Thursday, January 25, 2018

Blitz + Excerpt and Giveaway: Keeper by Kim Chance


Keeper
by Kim Chance
Genre: YA Paranormal Fantasy
Release Date: January 30th 2018
Flux Books

When a 200-year-old witch attacks her, sixteen-year-old bookworm Lainey Styles is determined to find a logical explanation. Even with the impossible staring her in the face, Lainey refuses to believe it—until she finds a photograph linking the witch to her dead mother.

After consulting a psychic, Lainey discovers that she, like her mother, is a Keeper: a witch with the exclusive ability to unlock and wield the Grimoire, a dangerous but powerful spell book. But there’s a problem. The Grimoire has been stolen by a malevolent warlock who is desperate for a spell locked inside it—a spell that would allow him to siphon away the world’s magic.

With the help of her comic-book-loving best friend and an enigmatic but admittedly handsome street fighter, Lainey must leave her life of college prep and studying behind to prepare for the biggest test of all: stealing back the book.



Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2zW4wJS
Depository: http://bit.ly/2z29fZQ
Books-a-Million: http://bit.ly/2yXEmpC
Indiebound: http://bit.ly/2yeQ5AE

Excerpt
CHAPTER ONE
The Dragon’s Horde was as crowded as a Walmart on Black Friday.
By a sheer stroke of luck, I’d managed to claim the last square inch of standing room left in the place. Wedged between a metal rack of colorful anime novels and a life-size cardboard cutout of Captain America, I used my SAT prep book as a barrier between me and the throng of cosplayers and super-nerds swarming the comic book store.
It was Superhero Saturday, and the tiny shop was packed with every die-hard fan within a fifty-mile radius. A hazard of living in a small town, I guess. With so little to do in Lothbrook, Georgia, the Horde’s monthly meet-up event was as big a deal as the San Diego Comic Con.
“Pandemonium,” I muttered as two brightly-colored, spandex-wearing individuals began a heated debate over which was better—Marvel or DC. “Noun. Wild and noisy disorder; uproar.” 
I rolled my eyes and tried to tune out the noise. I needed to have fifty new vocabulary words memorized by the end of the night, and the chaos around me was making it difficult to concentrate.
I cannot believe I let Maggie talk me into this. I groaned, burying my face deeper into the prep book. That girl owes me so big—like “name her first born after me” kind of big.
I eyed my best friend standing a few feet away, talking animatedly to a boy with sandy brown hair and glasses. He was wearing a black Star Wars t-shirt and a newsy hat and looked exactly like the Pokémon-loving type of guy she usually gravitated toward.
Maggie was grinning and twisting a loose thread from her worn Batman t-shirt around her finger. Her thick black curls bounced around her shoulders—almost in response to her enthusiasm—and her light brown cheeks were tinged with pink. She practically glowed.
“Aww,” I said, turning to the cutout of Captain America. “Look! Nerd flirting at its best!” I chuckled at my own joke before turning my attention back to the list of words.
“Superfluous. Adjective. Means additional or unnecess—Argh!” I squealed as a large, burly-looking dude dressed like the Hulk bumped into me, sending my SAT book flying and knocking me right into Captain America.
The guy gave me a rather authentic grunt as I struggled to keep myself and the Captain in the upright position.
“Sorry,” he gruffed, handing me back my prep book.
“No worries,” I said, with a wave of my hand.
He grunted again and then ambled toward his friends, a group of guys all wearing various forms of tights and Avengers gear. I took it as my cue to get a little fresh air.
Weaving in and out of the crowd, I paid little attention to the people around me. My goal, the wide double doors, was only a few steps away.
“Now where are ye going, yon pretty lady?” A guy dressed as Thor—complete with thunder hammer and winged helmet—blocked my path. His phony accent was as ridiculous as the rest of his costume. “Ye should stay a while. I can show thou how I work my hammer.” He gave me a wide, toothy grin and jerked his head so that rounded arc of his hair flipped back into place.
I rolled my eyes. “Save it, Thunder God. I don’t date guys who are more hair obsessed than I am. Maybe next time.”
I moved to sidestep him.
“Don’t be like that,” Thor stepped in front of me again, dropping the accent this time. “I’m just looking for my own Jane Foster, darlin’ and I think she might be you.” He winked at me.
If that’s supposed to be a panty-dropper, then this guy is more clueless than I thought. I rolled my eyes and tried again to step around him, but he was quick, holding out his hammer to block my path. This time he waggled his eyebrows at me.
I sighed. Clearly, Thor wasn’t taking the hint. I looked past him, hoping to see Maggie or some other form of escape.
I spotted it standing a few feet away.
A tall guy in a dark gray t-shirt leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. He wasn’t talking to anyone, and he looked about as thrilled as I was to be stuck in this circus of spandex. It was worth a shot.
