Publication Date: December 9, 2014

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Genres: Young adult, contemporary

Summary (taken from Goodreads): No parents. No limits. No clue what they're in for.

Shy, cautious Claire has always been in her confident older sister's shadow. While Miranda's life is jam-packed with exciting people and whirlwind adventures, Claire gets her thrills vicariously by watching people live large on reality TV.

When Miranda discovers her boyfriend, Samir, cheating on her just before her college graduation, it's Claire who comes up with the perfect plan. They'll outshine Miranda's fame-obsessed ex while having an amazing summer by competing on Around the World, a race around the globe for a million bucks. Revenge + sisterly bonding = awesome.

But the show has a twist, and Claire is stunned to find herself in the middle of a reality-show romance that may or may not be just for the cameras. This summer could end up being the highlight of her life... or an epic fail forever captured on film. In a world where drama is currency and manipulation is standard, how can you tell what's for real?

Review

Claire does not understand people. She does not like parties - which is why, when her sister takes her to one, she ends up outside watching reality TV on her phone. When she does go inside, it's only to leave shortly after with a heartbroken older sister. Miranda's boyfriend, Samir, has cheated on her.

On the way home, they discuss revenge. It is only talk in Miranda's mind, but Claire really does want to get back at Samir for hurting her sister. In the end, her grand plan is to participate in Around the World, a reality show which Samir is also going to be a part of. 

But when Team Revenge gets split apart by an unexpected twist in the show, and Claire is left doubting how much she actually knows about reality television, she realizes things aren't going to go as expected. When she gets paired with an actor named Will for the first challenge, she decides it might not be that bad.

The first word I can think of to describe this book is fun. It was a light read that kept me smiling to myself nearly the whole time. I found myself so quickly invested in the story, even speaking aloud at times to Claire - mostly to yell at her, although I did cheer her along as well. To some people, having to yell at a character could be frustrating, but I think Claire was very realistic, relateable, and likable. I would not have had her any other way.

The reality show aspect of the story was fantastic as well. It really helped to develop Claire as a person, and it also led to some great twists and turns. It contributed to the fun, fast-paced feel of the story.

Towards the end, I began to disbelieve how many pages were left - did I not recieve the entire book for review? Had someone chopped the end off? Of course, the whole book was there. The epilogue proved it. But by the time I was about ten pages away, I knew I would not be satisfied with the ending. 

The story was not allowed to slow down, and it made the conclusion feel like a bit of a shock. It felt rushed, and I wish the ending had been paced just a tad slower. Despite this, though, I really enjoyed the book. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun read, especially if you still want to feel for and relate to the characters. I think For Real did a great job at this.

Focusing on the Negative

For my first writing post on this blog, I wanted to have a discussion/advice post. I do realize that writing advice is quite subjective. It has always amazed me how differently people write, and how a strategy can be fool-proof for one person and impossible for another. But I feel like, at least for me, it can be incredibly easy to get stuck in a phase of writing the same things over and over - the same plot, characters, genre, etc.

After a long - I would say years long - phase of mine where I continuously wrote cliched romances with fairly flat characters, I created a rule for myself - when beginning a new project, I focus on the negative.

It sounds like backward advice, and it probably won't work for anyone. But for me, it does work. What I'm suggesting is to take one thing - or several things - you're absolutely awful at, and make them essential to your story. You can't write fight scenes to save your life? Write in at least five. Awful at world-building? Write fantasy.

Personally, I'm always finding new weaknesses in my writing. But I'm also always seeing improvement, so long as I don't shy away from everything I am bad at. When I neglect this rule, I typically look back and find that my writing quality has stayed the same. Even a single short story in which you force yourself to write something you aren't great at can improve your writing a TON.

As a disclaimer, I'm not saying to get stuck in that trap where you can only see the negative aspects of your writing. That's all too easy to do, and focusing on the positive side is just as important. Think about what you're good at, but don't stick to comfort zones. Branch out and be as diverse as possible. 

You probably won't thank yourself while writing, especially at first - but the improvement in your writing will be worth it in the end!

If you've read to the end here, feel free to let me know what you're greatest weakness and strengths are in your writing. My strong point is dialogue, but I'm still trying to improve my descriptions!

WWW Wednesday

A little later than my usual post (I thought I had one scheduled already!), but here's a quick WWW Wednesday for you guys. It's been awhile since I've done one of these!

What are you currently reading?

For Real by Alison Cherry

I'm really liking this one! Hoping to finish tonight and have my review up very soon. It is a review copy that comes out VERY soon (December 9th) and I would highly recommend it based on what I read so far. It's very fun.

What did you recently finish reading?

Slated by Teri Terry

I enjoyed this one very much! I gave it 4.5 stars. It was very fast-paced and played a big part in getting me out of my recent reading slump.

What do you think you'll read next?

