Saturday, December 31, 2011

Twenty Eleven Reading Challenges Completed!

I completed all my reading challenges for the year! Seventy-five books altogether, five of them were for the Off The Shelf Reading Challenge and eight of them were for the Summer Romance Challenge. Here's a compiled list of everything.

~*~

Off The Shelf Reading Challenge
Off The Shelf!
~ Link to Progress Post details ~
Books Read For This Challenge: 

1. This Lullaby~Sarah Dessen
2. Stealing Heaven~Elizabeth Scott
3. Elsewhere~Gabrielle Zevin
4. Wintergirls~Laurie Halse Anderson
5. Looking For Alaska~John Green
~

~*~

2011 Summer Romance Challenge






 Books Read For This Challenge:
 1. Tourist Trap~Emma Harrison
 2. The Ex Games~Jennifer Echols
 3. The Other Boy~Hailey Abbott
 4. So Much Closer~Susane Colasanti
 5. Heart On A Chain~Cindy C. Bennett
 6. That Summer~Sarah Dessen
 7. Persuasion~Jane Austen
 8. Twilight~Stephenie Meyer
~


~*~

2011 Goodreads Reading Challenge




Blue Sky Days
I Know You Really Love Me: A Psychiatrist's Journal of Erotomania, Stalking, and Obsessive Love
The Radleys
Catwings
True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet
Deaf Child Crossing
Looking for Alaska
Getting Published: Writer's Little Instruction Book
Wintergirls
Inspiration & Motivation
Double Clutch
Craft & Technique
Virals
Elsewhere
The Girl in the Park
Wanderlove
Geek Girl
Vampire Kisses: Blood Relatives, Vol. 3
Stealing Heaven
Twenty Boy Summer

}




















75. The Duff by Kody Keplinger
74. Portal by Imogen Rose
73. Catwings Return (Catwings #2) by Ursula K. Le Guin (reread)
72. Blue Sky Days by Marie Landry
71. I Know You Really Love Me by Doreen Orion
70. The Radleys by Matt Haig
69. Catwings (Catwings #1) by Ursula K. Le Guin (reread)
68. True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet by Lola Douglas
67. Deaf Child Crossing by Marlee Matlin
66. Looking for Alaska by John Green
65. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
64. Getting Published by Paul Raymond Martin
63. Inspiration & Motivation by Paul Raymond Martin
62. Double Clutch by Elizabeth Reinhardt
61. Craft & Technique by Paul Raymond Martin
60. Virals by Kathy Reichs
59. Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin
58. The Girl In The Park by Mariah Fredericks
57. Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard
56. Geek Girl by Cindy C. Bennett
55. Vampire Kisses: Blood Relatives, Vol. 3 by Ellen Schreiber (illus. Rem & Elisa Kwon)
54. Stealing Heaven by Elizabeth Scott
53. Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
52. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
51. Persuasion by Jane Austen
50. Garfield Minus Garfield by Jim Davis (concept created by Dan Walsh)
49. That Summer~Sarah Dessen
48. The Grand Escape by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (reread)
47. Heart On A Chain~Cindy C. Bennett
46. So Much Closer by Susane Colasanti
45. The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
44. Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin
43. Afterlife (Evernight #4) by Claudia Gray
42. The Other Boy by Hailey Abbott
41. Real Live Boyfriends (Ruby Oliver #4) by E. Lockhart
40. The Ex Games by Jennifer Echols
39. At the Party (Books 1-4) by Lauren Barnholdt
38. LoveSick by Jake Coburn
37. Gossip Girl (Gossip Girl #1) by Cecily von Ziegesar
36. Cows of Our Planet by Gary Larson
35. Last Chapter and Worse by Gary Larson
34. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner (an Eclipse Novella) by Stephenie Meyer
33. Forgive My Fins (Fins #1) by Tera Lynn Childs
32. Charmed and Dangerous: The Rise of the Pretty Committee (prequel) by Lisi Harrison
31. Chasing Brooklyn by Lisa Schroeder
30. My Blood Approves (My Blood Approves #1) by Amanda Hocking
29. Fallout (Crank #3) by Ellen Hopkins
28. Second Helpings (Jessica Darling #2) by Megan McCafferty (reread)
27. Wish by Alexandra Bullen
26. This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen
25. The Indispensable Calvin And Hobbes by Bill Watterson (reread)
24. Tourist Trap by Emma Harrison
23. Endless Summer by Jennifer Echols
22. Matched (Matched #1) by Ally Condie
21. Hold Still by Nina LaCour
20. Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Steifvater
19. Nightshade (Nightshade #1) by Andrea Cremer
18. Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick
17. Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush #1) by Becca Fitzpatrick
16. The Dark Divine (The Dark Divine #1) by Bree Despain
15. A Tale Of Two Pretties (The Clique #14) by Lisi Harrison
14. Sloppy Firsts (Jessica Darling #1) by Megan McCafferty (reread)
13. Jekel Loves Hyde by Beth Fantaskey
12. Where She Went (If I Stay #2) by Gayle Forman
11. Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols
10. Dance With A Vampire (Vampire Kisses #4) by Ellen Screiber
9. Teenage Mermaid by Ellen Schreiber
8. Déjá Dead (Temperance Brennan #1) by Kathy Reichs
7. Sisters In Sanity by Gayle Forman
6. A Countess Below Stairs by Eva Ibbotson
5. Delirium (Delirium #1) by Lauren Oliver
4. Rosebush by Michelle Jaffe
3. And Both Were Young by Madeleine L'Engle
2. Insatiable by Meg Cabot
1. My Little Phony (The Clique #13) by Lisi Harrison