“Babe!” I called over Thor’s shoulder. “There you are!” I pushed past Thor and walked over to the guy. His eyes narrowed in confusion, and I gave him what I hoped was a pleading look. “I’ve been looking for you!” I pulled him off the wall and linked my arm through his. Then I turned back to Thor and smiled widely.
Thor narrowed his eyes in suspicion, and my heart flickered with panic as the boy pulled his arm from mine. But then he snaked it around my shoulders and pulled me close.
“Sorry, babe,” he said, his voice deeper than I expected. “I got a little distracted by all the hair tossing.” He looked pointedly at Thor, and then stared down at me, a crooked smile on his lips. This time my heart flip-flopped for a different reason.
I turned back to Thor, a triumphant smirk on my face.
He swung his hammer from one hand to the other, glared at me, and then stalked off.
I quickly stepped out of the stranger’s arms. “Sorry about all that.” I shrugged. “Who knew Thor was such an arrogant asshole in real life?”
The boy in gray stared at me, his blue eyes bright with amusement. There was a faint streak of purple on his pale cheek, a bruise I hadn’t noticed initially. I wanted to ask about it, and there was a strange urge flowing through my fingers to reach out and brush his cheek, but I stopped myself on both accounts. What the hell, Styles! Get a grip!
“It must be all the hairspray affecting his brain,” he said, his smile widening.
My cheeks grew warm. “So . . . you a big comic book fan?”
“I appreciate them, but big crowds like this? Not really my scene. A friend of mine paid me twenty bucks to drive him here tonight.”
“Yeah, not really my scene either. I’m more of a small group kind of gal.”
He chuckled and pointed to my prep book. “Doing a little light reading?”
“You can never be too prepared,” I said, my cheeks blazing hotter. “The test is in two days. I’m graduating early and I have to get at least a 2200 to get into my top schools. The science programs are pretty competitive.” Oh my God. Could you sound like a bigger nerd?
He nodded politely. “That’s pretty impressive.”
“I’ve moved around a lot,” I said with a shrug. “Tons of sleepy little towns where nothing ever happens. I want get out and see the world, ya know? So many things to see and discover. I figured why wait?” Stop. Just stop. I wanted to smack myself. Of all my quirks, nervous word-vomiting was definitely my least favorite.
“I think that’s really cool,” he said, and then we stood there staring awkwardly at each other for a moment as if neither of us knew what to say next.
“So . . . thank you,” I finally blurted out, much louder than I meant to.
“Happy to help.” He smiled, and that strange sensation washed over me again. It was like the cool underside of the pillow after a long day or the way hot cocoa warms you from the inside out after being in the cold for too long.
There was something oddly familiar about him, but I couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was. “I’m sorry, but have we met before?” I asked.
His smile faltered and his eyes seemed to cloud over. “No, I don’t think so.” He looked down at his feet, scuffing the tile with his shoe. When he looked back up again, however, his smile had returned.
“Right,” I said. “Well, I really appreciate your help. My name’s Lainey, by the way.” I held out my hand.
“Nice to meet you, Lainey.” He took my hand in his. “I’m Ty.”
“Lainey!”
I jumped as Maggie ran over and grabbed me by the arm, spinning me around in a circle. “Guess what?” she squealed. “That guy I was talking to just asked me to go grab a coffee with him!”
“That’s great, Mags,” I said, pulling myself from her grip with a laugh. I turned back to where Ty had been standing, but the patch of wall he’d occupied was empty. I scanned the crowd, but there wasn’t a single stitch of gray in the sea of color. He was gone.
I sighed and turned back to Maggie, who proceeded to tell me every single detail of her conversation with Heath, the boy in the newsy hat.
“I told him I’d have to take a rain check of course, but it was so nice to be asked!”
I frowned. “Wait, why didn’t you say yes?”
“I promised I’d quiz you on your words if you came with me,” Maggie said with a shrug. “What kind of best friend would I be if I bailed on you like that?”
“And what kind of friend would I be if I didn’t let you off the hook.” I smiled at her. “You should go.”
Maggie narrowed her eyes at me. “Are you sure? Because you, Lainey Styles, are the true love of my life, and you come first.”
I grinned. “I’m totally sure. I need to be home early tonight anyway. Go have fun.”
“It’s just so rare to find someone who actually understands that Gwen Stacy was Peter Parker’s one true love. Everyone is always Team Mary Jane.”
“See? You have to go.”
Maggie squealed again and threw her arms around me, hugging me tightly. “You’re the best!”
 “Have fun—and text me when you get home.”
“Will do, Styles. Love you!” Maggie yelled over her shoulder as she scampered off.
“Well,” I said, hugging my SAT prep book to my chest. “Guess it’s just you and me then.” I sighed again and made my way toward the door.