Suspicion by Alexandra Monir

I'm really trying to get through these review copies! My reading slump put me way behind from where I want to be.

Top Ten Tuesday

Here is the link to the Top Ten Tuesday information from The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top Ten Books I'm Looking Forward To In 2015. 

1. I Was Here by Gayle Forman

I know I recently mentioned this on the blog (I've probably mentioned it a few times), but I can't imagine putting anything else first on my list. This book is, by far, my most anticipated release of 2015. It comes out January 27th, and I will be picking it up as soon as I can.

2. The Start of Me and You by Emery Lord

I'm going to admit it - I know nothing about this book. I have never read anything by Emery Lord, although Open Road Summer is also on my TBR. I just really like the cover. But will I buy and read it because of the cover? Yes, definitely.

3. The Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler

I've had my eye on this one for awhile. It seems like a really fun read, although it won't be out until the beginning of June.

4. Things We Know by Heart by Jessi Kirby

I really love the idea behind this - Quinn loses her boyfriend, finds the boy whom his heart was donated to, and falls in love. It comes out April 21st, only a few days after my birthday, so perhaps I'll let it be a late present to myself!

5. Tonight the Streets Are Ours by Leila Sales

Another book I judged solely by the cover. (Here's a secret: I knew very few upcoming releases before this post, which is pretty rare for me. I've been too busy to have done my research until now!)

6. Not After Everything by Michelle Levy

Both characters in this book seem to have a very troubled life, which admittedly could go right or wrong, depending. But it's compared to Eleanor and Park in the summary, and the cover is very nice, so it is on my list of books to look out for!

7. Damage Done by Amanda Panitch

While I can't tell much by the summary of this one, the mystery draws me in. Too bad the release date is so far away - in July.

8. Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton

The cover. The FONT.

9. Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

I'm very interested in the summary of this one. I was going to be lazy and copy-paste it, but it's WAY too long for that. Basically, a girl with a lung disease is taken from our world into a new one, Magonia, where she is no longer sick and has the huge task of saving humanity. (I think the summary makes it sound better than I do. Click the link?)

10. Hold Me Like a Breath by Tiffany Schmidt

Many things about this book appeal to me - the cover, the title, the summary. I'll be waiting rather impatiently for it!

Book Review: Slated by Teri Terry

Quick Facts

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Series: Book 1 in the Slated Trilogy

Date Read: November 28, 2014

Source: Purchased ebook

Publication Date: May 3, 2012

Publisher: Orchard Books

Genres: Science fiction, young adult

Summary (taken from Goodreads): Kyla’s memory has been erased,

her personality wiped blank,
her memories lost for ever.

She’s been Slated.

The government claims she was a terrorist and that they are giving her a second chance - as long as she plays by their rules. But echoes of the past whisper in Kyla’s mind. Someone is lying to her, and nothing is as it seems. Who can she trust in her search for the truth?

Review

This book was just short of five stars for me, and I can't quite figure out why. Maybe if I weren't in such a reading slump, I would have ended up giving this a perfect rating. Or maybe I still would have thought it to be a little off. The beginning did take me awhile to get into, but due to that reading slump, most books seemed slow to me.

Anyway, I did enjoy this. It was a fantastic start to the series. The concept of criminals being "slated" is interesting and worked well. So many questions arose, and I like how they were answered, for the most part, but there was still some mystery left behind - I just can't be sure what is true and what is not.

The ending found a way to be satisfying while still leaving questions to be answered in future books, which is something many first books lack. It feels like it could stand on its own, yet leaves the reader wanting to keep going.

The action and fast pace made this book even better, especially towards the middle and onto the end of the novel. As I said, I was in a reading slump, and so the fast pace definitely helped me get through the book. At around four-hundred pages, it felt much shorter. I cannot wait until I can pick up the second book.

Update: Combining Blogs

As some of you may know, I tried to run two blogs for a period of time - my other is a writing blog called Writing Under Stars. It's a writing blog (which is probably obvious) and while I was super excited about it, the blog did not go far.

I thought it would be best to keep reading and writing separate, but as I look back I have no idea why I thought so. Don't they fit perfectly together? Is there a writer in the world who doesn't read as well?

Kittens and Books can just as easily refer to the books I have read as the ones I am writing. And regardless of my blog name, there is no reason I cannot combine my interests in one place.

This is basically just a quick note to let you know that I will be posting writing-related things here, and that Writing Under Stars is not likely to be a project I continue with. While I'm not yet sure exactly how this blend will happen, I have decided to finally let it happen.

Some posts I have in mind include writing inspiration, advice, and possibly snippets of my own work. For those readers who have absolutely no interest in writing, I hope you can still continue to enjoy my reading posts - they'll be sticking around, and I will try to make it easy as possible to navigate the blog and only see the posts you want.

As always, thank you guys so much for sticking with me while the blog and I grow, and I learn exactly where we're going. I appreciate you readers so, so much.