2011 Reading Challenge



2011 Reading Challenge

Onlyminordetails has


read 6 books toward her goal of 50 books.


hide









~*~

Yay for a good reading year!!!

~Jessica

Friday, December 30, 2011

Links To All of My Reviews in 2011

I did 39 reviews since starting this blog... THIRTY-NINE! Which is, ironically, the same number of Update Thursdays, which means it's been 39 weeks since I became serious about my blog. Wow.

In case you missed any of them this year, here's a list in order of when I posted them (including date).

Asher, Jay: Thirteen Reasons Why (04/14/2011 #1)
Forman, Gayle: Sisters In Sanity (04/19/2011 #2)
Sones, Sonya: What My Mother Doesn't Know (04/25/2011 #3)
Oliver, Lauren: Delirium (04/28/2011 #4)
Cabot, Meg: Pants On Fire (05/07/2011 #5)
Echols, Jennifer: Going Too Far (05/08/2011 #6)
Reichs, Kathy: Déjá Dead (05/15/2011 #7)
Scott, Elizabeth: Perfect You (05/19/2011 #8)
Scott, Elizabeth: Something Maybe (05/20/2011 #9)
Applegate, Katherine: Sharing Sam (06/01/2011 #10)
Fantaskey, Beth: Jekel Loves Hyde (06/01/2011 #11)
Strasnick, Lauren: Nothing Like You (06/07/2011 #12)
Stiefvater, Maggie: Shiver (06/08/2011 #13)
Despain, Bree: The Dark Divine (06/09/2011 #14)
Cremer, Andrea: Nightshade (06/10/2011 #15)
LaCour, Nina: Hold Still (06/22/2011 #16)
Condie, Ally: Matched (06/24/2011 #17)
Anderson, Laurie Halse: Speak (06/29/2011 #18)
Childs, Tera Lynn: Forgive My Fins (08/02/2011 #19)
Schroeder, Lisa: Chasing Brooklyn (08/06/2011 #20)
Fitzpatrick, Becca: Hush, Hush (08/09/2011 #21)
Hocking, Amanda: My Blood Approves (08/13/2011 #22)
von Ziegesar, Cecily: Gossip Girl (08/16/2011 #23)
Echols, Jennifer: The Ex Games (08/20/2011 #24)
Abbott, Hailey: The Other Boy (08/27/2011 #25)
Colasanti, Susane: So Much Closer (08/30/2011 #26)
Nelson, Jandy: The Sky Is Everywhere (09/06/2011 #27)
Bennett, Cindy C.: Heart On A Chain (09/13/2011 #28) 
Dessen, Sarah: That Summer (09/20/2011 #29)
Austen, Jane: Persuasion (09/27/2011 #30)
Ockler, Sarah: Twenty Boy Summer (10/08/2011 #31)
Scott, Elizabeth: Stealing Heaven (10/15/2011 #32)
Hubbard, Kirsten: Wanderlove (10/22/2011 #33)
Bennett, Cindy C.: Geek Girl (11/08/2011 #34)
Zevin, Gabrielle: Elsewhere (11/22/2011 #35)
Reinhardt, Liz: Double Clutch (12/06/2011 #36)
Fredericks, Mariah: The Girl In The Park (12/13/2011 #37)
Anderson, Laurie Halse: Wintergirls (12/20/2011 #38)
Green, John: Looking For Alaska (12/27/2011 #39)




~Jessica

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Update Thursday #39

Welcome to Update Thursday, my own personal meme of sorts where I post an update of the goings on at my blog, with reading, with writing, and beyond. Feel free to borrow the idea from me for your own bookish musings.