Outside, the night air was crisp with a slight chill. Coats were usually unnecessary until the dead of winter—a “perk” of living in the Deep South—but October had brought with it some unseasonably cool temperatures. I wasn’t complaining; it was nice to be able to walk outside for ten minutes and not need a shower afterward.
The parking lot was less chaotic than inside the shop, but there were still dozens of people milling about. I dodged around a lightsaber fight and a very serious-looking game of Magic: The Gathering and made my way toward the sidewalk. My beat-up red Ford Escort was parked around the corner a few blocks down the street.
Lainey.
I jumped at the sound of my name and turned around. There was a family with two small children standing a few paces away and a group of middle-school-aged boys, but no one I recognized.
I looked around, shrugged, and kept walking.
Lainey.
This time the melodic, yet pleading voice was so close, it was as if someone were whispering in my ear. I shrieked a little and whirled around. “Maggie?”
There was no sign of her. A massive case of the heebie-jeebies pricked at my spine, but I shook it off, squeezing my SAT prep book a little tighter to my chest. There was a round of loud shouting as the lightsaber duel intensified, and more people were pouring out into the parking lot.
I shook my head. Maybe all the studying was starting to have an adverse effect on my brain. “Adverse,” I muttered, turning back toward the street. “Preventing success or development; harmful; unfavorable.”
A tall figure emerged from the shadows of the building. She stood apart from the crowd, her long skirt rustling around her legs like a bell in the breeze.
I stared at her. Her costume wasn’t one I’d seen before. She looked like she stepped off the page of a history book instead of a comic. There was something about her that held my attention; it was as if an invisible tether was linking us together. I couldn’t look away.
As she stepped forward into a pool of light from one of the parking lot streetlights, all the blood drained from my face.
She looked older than me, but only by a few years, with long dark hair and hollow, sunken eyes, but it wasn’t her face that sent my heart into my feet. Her dress and long green overcoat were stained crimson with blood.
She stood there staring at me with sad eyes, blood pouring through her fingers from a wound in her stomach.
I gasped, and stumbled backward, dropping my SAT book on my foot in the process.
“Are you okay?” The mother of the small children was staring at me, her eyebrows knitted together.
“That woman over there,” I said, nearly choking on the words. “She’s hurt!” I turned and pointed toward the shadows. “I saw—” I broke off.
There was no one there.
“Sweetheart, are you sure you’re okay?” The mother’s wide eyes searched my face. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
My eyes darted around the parking lot. But there was no blood, no body, no indication I had seen anything at all.
“Sorry,” I managed to squeak. “I thought I saw something.”
I didn’t bother with further explanation. I ducked my head and made a beeline for the sidewalk. My knees wobbled as I half ran to my car. Blood pounded in my ears, and a thick layer of goose bumps covered my skin.
Just think of something else. Anything else.
My brain was muddled but immediately began supplying me with the words I had been cramming into my head for weeks.
“Consternation. Noun. A feeling of anxiety or disbelief over something unexpected. Trepidation. Noun. A feeling of—”
LAINEY!
The scream roared to life in my ears, and I took off running. I jammed my hand into my pocket for my keys and collided with the driver’s side door. I fumbled for the right key, my hands shaking so badly I could barely hold on to them.
I forced the key into the lock. My hand wrapped around the door handle, pulling it open, but then I stopped. The dim light from the streetlamp was casting just enough glow to see hazy reflections in the window. The outline of my head and shoulders was familiar enough, but something was moving behind me.
I squeezed my eyes shut. It’s not real. Just a really good costume. An early Halloween prank, even. You’re exhausted and your brain is playing tricks on you. It’s not real.
I turned around and opened my eyes. The bloody woman was standing right in front of me. Her deep green eyes, the same color as the ornate, pulsating stone that hung from her neck, burned into mine. Something inside me crumpled, like a wall that I’d never known was standing. Every cell in my body pulled me toward the woman. The magnetism between us crackled through my veins.
I opened my mouth, but before I had the chance to scream, her icy hand shot out and gripped my arm above the elbow.
The moment our skin touched, a wave of electric energy shot up my arm and surged through my body. I cried out as a blistering light exploded before my eyes. My limbs quaked and the heat intensified, engulfing me in a fire that threatened to incinerate me from the inside out. I fell to the asphalt, collapsing against the inferno raging beneath my skin. The wave of electricity intensified with each beat of my heart. I cried out again.
Then, as quickly as it began, the pain disappeared. The world faded away, and everything went black.

About the Author

Kim Chance is an English teacher from Alabama, currently residing in Michigan with her husband and three children. When not writing, Kim enjoys spending time with her family and two crazy dogs, binge-watching Netflix, fangirling over books, and making death-by-cheese casseroles. Keeper is her first young adult novel. Kim is also a YouTuber who loves connecting with other writers. She posts videos at www.youtube.com/kimchance1 and is the creator of the #Chance2Connect chat on Twitter. Connect with her on Twitter: @_KimChance, Instagram: kimwritesbooks, Facebook: @kimwritesbooks, and on her website: www.kimchance.com.

    

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Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Top Ten Tuesday: YA Books I Need to Read Before Watching the Movie/TV Show

So awhile back, I was planning on doing a Top Ten Tuesday "compilation" over a few weeks of book to movie/tv shows related topics, and I only did one, which was YA Movie Adaptations, which was centered around the movie adaptations that I thought were better than the book for any number of reason or my favorite adaptations that I believed did the book justice. I then was planning on doing a worst movie adaptation list and a list focused on ya movies that I am anticipating watching, which never happened because life gets in the way a lot for me.

So without further ado - I will be pre-writing all of these topics, so that they will come out when I want them to come out, I am going to try to do another "compilation" over the next few weeks starting with YA Books I Need to Read Before Watching the Movie, then onto the following list in that order:

YA Movie Adaptations Out That I Want to See
Need to Be Made into YA Movies/TV Shows

As always with my Top Ten Tuesday lists (unless otherwise specified), there is no specific order to this list.

#1: Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken


10576365Darkest Minds is a book that I have actually owned for the longest time and just never picked up to read for whatever reason. And I've heard really good things about it. So I'm definitely hoping to read the book before the movie comes out in the fall of this year on September 14th.

Harris Dickinson has been cast as Liam, and Amandla Stenberg has been cast as Ruby.











#2: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline


9969571I am really looking forward to watching this movie, but before I do, I plan to read the book. As I am writing this, it is currently sitting on my bedside table waiting to be read - so maybe you'll see a review of the book in the next couple of days/weeks. I should definitely have this book finished before the movie comes out. Ready Player One comes out March 30th of this year.














#3: Death Cure by James Dashner


13117292If you saw my last post involving YA Movie Adaptations, this shouldn't be a shocker to see on this list. The Maze Runner books I really enjoyed, but the adaptations I felt were so much better because they were fast-paced and exciting, while the books were slower, and not as exciting as they could have been because of the pacing. I have been waiting for this movie to come out for the longest time, but I still haven't read the book. But like Ready Player One, I do have a copy to be read soon - definitely before I watch the movie.\

And yes, I do have a reason why I haven't yet read the book (which you know if you have read it - I was spoiled for it), but with the movie coming out, it is forcing me to finally finish the trilogy.

Death Cure is releasing this weekend - I will not be watching it this weekend, so I'm good for a couple of weeks before I have to have it finished, until then the answer to anyone asking if I want to see it with them will be, NO.