~*~

Reading...

Books I finished this week: 
Books I'm reading now (and some still):
Everblossom: A Short Story and Poetry Anthology by Larissa Hinton
Get Fuzzy 2: Fuzzy Logic by Darby Conley

So..... I finished my books for the year!!! Woot! Thank goodness. I'm not sure if I'll finish the ones I started, I picked up Get Fuzzy because I was in desperate need of a laugh. And it helped... a lot. Can't wait to get started on next years challenges. I've had to hold back from picking a couple of them up. I'm so excited to read some of them. ^_^

Writing...

Here's an inspiring quote I found on The Story Girl's blog. All of my lovely writer followers should read it. Let's all support each other this coming year in 2012. This is the year for writing that great novel we always wanted to! <3



Until next time...

~Jessica

PS: I'm scheduling this for the morning (since I'm working for the first time on a Thursday in probably half a year) so I don't forget to post it. Because I probably would forget, lol.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

The Favorites Of Twenty Eleven by Jessica

I felt it was necessary to cover this, since a lot of people are doing top ten lists and the like. This is my first real blogging year and let me tell ya, it's been quite a ride! I've probably read more this year than I have in years past. I've also met some amazing book bloggers and authors in the last year. I've also taken on two writing projects, one over the summer (that I'm still working on), and National Novel Writing Month. All in all, it's been so much fun and so rewarding. <3

Here's a little breakdown of things that I've done this year, and some of my favorite things...

~~~

I read my first Jane Austen novel


(Persuasion, click the link to read my review; it's been one of my favorite adaptations and I am so glad to have finally read it!)

~~~

I read my first Kathy Reichs novel


(Deja Dead, click the link to read my review; after years of Bones obsession, it's great to finally see where it all started, even if it is completely different!)

~~~

I participated in Banned Books Week


(I read Twenty Boy Summer in honor of it, click the link to read my review; I've always felt strongly about Banned Books Week so it was amazing to be part of it while in the book blog community)

~~~

I participated in NaNoWriMo for the first time


(NaNo was an awesome experience, I'll never forget it. And I won!)

~~~

I did a guest post for the first time


(Thanks to the awesome Alison Can Read for letting me talk about Twilight jewelry)

~~~

I bought a Nook and discovered amazing Indie Authors


(Like Cindy C. Bennett [Heart On A Chain], Liz Reinhardt [Double Clutch], and many more)

~~~

I discovered the awesomeness that is dystopian novels


(Lauren Oliver's Delirium started it all)

~~~

I also read some powerful, life-changing, and just awesome novels I'll never forget