#4: Wonderstruck by Brian Selznik


10128428So in some way, I not only didn't even know this book existed until this past week, but I didn't even know about the movie. After watching the trailer of the movie, I knew it was something that I would be interested in watching, and and have decided that this is another movie that I would like to read the book before watching.

The movie came out last year in October, so it will have to be a book I get to soon.













#5: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

18460392I have actually wanted to read this book a few times throughout the past few years, but never got the chance, and now with the movie coming out... soonish (there's not really any release date scheduled at this point), I feel that it is time to finally pick this book up and read it before the movie does come out.

I have heard and seen good things about this book, so hopefully, I'll tackle this book soon.

Elle Fanning was cast as Violet Markey, but that is all of the casting information at this point.











#6: To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

15749186So I have debated in the past whether or not I wanted to pick this book up - it sounds like a quick cute and funny read, but I've also personally heard really mixed reviews regarding this book, which is one of the reasons why I've haven't yet picked this book up to read. The movie coming out kind of pushes me to go and read this book as soon as possible.

The movie is set to come out at some point during 2018, but there is no official date at this point, and the movie has Lana Condor starring as Lara Jean.











#7: Panic by Lauren Oliver

17565845I am waiting for the day that I pick up a Lauren Oliver book, and love it. Out of all of her books, Panic sounds like the book that I would love, but I've read three of her books and enjoyed them, but didn't love them.

Panic is coming out sometime in the future. As of right now, there is no cast listing, but I do know that Lauren Oliver herself is writing the screenplay.













#8: Valiant by Lesley Livingston

30375703This is the only book on this list that is becoming a tv show rather than a movie. It was picked up by the CW, which has done previous adaptations of The 100, Vampire Diaries, and Secret Circle, so I kind of have high hopes that this adaptation will turn out good (especially since The 100 is one of my all-time favorite book series, and all-time favorite tv series - although they are drastically different after the first season).

This is one that I'm really looking forward to not only reading but also seeing on the screen because I think it's one that I will love.











#9: Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider

34738584I don't know much about the movie adaptation for this book, but I do know it's in development according to Robyn Schneider's website. I decided to include this book instead of a few other movies that I have heard movie talk about because I have actually already started reading it.

I heard about it being made into a movie and had access to the book to read, so I borrowed it from my online library as an audiobook, and so far I like it.












AND FINALLY...

#10: Unearthed by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

25446297This book just came out this month, but the rights to the movie were already bought. This is probably the one I am looking forward to the most. I have loved almost everything Amie Kaufman has written (Illuminae Files with Jay Kristoff and the Starbound trilogy with Meagan Spooner).

I couldn't find anything recent about the movie, but it's one I would definitely want to see onscreen (actually I would love to see any of her books onscreen).

Monday, January 22, 2018

Review: Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis

28218872Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis

Grace Mae is already familiar with madness when family secrets and the bulge in her belly send her to an insane asylum—but it is in the darkness that she finds a new lease on life. When a visiting doctor interested in criminal psychology recognizes Grace’s brilliant mind beneath her rage, he recruits her as his assistant. Continuing to operate under the cloak of madness at crime scenes allows her to gather clues from bystanders who believe her less than human. Now comfortable in an ethical asylum, Grace finds friends—and hope. But gruesome nights bring Grace and the doctor into the circle of a killer who will bring her shaky sanity and the demons in her past dangerously close to the surface.

Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery

Mindy McGinnis, the acclaimed author of Not a Drop to Drink and In a Handful of Dust, combines murder, madness, and mystery in a beautifully twisted gothic historical thriller perfect for fans of novels such as Asylum and The Diviners as well as television’s True Detective and American Horror Story.

Pages: 400
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Brittany Pressley
Published By: Katherine Tegen Books
Genre: YA - Mystery, Historical Fiction

Cover Review:
I love this cover, it conveys so much about what this book is about.

Rating:
✮✮✮

Review:
When I first heard about Madness So Discreet, I had no desire to read this book - which I don't understand after rereading the synopsis of this book, this book is right up my alley of books that I would die to get my hands on - okay maybe not die, but you get the idea. I finally decided to give Madness So Discreet a chance because I heard about This Darkness Mind which I am unable to read at the time - and I am so glad that I did. This book is everything I could have wanted, and more.