  
(Kirsten Hubbard's Wanderlove, Jandy Nelson's The Sky Is Everywhere, Nina LaCour's Hold Still, Madeleine L'Engle's And Both Were Young, Marie Landry's Blue Sky Days, Kody Keplinger's The Duff, and many more, listed above and reviewed on my blog, I just don't have enough space to post more pictures and gush about it all!)

~~~

There are so many more awesome books that I read and reviewed, but this is just a little sampling of my favorites.

What were your favorites from 2011? Please share in the comments!

~Jessica

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Review: Looking For Alaska by John Green

Title: Looking For Alaska
Author: John Green
Source: Purchased paperback
Buy: Amazon ~*~ Barnes & Noble
Caution: May contain spoilers


Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet Francois Rabelais called the "Great Perhaps." Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young. Clever, funny, screwed-up, and dead sexy, Alaska will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

Looking for Alaska brilliantly chronicles the indelible impact one life can have on another. A stunning debut, it marks John Green's arrival as an important new voice in contemporary fiction.

~summary from Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Three words (again): candid and honest.

I’m not accustomed to reading novels told by male protagonists, so it was slightly difficult to get into Miles’ head. Not that’s he’s unlikable because I did like him. Sometimes reading a book told in the point of view of the opposite sex can be harder to get into. I found that with the first twenty or so pages. It was dull, just setting up the scenario of Miles going to a boarding school for the first time. He becomes friends with his roommate Chip (The Colonel), who nicknames him Pudge (playing on the fact that he really is the opposite). Then Miles meets more people through him, including Alaska.

Alaska. Now she’s one of those girls that bring out the side of ourselves that is hiding underneath the proper exterior we portray to the world. Her view of life and people can be contagious and upsetting at the same time. Miles is drawn to her, even though she has a boyfriend already. The scene that is quite possibly the foundation of the whole novel is when the two of them were alone and talking about Simón Bolívar’s last words: “How will I ever get out of this labyrinth!”

That was a staple throughout the book--Miles and his memorization of famous last words. The reason he went to boarding school was based on François Rabelais’ last words: “I go to seek a Great Perhaps.” After reading many of the last words quotes, it made me want to read more. You know a book is good when it inspires you to do something yourself, even though it’s unoriginal.

It’s funny. I recently complained about not understanding boys, and this book was actually very eye-opening. The boys in here (Miles and Chip) are deep, deeper than you expect to ever find in some boys. So often are there male characters that are less likeable and undesirable, it was nice to see a new kind of smart boys. Not just smart, but that they have emotions, and show their emotions. At several points, I wanted to scoop them up and hold them in my arms.

There are certain books and certain words in these books that resonate in you. You take them and carefully place them into your pocket and carry them the rest of your life. I finished Looking For Alaska with a sense of understanding. Not necessarily that I knew exactly how to explain what I understood, just that I had this feeling of completion that felt like it altered my outlook slightly.

Although I enjoyed this, some may not. I can’t say why. That’s a big spoiler. Let’s just say I almost hated it when I figured out what was going to happen. However, it felt reminiscent of those books that seem awful but have a deeper meaning. John Green wrote an amazing novel here. Whether you like the story or where it ends somehow doesn’t matter. It’s the journey that counts. At least, that’s what I got out of it.


My Review: 
Very Good: Stay up late



~Jessica

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Update Thursday #38

Welcome to Update Thursday, my own personal meme of sorts where I post an update of the goings on at my blog, with reading, with writing, and beyond. Feel free to borrow the idea from me for your own bookish musings.

~*~

Reading...

Books I finished this week: 

Books I'm reading now (and some still):

Writing...

I spent a little bit of time working on the first chapter of my book. I'm planning on printing out a bunch of character and emotion sheets from The Bookshelf Muse because they'll help in case I start to lose track of my characters. I'm planning on finishing the revision of the first chapter today in between a Veronica Mars marathon. Why not get a jump start on my writing while I'm feeling creative? ^_^


Until next time...

~Jessica

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Review: Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Title: Wintergirls
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson
Source: Purchased paperback
Buy: Amazon ~*~ Barnes & Noble
Caution: May contain spoilers


“Dead girl walking,” the boys say in the halls.
“Tell us your secret,” the girls whisper, one toilet to another.
I am that girl.
I am the space between my thighs, daylight shining through.
I am the bones they want, wired on a porcelain frame.


Lia and Cassie were best friends, wintergirls frozen in matchstick bodies. But now Cassie is dead. Lia's mother is busy saving other people's lives. Her father is away on business. Her step-mother is clueless. And the voice inside Lia's head keeps telling her to remain in control, stay strong, lose more, weigh less. If she keeps on going this way—thin, thinner, thinnest—maybe she'll disappear altogether.