This book was exciting, suspenseful, and mysterious about a girl who goes from a privileged life to working with an asylum doctor to solve crimes. The story was brought to life with Mindy McGinnis' writing style and her intriguing characters. Grace, who has endured the worst from her family, gets sent to an asylum, where she is rescued by Dr. Thornhollow, who is so incredibly socially awkward, I couldn't help but love him. Grace, herself, is such a complex character, and it's interesting to see how her character grows and changes as the story progresses.

I'm the kind of person who loves, even if it's a tiny little spark, romance in every novel I want to read. I love romance, and even though I must admit, I wish Grace and Thornhollow had something grow between them, I do love that there isn't. I feel like it would have detracted from the relationship you do see grow between Grace and Thornhollow throughout the novel. I loved how Grace and Thornhollow clicked on a different level (although I would have been happy if it had developed maybe near the end).

Another great thing about this novel is that you get to see more than just the relationship between Grace and Thornhollow, you get to see her relationship with some of the other women in the asylum like Elizabeth and Nell, and you see how these two women become more than just friends with Grace, they become family, something she really hasn't experienced in her life. I also want to mention Adelaide, who I absolutely loved with her quick loyalty to Grace, even against her own brother, Thornhollow; and her personality. I wish that she had been more part of the story than the amount of time that she had actually been in the novel.

This is definitely one of my favorite reads because it's not your normal novel about a girl who suffers and has the happily ever after, it's much more darker than that. I would highly recommend this novel if you are a fan of the Asylum series by Madeleine Roux or if you are a fan of the tv show Criminal Minds, because throughout the novel, I was reminded of this show with some of the things Thornhollow does and says. I look forward to reading more by Mindy McGinnis and hopefully more books like this one.

Saturday, January 20, 2018

Review: Midsummer's Night Scream by R.L. Stine

16075935Midsummer's Night Scream by R.L. Stine

Oh, what fools these actors be!

it was a horror movie that turned into real horror: Three young actors lost their lives while the cameras rolled. Production stopped, and people proclaimed the movie was cursed.

Now, sixty years later, new actors are venturing onto the haunted set. In a desperate attempt to revive their failing studio, Claire's dad has green-lit a remake of Mayhem Manor, and Claire and her friends are dying to be involved.

At first, Claire laughs at Jake's talk of ghosts and curses. He's been too busy crushing on her best friend, Delia, or making out with that slut, Annalee, to notice that she's practically been throwing herself at him. What does he know anyway? This is her big chance to be a star!

But then, Claire runs into a creepy little man named Benny Puckerman, and gets her hands on a real love potion! Unfortunately, the course of true love never did run smooth...

Get ready for laughter to turn into screams as the Grandmaster of Horror, R.L. Stine, takes on the Master of Theater in this modern reimagining of Shakespeare's classic romantic comedy, A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Pages: 250
Format: Paperback
Published By: Feiwel & Friends
Genre: YA - Horror, Thriller

Cover Review:
I really like the simplicity of the cover, and how it conveys what the theme of the books is about.

Rating:
✮✮✮

Review:
Midsummer Night's Scream left me wishing for more. I had such high hopes about this book because it sounded absolutely fantastic - it sounded like it was going to be such a creepy, scary read... and this book was neither in my opinion. But I did like the concept of the book (although there were a few things I wished had been left out - like some of the things involving Puckman, but I'm not going to explain because... spoilers). I also, for the most part, enjoyed the plot - it was entertaining and it was definitely a quick read.

Another reason I felt the book was a letdown from what I had been expecting was because I couldn't relate or connect at all with the main character. She frustrated me to the point of annoyance. I just had a hard time with understanding where she was coming from and why she was doing what she did. And a lot of the characters were also annoying - with the exception of Delia. I really enjoyed her character, and probably would have enjoyed the book more if it had been told from her perspective instead of Claire's. I also was really disappointed with the "relationship" between Claire and Jake, and felt that it could have been left out - which might have allowed me to like Claire more.

Overall, I felt like this book was an ok read and could have been one of my favorites, but it just missed what I was hoping for. I am sad that I was not able to enjoy the book as much as I wanted to when I picked up the book.