In her most emotionally wrenching, lyrically written book since the National Book Award finalist Speak, best-selling author Laurie Halse Anderson explores one girl's chilling descent into the all-consuming vortex of anorexia.


~synopsis from Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Three words: powerful and raw.

Allow me to expand on this. When I bought this book, my initial thoughts were that it would be a good read. Since Speak is such an amazing book, how can I expect anything less by Laurie Halse Anderson? I didn’t expect it to reach the amazingness of Speak. But man, I was wrong. So wrong. Wintergirls pulled through and, as much as I have a special place for what Speak stands for, I believe I loved it equally as much.

I need to be honest. I don’t understand the desire to be skinny to the point of anorexia and bulimia and starving oneself (I understand wanting to be skinny in general, but not to the extreme). It’s not something I’ve dealt with, so I feared I wouldn’t be able to relate or care for a character that has that view of themselves.  And I admit, listening to Lia speak of her weight the way she did, I sometimes wanted to punch her back to reality. BUT. I kept in mind the fact that when someone has body dysmorphic disorder, they can’t view themselves in any way except bigger than they really are. Hence the constant need to lose weight. I began to be pulled into Lia’s world of misconstrued views on her appearance. I could see the imperfections from her eyes. I could feel the illusions playing tricks on my mind.

The anorexia wasn’t enough though. Lia also cut. Which is another thing I cannot relate to. With good reason because when she cut, I felt sick to my stomach and I wanted to escape and get out of her head. But I couldn’t put the book down. I had to keep reading. The thought of the cutting caused me to have that achy feeling spread through my body. I couldn’t stop imagining the times I’ve gotten cut on something, that initial feeling just kept repeating. It was so disturbing and scary to see how far people go to feel something.

Lia’s journey is one that takes on more than just the anorexia and the cutting. Her best friend Cassie is dead. The one who was just as obsessive about staying skinny. The one who half cheered her on and half wanted to be the skinniest. She can’t stop thinking about Cassie. She can’t stop seeing her everywhere she goes. Her family is trying to save her, but Lia doesn’t want to be saved. She wants to be thinner. She doesn’t want to get to the weight the doctors tell her is healthy. She wants to be less than the skinny she already is. Over 100 pounds is not what she wants. She wants 95. She wants 85. But where will it end?

I was overcome with many emotions throughout this book. Writing out this review was like reliving the emotions all over again. Yes, I don’t have the desire to be extremely skinny. Yes, I don’t have the desire to cut myself in an attempt to feel. But I have come to understand more about those who have those desires through the words Laurie Halse Anderson has penned in this novel. Wintergirls is one of those books that will not go away, just like Speak. Lia will stay with you a long time.


My Rating:

Exceptional: Stay up until at least 1 AM


~Jessica

Monday, December 19, 2011

An Obligatory Post About my 2012 Plans

2012 is coming...

...and it's time to start planning it all out... Here's a little bit about what I'll be doing in 2012...


Reading Challenges...



52 - 10 - 21 - 8 = 13

So I have 13 other books to read for the year. One of them will be The Complete E.E. Cummings. He's one of my favorite poets and I am determined to read every one of his poems. Instead of just doing this haphazardly over many years, I will make a point to read a few a day and complete the book in one year. Other than that, I have a few rereads in mind, and the rest I'll just wing it.

Yeah.... I'm going lower in my reading goal in 2012 (I'll probably break it anyways). I was originally wanting to hit 100 books total. Once I got to NaNoWriMo this year, I realized I wanted to focus more of my energy on writing. Which brings us to the next section...


Personal Writing Challenges

During/after NaNo, I realized how much time I have been wasting over the years coming up with all these ideas for stories. I would just write out the ideas, never write out complete stories or complete scenes. When I finally started buckling down (and kicking myself in the butt several times), I enjoyed it. So I see the importance of me making sure to write at least once a day, even if is just for 10-15 minutes.

Aside from writing every day, I am going to set myself a challenge... and this challenge will be the following:

I, Jessica S. at Thoughts At One In The Morning, will publish at least one novel by the end of 2012.

    Yep, you heard me! I am setting this goal and I am determined to follow through on it. I would prefer to have two of them done (my NaNo novel plus the one I was working on prior to that), but I'm going to be realistic and see how it all pans out.


    Here At Thoughts At One In The Morning...

    After hearing about my personal reading and writing goals, you're probably wonder what else is going to happen on this blog? Well, let me tell you. It's going to be awesome. There will be at least one review per week. I'm also working on some fun articles about books, reading, and writing that I hope you will like. I am hoping to have some guest posts and interviews with authors and other bloggers.

    Also, and this is the best: MORE GIVEAWAYS! There will be several giveaways next year. I have three in January. Plus, I will have one for my blogoversary (my blog technically started Sept. 2010, but I didn't take it seriously until April 7th, so that is when I am considering this blog a year old).

    I will probably cut back on memes again. It prevents me from keeping up with my other blogish duties. I'll stick with my Update Thursdays, my once a month In My Mailbox, plus one more Waiting On Wednesdays, then stop those. And as much fun as they are, I won't be doing any more Follow Fridays. And I think I'll stop my monthly recaps, it takes too much time to put together!


    That's about it! It's nothing fancy, just some of the basics. Anyone else working on 2012? I know, I'm still working on finishing up 2011 myself. I just needed to get myself together more. I have the tendency to procrastinate, so, I needed to do this. :) Happy planning everyone!

    ~Jessica

    Thursday, December 15, 2011

    Update Thursday #37

    Welcome to Update Thursday, my own personal meme of sorts where I post an update of the goings on at my blog, with reading, with writing, and beyond. Feel free to borrow the idea from me for your own bookish musings.

    ~*~

    Reading...

    Books I finished this week: 
    ~True Confessions Of A Hollywood Starlet by Lola Douglas
    ~Catwings by Ursula K. La Guin (reread)
    ~The Radleys by Matt Haig

    Books I'm reading now (and some still):



    Writing...

    Came up with a scene idea for a different story but it kinda broke up my reading spree a little bit. Can't wait until January when I'll be diving into writing more again!


    And Otherwise...

    I got my Wanderlove & Like Mandarin bookmarks in the mail! So cute. Can't wait to use them in giveaways... I keep sleeping in too much on Thursdays. It's basically the only day I get to really sleep in, and my body and mind seem to take advantage of that even though they shouldn't. But sometimes I do feel refreshed, like today, so that's good... Ah, halfway through the month and I'm almost caught up on reading. Only 5 books to go and I'm halfway through a couple of them. I need to learn focus. I think next year I'll try to keep my reading at 2-3 books at a time. :P Lol.

    Until next time...

    ~Jessica

    Wednesday, December 14, 2011

    Waiting On Wednesday #15: Keep Holding On

    WoW: Hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine

    Title: Keep Holding On
    Author: Susane Colasanti
    Read the Goodreads Synopsis


    Susane Colasanti's books are always great. Two of them are in my top favorites. I love a good book about young love. So I can't help but want to read the next one, since I've already read the rest!


    What are YOU waiting on?

    ~Jessica

    Tuesday, December 13, 2011

    Review: The Girl In The Park by Mariah Fredericks

    Title: The Girl In The Park
    Author: Mariah Fredericks
    Source: NetGalley
    Buy: Amazon ~*~ Barnes & Noble
    Caution: May contain spoilers

    When Wendy Geller's body is found in Central Park after the night of a rager, newspaper headlines scream,"Death in the Park: Party Girl Found Strangled." But shy Rain, once Wendy's best friend, knows there was more to Wendy than just "party girl." As she struggles to separate the friend she knew from the tangle of gossip and headlines, Rain becomes determined to discover the truth about the murder. Written in a voice at once immediate, riveting, and utterly convincing, Mariah Frederick's mystery brilliantly exposes the cracks in this exclusive New York City world and the teenagers that move within it.
    ~synopsis from Goodreads

    My Thoughts:

    Rain wants to know what really happened to her friend Wendy that night in the park. There’s so much buzz and false reports going around. And as true as it is about Wendy having a bad girl side, Rain just doesn’t believe that this was the act of a stranger that happened upon her in the park. She knows it’s somebody Wendy knew. Although they were and weren’t best friends, Rain remembers the good in Wendy, even though nobody else knows it.

    I have to say, Rain’s determination is something you have to love and want to aspire to have. Her good girl nature could nearly hold her back in her quest to the truth, but she pulls through with sneaky devices. She tricks information out of the people trying to protect Nico, the guy that Wendy was obsessively after in school. Nico’s friends are surrounding him, saying things to have his back, trying to keep this not so good guy safe. Rain knows another side of him and doesn’t believe him when he says he wasn’t with Wendy that night.

    Wendy was the quintessential boyfriend stealer. She purposefully went after the boys of the girls who wouldn’t give her the time of day. You want to hate Wendy because of her attitude and actions, but at the same time you feel what Rain feels: that pain of losing somebody. Then you really think about it--this is a girl who was crying out for attention, and she got it in the worst way.

    As clues emerge, it points one way, then another. You think it’s over when it’s not even close. And when your reach the end… you have no idea what hits you. I’m completely serious. The way it all went down had me shocked, and it was the last thing I expected.

    Mariah Fredericks is an amazing author. I had read her novel The True Meaning of Cleavage years ago and thought it was a great one. When I saw her name on this book on NetGalley, I had to request it. Upon starting the story, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But she blew me away. It was just so powerful and chilling. I loved Rain. She was one of the absolute best first person character I’ve viewed a story through. She wasn’t perfect or popular. She was just real. And I loved that.


    My Rating:

    Exceptional: Stay up until at least 1 AM


    ~Jessica